An overwhelming resistance to the cost of a plan to build a new Fayetteville High School was the primary reason voters rejected the Sept. 15 proposal, according to the results of a survey conducted by district officials.
When asked to approve a 4.9-mill property tax increase to fund construction of a brand new school, residents in the Fayetteville school district defeated the issue by a vote of 6,382 against and 3,672 for.
The survey, which was mailed to those who voted, asked people to rank the three reasons that most impacted their decision to vote for or against the millage.
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Of the nearly 5,100 surveys received, 39% of those who voted against the proposal said the primary reason was because of the $113 million price tag attached to the district’s plan.
Another key factor was the estimated $13.50 monthly increase to personal property taxes that would’ve resulted from the passing of the issue. 22% of respondents cited this as their number one reason for voting against the millage.
34% of those who voted for the issue said they did so mainly because of the quality of the current high school facilities. District officials and representatives of the Campaign for A+ Stronger Fayetteville group said that the current high school is cramped and lacks the technology to support 21st Century learning.
Going forward
As an alternative to the original plan which called for a completely new high school built from the ground up, the Fayetteville School Board voted last month to accept $52.3 million in Qualified School Construction Bonds allocated by the State and to put $45 million of the money towards renovation of the current facilities.
Hight Jackson Associates of Rogers was chosen as lead Architect for the project in a partnership with Marlon Blackwell of Fayetteville, and DLR Group of Overland Park, Kan. Nabholz of Rogers will provide construction.
The following image is part of a larger, more in-depth info graphic. Click here to download a detailed PDF of the entire survey results.
