CHICAGO -- The Columbus, Ohio City Council has approved an $842 million bond measure for the November ballot.
The borrowing, approved Monday, would finance part of a $2.5 billion five-year capital plan. The top-rated city sets aside 25 cents on every $1 of income tax revenue to pay for debt service on its GO debt.
The bulk of the bond proceeds, $445 million, would be used for water and sewer upgrades to comply with Environmental Protection Agency standards.
Another $220 million would be used for streets and bridges; $124 million for city parks; and $52.5 million for public safety.
The Columbus school board, meanwhile, on Tuesday voted to put its own $200 million bond issue on the Nov. 5 ballot.
A millage committee and other bodies still need to approve the borrowing.
The property tax increase would raise about $10 million a year to pay debt service on bonds issued for capital upgrades.
The board for the first time will decide which schools to upgrade based on academic performance, according to local reports.
The city typically puts a borrowing on the ballot every three to five years. Voters in 2008 approved a $1.66 billion GO authorization that was the city’s largest bond proposal to date.
