San Diego’s $5 billion funding deficit would be $1 billion larger if it included hundreds of maintenance projects officials postpone and ignore.
Deferring maintenance on institutional and commercial facilities is an all-too-common practice. But it is rare that an organization gets put on notice for the practice. In the case of San Diego, though, an audit spotlighted the practice and even put a dollar figure on its impact.
San Diego’s nearly $5 billion infrastructure funding deficit would be about $1 billion larger if the city included hundreds of maintenance projects that officials postpone and ignore, according to a 57-page audit reported by the San Diego Union Tribune.
Postponing those projects, which include roof patches and minor repairs to HVAC systems, will increase long-term costs by forcing the city to replace entire buildings sooner than necessary, according to the audit.
“Although deferring maintenance can save money in the short term, deferring maintenance results in higher future costs and can impact city services, worker morale and the overall reputation of the city,” according to the audit.
It can also deprive city leaders of an accurate picture of how far behind they are on infrastructure projects. The audit says deferred maintenance should be included in future evaluations of the city’s infrastructure deficit.
The audit says the roughly $25 million San Diego spends annually on facility maintenance is only 8-18 percent of what the city should spend.
December 3, 2024
By Dan Hounsell, Senior Editor
Dan Hounsell is senior editor for the facilities market. He has more than 30 years of experience writing about facilities maintenance, engineering and management.
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