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Elections

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Fewer Voters Turn Out for Second West Bloomfield Schools Sinking Fund Election

About 16 percent of registered voters showed up at the polls to pass Tuesday's sinking fund millage; last fall's turnout was 74 percent.

About 16 percent of West Bloomfield School District's 25,740 registered voters turned out to vote on Tuesday's sinking fund millage, which passed by a 190-vote margin.  By comparison, the November 2011 school board election drew 19 percent of registered voters, and the last sinking fund millage request, on the ballot with the presidential and state-wide elections in November of 2012, failed by more than 800 votes with about three-quarters of registered voters going to the polls.  West Bloomfield Patch reader Richard Goldman, commenting on Facebook, called the turnout percentage "horribly low."  "The major problem here in this economy is that so many homes are now abject worthless that homeowners can nary afford an increase let alone being …

arnie weiss

12:23 pm on Thursday, May 9, 2013

both beth & art are right on these school boards & other political self interest only care about making their spending easier so they really do not have to work to do their jobs, yes they will spend any amount of $$$$$$ they want i.e $65000 for a special election in the off season. remember their theory it only cost the price of a gall of milk per week for their obnoxious taxes. I am still …   more ›

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Voters Narrowly Approve West Bloomfield Schools Sinking Fund Millage

While election results are unofficial, Oakland County's elections website reports millage supporters score a 190-vote victory.

Update 8:46 p.m. With all precincts reporting, voters have approved the sinking fund millage by a narrow margin, 2,224-2,034. Elections results remain unofficial until they are certified.  We'll have additional coverage and an in-depth look at precinct by precinct results Wednesday morning.  Update 8:36 p.m. With 10 of 16 precincts reporting: Yes, 1982, No, 1805.  Update 8:30 p.m. With half of all precincts reporting: Yes, 1763, No, 1521. Update 8:15 p.m. With four of 16 precincts reporting: Yes, 949, No, 753. If it was up to West Bloomfield Public Schools voters in Keego Harbor, Sylvan Lake and Orchard Lake, there would be no sinking fund millage; all three voted it down.  Update, 8:09 p.m. With two of 16 precincts reporting here's where …

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Teacher

5:49 pm on Sunday, May 12, 2013

Pending Approval Teacher 5:46 pm on Sunday, May 12, 2013 Just so you know and are well informed, teachers DO NOT have 45 days of vacation. We spread our pay to get paid during the summer. To make it clear, I get paid less during the school year so that I can get a pay check during the summer. My school district does not pay me during the summer. This is a HUGE misconception. Please understand the…   more ›

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Do You Favor or Oppose the West Bloomfield School Millage? Tell Us About It

West Bloomfield Patch invites you to share your opinion about the May 7 election by submitting a blog post.

West Bloomfield Public Schools voters will go to the polls Tuesday to decide the fate of a a 14-year, 1.25-mill levy proposal that would provide funding for building upgrades and repairs.  If you have an opinion about the millage, in support or opposition, share it with a blog post! Your submission will be featured on our site and in our newsletter, and we'll close election-related blog submissions after Friday.  Ready to share your thoughts? Start here: Start a Blog.  Read our guide to the May 7 election to find links and more information about the ballot question. 

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Jane Doe

7:58 am on Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Arnie: Problem is, the state keeps reducing "what they have." So as they create their budget, the state cuts the school aid fund a little more, and they have less than they planned for. This is an ongoing occurrence. And not an accident, either.... The word out of Lansing is we have declining state revenue and, therefore, must cut budgets. Truth? Money for schools is being used for other projects…   more ›

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Your Guide to the West Bloomfield Public Schools May 7 Special Election

Voters will decide the fate of a 14-year, 1.25-mill levy proposal to provide more than $30 million in repairs to district buildings.

West Bloomfield Public Schools (WBPS) voters will decide whether to approve a 14-year, 1.25-mill levy proposal in a May 7 special election. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at WBPS precincts in West Bloomfield Township, Keego Harbor, Orchard Lake and Sylvan Lake.  If approved, the $1.25 per $1,000 of taxable valuation would increase property taxes $125 per year on a home with a taxable value of $100,000, starting July 1, 2013. (If your home has an assessed value of $200,000, it has a taxable value of $100,000.) The millage is expected to raise a total of $30.25 million for use primarily on upgrades or repairs. The district's school enrollment and facilities committee identified $23.1 million in needed repairs, including $4.1 …

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Christy Forhan

2:17 pm on Tuesday, May 7, 2013

ConcernedWBTaxpayer...I repeat what I said to Mark Z above. Please use your passion and analytical skills in a forum that matters. The Patch blog under an anonymous name isn't the forum.   more ›

Friday, April 5, 2013

Voter Registration Deadline Nearing for West Bloomfield School Election

Residents hoping to vote in the May 7 election have until April 8 to register.

The deadline to register to vote in the May 7 West Bloomfield School District election is just around the corner.  On the ballot is a 1.25 mill Building and Site Sinking Fund, which will provide about $2 million annually for the next 14 years. Read more about the proposal on the district's website.  Voters have until April 8 to register at their hometown government offices in Sylvan Lake, Orchard Lake, Keego Harbor or West Bloomfield, the Oakland County clerk's office in Pontiac, any Secretary of State office or by mail. This year, there is a new requirement to register to vote in Michigan. As of March 28, anyone wishing to register to vote must have a photo ID or a signed affidavit with proof of citizenship. If they do not have photo ID, …

arnie weiss

7:26 pm on Friday, April 5, 2013

how many times do we have to vote on this issue when is the school board going to understand the word NO we defeated this issue before . i urge the voters to defeat this probosal again & let the school board know that we the VOTERS have said NO. enough is enough .   more ›

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

West Bloomfield Schools Millage Proposal Approved for May 2013 Ballot

Voters will decide on 1.25-mill, 14-year building and site sinking fund proposal in special election.

