City Council

October 19, 2010 CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS City Council Meeting Agenda 6:15 P.M. – P.H. – Proposed 2011 Comprehensive Budget 6:50 P.M. – P.H. – Amendment to Taxi Ordinance 7:00 PM CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL SALUTE TO FLAG PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD / 15 MINUTES PRESENTATION(S) EXECUTIVE SESSION Discussion regarding proposed, pending or current litigation; personal private information of a person or corporation, or matters leading to the appointment, employment, promotion, demotion, discipline, suspension, dismissal or removal of a person or corporation. CONSENT AGENDA 1. Approval of 10/05/10 City Council Minutes 2. Approval of 10/8/10 City Council Minutes 3. Approve Budget Amendments 4. Approve Budget Transfers 5. Approve Payroll 10/8/10 $382,039.48 6. Approve Payroll 10/15/10 $391,541.81 7. Approve Warrant 2010 Mid 10MWOCT1 $149,827.82 8. Approve Warrant 2010 Regular 10OCT2 $485,733.28 MAYOR’S DEPARTMENT 1. Discussion and Vote: Accept Donations for the Recreation Facility 2. Discussion and Vote: Capital District Youth Basketball League Rate 3. Discussion and Vote: Sports with a Purpose Program/Second Chance Sports Rate 4. Discussion and Vote: Pickleball Fees Lag Rate 5. Discussion and Vote: AAU Tournament One Time Rate 6. Discussion and Vote: Permission to Sell Novelty Items at Recreation Center 7. Announcement: Open House at Recreation Facility on Saturday, October 30, 2010 8. Discussion and Vote: Change the Date of First City Council Meeting in November 9. Announcement: Appointment to the Zoning Board of Appeals ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT City Council Meeting 10/19/10 1. Discussion and Vote: Amendment of Taxi Ordinance 2. Discussion: Dog Licenses 3. Discussion and Vote: Hiring of New Deputy Commissioner of Accounts FINANCE DEPARTMENT 1. Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Empire Blue Cross ERRP Form 2. Discussion and Vote: Department of Public Works Payroll Transfers 3. Discussion and Vote: Department of Public Safety Payroll Transfers 4. Discussion and Vote: Recreation Department Payroll Transfers 5. Discussion: City Finances PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT 1. Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Contract with Moisture Barriers 2. Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Sidewalk Agreement 3. Announcement: Geyser Crest Wellfield Improvement 4. Update: DPW Projects PUBLIC SAFETY 1. Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Contract with Zangrilli Engineering for Structural Repairs at Lake Avenue Fire Station SUPERVISORS Joanne Yepsen 1. County Update 2. Local Law to Authorize Dog Licenses 3. State Solid Waste Management Plan 4. Awarding Open Space and Farmland Protection Grants Matthew Veitch 1. Public Safety Committee 2. Public Works Committee 3. Geyser Road Bridge Construction 4. Saratoga Gaming and Raceway Foundation Applications ADJOURN Page 2 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 October 19, 2010 CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS City Council Meeting City Council Room PRESENT: Scott Johnson, Mayor Ken Ivins, Commissioner of Finance John Franck, Commissioner of Accounts Anthony Scirocco, Commissioner of DPW Richard Wirth, Commissioner of DPS Matt Veitch, Supervisor Joanne Yepsen, Supervisor STAFF PRESENT: Shauna Sutton, Deputy Mayor Kate Jarosh, Deputy Commissioner, Finance Tim Cogan, Deputy Commissioner, DPW Frank Dudla, Deputy Commissioner, DPS Joe Scala, City Attorney RECORDING OF PROCEEDING The proceedings of this meeting were taped for the benefit of the secretary. Because the minutes are not a verbatim record of the proceedings, the minutes are not a word-for-word transcript. PUBLIC HEARINGS Proposed 2011 Comprehensive Budget Mayor Johnson opened the public hearing at 6:16 p.m. Commissioner Ivins stated he has been receiving e-mails and calls with public comment. He has also received some solutions to the budget. The biggest thing he has heard so far is the tax increase is too high. To get to the point of where the budget is currently, they had to cut over $2 million from what the departments requested. He is looking forward to hearing what the rest of the public has to say. The next public hearing will be October 28th at 1:00 p.m. John Krause of 227 Grand Avenue stated last week was a discouraging week. He read the budget was a sound budget for 2011 – he doesn’t call an 8.5% tax increase to be a sound budget. Then he saw on the TV that there will be no increase in social security payments to retirees in 2011. He bets the County or school taxes aren’t going up that much. In 2 years there will be a composite 17% increase in city taxes. Hopefully the Council will look into the single healthcare provider mentioned. He suggested that the Council not make the ‘make up’ payment to the pension fund. He stated the City should ask the New York State Comptroller to collect the millions of kickback dollars from the former Comptroller Havesi. We need to verify and validate sales tax payments. He also suggested having various