TACOMA, Wash. — A serious upgrade may be coming for IDEA High School.
The high school was established in 2017 within a school building that was built in 1912, before World War 1.
It originally served as an elementary school, but now holds 400 high school students studying industrial design, engineering, and the arts. Yet after more than 100 years, its roots are obvious.
Kainoa Higgins has been IDEA High School’s co-director since 2018. As much as he enjoys his time with the students, he admits that the school has outgrown the building, and is reminded of that fact when he sees the floors breaking down underneath the school’s equipment.
“We have all this heavy-duty machinery and equipment that over time slowly sinks down,” he said. “If you look around, you can see that we’ve had to shift its location on a routine basis, otherwise, it all sinks into the floor.”
Now Tacoma voters are deciding on a plan to address the aging school building’s needs. A bond measure on the February special election ballot would provide $650 million to Tacoma Public Schools to replace or renovate 11 aged and deteriorating schools, such as IDEA High. The money would be paid over 25 years, costing Tacoma homeowners $7.53 a month on average through property taxes.
The measure was passing with a 69% approval rate following an initial round of ballot returns on Tuesday. These returns are from ballots that were turned in early and tabulated.
Opponents of the bond say it’s too expensive, Higgins said it’s long overdue.
“The frustration comes from knowing in our hearts of hearts what’s possible, and knowing what these kids can do and knowing what this staff can do with the right space and resources,” Higgins said. “These students are deserving of, and the future generations are deserving of refreshed opportunities, that we’re looking forward to.”
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