From Staff Reports
news@princetonherald.com

With early voting over, the rest of Princeton’s registered voters can head to the polls from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, May 10 at Princeton City Hall.

Four people are running for two open seats on the Princeton ISD Board of Trustees, including incumbent Angela Dooley, challenges John Murray, Donnie Campbell and Rebecca Henry.

On the Princeton City Council, incumbents Bruce Beauchamp and J.M. Caldwell are running unopposed, and incumbent Rocky Lemley and challenger Ken Bowers are vying for Place 5.

The May 10 ballot will also include a Princeton ISD bond package, which includes about $46 million in improvements to district facilities.

Among those improvements would be the expansion and enhancement of the football stadium, a second gymnasium for Clark Junior High School, a new multi-purpose athletic facility, renovations and expansion to the
agricultural barn, security vestibules at Lacy and Godwin elementaries, a sidewalk from Clark to the high school, handicap accessible playgrounds at Lacy and Godwin elementary schools, and other items.

Another major project in the package is the total overhaul of the plumbing at Godwin Elementary. When the school was built in 1999, contractors failed to install the underground sewer pipes in sand and gravel.

Since then, the unstable black clay soil has caused the pipes to move, resulting in ongoing plumbing problems, according to district staff.

About $23 million of the proposed projects would be spent on classroom space.

The previous bond issue passed in 2001 was for $45.5 million, and served a 10-year plan through 2011.

That plan included the building of the high school, the third elementary school, which is set to open in the fall of 2008, additional classrooms at Godwin, and a renovation of all the classrooms in the district.

The newest bond proposal addresses more athletic facilities needs to make up for what was not addressed in the last bond proposal, Anthony said.

The facilities built with the last bond issue are up-to-par facilities, according to district staff, but the current bond package is meant to enhance remaining facilities and especially those related to extra-curricular activities, bringing those up to the size and standards of other similarly sized school districts.

The most hotly contested ballot item this year is likely to be the proposed home rule charter for the City of Princeton.

Under state law, general law cities like Princeton have no local charter or other governing document.

These cities cannot do or enact anything that is not specifically permitted by the laws of the state.

When a city becomes home rule, that city operates under its own charter, which acts as its constitution.

According to proponents, home rule allows the city more discretion in the types of regulations and planning activities it can pursue. More than 90 percent of all Texas cities of 5,000 population or greater have home rule charters.

Under the proposed charter, the city would:
• Switch to a six-member city council with a voting mayor.
• Created a city manager position. The manager would serve as the administrative officer of the city. The manager is responsible to the city council. (Currently, the mayor is the chief administrative officer of the city)
• Require members of city boards and commissions to be residents of the city (currently non-residents can serve), unless six of the seven council members vote to permit a non-resident to serve.
• Permit the recall of elected officials with 30 percent of registered voters petitioning.
• Allow initiative authority of the voting public. An initiative allows the public to gather signatures from at least 30 percent of the number of votes in the most recent city election in order to enact a specific ordinance or resolution. An initiative would require the city to either adopt the ordinance or put it to a vote before the public.
• Allow referendum authority. This allows citizens to require that an ordinance or resolution passed by the city council be submitted to voters for approval or disapproval. The petition requiring the referendum must be signed by 30 percent of the number of votes in the most recent city election.

The home rule form of government also allows cities more flexibility in annexing land with or without approval of residents to be annexed.

A home-rule city may also set a maximum property tax rate of $2.50, compared to $1.50 per $100 valuation for a general-law city.

(Due to its population, the city can currently already set a maximum property tax rate of $2.50)

The home-rule charter proposal failed in November.

Of the 2,248 registered voters in Princeton, a total of 226 came to the polls. The final result was 149 against the proposed home rule charter and 117 in favor.

In early voting 81 residents cast ballots: 45 in favor of the home rule charter, 36 against.