Hoping to address overcrowded classrooms and deferred maintenance while balancing tax implications, the Kalispell school board unanimously approved a pair of bond requests for roughly $54.76 million to build a new elementary facility and renovate the city’s existing schools.
The Kalispell Public Schools Board of Trustees voted June 14 to move forward with two separate bond elections on Oct. 4. The elections will be conducted through mail-in ballots in the elementary and high school districts.
Voters in the Kalispell elementary district, which spans city limits and the surrounding area, will decide whether to approve a roughly $26 million bond to build a new kindergarten-through-fifth grade school on the south end of town and remodel the existing elementary sites and middle school.
For the 20-year bond, property taxes would increase an estimated $99 annually on a home in the district valued at $170,000, according to school officials.
Residents in the elementary district will also vote on a separate bond request with residents in the larger high school district, which includes Kalispell and 13 partner districts in the outlying valley. The request is for a $28.76 million bond that would go toward remodeling sections of Flathead High School that are over 100 years old as well as deferred maintenance, along with an expansion of the Agricultural Education Center and upgrades at Linderman Education Center. The bond would also fund maintenance needs at Glacier High School, rebuild the main field at Legends Stadium and expand parking opportunities near Flathead.
For the high school bond, property taxes would increase roughly $48 annually for a home valued at $170,000, according to school officials.
If both bonds were approved, property taxes would increase roughly $147 annually for a $170,000 home in both the elementary and high school district.
»»» Click here for a breakdown of proposed renovations and costs.
The bond requests come at the conclusion of a yearlong planning effort involving over 40 community members, school staff and professional planners focused on addressing persistent overcrowding and facility needs.
The swelling student population hit a record 3,018 kids last year, and the city’s five public elementary schools were 225 students over capacity. The most recent elementary school built in Kalispell was Edgerton in 1987 and the other four sites are all over 65 years old.
In recent years, the district has added classrooms onto existing sites, but those facilities are already filled while others are plagued by deferred maintenance, including electrical, plumbing and air quality issues, administrators say.
Over the last 12 months, the planning committee debated a variety of solutions, including building a new middle school and two elementary schools. The recommendation whittled down to two new elementary schools — one on a south property the district purchased three years ago and another on a prospective property on the north end.
At Tuesday’s school board meeting, the trustees rebuffed the recommendation for a second elementary school after weighing the risk of asking taxpayers for a larger bond and jeopardizing the entire proposal.
“We absolutely have to have a school. Do we ask for two and get shot down or do we go for one?” Trustee Frank Miller said. “I’m pretty confident we can convince the people we need one. We can show that pretty easily. Asking for that second one, I don’t know. Unless the mindset in this community has changed in the fast few years, I’m pretty nervous about that.”
Based on a projected 2 percent growth in enrollment, the two new elementary schools and other sites would have not reached full capacity again until roughly 2035.
With one new elementary school and the same 2 percent projection, the district is expected to reach full capacity within 10 years.
“I have no doubt we will have this conversation again in 10 years when our schools are overcrowded,” Trustee Mary Tepas said.
If the bond were approved, the district would break ground on the elementary school on Airport Road in April 2017 with a tentative completion date of August 2018.
Trustees also grappled with whether they should include the cost of purchasing land on the north end of town in the bond request. Trustee Mary Ruby opposed purchasing the land until a formal cost had emerged, and the board agreed to direct school administrators to enter negotiations with the landowner on the north end of town for a set price. Some trustees encouraged the board to acquire the piece of property once the price is settled to avoid missing out on real estate that could prove valuable in the future.
In the elementary district, the new school would cost an estimated $15.7 million. The renovations at the existing schools would cost another $10 million.
In the high school district, the spending would cover $18.19 million in upgrades and additions at Flathead High School, including $11.7 million for new construction; $4.64 million for renovations and upgrades at the Agriculture Education Center; $3.44 million for renovations at Linderman Education Center; $1 million to buy lots around FHS to add parking; $958,000 to rebuild the field at Legends Stadium; and $426,900 for deferred maintenance at Glacier High School.
The additions would allow the high schools to accommodate another 150 kids and 75 more students at the agriculture center, according to administrators.
In terms of timing, the school board opted for a mail-in ballot election in October instead of a general-election vote. The district can run the mail-in election for $7,000 while the cost of joining the general election would be $10,000, according to school officials. Also, the mail-in ballot election will only require a simple majority for approval or disapproval.
Kalispell is among many cities across Montana grappling with growing enrollment and outdated facilities. Last winter Missoula voters approved bond requests for $88 million for elementary and middle school upgrades and $70 million for high school renovations. Last fall Bigfork residents approved a bond request for $14 million to redevelop the high school. In 2013, Billings voters approved a $122 million bond to build two new middle schools and address $36 million in deferred maintenance. Bozeman passed a $26.37 million bond in 2012 for a new elementary school and upgrades to its other aging sites.