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November 3, 2009

Voters have mixed responses to referendums

Multiple school districts combatting funding issues

By Tanner Kent

For area school districts attempting operating referendums, it was heartbreak or hooray on Election Day.

About 60 school districts across the state attempted referendums on Tuesday to combat declining enrollments, another year of frozen funding and delayed aid payments from the state.

In this area, referendums passed in Waterville-Elysian-Morristown, Blue Earth Area, New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva and Maple River. In St. Peter, voters approved a referendum for deferred maintenance projects on schools.

Meanwhile, operating referendums were defeated in Waseca and Le Center.

“It was a pretty close vote with the economy so poor,” said Matt Helgerson, co-superintendent, of Le Center’s 80-vote margin.

Taxpayers in the Waseca School District voted against a referendum last year. This year, the district launched another campaign that continued throughout the summer and included booths at the state fair, community meetings and organized support groups.

But this year’s referendum — which would have generated $1,300 per pupil — was rejected by a vote of 1,923 in favor and 2,273 against.

Waseca Supt. John Rokke has said that if the referendum failed, the district would be facing budget reductions in the spring of up to $2 million.

In Le Center, taxpayers rejected the referendum by a vote of 360 in favor and 448 against. Officials said that — among other things — the district will have to consider cutting all-day kindergarten in the spring.

“We’ll just have to try again,” Helgerson said.

In the communities that did pass referendums, the results were rather decisive.

In NRHEG, the $450-per-pupil referendum was passed by a vote of 664 in favor and 533 against.

In Maple River, which closed a school site in Amboy last year due to budget cuts, an $889-per-pupil levy was renewed with 946 votes in favor and 213 against.

In Blue Earth Area, more than 80 percent of voters (1,199 versus 270) cast ballots in favor of renewing a $650-per-pupil levy.

And in WEM, which closed a school building in Elysian last year, voters passed a $1,200-per-pupil measure with 988 votes in favor and 814 against.

“I give the credit to the residents of this district,” said WEM Supt. Joel Whitehurst. “They rose to the occasion.”

In St. Peter, school district residents passed a capital levy for deferred maintenance projects on schools (1,187 in favor and 573 against) while Jon Carlson, Robert Lambert and Peter Nelson were elected to the School Board.

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