2007 NEISD BOND PROPOSAL
April 30 - May 8, 2007: Early Voting
May 12, 2007: Election Day
HEADLINES
From north to south, school bonds get the nod
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 05/13/2007 01:12 AM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
Voters in three San Antonio school districts said a resounding yes to paying for building new schools and improving old ones, despite a jaw-dropping $1.2 billion overall price tag.
The bulk of the money is for the Northside and North East independent school districts — the city's two largest — to build new schools and classroom additions to keep up with growth. Late Saturday, 99 percent of votes were in for Northside and 97 percent for North East.
Editorial: Bond package vital to North East schools
Express-News Editorial Staff
Web Posted: 04/15/2007 05:43 PM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
North East needs the bonds to continue providing the high-quality education that residents moved into the district to receive.
Growth puts a burden on the district, but it is the first-tier education that makes North East an attractive place for families. The district has proven its dedication to using bond funds wisely.
The bond package represents a conservative effort to keep up with rapid growth.
We urge voters to approve the North East bonds.
The cost of learning
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 04/05/2007 11:35 PM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
Three years ago, voters in the Northside Independent School District approved a bond package that included a new high school for the jaw-dropping total price of $85 million.
Today, that sounds like a bargain.
Northside's got a campus on the drawing board now with a $102 million price tag, which will make it the most expensive high school ever built in Bexar County.
School building costs in San Antonio lead the state and are at a record high for a variety of reasons. A shortage of laborers and skilled construction workers fueled by the city's building boom, along with global forces such as rising commodity and fuel prices, are driving construction costs here to an all-time high, say district officials and construction experts.
David Flores: New facility a necessity for NEISD
David Flores, Express-News Sports Columnist
Web Posted: 03/08/2007 09:39 PM CST
San Antonio Express-News
It shouldn't surprise anybody who follows high school sports that a proposal for a new football stadium will be included on the ballot of the North East Independent School District's bond election this spring.
For that matter, it shouldn't surprise anyone who knows anything about the growth of the Northeast Side.
The addition of a new NEISD football stadium, which also would be used for soccer and would include a running track, is expected to cost $27.5 million. That's less than 6 percent of the $498 million bond package.
"That's a very small percentage when you consider the whole thing," Susan Achterberg, co-chair of the NEISD bond committee, said Thursday. "And it's not just about football. We're talking about soccer, track, the band members, the spirit groups and the ROTC kids."
NEISD to ask voters for $498 million
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 02/20/2007 01:54 AM CST
San Antonio Express-News
Voters on San Antonio's North Side will have big-dollar decisions to make during the May 12 election when the city's two largest school districts will ask their residents to approve bond issues totaling nearly $1.2 billion to keep up with phenomenal growth on the far North Side.
Trustees for North East Independent School District approved a $498 million bond proposal Monday. The district is growing by 1,600 students a year, and $132 million of the bond is earmarked to build four new elementary schools north of Loop 1604.
North East ISD planning to call bond issue
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 02/13/2007 12:27 AM CST
San Antonio Express-News
North East Independent School District trustees plan to vote next week on whether to ask taxpayers to approve a nearly $500 million bond issue in a May 12 election.
The money would be used to build at least four new schools and update old campuses.
The district's facility study committee recommended going for the bond at a meeting Monday night. The board will vote on whether to approve the bond proposal next Monday.
Superintendent Richard Middleton said outdated facilities in the southern and eastern parts of the district need to be addressed, as well as the challenges of growth in the north.
Growth remains hot issue in '07
Chuck McCollough, Express-News Staff Writer
Publication Date : January 10, 2007
San Antonio Express-News
Growth, change and the issues they spawn will make 2007 even more dynamic than 2006 on the Northeast Side, education, neighborhood and elected officials predict.
Bond issues by San Antonio and North East Independent School District will grab a lot of headlines in 2007, but so too will such topics as seeking state money for schools and transportation improvements. And crime control, sidewalks and bike paths are on the radar of neighborhood groups.
