Our school district is planning for the future with the SOAR ’29 Capital Improvement Project. This project focuses on improving our schools and ensuring that students have the best facilities to learn and grow.
Let’s dive into the details of this project and what it means for our community.
What Is the SOAR '29 Capital Improvement Project?
The SOAR '29 project is focused on transforming our schools to better serve students, teachers, families, and community members. It prioritizes essential infrastructure improvements, enhances safety and security, and creates modern learning environments. These updates will not only prepare our schools for the future but also ensure our district remains an exceptional place for education and growth. Additionally, the project includes significant upgrades to key areas such as our elementary classrooms, auditoriums, cafeterias, kitchens, pool/aquatics center, and field house, reinforcing our commitment to keeping our district at the heart of the community.
Videos About SOAR '29
To help you better understand the SOAR '29 Capital Improvement Project, we have created a series of informative videos. These videos highlight the goals, benefits, and specific updates planned for our schools. You can watch them on our district’s website under the Project SOAR '29 Information page. The available videos include:
Short Video 1 - Playground Remodel and Property Development
Short Video 2 - Large Auditorium & Entrance Renovations and Addition
Short Video 3 - High School Cafeteria
Short Video 4 - Elementary Upgrades and Renovations
Long Video - Full Project Scope Narration, including Financial Information
How Will This Project Be Funded?
Funding for SOAR '29 comes from a combination of state aid, district reserves, and a tax increase for local homeowners.
Here’s the breakdown of how the District will pay for the project should it be approved by the voters:
State Aid: New York State will cover approximately 65% of the total project cost through state building aid. This substantial support significantly reduces the financial burden on our community.
District Reserves: Years of careful financial planning allows us to use our capital reserve, in the amount of $5,008,869, to fund part of the project, further limiting the tax impact. Our capital reserve is a voter-approved savings account that can only be used for capital projects, like building repairs or renovations, and not for annual operating expenses, like hiring staff.
Tax Impact: The remaining cost will be covered by a tax increase for homeowners.
To help fund this important project, there will be a one-time increase to the tax levy of 4.08%, starting in the 2025-2026 fiscal year. This increase is not compounding—it happens once, and that’s it. After this increase, that new amount will be part of the annual tax levy moving forward, just as with any other tax levy adjustment.
To clarify a commonly misunderstood component of the tax impact: the tax levy will not increase 4.08% each year for the next 17 years. This project will result in a 4.08% increase in your taxes for the 2025-2026 year, only. After that, taxes will remain at this new level and will not increase further due to this project. While the project will be paid off over 17 years, it’s important to note that this timeline does not affect the tax levy increase, which occurs only once.
If approved,
In 2025-2026, your taxes will increase by 4.08% specific to this project.
After that, taxes will remain at that level, but they won’t increase further for this project.
Any future tax increases would be related to the normal annual budget process, not this proposal.
Here is a chart that translates the 4.08% levy increase to projected increases to tax rates for each township within our district:
When and Where Do We Vote?
The vote for the SOAR ’29 Capital Improvement Project is on Tuesday, December 17th, from 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Watkins Glen High School’s Board of Education Conference Room, which is just off of 12th Street on the north end of campus. See the “vote” sticker in the map below.
Please make time to vote and have your voice heard.
Historically, our community has always come together to support our schools, and we’re excited about what the future holds. If you have questions about the project, feel free to reach out to the district office or visit our website for more information. United, we can help our students and community SOAR!
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