From North Wasco County School District 21:
By Stephanie Bowen
Community polling kicks off this coming week, the topic? A High School Bond.
The Community Bond Planning Advisory Committee for North Wasco County School District recently held their second workshop to discuss a potential bond measure this coming May.
Back in June, the advisory group, made up of district families, parents, teachers, and staffers as well as community members, all came to the consensus that the district should focus its efforts on a replacement for the current TDHS building, which was built in 1943. The potential new school building would be constructed on the Wahtonka campus, adjacent to the current onsite building.
Narrowing in on the focus of a bond package, the current workshop session included an update from OPSIS, the architecture and planning group facilitating the bond process. The session focused on potential programming and site options and the current state and future projections of construction costs.
In addition, a case study was presented to the group on a recent build in North Eugene. The presentation showcased potential design and architectural elements such as the use of light and windows, green spaces, secure courtyards, and maximizing learning spaces. The case study created a stark reality check for many in comparison to the current High School building and sparked comments on the effects of the building state and its influence on the overall student experience and school pride.
The question on everyone’s mind - what’s it going to cost?
Opsis Architecture laid out several potential bond options to the advisory group with varying levels of project cost and scope. Project variations ranged from focusing on just the building itself, to a comprehensive school campus with additional onsite features such as athletics fields and expanded programming options, like CTE (Career and Technical Education).
“Project cost is always at the forefront of our minds. We want to be sure that when we start sharing numbers with our community about what a potential bond might mean to them, that we have the most accurate projections possible,” said D21 Chief Financial Officer, Kara Flath.
Flath has been working collaboratively with Wasco County Tax Assessor’s office over the last several months in order to ensure estimated tax numbers related to the potential bond coincide with the most recent tax assessments. These numbers will help the district better understand, and subsequently respond, to concerns regarding the bond cost when it comes to individual impacts. Updated numbers should be finalized this week.
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Beginning next week, Wright Public Affairs will be conducting phone interviews with Wasco County citizens to survey the community and gauge the support of the various packages. So if your phone rings, give them a few minutes to share your thoughts.
Polling information will be taken back to the advisory committee to review. The group is slated to meet two more times through December before finalizing their proposed bond package and presenting it to the North Wasco County School Board in January.
