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On Monday, August 5th, 2024 the Sultan School Board of Directors unanimously approved a bond package to address our growing need for more space.
Ballots will arrive in your mailbox October 18th!
What's proposed to alleviate the space issue:
#1: Gold Bar Elementary (GBE) would get a 10,000 square foot addition, making it 45,000 square feet in total so the school can serve 450 PreK-4th grade students. This is an increase from the current capacity of 256.
Cost: $29,085,431
#2: A NEW 45,000 square foot elementary school that will serve 450 PreK-4th grade students on Sultan Basin Road.
Cost: $47,972,345
#3: Sultan Elementary School (SES) would get minor upgrades and convert to grades 5-6. This would take enrollment from 670 students down to 315 students.
Cost: $2,657,224
Other Components...
Once complete, Sultan Middle School (SMS) would serve grades 7 & 8 only with a population of 350
students, down from the current capacity of 432 students.
Portables from SES and from GBE would be REMOVED!
The new elementary school on Sultan Basin Road would provide the community with a gathering place
that is out of the Culmback Dam flood zone.
What will it cost?
To build a new elementary school, ease overcrowding, and update school safety and security for students, the Sultan School District is asking the community to consider a $79,715,000 Capital Projects Bond. This is the principal. You would add approximately 55 million additional for the interest. For a total payback of 135 million. This number will be finalized at the time rates are locked in. The following graphic includes payback for both principal and interest. This is similar to when you buy a house. You have a principal amount the house sells for, and the payback includes the interest.
Why a bond?
There is not a mechanism to build a public school in a community other than passing a bond. Think of this in a similar way to buying a house and paying the mortgage. The vision of the Community Facility Advisory Committee (CFAC) is to increase space to serve students while meeting the needs of a growing community. The schools are the communities.
K-12 school districts in the state of Washington do not receive state funding to renovate old buildings or build new facilities unless the community approves a bond. If the 2024 bond passes, we would qualify for $14,000,000 from the School Construction Assistance Program (SCAP).
School Bonds & Levies and Property Values - YouTube Video
BONDS & LEVIES: The Seeds of School Funding - What is the difference?
QUOTE: "I have NEVER seen a portable bathroom at an elementary school! Let alone 2!"
Legislator quoted during a tour of Sultan Elementary School (SES)
WAMOA/OSPI/A4LE/AIAWA LEGISLATIVE SCHOOL VISIT