Elk Grove Unified School District Seeks Construction Funds

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Elk Grove Unified School District in Sacramento is currently seeking $450 million in bond sales to upgrade its aging schools, and possibly to build several new ones, according to the Sacramento Bee. The district outlined its plans in a February 2016 facilities master plan document, and hopes voters will approve the bond on a ballot that will also include a $9 billion statewide initiative for K-12 campuses and community colleges.

Voter support for the bond funding would provide part of the total $1.7 billion Elk Grove says it needs to make general upgrades to its schools — including patching roofs, providing updated technology and keeping air conditioners running — and support some new construction. The funds would also help build several new campuses to accommodate the nearly 14,000 additional students that are expected in the district in the next 10 years, according to officials at a February school board meeting.

The proposed plan would require homeowners in the Elk Grove district to pay $38 per $100,000 of assessed property value annually, according to the Sacramento Bee. The average residence would pay approximately $96.52 annually, said Robert Pierce, Elk Grove Unified School District’s associate superintendent of facilities and planning.

According to Pierce, many in the community believe that Elk Grove Unified is a new district, but the average district school is about 20 years old. Major updates to sports fields, libraries and school offices are greatly needed. The district plans to devote all bond money received to improving and repairing existing schools, but its ability to use funds exclusively for repairs relies on the statewide initiative passing. If the initiative does not pass, the funds would have to support projects deemed essential for the community, which includes new school construction. Upgrades for the existing campuses would be put on hold and would be completed as the district is able.
Community members have mixed feelings on the statewide initiative, as some believe it is a “money pit,” according to the Sacramento Bee, while others feel if the updates are needed, the district should provide them.

If the $9 billion proposed initiative passes, $3 billion would go toward new K-12 school construction and an additional $3 billion would support modernizing existing K-12 campuses. The initiative would also provide $2 billion to community colleges, $500 million to career technical education facilities and $500 million to local private schools.

Elk Grove Unified has determined there is a need for an additional 10 elementary schools and one new high school in the next decade, according to Pierce’s statement at the February board meeting. The total cost of these schools would be approximately $634 million.