College Station ISD calling bond election in May, focusing on athletic renovations

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – The College Station ISD Board of Trustees unanimously voted to hold a bond election this spring.

May 4 has been approved as the day CSISD will put two propositions in front of voters, totaling $53 million. Trustees voted during a board meeting on Wednesday.

Proposition A is worth $40,200,000 for renovations to the A&M Consolidated High School athletic stadium and fieldhouse, plus the College Station High School athletic stadium. This item is a property tax increase.

Proposition B is worth $13,270,000 for renovation to the A&M Consolidated High School baseball/softball stadiums plus the College Station High School softball/baseball stadiums. This would also be a property tax increase.

The Long Range Facilities and Bond Planning Committee voted to bring these propositions to the board and encourage the group to hold the election in May. But, committee presenters Rick Bennett and Paul Hawryluk said these items need different messaging to voters.

“We need to make functional safety and operational improvements these are not aesthetic improvements,” Hawryluk said.

Nic LoGalbo, a College Station resident, attended the meeting to oppose bringing the bonds to voters, saying voters already shared their thoughts on the propositions.

“I want to address today this new bond issue since being proposed for $50 million,” he said. “What I’m curious about is why it’s being proposed again. The people of College Station already said no twice, this is the third time it’s being asked and we just came off an election cycle this past November.”

The bonds voters denied in November 2023 are very similar to what is being proposed now. In November, Proposition C focused on football stadiums, specifically at A&M Consolidated and College Station High School. Just months ago, this proposition totaled just over $38 million, which is around $2 million less than what is currently being proposed.

Proposition D in November is the same price as the current Proposition B. Both propositions focused on baseball/softball stadium renovations at the same two high schools.

“I understand we’ve put it out twice, but I don’t know that we’ve educated the community and those that realize, because the other part of this is that elementary parents and those parents of those kiddos are gonna be the ones that benefit from this the most,” Board President Jeff Horak told the group.

To get the bonds passed on the third try, district officials say they need to change up their messaging.

“If you look at football stadiums, they’re used how many days out of the year? I mean it’s not just football games and practices, tons of teams, organizations and clubs are using these facilities all the time,” Darin Payne, CSISD Board of Trustees Vice President, said.

CSISD laid out what each proposition includes:

Additions and renovations to the existing A&M Consolidated High School athletic stadium and fieldhouse and existing College Station High School athletic stadium ($40,200,000), including:A&M Consolidated High School Fieldhouseexpanding and renovating the weight room;relocating coaches’ offices;a new and enlarged sports medicine area;additions and renovations of locker rooms;two new classrooms;upgrades to the interior finish including paint and flooring;site improvements due to the expansion for access between the weight room and baseball field;A&M Consolidated High School athletic stadiumexpanding seating capacity from 5,238 to 6,300;resurfacing of the track;adding turf to one of the “D-zones”;rebuilding the press box, restrooms and concessions stands as one structure;renovating the home and visitor entrances;rebuilding the home and visitor ticket booths;a new scoreboard;College Station High School athletic stadiumexpanding seating capacity from 4,573 to 6,300;resurfacing of the track;adding turf to one of the “D-zones”;adding restrooms;repairing the press box;repairing concrete due to excessive heaving; anda new scoreboard.Renovations to the existing A&M Consolidated High School baseball/softball stadiums and existing College Station High School baseball/softball stadiums ($13,270,000), including:All four stadiumsconverting the grass playing surface to artificial turf;installing LED lights;A&M Consolidated High School softball stadiumexpanding seating;renovating the press box and ticket booth; andmodifying sidewalks and parking to accommodate improvements.