The Yakima School District continues to move forward on projects approved by voters as part of the April 2026 school bond. From completed improvements to major school construction, here is where the work stands today.

Hoover & Garfield Rebuilds

Selecting a General Contractor

The District has completed the competitive General Contractor/Construction Manager, or GC/CM, selection process for the replacement of Hoover and Garfield elementary schools.

Five qualified contractors submitted Statements of Qualifications. Following a state-required review process, three firms advanced to interviews, and two finalists were invited to submit fee proposals.

Garco Construction of Spokane received the highest overall score and submitted the lowest fee proposal. Garco is the apparent successful contractor for both school projects, pending completion of final contracting requirements.

The District will now begin working with Garco as design progresses. The District and contractor will eventually negotiate a Guaranteed Maximum Price, or GMP, which will establish the maximum construction cost for the two schools.

The GC/CM process allows the contractor to join the project during design, contribute construction expertise and help identify opportunities to begin appropriate site work earlier in the process.

Permitting & Site Preparation

The District has paid applicable permit fees and continues to work closely with the City of Yakima on building permits, the State Environmental Policy Act, or SEPA, review process and other requirements associated with the two school sites.

Traffic counts are scheduled for September 22 and 23 at both Hoover and Garfield. The information collected will help the District and City plan for traffic flow, student arrival and dismissal, pedestrian safety and other transportation needs surrounding the new schools.

Additional Bond Projects Moving Forward

Adams Elementary

The Adams Elementary parking lot project is complete. The new parking lot was paved and striped before the beginning of the 2026–27 school year.

Lewis & Clark Middle School

The courtyard replacement is substantially complete. The remaining work includes the installation of a new access gate, which required custom fabrication and will be installed soon.

A complete resurfacing and reworking of the Lewis & Clark track is expected to begin in September. Construction is anticipated to take approximately eight weeks. The District is coordinating with the contractor and school principal to minimize disruptions to students and school activities.

Elementary Playgrounds

Design work is underway for playground improvements at several schools. Gilbert Elementary is expected to be among the first playground projects to move forward.

The District will coordinate construction schedules around school operations, student access and the availability of playground equipment.

HVAC Improvements

The District is also evaluating large heating, ventilation and air-conditioning equipment for replacement based on age, condition and operational need.

This includes the chillers at Whitney Elementary, which are nearing the end of their useful life and may be included among the District’s near-term improvement projects.

Bond Funding

On September 1, the District completed the first of two planned bond sales under the $200 million authorization approved by voters.

The sale received strong interest from the bond market, drawing 119 orders from 29 institutional investors across the country. The District secured financing at a true interest cost of approximately 4.36 percent. True interest cost is a standard measure of the overall cost of borrowing.

The bonds had a principal amount of $94,225 million. Bond premiums increased the total proceeds available for bond projects to $100 million. Those funds are scheduled to be deposited into the District’s Capital Projects Fund at closing on September 15.

By dividing the voter-approved authorization into two sales and timing those sales to align with capital project needs, the District avoids issuing the full amount before the funding is needed and saves taxpayers money.

What’s Next

Over the coming weeks, the District will begin working with Garco as the designs for Hoover and Garfield continue, conduct traffic counts at both school sites and prepare for work on the Lewis & Clark track.

Planning will also continue for playground improvements, HVAC replacements and other projects included in the bond program.

Thank you, Yakima voters, for continuing to invest in our students, schools and community. We will continue providing updates as these projects move from planning to construction.

Dr. Trevor Greene, Superintendent
Jake Kuper, CFO/Assistant Superintendent

YSD Construction & Bond Projects August Update

August 19, 2026

Yakima School District continues to make significant progress on projects included in the voter-approved 2026 bond measure. Work is underway on the replacement of Hoover and Garfield elementary schools, improvements at existing schools, playground replacements, and planning for future athletic facility upgrades.

The following provides an update on current work and upcoming milestones.

Hoover and Garfield Elementary School Replacements

Planning and design for the replacement of Hoover and Garfield elementary schools continue to move forward.

Five highly qualified general contractors submitted Statements of Qualifications as part of the District’s contractor selection process. Following review by a District selection panel, three firms have been shortlisted to advance to the interview phase. Interviews are scheduled for August 27, after which proposals will be scored in accordance with the state-required selection process.

Following completion of that process, a recommended contractor is expected to be presented to the Yakima School District Board of Directors for consideration and potential action at the September 15, 2026 YSD Board Meeting.

Meanwhile, schematic design for both schools continues to advance. The design team is approximately 50–70% through the current design phase, with District staff, architects, and project managers continuing to refine building layouts. School principals and staff will also have opportunities to review plans and provide feedback regarding classroom and instructional-space configurations.

Current preliminary plans call for two-story school buildings, with additional mechanical space above portions of the buildings.

The District has also met with the City of Yakima as part of the planning and permitting process. Work with the City includes review of projected enrollment, traffic impacts, zoning requirements, building height, and pervious and impervious surface requirements. Because the existing school properties include multiple parcels, some parcel consolidation or short-plat work may also be necessary.

Several important site-development steps have already been completed, including:

• Soil testing and geotechnical work

• Topographical surveys

• Review of property lines, titles, and parcel configurations

• Historical and projected enrollment analysis to support traffic-impact planning

A full traffic impact analysis will be completed as the projects advance.

Adams Elementary Improvements

Significant site improvements are underway at Adams Elementary.

The project includes replacement of concrete and substantial improvements to the school's parking area, including repaving and restriping. Concrete work is nearing completion, with asphalt work to follow.

Although construction activity has created some disruption immediately before the start of school, the project was intentionally accelerated following passage of the bond so that this long-planned improvement could be completed as quickly as possible.

