John A Holmes High School financing  (see govinsights/chowan for complete article)

 

 

Holmes High in context

At 554 students (2024-25 enrollment per NCES) and approximately $85 million in total project cost, Holmes High School comes to roughly $153,430 per student. The following NC comparisons use publicly reported data from recent high school construction projects:

School Location Total Cost Students Cost / Student
John A. Holmes HS Edenton (rural eastern NC) ~$85M 554 $153,430
Greene Central HS Snow Hill (rural eastern NC) ~$62Ma 776 $79,897
Franklin HS Macon Co. (rural western NC) $137.6Mb 1,400c $98,286
Ballantyne Ridge HS Charlotte (CMS) $158.6Md 2,500 $63,440
Second Ward HS (rebuild) Charlotte (CMS) $176Me 2,000 $88,000
Durham School of the Arts Durham (specialty magnet)f $256M 2,200 $116,364

 

 

 

 

No voter approval was sought for this loan. Under NC G.S. § 160A-20, a county can finance major capital projects through installment financing (such as a USDA loan) without putting the question to voters. A traditional general-obligation bond would have required voter approval. Both the original $50 million authorization in April 2021 and the increased $85 million authorization in September 2023 were decisions made by the seven-member Board of Commissioners, not by referendum.

 

The County's representation to the LGC about taxes. In its November 6, 2023 application resolution to the LGC, the Board of Commissioners formally represented that the County "does not anticipate an increase in taxes to pay the installment payments under the Contract" and that "the increase in taxes, if any, necessary to meet the sums to fall due under the Contract will not be excessive." These are findings required under N.C.G.S. § 160A-20; the same language appeared in the original 2021 LGC application for the $50 million financing. Whether that projection holds will be observable when the FY 2026-27 adopted budget is published in May or June 2026, which will be the first full year of Holmes debt service.

For context, voters had earlier rejected a quarter-cent sales tax intended to fund Holmes HS renovations on November 3, 2020, by 52.56 to 47.44 percent per NC State Board of Elections certified results.