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KUNC's guide to Election 2012 in Colorado and the Colorado vote. Additional guides include a detailed look at Amendment 64, Amendment 65, and a look at Amendment S. You can find our archive of national election coverage here.

On The Ballot: Fort Collins' Measure 301 & Greeley's 3A [Updated]

Grace Hood
/
KUNC

On Nov. 6 Coloradans will decide the legality of marijuana and putting a cap on campaign spending while voters in Fort Collins are deciding if they want medical marijuana dispensaries around town-again and Greeley is looking at a bond for a new school.

Measure 301 would repeal a ban passed last year on medical marijuana dispensaries in Fort Collins. The proposed measure would prohibit dispensaries within 500 feet of a church, child-care center or recreation site and within 1,000 feet of a school or playground. Measure 301 would also establish a local board to monitor the dispensaries. The number of dispensaries would be limited to one for every 500 registered medical marijuana patients.

Residents in Greeley and Evans are voting on 3A, a bond to replace the existing John Evans Middle School with a new facility. The existing school would be demolished if 3A passes since it cannot be repaired because of the amount of asbestos used during its original construction.

Credit Jim Hill / KUNC
/
KUNC
A lawn sign in Greeley in support of 3A

Greeley has been given a Building Excellent Schools Today or BEST grant by the state (editor's note: Greeley-Evans is listed as an alternate for the BEST grant, more in the update)- which derives its funding from commercial activities such as oil and gas production, mining and ranching on state owned lands.

The BEST grant will pay for 72% of the costs of construction of the new school. The proposed $8.2 million bond would cover the remaining 28%.

If 3A passes, homeowners would pay an estimated tax of $7.94 for each $100,000 of home value for the life of the bond, which is expected to be 20 years, while business owners would pay an estimated $28.95 for each $100,000 of commercial real estate.

The new school would be located at 37th Street and 68th Avenue on property the district already owns.

Update 11:55 a.m. 10/31/2012: Districts around Colorado apply for BEST grants each year and approved projects are put on two lists. The funded list's BEST grants are contingent upon their communities funding the rest of the project, which is usually done through bonds. Since some bonds fail projects on the alternate list are given the funding.

The Greeley-Evans District project is listed as an alternate.

Other school projects on this year's funded list will receive priority, but Theresa Myers, Director of Communications for Greeley-Evans District 6 says if 3A passes the funding is likely.

"We are number two on the alternate list and for the last several years schools in our position have recieved a BEST grant," said Myers.

Myers says "if 3A passes but we don't get the BEST grant this year we can apply next year for the BEST grant." 

Fliers that have been distributed in the Greeley-Evans area that claim the BEST funding is "guaranteed," were produced by the Committee to Support Education in Greeley-Evans, not by the school district says Myers.

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