By Alexandra Fenwick
Staff Writer
January 28, 2008
NORWALK - A $31,710 engine for a police boat, $120,000 for school playground equipment and $40,000 for library carpeting will be among the items that city departments pitch to the Planning Commission.
In two meetings that will kick off the budget season, capital project wish lists for the 2008-09 fiscal year will be presented by the Fire Department, Health Department, Parks and Recreation, and Board of Education tomorrow and by the library, Police Department, Historical Commission, Redevelopment Agency, Public Works, Water Pollution Control Authority and Parking Authority on Wednesday.
Departments are requesting nearly $42.5 million in capital funds - an increase of about 71 percent over the $12.2 million in capital funds approved for this fiscal year. Initial capital budget requests came to about $30.3 million last year.
Capital budget requests cover one-time construction expenses and purchases not in the operating budget.
The two largest capital budgets come from Public Works, which is seeking $19.5 million, and WPCA, which wants $11.6 million.
The city Charter requires that the Planning Commission sign off on the capital budget because many requests deal with infrastructure, for which the commission must plan improvements.
Finance Director Thomas Hamilton will weigh in with his capital budget recommendations before a public hearing in mid-February. By early March, the Planning Commission makes recommendations to the mayor, who has 10 days to develop his own recommendations before the capital budget request moves to the Board of Estimate and Taxation.
The board is scheduled to set a capital budget cap March 19, Chairman Fred Wilms said.
The Common Council, which can cut the budget by item, reviews it in early April before final approval in mid-April, Wilms said.
With ongoing school construction and a police headquarters that opened in May 2005, capital budget requests have shifted from those departments to infrastructure.
The largest capital budget requests include $7.1 million in storm water management, $6.5 million in road work and a WPCA request of $3.5 million to upgrade the water treatment plant.
The boat engine is the Police Department's only capital request this year, with a $52,738 request to replace firearms planned for next year.
The fire department will have a $2.5 million request for new headquarters next year. But this year, the department is holding off with $791,415 in requests, including a $60,000 command car and a $42,000 fire sprinkler demonstration trailer.
Recreation and Parks is seeking $2.91 million, including school playground equipment, $25,000 for tree planting and about $1.27 million to improve Veterans Memorial Park, Cranbury Park and Calf Pasture Beach.
The Parking Authority's $2.6 million request includes $1 million to replace the Haviland parking deck.
Along with more than $708,000 to replace gymnasium doors, stage curtains and rigging systems at more than a dozen schools, the Board of Education is seeking $875,000 for new technology, including $100,000 to replace middle school computer labs; $200,000 for new desktop computers in 120 elementary school classrooms; and $100,000 to replace Roton Middle School's phone system with a digital service.
The BET sets the capital budget limit from two perspectives, Wilms said.
"How much debt can we afford in order to maintain the city's AAA bond rating, and we also do a line-item review," he said. "If we were to set a cap, at let's say $9 million, we would want to look at individual projects to make sure there were $9 million of worthy projects for a bottoms-up approach. We would not comment on individual projects, but we want to make sure they're worthy."
The budget the council approved for this fiscal year includes $1.45 million to fix flooding problems, including $100,000 that Public Works requested for creating a citywide storm-water management plan; and $250,000 to fix drainage problems.
It also includes $2.8 million for the city's largest-ever allocation for road repairs; $875,000 for school computer technology; $355,000 for improvements at Calf Pasture Beach, including $275,000 to refurbish restrooms; $274,000 for the Norwalk Redevelopment Agency for work in the Wall Street redevelopment area; and $276,000 to finish capping a former landfill at Oyster Shell Park.
The operating budget season begins Feb. 11, when Hamilton makes his recommendations to the BET.
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