Volunteers sought for Wahluke facility committee

MATTAWA — Volunteers are being solicited to work on a long-term plan to address building maintenance and facility needs in the Wahluke School District. Superintendent Andy Harlow said the Facilities and Operations Committee will meet over the winter and spring with the goal of finishing a plan by June 30. 

Harlow said community involvement is going to be very important to the process. 

“Our goal is by the end of June we put together this 10-year facility plan, and that group will be part of that. We really, really need community members to be part of this,” Harlow said. “This has to be our community plan.” 

He said the committee will start meeting in mid-February. 

Financial constraints have meant district officials put off upgrades and haven’t set up a schedule for remodeling, sometimes for years, Harlow said. Like most school districts, Wahluke has a target for the amount of money that should be left when all the bills are paid at the end of the school year. It’s called a reserve, and Wahluke has been missing its reserve target, Harlow said. 

District officials have been working to improve the financial position, among other things making substantial staff cuts in 2023-24 and 2024-25.  

“We have a balanced budget, and we’re close to hitting our reserve number that the board sets,” Harlow said. “So, we’re on a good trajectory there.” 

But the district had less money to take care of its facilities, he said, and capital projects were and are expensive.  

“We’ve done a lot of things to put ourselves in a good spot going forward,” Harlow said. “The downside – and this is just the reality – unfortunately, we’ve kicked the can down the road on many of our facilities.” 

Identifying what needs to be done and looking at ways to pay for it will be the job of the facilities and operations committee. 

There’s been administrative turnover as well, he said, which slowed down the process of figuring out what is needed and how to pay for it. In his opinion, that’s why a 10-year plan is important. 

“This has to be a long-term commitment,” he said. 

The district will work with officials at Education Service District 105, Yakima, and architects from NAC Architects, Spokane. Upgrading and remodeling facilities is expensive, and before they consent to projects, district patrons will have to be confident that any money spent is being spent wisely, Harlow said.  

“So when (residents ask), ‘Why are you putting a new roof on Mattawa Elementary?’ or ‘Why are you looking to possibly remodel a building?’ this is going to be the plan that maximizes the most grant dollars, the most state and federal dollars, maximizes our most urgent needs,” Harlow said. “And again, it isn’t just one person driving this.” 

District patrons also will get a look at the plan as it develops, he said. People who want to volunteer for the committee should contact Cheryl Douglas at the WSD office at 509-932-4565.