La Conner Weekly News - Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper

Interim La Conner schools Superintendent Rich Stewart and school district voters have given a giant present to students, staff, parents and the yet-to-be-chosen new school superintendent: an overwhelming, 71% yes vote in the Feb. 9 election for a four year replacement educational programs and operations levy. Most of the remaining ballots were counted Thursday.

In La Conner, 361 more yes votes were in the additional 542 ballots.

The Concrete Schools renewal levy for educational programs and operations won with 57.9% of the vote, as did the two Mount Vernon school district levies. Its renewal levy for educational programs and operations gained 51.2%. The district’s safety and technology capital projects levy has 51.7%. Both were below 50% after the Feb. 9 vote count.

The elections office has 40 votes left to count across the three districts. Ballots will be tallied and the election certified Feb. 19.

The new levy rate is $1.45 per $1,000 assessed valuation, a slight decrease from the $1.50 per $1,000 level of the last two years.