SEQUIM — The Sequim School Board will ask voters a third time to approve a construction bond to repair and expand school buildings and will decide Aug. 3 when the question will appear on a ballot.
The board members will vote then on whether to put the bond question on the Nov. 3 general election ballot or wait for the Feb. 9 special election.
Board member Mike Howe said he wants to make sure the bond has the best chance of passing, which is typically in a February election.
Board President Bev Horan noted that the cost of the February election would be entirely on the school district, while the November election would simply be added to the existing general election ballots.
In February, the school district’s proposed $49.5 million, 20-year bond received 6,691 yes votes to 5,026 no votes — a 57.11 percent to 42.89 percent margin. A 60 percent supermajority was required.
That followed the failure of another bond attempt in April 2014 calling for $154 million for construction projects that garnered support from only about 44 percent of Sequim voters.
The third attempt would see an increase in the bond amount from the February proposal.
Because of changes in the market since the Feb. 10 bond proposal, the bond amount is expected to increase from $49,265,000 to $49,300,000 — but because of an increase in property values in the Sequim School District, the tax rate would be reduced from 64 cents per $100,000 assessed value to 61 cents per $100,000 assessed value, said Brian Lewis, district director of business services.
If the bond election is in February, the cost of the bond could increase again, and there is some concern there would be a shortage of construction workers available for the project because of a boom in construction in the Seattle area, Lewis said.
“If it fails again, I don’t think we should try again. The voters will have spoken,” Howe said Monday.
After the larger bond was rejected, the proposal was pared down to cover eight immediate district needs.
They were:
■ Build a new elementary school.
■ Add a wing of classrooms at Greywolf Elementary.
■ Renovate Helen Haller Elementary and convert it to house fifth-graders and Olympic Peninsula Academy, which is for home-schoolers.
■ Add band, choir and science classrooms, and renovate the science wing at Sequim High School.
■ Demolish the former Sequim Community School.
■ Convert the community school gymnasium into a district warehouse.
■ Convert the former Olympic Peninsula Academy building into maintenance headquarters.
■ Modernize the district kitchen.
District problems
The district kitchen, where 1,800 student meals are prepared daily, was last updated with used Navy equipment in the 1970s, and replacement parts for the failing kitchen equipment are no longer available, district officials have said.
Elementary and high school buildings do not have enough space for current enrollment, they said.
More than 950 students are enrolled at Sequim High, which was built for 850 students, and at Helen Haller Elementary, four new classrooms are being installed in a parking lot to make room for about 180 new full-time kindergartners — more than doubling the 84 enrolled in kindergarten in 2014.
Greywolf Elementary has converted the school library and computer labs into classrooms, and moved those services into three portable units.
A fourth will be installed at Greywolf Elementary this summer.
Greywolf was designed for a new wing to be added on as needed, officials said.
The bond would fund a new science wing at Sequim High with six modern science laboratory classrooms to offer classes needed for high school seniors who will require an additional year of lab science to meet state graduation requirements.
Band, orchestra and choir rooms would be added to the current performing arts wing. Current students must cross the street to the former Sequim Community School for music classes.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.
