Ripples

Star Tribune Thu, 24 Apr 2008 05:07:51 GMT
Delano voters OK money for land - but not school

Delano School District officials are considering their next move after voters again rejected a bond to build an elementary school. After losing their second bid for $27 million in bonds to build an additional elementary school, Delano School District officials must decide whether to put the question before voters again this fall for a third vote within 12 months. Residents on Tuesday voted 1,782 to 1,304 to approve $980,000 for acquiring land for the new school. However, they rejected a $27 million construction bond by a vote of 1,694 to 1,388. ... Many residents said they understood the district is in a bind, but cited Wright County's worsening housing market, high gas prices and an economic climate that the state economist has called a recession as the main reasons they balked on approving the construction proposal. Delano resident Linda Franzen questioned whether the extra school capacity would really be needed. "Delano has so many houses for sale, and Wright County is in a decline," she said. "I don't think Delano is going to keep growing like it was. There will still be people that move out here, but [gas prices are] very expensive. It's gone up so much."

[[keywords: LandUse;Schools;Metro;]]