JACKSON COUNTY, MI – Voters have declined to allow Vandercook Lake Public Schools to borrow up to $19,995,000 from the state to pay for several major capital improvements to the district’s infrastructure.

Residents decided 499 to 398 on Tuesday, Nov. 4 to reject the bond, funded by the School Bond Qualification and Loan Program. This would have increased the current millage rate for residents in the Vandercook Lake Public School District area from 3 mills to 7 mills for 30 years, or until the loan is paid off.

One mill is equal to $1 paid in property taxes per every $1,000 of a property’s taxable value, roughly half of market value. As an example, a Jackson County resident who owns a $200,000 home would pay about $700 a year for the millage.

The bond was being requested to fund mult

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