Capital Planning & Space Management Process

Purpose

The Office or Resource Management and Planning (ORMP) is responsible for the overall management of the capital improvement program. The capital improvement program consists of investments made by the campus to respond to the need for new assets or improvements to assets that will achieve campus objectives. Capital investments consist of new buildings or facilities, utility infrastructure, renovations to existing buildings to provide new capabilities or correct deficiencies, acquisition of land and acquisition (purchase) of buildings or facilities.

The campus maintains a 10-year Capital Improvement Program that identifies the projects that are proposed to be undertaken. The 10-year plan provides a inventory of all needs, and identifies the general goals of the project. To the extent funding plans are known, the plan identifies a funding strategy for each project included in the plan. General categories of funding in the capital program include state funds, campus funds, gift funds, debt funds fees and accumulated reserves.

Deans and vice chancellors are responsible for evaluating the adequacy of capital assets that support their programs. To the extent facilities are inadequate in terms of quantity of space, capacity, functionality, or quality, deans and vice chancellors may propose capital investments to address the inadequacy. The ORMP is responsible for reviewing proposed projects to ensure they are justified, assessing proposed funding plans for feasibility, and reviewing projects for consistency with campus, university and state policies concerning use of capital funds.

The capital needs associated with maintaining and improving campus programs far exceed the available funding. Campus leadership weighs the relative merits of proposed capital investments and makes funding decisions on a priority basis.


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Capital Projects Defined

Capital projects include construction, renovation or alteration work that adds value, extends the life or results in a betterment of a building, structure or other asset owned or leased in by the campus. Capital projects also include improvements to utility systems and circulation systems such as roads and pathways.

Projects that are intended to return an asset to its intended use or service level are Maintenance Projects and are not included in the capital program. Such projects include replacement of worn-out or unserviceable building systems such as roofs and exterior painting that do not add significant improvement or additional value to a building, structure or other capital asset. Maintenance projects generally maintain or preserve the structure for its intended use through one-time investments. The Office of Administration, Operations and Maintenance (O&M) establishes the priority list for deferred maintenance work. Where a new use is proposed in a space and building systems are in need of upgrading to meet new needs or correct deficiencies that are mandated, capital and maintenance work can be combined in a single project.


  1. Major Capital Improvement Projects are capital projects with an estimated cost in excess of $400,000. Major capital projects are reviewed for program need and environmental implications by ORMP, and the approval process is generally determined by the estimated project cost, as follows.
$  400,001 − 5,000,000 
  Chancellor Approval
 5,000,001 − 10,000,000
  Office President (OP) Approval
10,000,001 − 20,000,000
  Presidential approval with concurrent of Regents' committees
20,000,001 +
  Regents Approval

The campus maintains two distinct capital funding plans-a 5-year State Capital Improvement Program and a 5-year Nonstate Capital Improvement Program. The project development and approval process for the two differ because state funded projects require extensive review and approval by Office of the President and state funding agencies.

Nonstate-funded projects do not require state approval, but are subject to review and approval as noted above. Non-State Funded Major Capital Improvement Projects are developed throughout the year by campus planners in consultation with the campus leadership, including deans and vice chancellors.

State Funded Major Capital Improvement Projects are developed by campus planners in consultation with the campus leadership, including deans and vice chancellors. The funding request for State funding approval is in accordance with the annual plan that is updated by the campus, published by the Office of the President and approved by the Regents and submitted to the state as part of the annual state budget process.

Due to their scale of major projects and the potential impact of such projects on a variety of campus programs, major capital projects go through an extensive development process. Planning, design and construction usually takes about four years for a major new building. The specific steps for development of a major project are as follows:

  1. Inclusion of a project in the campus 10-year Capital Improvement Program based on consultant and advice from the dean or vice chancellor.
  2. Identification of a funding strategy, and, as appropriate, inclusion of the project in the 5-year State Capital Program or the 5-year Nonstate Capital program. A tentative schedule is also developed.
  3. Development of a "Project Planning Guide Abstract" for the project. This document outlines the key program objectives of the project, describes the intended work and identifies the funding plan in detail. The PPG Abstract is developed by the ORMP and reflects information about the project to allow policy level endorsement of the project including program objectives, proposed site, environmental considerations and costs.
  4. Appointment of a Planning Committee by the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor, with a representative of the dean or vice chancellor as chair. Planning Committees consult with various campus representatives interested in the project including users, campus planners, and support units such as Environmental Health and Safety.
  5. Development of a Detailed Project Program (DPP) . The DPP is a document that provides important details about how the programmatic need will be accomplished. Typically, DPPs are prepared by architectural consultants and consist of room descriptions, site plans, utility plans to serve the building and a final cost model.
  6. The final DPP becomes the basis for completing a Project Planning Guide for the project that is used to secure approval of the project through the appropriate funding processes.
  7. Upon approval of the PPG, a Building Committee is established, an Executive Architect is appointed, and the project moves into the implementation phase under the direction of the Office of Administration (O&M or A&E).

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2) Minor Capital Improvement Projects are capital projects with an estimated cost between $35,000 and $400,000. State policy limits the use of state general funds for such projects to $100,000 for each project. Minor cap projects are reviewed for program justification, appropriate fund source and account information, and environmental implications and then approved by the Office of Resource Management and Planning.

Generally, the process is as follows:

  1. The department conceives the project to meet the needs of the program and prepares written material that justifies the project and describes the work to be accomplished. In preparing the documentation, It is important that the initiating department discuss and ferret out as much detail as possible so this information can be communicated to those responsible for completing the work, such as Operations & Maintenance (O&M) and Architects and Engineers (A&E) . A clear description of the work needed will expedite approvals and save considerable time and expense in the implementation of the project. Also, priorities should be established about the work that needs to be completed. A preliminary budget estimate and proposed funding plan is also included.
  2. The department consults with O&M or A&E to determine a reliable estimate of the cost of the project. It is important that all aspects of the project are described in sufficient detail to ensure that the cost estimate is reliable.
  3. O&M or A&E will assign a project manager who is responsible for the delivery of the project.
  4. The department works with the dean's or vice chancellor's office to secure approval and identify funding consistent with state policy that a maximum of $100,000 can come from State funds.
  5. The dean's or vice chancellor's office transmits the proposal to the ORMP for review using standard formats provided by ORMP. It is very important that the description and justification are adequate and that the funds are available.
  6. The ORMP reviews the proposal for accuracy and consistency with campus policies and priorities and with State environmental requirements and if appropriate, prepares a approval letter to the Vice Chancellor of Administration authorizing expenditure of funds for the proposed project.
  7. Once approved, the O&M or A&E project manager oversees processes for completion of the design, construction documents, construction bids, and completion of the project.

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3) Other Planning and Implementation Considerations

  1. As the project moves through the various stages of development the 10-year Capital Improvement Plan, and the appropriate 5-year Capital Program will be updated to reflect the status of the project include:
    • Program support and potential funding sources
    • Preliminary land/building resources and cost
    • Estimated year of construction completion.
  2. Preliminary studies and evaluations may be funded separately from the aggregate project cost by utilizing state and non-state funds that have been budgeted separately for planning and utilization studies.
  3. Preliminary planning and utilization studies can be funded by requisition (usually through O&M), or-as circumstances dictate-- through the plant account (usually through A&E).
  4. Requisition funding generally consists of "studies" completed under the direction of the project manager. The project manager will initiate the work request or submit the requisition for funding through the ORMP.

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4) Resources

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