Building new school makes most financial sense for longterm

This spring the Whitefish School District board of trustees voted unanimously to ask the school district residents to vote on a bond initiative to build a new Muldown Elementary School. The mail-in ballots have arrived in mailboxes and I want to share a few thoughts about why the trustees felt so strongly about this issue.

We learned a lot in the nearly 18 months that community volunteers worked with architects and engineers to study the serious issues. The task force included trustees, teachers, parents, community members, support staff, and administrators. Everyone rolled up their sleeves. While addressing the known and serious problems, the task force also looked for ways to enhance the physical environment for the modern era.

The issues at Muldown have been mitigated over the past 25 years since the last renovation, but a more comprehensive solution is needed. The mechanical, electrical, and structural issues are not going away. Costs will only rise.

What we discovered as we went through this process is that you don’t just replace boilers. The infrastructure that goes with those boilers has to be upgraded in turn. You don’t just replace the roof. The structural components of the building have to be upgraded as well to meet code. The Band-Aid solution did not seem workable, efficient nor cost effective.

From 16 different options studied, the task force ultimately recommended rebuilding Muldown as the most efficient use of taxpayer dollars for the long term. Displacing students in modular structures during a renovation or expanding the current school to an even larger layout didn’t sit well with us when we looked at the costs and results of each solution.

Rather than reconstruction and additions, the task force felt that building a new school was the most fiscally prudent option. It is an option that would create a safer, more efficient, and eco-friendly building, as well as offer better opportunities for innovative learning.

Saving the functional areas of the old school for future use was also a good recommendation that came out of the many months of research and meetings. Demographic studies show that constructing a building for 756 students is a prudent move. We are in a time of growth now but in recent years we were concerned about decreasing enrollment. This creates an interesting dilemma — we certainly don’t want to overbuild now but we need to address the growth we’re all feeling. Forecasts show that K-4 numbers should begin a slight decline after 2019. But should we need more space in the future, parts of the old building could be put to new use.

We don’t have a crystal ball from which to make these important choices. What we do have are historical trends, a professional demographic study, and our understanding of local economics. Most importantly, what we have is a task force that studied the problems in depth and at length. It was truly eye-opening to be a part of and I am thankful for the many hours the task force volunteered for this undertaking.

The choice is now before the Whitefish School District voters. Let us hear your voice by returning your mail-in ballot by Oct. 3.

Nick Polumbus is the chairman of the Whitefish School District board of trustees.