Mundelein Consolidated High School District 120 announced on Mar. 19 that its approach to issuing building bonds for the Facilities Improvement referendum will save local taxpayers more than $7 million over the life of the repayments.
The savings come after voters approved the project in a November 2024 referendum, with the District Board authorizing bond sales on Jan. 13. Taxpayers will see an increase on their property tax bills starting in May, but officials say the impact will be lessened by a shorter repayment period and lower interest rates.
District officials said that while homeowners with a $300,000 property can expect an annual increase of about $414—matching previous estimates—the duration of this tax increase has been reduced from 20 years to 17 years. The district secured an interest rate of 3.55 percent in February, which is lower than the anticipated rate of 3.81 percent. “At the end of the day, it generated $7.4 million in savings for taxpayers,” said Cathy Johnson, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations. “It’s great, great news for the taxpayer.” Johnson also explained during a video podcast with Dr. Corey Tafoya, Superintendent of Districts 75 and 120, that even when a second round of bonds is issued next year, there will be no additional impact on taxpayers: “The way that we’ve structured this, taxes are not going to go up more when we issue the next set of bonds,” she said.
The district was able to save an additional $186,875 by negotiating lower fees with its underwriter. Tafoya said, “One of the great success stories recently was the issuing of these bonds… We’re trying to do everything possible to minimize the impact on the taxpayer. We want our taxpayers to feel like this product – of which we’re going to be really proud of in the end – that it also was done as financially responsible as possible.”
According to the Illinois State Board of Education, Mundelein Consolidated High School District 120 represents Lake County and serves grades nine through twelve at Mundelein High School with an enrollment of over two thousand students during the 2019-2020 school year. The district spent nearly $30,000 per student in 2020 for a total expenditure exceeding $61 million according to state data. The teaching staff includes 130 teachers earning an average salary above $91,000; just over half are women and none had more than ten absences in one school year according to state records.
Demographically, Mundelein Consolidated High School District 120 is composed of approximately forty-one percent White students, forty-five percent Hispanic students, six percent Asian students and two percent Black students according to ISBE. Chronic truancy rates were reported at just over four percent—less than half the statewide average—during the last measured school year as reported by ISBE.
As construction continues under budget and on schedule—with major work set for summer including new athletic facilities and student spaces—the district says it remains committed to financial responsibility while delivering improvements.
