Board of Town Commissioners

MINUTES BEL AIR BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BUDGET WORK SESSION MEETING MAY 8, 2024 The Board of Commissioners Work Session Mee�ng was held on May 8, 2024, at 4:30 pm. PRESENT: Commissioner Paula S. Etting, Chair Commissioner Steven T. Chizmar Commissioner James B. Rutledge, III Commissioner Jakob D. Taylor IN ATTENDANCE: David Anderson, Media & Public Relations Specialist Edward Hopkins, Town Administrator Steven Kline, Director of Public Works Michael Krantz, Director of HR & Administration Lisa Moody, Director of Finance Jane Sudbrink, Recording Secretary ABSENT: Commissioner Mary F. Chance I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Etting called the meeting to order at 4:30 pm and read the roll call of commissioners. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Commissioner Taylor mo�oned to approve the agenda. Commissioner Chizmar seconded the mo�on. Mr. Krantz asked for a vote. Ayes: Commissioners Rutledge, Chizmar, Taylor, E�ng. Nays: None. Mo�on carried 4-0. III. BUDGET A. Presenta�on 1. Bel Air Recrea�on Commitee David Care�, BARC, Vice President, Finance, provided highlights from the past year. He first noted that the rec commitee has had higher opera�ng expenses this past year, such as maintenance of the Rockfield playground. He discussed new programs that have been highly received, including a fishing rodeo for youth, co-ed flag football for people of different ages, and ice ska�ng for youth and adults via a partnership with Ice World. He also described programs for children with special needs, including the cheer abili�es program and discovery soccer and basketball. Mr. Care� said his request, $115,250, is 20% higher than last year’s because of the new programs and costs associated with ongoing programs, like community chorus and band and Fes�val for the Arts. Mr. Care� said the rec commitee strives to keep registra�on costs reasonable. He said the largest program, soccer for boys and girls, had over 2,600 par�cipants last year and is the least expensive in the 1 county. He said over the past twelve months, there were 11,000 registrants across programs and he does not foresee a drop-off with programs registering at this �me. Commissioner Taylor asked if the 20% increase is related to specific programs or across the board. Mr. Care� said it is not across the board. He detailed where expenses have gone up (e.g., capital improvements for the community chorus), how the Fes�val for the Arts does not generate revenue, and how some larger programs have not increased registra�on fees. Mr. Care� said the goal of the rec commitee is to keep costs for par�cipants down while maintaining what they can provide to the community. He explained to Commissioner Taylor how, when the rec commitee receives town funds, the board of directors goes through the programs and determines where to apply those monies. He told Commissioner Chizmar that town funds are used for rec programs only and to offset costs in order to keep registra�on fees down. He also informed Commissioner Chizmar that hardship situa�ons are taken on a case-by-case basis with the registra�on fee usually waived. B. Con�nued Detailed Review of General Fund Expenditures 1. Bel Air Armory Julia Potler, Events Manager, presented to advocate for an $8,000 request for marke�ng of the armory. She said $7,000 of this request is to the websites weddingwire.com and theknot.com, the two biggest portals to find wedding venues. She described the history of the marke�ng budget for the armory, which was negligible when she started five years ago. The budget has increased because of these portal charges as well as other marke�ng items such as brochures. Ms. Potler said that revenue generated this month (contracted) was $83,000, the wedding por�on is $29,962, or 36% of revenues. She informed Chair E�ng that weddings are the biggest money maker because of their frequency. She said every event pays the same fee, $150 per hour and $100 per hour for nonprofits. Mr. Kline presented on the proposed opera�ng budget for the armory, $286,296. He said $18,000 is for general maintenance and u�li�es. He discussed the regular opera�onal expenses for the armory, such as salaries and benefits. He then detailed the proposed capital projects to include replacement of the hot water heater and circula�on system and dimmable ligh�ng in the auditorium at an es�mated cost of $50,000 to come from the capital reserve. 2. Town Buildings/Hydrant Rental Mr. Kline said this por�on of the budget covers salaries for two full-�me Custodian IIs. He said he is reques�ng an addi�onal Custodian II to cover cleaning and minor maintenance of the town hall and police department. Mr. Kline said the quality of service from the external contractor proved to be sub- par and he elected to discon�nue the contract. Mr. Kline said the requested amount is $76,000, which is somewhat less than the fee to the subcontractor. Ms. Moody added this final number will depend on benefits but the most it could go over is $10,000. Mr. Kline said he is reques�ng $457,530 for the buildings budget to operate town buildings, including u�li�es, supplies, and cleaning. He said he is also asking for $100,000 for capital projects—replacement of two entry doors at public works and the planning department, replacement of the overhead door and operator at the public works shed, and