Library Bond Issue Passes – Unofficially
"We are hopeful." – Ed Worso
The final unofficial results of the Geauga County Board of Elections showed a narrow victory for Geauga County Public Library’s $24 million bond issue Nov. 7.
With a 1.5 percent margin of victory, those following the issue will have to wait until provisional ballots and 10-day absentee ballots are counted, according to board of elections Director Deborah Reiter.
The 0.5-mill tax levy would cost homeowners around $17 per $100,000 property valuation, according to a library board press release. It is projected to be paid off in 30 years.
The push to pass a bond issue began last year as the library’s board of directors decided the time was right to replace the small and outdated Bainbridge facility, as well as add a new library building in Thompson, which is currently served by a branch located inside an elementary school.
The bond was controversial in some parts of Geauga County, including Middlefield, where residents are still paying off their library, financed through the school system, and built in 2001.
Geauga County Commissioners also opposed the levy, and debated preventing it from being placed on the general election ballot before discovering in August their advisory role prevents such action.
Library Director Ed Worso is looking forward to a final tally.
“We are hopeful,” Worso said. “But we’ll wait and see.”
