CHIMACUM — Chimacum School District leaders should take a break from trying to pass a bond to update school buildings to concentrate on essential school funding for basic operations, the superintendent has told the School Board.

Chimacum Superintendent Rick Thompson said Thursday he told the board during its Wednesday meeting that he recommended the district concentrate on putting before voters a replacement maintenance and operations levy in February 2017.

The district also will solicit ideas from the community about changes members of the public would like see in the district, he said.

An online exchange of ideas is set from today to June 5, with a goal of 500 community members taking part, he said.

“This format will allow community members the opportunity to provide input about what they see is going well in Chimacum and what changes are recommended,” he said.

Part of the engagement will ask for ideas about facilities.

Links to the forum will be available on the district website at www.csd49.org.

Levy uses

A levy is typically used to fund essential educational operations and maintenance of existing buildings, and fills in the gap where state funding falls short, Thompson said.

Levies were initially implemented by school districts for the extra things school districts wanted to offer to students, but as state funding fell, schools used more of that funding to pay for basic education and maintenance needs, he said.

20 percent of revenue

The current maintenance and operations levy, which will expire at the end of 2017, is 20 percent of the district’s revenue, he said.

The levy allows the district to function while the state works out funding issues, he said.

Thompson noted that as of the 2015-16 school year, state funding for maintenance of existing buildings was returned to the budget.

This will allow the district to focus on district educational programs, he said.

The district plans to appoint co-chairs in June to form a committee to run a replacement levy on the ballot in 2017.

A levy committee will convene in fall 2016, Thompson said.

Bond falls short

The final vote for the $29.1 million Chimacum construction bond April 26 fell just short of a necessary 60 percent supermajority approval — 59.3 percent.

Thompson said he thanks the volunteers who spent so much time and effort in trying to pass the bond three times in 14 months but that it is time to reassess what the district voters want.

The first levy attempt, for $34.8 million in February 2015, was defeated, with 51.5 percent voting in favor of the bond.

In February 2016, the levy was reduced to $29.1 million, and support increased to 58.04 percent.

The April 2016 bond was lost by less than 1 percent

There will be more work to discuss the community’s wants and needs for the school district, Thompson said.

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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.