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Council workshop weighs capital projects, watershed planning and deferred‑maintenance priorities
Summary
Public Works presented a draft five‑year capital improvement program and sought council direction on prioritization. Discussion centered on balancing new projects, maintenance, watershed master planning (Kehoe, Seymour, Roosevelt), grant capacity and staffing for grant writing and project management.
Public Works Director Mazbo Zirunia presented the city's draft five‑year capital improvement program (CIP) and asked the council for direction on prioritization, program categories and whether to emphasize maintenance and watershed planning over new capital projects.
Zirunia said the CIP currently lists 55 projects and programs across categories including stormwater, parks, facilities, sewer, streets and trails. He emphasized a need to balance limited city general funds with grant opportunities and recurring maintenance costs for recently completed facilities such as the new library and Carter Park.
Council discussion focused on how to prioritize stormwater and watershed work. Multiple council members urged the city to address the Kehoe Watercourse issue related to ongoing erosion near private properties and potential liability. Council members and staff debated whether to pursue a single, large watershed master plan covering East‑of‑Highway‑1 tributaries or to tackle watersheds individually. Some members emphasized that master planning is expensive and dependent on grants, while others said targeted projects that reduce immediate public‑safety and liability risks (Pullman, Kehoe, Roosevelt) should take precedence.
Mazbo Zirunia said the city recently updated a hydraulic model of the collection system and plans to present it to council on May 6; the model is intended to guide sewer and stormwater projects and to inform discussions about collection‑system capacity and wet‑weather storage.
Council members also raised organizational capacity issues: several suggested creating or funding grant‑writing capacity because securing external grants will be essential to advancing larger projects; staff noted a grant writer can reduce but not eliminate the technical time departments must invest in applications. Other topics included preparing for large Caltrans projects on Highway 1, prioritizing maintenance over new initiatives where feasible, and preserving sinking funds for fleet and equipment replacement.
Why it matters: The CIP defines which public facilities the city will invest in or seek grant funding for in coming years. Council direction will shape whether the city focuses on deferred maintenance and high‑risk drainage projects, pursues watershed master planning, or advances larger trail and street projects that require substantial outside funding.
Staff committed to returning May 6 with a refined CIP informed by tonight’s conversation and to circulate the hydraulic model and project prioritization criteria for council review.
