What the bonds and the levy would pay for
The project list, its costs, and how the two kinds of money work.
Most of the $350 million in bonds would build two schools in Otsego, where the district's enrollment is growing. The capital project levy would pay for technology, curriculum, and about $4 million a year of utility costs for ten years.
What would the bonds build?
A new high school, a new early childhood through grade 8 school, an education center, and smaller projects at existing schools. The Department of Education’s itemized total is $353,380,289.
| Project | District, May 19, 2026 | Department of Education review, July 23, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| New high school in Otsego (1,500 seats, core built for 1,900) | $195M | $194,615,000 |
| New early childhood to grade 8 school in Otsego, and Hassan Elementary addition | $98M | E-8 $85,000,000, Hassan $13,000,000 |
| Education center for Setting IV special education and the alternative learning center, at the Ivan Sand site | $30M | $30,000,000 (listed as “New Admin Offices / Specialized Programs Building”) |
| Career and technical education (Elk River HS renovation, Rogers HS and Zimmerman MS/HS additions) | $16M | Rogers HS $6,500,000, Zimmerman MS/HS $13,750,000 (CTE and secure entrance), Elk River HS $1,500,000 |
| Secure entrances at Zimmerman MS/HS and Rogers MS | $11M | Rogers MS $5,250,000 (the Zimmerman entrance is inside the $13,750,000 line) |
| Bond issuance costs | Not shown | $3,765,289 |
| Total | $350M in bonds | $353,380,289 |
Estimated project costs. The district rounded to millions. The Department of Education's lines add to its stated total.ISD 728Minnesota Department of Education
The Department of Education's itemized estimate totals $353.38 million, about $3.38 million more than the ballot's $350 million bond limit. I have not found a public record explaining whether that difference would come from existing funds, another revenue source, or changes to project costs or scope. The ballot itself caps the bonds at $350 million.Minnesota Department of EducationISD 728 School Board
The district says it already owns the building sites. It paid about $8.27 million in 2023 and 2024 for more than 170 acres in northwest Otsego.ISD 728
A September 14, 2026 board slide summarizes the Department of Education's figures as $84 million for the E-8 school and $31 million for the education center, slightly different from the department's own table.ISD 728
The department's narrative calls the education center a building “to house administrative offices and specialized programming space.” District pages describe it as a home for Setting IV special education and the alternative learning center.Minnesota Department of EducationISD 728
What would the capital project levy pay for?
Technology, devices, software, textbooks, technology staff, and districtwide utility costs, according to the Department of Education’s review.
The review lists technology upgrades, student and staff devices, software and textbooks, technology personnel, and “ongoing districtwide utility expenses (natural gas, water, electricity and garbage removal).” It estimates the utility part at $4 million a year.Minnesota Department of Education
Paying utility costs this way is new. In 2026 the Legislature added utility service costs to the list of allowed uses of operating capital revenue, effective for fiscal year 2027. The online statute had not yet been updated with that change when this guide was written.Minnesota Revisor of StatutesMinnesota Revisor of Statutes
Levy proceeds go into a restricted account in the general fund and may be spent only on the approved projects.ISD 728 School BoardMinnesota Revisor of Statutes
The district says that moving technology and security costs into this levy “frees up” general fund money to staff the new buildings.ISD 728
How do the bonds and the levy differ?
The bonds borrow money now and are repaid by a tax over many years. The levy is a tax rate collected each year for ten years and spent as it comes in.
Both are taxes on net tax capacity, the taxable value the state assigns each property after applying class rates. That means homes, farms, businesses, and rentals all pay toward both. The district's existing operating referendum works differently, because it is levied on market value and largely excludes farmland.Minnesota Revisor of StatutesMinnesota Revisor of Statutes
The bond tax repays principal and interest. Ehlers, the district's financial advisor, says “the bonded tax levies would remain in place for 26 years.”Ehlers
The capital project levy is set as a rate, 5.579% of net tax capacity. In later years the school board certifies that rate times the prior year's net tax capacity, so the dollars collected rise or fall with the tax base. The $90 million total on the ballot is the district's estimate of ten years at about $9 million.Minnesota Revisor of StatutesMinnesota Department of Education
The law behind each part
Bonds are issued under Minnesota Statutes chapter 475, and the tax that repays them is part of the school debt levy, spread on net tax capacity.Minn. Stat. § 275.08
The capital project levy is authorized by Minn. Stat. § 123B.63, subd. 3. That subdivision allows a bond question and a levy question to be combined into one question, and it requires a positive or negative review from the Commissioner of Education before the vote.Minn. Stat. § 123B.63
When would the new schools open?
The district says the E-8 school would open in fall 2029 and the high school in fall 2030.
The district expects to open the high school in phases, probably starting with grades 9 and 10. Southern attendance boundaries would be adjusted when the new schools open, and temporary changes are possible during construction. The district says class sizes are meant “to stay the same,” not to shrink.ISD 728ISD 728ISD 728