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Kennewick School District will ask voters for a $107 million bond on Feb. 9
The Daily Kennewick team
If you live in the Kennewick School District, mark Feb. 9. The school board voted 4-0 Wednesday to put a $107 million bond on that special election ballot, with board member Brittany Gledhill absent. It would rebuild Horse Heaven Hills Middle School and Highlands Middle School, and pay for restrooms, technology, career and technical education and playground work across the district.
The bond by the numbers
- $107 million
- bond measure on the Feb. 9 ballot
- $61 million
- in expiring state match dollars it would capture
- $76
- estimated yearly cost on a $400,000 home
- 60%
- minimum voter approval needed to pass
Sources: Tri-City Herald, Nonstop Local News
“We can’t pass up $61 million from the state that everyone in this room who’s paying taxes paid into, including all of us up here.”
The bond alone is estimated at about 19 cents per $1,000 of assessed value when collection begins in 2028, and it climbs from there. The district says its property tax rate should stay in the $3 range, and the board says it would hold combined rates flat by restructuring existing debt.
The bond's rate would climb from 19 cents to 30 cents by 2030
Source: Tri-City Herald
View as table
| Rate per $1,000 of assessed value | |
|---|---|
| 2028 | $0.19 |
| 2029 | $0.27 |
| 2030 | $0.30 |
- Combined rate: about $1,200 a year on a $400,000 home
- Highlands Middle: built 1959, serves 760 students
- Richland plans its own $94 million bond in February
Sources: Tri-City Herald, Nonstop Local News