Portland Public Schools Board greenlights $1.8 billion bond measure to bring to voters

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Portland Public Schools Board has voted to endorse a $1.8 billion bond measure that voters will ultimately decide on this spring.

It's a move some PPS parents were hoping would come true after months of advocacy.

At the Prophet Center in North Portland, every board member voted yes on the bond measure Tuesday night, which will go before Portland voters in the form of a ballot measure in May.

Back in November, the board was originally talking about a bond measure in the $1.5 billion range. However, it increased to $1.8 billion. The bond measure will address what parents have described as long overdue upgrades to multiple schools, including Cleveland High School, Jefferson and Ida B. Wells.

Calisto Ford, a Cleveland High School student, said the bond is needed due to the school's current lack of accessibility for disabled students like himself.

"Our school is not only inconvenient — inaccessible — but a safety hazard to our disabled students. So the Cleveland rebuild is long overdue," Ford said.

PPS Board Member Julia Brim Edwards proposed an amendment adding another $40 million to the bond measure for a Native American center within the district but the amendment did not pass.

PPS Board Member Andrew Scott also clarified that while the previous schools earmarked for modernization are part of the bond measure, the total cost — and design — for each construction project haven't been finalized.

District leaders hope to transition from the planning phase to the design phase for the renovations laid out in the bond measure prior to when it comes before voters in May.