ADA-compliant improvements at the Rockfield Manor Barn. 2  Mr. Kline clarified for Chair E�ng that country weddings are the main events at the barn and there is currently only one ADA-compliant entrance. Fire regula�ons require two entrances. Mr. Kline said he is reques�ng $55,584 for rental of the 304 fire hydrants in town. 3. Public Works Department Mr. Kline said he is reques�ng the hiring of a part-�me Inspector I posi�on. He said such a posi�on would provide enhanced construc�on oversight, efficient project support, collabora�ve contractor rela�ons, comprehensive inspec�on surveys, and proac�ve maintenance. In answer to Commissioner Taylor, Mr. Kline said this person would work 32 hours every two weeks, or 2 days per week. He provided a history of this posi�on in the town. He said the town used to have a full-�me inspector, but, due to state regula�ons, this person was moved into a different posi�on. Mr. Kline speculated that the inspector posi�on could be filled by a re�red engineer. He told Commissioner Chizmar that the salary would be $17,206 per year. Mr. Kline reported that he is reques�ng $1,321,189 in salaries and benefits for administra�on of his department and the town’s MS4 Stormwater Management Program. Mr. Kline said the mowing services contract is $39,367. Mr. Kline discussed the town shop budget. He said he is asking for $467,756 for the opera�on and maintenance of 70 vehicles, 60 pieces of equipment, three employees, diesel, supplies, repair parts, and vehicle and equipment repairs. He informed Commissioner Chizmar that larger engine repairs are outsourced. Mr. Kline also explained the evolu�on of the vehicle replacement policy that now involves moving vehicles earlier so as to eliminate costly repairs, purchasing more efficient vehicles, and earning more money when the re�red vehicles go to auc�on. He also explained to Commissioner Chizmar that purchasing diesel fuel through Corbin Fuel is the most cost efficient and provides a local backup in emergencies. For the streets budget, Mr. Kline said he is reques�ng $1,997,012 to pay for tree work, street ligh�ng, traffic control, curb and guter repairs, street maintenance materials, sidewalk maintenance materials, and snow and ice removal. Mr. Kline said he is reques�ng funds to cover the purchase of two new pick-up trucks and a leaf vac truck. He es�mated that the trucks will sell at auc�on for approximately $4,000 each and will cost $70,000 each to purchase. The leaf vac truck could sell at auc�on for $8,000 and will cost $190,000 to purchase. These vehicles will be funded through ARPA funds. Mr. Kline discussed new street construc�on at a budget cost of $335,000. He listed the streets to be resurfaced. Commissioner Taylor asked about the decision process for repaving streets. Mr. Kline described a previous program that the town used for fi�een years to determine which streets should be paved. He said staff no longer has access to that program so they are using knowledge and experience to maintain the town roads. Ms. Moody confirmed for Chair E�ng that highway user funds will cover these costs. She told Chair E�ng that the funds are $720,000 for FY25 and they cover more than repaving, including such items as snow and ice removal and streetligh�ng. 3  Mr. Kline discussed the refuse budget at $987,785; $747,100 is for salaries and benefits. He detailed the $236,685 condominium trash and recycling contract. The town is required to pay Harford County a �pping fee of $133,380 annually. The town pays Casella $103,305 to provide the dumpsters and service of collec�ng trash and recyclables. Mr. Kline and Ms. Moody explained the increase in the budget was a result of an increase in the �pping fee, which also resulted in discrepancies with the FY24 budget. Commissioners, Ms. Moody, and Mr. Kline discussed the reasons behind this contract, namely that the town does not have trucks to handle dumpsters, nor does it seem cost-effec�ve to purchase them. They further discussed the county’s jus�fica�on for the �pping fee. 4. Appearance and Beau�fica�on Commitee Mr. Kline said the commitee is reques�ng $39,300, which has remained consistent over the last eight budget cycles. He said the commitee is responsible for the town’s flower gardens, Main St hanging baskets, and holiday decora�ons, all of which enhance the aesthe�c appeal of town. Chair E�ng noted that the McCormick St flooding project is not in the budget. Mr. Kline confirmed this and said it is a $1.7 million project. He said his plan is to seek funding through grants at the state level. This would be a grant specifically targeted to stormwater management issues. He told Commissioner Chizmar the engineering is complete on this project and it is “shovel ready.” Mr. Kline said that in the interim they have made low-cost improvements to the area that have prevented flooding for the last three years. He noted that unlike his sewer projects that are proposed for ARPA funds, this project is not suitable for ARPA funds because it only affects a small group of people. C. Discussion by Commissioners on Budget Issues Chair E�ng announced that MML membership dues were restructured resul�ng in an extra $4,000 for the FY25 budget. Ms. Moody addressed the Outstanding List. Ms. Moody said Mr. Small will address item 3 next Tuesday. Items 4 and 5 are budget related. She said item 6 can be discussed tonight. Mr. Krantz said he