The City Council recommended projects for the May 2023 bond election that includes $140,045,000 in funding, with 71% of funding geared toward transportation, 20% toward the library, and 9% toward park and recreation.
The New Braunfels Economic Development Council plans to provide capital investment support and have adopted a list of proposed 2023 bond projects to financially support if funds are available. The NBEDC will also annually evaluate their funding capacity and determine what projects and project phases to support.
“There was an overall consensus [for the NBEDC] to fund the next phase for essentially nine projects, and a number of those were priority projects from the Bond Advisory Committee,” said Garry Ford, New Braunfels Transportation and Capital Improvements director.
Some of the projects prioritized by the NBEDC include funding the final design of the first phase of drainage improvements on Castell Avenue, the construction of pedestrian improvements to Common Street and the final design of Kohlenberg Road from I-35 to FM 1101.
The council reviewed three propositions that are being considered to be placed on the ballot for the May 2023 bond election. Proposition A would focus on over $99 million worth of transportation projects, including on Common Street, Barbarosa Road and Saur Lane, Solms Road, and Kohlenberg Road.
Funding toward parks and recreation to be used for land acquisition and renovating parks among other purposes, including completing the second phase of construction at Mission Hill Park, will be Proposition B, which totals around $12 million.
Voters would have the opportunity to approve a new Southeast Library Branch costing nearly $29 million, which will go toward land acquisition and infrastructure projects toward building the new library facility on the Southeast side of I-35 in New Braunfels.
“Not all cities include their priority projects within the proposition language. ... However, in the spirit of transparency and to be clear what those priority projects are we have been consistent since 2019 to include in the [propositions] specific products,” said Jared Werner, New Braunfels assistant city manager.
City staff, council and committee members have been working on compiling the proposed 2023 bond program since July 2021. In the next steps, the City Council will consider approving a resolution calling for the bond election on Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. at city hall. More information on the bond can be found at www.newbraunfels.gov/bond.
“We've been through a pretty extensive process, I would say a community driven process, to get to where we are now,” Ford said. “So it started back in July of 2021, and a year and a half later, we have come to the City Council to finalize that as a project and then next month to call for an election for a May 2023 bond election.”
