Sierra Unified Hopes Voters Will Approve School Bond Measure for First Time Ever
Published on GV Wire, August 14, 2024
By Edward Smith (view original article here)

A $24.2 million bond will be on the November ballot for mountain and foothill residents in Sierra Unified School District.

Trustee James Hoak says selling the community on the bond will be an “uphill battle.” But he’s confident that when voters learn the district’s buildings average age is 71 years, they’ll realize the benefits of voting to pass.

The district unsuccessfully tried in 2008 and again in 2012 to pass bonds.

“We decided on a lower amount so we can start making some improvements and earning trust,” Hoak said. “We want to show the community what we can do with this chunk of change and then go from there. We’re really just trying to take baby steps … with the things that really need to be improved.”

First Time Sierra Unified Has Proposed a Bond (corrected)

Sierra Unified has never passed a school bond before. The district’s bond committee has a town hall scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 22. The bond will focus on modernizing the buildings — one of which is more than 100 years old.

The small gym was built in 1922, according to the needs assessment conducted by the district. The administration building dates to 1938.
“Some of the sinks and stuff that’s inside the bathrooms have been around for generations,” Hoak said. “My mom probably used the same toilet.”

The biggest expense covered by the bond would be new roofing, estimated at $7.8 million. New windows would cost the district $2 million.

Hoak said the old buildings have strong bones and the desire of the board is to maintain their classic character.

Approving Bond Opens Up Matching Funds for District

The bond would add $45 of property tax per $100,000 of assessed value, generating about $1.7 million a year. Hoak said there’s definitely been a negative reaction to the tax.

A conservative himself, Hoak said he was initially opposed to it, too, until he realized the need to upgrade the district’s aging structures.
The district tried to pass both the $12 million Measure V and $10 million Measure W in 2008.

Measure V failed with 51.36% of voters opposing it. The 51.03% of voters who approved Measure W were not enough to make up the necessary 55%.
The $5 million Measure O in 2012 also failed to get the 55% necessary to pass, only getting 50.9%.

Hoak said many voters are coming around to support the bond, which also needs 55% for passage. He hopes the town hall will give the public a chance to see the condition of some buildings.

“I think it’s gaining momentum. People are realizing, ‘you know what? Yeah, we need to make these improvements,’ ” Hoak said. “I see it changing but definitely we took it on as an uphill battle.”

Getting a school bond approved could also open up matching funds from the state budget, especially Proposition 2, the $10 billion statewide public education bond that earmarks some money for small districts.

Prop. 2, which goes before voters statewide in November, covers up to 65% of modernization project costs and 55% of new construction projects.
Contractor Schneider Electric agreed to work with the district to help find funds, Hoak said.

“Personally, I think it’s definitely going to happen, we’ll get more funds out of that,” Hoak said. “But you don’t know until you pass the bond and start moving forward.”

Major Upgrades at Sierra
Previously Published in the Mountain Press, July 1, 2024
By CANDYCE KULIKOFF, Mountain Press contributing writer

Sierra High School sits nestled among the foothills on the slopes of the Sierra Nevada. The school opened in tents in the fall of 1922, over a hundred years ago, moving into a permanent building the following year. In 1934, the small gym was built and became the social center of the community, hosting dances and dinners, plays, and recreation activities.

Over the years, administration, math and science buildings were added to the sprawling landscape. In 1938 the administration building was added, the library in 1947, and most of the classroom wings in 1950. Education also changed over time to include more extracurricular offerings and the most recent buildings were added, such as the Presentation Center (1968) and the Auto Shop (1970s).

While the facilities management and employees continue to maintain basic repairs and upkeep as best they can, it has been decades since the school has had substantial work done to benefit the students who attend.

The current summer project at Sierra High facilities has been a major electrical upgrade to accommodate the technology of today, with more computers and internet being used throughout the day in all areas of campus. Kelly Capps, the new facilities manager for Sierra, is currently working to replace two of the main transformers as well as repairing and adding more panels to handle the electrical load. Fiberoptic cables have been added to help with faster internet speeds, as well as energy efficient lighting throughout the district. Total cost of these upgrades is $3,567,234. The major electrical overhaul is to be completed over winter vacation, as work cannot be done while students and faculty are present for safety reasons.

The district is paying for the project by applying leftover Covid ESSER funds allocated for health and safety projects in the amount of $1,993,466. In addition, the monies from the 2019 sale of Auberry Elementary, $2.35 million, has been saved for major facilities work, and some of those funds are being spent on this project.

In addition to the electrical overhaul, separate grants have been awarded to the school district with the help of Schneider Electric, who is the main prevailing-wage contractor working with the school district on upcoming projects. All government-owned buildings require prevailing-wage contractors to meet specific guidelines for the state.

A $1.7 million grant from San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District has been awarded to the district to build an electric bus infrastructure. (Last October Governor Newsom signed legislation to move forward on requiring schools to purchase zero emission buses by 2035.) A grant was received from California Schools Healthy Air, Plumbing and Efficiency Program and from California Energy Commission of $609,508.39 to begin replacing toilets, sinks and icemakers districtwide. The district also received a COPS grant from the Department of Justice for surveillance cameras in the amount of $375,000 in 2023. Additional cameras have been installed in all outdoor areas of the school, including Lodge Road and parking lots. Cameras are now also in the cafeteria and library.

Kelly Capps stated, “The vision is making Sierra successful in all areas of the environment for the students to learn in.”

SUSD Considers a Bond in November
By Cortney Burke, March 2024

The Sierra Unified School District Board of Trustees is placing a bond measure on the ballot for November 2024.

Facilities on the Sierra High campus range from the nearly 100-year-old small gym to the newest building, which is the Presentation Center, built in 1968. If you have recently visited the campus, you will have seen the same bathrooms you saw 40 years ago, the same library, gyms and locker rooms; roofs have been patched and some classrooms still have only two electrical outlets.

Over the last several years, the district has gone through a major review of needs and priorities. We have been working through the top priorities with the help of grants, COVID funds, and money from the sale and lease of surplus properties. These projects address basic necessities like replacing the main electrical transfer station, which dates back to 1974. Working through these projects has made it clearer than ever that the issues with our aging facilities are far greater than the funding we have, which leads us to consider a bond.

The list of fundamental needs is long: roof replacements and repairs, improving campus security and fire safety, repair or replace inefficient heating, air conditioning, electrical systems throughout the campus. There will be a focus on updating and modernizing classrooms, labs, technology, fields, farm facilities and common areas. Due to the age of the campus, we must also plan for ADA upgrades, and possible mitigation of asbestos, mold or lead paint issues during upgrades. We are also considering an upgraded track to legal CIF size and all-weather turf.

We are evaluating a measure authorizing $24,000,000 (twenty-four million) in bonds at legal interest rates, a levy of $45 per $100,000 assessed value, while bonds are outstanding.

The measure requires independent citizens oversight, annual audits and reports to the community to ensure that the school district uses these funds as promised. Funds from this measure will go towards bettering the education, health and safety of students at Sierra High and Sierra Alt Ed. By law, no money from this measure can be used for salaries.

The bonds would be paid for through local property taxes, at current values. An example would be: if your home is currently assessed by Fresno County at $300,000, this bond would be an annual added tax of $135; a value of $600,000 would be $270 per year. (You can find your current assessed value, at www.fresnocountyca.gov/Departments/Assessor/Value)

The needs are great and without the support of the community, the school will fall even further behind as a great place for our students. SUSD is the only Unified School District in Fresno County that has not passed a school bond. For far less than $1 per day for most of this community, we hope you will follow the campaign in the coming months.