Appo referendum overwhelmingly passes
I liked the way Appoquinimink School District framed this vote by speaking directly to the idiot Trump-voting fucknuts who can’t see beyond their own greedy self-interest:
Good Schools = Higher Property Values
Three new schools and a host of other school upgrades related to growth will be a reality in the Appoquinimink School District as voters overwhelmingly approved a $268 million capital referendum Tuesday.
Unofficial results from the Department of Elections show 5,152 votes for and 2,496 votes against the first question, which gives the district $3.1 million in operational funding.
A similar margin was seen for the second question, which gives the district money to build new schools and renovate others. Unofficially, there were 5,506 “yes” votes and 2,102 “no” votes.
Full disclosure – I am an Appo School District parent.
With the thousands and thousands of home equity dollars they’ll be able to refinance their medical bills and credit card debt into a 2nd mortgage!!!!
Donviti is like the Livia Soprano of Delaware Liberal
is she hot? then yes!
wait, no!
Nah, he’s more like Junior Soprano.
To be fair, that equation has been part of virtually every referendum campaign in Delaware for more than 40 years (except perhaps in the ’70s for the old Conrad and De La Warr districts, which were poor, small, blue-collar and rimmed by more middle class districts) but the argument hasn’t played well in areas where grandparents haven’t gotten over the court-ordered desegregation that took effect 38 years ago … even after deseg has largely been undone by our General Assembly.
The equation works well in Appo, however, because it wasn’t subject to the deseg order and, for that reason, has become the preferred location for McMansions largely (but not entirely) isolated from the urban and rural poor.
There’s nothing wrong with playing to their bean-counting, portfolio-enhancing sensibilities if it strengthens the school system. If you told me that paying $200 more in school taxes would likely raise my property values by $2,000 a year — well, you don’t have to be Donald Trump to jump at a 10 bucks on the dollar return.
@mediawatch, you don’t have to be DJT, but it might help to have a cursory understanding of how intimately property values are intertwined with the local school system…and then actually be a property *owner*. It’s not as simple as you think. Plenty of people whose interests would be best served by strengthening their local school district have no qualms about voting against school funding referenda. No qualms at all.
Appo is excluded from deseg, it’s also excluded from the NCC Tax Pool, and has a disproportionate amount of funding coming from the State given its size and tax base compared to the other NCC Districts.
“There’s nothing wrong with playing to their bean-counting, portfolio-enhancing sensibilities if it strengthens the school system.”
Thank you.
And Brian I pay NCC taxes. What do you think, MOT is some kind of principality like Monaco or something?
More money to build schools that are way over built! Appo looks like a small college! some of the private schools don’t have the amenities that Appo has. And, with all the building going on down there, the schools are getting the money anyway and piss it away.
Love how Jason, loves to call people F***nuts. That wins an argument!! Just shows ignorance!!
@Anono: Do you think your unsupported spewing wins arguments? Meanwhile, we all read your comments, and you’re not actually nuts. You’re just a typical ignorant-and-proud-of-it conservative who, as is typical of conservatives, incorrectly thinks of himself as an adequate human being.
As an example, let’s unpack your comment.
“More money to build schools that are way over built!”
Do you have any evidence for that? If not, it’s just your opinion, which obviously was not shared by the majority of district voters. Fail.
“Appo looks like a small college!”
Appoquinimink HS serves a student population of 1,600. That is, in fact, the same as Wesley College. So, while your statement is true, you made it as if it were some kind of mark against Appo. Why shouldn’t it look like a small college if it serves a student population the size of a small college’s?
“with all the building going on down there, the schools are getting the money anyway and piss it away.”
Again, this statement is intellectually content-free. Have you researched this at all? Do you have any figures to back up your contentions? Of course not. Conservatives don’t want to do the research, they just want to bitch and moan and then claim everyone agrees with them — which is just a final inaccuracy on the pile of bullshit you’re already constructed.
You’re way out of your league here, sporto.
@Brian: Mediawatch has forgotten more about Delaware education than you can ever hope to know.
“Love how Jason, loves to call people F***nuts. That wins an argument!!”
Sour grapes Trump-voting loser. You lost, get over it.
You can keep spinning that ol’ yarn about “getting the money and piss it away”, but we all know you got nothing in the way of facts and examples to support your bullshit. Jason’s use of “fucking nuts” is pretty apropos in describing quite a few stances on this.
That being said, you’re first complaint is that the District is making the schools look too fancy? God forbid they make it look nice! I mean, you’re totally correct on this. They should build a four-story, one-square block building and tell the kids to deal with it. I mean, why should anyone, at any point in the future, experience something that might have a few more amenities, is more comfortable than the way YOU had it back in your good ol’ days!
I see I could have left my comment as “What Anonymous Said”!
@J330 “And Brian I pay NCC taxes. What do you think, MOT is some kind of principality like Monaco or something?”
Of course you pay NCC taxes if you live in NCC. The “Tax Pool” I’m referring to is the tax collecting entity that *still* exists from the days of the New Castle County School District. Its only purpose is to reallocate taxes from the districts with larger tax bases to districts in NCC to the districts with smaller tax bases using an outdated fixed formula that today actually does the opposite of what it was designed to do 40 years ago (takes from the larger poorer districts and gives to the wealthier smaller districts). Brandywine, Red Clay, Colonial, and Christina are all in this pool.
Appo is not. Although if they were, they’d be receiving additional funds in the form of property tax revenue from Christina and Red Clay. Appo also receives a disproportionate amount of equalization funding from the State because they are still considered a “rural” school district in the eyes of the formula.
FWIW, I’m not hating on Appo or their referenda, I’m very happy it passed (and easily). But all things funding are not equitable even among NCC School Districts.
Thanks for the info.
Now if we could just get some affordable housing down there then low-income people too could take advantage of those good Appo schools.
Please. This view of MOT as McMansionville is cute, (and was true 20 years ago) but take a look at the number of new townhouse starts vs. single family home starts and let me know how it holds up to reality.
is making a school look fancy code for gay?
I imagine the fear of someone like Johnny Weir designing the library and teachers lounge is what is going on here
“Please. This view of MOT as McMansionville is cute, (and was true 20 years ago) but take a look at the number of new townhouse starts vs. single family home starts and let me know how it holds up to reality.”
Brings us right back to the topic I mentioned earlier about understanding the relationship between the strength of your local school district and property values. If you can afford the rent on a townhouse or apartment in Appo and you have kids, move there. Benefits of a strong school district and the cost of taxes to pay for it borne by your landlord spread out among your fellow renters.
“If you can afford the rent on a townhouse or apartment in Appo and you have kids, move there. ”
1. Where would you work in Appo that you could afford the rent?
2. You see where this is going right? Appo’s “good schools” are based on its history and still-present large lot, single-family zoning. Once the apartments and townhouses* increase to a certain point, the demographics of the public schools will change and Appo parents will back away from their TPS and start screaming for Red Clay-style magnets and charters.
*because of course many townhouses will be bought by investors and rented out.
Dad was a teacher as was one aunt, schools have been using this argument since time began. Schools, and their quality, have been a real estate selling point forever. Agreed, it does not take the high line of better education… But if it works it works.
“…increase to a certain point, the demographics of the public schools will change and Appo parents will back away from their TPS and start screaming for Red Clay-style magnets and charters.”
That’s already happening because MOT is part of America and some portion of every American population is racist, and some parents think that charters are private schools at public school prices.
The good news in Appo is that (so far) those opting out have not been able to create any charters good enough to skim the academic/performing arts/athletic talent from the top of the terrific public schools.