Bremerton School District putting levy, bond measures on February ballot
As past-its-prime schools go within Bremerton School District, Armin Jahr Elementary is up there. It was built in 1968 and hasn't seen any significant upgrades since the late 1990s.
The king of fading facilities, however, is View Ridge Elementary. Built during the middle of World War II in 1943, the school has been remodeled just four times.
Replacements of Armin Jahr and View Ridge are two of the planned projects attached to a 25-year, $150-million bond that is slated to go before voters during the special election on Feb. 13, 2024. Bremerton's school board approved both the bond measure and a two-year educational programs and operations (EP&O) levy measure at its Nov. 9 meeting. The levy requires a simple majority to pass, while the bond requires a 60% supermajority.
The last time Bremerton School District had a capital bond on the ballot was 2005. Voters backed the $30.5 million measure that led to the expansion of Bremerton High School and Mountain View Middle School, effectively signaling the end of Bremerton Junior High School, the building that once housed East Bremerton High and has since been demolished. In 2022, voters approved a two-year capital levy that is funding the current Mountain View Middle School multi-use sports complex project.
Bremerton School District Superintendent James Crawford said it's time to ask the community for support again, believing it's not prudent for the district to keep aging facilities limping along with no remedy in sight.
"It would be irresponsible for us not to ask the voters and let them decide," Crawford said.
In addition to replacing Armin Jahr and View Ridge, the district hopes to renovate/relocate its alternative high school, Renaissance, and replace its Consolidated Facilities complex, which is home to the district's transportation, warehouse, grounds and maintenance departments. District-wide heating, ventilation and air-conditioning upgrades are also planned.
The new EP&O levy, which would fund programs, staff and services not covered by the state, would go into effect in 2025 and be a replacement for the four-year EP&O levy Bremerton voters passed in 2020.
If both proposed measures pass, Crawford said local tax rates will actually decrease. In 2024, tax-payers are on the hook for $1.93 per $1,000 in assessed property value for the EP&O levy and $1.13 per $1,000 in assessed property value for the capital levy, a total of $3.06. The estimated rates in 2025 would be $1.89 for the EP&O levy and $1.06 for the capital bond, a total of $2.95.
Bremerton won't be the only local school district seeking voter bond approval in February. In October, North Kitsap's school board approved a 20-year, $242-million bond ask. Meanwhile, South Kitsap's 21-year, $271-million bond is headed for failure. As of Wednesday, it had 50.7% support according to the Kitsap County Auditor's office.
This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Bremerton School District putting levy, bond on February ballot