Following are topics to keep an eye on in 2007:
Schools
NEISD Superintendent Richard Middleton and Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District Superintendent Belinda Pustka said the new year starts with an old problem for educators -- how to pay for things.
From north to south, school bonds get the nod
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 05/13/2007 01:12 AM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
Voters in three San Antonio school districts said a resounding yes to paying for building new schools and improving old ones, despite a jaw-dropping $1.2 billion overall price tag.
The bulk of the money is for the Northside and North East independent school districts — the city's two largest — to build new schools and classroom additions to keep up with growth. Late Saturday, 99 percent of votes were in for Northside and 97 percent for North East.
Final results were in for the South San Antonio Independent School District school bond measure. Voters there overwhelmingly approved a $37.2 million bond to upgrade out-of-date facilities, some in violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Northside's bond totals $693 million — the largest school bond in San Antonio history — and will finance the construction of a dozen new schools and about $275 million worth of upgrades, renovations and classroom additions.
"I was concerned," Northside Superintendent John Folks said as he watched the returns push the bond toward passage at an election party. "This is the first time we've had a bond election during a general election. But I know the voters in this district understand the challenges we have with growth."
The district, which is growing by 4,000 students a year, opened four new schools this year and three of those are full. In 2008, five new schools — three elementary, one middle and one high school — will be completed. District officials expect those to be full within a year or two of opening.
Neighboring North East ISD is growing by 1,600 students a year and officials plan to build four new elementary schools with a portion of the $498 million bond. The bond will also finance upgrades, renovations and classroom additions at the district's older schools, pay for air-conditioned gyms at every elementary, middle and high school and a new $28 million athletic facility.
The bond was cruising toward passage in North East.
"I think the message got out very well and the bond was really reflection of what the people said they wanted to see," North East Superintendent Richard Middleton said.
Some North East supporters were concerned about the $27 million athletic facility, which will include a football/soccer stadium. The district will have seven high schools when the new Johnson High opens next year, and Middleton said one athletic facility wasn't enough.
"Parents didn't want kids playing games on Thursday nights and in the heat of the day on Saturday afternoons," he said.
The second time was a charm for the South San Antonio Independent School District, where voters passed a $37.2 million bond referendum they had rejected in November. The proposal passed 754 to 292 — or with 72 percent of the vote.
"I'm feeling really good," Superintendent Ronald Durbon said. "I was very confident because of the (political action committee) that was formed in the community, and they really worked hard, and the final votes showed it."
The money will go toward upgrading aging facilities so that they are in compliance with ADA requirements, building walking tracks, covered basketball courts and softball fields to be used by the community and for physical education classes, and maintenance projects throughout the district.
School officials expect to pay off about 70 percent of the debt using state money.
Officials in all three districts say property owners shouldn't see a difference in their tax bills, even with the bonds passing.
A 2006 mandate by the Texas Legislature will drop the maintenance and operations portion of school property-tax bills from $1.33 to $1 per $100 of assessed value next year. That's on top of the drop from $1.50 to $1.33 reflected in this year's tax bills.
The decreases mean Northside and North East taxpayers will not see an overall increase in their tax bills for at least two years by conservative estimates. South San Antonio voters would see an overall drop in their bills through 2011, according to district projections.
Editorial: Bond package vital to North
East schools
Express-News Editorial Staff
Web Posted: 04/15/2007 05:43 PM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
The North East Independent School District continues to grow at a rapid pace.
Since 2003, the district has gained an average of 1,600 students annually.
District leaders are struggling to keep up with the growth, and the North East board is asking voters to approve a $498 million bond package.
The bonds would fund four new elementary schools north of Loop 1604 and classroom additions to replace portable buildings at four other elementary campuses.
Athletic and fine arts facilities would be replaced or upgraded at 25 campuses, and Madison High School would receive an Agriscience Magnet Program upgrade.
Deferred maintenance, such as roofing at 11 campuses and air conditioning for gyms across the district, also would be financed.
A $27.5 million sports facility to alleviate overload at Blossom Athletic Center also is part of the package.
