Buckeye council hears PMO's CIP update, bond projects and proposed cost-recovery ordinance

At a Feb. 17, 2026 City of Buckeye council workshop, PMO staff led by James Shanno gave a detailed update on the city's Capital Improvement Program, the Program Management Office's first-year work and upcoming bond-funded projects, and previewed a proposed cost-recovery ordinance and a new project dashboard called Sensei IQ.

Shanno said the city moved from an annual CIP submission to a monthly intake and evaluation process and described the PMO's role coordinating transportation, real estate, an administrative function and the CIP itself. He said outside evaluation work began in April 2024 and the PMO was formally established in March 2025.

Why it matters: the PMO frames how projects are vetted, prioritized and financed and will manage the bond projects that residents voted to fund.

Shanno told council the city set staged spending targets after consultant work: a 40% execution target in FY25, 60% in FY26 and 80% in FY27 and beyond. "If a PM doesn't know their scope, schedule, budget, they probably don't know their project very well," Shanno said when describing the emphasis on scope, schedule and budget. He reported the FY25 actuals reached about 70%, up from roughly 26% in FY24.

Council and staff discussed dollar examples: the presiding official noted that in one prior year the city had about $82,000,000 of projects with roughly $20,000,000 spent; staff later described a roughly $120,000,000 program in which about $80,000,000 was reaching execution as the PMO matured.

Staff outlined key near-term projects funded in the first bond raise: two fire stations (706 and 709) and planning funding for a public-safety headquarters (approximately $6,000,000 in the first raise), Sun Valley Parkway median lighting, and several pinch-point removal transportation projects. McDowell was reported to have opened the day before the workshop, and the Jackrabbit corridor was described as a roughly $200,000,000 multi-jurisdictional investment involving Buckeye, Goodyear and ADOT.

Shanno previewed a proposed cost-recovery ordinance (formerly discussed as the "Scallop Street" policy) that "establishes a clear defensible cost recovery framework when the city advances street improvements ahead of adjacent development," and said staff expects a workshop on that ordinance in early April. He said alternatives to assessment include liens or development agreements and that fee-in-lieu payments collected from developers are sometimes used instead of assessments.

Staff also described Sensei IQ, a Microsoft-based project-management and dashboard platform intended to provide a single source for schedules, budgets, KPI reporting and automated drilldowns by department, project and geography; Shanno said initial use will be internal with a likely public-facing component later.

Council asked about legacy fee-in-lieu payments and how small historic payments would be incorporated; staff acknowledged older payments often are insufficient for today's costs and said the city will track those funds and incorporate them into projects where feasible, using other funding or developer agreements where necessary. Amy in Public Works confirmed downtown reconstruction on Edison, Easton and Roosevelt streets will begin next month and that the current scope is roadway reconstruction only (no curb, gutter or sidewalk included in this work).

Shanno closed by distributing the first annual council district CIP report in PDF form and offering to provide more detail on request. Staff said corridor maps exist for Jackrabbit, Miller and Watson and that additional mapping and a spreadsheet tallying public/private infrastructure investment is being developed.

Next steps: staff will return with a workshop on the cost-recovery ordinance in early April, begin showing Sensei IQ demonstrations within one to two months, and provide the district CIP report electronically.