City Council

CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP CITY COUNCIL ROOM TUESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2004 5:00 P.M. PRESENT: Commissioner Thomas Curley, DPS Michael Lenz, Mayor Commissioner Matthew McCabe, Finance Commissioner Thomas McTygue, DPW Commissioner Stephen Towne, Accounts ABSENT: Phil Klein, Supervisor Anthony Scirocco, Supervisor STAFF PRESENT: Matthew Dorsey, City Attorney (left at 5:20 p.m.) Erin Dreyer, Deputy Commissioner, DPS Christine Gillmett-Brown, Deputy Commissioner Finance (arrived 6:00 p.m.) Debbie Harper, Deputy Commissioner, Accounts Alicia Wardell, Deputy Mayor CALL TO ORDER Mayor Michael Lenz called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. LAND ACQUISITION Matthew Dorsey, City Attorney, said he distributed a memo last week on the purchase and subdivision of the Kuchesky parcel. He said he was not looking for an approval this evening but may be at the next meeting. This is a 76 acre parcel that will be subdivided into five parcels - one 72 acre parcel and four, one acre parcels. Mr. Kuchesky has asked for additional land, approximately 40 feet deep in the rear of lots three and four and for additional land on lot two to allow him more room for his sheds. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like to see this land staked so that the Recreation Commission members can get a visual on what Mr. Kuchesky is proposing. He said he did not want any surprises. Mayor Michael Lenz said the area would be staked. Matthew Dorsey said he would continue to negotiate with Mr. Kuchesky, at the Council’s direction, and then possibly bring it to the next Council meeting to finalized the details. Commissioner Stephen Towne expressed some concern with the proposed road and if there was enough room near the pond. Matthew Dorsey said if the City accepts Mr. Kuchesky’s proposal, it would leave little land between the end of the parcel and the pond to construct a road. He said that Tommell Surveying has shown another proposal bringing in the property line more tightly. EXECUTIVE SESSION There being no further discussion, Mayor Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to adjourn to executive session at 5:20 to discuss land acquisition matters. Ayes all. Council members returned at 6:00 p.m. Mayor Michael Lenz reported that no action was taken. BUDGET WORKSHOP Page 1 of 6 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 12, 2004 Commissioner Matthew McCabe said that all discussions on the budget would be held in an open forum. He requested another workshop for Tuesday, October 26, at 5:00 p.m. Because Commissioner Stephen Towne could not attend that meeting it was agreed that different date would be set. The first public hearing on the budget will be held on Tuesday, October 19 at 6:30 p.m. Commissioner Matthew McCabe reviewed the budget message as follows: - The 2005 comprehensive general fund budget calls for $134,999 less expenditures than the 2004 adopted budget or a .5% decrease in spending. - A 20% increase in health insurance premiums or an additional $543,900. - A 7.6% increase in liability insurance or an additional $51,391. - A 6.14% increase in salary and salary related items or an additional $995,333. - No estimate for retirement payments is included since the 2005 retirement payment will be due on February 1, 2006 and the 2004 retirement payment is not due until February 1, 2005 and was budgeted in 2004. The amount of pension costs cut is $2,152,000. - All salary, benefit and insurance related expenses were retained at the requested amount, except for retirement as noted above. - All other lines such as equipment, supplies, professional services and contracted services were cut back to the 2004 adopted budget amounts except in cases where the requested budget was less than the 2004 adopted amounts. Gas and oil lines were increased by 20%; utilities by 5% and payments for wind power were included. Various requests for new items in each department were included at the requested amounts. - A combined tax levy of $12,414,512 or a $2,662,603 increase from 2004. - A combined tax rate decrease of 24.51%. The tax rate per $1,000.00 of assessed value would be $5.36. - New capital projects valued at $2,616,000. - A remaining debt limit of $6,794,364 for future bonding. - Additional debt payments $117,720. - The increase in the Capital fund levy would be $279,470. - If there was no change in the assessment roll, the combined tax rate increase for the comprehensive budget would be approximately 27%. A $150,000 home would be paying approximately $300 more than in 2004. - Every $165,000 causes a 1% change in the tax rate. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said that as noted during previous discussions regarding the 2005 budget, benefit and insurance costs would now be allocated to each department rather the entire amount budgeted in Finance or Accounts. The items being allocated in 2005 are retirement, liability insurance, social security, unemployment, hospitalization, hospitalization opt-outs, vision, disability and sick leave. In addition revenues associated with these items such as hospitalization reimbursement, workers’ compensation reimbursement and insurance recoveries will be allocated to departments. Commissioner Matthew McCabe also noted that the City no longer has an unappropriated unreserved surplus that the City Council can use to balance the 2005 budget. When the books were closed in 2003 there was approximately $387,000 remaining in unappropriated unreserved surplus. The Council appropriated this in 2004 to pay for the firefighters’ contract. He said that at this time he is projecting an approximate operating deficit of $1 million for 2004. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown then reviewed the summary of allocations. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked why these items were being allocated to departments. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said it was due to the new accounting standards and it is also shows a better reflection of the departmental budget. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked how the allocations were determined. