City Council

October 17, 2018 CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS Budget Workshop City Center 1:00 PM 1:00 PM CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL SALUTE TO FLAG PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD / 15 MINUTES PRESENTATIONS 1. Nothing at this time. CONSENT AGENDA 1. Nothing at this time. MAYOR’S DEPARTMENT 1. Nothing at this time. ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT 1. Nothing at this time. FINANCE DEPARTMENT 1. 2019 Budget Workshop: Finance Department, Accounts Department, Recreation Department PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT 1. Nothing at this time. PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENT 1. Nothing at this time. SUPERVISORS Matthew Veitch 1. Nothing at this time. Tara Gaston 1. Nothing at this time. ADJOURN Budget Workshop 10/17/18 October 17, 2018 CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS City Council Meeting City Council Room 1:00 PM PRESENT: Meg Kelly, Mayor Michele Madigan, Commissioner of Finance John Franck, Commissioner of Accounts Peter Martin, Commissioner of DPS STAFF PRESENT: Lisa Shields, Deputy Mayor Mike Sharp, Deputy Commissioner, Finance Maire Masterson, Deputy Commissioner, Accounts John Daley, Deputy Commissioner, DPS Vincent DeLeonardis EXCUSED: Anthony Scirocco, Commissioner of DPW Joe O’Neill, Deputy Commissioner, DPW Matthew Veitch, Supervisor Tara Gaston, Supervisor 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. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Kelly called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m. PUBLIC COMENT Mayor Kelly reminded the public and Council that rules have been adopted regarding the public comment period. She reviewed these rules for all. Mayor Kelly opened the public comment period at 1:01 p.m. No one spoke. Mayor Kelly closed the public comment period at 1:01 p.m. Page 2 of 4 Budget Workshop 10/17/18 FINANCE DEPARTMENT Commissioner Madigan advised this is the first budget workshop and will focus on the Finance Department, Accounts Department, and the Recreation Department. Finance Department Commissioner Madigan advised the 2019 expense budget for the Finance Department is down $242,000 compared to the 2018 budget. The part time web coordinator is not in the 2019 budget as a portion of those duties have been taken over by the help desk technician in the IT Department. She believes there is a demand for a focus on communication city-wide. Benefits are down by $17,000 due to an employee retiring and going to a less expensive plan. Equipment is up by $29,000 due to increased hardware needs. Now that there is a year’s worth of data, they can budget the Onyx bill directly and there should be decreases in the DPW, Recreation, and DPS utility lines. Contingency was decreased to $125,000 which may be re-visited. One expense that applies to all departments is health insurance allocations; they may be revised. She continued to review other taxes that have been received such as mortgage tax and occupancy tax. She suggested a budget director position to provide a consistent budget presence and oversee the budget process. Mayor Kelly stated she agrees with the communication position and the budget deputy for consistency. Accounts Department Commissioner Madigan advised expenses for 2019 in the Accounts Department are up $60,000 over 2018. Personnel expenses are up $21,000 due to contractual arrangements. Revenues are also up $13,000. The department requested 2 new positions which are not included in the 2019 budget. There was a request for an increase in appraisal services of $107,000 and a request to increase the assistant purchasing agent’s salary by $7,000. She has spoken to the department about their priorities. Commissioner Franck advised the increase in salary requested for the assistant purchasing agent is due to adding duties. This person has been promoted through the ranks and took care of fixed assets when originally hired by the City. He has put forward the least expensive way of doing this; the $7,000 is incorrect as that is just the salary increase; with payroll taxes the number is closer to $10,500 from a budget standpoint. Commissioner Franck also advised the Assessment Department used to have 4 people of which 1 would always be in the field to measure properties. This year they are using appraisal fees to go to court on open cases and end those as soon as possible. Commissioner Franck stated if they can get these dollars that would be great; if not he understands. Recreation Department Commissioner Madigan stated this department is the hardest to budget for due to the fire. Loss of revenue and increased expenses due to running programs at other venues should be covered by insurance. The revenue budget is up $84,000 and expenses are up $54,000. John Hirliman advised they are looking to combine the 2 ice rinks. They are not going to operate the concession stand January and February. They have been able to reduce most Camp Saradac lines with having actual numbers from 2018. Dereck Legall stated the Recreation Commission unanimously voted to request an increase in pay for the director from a grade 14 to a grade 16. He is the lowest paid director in the City. Page 3 of 4 Budget Workshop 10/17/18 Mayor Kelly stated she agrees John is deserving of a raise looking at what he has done and he will be re- building everything. Commissioner Franck stated John Hirliman has done a fabulous job. With all the deserving people, John is the most. Revenue has gone up dramatically since he has joined. Commissioner Martin stated he too supports the adjustment to John’s position. He also asked if John has been in touch with Marilyn and insurance to be sure they can recoup any money lost from not having the Recreation Center in use. Deputy Mike Sharp advised a forensic audit will be done to determine how much money has actually been lost due to the fire. Commissioner Madigan stated John is very good at managing his staff and budget. He looks for recreation to pay for itself. This request will be taken under advisement strongly. Commissioner Madigan asked all departments to submit their budget change requests. The first public th hearing was held yesterday and the next one will be held on November 5 . The next budget workshop is nd scheduled for Monday, October 22 at 5 p.m. at the City Center. That workshop will focus on the Department of Public Works and the Capital Budget. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Mayor Kelly adjourned the meeting at 4:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lisa Ribis Clerk Approved: 11/5/18 Vote: 5 - 0 Page 4 of 4