The $141.2 million Victoria school district bond proposal allocates funds for unnecessary projects such as a walking trail and Wi-Fi at a multi-activity complex, members of a new group said Sunday.
Nine people identifying themselves as concerned businessmen met Sunday at Golden Corral to discuss their opposition to the proposal. They're not against having a bond but would like to see other options or negotiate the proposed one, they said.
"We're presented with a $141 million bond," said Shane Morris, owner of Morris Chiropractic. "As a taxpayer, I would like to simply say, 'What's plan B? Give me the $70 million bond option. . Give me the $100 million option.'"
The Victoria Independent School District school board plans to call for the bond to be approved at its next meeting Aug. 17. If placed on the ballot, the bond would be voted on Nov. 7.
The 30-year, $141.2 million bond would renovate 17 schools, replace four others and establish a multi-activity sports complex.
If the school board approves the bond, these men plan to stand against it.
They agree the safety of students is a top priority and that the district needs up-to-date facilities, but they think the bond goes about it the wrong way.
For example, instead of building a new Stroman Middle School -- the current building is four stories tall and was built with an open concept -- the security there should be increased, Morris said.
The men would like to know where the district got its bids and want more details about the bond, Morris said.
They didn't understand why painting and carpet replacements would be part of the bond as that should be included in regular yearly costs, said Emett Alvarez, former City Council member and co-owner of Revista de Victoria.
"You can't capitalize those projects for 30 years," he said. "You're telling me you're going to capitalize carpet? That carpet will be ripped up in 15 years for new carpet."
Group members said they thought the bond included unnecessary spending such as adding Wi-Fi and investing more in the two high schools still being paid off from the 2007 bond.
"You paid for your cellphone," said Cody Shugart, a car salesman. "If you want to play 'Words with Friends,' you can go sit in the stadium and play on your data."
On another note, if VISD came to the community with a bond to make the teachers the highest-paid in the state, Morris would stand strongly behind it.
"As opposed to the new buildings to draw people to Victoria, as a lifelong resident of Victoria, I would be very proud, and I wouldn't have a problem if we as Victoria were the (example) for the rest of Texas in the fact that we had the highest-paid teachers in the VISD," he said."
When consolidation of Stroman and Victoria high schools occurred in 2000 and VISD had people leaving the district, the parents weren't looking at the buildings but at scores and teachers, said Jeff Magnia, a retail sales manager. The enrollment trend reversed after VISD opened two new high schools in 2010.
"It's not about the buildings . and all this great stuff but the teachers," he said. "We don't have teachers staying. . Most of them are leaving the district because of financial reasons."
Shugart said they agreed VISD buildings need to be upgraded but that it could be done for less than the proposed cost.
The group isn't against upgrading the district for the sake of students but opposes uncontrolled government spending, Morris said.
"We've got to have state-of-the-art because we've got to have our kids learning in that environment," he said. "It's not that we're against; it's just the uncontrolled spending that we're against.
