Voters rejected a $39.2 million budget for the Turner-area school district by a vote of 288-276 on Thursday, narrowly passing in Turner but failing in Greene and Leeds.

Voters in all three towns turned down a proposal to buy 18.8 acres on Cobb Road for $500,000 by a vote of 322-242. It was to be used to add up to two athletic fields and create a bus facility and fueling station.

The Maine School Administrative District 52 board of directors will discuss next steps for the budget process at its meeting at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Greene Central School at 41 Main St.

“Their primary goal is to move as efficiently as possible to establish a (fiscal year 2026-27) budget that supports our students’ needs and is acceptable to voters,” Superintendent Cari Medd wrote in an email following the vote.

The proposed spending plan was an increase of $1.89 million, 4.86% higher than the current budget.

Greene residents voted 97-79 against the budget; Leeds residents rejected it 68-60. Turner voters approved it 137-123.

The land purchase question failed 105-70 in Greene, 78-50 in Leeds, and 139-122 in Turner.