City Council - Finance Committee

CITY OF EASTHAMPTON OFFICE OF THE CITY COUNCIL Easthampton Municipal Building 50 Payson Ave., Ste. 100 Easthampton, Massachusetts 01027-2260 Telephone #: (413) 529-1460 Fax #: (413) 529-1417 Minutes City Council Finance Committee Meeting, 9/13/2023 Attendees: Finance Committee Members: Councilor Dan Rist, Chair Councilor Tom Peake, Clerk Councilor Koni Denham Other Attendees: Parks and Recreations Director John Mason City Council President Homar Gomez City Treasurer Jessica Hebert City Auditor Hetal Patel Meeting was called to order at 5:15 PM. 1) Approval of Minutes: None. 2) Mayor’s Communication: None 3) Public Speak: None 4) New Business a) $400,000 for rehab & restoration of the Nonotuck Park Pool & surrounding area. Councilor Rist stated that this had been approved by the CPA Committee. It comes on top of $400 previously granted. This includes all of the open space and recreation designated funds, although there still undesignated funds. Parks and Recreations Director John Mason stated that the City put in an application for a federal grant but did not receive those funds. The state PARK grant money needs to be spent or it will be lost, so they came to the CPA. This is Phase I. Phase II includes shade structures and ADA improvement, but free cash could be used for that component. They plan to apply for the federal grant again last year to apply to upgrade the spray park. He also  stated that the pool was well-utilized this summer, except for a few mechanical issues, and the lifeguard staffing was at higher levels than prior to the pandemic. These fixes will address the mechanical issues that shut down the pool this summer. He states that the contractors have a drop-dead May 15 deadline to complete this work, so the pool construction will be complete for next summer. Motion made by Councilor Peake and seconded by Councilor Denham. Motion passed 3-0. b) $11,154.00 for Veteran’s retirement appropriation to S. Hadley as district is dissolved: This is the final payment as the district was dissolved. Motion made by Councilor Peake and seconded by Councilor Denham. Motion passed 3-0. c) $52,736.65 transfer to the PEG Access Account: This is a regular quarterly payment. Councilor Rist asked when the contract came up for renewal, but nobody was aware. Motion made by Councilor Peake and seconded by Councilor Denham. Motion passed 3-0. 5) Old Business 6) Continuing Business a) Quarterly fiscal reports from the City Auditor: This was not discussed tonight. b) Quarterly Report on Covid-19 grant funding and spending: This was not discussed tonight. By motion made by Councilor Peake and seconded by Councilor Denham, the meeting was adjourned at 5:29 PM