Capital Improvement Projects

On March 16, 2020, the Board of Trustees adopted a Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) to address public infrastructure needs of the Village for the years 2020 through 2024.  We use the term “Capital” to generically describe physical assets of the Village.  These items include streets, bridges, sidewalks, streetlights, water mains, wells, fire hydrants, sewer mains, sewage pumping stations, and the storm sewer system.   The CIP includes reconstruction of several neighborhoods, water utility projects, and municipal facilities.  

The Village has deferred significant capital improvement projects since 2012.  As has been discussed with the Board of Trustees and various committees, deferring work on capital assets does not eliminate the need to someday replace or reconstruct them.  Think of it in the same way a homeowner needs to replace the roof on their house periodically - all things remaining equal, physical assets deteriorate over time.  The other factor is growth.  Just as a family needs more space, maybe a larger home or addition, as a family grows, so too does the Village need more water supply, more space for equipment, etc., as it has grown over the years.  

The 5-year CIP adopted by the Village Board attempts to balance the infrastructure replacement and expansion needs with the financial impacts on taxes and utility rates.  

From a financial perspective, the Village can take on additional debt for capital replacements and additions due to debt obligations being paid down.  This means the burden of new debt will be lessened since a significant part of it is replacing debt that is being paid off.  

The linked documents for the CIP approved in March 2020 includes a detail of projects and financial tables showing the detail of debt for the Village general fund and the water, sewer, and storm sewer enterprise funds.  

Please review the CIP items and contact the Village Administrator at kdonner@westonwi.gov with any questions or comments.