The Slippery Pig Conundrum
How are the decisions being made?
If approved, this 2024 Levy will begin the construction of a new school building on the
existing Pearson Elementary School site. Do we want to be locked into that now? Why just a few months ago were we told this site was unbuildable, and NKSD was making a plan to build on Slippery Pig? (See "Pearson" tab for more details)
ASSUMPTION? The previous CFAC committee began Bond preparation in 2018. We now know they made the decision to move Pearson Elementary to Slippery Pig Way on an assumption! This quote is from the NKSD website and shows the assumption basis:
“The proposed levy includes a new gymnasium at Hilder Pearson that would be designed so that it would integrate into a new school on the current site if voters approve a future bond.
The previous committee considered building a large elementary school on a new site based on the assumption that the scale of the project couldn’t be accommodated on the existing Hilder Pearson property without relocating students during construction. However, the current Facilities Advisory Committee (FAC), understanding the community’s strong preference to keep the school on its original site, revisited this assumption. They asked the architect team to reassess the existing property and the possibility for a school to be built there that would meet the current and future needs of the community”.
(To see this quote in its entirety, refer to the NKSD website 2024 Capital Levy FAQ - North Kitsap School District 400 (nkschools.org) https://www.nkschools.org/about-us/bond-levy-information/2024-facilities-and-technology-capital-levy/2024-capital-levy-faq)
The current Citizen's Facility Advisory Committee (CFAC) has 27 members, 13 of whom were on the Committee that approved the Bond on an assumption. The current committee
members asked “...the architect team to reassess the existing property and the possibility for a school to be built there that would meet the current and future needs of the community” (from quote above). This is the same architect team that worked on the Bond when we were told a new building could not be built on that site without relocating the students. However, in only two months,
April 23 - June 26, this firm has found a way to build a school on the existing site and present it to the Facility Advisory Committee.
The previous Committee had at four years to find facts prior to the 2022 Levy, yet they chose assumptions. This same committee had an additional two years (six years combined) to consider their assumptions and choose to work with facts, yet they went with assumptions.
Now this new CFAC (remember, 13 of the 27 approved the Bond) had, from their first meeting on April 23rd to July 22 to find all the facts, all the information they needed to make the
decision that Pearson Elementary should remain on the current site. Previous committee had 6 years, the current committee 3 months. We have concerns that this Levy is also based on assumptions.
This Levy would begin the construction of a new school on the current site by adding a
gymnasium and modifying pickup/dropoff and parking. We can see on the NKSD website
renderings of a new school for this site that would attach to this new gymnasium. Remember, in February we were told that building on this site was impossible.
Word is that Pearson Elementary will be a smaller school. If there are plans for a smaller school what will the student capacity be? A record request #24-162 for student capacity and square footage shows “There were no responsive records found for your request.” Does NKSD know the student capacity for this new building? If so, the Citizens Facilities Advisory Committee, the Committee making these decisions, wasn't given the information. Making a decision to build a new school on this property without knowing the student capacity is
unconscionable. The renderings of this proposed school appear to show there isn’t room for expansion. Is it logical to build on this site when NKSD owns nearly 30 acres on Lone Maple Road? It is close to the current school.
This Levy, if passed, will begin the construction of a new school building on the current Pearson site. Do we want to be locked into that now?
This is reminiscent of the 2022 Capital Projects Levy that included the purchase of the Slippery Pig property. No details were given at that time as to what the plans were for the new school. What a mess that purchase turned out to be. Now NKSD has purchased 20 acres with 2 rental homes, and a bad drainfield.
Do we want to repeat a mistake like the Slippery Pig purchase by voting to approve something at Pearson that we have no details on? We can agree that Pearson needs a new building, it is the “where” and the “what” that are the questions. Why approve a plan to spend a multitude of millions without seeing that they have a well thought out, comprehensive long-term plan in place? There is more information on this lack of long-term plans on our website.
We are also being told that the “community wants the new school on this current site”. The reactions we got from the community during the Bond were that they didn't want Pearson moved to Poulsbo, Lone Maple property wasn’t even an option. We feel it is presumptive on the part of NKSD to assume that the community wants the school on the current site. What work has been done by NKSD to determine the desires of the community regarding the future of Pearson since the Bond failure?
We did a Public Record Request to determine how NKSD seems to know the mind of the public in regard to the location of the new Pearson school building. The results of this Record Request #24-167 were disturbing. What we received shows that the only times NKSD
connected with the community about Pearson after the Bond failure was in the three Levy community presentations. During these presentations Pearson was mentioned. The important point is these mentions were not solicitations for input on the location of the new school.