Defeated Bond May Appear On February Ballot

Riverside school officials are considering how to prop up a twice-defeated bond issue for another shot.

Rejected soundly on both Sept. 17 and Nov. 5, the $2.8 million bond could reappear on the ballot as soon as February.

The bond would have paid for a middle school renovation, a gym, athletic fields, new wiring and a bucket of small nuts-and-bolts improvements.

The bond received just 49 percent approval during the presidential election in a record voter turnout for the school district.

Ironically, the high turnout may have doomed the bond, says superintendent Jerry Wilson.

“We had more yes votes than ever, but that’s tough when you have that many people voting,” said Wilson. “A lot of them have no interest in the schools.”

But school officials are acting like political strategists, waiting for ballot counts and figuring when there are optimum windows for approval.

Because so many ballots were cast, reproposing the bond this winter is unlikely. State law requires school bond issues get a turnout of at least 40 percent of the previous election.

The record turnout of Nov. 5 would be hard to match, Wilson said.

The bond issue may appear on the ballot in the spring or fall, in part to take advantage of a state fund that would help pay for Riverside improvements.

The district qualifies for matching money from the state.

Riverside can propose the bond twice a year for as long as it wants. One Riverside bond was proposed four times before approved.

Every school bond issue statewide failed Nov. 5, and just two out of 14 passed Sept. 17. School officials are expected to ask the 1997 Legislature to ease tough approval requirements for school bond issues.

If approved, property taxes in the district would have risen 10 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, or $10 on a $100,000 home.

, DataTimes