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said that the majority of these items, retirement, health benefits, vision plan, liability insurance, etc. had been primarily funded through the Finance and Accounts Departments budgets. Page 2 of 6 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 12, 2004 Commissioner Thomas Curley said he was concerned and uncomfortable with this process because he had no control over how these numbers were generated. Commissioner Stephen Towne said there is a methodology to the insurance distribution and he would share it with Commissioner Thomas Curley. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown explained said that with some of the line items such as retirement and hospitalization they were able to use actual enrollment numbers. With other line items such as unemployment, disability, workers’ compensation, etc., past history and trends were used. She said for the revenue line items, such as hospitalization, actual employee counts were used and again with other line items it was trends and history. She said she understood Commissioner Thomas Curley’s concerns because his department budget increased by about $3.5 million and DPW also increased by about $1.8 million, but said that everyone should keep in mind that while their budget increased, other budgets decreased. Commissioner Matthew McCabe asked for Council members’ feedback on the comprehensive budget. Department of Public Safety Commissioner Thomas Curley reviewed his areas of concern as follows: Repeater system: requested $25,000, received nothing. He said the Police Department is having a difficult time in transmitting and receiving calls. Originally they had requested that this be included in the capital budget but it had not been placed in either the capital or the general budgets. Repair & Maintenance Building: original request $11,500, received $1,500, now asking for $5,750. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown clarified that the dollar amount that they were really looking for was $4,250. Commissioner Thomas Curley said yes. Gas & Oil: originally request $60,000, received $60,000, now asking for $80,000. Commissioner Thomas Curley said they have been informed by DPW that their gas and oil prices have increased significantly this year and they would require additional funding next year. Traffic lights/maintenance supplies/repair & maintenance to vehicles/utilities/pavement markings/signs and posts: originally requested $82,500; received $69,915, amount cut: $12,575. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the entire amount of $82,500 was necessary. He also noted that some of the funding was for utilities (traffic lights). Shift shortage: originally requested $51,500, received $41,500; amount cut: $10,000. He said this was an absolute cost and he needed the entire $51,500. Office Equipment: originally requested $13,000, received $3,000, amount cut: $10,000, revised request: $5,500. He said that they are looking into leasing a copier which decreased the initial cost. EMS supplies & EMS Training: originally requested $36,800, received $30,000, amount cut: $6,800. He said that these are exact needs and are state mandated. Office Equipment: originally requested: $5,000, received: $1,500, amount cut: $3,500. He said he needed the additional funds to cover the cost of new furniture. Capital budget: Commissioner Thomas Curley said that he would like to see funding added to cover the cost of the design work for the emergency facility on the east side. He said while the project will not likely begin construction in 2005, the design work should be done. He said they are looking at a location and that could be determined in the near future. He said this is an important issue and it needs to be funded. Page 3 of 6 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 12, 2004 Department of Public Works Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked for clarification on the combined tax rate increase and what was the rate this year. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said the rate was at about $7.15 last year and would be $5.36 this year. He said because the rate is being spread across the board, due to the reassessment, the tax rate goes down. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said the budget still calls for creative thinking and belt tightening. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked about the pending contract negotiations with the City Hall unit and the DPW unit. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said that money had been included in the contingency fund for those contracts. City Hall line item: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he was planning to resurface the Music Hall floor, however, it would not be done with the loss of the $57,000. He said the replacement of the windows was included in the capital budget and that was a crucial issue. Drink Hall: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that request was cut by $5,250. He reminded Council members that they recently installed central air conditioning, therefore, their utilities bills would go up. He said he would like at least half of what was cut. Court cleaning: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that $25,000 for court cleaning was cut. He said that the City bills the court system $25,000 to cover this expense, therefore, it was a wash. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said that both the revenue and expense lines were removed and there needed to be some discussion on where the money should go. Special Assessment District: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said this was similar to the court cleaning. He said the City bills SAD $30,000 for the sidewalk work, snow removal and flowers. He said if this money is not included the work would not be done. