The Bond Advisory Committee met for the fourth time to hear a report on the status of the 2023 MISD School Bond.

The committee was reminded of its roles and responsibilities and heard reports on construction and project timelines; finance reports; and communication and community engagement efforts.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Campus project signs have been installed in front of the campuses. Each sign informs the public of the specific projects unique to the specific campus along with a QR code directing the public to the 2023 bond website for more information.

Updates have been made to MidlandBond2023.com, including a revamped Finance page that includes all press releases related to finance, bond sales and anticipated bond sales. Videos have been added to the Bond Advisory webpage along with a section dedicated to meeting recaps.

Since the committee last met, the groundbreaking of the new elementary school has taken place, and a community survey was distributed asking for nominations for the name and mascot of the new school. Per district policy, a committee was formed and will seek approval from the MISD Board of Trustees in September.

OPERATIONS

Project progress on the new elementary school, new high schools, elementary school safety and security updates, middle school updates, and the site improvements taking place at Midland Freshman High School were presented.

The new elementary school is on schedule to open in the fall of 2025. Site work is complete, sub-slab utilities are in, and the grade foundations and slab will be poured soon.

Work on the two new high schools is well underway. The Construction Managers at Risk (CMARs) have been selected and design meetings with district user groups have taken place. Schematic design is scheduled to be complete next month and twelve meetings have taken place with the CMARs on scope and cost review. The projects are on schedule, and the anticipated opening remains the fall of 2028.

Cabling for the elementary school safety and security package has been pulled in 14 of 26 schools, with South Elementary in progress. Schematic design was discussed and included an overview of the new secure vestibules that will be added to these campuses. The bids for these projects will be issued by the end of this year, with an anticipated completion of the fall of 2026.

The first package of middle school work at Goddard Junior High and the current Midland Freshman High School is in the schematic design phase. As previously communicated, these projects were chosen as the first middle school projects to take place as they have the same floor plan. Updates to these campuses include kitchen additions, secured vestibules and classroom additions.

The second middle school package is taking place at Alamo Junior High. Classroom additions and a new library were presented. The two-story classroom addition is expected to be completed in the fall of 2026.

The elementary school safety and security package, which consists of 26 elementary schools, was presented. These projects include security cameras, cabling, and updated/additional access controls. They are scheduled to be completed in March 2025.

Site improvements are also well underway at Midland Freshman High School. The tennis court slab has been poured, track curbs are complete, and the base material is in the final grading stages. This work is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.

At its regular August meeting, the Board of Trustees approved the architecture and engineering firm for Package Eight, which includes four elementary schools – Bush, Scharbauer, DeZavala, and Santa Rita. These campuses were chosen based on the large amount of work needed at these campuses.

FINANCE

As presented to voters prior to the passage of the bond, the overall tax rate for the 2024-25 fiscal year has remained flat at $0.877. The recent defeasance that took place in August was also presented. The defeasance saved taxpayers over $35 million, and the district anticipates future defeasences to save even more.

      Interest Rate

• Planned Interest Rate: 5.25% – 5.50%
• Actual Interest Rate: 4.09%
• Estimated Savings: $310 Million

       Savings

• Total savings since 2012: $56,240,128

• Recent defeasance saved taxpayers $35,812,950

• Total savings to taxpayers from refinancing and defeasing existing debt since 2012 of $92,053,078

• Outstanding principal amount of $15,930,000 remaining, reduced from $125,056,986

The Bond Advisory Committee met for the third time to hear a report on the status of the 2023 MISD School Bond.

The committee was reminded of their roles and responsibilities and heard reports on construction and project timelines; cost of projects and finance reports; and communication and marketing efforts.

OPERATIONS

Procurement procedures were presented about processes school districts must follow related to the procurement of professional services and construction processes. 

Updates were given on the bond packages, and the district reported that of the 1.4 billion bond, $1.1 billion has already been assigned to bond projects. 

The new elementary school is on schedule to open in the Fall of 2025 with the groundbreaking scheduled for June 6th of this year. Since this school is a prototype of the current Fasken and Yarbrough elementaries, district leaders and architects have worked closely with current tenants of the campuses, including principals, nurses, and special education departments, to make adjustments to the design. The budget for the new elementary school is $53,300,000, and the district is pleased to report that the construction bid came in approximately $8,500,000 under budget. 

The committee was presented schematic design views of the high schools, and an overview was given of the layout including academic space placement, traffic flow, parking spaces, fine arts placements, and athletic fields. The designs shown are preliminary and subject to change throughout the design process. 

The elementary school “Group A” package was discussed, and includes campuses currently without security vestibules. Construction on these projects is expected to begin in the spring of 2025.

Package 4, Midland Freshman and Goddard Junior High, make up the first middle school package. These campuses have the same floor plans and will be converted to middle schools when grade reconfiguration takes place in 2028. 

Alamo Junior High School makes up the Middle School Group B package. Elements of this project include new classrooms, a secured vestibule, a new library, dining expansion and kitchen upgrades, and a new sprinkler system. Construction is expected to begin in the Summer of 2025.

