CARLSBAD UNIFIED CONNECTIONS

Measure HH Update

Today Carlsbad Unified students are learning in new STEAM Labs (for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) and renovated classrooms on their campuses, and benefitting from upgraded technology and safety features districtwide. Funding from our school’s $265 million construction bond, Measure HH, has made this possible.

In November 2018 the voters approved Measure HH to modernize classrooms, infrastructure, and instructional technology. In the past six years, our construction management team, contractors, and consultants have been busy building and renovating our facilities. Our team regularly provides project and financial updates to our Independent Oversight Committee (IOC) to ensure that bond funds are spent only on activities approved in the ballot measure.

The IOC provides an annual report to the Board of Trustees, and Carlsbad Unified regularly reports its construction and modernization progress to the community.

On October 16, Assistant Superintendent for Business Services, Eric Dill, presented an update to the Board of Trustees.

To date, all Phase 1 work has been completed, including: campus-wide renovations at Magnolia, Hope, and Kelly Elementary Schools; improvements to Carlsbad High School’s Science Building and chiller plant; new innovative STEAM labs at Magnolia, Hope, Kelly, Poinsettia, and Pacific Rim Elementary Schools; and district-wide projects on safety, security, and energy efficiency and sustainability.

In Phase 2A, the construction team carried to the finish all modernization projects at Jefferson Elementary, including a new STEAM lab, a Culinary Arts classroom, and renovations in the older buildings. Campus-wide renovations at Valley Middle School and a new STEAM lab at Calavera Hills Elementary School are also complete.

Classroom renovations at Aviara Oaks Elementary School have been finished too. The school now has three new classroom buildings that replaced old portable classrooms that were at their end of life. In addition, the kindergarten building was remodeled and a dedicated STEAM classroom was created. Campus exterior work is underway, and improvements to traffic circulation will take place next summer.

In Phase 2B, upcoming projects at Buena Vista Elementary, Aviara Oaks Middle, and Pacific Rim Elementary are currently in the plan-approval phase.

At its November meeting, the Board will consider issuing the final $87 million in Series C of General Obligation Bonds, for a sale in January or beyond. They would finance the completion of Phase 2B construction projects, including Board-approved designs for Aviara Oaks Middle School, Carlsbad Village Academy, and Pacific Rim and Buena Vista Elementary Schools, as well as the final phase of construction projects at Calavera Hills Elementary, Calavera Hills Middle, Poinsettia Elementary, and Sage Creek High School.

Our Measure HH focus is to direct funding to classrooms. Accordingly, our priorities are to remove old portable classrooms and replace them with permanent structures, to provide dedicated STEAM/CTE classrooms at all campuses, and to complete security upgrades.

In the six years since the passage of the bond measure we have dealt with both significant price escalation in labor and materials, and costly regulatory changes. In light of that, the Board in Spring 2025 will establish a budget for the final phase that allocates remaining resources, from Measure HH or other available construction funds, based on updated needs assessments for the remaining projects.

We appreciate our Measure HH team’s hard work, and our Carlsbad community’s continued support. Together we strive to provide our students with the technology, the safe and secure campuses, and state-of-the-art schools that will prepare them for tomorrow’s college and careers.