Eanes Independent School District could be heading for one of the biggest facelifts in its history, with trustees signaling Tuesday that a sweeping bond package may land on the May 2027 ballot. After hearing long-range facility recommendations, board members discussed a plan that would touch nearly every campus and potentially redraw attendance zones across Westlake and the surrounding community.
Administrators said the concept on the table would reach into elementary, middle, and high school sites and could reshape not just where students go to school, but what those campuses look like once the dust settles.
At a Feb. 24 board meeting, Chief Financial Officer Chris Scott walked trustees through early financial modeling that put the Long Range Facility Planning Committee's full slate of ideas at roughly $900 million, with about $800 million tagged for construction and $100 million for maintenance and operations. Scott told the board that the district's debt service rate, currently at a historically low 12 cents per $100 of assessed value, could climb to as much as 43 cents per $100 by 2036 under a no-growth scenario, with different outcomes projected under 2.5% and 5% tax base growth.
Scott added that the district does not necessarily have to chase the full $900 million figure. Packages in the $200 million to $400 million range could still be “transformative” while producing smaller tax rate impacts, as reported by Community Impact.
What the LRFPC recommended
The district's Long Range Facility Planning Committee recommended shifting to a four-elementary campus model, with Eanes Elementary repurposed as a central early childhood hub rather than a traditional neighborhood school. The blueprint calls for full rebuilds of Cedar Creek Elementary, Forest Trail Elementary, and Hill Country Middle School, along with additions and modernizations at Barton Creek Elementary and Bridge Point Elementary.
Westlake High School would also see a large-scale reconstruction and renovation effort under the committee's vision. The LRFPC report lays out suggested phasing, staging, and community feedback steps to sequence the work over time, as detailed in the LRFPC recommendations.
Timeline and next steps
Trustees have already taken an early procedural step, agreeing this spring to convert the district's Bond Oversight Committee into a Bond Advisory Committee that will help the board assemble a prioritized list of projects.
The Bond Advisory Committee is expected to begin meeting in the fall to refine cost estimates and timelines. Under the working schedule, the board would receive BAC recommendations in December, consider calling an election in January, and, if approved, place a bond before voters in May 2027. District leaders said they plan to “front load” community engagement so residents can weigh in on trade-offs and phasing well before any final decisions are made, as reported by Community Impact.
What it means for homeowners
Eanes currently collects a debt service rate of 12 cents per $100 of assessed value, a level district officials say they have deliberately kept low over multiple bond cycles. The business office has emphasized that most maintenance and operations dollars are subject to state recapture, with roughly 61% of those collections sent back to the state, which can limit the district's day-to-day flexibility and make bond planning one of the few reliable ways to fund major capital projects without losing money to recapture.
District documents from the Eanes ISD Business Services office note that homeowners will be watching how trustees balance package size, timing, and local tax base growth before any election is formally called.
For now, trustees and staff say they will use the spring to narrow priorities and ramp up public outreach, then hand off detailed project scopes to the Bond Advisory Committee and bond counsel. Residents who want to follow the process can track LRFPC materials and board packets on the district's website as the planning work moves forward.
