$700M in bond projects for ?SRJC, Petaluma, ?Santa Rosa

Sonoma County voters last year pulled the proverbial pollbox lever for bonds that would fund more than $700 million for school construction projects at Santa Rosa Junior College as well as Santa Rosa and Petaluma city schools.

North Bay Business Journal’s May 27 Construction Conference is set to zero in on the facilities needs and plans from these districts.

A panel of experts will be exploring project opportunities coming to local school districts: Frank Chong, Ph.D., president and superintendent of Santa Rosa Junior College; Steve Bolman, retiring superintendent of Petaluma City Schools; and Socorro Shiels, superintendent of Santa Rosa City Schools.

Voters in November approved Measure H, which would raise $410 million to modernize and expand facilities at Santa Rosa Junior College, many of which are several decades old. Among the projects is a $91 million math and science building, replace old labs and classrooms, modernize career technical education facilities and build classrooms and laboratories at Shone Farm.

Also in November, Santa Rosa voters approved measures I and H totaling $229 million in bonds. District officials estimate that all needed projects would cost nearly $470 million, but the bond effort was limited to keep the property-tax bump to only $30 per $100,000 in assessed value.

Petaluma voters in June approved $89 million in bonds for elementary and high schools. The district has a 10-year timetable of projects that could total $110 million–$120 million with hoped state matching funds, according to Bolman. Projects for performing arts centers at two high schools are set for 2018 and 2021.