Powell's Finance Committee began sorting through roughly $61 million in infrastructure project requests Aug. 11, opening the city's most consequential budget exercise of the year with a half-hour-early start to accommodate the workload.

The session at Council Chambers, 47 Hall Street, marked the formal kickoff of the 2027–2031 Capital Improvement Plan review, according to the meeting agenda. Committee members received three CIP documents: a five-year presentation, fund balance projections and individual project requests. They also reviewed July 2026 financial reports and considered third-quarter supplemental appropriations.

What's on the table

The five-year plan spans approximately 15 projects. Named proposals from earlier committee discussions include the North Depot Street reconstruction, the Scioto Street extension and bridge, Bennett Farm development (estimated at $18 million), expanded path investments and a potential Village Green redevelopment that City Manager Andrew White has described as conceptual and possibly years away.

Not all 15 will survive. "They anchor $61M of project resources to be available of these 15 projects and as they get into it and the process matures, they may only do nine of the projects," White said at the committee's May 12 meeting.

Declining revenue complicates the math

Powell funds its capital plan partly by transferring 25% of the prior year's income tax receipts into the Capital Projects Fund. That formula means shrinking tax collections directly reduce infrastructure dollars.

Income tax receipts have trailed 2025 levels all year: down 7.4% through February, 7.7% through April and 6.2% through May, according to Finance Committee reports. Finance Director Samantha Borchers has attributed the decline partly to employees returning to offices outside Powell and paying taxes to their workplace cities instead.

The tension is not new. At the committee's March 10 meeting, councilmember Leif Carlson said 2025 was probably the first year he started seeing red in expenditures and that any revenue bump from Ohio State's new outpatient center may simply offset the capital programs coming online.

That OSU facility, with an initial 290 jobs and plans to reach 600, could eventually generate an estimated $648,000 in annual income tax revenue once fully staffed.

Road conditions add pressure

The city's pavement condition index stood at 74 citywide as of May 2026, just below the target of 75. White has said the city has been "playing catch up" on road maintenance, a factor likely to influence which CIP road projects rise in priority.

What happens next

The Finance Committee reviews, prioritizes and recommends capital projects. Any spending requires full City Council approval. Meeting minutes from the Aug. 11 session are expected around Aug. 13, which will confirm specific discussion outcomes.

The committee moved its start from the usual 7 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. specifically for the CIP review, according to its July 14 agenda. Vice-Mayor Tom Counts chairs the panel.