Bond Project Update: July 2025

Thank you, voters!

In 2019, our voters approved a School Construction Bond to build new schools and renovate and expand old ones. Bond funding is kept separate from the rest of the district’s budget, including our levies that need to be renewed every four years. As the saying goes: Bonds are for Building, Levies are for Learning. Learn more at bethelsd.org/bond

NEW Bethel High School

Thank you, voters! The last piece of structural steel is in place and the football field is turfed! Construction on the New Bethel High School broke ground over a year ago and is scheduled to be completed in 2026.

Evergreen Elementary

The much needed expansion of Evergreen Elementary is nearing completion. The bond-funded project is adding 10,000 square feet to the school, which includes 10 additional classrooms and a new commons area. It is scheduled to be completed by this fall.

What will happen to the old Naches Trail Elementary?

Evergreen students and staff spent the past year in the old Naches Trail building while the Evergreen remodel took place. The old Naches Trail is now being evaluated for future use. Ideas under consideration include office space, training areas, and/or a community center. Since the district utilized state matching funds to build the New Naches Trail, due to state law, the old building can’t be used as a permanent school site. As there was money in the bond to tear down the old Naches Trail, that money would be used instead for any construction/remodeling projects at the site.

NEW Cedarcrest Middle School

Originally planned as a modernization and expansion under the 2019 Bond, careful planning and additional state funding will now allow for a full rebuild of Cedarcrest Middle School.

Built in 1982, Cedarcrest is one of the district’s older schools. At just under 88,000 square feet, it is comparable in size to our modern elementary schools and no longer meets our community’s needs.

“Education has changed significantly in the last 40 years,” said Cedarcrest Principal Hans Nelson, “A space that is designed for intentional learning, that is designed for student success, that’s designed in a way that will make our community feel proud … that’s what it’s time for.”

The new three-story building will be nearly 123,000 square feet, featuring 39 classrooms and capacity for 850 students, up from the current 700.

Construction is set to begin in summer 2026, coinciding with Bethel High School students moving into their new building. Cedarcrest students will temporarily relocate to the old BHS for two years.

The new Cedarcrest is scheduled to open in the fall of 2028.

“I think it’s really going to be something our community can be proud of,” Nelson said.