July 10, 2019 - The Duval County School Board approved the school district's Master Facilities Plan at its meeting on July 2, 2019.
Earlier this year, the School Board approved a resolution for a referendum to create a half-penny voluntary sales tax to fund the plan.
The sales tax would need voter approval, but to get to voters, the City Council and the Mayor need to approve for the referendum to be on the ballot.
You can see the plan and much more information about the proposed referendum at www.ourduvalschools.org.
The approved Master Facility Plan includes these top 10 features:
School safety and security are at the top of the priority list for every school.
The plan eliminates $1 billion of maintenance issues expected over the next five years.
The plan removes more than 400 portables, eliminating most, if not all, portables in the district.
The plan includes a methodology for equitable funding for charter schools using similar criteria driving funding to repair traditional schools.
The district conducted more than 20 community meetings and many small-group meetings. An online survey received more than 1,600 responses. The plan represents the diverse voices of the community.
The plan will consolidate schools, reducing the number of schools and student seats, while building new schools in areas of growth.
The plan is founded on a comprehensive and detailed engineering and site inspection of all school campuses.
The district analyzed long-term enrollment trends and anticipated the impact of future charter schools and other choice options.
The plan is based on financial guidance from external analysts with the PFM group, a group that also advises the City of Jacksonville.
A citizen oversight committee will review all expenditures in accordance with the plan.