Local School Levies and Bonds Roundup
by Jenn Askew
With all of the news of Seattle and Bellevue closing schools, its easy to overlook the story elsewhere in King County. Many families who have moved out of the big cities are moving to the ‘burbs, which means school districts out here are needing to accommodate an influx of new students. Unfortunately, when a student moves they can’t bring their old school and teaching staff with them! Several nearby school districts in King County have a levy, bond, or both on the November ballot. Here’s a roundup of the ballot measures happening in districts near and around the Tahoma area.
Quick refresher: A levy is a property tax that collects money every tax season (April and October) for the length of the levy, that the district can then spend on approved items as the money comes in. Bonds are issued when a district needs a large amount of money upfront, often for new building. When voters approve a bond, they are agreeing to a property tax for a specified length of time, which is used to pay off the bond (loan). In both cases, voters are approving the tax rate they will pay as well as the total money that the district can collect. Levies require a simple majority of 50% (plus one vote) to pass, while bonds require 60%.
Levies are often used for ongoing costs of running a school district, while bonds are typically used for large building projects. This is why you’ll often hear “Levies are for Learning, Bonds are for Building.” As you’ll see below, this simple phrase has some exceptions.
Issaquah – School Modernization and Construction Bond
Issaquah is asking voters to approve a $642.3 million bond. This bond will allow the district to finally build a fifth high school (which would be their fourth large, comprehensive curriculum high school), as well as to make needed improvements around the district. Two of Issaquah’s comprehensive high schools are some of the largest public high schools in Washington state, coming in at 5th and 14th, and all are over capacity. The district has seen the largest enrollment increase at this education level. The new high school accounts for less than half of the total bond.
In 2016, voters approved a bond to build a fifth high school. The district then faced several years of legal work when part of the site was declared historical, then another several year delay during the pandemic, waiting for permits. In that time, the cost to build the high school increased well beyond the funds approved in 2016, and some of that money was put to use elsewhere. This has been a point of contention in the community. The district worked with the state auditor to form a Bond Oversight Committee. They’ve also had some changes to their school board since then and a new superintendent.
The primary expenditures of this bond and the remaining prior bond (taken from official ISD documents) are:
- $17.9 million in Safety and Security
- $317 million in Building Modernization & Efficiency
- $261 million for High School Capacity & Program Expansion
- $90 million of this is from the 2016 bond
- $46 million for Student Support, Well-Being & Athletics
Cost: $0.29 per $1000 valuation, with an average cost for an Issaquah home owner of $322/year, based on an average valuation of $1.1 million.
You can learn more about the Issaquah building bond on their website here.
Auburn – Building for Learning Bond
Auburn is asking voters to approve a $532.1 million bond. Auburn has seen a large increase in their enrollments since their last bond was passed in 2016, especially at the middle school level. They also have several aging buildings that need significant refurbishment or replacement.
Auburn is hoping to replace an elementary school and a middle school. The elementary school has useful life left as a school, but the cost to refurbish it into a future school is not included in this bond. They have instead chosen to rebuild this school at a separate site, to eliminate impacts on the academic environment during the school year. The middle school that is slated for replacement will be refurbished as an administrative building. Both of these new schools will be larger than those they are replacing, to help Auburn accommodate all of the newly enrolled students. They will also build a fifth middle school. The district is currently over-enrolled at the middle school level by 900 students.
The district will also use this bond money to make improvements to every building in the district.
The primary expenditures of this bond (taken from official ASD documents) are:
- $176.4 million for Middle School #5
- $183.2 million to replace Cascade Middle School
- $108.2 million to replace Alpac Elementary School
- $64.2 million in facility improvements, including security systems and HVAC
Cost: $0.81 per $1000 valuation, with an average cost to an Auburn home owner of $440/year, based on an average valuation of $550,000.
You can learn more about the Auburn building bond on their website here.
Lake Washington – Building Excellence Capital Construction Levy
Lake Washington is asking voters to approve a $676.9 million construction levy, which is something new on this list. This levy is part two of their three part construction levy plan. Part one was passed in 2022. Construction levies work just like other typical levies, in that the funding has to be used for approved expenditures, as passed by the voters, and the money is only available as it comes in during tax collection times. This particular levy is for six years.
The Lake Washington school district, like Auburn, has a bevy of aging buildings needing refurbishment or replacement. They have also seen increased enrollment since their last building bond was passed in 2016. After being one of the fastest growing districts in the state for decades, things slowed down during the pandemic. While they are now anticipating reduced enrollments over the next few years, the district is still over-enrolled at several schools, while also needing to ensure continued use of their aging infrastructure.
Three of these schools – the two elementaries and one middle – will be fully demolished and replaced, while the second middle school will be partially demolished and rebuilt in place. The district is using three-story plans on their replacement elementary school building projects, to save money.
