North Wasco County School District Secures Unanimous Vote for $140 Million Bond on November 23 Ballot to Replace The Dalles High School

By Robin Denning

The Dalles, OR— The North Wasco County School District held its regular meeting on June 15th, 2023 to discuss several matters including an upcoming school bond.

The meeting began with congratulations and celebrations for The Dalles Riverhawks State Softball Champions, who won the state championship on June 3rd, 2023, the same day as high school graduation. The school board members and superintendent, Dr. Bernal, honored the teams and coaches with gifts and high praise, recognizing their inspiring achievements.

One of the key agenda items during the meeting was a presentation by Jeremy Wright, a Public Affairs consultant, who shared the results of two rounds of polling conducted over the past 12 months. The second, and most recent survey conducted in May this year involved 400 randomly selected voters from The Dalles and provided valuable insights for the board's decision-making process.

The polling focused on three different voting packages for the board, with bond amounts of $140 million, $130 million, and $120 million. While all packages aimed to address the need for a new high school, and provide a plan for the current high school, the higher amounts included more features such as more career and technical education programs, athletics, and repairing & repurposing the current high school. The language on the slide read “Allow it to centralize services, creating efficiencies by locating things like expanded childcare services and community programs in the building”.

You can watch the full presentation below.

The presentation highlighted some of the current issues faced by the high school, including security concerns and seismic readiness. At least 28% of the polling recipients expressed agreement with the statement emphasizing the need for enhanced security measures to protect against school shootings. The poll also showed favorable responses regarding the importance of earthquake safety and the potential use of the high school as a disaster shelter and relief site.

Following the presentation, the board discussed the possibility of putting the bond on the ballot in November 2023. Dr. Bernal presented the final options proposed by the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) and the facilities groups, conveying the consulting firm’s recommendation of the $120 million bond package.

During the discussion, the chair, Jose Apricio mentioned that the district had already sold off one piece of land to pay for additional career technical education at the high school and they’re working on another parcel on the east side near the veteran’s home to raise funds for facilities.

Dr. Carolyn Bernal added “It’s important to remember that all of our facilities have a long list of repairs and we would be remiss if we did not utilize those dollars to also go towards the repairs our other buildings desperately need.”

David Jones’s response emphasized the importance of going for the higher bond to adequately address the students needs and do the job properly.

”If we don't do it now, it's not going to get done. Colonel Wright’s 100 years old next year. It's going to need a new replacement. So if we put anything off in the high school, what I'm saying now it's not going to get done,” said Jones.

Eventually, Jones motioned to move forward with the $140 million package, and Adrian Lopez seconded the motion. The measure passed successfully with a unanimous vote from all the members present. This decision marked the culmination of an 18-month-long planning and feedback process involving an over 60-person committee, elected leaders, parents, and stakeholders.

Since the culmination of the Community Advisory Committee's work, a political action committee (PAC) has been formed to run a campaign in support of the bond measure. The PAC, North Wasco Strong Community Schools, represented by Davina Craig, Robin Denning, and Marie Mourou, encourages parents, alumni, and local residents to share their personal stories about The Dalles High School and how a new building would benefit student safety, academic achievement, athletic and musical excellence, and more. In addition to striving for high achievement, this bond package also facilitates major repairs of the current high school building, ensuring that the current high school building at Amaton field will continue to be used for educational programs into the future. More information about the PAC can be found at voteyestdhs.org

The approved bond of $140 million, with a cost of $3.12 per thousand dollars of assessed home value, will enable the construction of a new high school and the renovation of the existing The Dalles High School to centralize and expand services, including childcare, currently spread throughout the district.

Here’s the exact language of what was presented in that package:

[140 MILLION] A bond that would cost the average homeowner three dollars and 12 cents per thousand dollars of assessed home value. This bond would allow the district to replace The Dalles High School with a building that meets safety and educational standards for today instead of those from 1940. The new building would provide increased space for career and technical opportunities. Unlike the current high school, the building would be fully accessible for students, staff, and community members with disabilities. The current high school would be repurposed, receiving basic repairs that allow it to centralize services, creating efficiencies by locating things like expanded childcare services and community programs in the building. The bond would also pay for the demolition of the existing Wahtonka campus, creating space for in-demand athletic fields.

You can watch the boards discussion and decision below:

For more details and to calculate the tax impact, you can visit the tax calculator available at voteyestdhs.org/calculator.

Additional Information about the Bond & Taxes

- Bond repayment is based on tax assessed value, which isn't necessarily the same amount that a property would fetch on the real estate market. To find your assessed value, check your property tax statement or you can request information at the Wasco County Tax Assessor's Office.

- Repayment will be based on the actual amount of money that’s spent, the $140million represented the maximum amount the district could bond.

- The school district has completed steps to gain a $4 million dollar grant from the state.

- Any additional funds that The City of The Dalles or Wasco County decides to add from the Google money would reduce the amount and burden on taxpayers. The community is encouraged to share their opinions on this in public meetings and work with elected officials and show their support.

- Work has continued through the district administration and the political action committee to investigate and secure additional opportunities for non-taxpayer funding to support the project.