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Facilities & Fleet: Arapahoe County seeks larger building-maintenance and capital budgets, explores grounds contract and Altura Plaza options
Summary
Facilities & Fleet presented a five-year capital and maintenance plan that includes a roughly $60 million CIP backlog and asked for higher building-maintenance and operating budgets plus staff and equipment investments to reduce deferred maintenance and operational risk.
Arapahoe County Facilities & Fleet (FFM) presented a study-session update on facility condition, capital improvement needs, and operating gaps across the county's 34 facilities (about 1.2 million square feet). Staff said a recent facility-condition assessment and the county's five-year CIP list indicate roughly $60 million of capital projects are needed across 2026'2030 and recommended increasing annual building maintenance fund spending (Fund 33 projects) to roughly $1.2 million a year (about $6 million over five years) from historical averages of about $600k/year.
FFM asked the board for increased operating funds (Fund 10) to absorb inflation for materials, professional services, and on-call overtime expenses; staff characterized a request for an operating increase to prevent repeated midyear shortfalls. The department outlined staffing gaps (project managers with heavy workloads, need for full-time plumber focused on the detention center, additional fleet mechanic to reduce vehicle turnaround time, and a roving custodian to cover vacancies) and equipment asks (vehicle/equipment replacements held since the COVID period) and asked that some AV and security camera capital items move to Fund 70 for planned replacement schedules.
Staff described an option analysis on grounds maintenance and snow removal: county crews currently perform many activities in-house with some trustee staffing historically used; FFM proposed studying an outsourcing model for snow removal to reduce overtime and maintain safer, more timely site access in winter, or alternatively proposing targeted hires if the board prefers insourcing. Commissioners asked for side-by-side cost comparisons (outsourcing vs. hiring) and more precise budget estimates for operating TBDs.
Commissioners also asked for additional analysis of Altura Plaza (an aging county-owned facility): FFM said electrical and other behind-the-wall systems show code and life-safety concerns and that the county will study options (renovate, relocate to CenterPointe or other acquired building, or staged capital renewal); staff said a full solution may take 2'3 years if the county decides to build or acquire a new facility.
Next steps: FFM will refine CIP and operating-package details, produce comparative cost estimates for grounds/snow outsourcing vs hiring, and coordinate AV/room upgrades planning with the commissioners'office before formal CIP submission.
