Now the real work can begin.

The 2017 no tax increase bond issue is an issue no more, with Jefferson County residents passing the proposition resoundingly with nearly 80 percent of the vote, making 2017 the fourth consecutive successful bond issue since 1998. This bond issue also was passed with a larger share of the vote than any of the previous three, with the next highest achieving 74 percent of the vote in 2011. Windsor High School Principal Jason Naucke attributes this success to the character of Jefferson County and Windsor district residents.

“Any time that you’re close to 80 percent in anything, that’s pretty substantial. So I think it speaks volumes about the Windsor community that basically four out of every five people who went to the polls voted for the Windsor proposition. That’s awesome,” Naucke said.

The significant passing of the proposition, however, was a group effort. It is not only a result of the character and spirit of the Windsor community, but also the teachers and other members of the Windsor high school faculty that helped lobby for and put up signs in support of the bond issue.

“I think everyone who is a Windsor student and Windsor parents should really appreciate the efforts of the teachers, because this really benefits everyone in the community,” National Honor Society President Brogan Eyre said.

The 2017 proposition includes projects ranging from increased school security to a new auditorium and if the remaining funds are available, even a new softball field. With so many projects, and the amount of work it would take to complete some of them, construction is unlikely to begin until later this year. As of right now, the planning and plotting of the projects, and finding the right labor sources to actually undertake the construction are the main priorities.

School administrators are also trying to avoid interfering with day-to-day school activities as minimally as possible, but some minor inconveniences might be unavoidable. While work is being done to install the new more-secure front doors to the high school, for example, that entrance will be unusable, so the doors near the counselor’s office will be substituting in its place for the time being. Interruptions aside, Naucke is confident that the work will be worth it.

Naucke said, “We’ll have to be flexible in how we’re doing things and the setup of it all, but in the end you put up with a headache for a little bit for some really long term returns.”