And a significant amount — $44 million — would finance vital classroom technology, such as computers, teacher laptops, graphing calculators and more.
The bonds would add about a nickel to the debt retirement tax rate.
Still, the Legislature's decision to cut local operations and maintenance tax rates should result in a net tax reduction for the next two years.
Education is an important investment in the district's children and the future of the city.
North East needs the bonds to continue providing the high-quality education that residents moved into the district to receive.
Growth puts a burden on the district, but it is the first-tier education that makes North East an attractive place for families. The district has proven its dedication to using bond funds wisely.
The bond package represents a conservative effort to keep up with rapid growth.
We urge voters to approve the North East bonds.
The cost of learning
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 04/05/2007 11:35 PM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
Three years ago, voters in the Northside Independent School District approved a bond package that included a new high school for the jaw-dropping total price of $85 million.
Today, that sounds like a bargain.
Northside's got a campus on the drawing board now with a $102 million price tag, which will make it the most expensive high school ever built in Bexar County.
School building costs in San Antonio lead the state and are at a record high for a variety of reasons. A shortage of laborers and skilled construction workers fueled by the city's building boom, along with global forces such as rising commodity and fuel prices, are driving construction costs here to an all-time high, say district officials and construction experts.
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita didn't help costs since they shut down oil and natural gas platforms and refineries along the Gulf Coast. China's modernization and building boom is also a factor. New demand for copper and brass there — used for wiring, pipes and fixtures — has fueled a 64 percent cost increase for those materials in the past year.
And for those who rhapsodize about the simple, cheaper schoolhouses of their youth, there is this: The schools being built here may offer more than those of childhood memory, but they are no more elaborate than others going up around Texas — just pricier.
"Historically speaking, we've never been here before," said Doug McMurry, executive vice president of the Associated General Contractors chapter in San Antonio. "It's creating an incredibly difficult challenge when it comes to labor."
The $102 million price tag includes money to prepare the construction site and furniture and equipment for the school. The actual cost of construction is projected to be about $83 million — 22 percent more than the $69.5 million price for Brandeis High, scheduled to open next year, and a whopping 61 percent jump from what it cost to build Stevens High, which opened in 2005.
And the cost could jump further since construction isn't set to begin until next year.
Dan Boggio, president of PBK, an architectural firm that has designed schools for 113 school districts across Texas, said the San Antonio building market is glutted with work and their aren't enough contractors to get it all done, driving up labor costs.
Major projects include a $650 million airport expansion; multiyear building programs at the University of Texas at San Antonio and the University of Texas Health Science Center totaling $689 million; a $450 million bond issue for the Alamo Community College District approved last year; and a $207 million building program in the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District. San Antonio also leads the nation in hotel building, with 44 hotels under construction or scheduled to break ground this year.
"It's an imbalance in the workload compared to the capacity of the work force," Boggio said. "Anytime you have an imbalance like we have in San Antonio, the law of supply and demand kicks in."
PBK compiled a report in November that shows Central Texas (which included San Antonio) as the most expensive regional market in the state for high school construction. According to the report, it costs $4 more per square foot on average to build high schools in Central Texas than in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and $19 more per square foot than in the Houston area.
Boggio said San Antonio represented the high end of the cost range for the area at $139 to $176 per square foot.
"And those are 2006 numbers," Boggio said. "The costs are still going up."
And it's not just the local labor market that's affecting the cost of building schools, the experts say. Rising construction costs are creating headaches for school districts across the nation. Costs stayed relatively stable through the 1990s and began to creep up in 2000, but the biggest jumps came in the past few years.
In 2002, the national median cost per square foot for a high school was $158, according to an annual report by American School & University Magazine. In 2006, that cost jumped to $180.
"The construction costs have gone insane, really in the last year," said Lowell Tacker, an architect with O'Neill Conrad Oppelt Architects Inc., which designed the 2-year-old Steele High School in Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD.
Just last month, Ken Simonson, chief economist for Associated General Contractors of America, released an inflation alert, saying the cost of construction materials should rise this year for the fourth year in a row because of worldwide demand, high fuel costs and political unrest that can create spikes in the market for such things as oil.
