By Kim McDarison
A City of Fort Atkinson budget workshop, including an overview of the proposed five-year capital improvements plan, was held in October. A public hearing about the city’s proposed 2022 budget and capital improvement expenditures planned in 2022 was held Tuesday, Nov. 2.
Members of the public did not come forward to comment about the city’s proposed budget or its associated capital improvements plan.
The budget and capital improvements plan are anticipated to undergo formal adoption by the city council on Nov. 16.
A story about the budget as it was presented during the October workshop is here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/city-shares-2022-draft-budget/.
Budget information shared Tuesday will come in a future story.
2022 capital improvements expenditures
During the October workshop, Fort Atkinson City Manager Rebecca Houseman LeMire told members of the Fort Atkinson City Council and others in attendance that the city’s staff was proposing some $211,040 in capital improvements to be funding in 2022 using levied tax dollars not including the Transportation Improvements Funds.
LeMire wrote in a budget workshop overview: “This level of funding is not sustainable due to the city’s aging fleet. The city is very fortunate to have talented and highly qualified staff serving as the head mechanic and mechanic, who have consistently extended the lives of our vehicles. However, this is not done without significant costs associated with parts and labor.
“Staff is proposing borrowing for additional capital projects, equipment, and services in 2022, as well as using some of the city’s American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funds.”
During Tuesday’s public hearing, which was held in advance of the regular city council meeting, LeMire told those in attendance that in 2022 the city was projecting an estimated borrowing of $1.5 million to fund capital improvement projects, with those monies used to purchase replacement equipment such as a police squad car, two dump trucks, a skid loader, and a transit van with a water tank, as well as funding for street reconstruction, including an ongoing annual water main project, and aesthetic and safety improvements on the Robert Street bridge.
Information supplied through documentation during the October workshop identified several funding mechanisms proposed to finance some portion of capital improvement projects.
Expenditures and proposed funding sources
A document itemizing 2022 capital improvement projects as requested by the city’s departments and detailing potential funding sources shows proposed expenditures totaling $4.2 million. Of that amount, some $211,000 is identified as coming from the taxpayer-funded levy, $1.57 million is proposed to come through borrowing, $710,000 is proposed to come through the city’s Transportation Improvements Funds, and $1.5 million would come from a category labeled “other funding source.” Projects totaling $234,000 were moved forward for inclusion within CIP budgeting beyond 2022.
Other funding sources
A table listing 2022 capital improvement projects and “other funding sources,” identified ARPA funds, the library trust fund, the museum trust fund, and resources from within the water, wastewater and stormwater utility funds, as included within that category.
Of the $1.5 million funded through “other sources,” $46,400 is supplied through ARPA funding, $25,000 is supplied through the library trust, $10,000 is supplied through the museum trust, $1.2 million is supplied through the water utility, $110,000 is supplied through the wastewater utility, and $105,000 is supplied through the stormwater utility.
ARPA revenues and expenditures
A document listing ARPA revenues noted that in 2022, the city anticipates having revenues received through “state/federal emergency grants” available in an amount, including interest, of $650,296.39.
The document also lists ARPA expenditures proposed in 2022, including $46,400, labeled “CIP-other funding,” $250,000, labeled “EMS startup costs,” 10,000 labeled “council laptops,” and $400,000 labeled “Banker Road placeholder,” totaling $706,400.
An estimated expenditure in 2021 of $29,980 was listed as “chamber upgrades.”
Capital Catalyst Fund revenues and expenditures
According to documents shared during the October workshop, among resources in this category are monies received through matching grants and state capital catalyst grants. In 2021, according to the document, the city received $300,000 and estimated the receipt of another $300,000, for a total of $600,000. Of those monies, $100,000 is proposed to be spent on capital projects in 2022.
Itemized CIP expenditures proposed for 2022
The CIP document shared during the October workshop itemizes the following projects and funding sources:
• Annual computer and server replacement costs for all the city’s departments, totaling $20,400, with those funds coming from the 2022 tax levy.
• Costs associated with a facility maintenance assessment, totaling $9,000, to be paid with funds coming through “other funding source.”
• Some $88,000 to be used to purchase two squad car replacements per year, with plans to replace one in 2023 and another in 2026. The full amount would come from two sources: $44,000 from tax levy dollars and $44,000 from a proposed borrowing.
• Some $12,600 to be used to replace AED (automated external defibrillator) equipment. The equipment is replaced in seven-year cycles. Funds for the replacements would come from tax levy funded dollars.
• Some $8,000 was proposed for the purchase of a PPE gear dryer, however the item was pushed to a future CIP.
• Some $6,000 was earmarked for the replacement of portable radios which are required to match replacements in equipment being considered at the state and county levels. Funds would be supplied using tax levied dollars.
• Some $10,000 was proposed to replace hoses and nozzles. The item was pushed to a future CIP.
• Some $45,000 is proposed for the development of a comprehensive plan for downtown infrastructure, branding, and marketing, as indicated in the city’s comprehensive plan, with those monies coming from tax-levied dollars.
• Another $340,000 is proposed for the former Lorman scrapyard site remediation and demolition work. Monies proposed are in addition to those dollars coming through a CDBG grant, the document states, and would come from a proposed borrowing in 2022.
• Some $9,000 is slated for a proposed facility study for aging campus and an over 50 year old garage. The monies are proposed to come from tax-levied dollars.
• Over $1.3 million is proposed to be spent on the city’s CDBG water main project. Of the total proposed, some $675,000 will come from a proposed borrowing in 2022 and $666,000 will come from the city’s Transportation Improvement Fund.
