FARMINGTON, Utah – Davis County is experiencing massive growth and it’s trickling into schools.
Space is tight for the state’s second largest school district and administrators are banking on taxpayers to pick up the tab to give students more space.
Rachel Peterson has three children who attend elementary, junior high and high schools in Woods Cross. She says they need more room to learn.
“Our kids need good facilities where they aren’t sitting on top of each other,” Peterson said.
With 70,000 students in Davis School District, administrators are trying to accommodate growth.
“In our secondary where we’re really feeling the crunch. We have some junior highs with 1,700 students in them,” said Craig Carter, business administrator for the district.
The district plans on building a high school in Farmington, a junior high in West Layton an elementary in the northwest part of Davis County and possibly another one in North Davis County. They would also remodel five existing schools.
They’ll ask voters to approve a $298 million bond in November.
“Anytime you’ve gone out with a bond as we’ve seen recently across our state, it’s been a challenge,” Carter said.
If a person’s home is worth $240,000 they would pay $1 to $2 per year over the next seven years. That means they would pay an additional $7.49 for the entire bond.
“It`s frustrating to have to pay more money but there’s no money in the budget to do this,” Peterson said.
If the bond doesn’t pass, administrators say they’ll have to make some tough decisions.
“If the bond isn't successful we'll have to look at alternative scheduling to manage those students, could be split sessions some other types of things, boundary adjustments possibly,” Carter said.
Parents who want to learn more about the bond can attend an open house put on by the district Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Clearfield High School, 931 S. 1000 East, in the Little Theater.
Click here for more information on future open houses.