Simonson said costs should increase at an overall rate of between 6 percent and 8 percent, but warned there could be price spikes throughout the year.
Tacker said prices for things like copper wire and steel and materials for roofing and paving are astronomical. The cost of rebar, Tacker said, doubled in the past year.
"People have been going around cutting copper coils off air conditioners to sell them," Tacker said. "Contractors are spray painting copper wire flat black so it can't be seen from the road."
Tacker, whose company helps school districts put bond proposals together, said it's imperative that they build in the cost of inflation when planning for new schools.
"The worst thing to do is go out for a school bond and not account for escalation," Tacker said. "It's a little like looking into a crystal ball, but you have to make the best estimate you can."
Few know that better than officials at Alamo Community College District. Last year voters approved a $450 million bond package for the district, but plans had to be scaled back by 21 percent because of rising construction costs.
At ACCD's new campus, Northeast Lakeview College, which broke ground Thursday, district officials underestimated by $10 million the cost of utilities and other infrastructure.
Gary Sullivan, North East ISD's executive director of construction management and engineering, said he usually builds a 6 percent cushion into bond project estimates, a precaution that has served the district well in the past. But construction projects now under way as part of a 2003 bond issue have eaten into that reserve.
"All that cushion is gone. We're running about 1 percent behind now," Sullivan said. "At this point we're not willing to shortchange any of our projects.
"Over about the last 30 months, we've seen around a 1 percent increase per month. It's not like anything we've ever seen before."
Northside officials hope the $102 million price tag for the school that would be built in the West Potranco Road area won't keep voters from approving a $693 million bond proposal May 12. The district needs the money to build a dozen new schools to keep up with booming enrollment.
If the bond issue fails, Northside — which already uses portable classrooms at many campuses — would be forced to consider measures such as double shifts at schools. Under such a plan, half the students would attend school from early morning to early afternoon and the other half from afternoon to evening.
The bond also includes $10.5 million for 14 new classrooms at Warren High School to house a Construction Trades Academy.
Gary Joeris, president of Joeris General Contractors, said San Antonio schools need to invest in vocational programs, not least because his business needs skilled laborers.
"For years we had shop classes in schools, and in the last decade or so there's been a pull away from that," said Joeris, whose company is building new middle schools in Northside and North East and is in charge of expansions and renovations at North East's Churchill and Roosevelt high schools.
"We need people," he said.
David Flores: New facility a
necessity for NEISD
David Flores, Express-News Sports Columnist
Web Posted: 03/08/2007 09:39 PM CST
San Antonio Express-News
It shouldn't surprise anybody who follows high school sports that a proposal for a new football stadium will be included on the ballot of the North East Independent School District's bond election this spring.
For that matter, it shouldn't surprise anyone who knows anything about the growth of the Northeast Side.
The addition of a new NEISD football stadium, which also would be used for soccer and would include a running track, is expected to cost $27.5 million. That's less than 6 percent of the $498 million bond package.
"That's a very small percentage when you consider the whole thing," Susan Achterberg, co-chair of the NEISD bond committee, said Thursday. "And it's not just about football. We're talking about soccer, track, the band members, the spirit groups and the ROTC kids."
Achterberg will get no argument here. Academics come first, of course, but there's no doubt extracurricular activities enhance a student's educational experience.
The cost of school programs outside the classroom is worth every penny, a wise investment in our children's physical and mental wellness.
Given the scheduling problems NEISD already faces, it was inevitable that district officials would push for a second football facility before Lady Bird Johnson High School opens in 2008.
Even if voters approve the bond package May 12, Comalander Stadium would have to accommodate the seven NEISD schools for at least one season.
That would mean more Saturday afternoon games ? in the heat ? but at least there would be an end in sight.
Comalander Stadium, home to the six NEISD high schools now, is a first-class facility that got a much-needed face-lift with money from a 1998 bond.
