City Council

Public Hearing 4/16/13 CITY OF FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA HON. MARY KATHERINE GREENLAW, MAYOR HON. BRADFORD C. ELLIS, VICE MAYOR , WARD ONE CITY COUNCIL HON. KERRY P. DEVINE, AT-LARGE HON. MATTHEW J. KELLY, AT-LARGE MINUTES Council Chambers, 715 Princess Anne Street HON. GEORGE C. SOLLEY, WARD TWO HON. FREDERIC N. HOWE , III, WARD THREE HON. BEATRICE R. PAOLUCCI, WARD FOUR Fredericksburg, Virginia 22401 April 16, 2013 The Council of the City of Fredericksburg, Virginia, held a budget public hearing on Tuesday, April 16, 2013, beginning at 7:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers of City Hall. Present. Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw. Vice-Mayor Bradford C. Ellis. Councilors Kerry P. Devine, Frederic N. Howe, III, Matthew J. Kelly, and Beatrice R. Paolucci. Also Present. City Manager Beverly R. Cameron, Assistant City Manager Mark Whitley, City Attorney Kathleen Dooley, Budget Manager Amanda Lickey, and Deputy Clerk of Council Brenda T. Martin. Absent. Councilor George C. Solley was out of town for a work related trip. Officer Recognized. Mayor Greenlaw recognized the presence of and thanked Corporal Jamie Walker for being at the meeting. Staff Presentation on the FY14 Budget. City Manager Cameron introduced Budget Manager Lickey who gave a presentation on the Fiscal Year 2014 Recommended Operating and Capital Budget highlighting the recommended General Fund 5.14% increase, the $0.03 tax increase, the 2% cost of living adjustment and 1% 18193 Public Hearing 4/16/13 pay adjustment for employees to complete the second step of the mandatory Virginia Retirement System contribution phase in plan. Ms. Lickey reported that the City has continued to see an increased cost in health insurance. The recommended budget also includes a purchasing agent, two ALS Medic positions, and a total of 3.5 full time equivalent positions for the Sheriff’s Office. City Schools requested $1.2 million dollars in additional funds due to increased student enrollment. The five year Capital Improvement Plan was previously presented to Council. A public hearing will also be held on the advertised tax rate of $0.83. The City’s current tax rate is $0.74 per $100 in valuation. In accordance with the Code of Virginia, City Council can set a lower tax rate; but may not set a rate higher without an additional public hearing. The proposed increase in Water and Sewer rates represents the second year of the recommended rate structure adjustment based on the results of the water and sewer management study. The regular bi-monthly rate structure adjustment is blended to generate 8% more revenue to sustain the Water Fund and 8.5% to sustain the Wastewater Fund. The refuse collection fee is recommended to increase $3.00 in the bi-monthly cycle. The high density rate is recommended at $28.20 and the residential rate at $34.50. Notice of Fiscal Year 2014 Recommended Operating and Capital Budget Public Hearing. The Clerk read the notice of the public hearing as it appeared in the local newspaper, the purpose being to solicit citizen input. Mayor Greenlaw opened the public hearing and explained the five minute time limit for each speaker. The following speakers came forth to speak to this topic. 18194 Public Hearing 4/16/13 Jessica Cifizzari, 409 Progress Street, Disability Resource Center spoke about going into their 20th year of service with 78 workshops offered last year. She thanked the City for their continued support of this organization. Michelle Hedrick, 325-A Wallace Street, Executive Director of Rappahannock Big Brothers Big Sisters, requested Council fund the $9,500 funding as requested. They have seen an increase in requests for mentoring children ages 6-13. Mentors help children achieve success and ultimately help the economics of the community. Theresa Bowers, Director of Senior Visitor’s Program with Mental Health America, explained that trained volunteers give free support to the elderly in their homes. Twenty-one percent of the clients they serve are City residents. The Senior Visitors Program requested full funding to support the needs of this growing population. Sylvia Kendrigan, a recipient of care given through the Senior Visitor’s Program states that their services have been very helpful, she has been receiving services for ten years from her volunteer Therese Wright. Therese Wright, 218 Anderson Drive, Falmouth has been a volunteer with the Senior Visitor’s Program for twelve years and for ten of those years, she has been assisting Sylvia Kernigan. She felt what she gets back from Sylvia is immeasurable. She stated she is honored to call her friend and she continually amazes her as someone who makes the most