Align facts with plans and funding to determine sustainability.
Facts and decisions regarding the City of Billings and Billings Public Schools (BPS) are used on this website as an example to aid in understanding the many interrelated issues.
The City of Billings, with support from the Billings school district and other community partners, applied for and won EPA implementation assistance to improve coordination of school and community planning. Two tools were created; the Policy Audit tool, and the Smart School Siting tool, neither of which were used with the most recently created master facilities plan which expands two historic elementary schools from 300 to 400 capacity and builds two new middle schools. Funding for the schools is dependent on enrollment forecasts (1,068 new students between 2012-13 and 2017-18), and the passage of mill levies, Currently, the forecast is short of the original student enrollment forecast by approximately 600 students. It is important that any Facilities Master Plan be accompanied by budget data to prove feasibility. When enrollment changes, budgets decrease and facility plans may need to be re-visited and altered if districts wants to establish long-term sustainable education solutions.
The following facts regarding Billings Public Schools are supplied to help the reader understand the complexity of planning for schools and community.
School location decisions have a dramatic impact on dollars spent on infrastructure and transportation. Neighborhood density around school sites determines distance to school (boundary area). As a result, site decisions impact access to education, health, safety and long-term expenditures on transportation. When schools are closed, barriers and distance to school increase and kids are less likely to walk and bike.
Reviewing school district enrollment over decades allows for a more comprehensive picture of trends (rather than shorter spans - 5 years or less). Short term bumps and dips (or bubbles) in enrollment can be misleading. Perform a multi-decade trend analysis (especially important in slow growth or declining enrollment states). When estimating student enrollment by boundary area, note that for every new house sold, 7-8 existing homes are sold (McGibbon Demographics). As seen in the Billings census tract maps, some neighborhoods experience consistent yield of school aged children while other neighborhoods experience long periods of reduced student yield (due to empty-nest). Analysis of housing type, affordability and turnover rates that relate to student yield can help inform the school location decision.
Facts and decisions regarding the City of Billings and Billings Public Schools (BPS) are used on this website as an example to aid in understanding the many interrelated issues.
The City of Billings, with support from the Billings school district and other community partners, applied for and won EPA implementation assistance to improve coordination of school and community planning. Two tools were created; the Policy Audit tool, and the Smart School Siting tool, neither of which were used with the most recently created master facilities plan which expands two historic elementary schools from 300 to 400 capacity and builds two new middle schools. Funding for the schools is dependent on enrollment forecasts (1,068 new students between 2012-13 and 2017-18), and the passage of mill levies, Currently, the forecast is short of the original student enrollment forecast by approximately 600 students. It is important that any Facilities Master Plan be accompanied by budget data to prove feasibility. When enrollment changes, budgets decrease and facility plans may need to be re-visited and altered if districts wants to establish long-term sustainable education solutions.
The following facts regarding Billings Public Schools are supplied to help the reader understand the complexity of planning for schools and community.
- The City of Billings has grown, sprawled and aged - Over 40 years, the Billings city population increased from 62K to 104K, nearly tripled in size, and mean age has jumped from 27 y/o to 38 y/o - Census & Economic Information Center (CEIC MT), as a result fewer students overall are now spread over a larger area.
- Student enrollment has decreased from 18K to 16K over the past 40 years- MT Office of Public Instruction (OPI).
- Billings has closed several "neighborhood" elementary schools. Three neighborhood elementary schools were closed in 2001 - Beartooth, Garfield and Rimrock. Rimrock Elementary School was reopened for 1 year and closed, the school district cited inadequate funding as reason for the school closure. Beartooth Elementary was reopened in the fall of 2007.
- BPS has more than 600 elementary students who are designated "homeless" and that number has grown annually. These children and their families live in temporary housing in supervised public or private facilities located primarily in the core of the city, where several schools have been closed.
- School Funding is based on enrollment.
- Elementary enrollment was projected to decrease further after 2018, the year after a second middle school is built; funding and sustainability need to be addressed per changes in enrollment.
- City area has nearly tripled, infrastructure is not yet in place for students to walk and bike to school. Plans, costs and anticipated dates for improvements are not in school plan estimates
- School bus transportation costs continue to increase. Is transportation cost greater than projected savings for school closures? In 2001 Beartooth elementary school was closed; costs to close, reopen and bus students were greater than had the school been left opened. Calculate both short and long term costs for school closures.
- Transportation costs are the second greatest cost for most households.
- Transportation budgets are permissively levied (the transportation budget is funded without a vote of the people in Montana)
- Billings Public Schools has over 100M deferred maintenance (2010), voters have continued to approve low-cost government issued bonds to take care of existing buildings (2010), (2011) - showing support for taking care of existing infrastructure at low costs.
- In the Billings Public School bond of 2013, 36M in deferred maintenance was included in the bond (interest adding up to more than 20Million). The district did not elect to run a No interest building reserve levy. School districts commonly use this NO interest tool to address deferred maintenance - 10% per year (i.e. $36M Building Reserve Levy/10 years = 3.6M interest free funds available for use every summer for 10 years). When deferred maintenance is part of a bond, taxpayers are charged interest and the entire amount is available upon sale of the bond.
- In Yellowstone County, 51% of households under 80% Area Median Income (AMI) were cost‐burdened in the year 2000 and were spending over 30% of their income on housing costs. Almost 24% of households qualified as having a severe housing cost burden (paying over 50% of their income for housing costs). MDOC’s Housing in Montana study illustrates the current cost burden for renters in Yellowstone County and affordability will be more challenged by the year 2020 (City of Billings, Substantial Amendment to the 2008-2009 Consolidated Plan).
School location decisions have a dramatic impact on dollars spent on infrastructure and transportation. Neighborhood density around school sites determines distance to school (boundary area). As a result, site decisions impact access to education, health, safety and long-term expenditures on transportation. When schools are closed, barriers and distance to school increase and kids are less likely to walk and bike.
Reviewing school district enrollment over decades allows for a more comprehensive picture of trends (rather than shorter spans - 5 years or less). Short term bumps and dips (or bubbles) in enrollment can be misleading. Perform a multi-decade trend analysis (especially important in slow growth or declining enrollment states). When estimating student enrollment by boundary area, note that for every new house sold, 7-8 existing homes are sold (McGibbon Demographics). As seen in the Billings census tract maps, some neighborhoods experience consistent yield of school aged children while other neighborhoods experience long periods of reduced student yield (due to empty-nest). Analysis of housing type, affordability and turnover rates that relate to student yield can help inform the school location decision.
Examples of poorly coordinated decision making:
Closing schools without coordination of HUD plans
Closing schools without coordination of City Planning infrastructure placement - sidewalks, bikeways, signals and crosswalks
Closing schools with surrounding infrastructure in place
Opening schools without infrastructure for walking and biking or transportation services (city bus/transit)
Billings was 14.71 square miles in 1970 and is now 43.52 square miles; increasing the need for all infrastructure including water, sewer, sidewalks, safety and other community services. Over the past 40 years, the city area nearly tripled, while the population has not yet doubled.
The City of Billings is working to address the costs for services and has adopted both a growth policy and infill policy.
The City of Billings is working to address the costs for services and has adopted both a growth policy and infill policy.