The total cost of the bond is $49M. This is $20.5M less than the previous bond.

The passage of the bond will increase the annual taxes on a home with a 2024/25 “market value” of $100,000 by approximately $85.06.

Your market value is the taxable value of your home. You can find that value HERE.

Enter your property address and click “GO”.

Taxable market value and market/resale value are not the same.

The current HMS property does not meet the space/acreage for most state standards across the nation. Currently, the middle school is approximately 2.9 acres. A standard middle school campus is 13-14 acres.

For comparison, Wyoming schools with similar populations would have a 14 acre campus while Idaho would have a 13 acre campus. The Westview property is 15.35 acres.
Despite not having the adequate acreage and greenspace, renovations to make the building a modern learning facility would require a significant investment for a temporary fix to an almost 100-year-old building. Renovations would still not meet the acreage/green space guidelines or allow room for growth.

The district will try to sell the building and in doing so, want to be a good stewards of the public’s assets and get fair market value, but they need a buyer. There is an interest in the property but all details would need to be finalized before the building is vacated. The proceeds from the sale would go to the Westview project.

The 4th and 5th grades will be located in a remodeled version of the current Westview building, and the 6th-8th grades will be located in a newly-constructed building on the same property already owned by the district.

This allows for future growth of Daly Elementary, considers the academic and social needs of a more closely aligned 4th and 5th grade, and the consolidation of PreK for support and intervention services.

These two buildings will be connected by shared service spaces that reduce the cost of the project but still keep the age groups separate during the school day. This connection may include a central kitchen with separate cafeterias, two gyms divided by a solid wall, and a central administration area. The 4th/5th grade and 6th-8th grade groups would not interact within these shared spaces during the school day.

Not only is the proposed project located directly across from the Hamilton Police Department, it is also contained to singular buildings. Students would not be required to attend class in a separate building as they do now between the main building and the “pod.”

11/7/95: HSD3 passed a bond to make renovations to the current middle school to address fire, safety, handicap, electrical, and mechanical codes as well as add science labs.

11/7/95: HSD3 passed a bond to build the current high school and to also do renovations/improvement on the former high school (current HMS) to convert into a suitable facility for the middle school.

No, the voters were not promised the district would sell the Washington property. The possibility was discussed during the planning process as a way to consolidate properties. However, just like with the current middle school property, the district would have to get permission to sell the Washington property by putting it on the ballot for the voters to decide. This was never done. Since then, the property has been put to good use in housing the Early Literacy program.

The current middle school building was never condemned. It did have major structural and HVAC issues that made it a poor environment for students. After building the new high school, the district made many upgrades to the current middle school.

Market/Resale Value is the price at which you can sell your house. This takes into account factors such as curb appeal, the housing market, condition, similar properties on the market, etc. This is not the value at which your property is taxed and is not taken into consideration for bond/levy calculations.

Taxable Market Value is used to calculate property taxes. It takes the county’s assessment rate into consideration and is often much lower than your home’s market value. This is the amount used to calculate taxable market value.

You can find both of these values for your residential property by clicking HERE or visiting the following link: https://svc.mt.gov/dor/property/prc

Please visit the following link to see if you qualify for any of the state’s property tax relief and assistance programs:
https://mtrevenue.gov/property/property-tax-help/

Funds from the bond will not be released until December of 2025. The goal is to break ground spring of 2026 with completion of the project in the fall of 2027.

This plan includes extra potential classroom space that would accommodate growth at each grade level should it be needed. There is also enough acreage at the Westview site to allow for future expansion should that be needed at some point in the distant future.

Federal and state grants for capital projects are rare. The board of trustees is exploring options for soliciting donations from businesses and/or individuals to help offset the cost of the project.