Lancaster Voters Back School Bond Measure in Early Returns

LANCASTER —  Skimpy early returns in Tuesday’s election gave a substantial lead to a bond measure aimed at raising $29 million to give Lancaster elementary schools a face-lift.

With only absentee ballots counted, the bond measure was drawing a yes vote of more than 72%.

Approval of the measure would qualify the district for matching state funds, in keeping with last November’s Proposition 1A state bond measure.

The money would be used to repair and renovate school facilities and construct additional classrooms in a district that school administrators say is seriously overcrowded.

“Every kid in the school district--one way or another--is affected by this in different ways,” said Ned McNabb, assistant superintendent for business services.

A homeowner in the district with a $100,000 assessed valuation will pay about $27 per year to support the local measure.

The district’s last successful school bond issue passed in 1955.

“We’ve done everything possible before we went to the voters,” McNabb said.

Administrators of the school district, which serves 13,500 students, say they need to upgrade plumbing, heating, electrical and ventilation systems.

Seven schools in the district are 38 to 44 years old, including Desert View Elementary, built in 1957 for 500 students and now housing 980.

Desert View needs everything from a new roof to carpets, and blackboards to replace the worn-out ones they now have.

None of the money was slated for teachers’ or administrators’ salaries, and an independent community oversight committee was to be established to ensure that projects are completed on time and within budget.