4 Katy ISD props worth more than $800M on November ballot aim to help district's growth

KATY, Texas (KTRK) -- On Nov. 7, Katy ISD will ask voters to approve a record-high bond for the district to keep up with its needs.

"People want to come here," Ted Vierling, the chief operations officer for the district, said. "We've got our warts just like everybody else. But I think we do a great job."

Data provided by Katy ISD shows they added the most students from the fall of 2016 to the fall of 2021 than any other district in the area. There's a more than 4,000-student gap between them and the next closest district, Lamar Consolidated.

"We're over 94,000 kids today, and we expect by 2031 we'll have 106,000 kids in Katy ISD," Vierling said.

The four propositions on the November ballot will aim to keep up with that growth. They are broken down as follows:

• Proposition A: Three new elementary schools, a new junior high school, 26 renovations and expansions for aging campuses, 85 safety and security upgrades, buses, 61 building component replacements ($722,992,054)
• Proposition B: Districtwide classroom and campus technology ($83,567,360)
• Proposition C: Existing districtwide natatorium (competition swimming pools) component replacements ($4,195,456)
• Proposition D: Districtwide campus athletic facilities and Rhodes Stadium repairs ($29,875,472)

Voters will approve or disapprove each item individually on the ballot.

"Making sure that facilities are up to par, we think that's important," Vierling said. "I know in other districts they haven't done that. They've let that lapse, and all that does is create more problems for you and create a larger cost really down the line."

Katy ISD opened two elementary schools this year. Vierling said one of them already has a portable building, which indicates their need for more space.

If all four items get approved, Katy ISD said there will not be a tax increase for residents.

Dr. Steven Craig, an economics professor at the University of Houston, said growth in Katy could make that possible, but it depends on whether the predicted increase is correct.

"Doing it by a bond is more efficient than raising the taxes now and getting the cash together and building the new schools, because, like I said, you can make the person of the future pay for the new school because they're going to pay the taxes to pay the debt service on the bond in the future," Craig said.

Since 2014, Katy ISD has approved more than $2 billion in bonds.

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