With 40 years in education in Oregon and Germany, I’m a bit conflicted over the Marysville bond measure which will cost a $300,000 property owner $7,500 over its 20 years. This is on top of a 33 percent increase in overall property taxes in the past two years. Over those 20 years and at present rates, that property owner will pay over $41,000 to District 25.
The reasons given for a yes vote are many and varied. Some verge on being specious. Among them: The district uses 23 portables as classrooms. Sounds reasonable enough. The high school has too many doors; other schools have too few doors. There are not enough outlets to charge all the Chromebooks. (Why didn’t the technology levy cover this inconvenience?)
One wonders how the Marysville School District got to this point to need to replace five schools all at the same time. Was it poor planning by the administration? I once taught in a high school that is 80 years old. Its halls first echoed the sounds of students during the Great Depression. Yet, it survives to this day, not as an antiquated building, but a thriving, modern school. Perhaps the $12.5 million “set aside” as part of the bond measure will be a part of a more forward thinking district and not just a slush fund.
It is time the state and federal governments increase direct aid for major infrastructure projects like this and give property owners some relief. (Some $62.4 million outside of the $230 million property tax measure will come from other taxpayer funded sources.) If the U.S. can spend trillions on failed experiments in nation-building like Iraq, we can afford to give our students, not just a good education, but an excellent one.
Karl Rehm
Marysville
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