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Meridian bond fails to reach 60% threshold; board to review next steps
Summary
The Meridian School District bond failed to reach the 60% approval threshold for capital measures; Superintendent said the measure reached about 52% after counts and the facilities committee will review results and community feedback before deciding next steps.
The Meridian School District’s bond measure did not reach the 60% supermajority required for capital project approval, Superintendent (speaker 4) told the board on Nov. 6. "We were 51.91% last night," the superintendent said, later updating the board to 52.39% as additional ballots were counted, and adding that about 14,000 ballots remained but the margin was too large to reach 60%.
Why it matters: the bond was intended to address the district’s primary facilities need — the middle school — and the district relied on the capital package to fund that work. The superintendent told directors that because capital measures require a 60% threshold in Washington, the district must reconsider its strategy even where a simple majority carried public measures.
What the superintendent said and the district will do: the board will meet with the facilities committee on Friday to review the results and solicit community feedback before deciding whether to pursue another measure. "We need to actually hear what was on people's minds," the superintendent said, noting voters repeatedly cited tight household budgets as a reason for rejecting the bond.
Context and equity concerns: the superintendent compared local results with other recent bond outcomes in the state, saying one neighboring district’s bond passed at a lower tax rate per assessed dollar: "Sumner Bonney Lake has 10,800 kids... their bond measure was 70¢ on the dollar. Ours is $1.38," she said, framing the outcome as an equity and capacity concern that will factor into future planning.
Board response and next steps: directors expressed interest in a careful review rather than an immediate re‑run of the measure. The superintendent said the facilities committee will work on outreach and a post‑mortem of the campaign and proposed projects; no final decision on a new election date was made at the Nov. 6 meeting.
The district indicated the facilities committee will bring recommendations to the board following staff analysis and community engagement.
