Council Study Session

MINUTES CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION CITY OF MONTEREY Wednesday, April 26, 2017 4:00 pm FEW MEMORIAL HALL OF RECORDS, MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA Councilmembers Present: Councilmembers Barrett, Haffa, Smith, Roberson Absent: Councilmember Albert City Staff City Manager, City Attorney, Director of Information Resources/City Clerk, Present: Assistant City Manager, Finance Director, Community Services Director, Acting Community Development Director, Acting Public Works Director CALL TO ORDER Mayor Roberson called the meeting to order at 4:02 p.m. PUBLIC COMMENTS Mayor Roberson opened public comments on items not on the agenda. Jim Cullem, Skyline Neighborhood Association, voiced concerns regarding tree maintenance in his neighborhood. Mayor Roberson noted that the NIP will be reviewing a project tomorrow night for Urban Forestry for the Skyline neighborhood. Having no further requests to speak, Mayor Roberson closed public comments. STUDY SESSION 1. Receive a Report and Presentation about the Discussion about creating a Public-Private Partnership Pilot Program between City and Business Districts to prioritize and fund Infrastructure Projects within the respective Business Districts (Not a Project under CEQA per Article 20, Section 15378 and Under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061) (City Manager-208-03) Action: Received report City Manager McCarthy introduced the item, and Assistant City Manager Uslar provided a history of the matter. DeAnn Brady, Cannery Row Business Association, presented details of the proposed two-year pilot partnership, including possible projects, and answered Councilmembers' questions. On question, John Narigi further explained the details of the proposed funding for the new program, explaining that the additional funding would come from the City and only be used for City services and capital projects. Mayor Roberson suggested potential funding sources, such as the tourism promotional funding, and Mr. Narigi expressed concerns regarding that proposal. Assistant City Manager Uslar reviewed potential funding from sources such as Gas Tax or Parking Fund and said that General Fund money would be guarded. Councilmember Smith left the meeting at 4:44 p.m. Councilmember Haffa expressed concerns that only the City is adding funding without additional private contributions.  City Council Minutes Wednesday, April 26, 2017 Councilmember Barrett said that Cannery Row Association has the potential to be a good collaborator in a partnership. He noted that NIP is a great model for collaboration and said that this proposal is a good tool to formalize the dialogue between businesses and the City. Councilmember Albert said that residents as well as tourists visit and use Cannery Row. He asked if this program is worth $104,000. Mayor Roberson opened the floor for public comments. Leslie Svetich, Acting President of North Fremont Business District, said that her board does not support the proposal as written and it does not present a level playing field. With no further requests to speak, Mayor Roberson closed public comments on the item. Mr. Narigi disagreed with the inequity statement, saying that each business district can determine the amount of their assessment. City Attorney Davi explained that increasing assessments can be difficult since the passage of Proposition 13 and Proposition 26, and there are limitations on how the funds can be used. Councilmember Haffa voiced concerns that there are infrastructure needs across the City, but this proposal emphasizes improvements in specified areas. He said he would prefer to maintain flexibility and prioritize all projects. He suggested setting aside restricted funds for capital improvements across the city. He said that it is not a City function to pay for private security, rather the number of police officers should be increased. He said a partnership could be used on a project-by-project basis. Councilmember Barrett said it would be interesting to discuss a vehicle, like the NIP, for those projects. Mayor Roberson said public-private partnerships are a good idea and we will continue to study the issue. 2. Presentation on the Results of the Risk-Based Analysis of General Fund Reserve Requirements (Not a Project under CEQA per Article 20, Section 15378 and Under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061) (Finance - 403-01) Action: Received report City Manager McCarthy introduced the item and Finance Director Porter presented the staff report and answered Councilmembers' questions. Councilmember Smith returned to the Chamber at 5:23 p.m. Ms. Porter reviewed the expected rate increases in PERS costs over the next few years. She said that the GFOA recommendation is to increase the reserve for economic uncertainty to 16.6%, but it could be increased to as much as 22% for a "Highly Risk Adverse" stance. She also recommended potential policy changes regarding the reserve. On question, Ms. Porter suggested ways to fund the recommended increase to 16.6%. She reviewed potential policy updates to include language for replenishment of reserves in the event of a draw down; formalizing an inter-fund borrowing policy; and establishing a policy for surplus funds exceeding reserve levels. Councilmember Barrett highlighted the graph that depicts that Monterey seems to be ahead of the curve during economic downturns. 2 City Council Minutes Wednesday, April 26, 2017 Councilmember Haffa supported setting aside money at the end of the year for capital reserves. He generally supported the recommendations to pay off PERS side funds and a percentage for capital reserves. Councilmember Smith agreed with the previous speakers, noting that options are available for the PERS side fund. He said that he would like to know more about how long it would take to build up the trust funds so we would have choices. ADJOURNMENT Having no further business to come before the City Council, Mayor Roberson adjourned the meeting at 5:44 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Approved, Bonnie Gawf Clyde Roberson Director of Information Resources/City Clerk Mayor 3