The Legacy Park Debacle: Unraveling the Pitfalls of Conduit Bonds and Ways to Sidestep Them

Williamson County CIP 2023

Front Line Advisory Group serves as a key subconsultant on the 2023 Road Bond Program for Williamson County, a program with a total not-to-exceed value of $825 million. The bond program encompasses 45 projects distributed across four precincts within the county. In partnership with HNTB, we are tasked with ensuring the successful delivery of each project by managing a wide range of critical responsibilities.

As part of this program, we are responsible for maintaining project controls, contract compliance, master scheduling, financial oversight, vendor management, and risk management.

Our approach includes leveraging best practices in project management, utilizing industry-leading tools, and ensuring compliance with established scope, schedule, and budget metrics. By focusing on these elements, we mitigate risks, optimize costs, and ensure that the program delivers maximum value to Williamson County residents.

Through our collaboration with HNTB and commitment to defined performance metrics, Front Line Advisory Group continues to solidify its role as a trusted partner in delivering exceptional outcomes for Williamson County’s infrastructure needs.

• Program Amount: $825 Million
• 45 Total Projects

Travis County, Texas 2017 Capital Improvement Bond Program

Front Line Advisory Group is the premier provider of Program Management Consultant services to the Travis County, Texas Transportation and Natural Resources Department (TNR) for their $300 million Capital Improvement Program (CIP). As the Prime Consultant, we take pride in our responsibility for managing, developing, coordinating, tracking, and consolidating the CIP Project schedules, budgets, documentation, permitting, and communication for the county’s 2017 Bond Program and annual budget process, as well as the projects deployed by the TNR Department.

Our extensive experience in the field allows us to confidently handle the diverse range of 60 CIP Projects, which includes road, bridge, bicycle, pedestrian, drainage, and park infrastructure projects. Our firm combines vendor management and integration of cutting-edge project management software, tools, and resources such as ProCore, Microsoft Project, Microsoft SharePoint, Project Server (PMIS), Primavera, Oracle Cost modules, and Microsoft Office Suite to deliver a data-driven project delivery cycle and project control systems.

Front Line Advisory Group, LLC has implemented Project Management Institute’s (PMI) identified scope, schedule, and budget best practices as the Program’s Performance Measurement Baseline (PMB). These metrics serve as the foundation for ensuring project success throughout the project portfolio, so that the desired benefits are achieved, risks are managed, and time and costs are minimized.

With our commitment to delivering quantifiable outcomes and defined performance metrics, Front Line Advisory Group, LLC continues to be a trusted partner for Travis County, Texas Transportation and Natural Resources Department (TNR), ensuring the successful delivery of their Capital Improvement Program (CIP) projects.

• Bond Amount: $307M
• 58 Projects

Travis County, Texas Development Services Department (More to Follow)

We are leading a variety of change management and process improvement initiatives for Travis County Development Services Division to help them more quickly and effectively work through over 22,000 active permit applications with 250 – 700 new applications coming in each month. These initiatives include tracking and cleaning their performance and process data, developing KPIs, managing the improvement and release of new technology, implementing process automation, improving communication through regular stakeholder meetings and improved website content, mapping and analyzing business processes, and developing training tools and plans.

• 42 Projects

New York Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR)

Jessy Milner played a crucial role in the Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts in New York as a senior housing consultant. His extensive background in program management and expertise in CDBG-DR rules and regulations were essential in coordinating a program budget of $4.2 billion and rebuilding communities affected by the storm.

As a former partner at Front Line Consulting, LLC, Mr. Milner led a team of up to 65 individuals and managed critical duties for more than 11,000 affected applicants, including project planning, assessments, procurement, estimations, and change order management for residential homeowners, small business owners, and various infrastructure projects.

In addition to his technical skills, Mr. Milner’s excellent communication and collaboration abilities proved valuable in working with government agencies such as FEMA, HUD, the New York federal congressional representative, and the state governor. His involvement in these partnerships helped the recovery efforts meet their objectives and timelines.

• Program Amount: $284M
• 3,000 Projects

New York Rising Recapture Program

During Mr. Milner’s tenure as a partner at Front Line Consulting, LLC, he led the creation, implementation, and management of policies for a multi-functional team of 26 individuals for the New York Rising Recapture Program. This program was part of the New York Rising Housing Recovery Program and aimed to recover excess funds that were disbursed in excess of eligible expenses and redistribute them to other eligible homeowners in need. The program ensured that the distribution of funds was fair and transparent.

Mr. Milner’s team included construction managers, case analysts, case managers, and customer service representatives who focused on collecting nearly $284 million in previously distributed funds for storm recovery rehabilitation that were no longer needed. With Mr. Milner’s leadership and guidance, the team effectively managed the recapture program and ensured that the funds were reallocated to eligible homeowners who required additional financial assistance.

• Program Amount: $4.2B
• 11,000 Projects

City of Kyle, Texas 2022 Capital Improvement Bond Program

In 2022, the City of Kyle selected Front Line Advisory Group and part of a team led by KFA to serve as the Capital Improvement Bond program managers for Proposition A of the 2022 Bond election. This proposition, worth $294.4 million, aims to transform and modernize specific roadways in the city, with a view to enhancing safety, mobility, and reducing congestion. in Kyle, Texas. 

There are eight major roadway projects planned for Kyle, encompassing an impressive 10.3 miles of new location, reconstruction, and widening work. These projects have been designed with the aim of revitalizing the city’s transportation network and will undoubtedly make a significant impact on the daily lives of Kyle’s residents.

In addition to improving transportation and reducing congestion, the new roads will also bring a host of exciting new amenities to the city. These will include new restaurants, shopping facilities, trails, and recreational opportunities, all designed to enhance quality of life for local residents.

The benefits of these improvements are expected to be far-reaching, extending well beyond transportation and lifestyle. By reducing emergency response times, improving pedestrian and vehicular safety, and strengthening connections between the east and west sides of Kyle, these projects will make a major contribution to the city’s overall economic development.

• Bond Amount: $294M
• 9 Projects

Travis County, Texas 2011 Capital Improvement Bond Program

In 2020, the Travis County, Texas Transportation and Natural Resources Department (TNR) demonstrated their trust in Front Line Advisory Group (FLAG) by bringing us on board to assist in the completion of the five remaining Bond Proposition 1 projects in the 2011 Capital Improvement Bond package, totaling $132,840,000.

As Program Management Consultant, we quickly identified the critical tasks of Capital Improvement Management execution and focused on the five biggest challenges of bond project execution: Budget Oversight, Schedule Enforcement, Contract Compliance, Vendor Management, and Communication with Stakeholders.

Our team at FLAG has been laser-focused on these mitigating challenges to ensure that these projects are on track, on budget and set for quick completion. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Travis County, Texas Transportation and Natural Resources Department to deliver successful outcomes for their Capital Improvement Programs.

• Bond Amount: $77M
• 5 Projects