Opponents to the Wichita Falls bond passed out flyers near Memorial Auditorium urging people to vote “no” because the city already carried too much debt.

This advertisement and several yellow signs throughout the city, all urging residents to vote “no," are paid for by an out-of-town group called Texans for Freedom.

“Taxes are already too high – residents need tax relief,” the flyer reads.

According to Deputy City Manager Jim Dockery, Wichita Falls carries about $160 million in outstanding debt – an amount that is not unusual for a city its size.

Out of 17 similarly sized cities, Wichita Falls ranks 10th in the amount of debt carried.

Of the same cities, Wichita Falls is eighth for highest debt as a percentage of the tax base.

"We have adequate debt capacity to take on the additional debt being considered in the May election," Dockery said Tuesday. "Even if all of the propositions pass, our debt amount will not be out of line with comparable cities or hurt our financial position." 

At least $115 million of this debt, he said, is from the water/sewer funds, which was used for water-system capacity improvements such as Lake Kemp, Reverse Osmosis Plant, Direct Potable and Indirect Potable Reuse Projects.

For this portion of the debt, the projects will generate enough revenue to fund the expense.

"This means that much of our borrowing needs lately have been to address our water supply and treatment infrastructure, not 'general' infrastructure that the bonds approved in May will address," he said.

Of the remaining $45 million in debt, only $9 million is being paid through property taxes, Dockery said. The other $36 million is being paid through other sources like 4B sales tax, airport revenue, FAA grants and stormwater funds.

Some major projects contributing to overall debt number are:

Dockery said when the debt will roll off varies from project to project, but at least $70 million of it will be off the books in five years.

Stagnation becoming a growing problem for Wichita Falls

In the past several years, the city has seen little growth – financial or population.

While Texas has seen increase of more than 16 percent in population over the past 10 years, Wichita Falls' population has increased one percent.

The median household income for Wichita Falls was about $44,000.

According to information from the Texas State Comptroller website, Wichita Falls has seen an increase of 82 percent of tax-supported debt per capita (per person).

Tax-supported debt per person in Wichita Falls is about $1,248.

A comparison of similarly sized cities – completed by the Texas Bond Review Board – shows Wichita Falls is toward the low end of debt per capita.

The cities being compared in that study were Allen, College Station, League City, Lewisville, Pearland, Richardson, San Angelo, Tyler, Wichita Falls and The Woodlands Township.

The highest debt of these 10 cities was Pearland, which has about $443 million in tax-supported city debt with per capita debt of about $4,000.

'Sister city' passes bonds, seeing changes

Abilene – sometimes called the sister city of Wichita Falls, but wasn't included in the TBRB comparison – has seen nearly six percent growth in the same time frame.

The median household income in Abilene was less than Wichita Falls at about $43,000.

Abilene, however, shows a huge spike in tax-supported debt per capita – up 238.2 percent over the past decade.

The city carries more than $418 million in tax-supported debt. Their tax-supported debt per capita is $3,427.

One reason for the leap in debt for Abilene is over $88 million in bonds that were passed in 2015 and 2016.

Like the Wichita Falls bond proposal, there were several propositions that could be voted on separately.

The propositions Abilene passed in 2015 included $46 million for streets; $3.8 million for sidewalks; $13 million for police and fire; $2.5 million for splash pads; and $4.2 million for airport improvements.

They approved another bond in 2016 for a $55-million Expo Center.

Without bonds, city must do more with less

Prior to the current bond election, Wichita Falls has not passed a bond in more than 20 years.

Early voting for the current Wichita Falls bond election began Monday.

Seven propositions for quality of life and infrastructure improvements total about $131 million. 

For a person with a $100,000 house, it would cost less than $14 per month in city property taxes, or about 44 cents a day, if all bond propositions were passed.

These types of bonds, said Dockery, allow a city to make a large purchase and pay on it over time, like a mortgage on a house.

The city depends on property and sales tax dollars to fund the budget. Inflation and higher costs of goods and services means city dollars do not stretch as far as they used to.

Each year without growth means city leaders must do more with less.

Chamber CEO: People now choose city, not job

Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce CEO and President Henry Florsheim said during an economic forum presentation last week that the way to increase the economy of the city is to bring in new residents and encourage current residents to stay.

The way to do that, he said, is a long-term task that includes quality of life improvements and infrastructure management.

City residents have said “no” to most city and school bonds for decades, he said, putting the city in a critical situation.

Showing a chart of population growth and decline, Florsheim pointed out that Wichita Falls is declining in population in all age groups except 65 or older.

Florsheim said how people choose where to work and live is different than in the past.

Years ago, people used to get a job and move to a city for that job. These days, he said, people choose where they want to live and then find a job that supports their lifestyle.

Without amenities and reasons for people to come to the city, Florsheim said people will choose to live in communities that have invested in themselves.