The St. Vrain Valley School District will try to pass a $189 million bond issue without help from the Dacono City Council, which refused to back the issue.
Council members said the city of 4,500 has been mistreated by the school district. Specifically, the district has refused to build an elementary school in the city, forcing some 350 students to cross Colorado 52 to attend school in nearby Frederick.
“St. Vrain Valley has consistently said ‘No, no, no’ to every proposal we’ve put out there for a school in Dacono,” said Mayor Wade Carlson.
Carlson, who was chairman of the St. Vrain Valley School Board for 16 years, said Dacono leaders are angry the city’s educational needs are being ignored by the district.
“We are the only municipality in the St. Vrain District that does not have a school for our own kids,” said Carlson. “And we are tired of that distinction.”
The district, based in Longmont, has an enrollment of more than 24,000 students and is spread over 411 square miles. Thirteen communities make up the district, including Firestone, Frederick and Dacono — all in Weld County.
Deputy St. Vrain Valley Superintendent Don Haddad said he understands Dacono’s stance. But, Haddad said, the city’s population and projected enrollment numbers don’t support building a school there.
“The numbers now just don’t warrant a school in Dacono,” he said.
He noted that the November bond issue will finance the construction of a new high school in Frederick, one of the fastest growing areas of the state, which will serve many Dacono families.
Dacono leaders will support a separate mill levy override being proposed by the district because that will benefit the entire school system, Carlson said.
The mill levy override is expected to generate $16.5 million in new revenue for the district next year.
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com.