The 2013 election picture got a little clearer at the West Bloomfield School Board meeting Monday with the approval of a building site and sinking fund millage proposal. The district will ask voters to pass a 14-year, 1.25-mill ($1.25 per $1,000 of taxable valuation, or $125/year for taxpayers in a home with a taxable value of $100,000) proposal in a special election May 7. The first levy will, if approved, take place on July 1, 2013.  The millage is expected to raise $30.25 million if approved for the district to use primarily on upgrades or repairs. The district's school enrollment and facilities committee identified $23.1 million in needed repairs, including $4.1 million of work at the high school, $9 million at the district's two …

Louise Cantor

12:58 pm on Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Leadership has not explained what repairs need to be addressed at all district buildings and how soon. The most recent bond took care of the district's most costly upgrades/repairs so this continues to be about raising new revenue to keep the district from going back into deficit. Leadership should be honest with voters about this smoke and mirrors sinking fund millage ballot question and not …   more ›

Sunday, December 16, 2012

On the Agenda: Apple Island Dig, West Bloomfield Schools Millage Proposal

The West Bloomfield School Board will consider placing a building site and sinking fund millage proposal on the ballot in 2013 or 2014.

Edited: 1:55 p.m., Dec. 17 to remove information regarding building and site sinking fund The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. Monday at West Bloomfield High School. Follow along on Twitter at @WBloomfldPatch or Facebook at West Bloomfield Patch. View the proceedings by tuning in to Civic Center TV or watch the live stream online. View the complete agenda packet on Broadbook. The board will consider a resolution which would allow the Greater West Bloomfield Historical Society (GWBHS) to apply for state and national historic designation for Apple Island, the 35-acre island in Orchard Lake owned by the district since 1970. The board will also consider a resolution which would allow Western Michigan University students to conduct an …

Monday, November 26, 2012

Chaldean Community Proud of Elected 39th District Representative

First Chaldean-American elected to state legislature, Klint Kesto, rallies support in West Bloomfield.

Personally walking door-to-door introducing yourself might seem like tedious work for a candidate running for office, but for elected State Representative Klint Kesto (R-39th District) it marked a path to history. When Kesto announced victory Nov. 6 in the hotly-contested race for an open seat over Democrat Pam Jackson, at Shenandoah Country Club in West Bloomfield, he said it wasn't about him as much as the community which made him the first Chaldean-American elected to the position of House representative in Michigan. There are more than 120,000 Chaldeans in Michigan (a colloquial term referring to Iraqi Christians, of whose ancestry dates to Historical Babylon) and growing in a time when many are leaving the state, said Chaldean-…

Monday, November 12, 2012

L. Brooks Patterson Looks Ahead: 'The County is Changing'

The Oakland County executive proved he's a stand-up guy during an Election Night appearance in Royal Oak.

As Democrats celebrated election victories Tuesday in Michigan and across the country, the mood at the Emagine Royal Oak theater complex, where more than 200 Oakland County Republicans gathered, was a mixed bag. That is, until L. Brooks Patterson, 73, changed the energy of room.  “He gave some remarks and then he told us he had a surprise for us – and then he stood up on his own,” said former Royal Oak Mayor Dennis Cowan. “Everyone burst into applause.”  Patterson, elected to his sixth term as Oakland County Executive on Nov. 6, was injured in a crash in August that left him hospitalized at McLaren Oakland Hospital in Pontiac for five weeks after suffering almost a dozen broken bones. He returned to work in October using a wheelchair and …

Haulin T Male

3:29 am on Sunday, November 25, 2012

Erin, I guess they found out,they tried that new math, and lost, As far as telling any one who you voted for, just torpedoes all the effort to vote in privacy, jthall, all you did was wasted your vote. my ballot did not ask why are you voting this way........ oh well   more ›

Saturday, November 10, 2012

If It Were Up to West Bloomfield Voters, Prop. 1 Would Have Passed

The 'emergency manager law' was the only one of six statewide ballot proposals which West Bloomfield voters supported Nov. 6.

Could the Greater West Bloomfield area be considered a new election bellwether? Seventy-four percent of registered residents voted in the majority on five of six statewide ballot proposals, among other votes presaging winners. West Bloomfield residents turned out at a total rate of 74.66 percent, including 37,866 ballots cast from 50,721 registered voters. Most of those physically went to the polls on election day: 22,251 voters visited a precinct, while 15,615 turned in absentee ballots. Most supported proposal 1, to allow the approval of the Emergency Manager Law in Michigan. Victories for the Democratic Party possibly establishing West Bloomfield voters as trendsetters included incumbent President Barack Obama over Gov. Mitt Romney (56-…

BUBBA URDAN

12:45 pm on Monday, November 12, 2012

The communities that voted Proposal 1 down are just shooting themselves in the foot and tying up the communities that need assistance to right their ship. There already is a law on the books for municipal bankruptcies, because of this the payment stream gets longer and longer and it makes it more costly for municpalities to correct the situation they are in. With an EM (Emergency Manager) the …   more ›

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