MENIFEE -- While most of Southwest County is seeing a slowdown in housing construction and therefore student enrollment growth, new students continue to pour into Menifee schools at a rapid rate.

That's why leaders of the Menifee Union School District say more schools are needed, and they are planning to ask district residents to approve a $31.4 million bond -- the second such bond in five years -- to pay about 50 percent of the costs for three schools.

The district wants to build an elementary campus near Canyon Lake, another on the south side of Menifee, and a middle school in northern Sun City. Developer fees and state funds will be used to cover the rest of the costs, according to Menifee Assistant Superintendent Dan Wood. The estimated costs are $25 million for each elementary school and $40 million for the middle school.

If the bond passes, annual property tax bills of homeowners in the district would rise by $17.90 per $100,000 of assessed valuation on their homes, Wood said. The tax bill for a typical home with an assessed value of $300,000 would rise by $53.70.

If the $31.4 million bond passes, homeowners will be asked to pay that amount on top of the $5.48 they are now being charged to pay off a $14 million bond voters approved in 2002.

At their meeting Tuesday afternoon, district trustees are expected to make a formal decision on whether to put the bond measure on the Feb. 5 presidential primary ballot or wait until later in the year. Last month, the trustees reached an informal, verbal consensus to call for an election regarding the bond issue.

That $17.90 figure could also vary slightly over time, depending on the growth of the district, Wood said. It was originally estimated that the 2002 bond would cost taxpayers $22 per $100,000 of assessed valuation, but because the community grew so quickly and housing prices jumped so dramatically, officials were able to dramatically reduce the cost to taxpayers.

That bond was used to pay for construction of schools, including Evans Ranch and Oak Meadows elementaries, and additions to older campuses, including Ridgemoor Elementary.

Menifee trustee Robert O'Donnell, of Sun City, said Friday that he thinks this is a good time to seek financial help from the community to build the schools the district will need in the future.

"We may have seen a time of some slowdown in growth in nearby communities recently," O'Donnell said. "But the homes in our areas are more reasonably priced than homes south of here. So, we'll probably continue to see more people coming in."

A survey conducted by a bond consultant in June indicated the community would support a new bond. Of the 400 likely voters surveyed, about 60 percent said they would support a bond if the increase on their property tax bills are within reason. The margin of error was plus or minus 5 percent. The measure would need to get at least 55 percent of the vote in an election to pass.

For the last two years, the district's enrollment grew by more than 14 percent per year, according to Wood. As of Thursday, the district's enrollment was 8,806, up about 10 percent from the 8,000 students enrolled at this time last year.

Over the next several years, there are expected to be several thousand new homes in the communities served by Menifee Union, according to Wood.

Centex Homes is currently building homes in Menifee, just east of Menifee Road. When completed, that subdivision could have as many as 1,100 homes.

The Audie Murphy Ranch development, already under construction by developers Woodside Homes and Brookfield Homes, is expected to add 2,200 homes to Menifee near Newport Road.

Pardee Homes is expected to construct a total of 4,000 homes in its Cottonwood Canyon subdivision in eastern Lake Elsinore. Of the 4,000 houses, 800 would be within the Menifee Union district, Wood said.

"Plus, there are a number of smaller housing subdivisions also under construction now," Wood added.

Contact staff writer Lorell Fleming at (951) 676-4315 Ext. 2621 or lfleming@californian.com.