The Hi-Desert Water District Board of Directors learned at its special meeting Wednesday night that so far, about 2,900 ballots for the assessment vote have been returned. Those ballots are about 28 percent of the total; directors were initially told to expect between 20 and 40 percent of the eligible voters to return ballots. With the total ballots returned equaling about 28 percent, the district expects the total ballots returned to be in the 30s. The deadline to return ballots is May 13, when the ballots will be counted in public following a 9 a.m. public hearing.
