City Council

CITY OF POCATELLO, IDAHO CITY COUNCIL MEETING SERVICE LEVEL REPORTS -NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY AND EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION MARCH 8, 2012 Mayor Brian Blad called the City Council meeting to review Service Level Reports to order at 11:06 AM. Council members present were Roger Bray, Steve Brown, Craig Cooper, Jim Johnston, and Gary Moore. Council member Eva Johnson arrived at 11:12 AM. -INTRODUCTION Dave Swindell, Chief Financial Officer, overviewed the information that would be presented in the Service Level Reports. Briefings would be heard from the following departments: Engineering, Finance, City Hall custodial and Mayor/Council. He stated that the main components of the Service Level Reports would be the department’s inputs, outputs, efficiency, Citizens Survey results, and optional comments. -ENGINEERING Greg Lanning, Public Works Director, Deirdre DEPARTMENT Castillo, City Engineer, Dennis Hill, Project REPORT Engineer, and Josh Baird, Project Engineer, reviewed the Department’s Measures of Inputs and Outputs. Mr. Lanning gave a short introduction of Engineering staff and the duties they perform. Ms. Castillo reviewed Engineering’s Mission Statement and organization chart for the department. Mrs. Nye arrived at this time. Ms. Castillo stated that staff labor is the largest expense. However, the department must have enhanced computers in order to run the complicated programs their staff uses for projects. Mr. Swindell gave a short review of the Analysis of Inputs and Outputs for the department. Ms. Castillo reviewed capital improvement projects noting the School Zone Traffic Safety Improvement project was the most visible project in 2011. She noted that staff has been very busy with the South Valley Connector (Cheyenne) Project. GIS data is constantly updated and Mr. Hill administers this information. Ms. Castillo reviewed the Connector Project and estimates construction could start later in 2012 or Spring of 2013. Mr. Moore left the Council Chambers at this time. CITY COUNCIL MEETING 2 NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY AND EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION MARCH 8, 2012 In response to questions from Council, Ms. Castillo described how staff has been working with property owners to obtain land for the South Valley Connector project. She explained the history of the project noting that staff has been working on the project for 16 years because of levee certification issues. Ms. Castillo feels the long delay made it very difficult to get the project moving again. It was mentioned that an Environmental Report was instrumental in choosing the current location of the project. Mr. Hill explained that the department is implementing all of the GIS information on the City’s website to allow easier access for citizens and businesses. Mr. Moore returned to the Council Chambers at this time. It was noted that City staff can also access the information while out in the field. This allows staff to review actual permits as well as inspector’s notes while on a job site. Mr. Hill explained that individuals can see if property is located in the flood plain or the zoning designation for an area. He added that Emergency 911 systems utilize the GIS information to help emergency services and dispatch. Ms. Castillo reviewed the measures of efficiency compared to other cities of similar size. She reviewed the Citizen’s Survey and comments that were incorporated into what their department does. Ms. Castillo explained how Engineering staff works behind the scenes on transportation projects and feels customer satisfaction for travel, trails, and sanitation collection reflect their efforts. Levee recertification work was completed by Engineering staff and they assisted FEMA to determine the certification status. She noted that Federal Aid projects are time consuming and the additional rules can make a project more complex and expensive. In closing, Ms. Castillo mentioned that large requests for Public Records are very time consuming and impacts the Department’s productivity. -FINANCE Joyce Stroschein, Finance Manager, and David DEPARTMENT Swindell, Chief Financial Officer, reviewed REPORT the Finance Department’s Measures of Inputs and Outputs. Mr. Swindell reviewed the department’s mission which includes internal and external reporting requirements. He noted that the department serves as the City’s Legislative liaison by CITY COUNCIL MEETING 3 NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY AND EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION MARCH 8, 2012 advocating the City’s interests to the Legislature and other state-wide stakeholders. Mr. Swindell reviewed Finance staffing levels showing that the department has had the same number of staff for the past 25 years. He gave a detailed breakdown of the workload for Finance