Richland’s 12th elementary school still uncertain after state blocks matching money

Richland will start building a new Badger Mountain Elementary School this fall.

Nearly 600 students will start school where Tapteal Elementary is now while the district demolishes the aging building, but it remains uncertain when the next elementary school will open.

While the state’s decision not to give the school district any matching money for the project won’t change this year, school leaders felt the school space is needed.

The district can use nearly $11 million during the next few years to make up for the millions they planned on receiving from the state for new schools.

The list of short-term funding sources includes the money the district gets from investments, money set aside for capital projects and payment in lieu of taxes the district receives because no property taxes are collected for the Hanford nuclear reservation.

The final decision on the money will come at the end of the school year when the district puts together it’s budget for next year, said said district spokesman Ty Beaver.

While the changes will mean the district won’t have money available for future projects, it isn’t moving money away from any current programs, he said.

For example district plans include using $2.7 million the district expects to receive from the federal government over the next three years. The district generally uses the federal payment in lieu of taxes on one-time expenses.

The district generally makes its construction plans years out, said Superintendent Rick Schulte.

“This means that plans we make today will be adjusted as actual needs and numbers become available,” he said in a recent memo to the school board. “We have already made several preliminary or tentative estimates of funding sources for Badger.”

The district isn’t adjusting the size or what will be included in the new building, Beaver said.

Elementary No. 12

While Badger will be replaced, the future is uncertain for the second new elementary school, called Elementary 12, included on the $99 million bond that voters passed in 2017.

The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction told Richland and Pasco that they don’t qualify for the School Construction Assistance Program for elementary or middle schools. The program, also called state matching money, pays a significant portion of the costs for new schools.

The calculations say each elementary student needs 90 square feet. It then compares the enrollment projections with the amount of space the district already has.

Both school and state officials say the figure needs to be updated after decades of lawmakers adding new requirements.

Some of the changes including requiring smaller class sizes for K-3 students, which increases the number of classrooms needed, and more classrooms for special education students.

For now, district officials are putting the project on hold, but they are hoping a state Senate bill could help them. The bill would increase the calculation to 130 square feet for elementary school students.

The calculations are based on a 2018 report from the Joint Legislative Task Force on Improving State Funding for School Construction.

The measure had near unanimous approval in the Senate last year, but was sent back after it failed to make it out of the House.

It’s possible the Senate may pass it again and return it to the House. If it passes this year, the district would qualify for matching funds, which would put them back on track, Beaver said.