By Brian Knox | Published Thursday, November 5, 2009
Three school bond propositions were put before voters Tuesday with one passing (Bridgeport Proposition 1) and two failing (Decatur's lone proposition and Bridgeport's Proposition 2).
Voters in the Decatur school district soundly defeated the school's proposed bond.
The final numbers showed 544 voting for the bond and 883 voting against the bond. That translates to a 62 to 38 percent margin.
Early vote and absentee totals released shortly after 7 p.m. proved to be an ominous sign for the bond's passage. Traditionally early voting brings out bond proponents, but early vote totals showed 472 voting against the bond and 319 in favor of the proposal.
The $8 million bond would have provided upgrades district-wide and improvements to Eagle Stadium, including the installation of artificial turf.
Decatur Superintendent Gary Gindt said in an e-mailed statement that he was disappointed in the results - mainly for the students and teachers.
"I want to express my appreciation to all the voters who took their time to come to the polls. Clearly, we wish the results had been different, but that's not the case. The needs that we had hoped to address through this bond proposition remain and will need to be addressed sometime in the future. It is important for the parents, teachers and students of Decatur ISD to understand that. We (Decatur ISD) will continue to do the best we can with the resources available to us," the statement read in part.
Bridgeport Proposition 1
Voters passed Bridgeport's Prop. 1 by a vote of 649 to 601, or 52 percent to 48 percent. Early and absentee vote totals showed 343 in support of the bond and 181 against. On election day, 306 voted "for," while 420 voted "against."
The $15 million proposition was for new classrooms at the high school and intermediate schools, new band hall, new gym and other upgrades.
Bridgeport Proposition 2
Voters rejected Prop. 2 by a vote of 689 to 562, or 55 percent against and 45 percent for. After early and absentee voting, the proposition was favored by a 305 to 219 vote, but election day totals showed 470 against and 257 for the bond.
The $7 million proposition would have been used for technology upgrades, including providing all students in grades six through 12 with computers and creating laptop labs for students in grades pre-K through five.
Expanded coverage of the bond elections will be featured in Sunday's Wise County Messenger.
