Fort Worth ISD's $1.2 billion proposition too close to call until absentee ballots are counted
Fort Worth ISD's $1.2 billion Proposition A too close to call until absentee ballots are counted
The fate of school improvements in Fort Worth ISD remains up in the air Wednesday night. It likely won't be until sometime next week until the results of Tuesday night's Fort Worth ISD bond election are made official.
FORT WORTH, Texas - The fate of school improvements in Fort Worth ISD remains up in the air Wednesday night. It likely won't be until sometime next week until the results of Tuesday night's Fort Worth ISD bond election are made official.
The district's Proposition A called for more than $1 billion to improve and build schools. Unofficial results show it barely passed, with 12,342 voting for it and 12,300 voting against it. That's just a 42-vote difference.
Other propositions, like improvements to stadiums, auditoriums, and fields, failed.
It’s a narrow margin that still has time to change, depending on how many absentee votes are received between now and Monday. Still, supporters of the bond package are calling it a victory and looking forward to school renovations in the years to come.
"I’m thrilled with the 42 votes and I say thank you," FWISD Board of Trustees President Tobi Jackson said.
The $1.2 billion Proposition A of the FWISD 2021 Bond Package is narrowly ahead after Tuesday’s election but by just 42 votes.
"I am very hopeful that the 42 votes hold and that we can get this started for our students," Jackson added.
Under Prop A, all of the district’s middle schools and four of its elementary schools will undergo major renovations, including new entryways, corridor updates, remodeled media centers, and modified locker rooms, along with other improvements. It also calls for a new elementary school to be built.
The results remain unofficial, and because the margin is so thin, the Tarrant County Election Administration will likely wait until absentee ballots are counted.
That may not be done until next week.
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Jackson is hopeful and is counting it as a win.
"The voters sent us a big message and they got it right. Prop A was 80% of the dollars that we asked for," he said.
On the flip side, voters shot down everything else the district asked for, which would have funded new gyms, auditoriums, and stadiums across the district.
"I would like to have seen the auditoriums, but we make do with what we have for now," Jackson added.
The Tarrant County Election Administration said voter turnout was just under 8%, which is low, but also on par for this type of election.
Several people FOX4 spoke with Wednesday said they didn’t vote.
"I had meetings and I didn’t get a chance," Tom Moncrief said.
"Didn’t know anything about it," Daniel Major said.
Ryan West didn’t vote either, but said had she made it to the polls, she would have voted no on all four propositions.
"I think that education is obviously the biggest priority in schools and I think the money should go to that," she said.
"All of our schools need to get back to teaching the basics: reading, writing and arithmetic," Moncrief added.
Jackson said it’s hard to pinpoint why so many people skipped the vote, but next time, plans to focus on really getting the word out.
"We begin with immediacy, engaging our public, and partnering with them, our employees, our students, our parents," he said. "And let’s get everybody on the same page of alignment and let’s get this done right."
In a statement, the Fort Worth ISD Council of PTAs said it was pleased with the results.