In a 4 to 3 vote, the Lubbock City Council voted to move forward with a Public Safety Improvement project the council has been talking about for months.
This is the first official vote that has gone through city council after months of discussions and open houses on how to fund the project and what the money would do.
The project, which will build a new police headquarters and three police substations, is going to cost the city $60 million. The money is coming from the issuance of certificate of obligation bonds. They debt will be paid back by increasing property taxes for Lubbock city residents.
The increase will be about three cents for $100 home valuation. That increase is estimated to be around $42 a year for the median home price in Lubbock.
The entire city council was in favor of the project that will improve public safety. But several council members wanted the public to have a chance to vote. Instead, the council passed it on Monday on it’s own.
Council members all agreed the police department needed an upgrade to their facilities to continue to protect and serve efficiently.
“The plan tonight could fundamentally change the way our police department looks to us,” said councilman Steve Massengale. “They will be in our neighborhood, they will be decentralized. We’ll have better access, they will look at our city differently. And we are so blessed to live in a prosperous city, but with that comes crime.”
The new tax rate will start in the 2018-2019 fiscal year.
