Marion School District Seeks Bond Vote for Improvements

If you live within the Marion Independent School District, as I do, then you no doubt have seen something online about a petition involving school improvements for the district. With three children that go to Marion schools, the issue obviously caught my eye and should concern anyone with kids in school or entering the school district.

A committee has been meeting for the past several months to help identify needs within the school district with regards to facilities. There have also been numerous surveys completed by staff, students, and residents of Marion. The committee then took those results to a group of contractors that the school district is working with and developed a list of the top wants and needs of the school district. Those needs include:

• New high school auditorium
• Outdoor activities complex(football field at the high school)
• Exterior high school walls
• New elementary school(replacing Starry)
• Renovations to FMI

The cost of the entire project would be nearly $36 million. So how would it be paid for? The first part would be a $31 million GO Bond. That would require a public vote for approval, and 60% would need to vote yes. The other funds would come from SAVE funds, or sales tax money. The committee wants citizens to know that this project would be tax neutral for Marion residents. Your taxes will not go up to pay for these projects.

The district needs signatures on a petition to call for an election to vote on the bond issue. Signing the petition, as I did yesterday, does NOT indicate how you will vote on the issue. It simply means you think the issue should be brought to a vote. Signatures need to be collected by January 4th.

You can sign TODAY, December 30th at the Marion District Office on the backside of the High School from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. There are also people reaching out on Facebook volunteering to come to you to get your signature. I urge you to watch the video below from Superintendent Brouwer, and sign your name to help improve the future of Marion Schools!