Package 6 includes access control updates, security cameras, and emergency communication enhancements to 23 elementary schools. The community can expect to see construction begin this summer.

Site Improvements to Midland Freshman High School encompasses Package 7. Construction on this project is expected to begin this summer.

The remaining bond packages associated with the 2023 MISD school bond are continuing to be developed.

FINANCE

BOND SALE

The first bond sale related to the voter-approved 2023 bond was discussed to provide insight on the successful pricing.

The district’s bond pricing ranked among the top three deals in the negotiated municipal bond market on March 5th for a total issuance amount of $900 million. There was much interest from investors, which led to a lower-than-planned interest rate.

During the bond planning process in 2023, the district assumed an interest rate on bondsales to be between 5.25% – 5.50%. The district is pleased to report that due to the high interest from investors, the true interest rate came in significantly lower at 4.09%, resulting in approximately $310 million in interest savings when compared to the planning amount.

Historical debt savings from refunding and defeasing outstanding debt dating back to Series 2012 were presented along with a future defeasance scheduled for August of this year. The defeasance will pay off a large majority of the existing principal amount for Series 2015-2020.

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY DASHBOARD & WEBPAGE

A dedicated page to MISD Bond 2023 financials has been added to midlandbond2023.com. A pillar of the page includes the financial dashboard, and as been added to provide the community with project spending progress.

COMMUNICATIONS

WEBSITE

The midlandbond2023.com website continues to be used to inform the community of project updates. The website has received major updates in the recent weeks including the dedicated financial page, campus profile updates, and an In the News section.

The Bond Advisory Committee met for the second time to hear a report on the status of the 2023 MISD Bond.

The committee was reminded of their roles and responsibilities and will meet with district leaders quarterly. They will hear reports on construction and project timelines; cost of projects and finance reports; and communication and marketing efforts.

The committee will present to the Bond Planning Committee annually each May and present the final report on Bond 2023 to the Board of Trustees.

OPERATIONS

NEW HIGH SCHOOLS

• Pfluger Architects has been selected for architectural and engineering services of the two new comprehensive high schools based on their qualifications.
• Dunaway has been approved by the Board of Trustees as the surveying firm for the two new high school projects.
• The design phase for the new high schools is currently underway.
• District and campus leaders visited schools in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and Lubbock Cooper. These site visits were intended to provide attendees an idea of how 21st century learning spaces look. The visits allowed attendees to provide feedback to architects about areas of these campuses that would be a good fit for the new Midland High School and Legacy High School.
• Peer group meetings will be held March 5th and 6th to discuss specific areas of design for the new high schools. Pfluger’s architectural team will facilitate these meetings. These meetings are intended to discuss specific areas of the schools with representatives from the district familiar with each area.
• The completion date of the schools is slated for 2028.
• The cost to build the new high schools is $985,200,000.

MIDDLE SCHOOL ADDITIONS/CONVERSIONS

• Programming packages are being developed for the middle schools.
• At the February board meeting, JSA Architects was approved as the architectural and engineering firm, based on their qualifications, that will provide planning, design and construction administration to Goddard Junior High and Midland Freshman High School. Upon grade reconfiguration in 2028, MFHS will be converted to a middle school. These two campuses exhibit the same floor plan, and, combined, create the largest middle school package. It was a priority to begin work on these projects first.
• Completion of classroom additions is slated for August 2026.
• The cost of the middle school additions and conversions is $123,200,000.

NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Parkhill Architects has been selected for the architectural and engineering services of the elementary school based on their qualifications.
• The new elementary school will be a Parkhill prototype design similar to the current Fasken and Yarbrough elementary campuses. This will save significant costs and design time.
• Because Parkhill is the Project Manager for the overall Bond project, they will not receive management fees associated with the elementary project.
• Campus leaders from Fasken Elementary and Yarbrough Elementary have met with Parkhill to provide feedback and suggestions for making improvements to the design of the new campus.
• The target completion date is scheduled for 2025, and groundbreaking is intended to take place late spring or early summer of this year.
• The project cost is $53,300,000.

SAFETY AND SECURITY

• Packages are currently being developed for the design phase of safety and security projects that will take place district-wide.
• Vandergriff Group Architects, based on their qualifications, was approved by the Board of Trustees as the architectural and engineering firm that will provide planning, design and construction administration at eight elementary schools. This eight school package was given priority as these campuses are currently without security vestibules. The elementary schools in this package include: Bush, De Zavala, General Tommy Franks, Lamar, Parker, Sam Houston, Santa Rita, and Scharbauer elementaries.
• Targeted completion of all safety and security projects district-wide is August 2028.
• The cost for all safety and security projects is $50,300,000.

UPGRADES TO AGING FACILITIES

• Packages are currently being developed for the design phase of the projects.
• All projects have a target completion date of August 2028.
• The overall cost for upgrades to aging facilities is $203,400,000.

