School bond is short-sighted

Regarding the upcoming bond proposal, I am concerned that the needs of our most valuable assets, our children, are not best being served.

The School District’s consultants, NAU Architecture, have shown that the proposed bond only temporarily solves crowding at the elementary level, and doesn’t focus on the middle schools at all. We’ll be facing another bond proposal in five years, then five years after that, for years.

Further, investing over $100 million in a brick-and-mortar high school seems redundant when there are indications that education will be increasingly accessed on-line with off-campus options. Solving part of the problem for 50 years doesn’t make sense when the technology will be outdated in five to seven years.

Also, the School District has overestimated our square footage needs, as defined by the state. However, the Washington state legislature is currently working on the education funding formula. School districts will be affected by their actions; shouldn’t we consider the financial impact before committing to any new taxes?

In addition to a currently existing bond and levy, there is also $50-plus million in interest that we must pay with the proposed bond, an amount that is seldom mentioned. Further, with property values going up substantially in 2017, the tax burden of the proposed bond could also be higher.

There are solutions that would benefit our students at a more reasonable cost. A multi-track schedule has been proven to solve overcrowding, and/or moving the ninth-graders to a junior high configuration and the sixth-graders to the elementary schools would enable bond money to be better utilized.

In the interest of our children’s education, please vote “No” on this proposed bond and let’s work together with the Moses Lake School District to solve our children’s educational needs in a realistic, fiscally responsible manner.

Jeff Powell

Moses Lake