Measure A, the $23.8 million bond measure for Selma Unified School District, unofficially passed as of Tuesday night with 69.93 percent of the votes. The measure will make the district eligible for $4 million in matching state funds.

The goal of Measure A is to provide funds for construction and maintenance of district buildings. Possible projects that are top-priority include fourteen additional permanent classrooms and an expanded cafeteria for Selma High, the replacement or renovation of 50-year-old restrooms, a new K-6 elementary school, classrooms for Eric White Elementary and Lincoln Middle School, and new shower and locker room facilities for Selma High.

Other possible additions are expanded student support facilities, furnishings and equipment, new and upgraded electrical systems for computer technology, upgraded outdoor lighting and fire alarm systems, the replacement of the 40-year-old Selma High swimming pool, and various other health and safety improvements that may be revealed by construction/modernization, such as plumbing or gas line breaks or dry rot.

Selma residents will pay an additional $52 per $100,000 of assessed value of their property. The assessed value is typically lower than the market value of the property, which is called the appraised value. This is because of Proposition 13, which limits the increase of the property's value to two percent per year. Both homeowners and renters will be expected to pay this tax, directly or indirectly. This rate is expected to stay the same for each year the bond is paid off.

The bond money is meant to be in addition to developer fees from the construction of new homes and commercial buildings, which proponents said aren't enough to meet the needs of the sistrict.

An independent Citizens Oversight Committee will be formed out of community volunteers, and the district will conduct annual, independent performance and financial audits. The results of that will be available to the public.

School board candidates Jennie Vasquez, John Hoyt, and Doug Kessler all support Measure A. Vasquez supports it for the role she believes it will have in creating new schools and improving classrooms, and Hoyt believes the measure will help with space issues. However, Kessler, though he supports the measure, doubts that Measure A will be able to deal with overcrowding as much as other candidates say it will.

The proceeds from the sale of the bands will not be used for teacher or administrator salaries or other school operating expenses. The only use they are authorized for is the construction, reconstruction and/or rehabilitation of school facilities. The funds cannot be taken away by the state.

Voters "know there's no way we're going to keep up with growth and everything" if the measure didn't pass, said Smith.

School board candidate Larry Cruff called the measure's progress "great."

"I think it's really necessary for Selma schools to have that," he said. "It's passing by quite a bit, and. . .I think it's going to be a great step forward for the community."

by Bettina Adragna

ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER