Two school districts seeking property-tax increases in the River Valley & Ozark Edition coverage area were unsuccessful in Tuesday’s annual school elections.
The Greenbrier School District’s request for a 2.9-mill property-tax increase to build an elementary school failed by 31 votes, 208 to 177.
In the Clinton School District, patrons soundly rejected a 1-mill property-tax increase primarily to build an agriculture complex. The proposal failed by 225 votes, 386 to 161.
Greenbrier Superintendent Scott Spainhour said he was surprised by the proposed measure’s failure in his district.
The plan was to build a $15 million elementary school in Springhill to handle growth and reduce the number of students in the other three elementary schools from 600 students to about 400 each. He said the district is growing by an average of almost 100 students a year.
The new school would have included a safe room and a gymnasium.
“I was surprised, and a little bit discouraged, but I feel much better today,” Spainhour said Wednesday afternoon. “It was very close — 31 votes. I feel good about our community, and I think if we try it again, we might be able to get it done.”
Spainhour said his next move is to ask for an extension of $3.5 million in state Partnership Program funds from the Arkansas Division of Public School Academic Facilities and Transportation.
“The first thing I have to do, and I’ve called them today, is contact the facilities division and see if I can get a waiver or extension on our partnership funding that was to sunset in October — next month,” Spainhour said.
“That’s my first step, and I’m confident about that. Depending on how long we get [on an extension, it] will make a difference on when and if we try to [pass a millage increase] again,” he said. “I suspect we will, since it was so close.
“I’m not discouraged anymore. We’ve got a great school; we’ve got great people. At some point, it’s going to happen, and if not, we’ll make the best of it. It’s just hard this day and time to pass a tax.”
Clinton Superintendent Scott Jones said he was surprised at the defeat of the proposed tax increase in his district, and he wasn’t sure why the measure failed.
“I really don’t know. I think that — I don’t think people are against what we’re doing — I think they’re just afraid of what’s going to happen in November, and the future’s unknown,” Jones said.
Jones said he doesn’t think the fact that Clinton voters approved a millage in 2011 to build an elementary school, which was completed this summer, played a role.
“I hadn’t heard anything positive or negative through the campaign,” he said of Tuesday’s millage proposal.
The millage increase would have brought in approximately $4 million to fund several projects, including renovating Walker Gym and constructing an agriculture complex at the high school. The complex would have included a greenhouse, which the district doesn’t have now.
Administrators planned to add a horticulture program.
The current agri facility was built in 1938, Jones said, and a metal building was added at some point.
Agriculture teacher Chad Mooney said the building is inadequate to house new technologies. If the millage had passed, he said, a cattle facility would have been part of the complex so that students could get hands-on experience.
“It’s hard to pass a millage. I wasn’t really surprised. I was surprised it failed by that margin,” Mooney said. “I thought we had more support, and the people I talked to, we were able to sway lots of votes. I say that, but you don’t know what they do when they walk away. When we explained it, people said, ‘Oh, yes, that’s a good idea. We’d be all for that.’
“I don’t know if we didn’t do a good job advertising it, or if people are to the point they just don’t want to pay any more taxes,” Mooney said.
The superintendent said he’s not sure of the district’s next move.
“I don’t know — meet and regroup. It depends on what [school board members] want to do, how to proceed from here,” he said.
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.