BLAST FROM THE PAST:
Cascade school district’s maintenance director Dario Moore points out damaged tiles in a locker room designed in the ‘50s.

After years of focusing on educating students, trustees of the Cascade Union Elementary School District are switching gears to educate the public. They hope to also convince a majority of local voters to support a $12.4 million school bond ballot measure.

Cascade Union Elementary School District board members voted to place the school bond measure on the Nov. 4 ballot during a special board meeting Thursday, July 31.

The board identified a number of significant repairs, upgrades and facility construction needs that far outweigh the district’s current budget. After more than a month of study and discussion, board trustees chose to move forward with a general bond measure in hopes of alleviating the district’s funding needs.

The ballot measure states that school renovations need to be made in order to keep them functional for future generations.

“We want the learning environments to be as conducive to learning as they can possibly be,” District superintendent Wes Smith said.

“When you have leaky roofs and heating and air conditioning systems that are so outdated that they can’t keep the climate controlled in a classroom, that’s problematic,” he said.

The ballot measure calls for a flat tax rate of $30 per $100,000 of assessed property value. If approved, this rate would translate into a monthly tax of $3.10 for the average homeowner living in the district. If the bond passes in November, funds could be used toward a specific list of capital improvement projects. Although the district isn’t required to address every project on the list, trustees are prohibited from using bond funds for projects not on the list. Additionally, no bond money can be used for teacher or administrator salaries. A citizens’ oversight committee will make sure the bond funds are spent properly.

Smith said that if the bond passes, it would increase the likelihood of the school district receiving additional matching funds from the state and federal governments to help pay for bond-identified projects.

The district’s bond consultant said the schools’ ages illustrate the need for help within the school district.

“It’s not as if we are talking about fixing up schools that are 10-years-old or 20-years-old. These schools are old,” Jon Isom said, noting most of the district’s buildings were constructed before or during the early 1960s.

District superintendent Wes Smith said bond funds would be used toward projects at every school site in the district, but the bulk of the work would concentrate on improvements to Anderson Middle School.

“It’s the only school that hasn’t been modernized in the district and it really needs the most work,” Smith said.

Built in 1949, the school clearly shows signs of deterioration, as the photos attest.

District maintenance director Dario Moore said he takes pride in the schools, but there is only so much patching he can do.

District representatives said they would initially address the most urgent projects.

“We are going to determine what the greatest needs in the districts are and do those first,” Smith said.