UPDATE: D. 31 Celebrates Referendum's Passage

UPDATED, 9:30 PM

Supporters of a $1.8 million property tax referendum in hugged and cheered Tuesday night as they celebrated the referendum's passage.

With 10 of 10 precincts reporting by 9:30 p.m., 1,399 residents, or 56 percent, voted for the referendum, while 1,096, or 44 percent, voted against it, according to unofficial results from the Cook County Clerk's Office. Even when all precincts have reported, paper ballots and mail-in ballots remain to be counted. 

But Superintendent Alexandra Nicholson said it was a big enough lead to celebrate a win.

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"I want to thank the community of District 31," she told a crowd of parents, teachers and administrators who packed into Rocky Vander's bar in Mt. Prospect to await the results.

"At this point, I'm going to consider it a win."

The referendum was . After a referendum in April 2010 failed 2-1, District 31 .  Even so, the district’s 2012-13 budget fell short, given mounting costs as more students qualify for state-mandated English language classes, $1.35 million in necessary “life safety” repairs for its aging buildings, and , according to Superintendent Alexandra Nicholson.   

Nicholson had said that if this referendum failed,  over the next two years to avoid going bankrupt. That could include eliminating a fine arts teacher, a social worker, and all school funding for extracurricular programs.  

According to Nicholson, the referendum’s passage will mean an increase of about $89 per $100,000 in assessed valuation for residents of district 31. 

As results began rolling in around 7:30 p.m., supporters at Rocky Vander's were hopeful.

algebra teacher and district parent Julie O’Connor, who greeted voters outside the polling site at Field, told the group she believed she’d ran into more yes-voters than no-voters.   

“It felt like there were a lot more positive than last year,” she said. 

Parent Amy Tamul was waiting with her husband and her three children, two of whom go to .

“We’re crossing our fingers,” she said.

Fellow parent Suzanne Kahn said she believed the results were much closer this year because referendum supporters were more effective at spreading their message.

"I think the campaign did a much better job of making the community aware of the district's plight," she said.

Pro-referendum group organizer Susan Harrison shared Kahn's sentiments.

"This would not have happened unless we pushed from the very beginning," she said.