News & Information

The Citizens’ Advisory Committee, a group of parents, community members and Bellingham School District staff appointed by the Board of Directors, recommended at Thursday’s meeting that the Board authorize a bond levy for voter approval in the March election. The Board will vote on the recommendation at its Nov. 10 meeting.

The committee has reviewed current and future growth and facility needs of the Bellingham School District and recommends a bond levy for $67 million to fund a new elementary school on the northwest side of the district, a new elementary school on the southeast side of the district, the purchase of a school site in Sudden Valley, modernization of Shuksan Middle School, seismic structural improvements of the district’s five historic buildings and major facility preventative maintenance projects.

"Our recommendation is based on a pressing need to provide functional school facilities that offer the capacity to meet the demands of our growing community," said committee co-chair Lisa Tatum. "The committee believes that all of the projects listed in the recommendation above are crucial to the mission of providing quality education in our community and that it is financially prudent to include every project in this bond."

The proposed bond, if approved by voters, would result in a tax rate increase for school bonds of 13 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value between 2005 and 2007, but the total levy and bond tax rate for all local school funding would decrease by 18 cents per $1,000 during that same period. For example, a home with an assessed value of $300,000 in 2005 and 2007 would have a decrease of $54 per year in local school taxes between 2005 and 2007.

The decrease is possible because the district is retiring some existing bonds and refunding some existing bonds at a lower interest rate. Also, the impact of new development in the city and the appreciation of reassessed property in the district make this feasible.

The district currently has 47 portable classrooms to accommodate schools at or above capacity. Any new school or modernization project would take a few years to complete before the facilities could be utilized.

About 10,437 students are currently enrolled in Bellingham schools, up from 10,189 in 2000 when voters last approved a bond to build Northern Heights Elementary, add a gym to Whatcom Middle School and complete other facility improvements.

By fall 2008 – the earliest a new school could open – enrollment is projected to grow to about 10,775 students. Significant housing and student enrollment growth has been occurring and is projected to continue in many areas of our community. Our schools in north Bellingham and in parts of the south side are especially tight on space for children.

The projects that would be funded by this recommended bond are:

· Building a new elementary school at 4420 Aldrich Road and a new elementary school on Yew Street near Tacoma Avenue for a total of $26 million. The district owns both of these properties.

· Purchasing school property in Sudden Valley. Enrollment at Geneva Elementary continues to expand with the growing population of Sudden Valley playing an important part.

· Modernizing Shuksan Middle School at its current location of 2713 Alderwood Avenue. Shuksan was built in 1956. With the exception of a 1961 classroom addition and a library addition in 1971, the school hasn’t had any major renovation. Shuksan currently has four portable classrooms and is at maximum capacity for classroom space. A study by licensed architects and engineers concluded that all major systems at Shuksan – mechanical, electrical, structural – have exceeded their useful life and the time has come, after 49 years, for a full-scale modernization. The total estimated project cost is $22 million.

· Seismic structural improvement of these five historic buildings: Columbia, Larrabee, Lowell, Whatcom and Roeder. These improvements would preserve and extend the useful life of these buildings for another 30 years and lessen the impact of a major earthquake. None of these buildings are unsafe and all have survived five or six seismic events dating back to 1918 (depending on the age of the building). However, improvements are needed to increase the safety and structural integrity of each building for future years. The Board authorized the study last spring to determine the scope of the structural improvements that are needed. While the work would vary at each site, common improvements include anchoring roofs and floors to supporting walls, reinforcing roofs, floors and walls, and installing support columns.  The total project is estimated at $16 million. 

· Districtwide major preventative maintenance projects that would include roofing, flooring and major system replacements.

The Citizens’ Advisory Committee met four times this fall. The committee is co-chaired by Lowell parents Chip Hilarides and Lisa Tatum, who are both active in the Bellingham community. Members of the committee are: Co-chairs Hilarides and Tatum; Board President Elaine Lynch; staff Mike Anderson, Judy Bishop, Becky Elmendorf, Terri Inge, Lisa Peterson, Shirley Potter, Nick Payne and Bill Stuckrath; parents and community members Kelly Bashaw, Anne Seeger, Ted Mischaikov, Dr. Eric Laine, Paul Grey, Rogan Jones, Dan Pike, John Macpherson, Tom Stuen and Russ Whidbee. Staff members supporting the committee were Superintendent Dale E. Kinsley, Assistant Superintendent of Business and Operation Ron Cowan and Tanya Rowe, director of School Information and Communications.