of life. Pam Garrett, Executive Director of the Safe Harbor Child Advocacy Center, gave the Council blue pinwheels for Prevent Child Abuse Month for April. Pinwheel gardens have been planted throughout the area and she asked members of Council to hold up theirs to represent a pinwheel garden planted in Council Chambers. She thanked 18195 Public Hearing 4/16/13 Council for funding for fiscal year 2013 and stated 130 children have come for services already and 35 were from the City. A new service provided this year is trauma focused therapy which is free for the child and parent. The cost benefit of combining services and decreasing time for processing to begin is a great benefit to all involved. She asked for the full funding of $6,000. Bobby Anderson, Executive Director of Rappahannock Council Against Sexual Assault, stated that last week during a regular council meeting Vista Members were recognized in a Proclamation. Two outstanding members are part of their organization. One of them Jay (last name not stated) addressed the Council for their budget request. They provide a 24 hour hotline and free assistance managing the events that occur with a sexual assault. Every year there is an increase in the instances of sexual abuse violence. They asked for their full request of funding for FY14. Peggy Phillips, representing Micah Ministries requested full funding for the cold weather shelter. She told the story of her life and how she went from being a professional to homeless. She is now the hospitality manager at Micah and has regained her nursing license thanks to their good work. Giannina Ienco, Elected Director of the Tri-County/City Soil and Water Conservation District, gave a background of their assistance to citizens and programs they provide and requested the Council restore funding. This year they partnered with Tree Fredericksburg and continued to provide education to school aged children in schools. Steven Flanagan, 817 Moncure Street, Big Brothers Big Sisters assists the community by one to one mentoring of the City’s high risk children. There are over 200 18196 Public Hearing 4/16/13 current mentors and more are needed. He also is a volunteer with the Senior Visitor Program and stated the importance of that service to the elder community. Ann Kloeckner, Executive Director of Rappahannock Legal Services which has served the citizens of this region for 40 years. Five counties are served by two and a half attorneys. Among many other legal services they advise and represent citizens facing evictions so they don’t become homeless, and assist with child and spousal support. She asked for full funding. Hamilton Palmer, 1500 Caroline Street, suggested that a percentage of the City budget be set aside for outside agencies. A copy of the auditor of public accounts was sent to all the members of Council some time ago. He felt we need some common ground on this data, which is compared to other communities in the state. Some of the City’s averages are twice as much and public works is six times the average of other localities. He recapped numerous accounts that were above average. Joe Wilson, 913 Caroline Street, thanked the Council for their service. He noted that part of the job as a public servant is to differentiate needs from wants. Outside agencies are wonderful assets to our community. Increases in some of the departments budgets are concerning to him and he noted specific departments; Sheriff’s Office, City Attorney and Information Technology. He states these increases are not sustainable. Seventy percent of our citizens are renters. We are a small City and to maintain our City status we need to spend money wisely and take a more regional approach to schools and police protection. Martha Huff, 1105 Walker Drive, spoke in support of the library and asked the Council to not think of the library as an outside agency but as a regional partner. All of 18197 Public Hearing 4/16/13 the people that all of the groups represented tonight, can use the library for many free resources. She asked Council to fully fund the library’s budget request for FY14. Mike Craig, 711 Lee Avenue, spoke about the use of federal, state and local funds for the police and sheriff’s offices equipment and supplies used in the July 27, 2012 raid on the Otter House. He stated he supports the police and thinks the watershed patrol and equipment is a good use of funds. Funding our defense has created an offensive entity. He suggested reducing the police budget for weapons and funding more of the outside agencies or community policing. He suggested asking citizens to assist with capital improvements such as parks, to save money. Richard Friezner, 1231 Hanover Street, asked the Council to put