The Ballot

See the wording of the June 14, 2004 ballot (which only 10% of Ann Arbor's registered voters voted for -- see below ) requesting a millage for a plan to "provide students with a better learning environment" including a "third comprehensive high school." See if you can find any mention of the location of the school or of the plan for the school, let alone mention of the impact it would have on the entire surrounding area.

That's right. Ann Arbor voters were asked to fund a "comprehensive" high school without anything in writing about:

where it would go
how big it would be
what the impact would be on other schools, teachers, teacher/student ratios
what road changes would be required (paving, widening, stop signs, traffic lights, how many access points into the site, etc.)

and without the AAPS doing:

any traffic studies of the area they already had in mind but weren't officially talking about
any study of impact on neighborhoods or safety issues
any study of the environmental impact

The Board's explanation for not including the proposed site of the comprehensive new high school on the ballot is that voters already knew what the location was by virtue of reading newspaper articles and mailings. There was an assumption that, because the public schools have owned the property for some forty years, it would somehow be etched in the voters' minds. However, the site was originally situated in the middle of agricultural land, before urban sprawl. It is now situated on a two lane road surrounded on all sides by development and adjacent to M-14 with its four ramps. Many people voted in favor of the bond, because schools are overcrowded. Many would not have done so had they known the proposed site.

Since the ballot had voters approve funding for the construction of the school, but not its maintenance and salaries, the future is a bit fuzzy. This is what the Board's own web site says: "Improved facilities and technology will attract new students and retain current students thus improving revenues (future available operating dollars)."

Finally, note that the ballot was passed with only 16,423 voters voting. This is a mere 14.5% of the total 113,213 registered voters (we don't know how many eligible voters there are in Ann Arbor). Since the vote was approximately 2:1 in favor, that means that about 10% of registered voters passed a $205,000,000 bond that included a new high school, but said nothing of where or how it would be built.

	Fighting Mismanagement in the Ann Arbor Public Schools District "If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers" — Thomas Pynchon

Main Archives Page (New High School) Environment Land Use Traffic School size Demographics Safety Archaeology Alternative sites In the News About CRS Write a letter ! Contact Us Home Page	The Ballot See the wording of the June 14, 2004 ballot (which only 10% of Ann Arbor's registered voters voted for -- see below ) requesting a millage for a plan to "provide students with a better learning environment" including a "third comprehensive high school." See if you can find any mention of the location of the school or of the plan for the school, let alone mention of the impact it would have on the entire surrounding area. That's right. Ann Arbor voters were asked to fund a "comprehensive" high school without anything in writing about: where it would go how big it would be what the impact would be on other schools, teachers, teacher/student ratios what road changes would be required (paving, widening, stop signs, traffic lights, how many access points into the site, etc.) and without the AAPS doing: any traffic studies of the area they already had in mind but weren't officially talking about any study of impact on neighborhoods or safety issues any study of the environmental impact The Board's explanation for not including the proposed site of the comprehensive new high school on the ballot is that voters already knew what the location was by virtue of reading newspaper articles and mailings. There was an assumption that, because the public schools have owned the property for some forty years, it would somehow be etched in the voters' minds. However, the site was originally situated in the middle of agricultural land, before urban sprawl. It is now situated on a two lane road surrounded on all sides by development and adjacent to M-14 with its four ramps. Many people voted in favor of the bond, because schools are overcrowded. Many would not have done so had they known the proposed site. Since the ballot had voters approve funding for the construction of the school, but not its maintenance and salaries, the future is a bit fuzzy. This is what the Board's own web site says: "Improved facilities and technology will attract new students and retain current students thus improving revenues (future available operating dollars)." Finally, note that the ballot was passed with only 16,423 voters voting. This is a mere 14.5% of the total 113,213 registered voters (we don't know how many eligible voters there are in Ann Arbor). Since the vote was approximately 2:1 in favor, that means that about 10% of registered voters passed a $205,000,000 bond that included a new high school, but said nothing of where or how it would be built.