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Mercer Matters Podcast: Episode 3 – Jennifer McLellan on Why Yes Matters for the 2025 School Bond
116 Plays30 days ago
In the final episode of our three-part series on the $165 million Mercer Island School Bond Measure, we sit down with Jennifer McLellan from the Vote Yes campaign. With the April 2025 vote fast approaching, Jennifer breaks down the bond’s potential impact.
Mercer Matters delivers what you need: no-nonsense discussions with key players on both sides of this critical issue. Our goal? To arm you with the facts for an informed decision.
Missed the earlier episodes? Check out Dr. Fred Rundle’s perspective as Superintendent and Mike Cero’s Vote No take to get the complete story. Subscribe now and join us as we close out this deep dive into what’s next for Mercer Island’s schools!
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Transcript
Introduction & Guest Background
00:00:00
Speaker
Hi, everybody. Welcome to the Mercer Matters podcast. In this episode, we'll be discussing the April 2025 Mercer Island School District bond measure ah with Jennifer McClellan of the Vote Yes campaign.
00:00:12
Speaker
I'm Ben Sharp, your host, and I'm a Mercer Island resident with three children in the Mercer Island School District. And as of this recording, I'm undecided. and This is my now third discussion. on the school bond package that's being presented to voters. I've also had a discussion with Mike Ciro of the No Campaign and also Dr. Fred Rundle, Superintendent Mercy Island Schools. Please be sure to check out those episodes.
00:00:33
Speaker
um So I'm getting better educated, Jennifer, on the school bond measure, but I'm excited to learn more from you today and get your perspective on why ah voters should vote yes to pass the bond.
00:00:45
Speaker
um So Jennifer, thanks for joining me. And thanks. First of all, thanks for all your efforts on behalf of campaigning for the measure. um You know, regardless of anyone's view on the bond, ah everybody doing this is volunteering. So thanks for putting in your time and and energy ah for our kids.
00:01:03
Speaker
um So I wanted to just give you an opportunity to kind of give a brief introduction background of yourself and then ah maybe dive into why you think voters should vote yes on the upcoming bond
Community Involvement & Voter Turnout
00:01:14
Speaker
measure.
00:01:14
Speaker
All right. Thank you, Ben. appreciate the time and I appreciate you doing this on behalf of our Mercer Island residents. I think the more we are informed on all issues is a good is a good thing. So thank you for your time on that.
00:01:27
Speaker
ah My name is Jennifer McClellan. As Ben mentioned, ah my husband and i are 26-year residents on Mercer Island. I actually attended the Mercer Island Residence.
00:01:37
Speaker
ah school district as a kindergarten first grader before we moved over to Bellevue. And I ended up graduating from Bellevue High School. But don't tell everybody here that that's where I actually ended up graduating from. Uh-oh, some dirt. I know.
00:01:50
Speaker
Be quiet on that one. um We have four children that went through the Mercer Island ah School District from kindergarten through 12th grade, all of them very different students, some of them high flyers, AP classes, doing all that. We've also, one of our um children is a special ed student.
00:02:08
Speaker
And so we are enormously grateful to the Mercer Island School District and and because they were, Very well prepared for the world. And all four of them are now out in the world paying taxes and working. Congratulations. Thank you.
00:02:24
Speaker
ah Off of our phone plan and and off of our ins insurance. So um we're we're very grateful for the Mursar and School District for that. And that's really why I'm here. I'm just invested in making sure this is a success experience.
00:02:36
Speaker
And I'm further invested because my granddaughter is now living on this island with um my daughter and her husband. And um she will be attending Island Park in five years. So I want to make sure that the schools are ready for her when she shows up.
00:02:50
Speaker
As far as my role right now, I'm volunteering, just like Ben said, with ah with a group called CMIPs. ah That's the Committee for Mercer Island Public Schools, all volunteers. And we range from parents with ah preschoolers on the island to people that have kids in our schools to grandparents to community members.
00:03:12
Speaker
It's a broad swath of community. community residents that believe strongly and in our school district and what this bond means for our school district. And so that's the group that's out with the signs and all the speaking engagements and everything like that. And so that's sort of who I am and who I'm representing here. And I'll give a ah quick little pitch for the bond and to vote yes.
00:03:36
Speaker
um I'll first start by saying, please just vote.
School Infrastructure Needs
00:03:39
Speaker
ah How this particular vote as a special election works is in order for it to be ratified, we need to reach a certain percentage of actual votes itself.
00:03:50
Speaker
And that percentage is based off of the previous election, which as we all know was a presidential election. So we have a pretty high level of votes that actually just have to happen. And there is a district that had a special way. There was a district in our state that had a special election for a bond in February and passed it, which is exciting, but it was never ratified or approved because they didn't reach that threshold of actual total votes. So we just need everybody to vote.
00:04:15
Speaker
um And then of course, from the CMIP side, please vote yes. And I will go first to the 20,000 foot level with our Mercer Island School District buildings. And with the exception of Northwood, and with the exception of the new, the half of Islander Middle School, which was built 10 years ago, which is on the new side, um all of our buildings are from the 1954 vintage. And so i will just first state that, as we all know, those of us that have homes that are in the from the 1950s, 1960s, that it is incumbent on all of us to maintain those those buildings so that they remain safe.
