Tomball homeowners will see a larger property tax bill in the future, now that the Tomball City Council officially passed a nine-cent tax increase on Oct. 24. This is the first increase for city residents since 1992.

Under the new rate structure, both business and residential property owners will now pay $0.34 per $100 of valuation, an increase of 36 percent. City officials have estimated that the additional cost for the average homeowner will be less than $120.

Residents will see the higher tax rate on their property tax bills they receive in the next few weeks, according to Tomball Finance Director Glenn Windsor.

“We’ve sent the information to the Harris County Tax Office and the new rate will be on the tax bill that will be due in January of 2012,” Windsor said.

The extra revenue will be used to pay for two public works projects. The extension of Medical Complex Drive will give the city another east-west corridor, helping alleviate congestion on FM 2920, according to city officials. The other project is the M121 drainage channel, which will help alleviate flooding issues in and along downtown Tomball.

City council members came under fire from several residents during the course of the past few weeks, with many saying they didn’t agree with council’s decision to raise taxes without a public vote.

However, several residents showed up to the first council vote on the issue on Oct. 17, to show their support for council’s decision.

Ultimately, council approved the increase on a 3-1 vote with Councilman Mark Stoll opposing. Councilman Derek Townsend was not present for the final vote.

Windsor said the next step will be for the city to have a competitive sale for the bond in order to secure the best interest rate possible. Council will decide which bid to accept on Dec. 5.

“The actual issuance of the funds will take part sometime in the beginning of January,” Windsor said. “Then council can start to take contracting bids for the projects and get started on the work.”

City officials are in the preliminary stages for the two projects, meaning they are looking at acquiring right-of-way among other steps.

Once the M121 project starts, city officials estimate it will take about two years to complete. The expansion of Medical Complex Drive is expected to take less time.

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