4 New Schools Opening In Puyallup This School Year

PUYALLUP, WA — Hundreds of students across Puyallup will walk into new schools on the first day of the 2019-20 year on Sept. 4. That's when the rebuilt Firgrove, Northwood, Sunrise schools and the new Dessie F. Evans Elementary open.

The schools were built after voters in 2015 approved a $292.5 million school construction bond measure. In addition to the four schools opening on Wednesday, the bond measure will pay for Pope Elementary to be remodeled by the beginning of the 2020-21 school year.

"While each of the schools has a unique design and its own personality, they are each larger, designed for today’s learning needs, immersed with natural light, and have improved vehicle access for buses, parents, and visitors," the district said in a statement describing the four new schools.

In November, voters in the Puyallup School District will be asked to approve a new $273 million capital bond for Puyallup high schools. If approved, the measure would add about 126,000 square-feet of space across several schools, enough to accommodate 2,000 additional students. The new space will largely come from remodeling schools to enclose open space between buildings, which the district also says will increase school security.

If approved, the high school bond measure would add 37 cents to the total school district tax rate. But the overall rate would be lower in 2020 than 2018 and prior years because other tax levy rates have been reduced.