The Morrow County School District in Oregon passed a $204.4 million bond following the close results of a special election on June 11, with residents approving the bond, 1,245 to 1,239.
The General Obligation Bond will authorize the usage of residents’ property taxes to fund school district capital projects. As the bond was approved, the district will also receive $6 million in a matching grant from the Oregon School Capital Improvement Matching Program.
Passing the bond was a yearlong, collaborative effort involving the Community Bond Advisory Board, school board members, district administrators, teachers and district facility and business departments among others. The funds will support projects that improve and update schools across the district, many of which are at the end of life for structure and operating systems.
The multi-million-dollar bond will fund the following projects:
Irrigon Jr./Sr. High School — $74 million will go towards replacing the school as the building is beyond its service life. The new school will be designed as a modern education environment for students.
Riverside Jr./Sr. High School — $75.9 million will fund a remodel of the school and build additional classroom space and a gym to support future enrollment.
Heppner Jr./Sr. High School and Heppner Elementary — $50.5 million will help to remodel the junior and senior high school to become a K-12 campus. The campus will feature grade level separation, resulting in operational savings and a safer location for elementary students.
Sam Boardman Elementary — $5 million will go towards parking and traffic flow improvements, including a dedicated bus loop for safety.
The district will also invest $5 million to improve security and safety at facilities, including secure main entry, camera and door access control. These features will be implemented at all district schools including A.C. Houghton Elementary, Irrigon Elementary, Morrow Education Center, Sam Boardman Elementary and Windy River Elementary.
The bond will mature over a 20-year period, and its rate is estimated to be $2.99 per $1,000 of assessed property value, although the actual levy rate may differ. For an assessed property value of $225,000, the owner would see an increase of $56 a month or $673 a year.
Morrow County School District is set to establish a bond oversight committee to manage the progress of the bond projects. Updates on the projects can be found on the district’s dedicated bond website.
Photo by 652234 from Pixabay
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