Portable classrooms at 3 Richland schools would ease crowding, but where’s the money?

A third high school is not in Richland’s near future.

The Richland School Board last week appeared to take that option off the table for the next bond request expected to go to voters in February.

But the district needs relief from the burgeoning high school enrollment, as well as one of its West Richland elementary schools. School officials now are considering buying 12-classroom modular additions for the three schools.

But the district must figure out how to pay for them.

Officials estimate they are short about $900,000 for the projects.

The Richland School Board last week previewed a tentative schedule that would start construction first at Hanford High School, followed by Richland High School and William Wiley Elementary School.

The one-story classroom structures would be similar in design to those used for Three Rivers HomeLink near Jason Lee Elementary School but would be made to match each school’s architecture. The district plans to order the buildings in the coming months, with their construction beginning in a factory as early as this fall.

The district has about $15 million for the projects, enough to cover construction costs but it needs to find nearly $1 million more for desks, chairs and equipment, as well as for an added multipurpose room for Wiley.

Superintendent Rick Schulte said the district could borrow the money, but then “the real question is how do we pay it back?”

Both high schools need classrooms so all teachers have a room of their own.

Wiley also is crowded and already has several portables.

The modular buildings would replace the current temporary classrooms at each school. The Hanford High project would be built immediately east of the main building in a grassy area, Richland High’s modular would be on the western side eliminating about seven parking spots.

And Wiley’s would be placed southeast of the main building where its current portables are.

Money cobbled together from different sources would pay for the portables, including $10 million in state-matching money remaining from the district’s 2003 and 2013 bonds.

And the district also has $5 million from the federal government as compensation for not paying taxes on its extensive landholdings in the district.

If the district borrowed money to cover the rest of those costs, it would typically use more of those federal dollars paid in lieu of taxes, or PILT, to cover the loan payments.

However, it’s unclear if or when the federal government will continue those payments.

“If we really do need (the classrooms), we need to figure out how to pay for it,” said board member Gordon Comfort.

More board discussions on the projects are expected in the coming weeks.

This story was originally published June 4, 2016 at 7:30 PM with the headline "Portable classrooms at 3 Richland schools would ease crowding, but where’s the money?."