00:04:55
Speaker
and warm and functioning for our island students. So I want to just really first stress that that is our priority and and where we start from.
00:05:06
Speaker
ah For this particular bond, and there are so many documents on the district website that explain the process of how we got to this particular bond.
00:05:17
Speaker
And from why I'm signed up to to promote it is this is... ah easily 10 year process of conversations and research and architects and it so building inspectors and everybody that could possibly be asked or brought in about this bond. This is a ah final product of all of that. And it actually is of the millions of projects that we could do for our district buildings. This is actually the narrowed down list of things that really have to be done.
Tax Implications of the Bond
00:05:52
Speaker
And so i I feel strongly that this is a practical bond, that this is a needed bond, that this will ah not only keep our buildings comfortable in the short term and safe in the short term, but also make sure that it's they stay that way over the next 10, 15, 20 years. We don't run bonds very often on this island.
00:06:13
Speaker
um And when we do, ah we do it because it's they're absolutely needed. So I want to, that's sort of my big point. high level look, we can dive into a little bit more detail about what the specific projects are. But i I just want to really state that, that this is a practical and needed ah bond for this moment for our buildings to keep them safe and warm.
00:06:36
Speaker
I do want to 100% acknowledge, and i this just needs to be said, this is a tax. So I never want to hide that ball. This is a tax. It's a tax increase.
00:06:50
Speaker
That's what a bond is. That's why we vote. ah tax No taxation with rap without representation. That's the basis of our country. So this is a tax increase. And I don't want to hide that ball. I also know that there are not just our seniors. There's many families and community members on this island that just living on this island is hard.
00:07:12
Speaker
I know my daughter and son-in-law living on this island as as a young married couple. it's it's This is an expensive place to live. And taxes are expensive. So I i don't want to hide that at all.
00:07:23
Speaker
um I do want to be clear that this is a 6.8%. percent increase. It's not what the no campaign is is putting out there. um And so i wanted I want to really state it is a tax. It is it is an increase. um But again, back to my original statement, it is a reasoned, thoughtful, careful ah bond that is working to try to keep tax rates even um over time and not be out there and crazy and impacting us more than what it needs
Detailed Projects & Safety Concerns
00:07:57
Speaker
to be. So,
00:07:58
Speaker
ah Ben, I'm going to toss it back to you. If there are specific questions that you have, I can dive into some of the projects and explain it from what I see. um But I thought I'd throw it back you. Yeah, no, thank you. and And we'll get into some of the costs kind of later. i have some questions for you and follow ups on that. But kind of sticking with the the projects.
00:08:19
Speaker
um A friend of mine thoughtfully pointed out that when the district asked for $165 million, dollars the burden of proof is on the district and to some extent the Yes campaign to you know demonstrate the need the value of putting those tax dollars to work. And I i thought that was a good framing.
00:08:35
Speaker
um And you're a great voice to help articulate that value proposition. proposition So um could you give us an idea of what's in the bond ah from your perspective and the major projects and why they're important?
00:08:49
Speaker
Yes, and and I absolutely agree with with that statement from your friend. Yes, it is incumbent on us um as the CMIPs campaign to explain what this is. And no, voters should not just blanket vote something in without understanding. And i again, appreciate this platform and appreciate you broadcasting these messages. Okay, projects, I'll i'll boil it down. And I know Dr. Rundle goes into an enormous amount of detail. And I would encourage people to go to the district website and our website, CMIPs,
00:09:19
Speaker
Yes, MISchools.org. um All the plans are in there, all the pictures, everything's in there. So if people want to dive deeper, they the the resources are there. But in in a nutshell, the big project is Islander Middle School.
00:09:33
Speaker
And Islander Middle School right now, if you drive by that campus, and just a quick little side note, we are really lucky with our facilities here. people here on mer in the Merceron School District, they work very hard. And I i feel they do a phenomenal job of maintaining our buildings and our our building grounds.
00:09:52
Speaker
And i i I get to see other schools around the state, and I can see the difference. And we are, we're really lucky. And so from the exterior, but Yeah, I would echo that.
00:10:04
Speaker
Yeah, I would echo that as well. Just even down to the janitorial staff. yeah My kids are at West Mercer. and They're wonderful. They are um old building, but it's clean and nice. And so and they and they paint they paint every, you know, they paint in the summertime. I mean, they're just not let. We just got new carpet. Yep, they just are not let to let go.
00:10:22
Speaker
And so i I really want to stress that that the resources, the community resources that we have are maintained. So when when our community chooses to invest through like the previous bond,
00:10:34
Speaker
They're taken care of. And so from the outside, the buildings, the buildings do look good. The reality of Islander Middle School is we have the new side, which was built 10 years ago. And it it it is wonderful. I would never say um sometimes we get accused, the yes campaign that we want shiny new buildings and we, and we want good learning spaces. I wouldn't say that it's off the hook in terms of compared to other buildings around the school, one of which is Mount Mount Spokane. That was when that was built, that was the most expensive high school in the state.
00:11:07
Speaker
um And, and we won't be, that's not the type of buildings we're thinking of building here on Mercer Island. So we have the the new building and then the other, ah buildings that we have on the Islander Middle School campus are our traditional old buildings from the 1950s. And so our students at Islander Middle School transition every almost every class period back and forth between our new buildings and our old buildings. And that learning space and that learning environment is not optimal.
