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York County staff outline new five-year CIP, scoring rubric to prioritize projects
Summary
York County staff presented a revised Capital Improvement Program that will use a five-year horizon, departmental scoring rubrics and a bottoms-up prioritization to schedule $50M+ of current projects and improve grant competitiveness; council requested clearer Gantt timelines and quarterly status reporting.
York County staff told the County Council on Nov. 10 that they are moving to a multi-year capital improvement program intended to prioritize major projects and align spending with strategic goals. Tom Couch, assistant manager, said the new CIP will use a five- to six-year horizon, department-led scoring and a rolling schedule integrated with the budget document.
"What we're trying to do is...use a bottoms-up approach," Tom Couch said, describing a process that brings department directors and supervisors into project identification and prioritization. He said the approach is meant to make projects more competitive for grants and to reduce surprises during construction by improving planning and cash-flow forecasting.
Council members pressed staff for clearer delivery timelines and budget detail. Lisa Hagood, accounting engineer, said staff will provide Gantt-style timelines and more detailed budget-line information in advance of future quarterly briefings so council can track whether projects are on schedule and on budget.
Couch outlined central elements of the proposed CIP: objective scoring rubrics for project value and urgency, grouping projects by department (public safety, general government, parks), alignment with the county strategic plan and a focus on "shovel-worthy" projects that increase grant success. He said cost will be a factor but the rubric will weigh value and alignment as well.
Staff said the CIP will present year 1 as the proposed capital budget and show out-year forecasts; projects may roll forward or expire depending on progress and funding availability. The county also plans annual updates to the plan so the schedule remains current.
Council asked whether the rubric should privilege cost savings or community value. Couch said the county is vetting the rubric to keep it objective and fair to all departments, and that detailed scoring forms will be issued to departments to support recommendations with data.
The county manager's office and staff will return to council during the winter budget process with the draft CIP and the first year’s proposed capital budget. Council members requested the staff provide the revised presentation materials and timelines before the next quarterly meeting.
