Recommended Capital Improvement Plan for New Kent totals almost $17 million

Capital improvement projects to the tune of almost $17 million are being recommended for inclusion in New Kent County’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year.

County administrator Rodney Hathaway unveiled his CIP recommendations totaling $16,979,034 for fiscal 2014-15 (FY15) before the county’s Planning Commission Monday night.

“That’s a huge number, but less than one-fourth would be funded by [county money],” he told commission members.

New Kent, he said, has $7 million in cash on hand that is set aside for capital improvement work. Of that, he is proposing to utilize just under $3.5 million during the next fiscal year.

The county would have to borrow $9.3 million to help pay for some of his recommended projects, he said. Just over $4 million would come through federal and state grants while proffer allocations would account for the remainder of the $17 million total, he added.

Topping the list of projects on Hathaway’s list is $5 million in renovation work to convert part of the county’s Historic School into an elementary school. The administrator said county supervisors dedicated 2 cents in the county’s current real estate tax rate to the renovation work, bringing in just over $465,000. Borrowing will pay for the rest of the anticipated $5 million price tag, and there should be “no additional tax impact on the county,” he said.

More county debt would be incurred if a $5.9 million project to upgrade the county’s public safety radio system meets with approval. The funding strategy, Hathaway said, is contingent on the county winning $1.6 million in federal and state grant money. Provided grant money is forthcoming, the county would then borrow the remaining $4.3 million.

“We’re working very hard to find funding,” he said, adding that the project could be removed from the list if adequate grant money is not found.

Cash on hand, he said, would go toward paying for several big ticket items including integrated software for the county’s financial department ($600,000), purchase of a fire engine ($600,000), replacing vehicles in all departments ($390,065), and developing a county park on Pine Fork Road ($200,000).

Regarding software for the financial department, Hathaway said the county expects to appropriate close to $500,000 in additional money the following fiscal year (FY16). The fire truck, he added, is part of a county plan to buy four fire engines and a heavy rescue truck over the next five years (one vehicle per year) at a total cost of $2.5 million. Of the replacement vehicles proposed, most are tabbed for the sheriff’s office. And as for the Pine Fork Road park, the $200,000 proposed for next year is part of $1.9 million plan to develop facilities there over the next five years.

Two projects at the county’s airport totaling just over $1.5 million appear on Hathaway’s recommended list. Federal and state grants should account for most of the cost with the county’s share amounting to just under $60,000, he said. Most of the overall money would go toward upgrading and resurfacing the airport’s taxiway.

A $989,000 allocation for buying a 100-foot tower ladder truck for the county’s fire department also appears on the list. But Hathaway said that purchase hinges on the county receiving over $900,000 in federal grant money. If the grant is not awarded, the truck will be struck from the list, he said.

County school officials, meanwhile, submitted a list of over $2.6 million in proposed CIP projects for next year. Hathaway has whittled the total down to a little over $1 million.

The administrator is recommending approval of schools’ requests for replacement buses ($390,000), a mobile classroom at New Kent Elementary ($75,000), fuel tank replacement ($175,000) and playground renovation ($50,000) at Watkins Elementary, and HVAC controls/fire alarm panel ($290,000) and lighting ($70,000) at the middle school. Failing to make Hathaway’s list are renovating the “Yellow House” ($960,000) and cafeteria HVAC renovation ($100,000) at New Kent Elementary along with $497,500 for “One-to-One Learning” technology on the secondary school level.

Another project of note Hathaway recommends is $165,000 in buildings/grounds work to replace the administration building’s roof, renovate the building’s kitchen/break room, and replace steps and sidewalks at the courthouse. Also on the recommended list is installing lights at Historic School playing fields ($75,000) and buying a marine patrol boat plus equipment for the sheriff’s office. The county has applied for a grant to cover the $48,000 cost for the boat/equipment, Hathaway said.

Separate from the $17 million in recommended projects is a capital improvement plan for county utilities totaling just over $1 million. All utility projects, however, are paid for through user fees and do not involve grants or county money.

A public hearing on Hathaway’s CIP proposal for FY15 is scheduled for the Planning Commission’s March meeting. Supervisors have the final say on which, if any, of the projects make the cut for inclusion in next year’s county budget.

Hathaway said his office received CIP requests from county departments for next year totaling almost $21.2 million. The overall plan, which covers the next five years, includes 77 individual requests with a five-year estimated cost of $43.6 million. Another 26 requests totaling $42 million appear in a category that falls beyond the next five years, making the combined CIP total a whopping $85.6 million.