Arlington voters decided this race by a hair in City Council, tax elections
Arlington voters are poised to approve a quarter-cent sales tax increase to fund an Economic Development Corporation, but the future remains unclear for the vote to increase property taxes to fund school district salaries.
Less than 200 ballots separate the 57,732 votes in favor of and 57,558 against raising Arlington School District property taxes to $1.3871 per $100 assessed value, an 8.84-cent increase, according to unofficial election results posted early Nov. 4.
With all 331 voting centers in Tarrant County reporting, the proposal to increase the sales tax rate to 8.25% — the highest rate allowed under state law — to fund the city’s Economic Development Corporation received 70,973 votes in favor and 57,645 votes against it. The election results were posted around 12:30 a.m.
The proposal to raise property taxes for those in the Arlington School District to fund staff salaries retained narrow support from voters throughout the evening, at one point losing support by only 12 votes.
Support for the sales tax increase, however, remained steady through the evening.
Richard Greene, a Star-Telegram columnist and former Arlington mayor, said the sales tax proposal may have seemed more palatable to voters than a property tax increase.
“I think that’s a much higher hurdle to clear, and the school district barely did that,” he said in a phone interview. “It’s interesting to see how different the outcome of those two proposals are.”
Tarrant County early voter turnout surpassed that of the 2016 election. More than 730,000 residents cast their votes either in-person or by mail, surpassing the county’s 2016 turnout of 682,740 ballots cast. Over 101,000 voters cast their ballots on Election Day.
The City of Arlington asked for the sales tax hike to fund its Economic Development Corporation, which was formed in 2015 but was sidelined due to lack of funding. The raise will cost the average resident an extra $15 per year, or $1.25 per month, according to the city website.
If the proposition officially wins voter approval, the city will start establishing the corporation board and open applications for residents wishing to serve, according to Trey Yelverton, city manager. The city may also review and revise its economic development plans to reflect community needs.
“We’ll look to work with the community, and we’ll work to build things from opportunity to improvements in our cities that people will be proud of, that they can look back and think those investments were warranted,” Yelverton said.
City leaders initially placed the question on the May ballot, but the election was pushed to November amid public health concerns due to novel coronavirus.
“I think voters see the value of maintaining a really strong economy, especially when you have a crisis that doesn’t seem to be ending any time soon,” said Brian Mayes, spokesperson for pro-tax increase political action committee Citizens for a Prosperous Arlington.
Meanwhile, Arlington Independent School District asked residents to set property tax rates at $1.3871 per $100 assessed value, an 8.84-cent increase. The hike will cost an average homeowner $162.70 annually on a house appraised at $208,985, according to the district website.
The property tax increase will bring in an additional $56 million in revenue, a fraction of which includes increased state funding. The sales tax will bring in $17.2 million.
The Economic Development Corporation is able under state law to fund projects including job training programs, building renovations or public transportation development.
Residents and groups skeptical of the sales tax proposal suggested the proposal was poorly timed and lacked specific planned uses for the funds. Some, including candidates for Arlington City Council, said the increase might hurt economically disadvantaged residents.
“Arlington is about to suffer the consequences of maxing out our taxes in the middle of economic uncertainty with people losing their jobs and people losing their homes,” said Andy Prior, spokesperson for Citizens for a Better Arlington, a political action group that opposed the measure.
Officials and backers of Citizens for a Prosperous Arlington said the measure is a small investment to help small businesses recover from the economic downturn of the pandemic. Advertising in support of the increase also stated the raise would give the city a competitive edge for drawing in high-paying jobs.
Citizens for a Prosperous Arlington spent $111,439 to campaign for the sales increase, while Pay Our Teachers spent $11,025 to support the property tax, according to campaign finance reports filed Oct. 26.
City Council elections
Arlington voters also decided four City Council seats, one of which is headed to a Dec. 8 runoff. The council races are the first in recent history that voters have taken up in November instead of May.
In District 7, an at-large district, incumbent Victoria Farrar-Myers will face Antoine Lane in a runoff election after no candidate received more than half of the votes. Farrar-Myers had a comfortable lead in the race for her third and final term in the most crowded City Council race, receiving 46,539 votes. Antoine Lane received 19,968, Chris Dobson received 17,023 votes and Hunter Crow received 14,516 votes.
Ruby Faye Woolridge kept a narrow lead over opponent John Hibbs to represent District 6, which covers the entire city. She will replace Robert Shepard, who was first elected in 2008 and could not run again under current term limit provisions. With complete, unofficial results counted Wednesday morning, Woolridge received 55,234 votes, while Hibbs had received 53,263 votes.
Raul Gonzalez kept his early lead in the race for District 2, receiving 15,435 votes, while opponent Jo Anna Cardoza received 13,116. Gonzalez will replace Sheri Capehart, who was first elected in 2000, then again in 2004 after an unsuccessful mayoral run in 2002.
Gonzalez thanked his supporters Tuesday night.
“I look forward to working with you to ensure a bright and great future for our beloved city,” he wrote.
Helen Moise won the race for District 1, which represents north Arlington, against Jeremy “J.J.” Fenceroy. Fenceroy received 7,025 votes, while Moise received 14,177.
Arlingtonians are slated to vote for the remainder of City Council seats and for mayor in the spring.
This story was originally published November 3, 2020 at 7:07 PM.
