Augusta City Administrator Allen on Tuesday presented a revised draft of the SPLOST 9 project list that she said totals roughly $407 million and would require about six years of collections, and asked the governing body to finalize the package for a vote in early August.

The recommendation trims or removes several previously proposed projects, keeps priorities identified by commissioners (including a convention center expansion and additional Riverwalk funding), and asks departments and legal staff to review earlier SPLOST accounts for any recapturable funds before those dollars are repurposed.

“We tried to compromise,” Administrator Allen said, describing a mix of deletions and additions after public and commissioner input. She acknowledged some members would be unhappy and urged the body not to partially fund projects during a single SPLOST period: “If you’re not going to finish and do the project completely during that SPLOST period it probably doesn't need to be on the list.”

Why it matters: the SPLOST (special purpose local option sales tax) package determines local capital spending priorities across public safety, infrastructure and quality-of-life programs. The administrator’s list will shape projects placed on the November ballot if the commission approves a final version and submits it to the Board of Elections on schedule.

Key changes and figures
- Total: Administrator Allen presented an updated recommendation she said was $407,000,005.74; the figure was later restated approximately as $407 million. A staff member later referenced $407,574,000; commissioners and staff treated the total as “about $407 million” during discussion. The governing body did not adopt a final, signed amount during the meeting.
- Timeline: Allen said the goal is to have the commission vote on the package at the August 5 meeting or at a special meeting on August 12, and to deliver finalized materials to the Board of Elections by Aug. 18.
- Major removals/ reductions: the administrator said she did not include a previously proposed $34 million affordable-housing allocation because she was “not comfortable that we have a process in place” to stand up such a program now. She reduced several other items, including a requested two new fire stations down to one and fleet and central-services requests; she also trimmed regional airport infrastructure, utilities, information-technology and program-administration line items.
- Additions/keeps: the convention center expansion was added by consensus; $5 million was added for Riverwalk enhancements; Daniel Field airport work was reduced from an earlier cited amount to $965,000 in the administrator’s recommendation. Transit funding in the draft was reduced to $1 million as a grant match allocation.

Commissioner questions and staff responses
Commissioner Stacy Pulliam asked how the parks allocations would be handled, saying she was concerned about earmarking $10 million to a single park before the city finishes a review to determine which parks it will keep or divest. “Giving $10,000,000 to one project when we don't know the parks that we're going to keep, how much they will need to be brought up to current standards ... we don't have the current numbers,” Pulliam said.

Director Williams told the governing body that the parks division originally estimated roughly $25 million to renovate all locations but has already scaled that figure down; she said the projects under consideration have been trimmed and that, depending on the types of renovations, “one park at that time could be more expensive than another.”

Process notes and next steps
Administrator Allen said departments will have until July 31 to report the status of previously approved SPLOST projects; staff and legal will determine what, if any, prior SPLOST funds can be recaptured and reallocated. Allen noted SPLOST 8 remains active through 2026; recapture consideration applies to SPLOST 7 and earlier.

No formal vote was taken during the meeting. Allen asked the governing body to avoid making piecemeal cuts and recommended removing full projects from the list if commissioners do not intend to complete them within the SPLOST period. The commission’s vote to place the SPLOST 9 package on the November ballot was scheduled for Aug. 5 or, if necessary, an Aug. 12 special meeting; final materials must be to the Board of Elections by Aug. 18, Allen said.

What was not decided or remains unclear
The commission did not adopt a final, signed project list or a precise total during the session. Several reductions and line-item numbers were discussed on the record, but staff and legal review remain necessary before funds from prior SPLOST cycles can be reallocated. The administrator said she had no estimate yet of how much could be recaptured.

The meeting closed without public speakers on the topic and without a vote; staff were charged to finalize the draft, collect departmental updates and return a version for commission action in early August.