UPDATED: District 113A Moving Forward With Financial Plan After Referendum Defeat

For the third time in just 14 months, Lemont voters that would have built cash reserves and brought back teachers and academic programs in .

The district asked voters Tuesday to approve the issuance of $20 million in bonds to support its working cash fund. Across 17 precincts in Cook and DuPage counties, unofficial results showed 3,348 (55 percent) votes against the measure and 2,735 (45 percent) votes in favor.

Tuesday marked the third straight District 113A referendum rejected by Lemont voters. However, it was also the closest vote to date.

In February 2010, a proposal for a $6 million limiting tax increase was shut down by more than 68 percent, while the Nov. 2 proposal for $8 million in working cash bonds was shut down by only 56.8 percent.

Referendum results: April 5, 2011

District 113A Superintendent Tim Ricker said Wednesday morning that he was disappointed by the vote, but would continue working with the administration to follow the district's state-approved financial plan.

"The good thing is that we have a plan," Ricker said. "We've been parallel planning for this scenario for months, so we are not going to have to do anything beyond what we've already said we're going to do."

District 113A was certified "in financial difficulty" by the Illinois State Board of Education in December 2009. They were required to submit a financial plan to balance their budget, reduce expenditures, build fund balances and eliminate borrowing.

As part of the financial plan, the district made $3.57 million in cuts to its budget for fiscal year 2011, which included extracurrculars, the gifted program and $3.17 million in personnel.

Last month, the District 113A Board of Education approved the elimination of two administrators, six tenured teachers and 2.5 non-tenured positions for a total savings of about $695,329. According to the financial plan, the district will consider another $670,000 in reductions for the 2011-2012 school year, including reductions in transportation services, administration, support staff and programs, along with the closing of Central School.

Ricker said a successful referendum would have allowed the district to bring back programs and teachers, and would have also eliminated the need for borrowing.

Moving forward, Ricker said the district will once again need to borrow tax anticipation warrants to meet its financial obligations in July. The last round — $5.5. million — was issued by Lemont High School District 210 in January after District 113A was turned down by multiple financial insitutions.

The district is on track to pay off the debt to District 210 by June, Ricker said. However, financial advisers determined the district will then need to obtain between $6.7 million and $7.5 million in TAWs. Though a financial institution has yet to be identified, Ricker said he and representatives from PMA Financial have already been working to secure the TAWs for about two months.

"The referendum not passing is definitely a road block for us, but we're doing what we need to do to follow the plan," he said. "What people need to realize is that the high level of education they expect is now much more than we can afford."

District 113A Board President Lisa Wright said the next few months will be difficult for the board as they move forward with more cuts.

"We have a really tough task ahead of us," she said. "I am monumentally saddened by the decision made by the community — a community that has chosen not to support its schools. Shame on them."

Despite the decision, Wright said she is confident the teachers "will continue to do amazing work" in the classrooms.

"The doors will still open at the schools, and the awesome teachers and administrators will keep doing what they've been doing," she said. "They're doing a remarkable job, considering the class sizes and limited resources they have had to work with."

Lemont Mayor Brian Reaves, who spoke out in support of the referendum several times in recent weeks, also weighed in on the referendum defeat, saying he was "unbelievably disappointed by the vote." However, he said he remains committed to improving public education in Lemont.

"Lemont is a town that has survived for more than 150 years. Well will get through this," Reaves said. "I look forward to working with the new District 113A Board of Education and furthering the education of children and enhancing the desirability to live in Lemont, grow up in Lemont and retire in Lemont."