A citizens facility committee has suggested that Clear Creek Independent School District, Texas, ask voters in May to approve a $387 million general obligation bond package.
The district, which includes portions of Harris and Galveston counties, would use the proceeds to upgrade many existing facilities and rebuild others in the area, which includes NASA’s Johnson Space Center south of Houston.
A $187 million bond program authorized by voters in 2007 focuses on new schools and additional capacity to accommodate enrollment growth.
The proposal would provide $90 million for high-priority upgrades, including roofs and air conditioning systems, at 38 schools and eight district support facilities. The plan also completes the reconstruction of a high school and rebuilds a middle school, said committee chairman Trent Martin.
“It was a question of whether the district should continue to put a Band-Aid on a bad situation or invest in more efficient use of these two facilities so that they can last another 40 to 50 years,” he told trustees last week.
The list of proposed projects includes $50 million for wireless Internet at all campuses and a new $43 million stadium in League City.
Approval of the bonds would require an increase in the district’s property tax rate to $1.49 per $100 of assessed value from the current $1.36 per $100. Total assessed value in the 103-square-mile district is $14.9 billion.
Trustees are expected to decide Feb. 11 on a final project list.
Clear Creek Independent School District’s $600 million of outstanding debt is rated Aa3 by Moody’s Investors Service and AA by Standard & Poor’s. The debt is enhanced to triple-A with coverage by the Texas Permanent School Fund.
