SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — In November, voters will decide if school bond proposal Measure K will become a reality for Lake Tahoe Unified School District.

According to the LTUSD website, “The District has been responsible stewards, routinely maintaining and fully utilizing classrooms and facilities.”

While maintenance has been a priority previously the district says, “it’s time to reinvest in the community’s greatest assets – local children and the schools they attend.”

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Dr. Todd Cutler, LTUSD superintendent, explained how Measure K was a carefully considered program that will improve South Lake Tahoe schools’ health, safety, and modernization of classrooms. 

“When I started [with the district] the school board approached me about doing an assessment of the facilities master plan,” Cutler told the Tribune.

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Shortly after the school district enlisted the support of a firm to help assess the facilities at the beginning of the 21/22 school year. Cutler said the district engaged with community leaders regarding the betterment of the schools to feedback before the school board approved the re-evaluated facilities master plan. 

The costs are estimated to be a staggering $200 million to complete the plans. Due to the cost of the plan as a whole, Cutler said it was ideal to attack the top two priorities first. 

Cutler said the bond is a potential answer to funding the plan. A survey conducted by Isom Advisors, a division of Urban Futures, Inc. was completed in March of 2022.

According to the presentation of the survey results, voter attitudes were tested regarding the district, projects, and tax tolerances for a possible school facilities improvement bond program.

Amanda Adams, president of the South Tahoe Chamber of Commerce, said due to “public and school board backlash to the original proposal” she asked for a meeting with Cutler which recently happened.

After the meeting Adams said the proposal is narrowed down to focus more on the health and safety over upgrades to the building, which she said is important for the whole community.

“When doing health and safety upgrades we know the new things will have to be up to current code which includes environmentally friendly items. So just focusing on the health and safety will also help make the buildings more environmentally friendly,” Adams said.

According to the LTUSD website, “If passed, Measure K will fund critical facility improvements at South Lake Tahoe schools, including: Safety improvements to ensure safe school sites, repairing/replacing leaky roofs, updating inadequate electrical systems, replacing outdated heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, making health, safety and handicapped accessibility improvements, replacing deteriorating plumbing systems, improving and modernizing learning environments to support today’s student.”

Measure K would provide funds by assessing a tax to property owners. The amount of the tax listed in the proposal was decided by the results of the survey conducted.

Results revealed 70% of those surveyed would respond favorably to a rate of $35/$100K assessed property value. Sixty-five percent of those surveyed said they would vote yes, less than 30% opposed, and less than 6% were unsure of their decision at the time of survey.

For more information on Measure K visit: https://www.ltusd.org/b_o_n_d_m_e_a_s_u_r_e_k/2022_measure_k_school_bond_overview

To review the survey presentation visit: https://cdn5-ss6.sharpschool.com/UserFiles/Servers/Server_2738240/File/Departments/Facilities%20and%20Maint/9_1_BondSurveyResults_0%20(2).pdf