At Monday’s regular scheduled meeting, the Whitesboro Independent School District (WISD) board of trustees approved a motion to call a bond election for $118 million in construction and renovations.
District financial advisor Brian Grubbs presented a packet of information to board members that outlined facts and figures of the financial impact of the proposal. After performing some research and calculations, Grubbs explained that WISD has an “extremely modest” outstanding debt service. Any previous bonds WISD has sold will be paid off completely in the next fiscal year.
“To say that you have the capacity to take on additional bonds is an understatement, based on your current debt position,” Grubbs said.
This new bond proposal has been developed as a 30-year fixed rate bond, assuming a conservative 5% interest rate.
“If you were selling bonds today, you’d be borrowing at close to 4.2%...I’m showing 5%. The reason I’m doing that is because we’re talking today about an election that will be held in May for bonds that won’t be sold until the summer of 2024 and, most likely, a portion of that the summer of 2025,” Grubbs said.
Grubbs provided two possible scenarios. The first considered a $100 million bond with a 5% interest rate. Using the average home value in our district of $280,000, the average cost increase for residents would be $18.43 per month in school taxes.
The second scenario considered the same factors for a $118 million bond. This resulted in a projected $27.12 increase for residents per month in school taxes.
“One important communication for individuals who are 65 years of age and older who have, on their own accord, filled out their paperwork to have their school taxes frozen -- any increase above that frozen limit, that personal tax payer will not see an increase in the dollar amount they pay,” Grubbs said.
The Horizon Team, a committee of 40 Whitesboro community members and school representatives, has met four times over the past six months to study the growth of Whitesboro and its impact on our schools. This team has gathered information about finances, demographics, facility needs, facility priorities and bond capacity.
“As members, we were charged with ultimately building a bond package recommendation,” Horizon Team spokesperson Eddie Wood said. “The level of dedication from this group of stakeholders was exceptional throughout the entire process. All decisions were made in the best interest of the students and district goals.”
The result of the team’s efforts was a $188M bond package consisting of two propositions with a total tax rate impact of 18 cents. The details of the package are as follows:
Proposition A is for $100 million and includes the construction of an early childhood center, high school auditorium addition, high school career and technical education (CTE) addition, agriscience arena, and district renovations, safety and security improvements and busing needs.
Proposition B is for $18 milliom and includes a multi-event center.
At the conclusion of the presentation, the board had no questions and proceeded to vote on whether to adopt the bond package recommendation. They unanimously agreed.
The WISD bond propositions will appear on the May 4 election ballots. If the bond should pass, financial advisors will reconvene with the school board and make plans to begin the bond sale this summer.
Watch for more information about the bond package in the News-Record in the coming weeks.
