Robbinsdale Area Schools approve referendum as budget deficit looms

ROBBINSDALE, Minn. (FOX 9) - Voters in Robbinsdale Area Schools have approved a referendum effort that will authorize approximately $360 million in investments throughout the district as it faces a nearly $20 million budget shortfall.

Robbinsdale referendum

What we know:

Voters faced three questions at the ballot box on Nov. 3, with the first two being approved and the third falling short.

According to unofficial results from the Nov. 3, general election, resident voters approved Question 1 (with 52.9% support or 25,092 votes) and Question 2 (with 50.47% support or 23,098 votes).

Dig deeper:

Together, the first two questions aimed at expanding and renovating Cooper High School and the New Hope Learning Center site to create a unified high school, serving students in grades 9-12, with a new name and identity to be determined later. The campus is anticipated to open for the 2030-31 school year.

As part of the process, it will repurpose Armstrong High School as the new home of Plymouth Middle School, and renovate Sandburg Middle School, serving approximately 1,100 students at each school. The existing Plymouth Middle School will then be repurposed to house Robbinsdale Spanish Immersion and other programming.

Additional funds will also serve to renovate and expand several other school buildings, while expanding job training, work experience, and soft skills classes for students, according to district officials.

Overall, the district claims the consolidation efforts will also decrease the reliance on district-leased space, offering long-term savings.

A third question, which proposed construction of a new elementary school on the former Robbinsdale Middle School site, did not pass – receiving 25,326 "no" votes, from 55.8% of voters.

What they're saying:

District officials say the decisions mark the district's first voter-approved school building bond referendum in nearly 50 years.

"This is a defining moment for Robbinsdale Area Schools and our community. We are incredibly grateful to our voters for participating in this important decision and for the trust they have placed in our district. These investments will allow us to reimagine our schools, address critical facility needs, and create learning environments and opportunities that better serve our students today and well into the future," said Superintendent Dr. Teri Staloch in a statement following the election. "Our community has spent many months learning, asking questions, and sharing perspectives about the future of Rdale and what we want for the experience of our students. That engagement doesn't end with this election. We look forward to continuing this work together and ensuring the voices of our students, families, staff, and community remain part of the process."

Robbinsdale schools budget problems

The backstory:

The district previously came across a $20 million accounting mistake that ultimately ushered in the closure of several schools and the elimination of roughly 200 positions.

In November 2024, budget details were made public at a school board meeting held on Nov. 18, 2024, that outlined the financial challenges the district faced.

"This situation stems from an error in implementation of the budget process," Robbinsdale Area Schools Chief Financial Officer Kristen Hoheisel said in a statement at the time. "Our total revenues amount to roughly $200 million, which includes $180 million in general revenues and about $20 million in compensatory funding. However, in the implementation of the budget process, the compensatory funding was included in the $200 million revenue assumption and then added again separately, effectively counting it twice. This error led us to overstate our available resources."

Hoheisel said at the time that the district was projected to cross the statutory operating debt threshold at the end of the 2024-25 fiscal year.

Statutory operating debt is a fiscal status defined in state law as when a school district’s year-end deficit exceeds 2.5% of its annual operating expenses.

Once reached, the process requires the district to submit a corrective financial plan to the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE).

What's next:

The referendum approval marks the beginning of a multi-year process which will be completed in phases over several years, the district says.

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