Temple TIRZ board approves financing-plan amendment as staff outlines multiple roadway, sewer and drainage projects

The Temple Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone board on Monday reviewed progress on major North Loop infrastructure projects and approved an amendment to the zone's financing plan to reallocate reserve funds and land-sale proceeds to several near-term projects.

Project chair John Keith said the board would "go through a few slides here to sign our current projects," and summarized progress on sewer work, street extensions and several downtown and park-area projects. Keith said crews have completed most sewer work under the railroad but that a final connection across the tracks requires an additional change order estimated at $593,835 to upsize the line and increase pumping capacity to handle higher flows.

The financing-plan amendment presented by Tracy reallocated several funding sources to permit near-term project releases. Tracy said the amendment's primary sources included approximately $6.6 million from land-acquisition savings and roughly $5.3 million freed by releasing bond reserve funds following a May bond refunding. "When we issued those…