Canadian Valley Tech proposition narrowly fails at polls
CV Tech Center did not get the needed support for their bond issue on Sept. 12. (Photo by Jacob Sturm)
By Jacob Sturm
Voters of Canadian County, along with seven other counties, narrowly defeated a proposition for a bond for the Canadian Valley Technology Center on Sept. 12.
The bond proposition, if passed, would have been for $75 million designed to pay for improvements district-wide, including a new training facility at the El Reno campus of Canadian Valley Technology Center and extensive improvements at the Chickasha campus.
CV Tech’s board members unanimously approved supporting the bond in April. CV Tech’s bond information page claimed more than 600 potential students were turned away this year due to lack of space and programs.
Canadian County voters totaled 1,737 in support of the bond. The Oklahoma State Election Board also tallied 2,104 voters from the county opposed. In total, Canadian County led the voting numbers with 3,841 votes in total.
In Grady County, there were 671 voters in support of the bond, while only 379 were in opposition. Grady county produced 1,050 votes in total Sept. 12.
Oklahoma County voters totaled 91 in support and 62 opposed to the bond.
McClain, Kingfisher, Garvin, Cleveland and Caddo Counties were also listed on the Election Board tally. They totaled 22 votes combined, with an even split (11 for, 11 against).
When added together between all counties, the bond failed by a near 48 votes.
Canadian Valley Technology Center Superintendent, Dr. Gayla Lutts, issued a statement following the results of the bond coming in.
“The election results last night for the CV Tech bond issue were disappointing,” Lutts said in the statement. “I want to thank everyone who got out to vote and who supported our efforts to educate the public about the bond issue. Over the past several months, we experienced an overwhelmingly positive response from our faculty, families, communities and business partners who were supportive of our expansion and improvement goals. We are proud of our growth and progress at CV Tech and remain committed to our mission of preparing our students to succeed through quality career and technical education programs and services. While the loss is certainly a setback, our eye is still on building a brighter future for us all.”
