Residents in Cleveland Independent School District voted against the district’s $125 million bond for five major projects.
With interest, the bond would have cost local property taxpayers $282 million—more than double the dollar amount shown on the ballot.
CISD taxpayers already owe $573 million in previously approved bond debt principal and interest.
CISD Superintendent Stephen McCanless said the bond was needed to keep up with mass enrollment. However, voters showed up to the polls and disagreed with his sentiment.
The district sits near Colony Ridge, a controversial development north of Houston that has strained district resources. Gov. Greg Abbott announced that the fourth special legislative session agenda includes a request for additional funding for the Department of Public Safety to patrol Colony Ridge.
The money would have gone to a building a new middle school ($125 million), a new Career and Technical Education building ($23 million), the conversion of Cleveland Middle School to a 9th and 10th grade center ($1.6 million), the renovation of Southside Elementary ($4.6 million), and improving its Douglas campus ($588,000).
According to election results from Liberty County, the bond—called Proposition A on the ballot—failed with 61 percent (784 votes) against and 39 percent (497 votes) voting in favor.
The election results from Montgomery County show Prop A passed 67 percent (2 votes) to 33 percent (1 vote).
San Jacinto County election results show the bond failed with 83 percent against (220 votes) and only 17 percent for (44 votes).
Cumulatively, the CISD bond failed 65 percent (1,005 votes) to 35 percent (543 votes).
