The recently enacted Stimulus bill, while not immediately helping design firms does offer some hope for increasing project opportunities going forward.
The initial infrastructure spending is going to “shovel-ready” projects where design, permitting and all right of way and utility issues are finished. These projects are ready for construction bidding, so there will be no design work beyond any construction period services required.
However, this does clear out a backlog of projects on infrastructure work that had been started, but was stopped as tax revenues declined going into the recession. This clears a backlog of work that was blocking new starts. By clearing this backlog, agencies should be able to get started with new projects sooner.
Will the clearing of unfinished projects help? It is really too early to tell. Unknown at this time are how much of the stimulus money will be used to clear this backlog, and how current tax receipts will translate into new funding for agencies.
Current evidence is mixed at best, with some agencies preparing to initiate new projects, and other agencies are still facing cuts in future funding. This is an agency by agency situation and likely will not be resolved until the first round of stimulus money and the current governmental budgeting cycle is much further along.
Our advice, stay in touch regularly with all of you agency clients. Don’t wait for the RFP development process (after they receive their budgets) as that may be too late to be in line for new projects.
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