So to finish the project, you need about $8 million buckazoids. Where they getting that from? Maybe Bessie Rhodes building will throw in a couple million. The rest???
They have $4m for contingencies in the budget (see above doc) and if everything goes perfect, maybe they can use that. But it's still not enough and that's the only room for error they really have. If something like HVAC goes way over budget, they're screwed.
I think in order for this to continue, the administration needs to prove to the board that the project can be fully funded. I just don't see how that's possible given the existing circumstances.
Also, it is inarguable that the project is still being funded at the expense of other things we can no longer afford. There's a $2.5M gap between the bus savings the project was approved on and the actual projected savings (which btw, we can still achieve by continuing with new student assignment mapping even if the new school is not built in the near future). This means not only the $8m you referenced, but an ongoing $2.5M of the existing budget that's needing to be pulled in from elsewhere to make our annual $3.3M payment.
We could literally buy Grecian Kitchen with one year of that $2.5M and lock in the D65 Admin free lunches for good.
Ahh, thanks for sharing the link to the audited financials. Seems like it was insufficient then?
re: Bessie sale closing the gap, how does that work? BR is still planned to be open through probably early June 2026. If the Foster School is slated for completion, and we're relying on proceeds from BR sale, we'd need a buyer lined up to close almost immediately after the conclusion of SY25-26 and the funds to clear. Not sure that's something you can bank on.
I also question the projected revenue from selling Bessie Rhodes. We have heard from D65 that the building appraises for: $2 million, $3 million, $4 million, $5 million. We have never been given a source for any of these appraisals. Furthermore, Bessie Rhodes abuts Skokie's Timber Ridge Park. You cannot develop on this parkland. Any potential buyer is working with a very confined footprint. And finally, yes: none of the money from selling Bessie Rhodes will come to D65 BEFORE the new Foster School is completed, so it cannot be used to help PAY for the new Foster School...unless contractors now accept "promises" upon completion of work.
The Baker-Tilly audits are actually public! You can find them here:
https://www.district65.net/about/budget-finance (they're under the Annual Financial Report - AFR section)
As I see it, the challenge with the Foster school is this:
1) They have $40m in lease certificate money to use for construction.
2) They don't appear to have any other money they can contribute to construction now or in future years.
Cordogan Clark's 2024 estimates are here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1y4Bb7jJgZlvPGquFV9aJmYko_iCsCYMK/view?usp=drive_link
Total Construction Cost: $42,097,914
Total Non Construction Cost: $6,355,827
So to finish the project, you need about $8 million buckazoids. Where they getting that from? Maybe Bessie Rhodes building will throw in a couple million. The rest???
They have $4m for contingencies in the budget (see above doc) and if everything goes perfect, maybe they can use that. But it's still not enough and that's the only room for error they really have. If something like HVAC goes way over budget, they're screwed.
I think in order for this to continue, the administration needs to prove to the board that the project can be fully funded. I just don't see how that's possible given the existing circumstances.
Also, it is inarguable that the project is still being funded at the expense of other things we can no longer afford. There's a $2.5M gap between the bus savings the project was approved on and the actual projected savings (which btw, we can still achieve by continuing with new student assignment mapping even if the new school is not built in the near future). This means not only the $8m you referenced, but an ongoing $2.5M of the existing budget that's needing to be pulled in from elsewhere to make our annual $3.3M payment.
We could literally buy Grecian Kitchen with one year of that $2.5M and lock in the D65 Admin free lunches for good.
OMG I laughed out loud at the idea of buying Grecian Kitchen
Ahh, thanks for sharing the link to the audited financials. Seems like it was insufficient then?
re: Bessie sale closing the gap, how does that work? BR is still planned to be open through probably early June 2026. If the Foster School is slated for completion, and we're relying on proceeds from BR sale, we'd need a buyer lined up to close almost immediately after the conclusion of SY25-26 and the funds to clear. Not sure that's something you can bank on.
Yeah it's cutting it really close, part of the reason why I'm a skeptic now
I also question the projected revenue from selling Bessie Rhodes. We have heard from D65 that the building appraises for: $2 million, $3 million, $4 million, $5 million. We have never been given a source for any of these appraisals. Furthermore, Bessie Rhodes abuts Skokie's Timber Ridge Park. You cannot develop on this parkland. Any potential buyer is working with a very confined footprint. And finally, yes: none of the money from selling Bessie Rhodes will come to D65 BEFORE the new Foster School is completed, so it cannot be used to help PAY for the new Foster School...unless contractors now accept "promises" upon completion of work.
Yeah the $5 million number the District has cited seems quite generous for a building that
1) Could be used as a school but needs a pretty large investment in improvements.
2) Could be used as residential but will require massive zoning change with the City.
3) Doesn't really have any commercial or other value.
Maybe this is where I can finally open the Tom Hayden School of Jazz Studies.