Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Strategic Capital Plan topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board approves strategic capital plan for sewer, stormwater and transportation; Big Bethel Road reprioritized
Summary
York County supervisors approved a strategic capital plan for wastewater, stormwater and transportation as part of the Sept. 2 consent calendar, amending project priorities to raise Big Bethel Road’s rank; the plan lists roughly $170 million in conceptual project costs and staff said a sewer rate study will inform funding and CIP timing.
The York County Board of Supervisors voted on Sept. 2 to adopt an updated Strategic Capital Plan for wastewater, stormwater and transportation as part of the consent calendar, approving the consent items "as amended" after a board amendment to reprioritize Big Bethel Road.
The plan, presented by county staff, lists conceptual projects — 18 sewer line extensions, nine stormwater projects, 16 sidewalk projects, eight crosswalk projects and 13 vehicular-transportation projects — with a combined preliminary estimated cost of about $170 million. County staff described the figures as conceptual engineering estimates that reflect costs at the time the plan was compiled and said actual project scopes and budgets will be refined through the capital-improvement program (CIP) process.
"What we're asking for is essentially, the adoption of the capital plan," Noel, the county presenter, told the board, reviewing the timeline and purpose of aligning staff and board priorities. He said the county removed water-supply projects from this plan after water service responsibility transferred to Newport News Waterworks a decade earlier.
Why it matters: The plan is a county road map for near-term capital priorities that will feed the annual CIP. County officials stressed the plan is not a commitment to immediate construction but a prioritization tool to guide budgeting, grant-seeking and rate decisions.
Funding and next steps
Staff told the board the county will use user fees, connection charges, a meals-tax contribution (split between stormwater and sewer capital), bonds and grants to fund projects. The county is conducting a sewer rate study, which staff said will be presented before the end of the calendar year and will inform how the CIP and project sequencing can proceed.
On stormwater funding, staff said the county does not currently have a dedicated stormwater fee; preliminary, high-level estimates presented during discussion ranged from about $5 to $10 per household per month to support stormwater operation/capital work, with a separate staff comment that a rough estimate to cover both operations and capital could be about $10 per household. Staff called those figures preliminary and subject to further study.
Regulatory drivers and project scope
Staff and supervisors discussed federal- and state-level water-quality requirements. The presenter and county engineers said work to meet MS4 permit obligations and total maximum daily load (TMDL) requirements has driven many stormwater projects. County staff described many stormwater items in the plan as retrofits to older neighborhoods that were developed before modern stormwater standards existed, noting that mandates and grant programs (including state SLAF grants) factor into project selection and timing.
Supervisor Shepherd pressed for faster action on Big Bethel Road, arguing residents had waited decades for sewer service. "Enough's enough. These people have been been sitting down here for too long waiting for this project to go on," Shepherd said, urging the board to move the project up the priority list.
Board action and amendment
A motion by Mr. Holroyd to approve the consent calendar "as amended" (which included adoption of the Strategic Capital Plan with the board amendment to raise Big Bethel Road's priority score) passed on a roll call vote: Holroyd — yes; Roe — yes; Shepherd — yes; Knoll — yes. The board directed staff to incorporate the amendment into the rolling plan and noted the sewer rate study later this year would inform whether the county has capacity to accelerate projects.
Implementation notes
Staff said the plan does not itself determine final funding solutions or immediate construction; projects will be prioritized in the CIP and scheduled according to funding availability, grant awards and the outcome of the sewer rate study. The plan document was described as a living tool that the board can revisit and re-rank during the annual CIP cycle.
Ending
Supervisors agreed to use the plan as a guide while continuing to refine priorities and funding through the CIP process. Staff said they will return with the sewer rate study results before the end of the year and will work with the board during the CIP process to translate the plan’s conceptual projects into funded, scheduled projects.
