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Referendum passes in Ashby
Published 11:26 a.m., November 4, 2009
Schools in Pelican Rapids and Perham are bracing for a new round of budget cuts after residents voted against proposed operating levies Tuesday.
The outcome was different in Ashby, where voters approved the school district’s first attempt at an operating levy.
In Pelican Rapids, the vote margin was 1,435 to 1,111 against a five-year $1 million levy that would have generated $900 per student. A second question asking voters to support an additional $200 per student also failed.
It was the second straight referendum defeat for the district, which had asked for a 10-year $1 million levy commitment in 2008.
Superintendent Deb Wanek said Wednesday she did not know why this year’s vote failed. The school board is scheduled to canvas the votes Nov. 9 and begin deciding what the district’s next steps will be, she said. Pelican Rapids schools have already made cuts to expenditures like supplies and equipment, Wanek said, and with staff comprising the largest percentage of the budget, that’s likely where the next round of cuts will fall.
“The school board knew we had some really strong financial difficulties ahead of us,” she said.
Residents in the Perham-Dent Public School District narrowly defeated a three-year operating levy designed to generate $500,000 annually. The vote margin was 1,746 opposed to 1,622 in favor.
“I think it was probably the economy more than anything else,” Superintendent Tamara Uselman said of the results. “I think it was a clean election and people voted from their pocketbooks.”
The only way to offset a loss of income is to make reductions, Uselman said, and in Perham’s case, the school board will likely consider cuts of about $1 million over the next two years. Those cuts will have a direct impact on students, Uselman said, from larger class sizes to reduced programs.
Meanwhile, a levy referendum for the Ashby School District passed by only two votes, according to Superintendent Allan Jensen. Voters approved a five-year $317,000 operating levy by a vote margin of 309 to 307.
Jensen said Wednesday he hopes the levy will help district officials avoid the kind of cuts they made last spring, when $170,000 was eliminated from the budget.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to avoid doing that down the road,” he said.
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The Daily Journal is happy to host community conversations about news and life in Fergus Falls and the surrounding area. As hosts, we expect guests will show respect for each other. That means we don't threaten or defame each other, and we keep conversations free of personal attacks. Those who persist with racist, defamatory or abusive postings risk losing the privilege to post. To post a comment you will need to register. Or, if you're already registered but have not included your true, verifiable identity with your registration, you will need to update your account to include your identity. Effective Dec. 1, 2009, all posts appear with the commenter's true identity, which must be verified by site staff. Those who registered prior to Dec. 1, 2009, should be aware that once you update your information with your true identity, all prior posts under your user name will also indicate your true identity. If you do not wish to link yourself to prior comments, you should register again with a different user name.Posted by HoffEditor (anonymous) on November 4, 2009 at 2:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The WCA district voted down a levy 497-571. A tough loss for the district - they already cut EIGHT PERCENT of the budget last spring. $630,000 in cuts! They already rank in the bottom half of average teacher salary in central Minnesota - I don't know what the people of the small towns of WCA expect, but they really let down the school with yesterday's vote.
Posted by golfnut (anonymous) on November 4, 2009 at 3:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Thank you people of Ashby! This was very important for not only the school and the kids but for the entire town in general.
Posted by votedem (anonymous) on November 4, 2009 at 9:14 p.m. (Suggest removal)
How do people expect their towns to grow and keep businesses if they don't support their schools??
Posted by taxxed2themax (anonymous) on November 5, 2009 at 8:47 a.m. (Suggest removal)
So we can expect to see that big, empty new development in Ashby full of new homes, housing nothing but young families with lots of kids in the next 5 years? I bet not!
Golfnut- Don't forget that it was very important to the teachers too... with wage negotiations coming up. Keep in mind that almost 50% of the people voted against it. If just one person had changed their mind,the outcome would have been different.
It sounds like WCA must have run an honest, neutral campaign? Perhaps they need to learn how to play on people's emotions, use scare tactics and misinformation to get theirs to pass. Throwing out a few absentee ballots might also help.
Go Ashby- #1 in taxes!
Posted by matson (anonymous) on November 5, 2009 at 8:10 p.m. (Suggest removal)
taxxed2themax, sounds to me like you should be living in the WCA school district where there are no taxes and they run honest, neutral campaigns. Or maybe Pelican Rapids, or maybe Perham-Dent. How many levy's for operating costs has the Ashby School District asked for since it's beginning? To the best of my knowledge I believe none. For one thing if property taxes were shared with "all" property owners it wouldn't create such a hardship on a chosen few. There are too many people that don't have homestead in the district that feel they shouldn't have to pay. If you can afford the extra property you should pay! If you can't afford the extra cost to keep a school district going then move to one that has no costs. I have a feeling you wouldn't be missed...
