If all seven bonds pass, it would give the city the ability to sell roughly $478 million in bonds to investors, which would be paid back with interest over a longer term. The bonds would not require an increase in property taxes, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said.
Voters have the ability to choose which of the seven bonds to support. The largest bond, which will show up on ballots as Proposition A, would provide $277 million toward public safety, including for renovations of police and fire stations as well as new vehicles.
Other referendums would support parks, animal care, public health, libraries, the city’s solid waste department and general improvements to city facilities.
The city has not released a detailed project list for the bonds, but officials said they would in part be used to fund roughly $194 million in projects in Houston’s 2023-27 capital improvements plan but have not yet been funded.
“The bond allocation will fully fund projects currently included in the ... plan,” Turner said. “These are critical projects located in every council district throughout the city.”
Among the projects labeled “future bond election” in Houston’s plan are more than $70 million for emergency response vehicles; $23 million to replace or renovate fire stations; and about $20 million in salary recovery across the police, fire, solid waste, public health and parks departments.
About $2.1 million would go toward replacing the roof at the Houston Health Department Rabies Laboratory in the Texas Medical Center, while $255,000 would help renovate the Hiram Clarke Multi-Service Center in southwest Houston.
Another $500,000 would go to the Hermann Park Conservancy. Conservancy CEO Doreen Stoller said the funding would be used for general needs at Hermann Park, including the repair of broken infrastructure, such as mechanical systems, lighting and leaks in the ponds in the Japanese Garden.
The remaining $274 million would be used for projects for 2028 and beyond, city officials said. This would help future councils by increasing spending flexibility to avoid having to schedule future smaller bonds, according to Will Jones, Houston’s interim chief business officer and director of finance.
Abbie Kamin, who represents District C on the Houston City Council, said there are other needed improvements that are not in the CIP, including renovations to the West Grey Metropolitan Multi-Service Center.
“MMSC is the primary location citywide where families and those with disabilities can access city programs and support,” she said. “It is in desperate need of renovation, and I will continue to push hard for it.”
The city most recently called bond elections in 2017. Informational public hearings are slated to take place at 6 p.m. Oct. 12 and at 9 a.m. Oct. 19 at City Hall, 901 Bagby St., Houston. Public health
