SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — The West Valley School District will be asking the community to consider a three-year capital projects levy in the November election.
The levy would replace the current levy that is set to expire at the end of the year.
The replacement levy would cost taxpayers in Spokane Valley $1 per $1,000 of assessed property value, which is $0.26 less than what the current capital projects levy cost taxpayers this year.
That means, if you own a home valued at $400,000, you would pay about $400 in taxes per year for this new levy.
One of the reasons the school district said this levy is needed is for the student pick-up and drop-off sections at Seth Woodard Elementary School.
One parent at the school said he supports this levy because improvements are needed.
“If they had a bigger space to actually have cars that are parked on the side, because once the cars are parked on the side and the buses are there, there’s no way any car can back out,” said James, a parent of a first grader at Seth Woodard. “I’ve had difficult situations with that. I had to sit there for 30 minutes.”
James said sometimes the congestion can cause confusion and people sometimes end up yelling at each other.
“Because once the cars are parked on the side and the buses are there, there’s no way any car can back out. It’s very difficult,” said James.
Around 150 students currently attend the Woodward.
The district said the new levy would pay to create space in the back of the school for parents to pick up and drop off their kids. This would separate parents’ cars from the bus area.
The levy would also pay to improve similar situations at other schools and update aging security cameras.
“It’s getting hard to see around corners and what we can see on the cameras, an so that’s a big investment to have those cameras so we know what’s going on to keep students and staff safe,” said Vicki Leifer, Assistant Superintendent of West Valley School District.
The new levy, combined with the educational programs and operations levy approved in February, will cost the community $3.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value over the next three years.
It is a smaller ask from the district after its bond failed in the February elections.
“We did a survey with the community after the bond failed, and we’re listening to the community, and it’s really not the right time for a bond, but we still need to maintain and support the buildings that we currently have, that they have invested in historically,” said Leifer.
You can find other projects this proposed levy would fund HERE.
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