By ANNELI FOGT

Editor

A more than $32 million plan to renovate Vashon High School’s gym, track, tennis courts, Building K and service buildings will be presented to the public beginning next week after a recent decision by the school board.

The decision came at a special Tuesday meeting almost exactly one month after the board asked architects to come up with a $25 million proposal for the projects, dubbed Phase 2 in the plan to upgrade and redesign the island’s schools, with special focus on the high school. The board has yet to vote on any of the improvements, and the Tuesday meeting was called so the board could decide how many of the projects would be presented to the public for consideration to be put on the ballot. In the end, the board decided to go ahead and present all the options, topping out at $32,062,000.

Board member Bob Hennessey voiced his concern briefly at the Tuesday meeting about the procedural way that the board went about their decision to jump from a $25 million project cap to $32 million, citing that he wanted to make sure correct methods were followed. He did say that he agreed with the board’s decision to bring everything to the voters and let them decide.

“We are not deciding what we build. We’re deciding what the community wants to vote for,” Hennessey said last week. “My takeaway is that the board has done all the work to date in a bubble. We’ve heard from the user groups; now we have to hear from those footing the bill, which is everyone. We need to invite them to participate.”

Board chair Laura Wishik said the board has made clear that its main concerns are more gym space, track renovations and getting Building K to work for the high school’s current programs, which would cost more than $28 million, according to estimates provided at the Sept. 22 meeting. Building K currently houses the school’s StudentLink program, an alternative high school option for island teens. Wishik said the building used to be a kindergarten and is “just not built for high schoolers.”

“Some of the equipment there, it’s aging. It’s definitely getting close to the end of its life,” Wishik said.

Hennessey agreed that the gym and track were very important, but said that he “would like to know more” about Building K before agreeing to put the renovation on the ballot.

“I need to find out what specific needs we have at Building K,” Hennessey said last week.

Besides the athletic facility and Building K improvements, the rest of the $32 million figure comes after the costs of scheduled replacement and renovations and a new bus barn are taken into consideration.

Superintendent Michael Soltman said Thursday that all of the projects will have to be done eventually. It’s just a matter of how much of them will be done now and how much will be postponed again. He said that the $4 million in scheduled replacement and renovation to parts of the district’s three schools is important to get funding for because it becomes “deferred maintenance” if not addressed.

“At some point, scheduled replacement and renovation becomes deferred maintenance, so it’s reasonable and responsible for us to plan for this,” Soltman said Thursday. “We would like to get adequate funding because we don’t want to be in a situation where we get behind.”

Soltman also said at the meeting that the corner of the high school that houses the bus barn is currently not very attractive, and he would like to see a nice building go there.

“What does the community have to say about it all as it is presented now? That’s what we want to know,” Soltman said. “These are really solid estimates.”

With the decision made to present all of the options, the board will turn its attention to community awareness events aimed at gathering feedback about what the public would like to see the money go toward. The first event will take place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 4, in the Thriftway shopping center. Photos and plans will be displayed, and board members will be present, fielding questions about plans, finances and the effects on property taxes that the projects will have.

A community involvement meeting has been set for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, at the Vashon High commons, and board members will be present at the commons again for the Homecoming Community Dinner at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16. Another community awareness event will take place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Thriftway shopping center, and one final meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, at the VHS commons.

The bond/levy election is set for Feb. 9, 2016.

The Phase 2 improvements, if approved by voters, follow a $48 million redesign and rebuild of the high school campus that was completed two years ago. The overhaul was made possible by a bond passed by voters in 2011, but, that same year, voters narrowly rejected a separate $3.5 million bond for a new track and field. The athletic facilities were not renovated.  In another close election, voters in 2009 turned down a plan to renovate athletic facilities and classrooms at the high school for $75 million.