By Mary Alys Cherry
The last Nov. 5 election ballots have been counted, but the voting isn’t over. We still have a runoff election coming up Dec. 16 in League City.
It’s between two 46-year-olds, Keith Gross and Jason Long, who are vying for the Position 6 seat after beating out Joanna Sharp Dawson in a three-way race. Gross is an attorney and Long is a project manager at the University of Texas Medical Branch.
Meanwhile, Andy Mann, the Position 6 incumbent who chose not to run, will continue to serve until after the runoff. Early voting will be held Dec. 8-12 from 7 to 7 at the League City Civic Center with election day polling from 7 to 7 at League City Intermediate, Creekside Intermediate, Hometown Heroes Park and Harborview Care Center. For questions, visit GalvestonVotes.org
While the election brought big smiles to Republican faces, it also brought a big win for Prop 1, which got an 80 percent approval for $1.8 billion in transportation funding—much less than needed, but a start.
School bonds OK’d
And for three school bond proposals.
Pasadena ISD Superintendent Dr. Kirk Lewis and other school officials were especially pleased with passage of their proposed $175.5 million bond that will provide replacement campuses for Mae Smythe and L.F. Smith, classroom additions to high school campuses, new technology and expansion of its Early College High School program to all PISD high schools, which will graduate about 500 to 600 students each year with both a high school diploma and a community college associate’s degree – completing both high school and two years of college at the same time.
Without any new taxes.
Dickinson ISD officials also were pleased when the votes were counted and their $56 million bond referendum was OK’d by 76 percent of the voters.
“It is a great day for the students of Dickinson ISD,” said Superintendent Vicki Mims. “The voters once again came through for our children… Now our work begins.”
The bond project will provide for construction of two new campuses, Elementary No. 7 and Middle School No. 3. District administrators said they are exploring the option of building a mini-education village concept featuring both an elementary and middle school connected on land the district owns on the west side of I-45 between Calder Road and Cemetery Road.
Over in Katy, the hotly contested $748 million bond proposal that lumped six new schools, renovations to many others and a new stadium into one proposal passed, 28,509 votes for the bond and 23,146 against.
The fast growing district adds about 3,000 new students each year.
Cities vote yes, too
In Seabrook, voters approved a $8.5 million bond referendum that will enable the city to build a new Public Works complex with Animal Shelter and Adoption Center ($6,850,000); purchase a new fire engine ($725,000), install a fiber optic network ($525,000); add and update the Pelican Bay Swimming Pool splash pad and install a new splash pad at Monroe Fields ($450,000).
In Nassau Bay, voters said yes to a six-charter amendment proposition which would reauthorize one-fourth of one percent sales tax for street maintenance.
