Schulenburg City Council Pursues $8 Million Financing for City Hall Renovations
The Schulenburg City Council voted earlier this month to take on $8 million in debt to renovate the downtown City Hall building. But a petition circulating in town could force an election.
City employees moved from the building in 2024 after structural issues were discovered following some heavy rain events. At one point, the Council considered building a new municipal building that would incorporate City Hall and the Police Station. The Council initially approved a decision to borrow $15 million to rehab the historic City Hall building in downtown. The $15 million project would have included improvements to the Police Station as well.
But then after hearing a lot of feedback from citizens, the Council rescinded the vote and decided to focus on the City Hall project. At a meeting on Monday, July 6, the Council voted to begin the process of seeking $8 million in certificates of obligation (COs).
At the July 6 meeting, the Council specified that no more than $7.5 of the $8 million will be used on the City Hall renovation project. City Administrator Tami Walker estimated fees for issuing the OCs would amount to $200,000 to $250,000. The City’s design firm, PGAL, estimated the cost of the City Hall renovations at $7.1 million. The Council instructed staff that any money left over should go toward wastewater and police station improvements.
“I’ll repeat, as Councilwoman (Kathy) Kleiber said in the meeting, we’re not trying to build a Taj Mahal,” Walker said “But we are trying to be very nostalgic from the outside and very modernized on the inside.”
The Council Chambers, which are currently located inside the Police Station, would move to the upstairs of the downtown City Hall building. That will require the installation of an elevator.
COs are one of two taxfunded mechanisms that local governments in Texas can use to borrow money. COs require approval by the governing body. They do not require approval by voters. The other mechanism, general obligation bonds, do require voter approval in an election.
In 2015, the State Legislature implemented some constraints on the ability of local governments to issue COs. The changes were aimed at preventing local governments from circumventing voter approval in issuing debt. In Schulenburg’s case, if five percent of qualified voters who live within the city limits sign a petition, the Council will be forced to call an election to put the bond up for a vote.
An effort to do just that is underway in Schulenburg. Chad Zimmermann, a Schulenburg property owner who lives out of town, drafted a petition last week. It asks the Council to put the bond up for a vote. While Zimmermann is not eligible to sign the petition himself, he has already gained some support.
“This petition is not about whether these projects are needed,” the petition states. “It is about ensuring that the citizens of Schulenburg have the opportunity to vote before the City incurs one of the largest long-term financial obligations in recent history. Texas law provides citizens with the opportunity to petition for a public election on proposed Certificates of Obligation. By signing this petition, registered voters are exercising that right.”
Walker said the petition will need 81 signatures to meet the five percent threshold. As of Tuesday, Zimmermann reported that he has collected eight signatures and another 15 individuals have expressed interest in signing the petition.
Zimmermann said he will be present with the petition at the Downtown Gazebo in Schulenburg’s Railroad Park (across from True Value) from 9 a.m. to noon this Saturday, July 25, to collect signatures.