their differences aside and think about tomorrow’s citizens, our children. He asked them to think of our City not only for the next few years, but for our citizens in 2045 and 2055. Notice of Proposed Increase in Real Estate Tax. The Clerk read the notice of the public hearing as it appeared in the local newspaper, the purpose being to solicit citizen input. The following speakers came forth to speak to this topic. Richard Davis, 315 Wolfe Street, voiced opposition to the proposed real estate tax increase to pay for the operating costs of the new courthouse. Apathetic citizen involvement in the process led no one questioning how we were going to pay for the courthouse. The operating costs for the life of the building were not addressed. Users of the facility should be assessed service fees. Van Perroy, 525 Caroline Street, spoke about the importance of the City working efficiently like a well-run corporation. He recently was asked to participate in a panel on Capitol Hill regarding non-profit competition with for profit businesses. He felt the City 18198 Public Hearing 4/16/13 should not be in the trash collecting business, it’s not fiscally feasible anymore since the City is losing money on it every year. An increased tax on real estate hurts local businesses. Gail Howard, 17 Tally Ho Drive Stafford, stated that she and her husband own six properties in the City that they rent to others. Raising real estate taxes will place more burdens on the land owners. The mindset for the City seems to be only for Caroline and Princess Anne Streets. She felt Council shouldn’t have “given away” Maury School. The proposal for the Lafayette Boulevard Corridor expansion and construction of a new courthouse complex was a good idea. Council should tighten their belts and cut some expenses. Jesus Dominguez, 18 Apache Terrace spoke about taxes being a part of life. He brought up the issues of renters versus homeowners paying taxes. He recommended looking more closely at spending money on non-revenue generating projects such as parks. Hamilton Palmer, 1500 Caroline Street and 401 Charles Street, spoke about raising the real estate tax rate and how it would affect many aspects of what makes this City so special. Approximately thirty percent of non-taxable or exempt real estate exist in the City and the rest of the City taxpayers have to pay their share. How efficient is City government at what they do and where can savings be found so that taxes do not have to be raised? Based on the auditor of public accounts the City pays $1,000- $1,200 more per person a year than our neighboring localities and that amounts to $25 million that could be cut from the budget. 18199 Public Hearing 4/16/13 Andy Burlett, 1413 Franklin Street, asked when do the tax hikes stop? Federal, state and now a proposed local tax increase. He stated him and his wife work and it’s hard to support their family. They are not getting pay raises in their current jobs. Thomas Dolan, 1505 Princess Anne Street, spoke in response to Councilor Kelly’s quotation in The Free Lance Star of “what are you people thinking?” He too was surprised that not more people were present to speak out against the proposed tax increases. He doesn’t see the benefit of the tax increase for what he would be receiving. Joe Wilson, 913 Caroline Street, commented that one of the reason’s most people don’t come out to speak at meetings is that they don’t feel like their voice makes a difference. The tax increase will only impact about 30-35 % of property owners. The City must operate like a business and not spend money it doesn’t have. Notice of Proposed Increases in Water, Sewer and Solid Waste Fees. The Clerk read the notice of the public hearing as it appeared in the local newspaper, the purpose being to solicit citizen input. The following speakers came forth to speak to this topic. Hamilton Palmer, 1500 Caroline Street, spoke about the auditor of public accounts and the analysis of data for water, sewer and solid waste. In the Public Works Department the City spent $9 million in FY11 which is six times more per capita cost than our neighbors. In sanitation and waste removal the City spent $4 million, Manassas $3 million, Spotsylvania $4.2 million and Stafford $2.4 million. The citizens deserve an explanation of why the City pays so much more than our surrounding neighbors. Adjournment. There being no more speakers to come before the Council at this time, Mayor Greenlaw declared the public hearings officially adjourned at 9:14 p.m. 18200 Public Hearing 4/16/13 Mary Katherine Greenlaw Mary Katherine Greenlaw, Mayor Brenda T. Martin Brenda T. Martin, Deputy Clerk of Council 18201 Public Hearing 4/16/13 [This page intentionally left blank.] 18202