Residents can walk through Hinsdale South High School and see its condition firsthand before District 86 moves ahead with an $82 million bond plan.

Hinsdale Township High School District 86 announced two guided facilities tours at the Darien campus, according to the Hinsdale South weekly newsletter. The first is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 27, at 5 p.m., just before the Board of Education's regular meeting that evening. The second is set for Saturday, Nov. 21, at 6 p.m., before a musical performance at the school.

The tours will let community members explore the school, learn about proposed capital improvements and see the district's facility needs up close, the newsletter said.

District 86's board voted Sept. 29 to begin the process of selling $82 million in bonds to pay for improvements at both Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South, as The Hinsdalean reported. The plan calls for a $46 million working cash bond and a $36 million life-safety bond. Neither type requires a voter referendum, though residents have until Nov. 2 to file a petition objecting to the working cash bond sale. If 10 percent or more of registered voters sign, a referendum would be triggered.

Superintendent Chip Pettit has framed the spending as overdue. At the Sept. 29 board meeting, he noted the original portions of Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South are 76 and 61 years old, respectively. "Even heavy renovation, at best, is a 20-year solution," Pettit said at that meeting, as reported by The Hinsdalean.

Board member Bobby Fischer was blunter about the locker rooms. "Those pictures didn't do it justice," he said at the Sept. 29 meeting, according to The Hinsdalean. Hinsdale South parent Heather Ruff described the weight room as "the dungeon" and pushed for gym air conditioning at the same meeting, Patch reported.

Priority projects on the district's preliminary list include renovated athletic fields at both schools, an expanded outdoor commons at Hinsdale South, updated science and culinary arts labs, and locker room modernization. A new heating plant at Hinsdale Central tops the life-safety side of the list, according to The Hinsdalean. Final project costs have not been set.

For homeowners, the bond sales would add about $166 in the first year to the tax bill on a $1.14 million home, raising the debt-service portion from $590 to $756. That amount would increase roughly $20 per year after that, according to The Hinsdalean.

The board is also renewing its strategic plan. At the Oct. 27 meeting following the first tour, the board plans to formally adopt "Vision Focus" statements and goals for six priority areas developed at its Sept. 29 workshop. The district is separately recruiting volunteers for a Strategic Planning Task Force that will meet about four times between November and February. Residents interested in serving can volunteer by Oct. 23.

Hinsdale Education Week Ahead

  • Tuesday, Oct. 27, 5 p.m. — Hinsdale South High School facilities tour, 7401 Clarendon Hills Road, Darien. Guided walk-through of proposed capital improvement areas before the board meeting.
  • Tuesday, Oct. 27 — District 86 Board of Education regular meeting, following the facilities tour. The board plans to adopt "Vision Focus" statements and district goals for all six priority areas.
  • Friday, Oct. 23 — Deadline to volunteer for the District 86 Strategic Planning Task Force. Interest forms available through the district.