BREAKING NEWS

Washtenaw County approves WCC tax renewal

A sign outside of an Ann Arbor polling place encourages voters to approve a WCC tax renewal. Lilly Kujawski | Washtenaw Voice

By Lilly Kujawski

Editor

Washtenaw County voters approved the proposal to renew a property tax that funds support for WCC on Tuesday.

The proposal passed with a total of 77.5% in support, with all but one out of 150 precincts voting in favor.

Local property taxes provide nearly half of WCC’s operating budget.

Historically, the community has supported these taxes and the college, said Christina Fleming, WCC board of trustees chairwoman, in a previous interview. In 2016, a similar WCC tax renewal passed with 70.41% of support.

Support for the proposal was in part generated by the external, volunteer-operated campaign organization Friends of Washtenaw Community College. Phil Snyder, associate vice president of college advancement, is a member of Friends of WCC and works on the campaign outside of working hours.

“We’re grateful to the entire community for their enormous support,” Snyder said. “It’s a sign of confidence in what we do.”

He said this year, in preparation for the March 10 election, Friends of WCC communicated with other outside groups in the community and designed and printed the signs that were set up outside polling stations.

Friends of WCC is a small operation, Snyder said. It’s mostly led by himself and former WCC Foundation member Jamie Buhr.

The voter turnout in Washtenaw County for the election was 38.9%.

This story will continue to be updated.