The St. Mary’s County Board of County Commissioners on May 13 moved to revise the county’s capital improvement plan to accelerate the Spring Ridge Middle School renovation and to add county match funding so the county can capture increased state funding for agricultural land preservation.

County finance staff briefed commissioners on a series of capital realignments and timing changes that together revised the county’s FY14 capital schedule. Lane Kramer, a county budget presenter, told the board: “Tomorrow, the Board of Education will be before you … to ask to move $250,000 so that they can start on the engineering and design of Spring Ridge Middle School … and that positions the Board of Education in its work with [state review bodies] to get their funding in place to meet that accelerated schedule.”

Why it matters: Commissioners said finishing Spring Ridge sooner would reduce disruptions for students, position the school system to receive state planning and construction reimbursements and allow the county to manage cash flow and debt capacity. County staff also told the board the county’s debt ratio under the recommended budget is about 0.85 (policy threshold 2.0), and the board still holds a PAYGO fund balance (about $10 million noted in materials) it can apply to projects if it chooses.

What the board decided and directed
- Spring Ridge Middle School: The board directed staff to revise the CIP so the Spring Ridge renovation is shown as a single project (including relocatable classrooms) and to present option 2 (an accelerated timetable with construction completion targeted for December 2015) with the county’s full share shown in FY14. Commissioners indicated unanimous support for moving the project forward and for listing the county’s full FY14 commitment in the budget documents to position the school system for state planning approval and faster construction.

- PAYGO / fund balance: Commissioners said the likely county funding source for the Spring Ridge county share and for other near‑term commitments would be PAYGO (assigned fund balance). Staff said PAYGO is the safest short‑term approach while the state completes planning approvals and will be available if needed.

- Agricultural land preservation: The county received notice that state funding for ag‑land preservation (state match) was increased for the cycle. County staff said the state’s increase adds roughly $950,000 for FY14 that could cover multiple easement projects. The Agricultural & Seafood Board asked the county to provide an additional $632,000 in local match to capture more of that state money. Commissioners agreed to add $632,000 of county PAYGO to the CIP schedule so the county can secure the state match, with staff to show the change in the next iteration of the capital schedule.

Other capital items and context
- Staff reported a variety of timing and funding corrections on projects including a $125,000 reduction in county funding for a sheriff’s substation to reflect a state bond bill, timing shifts in the airport master plan tied to federal funding, a $40,000 add for unanticipated critical building repairs, and engineer estimate increases for Dr. Johnson Road (about $116,000 moved into FY14 changes).

- Commissioners asked staff to prepare a consolidated, follow‑up CIP package that (1) shows Spring Ridge as one project with relocatables included, (2) adds the $632,000 county match for ag‑land preservation, and (3) reflects any other technical updates. Staff said they will return with a revised schedule ahead of the May 20 work session and the May 28 budget approval meeting.

Votes at a glance
- Hollywood Volunteer Rescue Squad rescue tax rate: commissioners agreed to proceed with the increase from 1.1 to 1.4 (direction to incorporate into budget; public hearing had one speaker in favor). Outcome: approved (direction recorded; no roll‑call recorded in transcript).

- Ridge Volunteer Rescue Squad rescue tax rate: commissioners agreed to proceed with the increase from 0.8 to 1.1. Outcome: approved (direction recorded; no roll‑call recorded in transcript).

- College of Southern Maryland (CSM) scholarship support: commissioners agreed to include $20,000 in the budget with stipulations that funds support St. Mary’s County students pursuing health/medical training. Outcome: approved (direction recorded).

- St. Mary’s County Library Sunday hours: commissioners agreed to fund Sunday operations and a one‑time $800 stipend to the library director; total added roughly $28,800. Outcome: approved (direction recorded).

What remains open
- The Board of Education’s formal motion to transfer $250,000 (a budget amendment) for Spring Ridge engineering/design is expected at the next session; that request had not yet been formally voted at the time of the work session. Commissioners requested the BOE present its updated book showing MSDE revenues before final confirmation of recurring costs tied to school security or staffing changes.

The board’s action to show the county’s full Spring Ridge commitment in FY14 and to add a $632,000 PAYGO match for ag preservation refocused the CIP schedule for the short term. Staff will return with updated pages showing the changes ahead of the board’s May 20 work session and the May 28 budget adoption.