PORT TOWNSEND — A Quilcene School District proposal for a $12.3 million construction bond was one vote away from passage as of 4 p.m. Wednesday.
School district bond measures require 60 percent supermajority voter approval to pass.
After a second count of Tuesday’s special election ballots on Wednesday, the bond had been approved by 59.22 percent with 40.78 percent rejecting it. It had stood at 59.96 percent approval after the initial count of ballots Tuesday night
“It’s literally one vote away. It couldn’t get any closer,” Quilcene Superintendent Frank Redmond said Wednesday.
The next count of votes in the all-mail election will be by 4 p.m. this coming Tuesday.
Other measures on the ballot include two replacement levies for the Port Townsend School District and a replacement educational programs and operations (EP&O) levy for the Brinnon School District.
Both passed with more than 70 percent voter approval.
A total of 7,391 ballots out of 16,213 provided registered voters had been counted by Wednesday for Jefferson County’s special election for a voter turnout of 45.59 percent.
Left to count are 501 ballots.
If the Quilcene bond measure doesn’t pass, “the school board will have to make some decisions about what to do next,” Redmond said.
“The possibilities are to run it again or not run it again,” and if the decision is to ask the voters again, to make adjustments based on the reasons voters objected to the measure.
Redmond said much of that will depend on the margin by which it doesn’t pass, if it comes to that.
The bond would fund the construction of a new elementary school, a new Career and Technical Education building, an improved weight room and improvements to athletic fields.
It would replace a capital levy now in place, which has a tax rate this year of $1.74 per $1,000 of assessed value, according to Redmond. That would mean school taxes would remain the same for about the next 20 years.
Levies, such as those passed in the Port Townsend and Brinnon school districts, require only simple majorities for passage.
“We are so pleased that the community is invested in our schools and our children,” said Port Townsend Superintendent Linda Rosenbury.
“The additional levy money will allow us to continue to provide healthy meals and opportunities through the arts, music and athletics.”
Voters approved the Port Townsend School District’s three-year educational programs and operations levy (EP&O) with 76.4 percent to 24 percent. The district’s capital levy was also approved by a large margin, 75 percent to 25.1 percent.
Both replace existing levies that will expire this year.
The EP&O levy will collect $3.45 million in 2023 through an estimated 90 cents per $1,000 assessed value property tax rate, expected to decrease to 86 cents per $1,000 in 2024 when $3.55 million would be collected and go down again to 79 cents per $1,000 to collect $3.53 million in 2025.
The capital projects levy funds the installation of solar panels at Salish Coast Elementary school, improved accessibility for disabled students at Port Townsend High School and Blue Heron Middle School, a seismic study at PTHS, and technology upgrades to help ensure student access across the district.
It will collect $1.75 million in 2023 through an estimated 46 cents per $1,000 assessed value property tax. In 2024, $2 million would be collected through an estimated property tax of 48 cents per $1,000, and in 2025, it would collect another $2 million through an estimated 45 cents per $1,000 property tax.
“The capital levy will be crucial as we start to study the seismic retrofit for our high school campus, which has been identified as being at high risk if there was an earthquake,” Rosenbury said.
Brinnon School District voters approved a two-year EP&O levy to replace one expiring this year with a vote of 72 percent to 28.4 percent.
The district will collect $327,395 in 2023 through a 92 cents per $1,000 assessed value property tax. In 2024, the levy would collect $337,217 through a 91 cent per $1,000 tax.
“We are very appreciative of the support of our community. I hope that they recognize that we have tried to be really responsible stewards of our funding. I think our effort to get grants has shown that,” said Brinnon Superintendent Patricia Beathard.
Neighboring Clallam County is the only county in Washington state that had no special elections on Tuesday.
More information on the Jefferson County elections can be found at www.co.jefferson.wa.us/1266/elections.
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Reporter Ken Park can be reached at kpark@peninsuladailynews.com.
