INOLA, Okla. — Pending finalized tallying at the state level, Inola Public Schools got its $60 million bond passed on the third try April 7 to make major upgrades and additions to its elementary school.
Each of the two propositions in the bond reached just over the 60% requirement.
WATCH: Third time's the charm: Inola passes bond to reshape elementary school
The funding will come through an increase in millage for the area, which has among the cheapest property taxes in Rogers County school districts.
Inola schools grandparent Jeanne Applegate said she was confident the tax implications were beneficial through her finance background. When the second she called fellow alumni in town and formed the One Inola support campaign to ensure the third try would work.
“There are a lot of people out there that thought it was going to cost $100 million because of the interest," Applegate said. "And I tried to convince people that money is going to stay in our community most likely, because a lot of the financial institutions around here are going to want to bid on those bonds.”
The biggest development coming is the replacement of the former Mitchell Field with a new upper elementary building for grades 2-5, open by the 2028-29 school year, Superintendent Jeff Unrau said.
The current elementary building will keep pre-K through first grade, upgrade HVAC and interior, and save a lot of space, Unrau said.
“The overcrowding is the biggest thing," Unrau said. "We’re forced into modular buildings. It’s a 1964 build. And so, just the efficiency of it. It’s just aged out.”
The superintendent added that fifth-grade students have been housed at the high school campus the last 20 years. As part of the bond, the high school competition gym will also get a new HVAC system, he said.
Teachers like Tami Bryant also shared in the excitement after the bond passed.
“We were really praying that it would go through not just for us, but for these kids. They deserve better,” Bryant said.
Applegate is convinced better is what her grandkids - and those in the future 300-home development in town will get.
“More people are coming here," Applegate said. "They’re going to want to come here because we have a good school system.”
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