But the district simply has outgrown Comalander Stadium, which opened in 1960 as North East Stadium. It was renamed in 2000 to honor NEISD athletic director Jerry Comalander.
The addition of a second stadium should not be perceived as a luxury, although some surely will think just that. But really, it's a necessity.
A second venue would eliminate Thursday night and Saturday afternoon games, which would be good news for parents and students. Administrators and teachers also would be happy to see the end of football games played on a weeknight.
Building a second stadium also makes good business sense. The district is going to have to add a new stadium sooner or later, so why not do it now? Given rising building costs, it would be foolish to wait.
In the final analysis, it's the students who will benefit.
"This is something that is desperately needed," said Achterberg, a MacArthur band parent. "We're one of the few districts in the state this size that doesn't have two stadiums."
The bond committee, which has more than 100 people from throughout the NEISD community, submitted its recommendations to the board of trustees after hearing presentations from staff members for months.
Voters will not have the option of being selective on the bond package because it will be on the ballot as one proposal.
"There might be some heartburn over the stadium but we believe the package speaks for itself," NEISD board president Beth Plummer said. "This is an academic and health issue. Thursday night games cut into study time during the week and the heat on Saturday afternoons can be oppressive."
The bond package also includes funds to install air conditioning in all the district's high school, middle school and elementary school gyms. The high school locker rooms and weight rooms also would get air conditioning.
The only athletic facilities in the district that have air conditioning now are Littleton Gym, which is adjacent to Comalander Stadium at Blossom Athletic Center, and each school's training room.
Not even Reagan, the newest NEISD high school, has air conditioning in its gyms.
Adding air conditioning to gyms would be especially good news to volleyball teams, which face the challenge of starting workouts in stifling conditions in early August.
"There's a perception out there that our gyms have air conditioning, but that's simply not true," Comalander said. "You'd like to think that improving the conditions in those gyms, especially for our volleyball teams, would add to attendance and participation."
Money is tight everywhere but investing in our children's overall education is always worth the sacrifice.
NEISD to ask voters for $498 million
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 02/20/2007 01:54 AM CST
San Antonio Express-News
Voters on San Antonio's North Side will have big-dollar decisions to make during the May 12 election when the city's two largest school districts will ask their residents to approve bond issues totaling nearly $1.2 billion to keep up with phenomenal growth on the far North Side.
Trustees for North East Independent School District approved a $498 million bond proposal Monday. The district is growing by 1,600 students a year, and $132 million of the bond is earmarked to build four new elementary schools north of Loop 1604.
The district has built seven schools since 2003, including Lopez Middle and Johnson High School, slated to open next year.
"On the North Side, it just seems like we can't build schools fast enough," said Beth Plummer, president of North East's board of trustees. "It's a nice problem to have. We want people to want to come here, and at the same time we have to keep up with the growth."
Neighboring Northside ISD trustees approved a nearly $700 million bond proposal last month ? the biggest in San Antonio history. Northside plans to use the money to build a dozen schools and fund about $275 million worth of upgrades, renovations and classroom additions.
Officials in both districts say property owners' tax bills will go down for the first two years, even if the bonds are passed, because of the state Legislature's mandate to drop the rate for the maintenance and operations portion of the school property tax bill over two years. The rate already dropped from $1.50 to $1.33 per $100 of assessed value for 2006 and will drop to $1 this year.
Growth has been so explosive on the far North Side, especially in the cramped Stone Oak area, that Middleton had to cap enrollment at Reagan High and Bush Middle ? two of the district's most popular schools ? last year.
The cap, which included a stipulation that only residents with a contract on a house or a signed lease by the end of April could send their children to Reagan or Bush if their children weren't already enrolled, sparked a land rush in the surrounding neighborhoods.
Those schools expect to see some relief when Johnson High and Lopez Middle open next year.
Enrollment at several North East elementary schools also has been capped, and the only thing that will relieve the burden at those schools is the new elementary schools in the current bond proposal, district spokeswoman Deborah Caldwell said.
