Proposed bonds worth hundreds of millions of dollars would pay for public school construction, parks and Wake Tech expansion
Wake County is proposing a $531 million bond to pay for public school construction and a $353 million bond to expand Wake Technical Community College.
“You’re adding more to the cost of families, and that’s something we ought to be concerned about,” said OneWake member Rev. Mykal Brickhouse.
OneWake is a grassroots group advocating for property tax relief.
“Is this the right time?” Brickhouse asked. “Are we going to be overtaxing people who are already heavy burdened?”
Proposed bonds would build Wake education opportunities
The possibility of higher taxes would come from two proposed bonds that would be on the ballot for Wake County voters in November: One for public school construction and the other for projects at Wake Tech Community College.
Wake Tech President Scott Ralls said the college has a $1 billion impact each year on the county.
“If we were shrinking or we were standing still, we wouldn’t need to grow, but what you get from this for our students and our community is return on investment,” Ralls said.
Ralls explained his hopes for the bond to pass to add more funding for Wake Tech.
“Our hope is to continue to do that with the facilities that will allow us to expand to meet both the expansion opportunities in our county, but also to contribute to the rich opportunities for jobs that are coming to our region and are growing in our region,” Ralls said. “It’s all about jobs for us.”
Proposed parks bond for Raleigh residents
The city of Raleigh also wants to add a $275 million bond to pay for more than 20 park projects. People who live inside the city limits of Raleigh are also due to vote on the parks bond.
“I’m not in big favor of increasing taxes, but I am in favor of helping out our parks,” said John Chavis Memorial Park jogger Jennifer Barker. “I take my kids all the time to the parks, and I use them for running, so, at least I’m utilizing them.”
Wake County's bonds would cost homeowners one cent more for every $100 their property is valued to be worth. City of Raleigh taxpayers can add roughly 4 cents on top of that for their parks.
Based on the average home value of $337,000 in Wake County, the average tax bill for a county homeowner would go up $33.70 per year. In Raleigh, the average home value is $317,493. That homeowner would pay an extra $31.75 for the county bonds tax, plus about $127 more for the city parks taxes for a total increase of $158.75 a year.
“I feel we can’t afford not to do it,” said Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin.
Baldwin backs the parks bond. It includes a Play Plaza in Dix Park and the new Devereaux Meadow urban park along Capitol Boulevard and Peace Street.
“If [there is] anything we learned during COVID, it’s how important it is for our parks to be there for us,” Baldwin said.
Brickhouse worries the cost of that progress will leave people behind.
“If we are thinking about those families who are already suffering, many of them will not be able to see the benefits of these bonds,” Brickhouse said.
