Questions about the bond? Click here to submit a question, or send an email to: wsdbond@wenatcheeschools.org 

Bond Phase 2 - Q&A

Q. Why not a new high school—were other options considered?

A. A number of other scenarios were considered, including:

• Build a second comprehensive high school and modernize WHS
   
• Convert  Foothills Middle School into a smaller 9-12 school for about 600 students, which would require building a new middle school.
   
• Build a STEAM academy for 600 students.
   
• Acquire the Public Utility District building on Wenatchee Avenue, as they move out.
   
• Reconfigure grades to 8-9 junior high, 10-12 high school, and build a new junior high for 1200 students.
   
• Acquire the Wenatchee Federal Building for a secondary high school campus.

The citizens committee concluded that all options would have significant costs which divert too much of the available funds away from the modernization of WHS.

Q. How many students will the modernized WHS hold, and will it be large enough for the future?

A. Just over 1,900 students are enrolled at WHS. Running Start and Wenatchee Valley Technical Skills Center students are not on campus, reducing population to about 1800 students physically on campus at the same time

Q. How will passing the construction bond change my taxes?

A. The Bond will create a $1.17 increase over 2017 tax rate per $1,000 assessed value

Q. How many students will the modernized WHS hold, and will it be large enough for the future?

A. The modernized Wenatchee High School will be built for a population of 1,900 full time equivalent (FTE) students, and there is additional space for up to 200 additional students should population grow. That population calculation was created using a number of tools: cohort survival projections; consultation with the City of Wenatchee officials; and density charts, including number of people living in households. Using these tools, the projection showed that the FTE’s may stay around 1,900 FTE’s or even decline in the next decade.

Q. What expertise does the citizens committee have?

A. This 33 member committee was made up of 14 community members, 2 high school students,  2 School Board Members, 4 school representatives, 1 Wenatchee Education Association (WenEA) member, and 10 program/school administrators. The Committee’s work was facilitated by five senior administrative staff and four consultants, including architects and engineers.The methodology included a series of consultant presentations, facility tours, in depth discussions and brainstorming sessions which ultimately lead to a consensus, and resulted in the recommendation to modernize and add to the existing Wenatchee High School.

Q. What is the actual life of the infrastructure?

A. The life expectancy of the current infrastructure correlates to when the cost to operate and maintain the system over takes the benefit of using the system. The district maintenance and operations staff does a good job of maintaining these systems, but repairs usually require complete replacements because parts are not available anymore. Efficiency and connectivity have also become an issue.

Q. How many students will the new classrooms hold?

A. The current classrooms are too small at 750 sq. ft. for 30 or more students, depending on the class. 21st Century classroom recommended at 900 sq. ft. with technology capacity. The newly remodeled school would include the 900 sq. ft. classrooms with technology infrastructure. There will also be areas for collaborative learning, similar to the new Washington Elementary School and Lincoln Elementary School, which clusters grade level classrooms into pods and includes a central space for small groups and/or collaborative learning.

Q. How is the kitchen equipment a problem?

A. The kitchen is not functional enough to feed all the student in the school — about 1,000 students a day. Food stations are spread out through the entire school in order to feed all the kids and give them time to eat lunch. The equipment is old and undersized, and the kitchen is to small to hold all the necessary equipment, so some equipment is in a back hallway. The old equipment slows down the cooking and presents problems every day. A lot of the equipment at WHS is second hand from the other schools that were recently remodeled, but the equipment is newer than what the high school had. The freezer is too small to hold enough food to feed the current high school population. The floor in the kitchen is sinking, leaving a lip into the freezer which makes it tough to load and unload.

Why aren't plumbing leaks repaired? Plumbing leaks are repaired and/or worked around, but due to age there are failing pipes, old valves, drains that are plugged or back up when used, and plumbing imbedded in concrete.

Q. Are there different phases of construction? Final completion date?

A. The construction for Wenatchee High School will be a phased project in a sense that a new classroom wing and likely the new kitchen and commons area will be built and occupied by students and staff prior to demolition of the existing spaces.  This phased approach will allow students to remain in the building during construction and alleviate the need for additional portable classrooms.  It is anticipated the design of the new facility will take two years and construction will take two years from the date of bond approval.