7/31/14 - A proposed merger between the Whitmore Lake and Ann Arbor school districts will go to the voters this fall. The school board for both districts voted Wednesday to place a proposal onto the ballot in November by which Ann Arbor would annex the Whitmore Lake district. The Ann Arbor district gets $9,100 per student from the state, while Whitmore Lake gets only $7,251. If approved by voters in November, the combined district would get $9,097 per student. The annexation, which would occur at the end of the upcoming school year, would help Whitmore Lake avoid going into deficit and possible state takeover, while Ann Arbor would get a larger student body, new properties and access to the US-23 corridor. Officials say the tax rate for the combined district would be 8.3942 mills. That represents a .2 mill decrease for Whitmore Lake district taxpayers and a .5 mill increase for Ann Arbor. However, officials are hoping to obtain $4.3 million in consolidation grant funding from the state. Following Wednesdayâs vote, both districts must now receive a letter of approval from the state superintendent, which is expected, and then submit ballot language to the county clerk by August 12th in order to get the measure onto the November 4th ballot. (JK)
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