Staff Writer | Mayor of Scottsdale
Scottsdale Mayor Lisa Borowsky is backing up her “no” vote with newly released financial details divulged during last week’s City Council meeting confirming that the City Council’s 2025 vote to replace an already approved roundabout at Scottsdale and Dynamite roads with a signalized intersection will add $3.4 million in costs to the project.
Mayor Borowsky voted against the change in scope when the City Council considered the redesign in 2025, citing concerns about cost increases and potential project risks.
In April 2025, by a 4 to 3 vote, the Scottsdale City Council members Jan Dubauskas, Barry Graham, Adam Kwasman and Kathy Littlefield voted to change the scope of the project opting to forgo the planned roundabout at Scottsdale and Dynamite roads.
Although the overall project budget remains capped at $43.7 million, city staff reports the additional $3.4 million in construction and related expenses was absorbed by drawing down the project’s contingency fund.
The contingency reserve was reduced from $4.43 million to just $0.85 million, well below the typical 10 percent contingency level commonly used to manage risk in large-scale infrastructure projects.
“These updated numbers make clear that the 2025 decision to abandon a fully engineered, approved, and grant-funded roundabout placed an unnecessary financial burden on this project,” Mayor Borowsky said. “Taxpayers deserve transparency about how and why a multimillion-dollar cost increase was absorbed simply to change designs midstream.”
Staff explained during the meeting that maintaining the overall project cap required shifting funds internally — primarily by reducing contingency reserves that are typically intended to address unforeseen construction risks.
Mayor Borowsky emphasized that fiscal discipline and careful project management remain essential as the City continues investing in major infrastructure improvements.
Project budget snapshot:
- Total Project Budget (unchanged): $43.7M
- Added Cost for Signal Change Order: +$3.4M
- Spent to Date: $20.4M
- Remaining: $23.3M
Cost changes (previous → updated)
- Construction: $29.9M → $32.94M (+3.04M)
- Design: $2.7M → $3.06M (+0.36M)
- Construction Administration: $1.45M → $0.89M (–0.56M)
- Utility Relocation: $2.47M → $3.16M (+0.69M)
- Right of Way: $2.19M → $2.24M (+0.05M)
- Administration: $0.54M → $0.54M (no change)
- Contingency: $4.43M → $0.85M (–3.58M)
Why the contingency shift matters
Major infrastructure projects typically carry a contingency of around 10% to manage unforeseen conditions, utility conflicts, inflation pressures, and schedule risks. For a $43.7 million project, that standard benchmark would be approximately $4.3 million.
The project now has only $0.85 million in contingency, less than 2% of the total budget, which substantially increases the financial risk if additional issues arise.
Mayor Borowsky emphasized that financial transparency and sound infrastructure planning remain priorities for her administration.
“When the contingency funds are nearly exhausted before a project is finished, Scottsdale’s taxpayers are exposed,” Mayor Borowsky said. “We must learn from this decision and ensure future project changes are data‑driven, fully costed, and made in the public’s best interest.”
