Brevard County staff warns ongoing funding needed to maintain 1,232 miles of paved roads

Brevard County public works staff told the Board of County Commissioners Tuesday that steady funding is required to sustain repairs across 1,232 centerline miles of roads and to address backlogs in bridges, drainage and facilities.

The county’s pavement condition index rose from 79 in 2019 to 86 in the most recent assessment, public works staff said, reflecting years of targeted resurfacing and preservation. ‘‘Good roads cost less,’’ public works staff summarized during the presentation, urging continued investment to avoid more expensive reconstruction.

The presentation outlined a five-year rolling plan that prioritizes preservation techniques — seal coats, reclamite and other surface treatments — so the county can extend pavement life at lower cost. Staff reported the county has completed 598 miles of resurfacing, 73 miles of reconstruction and 254 miles of preservation, for a total of 926 miles addressed to date. Since 2015 the county has invested roughly $115,500,000 in road work, staff said.

Why it matters: Reconstruction can be four times as costly as preservation, staff said. Staff estimated resurfacing and preservation needs will continue as a permanent, recurring obligation and warned that cutting resurfacing budgets could drop the county’s PCI by one to two points per year and erode the progress made since 2018.

Key details and trade-offs

- Inventory growth: Staff said the county is adding roughly 4.5 miles of new roads per year from residential and commercial development; that increase includes sidewalks, drainage, curb and gutter and ADA improvements. Those additions feed long-term maintenance needs.

- Preservation versus reconstruction: Staff presented estimates showing typical preservation costs from about $14,000 to $80,000 per centerline mile while full reconstruction can approach $865,000 per centerline mile. The current program emphasizes resurfacing and preservation and limits reconstruction to the most critical segments.

- Backlog and district differences: Staff reported the backlog of roads needing reconstruction fell from about 734 miles in 2017 to 74 miles today. District 5 still had the highest share of remaining reconstruction needs; District 2 faces scheduling challenges because of concurrent utility projects.

- Bridges and funding gap: The county maintains 48 bridges and a rolling five-year bridge plan shows an approximately $8.5 million shortfall for major rehabs and replacements over the program window. Some bridges do not qualify for federal grants because they fall below the National Bridge Inventory length threshold, which limits outside funding options.

- Drainage and culverts: Staff described an expanded drainage program (three countywide ditch crews plus five maintenance teams) that reduced cleaning cycles from more than 10–12 years to roughly 3–5. Staff estimated thousands of collapsed driveway culverts countywide and said replacing culverts typically comes from MSTU funds; replacement costs to homeowners can range from a few thousand dollars to $15,000–$20,000 depending on size.

- Dirt roads: The presentation noted 82 miles of dirt roads in District 1 (68 miles in D1 alone). Maintenance is labor- and equipment-intensive; staff said fully paving that inventory could exceed $100 million over time but may reduce long-term maintenance costs. Staff suggested options such as divestment to homeowners’ associations or new funding mechanisms if the board wants to accelerate paving.

Staffing, equipment and facilities

Public works staff said vacancies remain an operational challenge — particularly among the blue-collar road-and-bridge workforce — and that recruiting and retention have been affected by pay differentials with private contractors and other municipalities. Staff reported an 18.5% department vacancy rate overall and higher rates for road-and-bridge crews.

Heavy equipment costs and repairs also limit capacity: staff said the average heavy unit can cost $500,000–$800,000 and they averaged roughly $667,000 per year in equipment repairs over the last three years. Facility needs were also highlighted; staff said the Wickham shop replacement (phased project) has $22.3 million funded for phases 1–2 and an unfunded $18.1 million for phases 3–4.

Not a final decision

Commissioners did not take policy action on these program elements during the workshop. A procedural motion later in the afternoon to end the workshop at 5 p.m. and reschedule remaining items passed 5–0 (see Votes at a glance below). Staff will return with budget proposals and follow-up items in the next scheduled budget meeting.

Votes at a glance

A procedural motion to adjourn the workshop at 5 p.m. and reschedule remaining items was moved by Commissioner Goodson, seconded by another commissioner, and passed 5–0.

"I’d like to make a motion that we... end this at 5 and reschedule what’s left," Commissioner Goodson said before the board voted. The clerk recorded a unanimous affirmative vote.