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Council presses staff to turn CIP wish list into prioritized, fundable plan
Summary
Council directed staff to produce a prioritized capital improvement plan with timelines and funding strategies after hearing the FY2026 budget and tax-rate adoption calendar; members criticized the CIP as a 'wish list' and asked for staging and funding sources to make projects actionable.
During the budget and capital improvement plan discussion, the city manager presented the FY2026 budget calendar and milestones through September, including department budget meetings, a draft CIP presentation in April and public hearings in August–September.
Council members urged staff to stop treating the CIP as an uncosted wish list and to provide priorities, timelines and funding strategies. "What would really be helpful ... is on a particular item ... how's that gonna happen over what time period?" one council member asked, requesting a clear funding plan and the division of large projects across multiple years if necessary.
Staff responded that they will map each major CIP item to likely funding sources (internal financing, grants, or borrowing), and will propose multi-year phasing where capacity limits exist. The city manager and finance staff said a preliminary CIP draft and financing recommendations will be prepared for upcoming work sessions.
What happens next: staff will return with prioritized CIP lists, estimated timelines and recommended funding sources for each major project, and the council will review those materials during upcoming budget workshops.
