UBLY, Mich. -- Voters turned down a pair of bond and sinking fund proposals for Ubly Community Schools at the polls Tuesday, according to unofficial election results.
The district was asking for an $8.4 million bond, with a millage of 1.7 mills, and a sinking fund of $490,000 per year for 10 years at two mills.
In a 486 to 347 and 451 to 379 vote for the bond and sinking fund, respectively, residents voted against the proposals.
"The people have spoken for Ubly, and we will have to go back to the drawing board and rethink of what we want to do," Ubly Superintendent Joe Candela told the Tribune moments after seeing the results. "The one thing I would say is, it has at least opened the conversation that there's some real needs that need to be fixed."
"This is the biggest vote Ubly has had in the last 25 years ... and maybe that's not what people are thinking they need right now," he added.
Had voters approved the bond, the district had plans to add a new 12-room elementary wing, upgrade the 1936 gym as well as upgrade current fourth through sixth grade elementary rooms. With money from the sinking fund, the district listed off projects like replacing portions of the roof, technology improvements and HVAC upgrades throughout the district.
"We do have some reserve funding set aside," Candela said. "I know they (the school board) set some money aside for the floors in the gym. We'll have to see what we want to do with that."
With a new school year starting in about a month, no projects, if any, would start until next summer.
"I strongly believe in our (democratic) process, and the people voted, and they decided that it wasn't what this school district needs right now, and I respect that tremendously," Candela said, adding this was an opportunity to get people looking at the building and seeing what needs to be fixed.
