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Public Works reviews pavement management and FY26 capital improvement plan; five‑year program totals $778 million
Summary
Staff presented the city’s pavement management program and an updated FY26 capital improvement plan (CIP). The FY26 CIP includes roughly $402 million of design and construction work for the year and totals about $778 million over five years; staff stressed preventive maintenance, life‑cycle cost analysis and coordination across projects.
The committee received an update April 14 on Lee's Summit’s pavement management program and the draft fiscal‑year 2026 capital improvement plan.
Pavement management overview: Project manager Finch Schmager summarized the four pavement programs: crack sealing, surface seal, mill‑and‑overlay and curb replacement. He explained surface seal is a thin coating that typically extends pavement life 7–10 years; crack sealing is applied earlier to prevent water infiltration; mill‑and‑overlay removes the top two inches to restore ride and cross slope. Last year’s work included roughly 40 lane miles of mill and overlay (about $4.5 million) and about 43.8 miles of surface seal (about $1.4 million), with crack sealing and curb work also performed.
Why preventive maintenance: Staff emphasized that regular surface preservation (crack seal/surface seal) is far less costly than reconstruction; the department uses a four‑year inspection rotation and a pavement rating that produces a citywide average condition index (staff reported a current average of about 73). Funding sources cited for pavement work include the half‑cent transportation sales tax, CIP sales tax, bonds for select curb work and operations funding for potholes and minor repairs.
CIP FY26 summary: City engineer George Binger presented the FY26 CIP summary and timeline. Staff reported the FY26 program includes approximately $402 million of design and construction work in that single fiscal year and the five‑year CIP totals about $778 million. The FY26 submission adds 27 new projects; staff said they completed 21 projects in the prior year totaling about $30 million. Binger said the city’s CIP has benefited from unexpected grant awards — about $65 million in grant funding to date — which has increased capacity to take on additional projects.
Concrete versus asphalt and lifecycle: Committee members discussed initial construction costs versus lifecycle costs. Staff noted concrete can require less maintenance over decades and in some cases is cost‑competitive, especially when lifecycle costs are included.
What the committee asked and next steps: Members asked about how projects are prioritized (GIS condition mapping and drive‑by confirmations), sequencing with utility work and public engagement. Staff said the CIP is posted for public comment, the executive summary will be presented to council, and planning commission will hold a hearing before the council adopts the plan and staff programs FY26 budget authorizations.
Sources: Pavement management and CIP presentations, committee Q&A at the April 14 Public Works committee meeting.