00:11:39
Speaker
And it also, frankly, isn't safe because in our present climate um of trying to make sure that our students are in a space that has some restrictions of having people just come on campus. So at Islander Middle School.
00:11:54
Speaker
And you and you're you're talking specifically about the fact that the kids have to leave the building ah between classes, right? It's not a ah closed building campus for those who haven't been on IMS. Correct. And they're completely exposed ah all day long.
00:12:08
Speaker
And and that is that that is a safety concern, um whereas all the remaining buildings in the Mersant School District, not only what school starts are secure with a single entrance, but they also have a vestibule ah with a ah really solid sign-in and sign-out process for all visitors. So the remaining schools on this island are as safe as can be made in our current facilities.
00:12:33
Speaker
political climate. And right now, Islander Middle School does not have that at all. So it's a combination of not only getting our learning spaces back up. ah So every student is every every class period is in a classroom that's that is comfortable and warm and safe, but also making sure that they are in a building that is safe from the start of school to the end of school each day.
00:12:55
Speaker
So that's the largest project. There's other parts in that project that address space concerns. on Islander Middle School is very tight. An example is our performing arts courses. We have some of our courses are meeting in a storage closet there.
00:13:14
Speaker
And so addressing that learning spaces down there is also part of this. um project And the the person on that is is hearing is brandi Brandy Fox. She's incredible about how that build out has been designed and to address all the learning spaces. So that's the single biggest item is taking care of that building and finishing it. And and just as a side note on that, the reason why it was half done is the previous bond was actually ah sliced down because of a failure of a bond in 2012. So the 2014 bond sliced down and ah it was floated to just build half of Islander Middle School at that point to address the the feedback that we heard that the district heard from the community to to ask for less money. So that that's the reason why that whole that Islander Middle School wasn't built in its entirety right out of the gate.
00:14:09
Speaker
Our other big project after the Islander Middle School um upgrade here in the Merchant School District is that is the high school. And ah originally when the facilities committee was working on that, there something like 53 projects that were put up on the board. And they whittled it down to...
00:14:27
Speaker
like six or eight projects, they've really whittled down. And the projects that are on the list now are ones that are really needed to keep the learning spaces up here warm and comfortable and safe, and to keep these buildings ah continuing to function but over the next five, 10, 15, 20 years until maybe someday another bond appear. And so what those projects are, and they're not very sexy,
00:14:53
Speaker
But they're really needed. The big one is the HVAC system. Our HVAC system at the high school is um is ah a legacy system. Our facilities team works very hard to keep it running.
00:15:06
Speaker
And they are now down to the part place where they cannot find parts for it. They have to actually go to other secondary vendors to find parts for it. And it's a real problem. We'll have students in one classroom having to wear parkas.
00:15:21
Speaker
because it's cold and the next classroom they're stripping down to t-shirts because it's so hot. It's just the the the nature of the beast. It's an old system. It's an old building and trying to keep it warm and comfortable for the students is problematic. And so that is a huge project ah across the entire um space.
00:15:38
Speaker
the The next one, just because once you touch The HVAC system, it triggers the upgrades that are required for our fire alarm system, which are also old.
00:15:50
Speaker
And so that needs to be brought back into code. ah They work, but again, they're old. And so the the fire suppression system and the alarms and everything that needs to happen up here. And then the other things are really um Things like between the 200 and 300 hallway is a set of steps.
00:16:10
Speaker
There is a manual elevator there, but it's difficult to access during the day. And to install a handicap ramp in that space is surprisingly expensive. So that needs to go there. um There's some work that needs to be done in our locker rooms to bring them up to code and make them current. um Again, spaces that are safe for our students.
00:16:32
Speaker
And then other places for our performing arts, we have an enormous ah fine arts program here Mercer-Arne School District, very proud of that. But in our our performing arts center, that's outdated and in our gym especially. And it's gonna be very obvious with our fine arts showcase coming up this next week, trying to have that all there um so that it it really reflects that the level professionalism of our of our student perform student fine students.
Community Skepticism & Necessity of Improvements
00:17:02
Speaker
um The other building is the Crest Building, which is also part of our high school campus. That's over by the administrative building. One of the big projects is the parking lot that is there.
00:17:13
Speaker
Currently flows downhill. And so that needs to be addressed with some water management of water there and ah ah having some water retention ponds there and and changing that out.
00:17:25
Speaker
There's also handicapped accessibility issues both there and definitely at the admin office. ah building where we don't have, um, handicap access for, for some of those spaces.
00:17:38
Speaker
And then for the crest also installing a ah safe ah vestibule, um, there and then moving their health center out of a closet into an actual health center classroom is a high priority there as well.
00:17:52
Speaker
And then the admin building, which has never been remodeled since 1950, whatever, um, currently doesn't have the, um, access for people to go up and from the first floor to the second floor.
00:18:05
Speaker
If there are any mobility issues, they have to go around the full building. And so, because there's just a set of stairway in the center. So that would be an exterior elevator tacked onto that building to make sure that that has accessibility.
