Salina residents who plan to watch Monday’s City Commission budget study session will have dozens of projects, funding requests and long-term financial projections to follow.

The 2027 Budget Study Session is scheduled for Monday, Aug. 10, 2026, at 2:30 p.m. in Room 107 of the City-County Building, 300 W. Ash St. The regular City Commission meeting begins at 4 p.m. City Commission meetings and study sessions can also be viewed through SalinaTV, the city’s Facebook page and its YouTube channel.

The city’s 35-page presentation is primarily focused on the Capital Improvement Plan, or CIP. It includes projects recommended for funding, projects that have been delayed or moved to later years, proposed borrowing, capital reserve balances, equipment requests and another group of projects that remain under further review with no identified funding source.

Salina311 prepared the following rundown so residents can follow the discussion as commissioners move through the presentation.

The first major number: $25.69 million proposed for 2027

The current recommendation identifies $25.692 million in capital projects for 2027.

That is lower than the $32.317 million previously shown for 2027 in last year’s five-year plan. Some projects have been moved into later years rather than eliminated.

The recommended $25.692 million for 2027 is divided into four broad categories:

What is actually recommended for 2027?

The proposed sales-tax portion includes:

$4.222 million for street improvements$715,000 for the Parks Capital Improvement Plan$75,000 for hike-and-bike trail work

Another $150,000 is proposed from the Gas Tax Fund for a wayfinding-sign project that specifically excludes downtown.

The proposed property-tax-supported projects are:

Bill Burke Park riverbank repairs: $1.5 millionEast Crawford Road/Bridge widening: $2.1 millionEast Magnolia bridge and road improvements: $8 millionEast Iron design, Delaware to Marymount: $180,000West Magnolia Phase 2 and 3 design: $1 million

The Bill Burke riverbank project is listed as using property-tax-supported bonds with anticipated FEMA reimbursement.

Enterprise-fund projects proposed for 2027 include:

Seven sanitation trucks: $2.55 millionConstruction and demolition cell design: $600,000Landfill Cell No. 6 design: $600,000Waterline improvements: $4 million

Those projects total $7.75 million.

Several large road projects have been pushed into later years

One area to watch closely is the timing of major road projects.

The city’s schedule now places:

East Crawford Road/Bridge widening in 2027

East Magnolia Road/Bridge improvements in 2027-28

East Iron from Delaware to Marymount in 2028

West Magnolia Phase 2 and 3 in 2028-29

9th and Waterwell in 2029

East Cloud Road improvements in 2030

Ohio and Schilling in 2031

The city estimates the group of major projects shown on its construction-year schedule at $41.87 million.

Commissioners may discuss whether those dates remain realistic and which projects should take priority as borrowing capacity changes.

The debt discussion

The presentation includes a long-range debt model covering property-tax-supported capital projects.

The model assumes:

2.8% annual property-tax growth after 2027
Bonds issued for 20 years
A 4% interest rate

Under the model presented by staff, new borrowing produces an estimated property-tax-supported debt-service deficit of about $210,653 in 2029, followed by a projected surplus of about $47,226 in 2030.

The presentation specifically cautions that delaying the completion or funding of projects will change the model.

Those numbers are projections, not guarantees. Changes in property values, borrowing rates, construction schedules and project costs could change the results.

River Renewal appears separately

The presentation places the RAISE Grant and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers River Renewal Project under a category titled “Identified and Funded with Variable Schedule Partnership Projects.”

The city describes the item as its:

“excess commitment to the RAISE grant, 7 Bridges Project and the Corps of Engineers River Renewal Project.”

Unlike the Schilling cleanup immediately above it, the presentation does not provide a dollar figure or funding source beside the River Renewal entry.

That could become an important point of discussion Monday because the presentation acknowledges an additional city commitment without putting a current number beside it.

Schilling cleanup: $5 million to $12 million estimate

The same section identifies the city’s share of the former Schilling Air Force Base contamination settlement.

The city lists an estimated cost of $5 million to $12 million, although it says total project costs and the payment period remain unknown.

The proposed funding source is general obligation bonds supported by the Water/Wastewater Fund.

Seven additional projects are only “for further review”

One of the most important pages for residents to understand is Page 16.

The city separates seven projects into a category called “Projects for Further Review.”

The presentation defines those as projects that have been identified as potential needs but do not yet have a well-defined scope, cost estimate or financing source identified.

They are not the same as projects recommended for construction in 2027.

The list includes:

The priced projects alone total between $38.7 million and $41.7 million, before assigning any cost to the three projects marked TBD.

