CORRECTION

A story on Page 1A on Monday incorrectly reported that the John Locke Foundation and Americans for Prosperity are largely funded by Art Pope. The Locke Foundation is largely funded by the John William Pope Foundation, of which Pope is president and director. The Pope family foundation also is a major contributor to the state chapter of Americans for Prosperity.

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The $23 million makeover proposed for Lacy Elementary School is everything that people have come to love -- and hate -- about the request by Wake County schools for $970 million in school construction bonds.

Bond supporters see Lacy as one of 13 old schools in bad need of repair. Bond opponents see Lacy as an example of wasteful spending.

Voters will decide a winner in this debate Nov. 7. If the bonds fail, renovations at many of the schools could be reduced or eliminated.

Beverley Clark, whose Raleigh district would get four of the major school renovations, thinks the changes are in the best overall interests of the district.

"Why should a taxpayer in an older part of the city or county that's been paying taxes for 20 years have a decrepit school when some property that was farmland six months ago is turned into a new school?" Clark asked.

But bond critics, who have heard this argument many times before, say that kind of logic misses the point.

"The fact is, you can't have everything," said Fran DeLuca, director of the state chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a group that favors limited government and opposes the bonds. "You make choices about what you can afford and what you can live without."

Renovations are typically a major part of Wake's school construction programs, accounting for about half the money spent.

This time, renovations represent about one-third of the district's building program -- or $380 million out of total construction costs of $1.056 billion.

The $380 million would be spent on major renovations at 13 schools, smaller repairs at 100 schools and new computers. The rest of the money would be used for construction of 17 new schools as well as land and design costs for 13 future school sites.

Mike Burriss, assistant superintendent for facilities, said 86 percent of the renovation money would be spent to correct heating, ventilating and air-conditioning problems so the schools are safe, healthy places.

Critics question why those renovations sometimes cost as much as a new building. But in some cases, Burriss said, the district is actually building a new school on the site of the old one. Changing the heating-and-cooling system is so expensive, he said, that it makes more sense in the long run to replace some buildings rather than keep existing ones.

"We've been band-aiding this for years," Burriss said. "You sometimes have to renovate and replace everything."

School officials say the 13 schools scheduled for major repairs are 30 to 50 years old and most have never had major renovations.

"I've spoken in some schools that are in desperate need of renovations, some of which have been promised renovations for decades," said Phil Zachary, a leader of Friends of Wake County, the nonprofit group formed to get the bonds approved. "It's been a long time coming."

Lacy Elementary School, situated in an older, affluent section of West Raleigh, is often used as an example by the school district. Renovations there include demolishing two 1950s buildings where poor air quality is blamed for nosebleeds, pneumonia and various illnesses among teachers and students.

This month, the school's head custodian was taken to the emergency room after vomiting and having breathing problems while cleaning a room with poor ventilation. The room was closed and the academically gifted students who were using it have been moved to the media center.

Too much per pupil?

Bond opponents say health and safety issues should be addressed. But they question why the district has to spend almost $23 million on Lacy to accomplish the job.

The 13 schools scheduled for renovations would add 2,096 permanent seats at a cost of about $245 million.

DeLuca said that isn't enough when 32,000 more students are expected to enroll in the schools by 2010.

'They'll gain some seats, but at a very high cost," DeLuca said. "Those dollars could gain a lot more capacity from new school construction."

Another target of bond critics is Lynn Road Elementary School in North Raleigh. Lynn Road is scheduled for $22.1 million in renovations, including some money for new administrative offices and a conference room for meetings with parents.

People such as Terry Stoops, an education policy analyst for the John Locke Foundation, have also questioned spending $7.3 million at Enloe High School. The foundation, like Americans for Prosperity, is largely funded by Art Pope, a conservative businessman and former state representative.

Enloe's renovations will include a new weight room and demolition of part of a building to add parking spaces and upgrade athletics facilities.

"We should focus on adding new seats rather than on equity, which could go on forever," Stoops said.

Backers cite fairness

Bond supporters and parents at the renovated schools say it comes down to fairness.

"We don't want lavish new auditoriums and lavish new buildings," said Robin Oke, a parent at Poe Elementary School in downtown Raleigh, where the school would get $14.7 million in renovations. "We just want windows that are all the same color and open. These are the things that make a school nice."

Clark, the school board member from Raleigh, said many of the older schools have high percentages of students who are at risk of failing. She said those students need the best facilities to attract quality teachers and provide a good learning environment.

It isn't clear yet which side has the upper hand in this debate. The answer to that will come on Election Day.