The Lawrence school board race lost a candidate Tuesday at the same time the proposed school bond issues gained a more vocal opponent.

David Holroyd, who last month launched campaigns for both the Lawrence City Commission and the school board, announced Tuesday during an online chat with Journal-World readers that he was abandoning the school race.

Instead, Holroyd said he would form a group to oppose the $63 million school bond proposals that voters will decide on April 5.

“I couldn’t really do that if I were a candidate,” Holroyd said. “I think this long-range plan they’re trying to sell to the community is really just a Band-Aid approach to make it look like something is happening.”

Holroyd was the only one of the four announced school board candidates who opposed the bond issues. He said he particularly disliked the portion of the building construction bond issue that would pay for demolishing and rebuilding South Junior High at its current site. He said a new junior high should be built near Prairie Park School in southeast Lawrence.

His departure from the school race leaves just three candidates for three at-large seats in the April 5 election. He said he would continue to campaign for City Commission.

Officials with the Douglas County Clerk’s office said Holroyd’s name would remain on the school board ballot.

“Once the filing deadline passes, you can’t remove the name from the ballot,” said Marni Penrod, deputy county clerk. “But he can do what he wants to not campaign or to campaign against himself.”

Holroyd said he simply would not campaign for the position. He declined to speculate on the possibility of winning the school race without a campaign.

“I guess I’ll cross that bridge if I get to it,” Holroyd said.

6News video: School board race narrows Transcript of chat with David Holroyd, city commission candidate (02-15-05) More in Election 2005

During his online chat, Holroyd took stands on several City Hall issues, saying he:

• Supports a “modest approach” to expanding the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vt. Holroyd proposed that the library add a three-story expansion in the small parking lot to the west of the building. He also proposed that all the library’s genealogy and historical documents be moved to the former Carnegie Library building at Ninth and Vermont streets. Historical documents from the Watkins Community Museum of History, 1047 Mass., also would be moved there to create a new historical research library.
• Believes the smoking ban should only be overturned if enough voters gather signatures to force the issue to a citywide vote.
• Supports lifting the ban on fireworks to allow people to shoot the devices in the city limits on the Fourth of July.
• Believes the City Commission has “paralyzed” the community with the current discussion on homeless services. Holroyd said the issue should be addressed by social service agencies and churches, not city government.

Holroyd is one of nine candidates for the City Commission. Voters will narrow that field to six candidates on March 1. Voters will determine the three winners during the general election on April 5.