Finance Committee

FINANCE Thursday, March 19, 2026 – 5:30 p.m. Council Chambers – Olean Municipal Building Present: Members: Chairman McCall, Vice Chairman Crawford, Alderman Keary, Alderman Forney, Alderman Robinson, and Alderman Anastasia. Others: Mayor Amy Sherburne; Jennifer Fairbanks-Black, Chief of Staff; Lens Martial, City Auditor; Kris Shewairy, Youth and Recreation Program Coordinator; Ray Smith, Garage Shop Supervisor; James Sprague, Director of Public Works; Connie Dutton, Office Manager; Stephanie Olson, Principal Account Clerk, and Tiffany Taylor, Managerial Confidential Administrative Secretary. 1. Roll Call Alderman McCall called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. and asked that the record show that all committee members were present except Alderman Bennion, who was excused. 2. Approval of Minutes of the Previous Committee Meeting (Tuesday, March 17, 2026) Minutes were not available at the time of the meeting. 3. Unfinished Business a. PL #15-26: (Sherburne) Budget 2026 – 2027. Mr. Shewairy explained a large part of the increase in his personnel line items are due to minimum wage increases. He explained when he fit started this job, minimum wage was $10.40 an hour and it is now up to $16, and will probably go up again on January 1st. He explained there are also contractual increases in the line item, and another increase is for personnel for the anticipated opening at the splash park. He explained after his visit to a splash park in Tonawanda, he feels this will be a phenomenal attraction. He explained we will not need lifeguards, but we will need employees to monitor and supervise what is going on. He explained the cost is less for an attendant than a lifeguard. Alderman Crawford asked if these are part time positions and Mr. Shewairy explained they are. Alderman Forney asked why a lifeguard is not needed, and Mr. Shewairy explained a splash park is not an aquatic feature that requires a lifeguard. He explained in Tonawanda, they learned there are a lot of moving parts, and we will not know exactly how many employees we will need until the park opens and we see what the behavior is like. Alderman Keary asked how many staff members there will be, and Mr. Shewairy explained it will be staffed with four people per hour while it i8s open. Alderman Anastasia asked if our splash park is close in size to Tonawanda’s, and Mr. Shewairy explained we have 35 features while they have 40. He noted they have seven people on staff. Alderman Anastasia asked about the pool, and Mr. Shewairy explained he does not anticipate the pool at War Vets opening this year, and he has not requested any money in the tentative budget for it. Mayor Sherburne explained there is a grant in place for the pool project, and we have put it out to bid so when bids come back we will see how much the grant will cover and how much we want to move forward. She explained the project will not be done this year. Mr. Shewairy explained Mayor Sherburne has been looking at ways to extend the pool season, as right now we only are open seven or eight weeks of the year. He explained we have not found anything that does not break the bank, and as a supervisor and taxpayer this is one of his concerns. He explained we have gone three years without a pool, and life has gone on. He explained it his personal opinion that we should not invest in the pool and explained this is a 40- plus year old pool that is out dated. He explained what we are looking to do to it will leave us looking at the same thing, just with new concrete and fencing. He explained it is really just a giant cement pond. He explained it was open for two years when he first took over, and he feels his marketing skills are pretty good but we could not get the attendance up and saw maybe 20 users per day. He explained he asks that the Council keep that in mind when we get the bids back and decide where we want to go with the pool, as he has deep concerns. Alderman Crawford explained he thought in the planning stages we asked the engineers to include a heat source as an add-on or an alternative. Mr. Shewairy explained we did ask, but they do not feel they can find something that is sufficient enough for what we want it to do. He explained the overall size of the pool is an issue. He explained he would like something that will be used, and something the community will be proud of that brings visitors to our facilities. He explained he does not think putting the same product in there will do that. Alderman Crawford explained it was his understanding there would be a heat source, and Mayor Sherburne explained a heat source was included in the bid document, but it would not be at a level that would allow the pool to be enjoyed as a warm pool. She explained it would be a giant leap and an extraordinary cost to be able to make and keep the pool warm. Alderman Crawford suggested we look at any further alterations that will make the pool more efficient, such as shrinking the footprint. She explained he encourages working with the engineers to problem solve if that is at all possible. Mayor Sherburne explained the takeaway was to go to bid and see what comes back before we look at anything else. Alderman McCall asked if we have a grant, but not the money on hand, and Mr. Martial explained we have taken out a BAN for this project so we do have the money on hand. He explained this is a reimbursement grant. Alderman McCall asked that we follow up on the pool after the budget is completed. Alderman Robinson explained he would like to see an itemized breakdown to see what is going toward the four part time employees versus the contractual changes. Mr. Shewairy explained he did separate seasonal and full time, but he did not separate by season. He explained this can be separated out more. Alderman Robinson asked if the salaries normally included for the pool were removed from the budget, and Mr. Shewairy explained those were taken out of the budget, but there are lifeguard positions for Franchot Park. He