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Midway council accepts canvass showing $5 million open‑space bond passed by wide margin
Summary
Council formally accepted the county canvass showing the Midway open‑space bond passed with roughly 70.5% support (2,763 yes to 984 no). Staff said the city will now proceed with planning for prioritized land acquisitions and coordinate with bond counsel on timing.
Council members on Tuesday accepted Wasatch County’s final canvass of Midway’s open‑space bond, recording a strong voter endorsement for the city’s conservation plan.
City staff presented final totals for the ballot measure: 2,763 yes votes (70.54%), 984 no votes (25.12%) and 70 ballots left blank on the bond question (4.34%). After a brief procedural motion to accept the county’s figures, the council voted to canvass and record the results.
The bond’s passage authorizes the city to sell up to $5 million in open‑space bonds to acquire and preserve land identified in the community’s open‑space program. Council members said the margin reflected voter confidence in how past open‑space funds were used and stressed staff will coordinate with bond counsel on whether to sell the bonds in a single tranche or multiple tranches depending on market conditions and project readiness.
Council members also discussed sequencing: staff emphasized the need to identify candidate properties before issuing debt to avoid holding large amounts of idle bond proceeds. No immediate bond issuance decision was made at the meeting; council asked staff to return with analysis on timing, fixed costs of issuance and whether a single or multi‑tranche sale would be most cost‑effective for taxpayers.
The canvass acceptance was a formal, ministerial step that finalizes the ballot results and allows the city to move forward with the next administrative steps associated with the bond program.
