Money in pocket or expansion?

Grant High School officials said building a field house on district property off Devlin Road would not only be beneficial for the school, but help the community as well.

Grant High School officials said the need for additional gym space while being completely unable to expand the existing gymnasiums is the reason for building a $6 million field house.

However, it will be up to voters to decide if the field house, as well as a $38.5 million expansion of classrooms and other departments, at the district is needed.

Voters will decide at the polls during the Feb. 5 primary election.

District officials are seeking to retain 20 cents from their current tax rate and use that money to fund the $38.5 million expansion at the high school, at Route 59 and Grand Avenue in Fox Lake.

If voters approve the tax hike, the tax rate would remain at $2.053 per $100 equalized assessed valuation of a home. If it is not approved, the tax rate would drop to $1.853.

The owner of a $200,000 home would see his or her taxes drop about $132 if the tax hike is rejected.

Aside from the field house, District 124 would use the money to add about 21 classrooms, new science labs, art studios, family and consumer science labs and an activity center.

Superintendent John Benedetti said, aside from using the field house as additional gym space, the facility could be opened up for larger events through the Illinois High School Association and indoor graduations.

"We don't have the ability to add on to the current gym because of its location in the school," he said. "The best way to add gym space is to build a field house."

He added that because students would have to cross Devlin Road in the middle of winter to get to the field house, he has been talking with the village of Fox Lake about closing Devlin Road.

He has not discussed it with the Illinois Department of Transportation.

If approved, this would be the third expansion at Grant since 2000, when Grant expanded to hold 1,650 students. In 2005 new classrooms and a library were added, paid for through impact fees.

The school now has a maximum capacity of 1,750 students, Benedetti said. If the expansion is approved, the school would be able to hold about 2,300 students.