Romulus board moves bond vote to Aug. 5, proposes $160 million program with lower millage

The Romulus Community Schools Board of Education on Jan. 13 approved an amended resolution to move a planned bond election from May to Aug. 5, 2025, after a municipal advisor outlined a proposed $160 million capital program and a millage structure that the district says would lower — not raise — the current debt levy.

The change was approved by roll call vote after a presentation from PFM municipal advisor Brody Killian, who told the board the district could extend a reduced 7-mill levy and generate about $160,000,000 in new bond proceeds sold in three series (2025, 2027 and 2029) to finance building and technology projects identified in the district facility review.

The recommendation matters because Romulus officials said long-term property-tax revenues and recent debt payoffs create a narrow window in which the district can fund capital needs while holding levy rates lower than today’s aggregate debt millage. “We’re proposing . . . approximately $160,000,000” in new money, Killian said during his presentation.

Killian summarized the financial case: taxable value in the district has recovered since the Great Recession, recent refinancings and a completed payoff of the district’s school-bond loan revolving fund loan reduced near-term debt service, and those factors together permit an…