Prop A would help the district replace aging roofs without raising the current tax rate
Proposition A, on the November 4, 2025, ballot, would help the Mehlville School District maintain a routine roof replacement schedule without raising the current tax rate. This would keep maintenance costs low while ensuring students are comfortable and learning in their classrooms.
Mehlville School District has 1,027,000 square feet of roofs. To put that into perspective, it’s about the same size as 7 Costco stores or 5.5 Walmart SuperCenters. The district replaces its roofs in 10-foot by 10-foot (100 square foot) sections every 18 to 20 years. The district spends approximately $850,000 per year to maintain its roofs.
“Regular roof replacement is important because after 20 years, we start having problems inside of the building,” said Mike Gegg, Director of Facilities. “Buildings begin to experience more leaks, which can interrupt learning and cause increased maintenance costs to repair damage.”
Schools built in the early 2000s with no new additions, like Oakville Elementary School and Rogers Elementary School, have every roof square replaced at once since the entire roof is the same age. However, many schools have sections of roofs of different ages, so those must be replaced at different times. This includes both Mehlville High School and Oakville High School, and elementary schools that have received new additions over the years, like Bierbaum Elementary School, Blades Elementary School and Forder Elementary School.
For example, Oakville High School had different sections of its roof installed in 2008, 2018, 2019 and 2023. The district will wait to replace each section once it reaches 18 to 20 years old.
“You don’t want to replace a roof section if it’s only 10 or 12 years old when its life expectancy is another 8 to 10 years,” Gegg said. “It’s financially responsible for the district to only replace a roof section when it’s at that 20-year mark or if it is damaged or failing.”
The original Prop A, passed by voters in fall 2016, has funded most of the roofing projects completed in the Mehlville School District over the past decade.
“When Prop A was passed in 2016, many of the district's roofs were 25 to 27 years old, well past the typically 20 year life cycle,” Gegg said. “Prop A helped get the district back on a regular roof replacement schedule.”
Through fiscal year 2024, the Prop A levy generated $5.8 million that was used to complete 35 roofing projects at schools across the district.
Learn more about Prop A
The Mehlville School District Board of Education voted unanimously August 21, 2025, to place a levy on the November 4, 2025, ballot that would not increase the current tax rate. Called Proposition A, the levy would fund the upkeep of school roofs, buses, parking lots, technology and safety systems, and HVAC – preserving and protecting district facilities for generations of students.
Proposition A would generate an estimated $1.4 million annually for recurring maintenance needs by making a temporary tax levy permanent and reallocating a small portion of the district’s existing debt service levy from Proposition S. The proposal, which would not increase the current tax rate, requires voter approval in the November 4, 2025, election. Prop A would provide long-term stability for essential infrastructure like roofing, school buses, technology equipment, parking lot maintenance, HVAC and building safety – all of which directly impact our students’ daily learning experience.