Battle Ground Public Schools

Levy-funded projects preserve buildings, enhance safety and enrich education

With remote learning in effect, Battle Ground Public Schools’ maintenance and operations crews have been as busy as ever completing a variety of projects made possible by levy funds. Part of the district’s five-year plan for school improvements, these projects help preserve district and community assets, enhance learning opportunities, and improve safety and security for students.

The district is dedicated to using available funding responsibly so that school buildings last for current and future generations. The completion of regular and interval maintenance projects is a vital part of protecting and preserving these valuable community assets.

Some interval projects that have been completed recently (or are scheduled to get underway soon) include the installation of new roofs at Amboy Middle School and on the B building at the Lewisville campus (home to the district’s Nutrition Services department). New carpet at Prairie High School was installed to replace the nearly 50-year-old flooring. That’s right – the carpet at Prairie High School that was replaced this year was originally installed when bell bottoms were all the rage and disco fever was still gripping the nation.

Another interval project completed this summer was the preparation and painting of the exterior buildings on the Daybreak campus, which was built as part of the bond measure passed in 2005. Painting building exteriors; replacing roofs and HVAC systems; repairing sidewalks and covered walkways; and replacing siding, worn out floor coverings and aging countertops are all part of the district’s preservation efforts.

Across Washington, nearly all of the 295 school districts rely on levy money to provide important student programs and services. While education funding from the state provides for some regular maintenance and custodial supplies, it is not nearly enough to adequately maintain and preserve buildings, making levy dollars an integral piece of solving the school funding puzzle.

“Unfortunately, some maintenance projects get delayed when levies fail,” said Kevin Jolma, Battle Ground Public Schools’ Director of Facilities and Operations. “Many of the projects that are being completed now were scheduled for completion in previous years, but were delayed until now because of budget constraints.”

Jolma and his team are always looking for ways to make public dollars go as far as possible, seeking alternative solutions to building from scratch wherever possible. And because the district contracts with local companies to complete many of these necessary projects, levy-funded projects also help support the local economy.

The installation of fencing at Battle Ground and Prairie high schools and the Pleasant Valley campuses was completed earlier this year as part of the district’s mission of improving campus security. Two years ago, the district began making security improvements to campuses after contracting with 4Pointe LLC to provide an assessment for enhancing the safety and security of district school buildings. Based on the principles of Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design, the assessment included recommendations to enhance our school buildings beginning with the outside, and moving to the inside.

Other projects aim to enhance the learning environment with updated technology infrastructure, new lighting systems for performance spaces, and covered play areas. The libraries at Battle Ground and Prairie High Schools were revised to make more efficient use of the available space, as today’s high school students use libraries and media centers more for access to technology than they do for access to printed books.

Maple Grove Primary School has a new covered play structure that enables students to enjoy outdoor recess, even during the rainy winter months. A similar covered area is coming to the Yacolt Primary School campus, with the project scheduled to get underway in the spring of 2021.

Other levy-funded projects have improved access on school campuses. Take for example the recently completed connection of the Glenwood Heights Primary and Laurin Middle School campuses to the public sewer system. These campuses had been on septic since they were built in 1956 and 1965, and the system could no longer support the growth of students coming into the area. By connecting to the sewer system, this freed up an additional 2.5 acres of usable outdoor recreational space that was previously inaccessible because of the septic system.

Battle Ground Public Schools’ current levy expires in 2021, and the board of directors recently decided unanimously to dip into the district’s reserve fund and put a replacement levy before voters that is less than the current schools levy rate. The district also plans to strategically schedule future maintenance projects to take into account economic impacts.

The Battle Ground district already has the lowest property tax rate of all K-12 districts in Clark County. While other districts rely on multiple levies to fund technology, transportation, capital projects and educational programs, Battle Ground funds all these elements out of a single levy.

The educational programs and operations (EP & O) levy will be on the Nov. 2 general election ballot. The levy is not a new tax, and if approved, will replace the levy that expires at the end of 2021. It is estimated that property owners in the district will see a decrease in their local schools tax rate of 33 cents in 2022 compared to this year’s 2021 rate of $2.32 per $1,000 of assessed value. The local levy rate is projected to be $1.99 per $1,000 of assessed value during all four years.

For more information about the Nov. 2, 2021 levy, please visit our website at www.battlegroundps.org/levy.