ANN ARBOR, MI - Chipped paint in classrooms, warped and worn exterior doors and rainwater leaking into the lower level of the school due to drainage issues. There are some of the repairs needed at Ann Arbor's Slauson Middle School.

"It's an old building," Slauson Principal Rick Weiler said Friday, April 21. "It's got a lot of character, maybe too much character. ... Old dingy, chipped ugly paint - it's not a safety issue, but it looks awful. Does it affect students' ability to learn? I think so. It detracts from it."

Slauson, located at 1019 W. Washington St., is 80 years old. New additions and improvements to the building have been made over the years, but the school district says the building could use some larger updates and Ann Arbor Public Schools is looking for taxpayer support to make that happen.

People who live in the school district will have the chance to vote on May 2 on a proposed increase to AAPS' sinking fund millage. By law, sinking fund revenue must be spent on building and facility construction and renovations.

The 2.5-mill tax on all property in the AAPS district would raise $20 million a year for the school district over the next 10 years, up from the 1-mill sinking fund AAPS has levied since 2005 that generates about $8 million a year.

For the owner of a home with a market value of $325,000 - the median value for the City of Ann Arbor - the cost of the sinking fund tax will go from $162.50 a year to $406.25 a year if voters approve the increase.

The bulk of the additional sinking fund revenue - $140 million - is slated for repairs and improvements to infrastructure at each of AAPS' 32 school buildings. Another $32 million from the sinking fund revenue would be spent on finishing projects proposed for the 2015 bond revenue and $28 million would go to adding more classroom space at some schools to accommodate growing enrollment.

A cost estimate from Mitchell and Mouat Architects says each of Ann Arbor's K-5 schools would be allocated about $2 million for infrastructure repairs, K-8 schools would each receive $4 million, 6-8 schools are allocated $7 million each, and either $9 million or $13 million would go to each high school, depending on their size.

Weiler sees many ways to spend $7 million renovating Slauson. A large cement deck leading into the school's main entrance contributes to drainage issues that has rainwater running into the school at times and eroding the school's foundation. Ceiling tiles in one side of the cafeteria haven't been installed this school year due to ongoing leaks, and much of the boiler room has been rusted and corroded by water that ends up in the basement.

The three-level, 190,954-square-foot school sits on a hill, and rainwater running from the front of the school downhill is washing out the cement staircase and sidewalk that about 500 of Slauson's 800 students use to get from the bus drop-off area into the school every day, Weiler said.

Weiler also would like to see the worn and damaged exterior doors replaced, which he said is becoming a safety issue. There's a need to improve ventilation in certain parts of the school - including the pool and gyms - and the bathrooms and auditorium have not been renovated to meet current accessibility standards under the American with Disabilities Act.

"We could spend $7 million on Slauson, and it might not show," Weiler said of the costly infrastructure improvements that wouldn't necessarily change the aesthetic of the school.

Slauson is not AAPS' oldest school. Angell, Bach and Burns Park elementary schools, Ann Arbor Open and Community High School all are 94 or 95 years old, and the original building at A2 STEAM at Northside is 78 years old. Ann Arbor's newest schools are the Westerman Preschool Center and Skyline High School, built in 2006 and 2008, respectively.

The average age of AAPS' buildings is 60 years old. The district says updates to the HVAC systems, roofs, pool facilities, network infrastructure and other repairs are needed for the aging schools.

If the sinking fund increase doesn't pass, AAPS will have to address the most pressing infrastructure needs as they come up, using money from the general fund money to cover some of the repairs.

"Over the previous decade of downturn, we prioritized our staff salaries, our programs and our classrooms," Superintendent Jeanice Swift said to the board of education in January during early discussions on the sinking fund proposal. "That was the right priority - it still is, it always is. ... As a result of the deferral of repair and replacement, the district has fallen behind on the upkeep of our buildings. We believe it is important to responsibly attend to that work around our pressing physical needs at this time."

Recent improvements at Slauson - including repainting the cafeteria and buying new cafeteria tables last summer - have been paid for with general fund money allotted for the school's annual expenses, Weiler said. The school's Parent Teacher Organization helped fundraise for a new scoreboard in one of the gyms.

"We got tired of waiting on the bond money." Weiler said.

In 2015, Ann Arbor voters supported a bond that generated $33 million for AAPS, to be spent on updating classroom environments with new furniture, purchasing musical instruments, updating auditoriums, upgrading playgrounds and outdoor athletic facilities, installing new security systems at school entrances and purchasing new school buses.

Some of the 2015 bond money went to Slauson's Project Lead The Way lab and outfitting another classroom with new furniture. Recommendations for more classroom furniture purchases throughout the district will be brought to the school board in the coming months.

Bond advisory committees made suggestions for how specifically the money designated for each area should be spent. The projects they identified exceeded what the 2015 bond revenue would cover, so some of the money from the sinking fund increase would go to those projects.

Some voters aren't in favor of the new tax request.

Janice Wikarski, 70, and her husband, Kent Wikarski, are retirees. Janice Wikarski said they want to support local schools even though they don't have children enrolled at AAPS, but they're planning to vote against the sinking-fund increase.

She worries the property tax increase is too much of a financial burden on seniors with fixed incomes, people making low wages and even middle-class families who don't see a raise in their salaries each year to keep up with the tax increases.

AAPS is not the only entity asking for more from Washtenaw County taxpayers, she noted. In May 2016, Washtenaw County voters passed a county-wide special education enhancement millage that raised property taxes, and the Washtenaw County Commissioners are considering asking for a millage to support mental health services, substance abuse treatment and public safety resources.

"Where are people supposed to get the money for all these increases?" she asked.