Voters approve millage increase in Green Forest

Green Forest School District superintendent David Gilmore’s tone of voice has gone from cautiously optimistic to excited.

That’s after residents in the district voted overwhelmingly to approve a 6-mill tax increase to help finance the construction of a new building to house students in grades 7-2.

In a special election on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 337 voters (66.6 percent) voted in favor of the tax increase, with 169 votes (33.4 percent) against the proposal.

Gilmore has said the money raised through the additional taxes, along with $9.990 million awarded from the state of Arkansas, will help fund the proposed $25 million 72,000 square foot, multi-story facility, which will also include a performing arts building. The plan calls for seventh- and eighth-grade students to be housed in one part of the building with grades 9-12 in another area.

The election results announced on Nov. 18 are final but unofficial. The Carroll County Election Commission will meet at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 26, to certify the election results.

The election was the first time in 17 years that Green Forest residents had been asked to pass a millage increase. In that time, the district has managed to complete 14 facility upgrades to repair aging buildings dating as old as the 1920s and 1960s. The current high school building is 65 years old.

The new building will replace a high school building that has an array of issues, including a poor foundation, sagging floors and inoperable bathrooms. In addition, it will help do away with portable classroom buildings that have been on campus since 1989 and were supposed to have been temporary.

According to Carroll County Clerk Connie Doss, there are 3,392 registered voters in Green Forest. The 506 who voted represent a 14.92 percent voter turnout.

“In going all around talking to everyone in the community, I just constantly heard about the support for the schools, and people knowing that we do have a good cause here, with our facilities needing to be replaced. So I had a good feeling,” Gilmore said Friday, Nov. 21. “It may have been a bigger turnout than I might have expected and maybe even a little higher margin there, because I know it’s never a good time for things like [a millage increase].

“But, I think people understood the need for it, and really I’m just so proud of the community for stepping up like they did and getting together. All the churches, civic groups and people within the community just did so much to help get the word out.”

According to information provided by Gilmore, Green Forest’s tax rate of 36 mills entering the election was the lowest among 12 schools either in Carroll County or in the Tigers’ athletic conference.

Berryville, which has completed an array of building projects over the years, has a tax rate of 42.2 mills while Eureka Springs is at 36.1. The highest of the 12 schools mentioned in Gilmore’s report is Gentry in far northwest Benton county at 46 mills.

Green Forest’s new rate will be 42 mills, higher than Eureka Springs, but just lower than Berryville.

Gilmore said that when he took over for retired longtime superintendent Dr. Matt Summers before the 2024-2025 school year, the district had already done some legwork on plans for a new facility.

“I knew as soon as I came here that we had a great staff, great students and great community support, but our facilities were getting to the point where they needed to be replaced,” Gilmore said. “The community saw the need for that and really stepped up and did that, and I’m so extremely proud.

“There’s a real good morale on campus right now. People are very happy to see change and growth in the district, so we’re very happy campers.”

A lot of work was done by a lot of people to help the district trim down costs of the proposed project to help make the increase asked of taxpayers as small as possible, said Gilmore, who wrote a note to the community on the district’s Facebook page on Wednesday, Nov. 19.

“I want to sincerely thank our community for supporting the millage,” Gilmore wrote in the post. “I know paying more in taxes is never easy, and I appreciate the trust you’ve placed in our district. The school board worked with administration to reduce the burden for the taxpayer tremendously. The original project was estimated at $32 million, but by removing duplicated spaces and securing nearly $10 million from the state, we reduced costs by about $17 million and cut the local tax burden to roughly half of the original amount. As superintendent, I will strive to use the additional tax revenue efficiently to get the most out of facilities for our students.

“Your support shows the pride our community has in our schools and the value placed on our children’s education. We have outstanding students, staff, and families, and now we will finally be able to provide the quality facilities they deserve. We are moving forward quickly. I will meet with our architect week to begin the process, and I am committed to keeping this project transparent and welcoming community input along the way.

“Thank you again for supporting our students and the future of the Green Forest School District.”

Gilmore said he was going to spend some of his upcoming Thanksgiving break meeting with the architect.

“Obviously we’ve got to look at how many classrooms we need to make this work, so he can use all that to implement his design,” the superintendent said. “We’ve got to figure out where we’re going to build it on campus, do some core drilling to make sure everything’s adequate to build on. There’ll be a design process, and I think typically they bring two or three designs to the board and let them think about what would work best.

“We want to listen to the community and be very transparent, too. They’ve been so supportive of us. We need to make sure we’re going to listen to them on this, and have input from them as well. We are super excited about the next steps.”

If all goes as planned, Gilmore said he thinks it will be approximately the start of the 2028-2029 school year before a new facility would be complete.

“We think we’re a good two-and-a-half years away on that process,” he said. “It’s going to take a little bit of time to design it. We think we could have it designed by end of the summer, somewhere in that ballpark, and maybe break ground somewhere around the time school starts next fall. Then, it’ll probably take another 18 months past that to build it or so.

“… I’m hoping that our current freshmen will see this at least by their senior year and be able to take part in it. And, of course, all the kids below that will have a good solid building for years and years to come.”

“I want to sincerely thank our community for supporting the millage. I know paying more in taxes is never easy, and I appreciate the trust you’ve placed in our district. ... As superintendent, I will strive to use the additional tax revenue efficiently to get the most out of facilities for our students. Your support shows the pride our community has in our schools and the value placed on our children’s education. ...”