AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) — The Amarillo City Council met Tuesday and one of the things on the agenda was to consider two Certificates of Obligation focused on improving streets and municipal airport hangars.
The Amarillo City Council passed both Certificates of Obligation unanimously in a five-to-zero vote.
With that passage, Interim Deputy Assistant City Manager Laura Storrs said that a tax increase will be needed to absorb the $13,500,000 that will be used to pay contractual obligations to be incurred for constructing and improving streets, including drainage, landscaping, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, entryways, pedestrian pathways, signage, traffic signalization, and the acquisition of land and rights-of-way therefore and professional services rendered in connection therewith.
“It was about a little over half a penny that was not taken forward in the property tax rate to our citizens, but held back …So the way this works is you issue the debt this year and the first payment on a debt issuance will not occur until next fiscal year, so what we will do during the budget process, is say ok the tax rate is going to have to adjust to absorb this annual debt service payment, so that little over half a penny that you did not put on the property tax rate this year, we would bring that back next budget cycle and say we need to use that now to pay for this debt service going forward,” said Storrs.