Support for school bonds falls short

The majority of voters in several Spokane County school districts were saying “yes” to more taxes Tuesday night, but it wasn’t enough for most of the districts.

For the third time, voters in the Freeman School District seemed to support a construction bond to remodel the high school and elementary school buildings, but the district could not gather the 60 percent supermajority needed to pass the measure.

A bond in the Deer Park School District appeared to be meeting the same fate.

Freeman, a rural district 10 miles south of Spokane Valley, was seeking an $11.7 million construction bond. Late Tuesday, they count showed 822 voters saying “yes” and 806 saying “no.”

“It doesn’t make sense for us, after everything we put into this,” Superintendent Bill Thurston said. “We’re at a loss to say what’s happened.”

Even with the few votes that may trickle in by mail over the next few days, Thurston said it won’t be enough to reach the supermajority. “It will be impossible,” he said.

The bond would have cost homeowners about $195 a year per $100,000 assessed property evaluation.

Freeman voters rejected two $8 million bonds in 2002 to update aging school facilities.

Freeman High School, which was built for 150 students in 1957, now has more than 300. The district has about 900 students in grades K-12.

The bond would have paid for additional classroom and storage space at both schools, and updated heating, air and ventilation systems, electrical and plumbing systems.

“We’re just going to take it little bits at a time and do what we can out of general funds,” Thurston said. “There’s just a lot of major construction that won’t happen now.”

Here is a breakdown of votes in other Spokane County school districts:

• The Deer Park district’s attempt at passing an $11.9 million bond appeared to be failing Tuesday.

The measure was 25 votes short at final count Tuesday with 59.6 percent support. More votes from mail ballots still could be received and counted.

Tuesday was the second time voters rejected the $11.9 bond issue. In March, it failed by 19 votes.

The measure, which would have paid to remodel and expand the high school, would have cost about $132 a year for the owner of a $100,000 home.

• Voters in the Medical Lake School District rejected a $12.7 million construction bond to replace an old K-3 elementary school and add classrooms and gymnasium at Medical Lake Middle School.

The measure was failing with 52 percent of voters in favor of the tax.

Homeowners would have had paid $153 a year on a $100,000 home through 2008 and then $217 a year through 2030.

• Nine Mile Falls School District voters rejected a $13.3 million bond to finance improvements to Lakeside High School and two elementary schools. The expansion would have allowed the school to do away with classrooms in portable buildings.

The measure was failing with 52 percent support.

For homeowners, the cost would have been about $176 a year annually on a $100,000 home.

• Liberty School District’s educational technology improvement levy was rejected with 55 percent support.

The small southern Spokane County district asked voters for about $125,000 a year.

• Orchard Prairie was the only school district in the county that appeared to have gained approval from voters for a tax Tuesday.

Its two-year maintenance and operations levy, which will generate about $94,000 annually, was passing with 70 percent of the vote.

Orchard Prairie, which is north of Spokane, has 65 students in grades K through 7.