The Victoria Independent School District (VISD) Bond Action Committee (BAC) presented its bond recommendations to the Board of Trustees at the regularly scheduled July 17 meeting. The BAC is composed of 43 community members and three Board members.

“The Bond Action Committee, formerly known as the VISD Facilities Bond Oversight Committee,

is a citizen advisory group tasked with supporting, promoting and providing input on the development of a potential facilities bond proposal,” according to a VISD communications news release. “This group is made up of parents, staff, business leaders, and community members from across Victoria.”

The BAC has met for five sessions since June, including visits to VISD campuses. The committee received an overview of the district’s facilities and evaluated the age of each one, Randy Meyer, VISD deputy superintendent, said. BAC members looked over the history of VISD bonds including past bond proposals and timelines.

BAC members visited 11 VISD campuses, including the newly finished Mission Valley Elementary School, set to welcome students this fall. Colonel Richard DeAses presented the BAC’s work and recommendations to the Board.

“It’s no secret to anyone that we have not passed a maintenance bond in 18 years,” DeAses said. “I cannot stress the gravity of the situation that we’re trying to realistically face enough.”

After five sessions, the BAC concluded it requires more updated data. The facilities study data the committee had available was collected four years ago, being pre-COVID and pre-inflation information, DeAses said. 

“The data left us at a bit of an impasse when it came to finding accurate figures and landing on a ballpark number as to what would be the most appropriate and palatable first step,” DeAses said. “I do want to make a note that we are looking to this first bond being the first one in a long-term strategy to repair and bring our facilities up to the standard that they should beat.”

The BAC made six recommendations to the Board. The members are looking to develop a capital improvements bond, targeting the May 2026 election. The BAC aims for an initial ask of $30 million to $32 million for the first bond.

The committee requested the Board of Trustees engage with an architect and engineer for a full facilities assessment for both Patti Welder Middle School and STEM Middle School. When considering improvements for a campus, the BAC advised making full and complete renovations as opposed to partial improvements. 

“We should make sure that we are making all of the necessary improvements and doing it correctly the first time, to make sure that that building is ready for the next 15 to 20 years of use,” DeAses said.

The BAC awaits recommendations from the attendance boundaries and rezoning task force before making recommendations for elementary school improvements. The final decision made by the BAC was to extend beyond the original five meetings.

The BAC is set to reconvene on October 7 for session six to continue its work.

Michael Milliorn is a news reporter for the Victoria Advocate. You can reach him at michael.milliorn@vicad.com.