(Seguin) — A Seguin resident is urging the Guadalupe Appraisal District to step away from its planned purchase of the historic Mary B. Erskine property.
Dr. Al Burns, a local taxpayer and business owner, says the appraisal district is preparing to spend millions of dollars on a project that he believes is oversized, overly expensive, and unfair to the community.
Burns says the proposed building is simply too large for the appraisal district’s needs.
“But then further conversations with the appraisal district, though, that’s really not been a topic of conversation particularly the excess space that they have and leasing that to someone else just didn’t really ever come back up again so I’m not sure how concrete that is. I think that is definitely a decent use of space but looking further into their plans, they really only plan to remodel the main building initially. That’s where all the funds are going to – that $10 plus million and they plan to use that whole space and so the other 10 or 12,000 square feet that will just kind of continue to remain as is – it’s not really in the plan currently so that would have to be renovated before it can be leased. So anyway, that is still a concern of mine — that just the excess is just kind of sitting there not being used and being purchased without any need if that makes any sense,” said Dr. Burns.
He also questions the overall cost of the deal, warning that the additional space will burden taxpayers for years to come.
“First off it was just the overall price. There were other options available to the appraisal district to spend about $5 million for an expansion which seemed to me in a space that was more reasonable and adequate for their long term needs – you know to give them maybe 15-20 square feet of space and that was going to be $5 million more or less price tag which seemed to be fairly well priced. This project is twice that cost, and they are renovating an old building sort of speak. The second piece to all that is where those extra funds are coming from. Of course, they are coming from the cities and the schools. That’s where all the major funds come from and particularly the school side of it is what really kind of bothers me that of that excess $5 million, half of that is coming straight out of our school district budgets. That’s where it really kind of rubs me the wrong way in that those are funds that I would love to see stay in our schools and go towards teacher salaries and programs,” said Dr. Burns.
Burns points out that the property, once owned by Seguin ISD, sold to a developer for $800,000. Now after sitting vacant for years, he says the appraisal district is set to pay nearly double that price—despite no improvements being made to the structure. He says one can’t help but consider the higher price and the irony of appraisal work for this project.
“There’s one other piece that is really kind of unsettling to me. The Mary B. Erskine property itself was owned by the school district of course for decades. It was sold to a private individual in 2021 for roughly $800,000 and that private individual I’m sure has tried to sell it, but they did no improvements. In fact, they just let it deteriorate. The sales price that the appraisal district who sets what the appraisal value is on the building has valued it at $1.6 million and we are purchasing it for $1.9 million. So, this private owner is getting an excess of over $1 million of revenue or making $1 million for just basically buying this property and holding it for three years. So, I just view this as this private individual getting out $1 million out of our schools and that just seems wrong to me. I don’t know why the appraisal district, who knew the sales price three years ago would not have tried to negotiate it down to a more much reasonable price. Sure, I see the person getting a profit, but a million dollars just seems very excessive to me,” said Dr. Burns.
In a letter to the editor and in conversations with local officials, Burns says he believes many details were left out of the district’s public presentations on the project. He says while the measure was approved by a large margin during summer forums, local communities have yet to see a full accounting of construction, operating, and maintenance costs.
Burns argues that the money would be better spent by cities and school districts on more pressing community needs, particularly for students. He says he has spoken with Chief Appraiser Peter Snaddon about his concerns but that the two remain at odds.
With the board expected to take a step in the purchase today, Burns says he felt he had no choice but to go public.
Meanwhile, Chief Appraiser Snaddon says he believes the board of directors has worked diligently in planning for its future.
Snaddon says the board of directors has been evaluating facility needs for nearly two years. With county population projected to grow substantially over the next two decades, he states that the current office is already beyond capacity and does not provide adequate space for staff or taxpayers. He says the district stands committed to its proposed acquisition of 216 E. College Street which was selected after reviewing multiple options, including expansion of their current site. He says all in all, it was determined to be the most cost-effective and long-term solution.
Responding to Dr. Al Burn’s concerns, Snaddon outlined his answers in a written statement to the Seguin Daily News. He states, “with regard to the purchase price: the current owner acquired the property through a blind auction process, where sale prices can differ significantly from market value since bidders do not know competing offers. Our transaction is an arms-length negotiation, backed by an independent appraisal and engineering studies, ensuring the price reflects current market conditions and is defensible for taxpayers.”
As for the size of the proposed building, he states, “the size of the facility is designed not only to meet today’s needs but also to accommodate projected population growth, staffing increases, and greater accessibility for the public well into the future. We believe it is more fiscally responsible to plan appropriately now rather than make piecemeal expansions that would ultimately cost taxpayers more.”
Currently, he says the appraisal district has received the required approvals from the taxing jurisdictions under the Texas Tax Code and is proceeding toward a scheduled closing.
The board of directors is expected to meet today to set the interest rate for project funding. The meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. (Wednesday, Oct. 8) in the Guadalupe Appraisal District located at 3000 N. Austin St.