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Residents of an Arizona city are up in arms, claiming that they unknowingly agreed to an 89 percent property tax hike to fund an $80 million high school football stadium. Last year, Arizona voters approved a $125 million school improvement bond for the Tolleson Union High School District. But residents have complained about the lack of transparency around the bond, claiming they were unaware that the money was going toward building the indoor football stadium, which would be the first in Maricopa County, 12News reported. The school district Superintendent, Jeremy Calles, has championed the project. “I would challenge anyone who thinks we don't need the stadium to be out on that field when it's 115 [degrees] and you're playing on turf in 115 degree weather,” Calles said last month. “If there is any state that should have more dome stadiums, if there is any county that should have more dome stadiums than zero, it is definitely this one.” At the last school board meeting on October 14, locals complained about the recent property tax increase. Vincent Moreno, a former Tolleson Union board member, said his property tax bill skyrocketed by 89 percent — or $215 — to fund the school district bond. Moreno shared his property tax bill with 12News. "Nowhere in this publication does it say I'm going to pay 89 percent more next year," Moreno told the board, 12News reported. Moreno told the outlet that he didn’t recall references to the stadium project at past meetings. “The estimated average annual tax rate for the proposed bond authorization is $0.34 per $100 of net assessed valuation used for secondary property tax purposes,” a notice for last year’s election read under the school improvement bond’s description. The Independent has contacted Calles and the school board president for comment. At a Joint Legislative Audit Committee meeting in October, state lawmakers approved an audit of the school district after hearing complaints over allegations of financial mismanagement, including concerns about the stadium, the Arizona Capitol Times reported. Lawmakers also questioned Calles over the school improvement bonds’ vague language, the Arizona Mirror and KJZZ reported. Former Tolleson High School principal Felipe Mandurraga testified before the state committee, alleging Calles had a “dome stadium obsession.” The superintendent "immediately began discussing a dome stadium when he took over as superintendent, throwing it out there that he wanted to be one of the first big dome stadiums in the state of Arizona," the former principal added. "Taxpayers deserve complete transparency regarding the use of their hard-earned money, particularly in our schools," Arizona GOP state Senator David Farnsworth said in a statement. "This audit aims to restore accountability and ensure that students, parents, and teachers benefit from a system that operates with integrity and responsibility." Amid the backlash, the superintendent told parents in an email last week that the fate of the stadium would be determined at a November 18 school board meeting. The meeting “would provide direction on whether or not to proceed with the enclosed stadium,” the email, obtained by 12News, read. Arizona voters will cast ballots on Tuesday for another school improvement bond authorization measure. Some locals believe the bond will be used to pay for the stadium, 12News reported. The bond “allows a school district to borrow money for capital projects such as building and/or renovating schools, purchasing buses, or improving technology,” the pamphlet states. Citizens for Schools Accountability, a Tolleson-based nonprofit, posted on X regarding the upcoming vote: “Taxpayers would help pay this loan back for the Tolleson Union High School District. That means paying around $1,520 more each year in property taxes on the average home. The district hasn’t said what projects the bond would cover. Should taxpayers have that information?”
