By: Garrett Andrews//August 16, 2017//
Garrett Andrews//August 16, 2017//
The Hillsboro School District plans to ask general election voters in November to support a $408 million construction bond to upgrade its building stock.
The district on Aug. 2 published a request for proposals for architectural services, and will interview candidates later this month.
If passed, the bond would fund three new elementary schools; heavy remodels of two high schools and a middle school; and seismic, MEP and roof upgrades at every other district school.
Hillsboro School District is the fourth-largest school district in Oregon with 21,000 students across 25 elementary, four middle and five high schools. The average age of a school building in the district is approximately 40 years old.
District voters approved construction bonds in 1995, 1999 and 2006; a 2013 campaign for a $25 million safety and technology bond was unsuccessful.
While the 20-year bond’s scope won’t cover all of the district’s needs, the $408 million amount was chosen because it would allow the district to maintain its current bond rate of $2.24 per $1,000 of assessed value, Adam Stewart, the school district’s chief financial officer, said.
“A big selling point for our community is that we can do all these wonderful things and not have to raise our tax rate for bonded indebtedness,鈥 Stewart said.
Stewart said the district intends to file paperwork with the Washington County Elections office before the Sept. 7 deadline in order to make the Nov. 7 ballot.
A spokesperson for the Oregon Secretary of State’s office said no school districts in Oregon have yet filed bond measures for the ballot.