Much to the pleasant surprise of members of the Kendall County Parks Advisory Committee, the county commissioners increased the county’s bond measure to secure land for conservation to $20 million, formally placing the measure on the November ballot.
The pressure was on Monday morning for the local commissioners to decide on the measure, which was years in the making, as it was the last day to vote on a measure if the bond proposal were to show up on the next election ballot.
“This is an opportunity for us to move forward in an endeavor I think will have a lasting impact,” County Judge Darrel Lux said. “Commissioner (Don) Durden hit me hard about two weeks ago, or a month ago, when he said, ‘What are you going to tell your grandkids what Kendall County was like when you were a child?’
“So, I feel confident in telling them if you look at the amount of property owned by the Lux family, it will look the same. But it’s not the same strategy used across all of Kendall County. We have people come – we have people call – that say, ‘Just stop. Just say no.’
“And this has not been an easy issue for me because I understand we’ve had some major changes in our valuations. We have young people who are going to be asked possibly to pay more.
“What hit me the other day, is it’s not my responsibility to decide what y’all are going to do. It’s y’all’s responsibility. We have the opportunity to give y’all that opportunity. So, it made my life a lot easier.”
While Brent Evans and other members of the parks advisory committee, which was created last year, thought the bond had been negotiated down to about $13 million during talks with county officials, Lux moved to bump the total up to $20 million after it was found the tax rate increases would be nominal, especially when compared to bonds proposed by other local municipalities.
With bond counsel estimating a $20 million bond would lead to a roughly half-a-cent per $100 increase to the county tax rate, the average Kendall County resident with a home valued at $400,000 can expect to see an additional $24 tacked onto his or her annual bill.
Further reducing this annual impact, which Evans chalked up to a sip of coffee per day and averages out to about 65 cents per day, Lux proposed extending the bond maturity from 12 years to 15 years. This would likely both reduce the rate and the annual impact of the bond on landowners in the county.
The bond is intended to fund the acquisition of land to match the growth boom hitting the Hill Country over the past several decades – oft referred to as unbridled growth – with little signs of stopping with land conservation efforts. While Precinct 3 Commissioner Richard Chapman showed some concern about support for a bond if the funds were used to purchase conservation land or easements where public access would be denied, Lux said people are often worried about having access to areas they wouldn’t visit if they could.
County Auditor Corinna Speer noted that if the money is approved, it would be left to the commissioners to decide how to designate the land and what land to purchase. In the end, it seems land will be acquired both for public-access parks and non-access conservation purposes.
The discussion among commissioners about a potential bond proposal was spurred by a presentation from the executive director of the Hill Country Alliance, a nonprofit organization that for nearly two decades has worked to preserve natural resources in the Hill Country.
During her presentation, HCA Director Katherine Romans urged the county commissioners to match the “explosive growth” in development and population in Kendall County with money toward protecting natural resources and undeveloped land. She said about 4 percent of the land in Kendall County has been developed while 3 percent has been conserved, leaving about 93 percent of the county in limbo.
Several members of the community spoke before and after the bond agenda item was up, including Evans, who detailed the process that led up to the commissioners’ ultimate decision.
“These kinds of projects are more valuable than just the number of gallons of water protected,” Evans said. “These projects teach visitors about the preciousness of our aquifers and water ways and inspire landowners to be good stewards of private water resource lands. And the project can motivate donations of land that protect water resources.”
Timeline
2019 - Ongoing concerns from citizens regarding growth and threats to local resources first spur the conversation with county commissioners about a conservation bond.
2019, fall - The Cibolo Conservancy Land Trust and Hill Country Alliance begins working with the Trust for Public Land to survey county residents on conservation opinions.
2020 - The COVID-19 pandemic puts the conservation bond effort on hold.
2021, spring - The commissioners formally form the Kendall County Parks Advisory Committee and appoint members of the local conservation community.
June 27, 2022 - HCA Director Katherine Romans urges the county commissioners to match development boom with land conservation through a bond measure.
July 25, 2022- Brent Evans, of the Cibolo Center for Conservation and parks advisory committee, announces to commissioners a cold-call survey is being conducted to gauge public support of a conservation bond.
August 22, 2022 - The commissioners formally approve the $20 million conservation bond for the November ballot.
November 8, 2022 - Kendall County residents to vote on several major decisions across the county, including the county conservation bond, a $36 million Boerne bond and a Bergheim ESD.
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