departments set higher targets for fine revenues and meet them; cut legal fees by 25%. Where are the stimulus funds for the police staffing and how much is it. Increasing property tax 8.5% is not the answer. The Council needs to be more skillful in managing the funds. Page 3 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 Al Callucci of 9 Lexington Road stated the overall budget process has improved over last year. He wishes he could have seen the 2010 actual budget listed instead of the 2008 budget. Generally if the budget process doesn’t start out right it isn’t going to end up right. Last year there was $1.5 million overstated and we didn’t get real numbers until March 2010. The 2010 projected sales tax revenue being projected is $8.7 million dollars - an increase of 3.39%. The County, Wilton, and Clifton Park are running a range from 8.5% - 9%. He thinks Saratoga Springs is in the top 2 generators and thinks we should be between 7.5 -8%. He used the 7.5% number and came up with additional revenues of $300,000. He used real numbers for the departmental budgets. As of 6 months, DPW was at 46.1% of budget; at the end of the year, they would be $664,000 less than the $9.2 million being projected for 2011. DPS is at 46.9% after 6 months. They are showing a major decrease in budget already reflecting $674,000. Their savings vs. their projected expenses would be $997,000. He confirmed the healthcare costs are the City’s costs only and not including the employee contribution. Commissioner Ivins stated that is correct. Mr. Callucci continued to say using that logic; he has come up with an increase in revenue for sales tax and a decrease actual spending of $1,292,000. That will have a direct impact on this budget. Kevin Madigan of 30 Horseshoe Drive stated he has 4 issues relating to revenue. We have a flawed budget process; last year’s budget had $1.9 million in miscellaneous revenue. He doesn’t believe that was passed by the Council as the Council didn’t actually approve and pass another budget from the original one presented. Mid way through the year that figure was reduced to $500,000 and has since been further reduced to $1,866. Why is the projected amount lower than the actual? This illustrates one of the challenges in our budget process and points to a flawed process. Hopefully this year our process will be improved and use real numbers. He stated he can’t understand all the information that was presented during the budget presentation on October 18, 2010 regarding how much we are going to collect in property tax this year and how much we think we are going to collect next year. The year end projection for 2010 is $735,000 less than the amount already recognized. Another issue is the mortgage tax – according to the information provided there has been a decrease in the mortgage tax from the mid year revision and then seeing an increase in the mortgage tax for 2011. He is wondering if there is any economic analysis to indicate why we would expect an increase in mortgage tax. He is not sure how realistic our revenue projections are. The last item is recreation – the fees were originally projected for 2010 to be $95,000, now the 2010 projection is $82,000, and $102,000 is being projected for 2011. Why do we think we are going to get more fees? The summer program recreation fees also appear to be unrealistic. Increasing fees doesn’t always mean an increase in revenue; it could mean a decrease in participation. Before we can talk about the expense side of the budget, we need to have faith in the revenue projection. He asked the Council to work on a better process this year than last year to approve a budget that is realistic and obtainable. Al Callucci asked for clarification regarding the fire positions. The request was for 4 positions; he was under the impression that the grant stated all 7 firefighters had to be added at the same time or zero. Commissioner Ivins explained the original request was for 4 positions, which was before the grant was in place. He took those positions out as part of this budget. Now that we have the grant, all 7 will have to be put back in with the offsetting revenue. Mayor Johnson ended the public hearing at 6:50 p.m. and left it open until the next public hearing scheduled for Thursday, October 28, 2010 at 1:00 p.m. Amendment to Taxi Ordinance Mayor Johnson opened the public hearing at 6:50 p.m. Richard Madarassy in 6 Robins Run of Gansevoort manages the daily operations of Saratoga Taxi. They are the only taxi company that garages, maintains, and dispatches from the City limits. He doesn’t agree Page 4 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 to the ordinance as proposed. There are negative impacts that have not been taken into account. Their concerns have not been solicited. He believes they should have an opportunity to provide input and work with those at the City that are writing the ordinance. He requested that this be tabled and brought back in a couple weeks after they have all had a chance to work together on this. Rick Kunz of 17 Penny Royal Road, Malta and also from Saratoga Taxi stated he became aware of these changes last Thursday. They would like a little more time to review, give their input and work with the Council on this. Mayor Johnson ended the public hearing at 7:00 p.m. and left it open. