This May, Portland Public Schools will ask voters to pass the largest construction bond in state history — $790 million — with no guarantee who, exactly, will be in charge at Oregon's largest school district.

Although the Portland school board has had a lone finalist for superintendent since early March, a contract hasn't been inked and no date has been set for a vote to hire him.

The uncertainty doesn't stop there: On the same ballot as the bond, voters will choose three new members for the seven-member Portland school board. No doubt some view a board sea change as a boon for the district's credibility, but how that change will affect Portland Public Schools is anyone's guess.

Nearly eight weeks ago, the board announced Donyall Dickey, Atlanta Public Schools' chief academic and schools officer, as its top choice. Two board members and the district's deputy chief wrapped up a vetting trip to Georgia six weeks ago.

Don't expect Dickey or anyone else to be named superintendent in time for the election.

Portland school board chair Tom Koehler, who is handling negotiations, said he expects to finalize a contract mid- to late May and won't rush to meet an "arbitrary deadline" like the May 16 election.

Koehler said uncertain leadership should not worry voters, noting the group of employees tasked with implementing the 2012 bond is still there and will do the same for this bond, should it pass.

"I am not concerned and fully expect Donyall to be our next superintendent," Koehler said. He said the district has been criticized in the past for not thoroughly reviewing job candidates. "The background check is very extensive, as it should be. Our expectation is that it will take as long as it needs to in order to ensure it's thorough."

As to whether Dickey's salary has been an issue for a district that is bracing for a budget shortfall, Koehler said negotiations are almost done. The approach, he said, has been "to look at the market and provide a competitive but commensurate salary to other superintendents of like size districts in the region.

Dickey — who has never been a superintendent — makes $230,000 in his role now in Atlanta, which has roughly 52,000 students. Portland has about 49,000.

Carole Smith who helmed the district for nearly a decade made a base salary of $247,000. Interim Superintendent Bob McKean, who had previously led Centennial School District, which has roughly 6,000 students, makes $243,600.

Should Dickey's hire fall through, Portland Public Schools would be facing the prospect of having to launch another search for an interim superintendent on top of yet another search for a permanent superintendent. McKean's contract is up at the end of June and it's unknown if he would stay on.

For those counting: That could mean four executive searches since Smith left in July 2016.

All of this comes at a critical juncture for the school district.

Although Portland Public Schools' lead scandal has been a selling point for the bond, with campaign signs in yards that say "I'm voting yes to get the lead out!", the crisis has also dogged the bond.

The school board chose not to send the bond to a vote in November as planned, saying the lead crisis blindsided the district and more time was needed. They wanted to be able to detail the bond money that would go toward the many health and safety hazards that lurk districtwide in Portland's old schools.

A bond had been in the works since at least 2010, as Portland Public Schools is on the front end of a 30- to 50-year-long series of successive bonds to modernize all 90-plus of its school buildings, which average about 70 years old. The kickoff of this plan failed, with voters in May 2011, rejecting a half-billion-dollar bond measure. However, Portland Public Schools rebounded, with voters in November 2012 overwhelmingly approving a $482 million bond.

How deferred maintenance has left schools in dangerous disrepair has come into focus in the past year, due to the May 2016 lead in drinking water crisis. And it wasn't just a lack of rigor in facilities upkeep that became a flashpoint. A harsh light was also cast on the district's failure to hold employees accountable and its lack of basic systems, a point auditors had been making for years to no avail.

The scandal spurred a painful transition. Many top officials have left, and a combination of people who have stuck it out and short-timers tapped to fill in temporarily are working to rehab or create basic functions.

What is Portland Public Schools asking of homeowners?

For the first four years, property owners would pay $1.40 per $1,000 of assessed property value, meaning the owner of a home assessed at $240,000 would pay $336 a year. That would be on top of the $1.10 per $1,000, or $264 on a $240,000 home, property owners also will pay to help retire the district's 2012 construction bond, which will be paid back by 2033. The 2017 bond, if passed, would be paid back by 2047.

"It is my opinion that the current Portland Public Schools staff managed the 2012 bond in a professional and responsible manner," Dickey told The Oregonian/OregonLive by email on April 25. "Provided the public votes in the affirmative, I plan to be in place to support the management of the 2017 bond in a manner consistent with the high expectations of the community. "

— Bethany Barnes

Got a tip about Portland Public Schools? Email Bethany: bbarnes@oregonian.com