LPOSD levy talk goes live

SANDPOINT — The Bonner County Daily Bee hosted a live Facebook interview Monday regarding the Lake Pend Oreille School District's proposed $55.1 million plant facilities A.

For those who missed it, here are some highlights from the interview with Shawn Woodward, district superintendent, and Kendon Perry, head of the plant facilities levy committee.

The levy, spread out over six years, is estimated to cost $200 per year for taxpayers with a home valued at $200,000. Taxpayers are currently paying on a two-year supplemental levy, which residents with a home valued at $200,000 pay an estimated $184 per year.

Woodward said the district is currently in the second year of the supplemental levy and another will go to voters in March of next year. The supplemental levy amount is approximately $7.9 million per year, he said, and represents one-third of the district's operating budget. Perry explained the money from a supplemental levy and money from a plant facilities levy are two separate "buckets" and the dollars in those "buckets" can not be interchanged. The plant facilities levy, for example, can not be used to supplement salaries, although it can be used to pay a consultant who is overseeing the construction.

Woodward said the cost of maintaining the school facilities is about $1.3 million a year, much of which comes from the supplemental levy. The $1.3 million includes funding of supplies, materials and maintenance staff — not including custodial staff.

"The good news is, the reason it is only $1.3 million is we have a lot of good people on staff with a wide range of background experience, so they actually do that work for us," Woodward said.

Some of the maintenance and repair issues Woodward mentioned are broken water lines, creating the need to bring in portable toilets and bottles water in order for school to continue; the kitchen at Northside Elementary School was shut down due to a failed sewage line; and the district is "routinely" having to use a jackhammer on the floors to access plumbing and heating at three of the oldest schools: Sandpoint Middle School and Washington and Northside elementary schools. Those three schools would be rebuilt if the levy passes. The district also plans to upgrade security systems district-wide, including an integrated emergency notification system and secure exterior doors.

"The other problem we can't do a lot about without investing a lot of money is the air quality," Woodward said. "Our ventilation systems are 60 years old — we can clean them and those kind of things, but they just don't provide adequate amounts of fresh air."

While the high CO2 levels are not dangerous to student health, it impacts their ability to think clearly. Perry said the consultant on the project, Dave Teter, said educating students in a bright, modern, well ventilated, new facility can impact student learning by as much as 6 percent.

"When we add that on top of the academic performance that we've got in this school district, that's a pretty substantial number," Perry said.

When the process began last fall and the consultant was brought in to look at the facilities and the needs of the district, Woodward said one thing they looked at was enrollment. The consultant looked back over five years to determine what enrollment will look like throughout the course of the six-year levy period.

When Coldwater Creek shut down in 2014, Woodward said the district lost about 100 students. Even with that drop, looking forward they expect to see an enrollment decrease of no more than 3 percent, between 83 and 115 students, over the next six years. That number also does not factor in new programs, such as the new home school academy, which Woodward estimates will draw in about 40 new students by the end of the school year.

"The enrollment situation is critical," Perry said. "What is more critical is the fact that, regardless of flat enrollment, increasing or decreasing enrollment, these building are in dire need of some attention. So even if we saw kids going away, we would still be obligated, in my opinion, to be responsible to the kids that are still here to do something proactive."

A common question by voters is why run a plant facilities levy rather than a bond? Perry said it came down to the options of a levy, which is a 55 percent yes vote, or a bond, which is typically spread over 20 years and requires a 66.67 percent yes vote. Perry said the committee felt they could more successfully invest time and resources in the levy. Also, he said, when the cost is spread out over 20 years it is less money each year, but the net cost to a property owner is greater over a 20-year period and saves about $6.8 million in financing costs as well.

"It's suggested that the district and the committee is not being prudent with the money, I'd say otherwise," Perry said. That is darn near the cost of a new elementary school by not going after a bond."

Woodward added that during the six-year levy period there is "no thought" of going after a bond.

Another question by voters is how a bond or levy is financed. For full information regarding this question, Woodward recommended calling the district's chief financial and operations officer, Lisa Hals at 263-2184.

Woodward said the levy would allow the district to borrow money from a bank or private investors to finance the project, allowing them to finish all of the construction in less than three years.

"We need to do this sooner than later," Woodward said. "We are pretty excited. Three years from now I hope we have much better facilities for our students."

The Daily Bee is hosting a Facebook Live interview with the Vote No committee regarding the levy at 11 a.m. Friday.