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Construction continues on the new Hodgson Vo-Tech building in Glasgow. The building was awarded $33.6 million in the Fiscal Year 2025 bond bill. | DBT PHOTO BY KATIE TABELING[/caption]
DOVER — Gov. John Carney signed his last operating budget for the state at the end of June and with it came his signature on $1.1 billion in capital improvement projects as well as $98.4 million in grants in aid for various service organizations across the state.
For the Fiscal Year 2025 plan, Delaware legislators passed a bond bill with $300 million less than the previous year. Lawmakers also touted that this year’s grants-in-aid bill was the largest in history. The signed proposal for service organizations and nonprofits was slightly up from the $91.7 million the governor recommended in the one-time supplemental bill.
The grant-in-aid bill supports not only a variety of nonprofits, but also the state’s volunteer fire companies, county ambulance crews, historic preservation, arts programs, veterans organizations and more.
For the first time, it also included an allocation of $4 million federal pass-through funding to 16 nonprofits that were historically included in the operating budget. State legislators maintain that the funds were moved to this bill to “ensure better consistency and transparency” through the annual funding review.
This year, the grants-in-aid bill included 41% for service organizations and 59% for first responders, according to Delaware Alliance of Nonprofit Advancement CEO and President Sheila Bravo. Roughly a decade ago, roughly 55% went to service organizations.
“It may look like a lot more money, but proportionally it’s shifted over time,” Bravo told the Delaware Business Times. “One thing we’re pleased about is that there is a recognition that the cost for audits has really risen, and there’s flexibility included on how the funding is needed.”
Through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), $1 billion federal funding was allocated to Delaware, and county and municipal governments also received their own share. Over the years, nonprofits were able to get a piece of funding - but now they have to account for it in forthcoming audits.
“Even if you received $5,000 in grants, you still have to do an audit to show what it was spent for,” Bravo said. “We were hoping that there would be a move to support other ways of verification, but it’s a good start.”
Looking to the future beyond the 2024 election, Bravo hopes that there may be a chance to improve transparency around the grants-in-aid process. There are more than 300 applications and have no committee hearing on the process and Bravo said that the conversation is becoming more urgent as time passes.
“There’s a level of concern now where organizations can’t afford to do the work, and if the government takes on that work, it’s going to cost the taxpayers more money. With 9% inflation over the past two years and $15 minimum wage, there hasn’t been an increase in contracts,” she said.
Bond Bill Overview
Last year, the General Assembly passed a capital spending plan on par with the previous year, while the grant-in-aid bill was among the largest in history. Even though the bond bill was around 20% less than last years, it still achieved major initiatives outlined by Carney and many elected leaders.
“The capital budget touches every corner of our state, and these investments have a real, tangible impact on people’s lives, whether it’s students attending new and upgraded schools, roads that are easier to travel, or clean water projects moving forward,” Rep. Debra Heffernan (D-Bellefonte), who serves as chair of the Joint Capital Improvement Committee, said in a statement on June 27.
In all, the bond bill allocates roughly 21% less than what Carney proposed before this session, as the state financial projections were still urged caution when it came to spending. Top priorities include $352.7 million for road projects across the state, as well as $160 million for school construction projects in Smyrna, Red Clay, Colonial, New Castle County Vo-Tech, Polytech and Christina school districts.
Included in the school funding is $37.5 million for the new John G. Leach school in the Colonial School District, $34 million for a new Sussex Central High School and $33.6 million for the new Hodgson Vo-Tech building. The rest is allocated for minor capital improvement projects.
Other line items include $27 million for a new fund for clean drinking water funds, $15 million in state park improvements - as well as a feasibility study for Cape Henlopen fishing pier - $26 million for a new state police barracks in Georgetown as well as $25 million for new Kent and Sussex Family Courthouses for the fourth year.
Signing off on economic drivers
Under Carney’s administration, Delaware has awarded millions to businesses looking to expand or relocate in the first state through many funds that are administered by the Division of Small Business through the recommendation of the Delaware Prosperity Partnership. As this is his last year in office, it remains to be seen how much this strategy will change after the November election.
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DE Turf Sports Complex received funding from the newly-minted Sports Tourism Fund. The fund reopens in August. | DBT PHOTO BY KATIE TABELING[/caption]
In his last bond bill, Carney suggested pared back funds for the Strategic Fund, from $20 million from FY 2024 to $12.5 million in his proposed budget. He also suggested $6 million for the Delaware Sports Tourism Capital Investment Fund and $5 million for the Lab Space Fund.
