DALLAS - A year after voters rejected a $99 million bond proposal, Katy Independent School District is considering a $748 million package that includes a cheaper football stadium.
At a meeting of the Katy ISD school board July 21, Keith Carmichael, chairman of the Katy ISD Bond Committee, outlined the new proposal that would go to voters Nov. 4 if approved by the board.
"Managing growth and planning for the future is a priority we cannot underestimate or ignore, and this bond committee recognizes this," Carmichael told the board, according to a video recording of the meeting. "In 2018, it's projected that we'll have 80,718 students. Each year, Katy ISD grows by almost 3,000 students."
This year's proposal calls for $58 million for a second stadium adjacent to the existing football stadium. Last year's proposal sought $69 million. The 2013 proposal was the first in the district that did not call for building any schools.
"One of the questions we dealt with was: How do we package the referendum?" Carmichael said. "Should the stadium be issued as a second referendum by itself or should it be included in the package with all the rest of the projects? Of those who voted that night, 80% were in agreement that it should be on one single referendum."
The board could still decide to break the stadium out as a separate proposal, Carmichael said.
The bond committee was made up of more than 200 parents, senior citizens, students and other residents who reviewed more than a hundred projects with an estimated value of $1 billion, Carmichael said.
The committee recommended using $356.8 million of the $748 million bond proposition for new facilities, including six elementary schools, two junior high schools and a high school.
"Katy is a magnet for families from all over the nation because of its successful schools, communities and businesses," Carmichael said. "We know this area is going to continue growing and with it, the district too."
The board will have until Aug. 18 to consider the bond committee's recommendation, at which time it will also decide whether to call for a voter referendum.
In the 2013 election, about 54% of the voters rejected the bond proposal.
Located in the booming suburbs west of Houston, Katy ISD is largely residential with single family residential properties accounting for over 60% of taxable values.
With about $1.1 billion of outstanding debt, KISD last went to market in July 2013 with $376 million of bonds. The district has underlying ratings of Aa2 from Moody's Investors Service and AA from Standard & Poor's with stable outlooks. The district's bonds receive triple-A ratings with a guarantee from Texas' Permanent School Fund.
