Voters in San Marcos will face two bond propositions on the May ballot that total $32.2 million and would address public safety facilities and what officials say is a much-needed expansion at the San Marcos Public Library.

City Council voted Tuesday to put the two propositions on the ballot, although some council members expressed reservations about putting a bond on the May 6 ballot potentially alongside a San Marcos CISD bond.

Mayor John Thomaides and council members Scott Gregson, Melissa Derrick and Jane Hughson voted in favor of putting the bond on the May ballot. Council members Lisa Prewitt, Ed Mihalkanin and Saul Gonzales voted against the measure and voiced a preference to see the items placed on the November ballot.

“These are things that we need,” Gregson said. “These are things that our growing city demands that we have ... to preserve, protect and defend the health and safety and welfare of our citizens.”

Prewitt said she is concerned that between a potential San Marcos CISD bond and a city bond, voters will be overloaded.

"I still feel very strongly that we should put ours back until November," she said. "I'm very concerned that if this bond doesn't pass in May, because it will be an overwhelming group of information between the city and school board, that we might not get some of our needs [addressed]."

The first proposition totals $17.45 million and would increase the city’s tax rate by $0.053 per $100 valuation.

The proposition will address public safety, including fire and police department facilities. The proposition will fund renovations at the police department, including improvements to the city’s 911 center, additional security around the department’s parking lot, creating new office space and other improvements. Additionally, the proposition will fund the relocation of Fire Station No. 2 from a former residence on Holland Street to near Wonder World Drive and Ranch Road 12.

The proposition will also fund construction of a fire training facility and a new fire department near the Trace community being built at I-35 and Posey Road.

The second proposition totals $14.75 million and will increase the city’s tax rate by $0.0307 per $100 of property valuation. The proposal would fund a 29,000-square-foot expansion at the San Marcos Public Library, 625 E. Hopkins St., San Marcos.

The library has reached capacity, Assistant City Manager Steve Parker said, and the meeting rooms at the current facility are consistently booked.

Mihalkanin questioned whether the city should not consider including flood resiliency projects in the bond.

“The city of San Marcos had two major floods in 2015,” Mihalkanin. “There were people whose houses were damaged that had never been damaged before. What I’m asking is, if we had two major floods in one year, why wasn’t with this bond process any kind of conversation about bonds to reduce the problems of flooding since we’ve all been dealing with it more often?”

Interim City Manager Collette Jamison said the city is still working to identify projects that will address flooding issues throughout the city. Those projects are likely to come to council in April, she said.

House Bill 1378, which was approved during the 2015 Texas Legislative Session, dictates that if the bonds do not pass, the city would have to wait three years before the projects could be funded through a certificate of obligation, which does not require voter approval.

The school district is expected to decide whether or not to call a bond at a meeting Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. at the Central Administration Building, 501 S. LBJ Drive.