Tonight at 6:30 PM at SIS, there is a listening session concerning whether the Village Board should contribute to the renovation of the athletic facilities. I will bring you whatever information I obtain on either side, and will recap the evening in a later post.
For now, here are some electronic materials I obtained which are being distributed by those in favor of the Village Board's contributing the money to the fundraising effort.
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Why Support D2D?
Vibrant communities don’t develop by accident. They take vision, commitment and investment. The Drive-To-Distinction (D2D) campaign is a bold initiative designed to make a major contribution to the quality of life of all Shorewood residents for decades to come.
Athletes and those families interested in athletics support this initiative. This is not a surprise to anyone. What is less obvious perhaps is why every Shorewood resident benefits (see summary list below) by implementing these plans. You should support D2D if you believe our schools are a significant, contributing factor to the health of our community. You should support this initiative if you are tired of the academic program cuts in our schools. You should support D2D if you believe in physical education or combating the rising problem of childhood obesity. You should support this project if you are a Shorewood resident with children at St. Roberts today, with plans to attend Marquette High or DSHA. You should support this project if you like the idea of a summertime farmer’s market or a Seniors Walking Club in the middle of winter. If you are a landlord, business owner, empty nester or senior citizen with no direct interest in the schools, recreational and social activities, you should support this project. Finally, if you are a property owner and taxpayer you should definitely support D2D.
The single largest reason that people choose to live in Shorewood is the quality of our schools. Families move to Shorewood, raise their kids and become the next generation of empty nesters, senior citizens and shoppers. We must continue to fill the pipeline with that next generation of Shorewood residents or the quality of Village life will diminish over time.
Like it or not, we are in competition with other school districts and communities for residents. Young families who are considering a move from other countries, US cities or Wisconsin communities often come to town and visit three, four or five communities prior to making a decision on where to rent or buy a property. They may make two or three visits to various school districts in a single day. We often get just one chance to make a good first impression. Shorewood High School is the gateway to our community and we don’t have great “curb appeal”. Our neoclassical buildings are impressive however a closer inspection reveals a facility that is tired and underwhelming. Facilities sell and we are sending a signal to prospective residents that we are not looking forward and investing in our future. Our competition: Whitefish Bay, Nicholet and Mequon, to name just a few, continue to invest in new facilities.
Shorewood must attract new families to our community at an accelerated rate if we are to reverse the tide of declining enrollment. We cannot continue to enjoy the benefit of a world-class school system without doing one of two things: increase property taxes or increase enrollment. Did you know that each additional student who enters and completes K-12 in the Shorewood system generates $140,000 in funding? We would inject an additional $11 million into the school system if D2D helped to attract or retain just 4 families (2 children avg.) per year over each of the next 10 years. Cut that assumption in half to just 2 families per year for 10 years and you generate more than $5 million to use in the classroom. In addition, an increase in the demand for housing would benefit property owners, area businesses and the Village tax base.
We must take bold, visible action if we are to attract more students into the school system, remove the pressure to cut programs or dramatically increase school revenue through referendum. Nobody would dare to suggest that D2D is a panacea for all of our fiscal challenges however we can reduce the magnitude of future funding requirements by implementing these plans. Certainly residents will always have the ability to reject a school referendum however seniors, empty nesters, business owners, landlords and Village representatives all understand that there is no free lunch. Surely all Village residents realize that a declining school system is not good for Shorewood? A decline in the reputation of our schools would ultimately lead to a fall in demand for rental units, reduced housing values, declining business success and tax revenue. We cannot save our way to prosperity. We must spend some money to make money. This project will deliver tremendous value, especially
