2.5-mill school levy fails

COLDWATER - A 2.5-mill continuing permanent improvement levy intended to fund maintenance projects including roof repairs and HVAC work for Coldwater Exempted Village Schools failed during Tuesday's special election.

School officials said they will try the levy again at the November general election.

A little more than 56% of voters, or 598 people, voted against the levy, while a little more than 43%, or 465 people, in favor.

The Coldwater board of education sought the levy to pay for costly maintenance projects, including long-discussed roof repairs estimated at $2.2 million, updates to the village's HVAC system estimated at $1.3 million and other miscellaneous projects such as brick waterproofing and gym floor repairs.

The levy would have cost the owner of a $100,000 home $87.50 per year.

District treasurer Jenn McCoy has said at board of education meetings that state funding for the district has been largely stagnant for about a decade. Roof repairs, while long discussed and described as necessary by school administrators, have had to be completed in phases due to insufficient funding.

The morning of the election, the board of education held a special meeting, and approved a resolution to put the same levy on the November ballot. McCoy said Tuesday before the polls had closed, that depending on the results, the board of education would hold a special meeting today to pass the final resolution needed to put the levy on the November ballot before today's 4 p.m. deadline.

"We've got a severe need for that roof to be taken care of, and an HVAC project coming up in the next year or two, so big ticket items," Superintendent Jason Wood said Tuesday night after the election results had come in.

None of the money collected by the levy would go toward staff salaries, Wood said.

All funds raised by the permanent improvement levy would legally need to go toward facility improvements such as maintenance projects or capital improvements such as technical upgrades that may be needed for modern day schooling, Wood said.

Over the past several years, the district had been "putting Band-Aids" on things that actually needed to be replaced or restored, Wood continued, and as time goes on, more projects will come. Updates to the school's servers, wiring and networking would need to be done within the next five years, Wood gave as an example, and the money from the proposed levy would be used for such purposes.

Wood said the district would strive to communicate the need for the levy to the community better leading up to the November election. He said he would be happy to address any questions from community members. Board of education members and McCoy also could be reached with any questions, he said.

• No results were available Tuesday night from the Auglaize County Board of Elections website for a 2.5-mill, five-year renewal levy for fire and emergency medical services for the village of New Knoxville.