Newt and Karen Heilman’s Chatham County Real Estate Blog

Chatham County Commissioners Approve 5-year Capital Plan January 30, 2010

During its Board Summit on January 22, the Chatham County Board of Commissioners approved a Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan, which includes, among other things, a new high school in northeastern Chatham, a new jail, county-owned landfill site study, and moving ahead immediately with the judicial center.

“The commissioners feel that we need to move forward with the high school on Jack Bennett Road, even though this school was not recommended by the county manager. Recent school population projections did not take into account development that has already been approved, including Briar Chapel, said Commissioner Vice Chair George Lucier. “These projections were flawed and not useful for planning purposes.”

The approval of the plans to build the new high school by the commissioners is contingent on the Board of Education reaffirming their request for this new facility.

The high school, which would open in 2015, would have a capacity of 800 students, but the core facilities, such as the media center, cafeteria, and gymnasium would be constructed to accommodate 1,200 students so as growth occurs, the facility can be expanded.

The commissioners also directed the architect to continue finalizing the plans for the new judicial center. “We want to begin this project as quickly as possible, given the safety concerns and the crowded conditions at our existing court facilities,” said Commissioner Chair Sally Kost. “Acting quickly will also allow us to take advantage of current construction market conditions.”

The commissioners asked the architect to find ways to reduce the judicial center budget without impacting the function or general design of the facility. The commissioners trimmed the budget by roughly $4 million from the original estimated amount the county would have to borrow by taking advantage of lower construction costs and selecting other options for interior and exterior finishes.

“We can save substantial funds in the current construction market,” Kost said. “We also did what we could to reduce overall construction costs, but delaying this facility is not an option. As an example, District Court alone often has to handle more than twice the number of cases than it has capacity to handle during each session.”

The commissioners also approved a recommendation to fund a new jail, but asked county staff to work with a jail architect to reduce the total cost to $15 million, a reduction of 21%.

Kost said that the county can no longer ignore the needs for a new jail. “The data strongly supports the need for this facility.”

The Sheriff’s Office reported that the current jail is over capacity about 62% of the time, a trend that could create unsafe conditions and, down the road, the potential for the state to force the county to address the problem through more costly options.

As part of the capital plan the commissioners agreed to hire a consultant to look at potential sites for a county landfill. Kost said, “It is important to point out that this does not mean that any decision on the size or location of a landfill has been made, including whether or not it will accept only waste generated in our county or waste from surrounding areas.”

The consultant will look at sites that would accommodate 180 to 500 tons per day, so that the county can weigh its options. The smaller size would accept Chatham-generated waste only. The landfill site study will be paid out of existing capital reserves.

Related to this decision, the commissioners voted to delay the opening of a new waste collection center in the northeastern part of the county by one year to 2015, mainly because usage of the existing Cole Park Collection Center has actually declined in the past year.

The commissioners also added the following school-related items to the updated capital plan:

• Replacement of roofs at nine older schools this year, using qualified school construction bonds to cover the estimated $2.2 million cost.
• Replacement of indoor gym bleachers at Chatham Central and Jordan Matthews high schools, because existing bleachers are in poor condition and pose a safety hazard. The estimated total cost is $310,000 paid over two years (2011 to 2012) out of fund balance.
• Improvement of lighting and sound for auditoriums at Chatham Central and Jordan Matthews so that all three high schools have upgraded auditoriums which will not only serve school functions, but will be able to accommodate many community activities. The estimated cost at each school is around $360,000.
• Replacement of lights at Northwood’s football field. Existing lights do not meet standards of the NC Athletic Association, which means the school could be forced to play on an opponent’s field during a playoff game. The commissioners moved this project up one year to 2011. The estimated cost is $116,000 and will be paid from county reserves.
• Replacement of broken or uneven paved areas at six schools, including sidewalks, driveways and play areas. Estimated cost is $150,000 over five years.

Other projects added or revised in the Five-Year Plan include:

• Reductions in the scope of renovations at existing county buildings.
• Improvements to Briar Chapel Park, a new park in a northeastern Chatham development. The park is expected to be donated to the county. Recreation fees paid by the developer will fund the estimated $300,000 needed to make improvements in 2010. The work includes restrooms, concession stand, fencing and more lighting. Community input from this past November will be considered in developing facility plans and operations of the park.
• Minor improvements to Northwest District Park on Woody Store Road so that it is open for full-time use in 2011. Work primarily includes repairs to existing facilities, such as the picnic shelter, activity center, dining hall roof and kitchen, pool house roof, fishing pier, gym roof, and roads and driveways. Work also includes a new playground and barriers to protect walkway users from vehicle traffic. The estimated cost is $100,000, paid out of the parks capital reserve.
• Improvements to the Law Enforcement Center site were moved up one year to 2011 so that the county can retain a $51,000 grant to help with the costs. It will provide additional parking and improved road access to the center, which is currently limited.

All of the new projects approved except one can be funded with existing borrowing capacity, capital reserves, fund balance, specified fees, grants and other revenues, according to Kost.

Building the new high school in the next five years means a potential property tax increase of 0.15 cents as of July 1, 2011 and an increase of approximately $700 in the school facility impact fee, effective January 1, 2011.

“To pay for the new high school, a slight increase in the property tax and an increase in the school facility impact fee will be necessary,” Kost said.

The commissioners explored various options regarding the impact fee, but tentatively approved an increase of around $700 to be effective January 1, 2011. As part of this impact fee decision, the commissioners made it clear that it included relief to builders by delaying the collection of the fee to a later point in the construction process. The fee is currently paid at the time of permitting. The change in when the fee is paid will be implemented January 1, 2011.

“We recognize that it is harder for smaller builders to pay the fee so early in the process. We can help by moving the collection of the fee to a point later in the construction cycle,” Kost said.

She emphasized that the commissioners would strongly prefer to fund all the critical needs in the five-year plan without any new revenues, but “we are dealing with a backlog of vital needs and have limited options to pay for them.” The impact fee can only be used for new school construction.

“It is important to note that legally we are not allowed to vary the level of the impact fee by the square footage or value of the home. Our hands are tied on those options,” Kost said.

She also noted that a 2009 study of the current school impact fee of $3,500 shows that the fee could be set much higher to reflect the actual cost of building new schools.