Clear Creek ISD voters OK $487 million bond proposal

The $487 million bond proposal approved by Clear Creek ISD voters will include funds to provide playground makeovers at 20 district elementary schools. The $487 million bond proposal approved by Clear Creek ISD voters will include funds to provide playground makeovers at 20 district elementary schools. Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Clear Creek ISD voters OK $487 million bond proposal 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Clear Creek Independent School voters have authorized a $487 million bond package aimed at addressing enrollment growth, aging campuses, technological needs and safety improvements.

In unofficial results from the May 6 election, the bond won support of more than 63 percent of voters.

"We are appreciative of the community's support of our schools, our teachers and our students," Superintendent Greg Smith said in a press release. "I would like to first and foremost thank the CCISD Facility Advisory Committee who worked tirelessly over the course of many months to put together a bond package that reflected the community's priorities. We are ready to get to work on these important projects that will undoubtedly improve the learning and working environment for teachers and students across this great school district."

Approval of the bond allows the district to build new schools, increase the capacity of crowded campuses and rebuild and renovate schools that are between 40 and 50 years old. It also will provide funds to renovate or replace aging elementary school playgrounds, purchase new buses and build a second magnet campus to expand enrollment. The district's security systems and other technological systems, such as computer labs, would be updated.

"This school bond program will give us the ability to stay competitive in education and the ability to support the children of CCISD today and decades into the future," district board president Laura DuPont said in a press release. "As a school board we appreciate the community's support of this bond package and we will ensure these funds will be used solely for the purposes we outlined to the public."

The district's tax rate is $140 per $100 valuation. The bond package is projected to result in a 3.7 cent increase in the rate, which could mean around $6 more monthly in taxes on a home with the median value of $223,635.

There was opposition to the bond proposal from one group, Citizens for CCISD, a political action committee, which questioned whether the district was overspending. In March, the Galveston County Republican Party approved a resolution which called for the district to postpone the bond election until November.