Fort Mill’s $204 million school bond passes, unofficial election results show

Unofficial results posted Tuesday night show the Fort Mill school bond referendum vote passed with 64% approval.

Fort Mill’s school superintendent is calling Tuesday’s $204 million bond election a win, and not just for his school board.

The polls closed at 7 p.m. and a little before 9 p.m. the York County Voter Registration & Elections Office had not posted results from the referendum.

Even so, about an hour after the polls closed, the Keep Our Schools Strong committee that backed the bond posted a Facebook video stating it was a “yes” vote, based on numbers posted at polling stations.

In the video Fort Mill School District Superintendent Chuck Epps declared the election a success with the passage of the referendum.

“The children of Fort Mill will be the winners here tonight,” Epps said. “So pleased with our community support. So thankful to the community. They continue to come through for us.”

The voter registration office posted unofficial results at about 10 p.m. There were 3,807 votes cast, or 6.7% turnout of eligible voters. Precincts ranged from less than 3.6% turnout at the Lake Wylie Lutheran Church precinct to more than 9.1% at Carolinas Cornerstone Church. Five precincts — more than 20% of them — had voter turnout below 5%.

Results will be certified this week.

The ballot question asked voters whether the district should issue and sell up to $204 million of bonds to fund a new middle school, early childhood development center, land purchases for future schools, technology and facility maintenance.

If there’s bond money left over, the board could use it to renovate, repair, expand, equip or furnish other district facilities, according to the ballot question.

The maximum tax increase would result in an extra $60 per year, or $5 a month, cost to homeowners for every $100,000 in home value. So the owner of a $500,000 home would pay $300 more a year, or $25 more per month. Costs would be higher for businesses and rental property owners.

What happens now?

The school district owns 88 acres at 278 Gold Hill Road where a new elementary school is under construction. That $67 million school is being paid for through impact fees, or charges on new home and apartment construction. That same property will have the new middle school — the bond’s most expensive item.

The district would aim to open the almost $87 million middle school in 2026.

The $64 million childhood learning center, to serve pre-kindergarten students, would go on 34 acres donated by Clear Springs Land Co. District officials discussed having that facility open in 2027. Clear Springs owns property off Tom Hall Street, across from Dobys Bridge Road and east of Joe Louis and Steele streets.

Voter turnout, confidence in school district

School board member Anthony Boddie stopped in at Unity Presbyterian Church to vote a little before noon Tuesday. Boddie was concerned with low turnout, since only about 80 people had voted at that precinct to that point. Just down the road at the Fort Mill Church of God polling place, turnout was half that amount.

More voters began to trickle in around noon. Sam Culver, at Unity, had his mind made up well before he entered the voting booth.

“Fort Mill schools are foundational to the town and they’re what sets this town apart,” Culver said. “A simple yes vote is a no-brainer.”

The reputation of the school district, and trust in its leadership, also was key for voter Brenda Stowe.

“I’ve never been in the education field, but I certainly respect what the Fort Mill district has done,” Stowe said. “It’s one of the best that I’ve ever seen.”

Stowe no longer has children in Fort Mill schools, but as a parent and grandparent she sees funding the school system as more important than the tax increase she’d have to pay.

“I sent my children to Fort Mill schools, and I like the way they turned out,” Stowe said. “My children had the advantage of the schools here and I owe it to the other people that live here now with their children, that they get the benefit that I did.”

More money needed for Fort Mill schools

Regardless what voters decided Tuesday, more funding will be needed moving forward. The $204 million bond proposal was part of an almost $700 million needs list presented to the school board in November. The $700 million is the projected 10-year costs.

In addition to what’s on the bond, the 10-year list included the new elementary school under construction now, two more elementary schools, expansion at existing high schools, a performing arts center, more money for land purchases, technology and maintenance.

Fort Mill has $700 million in school needs. How much might go on a bond next year?

Fort Mill has grown into the largest school district in York County — based on enrollment — despite being the smallest in the state geographically. The district’s more than 18,000 students are the result of decades of growth. Since 1998, the district has averaged about 600 more students each year.

The 20 district schools now vary with how much room they have available. For the past several years some schools have been frozen, meaning students that would go there are instead sent to schools with available space. The district projects elementary school space across the district would reach capacity by the 2027-28 school year without the new school under construction. Without the bond, middle school space would run out the following year and high school space, the following year.