00:18:18
Speaker
So those are really the um the core of the bond. um And again, I'll circle back around and say all of them address address safety issues. They address ah learning and learning classroom needs, not just wishes, but needs across our district.
00:18:38
Speaker
So I hope that answered your question, Ben. Yeah, no that's that's great. Thanks for the thanks for the overview. and And just from a cost perspective, so IMS, I'm looking here at the websites, roughly 100 million of the the package, correct me if I'm wrong.
00:18:52
Speaker
Yes. About 84 million for the school itself, and then 16 or so million for this performing arts center there. um how much How much gets dedicated to the high school and the Crest admin building to kind of round out the full $165 million dollars bond package So i know that i will pull it up in front of me here in just a second. There is, again, ah yes, mercerislandschools.org has a fabulous pie graph there. So of the 165 million, you're correct, IMS is 99.5 million, so close to 100.
00:19:25
Speaker
Mercer Island High School, between the HVAC system, fire alarm, um updating to 200, 300 wings, million. The admin and crest buildings, which as I mentioned, is handling the water flow off of that parking lot, the vestibule, that external elevator.
00:19:45
Speaker
um And then handicapped parking out in front, that's 5.9 million. so So that's sort of, and then the balance, there's um a close close to 3 million, not quite, but the balance is an elementary study for ah potentially someday, I don't wanna think about it because I just have to think about this bond right now,
00:20:06
Speaker
um, bond for our, our three older elementaries, um, that based on how we've handled bonds with the school district, we seem to do that, a bond every, um, 10 to 15 years. So it's, that won't be, um, that that's to plan for that next bond out there.
00:20:23
Speaker
And then the last is pay, pay back for this conceptual design, which, uh, we utilize the district utilized another, um account to pay for this to support. um Actually bringing a bond to the community is um but really expensive.
00:20:39
Speaker
And so when we, you know, to fail a bond is, is um is problematic because it's really expensive. You know, architects cost money, um all the engineering costs money, all the planning, everything is involved. so so Do you have an estimate for how much the the preparation cost? one yeah one I'm just curious. 1.45 million.
00:21:01
Speaker
And does that is that primarily the third party costs? I mean, does that also include the time that all the district personnel spent on preparing it? Do you know? It's mostly external costs is my understanding because there is architectural designing that needs to happen. And of course, Brandy Fox is a key part of that. And she, um, she has been our, um, building essentially general contractor would be the best way to so consider her. Um, and is she a district employee?
00:21:29
Speaker
she is She's not. She's an outside vendor, but she works for us and all of her projects that she's done. And that includes the the previous, the half of the IMS that was built. It includes Northwood, includes the 10 classrooms um at the end of the high school 2012 or 2014 rather, um, had been on budget and on time. So she is incredible, but she's, she does cost money.
00:21:55
Speaker
Yeah. And, and her team costs money. So they're the ones that, that, um, do all the work involved with, um, the actual ah costs of the building. And, um, you know, they, they help, they manage the architects, all that work and, and it costs money.
00:22:11
Speaker
It costs money. Fair enough. Yeah. Fair enough. Okay, thank you. um So I guess ah another question, I asked Mike Cyril the same question. I'm curious to kind of get your response. um Of the improvements, do you view all of them as critical to have? you view some as nice to have? Like how would you for voters sort of bucket the importance of the various improvements that you talked through with me? Yeah.
00:22:36
Speaker
Really good question. I was speaking to a community member the other day and, and that was the question is, okay, if this bond fails, what's, what's going to happen? And um ah first off, I don't even want think about that because I don't know if I have the energy to do this. It's a lot of hard work to, to do this. um I don't know how the district would repackage this because they already have taken everything that was sort of either wish for or needed and have ah winnowed it down, have slashed it down to sort of the must haves.
00:23:10
Speaker
um In terms of IMS, I don't know how you do less. um I suppose, um you know, one of the things that... has been put out there is sustainable building practices. I hate to have that go away, but there is there, you can build cheaper. You can build cheaper um and not worry about sustainable things. So maybe that's an option um in terms of, and you know, I don't know but how that could be cut down. It's, it is such a practical design. um I don't know how that would be. So um I think if they had to actually, you
00:23:49
Speaker
ah rerun something or cut it down, um IMS would just probably remain sort of a half and half building. But again, you know, the minute there is something dreadful that happens there, then that's a problem, right? i Having the students outside between buildings. So I don't know how that would work.
00:24:09
Speaker
ah From the high school perspective, ah Really what we're facing is um the HVAC system is being held together by string and wires now. And and when something breaks, which it will, um it it we're we're sort of at the place where it's going to be catastrophic, where you can't patch it together anymore. And I don't know how you handle that.
00:24:31
Speaker
I don't know... um I don't know. I don't know. So I would state, and that's part of my passion on being on the CMIPs is this is, this is not, you know, I think one of the accusations is we don't need shiny new buildings.
00:24:47
Speaker
This has nothing to do with shiny new buildings. This is really maintaining old buildings and keeping everything safe and, and providing really solid, ah practical learning environments for our students.
00:25:00
Speaker
Okay. I appreciate that. And I, I, a question came to mind as you were talking, um, with respect to IMS. So you've mentioned safety, yeah several times with respect to that design and the, and the project itself, is that sort of the primary driver, do you know, for the improvements or, or is it one of the top three is sort of the collective safety for the kids?
