Let district pay for its new schools

The Edmonds School District’s hands are out again. They want voters to approve raising soaring property taxes to fund an unneeded new Lynnwood High School. On paper, the numbers might look reasonable, but when you add future levies and bonds, $140 million will hit property owners hard. The district is portraying itself as an equal partner in its claim that with the money it earns by leasing the land where Lynnwood High currently resides, it can pay to replace other schools including Alderwood Middle School. That’s the first I’ve heard that Alderwood needs replacing! I attended several functions at Lynnwood High last year and took the time to look around. I saw no evidence the school needs replacing. I am opposed to replacing LHS regardless, but if the district is insistent on a new school, let it fund it with money it would earn selling and leasing property it already owns.

The district wants to renege on a promise by requesting we renew a previous levy to maintain certain programs and smaller class sizes. It promised to achieve certain goals for the life of that levy. Now’s the time when property owners could see some tax relief and the district doesn’t want to give up that money. The district has fallen short, and should not be rewarded.

With the sky-high gas prices and the obscene rates we are being charged by Puget Sound Energy and the Snohomish County PUD, not many home and property owners can afford an increase in property taxes, especially for non-essentials. Property owners should review last year’s statement and their current assessment. The district receives 40 percent of the pie! It’s no accident that it is holding this election prior to the mailing of this year’s tax statements. Property owners should mark their ballots with emphatic no votes.

Donald Baker

Lynnwood

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