Capital Project Planning Strategies

Plan Early, Plan Often: Capital Project Planning Strategies For Better Results

A capital project is a significant investment of taxpayer dollars. The more time and consideration you put into the early stages of project planning before the vote, the better positioned you’ll be to achieve your vision after the vote.

When Is The Right Time? 

The time between capital project concept and completion can be years, so it’s never too early to begin considering your next capital project. Begin internally by identifying critical facilities needs, public or academic program goals, project financing options, and community enhancements. Consider convening a Capital Project Advisory Committee that includes community members, stakeholders, and staff members. The Committee can help your administrative team workshop ideas and gauge which improvements voters will be willing to support.

Assemble Your Team.

When these ideas are ready for shape, assemble your project team. Bring key consultants together early in the process, including your financial advisor, architect, and construction manager. The financial advisor can provide a financial study to determine the maximum referendum amount without a tax impact. The architect can share innovative design concepts and assist with the Building Condition Survey (BCS) to prioritize immediate needs. The construction manager can provide BCS and conceptual cost estimates, identify cost efficiencies, and develop a project delivery schedule. Working together, the consultants and administrative team will collaborate to strategize scope development, maximize project funding, and plan a realistic, achievable project schedule prior to a referendum.

Construction Manager or Clerk of the Works?

Owners sometimes wait until after a referendum to bring a construction manager on board, or opt for a Clerk of the Works closer to the start of construction. The pitfall with this approach is by that point, the budget is already set; if the cost estimates a construction manager provides during the design phase detect discrepancies in conceptual estimates developed by a different party, bid day could be at risk. A construction manager is also in-tune with current regulatory review times and material shortages or delays that could negatively impact the budget and schedule. When the construction manager is involved throughout the pre-referendum and conceptual planning process, these issues can be identified and mitigated early on, before they can become a problem. A Clerk of the Works has even less ability to resolve these types of issues, as this delivery method is only tasked to monitor the budget and schedule during construction, not to manage them. 

Turn Your BCS and Advisory Committee Input Into a Long-Range Facilities Plan.

The BCS is a logical first step in identifying and prioritizing the most critical infrastructure needs, equipment replacements, and health, safety, and security improvements to include in your next capital project. To make it a more useful tool over the long term, turn your BCS “needs list” and your Committee’s “wants list” into the foundation for a long-range facilities plan. This big-picture planning leads to measured, consistent strategies that build up capital reserve funds, leverage retiring debt service, building aid, and grant programs, align program goals, minimize the tax burden, and accomplish more ambitious facilities and academic enhancements across future projects.

Proactive capital project planning leads to team cohesion, informed decisions, and thoughtful execution. These extra efforts put into pre-referendum and long-range planning are not just for the vote – they establish the path through design, construction, and completion that your entire project team can mutually support and deliver.