The upcoming election for the Community Center project is a hot topic in our community, and I’ve already had the opportunity to discuss this initiative with many of our residents.
I have heard from many residents over the years who have suggested making some changes to the Community Center, with a rodeo arena being the most popular suggestion. Our recently adopted Community Center & Fairgrounds Master Plan articulates a series of improvements that would help to meet the community’s goals for the facility.
When considering how we would fund this project, it was important to me that we look at how other communities have funded similar big-ticket facilities. Ultimately, we were able to come up with a plan to fund the project without raising the tax rate and without taking away from important initiatives.
One of the proposed funding sources would be a Venue Tax consisting of an additional 2% tax on hotel room stays and a 5% tax on short-term motor vehicle rentals. This is the measure that Victoria voters will decide on when they go to the polls on May 3.
Another proposed source is certificate of obligation bonds, or CO bonds. This is the only funding source that has any connection to property taxes, and even so, it will not affect the tax rate.
I am proud to say that the City has managed a responsible debt program these past several years, paying off debts early whenever possible. It was because of these efforts that the City last year was able to significantly decrease the I&S rate, which is the portion of the tax rate that goes toward paying off debt.
Between this responsible debt management, the Venue Tax and other specialized funding sources, we will be able to fund this project without impacting property taxes.
It is also important to clarify that this project will not detract from other important initiatives, such as street projects and salaries. The City remains on pace to meet our goal of repairing 112 miles of streets during fiscal years 2022-2026, a 50% increase compared to the previous five-year period. Incidentally, North Street is one of the roads slated for improvement during the next five-year planning window, including the area in front of the Community Center.
As for salaries, it should be noted that all (yes, all) of the funding for this project is from specialized sources that cannot be used for salaries: the Venue Tax must be used for a venue project, CO bonds must be used for one-time expenses, and so forth. Employee compensation is an important issue that we will address more thoroughly in next year’s budget, and this project will not detract from that effort in any way.
Another question that residents often ask is: Why not build a new community center somewhere else? I suspect that many who ask this are not aware of the sheer cost of building a new community center. It would cost about $70-80 million, not including the cost of purchasing land, to build a new community center that is the same as the one we have now, versus $35 million to improve the one that we currently own.
Another problem is that the people who want us to build in another location have different ideas about where that should be. For example, some people say that it should be on the north side of town, close to hotels and restaurants, while others say that it should be in an open area out in the County.
It is important to remember that our Community Center fulfills several functions—conventions, conferences, livestock shows, private events, etc.—so there is no one ideal location for the facility. If money were no object then we could simply build multiple facilities in multiple locations; however, renovating the facility makes the best use of the resources that we have.
Still others wonder if Victoria really has enough tourism and events to justify this sort of thing. Downtown alone has hosted hundreds of events since the De Leon Plaza renovation last year, and we receive thousands of hotel room night stays per year from events. However, this project is not only about attracting out-of-town events; it’s also about giving residents an improved facility for church festivals, weddings, quinceañeras and much more.
Early voting for this election starts on April 22, and election day is Saturday, May 3. We hope that all registered voters will educate themselves about this project before they head to the polls. To learn more, visit www.victoriatx.gov/communitycenter.
Jesús A. Garza is the city manager for the City of Victoria.