CVCC board agrees to put $54.9 million career center bond on ballot in November

August 28, 2026  |  By David Delcore  |  The Times Argus

BARRE — Voters in 18 central Vermont towns will be asked in November to consider a $55 million bond, which, if approved, would finance the Central Vermont Career Center’s latest expansion plans.

The warning for the Nov. 3 special election must still be approved and signed, and the ballot language is getting one last legal look, but the decision about whether and when to ask voters to weigh in has now been made.

Armed with what it views as a favorable cost estimate and a more palatable proposal, and buoyed by a freshly forged alliance, board members of the CVCC School Board unanimously set the stage for its second straight November bond vote Monday night. The decision is consistent with what had been a summer-long goal, which seemed less realistic at some points than others given the tight time frame.

Some of the information, including the professional cost estimates for constructing a satellite center on the East Montpelier campus of U-32 Middle and High School, was recently obtained, and the final hurdle — securing the endorsement of the Washington Central School Board — was cleared last week.

The Washington Central board is responsible for the pre-K-12 school system anchored by U-32, and last week its members signaled their support for a November bond vote and a yet-to-be-negotiated land lease with CVCC.

The lease must be finalized for the project envisioned by CVCC officials to proceed. However, it isn’t clear when details of the proposed lease will be publicly available, and, based on draft ballot language, it doesn’t need to be finalized before Nov. 3.

The language reviewed by the CVCC board simply seeks voter authorization to enter into a “30-year ground lease” based on terms it negotiates with Washington Central. Voters in Washington Central’s five towns will see two lease-related questions. The first as part of the broader CVCC district and the second to authorize the Washington Central board to execute the lease.

With 10 weeks remaining before the election, lease negotiations haven’t seriously started, and, based on Monday night’s discussion, it isn’t clear whether CVCC officials plan to estimate the town-by-town tax implications of the latest bond proposal.

That could be a beyond tricky exercise for various reasons, even before factoring in the very real possibility the roster of towns currently served by the Barre-based career center could change by the time the first debt payments are due. Some could be lost and others could be added based on merger discussions that are just starting and could eventually alter Vermont’s public education landscape.

For the purposes of the Nov. 3 bond vote, the CVCC district’s boundaries encompass both Barres — the city and the town — as well as all five Washington Central communities — Berlin, Calais, East Montpelier, Middlesex and Worcester. It also includes Montpelier and Roxbury, along with the entire Harwood Unified Union School District — Duxbury, Fayston, Moretown, Waitsfield, Warren, and Waterbury. Marshfield and Plainfield — partners in the Twinfield Union School District — will also have a vote on the bond, as will voters in Cabot’s single-town district.

CVCC Superintendent Jody Emerson said that while big changes are on the horizon, they needn’t be a distraction.

“There are so many unknowns and variables, we could really get stuck in the weeds,” she said, urging the board to focus on a proposal that will expand access to career technical education to students who are currently being turned away.

That was the sole focus of the $149 million bond that was rejected in a district-wide vote, 5,751-3,873, last November, and it remains the focus of the more economical alternative voters will confront in November.

Plans to construct a new standalone center were scrapped earlier this year in favor of a multi-campus proposal that retains half of the center’s programs in the wing of Spaulding High School in Barre it has occupied since 1969 and constructs a new two-story building to house on a practice field at U-32.

Though recently prepared cost estimates ranged from $52 million to $56 million, the board appears poised to seek voter approval of the $54.9 million figure recommended by their architect. Members were told that is enough to finance the entire project and assume no state participation. State construction aid was suspended in 2007.

The draft ballot language reflects that current reality, prompting questions about whether that was necessary and concern that it might not be helpful. It is required by law, and the district’s lawyer has indicated it must remain.

While Emerson acknowledged most voters will want to know what approval of the bond will mean in terms of their taxes, the honest answer is that is impossible to predict.

According to Emerson, the board can say with certainty that financing a $54.9 million bond over 30 years will cost considerably less than the $149 million proposal that was floated last year.

Based on the board’s vote, Emerson said a marketing campaign will ramp up and be ready for launch on Sept. 15 — the day after members formally approve the warning for the election they agreed to hold Nov. 3.

Scheduling the bond vote with this year’s general election won’t necessarily translate into significantly higher turnout. General Election ballots will automatically be mailed to all voters on Oct. 1, and many, if not most, will vote and mail them back.

Ballots for the CVCC bond cannot be automatically mailed to all the district’s voters without the consent of the select boards and city councils in all 18 of its towns.

Those ballots will be available at the polls on Nov. 3 and by request in advance. Part of the marketing campaign will focus on making voters aware the bond will be on ballots that can be requested in advance from their respective town clerks or voted on in person on Nov. 3.