Third try: Lake Wash. District rallying support for school bond

SAMMAMISH, Wash. — An Eastside school district is rallying for support of an upcoming school bond which has failed twice before.

Reporter Jeff Dubois is explaining why the bond is needed in our morning newscast. Watch on air through 7 a.m. and online through 8 a.m. http://kiro.tv/LiveNews

The Lake Washington School District claims one school is so overcrowded, students are served lunch outside and have to dodge crows.

The district needs at least 28,000 voters to approve the $398 million bond measure.

The bond has been a tough sell. The district asked for money before and voters have turned it down. This time, the total bond amount is less and the tax hit may be a little more palatable.

If approved, the property tax rate will stay the same for homeowners and will only go up if their home value increases.

If the measure fails, 14 percent of students in the district, which is the fourth largest in the state, would have their classes in portables.

In the last five years, the Lake Washington School District has grown by 625 students a year.

The money brought in by the bond measure would go to build new schools in Redmond Ridge and rebuild other schools for more capacity, including Juanita High School.

To rally support, the district is organizing an event outside Margaret Mead Elementary in Sammamish at 7:45 a.m. Tuesday.

Ballots have been mailed and need to be returned in two weeks.

Cox Media Group