AUGUSTA — City councilors approved a new $133.5 million five-year capital improvement plan that includes proposals to borrow more than $6.1 million next year for projects including upgrades to the Augusta Civic Center and take on more than $3.8 million of construction projects on the city’s deteriorating streets.

The plan includes asking voters in November for permission to borrow $5.4 million for several projects, which would be in addition to bonding $750,000 councilors authorize themselves without needing voter approval.

If approved, the borrowing plan would result in estimated yearly payments of $500,000 taxpayers will be responsible for covering, according to a report by William Post, assistant city manager. However, Post noted the city’s debt from prior projects will decrease by $150,000. The net increase that taxpayers will be responsible for under the borrowing plan would be only $350,000.

The city-owned Civic Center, which hosts conferences, conventions and sports tournaments, will continue to see investment in major repairs, if voters approve. The proposed bond would provide $500,000 for a new air conditioning system, $400,000 for a new boiler system, $250,000 for a new auditorium sound system, and $180,000 for new fire doors and other fire code compliance items.

Over the five-year plan, $18 million in work is proposed for the building built in 1973.

Ward 3 Councilor Mike Michaud, who has suggested city officials consider replacing the aging Civic Center with a new facility at an estimated price tag of $100 million to $140 million, questioned putting money toward repairing the building, which he said would not result in a new facility that could be better marketed to customers. Other councilors, however, have indicated to city staff they do not think the city could afford to build a new Civic Center and they favored repairing and updating the current structure.

“I know collectively the council didn’t want a brand new building, but I don’t see a vision for that building,” Michaud said. “I’ve walked around that building and there’s partition walls (where) I can stick my finger in the cracks. This is really just putting Band-Aids on this building. I have a vision of this building being a major asset to the city for at least another 50 years. And what I’m seeing with this it is, again, just putting the lipstick on the pig.”

The $11.3 million plan for fiscal year 2026, which draws from multiple funding sources, includes more than $3.8 million in spending on road and sidewalk projects. Because planned work is projected to cost more than that, additional funds would come from other sources, including $1.1 million from the public works annual budget, and $583,000 in money reallocated from past capital improvement projects that wasn’t spent.

City councilors unanimously approved both the capital improvement plan and reallocating unspent funds to road projects.

Post and Ingrid Nivison, city finance director, worked extensively to go through old project documentation to determine how much money was left over that could be reallocated and create the new five-year plan, City Manager Jared Mills said.

Last year, city councilors approved only a one-year capital improvement plan — rather than a multi-year plan as they had traditionally done — because the city’s financial planning had fallen behind during a series of staff changes, before Post was hired last year.

“So now you have this snapshot, it has our facilities, public works, the Civic Center,” Mills said of the $133.5 million, five-year plan. “When you look, it’s a staggering number, what we have for capital projects coming up. But obviously it’s a five-year snapshot and can be extended beyond that, and can be shifted, with priorities.”

The plan’s building improvement funds include $625,000 for a new roof and $275,000 for a new entrance ramp at Buker Community Center.

A combined $1.2 million would be put into facilities improvements at the public works site, with $500,000 for a maintenance shop ventilation system, and $750,000 for site planning, design, and engineering for a planned new public works facility, meant to address multiple problems with the current public works building.