Preliminary results show Henderson voters favoring a property tax extension that supports a large portion of the city’s parks, recreation programs and community services.
Polls for Henderson’s nonpartisan primary election closed at 7 p.m. Tuesday, and early results showed voters passing Ballot Question 1, which would renew the city’s 30-year levy of $0.12 per $100 of assessed valuation, with 78.3 percent of voters in favor of the proposal and 21.7 percent against it.
The question had received 42,622 votes in total as of 8:51 p.m.
By passing the question, which voters first approved in 1997, Henderson will be able to continue maintaining funding for its Parks and Recreation Department at the current level. City officials previously have said the tax supports roughly 40 percent of the parks and recreation budget and that it had generated more than $155 million in the last decade alone.
Mayor Michelle Romero, who according to preliminary results was ahead in her race, said last month that rejecting the ballot question would have been “catastrophic” to the way the city manages its 77 parks, eight recreation centers, 105 athletic fields and more than 300 miles of trails.
Henderson resident David Thompkins, who cast his ballot Tuesday evening at Galleria at Sunset mall, said he voted in favor of the ballot question.
“These are the opportunities for me to have an impact on my tax dollars,” Thompkins said. “That’s important to me.”
Another voter at Galleria, Ivan Soto, said he voted against the measure because it put an extra burden on homeowners.
“It’s not attractive for new homeowners,” Soto said. “I feel like there are other ways we can fund those parks other than putting it on the homeowners.”
During a presentation at a Henderson City Council meeting in April, David Weiser, the city’s assistant finance director, said that if the question failed, the city could lose up to $22 million in annual revenue. Weiser added during that April meeting that if voters rejected the ballot question, the city would have to explore cuts to parks and recreation staffing, reduced operations at parks and recreation centers, fee increases or reductions in other city services.
Contact Casey Harrison at charrison@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Casey_Harrison1 on X.