explained everything programming-wise is captured in the personnel line, which is $167,162.50. Alderman McCall explained the March 3, 2026 budget version has $10,000 less for personnel service and asked what the increase is for. Mr. Shewairy explained he originally budgeted for three workers at the splash park, but he has increased that to four. Alderman Robinson asked that a breakdown be sent via email. Mr. Shewairy explained the Overtime line item is for overtime and the comp buyout, and the 102 line is for shift differential as during different seasons the full-time staff works second shift. Alderman McCall explained it was discussed hiring someone with evening hours to omit overtime and comp time, and Mr. Shewairy explained his department really does not have a lot of overtime for the amount of hours they have. He explained it is a seven day a week operation for pretty much ten months out of the year, and they only use overtime when the only chose is to use overtime or close down. He noted he may have one employee turn in comp time that didn’t in the past, and he had to budget accordingly for that. Mr. Shewairy explained the Other Equipment line has a big increase, and he explained we do not have picnic tables, benches, or umbrellas for the splash park that will be opening in a few months. He explained he increased this line item to purchase those things. Alderman McCall suggested using the Magnano Funds to do this, and explained there is a need for these things from a parks perspective. Alderman Robinson explained these funds have been mentioned multiple times for parks projects, and he knows we have funding left over from Oak Hill Park that we were talking about. He explained he does feel that things like this should be included in the budget as they are here. Alderman McCall explained these things, if we want them to last, are expensive. Mayor Sherburne explained these sorts of things are exactly what the Magnano Fund is for, and explained we can tap into it for these if we choose. Alderman McCall asked that we get quotes for these things, and then we will revisit this line item if we need to. She explained she does not feel $28,000 is a lot of money for what we are looking to do with it. Alderman Crawford explained we should earmark this line, as he is still thinking about the increase in taxes and if there are potential items that we need to get trimmed out, this line should be considered. He explained there is an alternative way to fund these needs and these are the sort of things we need to be looking at. Alderman Anastasia asked why there is an increase in Concessions as we have not used very much at all this year, and Mr. Shewairy explained there are large purchases made from this line at the end of the budget year. Alderman Robinson explained it would be good, when advertising for this department, to be more modern and advertise how people are using technology these days such as with apps and online. Alderman Crawford explained when working to create greater demand for our product we can look into search engine optimization and advertising on Facebook. He explained active marketing and advertising might be worthwhile to explore. Mr. Volz explained they have done some baby steps and have started a business page and business spotlight to get things on the forefront. He explained they have discussed bringing in someone who is a little bit more experienced with social media, and Mayor Sherburne explained this can be a tool to shed a light on all of our departments. She explained social media is how communities attract residents and communicate with people. Alderman McCall suggested looking into interns from the St. Bonaventure Marketing Department or JCC. Mr. Shewairy explained there is a large reduction in the Miscellaneous Contracted Services line because they are planning to run the after school program this fall from the John J. Ash Community Center instead of St. John’s. He explained we do not know what is going to happen with St. John’s, and explained the John Ash Center is not a senior center, it is a community center. He explained we are going to run the program school days during the same hours from 3:00 to 5:30 p.m. He explained this is a quiet time in the building and we would like to utilize it. He explained in terms of the gym, with the Mayor’s help we have started shared services with the Olean School District and will be running the basketball program out of their gym. He explained this is a win for kids, taxpayers, and the City. He explained the school district’s gym is actually safer for players and more enjoyable for spectators. He explained we are not leaving St. John’s because of anything they have done, and explained they have been more than accommodating and gracious, but it is time to move on. He explained this saves us $16,000 annually. He explained this facility is also more centrally located and we can utilize War Vets and Lincoln Parks. Alderman McCall explained we want to see our buildings utilized. She asked about kids playing basketball during the after school program, and Mr. Shewairy explained they currently do, but that is actually where we run into most of our behavioral issues. He explained there will be plenty for them to do at the John Ash Center besides play basketball. Alderman Anastasia asked if this program runs all year and Mr. Shewairy explained it runs ten months of the year. Alderman Anastasia asked where the kids will be placed when the center is being used for a Code Blue, and Mayor Sherburne explained we only do Code Blues at the center on Sunday, as that is when the Genesis House needed us to help out. Alderman Anastasia asked if there are other locations for Code Blue during the week and Mayor Sherburne explained there are other locations Monday through Saturday. She noted Sunday was when they had the most need for the placement of people, and the rest of the week they were able to find other options. Alderman Crawford asked if there will be additional costs to get the center ready