Instead, the Capital Improvement Committee reduced the Strategic Fund to $9.5 million and raised the Sports Tourism Fund to $10 million. The Transportation Infrastructure Investment remained intact at $5 million.
Other familiar requests that returned this year were the University of Delaware’s National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals’ (NIIMBL) and SABRE centers. SABRE is an acronym for Securing American Bio-Manufacturing Research and Education, at the University of Delaware’s STAR Campus. The 70,000 square-foot manufacturing site will be a hub for innovations in cutting-edge pharmaceuticals, and construction work has already started.
NIIMBL was granted the $5 million in capital funds Carney proposed and SABRE was granted $15 million, or $11 million more than what the governor had included in his draft bond bill.
“We are excited about NIIMBL's continued growth and impact in Delaware and are grateful for the state's commitment to nurturing that growth and creating the infrastructure needed for biopharmaceutical manufacturing innovation and workforce development in Delaware,” NIIMBL Director Kelvin Lee said in a statement.
New government centers?
The bond bill also included funding set aside for two government centers - millions for the redevelopment of one in Hockessin and thousands to study an existing one in Georgetown.
The legislature approved $18 million to renovate the Emily P. Bissell Hospital off Newport Pike, which has been closed since 2015. That facility served as a nursing home for decades until it closed its doors, although ChristianaCare maintains an adult day care there.
The funding will be used to build a replacement lab and office space for the Delaware Division of Forensic Science. However, language in the bond bill also creates an advisory committee to maintain communications between state entities and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB, the Controller, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Safety and Homeland Security, the House of Representatives and the Senate. The governor will also have two representatives on this board.
The bond bill also includes $250,000 for the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) to conduct a feasibility study to revitalize the Stockley Campus with other state agencies. That campus is five miles north of Millsboro and houses many DHSS divisions, such as the Division of Developmental Disabilities Services, Division of Public Health, Division of Services for Aging and Adults with Physical Disabilities.
However, that campus also has offices for Delaware’s Department of Safety and Homeland Security, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, the Department of Services for Children Youth and their Families, and the Department of State and other programs.
In total, about 450 employees use the facility although not all are state employees.
Among the goals for this plan include an investigation for opportunities for public-private partnerships on the campus, as well as possible training and educational opportunities for health care workers and people with disabilities. A report is due to the General Assembly on Sept. 15.
On the Horizon
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Delaware quietly bought the Alpha Technologies building earlier this year and has allocated millions to renovating it. | DBT PHOTO BY KATIE TABELING[/caption]
In terms of other funding requests this year, there were little in terms of concrete requests this year. Wilmington projects secured millions in various projects, including $18.5 million to renovate One Custom House, former Alpha Technologies building that Delaware Business Times first reported on in June.
OMB representatives said that the plan is to renovate and “add additional square footage to the footprint,” which would include expanding the lobby, securing parking and “generating additional building support space.” Renovations are expected to be complete by summer 2026.
Meanwhile, the “Wilmington Workforce Development Initiative” was granted $10 million. That funding fulfills Longwood Foundation’s hope for state funding for a $57 million high-education complex in the final building in the Bracebridge complex. That campus of four buildings once held Bank of America’s hundreds of employees, and will soon see new life when Incyte moves its headquarters there.
In addition, the Downtown Dover Partnership and the city of Dover successfully secured $10.4 million, which is to be split among many projects. About $8 million is allocated to the build of the proposed six-story mixed-use development at 120 S. Governors Ave., which has been deemed a high priority for Dover officials to unlock the district's potential.
Another $2 million is set aside for water and wastewater infrastructure, as the downtown buildings are in need of an upgrade. In the past, city officials have said the water and sewer lines are old and not equipped to serve high-density projects in line with the master plan vision.
This investment builds off the $25 million awarded by the state months ago, including bond bill funds and ARPA funds to redevelop the 120 S. Governors Ave. with Mosaic Development Partners and Colonial Parking Inc.
“It’s exciting to see what’s taken place so far, but the infrastructure funding is equally critical because it supports the planned growth there,” Downtown Dover Partnership Executive Director Diane Laird said. “Loockerman is going to look different with planned pedestrian walkways and outdoor dining, and this is a significant boost to get us there.”
