New Philadelphia school levy fails, district weighs next steps
The income tax issue was defeated by more than 1,000 votes, according to unofficial totals from the Tuscarawas County Board of Elections
New Philadelphia City school officials will be looking for another strategy to build new schools for the district after defeat of a 1.5% income tax May 5.
Jon Baker
The New Philadelphia City Schools Board of Education is going back to the drawing board after voters on May 5 rejected a 1.5% earned income tax to build new buildings for the district.
“Obviously, we're disappointed,” said Superintendent Amy Wentworth. “This is something this district needs. We have facility concerns. Our facilities are in bad shape and even repairing them just to make our old non-compliant facilities usable is millions of dollars.
“At this point, the community has said they are not willing to support the construction of new buildings, so I'm not exactly sure where that leaves us. We'll keep trying to educate our students the best way we can and in the best learning environment, using the resources we have, but it's getting more and more difficult.”
The income tax issue was defeated by more than 1,000 votes, according to unofficial totals from the Tuscarawas County Board of Elections — 2,087 votes in favor and 3,303 against.
Over the past two years, voters in New Philadelphia have also rejected bond issues on three separate occasions to build new schools.
If the income tax issue had passed, the district was going to purchase a 77-acre tract of land on state Route 39 east of New Philadelphia for $2.75 million to construct two new schools. The sale was contingent on passage of the income tax.
Wentworth said the board will be holding a work session later this month to talk about its next move.
The state was going to provide $80 million for the project. The offer from the state is good through the end of 2026, but New Philadelphia must raise its local share to receive that money.
The superintendent said the big question now is whether the district will try again in November.
Wentworth will be leaving the district on Aug. 1 to become superintendent of Indian Valley Local Schools. Her replacement, Carole Sutton, will be involved in deciding the district’s next move.
“She is already involved in some discussions and meetings, and she will be primarily the one helping the board make this decision and lead this plan moving forward,” Wentworth said.
Now that the land on Route 39 is no longer available to the district, New Philadelphia will have to return to its former plan of using property it already owns for new buildings.
“That plan hasn't been successful in the past either. Back to the drawing board to some degree,” the superintendent said.
Why does she think voters rejected the tax levy?
“I think the community has said they just don't want to pay for it,” she answered. “Three years ago we started this process, and we started it with a commitment to try and develop a plan the community wanted. I feel like we've listened and been responsive to make changes to the plan, pretty much every time it's been on the ballot in response to the feedback that we got, but the needle's really not moving in terms of the outcome of the elections, and so at this point I think that money is tight and it's not something people want to spend money on.”
On average, the seven schools that the district operates are about 80 years old. The oldest building is the high school, built in 1913. The newest is South Elementary, built in 1974.
“Right now, we've identified about $5.8 million of critical infrastructure needs that we have in our current buildings, and that's things like roofs and fixing the modulars,” Wentworth said. “That's money just to keep the old buildings able to house students. That's not making any improvements, other than just keeping the roof from leaking.
“So, even if we had the $5.8 million to do that, it doesn't address the needs like safety and security. It doesn't address our lack of handicapped accessibility or ADA accessibility. It doesn't address the infrastructure required to maintain the internet and updated technology. None of those things are addressed. That's just $5.8 million to make old buildings functional for kids. So, we're in a tough spot right now.”
The superintendent did take a moment to thank the members of the levy committee.
“They have worked tirelessly for several election cycles now, and they've really given of themselves. Unfortunately we haven't gotten the response that we were hoping for. It's a tremendous group of people who've really poured themselves out for this district, and I just appreciate that,” she said.
