News Article

Date: May 24, 2006
By DAVE RANK - Daily News Staff

Radio system dominates building program

There’s a $13.3 million mountain gorilla sitting in the middle of the county’s facility budget for the next two years, and an $800,000 lowland ape waiting in the wings.

Tuesday, the County Board’s Executive Committee received its first look at the next six-year Capital Improvement Program, which does three things:

  • Budgets the use of revenue from the county’s half-cent sales tax;

  • Allocates spending on county facility maintenance, improvements and new construction projects for next year;

  • Anticipates future construction projects that are given tentative schedule slots for consideration in the following five years, in this case up to 2012.

Administrator Douglas Johnson presented the opening round of the plan to the five-member committee, which has until July to make final recommendations before the plan heads to the full County Board for approval this fall.

The mountain gorilla is the complete overhaul and replacement of the county’s radio communication system for first responders and other government agencies. That price tag is now set at $13.3 million with $9 million expected to be spent in 2007 and the rest, $4.3 million, expended in 2008.

In the wings is an annual expenditure of $800,000 for a proposed countywide purchase of development (PDR) program.

While that suggested funding use remains in the Capital Improvement Program for now, whether or not that allocation actually will make it to the final county budget in the fall likely will be decided next month by the full County Board.

Johnson called it "a placeholder" in the spending plan until specific directions come from the County Board in June.

"I appreciate putting in a placeholder for PDR in the plan," said Daniel Stoffel, county supervisor from the town of Kewaskum and a leader in support of the proposed agricultural land preservation program.

Started in 1999, the county sales tax has been used to fund a rash of building projects without borrowing additional money. While that no-borrow goal remains, Johnson said, the size and rapidity of installation required for the radio communications project has the county looking at bonds or a short-term loan to help pay for it.

The county is looking at borrowing $7 million for the radio project.

The capital improvement plan has no further borrowing scheduled through 2012, Johnson said.

Also on the 2007 capital improvement schedule for 2007:

  • $1 million for highway projects, an annual expenditure.

  • $500,000 for park development, another annual expenditure, with $100,000 allotted to a smaller PDR pilot program to protect farmland adjacent to the county’s existing parks, and another $200,000 scheduled to reduce outstanding debt at the Washington County Golf Course.

  • $400,000 for existing facility repairs and renovations.

  • $300,000 for additional remodeling at the Sheriff’s Department.

Total capital improvement spending for 2007 is $12 million, which includes the proposed borrowing. Because of planned reductions in spending over the next five years, the average annual spending amount for the 2007-2012 plan is $5.78 million, which is below the County Board’s Finance Committee’s recommendation, Johnson said.

A total of $1.6 million in sales tax revenue will be used to directly reduce the 2007 property tax levy, Johnson said.

For planning purposes, John-son said, $8 million in county sales tax revenue is being budgeted for 2007