Rowan County on Tuesday had the opportunity to move boldly into the future by passing a $45 million bond referendum to build a much-needed new complex of buildings at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College.

And it took advantage of that opportunity.

Understandably, the “no new taxes” sentiment was a deciding factor for many. County staff projected that a 3-cent increase would be needed to take on the additional debt based on the current taxable property in the county. With its years of experience, the county’s finance staff could reasonably project increases in tax revenue, but assumptions are best avoided when it comes to taxpayer money.

That means projects like Chewy.com’s fulfillment center on Long Ferry Road was not included in the calculation. Neither were any of the many local and less-hyped projects happening across the county — from housing developments to local business expansions.

A majority of voters on Tuesday judged the benefits of a new technology education complex outweighed any potential tax increases. The complex would build space for programs with more demand than room to house students. Some of the facilities in which students took classes were antiquated, too.

Among other things, there are local employers who cannot find enough workers to fill their open positions despite enough work to keep qualified people busy.

Meanwhile, students in Rowan-County Early College and others who are dual-enrolled will have a space of their own on the campus. That means no more trailers housing some of the highest-achieving students in the county.

The college must now get to work on sketching out more detailed plans for the complex. Because the school must deal with state construction officials, RCCC Board Chairman Chip Short in an editorial board meeting last month projected it would be at least three years before the public sees progress on the building. If the need is as bad as Short, RCCC President Carol Spalding and other officials say, sooner is better as long as a sped-up process is the result of cutting government red tap and not sacrificing quality.

Most important, Rowan County can now say that it has prioritized public education of late after years of fighting over funding. Commissioners allocated $15 million to capital needs for Rowan-Salisbury Schools for the current fiscal year, which ends June 1. County Manager Aaron Church and commissioners also say they plan to allocate $60 million more to capital needs in the 2021 fiscal year, which starts July 1 of this year. Those funds will go toward replacing aging schools with new, state-of-the-art facilities.

There will always be a question about where a community should start to improve its quality of live, but investing in public education seems like as good a place as any.