Gig Harbor Task Force Recommends $800 Million Bond to Replace Peninsula and Gig Harbor High Schools

Gig Harbor's two big high schools should be torn down and rebuilt, a Peninsula School District task force told the school board Tuesday, Oct. 27. The Capital Bond Planning Task Force recommended new buildings for Peninsula High and Gig Harbor High, a new district bus barn, a shared stadium, new pools and new performing arts centers, Gig Harbor Now reported.

The price tag is about $800 million, paid for with a 20-year bond that voters in the district, which covers Gig Harbor, Washington, and the Key Peninsula in Pierce County, would have to approve.

Why replace instead of renovate

The task force found leaky roofs, failing mechanical systems and classrooms that do not meet modern security standards. Science labs, career and technical education rooms, pools and theater spaces lag behind neighboring districts. The main Peninsula High building dates to 1946, and Gig Harbor High went up in 1978. The 56-year-old bus barn is in the same shape.

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Members priced a renovation option too. The cheapest version that reused the old buildings came in around $715 million, with only one pool and one performing arts center shared by both schools. A maximum plan ran about $900 million.

"Reusing a building does not necessarily save the money that we initially thought it would," task force member Jonathan Appleton told the board, adding that it can stretch construction timelines and put students in the middle of a job site.

The schools are also full. A district facilities committee reported last year that Peninsula, Gig Harbor and Henderson Bay high schools had a head count of 2,840 students against an "ideal" capacity of 2,941, according to Gig Harbor Now.

A new stadium and the land

The task force unanimously recommended a shared stadium at a neutral site rather than on either campus. The Fish Bowl rivalry game moved to Mount Tahoma Stadium in Tacoma in 2024 because the home field on the Peninsula High campus was too small. The task force wants a stadium the same size as Mount Tahoma, which seats 5,000.

The district has already bought 27 acres near Peninsula High in a series of purchases since 2024, though officials have only described the land as being for "future school programming."

The tax bill

If voters approve $800 million, the total school tax rate would be about $3.52 per $1,000 of assessed value, roughly the middle of districts in Pierce and Thurston counties. The task force estimated the increase at $67 a month for a $500,000 home and about $127 a month for a $950,000 home.

That is a much bigger ask than the last one. District voters passed a $198.55 million bond in February 2019 that built and expanded elementary schools, according to the district's capital projects page.

"I'm just a little … $800 million. That's just a big number," board member Chuck West said. "It takes me a little while to digest."

What's next

School Board President Natalie Wimberley asked Superintendent Krestin Bahr to draft a resolution sending the bond to voters. No election date was announced.

Sources

• School district task force recommends replacing Peninsula, Gig Harbor high schools, Gig Harbor Now
• Peninsula School District committee says high schools should be "highest priority" to upgrade, Gig Harbor Now
• Capital Projects, Peninsula School District