Mukilteo school board sends $400M bond back to ballot
Published 11:20 am Wednesday, July 22, 2026
EVERETT — The Mukilteo School District’s board of directors voted Tuesday to send a $400 million bond package back to the ballot in November after it failed to pass in a February special election.
The second go at the bond measure comes after voters narrowly rejected the package in February, with 57.2% approval. School bond measures require a 60% supermajority to pass.
If approved, the bond will pay for replacement work at multiple schools along with maintenance projects. The bond’s largest project would be a $134.7 million replacement of Explorer Middle School, the second phase of a two-phase project that began with passage of a construction bond in 2020. Other projects would include a replacement of Mukilteo Elementary School and partial replacements of Serene Lake and Olivia Park elementary schools.
It would also include a new addition to the Kamiak High School gymnasium, new turf fields and tracks at Kamiak High School, Voyager Middle School and Goddard Stadium, as well as upgraded tennis courts at Mariner High School.
Schools across the district would also see improvements to playgrounds, parking lots and athletic fields. An aging cable network will be replaced, emergency infrastructure will be upgraded and repairs to roofing, fire systems and HVAC systems would be made.
In March, staff at the school district recommended running the bond measure again in the November election because the February election was a close call. Officials said they hoped higher turnout and additional time to share information about the bond would help the chances of the package’s approval.
Also on the ballot in February was a renewal of the district’s operations levy, which passed comfortably with 59.6% approval.
If the bond is approved in November, the district estimated that property taxes would increase by approximately 20 cents per $1,000 of assessed home value, or about $132 per year for the median homeowner in the district.
It’s more difficult to pass school bonds in Washington than in most states across the country, as the state’s constitution requires bond measures to pass with a 60% supermajority. Most states only require a 50% simple majority. Lawmakers in Olympia have proposed lowering that threshold, albeit unsuccessfully.
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
