By Louis Zylka
The 830 Times
Local voters rejected a $50 million school bond issue.
Val Verde County Clerk Teresa Esther Chapoy announced the results of voting on the San
Felipe Del Rio Consolidated Independent School District’s bond issue proposition outside the
county courthouse on Tuesday evening.
Chapoy said a total of 3,318 voters cast ballots on the bond issue proposition, with 1,889
persons voting against the measure, and a total of 1,429 voting for it.
Had it passed, the public school district’s board of trustees would have use the bond proceeds
to improve several campuses. The projects included creating a new Del Rio Freshman Center,
renovating the Buena Vista Elementary School campus, adding a gym to the San Felipe
Memorial Middle School (SFMMS) campus, building a new tech facility at SSFMS and
renovations at Roberto “Bobby” Barrera (RBB) STEM Elementary School campus.
Raymond P. Meza, school board president, spoke with The 830 Times about Tuesday’s
election results. Meza said he and the other members of the school board are disappointed
voters did not approve the bond issue.
Meza speculated one possible reason for many voters rejecting the bond was due to fewer
people going out to vote, as well as conflicting opinions over various topics discussed within the
community.
“We feel like there’s a lot of things going on from homecoming week and people preparing for
other things, and then the city has a couple of issues that people are upset about in regard to
the water rates and the bridge,” Meza said.
Despite the bond not passing, Meza had a positive outlook, saying, “Sometimes things happen
like that, and so we just go on, you know.”
Meza said the bond would have helped improve the campuses, especially the safety of students
at the freshman campus.
Meza said he believed another reason voters may have rejected the bond was because of
citizens objecting to the money going towards the Bobby Barrera Elementary School at Laughlin
Air Force Base. Meza spoke highly of the relationship between Laughlin and the school district,
adding the school board wanted to get grant money to improve the safety of the students at the
base.
Meza said the school board may seek out another bond issue with a reduced amount. He said
that instead of the five projects previously mentioned, the board could pick one or two projects
for a future bond to cover.
Meza also thanked voters who supported the school board’s decisions and said, “(The school
board) just wants to help with everything we know.”
The 830 Times attempted to reach SFDR-CISD Superintendent Dr. Carlos Rios for comment, but he
had not responded as of press-time.
