PORT ANGELES — The League of Women Voters of Clallam County will sponsor a forum tonight on the two Port Angeles School District measures that will be on the Feb. 10 special election ballot.
The forum will be from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Port Angeles Senior Center gymnasium at 328 E. Seventh St.
Speakers at tonight’s forum will include Superintendent Marc Jackson; Kelly Pearson, director of finance and operations; Nolan Duce, director of maintenance; and a Port Angeles High School student.
Time will be allowed for questions from the audience.
On the ballot will be a two-year maintenance and operations levy to replace the four-year levy that expires next December, and a $98 million bond to replace eight classroom buildings and refurbish the auditorium on the 39.7-acre Port Angeles High School campus.
The two-year levy would collect $8.6 million in 2016 and $8.8 million in 2017. It would cost property owners an estimated $3.26 per $1,000 of assessed value.
The 2013 levy rate on the present levy was $3.23 per $1,000 assessed valuation.
The bonds would be in the amount of $98,254,000 for a term of 25 years and would cost property owners $2.06 per $1,000 assessed property value for 25 years based on 2014 values.
But the total assessment for school district bonds would be less.
Property owners are currently paying 0.46 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value for the Dry Creek and Jefferson Elementary bonds that expire in December 2015.
If it is approved, the change in the amount a property owner would pay for the bond is from the current 0.46 cents to the new $2.06, an increase of $1.60 per $1,000 of assessed property value.
The combination of the levy and the new bond, if both are approved, would mean an estimated additional $1.63 per $1,000 cost to property owners.
A simple majority is needed for levy passage.
A 60 percent majority is required for voter passage of a school bond issue.
In addition, there must be a 40 percent voter turnout based on the number of votes cast in the school district in last month’s general election.
For more information, see www.portangelesschools.org.
Levy and bond questions, comments and suggestions may be emailed to info@portangelesschools.org, or sent by the U.S. Postal Service to Superintendent, Port Angeles School District, 216 E. Fourth St., Port Angeles, WA 98362.
