The revised bond package cuts nearly $100 million from the steering committee’s recommendation, bringing the total to $429.9 million. This keeps the amount within the school district’s debt capacity and prevents a tax rate increase.
The context
During a Jan. 13 special meeting, the bond steering committee, comprised of 16 parents, community members and nine staff members, recommended that the board approve a bond package with up to five propositions totaling $529.68 million. This recommendation was based on data from multiple needs assessments, discussions and feedback among committee members with a focus on the district's overall goals.
Boles said during the meeting that the 2025 bond package could not exceed $430 million without raising the tax rate, pressuring the school board to prioritize projects.
Breaking down the potential bond package
The revised 2025 bond package reduced Proposition A by $76.7 million and Proposition D by $21 million. These cuts were achieved by removing the construction element from Elementary No. 13 and postponing the Tomball West High School natatorium to a future bond election.
A general reduction was also made to athletic facility upgrades, the career and technical education expansion, the elementary library renovations and facility infrastructure replacements.
The TISD school board will consider the following propositions:
Proposition A: general purpose
Estimated total cost: $331.6 million
- Athletic facility upgrades: $26.2 million
- Career and technical education expansion: $12 million
- Connections Academy renovation: $2 million
- Early Excellence Academy: $35 million
- Elementary library refresh: $2.5 million
- Elementary No. 13, land and site development only: $38 million
- Expansion of special services program: $8 million
- Existing campus refresh: $8 million
- Facility infrastructure replacements: $75.9 million
- Fleet additions and replacements: $27.41 million
- Fine Arts updates: $4 million
- New Tomball Intermediate School: $59 million
- Safety and security upgrades: $10.84 million
- Transportation Center expansion: $22.75 million
Estimated total cost: $20 million
- SMART panel replacements
- Staff device refresh
- Student Chromebook refresh
Estimated total cost: $2.8 million
- Equipment and infrastructure
- Turf and track replacement/resurface
Estimated total cost: $880,000
- Existing natatorium updates
Estimated total cost: $76.7 million
- Build fine arts/athletics multi-use facilities at Tomball, Tomball Memorial and Tomball West high schools
In its initial recommendation, the bond steering committee said TISD should focus on facility infrastructure replacements, safety and security upgrades as well as campus revitalization.
Additionally, the committee urged the school district to prioritize building multi-use facilities at Tomball, Tomball Memorial and Tomball West high schools
Boles said the revised 2025 bond package keeps those recommendations while making cuts based on the school district’s immediate needs.
“Focusing on our existing facilities ... that still plays a primary role within Proposition A,” Boles said. “Removing the construction of the elementary was also something that was a topic of discussion within the steering committee.”
Explained
The decision to remove the construction of Elementary No. 13 from the 2025 bond package was based on enrollment projections, Boles said.
Rosehill and Grand Oak elementary schools will reach full capacity in 2027 and 2031, respectively. Boles said the school district can use alternative measures to postpone the construction of a new elementary school until 2033.
“We’ve got two campuses over the span of the next 10 years that are going to reach full capacity and need relief,” he said. “We feel comfortable in being able to delay construction ... by either utilizing some sense of a temporary rezone or the addition of portable [facilities] at these campuses to help alleviate that overcrowding.”
The other major change was in Proposition D, which removed the Tomball West High School natatorium from the proposed 2025 bond package. TISD officials decided it was unnecessary given the success of previous models.
“We’ve opened a high school without a natatorium in the past,” Boles said. “We opened Tomball Memorial in 2011, and for nine years, we bused students from Tomball Memorial to Tomball High School in order to practice, in order to compete, and we can say that during that timeframe, we were successful in that and in January 2021 we opened Tomball Memorial High School’s natatorium.”
Tomball West students would practice at Tomball Memorial’s natatorium until their own facility is built, Boles said.
What’s next
Michael Pratt, president of the TISD board of trustees, suggested holding another special meeting to discuss Proposition E further before the Feb. 11 meeting, at which the board will decide whether to hold a special election for the 2025 bond package in May or November.
Pratt said the decision on when to hold the election will be based on the school district’s needs.
