Blaine County Capital Improvements Plan 2017 Update September 1, 2017 Prepared by: Great West Engineering, Inc. Reviewed by: Blaine County Commissioners Prepared for: Board of Blaine County Commissioners 420 Ohio Street P.O. Box 278 Chinook, Montana 59523 Adopted by Resolution: September 25, 2017 CONTENTS Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 3 Previous Planning Guidance ......................................................................................................................... 6 Public Outreach and Engagement ................................................................................................................ 7 Airport Priorities ............................................................................................................................................. 8 Bridge Priorities .......................................................................................................................................... 10 Building Priorities ........................................................................................................................................ 12 County Equipment Evaluations and Priorities........................................................................................... 15 Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Evaluation and Priorities .................................................... 17 Parks and Recreation Evaluation and Priorities ....................................................................................... 19 Road Evaluation and Recommendations .................................................................................................. 20 Solid Waste Infrastructure Evaluation ....................................................................................................... 22 Implementation .......................................................................................................................................... 24 Priority Recommendations ..................................................................................................................... 24 Timeline ................................................................................................................................................... 24 Financing Improvements ........................................................................................................................ 24 LIST OF TABLES Table 1 - Overall County Priorities................................................................................................................. 2 Table 2 - County Airport Priorities ................................................................................................................. 8 Table 3 - Bridge/Culvert Priorities (Road Department 2017) .................................................................. 10 Table 4 - Building Priorities ........................................................................................................................ 12 Table 5 - Big Flat Ambulance Priorities ..................................................................................................... 15 Table 6 - Chinook Ambulance Priorities .................................................................................................... 15 Table 7 - Chinook Library Priorities ............................................................................................................ 16 Table 8 - Clerk and Recorder Priorities ..................................................................................................... 16 Table 9 - Health Department Priorities ...................................................................................................... 16 Table 10 - Information Technology Department Priorities ...................................................................... 16 Table 11 - Mosquito Department Priorities ............................................................................................... 16 Table 12 - Road Department Priorities ..................................................................................................... 17 Table 13 - Treasurer’s Department Priorities ........................................................................................... 17 Table 14 - Weed Department Priorities ..................................................................................................... 17 Table 15 - Sheriff’s Department Capital Equipment Priorities ................................................................ 18 Table 16 - Fire Department Equipment Priorities ..................................................................................... 18 Table 17 - Disaster and Emergency Services Equipment Priorities ........................................................ 19 Table 18 - Park and Recreational Facilities Recommended Improvements .......................................... 19 Table 19 - Paved Road Priorities ............................................................................................................... 20 Table 20 - Unpaved Road Priorities ........................................................................................................... 20 i LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 - Blaine County ................................................................................................................................ 5 Figure 2 - County Airports .............................................................................................................................. 9 Figure 3 - Location of Priority County Bridges ........................................................................................... 10 Figure 4 - Location of County Buildings ..................................................................................................... 12 Figure 5 - Location of County Buildings in Chinook .................................................................................. 15 Figure 6 - County Roads ............................................................................................................................. 21 Figure 7 - Solid Waste Districts .................................................................................................................. 23 APPENDICES Appendix 1 - Project Prioritization Tables Appendix 2 - Bridge Information Appendix 2 - Building Information Appendix 3 - Equipment Information Appendix 4 - Road Information ii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Blaine County is in a transitional period. While the overall population of the County continues to decline, the Native American population continues to grow. This growth has increased the need for housing, employment, and other services. Tribal and County entities are interacting in various types of services that may require memorandums of agreement/understanding to satisfy jurisdictional issues. Depending on the types of services, and the types of funding available and eligibility criteria, it is necessary for governmental entities to communicate and come to a workable solution for all of its citizens. The County Commission values the input provided by each County department with regards to their lists of important needs. This information will be invaluable for planning and prioritizing the capital improvements that the County pursues. However, due to the County’s budgetary constraints, it is important for County personnel and County residents to note that Blaine County faces significant financial challenges. This is particularly true when viewed in the context of national and state budget conversations and how they affect the County’s overall budget. The following table illustrates the uncertain nature of federal funding for local services. Since 2010 Blaine County has experienced a 75% decrease in the amount of federal expenditures (contracts, grants, loan, & other assistance). From fiscal year 2010 to 2016 the federal government allocated on average $32.4 million to Blaine County and other agencies. Federal Expenditures in Blaine Co. $50,000,000.00 $45,000,000.00 $40,000,000.00 $35,000,000.00 $30,000,000.00 $25,000,000.00 $20,000,000.00 $15,000,000.00 $10,000,000.00 $5,000,000.00 $- 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Source: www.usaspending.gov In fiscal year 2017, federal allocations dropped to $8.2 million. In addition to the decline in federal funding, Blaine County has also experienced a dramatic drop in, gas and oil revenues. Despite these challenges, the County has been able to maintain a functional, yet conservative budget through increased property taxes and the contribution of PILT dollars from the federal budget, but increasing taxes is not a long-term option for the County and the future of the PILT program is uncertain. Despite the issues mentioned on the previous page, a core responsibility of the Blaine County Commission is the preservation, maintenance, and improvement of the County’s capital assets. Everything the County does – from providing services to residents and businesses, to equipping 1 employees to effectively perform their jobs – requires the existence of certain basic physical assets. These assets include items such as roads and bridges, parks, buildings, vehicles, large equipment and information technology. These items