CITY & SCHOOLS
News from Plano & Plano ISD
COMPILED BY COLBY FARR & SARA RODIA
NUMBER TO KNOW This is the number of new principals hired in Plano ISD ahead of the 2022-23 school year. District officials named four elementary and two middle school principals. 06 HIGHLIGHTS PLANO ISD District officials announced July 16 Coach Tom Kimbrough, former Plano High School football head coach and district athletic director, was inducted into the Texas High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor. Kimbrough served as coach from 1976-91 and won more games than any coach in the state during his tenure, according to district officials. PLANO Residents are asked to conserve water by reducing outdoor watering times through Sept. 15. Residents should only water on assigned days, with even-numbered addresses watering on Mondays and Thursdays, and odd-numbered addresses watering on Tuesdays and Fridays, according to city officials. TEXAS Officials with the Texas Department of State Health Services announced in early August the creation of a new grant, the Federally Qualified Health Center Incubator Program. The grant includes $20 million for public and nonprofit health providers to expand services for underserved and uninsured residents. Individual organizations can receive up to $500,000. Plano City Council meets at 7 p.m. Aug. 22 and Sept. 12. Meetings are held at 1520 K Ave., Plano, and can be streamed online. 972-941-7000. www.plano.gov Plano ISD board of trustees meets at 6 p.m. Sept. 6 at the PISD Administration Center, 2700 W. 15th St., Plano. 469-752-8100. www.pisd.edu MEETINGS WE COVER
Plano City Council prepares for tax rate adoption PLANO City Council members set the property tax rate ceiling at $0.4265 per $100 valuation during a general meeting Aug. 8. The proposed rate is two cents lower than the rate that was approved for the fiscal year 2021-22 budget, according to the council agenda. Council members also called for a public hearing to be held during a general meeting Sept. 12, the same night the tax rate is expected to be approved. City Council members can set the rate as low as $0.4176 per $100 valuation, which would earn the same amount of revenue as the year before, Budget Director Karen Rhodes-Whitley said during a pre- sentation. This year’s proposed tax rate would continue to shift funding from the operating rate into the debt service rate. This shift provides debt service for the $364 million bond referendum passed by voters in 2021.
D
DISTRICT PROPOSITIONS Plano ISD’s Future Forward Task Force has recommended $1.49 billion in propositions that could go forward for a resident vote in November. Proposition A: $1.16B for renovations, safety and security, and instruction Proposition B: $173.45M for technology Proposition C: $130M for a new event center Proposition D: $27.81M in stadium renovations
C
B
A
Total: $1.49B
SOURCE: PLANO ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
Plano ISD task force presents $1.5B bond recommendation for November ballot
PLANO ISD Trustees heard a presentation Aug. 2 from the district’s 2022 Future Forward Task Force regarding recom- mended projects to include in a possible bond package of nearly $1.5 billion. District officials said the board is expected to consider the task force’s recommendation at its Aug. 16 meeting for possible inclusion on the November ballot. As of press time Aug. 15, a decision had not been made. With four propositions, the proposed bond package would total $1.49 billion for “critical” projects in the district, according to task force co-chairs Rick Cinclair and Marshall Jackson. In total, the district needs more than $2.24 billion in projects, but that was cut by about a third to land at the suggested bond, they said. “I think kicking the can down the road is probably an apt description of what has happened in Plano,” board President David Stolle said. “It’s time [for this]. We’ve had one bond in the last 14 years, which is too long ago.” Nearly 79% of district voters
passed a $481 million bond in May 2016. That bond provided funds for districtwide renovations, the fine arts center, technology improvements, early childhood education and more. Johnny Hill, PISD deputy superintendent for business and employee services, said the district is able to issue up to $1.52 billion without increasing the district’s property tax rate. District officials said the task force worked for more than five months on the bond package recommendation. Hill cautioned the board against putting off calling the bond elec- tion. He said putting off this bond for six years could cause the cost of these projects to increase by nearly 42% due to projected construction cost increases and inflation. “This bond will help us keep playing [competitively] with the districts around us; give us the ability to meet the growing demands for [career and technical education] and other important programs; allow us to upgrade our technology to enhance our education,” Cinclair said.
TAX TIMELINE
Plano City Council will adopt the fiscal year 2022-23 tax rate in September.
• July 27: city staff presents recommended budget • Aug. 8: rate ceiling set at $0.4265 per $100 valuation • Sept. 12: public hearing to be held; tax rate to be adopted SOURCE: CITY OF PLANO/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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PLANO NORTH EDITION • AUGUST 2022
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