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Wake County releases balanced seven-year capital plan; county portion totals $1.15 billion
Summary
County staff briefed commissioners on the recommended FY2026–FY2032 capital improvement program (CIP). The full 7-year CIP across county, schools and Wake Tech was presented earlier as roughly $4.8 billion; the county-only portion in the manager’s recommended budget is $1.15 billion, with maintenance and county buildings prioritized.
Wake County staff presented the county portion of the recommended FY2026–FY2032 capital improvement program at the Board of Commissioners’ May 12 work session and described how the plan was balanced within projected revenues.
Molly (county staff) said the county manager’s recommended budget links each project in the seven-year window to identified funding sources and that the county portion of the CIP “totals $1,150,000,000.” She said the county’s capital plan prioritizes maintenance of an asset portfolio that exceeds 5,000,000 square feet and allocates funds across county buildings, automation (IT), public safety and criminal justice needs. Molly said the county used a prior tax-rate planning exercise that dedicates part of the property tax (15¢ of the rate) to debt and capital; that allocation, plus limited obligation bonds and general obligation bonds for library projects, supports the recommended program.
The county brief confirmed that a portion of county capital is not eligible for debt and therefore is funded with cash (PAYGO). Molly noted $10.5 million in prior-project savings available for FY 2026 and said the plan sets aside capital reserves beginning in FY 2029 to smooth future needs.
Commissioners asked staff where they could find a comprehensive list of county-owned buildings; staff said General Services Administration (GSA) maintains such an inventory and that staff can provide it. Commissioners also asked about evaluating county-owned land and buildings to determine “highest and best use”; county staff recommended GSA lead that review and noted prior work on county land for housing.
No formal board votes occurred during the presentation. Commissioners were invited to send budget questions to county staff before the May 15 deadline for compilation and to the May 22 work session for discussion.