• Some $14,000 is proposed to pay for a design fee and construction fee to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. The project includes mill and asphalt work on Whitewater Avenue from Fox Hill Road to Madison Avenue. The project, labeled on the document as the “Whitewater Avenue Planning/Design” project is slated for construction in 2023. A notation within the document states that the fee may be lower. Monies to pay for the item will come from the Transportation Improvement Fund.
• Some $20,000 is proposed to pay for some design and construction costs associated with the Robert Street bridge project slated for construction in 2022. Monies will come from the Transportation Improvement Fund.
• A second line item also addresses costs associated with the Robert Street bridge project, labeled as “construction-city portion,” in the amount of $100,000. Monies will be used to pay for deck upgrades, and decorative fencing and lighting, according to the document. Funds are proposed to come through a borrowing in 2022.
• Another $10,000, coming from the Transportation Improvement Fund is earmarked for design and construction work associated with the Riverside Drive/State Highway 106 reconstruction project due to take place in 2026.
• Some $350,000 is earmarked for the purchase of a 5- to 6-yard single-axle dump truck with a wing plow and sander. The new equipment will replace a similar 1999 vehicle currently in the city’s fleet. Monies to purchase the truck will come from a proposed borrowing.
• Another $40,000 will be spent to purchase a skid loader, with those monies also coming from the proposed borrowing.
• Some $25,000 will be used to purchase a Ford transit van with a water tank. The new vehicle will replace one that is 39-years-old and used for “watering and streetscape,” the document states. Monies to purchase the new vehicle will come through the proposed borrowing.
• Some $3,500, coming through “other funding source,” will be used to purchase two fabricated diving board stands.
• Another $29,000, coming from other funding sources, will be used to repaint a 175-foot water slide at the city’s pool.
• A one-ton pickup to be used for plowing, coming at a cost of $46,040, will be purchased with funds coming from the taxpayer-funded levy.
• Some $28,000 will be spend to develop a Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. Monies to support the initiative will come from the taxpayer-funded levy. The plan is a requirement, according to the document, and is a focus area on the city’s comprehensive plan.
• Some 35 padded foldable chairs are slated for replacement at a cost of $1,100, with those dollars coming from “other funding source.”
• Senior center parking lot striping and sealcoating projects are slated within the CIP, coming at a cost of $2,400, with those monies coming though other funding sources.
• A drinking fountain replacement at the senior center is also proposed in 2022, coming at a cost of $2,500, with those dollars coming through other funding sources. The new fountain will provide a bottle filling station, according to the document.
• An automatic front door upgrade at the Hoard Historical Museum is also slated in 2022, coming at a cost of $5,500. Monies for the upgrade will come through other funding sources.
• A roof over the Hoard House porch is slated at a cost of $4,500, with those dollars coming through other funding sources. The current rubber roof is showing age and beginning to leak, according to the document.
• Some of the library’s computers and other tech will reach a 4-year replacement cycle in 2022. Some $5,000 is proposed for those replacements, coming from “other funding source.”
• Also at the library, some furniture and upholstery is in need of replacement, the document notes, coming at a cost of $20,000, with those monies coming through other funding sources.
• Some $18,000 is slated to replace maintenance software at the wastewater plant. Those monies will also come through “other funding source.”
• Also at the wastewater plant, $40,000 is earmarked to replace a pump that has become corroded, with those monies coming from other funding sources.
• A complete replacement of HVAC controls is slated at the wastewater plant, coming at a cost of $52,000 from “other funding source.” The controls have been in place since 1993, the document states.
• The city has also identified for replacement 548 5/8” water meters in 2022. The replacements come at a cost of $114,532, with those dollars coming through “other funding source.”
• Another $20,000, also coming through other funding sources, is earmarked to replace commercial 1″ to 12” grade water meters.
• Also associated with the water department, a “standard capital outlay” of $25,000 is earmarked for “new installations,” with those monies coming from “other funding source.”
• Some $26,000 for the replacement of 35-year-old electrical panels located within the water department was moved to a future CIP.
• Another $30,000 to purchase a portable generator and switch gears for emergency operation was moved to a future CIP.
• Two payments of $45,000 were identified for the purpose of purchasing new trucks between 2021 and 2026. The first payment of $45,000 is proposed to come from “other funding source,” and a second payment of $45,000 was moved to a future CIP, according to the document.
• Some $15,000, labeled as “well security,” is earmarked for the purchase of tinting and metal bars for windows, and metal doors, as well as security cameras for buildings associated with the city’s wells. The funds are proposed to come from other funding sources.
• Another $160,000, earmarked to replace services and hydrants as they coincide with the installation of new water mains, would come from other funding sources. Approval of the city’s rate case by the Public Service Commission (PSC) was cited as a condition of this expenditure.
• Main replacement, coming at a cost of $843,000, was also identified as coming through other funding sources. Monies are earmarked to replace approximately 1% of the city’s water main each year. Approval of the pending rate case was cited as a requirement of this expenditure.
• Some $95,000 was identified to fund the purchase of a truck-mounted leaf vacuum, with those dollars coming from other funding sources.
• Under a heading of “stormwater,” $10,000 is earmarked to fund ”a number of projects outlined in the 2018 stormwater plan,” according to the document, with those funds coming from other funding sources. The document further states that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is requiring “progress on these projects.”
• Another $110,000, earmarked for stormwater collection system maintenance, was moved to a future CIP.
• Some $2,500 to be spent on pavement maintenance at the municipal airport was moved to a future CIP.
• Structure maintenance at the municipal airport in the amount of $2,500 was moved to a future CIP.
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