00:25:21
Speaker
Ben, I'm, I'm dancing around it a little bit. I know you picked up on that. Um, um, we live, we live in a culture right now and we're coming into sort of the season of, um, of school shootings. You know, April is the season where it really happens. And so all of us are keenly aware of that. And we have, you know, you have active school shooting drills and, um,
00:25:48
Speaker
the school Mercer Island School District has has really worked hard to try to get our campuses as safe as possible. Every school has been retrofitted with a ah safety vestibule. So all visits are screened.
00:26:01
Speaker
um All external doors are locked at the start of every school day. And so that really is ah primary concern. And ah what Islander Middle School, the situation in Islander Middle School right now is is extremely it's It's problematic.
00:26:20
Speaker
and And getting all of our students together under one roof in a situation where they're safe and external doors are locked and there's a ah ah visitor vestibule the at the front entryway with staff and adults there.
00:26:35
Speaker
um that's what I keep referring to safety. That's what I mean. but Okay. No, that's that that makes sense. yeah thanks for Thanks for clarifying on that. Yeah. um Yeah, and it's it's a challenging topic. I suppose those listening might say, well, how is that any different than the kids going outside for recess or or whatever else? But and I think as you think through that, you know those are relatively small periods during the day relative to you know kids every hour right transitioning between classes. and so i do you know i do I do get that perspective for sure. So yeah, thanks for thanks for clarifying on that. Yep. um Yep.
00:27:12
Speaker
so let's, let's talk costs a little bit. I think as I was preparing for this interview and the and the others, you know, I was scrolling next door and looking on Facebook, uh, Mercer Island there, it is a, this is very contentious.
00:27:27
Speaker
Um, and I spent quite a bit of time talking with Mike Ciro, uh, on this. And I think I have a better understanding now, but I want to give you the opportunity. Can you explain,
00:27:38
Speaker
ah like how you look at the cost of the bond. And then specifically, you know I'm driving down Island Crestway, I see 40% vote no, yes.
00:27:49
Speaker
vote yes and And so could you just help listeners understand the difference and right yeah from your perspective, please? Right. Oh, I'd love to. And and I would actually argue that the contentiousness is not necessarily the bond.
00:28:06
Speaker
um And I watch, you know, I'm Nextdoor. i know i'm on Nextdoor. I'm on Facebook. I'm watching. And CMIPs is watching this very clearly carefully. And we have chosen as a as a group to engage on bond issues when it's a bond issue.
00:28:22
Speaker
um We have chosen not to engage in other other issues. other other sort of um Maybe critiques of the school district or other issues people have. Yeah, fair. Much of the controversy that is on Nextdoor and Facebook is an individual.
00:28:45
Speaker
And it really is individuals. I mean, if you actually sort of look at the the people that are posting, they are individuals that have particular complaints about about the school district.
00:28:57
Speaker
And it can be they don't like the school board. They don't like um the special ed program. They don't like DEI. They don't like, you know, they, they, it runs the gamut and um they, they just have some um from their own personal experience, some concerns, some things that they're not, um ah they don't agree with. And so much of the no's,
00:29:24
Speaker
to the bond have been in an attempt to quote unquote, send a message to the district about things that have nothing to do with the bond. And so that's really why we've chosen not to engage um in those because no, we don't want to talk about enrollment. I don't want to talk about, we don't want to talk about math scores.
00:29:43
Speaker
um We don't want to talk about special ed, not because those aren't important, But because in the world of CMIPS and everything, we're talking about the bonds. So we wanna talk about the buildings. We wanna talk about why these projects. We wanna talk about the tax rate. We wanna talk about ah the cost.
00:30:03
Speaker
So I wanna first start there and say all of those things um people have their opinions, they should have their opinions. There's as access to spaces for them to voice their opinion and work towards change.
00:30:18
Speaker
um but But using the the bond saying no on the bond as a big, huge, huge you know weapon weaponizing it is is not the way not the way to do that. and and so so Can I can ask you a question on that specifically?
00:30:35
Speaker
Because as I've talked with the very reasonable parents, um I don't think any of them are the ones you know blowing up the the next door. right um I think there's generally ah concern with the direction of the district is going or is gone.
00:30:49
Speaker
um you know There's those who are disappointed in educational outcomes for their kids. think And I think, I think the, the way they frame it, at least in my discussion is, you know, this is a lot of money being given to the district. And if, if we have genuine concerns about sort of the direction or academic performance anything else, you know, does it make sense to, to, you know, vote yes and give the money. And i think that's,
00:31:16
Speaker
I think that's the framing generally that i've that I've been exposed to. So I just want to give you, i mean, do you do you sort of agree with that? I mean, does it make sense that people can sort of question? okay they can So I guess let me answer in two frames.
00:31:29
Speaker
First off, I want to be very clear. They can question. oh my gosh. Yes. And they should. And they should vote in the school board members that vote. are their voice and they should ah pound the table and they should volunteer and they should be involved. They absolutely, I am never advocating taking away voice, um parent voice on their children's education, a hundred percent. And I come out of all the PTAs and that's one of the big things that PTAs do.