staff with a ten-year comparison of how things have changed. The comparison showed that the workload has increased because of additional government requirements and banking programs to process payments for citizens and changes to internal processes for City employees. Mrs. Strochein reviewed the GASB 54 reports and the detailed involvement in staff time. She explained that the reports are mandated and must be done in a timely manner. Mr. Swindell reviewed the projects completed by the department which included implementation of 100% Direct Deposit for the City’s payroll recipients and becoming Self-Insured for Worker’s Compensation. In response to questions from Council, Mr. Higgins stated that the custodial responsibilities have been under the Finance Department as long as he can remember. He believes it may have started during the City’s early history. Mr. Swindell feels the workload in the Finance Department is unmanageable. He explained that Mrs. Strochein is working on Saturdays to have uninterrupted work time and has not taken regular holidays off. In response to questions from Council, Mrs. Strochein shared her frustration with not being able to complete tasks because of the workload. Mr. Swindell noted that a full-time accountant and an increase in the hours for Hailey Lacy to assist with the workload will be requested in the next budget cycle. Mr. Swindell suggested hiring an Idaho State University accounting student to train them in city government processing. In closing, Mr. Swindell feels a position is necessary at this time to meet the current need and be fully trained before Mr. Higgins retires in 2014. Mayor Blad called a recess at 12:30 PM. Mayor Blad reconvened the meeting at 1:05 PM. -CITY HALL Jerry Higgins, City Treasurer, and David CUSTODIAL Swindell, Chief Financial Officer, reviewed CITY COUNCIL MEETING 4 NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY AND EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION MARCH 8, 2012 REPORT the Custodial Department at City Hall and outlining offices Measures of Inputs and Outputs. David Swindell reviewed the history of the custodial staff noting that the Airport hired a full-time custodian in 2011. This decreased the number of custodial staff by one. He reported that the current custodial staff is doing an excellent job on the care of City Hall. An analysis of all the City facilities cared for shows a cost of $3.33 per square foot to provide custodial and maintenance services. It was noted that emergency repairs are allocated out of a different fund and are not reflected in the custodial/maintenance report. Mr. Swindell reported that the quality of custodial services has improved. However, the age of City facilities, custodial equipment, cleaning and maintenance costs is a concern. In closing, Mr. Higgins noted that an employee lounge has been created for employees that may need an area for private time or when feeling ill. He explained the Health Care Reform Regulations require the City to provide such an area for employees. -MAYOR/COUNCIL Anne Nichols, Assistant to the Mayor, reviewed REPORT the Mayor/Council Measures of Inputs and Outputs. Mrs. Nichols reviewed the Department’s Mission statement. She noted the number of staff positions has decreased by replacing a full-time position with one half-time position. Mrs. Nichols reported that much of the department’s correspondence is being done electronically. She explained that this change resulted in a substantial savings as the department oversees 226 to 243 volunteers that serve on 24 Advisory Boards with 86 appointments/reappointments being made in 2011. The Department’s 2011 Projects and Programs Fiscal Year was reviewed highlighting new programs such as: Mayor for a Day and Media Day. Mrs. Nichols explained that the Media Day Program takes individuals on a tour through City facilities and is just one of the City’s pro-active public relations efforts. It was noted that staffing positions and responsibilities were reevaluated after the previous City Clerk retired in 2010 and those changes reflect a cost savings for the department. Staff CITY COUNCIL MEETING 5 NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY AND EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION MARCH 8, 2012 is always monitoring State Funding Levels, State Legislation changes, Property Taxes and growth in the Community verses quality of life. Mr. Swindell reviewed various topics that have been considered during the 2012 Legislative Session. He reported that the Mayor’s Office watches these topics closely because it may have an effect on the City’s processes and funding levels. Mr. Moore thanked the Mayor’s Office staff for their efforts adding that Council can always count on them to manage and meet the Council’s needs. Mayor Blad adjourned the meeting at 1:32 PM. APPROVED: BRIAN C. BLAD, MAYOR ATTEST: RUTH E. WHITWORTH, CMC, CITY CLERK