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County engineer outlines $3.5B portfolio, warns hiring freeze and service cuts would slow project delivery
Summary
The County Engineer reported a portfolio of roughly $3.5 billion in active capital projects, described completed debris‑removal and ongoing JANIS resilience work, and warned that proposed offsets and hiring‑freeze risks would delay project delivery and reduce on‑the‑ground maintenance such as janitorial and landscaping.
County Engineer Milton Ramon presented the Office of the County Engineer’s FY2026 priorities, ongoing capital portfolio and the operational tradeoffs embedded in proposed budget reductions.
Ramon said the County Engineer manages a portfolio of 603 active capital improvement projects across roads, drainage, parks and buildings valued at approximately $3.5 billion; the office reported $512 million in project payments in the current year and said about $300 million of project work comes through precinct partnerships. He highlighted accomplishments including debris removal after storms (about 1.8 million cubic yards collected), 583 traffic studies completed and maintenance of traffic signals and school beacons.
The nut graph: Ramon said proposed offsets and a potential hiring freeze would reduce building renovation scope, cut janitorial and landscaping services, and shift the office to emergency‑only preventive maintenance; he asked the court to protect life‑safety systems and to consider using eligible capital or mobility funds for project delivery where permitted.
Ramon described four core priorities for the next year: safe and reliable infrastructure, flood resiliency, operational efficiency, and securing external funding (grants). He noted work on Vision Zero (traffic‑safety steering committee), a county‑wide drainage master plan, signature flood‑resilience projects (JANIS program) and downtown facility planning for departmental space needs. He said the office is exploring pilot programs for energy efficiency, including solar installations at county facilities.
On personnel, Ramon said construction management and inspection workloads have increased while staffing has not kept pace; he warned that the hiring freeze would delay project delivery if vacancies could not be refilled and said certain functions (life‑safety, emergency response) would be prioritized if cuts proceed.
Ending: Ramon asked court members to weigh the tradeoffs and he said the office will continue to seek state and federal grant funds and to prioritize projects by risk and community need as the budget process continues.
