Suburban Chicago school district asking for $130 million

PALATINE, Ill. (AP) - For a suburban Chicago school district, the presidential contest isn't the only issue voters will have to address in November.

Palatine school District 15 will seek voters' permission to borrow $130 million to build two new schools - one of the costliest of such referendums on the ballot.

The Chicago Tribune reports (http://trib.in/2elod3y the request touches on a wide range of issues, including school boundaries to busing to minority integration.

Many of the district's Hispanic students live in relatively high-density apartment complexes in pockets of Palatine and Rolling Meadows. Officials say one of the proposed new schools would be built in a Hispanic neighborhood in the northeast corner of Palatine.

Critics say the referendum involves too much change at once. Superintendent Scott Thompson says the plan is a good one.

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Information from: Chicago Tribune, http://www.chicagotribune.com