Tax notes OK'd for annex expansion
By DAVID LOWE Staff Writer

The Lampasas County Commissioners Court on Monday unanimously approved $4 million in tax notes to fund expansion of the Lampasas County Office Building, or "annex."

The seven-year notes, approved at a 3.35 percent interest rate, are not subject to petition, and they will become effective without an election. The court will not pursue certificates of obligation, which commissioners considered at earlier meetings.

After the Commissioners Court took no action April 7 on a proposal to authorize 20-year certificates of obligation, Bank of America withdrew its offer of 3.94 percent interest on certificates. If the court had waited for verification of a petition calling for an election on certificates of obligation, construction costs and interest rates likely would have risen, commissioners said.

"It's a no-brainer to get it done now," Precinct 2 Commissioner Alex Wittenburg said of expanding the annex. "We've got a problem. We're out of room. If we wait, all we do is increase the burden for taxpayers."

Precinct 3 Commissioner Lowell Ivey said several of his constituents asked him to vote for tax notes to expand the county office building, which commissioners say lacks enough room to store printed copies of county records.

Although opponents of using certificates of obligation for annex expansion submitted a petition with 723 signatures, no citizens at Monday's meeting spoke against funding the project through tax notes.

"We've got a select few of about 600 people who are ruling everything we do for the business of this county," Ivey said of petition signers, "and we have 22,000 (county residents)."

Several citizens have voiced concerns about demolishing the former Brooks' grocery store on Pecan Street to expand the annex, County Auditor Jack Clark said. They would prefer to expand across an alley behind the annex and connect to the existing county building with a breezeway, he said. Clark invited the audience at the Commissioners Court meeting to comment.

Judy Hetherly, representing Vision Downtown Lampasas!, said the downtown revitalization group has not taken an official position on the Brooks building.

Precinct 4 Commissioner Jack B. Cox said the court plans to use the same exterior on the county office addition as on the existing annex building.

The county may refinance the tax notes any time before 2014. Bond attorney Burt Fowler told the court the county likely will get a lower interest rate by starting with seven-year tax notes and then refinancing than it would have by authorizing 20-year certificates of obligation.

As Lampasas County and its tax base grow, individual property owners will face less of a burden from tax notes, Clark said.

"As the property values increase, it takes away the impact of these taxes," he said. "For every $100 million that goes up in property tax values, we raise an additional $52,000 (per year)."

In another item, the court voted 3-2 against adding a 2 percent sales tax to fireworks. Wittenburg, Cox and Ivey voted against the proposed tax. County Judge Wayne Boultinghouse and Precinct 1 Commissioner Robert Vincent voted for the levy.

Revenues would have paid for firefighter education and training, Vincent said. The tax would not have stopped people from buying fireworks, he added.

Bob Stewart, owner of Bob's Discount Fireworks, however, told the court an extra tax would have penalized customers seeking legal entertainment.

"You're putting the blame on the fireworks when it's the people who use them that start the fires," he said.

Stewart said he accepts bans on fireworks with sticks and fins but has lost money from not selling the items.

"If you keep raising taxes on us, eventually I may go out of business," Stewart said.

He added he only sells fireworks two times a year for about 10 days at a time.

"It seems to me it would be reasonable not to tax them extra, considering how short a time they are there trying to make money," Cox added.

Stand owners do a good job controlling the kind of fireworks they sell, the commissioner said.

In other business, the court voted unanimously to rescind bids for sidewalls on County Road 4630. Vincent said he estimated the project in his precinct will cost $30,000 to $50,000, but he would like to find a contractor willing to complete the work for less than $30,000.

"I'd like to have more more time to consider this some more, work some things around, and maybe we can save the taxpayers some money," Vincent said.

In addition, commissioners voted 5-0 to appoint Cecil Crawford and Bobbye Behlau to the Lampasas County Historical Commission.