Bay Area Houston Magazine

The Clear Creek Independent School District Board of Trustees has called for a $487 million bond election on Saturday, May 6 to address growth, safety, aging facilities and program expansions.

If approved by voters, the bond program would allow the district to build new schools or permanently increase the capacity of existing schools due to overcrowding, rebuild or renovate schools between 40 and 50 years old, repair or replace elementary playgrounds, purchase new school buses, and expand the district’s science magnet for intermediate students to a second location.

The proposed bond would equate to a $0.035 tax rate increase or a $5.47 per month increase for a homeowner of a median home valued at $223,635.

“Thank you to everyone who served on the committee and gave much of their time and effort to bring this proposal forward to the community,” said Dr. Laura DuPont, board president. “The committee incorporated public input and presented a plan to accommodate enrollment growth and maintain schools for the next five years as we asked them to.”

The unanimous vote on Monday capped a community-driven effort to analyze and prioritize the school district’s $1.2 billion in facility and capital needs. Prior to taking action, the school board further reduced the CCISD Facility Advisory Committee’s $494 million recommendation to $487 million.

“Clear Creek ISD is a destination for families in search of a quality education,” said Dr. Greg Smith, Superintendent of Schools. “I thank those who have been actively involved in this process.”

Contents of the school bond package were prioritized by a 30-member facility committee consisting of parents, local citizens, business leaders and educators. Over the course of several months, the Citizens Facility Advisory Committee studied a district-wide facility assessment, enrollment projections, and district financial information as well as toured schools. The committee used this information and input from the public to finalize its recommendation.

The proposed bond will touch the majority of CCISD facilities in some capacity. It will address:

Enrollment growth: $72.9 million

Clear Creek ISD’s student enrollment is at nearly 42,000 students in 2016. Third-party projections have the district growing an additional 2,100 students by 2021. Currently, ten elementary schools and four intermediate schools are at, or over, instructional capacity.

• Build the district’s 27th elementary school along Highway 96 in League City
• Remove portables and replace them with permanent additions at Stewart Elementary, Creekside Intermediate and Clear Lake Intermediate

Aging Schools: $333.4 Million

Six schools in the district are more than 50 years old and two are more than 40 years old. This bond proposal would allow for two school rebuilds and significant renovations and technology upgrades to six. Forty schools and CCISD facilities would receive priority repairs.

• Rebuild of League City Elementary (‘60) and Clear View High School (‘39)
• Major renovations and site improvements to elementary schools — Clear Lake City (’65), Ed White (’65), Ross (‘65), Whitcomb (‘67), Hall (’79), and Landolt (’79)
• Major renovations and site improvements at Main Bus Transportation Center (’69)
• Thirty-nine CCISD schools and facilities would receive priority repairs

Safety upgrades: $20.8 Million

The bond proposal would address playground safety, upgrade security cameras and replace school buses that are between 15-25 years old.

• Replace 75 school buses with more than 200,000 miles
• Fund an elementary playground replacement and repair program
• Replace analog with digital surveillance cameras and intrusion detection equipment
• Reconfigure areas of Armand Bayou Elementary

Student Programs: $23.1 Million

Every year, 200 intermediate school students are turned away from the district’s science magnet program at Seabrook Intermediate due to space limitations. This bond would allow the district to open a second site. The bond proposal would also include additions and equipment replacements for certain programs.

• Science labs and classrooms at Brookside Intermediate for a second science magnet
• Fine Arts expansions and renovations at Clear Creek High, and at Clear Creek, League City and Space Center Intermediate campuses.
• Music instrument replacement and equipment for fine arts and athletics

Technology: $31.8 Million

The following improvements are proposed to maintain the district’s technology systems:

• Upgrade network and server equipment
• Replace teacher computers and student computer labs
• Purchase and install ceiling mounted projectors for classrooms
• Replace district telephone system

The $487 million referendum includes 1 percent for project management and bond issuance costs, CCISD said. Visit www.ccisd.net/bond2017 for more information.