School officials will wait for dust to settle after bond proposal failed to pass

ISHPEMING– A bond proposal for one local school district just barely failed to pass yesterday and officials from that district say they are going to wait and see what to do.

The bond referendum to give N.I.C.E Community Schools a new gym was defeated 490 votes to 421 votes. If it would have passed the school district could have gone forward with a 4.1 million dollar project adding a new gym as well as locker rooms and bathrooms.

Superintendent Brian DeAugustine, said that he is a little disappointed in the outcome.

“Certainly we wouldn’t have asked the question if we hadn’t been hopeful that it might pass and to have it go down and fail, yeah it is disappointing,” he said. “But it’s alright because we’re a happy, healthy school for the most part. We’ve got gorgeous facilities and grounds, we feel really strongly about our students and their families and we really believe the strength in the school lies in its people, not in the bricks and motor or the buildings that it has.”

DeAugustine said that they plan on “waiting for the dust to settle” before figuring out how to go forward. He said they will also be meeting with community members and getting their feedback on the proposal.