Early election results Wednesday morning showed City College’s bond Measure P was passing with a 67.01% vote, according to unofficial results from the County of Santa Barbara elections division.
Measure P is a $198 million bond that is meant to improve City College facilities and would extend the current property tax of $8.50 per $100,000 of assessed value, which was previously approved by voters in 2008 through bond Measure V.
According to Noozhawk, Measure P needs 55% voter approval to pass.
Santa Barbara County Board of Education TA2 candidate Christy Lozano shared her opinion on Measure P, in light of the 64.06% vote, as of Tuesday.
“I am a no on P,” Lozano said. “That’s a lot of money to ask from taxpayers for potentially the next 30 or 40 years.”
She went on to voice her concern about school spending and how the money brought from Measure P will be allocated.
“I was looking at the salary of the President and different people that you know work for the school and their salaries are way above $450,000 not including a housing stipend,” Lozano said. “So that’s what I believe the money’s actually going to and it’s not actually going to the kids.”
The Board of Trustees voted 5-2 to place the bond on the ballot on June 27, with City College Superintendent-President Erika Endrijonas and Board President Jonathan Abboud spearheading the initiative.
Following the counting of mail-in ballots only, Abboud expressed his excitement about the potential win.
“We’re just so appreciative of the support from the community,” Abboud said. “It’s a big night for Santa Barbara City College. This is going to put us on the path for the future that we need to be on.”
The deterioration of buildings on City College’s campus, specifically the physical education building, has over time raised seismic concerns and concerns about facilities. Over time, this accumulation of concerns prompted the bond to be ultimately placed on the ballot.
“We needed to be on this path 10 years ago,” Abboud said. “We’re going to be there now, and the community really came behind us in a big way.”
Abboud pointed to the approval from the majority of voters, as of Tuesday night, as evidence of the community’s support for City College.
“63% is way more than we needed to pass this,” Abboud said. “That just shows that there’s strong support for City College. There was a lot of love for City College.”
