Governor DeWine discusses new state budget, foster care focus wdtn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wdtn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Superintendents thrilled with levy passages
By Scott Halasz - shalasz@aimmediamidwest.com
XENIA Don’t be shocked if you see some area superintendents doing cartwheels through their buildings this week.
Voters in the Beavercreek, Bellbrook-Sugarcreek, and Xenia school districts unofficially passed crucial property tax levies Tuesday, providing funding for day-to-day operations and a new middle school.
In Xenia, the fifth time was the charm as voters finally gave the OK for a new Warner Middle School. The district had been trying to pass some type of middle school levy since November 2016, when it went for a combined HS/MS complex. The levies failed four times prior to Tuesday.
All levies pass, changing schools’ outlooks Jeremy P. Kelley
The Bellbrook, Xenia and Beavercreek school districts are making new plans for the coming years because voters changed course Tuesday, approving tax levies after previous rejections.
All 10 school levies in the five-county Dayton area were approved just the second time in the past dozen years that there were no rejections. School levy passage was up slightly statewide as well. The Ohio School Boards Association reported that 68% of all school levies passed (up from 64% in November), including 50% of new/additional tax requests (up from 38%).
Voter turnout was dramatically different from November’s levies, which shared the ballot with the presidential election, to Tuesday’s quiet ballots on a rainy day. November turnout was 83% in Bellbrook and 81% in Beavercreek, but fell to 43% and 32%, respectively.
Bellbrook levy fails for third time
By Scott Halasz - shalasz@aimmediamidwest.com
BELLBROOK The Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Local School District could be facing more cuts after voters turned down a general operating levy for the third time.
According to unofficial results from the Greene County Board of Elections, 5,540 residents in the district voted no, while 4,912 voted yes for Issue 21. While there are some absentee and provisional ballots yet to be counted in Greene County, district officials did not feel there were enough to make a difference.
“This outcome is both disappointing and disheartening not only for our families and students but for the entire community,” Superintendent Dr. Doug Cozad said in a release. “When a levy fails, the needs do not go away with that failure rather, they worsen. Due to this levy failure, the district will not collect the approximately $3.3 million next year if it would have passed. We appreciate the work done by so many to help inform vot