Utah County budget staff told the County Commission on Oct. 14 that a series of proposed brick-and-mortar projects could deplete the county's tourist-related and capital reserves within three years if the commission approves all current requests.

At a budget meeting, staff said the county currently has roughly $20 million in available funds in the county's project account and are conservatively projecting about $16 million in revenue per year. Staff built a 4% annual revenue growth assumption into three-year projections and flagged that, under the present mix of requests, the fund balance would be drained by 2028.

Why it matters: commissioners will have to choose which projects to fund now and which to defer if they want to preserve capacity for future opportunities such as potential airport-related projects. Staff identified multiple contenders for county support, including a three-year, $9 million request tied to a larger $60 million Thanksgiving Point expansion; a proposed Utah Lake Nature Center (project total cited at about $20 million with a county ask of roughly $4.7 million); an ice rink (project ~ $14 million; county set-aside ~ $4 million); and enhancements at the fairgrounds (county portion cited as $5.75 million of an $11.5 million project). Internal public-works items such as Lincoln Beach and the Provo Canyon Trail were also listed as potential future asks.

Budget staff said some projects (Thanksgiving Point) may produce revenue that replenishes the fund more quickly than others (the nature center), and noted that some external funding opportunities could change the county's exposure. For example, the nature center team has applied for federal community-project funding but had not received it as of Oct. 14. Thanksgiving Point indicated it cannot start construction until the county commits dollars, while the nature center could structure an agreement with reimbursement terms to delay county cash flow impacts.

Staff also noted a possible unaccounted source: the county's share of transient room tax (TRT). Staff said the county receives 4.5% TRT and 2% of the 4.5% must be used for tourism promotion; the remaining portion historically went largely to convention-center bond payments. Because TRT revenue has grown, that leaves an incremental amount (staff estimated about $1.3 million) that could be redirected to brick-and-mortar projects, but those funds were not included in the spreadsheet staff presented.

Commissioners discussed options to preserve capacity, including taking a county-internal loan from a healthy utility or other fund to stretch payments over time, then issuing bonds later if interest rates fell. Staff said the county has enough internal fund balance to loan itself money in theory and that such an approach could buy time without immediately committing all funds.

Commissioners and staff also noted trade-offs: some projects are revenue-generating and could restore the fund balance but others would largely draw down reserves. Staff recommended commissioners prioritize projects that would replenish the fund and consider staged or reduced requests for multiple projects to allow partial funding of both.

Budget staff said they would keep refining projections and would return with more specific analyses and funding options, including potential borrowing scenarios and proposed prioritization lists for commissioner decisions.