Education
ASD approves $234 million bond for West District schools
Rob Shelton | Lehi Free Press
The Alpine School District Board of Education unanimously approved a $234 million lease revenue bond Tuesday, April 22, setting in motion plans for two critically needed schools in the district’s western region.
Parents, teachers and taxpayers packed the district office in American Fork for the heated public hearing. For nearly an hour, residents took turns at the microphone before board members cast their final votes on the bond measure.
The $234 million will build a new high school in Saratoga Springs and an elementary school in Eagle Mountain, where classroom overcrowding has reached critical levels as families continue flooding into Utah County’s western communities.
Eden Davenport, a Saratoga Springs mother of four with children attending district schools, spoke emphatically in favor of the measure.
“This bond is desperately needed, and it is needed now,” Davenport told board members. “As someone who works with youth in our community, I have seen firsthand the negative implications that overcrowded schools have. I’ve seen the difficulties that some of our children face making social connections because our schools are beyond max capacity.”
Molly Barrington also spoke in support. “Thank you for putting this bond forward. Having been a substitute teacher, this is so needed, and needed to happen yesterday.”
However, John Gadd strongly opposed the bond, questioning both its timing and amount.
“You’ve now tripled that from $86 million to $238 million,” Gadd argued during public comments. “You’re tripling it just because you can, which is a really horrible reason to take out debt for the next 31 years; debt that I’m going to be paying and kids who aren’t even born yet are going to be paying property taxes on.”
Gadd expressed concerns about the financial impact on vulnerable residents, adding, “This hurts seniors who live on fixed incomes. This hurts people who are disabled, who live on disability income. This hurts the moms and dads of the kids that you guys care about so much.”
At the March 25 meeting when the bond issue was approved for a public hearing for April 22, board members had addressed several misconceptions about the financing.
Board member Julie King clarified key aspects of Senate Bill 188 that made the bond possible. “When it says proportional, that does not mean proportional to tax base,” King explained. “If you issue a lease revenue bond, and the West is taking 100%, they would take 100% of the debt in a split.”
She emphasized that the bond would not require property tax increases. “The funding is available and will not require us to raise taxes,” King said.
Business Administrator Jason Sundberg explained that previous plans for an $86 million bond were limited by past legislation. “The $86 million was the maximum we could have done back then because of the lease revenue bonds we had done in the past,” Sundberg said.
He added that the district has built up a building fund through truth in taxation meetings over the past two years. Payments will be interest-only for the first three years, with the first principal payment not due until March 2029.
According to district officials, the financing structure aligns with state legislation passed earlier this year. Under the arrangement established by Senate Bill 188, the current Alpine School District will be responsible for all bond payments until the official split takes effect. After July 1, 2027, when the three-way district split becomes official, the Lake Mountain (West) District will assume full responsibility for the debt and all remaining bond payments.
Board member Sarah Beeson emphasized unity despite previous disagreement about the district split itself. “This board—the elephant in the room is, yes, we were divided on a split, but in terms of taking care of students, I feel like we are united and resolved and committed to the success of all students in all areas,” Beeson said. “The intent of our board is to make sure that we are creating three strong districts and that, together, we are unified and committed in that process.”
Board member Emily Peterson used a driving analogy to describe the transitional process. “We’re shifting gears here. We got to take our foot off the clutch and hit the gas at just exactly the right rate, or else we’re going to stall out,” Peterson said. “This is just one of those steps.”
Superintendent Farnsworth explained the urgency behind the bond. “The three-year build time on a high school necessitates that (it be) started as soon as possible so they can be in place for 2028,” he said. “That’s our intention, to open that in 2028 to relieve the overcrowding of the secondary schools in that area.”
The funding approval follows voters’ November 2024 decision to split ASD—Utah’s largest with approximately 84,000 students—into three separate entities:
● Lake Mountain (West) District – including Cedar Fort, Fairfield, Eagle Mountain, Saratoga Springs and unincorporated parts of Utah County west of Lehi.
● Aspen Peaks (Central) District – including Alpine, American Fork, Cedar Hills, Highland, Lehi and the Utah County portion of Draper.
● Timpanogos (South) District – including Lindon, Orem, Pleasant Grove and Vineyard.
This historic reconfiguration will be fully implemented by July 2027.
Board member Ada Wilson acknowledged the critical need for new schools in the western district. “They are struggling with very high enrollments,” Wilson said at the March 25 meeting. “Between the time of the issuing of the bond and the allocation date, ASD will be paying a certain amount. That is an amount I’m willing to pay for the students that need these buildings.”
Construction on the new high school in Saratoga Springs could begin as early as this summer, with completion targeted for fall of 2028. The new elementary school in Eagle Mountain is expected to open its doors by 2027.
The bond approval marks a turning point after voters rejected a larger $595 million general obligation bond in 2022, which would have funded similar projects alongside other initiatives throughout the district.
Following this approval, the district moved forward with underwriter selection on April 25, with bond pricing scheduled for May 28.
