Georgetown school district voters have come out strongly in favor of a $649.5 million bond package, according to the early but incomplete vote count.
The bond proposal, split into four propositions, will pay for a new elementary school, middle school and high school at the 13,000-student district. The money would also be used for a new performing arts facility at a high school, upgrades to aging buildings, technology upgrades and improvements to athletic infrastructure.
Proposition A requests $597.47 million for new elementary, middle and high schools; school security; land acquisition for school facilities; reconfiguring a middle school for Frost Elementary School; and school bus purchases. Proposition A received 71% support from early voters, with 29% coming out against the proposal.
If approved, part of the bonds would be used to reconfigure the former Benold Middle School as a new facility for Frost Elementary students. The current Frost Elementary is overcrowded with no room to expand, the school’s principal has said.
Proposition B is also enjoying support from early voters, with 69% casting ballots for it and 31% against it, according to the early vote tally. Proposition B asks for $20.33 million for districtwide technology upgrades. It would help pay for improvements to cyber security and replace or repair student and staff devices.
Proposition C proposes $27.85 million for a new performing arts facility at East View High School, upgrades for the fine arts facility at Georgetown High School and new uniforms and concert attire for fine arts. Early voters supported the measure with 64% approving it and 36% opposing it.
Proposition D asks for $3.86 million for track repairs at Georgetown High School, and for a field house and locker room expansion at East View High School. Sixty-two percent of early voters cast a ballot for it and 38% against it, according to to early voting results.
Election day ballots are still being counted.
“If approved by voters, the tax impact on property owners could range from zero cents to an estimated 1-cent per $100 valuation or $33 annually for the average home in Georgetown ISD depending on the timing of the sale of bonds,” according to the district’s website.
The district grew by 13.5% in five years — from 11,508 students in the 2017-18 school year to 13,063 in the 2022-23 year, according to Texas Education Agency data.
With a 14.4% growth rate, the city of Georgetown was the fastest growing U.S. city of over 50,000 people from July 2021 to 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
More: Georgetown ISD seeks $649.6M bond for new schools, facility upgrades, equipment
The bond proposals are necessary for the district to get ahead of projected growth, Superintendent Devin Padavil has said.
Demographers predict the district will gain 6,000 students over the next 10 years, he said.
The last time the district had a bond election was in 2021 when voters approved $349.9 million of the district’s $381.7 million in proposed bonds. Voters said yes in 2021 to new schools and technology upgrades but rejected a swim center and other extracurricular-related projects.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Election: Results for Georgetown ISD’s $649.5 million bond
