Houston voters appear to have struck down the local school district's record $4.4B bond measure Tuesday, according to local media projections, a result that was largely expected since both of Harris County's major political parties officially opposed the measure.
The result squashed the hopes of local commercial real estate leaders who supported Houston Independent School District's bond measures and the construction projects and economic stimulation they could bring.
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According to unofficial early voting results by the Harris County Clerk Tuesday night, 60% of voters voted against Proposition A and Proposition B.
The largest bond proposal in Texas history faced bipartisan opposition from the start, with distrust of the state-run school district bridging the political divide.
But the city’s aging schools found allies in the commercial real estate community as business organizations and a list of builders, architects and contractors supported and fundraised for the bond measures, which would have offered lucrative contract opportunities.
“If it's turned down, it will be a vote against our city being as excellent as it can be,” Alan Hassenflu, Houston Region Business Coalition chairman and CEO of Fidelis Realty Partners, previously told Bisnow. The bond funds would stay in the Houston community and go to local contractors, he said.
The Greater Houston Partnership, another business organization, also supported the measures. GHP cited a need to safeguard the health and safety of students, teachers and staff and build modern learning environments as severe weather events stress the school system’s already fragile infrastructure.
“HISD students face unacceptable conditions, including lead-laced water, faulty heating and air conditioning systems, and facilities with rats and mold,” Greater Houston Partnership said in its news release.
Bond opponents agreed that Houston ISD needs infrastructure upgrades but took issue with the timing, organization and oversight of the proposed bond projects, they told Bisnow.
“It’s just not prudent to leave taxpayers on the hook for a $4.4 billion bond that will be spent by a man with a long history of mismanaging public funds,” Hany Khalil, executive director of the Texas Gulf Coast AFL-CIO, said in a statement.
The $4.4B in bond funds would have been used to upgrade campus security, expand campuses to reduce overcrowding, improve air and water quality, and invest in early childhood and career and technical education, according to an HISD fact sheet.
Voters last approved an HISD bond in 2012, which was the largest school construction bond in Texas history at that time. That $1.9B bond helped repair and replace 40 schools across the district, including 29 high schools.
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