School board postpones bond decision
October 30, 2008
By Laura Geggel
An audience of about 50 people applauded the Snoqualmie Valley School Board’s decision to postpone a vote concerning a school bond at the Oct. 23 meeting.
Many people at the meeting came to learn about the district’s plan to potentially transition Snoqualmie Middle School into a satellite campus for Mount Si High School.
If this were to happen, middle-school students would be directed toward either Chief Kanim or Twin Falls middle schools, which have larger student capacities.
At the meeting, School Board member Caroline Loudenback recognized “the community wants more of a voice” in regard to the bond.
The school board would “set up some avenue to get some input from the community,” Loudenback said. Such an opportunity would allow the public to review the school board’s options before the next board meeting in the district office at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13.
Superintendent Joel Aune said he hoped to have a decision regarding the bond completed by Dec. 1.
Kathryn Lerner, who served on the Facilities Task Force that studied the district’s options to accommodate its growing student population, seconded Loudenback’s motion. She encouraged discussion, but said that after three failed bonds to build a second high school, the district did not have many alternatives to alleviate crowding.
“I realize that it’s a hard issue to grapple with,” Lerner said.
Community members are invited to give their input online at www.svsd410.org until Nov. 10. Select “Bond Decision coming in November” and then click on “School Bond Input” to participate.
As of Tuesday, the district was still considering whether it would hold a public forum, said Public Information Coordinator Carolyn Malcolm.
Several community members said an online link on the district’s Web site was not a proper venue to discuss the bond.
“The critical next step that’s missing from the chart is public engagement,” said Ames Lake resident Nina Rivkin, addressing the school board’s plan overview. “A Web site is not public engagement.”
Snoqualmie Middle School Music Director Dean Snavely offered his school as a location for a public forum.
“We need to hear what each other thinks,” Snavely said. “Not have e-mails going back and forth.”
The proposed bond costs $34,183,000. Of the bond, about $8.4 million would fund 18 double modular classrooms and about $25.7 million would finance upgrades and repairs to existing schools and facilities.
Director of Business Services Ron Ellis broke down the $25.7 million figure into three categories: infrastructure, interior and exterior, and safety and security upgrades.
Infrastructure upgrades would allow for building reconfiguration and upgrades in the areas of roofing, electrical, heating and ventilation and emergency power refrigeration.
Interior and exterior upgrades would aid improvements for ceilings, floors and parking lots.
Lastly, safety and security upgrades would finance security video systems, safe playground equipment and update fire panels and a track for Chief Kanim.
“Every school in the district, with the exception of Two Rivers and Twin Falls, gets something,” Ellis said.
The last bond proposal included $15 million for the purchase of land for future schools. The school board has since removed that expenditure from the bond.
“We’re trying to make it so we just take care of the necessities right now due to the economy,” said School Board President Marci Busby. “We’re trying to get the portables to take care of the crowding.”
If the proposed bond is successful in March, the school board plans to run a bond for a second high school in the 2011-12 school year and a bond for a sixth elementary school in 2014-15.
If the $34 million bond passes, taxpayers would contribute $0.41 per $1,000 of assessed home value. For example, owners of a $200,000 house would pay $82 per year. If it does not pass, the district will turn to its No Fund Plan and consider solutions including double-shifting, alternate schedules, utilizing non-traditional spaces for classrooms, redrawing boundaries or year-round school.
Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434.221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.
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