Jersey Village City Council members approved a guaranteed maximum price, or GMP, of $8.1 million for the first phase of the City Campus project during an Oct. 27 regular meeting in a 4-1 vote with council member Simon Hughes opposed.
The details
Including construction, architecture and engineering fees, the total cost for phase one sits at $9.3 million, according to meeting documents.
No new city debt was issued ahead of the agreement, since $9.5 million for phase one funding was adopted in the fiscal year 2026-27 budget on Aug. 18, as previously reported by Community Impact.
Finance Director Jennifer Brown said that by the end of the fiscal year, the general fund balance is expected to sit at $4.64 million after accounting for phase one’s costs—$846,000 higher than the required reserves.
Some context
The City Campus project has seen three unsuccessful bond proposals in 1990, 2002 and most recently in November 2025, prompting the council to move forward with a pay-as-you-go approach as opposed to issuing new debt for the project.
“The fact we need a new city hall, the fact we’re here today is not an accident… this is probably the single biggest deferred item the city has,” council member Greg Holden said.
Dec. 1 is the anticipated notice-to-proceed date, and construction should take eight months to complete, according to meeting documents. Phase one of the City Campus project includes:
The discussion
Hughes said he favored using bond funds for the first phase so the city could move quickly into phase two using the fund balance, as many community spaces will no longer be available following phase one's start. City Manager Austin Bleess said city staff has made community members aware of this.
“We told each and every one of the people that are using that space, every time they talk to us about it, this is temporary, this will go away,” Bleess said. “Everybody agreed to it, so we let people use it.”
Holden requested that city staff look for alternatives or policy changes to help accommodate the affected groups.
“I think, while the city’s delighted to have better offices for the administration, and closer offices and facilities for public works, I think the city is really, you know, jonesing for these community spaces,” Hughes said.
In other news
Council members Connie Rossi and Michael Brittain were designated as the Houston-Galveston Area Council, or H-GAC, representative and alternate, respectively, for the 2027 general assembly planned for December 2026.
The council also approved multiple purchases, including vehicle replacements for the Jersey Village Police Department.
