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GREENSBORO Relieved members of the Guilford County Board of Education will have one burden off their shoulders when they meet early this morning to talk finances.

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For the third time in eight years, voters cleared the way for Guilford County Schools to address student population growth. On Tuesday, they approved a bond package of $457.3 million.

Of that, $412.3 million will go to pay for 27 projects, including five new schools and renovations or expansions at 13 others.

Eastern Guilford High School, which was destroyed by fire in November 2006, will get $45 million to rebuild.

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How it breaks down

Board Chairman Alan Duncan said he expects bids soon for the construction of Jamestown Middle School, which topped the project list and should take about 18 months to build. The board can also move forward on some maintenance and hire architects for other projects, he said.

The board will briefly discuss the bonds at a 7:30 a.m. budget meeting today.

"Jamestown will move forward starting (today)," Duncan said.

About 55 percent of 124,246 voters approved the $412.3 million bond, according to complete but unofficial election results.

That's a smaller percentage then the 59 percent and 67 percent of voters, respectively, who passed bonds in 2000 and 2003.

School board member Darlene Garrett said she was surprised at the results.

"I knew it was going to be a hard battle because of the increases in taxes that was going to have to happen," Garrett said. "The economic climate is not looking the best."

Barbara Taylor of Gibsonville said she voted against the bond because her husband suffered a recent job layoff and both are concerned about rising expenses.

"I think they should make do like we have to," Taylor said.

Other voters said they would not let tax increases stop them from addressing population growth.

"A lot of schools are overcrowded," said Jamestown resident Nikeya Lomax, who supported the bond. "It wouldn't hurt for more schools to be built."

The bond package presented Tuesday was the result of almost two years of planning by the school board.

The district has grown by 1,200 to 1,500 students each year and has more than 600 mobile classrooms scattered across the county to accommodate crowded schools. The district projects it will add 7,400 more students during the next decade.

Eastern Guilford

Damond Faucette recalled smelling smoke the night Eastern Guilford High School burned. So voting for $45 million to help rebuild the school was not a difficult choice, he said.

"This is right here in our community, in our backyard," said Faucette, who lives about a mile from the school. "I figured I'd help them out."

About 54 percent of the 122,606 voters approved the Eastern bond, according to complete but unofficial election results. That decision relieved the Guilford County Board of Commissioners from having to find an alternative payment plan for the project after a state insurance settlement failed to cover most of the estimated $61 million cost.

Students are currently housed in a temporary modular classroom village on the same site the school is being built. Guilford County Schools has received $17.6 million in state insurance proceeds. The district is using about $15.5 million in 2000 and 2003 bond money to help pay for the construction during the 2007-08 academic year.

The board will use the $45 million to repay borrowed money over a three year period. The school is expected to open in 2009.

Contact Morgan Josey Glover at 373-7078 or morgan.josey@news-record.com