Voters in Wentzville and Hazelwood approved school measures Tuesday that will steer millions toward aging buildings and strained district operations, giving both communities a financial boost without increasing their overall tax rates.
Wentzville's Proposition O passed with 66% of the vote, authorizing the district to seek $185 million in bonds for facility repairs, safety improvements and the eventual rebuilding of Heritage Elementary, according to STLPR. The measure also covers work at Holt High School and Wentzville Middle School as the rapidly growing district tackles a long list of deferred maintenance needs.
The official ballot language from St. Charles County says the bond issue is expected to leave Wentzville's debt-service property-tax levy unchanged at 93.04 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. In other words, voters approved a major school makeover without approving a higher debt levy.
Heritage Rebuild Anchors Wentzville Plan
Heritage Elementary, which was built nearly 70 years ago, is the centerpiece of the Wentzville plan, with its replacement estimated at about $65 million. The package also calls for replacing boilers and chillers, installing new roofs and windows at Wentzville Middle School, and adding a storm shelter, as detailed by STLPR.
Hazelwood's Proposition H passed more narrowly, winning 52% of the vote and giving the district permission to shift existing tax authority from debt service into daily operations. District leaders have said the move is intended to protect spending on teachers, transportation, classroom resources, programs and services as state funding declines.
The Hazelwood School District describes Prop H as a zero-rate-change transfer: The operating levy rises by $0.30 per $100 of assessed valuation while the debt-service levy falls by the same amount. The district estimates the change could provide roughly $8 million annually beginning in the 2026-27 fiscal year while leaving the overall tax rate unchanged.
Two Districts, One Familiar Budget Problem
The votes reflect two different needs under the same financial pressure. Wentzville is preparing to spend heavily on buildings that need major repairs, while Hazelwood is using an internal levy shift to keep routine school operations from absorbing the full impact of revenue losses.
For families, the next phase will be less about ballot language and more about execution: Wentzville must turn its bond authorization into projects, while Hazelwood must show that the transferred money reaches classrooms and essential services. The voters have supplied the funding tools; now the districts have to prove the tools were worth approving.
