A Beech Grove school referendum appeared headed for approval, but similar measures in Franklin and Perry faced long odds tonight.

Official ballots weren’t tallied, but Perry Township Schools Superintendent Thomas Little said preliminary data from the district indicated voters rejected a $98.9 million construction measure.

“We’ll regroup, we’ll move on and we’ll educate 14,000 kids tomorrow and love them and help them,” Little said Tuesday night.

In contrast, the Beech Grove measure appeared to have enough support to pass with nearly half the precincts reporting results Tuesday.

Superintendent Paul Kaiser faced eliminating school bus transportation if the referendum failed. Kaiser, school officials and bus drivers pounded the pavement to encourage support for the schools Tuesday.

“It’s been real positive,” said Kaiser, who talked with voters outside several polling sites throughout the day.

“We had 202 parents who voted early and we contacted almost 1,600 parents who are registered voters in the past 72 hours — personally contacted them,” Kaiser said.

Facing multimillion-dollar budget problems because of the state’s new 1 percent property-tax cap, Beech Grove and Franklin Township schools asked voters not to take the full tax cut due to them in 2010 and instead let the schools use that money.

Franklin Township, resident Lori Russ spent nearly 12 hours passing out fliers in support of the school referendum at the polling site at Indian Creek Christian Church.

One thing she noticed was that many voters expressed frustration over the wording of the ballot questions.

“They’re not really sure what they’re voting for because of the wording,” said Russ, who has a son at the high school and several nieces and nephews in the district.

The school district did not have any say in the wording of the ballot questions, as that was preset by the state.

Area resident Lon Seebach split his vote on the ballot. He supported the school district but voted against a new Wishard Hospital.

“I think we need to start looking at where we put our tax dollars in terms of all the various areas of need. Basically I think we need to address education more than we need to address fancy buildings or exotic architecture,” Seebach said, citing Lucas Oil Stadium, the expanded convention center and a new terminal at the airport.

Retiree Joyce Clark didn’t like either plan.

“With economy, everything’s so bad right now,” Clark said. “I hate to see more money going out right now.”

Perry Township retirees James and Sari Marsh echoed Clark’s statement.

Both said the burden of additional taxes simply was too much and indicated they voted no on Perry Township’s school plan and the Wishard Hospital referendum.

“We’re tired of schools having huge basketball courts and swimming pools. Why do you need that for education?” James Marsh said.

He lamented how little he hard heard about the school plan and admitted he didn’t know the details.

“Whatever the plans are it means more tax for me, I’m taxed out . . . we can’t afford any more taxes,” he said.

Perry Township’s sweeping plan had called for securing entryways and playgrounds, updating fire-alarm systems, replacing 40- and 50-year-old mechanical systems, upgrading plumbing, improving traffic patterns at schools by adding separate routes for buses and cars, and adding on to Southport and Perry Meridian high schools.

Little said those issues won’t go away and the district will present the plan to voters again next year.

“It just wasn’t the right time to raise taxes,” Little said, referring to the rocky economy.

Unlike Beech Grove and Franklin Township, which sought funding referendums, Perry Township’s construction plan put it in a different category under state law and officials were not allowed comment on the plan following the district’s 1028 hearing June 1. That lead to an information void that many voters found discouraging.