LHS Debt Service Referendum Projected To Pass: Unofficial Results

LEMONT, IL — With 100 percent of the precincts reporting in Cook County and 100 percent of Election Day votes tabulated in DuPage County, the referendum from Lemont High School is projected to pass, according to unofficial results.

Voters who live within Lemont High School boundaries, which includes Lemont and portions of Darien, Downers Grove and Woodridge, voted on this question:

"Shall the debt service extension base under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law for Lemont Township High School District Number 210, Cook and DuPage Counties, Illinois, for payment of principal and interest on limited bonds be increased from $249,604 to $5,000,000 for the 2022 levy year and all subsequent levy years?"

Results (unofficial totals):

• YES: 5,355 votes
• NO: 4,939 votes

Note that Tuesday's results are unofficial until counties certify the results later this month.

The Lemont High School District 210 Board of Education approved putting the referendum question on the ballot at its Aug. 18 meeting.

With a successful referendum, there would not be an increase to the annual debt service burden for taxpayers, the district has said, and District 210 will have access to consistent funding in order to make necessary improvements on campus on an as-needed basis.

The district has developed a facility improvement plan, and updates to classrooms, especially science labs, STEM learning spaces and areas for career and technical education, are a high priority in the plan.

A debt service extension base represents the maximum annual tax levy that a taxing body can extend to pay principal and interest on its non-referendum debt, according to the district. This amount is different for every school district; some school districts have a base in the millions of dollars.

Taxpayers approved infrastructure bond referenda in 1996 and 2006, the district said. The last payments on outstanding bonds will be made in 2028.

The district said it will not exercise its increased debt service extension base until its previously scheduled bond debt is retired.