On Monday, City Council held the first reading of the proposed Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). Utilized as a planning tool to identify capital projects, and then as the outline to appropriate financing + timing, the CIP is prepared each year, with the first year of the plan serving as the coming year’s capital budget.
The 2019-20 fiscal year budget has been set, by city council + department members, at $31,875,185, with the funds being segmented into four categories:
- Neighborhood investment + infrastructure ($18,510,000) | Ex.: street resurfacing, stormwater improvements, construction of sidewalks, etc.
- Economic development ($5,776,634) | Ex.: investment in commercial corridors, operation of the Greenville Convention Center, improvements to Fluor Field, etc.
- Public safety ($3,892,473) | Ex.: police + fire protection.
- Parks + recreation ($3,696,078) | Ex.: Unity Park, the greenway + trails, etc.
The funding highlights for each of the above categories can be seen broken down by project here.
But where does the money for the CIP budget come from? A multitude of revenue sources, including:
- Utility funds ($13,325,000) | Ex: sewer + stormwater fees.
- General funds ($8,457,298) | Ex: property taxes + business licenses.
- Tourism funds ($5,645,000) | Ex.: hospitality tax + accommodation taxes.
- TIF funds ($3,747,887) | Property tax revenues generated from specific areas of the city, that were once previously restricted for use in those areas.
- Capital projects funds ($700,000) | Savings from completed projects + interest earnings on idle funds.
Budget sources example chart | Provided by the City of Greenville
Additionally, the CIP includes in excess of $5,000,000 over the next five years to finance the production of affordable housing.
What are the next steps? The CIP will go through a second reading –where it will be either adopted or rejected – at the formal City Council meeting, Mon., May 13 at 5:30 p.m.
