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The Plano City Council has called for a bond election. ËÄ»¢Ó°Ôºâ€™S Collin County reporter Caroline Love sat down with Justin Martin to give us the breakdown on why the council is asking Plano citizens to help foot the bill for one of the largest bond packages in the city’s history. Here's what they said:

JUSTIN MARTIN: The Plano city council has called for a bond election. ËÄ»¢Ó°Ôºâ€™S Collin Country reporter Caroline Love is here to give us the breakdown on why the council is asking Plano citizens to help foot the bill for one of the largest bond packages in the city’s history.

So, Caroline, there are several bond propositions on the ballot. What items stand out to you?

CAROLINE LOVE: The bond this year really aligns with the city’s priorities. The biggest item is the first proposition for road improvements. That’s often the most expensive and important item for bond elections anywhere. Public safety is also a priority in most cities, and Plano is no exception. That’s why a new police headquarters and training center are on the ballot. The police headquarters is around forty-five years old. There’s also funding for improving the city’s fleet operation center.

JUSTIN MARTIN: This bond election is asking for about $649 million. That’s about $300 million more than the previous bond election. What’s behind that?

CAROLINE LOVE: The last bond election was four years ago. Inflation has gone up since then. That impacts the price of materials for construction projects and land purchases.

The final number is actually less than what the city started out with. It was originally over one and a half billion dollars. But they cut it down to where it’s at now.

The city council has talked a lot about the bond’s sticker shock. But Mayor John Muns told me the projects all are necessary.

MUNS: If we don't take care of our infrastructure, I think companies will look elsewhere if we're not taking care of our city in all facets.

Plano is a mature city now. The roads are decades old and so are a lot of the city’s facilities. Muns says it’s time to update.

JUSTIN MARTIN: Why a bond election? Aren’t there other funds that the city could use to pay for some of these projects?

CAROLINE LOVE: I talked with Plano’s budget director, Karen Rhodes Whitley, about this. She says it’s like taking out a mortgage when you buy a house.

KAREN RHODES-WHITLEY: Do you have $579,000 sitting in the bank that you can go pay cash? Most people do not. It's just like the city.

I mentioned earlier that Plano is a mature city. Muns told Plano has one of the highest senior property tax freezes. That lowers property tax revenue. He says the city doesn’t want that to change. But it does mean they may need to explore other options for big projects.

That’s where the bond comes in. Rhodes Whitley says they’ll issue the debt and collect the money over the next twenty years.

JUSTIN MARTIN: Tell me more about that. Where does the money for the bond come from?

CAROLINE LOVE: This is a general obligation bond. That means the money will come from property taxes. Plano has a good track record of paying off its debts, so interest rates are low.

Rhodes Whitley says it would add about three and a half cents to the city’s property tax rate if approved.

JUSTIN MARTIN: The final approval is up to the voters. What happens if the propositions don’t pass?

CAROLINE LOVE: That’s a tricky question. The city does have other funding sources available – but that’s a lot cash they’d have to find. Plus, they need to pay for other city services and projects too. The city council members are in agreement that the items in the bond are all necessary. But they also recognize that it’s a bigger number than past bonds. That’s why they cut projects like the arts building. The city decided to look into other funding sources for it, like a public private partnership, to take it off this year’s bond election.

JUSTIN MARTIN: Is the bond election on the same day as the city council races in Plano?

CAROLINE LOVE: That’s right. There are elections for three city council seats and the mayor on the ballot in addition to the bond. Early voting is scheduled to start April 22. Election day is May 3.

Got a tip? Email Caroline Love at clove@kera.org.

Caroline Love is a corps member for ËÄ»¢Ó°Ôº.

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