Measure would allocate
$116 million to schools
■ Ballot Measure 20-56, which
is slated to appear in the May 21
primary, looks to rebuild and
revamp four area schools
By Brad Schmidt
Oregon Daily Emerald
This primary election, the Eugene
School Board will ask the $100 mil
lion question: Are Eugene taxpay
ers willing to fund the construction
of four new school buildings?
The passage of Ballot Measure 20
56 in the May 21 primary election
would allocate $116 million in
property tax dollars to the Eugene
School District to provide better in
structional facilities and replace ag
ing buildings.
Measure 20-56 would replace
Patterson and Westmoreland ele
mentary schools with a new ele
mentary school on the Patterson
site. The Washington and Willaken
zie elementary schools would be re
placed with a new elementary
school, possibly on the Monroe
Middle School site. Madison Mid
dle School and Cal Young Middle
School would be rebuilt at their cur
rent locations.
The funding would also allow for
remodeling and additions at several
schools, major repairs to teaching fa
r
cilities and improvements to dis
trictwide safety and security systems.
The combination of elementary
schools would increase enrollment to
about 500 students at each proposed
location, Eugene School District Su
perintendent George Russell said.
That number coincides with the
enrollment at Gilham Elementary
School, one that Russell said func
tions well and has many programs,
such as music and sports, that
smaller schools go without.
“(People) automatically assume
that bigger schools are bad,” said Dana
Siebert, co-chairwoman of the politi
cal action committee Yes for Schools.
“I think that assumption is wrong.”
Ideally, Siebert said, the best situ
ation would allow for small schools
with small classroom sizes and un
limited funding. But building large
schools while maintaining class
room sizes is a more feasible goal,
Siebert said.
The passage of the levy would in
crease taxes for a property assessed
at $143,000 by about $124 per year.
More than 73 percent of all residen
tial properties within 4J boundaries
have an assessed property value of
$143,000 or less. By law, bond money
cannot go toward teacher salaries,
textbooks or student activities.
The $116 million-dollar bond has
its opponents.
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Where the
money
would go
Measure 20-56,
which will be on
the May 21
primary election
ballot, would
fund four new
schools in the
Eugene School
District. The cost
of the project is
$116 million in
tax dollars to be
paid from
property taxes
over the next
20 years.
$52 million
Four new schools
$35.3 million
Capital systems
replacements
$24.1 million
Remodels and Additions
$4.6 million
B Technology
Nick Olmstead Emerald
“I don’t think money is the an
swer,” former University graduate
and 1972 Libertarian candidate for
vice president Tonie Nathan said.
“More money doesn’t provide a bet
ter education.”
The measure is also the most ex
pensive on the primary ballot.
“I’m sure (voters) are going to be
wary of any price tag in today’s
economy,” Russell said. “I’m hope
ful and confident it will go
through.” The decision to put the
I
levy on the May 21 primary ticket
was a strategic one. According to the
state’s so-called “double majority”
law, any proposed property tax hike
in a primary election must be
passed with a voter turnout greater
than 50 percent.
Even with a majority vote in favor
of the measure, the vote will be void
without a voter turnout of at least
40,520 people.
And if the levy doesn’t pass, the
district will have time to evaluate its
opposition and perhaps revamp the
proposal for the November general
election, where the double majori
ty rule doesn’t apply.
If the measure fails in the primary
election, the district will have an
easier time grabbing voters’ atten
tion during the noisy general elec
tion, Eugene School District spokes
woman Barb Bellamy said.
E-mail reporter Brad Schmidt
at bradschmidt@dailyemerald.com.
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