$110 million school measure headed to Oak Harbor voters - Whidbey News-Times

$110 million school measure headed to Oak Harbor voters

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Voters will decide early next year whether to approve a 20-year, $110 million bond proposed by the Oak Harbor School District in order to fund the construction of a new elementary school and the replacement of the transportation center.

Board members voted to place the measure on the Feb. 9 special election ballot during a meeting Monday night. The district estimates the tax rate will start at $0.97 in 2028 before dropping to and staying at $0.95, although that may change.

Owners of homes with assessed values of $500,000 are estimated to pay approximately $40 more a month, or $475 more a year, at these rates.

A 60% supermajority is needed to pass school bonds in Washington state.

Maintaining Oak Harbor Elementary School and the transportation center — two aging facilities school officials call unsafe — is becoming costly for the district. The decision to build a new school and replace the center follows recommendations of the district’s Capital Facilities Advisory Committee.

The district plans to construct a new elementary school on a 10-acre property it owns at Fort Nugent Park to replace Oak Harbor Elementary, which is at the corner of Whidbey Avenue and Midway Boulevard. District officials explained at a meeting earlier this year that a new school could reduce the need for portable classrooms district-wide and newly serve an area of the district demonstrating growth.

While Oak Harbor Elementary would be decommissioned, the historic building would be preserved and repurposed for the community’s use. Oak Harbor city staff have discussed the possibility of using the property in their efforts to create fields and recreation space.

The transportation center, which is beyond its life expectancy, could remain at its existing site, according to Superintendent Michelle Kuss-Cybula, but a failing roof and heating system and other issues necessitate its replacement.

The district does not expect funding for new buildings from the state’s School Construction Assistance Program, or SCAP, according to Kuss-Cybula. Federal funding, a presentation added, is limited to special grant opportunities and requires significant local matching.”

Previously, the superintendent called the district’s ability to fund the construction of two new school buildings — the new Crescent Harbor Elementary and Forest Vista Learning Center — a “twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” State and federal grants totaling more than $130 million paid for their construction, according to a previous News-Times story; the schools qualified for federal funding due to their locations on military property.

Federal funding covered 80% of the cost of the two schools because the district paid for the remaining 20% with state Sen. Ron Muzzall’s help. He secured state funding after two bond attempts by the district in 2022 and 2023 failed.