Question: The CIP budget includes $471 million in FY 2025 of a $2.33 billion 10 year CIP budget, or roughly 20% of our 10 year budget is being spent in Year One. How does that percentage compare to recent years? Does staff believe that we are facing a large share of CIP expenses presently that will decline over time, or that future CIP expenses only appear lower because we haven’t programmed anything in those years? (Councilman R. Kirk McPike)

Response: 

The last several approved Capital Improvement Programs (CIPs) have included substantial Year 1 capital budget investments to support major renovations or replacements of City and Schools facilities, stormwater and flood mitigation infrastructure, transit corridors, WMATA’s capital program, and the redevelopment of the Landmark Mall site. The table below provides the year 1 capital budget and its proportion of the overall 10-year funding plan for the approved FY 2020 – FY 2024 capital budgets, along with the proposed FY 2025 capital budget. Additionally, at the end of this response, a listing of the significant drivers for each capital budget (projects with an appropriation of over $10 million) can be found.

The proposed FY 2025 capital budget, along with the last few approved capital budgets, represent a historic level of commitment to and investment in the City and School's capital assets. Largely, these capital budgets represent the culmination of long-term planning efforts by the City and Schools to address identified needs. The clustering of appropriations for these projects into the last few fiscal years is indicative of both the importance and urgency of these investments in City and School facilities, along with the grant awarding and schedules for transportation projects, Transit Corridor “B” and “C”.

The Proposed FY 2025 capital budget includes budget authority to begin construction of a number of significant capital projects that have been included in previously approved CIPs (most notably City Hall Renovations, and George Mason Elementary School), and the final installment of the City’s contributions to the redevelopment of the Landmark Mall Site. This represents $184.4 million of the FY 2025 capital budget. Additionally, the FY 2025 capital budget includes $149.5 million in projects supported by awarded federal, state, and regional grants and other non-city funding sources.

The City’s 10-year CIP is a reflection of the known needs of the community that will need to be afforded within the currently known revenue environment. While the out-years of the Proposed CIP are smaller, they still represent a significant annual investment in City and School capital needs, averaging $206.9 million per year.

The CIP is an iterative process that is re-evaluated on an annual basis, and it is likely that more investment needs will be identified over time. As it stands, the Proposed capital plan will require substantial planning and trade-offs in future budget development cycles, largely due to the funding commitments made in recent capital plans, including this FY 2025 capital budget.

Significant Drivers of previously Approved Capital Budgets and Proposed FY 2025 Capital Budget

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