Moscow voters will consider a school facilities levy this fall.
The Moscow School Board unanimously approved placing a levy on the November ballot during their meeting Tuesday night. The measure would cost about 9.4 million dollars annually for seven years. If approved it would increase property taxes in the Moscow School District by 280 dollars a year for every 100,000 dollars of assessed value. The measure would need 60% super majority approval for passage.
If approved the roughly 66 million dollars would fund three projects prioritized by the Moscow School Board Tuesday night. Those priorities are renovating and expanding Moscow Middle School into the high school and add career technical education and performing arts space, renovate the Russell school building into administrative offices and create room for alternative high school programs and replace the HVAC system at Lena Whitmore Elementary.
Trustee Dulce Kersting-Lark recognizes the request that’s being made to taxpayers. You can hear those comments below.
This school facilities levy ballot measure is the first phase for a longer list of projects to address Moscow school building needs. The board agreed that another levy would be likely seven years from now for a new middle school and elementary school.
Moscow school administrators, staff and the trustees have been discussing school facilities for the past three years. Superintendent Shawn Tiegs told trustees Tuesday night that back in 1978 Idaho education officials told the school district that Moscow’s downtown high school was inadequate. The last school facilities measure in Moscow was in 2005 when a 29 million dollar bond for a new high school failed with 56% rejecting the proposition.
