photo by: Journal-World

The west side of the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts St.

Douglas County leaders will get their first look at the county’s next five-year Capital Improvement Plan during a work session this week.

Based on what the Douglas County Commission recommends Wednesday afternoon, county staff will bring back a finalized version of the plan to be formally adopted during the commission’s next meeting on Nov. 2.

County staff estimates that there will be nearly $19 million in the CIP fund balance as of Jan. 1, 2023, and that just short of $9 million of that will be allocated to projects for next year.

Items of note include a $1 million allocation to the county’s project to expand the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center and revise its master plan, which will go toward design fees and construction documents. That project has a roughly $24.5 million budget overall, according to the 2023-2028 CIP projects summary document included with this week’s agenda.

The largest single expenditure the county anticipates making next year, according to that document, is more than $4.3 million to restore stonework at the Douglas County Courthouse and to waterproof the building’s basement. All but $116,079 of the cost of that project is accounted for in reserve CIP funds from 2022.

The county also projects to allocate at least $1 million toward a number of other projects next year, albeit with smaller overall budgets comparatively. That list includes nearly $1.5 million toward beginning work on remodeling the second floor of the Douglas County Courthouse, including the County Commission hearing room. A remodel and electrical upgrade in the courthouse basement, an HVAC replacement for the Public Works Department, and a new maintenance shop for the Douglas County Fairgrounds will all be allocated more than $1 million each.

The third floor of the courthouse is also set for a remodel, and that allocation is $873,267.

The Judicial and Law Enforcement Center expansion — plus the aforementioned remodels in the courthouse basement, second and third floors — are improvements to the downtown Lawrence campus of county property that were deemed as priorities in a 2019 space needs study.

One new element for the new plan is the inclusion of “Capital Replacement Program” projects. Those projects can include replacement or repair to existing structures that restore value and planned expenses for maintenance and repairs. That’s a departure from typical CIP projects, such as land acquisitions, new construction or remodels at public buildings, and studies preparatory to new construction, for example.

There are nine CRP projects listed on the CIP projects summary, and they all range in expected budgets between $100,000 and $250,000. The CIP also includes a $2 million allocation toward a CRP General Contingency fund.

Capital improvement planning is funded through a budgeted line item in the county’s general fund. Fund allocations are split between two departments: Public Works and County Administration.

As of Tuesday afternoon, there isn’t any business listed on the regular agenda for the County Commission meeting following the CIP work session.

Wednesday’s work session will begin at 4 p.m., followed by the business meeting at 5:30 p.m. at the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts St. The meeting will also be available by Zoom. For meeting information, visit the county’s website: dgcoks.org/commissionmeetings.