The Houston School District will hold a public meeting Thursday to discuss progress on a proposed building project that will appear on the April ballot.
Dr. Dan Vandiver, superintendent, said the public is invited to the 6:30 p.m. meeting at the commons area of the Houston Elementary School. Preliminary plans for the project will be presented for discussion and feedback.
The board of education is proposing construction of a new high school building and making improvements to an existing building.
The proposal calls for passage of a $5 million bond issue that would not result in any tax rate increase. A four-sevenths majority is required for passage. The current property tax rate dedicated to debt service would remain at the current 80 cents per $100 assessed valuation for a longer period of time.
The second component is a $2.5 million lease-purchase that is necessary because of state limits on bond capacity. That prevents the district from selling enough bonds to finance the measure. If approved by a simple majority, additional an 43-cent levy per $100 assessed valuation would result. It includes a sunset clause that would eliminate the tax at the end of a 20-year period.