At Monday night's school board meeting a lot of people were thinking about Clark Middle School. In a week, voters will be asked to pass Proposition Four: a 65 million dollar bond that would replace the nearly 50-year-old school. Property owners will have to ask themselves if saving Clark is worth raising their taxes.

"We're talking about a school that is literally falling down," said Clark Middle School teacher, Maureen Cronin-Wmscornelius.

As Cronin-Wmscornelius showed CBS 11 News around Clark Middle School, the seventh and eighth grade English as a Second Language teacher showed us why district officials say a new school needs to be built.

"Just as we're walking right here, here's a water spot," said Cronin-Wmscornelius.

"Any students who may encounter the secondary effects of what is possibly mold. Clearly you can see the black and brown staining there," said Cronin-Wmscornelius.

"They are definitely afraid of crumbling. You can notice right above that the electrics are housed right above that," said Cronin-Wmscornelius.

Cronin-Wmscornelius is referring to an area of Clark Middle School that faculty members call The Bucket Zone. A lot of water has come down on that ceiling and now members feel it could collapse at any time.

"A significant amount of moisture came down at one time and buckets had to be placed in this area to collect the incoming water to allow normal operations to occur during the day," said Cronin-Wmscornelius.

From those sorts of examples, to water fountains falling off the wall, to exposed rust over many of the floors, students and faculty complain about a host of problems that plague the middle school.

"The scent is something very reminiscent of rotten eggs," said Cronin-Wmscornelius.

Take the boys and girls locker room for example:

"Students are not able to shower in here, because there seems to be some sort of back issue on here going on with the plumbing," said Cronin-Wmscornelius.

This directly affects kids like seventh grader Jennifer Tillman, who has gym first period.

"I have to carry deodorant in my locker. Since we don't have showers; it's a mess," said Tillman.

While many property owners will argue they'd like to help, but simply cannot take another property tax hit, or it's not a problem in their district, the folks at Clark Middle say it will cost too much in the long run not to build a new school right now.

"Give it consideration, before you simply decide no, because there is going to be a property tax increase. Actually look at what the short-range implications are," said Cronin-Wmscornelius.

The implications are now left up to voters. They'll have the final word April 3, 2007.

Since state lawmakers have already agreed to reimburse 60 percent of the bond's debt, if Proposition Four passes, property owners would see their taxes increase by a little more than nine dollars for each 100,000 of their assessed property value. That breaks down to a 7.57 dollar tax increase and an estimated 1.51 dollars for operational and maintenance costs.

Proposition 5

Voters will also be asked to pass another education measure district officials say is aimed at fixing about 40 schools. The 20 million dollar Proposition 5 would be used to fix projects like replacing the roof at Campbell Elementary School. The money would also be used for upgrading security and emergency communication systems along with traffic, sprinkler, electrical and mechanical projects.

"As you know we have a lot of schools getting up there in age. What we need to do it get in there and make these repairs because, if you don't do it today, then the more expensive it's going to be to get in there and make those repairs," said Anchorage School District Assistant Superintendent, George Vakalis.

Since state lawmakers have already agreed to reimburse 70 percent of the bond's debt if Proposition 5 passes, property owners would see their taxes increase by 1.75 dollars.

Together, if both education propositions pass, property owners would see their taxes increase by about 11 dollars for each 100,000 of their assessed property value.

School Board Candidates

Voters will also choose Anchorage School Board candidates. Terms last for three years and board members make curriculum, staffing and budget decisions. Incumbent Tim Steele is running unopposed for school board seat A. This is Steele's third time running.

As for seat B, Jake Metcalfe won't be running again. So Ryan Sharratt and Chris Tuck are vying for that seat. Sharratt is a 28-year-old environmental engineer and has worked across the state in that field for years. Sharratt says his top priorities are increasing teacher pay and local funding; discipline and getting parents more involved in their kid's education. Electrician and Dimond High School graduate, Chris Tuck, says he wants to make sure taxpayers earn value for their education investment and ensure students graduate ready to learn and work.

To contact Matthew, call 907-273-3186.