The parking and access improvements are expected to be completed and ready for students, staff, and families before the beginning of the school year.

Lewis & Clark Middle School Courtyard Improvements

Significant improvements to the interior courtyard at Lewis & Clark Middle School are nearing completion. While this project is largely out of public view, it addresses an important and heavily used part of the Lewis & Clark campus.

The work required substantial excavation and reconstruction to correct longstanding drainage issues and improve the courtyard surface. Because students and staff regularly use this area to move between parts of the campus throughout the school day, the improvements will provide a safer, more functional, and more welcoming environment for the Lewis & Clark community.

The project is expected to be completed and ready for students and staff by the first day of school.

Elementary Playground Replacements

Replacing and improving elementary playgrounds was an important component of the 2026 bond measure, and planning for that work is well underway.

The District has developed preliminary playground designs for most elementary schools, with Gilbert Elementary scheduled to be the first school to receive a new playground.

Additional schools will follow as construction schedules allow. Hoover and Garfield will receive entirely new playgrounds as part of their school replacement projects.

Because playground replacement requires demolition, excavation, installation, and periods when playgrounds cannot be used, the District will carefully sequence projects to minimize disruption to students and schools.

Davis/Sunnyfield Softball Complex

Planning also continues for improvements to the Davis High School softball facilities at Sunnyfield, adjacent to Lewis & Clark Middle School.

Preliminary engineering work was completed before the bond election, providing the District with a foundation for moving the project forward. District staff will next evaluate design options, construction schedules, costs, and impacts on athletic programs.

One concept under consideration includes a four-field, cloverleaf-style configuration using natural grass. Other possibilities could include a combination of practice and competition fields and the potential use of artificial turf in portions of the complex. The District will evaluate these alternatives within the financial commitments established by the bond measure. 

Scheduling will also be an important consideration because newly installed natural grass fields may require approximately 12–18 months before they are ready for competition; therefore, both natural grass and artificial turf options will be weighed.

Track, Field and Stadium Improvements

Planning is also underway for track and field improvements included in the bond program.

The work at Zaephel Stadium is expected to include resurfacing or reconstruction of portions of the track as well as improvements to field-event areas, including long jump and triple jump facilities.

The District also intends to use this work as an opportunity to improve the stadium's infrastructure. When portions of the field are opened for construction, additional electrical conduit and power capacity will be installed. These improvements will help address limitations with electrical access during large athletic events and meets, including the 1B, 2B, 1A State Track & Field Championships hosted yearly at the facility.

Much of this work is anticipated for summer 2027. Scheduling will begin well in advance because specialized track and artificial-turf contractors serve projects throughout Washington and have particularly busy summer construction schedules.

Bond Financing

The District continues to prepare financially for the major construction work ahead.

Moody's reaffirmed the District's bond rating, an important step as the District prepares to issue bonds authorized by voters. (Moody’s is a leading global credit rating agency that evaluates the financial health of public school districts and assigns credit ratings to their voter-approved bond measures, directly determining the interest rates and borrowing costs taxpayers will pay to fund school infrastructure projects.)

The District currently anticipates selling approximately $100 million in bonds on September 1. These proceeds will provide funding for the first major phase of bond construction and improvement projects.

Moving Forward

The passage of the 2026 bond allowed Yakima School District to begin addressing facility needs that have been identified and discussed with our community for years. Some of this work — surveys, soil testing, permitting, contractor selection, engineering, and utility planning — may not always be visible, but it is essential to delivering successful projects.

At the same time, visible improvements are already occurring across the District.

We appreciate the patience of students, families, staff, and neighbors as construction moves forward, particularly when projects create temporary disruptions. Most importantly, we remain grateful to the Yakima community for its investment in our schools and our students.

Dr. Trevor Greene

Superintendent
Yakima School District

Jake Kuper
CFO/Assistant Superintendent
Yakima School District

Download PDF version with photos

July Board Update:

Yakima School District's $200 million bond measure, approved in April 2026, marks the district's first bond measure to receive voter approval since 2009.

The approved Capital Construction Bond allows for the replacement of Garfield and Hoover elementary schools, both of which are more than 60 years old. In addition, the bond supports important improvements across the District, including HVAC system upgrades, roof repairs and maintenance, accessible playgrounds at our elementary schools, a Davis HS softball/fastpitch complex, new track surfaces at the middle schools and two comprehensive high schools, and new turf at Zaepfel Stadium.

Since 2006, the District has brought four bond measures before voters. Bond proposals in 2006 and 2007 failed, while voters approved a bond measure in 2009 that funded improvements at Davis, Eisenhower, and Stanton Academy. The 2026 measure was the district's first bond proposal in nearly 20 years and reflects community support for investments in school facilities across the District.

In Washington state, passing a bond requires a 60% supermajority of “yes” votes and a validation threshold: voter turnout must be at least 40% of the total votes cast in the district during the previous general election. The April bond passed at 60.99%.

What’s Next?

The District selected Design West Architects and Turner & Townsend Heery as its project management team, both of which bring extensive experience managing large school construction projects. Initial planning meetings have begun, and the District expects to have its building design and project management teams fully in place by fall 2026. The bond sale process is scheduled to begin in September 2026, making funds available for project work.

Several facility improvement projects are already underway this summer, including improvements to the Lewis and Clark Middle School track and upgrades to the school’s courtyard area. Accessible elementary playground improvements will begin this upcoming 2026-27 school year.

Current planning targets call for the new Hoover Elementary School to open in fall 2028, followed by a new Garfield Elementary School in fall 2029. As with all major construction projects, timelines and project schedules may be adjusted as planning and construction progress.

The District will continue providing regular updates through Board meetings, District communications, and project updates. Additional updates will be made available on this webpage.