Document Actions
Planning Process
The City of Albuquerque's planning process for capital improvements occurs over a two-year period, and the steps are mandated by the CIP Ordinance. Following is a brief summary of the planning steps.
Summary of Planning Process
Capital Implementation Program
The Capital Implementation Program division of the Department of Municipal Development administers the process by which capital improvement projects are planned, selected and proposed for adoption by the City Council. The capital plan covers a ten-year period, and is reviewed and updated biennially. Under the guidelines promulgated by the Mayor and adopted by the City Council on April 3, 2006, city departments developed and extensively reviewed projects and programs to arrive at the 2007-2016 capital improvements program. The project proposals contained in this document describe the capital requirements for the City of Albuquerque to be funded with general obligation bonds. These projects represent the first two-year cycle of the current Decade Plan.
Selection of Projects
The general obligation bond projects summarized in this document have been through several stages of review and public comment including:
Staff Review Committee
Selected staff members rated all projects based on Council adopted criteria. Individual ratings were averaged to determine the overall rank of the projects. Members of the committee included staff from the Office of Management and Budget; the Planning Department; and the Capital Implementation Program. City departments made informal presentations to the staff review committee. Rated and ranked projects were forwarded to the CIP Review Committee.
CIP Review Committee
Ranked projects were evaluated by senior City management, including the Chief Administrative Officer; the Chief Financial, Operating and Public Safety Officers; the Director of the Department of Municipal Development and the Budget Officer. The Director of City Council Services or her representative participated as ex-officio members of the CIP committee. Funding recommendations were made to the Mayor by this committee.
Environmental Planning Commission (EPC) Public Hearing
EPC reviewed the Mayor’s proposed capital program at a public hearing on January 18, 2007. The commissioners found that the program conformed to the policies and criteria established by the City Council.
Albuquerque City Council Review and Plan Adoption
After receiving the findings from the EPC, the Major finalized his recommendations and forwarded the program to the City Council. By ordinance the Council must conduct at least one public hearing prior to adoption of the program that will be placed on the ballot.
The City Council considered the 2007 capital program during two meetings of the Committee of the Whole, and amended and adopted the program at a regular meeting on March 5, 2007. Two public hearings were conducted, one during committee deliberation and one during final action.
The City Council made additional amendments to the adopted capital program through the operating budget bill approved in late May 2007. These amendments have been incorporated into the 2007 General Obligation Bond Program.
Approval by Voters
Projects approved by the City Council for the general obligation bond election to be held on Tuesday, October 2, 2007 have been grouped into 10 ballot questions, which were approved by the City Council on June 18, 2007.
If these ballot questions are approved by the voters, the City Council will make corresponding fund appropriations, approximately during the first quarter of 2008. At this time, implementing agencies throughout the City will begin to take action on the authorized capital improvement projects.
The Capital Implementation Program has administrative responsibility for oversight and tracking of all capital expenditures and, as part of that responsibility, reports the status of projects to the City Council. The Division also has responsibility for implementation of a variety of capital projects, for selection of design contractors, for contract administration and for administration of the public art program and urban enhancement trust fund.