Hampton council approves new capital improvement plan
Plan includes key projects plotted before outbreak
HAMPTON — Buckroe Beach could be getting a lot of love this year — some $5 million worth — to rebuild its boardwalk.
Also getting attention could be the former Wythe Fire Station on Kecoughtan Road, slated for a $7 million overhaul and a new location for a new building.
These and other projects in the pipeline for years, are on deck in Hampton’s latest capital improvement plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1, which was unveiled Wednesday.
The first year of the five-year capital plan is tucked in City Manager Mary Bunting’s recommended $516.8 million spending plan and allocates $83.5 million. The funding is a part of $367 million in various projects slated over five years, tapped by the Hampton City Council as strategic priorities.
The funding sources to cover the fiscal 2021 capital plan draw heavily on general obligation bonds, revenue from the city’s general fund, state and federal money, and grants, assistant City Manager Brian DeProfio told council Wednesday during an electronic meeting. Other revenues from taxes and fees or enterprise funds, are restricted to certain projects.
“Both of these plans, the budget as well as the CIP, are what we call pre-COVID-19 plans,” DeProfio said. “These plans were developed before those revenue impacts have been identified because we’re still assessing what those impacts would be. We may need to adjust funding levels and projects as revenue impacts become more clear.”
The plan broadly sets aside $12.3 million for economic growth in 2021, as well as $16.4 million for multiple infrastructure, road and pedestrian projects. Another $13.7 million is slated toward resiliency projects. The capital plan also proposes $13.9 million toward making Hampton visually a better place to live, $8.4 million for education projects and $18.6 million for projects focused on public safety.
Funding for resiliency projects to curb stormwater pollution and flooding will be paid with $12 million in bonds and steady $1 increases annually to residential stormwater fees over the next few years.
Hampton has allocated $9.2 million to replace the entire public safety inventory of radios, microphones, chargers and batteries.
Also being funded this year is a splash park, a $4.5 million project and component of the city’s coming $29 million aquatics center.
Some items of note this year’s capital plan include $1.1 million toward new center median streetlights along Magruder Boulevard, renamed Neil Armstrong Parkway earlier this year.
The city has set aside $1.6 million for two neighborhood centers in the Olde Hampton and Fox Hill neighborhoods.
Wednesday was the first of two public hearings for the city budget — and the first for council members to chime in. Because city hall is closed, residents could email or call in comments.
A big concern among the council was the delay in raises for city employees — pegged at 3% — but the city expects to execute that later in the fiscal year, DeProfio said. Some members felt, considering the economic shutdown from the pandemic, funding for new jobs, while budgeted in Bunting’s proposed spending plan, can also wait.
“New positions and new spending, that concerns me greatly,” Councilwoman Linda Curtis said, echoing a similar sentiment made by Councilman Steve Brown.
“We are in an economy perhaps no one can predict how deep the hole will be,” Curtis added. “It strikes me that is not a time to be adding positions on the city roster. If we can manage to go without furloughing our employees, that would be a great accomplishment. We want the public to be able to see, clearly, where the new spending is, so they can weigh in on it.”
Councilman Billy Hobbs said, “let’s take care of our employees first and sort out the rest later.”
Bunting said Hampton will need to look at revenue projections month-bymonth and will fund delayed spending items, such as salary increases, as revenues stabilize.
The full budget is online at hampton.gov/budget. Printed copies of “budget-in-brief” summaries are available outside city libraries.
The next public hearing on the Hampton budget takes place May 6. The city is accepting comments until midnight May 5 by emailing council@ hampton.gov or by leaving a message at 757-727-6315.
The council expects to make a final vote on the budget May 13.