Arlington voters to decide $10.5M school bond Nov. 3
Published 2:16 pm Monday, October 5, 2026
The Arlington School Board of Education has voted to place a $10.5 million school bond issue on the upcoming Nov. 3, 2026, ballot, aiming to fund critical facility upgrades and expand career-technical education spaces.
The decision, finalized during an Aug. 10 meeting, follows three years of community feedback targeted at identifying the district’s most pressing infrastructure needs. Officials stated the bond will focus on two major areas of the campus: the main activities entrance and an expansion near the “Blue Gym.”
“This bond proposal directly reflects the priorities our community shared with us over the past year,” said Superintendent Dr. Dawn Lewis. “By investing in hands-on learning environments and addressing critical space constraints, we are ensuring our facilities can safely and effectively support our students’ diverse academic and athletic pursuits for years to come.”
The first area of the proposed project targets the school’s main activities entrance. If approved, the bond will fund the construction of hands-on, career-focused classrooms. These modern spaces are slated to house vocational courses, including woodworking, construction, manufacturing, agriculture and FFA programs.
In addition to the academic expansion, the entrance itself will undergo a significant renovation. District officials noted the upgrades will not only enhance the building’s visual appeal but will also permanently fix a severe, ongoing drainage issue that has plagued the entrance for years.
The second major project involves constructing a “flexible space area” utilizing an existing exit next to the district’s Blue Gym.
According to school officials, the addition is designed to solve a persistent scheduling bottleneck. Because the Blue Gym doubles as the school lunchroom, scheduling concurrent elementary and high school physical education classes has proven difficult. The new overflow space will alleviate that pressure.
Furthermore, the area will serve as a dedicated practice space for dance and cheer teams and will become the new permanent home for Arlington’s rapidly growing girls wrestling program, the boys wrestling team and the local youth wrestling program.
District officials released specific figures outlining the financial impact on local property owners if the $10.5 million measure passes.
The tax impact is projected at 4 cents per $100 of assessed property value. For a homeowner with a $100,000 property, this translates to an estimated cost of $3.33 per month. For local farmers, agricultural land would see an additional cost of $1.02 per acre per year.
To address community questions and provide detailed breakdowns of the architectural plans, Arlington Public Schools will host a public informational meeting on Oct. 7 from 7-8 p.m. in the Arlington Public Schools Board Room, located at 705 N. 9th St. in Arlington. Recognizing that some residents may be unable to attend the session in person, school officials confirmed they will also broadcast the meeting live on the school’s Facebook page as well as on the APS district website. There will be another informational open house on Oct. 21 from 5:30-7 p.m. This will be held in the school’s Blue Gym.
For more information regarding the upcoming bond election, including detailed architectural blueprints and tax impact calculators, residents can visit the official school district website or contact the administration office. Registered voters living within the Arlington Public Schools district boundaries can cast their ballots on the measure during the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
