Voters approve millage for Lincoln schools

By Mark Tower
May. 4, 2010    ·    10:45 p.m.

Voters in the Lincoln Consolidated School District resolved Tuesday to extend the current property tax levy of 7.35 mills to help pay for technology and critical facility needs across the district.

According to district Superintendent Lynn Cleary, preliminary election results showed the bond proposal was victorious, 1,158 votes for yes defeating 916 no votes. These numbers, Cleary said, do not include York Township, which usually makes up a small number of voters in the district.

Cleary said the extension of the millage, which will cost the average household valued at $150,000 in the district about $10.60 per week in property taxes, will help the district and its students be better prepared for the future.

“We will not let the voters down,” she said. “We will do what we said we would do and we will do it well. I want to thank the voters of Lincoln for putting their faith in us.”

The current bond was set to expire in 2030 and will now be extended to approximately 2039, according to Ken Goetz, chairman for the bond campaign.

The $35 million bond funded through the millage will pay for upgrading technology for students and teachers, making critical renovations to buildings and infrastructure, adding four new classrooms to Childs Elementary, renovating the auditorium, adding an additional 1000-seat performance arts center, bringing athletic facilities into compliance with Title IX standards and purchasing several new buses.

The district also plans to renovate Brick Elementary with everything from new walls and rooms to upgraded technology.

About 30 percent of the bond will go toward purchasing instructional technology and improving infrastructure in all buildings, according to the district. Another 2 percent will pay for new buses, and the remaining 68 percent will pay for critical needs throughout the district.

According to information from district staff, instructional and infrastructural technology improvements will include replacement of student and teacher workstations, projection systems with sound, interactive white boards, document cameras, network upgrades, wireless access, video distribution, video surveillance and replacement of copiers and telephone systems.

Critical needs, district staff said, include asphalt and concrete replacement, new playground equipment compliant with current safety standards, new exterior and interior lighting, roof renovations, asbestos abatement, ceiling and floor replacements, heating and cooling improvements, electrical and plumbing upgrades meant to save energy, security system improvements, replacement of blackboards and white boards, upgrading of fire alarms and new classroom furniture to support the new technology.

Other facility improvements include upgrades to high school science labs, improvements to athletic fields, gym and locker room improvements, a larger auditorium at the high school, four new classrooms at Childs Elementary and a reconfigured parents and bus loop drop-off.

Over the past two years, the district performed a series of public forums, input sessions, surveys and building-by-building needs assessments to determine exactly what they needed to keep facilities up to code and improve learning opportunities for students.

The improvements the bond will pay for, according to district staff, are expected to be completed over the next three years.

Election results by township
Voters in all Ypsilanti Township precincts in the district said yes to the bond proposal, 780 yes votes to 438 no votes. Turnout in the seven Ypsilanti Township districts voting in this election ranged from 8.72 to 9.69 percent, with 1,218 of the 12,213 registered voters in the district casting ballots.

Voters in the Augusta Township precincts in the district said no to the millage, 411 to 307. Turnout in Augusta Township's Precincts 1-3 were 725 of their 5,110 registered voters, or 14.19 percent.

York Township voters in the district also denied the millage proposal with seven no votes to zero yes votes. Turnout in York Township's Precinct 1 was 179 of the 2011 registered voters, or 8.9 percent.

Washtenaw County Clerk's office had not yet released final results from Sumpter and Van Buren Townships, or the final count for Tuesday's election. The Ypsilanti Citizen will update the story with complete results when they become available.