ONE BOND AND a levy headed for approval while another bond fell short in the initial count of ballots Tuesday night.
A $3.6 million bond to fund repairs of Mountain View Commons had surpassed the necessary 60 percent approval with 71.47 percent of voters in favor.
Early returns showed Port Townsend voters approving a replacement maintenance-and-operations levy, which would net the school district $14.6 million over a four-year period. The school levy requires a simple majority to pass, and 70.82 percent of voters approved.
A $34.8 million bond for Chimacum school renovation and expansion fell short of the supermajority percentage with only 50.88 percent in favor.
In the Sequim School District — which has a small number of voters living the Jefferson County community of Gardiner — a 20-year, $49.26 million school construction bond was below the 60 percent approval needed but hovering close to the mark.
The Jefferson County Auditor’s Office on Tuesday counted 9,738 ballots out of 20,135 mailed to registered voters, for an election night turnout of 48.34 percent.
The office counted all ballots received by Tuesday morning, said Betty Johnson, elections coordinator, who “optimistically” expects some 800 to 900 more to come in later this week.
The next scheduled count will be by noon Friday, Johnson said, but that could be moved up to Thursday “if any of the races are really close,” she said.
Of the 7,124 ballots mailed to registered voters in the city of Port Townsend, 3,541 had been received by Tuesday morning for a voter turnout of 49.7 percent.
Those numbers in other elections: Port Townsend School District, 11,347 mailed, 5,596 returned, 49.32 percent turnout; Chimacum
School District, 8,508 mailed, 3,997 returned, 46.98 percent turnout; the Jefferson County portion of the Sequim School District, 280 ballots mailed, 141 returned, 50.36 percent turnout. In Clallam County, 21,649 ballots were mailed in the Sequim School District.
Clallam County’s turnout Tuesday night was 46.95 percent, with 21,128 voters having returned ballots out of 45,156 mailed.
None of the measures on either ballot is countywide, so only voters in the specific jurisdictions received ballots.
Each of the bonds and all levies other than school levies require 60 percent for passage as well as 40 percent voter turnout based on the
number of votes cast in the Nov. 4 general election.
A simple majority is needed for school levy passage.
Mountain View bond
If approved, the city of Port Townsend’s bond measure would authorize raising up to $3.6 million in bond sales to go toward the estimated $4.1 million needed to complete repairs at the aging Mountain View complex at 1919 Blaine St.
The site is owned by the Port Townsend School District and operated by the city of Port Townsend.
The bond would fund installation of a new heating system, roof repairs, city pool maintenance and fixing other structural issues.
If the Mountain View bond is approved, property owners would pay for only part of the cost of repairs.
The measure would mean a property tax increase of no more than 13 cents per $1,000 of valuation for 15 years.
The amount between the total cost of the project and the amount raised by the bond measure will come from grants that are already committed from the state Department of Ecology for $300,000, the state Department of Commerce for $500,000, a grant of about $180,000 administered by the Jefferson County Public Utility District and other sources to be determined, according to City Manager
David Timmons.
The full increase would first appear on the 2017 tax statement, although property owners would most likely see a 5-cents-per-$1,000-of-valuation increase in 2016.
Tenants at the former elementary school include the Port Townsend Police Department, the Port Townsend Food Bank, Jefferson County YMCA, the ReCyclery, the KPTZ 91.9 FM radio station, Working Image, the Olympic Peninsula chapter of the Red Cross and the only public pool in Jefferson County.
Interest on the 17-year life of the bond is estimated to cost $1.46 million, figuring a 3 percent rate of interest.
Chimacum schools
The Chimacum school bond would fund renovation and expansion of Chimacum Creek Primary School and the district’s main campus, including the auditorium.
It also would fund construction of a new athletic complex with a stadium, field and track and support other infrastructure improvements.
If approved, the measure would impose a new tax on property owners by $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed value, or $375 for a $250,000 home. Collection would begin in 2016.
The upgrade of sports facilities would include an all-weather field, concessions, restrooms and storage as well as new tennis courts.
Superintendent Rich Stewart said construction of an athletic center and a renovated auditorium would allow games to be played at home rather than Port Townsend.
After renovation, the Chimacum Creek Primary School would serve first through fifth grades, with the middle school and high school in the Valley Road location.
Also planned is the removal of the 1940s buildings and library and construction of a new middle school library resource center and centralized school administration.
Interest payments over the life of the bond, if it is approved, are estimated at $22 million, using a 4.98 percent rate.
Renovations and additions would take two to three years, Stewart said.
The school recently finished gym renovations which were subsidized by a levy voters approved in 2012.
Port Townsend schools
The Port Townsend School District replacement levy is necessary to continue many school programs, according to supporters.
“The school levy in the state of Washington is part of the standard operating procedure for school districts,” said Jennifer James-Wilson, Port Townsend School Board member, in November.
“It provides about 25 percent of our budget and the reason that voters should approve it is because it’s part of our basic funding.”
The estimated rate for 2016 would be $1.58 per $1,000 of assessed valuation; $1.60 per $1,000 in 2017; $1.63 per $1,000 in 2018; and $1.66 per $1,000 in 2019.
The rate for the current levy, which will expire this year, is $1.56 per $1,000 of assessed value.
It would be used for educational programs, extracurricular support and facilities.
Sequim school district
The Sequim School District’s proposal was its second attempt to pass a school construction bond.
In April, voters rejected a $154 million bond proposal.
The school district cut down its wish list to arrive at a $49.5 million, 20-year bond proposal to fund a new elementary school to replace Helen Haller, new classrooms at Greywolf Elementary and Sequim High schools, and renovations to Sequim Community School.
Supporters said that many of the schools do not have enough space for all of the students and that much of the science lab and kitchen equipment is so old it can’t be repaired.
The bond would cost an estimated 63 cents per $1,000 of property valuation, or $126 a year for the owner of a $200,000 home.
Currently the district has a $1.61 per $1,000 maintenance and operations levy, for a total district tax rate of $2.23 per $1,000 assessed valuation.
The district has estimated $31.5 million in interest payments over the life of the bond, figured on a 4.98 percent rate as a worst-case scenario.
