Letters

CV bond protects investment in home

The upcoming Central Valley School District bond is an investment in our future.

Seven years ago, my wife and I intentionally purchased a home within the district’s boundaries. As a homeowner, not only is my home a place to live and call my own, but I view it as an investment.

One way of supporting this investment is by paying taxes that help support schools, fire departments, libraries, and other areas that help create a strong infrastructure that makes the city of Spokane Valley a desirable place for people to live. Schools are at the heart of any community and deserve our support, even if it is as simple as protecting our homes as an investment.

For me, it goes beyond my personal investment, by supporting the kids in our community, I am helping my community. The taxpayers were there for me when I went to school, and this is my way of doing my part to support the future of the next generation.

With that thought in mind, it makes it easy to vote “yes” for the Central Valley School District Bond.

John Parker

Spokane Valley

Outdated schools need your support

Vote “yes” for the Central Valley School District bond. I am a student at Evergreen Middle School, and my mom is the principal at Opportunity Elementary. Both Evergreen and Opportunity are on the construction bond this Feb. 8.

Opportunity needs to be remodeled and updated because it was built in 1968 and has never been remodeled. Opportunity has very little technology, a very small gym, and the classrooms still look old-fashioned. The heating system is very old and broken. Opportunity almost canceled school because it didn’t have heat. Therefore, the time is now to vote “yes” for Central Valley Schools!

Courtney Carolan

Evergreen Middle School student

Leave lasting legacy to our grandchildren

Evergreen Middle School and Chester Elementary, built in 1974; Greenacres Elementary, built in 1978; Ponderosa Elementary, built in 1979 – four new schools built in five years.

What a wonderful legacy the CVSD community of the 1970s left for the following generations. Thank you for recognizing the need and providing the means to educate those students in modern, uncrowded schools.

Now it is our turn. These same buildings and Opportunity Elementary, built in 1968, are in desperate need of expansion and modernization to deal with our growing community and equip our children to succeed in the 21st century. As the Liberty Lake area continues to grow (a fact that must be faced), we, like the generation ahead of us, must recognize the value of uncrowded schools and build a new elementary school. This will also allow the Kindergarten Center to close and send those students to their home schools – something most parents would agree is desired.

While some of us may not totally agree with all aspects of this bond proposal, many hours of thought, research and community input have produced a bond package that addresses the most urgent needs, provides a 20-year vision, and attempts to provide our students with safe, modern schools that meet today’s technological and population needs in a reasonable way.

I recently received a flier implying that the bond is not a legacy we want to leave our children. I disagree. While nobody likes tax increases, some are necessary to achieve important goals. I believe this is just the legacy we need to leave our children and grandchildren.

Don’t let the sacrifice of the CVSD community of the 1970s go to waste. Provide our students with schools where the worry isn’t how to squeeze all the students into limited classrooms, how to plug all the computer equipment into limited outlets, or how the keep the school warm, but instead what classes to provide and how to best equip our students for the future.

Vote “yes” for the bond; provide for the students of today and tomorrow.

Andrea Benson

Spokane Valley