St. Joseph Voter turnout was lower than predicted Tuesday afternoon during the city’s 2015 Bond Election.

Buchanan County Clerk Mary Baack-Garvey said turnout as of 2:30 p.m. was only at 3.1%.

“I still have faith that with this warm up we will get to 10%,” Baack-Garvey said.

The only issue on Tuesday’s ballot in St. Joseph is to authorize $190 million in bonds to complete the next phase of the city’s Long Term Control Plan to reduce sewer overflows into the Missouri River.

Baack-Garvey expected voter turnout to be light.

“The one-issue ballots just don’t seem to bring out the turnout,” she said.

If approved by voters, the City Council will be eligible to apply for bonds issued through the State Revolving Fund. The interest rate on such bonds is typically half of the normal rate, saving the city about $53 million over the life of the 20-year bonds.

St. Joseph is one of 770 cities in the country, and one of three in the state of Missouri (along with Kansas City and St. Louis), that have a combined sewer system that carries stormwater and wastewater in the same pipe. As a result, officials here are faced with federal and state mandates to reduce discharges of stormwater mixed with raw sewage that overflows into the Missouri River.

St. Joseph voters have until 7 p.m. to cast their ballots before polls close.

Click here for a list of precincts and ballots.