The Iowa–Grant School Board denied a request to move property from the Iowa–Grant school district to the Platteville school district Feb. 8.

But the Iowa–Grant board may not have the last word on whether the property owned by Jason and Jaclyn Bevan on Austin Road in the Town of Lima will stay in the Iowa–Grant district.

The Bevans have an 8-year-old daughter with hydrocephalus and a shunt to drain fluid from her brain. The girl is open-enrolled in Platteville. The Bevans have a younger daughter who will be attending school soon.

The Iowa–Grant board voted down the request 4–3. The Platteville School Board heard the Bevans’ request as an information item Feb. 8, and can vote Monday night.

If the two school districts disagree, the decision can be appealed to the state Department of Public Instruction School District Boundary Appeal Board for a final decision.

The Bevans have relatives in the Platteville area who they believe could get their daughter to a hospital faster than if she was at Iowa–Grant. 

The Bevans’ property, which is on a Platteville school district bus route, is assessed at $183,500. Iowa–Grant superintendent Linda Erickson said the loss of the property would mean $1,500 in lost tax revenue and the loss of state aid for open-enrolled students. School districts get more state aid for students who live in that district, and less aid for students who open-enroll in or out of the school district.

School districts are also required to educate students who live in the district, while school districts can choose to allow students to open-enroll in or not.

The Dodgeville Chronicle contributed to this story.