Kaysville officials say a moratorium on construction of new homes is too drastic a solution to overcrowded schools.
The City Council and Planning Commission met Tuesday with Davis School District officials and some 30 residents.The meeting was prompted by residents of the Hess Farms and South Bench subdivisions, who sought a moratorium until new schools can be built in Kaysville.
School crowding is a problem in Davis County, and some Kaysville residents fear their children's education may suffer.
Last week, a school district committee recommended bonding for up to $50 million to build new schools and improve others in the area.
City Administrator John Thacker said low interest rates are attracting plenty of homebuilders. Some 250 building permits were issued last year, and the city is ahead of that rate so far this year.
Both Mayor Brit Howard and school board President Louenda Downs said a moratorium is unwise.
"I think a moratorium is taking personal property rights," Howard said.
"A moratorium cuts off more than just brick and mortar," Downs said.
Superintendent Richard Kendell said all Kaysville schools have more students than they are equipped for now.
But the crisis is not in the day-to-day operation of schools, Kendell said. "We can hire more teachers and buy more books, but we don't have the money for building."
Hess Farms resident Bruce Allen said each of the 475 homes in his subdivision houses 2.4 children on average, and another 306 houses are expected to be built this year.
"We'll have 1,875 children by the end of the summer. The birthrate is about 90 babies per year and that would go up to 150 a year," he said. "If you'll build one (a school) out there, we'll populate it."
Voters approved a $40 million bond issue in 1991 to build Northridge High School and make other improvements. School officials said they still have money from that bond to make Kaysville and Farmington junior high schools year-round schools. There also is $700,000 for the Davis High School auditorium, Kendell said.
The proposed $50 million bond issue would raise property taxes on a $75,000 home by $65 a year, district officials said.
If such a bond passed, the district would build a junior high and an elementary school between Kays-ville and Layton.
Downs said that would be a solution for just three to five years. The board will take action on the committee's recommendation March 2, she said.