Auburn School District No. 408 - Proposition No. 1 · King County

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Statement For · Cari Manry, Terri Herren

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Committee: Cari Manry, Terri Herren

Vote Yes to build a brand-new middle school and replace the aging, outdated Cascade Middle School and Alpac Elementary. Today, over 1,100 of our middle schoolers are crowded into 45 temporary portables, while Alpac faces constant, costly repairs. This bond directly solves overcrowding district-wide in the middle schools. Our community and students deserve modern facilities now–not years down the road. Clean, safe, and modern schools ignite student pride, boost teacher commitment, and uplift entire neighborhoods. Our kids deserve spaces designed for success. This is a fiscally responsible investment. Auburn School District has a proven track record of delivering projects on time and under budget while keeping taxes low. At an estimated cost of just $1.10 per $1,000 of assessed value–about $50.41 a month for a $550,000 home–we can secure three modern schools to serve generations. A majority voted Yes in the last election, but we need a 60% supermajority to secure critical state matching funds. Our students cannot wait.

Rebuttal of argument against

Misleading comparisons ignore differences in school size, site conditions, and long-term construction standards. Auburn is building schools designed to last a century and has a proven record of completing projects on time and on budget. Replacing aging schools and overcrowded portables now is a smarter long-term investment than continuing costly repairs. Vote Yes to provide safe, modern schools for generations of Auburn students.

Statement Against · Eric Petersen

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Committee: Eric Petersen

The Auburn School District is demanding a massive $491 million bond package to build three local schools, averaging a staggering $163 million per individual facility. Meanwhile, the neighboring Tacoma School District is successfully building eight separate schools for an average total cost of $66 million each. The new Lowell and Whittier are modern, state-of-the-art elementary schools for under $50 million each. However, Auburn demands a whopping $118 million to demolish, design & build Alpac Elementary. This massive cost discrepancy begs an obvious question: where exactly is the other $68 million going for this school alone? Furthermore, the district’s advertised $1.10 property tax rate completely fails to cover repaying the $491 million principal plus the $350+ million in interest debt. Repaying this massive accumulated interest forces true initial rates up to $1.93 per $1,000, exposing a huge gap between the advertised numbers and the harsh financial reality. Working families and honest local people are barely getting by in today’s tough economic environment. The school district must bring local taxpayers a reasonable, fiscally responsible request instead of pushing over-inflated, expensive dreams that place an unfair, heavy financial burden on our entire community. Vote No

Rebuttal of argument for

If you own property assessed at $600,000, your current property tax bill for schools alone is $4,800. If you add this bond at the true cost of $1.93 per $1,000, your school tax portion will jump to $5,958 per year. Tacoma’s approved $650 million bond replaces or renovates 11 aging schools; Auburn wants $491 million for just 3. Don’t be bullied, make them resubmit this with real cost, not bloated numbers. Vote no.