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Staff tells committee 24% of city assets in poor or failing condition; master plans underway but take 15'0 months to finish
Summary
Public-works staff told the budget committee the city has completed partial master-plan work and estimates about 24% of assets are in poor or failing condition; staff explained System Development Charge (SDC) rules and how SDCs apply only to growth-related projects, not replacement work.
Public-works staff told the Stayton Budget Committee that roughly 24% of the city's inventory of assets is in poor-to-failing condition and that master plans for water, stormwater, transportation and parks are in various stages of production.
Barry (Public Works staff) described the metric as a five-point scale (excellent to failed) and said the city's share in the bottom two categories (poor and failed) is about 24 percent. He told the committee this is above a typical target (about 9 percent) but below a national average staff cited (about 35 percent).
Staff outlined the timeline for master plans: they typically take 15 to 18 months to produce, plus periodic five-year reviews. Barry said the water-related master plans are already under production (about 12 months into an 18-month review when he spoke). The committee heard that completing master plans does not by itself speed projects to construction; master plans set priorities, but implementation depends on available funds.
On financing rules, staff clarified the use of System Development Charges (SDCs). "SDCs are only allowed to be applied to growth projects," Barry said. "SDCs cannot be applied to renewal or replacement of existing assets." Staff illustrated the rule with pipe upsizing: if a developer needs increased capacity and the city upsizes a new pipe, the incremental cost tied to new capacity may be SDC-eligible; repairing or replacing existing pipe is not.
Committee members asked whether unspent street overlay appropriations from prior years reflected project delays; staff said some dollars were unspent because projects were postponed while the city reassessed asset priorities and because of staffing vacancies in public works.
Staff also described how SDC eligibility varies by project: some components (e.g., a winter equalization tank at the wastewater plant) may be 100% growth-eligible while others (existing pipe repairs) are not. Master plans, asset management, utility rate studies and SDC calculations were presented as linked pieces of infrastructure finance and planning work that should be reviewed about every five years.
The committee directed staff to continue completing master plans and to provide further cost estimates for assets predicted to fail within five years.
