Voters reject Mogadore, Springfield school levies, Coventry Township parks levy
Voters in the Springfield Local School and Mogadore Local School districts and Coventry Township rejected requests for additional funding on Tuesday.
In Coventry Township, voters asked to bump up the millage on a parks levy declined to do so.
The 2,200-student Springfield district, which covers Springfield Township and Lakemore, is the only district in the state under fiscal watch. That means its finances are monitored by the Ohio Department of Education.
The district would have reaped about $1.7 million a year with the levy, which would have added about $132 a year to each $100,000 of the county fiscal officer's appraised value of homes in the district. But in what's become a common result for the district, voters declined to approve the new funding.
The final vote was close, however — 1,312 against the levy to 1,249 for it among Summit County voters, and 52-15 against it from Portage County voters who reside in the district.
The funds would have been used to help lift the district out of financial watch and put it on a more secure five-year financial path. In the past few years, the district has cut staff and programs to balance its budget and failed at the polls several times in its request for new funds.
Mogadore Local School District levy fails
The proposed increase was steeper for homeowners in the Mogadore Local School District. The 9.9-mill levy would have raised about $1.07 million a year from homeowners and cost about $346 for each $100,000 of the county fiscal officer’s appraised value.
The issue failed badly with the district's Summit County voters. With 100% of the Summit County vote tabulated, the Mogadore schools issue lost by 657 to 258, or 71.8% to 28.2%. In Portage County, where some of the district extends, it was rejected 237 to 84.
Other Summit County school levies
Coventry Township parks levy
Coventry Township made a second stab at a parks levy increase. Voters also rejected an increase to an existing levy in November by a 2,075 to 1,847 vote.
Voters were asked for a 0.25-mill increase to the current levy of 0.5 mills. It would have collected about $212,000 a year, beginning in 2024.
Although there were far fewer votes cast Tuesday, the result was the same, with 490 against the levy and 308 voting yes.
Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at aashworth@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Voters reject levies in Springfield, Mogadore school districts