00:31:57
Speaker
Like how do, how do we support a learning environment? So I want to be clear on that. What I'm saying is forcing Mercer Island high school students um students to sit in very cold classrooms or very hot classrooms is not the way to send a message to the district.
00:32:15
Speaker
It just isn't. um I think there's we need to separate taking care of our Mercer Island resource, which is these are our buildings.
00:32:27
Speaker
um Taking care of a Mercer Island resource um is the priority here. um They are learning environments for our children. um and And using, again, back to using it as a weapon, because there is some disagreement on, you know, test scores is is not is not the best use.
00:32:49
Speaker
it It is not a good idea. There's no benefit out of that.
Clarifying Tax Misunderstandings
00:32:53
Speaker
Um, i I appreciate you responding to that. I mean, that's, that's, that's fair. that back Back to the cost now. Right. So help, help explain the, you know, the 7% versus 40% that's kind of being articulated out there.
00:33:07
Speaker
So, um, and I, I also want to state, I never finished the, we never finished sort of the statement about with the no campaign about, um, uh, you know the people that are out there on Facebook and next door and and that it's contentious. So I wanted to finish that stating that the the definitely the early ones and then ah many of them have been individual complaints about things that had nothing to do with the bond.
00:33:33
Speaker
the The case with Mike Ciro and his his no campaign is is he has traditionally always been a no tax campaigner. statement.
00:33:45
Speaker
That's, that's where that's been his position um with the city, um with their, with their proposals. it he He always defaults to a no tax situation. And, and I know Mike socially, we traveled in the same circles. Our, our kids are, have been on swim team together. I mean, it's not like we know each other. We're on Rotary together. um And that has been his place. So his argument always is a no tax place.
00:34:14
Speaker
And so I just want to sort of make sure that from from CMIPs and from what we see is that some of the no is a personal place.
00:34:26
Speaker
concerned with the district that doesn't have anything to do with the bond. And then it's sort of a no tax from the no. um i I also want to restate over and over, this is a tax and people should be thoughtful and should be educated on what it is and what um what it means.
00:34:44
Speaker
And I, again, I'll stick to my point that these are needed improvements. These are needed safety. These are needed learning environments. Now your question about the difference between the 40% and that's six, 7%. This one is driving us crazy.
00:34:56
Speaker
Right? one that is driving us crazy Because what Mike has done is he's gone and and he's he's put out documents and we studied them and like, where did he get this 40%?
00:35:11
Speaker
Oh my God. Because if it really was a 40% increase, we would be able, if that if that really was what it was, we would be able to drop every school and rebuild every school from the ground up. I mean, it just is such a ridiculous number.
00:35:26
Speaker
um He is utilizing predictive numbers. He went out. um He went to the Piper Sandler predicted numbers. And we still actually can't get to 40 percent. We get to 34 percent with his his numbers from the from the district side, from um the CFO, our district CFO, from all of the tax folks, from us, what it is.
00:35:51
Speaker
And again, this is my how I do it because I ah it just is is simple to me is the current tax rate for the Mercer Island School District is one. One dollar and forty five cents per thousand dollar value of the house.
00:36:08
Speaker
So that's one one point four five with this bond. If it passes, it would take that tax rate to one point eight nine. So that difference is 6.8% increase in tax rate. So when we utilize that number, that's what that is.
00:36:27
Speaker
What that equates to, and this is my husband. My husband's like, i don't don't tell me all that. I just want to know how much money it's going to cost me, ah cost our our family each year. What that equates to is $450 per million-dollar-valued house per year increase.
00:36:46
Speaker
And so the average house value on Mercer Island is 2.2 million. So you're really looking a little over um a thousand dollars a year increase um in tax increase for this bond um on Mercer Island. And so that, those are the numbers that I understand, my husband understands when I talk to other people, they understand um in terms of costs. Now, is it a tax increase? Yes.
00:37:11
Speaker
Is it a little over a thousand dollars? Oh, go ahead. Yeah, sorry. Okay, so I just wanted to to to circle back. So the current rate's $1.45 per thousand and the proposed rate's $1.89 per thousand. Is that correct?
00:37:24
Speaker
Yep. Okay, so if i if I do the math, 1.89 divided by 1.45, I get a 30% increase. um yeah so So the 7%, how do you come to the 7%? What's the math on that?
00:37:39
Speaker
Okay, the difference is if you take, here, I'm pulling up my calculator. Okay. So it's the 45 cent increase, 45 divided by the, okay, you're putting me on the spot with numbers, but it's different.
00:38:02
Speaker
So I think the what I've come to um is it's ah it's a function of the denominator. So, and and actually I think, you know, from my perspective, the research I've done, and i and and please feel free to correct me and I'll i'll talk here for a second, and give you a chance to to run the numbers. But, ah you know, the I think it's a function of the denominator. You know, my my analysis is that sort of both are correct.
00:38:28
Speaker
um You know, the 7% seems to be derived from the, you know, roughly $1,000 increase divided by your total property tax bill, um of which there's, you know, the state taxes and everything else. And and and both Mike Ciro and Dr. Randall did a great job, if you check out those episodes, in articulating um those those numbers.