will be ready to address item 7 next Tuesday. She said she will make the addi�onal $4,000 item 8, and item 9 will be the IT restructuring. Ms. Moody also said she would determine whether it would be possible to use monies from the real property tax to fund the $25,000 Wayfinding fee rather than the capital reserve. She said she would address this as item 10 next Tuesday. Commissioners and Ms. Moody discussed the rec commitee’s request. The amount the budget proposes to fund the rec commitee is a 5% increase over last year, $102,000, but it is under their requested amount of $115,250. She explained for Commissioner Taylor how the rec commitee has been funded by the town over the years. Mr. Hopkins explained his ra�onale for funding the nonprofits. He said he needs to keep a balance across all the organiza�ons and a 20% increase just for the rec commitee would look unfair. Commissioners were in agreement with the level of funding for the rec commitee. Commissioner Rutledge said the rec commitee has other avenues of funding to explore. Commissioner Chizmar suggested using some of the extra $4,000 from MML for the rec commitee. 4  Chair E�ng asked about Winter Wonderland funding, and specifically whether some of that extra $4,000 could be directed to it. She noted it is a terrific event that is done by volunteers and increases sales for local businesses by bringing in over 17,000 people. Mr. Hopkins said that for Winter Wonderland last year, the total in-kind costs for the town were $8,569.66. Ms. Moody said that there is not a revenue source for Winter Wonderland nor an MOU yet to ensure costs are reimbursed. She said there is no budget impact for this event. Ms. Moody explained that Winter Wonderland is included in the budget for expenses, like the police, but the town is not asking for reimbursement. She said the town’s current revenues are what pay for these costs. Mr. Hopkins said the $8,569.66 was mostly for personnel, and he said he spoke to Pa� Parker about using the fire police. In addi�on, he said he spoke to Ms. Parker about an MOU and what future reimbursement to the town would look like. Chair E�ng reiterated her viewpoint that Winter Wonderland brings revenue back to the town and it is not a money-making event. Ms. Moody confirmed that the budget can be passed with this event considered as in-kind. Commissioner Rutledge also noted that expenses for the event are listed in the police department’s budget. Ms. Moody said that the percentage increase for the fire company over last year is 6.3% while the alliance is a 33.3% increase. She explained how the MOU with the alliance will help with reimbursement for large events like the BBQ Bash and First Fridays. Ms. Moody described the final budget work session for next week. In reference to ARPA, she said that she gleaned from the commissioners’ ques�ons and feedback, that their focus for ARPA will be on the sewer projects. Ms. Moody said that part of the discussion will be how to fund the projects that will not be funded through ARPA as a result of this decision. She will also present the final results of the FY23 audit. Ms. Moody said she is in the middle of doing a budget amendment for FY24, and there may be projects that could be funded through the current year revenues. Chair E�ng confirmed that the commissioners feel it is prudent to spend the ARPA money on projects that will last for decades. Chair E�ng requested that Ms. Moody add to the Outstanding List a spreadsheet of the percentage increases for each nonprofit along with the dollar amount. Commissioner Rutledge asked that she also add the amount each nonprofit has requested. Ms. Moody said she will also provide a final, updated ARPA spreadsheet. Commissioner Chizmar asked for more details about the capital reserve. She said the total transfer from the reserve is $175,000. She said the armory, town buildings, and the planning department all have projects for the capital reserve funds and she can prepare a spreadsheet with this informa�on. She told Commissioner Taylor that the total capital reserve is $4.4 million. Ms. Moody said discussions about the FY23 audit will shed more light on the capital reserve funds. Ms. Moody also explained for Commissioner Chizmar the purpose and use of the capital reserve in jurisdic�ons. Specifically, for Bel Air, the town has not used these funds over the years, only just put money into it. She said if they use the capital reserve funds, they must also con�nue to replenish it by factoring it into the budget and by pu�ng excess revenues into it. She also said excess revenues can be used to fund projects rather than dipping into the capital reserve. 5  Commissioner Chizmar expressed concerns about a $20 million budget and a $4.4 million reserve. Ms. Moody advised looking at the budget from a future perspec�ve rather than on a year-by-year basis, par�cularly when ARPA ends. Ms. Moody noted that any amendments commissioners make next Tuesday will require Ms. Moody to spend the rest of the week shi�ing the budget around to make it balanced. IV. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Taylor mo�oned to adjourn the mee�ng. Commissioner Chizmar seconded the mo�on. All in favor. The mee�ng adjourned at 6:23 pm. APPROVED: May 20, 2024 Signature on file _____________ Paula S. E�ng, Chair Board of Town Commissioners Signature on file_____________ Michael L. Krantz, Town Clerk 6