SCHOOLS South Range district missing real estate tax appropriations

School officials cannot understand why the district is losing out on tax revenue.
By VIRGINIA ROSSVINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
NORTH LIMA -- South Range School District representatives plan to attend a Salem City Council meeting tonight to find out why South Range is being denied revenue from real estate taxes being paid by a local Home Depot store.
Superintendent Jim Hall said at the school board's regular monthly meeting Monday that Salem officials already have indicated revenue from real estate taxes paid by Home Depot is to be used for work near that site, including road and sewage projects.
He said he doesn't understand why none of the money is benefiting the school district. The area of the city where the store is located is in the school district.
Hall said city officials indicated they plan to discuss the tax revenue appropriations tonight. The meeting is scheduled to start at 8. Jim Phillips, school treasurer, is one of the South Range representatives planning to attend.
Finding the money
Hall said school officials have not been able to determine the amount of money the school district could be losing by the city's decision.
He said the school district plans to ask city officials for specific information about the store's tax bills to determine how much money could be coming to the district from those taxes.
"We have no control over this," he said. "I don't understand why there has been a reluctance for [the city] to communicate fully with us since the land is in our school district and the tax revenue belongs to the school district."
In other news, the school board agreed to advertise for bids for a new 47-passenger school bus.