CONTRIBUTED GRAPHIC A rendering from Studio MELEE shows the concept for a new fire station in State Center. On Tuesday, 61 percent of voters approved a $1.5 million bond to finance the project.

STATE CENTER — Two bonds were voted upon, but only one was approved.

During Tuesday’s election, residents of State Center and the West Marshall Community School District determined that the project for a new $1.5 million addition to the State Center fire station would go forward.

Ballots from 723 State Center residents were cast with 439, or 61 percent, in favor and 284 voted against.

State Center Fire/EMS Chief Brad Pfantz was very happy with the election results, especially since voters narrowly turned it down last year.

“I am cautiously optimistic, but pleased,” he said. “Now the project can move forward.”

Pfantz was not sure why State Center residents approved the project this time. He did communicate with people after the last election and tried to address their questions and concerns. Pfantz said having the bond issue included in such a big election really improved the number of voters.

“Turnout was big this year,” he said. “Last year, it failed by .5 percent. This year, it passed by one percent. Both votes were close. It just went the other way this year.”

The next step in getting the fire station addition is to hire a construction manager. Pfantz said the plan is to put it out for bid in the spring or late summer of 2025. He would like to break ground next winter.

“That might be aggressive,” Pfantz said. “It might go into January 2026. I hope everything goes as planned.”

The chief thanked residents for turning out and for supporting the State Center Fire/EMS Department.

“People appreciate what we do,” he said. “They are always here for our fundraising events. The community is supportive of us financially and giving us kudos. It is always good to feel appreciated.”

Competing with the State Center fire station was the elementary school addition project for West Marshall, which ultimately fell short of the needed 60 percent supermajority.

West Marshall Superintendent Jacy Large said he was also aware the district’s bond was going to compete with the city’s. He said if they try again, he hopes the project will not have to compete with another bond.

“The question seemed to be what people care about more, as the fire station would not cost more than the school,” he said. “The school was not as important as emergency services.”

The district’s $14 million bond would have also addressed the demolition of the three-story building which houses fourth and fifth grades, construction of a parent drop off and parking area and connecting the middle school to the high school.

A total of 2,479 ballots were cast and 1,395, or 56 percent, approved. In Marshall County, 2,459 ballots were cast with 1,383 giving approval, and 1,076 being opposed. Twenty Story County residents submitted ballots for the bond, with 12 approving and 8 opposing.

Large said while he was pleased with the voter turnout, he underestimated absentee and early voters. There would have been a focus on getting information to the voters earlier.

“The hardest part is looking at the staff and kids and saying ‘Sorry this did not work out, but we will do better,'” he said.

Large said he has learned from voter feedback. He said there needed to be more digital footage of the project and of the 100-year-old school building. For the three project community meetings, roughly 23 people attended. Some of the older voters did not attend because they did not want to climb three flights of stairs to view the damages to the building.

The makeup of the West Marshall school board will also be affected by the election results. Large said there are three members who indicated they would not serve another term if the bond vote failed.

“It is going to be different,” he said. “We have candid board members, and this was a deciding point on whether or not they intend to run for election again.”

The members who are leaving had a goal of seeing this project through and improving the academics for the students. With the anticipated changes to the school board, Large is not certain about the future of the project.

“We will not have the majority with three going out,” he said. “We need to look down the road.”

The next steps will be determined at a capital improvement meeting in November. Large added that the district does not have enough money in the SAVE (Secure an Advanced Vision for Education) fund to maintain building needs. They will continue being good stewards of the finances.

“It failed, and we’re not going to put $500,000 into the building,” he said. “We will see what we can do.”

Large, a former principal at Miller Middle School in Marshalltown, added that even though the election did not go the way he wanted for West Marshall, he was happy to see the results for the Reimagine Miller project.

East Marshall

West Marshall was not the only area school district with a bond that did not get enough voter approval to move forward. East Marshall Superintendent Tony Ryan thanked voters for considering the district’s general obligation bond vote and added that while the bond failed, a majority did approve.

The $13.5 million project would have built an addition to the elementary building in Laurel, which includes a gymnasium, classrooms and restrooms; and an addition to the high school in Le Grand. The project would have also covered HVAC systems and resulted in the closure of the current middle school in Gilman, the oldest of the district’s three buildings. In order for the bond to pass, 60 percent plus one of the voters on Tuesday would have had to approve, and the East Marshall bond received 53 percent approval.

“This outcome on election day does not diminish the support East Marshall residents have for our schools and students,” Ryan said. “The next challenge for the school board and administration will be identifying future steps to address our facilities needs. We will continue to engage with district residents throughout this process. Thank you for your consideration of the bond measure on the ballot Nov. 5.”

In Marshall County, 1,777 voters cast their votes with 949 in favor and 828 against. In Tama, 58 voters approved and 51 were against for a total of 109; Poweshiek, 4 ballots were cast with zero in favor; and Jasper, 42 in favor, 50 against for a total of 92. The total vote between all four counties was 1,982.

GMG

GMG CSD Superintendent Chris Petersen was thankful for the district voters who gave their approval for the $12.3 million bond issue. Sixty-six percent of voters approved, surpassing the required 60.

Two hundred ninety Marshall County voters approved, and 161 were opposed, for a total of 451 ballots. In Tama, 535 ballots were cast with 364 voters in favor and 171 against, for a total of 986 ballots.

“It was a long informational campaign, and the voters were well informed,” he said. “We got the information to the people and left it in their hands.”

It was the first time the project came to the voters, and Petersen believes they approved thanks to an attached sense of urgency.

“The legislature said [bond votes] can only happen in November, so we would have to wait until next year,” he said.

The bond voters approved will be used to build, furnish and equip a classroom addition to the middle school and high school in Garwin. The project will include parking, maintenance on the existing school building and life safety and ADA improvements.

Petersen said some people believe the hard part and work is over now that the election is over, but it is only just beginning.

“There will be a little lull for the next couple weeks, and then we will start the design process, which will be lengthy because of the detail,” he said.

Petersen is optimistic ground will be broken in the spring of 2026 after the design is completed and bids are awarded.

Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.