Lowndes Schools Likely to Try New Referendum

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) — It’s back to the drawing board for Lowndes County school administrators and more than 5,000 students who say major school upgrades are too important to let die.

Only 52 percent of voters Tuesday supported a $47 million bond issue that would have built new schools and a career center, upgraded others and put computers in the hands of every student. A 60 percent approval was needed for passage under state law.

Only 1,817 people — less than 10 percent of the 18,452 eligible voters — turned out. Only three of 13 precincts gave it a majority. Those three are in the New Hope area where a new high school is planned. A new elementary school wasn’t enough to sway Caledonia voters.

“I think a lot of people took it for granted that it would pass, that it was such a no-brainer, that they stayed home. When you think we have 10,000 parents in our school district, it should have been easy. I think that was a lot of it. And I don’t know how we didn’t get the message across to people that it wasn’t going to mean a tax increase. I just don’t get it,” Superintendent Lynn Wright said.

“It may have knocked us down a little but we’re not out, we’re not going to quit,” Wright added.

Administrators are putting together a new proposal with even more emphasis on value at no increased cost to taxpayers because of big revenue increases expected form Lowndes County’s industrial growth in the last 10 years and record low interest rates.

“It’s so much bang for our buck,” Wright said. “The revenue coming within the next 18 months and we would have had more than enough to service that debt. We’re one of only three school districts in the state of Mississippi that does not have a career tech center and with the industry we have and EMCC and the job they do…it’s too critical for the students of Lowndes County and Lowndes County overall that we go forward and try to get these projects completed.”

A new proposal could be before voters by the end of the year.