By Mike McCombs
The Island News
If there’s one thing Beaufort County voters can agree on, it’s supporting their schools at the ballot box.
It was true four years ago, and it was proved true again Tuesday, Nov. 7 when more than 72% of Beaufort County voters who went to the polls voted “yes” for the Beaufort County School Bond Referendum.
The bond referendum requested $439 million in bonds to help deal with overcrowding in schools, bolster security measures and modernize outdated facilities.
“This is the largest bond referendum in our district’s history, and its approval represents a strong show of support for our 21,500 students and their futures,” Beaufort County School District Superintendent Frank Rodriguez said in a statement released late Tuesday night. “Our job now is to demonstrate to voters that their vote of confidence was deserved. We will work to ensure these important projects are completed on budget and in a straightforward and transparent fashion.”
Candace Bruder, spokesperson for BCSD, said before the election that this would be the largest bond referendum the Beaufort County School District has ever passed, topping the $345 million bond referendum passed by the county’s voters in 2019 with nearly 70% of the vote.
This one was bigger and more popular, supported publicly by the Beaufort Area Chamber of Commerce, the Military Enhancement Committee and the United Way of The Lowcountry.
“Investing in education is essential to creating a more self-sufficient Beaufort County,” the United Way said in a statement supporting the referendum. “When our children have access to high-quality education, they are better equipped to succeed in school and in life. They are more likely to graduate from high school, attend college, and secure good-paying jobs. A strong education system is also essential to attracting and retaining businesses, which creates better jobs and boosts our local economy. The bottom line: an investment in our schools benefits us all. “
Prior to that 2019 referendum, the BCSD had not passed a bond referendum in 11 years, in part because of voter distrust in an embattled, unpopular superintendent, who was eventually found guilty of ethics violations, and a Board of Education split in its support for him.
Then-new Superintendent Rodriguez said the day after the 2019 election that the approval of the voters by such a large margin was a strong endorsement of the students of Beaufort County.
That support was repeated Tuesday night.
“This vote of confidence will continue the District’s momentum of improving and securing learning environments for the students and staff of Beaufort County,” Rodriguez said.
What’s in the referendum?
Most of the $439 million will go to rebuild Hilton Head Island High School ($167.4 million), replace Lady’s Island Middle School ($65 million) and build a new elementary school in Bluffton ($56.6 million).
Career and technical education renovations and additions cost $36.4 million, a new gym for Riverview Charter School will cost $19.2 million and a new Early Childcare Center in Bluffton is $29.7 million.
The rest of the money will go toward additional safety and security enhancements, parking lots, drives, sidewalks, furniture, HVAC replacements, constructing a kitchen for Right Choices Alternative Program and building a technology warehouse imaging center.
Rodriguez, has said, if the referendum passee, the BCSD could be moving forward with some of these projects as early as spring 2024.
‘Straightforward and transparent’
Just as he did Tuesday night, when the 2019 referendum passed, Rodriguez promised the school district would work in “a straightforward and transparent fashion.”
One of the keys to this was the establishment of a citizen led oversight committee made up of CPAs, urban planners, civil engineers and project managers.
This committee was called Citizen Led Oversight Committee (CLOC) and was established as an independent group of volunteers who monitored all referendum building projects, schedules, budgets and expenditures.
This same committee will oversee the process this time, as well.
And once again, taxpayers will not see a change in the amount they pay as a result of this referendum.
Reporting from The Island News’ Assistant Editor Delayna Earley and former reporter Mindy Lucas was used in this story.
Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews.com.