for this. Mr. Shewairy explained there will be a slightly increased cost because lights will be on longer, but all of the equipment at St. John’s belongs to us and will be moved there. Alderman Anastasia asked about the monthly dinners hosted by the Coasters at the John Ash Center, and Mr. Shewairy explained these are done during daytime hours. Mayor Sherburne explained there are really good resources for grandparent programs, and it could definitely be good down the road to have both seniors and kids in the same building. Mr. Shewairy explained right now we are at $267,000 in income for the Recreation Center, and e4xplained we have at least $10,000 more on the books coming inl. He explained this is a $40,000 increase from last year and $90,000 increase from six years ago. He explained when he first started we were doing ten summer concerts, and now we are doing 22. Mr. Shewairy explained under Recreation Maintenance, there is an increase in janitorial supplies as we used more due to the winter weather this year. He explained we may need more funding for Chemicals and may need less, and explained it will all depend on what happens when the splash park opens. He explained there is a major increase in light and power as the facility uses a lot of power, and we need to account for the additional power needed at the splash park. He explained Miscellaneous Contracted Services is for the cost of maintenance checks for the compressor. Alderman Crawford explained the compressor is about ten years old and asked if we should start building a reserve account to have funds available when we need to replace it. Mr. Shewairy explained it would not be a bad idea to do a reserve. He explained he will discuss this with the company who comes in to check the compressor, and explained anything that is breaking now is from routine use. He explained with a longer season, there is more use, and that is why it is imperative we stay on top of maintenance. He explained we should also look at putting money aside for batteries for the Zambonis. He explained they are five years old and have a life expectancy of 6 to 8 years. He explained the cost was $11,000 to $12,000, but that was a while ago and he is sure the cost has gone up. He explained for the compressor itself, as long as we take care of it and maintain it, it should last for a while. Mr. Shewairy explained there is a reduction in Youth Bureau Personnel Service because we will not be staffing any of the housing courts this year. He explained last year we would have two kids for one staff member, and it was a waste of resources. He explained they even knocked on doors to let people know they were there and it is a free of charge program, but it didn’t work. He explained resources are better used maintaining programming at the recreation center. He explained he took out Other Personnel Services because no one does his job when he is not here, so there is no out of title pay. He explained Programming is for any costs that involves kids, such as the Easter egg hunts. He explained we receive pass through State money from the County, and this year that went up to $22,000. Mr. Shewairy explained at the Bartlett House, the 100 line item increase is due to the minimum wage increase as well as due to an increase in events and usage at the house. Alderman McCall asked about the project for the wall, and Mr. Shewairy explained the retaining wall was done two years ago. He explained we need to get the roof out to bid to have it put on the building properly, and we are trying to pick away at other things as we can. Alderman McCall asked if there is enough budgeted, given this is an aging building, and Mr. Shewairy explained we do it nothing catastrophic happens. He explained the 100 line item under Adult Recreation also increased due to the minimum wage increase and increased usage, and explained between June 1st and the end of February we had over 18,000 participants in different events. He explained that place is busy and runs very efficiently. He explained the big change is for utilities, which will increase both due to the market and with the relocation of the after school program. Mayor Sherburne explained she has given the budget a lot of thought since the meeting on Tuesday, and explained this budget is the exact same budget that has been used for the last three years. She explained she has not added any lines or anything new. She explained she sees frustration going line by line but the new software allows us to do this. She explained it is important to see what everything actually costs. She explained what the Council is seeing, and what the fact is, is that there is a cost increase in a lot of items and we are making sure funds are allocated properly to run the City. He explained there have been changes in debt service and payments have increased for Walkable Olean Phases III and IV. She explained for the Splash Pad alone, we paid only $60,000 in interest last year, but this year we are paying that plus $91,000 in principal. She explained these are things that we have to put in the budget, and if we receive any reimbursements for projects they will affect the next budget year, not this one. She explained this budget is not full of fluff and these are actual numbers that are not shaved off and we are not avoiding or failing to include just so the tax levy is palatable to everyone. She explained she knows this process is laborious, but she feels this is necessary. Alderman McCall explained the Council has had tedious budgets in the past when we went line by line, and other than getting stuck on 100 line items, we recognize that we need to do this. She requested the debt service breakdown be emailed to the Council. She explained she would also like to know where the proposed tax increase is right now. Mayor Sherburne explained voluntary tax payments were taken out of revenue, which was her attempt to offset expenses. She explained she is still working on other sources of revenue that might come in. She explained