Good
morning, Chairwoman Molnar and members of the Commission
on Capital Budgeting and Planning. It is my pleasure
to meet with you this morning to present the New
Jersey Department of Agriculture's fiscal year 2000
capital budget request.
As you know, the Department of Agriculture
works very closely with all segments of the multi-billion dollar
food and agriculture industry here in the Garden State. This diverse
industry is supported by a variety of programs and services provided
by the department. And these programs and services have often been
reinforced by funding recommended by the Capital Budget and Planning
Commission. For example, in FY98, this Commission recommended funding
for a grandstand pavilion at the Horse Park of New Jersey in Allentown
as well as funding for a laboratory glassware washer/dryer in the
department's animal health laboratory. Both of these projects are
nearly completed and each, in its own way, provides significant benefits
to the livestock segment of the Garden State's agriculture industry.
For the current fiscal year, the Commission approved funding for
upgrading the HVAC system at the Philip Alampi Beneficial Insect
Laboratory in Ewing so that we can improve production and better
protect the health and well-being of our employees there. We are
working with the Division of Building and Construction to complete
this project. Our requests for capital improvements always stem from
our constant effort to meet the every-changing needs of the agriculture
industry and the many other constituencies that depend on the department
and improve the delivery of services and programs to them. In that
regard, NJDA's capital request for FY2000 is no different. The three
specific capital improvement projects we seek funding for in the
coming year are all aimed at helping us provide a wider range of
services more efficiently and cost-effectively. The first request
would fund an upgrade of our 10-year-old central computer system.
Right now, this system costs nearly $100,000 a year to maintain.
As you may know, hardware and software maintenance costs tend to
increase as we invest in new system-wide software products needed
to run programs offered by the department. Our current Digital Equipment
Corporation VMS operating system has performed well over the last
decade, serving our local area network and providing a good foundation
for the development of new database applications. However, the system
has begun to show its age. Network transactions have slowed significantly
as users, field offices and new software have been added to the network.
The slow-down adversely affects every employee in our agency and
all of our programs. And, of course, our agency, like so many others,
is concerned with being prepared for the year 2000 conversion.
Our request for $202,000 would let
us change from current VMS to NT technology. The change would accomplish
a lot of different things:
- It
would provide a new central computer system which is Year 2000
compliant.
It
would reduce our annual maintenance costs by 60 percent.
It
would increase system capacity and speed, both of which are particularly
important to the use of geographic imaging systems for our numerous
conservation and land use programs.
It
would improve the department's local area network by enabling us
to acquire and install 10 system printers throughout the department.
- Also,
it would provide additional capacity and speed.
I
ask your support of this initiative. Our second FY 2000 capital funding
request is related to the Horse Park of New Jersey at Stone Tavern.
It is a facility that you have all heard me speak of in most of my
appearances before this Commission. You know how strongly I feel
about carrying out the master plan for developing the 147-acre Horse
Park into the finest equine facility of its type on the entire East
Coast. The Park opened to the public in 1988 with an administration
building, a 60-stall barn and two show rings constructed with state
funds. Since then the industry has contributed to the Park's development
by funding three stall pavilions for 215 stalls, construction of
a schooling ring and numerous improvements for three-day eventing
and driving marathons, renovations of the carriage dressage and grand
prix arena, expansion of the camper and camper parking areas and
more than $200,000 in landscaping. In addition, this Commission has
been extremely supportive of the development of the Horse Park of
New Jersey. Your past support has enabled us to pave the main access
road and camper area, improve two access roads within the park and
construct a covered grandstand which provides a comfortable, sheltered
public viewing area that is extremely popular with both spectators
and vendors. Thanks to improvements like these, the Park's popularity
continues to grow. This year, the Park is hosting 30 weekends of
activity including the state 4-H championships; regional dressage
championships; the national Standardbred pleasure horse show; horse
shows for the handicapped; the state FFA horse judging event; and
numerous breed shows and cross-country events. This October the Horse
Park will be the site of the nationally- significant 1998 United
States Dressage Federation regional finals and they will return in
September 1999. With all of this, however, the Park lacks year-round
capability. Beginning in FY2000, we are requesting funding for a
two-phase project that would result in a covered work area and indoor
facility which, when completed, would enable the Park to host both
equine and non-equine events year- round, subject to the approval
of the Department of Environmental Protection. Because of its size,
construction of a 250 ft. x 400 ft. x 22 ft. covered facility, with
seating for 2,500 spectators, will have to be completed over a two
year period. In FY2000, we would like to acquire a needed parcel
of land for the construction of a second access road, begin design
and site preparation and complete half of the actual construction.
Therefore, I am requesting $3,513,000 in fiscal year 2000 to begin
work on this ambitious but worthwhile project. In FY2001, we would
return to seek funding for the balance of the project in the amount
of $2,602,000. Assuming approval of the FY2000 and 2001 Horse Park
expenditures, in FY2003 through 2006, our capital needs at the Park
would be for additional stabling as the anticipated demand for use
of the indoor facility will cause a shortage of permanent, covered
horse stalls. This request represents a large investment by the state.
However, it=s one that would generate a tremendous return. Using
this year as an example and based upon proven formulas developed
by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture, the economic impact
to the local area of having 61 days of activity at the Horse Park
will be $15,250,000. Assuming a conservative usage of 150 days per
year for both equine and non-equine events, this public investment
could yield economic benefits to the area of more than $37.5 million
annually. The third portion of our fiscal year 2000 capital request
is for funding to add an extension to an existing accessory building
at the beneficial insect laboratory in Ewing. Currently 62 ft. by
52 ft., this building is used to store agricultural field implements
and greenhouse and laboratory supplies used in the production of
beneficial insects. The production and release of these beneficial
insects, as you know, saves farmers and homeowners money by reducing
their reliance on costly chemical pest control agents, thereby reducing
the impact of these chemicals on the environment. The existing storage
building is filled to capacity so that materials and supplies have
to be stored in the laboratory in space that could otherwise be used
to raise beneficial insects. Requested funding will enable us to
build a 1,550-square-foot addition to the storage building, increasing
capacity by 48 percent. I am, therefore, requesting $153,000 for
this project in fiscal year 2000. This project is also part of a
multi-year facility improvement. We would like to replace the cooling
towers at the beneficial insect lab in fiscal year 2001 and its two
boilers in fiscal year 2002. Another portion of our five-year plan
includes a capital budget request for fiscal year 2001for repair
of the greenhouse attached to the Health/Agriculture laboratory building.
Thirty-two years of use has taken its toll on this facility. The
temperature controls are obsolete and malfunctioning and ventilator
controls need to be replaced. Existing lighting should be replaced
with high-intensity sodium lights. Shading should be installed to
protect plants and other materials. To accomplish these improvements
and make the greenhouse a more productive component of the department's
regulatory and diagnostic efforts, I will be requesting $70,000.
I appreciate the opportunity to bring these three projects before
you as the New Jersey Department of Agriculture's fiscal year 2000
capital budget request. Now I and the members of my staff with me
would be pleased to respond to any of your questions.
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