FINANCE

BOND SALE

At the February meeting of the Board of Trustees, the order authorizing the issuance of Midland ISD Unlimited Tax School Building Bonds at the amount of $900 million was approved. The sizing of the first bond issuance will provide approximately 28-30 months of projected expenditures. The remaining amount of unissued bonds is projected to be issued in 2026; however, this will solely depend on the need.

S&P AND MOODY RATINGS

Moody’s issued MISD an Aa1 rating and improved its outlook to “positive” from “stable.” S&P confirmed its AA rating. This can lead to low interest rates for the upcoming bondsale. These high ratings are great for both bond investors and Midland taxpayers. They show investors that MISD bonds are a low-risk investment. For the taxpayer, these ratings should result in a lower interest rate, saving on total repayment.

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY DASHBOARD

A financial dashboard will soon be added to midlandbond2023.com to provide the community with project spending progress.

COMMUNICATIONS

WEBSITE

The midlandbond2023.com website will continue to be used to inform the community of project updates. The website will regularly be updated with project status and financial information along with Bond Advisory Committee meeting recaps. A financial dashboard will be added to the site to keep the transparency of bond spending at the forefront.

BOND ADVISORY COMMUNICATION

An overview of communication that will be sent to the Bond Advisory Committee members was presented. Members of the committee will receive monthly previews of bond items that will be reported and/or voted on during regular monthly school board meetings. Recaps of the quarterly Bond Advisory Committee Meetings will be sent to committeemembers as well as the Midland community at large. In the interim, should any items of note arise, Bond Advisory Committee members will receive notification.

STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION PLAN

The MISD Communications Department, along with Parkhill and Pfluger, have been working together to create a strategic communications plan that aligns communication and project planning, design, and construction phases.

SIGNAGE

Signs have been placed at the sites of the new elementary school in Lone Star Trails and the locations of the new MHS and LHS.

Campus packages are being developed, and signs will be placed in front of campuses once those have been finalized.

The Bond Advisory Committee met for the first time to hear a report on the status of the 2023 MISD Bond that passed in November.

The committee was introduced to their roles and responsibilities and will meet with district leaders quarterly. They will hear reports on construction and project timelines; cost of projects and finance reports; and communication and marketing efforts.

The committee will present to the Bond Planning Committee annually each May and present the final report on Bond 2023 to the Board of Trustees.

OPERATIONS

NEW HIGH SCHOOLS

• An overview of the programming, design, and construction phases of the new high schools was given.
• The completion date of the schools is slated for 2028.
• The cost to build the new high schools is $985,200,000.

MIDDLE SCHOOL ADDITIONS/CONVERSIONS

• An overview of the programming, design, and construction phases of the middle school additions and conversions was given.
• Completion of classroom additions is slated for August 2026.
• The cost of the middle school additions and conversions is $123,200,000.

UPGRADES TO AGING FACILITIES

• Packages are currently being developed for the design phase of the projects.
• All projects have a target completion date of August 2028.
• The overall cost for upgrades to aging facilities is $203,400,000.

SAFETY AND SECURITY

• Packages are currently being developed for the design phase of safety and security projects that will take place district-wide.
• Targeted completion of all projects is August 2028.
• The cost for all safety and security projects is $50,300,000.

NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• An overview of the design and construction phases of the new elementary school that will be built in the Lone Star Trails subdivision.
• The target completion date is scheduled for 2025.
• The project cost is $53,300,000.

PROJECT MANAGER

The committee received an introduction from Parkhill, the Bond Program Manager, and learned about their roles and responsibilities throughout the process including staying on scope, budget, and schedule.

FINANCE

RESOLUTION FOR REIMBURSEMENT

In September, the Board of Trustees passed a resolution that allows the district to reimburse themselves for expenses incurred related to Bond 2023, up to $50 million dollars. This allows the district to begin working on all bond projects without having to wait for bond dollars to be sold and received prior to spending funds.

Without a reimbursement resolution, incurring any cost associated with the bond program prior to selling bonds, the district would be required to spend local funds, which are already subject to recapture, and would result in the district not being reimbursed. 

BOND SALE

The district is reviewing the construction timeline and working with our financial advisor to plan future bond sales strategically. Bond sales are expected to begin in the spring/summer of 2024.

RFQ TIME FRAME

An RFQ will be sent on November 30 to create a pool of underwriters for the district to utilize moving forward. The district will recommend the pool of qualified underwriters to the board before the March board meeting.

FINANCIAL PROCESS

The district will work with the Bond Program Manager to ensure projects stay within budget, review all construction invoices for accuracy, and provide financial transparency throughout the duration of the bond program

COMMUNICATIONS

WEBSITE

The midlandbond2023.com website will continue to be used to inform the community of project updates. The website will regularly be updated with project status and financial information along with Bond Advisory Committee meeting recaps.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Ideas were discussed surrounding community engagement including the creation of regularly produced project update videos and ground breakings.