North East Superintendent Richard Middleton said his district isn't only dealing with growth in the northernmost part of the district, but also old, outdated facilities in the southern and eastern portions.
"It has always been a big concern for us to not only provide for growth but also provide for equity," Middleton said. "We want every student in our district to have access to great facilities."
If approved, the bond would help bring those old campuses up to the level of the new ones to the north.
Besides money for four new elementary schools, the bond also would finance classroom additions to replace portable classrooms, upgrades and additions to athletic and fine arts facilities at 25 campuses, and a new agriculture-science magnet program facility at Madison High.
It also would pay for air-conditioned gyms at every elementary, middle and high school where students are still exercising in the heat.
"In the spring, it gets up into the 100s in those gyms," Middleton said. "It's a health issue."
The bond also will provide $27.9 million to build a new football stadium for the district.
Middleton said he doesn't know of another district with seven high schools using only one stadium. Games have to be played on Thursday nights, and when Johnson High opens, Saturday afternoon games in the heat of September will have to be added to the schedule.
"We've tried everything: holding games at soccer fields, but there's not enough parking; the Alamodome, but that's unpredictable," Middleton said. "This is the best long-term solution."
North East ISD planning to call bond issue
Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Express-News Staff Writer
Web Posted: 02/13/2007 12:27 AM CST
San Antonio Express-News
North East Independent School District trustees plan to vote next week on whether to ask taxpayers to approve a nearly $500 million bond issue in a May 12 election.
The money would be used to build at least four new schools and update old campuses.
The district's facility study committee recommended going for the bond at a meeting Monday night. The board will vote on whether to approve the bond proposal next Monday.
Superintendent Richard Middleton said outdated facilities in the southern and eastern parts of the district need to be addressed, as well as the challenges of growth in the north.
"Their hearts are in the right place in looking to provide equity for this school district," said Middleton, referring to study committee members.
North East is growing by 1,600 students a year, and the district has built seven new schools since 2003, including Jose M. Lopez Middle and Claudia Taylor (Lady Bird) Johnson High School on the far North Side, slated to open next year.
Besides money for four new elementary schools, the bond issue would also finance additions to replace portable classrooms, upgrades and additions to athletic and fine arts facilities at 25 campuses, and a new agriculture-science magnet program facility at Madison High.
It would also pay for air-conditioned gyms in every middle and high school where students are still exercising in the heat.
"Every campus will be touched by this bond," said district spokeswoman Deborah Caldwell.
In neighboring Northside ISD, trustees approved a nearly $700 million bond proposal last month ? the biggest in San Antonio history. It will also go to the voters May 12.
Northside plans to use the money to build a dozen new schools and for about $275 million worth of upgrades, renovations and classroom additions.
Though Northside can barely build schools fast enough to keep up with growth, Middleton said a slowdown is in sight for North East. Quarries and large family ranches now take up much of the available land in the district.
The district is dealing with extreme crowding on the far North side, north of Loop 1604.
Middleton capped enrollment at Reagan High and Bush Middle ? two of the district's most popular schools ? last year. But the opening of Johnson High and Lopez Middle should ease the burden at those two schools.
Several elementary schools are also capped, and the only way to relieve crowding there would be the four new elementary schools in the bond proposal, Caldwell said.
The proposal also includes plans to build a new football stadium. Currently, schools share the Blossom athletic facility.
Board president Beth Plummer said that with six and soon to be seven high schools, one athletic facility means games Thursday nights and during the heat of the day Saturday afternoons.
"I cannot imagine that the board would do anything other than approve the recommendations," she said.
"It's important to deal with the growth and the equity issues in our district."
Growth remains hot issue in '07
Chuck McCollough EXPRESS-NEWS STAFF WRITER
Publication Date : January 10, 2007
San Antonio Express-News
Growth, change and the issues they spawn will make 2007 even more dynamic than 2006 on the Northeast Side, education, neighborhood and elected officials predict.
Bond issues by San Antonio and North East Independent School District will grab a lot of headlines in 2007, but so too will such topics as seeking state money for schools and transportation improvements. And crime control, sidewalks and bike paths are on the radar of neighborhood groups.
