(Spirit Lake)– Growing pains has the Okoboji Community School District looking for some options. As we reported last week, the district is now faced with a space crunch in its Elementary building as a result of growing enrollment. That has the district looking at various options to address the matter in the longer term, including the possibility of constructing a new elementary facility.
Superintendent Todd Abrahamson was at today’s (Tues.) Dickinson County Board of Supervisors meeting to see if the county might be interested in selling off another portion of a gravel pit on the west side of Milford. The district years ago purchased another segment of the former pit where the new middle school is currently under construction. Abrahamson told the supervisors the district is trying to get a long-term plan in place to address the Elementary school needs, perhaps some 10 to 15 years from now.
County Engineer Dan Eckert told the supervisors the county is still actively mining gravel out of a portion of the pit. Supervisor Tim Fairchild suggested the county determine a value of the material yet to be mined and include that in a selling price. The county will also explore possible options to ensure it could still access the active portion of the pit should the decision be made to sell the adjoining portion.
In other business, discussion of a 50-year agreement on the Lower Gar Outlet was also on the agenda but wound up being tabled as Milford Mayor Steve Anderson was unable to attend today’s (Tues.) meeting due to a last minute conflict.