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Johnson called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. PUBLIC COMENT Mayor Johnson opened the public comment period at 7:01 p.m. Commissioner Johnson said the public comment period is limited to a total of 15 minutes and individuals are limited to two minutes each according to the rules approved in February of 2004 by the City Council. No one spoke. Mayor Johnson closed the public comment period at 7:02 p.m. CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Ivins seconded to approve the consent agenda as follows: 1. Approval of 10/05/10 City Council Minutes 2. Approval of 10/8/10 City Council Minutes 3. Approve Budget Amendments 4. Approve Budget Transfers 5. Approve Payroll 10/8/10 $382,039.48 6. Approve Payroll 10/15/10 $391,541.81 7. Approve Warrant 2010 Mid 10MWOCT1 $149,827.82 8. Approve Warrant 2010 Regular 10OCT2 $485,733.28 Ayes – All MAYOR’S DEPARTMENT Discussion and Vote: Accept Donations for the Recreation Facility Mayor Johnson pulled this item from his agenda. Discussion and Vote: Capital District Youth Basketball League Rate (10-307) Page 5 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 Linda Terricola, director of recreation stated this is a co-sponsorship for the Capital District Youth Basketball League. The approved rate is $45 per hour but they are asking for a rate of $25 per hour. They are providing insurance therefore they are requesting the change in rate. Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Wirth seconded to approve the rate as described. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: Sports with a Purpose Program/Second Chance Sports Rate (10-308) Linda Terricola, director of recreation stated they have a request to provide services for special needs adults and children. They are asking for a group rate of $30 per hour rather than a per person rate. They are proposing this rate for the racquetball court between the hours of 4 and 5 p.m. Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Wirth seconded to approve the rate as described. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: Pickleball Fees Lag Rate (10-309) Linda Terricola, director of recreation stated they are trying to maximize the use of the downtime of the center. The group is requesting $3 for City senior citizens and $4 for a non-City, non-school district rate. Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Scirocco seconded to approve the rates as described. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: AAU Tournament One Time Rate (10-310) Linda Terricola, director of recreation stated this weekend is their first large event – the AAU Basketball Tournament. They are requesting the rate be $2,500 instead of the $4,000 as they don’t have the scoreboards, the kitchen is not ready, and they do not have bleachers. This is a one time only rate. Mayor Johnson reiterated this is not to set a precedent. Commissioner Ivins asked if we have a timeframe of when we can expect the completion of these items. Linda advised it should be completed the first or second week in December. Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Wirth seconded to approve the rate as described. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: Permission to Sell Novelty Items at Recreation Center Mayor Johnson pulled this item from his agenda. Announcement: Open House at Recreation Facility on Saturday, October 30, 2010 Linda Terricola advised the open house is on October 30th. The newspaper made a mistake. The event on October 29th is their first dance. Discussion and Vote: Change the Date of First City Council Meeting in November (10-311) Mayor Johnson advised the first Tuesday in November is Election Day this year. Page 6 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Wirth seconded to move the meeting from November 2, 2010 to November 1, 2010. Ayes - All Announcement: Appointment to the Zoning Board of Appeals Mayor Johnson stated he made an appointment on September 8, 2010 of Adam McNeill to the Zoning Board of Appeals. He has great confidence in Adam’s ability to serve. He is a graduate of the University of Albany with a degree in political science and finance and self employed. He is the past president of the board of directors of the Children’s Museum. He is taking the place of Janine Stuchin who has resigned from her term early. Mayor Johnson thanked Ms. Stuchin for her service to the ZBA. ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT Discussion and Vote: Amendment of Taxi Ordinance Commissioner Franck stated based upon the public hearing, he is pulling this item from his agenda. Hewill leave the public hearing open until the next meeting. Discussion: Dog Licenses Commissioner Franck stated he has been working on this with Supervisor Veitch. He also plans to meet with Deputy Dudla to work with the Department of Public Safety regarding enforcement. On January 1, 2011 the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets will no longer provide dog tags, issue notification of license renewals or maintain dog licensing data as a service to municipalities. Municipalities who are currently authorized to issue dog licenses, like the City of Saratoga Springs, will assume the remainder of the dog licensing functions. This includes ordering and maintaining an inventory of tags, being able to issue notifications of renewal, etc. We will also be required to set fees for different types of licenses with a required differential between altered and unaltered dogs. Specific details are still being worked out. The local law has to be completed before the end of the year. I plan to set a public hearing at the next City Council meeting. Supervisor Veitch added that when he learned the County was getting ready to issue a local law, he contacted Commissioner Franck to see what the City was doing. The County will be issuing tags at the shelter for dogs that are adopted at the shelter and will be good for 1 year. After the year the owner will have to go to their local municipality to renew the tag. The County is not taking over the tags for the entire county. He did reach out to other towns so see what that their local law looks like and has shared that information with Commissioner Franck. It is stated that each town must maintain an animal shelter. The City does not have a shelter but has a contract with the County for that. He is looking to see if that agreement remains valid going forward. Commissioner Franck stated this is an opportunity for us to update outdated things. There will be a fee increase because of the need to buy the tags, update the software, etc. Discussion and Vote: Hiring of New Deputy Commissioner of Accounts (10-312) Commissioner Franck introduced Sharon Kellner-Chille. Sharon has over 15 years of business sales and customer service experience. She is a detailed oriented person with strong communication skills. Due to the hiring freeze, he felt he should put this forward for a vote. Commissioner Franck moved and Commissioner Ivins seconded to approve the hiring of Sharon Kellner-Chille as Deputy Commissioner of Accounts. Page 7 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 Ayes - All FINANCE DEPARTMENT Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Empire Blue Cross ERRP Form (10-313) Commissioner Ivins moved and Mayor Johnson seconded to authorize the mayor to sign the Empire Blue Cross ERRP form as previously distributed to the Council. Commissioner Ivins stated about a month ago the Council approved the application for early retirement. They received word the application has been accepted and apply for the funding. His office and the Mayor’s Office have completed the on-line application. The next step is for the insurance carriers to supply the information they have on the insured and the claims they have. This information is HIPPA protected. Empire Blue Cross is asking the City to sign the standard form to allow them to release the information. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: Department of Public Works Payroll Transfers (10-314) Commissioner Ivins moved and Commissioner Scirocco seconded to approve the Department of Public Works payroll transfers as previously distributed to the Council. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: Department of Public Safety Payroll Transfers (10-315) Commissioner Ivins moved and Commissioner Wirth seconded to approve the Department of Public Safety payroll transfers as previously distributed to the Council. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: Recreation Department Payroll Transfers (10-316) Commissioner Ivins moved and Mayor Johnson seconded to approve the Recreation Department payroll transfers as previously distributed to the Council. Mayor Johnson advised this transfer is budget neutral. Ayes - All Discussion: City Finances Commissioner Ivins stated we are 13% ahead of 2009 for occupancy tax. Our August numbers for sales tax are in and are down from 2009 by $80,000. This is unstable revenue. He is confident with the budget numbers he put out there. This is something they will have to look closely at when they do a final approval of the 2011 budget. Mortgage tax final distribution has been received and is 10% below 2009. We did meet the revised budget for the mortgage tax. The 3rd quarter report will be presented at the next Council meeting. PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Contract with Moisture Barriers (10-317) Page 8 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 Commissioner Scirocco stated this contract is for the remediation to City Hall for the fallen ice on the Lake Avenue side of the building. Commissioner Scirocco moved and Commissioner Wirth seconded to authorize the mayor to sign a contract with Moisture Barriers in the amount of $165,725.00. Ayes - All Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Sidewalk Agreement (10-318) Commissioner Scirocco moved and Mayor Johnson seconded to authorize the mayor to sign a sidewalk agreement with Michael Fenton at 216 Church Street for a total of $1,050. Ayes - All Announcement: Geyser Crest Wellfield Improvement Commissioner Scirocco stated there will be a ribbon cutting ceremony tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. at the Geyser Crest Wellfield. The City Council is welcome to attend. Update: DPW Projects Commissioner Scirocco provided an update on the following projects the City is involved with:  Fifth Avenue Stormwater/Sewer Remediation Project – this runs from Henning Road to the gates of the Oklahoma Track. That area floods every time there is a rainstorm. The City is running 2,000 feet of stormwater and all the work is being done by DPW. Project is half completed.  