Santa Fe County unveils a tighter five‑year capital and maintenance plan, recommends two‑year GO bond cycle

Santa Fe County managers on Monday presented a streamlined five‑year capital and maintenance plan that, staff said, shifts the county away from an ICIP that often read like a “wish list” toward a pipeline of vetted projects backed by firm cost estimates and reasonably anticipated funding.

"We think this is a significant step forward relative to the robustness of the county's budget planning process," Manager Greg Schaefer told the Board of County Commissioners as he outlined sources of county capital funding and two proposed revenue bonds. Schaefer said the change means projects will proceed only after preliminary engineering reports (PERs) and design work make costs and funding clear.

Why it matters: staff said the new workflow — idea → PER → board selection → design → construction — is intended to reduce the county’s backlog of partially funded projects and prevent the ICIP from outpacing reasonably available resources. "If projects on the ICIP materially exceed anticipated resources, it becomes a planning document that is more wish list than plan," Schaefer said.

Staff recommended the board continue a two‑year general obligation (GO) bond question cycle rather than adopt a four‑year cycle. Under the two‑year option staff estimated voter authorization capacity of roughly $45 million in 2026 and 2028 and about $47.5 million in 2030; a four‑year cycle could allow asking voters for up to about $90 million at once, staff said.

The plan also introduces the county’s first formal five‑year maintenance plan, developed from an independent facilities assessment by ARC (Architectural Resources Consultants). Brian Snyder, who presented the maintenance plan, said it prioritizes in‑house maintenance where feasible and schedules contractor work where required, with the aim of reducing deferred maintenance and delivering projects more predictably.

Major project types highlighted in the plan include utilities (AMI/smart metering and telemetry), roads and trail extensions, fire station replacement and maintenance, renovations for judicial facilities and district attorney relocation, and housing‑related allocations. Staff also outlined how county‑controlled resources (capital outlay gross receipts tax, first 1/8 hold‑harmless GRT, unassigned general‑fund balance, and GO bond capacity) are expected to be available across the five‑year horizon.

What the board did: commissioners asked staff to refine the plan and prepare the ICIP for the July 1 submission to the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration, with a final resolution to be considered on Tuesday. Commissioners emphasized the priority of water‑security projects and permanent supportive housing while urging staff to document likely external funding partners for each entry.

The county manager said staff will provide a follow‑up with clearer project phasing, funding sources and contingency assumptions so the board can discuss priorities before the ICIP is finalized.

Sources: presentation and discussion at the Santa Fe County Board of County Commissioners special meeting. Quotes and details come from staff remarks by Greg Schaefer and Brian Snyder.