Voters to decide if Taylor will build recreation center

Voters to decide if Taylor will build recreation center

By Suzanne Haberman Friday, 05 March 2010

TAYLOR — Taylor residents will decide if they want the city to issue $3 million in bonds to build a recreation center when they vote in the city election May 8.

City council members decided during the city council meeting March 4, rescheduled from Feb. 23, to let voters lead the initiative to take on the debt—and the higher taxes—that would come with issuing the bonds.

The vote was not unanimous, however, with Mayor Pro Tem Ella Jez and Councilman Christopher Gonzales dissenting. They voiced their objections in front of a nearly packed council chamber, which seats 73 people. Many of those in attendance had come out to witness the council’s decision on this issue.

“As we look at this resolution we know that the citizens taxes will increase at least 3 cents,” Jez said, citing concern that the council was rushing into a decision without fully understanding the financial consequences.

Gonzales shared Jez’s apprehension over money, saying he was uneasy about taking on a new project in Taylor.

“There are a lot of needs, and we should improve on what we have now,” he said. “It is my focus as a council member to keep the taxes reasonable with the economy that we have. If we increase [taxes] again, it should be toward the improvements that we can give the city as a whole.”

Mayor Rod Hortenstine said he was comfortable with whatever the voters decide.

“They are going to have their way, and we can react accordingly,” he said.

The city’s financial advisers who were present at the meeting explained that the market is favorable for issuing bonds because interest rates and construction costs are low. Also, the $3 million debt would not negatively affect the city’s bond rating, which helps determine its eligibility for favorable interest rates on future bonds.