The recent article about voters rejecting school construction bonds ignored two fundamental reasons why Scarborough voters overwhelmingly rejected the proposed $160 million consolidated K-3 school in November:
First, residents place a high value on the existing three neighborhood schools. They don’t want to have 5- to 8-year-old kids in a mammoth 1,100-student school.
Second, residents were totally unconvinced that the proposed project was the only alternative to meet legitimate school space needs. The project would have meant about a 10% tax increase on top of the normal annual tax increases. Over the life of the bonds, the owner of a Scarborough home assessed at $400,000 would have paid $16,500 for the school construction. Strongly supporting effective schools does not equate to a blank check for construction projects.
Until school leaders acknowledge and respond meaningfully to these concerns, voters will continue to reject proposed solutions to school space issues.
Steve Hanly
Scarborough
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