Norman Helgason / norman@thereflector.com
The Ridgefield School District will reassess its capital facilities plan following the failure of its sixth consecutive bond measure. The review comes after a failed attempt to pass two bonds in April.
The measures aimed to address the district’s rapid growth and infrastructure needs.
Since the 2017 bond passage and subsequent construction projects, the district has seen a significant increase in student enrollment, growing 47% from 2,826 students in the 2017-18 school year to 4,163 students in the 2023-24 school year. Despite this growth, the district has struggled to secure necessary funding for additional schools through bond measures, with the last successful bond passed in 2016-17 for the construction of Sunset Ridge and View Ridge campuses.
In April 2024, two bond propositions failed to achieve the required 60% plus one vote supermajority. Proposition 10, a $70 million proposal, received 58.91% approval, falling short of the needed threshold. This bond aimed to fund a new 75,000-square-foot elementary school, an expansion at Ridgefield High School and various repairs including 10 classrooms and a space for career and technical education classes. The proposition would have additionally paid for roof repairs for Union Ridge and South Ridge elementary schools and Ridgefield High School.
Proposition 11, a $120 million measure, received only 50.92% approval and would have financed a new 125,000-square-foot intermediate or middle school, and a new wrestling room at Ridgefield High School. The bond would have paid for playground updates at the Union Ridge and South Ridge elementary schools and the resurfacing of Ridgefield High School’s track and field.
Following the bond failures, the district surveyed to gather public feedback on the proposals. Of the 356 responses received, key demographic insights include a significant portion of respondents aged 40-49 (44.6%) and a relatively small percentage of younger voters aged 18-29 (3.1%). Notably, 58.4% of respondents supported Proposition 10, almost mirroring the 58.91% of votes it received in April. Roughly 27.5% of respondents opposed both bonds, while 2.5% were unsure or did not vote. About 11.5% of respondents supported Proposition 10 and voted no on Proposition 11.
Key feedback themes:
• Simplification of proposals: Respondents suggested scaling back the design and scope of the proposed projects. Ideas included removing proposed amenities such as the elementary school’s turf field and the high school’s wrestling room renovations.
• Focus on new buildings: There was a preference for future bonds to prioritize only new buildings rather than including repair and renovation projects, which added to the cost of both proposals.
• Elementary school priority: Some respondents advocated for a future bond to focus solely on building a new elementary school, with expansions to high school facilities considered later. Additionally, some respondents proposed fifth grade be moved back to elementary school to balance enrollments across campuses. This was proposed in an April 2022 bond.
• Election timing and information: Suggestions were made to align bond proposals with general elections to boost voter turnout and to provide clearer, more comprehensive information on costs and impacts for future proposals, including interest, and any impact on current levies.
• Legislative and funding adjustments: There were calls to lobby for changes to the 60% supermajority requirement and increased state matching funds to support school construction projects. Some suggested lobbying to increase the School Construction Assistance Program (SCAP), a state matching fund. In 2024, matching funding was increased from $271.61 to $375 per square foot for projects. If the two proposals passed in April, state matching grant funds, including SCAP, would have contributed $11.7 million to the proposed projects in addition to the bonds.
Following their July review of community feedback, the Ridgefield School District Board will consider its next steps. Discussions include potentially hosting a Town Hall meeting to engage the community and re-establishing a Capital Facilities Advisory Committee to guide future decisions, though both ideas are to be determined. The board will discuss its updated capital facilities plan at a meeting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Aug, 27, at 510 Pioneer St.
Superintendent Dr. Jenny Rodriquez was unavailable for comment.