Council to mull capital improvements plan
Published 7:27 pm Saturday, February 21, 2015
Washington’s City Council, during its meeting Monday, could approve the city’s capital improvements plan for the next five fiscal years.
The plan addresses major expenditures such as new vehicles, stormwater (drainage) projects, water and sewer projects and computer hardware and software upgrades or replacements. The council decides which proposed projects receiving funding, whether a project will be completed in phases and when a project begins.
The CIP for the next five fiscal years (2015-2016 through 2019-2020) calls for spending $2.78 million for public-safety (police and fire). Among the proposed expenditures is buying a new fire engine for an estimated $450,000 in fiscal year 2016-2017. The new fire engine would replace the 1988 fire engine. The plan also calls for spending $450,000 in the next fiscal year for a new fire engine to replace the 1996 fire engine. Another $450,000 is earmarked in 2019-2020 for a new fire engine to replace the 2000 fire engine.
The plan also calls for replacing two EMS units at a cost of $310,000 during the five-year period.
Under the plan, $723,000 would be spent during the five fiscal years to replace police vehicles, with an average of $144,600 spent each year during the five-year period.
As for the city’s planning department projects, the plan includes installing Wi-Fi along the city’s waterfront at a cost of $30,000 in the 2015-2016 fiscal year.
Overall, the cost for proposed CIP general fund projects for the next five fiscal years totals $7.34 million.
The public-works section of the CIP earmarks $5.7 million in fiscal year 2016-2017 for drainage improvements and the second phase of stormwater improvements in the Jack’s Creek basin. It also earmarks $1.8 million for removing trash from Jack’s Creek in the 2017-2018 fiscal year.
During the five-year period, the CIP earmarks $6.3 million for sewer-related improvements and equipment purchases.
Overall, the CIP calls for spending $20.9 million on public-works projects during the five-year period.
The CIP is reviewed and revised annually.
Council members have made it clear that just because a project is in the CIP for a specific fiscal year, that doesn’t mean it will automatically be funded during that fiscal year. Projects that can be delayed — without compromising the public’s safety — may be delayed when practical, they have indicated.
The council meets at 5:30 p.m. Monday in the Council Chambers in the Municipal Building, 102 E. Second St. To view the council’s agenda for a specific meeting, visit the city’s website at www.washingtonnc.gov, click “Government” then “City Council” heading, then click “Meeting Agendas” on the menu to the right. Then click on the date for the appropriate agenda.