Walla Walla Schools Seeks to Pass Levy, and Capital Projects in February

In February 2024, the Walla Walla School District will ask voters to approve their operational levy, which maintains current funding levels tor the day-to-day function of its school, but also a capital improvements levy.

 Some of the facilities WWSD seeks to replace or upgrade are 40-plus years old

According to the District, the operations levy will replace the previous one passed by voters:

"Replacing the same rate approved by voters in 2020, the EP&O “Learning Levy” remains capped at $2.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value. It will run from 2025 to 2028."

This operations levy covers 18 areas ranging from athletics to band, honors programs, facility maintenance, phys ed., and basically anything to do with daily operations.

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  Capital Levy will replace many old facilities

The Capital Levy would replace or renovate 8 important facilities in the District:

" the Capital Levy rate is estimated to be no more than 38 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value and will automatically expire after six years. The Outdoor Capital Levy would cost about $3 per month for every $100,000 of assessed value. For a home assessed at $300,000 the annual cost would be $114 per year or $9.50 per month through the six-year Capital Levy time frame."

According to the WWSD, here's a list of the facilities the Capital Levy would 'fix'

• • "Replace the 60-year-old original tennis courts at Wa-Hi
  • Install an all-weather track at Pioneer MS for athlete, school and community use
  • Repair the 43-year-old Garrison tennis courts (Chubb Courts) and resurface the 20-year-old track
  • Consistent with all league schools, install high-quality artificial turf playing surfaces and field lighting (low spill/low glare) in order to maximize utilization, participation and post-season play at both the Klicker and Hayner Park fields at Wa-Hi
  • Install outdoor lighting (low spill/low glare) in order to minimize instructional loss and maximize family participation for baseball and softball players
  • Install elevated bleachers with ADA access at the Klicker Track and Field site for soccer, football and track and field spectators
  • Provide adequate access to restrooms and changing rooms for high school athletes
  • Construct a JROTC "Raider Obstacle Course" for student, first responder and community use"

Citizens can get more information about the levy projects by clicking here.