Northshore School District bond for new elementary now passing
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, February 21, 2018
BOTHELL — A bond measure that trailed during early election returns last week is now passing and will allow for a new elementary school to be built in south Snohomish County.
As of Tuesday, the $275 million bond proposal was comfortably above the 60 percent supermajority needed to pass. School levies to support day-to-day operations and technology also have passed.
Northshore School District Superintendent Michelle Reid and the school board told district followers in a letter that they knew the package of ballot proposals was “a big ask. … We so appreciate that you have once again placed your trust in us by approving our levies and bond.”
The Northshore district straddles the King-Snohomish county line. The measure received its strongest support in Snohomish County where there has been rapid enrollment growth.
The bond provides for safety and security updates at all schools; a new K-5 school at a district-owned site near Maltby; a new 30-classroom flexible use building on the Skyview Middle and Canyon Creek Elementary campus and a performing arts building at Inglemoor High School, to support both instruction and production.
The district should be ready for construction at Skyview by summer, spokeswoman Lisa Youngblood Hall said. She also said the district hopes to break ground at the elementary school this summer if the necessary permits can be obtained.
The kindergarten through fifth-grade elementary school near Maltby would be built for 500 students. It’s on land southeast of the new North Creek High School.
The district owns 33 acres of property that could someday house the new elementary as well as a middle school. The middle school was not part of the bond proposal that appeared on the Feb. 13 ballot.
At the elementary level, the district recently has been growing by 300 students each year, which is about half an elementary school’s enrollment.
Northshore has added 2,000 more students over the past six years with another 1,700 projected over the next six years.
Statewide, there were 24 bond measures on the Feb. 13 ballot. It appears it was among the dozen that have passed.
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.
