May 12 Growing Together Referendum
Join us for a Community Meeting
Join Superintendent Michael Baumann to learn more about the May 12 Growing Together Referendum and how it would impact our middle schools.
- Thursday, March 19, 7:15 p.m. at the Elko New Market Library (110 J. Roberts Way, Elko New Market)
- Tuesday, April 14, 5 p.m. at the Lakeville Area Schools District Office (17630 Juniper Path, Suite A, Lakeville)
Growing Community = Growing Schools
The Lakeville area continues to grow, and more families are choosing to live here. Over the past decade, K–12 enrollment has increased by about 1,200 students. Most of that growth occurred at the elementary level, with primarily younger families moving into the community. To keep pace, the district added additional classroom space and a new elementary school, which opened in 2024 thanks to a successful referendum in 2021.
Now, many of those students are moving into middle school, and middle school enrollment is expected to increase by 8 percent over the next five years, creating a need for additional space at the middle school level.
What's on the ballot?
On May 12, Lakeville Area School District residents will vote whether to approve funding for building additions, renovations and classroom furniture at the district’s three middle schools – Century Middle School, Kenwood Trail Middle School, and McGuire Middle School. The proposal of $139.6 million in bond funds seeks to address continued enrollment growth that is straining existing middle school facilities.
Proposed improvements would be based on each school’s needs in order to relieve enrollment growth and capacity challenges at the middle school level. If approved, the estimated tax impact would be about $14 per month based on a $500,000 home. Calculate the tax impact for your home value.
Over the past decade, nearly 9,000 new homes, townhomes, and apartments have been approved across the Lakeville area. Lakeville continues to be a statewide leader in single-family housing construction, and this trend is expected to continue throughout the district.
As our community grows, our schools must grow as well to accommodate more students.
Click the arrows to see additional charts
If voters approve the referendum
This funding would help create more comparable learning environments across schools and alleviate pressure due to enrollment increases.
If approved, the bond funding would allow the district to:
- Build classroom additions and gymnasiums
- Remodel existing spaces to expand and improve:
- Small classrooms (many classrooms are below the Minnesota Department of Education’s recommended size)
- Specialist learning areas (STEM, band, choir, family and consumer science, visual arts, and media arts)
- Special education classrooms
- Small-group and flexible learning spaces
- Kitchens and cafeterias
- Administrative offices
- Improve parking areas
- Update classroom furniture and learning environments
If voters do not approve the referendum
Without additional middle school space, enrollment will exceed school capacity, leading to:
- Increased class sizes
- Overcrowding in shared spaces such as hallways, locker rooms, restrooms, and cafeterias
- Increased wait times in lunch lines
- Limited course offerings and more complex schedules due to a lack of space, especially in:
- Gymnasiums
- Music, art, STEM, and family and consumer science classrooms
- Increasing space needs while construction costs continue to rise over time
Learn More:
- Email: vote@isd194.org
- Call: 952-232-2096
- Attend an information session
- Thursday, March 19, 7:15 p.m. at the Elko New Market Library (110 J. Roberts Way, Elko New Market)
- Tuesday, April 14, 5 p.m. at the Lakeville Area Schools District Office (17630 Juniper Path, Suite A, Lakeville)