Page 11 - Flathead Beacon // 10.12.16

NEWS
With Bond Approval, Kalispell School District
Turning Attention to Construction
City o cials expect residential growth to crop up around new elementary school
BY DILLON TABISH OF THE BEACON
Following the passage of the largest combined school bond in history, Kalis- pell Public Schools now has plenty of work ahead.
With last week’s passage of two bonds totaling $54 million, every school site in town is slated to undergo some form of renovation or expansion over the next few years, including an $18 million investment in Flathead High School.
But rst and foremost, the district is expected to turn its attention to build- ing a new elementary school — the rst since Edgerton was built in 1987 — as a way to alleviate chronic overcrowding at the existing ve sites, which are a com- bined 225 students over capacity this fall.
“This overcrowding issue is still breathing down our necks. We need to address that as soon as we can,” Chris- tine Hensleigh, community outreach coordinator for the Kalispell school dis- trict, said last week.
The school board is expected to iron out a timeline for projects in the coming weeks and months, nalizing designs and putting the construction contracts out for bid.
The new kindergarten-through- fth grade elementary school on Airport Road will have space for 450 students and cost an estimated $15.7 million. The district previously hoped that if the bond request was approved, the school could break ground in spring 2017 with a tentative completion date of fall 2018.
The other remaining elementary sites, as well as the middle school, will receive $10 million in renovations and upgrades.
With the addition of a new elementary school comes the issue of redistricting, which includes studying U.S. Census data to designate boundaries for each site. According to Hensleigh, the district will gather public input and study hard data before making any changes to the cur- rent district alignment.
“Within all of that, we will work to preserve the model of the neighborhood schools,” she said. “Schools are part of the fabric of the community and retain- ing kids in their neighborhood schools is important.”
Questions have also been raised about students from out of district, such as Somers-Lakeside, being able to attend the new elementary site. The current district policy only allows out-of-dis- trict students to attend Kalispell sites if there is capacity, which there hasn’t been in recent years, leading to a waiting list.
The addition of a new elementary site is expected to spur development in the south Kalispell area, according to city o cials. In early September, a developer
Students work in a super-sized third grade class at Peterson Elementary School. BEACON FILE PHOTO
pitched a proposal to build a 96-unit apartment complex just down the road from the future school. The proposal has been delayed after residents objected to the high-density complex.
“Schools create neighborhoods,” Tom Jentz, Kalispell’s planning director, said. “I expect that neighborhood to eventu- ally take o similar to what happened around Edgerton. People love to live next to a grade school.”
The nal election results show a 64 percent approval of the $26 million ele- mentary school bond and a 58 percent approval of the $28 million high school bond. Voter turnout was 49 percent — 21,670 ballots were returned among 44,386 registered voters.
In the Kalispell elementary district, which encompasses city limits, 4,593 peo- ple approved the bond while 2,550 opposed it. Ten ballots were spoiled and discarded because they were improperly encased.
In the high school district, which includes Kalispell city limits and the
“SCHOOLS CREATE NEIGHBORHOODS.
I EXPECT THAT NEIGHBORHOOD TO EVENTUALLY TAKE
OFF SIMILAR TO WHAT HAPPENED AROUND EDGERTON. PEOPLE LOVE TO LIVE NEXT TO A GRADE SCHOOL.”
- TOM JENTZ
outlying rural areas, 8,271 people sup- ported the bond request and 6,065 were opposed.
For the 20-year bond, property taxes will increase an estimated $99 annu- ally on a home in the elementary dis- trict valued at $170,000. For a similarly priced home in the high school district, property taxes will increase roughly $48 annually. For a home in both districts, taxes will rise roughly $147 annually.
In the high school district, the spend- ing will cover $18.19 million in upgrades and additions at Flathead High School, including $11.7 million for new construc- tion; $4.64 million for renovations and upgrades at the Agricultural Education Center; $3.44 million for renovations at Linderman Education Center; $958,000 to rebuild the eld at Legends Stadium; and $426,900 for deferred maintenance at Glacier High School.
“I’m just so grateful,” Kalispell Pub- lic Schools Superintendent Mark Flatau said after the election results were announced the night of Oct. 4, wiping tears from his face. “We’re just so appre- ciative of people putting their trust in us because we know that when it comes to taxpayers’ dollars, that’s a holy trust and I understand that. And when they give that to us, it’s not taken for granted. It’s very much appreciated.”
“It’s amazing,” Lance Isaak, vice chair of the Kalispell school board, said. “It’s great to see our community come together and say yes to kids. We haven’t built a new elementary school in nearly 30 years and to really address the future for that whole next generation of students, it’s overwhelming to be part of that and it’s exciting for our community.”
dtabish@ atheadbeacon.com
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OCTOBER 12, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
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