EPHRATA — Ephrata School District patrons will have one more chance to express their opinions on a possible district construction bond in a “listening session” from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Oct. 21 at the Ephrata Middle School Library. Ephrata Superintendent Ken Murray said district officials will use the information gathered from community discussions to determine their recommendation on a possible bond to the Ephrata School Board. 

District voters rejected a $75 million, 25-year construction bond proposal in February 2026. Murray said he started talking with ESD patrons in early March in an effort to determine what the community would – and could – accept in a bond proposal, if district officials decide to try again.  

“I tried to get out and find out where the community was at,” Murray said.

He emphasized that district officials are still looking at their options.  

“No decision has been made yet,” he said. 

The bond proposal did receive yes votes from about 53% of participating voters, but it needed 60% to pass.  

One of the biggest things he’s learned, Murray said, is that district voters are concerned about the condition of Grant Elementary School.

“Replacing Grant Elementary needs to be prioritized,” he said.  

Grant Elementary was one of the projects included in a 2019 bond approved by ESD voters. Remodeling was completed at Ephrata Middle School and Columbia Ridge Elementary, but the project at Grant Elementary was deferred and eventually canceled.  

Then-Ephrata superintendent Tim Payne said in September 2023 that project costs had increased to the point where the available funding was inadequate.  

Murray said the fact Columbia Ridge was remodeled, and Grant Elementary was not, resulted in what he called a “have and have-not situation.”  

The February bond proposal also included replacement of Parkway Intermediate School and improvements at Ephrata High School. Murray said that may have been more than district patrons could afford. 

“We just don’t know if the community has the capacity to support anything that raises taxes,” he said.  

The Grant Elementary proposal also envisioned moving the school from its current location on First Street Southeast to the area of Columbia Ridge, near H Street Southeast. Murray said that was not popular with district voters.  

“They want Grant Elementary near where it currently exists,” he said. 

In addition, a 25-year payback on the bond was probably too long, he said, since it would increase costs. 

District officials will take all the information they’ve received over the spring and summer and decide whether or not to make a recommendation to the Ephrata School Board at its Oct. 26 meeting. The ultimate decision lies with the board, he said. 

School board members also will determine the timetable if they decide to offer a bond. The earliest election date would be February 2027, which would require a decision before early December to meet state election requirements.  

If board members decide to put a bond proposal before voters, Murray said it will look different from the bond submitted this year. 

“If we come back with a bond in February 2027, this will not be the bond submitted in February 2026,” he said. 

    Grant Elementary would be a focus of a construction bond proposal, if Ephrata School District officials decide to ask voters for a bond.