School district plans to build new Renton High School

The Renton School District is gearing up to replace Renton High School on its current grounds, with additional land being acquired next to the site.

The district has been discussing the need for a more equitable Renton High School campus for many years, and began researching where a new campus might be located in 2021, according to district spokesperson Randy Matheson.

In May 2023, after reviewing nearly 10 pieces of property within district boundaries, the district focused their work on expanding the existing campus, Matheson said.

Matheson said building a new RHS would provide current and future students and families within the school’s boundaries with equitable, high school facilities and amenities comparable to those of the other high schools. Matheson said this replacement has been coming for a long time.

“While most modern high schools are built on 30-40 acres to include suitable learning spaces along with sports and athletics fields, Renton High School is built on only 23.7 acres with a large portion being limited by airport restrictions,” Matheson said. “In comparison, within our district, Hazen High School is built on 33.3 acres and Lindbergh High School is built on 37.2 acres.”

Renton School District voters passed the school construction election measure on the Nov. 2022 ballot with an overwhelming 64% approval. The ballot passed general obligation bonds in the amount of no greater than $676 million to pay the costs of making district-wide safety, security, seismic, and other essential capital improvements.

This bond proposal included replacing the current Renton High School as a project. Matheson said the total costs for purchasing and preparing property and constructing a new Renton High campus are estimated at $435 million.

According to the district, the plan is to build a new high school building and athletic fields on the expanded site while retaining the original 1929 historic portion of the current Renton High School facade and the IKEA Performing Arts Center. According to the district, the current expansion adds 9.7 acres to the current site. According to city documents, the new RHS groundbreaking is estimated to be in the spring of 2027 for a planned opening in the fall of 2029.

Those 9.7 acres are being added through the district purchasing 42 parcels adjacent to the current RHS, which includes 32 homes and eight commercial sites. The district reports that this assemblage will include relocating the district’s warehouse and nutrition services building, currently located on the Renton High campus at 409 S. Tobin Street.

Multiple current homeowners have expressed dissatisfaction with having their homes acquired by the district. These homeowners voiced their thoughts at Renton City Council meetings and at a North Renton Neighborhood association meeting on Aug. 21, 2024.

“The great majority of home and business owners in the build zone are working in unison with the district. Though some are understandably unenthusiastic about such a change in their lives, they appreciate the need to expand Renton High School for current and future students and families,” Matheson said. “Of the 42 pieces of property in the build zone, we have either fully acquired or are in active negotiations with owners of nearly 30 properties. Others are working to gather sales documents and appraisals.”

Matheson said the district is committed to purchasing each property and paying its owners full fair market value. He added that homeowners and business owners may be eligible for additional relocation assistance, moving assistance, mortgage interest differential payments, and other benefits worth tens of thousands of dollars.