The primary expenditures of this levy (taken from official LWSD documents) are:
- $86.8 million to Rebuild and enlarge Alcott Elementary
- $118.1 million to Rebuild and enlarge Smith Elementary
- $174 million to Rebuild and enlarge Kamiakin Middle School
- $202.9 million to Rebuild and enlarge Evergreen Middle School
- $25.1 million to Upgrade and modernize the fieldhouse and community pool at Juanita High School
- $70 million contingency in case of cost escalations
Cost: This construction levy has an annual increase built in, with the goal of keeping the total school taxes on levies and bonds at a stable rate. The first year will be a cost of $0.35 per $1000 valuation in 2026, increasing to $1.32 per $1000 during its sixth and final year of collection in 2031. In 2027, the tax paid for this levy for a $1 million home would be $380/year. (The median home value for LWSD is not published by the district, but was $840,000 in 2022.) This is on top of the 2022 construction levy, with a 2027 cost of $0.48/$1000. The third levy in this plan, to be run in the future, would be in addition to this.
You can learn more about the Lake Washington construction levy at their website here.
Kent – Capital Projects & Technology Levy
Kent is asking voters to approve a replacement levy, funding capital projects and technology. This will be a three year levy, collecting $97.8 million in total. The district did attempt to pass a replacement levy earlier this year, but it was voted down by the community. The November levy – which replaces a levy that is expiring this year – is 49% smaller than the one put before voters in April.
Levies are relied upon by Washington state school districts to fund gaps in what the state provides for “basic education”. You can read more about that in our article about the recent Tahoma levy, here. This particular levy in Kent is to fund repairs around the district as well as technology needs for staff, students, and security purposes.
The primary expenditures of this levy (taken from official KSD documents) are:
- Technology Projects:
- $13.9 million related to Education
- $9.3 million related to Infrastructure
- Capital Projects
- $38 million in critical repairs
- $22.96 million in Health & Safety
Cost: $0.72 per $1000 valuation in 2025, dropping to $0.70 in 2026 and $0.68 in 2027. With a median home valuation in Kent of ~$630k, the average home owner can expect to pay $454/year in 2025.
You can learn more about the Kent capital projects and tech levy on their website here.
Tahoma and Enumclaw – Future bonds?
The Tahoma and Enumclaw school districts do not have any levies or bonds on the upcoming November ballot, but there is an expectation in both districts that something might be put before voters soon. In Enumclaw, a bond for needed replacements and new building to accommodate significant enrollment gains and aging infrastructure failed in February, 2023. Those needs have only increased as more families continue to move into the Black Diamond and Enumclaw areas, and the district is currently working with developers to find a solution. It is still possible that a bond will be needed in the near future for school construction in Enumclaw.
The Tahoma school district last passed a construction bond in 2013. That $195 million bond paid for refurbishments across the district, a brand new elementary school (Lake Wilderness), and a brand new high school. That high school is now the second largest public high school in the state (though it’s dwarfed by many schools in other states, coming in at #451 nationally), but more importantly it’s almost at capacity and out of space.
I don’t think anyone is arguing against the fact that Tahoma needs more space, but here are some smaller impacts you may not know about: Some elementary students are having to eat lunch in their classroom, due to a lack of sufficient cafeteria space to seat everyone. At the middle school level, the girls badminton team has grown to nearly 100 students since it was launched just a few years ago. When the coaches were asked if there’s a plan to form a high school team here, like Issaquah has, the answer was “no” for one simple reason: There aren’t enough courts in the district to accommodate existing sports, let alone a new badminton team. At the high school, the music director is advocating for a small addition near the PAC, that would allow for another classroom and more instrument storage space for the band and orchestra program. The program is at capacity, with two teachers using all available spaces during every period of the day. They can’t add another class to the schedule, despite student interest, and the existing classes are full.
With inflation, the 2013 bond would be equivalent to a $263 million bond now, but as you can see above construction costs appear to have far outpaced inflation. Most districts are looking to spend at least that much on a high school alone. New elementary schools appear to be in the $100-$120 million range, and middle schools closer to $200 million.
This TV PAC member hasn’t had time to attend a Tahoma school board meeting in a while, but the most recent presentation from the Housing Committee* called for an addition to the high school, additions to the middle schools, a brand new elementary school, and more athletic spaces. Just looking at the numbers that other districts are seeing, my total guess is this would run at least a couple hundred million dollars. If a new high school were added to the mix – something many in the community have been asking for – we’d probably be looking at a half a billion dollar+ bond. We have lower home valuations here in Tahoma than places like Issaquah or Lake Washington, and very little commercial real estate, which would mean significantly higher costs to the average home owner.
The real question is not how much space the district needs, but how much space voters are willing to pay for. The new Superintendent, Dr. Ginger Callison, might also have some new ideas to bring to the table.
We’ll continue to keep an eye on these and future bonds and levies in this area!
*”House” or “housing” is the term used by school districts to refer to school buildings for use by students. This does not refer to the more typical use of the term, as a place to live.
This article was written by a member of the Tahoma Values Team. If you’d like to submit something to publish on our site, please email us at TahomaValues@gmail.com. You can also find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Mastodon.