these are actual numbers of what funding is required to provide services, and for payroll. She explained we will be having discussions such as the fleet discussion to attempt to offset increases. Alderman McCall explained she appreciates that being taken out, and explained there were revenues included last year that did not happen and we want to proactively remove things so we do not inflate revenue. Alderman Crawford asked if the council can receive a breakdown across line items, such as personnel service and benefits, which are 75% of the budget. He explained eh would like to see what really captures the significant changes from last year to this year. Mayor Sherburne explained she would like the Council to keep in mind a spending freeze that kept expenses low in prior budgets. She explained we hope that we don’t have to do that again, and explained that is why we are being truthful of each line item and what it requires. She explained this budget is what is needed and if the Council wants to cut and where, it is up to them. She explained this is what 2026-2027 is going to cost. She explained there are increases included for contract negotiations. She explained she just wants it to be clear that these numbers are based on using the budget from the last administration without anything extra. Mayor Sherburne explained the short-term and long-term debt slides being shown are directly from Municipal Solutions. Alderman McCall asked these be sent to the Council to help them visualize the dollar amounts. Mayor Sherburne explained these can be sent, and explained these will also be available the day the Clerk’s office is presented. She reiterated this is not a budget she is trying to inflate or bloat and explained our commodity is our employees. She explained we are not buying products, we are utilizing our employees. She explained she does feel there is room for cutting the additional part-time positions and explained she has offered to have community service volunteers come in to get their hours. Alderman McCall asked that the budget be re-ran and sent to the Council so the Council will be able to see what percentage we are at now and how far down from 18% we are. Fleet Mayor Sherburne explained she has been working diligently with Mr. Smith, the Garage Shop Supervisor, on the concept of cutting the fleet down. She explained after multiple meetings she feels they have come up with a good start on that effort. She explained they have looked at the oldest vehicles that maybe are not as useful as we once thought they were. She presented a list with six vehicles across multiple departments that we can eliminate by selling. She explained through discussions with other departments, we are looking at alternatives to the parks department’s garbage removal from the parks, which causes a lot of wear and tear on our vehicles. She explained if that alternative works out, we can sell these six vehicles and purchase only two replacements that make more sense for the departments. She explained one is a quad truck with a tow package that would be able to haul a trailer which will allow a crew to ride in one vehicle together instead of taking two when going to jobs. Mr. Smith explained the first dump truck, streets number 40, is a six wheel dump truck that has a spreader and a plow. He explained that is a 2012 that has already had the dump box replaced three years ago. He explained this fall to get it ready for plowing we had to do a major repair to the floor in the cab of the truck, which was really just a band aid. He explained although it was a good repair, it will not last forever and rust is there so eventually the cab will be no good. He explained we have been doing a lot of repairs to this truck and it is basically rusting out. He noted it is also the oldest streets dump that we would like to see replaced first. He explained number 37 is also a streets dump, and that is a 2014 that needs a new box as soon as possible, He explained there is a spreader in it now, and we are using it but the box is in very poor condition. He explained when spring comes, the hinges where the tailgate mounts are rusted, and we would not feel comfortable putting the tailgate on it as it could potentially come off and someone could get hurt. He explained he got a quote for a new box a year and a half ago around $20,000. He explained the box is six months out and if we order it today we will not see it for six months. He explained if we order the replacement truck today, it will be about 18 months before we see it. He explained his idea is to order the dump truck soon, and then it would not be paid for until the 2027-2028 budget. He explained this is a way to be proactive for the next year’s budget to see what funding we may need. He explained if replace the box on the other truck we should be able to get another three years out of it so we will be able to order in 2027 and pay in 2028-2029. He explained he is trying to spread out the two oldest dump trucks that we cannot live without, as these are ones we use for snow removal and salt spreading. Alderman Anastasia asked if the trucks are hosed off after they are done plowing. Mr. Smith explained they unload the salt and then bring them inside to wash them the best as they can. He explained a lot of times they are iced over so we are unable to clean them until the ice melts. He explained we can wash them as thoroughly as possible, but you are not going to get all of the salt off as it gets underneath the floor mats on the inside. Alderman Robinson asked if the City has looked into multi-use trucks where you can replace the flat bed with a dump portion. He explained at National Grid they have 350 and 550 trucks like this that they can get multiple uses out of instead of one truck as a dump truck only. Mr. Smith explained he has never looked into these, but the dump truck we are talking about are larger International 7400’s. He explained we do put spreaders into some of the smaller trucks, and then in others they just load