Public Works campus

The city lists $1.2 million for design and $12 million for construction of a potential new Public Works campus.

The existing operation is located at 412 E. Ash St. The presentation says the current location is undersized and conflicts with development of the downtown River Renewal project.

No funding source or replacement site is identified in the presentation.

Holmes Road

The city estimates $17.5 million to improve approximately 3.5 miles of Holmes Road to what the presentation calls “Interim Standards” to support continued residential and other development along Salina’s eastern boundary.

Funding remains unknown.

Smoky Hill Museum

A potential 8,000- to 10,000-square-foot expansion is estimated at $6 million to $9 million.

The project is based on a needs assessment, but no financing source is identified.

Bill Burke parking

The city identifies another $2 million proposal at Bill Burke Park to install an enclosed stormwater system and pave additional parking near the ballfields.

That project is separate from the $1.5 million riverbank repair already recommended in the 2027 CIP.

Capital reserve balances are another number to watch

The presentation shows several capital reserve accounts declining during 2027 as projects are completed.

The Buildings and Facilities Capital Reserve Fund is projected to move from approximately $1.49 million at the end of 2026 to about $440,736 at the end of 2027.

The city projects $500,000 in revenue for the fund during 2027 against $1.548 million in expenses.

Other projected year-end 2027 balances include:

Gas Tax Fund: $1.501 million
Neighborhood Parks: $19,845
Parks Maintenance Capital Reserve: $182,900
Special Parks: $717,329
Street Maintenance Capital Reserve: $437,528

A declining balance does not by itself mean a fund is in financial trouble. Capital reserves exist to pay for projects. The question for commissioners is how much reserve they want remaining after the planned spending.

Buildings and facilities requests exceed the available budget

The city lists $1.088 million in Buildings and Facilities requests against a stated budget of $500,000.

The requests include:

Police Department remodel: $300,000

TPEC arena sound upgrades: $150,000

Golf Course maintenance building rehabilitation: $110,000

Carver Center interior remodel: $110,000

Smoky Hill Museum exterior reseal: $105,000

Police electrical upgrade: $85,000

Fieldhouse Wi-Fi update: $84,000

Fieldhouse exterior reseal: $60,000

TPEC stair nosings: $26,000

Street Barn HVAC: $23,000

TPEC LED marquee panel: $15,000

Lumber for trash corrals: $10,000

TPEC pipe and drape: $10,000

The presentation does not show all $1.088 million being funded. Commissioners will have a $500,000 budget against requests totaling more than twice that amount.

Parks requests

The Special Parks section identifies $500,000 for the Gleniffer Hill Playground at Indian Rock, while the listed Special Parks budget is $300,000.

The Parks Maintenance Fund lists $715,000 in potential work:

Fencing projects: $200,000

Matson scoreboard: $20,000

Friendship Center concrete improvements: $175,000

Parks bathroom remodel: $200,000

Splash pad maintenance: $20,000

Oakdale fountain repair: $100,000

The stated budget is $500,000.

Streets and sidewalks

The Gas Tax program totals $1.5 million and includes:

Annual sidewalk and ramp repairs: $130,000

Annual street maintenance: $472,000

Maintenance, markings and detection: $190,000

Stormwater, bridges, railroad and parking-lot work: $708,000

The Street Maintenance Capital Reserve section separately lists $3.622 million for asphalt surface treatments and $600,000 for concrete repair, totaling $4.222 million against a $4 million stated budget.

Another $580,000 is listed through the KDOT Federal Funds Exchange program.

Water and wastewater system enhancements

The city lists $2 million in Water/Wastewater system enhancements:

Backhoe replacement: $250,000

Submersible pumps: $100,000

Generator: $200,000

Biocube replacement at Station B: $400,000

Painting and inspections at the Gypsum Hills and Gold water towers: $590,000

Two river-pump replacements: $80,000

Pumps and electrical upgrades at three wells: $380,000

The seven items total the stated $2 million budget.

Vehicle and equipment requests

The capital plan also contains equipment requests for Fire/EMS, Parks, Public Works, Sanitation, Solid Waste and Utilities.

Among the larger items appearing in the funded or budgeted section are:

Ambulance: $330,000

Streets motor grader: $331,097

Parks backhoe/loader: $132,000

Fire hazardous-material monitors: $130,000

50 Police/Fire mobile-data laptops: $110,000

Solid Waste equipment and landfill items totaling $513,200

More than $4.3 million is explicitly listed as unfunded

Page 23 identifies $4,318,923 in “2027 Requested but Unfunded Sub-CIP” items.

