Fulshear council calls May bond election to fund Primrose Park Phase 3 and parkland acquisition

The Fulshear City Council voted to approve ordinance number 2025-1478, calling a May 2025 election on general obligation bonds to fund Primrose Park Phase 3 and parkland acquisition.

Council members and staff said the measure would fund near-term construction tied to Primrose Park Phase 2 and Phase 3 work and purchase additional parkland. A Parks and Recreation representative said phase 2 has a scheduled groundbreaking this week and that, if voters approve the proposition, the city could "hit the ground running starting next year." (Parks and Recreation representative)

The ordinance was moved by Councilmember Kanopy and seconded by Councilmember Patterson; the motion passed. The council asked bond counsel and staff to provide FAQs on what the city and council may say after an election is called and to include required disclosures in voter materials.

Bond counsel told the council that the bond proposition must be limited to the projects voters are asked to approve. "What you're allowed to do is within the parameters of this proposition of what you take to voters," the counsel said, and advised the council the wording of any public materials should preserve the city's discretion. Counsel added that if the city makes specific promises to voters without proper disclosures, a court could treat those statements as a contractual promise and expose the city to litigation.

During public comment, a resident urged the council to include community gardens or native habitat areas in park planning, saying such spaces help preserve bird migration habitats and provide shared recreation. Councilmembers discussed design questions about the scale and uses of a proposed amphitheater within Phase 3; council members asked whether the amphitheater’s size and parking assumptions were fixed by the bond language. A council member noted survey responses favoring a community gathering space and asked for flexibility in design to allow multiuse programming.

Council members also raised questions about the municipal finance implications of a failed election. City staff and bond counsel summarized existing state rules discussed at the meeting: a failed general-obligation or certificates-of-obligation measure can trigger limitations on issuing certain obligations in the near term (described in the meeting as a "cool down" on certificates of obligation), and counsel said pending legislation discussed at the meeting could change that timeframe.

Before closing discussion, staff said they would email the council the presentation and guidance from bond counsel rather than present it at the same meeting. The council indicated it would review those materials before taking further administrative steps.