West Glacier voters approve school levy

West Glacier voters approved a $9,420 school levy last week by 62-29. The money will be used for maintaining, purchasing or renting technology equipment and networks and for training personnel.

Three other school districts held levy elections on May 7. Whitefish voters approved a $36,000 general fund levy by 845-644, while Kila voters turned down a $20,000 levy by 98-51 and Somers-Lakeside voters turned down a large $200,000 levy by 440-367.

Two incumbents were re-elected to the Flathead Valley Community College Board of Trustees in a five-way race for two seats. The results were Shannon Lund, 1,986 votes; Mark Holston, 1,826; Michael Hebert, 1,061; Ursula Wilde, 649; and Day Scovel, 566.

School District 6 mailed out about 1,800 absentee ballots to voters for this year’s levy election. They should arrive by Friday, May 17, according to superintendent Michael Nicosia.

Voters in School District 6 in the Columbia Falls area will see two levy proposals on June 4. The school board unanimously proposed a 3.01 mill elementary levy for $89,565 and a 2.8 mill high school levy for $96,434.

The combined impact on a house with a market value of $200,000 would be $16.08. Both levies would be permanent if the school district levies the amount at least once in the next five years.

Successful levies will allow the high school and the elementary schools to maintain current curricular, co-curricular and extra-curricular programs, Nicosia said.

Polling stations will be open Tuesday, June 4, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at West Glacier School and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Canyon Elementary School in Hungry Horse and Glacier Gateway Elementary School in Columbia Falls.