BISD’s $39 million bond for new school passes in Nov. 4 election
By Carla McKeown and Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan
Breckenridge Independent School District voters approved a $39 million bond Tuesday to build a new elementary school, according to the preliminary results released by the Stephens County Elections Office on Tuesday evening, Nov. 4.
The unofficial totals show 886 votes in favor of the bond and 638 votes against. Early voting and absentee voting accounted for 447 votes for the proposal and 342 against.
The Stephens County elections staff checks in ballot boxes Tuesday night, Nov. 4, at the courthouse. The unofficial results were posted outside the tax office as soon as they were calculated. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
The bond, which will fund construction of a new school building to replace aging facilities, marks a major milestone for the district after months of community discussion. The school is planned to be for students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade and will replace both East Elementary and South Elementary.
BISD Superintendent Prairie Freeman said she was grateful for the community’s support. “It’s great for the kids at Breckenridge,” she said after the results were announced.
“The community showed up for the kids, so that means a lot,” Freeman said. “We’ll start with the designing and planning phases from here, and then we’ll start construction either late spring or early summer, depending on materials and … weather and things like that.”
Freeman called the victory emotional, crediting local volunteers for their work to pass the measure. “I can’t thank them enough,” she said. “They did it for the kids here in this community.”
Kelsey Cornwall, a parent of three BISD students and treasurer of the Buckaroo PAC, which supported the bond, said she’s excited for the school district’s opportunity to build a new school.
Cornwall said she hopes to continue participating in the process as the project moves forward. “I’d like to be on the bond committee, the Bond Oversight Board, or whatever they’re gonna call that.” she said.
While she was pleased with the outcome, Cornwall said the narrow margin surprised her. “I thought it would pass by a wider margin. I know there were a lot of people that didn’t like the location, but notwithstanding, I thought it would pass. But we had great turnout. That’s what we wanted, right? One step at a time,” she said.
Jaclyn Morehart, who served on the BISD facility planning committee, said she was surprised that so many people turned out to vote in the election. “I’m excited for a new school, complete with all the updated safety features,” she said.
The Breckenridge Texan will provide updates as the district begins the design and construction process for the new school.
Cutline, top photo: Kelsey Cornwall, Prairie Freeman and Brian Kight look at the election results that were posted at the Stephens County Courthouse on Tuesday night. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
