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Mayor Kim Driscoll Announces Capital Projects Map

New website details over 150 capital investments underway in FY2020.
Posted on: July 2, 2019 - 12:28pm
map

With the start of the new fiscal year, Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll today announced that a new online map showing all of the capital projects underway in the current fiscal year has been published at www.salem.com/projectsmap.

Those viewing the map can click on any of the dots or road segments representing the many capital investments, maintenance, and improvement projects that are in design and planning or are under construction. Doing so will open a window showing additional details about the selected project, including location, department, current phase, and estimated cost. The 151 projects captured by the capital projects map total $115 million in investments to improve Salem’s parks, public spaces, streets, sidewalks, and public buildings, and enhance the City’s ability to deliver local services and maintain a high quality of life for Salem residents.

“It hadn’t been the City’s practice to include capital improvement plan in the annual City budget until I first took office and I’m proud that it was an important, forward-looking reform that we instituted early on,” said Mayor Driscoll. “A capital plan and forecast provide a responsible and transparent tool for planning for future obligations, while still being mindful of the present-day needs that help us best serve Salem residents. This financially strategic approach to planning is just one of the reasons that Standard and Poor’s raised our bond rating to the strongest level in Salem’s history five years ago. It’s also a reflection of our dedication to policies that foster positive economic growth, stable financial management practices, and sustainable and transparent budgeting. This new map provides even greater transparency with respect to capital projects in Salem and better helps us share important information about the work that’s underway across our city.”

The share of the City’s budget that is debt payment has been reduced by more than a third since 2006. The debt payment for FY2020 is 4%, or $310,000, less than it was in FY2019.