Surprise us by showing up to vote

There's an election today in Cedar Rapids.

Don't feel bad if this news catches you unaware. You're not alone.

Today's vote on increasing the Cedar Rapids School District's Physical Plant and Equipment Levy, or PPEL, hasn't exactly basked in an intense media glare. More like a flickering fluorescent bulb. Call the custodian. Heck, I didn't get around to writing about it until voting day.

But don't let the quiet fool you. It's an important issue. The ballot measure would increase the current 67-cent levy per-$1,000 in taxable property value to $1.34. The higher levy would raise an additional $3.5 million annually for an array of school building repairs, facilities updates, buses and technology needs over the next 10 years.

I've supported the same levy in my kids' Linn-Mar district and would vote for it in Cedar Rapids if I could. These are the basic bucks districts need to keep up with all the necessary fixes, upgrades and patches required to maintain safe, functional facilities. Some school buildings will be made more accessible to disabled kids and maybe get a decent heating system. Cedar Rapids, home to many aging buildings, likely needs the full PPEL.

But I'm not here to tell you how to vote. I just hope you bother to vote. Surprise us, Cedar Rapids. Show up for a change.

A year ago, a similar measure was floated in the regular school board election. Voters cast ballots at five 'Vote Centers” instead of dozens of polling places, including the district's four high schools and its Education Leadership and Support Center.

Of the district's 85,869 registered voters, the measure drew 3,938 total votes. That's around 4.5 percent. It was defeated handily, roughly 57 percent to 43 percent. But those 2,264 no votes made up just 2.6 percent of the district electorate.

If the Iowa House approved bills by a vote of three in favor, two opposed and 95 absent, we'd raise a ruckus. But that's basically how school elections usually work. And almost nobody is outraged.

There's one fewer Vote Center today. No ballots will be cast at the ELS, the newish, $44.5 million administration facility where the PPEL boost lost 499-384 in 2013. It remains a symbol of misplaced priorities, but it's no longer a polling place.

'Yes, the president of the School Board asked me to not place a vote center in the admin. building. I didn't think it was a wise decision on their part, but I didn't feel like fighting it,” Linn County Auditor Joel Miller said in an email.

It's still possible turnout could be higher today. This time there is an actual committee campaigning for the measure, Renovating and Improving the Student Environment, or RISE.

It's received a $10,000 donation from the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, $2,500 from architectural engineering firm Shive-Hattery.

Money and organization can boost turnout. As of Thursday, RISE had spent $1,444 on graphics and consulting services and has yet to pay a $5,000 tab to deNovo Alternative Marketing in Cedar Rapids for developing its logo, mail and website, risecr.org.

Polls at the four high schools open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.

l Comments: (319) 398-8452; todd.dorman@thegazette.com