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Wichita USD 259 officials brief Park City council on upcoming bond election Feb. 25
Summary
Wichita Public Schools officials told the Park City council that a bond question will appear on the Feb. 25 ballot and described facility needs, enrollment and outreach plans. Council members asked about which local schools would be affected and about follow-up community events.
Wichita Public Schools officials told the Park City City Council on Jan. 14 that a facilities bond question will appear on the Feb. 25 ballot and outlined the district’s facility needs and outreach plans.
The presenters, Addie Lowell, chief financial officer for Wichita Public Schools, and Dr. Lauren Hatfield, assistant superintendent, said the ballot question is intended to fund repairs and upgrades across the district’s aging buildings and to support “21st century” classroom and safety improvements. “We are the largest school district in the state of Kansas. We serve just under 47,000 students,” Lowell said.
Lowell said many district buildings are more than 60 years old and that the bond is framed as a long-term facilities plan developed from building-condition analysis, enrollment trends and community feedback. “This plan was developed by expert analysis of our building conditions, learning environments, enrollment trends, and capacity needs,” she said. Lowell said the district collected feedback from about 1,000 community members while preparing the plan.
The presenters described categories of work the bond would fund: major infrastructure repairs such as roofs and HVAC systems, updates to classroom and lab spaces, safety and security improvements, and accessibility upgrades. Lowell said consolidating inefficient buildings and replacing them with more efficient facilities could yield operational savings that the district could redirect to building maintenance.
Council member Ben Salceda asked whether Chisholm Trail would be included in the bond’s first phase. Lowell replied that Chisholm Trail is “not specifically being impacted with bond dollars” in phase one but that the district expects to direct roughly $11 million annually toward improvement projects at schools not listed in phase one if the bond passes.
Lowell told the council the district plans local community events where residents can tour schools and learn more about the facilities master plan; the first event was scheduled for Jan. 30, with additional events in early February. She also reminded the council that “every Wichita Public Schools District registered voter is eligible to cast a ballot on Feb. 25,” and she gave the voter-registration deadline as Feb. 4.
The council did not take action on the presentation; council members thanked the presenters and asked staff to share bond information with Park City residents. The district presenters said they would take questions from council members and the public after the briefing.
The district representatives did not provide a full dollar amount for the bond in their remarks to the council; the draft documents and public materials referenced by the presenters were summarized at the briefing.
