Belpre resident Karen Locke, center, checks in to vote Tuesday in the Belpre High School gym, which was the polling place for multiple precincts. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

BELPRE – All local issues passed in Tuesday’s election in Washington County, including Belpre City Schools’ fourth crack at funding for a single K-12 campus.

According to final, unofficial election results posted online by the Washington County Board of Elections, Belpre voters approved the 9.1-mill bond, at a rate of $319 per $100,000 of assessed value. It will raise $45.7 million, to be repaid over a maximum of 37 years. The state of Ohio will provide $22 million to complete the elementary portion.

The issue on Tuesday’s ballot also included a 0.5-mill levy to collect an additional $130,000 a year for permanent improvements.

With all seven Belpre precincts reporting, the bond issue had 1,187 votes for and 859 against.

Superintendent Jeff Greenley of Belpre City Schools expressed the school district’s appreciation after the results from the primary election. He received complimentary calls Tuesday evening.

Poll worker Rosemary Reed of Lowell, left, stands by as poll worker Cecilia Fair of Barlow, right, assists a voter in submitting her ballot Tuesday at Lighthouse Baptist Church on Ohio 339 in Vincent. Reed and Fair were working the polls for Primary/Special Election Day in Ohio. (Photo by Christina Myer)

“We express gratitude to the people, both for and against, who came out to the polls to express an interest in the future of Belpre schools,” Greenley said.

He attributed the success to a team of volunteers that encouraged passage of the bond issue and levy. Seventy-five volunteers promoted it, Greenley said.

“We had a strong team of volunteers who worked extremely hard,” he said. “I think that likely pushed it over the edge.”

Work will begin today to prepare for the sale of the bonds and to get the project ready to receive proposals, Greenley said. The bonds should be sold by this summer, he said.

“In August, I’ve been told,” Greenley said.

Voters turn in ballot slips in the Belpre High School gym, which was the polling place for multiple precincts during Tuesday’s election. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

Voters in the Marietta City School District approved the five-year renewal of a 4.06-mill levy that generates $2.75 million a year and costs $142 for each $100,000 of assessed value.

The money raised by the levy represents 10-12% of the district’s annual budget, officials have said.

With all 22 Marietta precincts reporting, there were 1,283 votes for the levy and 745 against.

Warren Local Schools asked voters to renew a 4.17-mill emergency operating levy they rejected in 2024. Final, unofficial results indicate it passed narrowly, 999-971, with all 13 precincts reporting.

The levy generates approximately $1.7 million annually, which officials said goes strictly toward operational expenses. It costs $146 per $100,000 of assessed value and, if the lead holds through the canvass, would remain in effect for another 10 years

The Washington County Board of Elections was open after hours on election day. Voting closed at 7:30 p.m. and members of the board spent the evening counting votes. (Photo by Amber Phipps)

“I am so happy and excited for our community to see that result,” Warren Superintendent Kyle Newton said. “To see our community financially help out is just so amazing and this means a lot.

“Congratulations to Marietta and Belpre, I’m so excited for their community and it’s such a game changer, it is what we need in our region as well,” Newton said. “It’s beneficial for us all to be strong.”

Voters in Washington County renewed a levy supporting the County Home and approved another to support Children Services.

The 2-mill County Home levy collects $2,765,000 a year and costs $70 for each $100,000 of appraised value. Its five-year renewal passed 4,076-2,701.

The five-year, 0.5-mill Children Services levy will collect $900,000 a year to support the care and placement of children as costs continue to increase. The millage rate would be $18 per $100,000 of assessed value.

Darron Luke, left, and Karen Pawloski with the Washington County Board of Elections review absentee vote numbers Tuesday night at the board office. (Photo by Amber Phipps)

Voters approved it 3,697-3,095.

Voters in the western part of Muskingum Township approved a renewal and increase for an emergency services levy, 153-66. The existing 3.5-mill levy provides for paid EMT coverage from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. The additional 1 mill would allow that coverage to expand to Saturdays and Sundays.

The increased levy would collect a total of $197,000 a year and cost $158 for every $100,000 of assessed value. It would remain in effect for five years.

Early voters gave the increased levy a 72-35 edge.

The kiosk for the drop-off ballot closed at 7:30 p.m. and all of the ballots were counted by members at the Washington County Board of Elections on Tuesday. (Photo by Amber Phipps)

Poll worker Marianna Kroner of Barlow Township, right, assists a couple who came in to vote at Lighthouse Baptist Church on Ohio 339 in Vincent, during Tuesday’s primary/special election in Ohio. Kroner said she has been serving as a poll worker for five years, noting that her first experience was during the 2020 presidential election. (Photo by Christina Myer)

Poll worker Julie Kuczko of Cutler, center, reviews a provisional ballot submitted by a voter Tuesday at Lighthouse Baptist Church on Ohio 339 in Vincent, during Ohio’s primary/special election. Kuczko said she has been serving as a poll worker for seven years. (Photo by Christina Myer)