Two new school boundary proposals considered in Kennewick

Back to the maps, Kennewick parents — the school district has unveiled two new proposals for redrawing elementary and middle school boundaries after hearing some concerns in community meetings and submitted comments.

District administrators showed the new boundary options during Wednesday night’s school board meeting. Maps were posted to the district’s website , and interactive versions will be online in the coming days. A final community meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Oct. 28 at the district’s administrative offices.

The district has a tight timeline — the board is expected to make a decision on new boundaries Nov. 4, allowing families enough time to determine whether they want to request to stay at their old school if the new lines move them elsewhere. But board members agreed another public meeting is needed.

“I like having a little more community feedback,” said board member Brian Brooks.

Voters approved an $89.5 million bond in February. It will pay for a new middle school and two new elementary schools, as well as rebuilding Westgate Elementary School and relocating and rebuilding Desert Hills Middle School. Other projects such as HVAC improvements and new building roofs also will be covered.

All those new buildings, which should all be open by the fall of 2018, require the boundary changes. Three proposals for elementary boundaries and two for middle schools were initially offered for public input.

Less than 60 people total attended the four community meetings the district held in recent weeks, much fewer than expected, said Assistant Superintendent Greg Fancher. But the district’s display of interactive maps on its website, and the sharing of information by neighborhood social media, answered most questions from families. Most also seemed happy with how the proposals kept neighborhoods together, a goal of the board.

Some south Kennewick families and those living along Leslie Road were concerned about the long bus rides their children would have to take to get to school in different boundary options. Middle school parents said they wanted more natural boundaries between the schools, such as major roads.

Issues about demographics, particularly a likely increase in low-income students at Highlands Middle School, and the ability for families to transfer in order to stay at a current school were also raised.

That led Fancher and Assistant Superintendent Ron Williamson to develop a fourth elementary boundary option and a third option for middle school attendance areas. They use aspects of the prior proposals but seek to to address parent concerns, such as more natural middle school boundaries and leaving enough room at different schools to allow families to transfer their students if they want.

The new proposals don’t address all concerns, as Highlands would still see a rise in its low-income student enrollment and some elementary students could face long bus rides. Board members noted all the proposals would leave Cottonwood Elementary School overcrowded and questioned whether families seeking transfers would undermine the boundary changes.

Administrators noted the current realignment only considers the new elementary school opening in the fall of 2016 and that boundaries would need to be tweaked in a couple of years for the other school expected to be built in west Kennewick. And while there’s always some families who seek to move their students, most prefer to stay in their neighborhoods despite having that option.

“It isn’t ideal but as a district we don’t decide where people live, we serve them where they are,” said Superintendent Dave Bond.

This story was originally published October 21, 2015 at 10:01 PM with the headline "Two new school boundary proposals considered in Kennewick."