00:38:47
Speaker
um But if you take the, you know, the the increase over, a you know, say $10,000 or $12,000 property tax bill, you get close to 7%. And then if you take the $1,000 increase and you just, the denominator is now just the local portion of the tax, which I think is, yeah you know, the number was, you know, about $2,000 now and it's going up a thousand. So that's, you know, roughly, you know, 40%.
00:39:13
Speaker
Again, the numbers, you know, Mike goes into those numbers on that episode and you can check that out. Do you, is that sort of roughly correct um in in your mind? I mean, is that is that how you guys have come to the 7% number?
00:39:27
Speaker
Well, I want to be clear that you it utilizing the you guys thing, it really is the Mercer Island School District, and they are the ones that manage the tax rate.
00:39:38
Speaker
um And so my understanding, again, is the difference between the 1.45, which is current rate, to 1.89. And just actually looking at that number, I mean, that's not 40% increase. isn't.
00:39:53
Speaker
it isn't um A 40% increase would would be so much more than that. So that's the difference between what is currently being paid by homeowners and then what is proposed.
Pride & Resource Efficiency in Mercer Island Schools
00:40:05
Speaker
um And so that's the 7% change right now. I keep coming back. And I think homeowners, this is what they really want to know when I have these conversations is what what am I writing the check for for that my taxes? And it's it is $450 per $1 million dollars valuation of home. and And just running that number, everyone's like, OK, got it.
00:40:30
Speaker
That's what that is. I think that the you know getting down into the percentage, and people just want to know how much more is this. And again, I'll state that i'll state that the the it is a tax increase.
00:40:42
Speaker
It is not what Mike Ciro is saying. he He is. And actually, you know, it's it's funny. ah You don't have the benefit of listening to episode when you do. Actually, you and he are making the same argument, believe it or not, to just look at what the actual cost is per year.
00:40:58
Speaker
yeah And the percentages sort of don't matter. So so frankly, ah you know, I think there's quite quite a lot of agreement yeah on the two sides there. Now, the part that I hesitate to even agree with him on this, and again, I know him. i know him We know each other socially.
00:41:11
Speaker
our Our kids are friends. like like we know This is a small island. You have to be very careful. That's what I want to tell people on Nextdoor and Facebook when they start to get i agree by a little nasty. agree, by the way. It's a small place. Be careful. Your kids will end up being best friends. um Anyway, ah that the value of some of our homes is off the hook.
00:41:32
Speaker
And so when you're talking about a waterfront home and Mike, Mike, Mike is that's part of his perspective, right? He pays a lot in taxes based on on his house um that that might be different than than the all the houses in Issaquah. Right. So I think that that is a valuable argument is the amount of taxes because of the value of your home is oftentimes different on Mercer Island.
00:41:56
Speaker
But I'll come back to the the average home value. Here's 2.2 million. And so that equates to a little over a thousand dollars ah in taxes for um for our families with this bond.
00:42:09
Speaker
Yeah. and And again, I mean, that's... that's that was a common message, you know, from, from my discussion with him as well as to kind of look at the, the, you know, the actual spend out of pocket for this, for this measure. And, uh, yeah, it's roughly, you know, a thousand dollars a year for the average house. So, yep um, all right. Well, so thanks for, thanks for walking through that.
00:42:29
Speaker
yeah Um, so the, the next question I have, you mentioned, um, other, you know, is qua in other districts from, from your perspective, how does, if the bond passes,
00:42:41
Speaker
um What we're paying on Mercer Island for schools, how does that compare to the neighboring districts and communities? Well, um that's part of the reason why I'm very comfortable doing this is, and i it always shocks me a little bit about the the criticism that I i hear ah from people on this island.
00:43:02
Speaker
um with our school district. I personally, Jennifer McClellan, ah have you know i I've seen it firsthand. Our four children went through this school district. i've I've seen the teachers in action. I've seen the school district. I've had a student in special ed, one of my children go through the special program.
00:43:21
Speaker
I am profoundly impressed by this school district and what it provides. It's a single high school district and just the that course course offerings alone are are incredible. i We have the things that we do. We have an internationally recognized band program. We have a robotics team that's going crazy. We've got the the best radio station in the nation. We have, i mean, it's just incredible what we have.
Future Financial Outlook & Conclusion
00:43:50
Speaker
And we do it, the Merceron School that District does it on a very, very reasonable budget. um In fact, I would say they're probably underfunded and they're at at the at the um district level.
00:44:05
Speaker
There's like five people working there for a district our size. It it is a shoestring. um They get things done. I'm so impressed. So as I look at how we compare around us,
00:44:18
Speaker
um We don't have brand new buildings. Every building in the Bellevue School District has been dropped to the ground and rebuilt. um We don't have shiny new buildings.
00:44:31
Speaker
And we have old buildings that are very well maintained. um I think that speaks to a practicality ah that I think our community should acknowledge. I am very impressed with the stewardship that are our school district leadership um ah follows with everything having to do with that. So ah in terms of rates, we have, again, lots of, like I encourage you, yes, merceroilandschools.org, go to the website. We have lots of um documents there that show that we do have
00:45:05
Speaker
um Sometimes the lowest, um oftentimes close to the lowest tax rate of any school district um around us, and and sometimes significantly by orders of magnitude, um which, again, speaks to ah the practicality and the awareness of education.
