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February 8, 2011 in News, City, Region
Three of four area school measures failing
Spokane County voters repeated their “no taxes” message from November, rejecting three of four school funding requests in today’s special election.
Central Valley, Mead and Readan-Edwall school districts all saw tax requests heading to failure tonight. Only voters in the Newport School District appeared to be supporting a levy.
Passage of the proposed bonds and levies initially looked promising, officials said, because the propositions on the ballot were continued taxes; property owners would pay the same or just a few cents more per $1,000 assessed value.
“Definitely, there’s a feeling of surprise,” said Melanie Rose, a Central Valley spokeswoman. “Surprise, shock and, of course, disappointment.”
Bonds
Central Valley School District’s construction bond included a new elementary school, renovation and expansion of Evergreen Middle School, modernization and renovation of Opportunity, Ponderosa, Greenacres and Chester elementary schools and a district-wide security upgrade.
Voters came out against the bond, with 54 to 46 percent.
The school buildings were built in the late 1960s to late ’70s, officials said. Those high-use facilities have grown old.
“The building will continue to age,” Rose said. “The students’ safety will continue to be compromised. It’s disappointing the community didn’t support these bonds, didn’t support our schools.”
The $69.6 million bond would have cost taxpayers $2.30 per $1,000 of assessed property value in 2012, 65 cents more than they are currently paying.
Mead School District’s $59 million bond would have modernized Midway and Shiloh Hills elementary schools and Northwood Middle School; acquired property for future school sites.
Tonight, 51 percent were voting against the plan.
The current rate of $2.20 per $1,000 assessed value would have remained the same had the bond passed, Mead officials said.
The last time a bond failed in the Mead School District was 1973.
The district’s Facilities Planning Commission put the bond package together and it will be up to them to reevaluate the bond and decide if and when to re-run it, said Mead Superintendent Tom Rockefeller. He said they will likely wait a few years to re-run the bond.
“It’s evident the issue with taxes and the issue with the economy right now are there,” Rockefeller said.
LeviesReardan-Edwall, a small district that straddles Spokane and Lincoln counties, asked voters to continue its $1.1 million levy with a 5 percent increase each year for the next four years.
But voters were hesitant, with 51 percent voting against it as of tonight.
Athletic programs are 100 percent dependent on the levy, as well as Future Business Leaders of America, FFA and other extracurricular activities, school officials said. The money also pays for four teachers.
The rate per $1,000 assessed value is $2.72 now, and would have been $2.73 in 2012 had the levy been approved.
The Newport School District, with residents in Spokane and Pend Oreille counties, asked voters to approve a three-year, $1.3 million replacement levy.
And voters said yes, with about 60 percent voting in favor as of Tuesday night.
The money pays for staff and programs, including music and arts, transportation from afterschool activities, a teacher for the gifted program, two school counselors and nursing services.
It will cost $1.82 per $1,000 assessed value in 2012 then decrease over the subsequent two years.
Reporters Jody Lawrence-Turner, Chelsea Bannach and Lisa Leinberger contributed to this report.
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reservedparking on February 08 at 10:12 p.m.
Thanks, Duane. Go away.
greenlibertarian on February 08 at 11:16 p.m.
The Altons have spoken and prevailed. Sorry kids.
terrymr on February 08 at 11:48 p.m.
Time to start closing schools - people will figure it out then … maybe
D Statler on February 09 at 12:41 a.m.
It is the wrong time to be building new schools.Our economy will turn around soon and then will be time to ask for new BONDS! Sometimes sending the school districts back to sharpen their pencils and ask again for a leaner building maintenance/new building proposal isn’t a bad thing.The most needed things will be seen on the next proposal.
It is time to VOTE YES on levies to keep the extra school programs running! Our children need the extra opportunities stay out of trouble and off the streets. The value of these extraciricular activities and extra benefits in the schools to our children is worth way more than the few dollars we pay in taxes for them.LEVIES ARE FOR LEARNING! Please continue to support your school levies at all costs. ThankYou
mikeln on February 09 at 3:44 a.m.
The private prison industry thanks all of you for sending buisness our way.
ChefGus/ John Olsen on February 09 at 4:43 a.m.
Oh Boy…. More young clients and friends for our Ministry at Shalom in the mornings after they spend the night on the street…… Los Stupidos….where oh where is Alice? john
ZagChuck on February 09 at 7:19 a.m.
@ GreenLibertarian.
The VOTERS have spoken. Why is it when the voters speak, if they disagree with you they are idiots being led by someone you don’t like, but when they agree with you, they are brilliant?
@ Chef Gus, John, these bonds had NOTHING to do with improving education. it was a taxation for job creation scheme for capital improvements. If you want to improve the EDUCATION of our children, thus keeping them off the streets, we need to return control of the school districts to local control, we need to be able to remove teachers who aren’t getting the job done, and we need to remove the nearly 200 Spokane area administrators who make over $100k per year and replace them with nearly 180 teachers.
Changing an entrance way and a cafeteria won’t decrease the 36% Drop out rate. I went to school in a 60 year old building, with classrooms often packed at 30-35 students. So did all of my successful classmates.
8john on February 09 at 8:36 a.m.
Right On ZagChuck!
State funding without strings + local control = success for all!
Voters are to be congratulated on voting down school bonds and levies that support racism and social / economic discrimination in our school’s academic and sports programs.
By voting no voters are sending a clear message to legislators that funding education is a state, not district responsibility.
It is the state that sets, and constantly increases, graduation requirements to benefit employers, student teacher ratio, how much money we get for school busses, and requires testing that can not be compared nationally.
Education is a welfare program for corporations and the military (where our students become cannon fodder for the wealthy), who do not want to pay the costs of training workers, for “educators” in the K-12 program (where 80% of the budget is controlled by the unions) and our state’s “higher” education system.
Only educational buildings seem to fall apart every twenty or thirty years.
Mead’s 59 million bond would have cost $2.20 per $1,000 of assessed value, Reardan-Edwall’s 1.1 million levy $2.73 per $1,000. Newport’s 1.3 million levy will cost $1.82 per $1,000. This is obviously unfair. Burdens on taxpayers should not depend on where you live and what your neighbors decide!
If the state would meet its responsibilities all taxpayers would be taxed at the same rate and all students might have the same amount per student available for “education”.