them with salt to spread on sidewalks and in small areas by hand. Alderman Anastasia asked if we are getting the new truck off state bid and Mr. Smith explained we are. Alderman Robinson questioned the time to wait for the truck, and Mr. Smith explained once the truck is received, it has to go to an outfitter, so we are at the mercy of the outfitter. Mr. Smith explained vehicles 99 and 100 are Parks Department 550s. He explained they both have plows on them, and if we can eliminate the trash pickup we would only need one 550 in the department. Alderman McCall explained something the Council has discussed is looking over all of the fleet and finding areas where departments can reduce or share vehicles. Mr. Smith explained in streets there are two 2013 F150s, numbers 33 and 75, and if we sell those we can replace them with one quad cab 250 so we can get rid of two truck and have just one that seats four. Mayor Sherburne explained one was a supervisor’s truck, and we want to get away from having a vehicle designed just for supervisors. She explained going from six vehicles to two also saves money on insurance. Alderman Robinson asked for confirmation that we would be selling six and then purchasing two, and Mayor Sherburne explained that is correct, we are looking at a net loss of four vehicles. Alderman McCall asked where this $225,000 is captured in the budget. Mayor Sherburne explained this is a discussion that we need to have. She asked if we want to have a designated line that can be created for funding so we have it as we rotate and eliminate our fleet. She explained right now we only put $10,000 towards that each year, and we have $8.9 million in vehicles, not including police and fire. She explained the funding is something that can be discussed, and explained this could be something we could use the additional State funding for. Alderman McCall explained since we can’t count on those funds each year we can look at this as something we can utilize those dollars for. Alderman Robinson explained he thinks this is something outside of the budget that we can discuss as a capital project after the budget passes. Mayor Sherburne explained we can absolutely do that. She explained we need to get away from single cab vehicles as it makes more sense to go to quad and crew cab vehicles. Alderman McCall explained she appreciates that, as for a long time the Council has asked that the fleet be looked at and to look at the possibility of sharing vehicles between departments and reducing the overall number of vehicles. Mayor Sherburne explained if nothing else, we definitely need a box for #37. She explained that $20,000 will get us through three years until we replace the vehicle in the 2028-2029 budget. Alderman McCall explained this amount should go into the budget. Alderman Robinson explained with a safety issue like this, he is unsure why we have to go through this entire process. Alderman McCall explained if there is $20,000 somewhere in this year’s budget or in contingency, then she suggests using that for this purchase. Alderman Robinson explained he usually is not in favor of throwing something new on something old and rusty, but if we can get three more years then we should find the money to replace the box for this truck. Mayor Sherburne explained we can revisit this later, and explained she feels we got a lot of good discussion out of this and we will mull this over to see if we want to start putting a line in the budget for these things. She explained these vehicles are inevitably going to start breaking down. Alderman Robinson explained the Council has been given a list of the fleet vehicles and the years for all of them. He explained looking at the number of vehicles five to eight years old or newer, he questions why it seems we keep having an increase in maintenance costs when we are purchasing new vehicles. Mr. Smith explained in theory the maintenance cost should be able to go down with the purchase of new vehicles, but that is not the case with most of our fleet. He explained we have some newer stuff but the older stuff, especially the bigger plow vehicles, are past their prime. He explained rust and corrosion play a big part in the issues. He explained there is a 2014 plow truck that had a hole corrode on a valve cover, and we had to replace that. He explained the 2013 pickups have served their time and it is time to get rid of them. He explained we do have less maintenance and warranties help on the newer vehicles, but we also have older vehicles with issues. Alderman Robinson asked if the mechanics are being trained with all of the upgrades to electronics in new vehicles. Mr. Smith explained training has dropped off basically since COVID. He explained there have been lasses at the County and some in Buffalo, but lately there has really been nothing available that we can go to. Alderman Robinson explained some of the makes that we have now may not be as reliable as they used to be, and asked if we have options on different makes when we go to State bid. Mr. Smith explained we do have options, and explained a lot of it depends on the availability of parts and dealers that are close to the area. He explained if we purchase a vehicle with a warranty we want to try to purchase it as close as possible so you don’t spend all day transporting a vehicle. He explained he would like to get away from Fords himself. Mayor Sherburne explained Dodge quad trucks were discussed instead of Fords, and noted she asked the same question. Alderman McCall explained there are projected replacement dates on the list, and that gives the Council an idea when these vehicles should be replaced in a perfect world. Mr. Smith explained this information is based on how long we want to keep the vehicles. 4. New Referrals for Consideration None 5. Committee Reports None 6. Adjournment A motion to adjourn was made by Alderman McCall, seconded by Alderman Forney. Voice vote, ayes all. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at approximately 7:15 p.m.