Clovis Unified shows how $400 million bond would be used

CLOVIS, Calif. ( KSEE ) – Administrators for Clovis Unified School District took media members and community members on a tour of Nelson Elementary today to demonstrate how money from a $400 million facilities bond would be put to use.

The Clovis Unified school board voted to send the bond to the Nov. 5 ballot at its meeting Wednesday night.

Nelson Elementary, built in 1957, is scheduled for a $20 million modernization project if the bond passes in November.

Assistant Superintendent of Facilities Denver Stairs walked guests through the school and pointed out the 1950s architecture and 1970s-style finishes inside.

“The colors here are green and yellow, but this awesome 70s countertop [in that] nice burnt orange. This is one of the things that does nothing except for date the construction,” Stairs said.

Stairs says Nelson Elementary would undergo a “facelift” including upgrading classrooms, the multipurpose room, the kitchen, and staff spaces.

“We want to make sure our community and students feel pride and we would be naive if we didn’t think that that starts with how their campus looks and how they feel when they walk on that campus,” District superintendent Corrine Folmer, Ed.D., said.

The modernization project at Nelson Elementary would be just one of many modernization projects across the district.

“We make sure that there’s a project for every school in our district and with a district of our size sometimes that’s difficult,” Stairs said.

If passed, the bond would also set aside $180 million to complete the Terry P. Bradley Educational Center, the future home of Clovis South. Without that money, Stairs said the high school may not be ready by the intended opening date in the Fall of 2025.

In addition, if the bond fails Clovis Unified will not be able to access money from Prop. 2, which is also on the ballot this Nov. If Prop. 2 passes, California schools must have a current bond to receive reimbursement money, according to Stairs.

Stairs and Folmer expressed gratitude and pride in keeping the property tax rate the same with this latest bond measure. The current tax rate is $155 per $100,000 of property value and it’s been the same for 12 years. This bond measure would extend the current rate for a longer period.

“It is lower than some of our neighboring districts, like Fresno, Central, and Sanger,” Folmer said.

A full history of the tax rate assessment and the complete bond text can be found online at cusd.com/2024bond .

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