Winfield-Mt. Union bond referendum fails to pass

Winfield-Mt. Union bond election voters denied the passing of the proposed $3.255 million referendum Tuesday, which would have allowed the school to construct a conjoined performing arts and athletic competition facility, along with an improved industrial tech building and an updated weight room for the high school.

A total of 371 votes were cast, with the final tally coming out to 161 voters in favor and 210 voting no. For the referendum to pass, at least 60% of voters needed to vote yes. As it stands, the yes vote was around 43%.

Winfield-Mt. Union Superintendent Jeff Maeder was surprised at the results.

“After receiving the unofficial numbers, I’m surprised at the outcome,” Maeder said. “We really thought we had a proposal that would benefit the community as a whole, not just the school.”

“The overall turnout was also lower than expected with the amount of effort the committee made to get the information out to our community. It’s disappointing to everyone who worked so hard on the campaign.”

The plan was to use the bond money to create a 14,300-square-foot gym facility across the street from the school. The gym would have made a more ideal space for school competitions and other school activities.

There was a proposed upgrade to the industrial technology center. The planned 1,080-square-foot expansion was to upgrade the industrial technology program.

The third and final planned project was a 1,200-square-foot addition to the weight room at the school. This idea was proposed due to safety issues related to crowing in the current weight room.

Maeder says the next steps are to assess and see how the district can further upgrade its facilities.

“I’m sure we’ll assess and analyze why it wasn’t successful, also what the next steps are to improve our facilities,” he said.

Comments: hunter.moeller@southeastiowaunion.com