Port Angeles School District plans to sell remaining bonds this fall

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, May 26, 2026

PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles School Board received updates on its next round of bond financing, major capital projects and district finances before a lengthy discussion about recent staffing reductions tied to the district’s $1.9 budget shortfall for the 2026-27 school year due to dropping enrollment and rising costs.

Corey Plager, managing director at D.A. Davidson, told board members Thursday that the district plans to sell the remaining $110 million in voter-approved bonds this fall to fund the new Hurricane Ridge Middle School and Franklin Elementary School and upgrades at Port Angeles High School.

Plager said the district’s tax rate has remained relatively stable while assessed property values and new construction have increased in recent years. He said the district plans to sell the bonds on a 20-year repayment schedule, which he described as the most common structure for school districts.

He also said the district’s improving financial position could help lower future borrowing costs.

“A higher bond rating may result in lower interest rates,” Plager said during the presentation, noting the district currently holds an A3 rating from Moody’s.

Plager noted the district’s success comes as school bond measures have become increasingly difficult to pass statewide in recent years.

“We’re noticing a lot of schools really struggling right now,” Plager said.

Meanwhile, Nolan Duce, the school district’s capital projects manager, updated the board on the progress of construction at Hurricane Ridge Middle School, which is replacing Stevens Middle School.

Duce said the new school will total about 84,000 square feet, nearly double the size of the current Stevens building. He said crews recently completed major concrete pours and structural steel work and have begun mechanical, electrical and plumbing installation.

“We’re on time and on budget with all of our projects at this time,” Duce said.

Duce also reviewed planning for Franklin and the high school, where schematic design work and geotechnical evaluations continue.

This fall, students are expected to play under new lights at Monroe Field, funded through unused contingency funds from the Hurricane Ridge Middle School project. Duce said donations are expected to cover the cost of a new scoreboard, as well.

Enrollment

Karen Casey, the school district’s business and operations director, reported the most recent numbers showed the district is about 10.5 full-time-equivalent students below budgeted enrollment levels. At the same time, she noted continued growth at Seaview Academy, which reached 386 students in May, including 205 out-of-district students.

Casey also reported the district’s general fund cash balance reached about $6.6 million in April, aided in part by spring tax collections.

“We haven’t seen that in a long time,” Casey said.

Casey said the district had about 39 days of operating cash on hand but cautioned that balance likely will decline later in the summer as major expenditures occur.

One impact of the decline in enrollment has been a reorganization of the district’s program aimed at maintaining free meals for students.

Fiscal coordinator Greg Geyer told board members the district plans to separate Port Angeles High School from the rest of the schools in its federal Community Eligibility Provision application because districtwide low-income eligibility rates no longer meet the 40 percent threshold required for full state reimbursement support.

He said the district will use about $180,000 in food service reserves to continue covering meal costs for high school students over the next four years.

Superintendent Michelle Olsen praised Casey and Geyer for finding a way to preserve free meals without impacting other areas of the budget.

“We have the funds, and we’re not going to have to take from other programs,” Olsen said.

Staffing reductions

Discussion later shifted to staffing reductions previously approved by the board as part of efforts to address the district’s projected budget gap.

Board member Nancy Hamilton had requested the measure identifying employees affected by the reductions be removed from the consent agenda for separate discussion, saying she wanted the public record to reflect her concerns about the process behind the cuts.

Hamilton was the lone dissenting vote May 7, when the board approved a resolution to eliminate eight positions.

On Thursday, Hamilton said she still did not believe she had received sufficient information.

“Board members do have a legal and fiduciary responsibility to exercise informed oversight before taking official action,” Hamilton said.

Olsen responded with a detailed explanation of how administrators identified reductions through enrollment projections, attrition, staffing ratios, collective bargaining agreements and program funding requirements.

Olsen said administrators prioritized reductions through attrition whenever possible and worked with union leadership throughout the process.

Board president Sandy Long and board member Kirsten Williams said they believed the board had received sufficient explanation and details about the reductions.

Long, Kirsten Williams and Stan Williams ultimately approved the measure over Hamilton’s objection. Director Ned Hammar was absent.

Finally, Stevens Middle School Principal Melissa McBride introduced students of the month, eighth-graders Emma Kate Edwards and Isaac Wendel.

She said a design of the Hurricane Ridge School ravens mascot is underway.

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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached by email at paula.hunt@peninsuladailynews.com.