四虎影院

Arlington residents will vote on a calling for infrastructure improvements in the May 3 election.

The proposal devotes nearly $137 million to street improvements, about $49 million to public safety and the remaining $14 million to routine infrastructure improvements to parks, City Hall and libraries.

The bond will appear on the ballot next to several .

Residents have until April 3 to register to vote. Early voting begins April 22 and ends April 29. Election Day is May 3.

Here鈥檚 what you need to know about the bond proposal before you cast your ballot.

City officials a property tax increase from the bond package, said Deputy City Manager Lemuel Randolph. Arlington has used a strategy that prevents bond sales from influencing tax rates.

The city adjusts the frequency of its bond sales to the state of the economy. If the economy slows down, officials slow bond sale activity, allowing them to keep taxes steady, Randolph said. The bond cost is based on current tax rates.

Arlington saw its last September after City Council approved a 1-cent increase to fund new city services, including a $500,000 Clean Team initiative and full-time police and fire positions that were initially funded through federal COVID-19 relief dollars.

The 2025 bond election is part of the city鈥檚 long-term strategy to routinely prevent public buildings and roads from degrading, Randolph said. A of residents helped prioritize bond projects.

鈥淥ver time, infrastructure will degrade, whether that鈥檚 new windows, roofs or HVAC systems,鈥� Randolph said. 鈥淭he city has significant infrastructure it鈥檚 responsible for, and in order for us to be caretakers of that, it requires reinvestment.鈥�

Tracy Winkles, an Arlington resident who sat on the bond committee, said officials gave her group a range of potential bond projects and asked them to narrow it down to about $200 million. Over six weeks, they debated and voted on what improvements were most needed.

鈥淓very department in our city came to us and presented their cases,鈥� Winkles said. 鈥淭he library came and presented theirs, the airport 鈥� we got to hear from their mouth what they needed.鈥�

The city tries to devote about two-thirds of bond funds to streets, which have about a 50-year lifespan, Randolph said. Arlington uses its to track the condition of roads and flag which ones need urgent repair.

Officials drive a third of the city鈥檚 around 3,000 miles of roads each year, covering and rating all roads over three years.

None of the street improvements target the city鈥檚 entertainment district, which received 2021 and 2023 bond-funded road improvements on . The 2023 bond sought to prepare the road for high traffic ahead of the .

鈥淲e鈥檝e laid out a list of projects here that are very basic,鈥� Randolph said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 not a lot of new investment. It鈥檚 more about taking care of the existing infrastructure and ensuring that it lasts into the future.鈥�

Because the bond focuses on maintaining infrastructure, Arlington could theoretically roll out capital improvements administratively without voter approval over many years, Randolph said.

However, a voter-approved bond package streamlines money to the projects so they can be completed faster.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of art and science to bond financing and city financing in general,鈥� he said. 鈥淚s moving forward (without a bond package) possible? Yes. But is it practical based on the current needs we have? I would suggest no, because how much time would be needed to accumulate enough cash to be able to pay as you go for these projects.鈥�

If all bond propositions pass, the projects will be completed over about four years, Randolph said. Officials will prioritize public safety projects, and street improvements will follow.

To Randolph, Arlington鈥檚 library system and parks system are a central part of what makes the city special, he said. Even if a resident doesn鈥檛 use those services 鈥� or drive on the streets listed in the package 鈥� Randolph would ask them to still consider approving the bonds for their 鈥渃ommunity benefit.鈥�

鈥淏ut at the end of the day, the voter needs to make that decision,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ur role as staff is simply to lay out the needs we鈥檝e demonstrated through the bond, then the voters will decide.鈥�

Drew Shaw is a reporting fellow for the Arlington Report. Contact him at drew.shaw@fortworthreport.org or . 

At the Arlington Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy .

This first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.