Indian Trail unveils draft five‑year CIP; staff outlines $166M plan and next steps

Town Manager Adam Mclam presented the town’s draft five‑year Capital Improvement Program on Wednesday, describing it as a planning and financial management tool that lists funded, partially funded and unfunded projects and does not by itself authorize construction. “Just because a project is included in a CIP … does not give that project authority to move forward to construction,” Mclam told the council.

The book-format CIP presented to council groups projects by funding status and includes estimated costs, projected schedules and project contacts. Staff reported the plan lists roughly $166 million in total projects, with about $60.5 million identified as fully funded; in the presentation staff also cited a $43.5 million subset of fully funded projects shown elsewhere in the packet.

Fully funded items called out by staff include Chestnut Parkway phase three, upgrades at Chestnut Square Park and town hall renovations, and additions such as park and infrastructure improvements. Partially funded or unfunded items include Indian Trail Road Complete Street Phase 2, a public works facility, the proposed community center and a package of sidewalk connections submitted to CRTPO’s prioritization process.

Councilors asked how Indian Trail’s funding percentage compared with peer towns and pressed staff on large unfunded projects. Mclam said the town is “a growing community” and that the CIP is intended to lay out priorities so staff and council can model funding and phasing options. He told council staff will return with a financial‑modeling demonstration and then present the plan for potential adoption once council is ready.

The presentation closed with staff describing next steps: a demonstration of new modeling software, phased task orders for future design work, and additional council briefings before any adoption vote.