Galena residents vote in favor of bond measure

Galena school district voters on Tuesday approved a $14.2 million general obligation bond measure that will help the district renovate its high school. A total of 1,352 people, or 65.1%, voted in favor of the bond measure, while 725 people, or 34.9%, voted against it, as voters also cast their ballots in Illinois’ primary elections. The Galena measure required a simple majority to pass. The measure will help fund a 66,000-square-foot addition between the recently renovated Galena Elementary and Middle School and Galena High School. Plans call for existing space on the west side of the high school to be renovated, while the original 1957 high school on the east side of the building will be deconstructed to make way for a new gymnasium. Project costs are estimated at $28.4 million. Officials plan to use reserves for the remaining $14.2 million not covered by the bond. Officials have estimated that with the measure’s passage, a home valued at $100,000 will see an annual tax increase of $99 to $126.