Ankeny Bond Referendum

So...it is quite tense here in suburbia today with a bond referendum which proposes a 10th elementary school being built to open for the 2014-2015 school year.  From what I can gather, the community is pretty split.  The biggest reason being the proposed location of the school.  Apparently, it was the third choice of the demographer, but there is some kind of deal being exchanged between the school and the city.  The only reason I am writing this is I am trying to work this out in my own mind before I go vote and thought my ramblings might help someone else.
First, I want to say I am not a demographer, and I don't claim to know exactly where the 10th elementary should be built, but it doesn't seem like the location chosen is going to help like we need it to.  Second, I do agree that at some point we will need a 10th elementary school.  We are an ever growing city and student/teacher ratio is very important, but do we need it now? Or are there other options? So this is part of the reason I am torn: if I vote yes, it gets built where the district has decided, if I vote no, I feel bad for any teachers out there who might end up with a huge class size.  I have seen this first hand as a teacher, 2 dear friends of mine had class sizes of 30 and 31, and they did their absolute best as they are bar-none some of the greatest teachers I know, but that is just too many 5th graders in one class!
But here are my other  concerns with all of this:
Ankeny seems to be valuing new/fancy buildings and stuff as the best way to raise student achievement, as opposed to valuing parental involvement and teachers.  Prairie Trail, our newest elementary which opened just this past fall, is extremely nice!  It has all the bells and whistles-microphones for teachers, Smart Boards, beautiful decor, and more.  Does this mean these kids will be smarter, will they feel more loved, will achievement data improve?  Because of a building? Because of technology?  As a teacher and a parent, I would defiantly say NO!  The 2 most important factors in student achievement are parental involvement and teacher quality.  If a child has 2 parents that love and care and provide for them in a safe environment while providing rich learning opportunities and that same child has a teacher who is highly trained, dedicated, and takes the time to get to know and care for the child, then it doesn't matter if that child goes to Prairie Trail or in a one-room schoolhouse with a pad of paper and a pencil.  We need to value things differently here in Ankeny.  Giving our kids the best of the best in terms of "stuff" i.e. Ipads, laptops, SmartBoards, etc.) can not and will not ever replace their need for people in their life who love them and encourage them and help them find success.  I am wondering if Ankeny should maybe slow down in our spending of money on all the latest and greatest technology and buildings and get back to the basics.  If this bond referendum was for paying teachers more or hiring more teachers to lessen student/teacher ratio, you can bet I would have been there this morning to vote yes.  These teachers work extremely hard and I think would gladly appreciate the extra income for all their work.  But even more, if they had the choice, because of the great, caring people they are, the teachers I know would choose to use money to hire more teachers, instead of more money for themselves, so that the chance to help more students could happen.
I also worry about communication with the public.  I know of two particular schools where class sizes are very low and other schools that have lower numbers right now as well.  From what the district has said, it seems as if we vote no, that all classes would just bust at the seams.  Not sure if that is the truth.  Have we looked at re-districting the boundaries to shift things so we wouldn't have to build a new school right now?  Maybe they have, I don't know, but I just don't think any of this information has been communicated.
Sooooo.....as you can see there is a lot to think about.  It might seem like an easy decision for some, but I have not found that to be so.  15 million dollars is a lot of money.  Are we wise to invest in yet another building? Is that what is truly best for our kids?  The district and school board would like you to think so, but I am just not sure.
Off to chat with the hubs some more about this, and then I will vote.  Hmmmmm.....yes or no?