Cheshire, Adams OK Exclusion for Hoosac Valley High Project
CHESHIRE, Mass. — Town voters made clear their support of the proposal to renovate Hoosac Valley High School by passing on Saturday a debt-exclusion ballot article by four to one.
The vote was 399-97 to exclude Cheshire's $3.7 million share of the $40.5 million project from permanently affecting the town's levy limit for Proposition 2 1/2. The vote was the fourth and final one to move the Adams-Cheshire Regional School District project forward.
Town meeting on Monday had approved spending for the project by 193-19. More information on the project can be found at Hurricanepride.com and in a presentation here.
Original post: Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010, at 7:42 p.m.
.jpg) .jpg) Supporter of the school district project began texting the results as soon as they were announced. About 23 percent of voters went to the polls. |
ADAMS, Mass. — Voters on Thursday approved a debt exclusion from Proposition 2 1/2 for the Hoosac Valley High School renovation and expansion by a nearly 3 to 1 margin.
The vote was the third of four required to move the $40.5 million Adams-Cheshire Regional School District project forward. Some 23 percent of the town's 5,657 registered voters cast ballots to approve the exclusion.
The Adams balloting was expected to be the toughest of the four votes, especially after a Cheshire town meeting on Monday overwhelmingly approved borrowing for the project, expected to cost that town $3.7 million.
An Adams town meeting, too, had approved borrowing on Tuesday, expected to cost the town $8.6 million. But that result was not too surprising because a number of town meeting members — Adams is one of only two towns in the county to have elected town meeting members — had felt they should approve the borrowing to allow all the town's voters to have a voice in the decision.
The handful of supporters awaiting the results hugged and applauded in victory but noted "now the hard work really begins."
There is still one more vote: Cheshire goes to the polls on Saturday from 10 to 4 at the Senior Center to vote on whether to exclude its portion of the borrowing from Proposition 2 1/2. The exclusions mean the borrowing won't permanently affect the towns' levy limits.
Tags: ACRSD, debt exclusion, Hoosac Valley, school project,