Those requests include equipment for Fire, Parks, TPEC, Streets, Flood Control and other city operations.

Some of the largest unfunded requests include:

Fire portable radios: $935,000
Fire tanker/tender pumper: $500,000
Fire cardiac monitors: $310,000
Fire wildland brush-truck project: $300,000
Street sweeper: $285,000
Two single-axle dump trucks: $230,500 each
Golf driving-range remodel: $200,000

TPEC has nine items on that unfunded list totaling $294,500, including a $90,000 forklift, $80,000 scoreboard/controller update, tables, chairs and food-service equipment.

TPEC has requests in both funded-competition and unfunded categories

TPEC appears in two different portions of the capital presentation.

Four requests totaling $201,000 appear in the Buildings and Facilities list:

Arena sound upgrades: $150,000

LED marquee panel: $15,000

Pipe and drape: $10,000

Stair nosings: $26,000

Those projects are competing within the $500,000 Buildings and Facilities budget.

Another $294,500 in TPEC requests is explicitly unfunded, bringing the total identified TPEC capital needs in the presentation to $495,500.

That figure does not include the arena’s separate annual operating support.

Outside agencies are also seeking 2027 funding

A separate outside-agency funding worksheet reviewed by Salina311 lists requests from nonprofit, economic-development, tourism and community organizations.

Among the changes:

Visit Salina: $750,000 to $950,000OCCK: $1,011,150 to $1,061,708Salina Grace: $90,000 to $100,000Salina Downtown Inc. operating supplement: $90,000 to $100,000Sky Fire: $12,500 to $15,000Salina Liberty: remains $35,000SDI facade grants: remains $85,000SCEDO: remains $300,000Community Marketing: remains $240,000United Way: remains $50,000Municipal Band: remains $25,000Salina Tennis: remains $40,000Cultural Marketing: decreases from $150,000 to $50,000

The worksheet's City Commission approval column is blank, so the figures should be treated as requests rather than final appropriations.

The worksheet itself displays the Cultural Marketing reduction as 33%. Mathematically, a reduction from $150,000 to $50,000 is 66.7%, so residents following that line should distinguish the amounts from the percentage printed in the worksheet.

What is not being decided simply because it appears in the presentation

Residents following Monday’s discussion should pay close attention to the terminology used in the packet.

A project can appear in the presentation without being approved for construction.

There are several different statuses:

Recommended projects are being placed into the proposed five-year capital plan.

Previously approved projects may still be in design, under construction, delayed, on hold or canceled.

Projects for Further Review are potential future needs without a complete scope or identified financing.

Requested but Unfunded Sub-CIP projects are requests for which funding has not been included.

Partnership projects with variable schedules have commitments or funding relationships but may not have a final schedule or complete cost shown in the presentation.

That distinction is particularly important when following the Public Works campus, museum expansion, Holmes Road, Bill Burke parking and the additional River Renewal commitment.

Previously approved projects: what has changed?

The opening portion of the presentation also provides status updates on projects already approved.

Among them:

Magnolia Road Trail: under construction

West Magnolia Phase 1: under construction

East Crawford design: in design

9th and Waterwell design: in design

West Magnolia Phase 2 and 3 design: in design

Downtown wayfinding signs: on hold

North Ohio Overpass painting: on hold while awaiting a Union Pacific Railroad permit

Brookwood Trail pedestrian bridge: canceled

9th and Ohio traffic-signal update: in progress

Ohio/Schilling design: preliminary design

East Magnolia improvements: preliminary design

Comprehensive Plan and zoning-code update: RFP anticipated at the end of September 2026

What residents should listen for Monday

The documents provide the numbers, but several decisions and explanations could become clearer during the discussion.

Among the major issues to follow are which Buildings and Facilities projects commissioners want to prioritize within the $500,000 available; whether the recommended road-project schedule changes; how the city intends to address its additional River Renewal commitment; whether any of the seven projects under further review move closer to formal planning; how commissioners view declining capital reserve balances; and whether outside-agency requests are accepted, reduced or revised.

The budget study session itself does not make every project final. It is part of the process commissioners use to establish priorities and provide direction before final budget and capital decisions are adopted.

Meeting: 2027 City of Salina Budget Study Session
Date: Monday, Aug. 10, 2026
Time: 2:30 p.m.
Location: Room 107, City-County Building, 300 W. Ash St.
Regular Commission Meeting: 4 p.m.

For residents watching from home, the city says commission proceedings are available through SalinaTV, the City of Salina Facebook page and the city’s YouTube channel.

CLICK HERE FOR YOUTUBE STREAM