Louisville weighs $144.5 million capital plan as $291.8 million in projects remain unfunded

Louisville is weighing a proposed six-year capital plan totaling $144.5 million while maintaining a separate inventory of nearly $291.8 million in unfunded projects. Preliminary 2027-28 operating forecasts also show gaps in the General Fund, Parks Fund and Golf Fund, setting up decisions about services, fees and capital priorities.

The figures are in materials prepared for the city’s July 22 budget retreat, which is scheduled to be informational rather than a vote. The meeting packet lists a recommended-budget presentation Sept. 1, a final presentation Oct. 20 and budget and capital-improvement-plan adoption Nov. 2. Those are scheduled milestones, not completed decisions.

Operating-budget pressure

The retreat presentation projects General Fund revenue of $28.7 million against $29.2 million in expenses in 2027, and $29.6 million against $30.2 million in 2028. After about $1.5 million in operational turnback, staff identifies gaps of roughly $200,000 in 2027 and $600,000 in 2028. The model includes $250,000 in one-time expenses in 2027 and $40,000 in 2028.

The Parks Fund’s projected operational gaps are about $40,000 in 2027 and $85,000 in 2028 after about $190,000 in turnback. Golf’s are about $200,000 and $230,000, respectively. Including roughly $400,000 in annual capital expenses, Golf’s total projected expenses exceed revenues by about $600,000 in each year.

Staff asked the council for direction on the pressure but the retreat record shows no vote or final choices. Options include reviewing vacant positions, fees and cost allocations, reallocating General Fund resources, and reducing programs or service levels. The preliminary City Manager model includes 6.8 full-time-equivalent positions costing about $804,500 in 2027, plus $274,000 in variable personnel costs; 13 additional requests totaling about $1.62 million were not recommended.

For Parks, staff modeled a $100,000 annual Conservation Trust Fund transfer through 2032 and asked council to consider extending or increasing it beyond 2028, increasing General Fund support if feasible, or reducing services. The model projects about $3.1 million in the Open Space acquisition reserve by 2032, below a $5 million target, prompting a request to revisit the reserve percentage.

For Golf, staff is modeling fee increases, changes to season passes and residential preferences, and capital-project deferrals. The fund is expected to become self-sufficient for operating and capital costs, but the materials do not establish which fees or projects will change.

Staff also recommended ending the temporary Recreation Center debt mill-levy credit in 2027. That would raise the city levy from 1.375 to 1.70 mills and add an estimated $20 annually for a median home. Staff recommended placing an extension of the city’s 0.125-cent Historic Preservation Fund tax on the November ballot; the tax expires Dec. 31, 2028, and the proposed extension would run through 2038. Neither policy had been adopted in the retreat materials.

Proposed capital plan

The proposed funded CIP totals $144,516,292 over six years, according to the capital-project summary and project forms. Planned annual spending ranges from $15.2 million in 2031 to $37 million in 2028.

The largest fund-level allocations are $66.76 million in the Capital Projects Fund and $52.65 million in the Water Utility Fund. Major proposed work includes:

• $34.67 million for annual roadway resurfacing.
• Water projects including a $7.77 million waterline replacement program, an $8.64 million NCWCD-Windy Gap firming project, a $6.05 million Raw Water Integration Project and a $10 million South County Water Treatment Plant residual-management project.
• $8.72 million in wastewater capital and $5.85 million in stormwater work.
• Parks and recreation projects totaling $4.37 million for recreation, $2.04 million for open space and $1.15 million from the Conservation Trust Lottery Fund. A $1.875 million playground and park-improvements program would replace one or two playgrounds annually through 2032.
• Transportation and technology projects including $802,000 for the Dillon Road sidewalk project, $500,000 for community trail connections, $630,000 for middle-mile fiber and $997,660 for citywide electric-vehicle charging.

The documents describe proposed requests and planning figures, not an approved or financed plan. Staff says initial capital requests exceeded $400 million across more than 200 projects and plans to prioritize existing assets, critical infrastructure, core functions and information technology while refining the CIP with council.

Unfunded projects and possible financing

The separate unfunded-project inventory totals $291,827,816. About $268.1 million, or nearly 92%, is assigned to the Capital Projects Fund. The list includes $20.5 million for the Golf Course Fund, $3.09 million for the Storm Water Utility Fund, $125,000 for the Water Utility Fund and $50,000 for the Recreation Fund.

The largest listed needs are a $140.8 million citywide underpass project, $46.2 million in CO 42 corridor enhancements and $23.25 million for City Services 2. Other entries include $15.52 million for recreation-center decarbonization, $5.83 million for city-services decarbonization and solar, $5.84 million for Downtown Front & Center Phase II, and $3.09 million for stormwater detention-pond maintenance.

The city labels the projects “unfunded,” but the materials do not establish that they have been formally deferred, scheduled or rejected. Some project sheets contain duplicated tables and conflicting figures, including different amounts for golf clubhouse work, so the inventory is best treated as a high-level needs list rather than a construction schedule.

Staff says major utility projects may require borrowing, particularly for water, solid-residuals and an administrative building. Utility capital investments are preliminarily estimated at about $67.2 million over 2027-32. The materials do not identify a specific utility-rate increase to address the unfunded list. A project sheet anticipates $273,000 in grants for police and court decarbonization, but the record does not describe a broader grant program capable of closing the gap.

Council guidance and the fall budget process will determine which projects remain in the funded program, which stay on the unfunded list and whether borrowing, fees, taxes, service levels or future budget cycles change the balance. The next listed milestones are a Finance Committee recap Aug. 20, the recommended-budget presentation Sept. 1, a final presentation Oct. 20 and budget and CIP adoption Nov. 2.