It was about seven years ago that the citizens of Ironton stepped up to approve a property tax levy that allowed for new schools to be built, all with the unspoken understanding that district’s leadership would have to be good stewards of that money and provide the best possible educational future for the city’s children.

The Ironton School District is making good on that show of faith and commitment of the citizens by smartly managing the financing of the bonds. The district is set to refinance approximately $8 million, a move that will ultimately save taxpayers more than $500,000 over the next couple of decades.

More refinancing could follow next year.

The district certainly didn’t have to do this and there are other ways that these savings could have been handled, but the schools’ leadership and the board chose to do the right thing and pass some of the financial relief on to the taxpayers.

We applaud the district for its effort and appreciate the fact the leadership understands the financial situation many Ironton citizens face.

In the end, this is a win for the taxpayers. The district’s students have been winning since the citizens did the right thing.