By Roland Murphy for AZBEX
Faced with cost escalations, uncertain economic conditions, budget constraints, leadership changes and a host of other both day-to-day and ongoing issues, city engineering leaders presenting at the BEX Leading Market – Series Upcoming Public Works Projects event May 14 focused on maintaining flexibility to manage the hundreds of projects on their books and encouraged better ownership and collaboration from the Architecture/Engineering/Construction community to move those projects to completion.
Led by moderator Danielle Intorf, business development at event sponsor Sundt Construction, Scottsdale City Engineer Alison Tymkiw and Mesa Assistant City Engineer Marc Ahlstrom presented overviews of current and upcoming projects and took fielded questions from both Intorf and audience members in the one-hour session.
Intorf asked the panelists to give their views on uncertainty facing public projects and their outlook on solutions.
Tymkiw described a ranging set of circumstances impacting uncertainty and planning at the moment. On the large scale, there is no way at the present time to predict what impacts federal trade and tariff policies will have on costs and material supplies. Scottsdale also has a new mayor and new City Council members who are all figuring out their priorities and vision for the City’s current undertakings and future efforts. They also are seeking input into projects and closely examining budgets and returns on investment.
Ahlstrom said cost uncertainty, particularly spiking prices, are a key point of uncertainty for his efforts in Mesa. He added Mesa also has a new mayor and new City Council members, some of whom are requesting more detailed justifications of project costs and more detailed explanations about process components.
When asked about challenges beyond cost increases, money was still a central issue. Both Tymkiw and Ahlstrom said the State Legislature’s decision to eliminate a renters’ tax has hurt their cities’ budgets and has required adjustments.
Ahlstrom also said the quality of design plans has deteriorated across the board, requiring more revision and more work when it comes to actual construction.
In a similar vein, Tymkiw said cost estimates are consistently too low. She added many of the projects currently planned in Scottsdale are part of a 2019 bond approval, meaning the projects were estimated in 2017 and 2018 and no longer reflect valid costs.
Ahlstrom called for better collaboration between design and construction partners with municipal staff to ensure quality and accurate efforts across all phases of project development.
Intorf shifted the questioning to ask what the panelists need from the A/E/C community to make projects better and operations smoother. Ahlstrom urged design and construction partners to take a greater ownership role and more responsibility.
“One thing I’ve been asking the design community in particular,” he said, “is to help us. Reach out a little. Don’t wait for us.” He urged team members not to wait for responses but to check in and take a proactive role. He also said, “We’re also challenging the consulting industry and saying, ‘Hey, you built a schedule in your contract. Help us meet that schedule. If you’re not, then help us understand why.’”
Tymkiw reminded attendees Scottsdale currently has some 400 projects on its books. She urged team members to “be very proactive and not wait for our staff to reach out… All of our project managers are overworked right now. We’re really looking for that assistance. We’re really looking for our consultants and our contractors to be a little proactive with us.”
When Intorf asked the panelists for insights into the next fiscal year, Tymkiw said Scottsdale is continuing to implement its focus on pavement preservation and is looking to procure funding from other sources, including the Maricopa Association of Governments and other outlets, to supplement its resources for projects.
Ahlstrom said Mesa has a high volume of maintenance-related projects that are ongoing, including pavement improvement. He said staff is also gearing up for a 2026 bond election for transportation and public safety, with a primary focus on matching funds required under Proposition 479’s Maricopa County half-cent transportation sales tax.
In an effort to improve operational efficiency, Mesa is also working to fully implement new project management software. “We’re seeing the value of that data, and this new system is going to provide us even more opportunities for that to help us, help our contractors, help our consultants and, ultimately, help our citizens.”
A Look into Projects
Prior to the question and answer period, Intorf gave Ahlstrom and Tymkiw the floor to present their cities’ projects and give an overview of operations and plans currently under development and consideration.
Speaking first, Ahlstrom explained most of Mesa’s public projects are funded by bonds approved in 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024 and include Public Safety, Transportation and Parks and Culture. The City currently has more than 300 projects under development including:
- Fire stations,
- Renovating the Police Headquarters,
- Gateway Library,
- Two major water-related projects and
- Several multiuse trail developments.
In terms of upcoming projects, Mesa’s list was diverse and included:
- Public Safety Training Facility Improvements;
- Multiple projects under the 2024 Parks, Culture and Public Safety bonds;
- A fiber network expansion;
- 911 Call Center Upgrades;
- Two Aquatics Centers;
- Central Mesa Indoor Recreation Center, and
- Multiple park, trail and recreation projects.
When Tymkiw took the floor, she explained to attendees how Scottsdale’s Capital Improvement Project system is staffed and structured and provided a quick overview of the $2.2B budget. The Fiscal Year 2025/2026 budget proposal stands at $952M, made up of $519M in and $433M in new requests.
After walking the crowd through the City’s CIP structure and funding, Tymkiw turned her attention to upcoming opportunities. Scottsdale has an upcoming solicitation for design of an Integrated Water Master Plan and for a CMAR to build a new fire station at 90th Street and Via Linda.
The City also has an upcoming bid opportunity for its Booster Pump Station 117/Zone 9C project.
Along with the major opportunities, Scottsdale also has two Job Order Contract opportunities coming up, as well as on-call opportunities for inspection services and mechanical design services.
Both presenters urged anyone interested in upcoming opportunities or program details to reach out with any questions.