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said it was her understanding that this was a DPW service. She said there would need to be some research and discussions between Finance and DPW on this matter. CHIPS funding: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that money comes directly from the state and the City has no control over that amount. Street lighting: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said this is a utility and the funds need to be restored. Professional services for casino: He said that $11,700 had been removed. Compost Equipment rental: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said it had been reduced by $7,000, however, that was okay because the equipment rental costs would decrease. Trees: Commissioner Thomas McTygue said there needed to be some funding for trees. Mayor’s Office Human Resources: Mayor Michael Lenz requested that the Human Resources budget be broken out of the Civil Service Commission budget. He also asked for an increase in the postage budget to $500. Parks & Recreation Administrator: Mayor Michael Lenz requested that $55,000 be budgeted for this position. Planning & Economic Development: Mayor Michael Lenz said they were still working on the development of this position. He said they are discussing ways of doing it internally. He said he wanted to reserve the right to come back and request $55,000, however, it was likely that he would ask for $10,000 more due to the increased responsibilities that may take place internally. Page 4 of 6 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 12, 2004 Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation: Mayor Michael Lenz said SSPF has requested that their allocation be increased from $12,000 to $18,000 Recreation budget: Bob Spratt said that he had sent his requests to the Finance Department. Their budget had been decreased by $45,000 from the original submission and they resubmitted their budget to Finance requesting that $17,540 be placed back into the budget. He noted that there had been a 9 percent increase in participation in programs and there are associated costs that come with that increased participation. He also noted that some items such as $5 shirt fee was a wash in the budget and asked that it be placed back into the budget. Commissioner Matthew McCabe asked about sponsoring sports teams noting that there are businesses that are interested in doing so. Linda Terricola said that generally the sponsorship fees cover the cost of the program and facility rental. Bob Spratt said they would also like to see funding added for the recreation facility. Linda Terricola said there was $25,000 funding cut from the budget that was for a DPW maintenance person. She said that position is needed to maintain the additional recreational facilities. Bill McTygue said due to the possibility of the City acquiring the Kuchesky parcel they need to increase their staff. Mayor Michael Lenz noted that there were lines decreased in the Planning Board and Design Review Commissioner. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said those were granted funded lines. Capital Budget: Mayor Michael Lenz said the capital program committee met several times with some good discussion. It was good for the departments to meet to get a better understanding of one another’s budget. He understood the rationale for pulling the funding for some of the larger projects, but he wanted to lobby for the inclusion of the recreational facility. There have been many meetings and much discussion on this matter. They are close to identifying a location and the next step is to develop and distribute the RFP. He understood there were issues with the DPS facilities but the recreation facility has been a topic of discussion for many years. In 2005 the City would be ready for design and build of the recreational facility. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like some input in the drafting of the RFP. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said he could support the recreational facility, but wanted to be fiscally responsible. He said if the location is identified and there are discussions on the true cost, staffing, equipment, paying for it, the City could then move forward. Mayor Michael Lenz clarified that the $10,000 for the Maple Avenue storm sewer would cover the cost of bonding of the $100,000 project. Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown said yes. Accounts Department Commissioner Stephen Towne reminded Council members that when the final assessment roll had been adopted he said he would take a conservative approach to the budget. He said in other communities reassessments have been used to increase budgets. He said that is not why the reassessment was done in this community. Commissioner Stephen Towne said the only item that was removed from his budget that he would like funding for was the copier. He explained that his department sells certified, official copies of birth, death and marriage certificates so there is a different level of quality that is required. He also noted that due to the Accounts Department taking on the vital records function the department is making an additional 12,000 copies each year. He said the Department needs to produce high quality documents that are sold to the public for their own personal permanent record. Therefore, he requested that $10,000 be added back into his budget for the purchase of a copier. Finance Commissioner Matthew McCabe said he would like to see funding added to the budget for the Media Project. He said that group would make a presentation to the Council in the very near future and he believed there Page 5 of 6 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 12, 2004 should be some funding added to keep that process going. He noted that in the end this would result in additional revenue for the City. Mayor Michael Lenz said he had no objection to discussing this matter. Other Commissioner Thomas McTygue questioned what the duties of the new Human Resources Director would be and in particular negotiating contract and grievances. Mayor Michael Lenz said the City’s labor attorney would still be used for negotiations and the Human Resources Director would play a supportive role by gathering information. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like a workshop with his staff on how this position will impact his department. Mayor Michael Lenz noted that this individual would start on October 25 and she would be a good resource to City staff. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Matthew McCabe seconded to adjourn the meeting at 7:15 p.m. Ayes all. There being no further business, Mayor Michael Lenz adjourned the meeting at 7:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathy Moran Clerk Approved: Page 6 of 6