00:45:25
Speaker
understanding that this is, you know, take care of our Mercer Island community and that we don't ask, the district doesn't ask for bells and whistles. So again, I encourage you to look at those documents that demonstrate that.
00:45:38
Speaker
Okay, great. Thank you. And I think the the last question before we kind of wrap up here that I have for you is, um, I think it's practical to consider the the extra thousand dollars a year or or more or less that we're going to be paying individually as or as families in the context of what's to come.
00:45:57
Speaker
Yeah. um So you'd mentioned, ah you know, study for the elementary school that that may come eventually. My discussion with Dr. Rundle will be paying off um the last bond 2029 and 2030.
00:46:10
Speaker
yeahp um so And then the city also has, you know more broadly, issues um issues with City Hall. yeah um And so there's there's clearly need in our community.
00:46:23
Speaker
yeah So how do you suggest listeners view this issue? suggests listeners view this this increase in the context of what's to come and and sort of specific to the schools, i'm not going to ask you about the city, yeah but specific to the schools, what can people expect over the next five or 10 years in terms of other, you know, levies, bond measures, et cetera.
00:46:45
Speaker
Okay. Terrific question. um I would really encourage your listeners to consider this bond and the needs behind this bond as a standalone need.
00:46:59
Speaker
Um, i Again, I don't need to rehash it, but it's a practical needed bond for the safety and well-being of our students immediately. And so i really, I'll address those other questions you have, but um I think, you know, always be aware, but I think how this works is we vote on one bond at a time. And I'd really like this bond to be considered as the needed one in this moment.
00:47:25
Speaker
um As to future bonds for the school district, yes, there will be future bonds. There will be. It just is. and That's how we take care of our buildings all the way from here for the next 50, 100 years, we're going to have bonds.
00:47:39
Speaker
um Is there a plan to have a bond? ah No, not at all. Because you have to convene a facilities committee that takes ah you know several years. Then you have to bring in the engineers and you have to bring in the architects. So,
00:47:53
Speaker
Based on past processes, it seems we don't do them shorter than every 10 years. So the next time we probably would be considering a bond would be 2035 and maybe even farther out from that. So that is why the school district has invested and will invest CAPTEC levy.
00:48:14
Speaker
money into our three aging elementaries with new carpet and painting and, uh, new roofs, things like that to keep them functioning. And as, as a good, as good learning um spaces as possible. So, um, I'm not ready to face another bond anytime soon.
00:48:32
Speaker
um And so that's that's in the future ah quite a way. So I wouldn't necessarily worry about that now. um As far as the city is concerned, ah I would encourage the community to also educate themselves when the city floats that bond. And I just saw a comment.
00:48:52
Speaker
ah um The Rotary is hosting Jesse Bond to talk about that, I think, in May. So I'm excited to see. i don't know anything about that. So I'm really excited to see what that looks like, how much it is, what that involves. But again, i really encourage the community two Learn about and focus on each bond as it goes. um Yes, it's important to look at the broader picture, but ah you I think that's with any sort of um community resource is um if you're looking at roads, we should look at roads. If you're looking at ah sidewalks, we should look at sidewalks. You know, you should look at each individual
00:49:31
Speaker
ah project and ah and and get get in you know get learn about it and make a decision about that particular project. Well, thank you very much for for articulating that the way you did. appreciate it. um I guess to to wrap up, I'll give you the last word. um you're You're kind of parting thoughts on on why folks should vote yes. And then again, um where they can get information about your group and and further information as a follow up to this interview.
00:49:59
Speaker
All right, perfect. Thank you, Ben. um I will just wrap up by by a two-pronged message. One is just encourage everybody to vote. It's vital that your voice is heard, and that's for everybody. I i also want to thank everybody that is listening to this to be civically engaged.
00:50:15
Speaker
ah we That is a good message and a good model to share with our island children. They need to also be civically minded and engaged, so that's important. So thank you for taking the time to research this.
00:50:26
Speaker
I would encourage you to vote yes. on this bond. And my statement on that is this is a practical bond. It is a needed bond.
00:50:37
Speaker
It addresses not only safety concerns of our students, but also to provide effective, warm, comfortable learning environments for our students for many years to come. It's they are needed they are needed it's needed work on old aged buildings. So definitely um definitely vote yes. And if you need to ah further investigate in this, I absolutely encourage that. i I would go to the two sites I'd go to would be yesmyschools.org.
00:51:10
Speaker
That is our CMIPs site. Yesmyschools.org, all one word. The other place is going to the Mercer Island School District website, and they have a 2025 bond page on there.
00:51:24
Speaker
And that includes all of the all of the architectural work. It's all the engineering work. it's all There's lots of pictures on there. You can take a peek and see all the information there as well. so So that would be my final pitch. And i i would like to wrap up by saying thank you to you, Ben, for hosting this. um As many forums as possible where we can help educate and share information, I think is makes for a vital, involved community, which benefits us all.
00:51:53
Speaker
Excellent. Well, Jennifer, thanks very much for taking the time to have a chat with me. And yeah, I look forward to running into you in the future. Thank you. I think we i think we will. I think we will. All right. Thank you. Take care.
00:52:04
Speaker
Bye.