Government
BY MICHAEL CROUCHLEY
Plano Mayor, council seats up for grabs The city of Plano will hold elections for several council and board of trustees seats in May, including mayor. The ling period opened on Jan. 15 and closed on Feb. 14. Up for election The even-numbered Plano City Council seats are up for election. Council members Anthony Ricciardelli, Kayci Prince and Rick Smith currently hold Places 2, 4 and 8 respectively, and all three are set to hit their term limit and cannot run for re-election. Place 6 is held by Mayor John Muns, who was elected in May 2021. Election day is on May 3 and early voting will run from April 22-29.
Commission OKs new Willow Bend plan The redevelopment of The Shops at Willow Bend in Plano will now include the demolition of Macy’s, along with additional townhomes. The gist Plano Planning and Zoning Commission recom- mended approval of the new zoning and concept plan for the redevelopment, coined The Bend, during its Feb. 3 meeting. The redevelopment was initially approved last February, and included demolition of the northern half of the mall, between anchor stores Neiman Marcus and Dillard’s, according to city documents. The mall’s third anchor store, Macy’s, announced in January that its Plano location, along with 65 other locations, would be closing this year. Developer Centennial reworked the plan to now demolish the southern half of the mall, including Macy’s, preserving the section from
The redevelopment plan for The Shops at Willow Bend is being updated by the developers.
RENDERING COURTESY CENTENNIAL
Neiman Marcus to Dillard’s. “It did give us reason to pause and rethink our strategy,” said Michael Platt, Centennial executive vice president of mixed-use development. “I think you’ll see an updated plan that makes a lot of sense.” The new plan also includes the addition of 50 townhomes at the corner of Plano Parkway and Chapel Hill Boulevard.
Plano voters to consider $647M bond on May 3
A Street improvements B Police HQ replacement C Police Training Center D Public safety facilities E Fleet Operations facility F Schimelpfenig Library G Parks and recreation Proposition
Cost
$316.47M $155.55M $51M $37.49M $45.14M $1.87M $40M
Proposition A is the largest, and asks for $316.47 million for street improvements. What else? The projected tax rate increase is $0.032 in 2029 if all propositions are approved, according to city documents. A virtual town hall dedicated to the 2025 bond referendum is set for April 17.
Plano voters will have the opportunity to vote on a $647 million bond referendum in May. Plano City Council called the bond election during its Feb. 10 meeting, and the 2025 bond referendum is the largest in the city’s history. The breakdown The $647 million bond will be broken down into seven propositions.
A
B
C E G D F
SOURCE: CITY OF PLANO COMMUNITY IMPACT
Learn more about school funding issues and how they affect your local schools. THE 89 TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION IS HERE
Ad paid by Raise Your Hand Texas
RaiseYourHandTexas.org/school-funding
8
COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
Powered by FlippingBook