In the upcoming May election, the City of Leary will have on the ballot for its voters a proposed 1-½ percent sales and use tax for goods sold in the city limits.
While that is legally and technically what it says on the ballot, city leaders would like to clarify that its voters are actually only being asked to approve a half of one percent increase.
Leary City Administrator Randy Mansfield told the Tribune last week, “The ballot wording is required to show the total amount of tax to be collected after the election if the measure is approved by the voters, which will be 1.5% total. However we currently have in effect a 1% sales and use tax in the city. We are asking the voters to approve an additional 0.5%.
Mansfield clarified that the required language may confuse the issue, but it is required by the Texas legislature.
The City of Leary has a storied history in Bowie County. It was named for an early settler, Daniel T. Leary. A post office was established there in 1894 with James T. Wiggins as postmaster and remained in operation until the 1960s. By 1914 the town reported a population of seventy- five. After that, population began to decline, reaching a low of twenty-five by 1925. During World War II two military installations, the Red River Army Depot and the Lone Star Army Ammunition Plant, were built just south of the town, and Leary began to grow again. By 1945 the town had a population of 100 and two rated businesses. By 1954 it had grown to 350. The town was incorporated on September 2,1960.
In 1982 Leary had a population of 253. In 1990 the population was 395 and currently the town boasts a population of 495.
The city is home to the Leary ISD. The district has one school that serves students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade and proudly call themselves the Leary Lions.
The city is nearing completion of a brand new water tower that portrays its love for the school district with the newly painted Leary Lion artwork. The water tower is hoped to be completed within the next 60 to 90 days.
