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Alvin ISD Asks Residents for $1 Billion

by James McClister

Alvin-ISD-school-elementary-junior-high-taxes-construction-debt-billion

In November, the residents of Alvin will go to the polls to decide whether to fund a bond package that would in turn fund a number of construction projects for the local independent school district. If it passes, the town will get three new schools, a new stadium and a career and technical education center. If it passes, Alvin ISD will become one of the most indebted school districts in the state. Tweet this

In a recent Alvin ISD Board meeting, members revealed the locations of the potentially forthcoming schools: a junior high at Broadway and Kingsley, in the Shadow Creek Ranch Neighborhood; elementary 17, which is planned in the Shadow Creek Ranch neighborhood, at Broadway and Half Moon Bay Drive; and elementary 18, which would be located in the Pomona neighborhood in Manvel.

The additional schools, as well as the career and technical education center and stadium, are a response to the district’s chronic overcrowding, an issue that’s become increasingly obvious in recent years. Last year, Alvin opened the doors to its newest elementary school, Duke Elementary, and already student enrollment is above capacity.

Paying For More Space

In a press release, district officials wrote: The campus was originally built with a permanent capacity of 800 and currently has nearly 1,000 students enrolled.

The overcrowding is forcing teachers and district staff to reconsider the school layout in order to make room.

“With all of the new students, we have to get creative with our use of instructional space to meet their needs,” said Fulvia Shaw, principal of Duke Elementary.

Alvin ISD Trustee Julie Pickren said it was Duke’s overcrowding, and projected increases in enrollment, which prompted the trustees to approve a school bond election.

“Alvin ISD does a great job of predicting the number of students who will be in our schools, based on the homes being built and the area is growing extremely quickly,” Pickren said. “This growth is the main reason that the Alvin ISD Trustees approved a November school bond election.”

But if the district bond is approved, not only would the construction costs exceed $200 million and raise taxes by a maximum of 8.3-cents, but the schools would stand as some of the most expensive junior high and elementary schools the state has ever seen.

In a report from WatchDog.org’s Texas Bureau, it was estimated that passing the bond package would saddle locals with a bill of “roughly $1 billion, counting interest payments, in a district that has about $6.5 billion in taxable property.”

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Comments

  • Y. Long says:

    How will the building of a school stadium on County Road 64, Iowa County, impact on neighbouring home owners?

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