Out of county project applications totaling more than $129 million, the James City County Policy Committee has composed a list of projects it thinks should be priorities, including a fourth middle school for Williamsburg-James City County Schools.
The James City County Planning Commission Policy Committee has been meeting over the past several days to review about 40 requests for funding from the county over the next five years; some projects are seeking funding in the next fiscal year, while others need the money as far out as fiscal year 2019. The committee’s recommendations for priorities will eventually make it to the Board of Supervisors, which will have the ultimate say on which projects are necessary and which will be funded. The board has not yet begun public budget discussions.
While requests came from a variety of county departments — fire, police, communications, parks and recreation, Williamsburg-James City County Schools, planning, general services and financial and management services — not all made the cut for the list of 14 priority projects.
Funding for a fourth middle school made the list of priorities, though it did not top the list; instead, the fourth middle school came in at No. 6, falling behind neighborhood stormwater management, a shelter generator, a Virginia Department of Transportation funding match, locators for emergency vehicles and shore stabilization at Chickahominy Riverfront Park.
The request for funding from WJCC Schools for the new middle school totals more than $40 million over two years, but does not account for the funding the City of Williamsburg would have to provide. The project would first need funding for design, estimated at $8 million, before the construction could begin.
Whether funding will be made available for the new school — or any of the projects — is questionable.
John McDonald, director of Financial and Management Services for the county, said he has heard suggestions that debt is not an acceptable option for the county. Acquiring debt would be necessary to fund a fourth middle school. McDonald did not mention from where the suggestion came, but he did say staff is waiting until the full board of newly elected members begins its term in January to begin discussions about debt.
“I would think stormwater has got the best chance because it’s required, but we’ll see,” McDonald said.
The stormwater project was ranked highest by the policy committee due in part to Chesapeake Bay cleanliness requirements that could cause the county to pay hefty fees if certain pollution reduction goals are not met.
Overall, the stormwater project would require more than $10.5 million, split over five years. In the first year, funding is requested at almost $2.2 million. The project would be aimed at improving neighborhood drainage in Brook Haven, Grove, James Terrace and neighborhoods in Toano to improve the countywide water quality.
The neighborhoods needing assistance have “undersized and aging systems which fail to adequately protect citizens and property from the impacts of storm runoff and inhibit future development …” according to staff’s request for funding. The other portion of the project dealing with water quality is aimed at reducing bacteria, nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment in the county’s waterways and in the Chesapeake Bay.
Also on the list of the committee’s top 14 priorities were:
- An annual VDOT funding match that could be used for various projects to improve roadways. The funding request totals $3 million, broken down into requests for $750,000 annually.
- Automatic vehicle locators for emergency vehicles at a total of $155,000. The locators would be a GPS-based system that could allow emergency personnel to find each other during accidents. It could also log information so reports could be generated to determine where and when higher concentrations of accidents occur to station police in advance of accidents.
- The fire department submitted a request for $277,000 to purchase and install a generator at the Abram Frink Jr. Community Center, enabling it to serve as an emergency shelter.
- Shoreline stabilization for the eroding shoreline at Chickahominy Riverfront Park — a $450,000 request. According to the request, the shoreline is becoming a safety issue.
- The second phase of work on the county’s fiber optic ring, an almost $2.4 million request broken down into five years of funding; the first year would cost more than $450,000. The fiber optic ring would sever the county’s dependency on Cox Communications and would move the fiber optic lines from a combination of underground and overhead lines to solely underground, which prevents the lines from going down when power lines fall.
- Parks and Recreation requested $250,000 for greenways and trails in the county as a request for $50,000 for each of the next five years. The funding would be used to plan, develop and improve trails in compliance with the county’s Greenways Master Plan. Funding through an existing bond will be exhausted at the end of this fiscal year, so new funding will be needed to match grants.
- The next phase of improvements at Mid County Park will include a parking addition, bus parking and sidewalks. The project comes with a $400,000 price tag.
- Outdoor restrooms and concession areas for the James City County Recreation Center’s park. The request total $350,000 and would replace the portable toilets not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Design and construction of a new Parks and Recreation administration office totaling $2.1 million. The office would be built at the Warhill Sports Complex to replace the current office near New Town.
- A Customer Relations Management System and 311 services; the projects were broken down into two requests with the CRM system totaling $225,000 over five years and $126,000 over five years for the 311 system. The CRM system can exist without the 311 system, but not vice versa. CRM would allow citizens to report problems, ask questions or express concerns using a website or email. The 311 system would allow citizens to call in with non-emergency questions or reports, including reporting broken street lights or asking about bus schedules.
