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Finance committee reviews capital plan and deep-tunnel stormwater project; staff flags reimbursement and cash-flow risk
Summary
Committee discussed a $3.9 million deep-tunnel stormwater project split between a county/state award and village funds, potential reimbursement delays through the state program, and staff recommended holding a $300,000 sanitary-sewer line pending bid results and reimbursement timing.
Lake Bluff Finance Committee members on Feb. 10 reviewed the draft 15-year capital program and spent most of the session on a proposed deep-tunnel stormwater project and related cash-flow implications.
Staff said Lake County has awarded approximately $2.7 million for the viaduct storm-sewer project but will retain roughly $300,000 for administration, leaving about $2.4 million available for construction if the village meets program requirements. Jeff (project staff) told the committee that the county expects to obtain the money from a state grant program administered by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DECEO), and that DECEO reimburses grantees quarterly rather than monthly.
Jeff said that if the village meets the program’s business-enterprise participation goals (a stated 28% BEP target for disadvantaged/women-owned firms aggregated across county projects), reimbursement could occur in four to six months; if the goals are not met, reimbursement could take about 12 months or longer. Jeff said the village had not yet received the intergovernmental agreement in writing but expected it soon.
The committee discussed the project scale and phasing. Staff proposed a $3.9 million first-phase scope that would extend the storm sewer from Lake Michigan westward to Moffett Avenue, with roughly $2.4 million from the county/state award and about $1.5 million from the village stormwater utility. Members heard that the construction sequence will likely start at the lake and work west to reduce interim flooding and that the pipe may be as deep as 40 feet in places.
Cash-flow implications and staff recommendation: because the state reimbursement timeline is uncertain, staff recommended deferring a $300,000 annual sanitary-sewer lining line item (line 26) from the immediate capital plan so the village does not have to float additional cash while waiting for reimbursements. Bettina said the updated capital spreadsheet assumes the village will need to temporarily provide cash for portions of the project and that fund balances after the proposed spending would remain above the committee’s safety target in the scenarios presented.
Other capital items discussed: a grant-dependent “Block 1” downtown improvement project (budgeted at $1 million in the packet assumptions), Green Bay Road reconstruction and bridge work (multi-year costs, partially grant-funded at an 80/20 split), vehicle-replacement contributions (increasing transfers to plan for a costly fire truck that can take up to four years to deliver), and smaller re-allocations of staff salaries across public-works subprograms. Committee members asked for more project detail and for staff to present alternative phasing and a clearer cash-flow timeline at the next meeting.
Ending: Staff said they would forward the county intergovernmental agreement when it arrives and return with updated bid and cash-flow scenarios before the next budget meeting; the committee agreed to revisit the sanitary-sewer line and Block 1 assumptions when those details are available.
