Bond proposal coming to a voters pamphlet near you

After 18 months of planning, the MHCC Board of Educators is seriously considering a proposed $125 million bond measure to give the main Gresham campus a major overhaul, and to keep the college in good financial standing.

A successful bond, which must be approved by Multnomah and Clackamas County voters across the entire MHCC service district, whill provide the first injection of capital improvement money into the campus in more than 40 years.

The measure would require an increase in property owners’ tax rates.

Part of the bond is to match $8 million funded by the Oregon Legislature to build a new workforce and applied technology center.

“The legislature renewed MHCC’s $8 million in capital funds. In order for us to access that money we have to match it, so that’s part of the bond ask,” said MHCC President Debbie Derr.

The current applied technology building is aging, in need of upgrades and repairs, and that’s exactly what the community is asking for, according to a survey of the community, says Al Sigala, executive director of the MHCC Foundation and Alumni Relations.

“The question is: What do you want this college to do for you? How will this college be a great college?” Sigala said. “What resonated through all these sessions was: jobs. I want a job, I want you guys to prepare me for a job.”

“If we’re going to be able to do that, increase those efforts, we’re going to have to build a new facility,” said Sigala.

One of the main projects in the proposed bond is to improve the technology infrastructure of the college.

“The greatest concern students have expressed to us is the inconsistency of wireless internet on campus,” said Derr. “We hear it all the time. We hear it. We know. We experience it.”

Derr said that technology doesn’t stop with good Wi-Fi reception, it is also to support technology in the machine tool technology lab and science labs.

“Technology is everywhere, so we have a plan, a list of things we need to do in relationship to supporting technology,” she said.

Solar panels will be part of the bond, too, but Derr noted that the college already has solar panels across the campus. She added, “In building [construction], we’ll be looking at LEED (energy efficient) certification. We may not pay the $50,000 to get the golden plaque, but my goal is to have LEED-level certified buildings.”

Also in the bond are improvement plans for the Maywood/Gateway campus. The building is old and the cost to repair it and bring it up to date is costly.

“That’s the other strategy – (serving) that end of our district, increasing service to that end of our district,” said Sigala. He says the demand and responsibility are both there to meet that need.

The suggestion from Derr to the Board would be to completely tear down and construct a new building at Maywood.

Over the past year, the college has performed lockdown drills which have highlighted some of the safety precautions the college needs to shore up that could be addressed in the bond.

They include installing automatic locks on doors around campus rather than having a staff member manually lock doors in the event of an active shooter situation.

Another safety improvement included in the suggested bond is a seismic upgrade for the campus. While the proposed cost of the improvements have fluctuated, the college is still finding out more about what exactly needs to be done for the Academic Center.

At last month’s board meeting, Rick Doughty, vice-president of administrative services said that the seismic upgrades are not as expensive as had originally been thought, but it will still be costly.

Part of that savings comes from the fact that MHCC will be applying for a grant from the state to pay for the seismic upgrades needed on the gymnasium, recently renamed the Yoshida Event Center. Sigala and Derr are confident that the college will be awarded the grant.

“We want to make sure that that building meets the ‘you will still be able to get in and use this building’ standard,” if a devastating earthquake occurs, said Derr. Since the college campus serves as an evacuation safety center for east Multnomah County, the gymnasium qualifies for the grant, she said.

The bond isn’t just about improving facilities on campus; it’s also about ensuring that the college is a good steward of the taxpayers’ money. For years, Mt. Hood has taken out loans to make repairs and improvements that could have been financed using a bond.

If the bond passes in May, the college will be able to pay off its current $29.4 million debt burden. Should the bond fail, the college will be left with a debt service of $41 million over the next 20 years, according to Jennifer DeMent, MHCC chief financial officer.

“It’s crippling us,” said Derr at last month’s board meeting.  Later, she said, “if the community had supported the bonds along the way we would not have been in a situation where we had to borrow money to take care of their (public) investment,” she added, comparing the bond to a family taking out a loan to repair its house.

Loans were taken out for capital projects, such as necessary repairs, improvements, and upgrades to electrical, HVAC, roofing, parking lots, and lighting systems.

For instance, the electrical system blew up a few years back, and MHCC had to take out a loan for repairs, Sigala said. In the meantime MHCC was without power for one week.

Typically, general obligation bonds can’t be used to pay off debt, only for capital improvements.

In Mt. Hood’s case, its loans could be paid back with bond money because they were taken out for capital improvements. Paying off the loans will save MHCC an estimated $20 million.

Leaders are aware asking for money may send the message that the college isn’t managing its money well, but say that’s not the case.

“We have been incredibly good stewards of the tax payer dollar,” said Derr. While neighboring community colleges (notably Portland and Clackamas) have gone out for bonds, in MHCC’s case their absence has put the college in the position of having to take out loans to cover the cost of basic repairs.

The college will promote Mt. Hood’s positive economic impact in the region.

“If you look at how, from an economic development standpoint, how much this institution contributes back to the community, it’s astounding,” said Sigala. For instance, the college employs 1,300 people, with a$63 million payroll that is invested back in the community, he said.

A political action committee, or PAC, has been formed to support the bond measure, with Doug Walker serving as co-chair. Walker is a small business owner in Gresham and serves on the advisory board to MHCC’s hospitality and tourism program.

“We’re raising money right now so that we can trumpet the vote in May of next year,” said Walker. “It’s a $125 million bond. A home in the district will pay about $60 more a year in property taxes” should the measure be passed, he said.

MHCC hasn’t passed a GO bond since 1974 and the last bond measure was attempted 13 years ago.

Walker has been a part of the survey process to figure out exactly what the community thinks of the college and how it can be better served by MHCC.

“From every survey we have done it says the college is as much an asset to our community as is Legacy Health, and light rail, and our industry,” he said.

“So it’s loved, it just needs a little polishing. Over fifty years, things kind of wear out.”