Following are topics to keep an eye on in 2007:
Schools
NEISD Superintendent Richard Middleton and Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District Superintendent Belinda Pustka said the new year starts with an old problem for educators -- how to pay for things.
Middleton said two financial issues dominating his 2007 agenda will be a $400 million bond issue and trying to get more state money from the Texas Legislature.
"The big question for educators is can the Texas Legislature generate new funds for schools that were lost to the property tax relief passed last year. And will there be enough money to take into account new student growth and inflation?" he said.
Uncertainty about state funding is coupled with concern over the lack of local control by school districts in their ability and flexibility to raise local funds for operations, Middleton said.
"As the state legislative session opens, we are in uncharted waters regarding how Texas school districts will operate for the next four or five years. NEISD is growing by about 2,000 students a year," he said.
That growth will be addressed in the bond issue NEISD plans to bring to the voters in May or November. The bond issue will call for constructing new schools and renovating some existing ones.
"We need four to five new elementary schools between now and 2015, more middle schools by 2010, and we could be looking at building a second football stadium in the years ahead," Middleton said.
Pustka said she would like to see state lawmakers come through with more money in 2007.
"In 2007, we want to be competitive in hiring and retaining the best teachers and district employees. We were able to give good raises last year, and we have high expectations for our employees and our students," she said.
The district is expected to have more residential growth this year; it only has 30 percent to 40 percent of its area developed so far. The district had a successful bond issue in 2006 and will open new wings at Watts Elementary School and Jordan Intermediate School in fall 2007, Pustka said.
"Work will start on three new schools this year, and they will open in fall 2008," she said.
The superintendent said she is working to make curriculum additions to schools in 2007.
"I would like to see a strings musical program added to intermediate schools and an art program added to elementary schools this fall," she said.
Suburbs
Craig Martin, chairman of the Northeast Partnership for Economic Development, said suburban cities also are looking to state lawmakers for help in 2007.
"We want to get our share of highway funding for projects in this area like expansion of Loop 1604 to four lanes and extensions of FM 3009 and Crestway Drive," he said.
"Another big issue for suburban cities this year will be Edwards Aquifer pumping reductions and how to balance that with continued development and growth in our area."
Martin, who also is mayor of Converse, said he will try to work a deal with Universal City in 2007 so that Converse can get a small piece of the Northeast Lakeview College campus.
"Converse has VIA service that could allow students to ride VIA buses to the campus," Martin said, noting that Universal City and Live Oak (where the campus is located) do not have VIA bus service.
Neighborhoods
District 10 Neighborhood Alliance President Sherri Dugas said crime is a growing problem in the area.
"It is at the forefront of obvious concerns we have. There is more awareness of an increase in crime in some areas of District 10 and the surrounding areas," she said.
Dugas said the alliance is proactive in working with police to address crime, especially regarding signs of gang activity.
Northeast Side neighborhood groups are taking a lot of interest in the city's $550 million bond issue, slated to go before voters May 12, she said.
"The bond issue will encompass a lot of street and drainage issues, and most neighborhoods would like to see the projects in their area. But we are trying to look at the big picture and projects on a priority basis."
Dugas said she would like more bike paths and parks to be included in the bond issue, especially for District 10.
She said the alliance in 2007 will continue to monitor and work on issues that have seen progress, such as noise abatement and bandit signs.
Bexar County
Precinct 4 Commissioner Tommy Adkisson said he hopes the new year will include expansion of two important roads on the Northeast Side.
"We will see the county bond issue continuing to expand North Foster Road and Woodlake Parkway. Those projects should go to bid in 2007," he said. "And we would like to see a new reliever road to the AT&T Center and improvements to the new county park near Cibolo."
Adkisson said 2007 also could be the beginning of a comeback for Windsor Park Mall, more soccer fields on the Northeast Side and an expansion of missions at Fort Sam Houston.
The commissioner said he will continue pressing for renewable energy sources and more energy conservation by Bexar County government so it can set an example for the local community.