Spokane school board raises some student fees, meal costs

The Spokane Public Schools board of directors voted to raise some student fees and meal costs Wednesday while approving scheduled salary increases for administrators and supervisors.

The final year of Superintendent Brian Benzel’s three-year contract was also passed by the board in its regular meeting.

Benzel is paid a base salary of $158,914 with another $19,069 (actually 12 percent of his base salary) put into a retirement account.

As of July 1, based on district salary schedules, the annual pay of associate superintendents ranges from $106,000 to $119,000, assistant superintendents’ salaries range from $102,000 to $115,000 and executive directors make between $91,000 and $103,000.

School officials also updated the 2003 bond capital projects, which are seeing further cost increases at Rogers and Shadle Park high schools. Here’s a breakdown of fee increases for 2005-2006:

•School lunches for elementary students will go up 10 cents to $1.85. Middle school and high school lunches will rise 10 cents to $2.35. The increases allow the program to continue a “break-even” status, said Associate Superintendent Mark Anderson. Reduced-price meals will not be affected. Breakfast costs are also going up 10 cents to $1.10 for elementary schools. Breakfasts at middle school and high schools will increase 5 cents to $1.30.

•Express fees for before-school and after-school child care programs are also going up. The monthly full-time rates will rise $23, to $340 a month. Morning rates went up $12, to $170 a month. Afternoon rates will rise $12, to $190. Full-time kindergarten will rise $15, to $220, and full-time preschool went up $40, to $600. The per-day rate will rise $2, to $30.

•The Spokane Skills Center increased the auto maintenance fees $5, to $35.

Some bond projects are seeing increased cost projections due to complications with remodels at Rogers and Shadle Park. Last year, spikes in construction materials rose faster than projections.

Earlier this year, the school board approved an increase in Rogers’ remodeling budget to $54.8 million, up from the 2003 bond budget of $41.2 million. Since April, district officials project the cost will increase another $1.5 million due to a need for unexpected significant reinforcing on portions of the 1932 structure, said Greg Brown, director of capital projects. Structural testing will be done this summer.

Shadle Park is also giving designers some challenges in turning an inefficient building with some small classrooms into a modern school.

The Shadle Park renovation is now being projected at $51.7 million. It’s the final major capital project of the 2003 capital bond.

Originally, the Shadle Park remodeling budget was $42.2 million.

As it stands, the district is facing a $5.9 million shortfall to pay for the 2003 capital bond projects. Some of the solutions being considered to make up the shortfall include using the $4.2 million capital projects fund or selling district property.

Another option being considered is doing the Shadle Park renovation in two funding phases with a 2009 bond handling the second phase.

Anderson said the least attractive option being considered is reducing the scope of work on the renovation projects. The district gets a chance only every 50 years to build a major structure, Anderson said. They’d like to do it right.

Fall projections will give a more accurate view of the funding situation, Anderson said.