Posted by taxxed2themax (anonymous) on November 6, 2009 at 9:31 a.m. (Suggest removal)
matson- So you're saying basically that anyone who voted "NO" should move out of the district and wouldn't be missed? I guessing that approximately 50% of the voters in Ashby happen to feel the way I do right now. I don't mind paying taxes to keep the school running IF it's reasonable and warranted, I don't believe that it is in this case. And it's OK to run a questionable campaign as long as it's for the "good of the school"? Check out the Mn School Boards Association Brochure at http://www.mnmsba.org/Public/MSBA_Docs/S... It states: "The district must provide information about the campaign in a neutral manner". Sounds to me like you may be ex- city council, possibly school board member with a relative employed by the school?
Posted by TomTom (anonymous) on November 6, 2009 at 10:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
taxxed2themax- what was unfair about how the campaign was run? What misinformation do you feel was used in the Ashby campaign? You were told how much your taxes would be increased based on the value of your home, what the money would be used for, and what could happen if the referendum didn't pass. They told you what cuts had been made already to cut expenses. What would you have done to balance the budget without the referendum? If you start cutting programs like Ag of music, students will go to schools that still offer those programs.
Posted by HeidiHoff (anonymous) on November 6, 2009 at 1:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I take personal offense that you would reference me on the internet when you obviously don't know what you are talking about! As you can see by my username, I am not afraid to let people know who I am when I make a public comment. And as for my husband and his volunteer work, he doesn't either. What are you afraid of? Maybe next time (because I'm sure there will be a next time...) you have something to say, you could step up to the plate and use your real name! I don't appreciate my husband being blamed for something he did not write, and for myself being referenced for no reason at all.
It's hurtful and RUDE!!!
Posted by matson (anonymous) on November 6, 2009 at 7:36 p.m. (Suggest removal)
taxxed2themax, please let me clarify something and then I will try let this thing go. My name is Oscar Matson Jr. from Mount Dora , Fl, I have never been on the city council, I am an ex school board member, I do have a relative that works at the school. I have always had "GREAT PRIDE" in the Ashby comunity, it's people and especially the school system! The Ashby community has always been close knit and looked out for each other and when I look at all the school districts that are willing to leave their schools behind in tough times I am once again proud of Ashby for stepping up to the plate. It will not be easy but here are the people banding together in in tough times once again... I only wish the vote wasn't so close. I do own property in the school district and will not be taxed as it is not homesteaded so it is exempt from what I am told. I feel this is wrong!!!!!! All the lake property owners and hunting land owners etc. should have to step up to the plate. It puts the burden on too few people in a sparcely populated district. A number of these are elderly people on fixed income. In my mind there is something wrong with this picture. We have to have a positive, forward attitude in these troubling times or we will all with out a question go backwards. The people in the Ashby community is the reason why it is such a great place to be from and to live. As far as I am concerned there is no better place to live or be from so that is why it troubles me to hear some thing negative about what the people are doing to sustain their community. Nothing personal to you whom ever you are but I have to say.... GO ASHBY GO.....You are awsome....always have been. Junior
Posted by lrisbrudt (anonymous) on November 8, 2009 at 1:21 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I have nothing but appreciation,respect and gratitude for all the citizens of our community. This vote was very difficult. We are in the toughest of times financially, and we were asked to give even more. Of course, a decision like this would be weighed heavily, and both sides of this issue deserve that kind of consideration. I thank the community for serious conversation, public meetings, the data reviewed, and the turnout when it came time to vote. As a school employee, I take very serioiusly the two vote difference. The community deserves accountibility and our excellence. I believe that the school district's history reflects this mission and is committed to bringing out the best in our students to ensure the property owner's investment will have positive returns.
Posted by william6 (linda williams) on November 15, 2009 at 8:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I hope the city of Ashby is just as committed to bringing money into the town, as they are for spending it. I am afraid for the community as I see business after business struggle and fail. I see young families who want to have a quality education program for their children, yet need to earn enough income to survive. It is a difficult decision that many of them face. Stay in a town with a wonderful, but expensive school system, or leave and find a town with lower taxes and jobs? Hopefully then, they can sell their home! It's easy to pass judgment on someone for their opinion when it doesn't reflect your own or it doesn't affect your situation negatively because you can afford the increase or have young children attending the school. But for someone who is already struggling to make ends meet, this can be a heavy burden to bear. This is especially true for the senior citizens who live on a very fixed income.
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