The Pflugerville ISD board of trustees is considering whether to ask voters for hundreds of millions of dollars for district improvements, which could include a fourth high school and a sports complex.
The board has scheduled a workshop for Feb. 6 at which representatives of the district's Citizens Facility Advisory Committee are expected to present a bond proposal worth approximately $297 million. The board will then likely decide at its Feb. 20 meeting whether to call a bond election for May.
"If we call a bond, we have to do it by Feb. 28," board member Vernagene Mott said. "We could opt to make it the November election. However, we feel like we need to move forward at least with the necessities."
Mott said the district has postponed calling a bond election for several years because of the struggling economy. PISD's enrollment growth and facilities maintenance issues, however, require immediate attention, she said.
Committee member W.C. Kolinek said the CFAC was formed in December at the behest of district staff. He said the group, which was made up of district residents and employees, met four times in January to consider what facility improvements PISD should include in its next bond.
Kolinek said the committee members were presented with facility reports from the district and asked to rate the needs of the individual schools. The district also presented plans to build a new high school, elementary school and possibly rebuild the aging Timmerman Elementary School.
Kolinek said PISD Athletic Director Johnna Denson also brought forth a proposal to build a $27 million sports complex that would feature a football stadium designed to seat as many as 10,000 people. He said CFAC members were told the complex could host all the district's football games, as well as regional playoff games.
Any new bonds issued by the district would not increase the local property tax rates, as the district reached the state-allowed maximum of $1.54 per $100 of valuation in 2012.
Mott said that to make the numbers work, the district has been aggressively paying off its existing debt and refunding the interest rates on its existing bonds.
The Feb. 6 workshop is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the PISD Administration Building Board Room, 1401 West Pecan St.