Albuquerque Public Schools will ask voters to approve $350 million in GO bonds. Here’s what that could fund.

Albuquerque Public Schools will be banking on voters this November to approve $350 million in general obligation bonds so it can take on major projects, improve cooling on campuses, complete construction projects in the face of skyrocketing costs and fund three new facilities tailored to student needs amid declining enrollment.

Part of that proposed bond package, if approved, will go to projects voters approved in previous years that have increased in cost, as $173 million would be allocated to “project budget shortfalls” across 13 campuses.

In 2019, the construction cost per square foot for the district averaged around $260.90; now, it’s priced at $542.95 and may continue to increase. The rise is due to supply chain issues, increased costs of building materials, labor shortages coupled with rising wages for construction workers and uncertainty around tariffs, according to Kizito Wijenje, executive director of the district’s capital master plan.

“You don’t wait till all the eggs are in one basket to start a project; you’ll never start anything, and inflation will kill you,” Wijenje said. “Our motto is promises made, promises kept.”

When it comes to the other improvements the district hopes to make, $40.2 million will be used to add refrigerant cooling to 20 campuses — five middle schools, 14 elementary schools and one alternative high school. The campuses selected either had the oldest or poorest-functioning cooling systems, according to Wijenje, who explained the selection process as “worst comes first.”

“The thing that I hear most about from the community is, honestly, HVAC air conditioning,” APS board President Danielle Gonzales said. “I think everyone knows that kids can’t learn unless they feel safe and comfortable, and that’s a big part of the air conditioning.”

The other large category the district will request funding for is $70.4 million for “right-sizing priorities,” which include building a special needs facility on the city’s West Side, a facility for career and technical education training and a classroom block at Taylor Middle School.

In December, the APS board voted to close Taft Middle School, which had about 200 students, according to the district’s dashboard. The majority of those students will go to Taylor Middle School.

To accommodate those students, the district plans to use a $30 million classroom block, and Wijenje describes it as a cost-saving measure since the cost to renovate Taft would be more than making improvements at Taylor.

About $15 million for “right-sizing” will be used for a new special needs education facility — the district doesn’t have such a campus west of the Rio Grande.

As for the technical education training facility, the district officials said it could alleviate increasing labor costs caused by labor shortages by training students who could someday take on contracting jobs. APS will spend $25.4 million on the facility.

“The idea is, there’s such a shortage everywhere, and so you’ve got to start somewhere,” APS spokesperson Martin Salazar said. “The idea here is, it’s a win-win; you basically get students, expose them to these various careers, get them started. They’re able to graduate, to go hit the ground running.”

In recent years, voters have consistently supported APS bonds, except for a February 2019 vote when they rejected them. However, the district put the items on the November 2019 ballot, and they passed. If voters don’t pass the bonds this November, Wijenje said the district will “make do with what we’ve got.”

“We’ll nickel and dime and use duct tape, but again, that’s what you get. The conditions will not be optimal,” he said. “Your taxes will go down, but you’re not going to be paying for much-needed services for your community.”