PETOSKEY — The Petoskey City Council unanimously approved the 2026-2031 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) during its meeting on Monday, Sept. 15.
During the meeting, city manager Shane Horn explained that the projects included within the CIP are subject to change, especially depending on how budgeting may change throughout the year.
“This is a plan. Hopefully we don’t have another repeat of what happened in March (ice storm), but we don’t know, so things change,” Horn said. “We’ve spent over a million dollars in storm cleanup that was not on our horizon to do. But I think we put our best foot forward and tried to do right by our community and address the debris cleanup as quickly and as responsibly as we could.”
Horn added that the city had to absorb the extra storm cost in its operating budget, though it is looking like the city will be getting 75% of funds reimbursed through FEMA.
The council’s approval of the plan came after a joint meeting on Aug. 12 between the council and planning commission. During the combined meeting, city officials were able to hear a full update on where the plan currently stands. According to Horn’s presentation, the plan totals more than $51.3 million in expenditures.
Because there are more identified projects of interest than there are funds to cover them, the joint meeting was an opportunity to get some feedback and direction for city staff to prioritize efforts.
Nearly half of the funding sources for the projects would be coming from the electric and general funds, which account for 30.9% and 17.5%, respectively. Grants would account for 13.1% of funding, while water and sewer funds would account for 13.9%.
More than four dozen projects were presented, each with an explanation of the work, projected costs, and justifications based on the city’s master plan.
CIP projects can include anything from new furniture purchases to art installations to parking lot resurfacing and more.
One of the largest projects included in the CIP proposal was the Winter Sports Park rink and pavilion project, totaling an estimated $2.9 million. The council ultimately voted to remove Winter Sports Park updates from the plan entirely until bids are received for the project.
The full list of proposed projects can be found in the Sept. 15 city council packet.
— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @KarlyGrahamJrn.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey council approves 2026-2031 Capital Improvement Plan
Reporting by Karly Graham, The Petoskey News-Review / The Petoskey News-Review
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