School districts across the metro-east are taking on tens of millions of dollars in new debt to fix buildings, add classrooms and expand career and technical programs — most without a traditional up-or-down vote from taxpayers. Fairview Heights’ District 105 is the exception this spring.
Here are seven takeaways from recent bond actions:
Most borrowing is happening via “backdoor referendum” — but Fairview Heights goes to the ballot
In O’Fallon District 90, O’Fallon Central 104 and Belleville 201, boards used a legally allowed process known as a backdoor referendum. They publish a notice of intent in a local newspaper; if 10% or more of registered voters in the district don’t petition for a referendum within 30 days, the bonds can be issued without going to the ballot. This petition criteria was not met, so those districts moved ahead.
In Fairview Heights’ District 105, by contrast, voters will decide March 17 whether to authorize $75.1 million in bonds for a new, unified school to replace the current Pontiac Junior High and William Holliday Elementary buildings.
Hundreds of millions in new and recent borrowing are reshaping schools and campuses
Taken together, the bond activity represents a major investment in local facilities:
- $75.1 million proposed in District 105 for a single new school to replace Pontiac Junior High and William Holliday Elementary.
- The sale of nearly $17 million in bonds will be finalized next month for O’Fallon 90; that’s included in the roughly $24 million in bonds the district has issued over the past few years for facilities improvements
- $2 million in general obligation bonds for O’Fallon Central 104.
- $18 million in working cash bonds for Belleville Township High School District 201.
- Up to $29 million in working cash bonds under consideration in East St. Louis 189.
- Roughly $62 million in bonds at Southwestern Illinois College last summer, plus $18.4 million in bonds approved in December 2023.
Property tax bills are central — sometimes held flat, sometimes clearly raised
Several districts emphasize that even with new debt, they expect the tax rate on bills to stay roughly the same:
- O’Fallon 90 expects to keep its bond-and-interest rate at 39 cents, thanks to refinancing and already paying other debt.
- Central 104 and Belleville 201 say the impact should be minor as they stretch payments over many years.
- District 105, however, is telling voters upfront that taxes will go up: its latest estimate says a $200,000 home would see an annual increase of about $855, or roughly $18 per week, if the referendum passes.
The money is aimed at basic needs: safety, space and long-delayed repairs
Across districts, leaders describe the bond projects as catching up on basic repairs or upgrades:
- District 105 (Fairview Heights): One ADA-compliant building to replace two aging schools with security upgrades, modern STEM labs and other instructional spaces and an updated cafeteria and gym. Officials say both current buildings have multiple Health/Life Safety violations that must be fixed.
- O’Fallon 90: Recently sold bonds will be for dedicated gyms so cafeterias no longer double as P.E. spaces at Hinchcliffe, Evans and Estelle Kampmeyer Elementary Schools, plus six extra classrooms at Hinchcliffe and Evans.
- Central 104: Completing four previously framed classrooms at Joseph Arthur Middle and demolishing the current district office next to Dawn Elser Elementary to add parking, while moving offices into a neighboring house.
- Belleville 201: Roof and brick work at Belleville East, new buses, replacement turf at Belleville West’s stadium, HVAC projects and potential added safety measures.
- East St. Louis 189 (proposed): New turf softball and baseball fields and a football practice field with associated amenities, a renovated high school auditorium, expanded parking at multiple schools and a larger, modernized high school cafeteria.
- SWIC: The bonds issued this summer are for a shooting facility for the Police Academy in Belleville, a new building in Red Bud for Perandoe and the Career Center of Southern Illinois. A previous bond issuance covered a 7,800‑square‑foot career and technical education building for welding, industrial electricity and forklift training.
Districts say they’ve run out of “band-aid” fixes on old buildings
Administrators repeatedly frame these bond issues as the end of the patchwork era. O’Fallon 90 officials describe a “laundry list” of projects that had been delayed for too long. East St. Louis 189’s superintendent says the upgrades are “desperately needed” but believes the tax base can support them. District 105’s superintendent says decades of short-term fixes on Pontiac and William Holliday are no longer practical or cost-effective, given aging roofs, electrical and plumbing systems, crowded cafeterias and students learning in hallways.
Debt is also a hedge against uncertain state funding and budget pressures
Belleville 201’s $18 million in working cash bonds is partly about preparing for the possibility that state funding next year won’t grow much, if at all…