The city of Plano is pitching its most intensive road and park investments in decades as infrastructure that was installed during the city’s first true growth spurt continues to age.
The projects would be funded by more than $224 million in proposed bonds that Plano voters will consider on the May 6 ballot. The largest shares of the proposed funding would go toward street projects—some expensive and prone to traffic disruptions—and improvements to the city’s sprawling parks system.
The city built much of this infrastructure during its population boom in the 1970s and 1980s, when more than 100,000 people flocked to Plano and corporations like J.C. Penney moved their headquarters to the city.
“You factor in the age of these roads and then you factor in the increased traffic,” Plano Director of Engineering Caleb Thornhill said. “As the years have gone on, these roadways have seen a large increase in traffic from the growth in Plano, but also the surrounding communities.”