Beekman Street Watermain Replacement – replacing of this line will increase the water pressure and fire protection in the area. Tom Kubricky Construction is installing 3,300 feet of a 12 inch waterline. This will allow the City to tie in all the side streets from West Circular to Church Street. Paul Male stated they installed 400 feet today, 1 hydrant, 12 water services, and a valve.  City Hall Roof - to install commercial grade snow and ice cable.  Nelson Avenue Phase 3 – this includes the addition of new pumps and sanitary line that redirects sewage from Adams Street, Doten Avenue, and the Villages of Saratoga to the County sanitary line on Crescent Avenue.  Casino ceiling bid will go out mid November and the work will be done in January 2011.  Birch Street and Grand Avenue improvement. PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENT Discussion and Vote: Authorization for Mayor to Sign Contract with Zangrilli Engineering for Structural Repairs at Lake Avenue Fire Station (10-319) Commissioner Wirth advised the title should say “for design work” instead of “structural repairs”. Commissioner Wirth moved and Commissioner Ivins seconded to authorize the mayor to sign a contract with Zangrilli Engineering for design work. Ayes – All SUPERVISORS Joanne Yepsen Page 9 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 County Update Supervisor Yepsen reported they will be looking at their tentative 2011 budget on October 26th. They will vote on the final budget on December 15, 2010. There will be an opening celebration for the Global Foundries new R&D facility on Wednesday, October 27th at 10:00 a.m. There is also an open house this Sunday. They will do this on a quarterly basis to keep the community informed. Local Law to Authorize Dog Licenses Supervisor Yepsen reported she provided her copy of the local law the County Board of Supervisors voted on today. State Solid Waste Management Plan Supervisor Yepsen reported they voted in favor to have the Department of Environmental Conservation to reconsider its draft solid waste management plan to be sure the counties are not burdened with additional fees, surcharges, and unfunded mandates. Awarding Open Space and Farmland Protection Grants Supervisor Yepsen reported they voted on awarding open space and farmland grants. They had $500,000 available to the County. Grants are going to the Town of Clifton Park, Town of Moreau, Town of Saratoga, and Town of Wilton. Matthew Veitch Public Safety Committee Supervisor Veitch reported the following items were approved at the County Board Meeting today: radio towers are being built in Clifton Park and Edinburg and have approved a contract for that; they approved s contract to improve software at the public defender’s office; and the animal shelter is holding their open house on October 30th. Supervisor Veitch announced the reverse 911 system bids are due tomorrow. Public Works Committee Supervisor Veitch reported the County’s road program is complete for 2010. The Cady Hill Boulevard is scheduled to be repaved and improved in 2011. He would like to inquire how to get a loan or grant for money from the IDA for improvements to the industrial park entrance. Mayor Johnson stated they are focusing more on Rt. 50 and Geyser Road and the safety issues of that area. Geyser Road Bridge Construction Supervisor Veitch reported the work started on this area in June. The jersey barriers have been removed showing the project is largely completed. The project is expected to be completed by November 4th. Saratoga Gaming and Raceway Foundation Applications Supervisor Veitch reported the applications are due today. They should be making their decisions by November 4th. Page 10 of 11 City Council Meeting 10/19/10 EXECUTIVE SESSION Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Wirth seconded to move to executive session for discussion regarding proposed, pending or current litigation as well as an update on collective negotiations at 7:43 p.m. Ayes - All Council returned from session at 8:13 p.m. Mayor Johnson stated nothing was resolved during executive session; therefore there is nothing to report to the public. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Johnson moved and Commissioner Ivins seconded to adjourn the meeting. Ayes – All There being no further business, Mayor Johnson adjourned the meeting at 8:14 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lisa Ribis Clerk Approved: 11/1/10 Vote: 5 - 0 Page 11 of 11