Cabarrus County staff on Monday summarized projects in the county’s Community Investment Fund and asked the Board of Commissioners for guidance on which items to prioritize in coming years.

The update, led by staff member Kelly, covered projects ranging from an under-construction behavioral health center to library renovations, park repairs and a proposed animal shelter replacement. Kelly said the behavioral health center site “is probably about 20% complete at this point” and that the Affton Library and Active Living Center will hold a ribbon cutting on March 11.

The county is weighing several capital projects that are not yet bid or ready to move forward, Kelly told commissioners. She listed a public safety training facility, a possible new elementary school in the Harrisburg/Northwest Cabarrus area, a workforce innovation center and renovations at the S‑203 Building on South Campus as items omitted from the adopted package because they were not at bid-ready status when the Local Government Commission funding request was prepared.

Why it matters: the county’s adopted capital improvement program (CIP) contains a number of multi‑year projects and some large price tags; commissioners must decide which projects to fund with limited capacity and debt timing in future fiscal years.

Among specific priorities commissioners discussed was a second entrance to Frankless Park, which multiple commissioners described as a safety priority because of traffic and an upcoming rail spur. Staff provided a rough estimate of about $5,000,000 for that second entrance.

Park repairs also drew attention. Staff said the boardwalk at Vietnam Veterans Park is “in very bad condition,” describing options that range from a lower‑cost wood replacement to composite decking with a galvanized metal frame and driven pilings. Staff presented a range of engineer estimates for replacement, saying the cheapest option discussed was about $300,000, another typical wood option was about $500,000 once pilings were included, and a concrete option could reach about $900,000.

Animal shelter replacement and site constraints. Staff said the county purchased a property for a new animal shelter last year but did not at that time secure sewer allocation and will pursue allocation in the next cycle. The staff estimate for replacement construction given during the presentation was “$500 to $550 a square foot to replace.” The staff test‑fit for the site showed a roughly 20,000‑square‑foot building capacity compared with about 7,000 square feet at the existing shelter; during discussion a commissioner noted that a 20,000‑square‑foot design would be about $11 million.

Sheriff’s perspective and human impacts. Sheriff Shaw addressed the board about the shelter, describing operational and humane impacts of the county’s current facility. The sheriff said the county had recently taken custody of 53 dogs at one time and used a temporary kennel trailer to house animals, and that limited capacity contributes to operational strain and staff burnout. He described co‑locating animal control with shelter staff as part of the proposed design so law enforcement presence and operations can be coordinated.

Public safety training facility. Commissioners and the sheriff discussed a proposed joint training center that would serve county and municipal law enforcement, fire and emergency management agencies. The sheriff said the project has been discussed for roughly 18 months and that governance, scope and cost need to be narrowed before design or debt issuance. “I think in all honesty, we need to go back to the table and dial that down a little bit and really look at... what’s our priority that first couple of years and then expansion down the road,” he said.

Budget and timing context. Staff noted the county’s debt and capacity projections: projected capacity in fiscal year 2026 is roughly $100 million without changing current annual contributions to the fund; by 2028 they estimated about $60 million of capacity under current assumptions. Staff said the county would not issue new debt until 2026 under the current schedule, giving the board time to set priorities and direct staff on sequencing and scope.

Next steps. Staff asked commissioners to identify any projects not mentioned for prioritization or items they believe should be deferred. Several commissioners said they agreed that the Frankless Park second entrance should be the top near‑term priority; others urged continued work on governance and scope for the training center before committing to design and debt.

Ending: Staff said they will continue to refine schedules and costs and will return to the board with additional updates as sewer allocation and procurement milestones advance.