To: Seattle School Parents and Voters

Subject:  Vote YES for Seattle Public Schools CAPITAL LEVY Proposition 1

Our students and schools need your help. Proposition 1 renews our commitment to safe and healthy schools by replacing a similar, expiring levy.

Safer Schools  Prop 1 ensures children have safe, well-maintained learning environments. It funds critical health and safety improvements such as roofs, seismic improvements, fire suppression and electrical upgrades to make every Seattle school safer.

Better Learning  The Capital Levy supports technology improvements to give students the learning tools they need to succeed. In addition, it upgrades worn-out playgrounds and athletic fields.

Greener Schools  Prop 1 also funds new green technologies for energy efficiency and other sustainable ways of cutting waste and costs.

Skills Centers   A successful YES vote on Prop 1 will open the door for millions of dollars in matching funds for job training and skills centers for students interested in vocational futures.

Proposition 1 is not a new tax. It continues our commitment to safe and healthy schools. Please vote YES on Proposition 1.

Safe buildings are a fundamental need in education.  Seattle Public Schools currently has a $500M maintenance backlog.

• SPS spends less than they did in 1979 on basic maintenance but has more buildings.   Simply put, you the taxpayer will pay MORE later because the district does not do enough basic maintenance now.   This levy does NOT address the maintenance issue in any significant way.  In fact, the first $50M  - nearly 20% of the entire levy - is to go to reopen 5 closed buildings.       
• Almost half of the SPS buildings are over 50 years old and are not being properly maintained.  There are new buildings that SPS spent over $700M to build and yet it does not properly maintain that investment.       
• Seattle Times 12/7/1995 - “He (Superintendent John Stanford) acknowledged, though, that if given a choice he would have kept the maintenance levy in the package and deferred the $75 million technology plan.”  If Stanford was worried about maintenance in 1995, why aren’t we in 2010?

Giving the district more money while they are not maintaining our buildings only enables bad practices.  Demand accountability of our tax dollars and proper upkeep for our school buildings.

For safe, healthy schools Vote YES for Proposition 1

We AGREE, our students DO need well-maintained schools.

We SUPPORT the Capital Levy because of its prudent investments in our schools:

    * Roof, fire sprinkler and water system repairs
    * Heating, ventilation and electrical renovations
    * Earthquake safety, student health, playground and building repairs
    * Window, siding and green, energy-saving replacements
    * Reopening schools for increased student enrollment

For safe, healthy schools, please vote YES!

Statement submitted by: Phil Brockman, Ramona Hattendorf and Eric Liu

www.SchoolsFirstSeattle.org or (206) 224-3563

• There is a $500M maintenance backlog.  This levy will barely make a dent.
• This levy has climbed from $178M in 2004 to $270M in 2010.
• This levy has only athletic fields in it, not new playgrounds.
• The district is NOT keeping our schools safe and healthy and they want taxpayers to pay more for repairs because the district didn’t take care of them earlier.

Demand accountability – if not now, when?

Statement submitted by: Melissa Westbrook

Download the full text of resolution (PDF)

Simple Majority (Wash. Const. art. VII, sec. 2(a))