Jamestown (CSi) Voters in the Jamestown Public School District Tuesday turned down the referendum of $19 million in general obligation school-building bonds for school construction and renovations at elementary and middle schools.

The final unofficial vote was  Approve 1,138 or 58%…disapprove 813.

The measure failed as a 60% majority was needed, or a yes vote of 1,171., falling 33 yes votes shy.

The vote was disapproving

The referendum required a 60% approval to pass.

As Jamestown Public Schools Superintendent Rob Lech stated earlier, if the bond issued had been approved,the proposal would continue the 21.1 mills currently levied to help pay for building Jamestown High School and remodeling Jamestown Middle School that is slated to expire this year.

The proposal would have also added another 3.71 mills or roughly a $19 per-year property tax increase beyond the current levy.

Now that voters have turned down the referendum,the current high school levy drops off when it’s repaid in August and property owners will see an approximately $96 annual reduction in property taxes.

Vote total 1,951

Early voting 369

Absentee 16

Election Day 1,566

A glitch in the new computer software meant that number of votes cast given by the computer software didn’t match the totals Stutsman County workers had kept throughout the day, so a hand count all the receipts and ballots were made.

Two ballots that will go to the canvassing board on Monday. One was marked both yes and no, and one ballot was left in a voting booth.

The School Board will meet as the canvassing board at 5:15 p.m. Monday, October 5, 2015, at the Jamestown Middle School’s, Thompson Comunity Room. The school board will then hold its regular meeting following the canvassing board meeting.

School Board, President Roger Haut says the School Board may consider a recount.

Superintendent Rob Lech told WDAY T.V. News Tuesday after the vote results, that school officials  they need to figure out why it didn’t pass.

He asked,  “Did people not feel informed? Was the price tag too high? Were we trying to do too much? Were we trying to do too little? And really to get a sense of where people, why they voted no.”

Superintendent Lech says they’ll be discussing whether the district will hold another referendum, or look at other means to address the issues.  The school district will have to wait six months before it can propose another bond referendum to voters.