Joint City-County Planning Task Force

Joint City-County Planning Task Force Meeting Notes September 10, 2014 - 9:30 a.m. Greene County Archives & Election Center - 1126 Boonville Ave. Meeting #23 Task Force Members present: Greg Burris, Springfield City Manager Chris Coulter, Acting Greene County Administrator Tim Smith, Deputy City Manager Collin Quigley, Springfield Assistant City Manager Cindy Stein, Greene County Auditor Mary Mannix Decker, Springfield Finance Director Martha Mundt, Greene County Budget Director Dan Patterson, Greene County Prosecutor Jerry Moyer, Greene County Court Administrator Kevin Spaulding, Greene County Sheriff’s Office The meeting began at 9:35 a.m. with a welcome from Chris Coulter, Acting Greene County Administrator. Mr. Coulter asked the members to review the notes from the August 6, 2014 meeting, and asked for a motion of approval. Cindy Stein, Greene County Auditor, made a motion to approve the notes. Dan Patterson, Greene County Prosecutor, seconded the motion and the notes were approved. Initial review of the draft of the final report began with a comment from Collin Quigley, Springfield Assistant City Manager, asking for clarification of the joint status of the Springfield-Greene County Library. Mr. Coulter stated the Library should be redefined as a “district”. Greg Burris, Springfield City Manager, stated that the first bullet statement of the Task Force Charge had been completed; however the next two bullet statements still need work. He proposed the group develop 12 -15 major indicator options to be used in the reports performance matrix. By using “dials” in the matrix it will be easier to determine the status of each topic within the report. Ms. Stein suggested the document be broken down and assigned to subgroups within the Task Force and to include City/County staff as needed. Mr. Burris agreed and suggested the group use the topic summaries as the assignments. The following is a breakdown of those assigned to each of the 14 topics, along with additional comments and suggestions for each topic: Topic: Assigned to: 1.0 – County Financial Situation Martha Mundt, Cindy Stein, Dan Patterson Mr. Patterson suggested that once established, the dashboard should be used in comparison with other peer counties to help determine Greene County’s standing. Mr. Burris asked whether the County had determined any peer counties as opposed to their benchmark cities. Tim Smith, Deputy City Manager, explained that Jon Williams, Greene County Assistant Stormwater Engineer, has already compiled some statistics on other counties. Mr. Patterson expressed that the County needs another revenue source. Mr. Burris asked about the Great Game of Government, which the County is practicing, and what costs have been determined. Mr. Coulter explained how the County’s High Involvement Planning (HIP) looks at statutory and contractual needs. Mr. Patterson questioned whether it focused sharply enough on the true needs and what offices are doing beyond what is statutorily mandated. Mr. Coulter explained that County Planning & Zoning and Building    Regulations could be voted out on the local level; and Animal Control has already been removed due to budget constraints. 2.0 – Law Enforcement Costs Sheriff Arnott/Major Kevin Spaulding, Chief Paul Williams, Dan Patterson, Jerry Moyer Mr. Patterson noted that the Law Enforcement Sales Tax did not work as well as it was initially intended. Mr. Burris suggested it might be easier to explain using a short video defining the why and how behind the tax. Martha Mundt, Greene County Budget Director, suggested adding a table similar to the one at the bottom of page nine, depicting the short fall by showing the actual cost versus revenue. Ms. Stein will provide the additional information needed for County LEST I Revenue and Jail Operation Expense as noted on the bottom of page nine. 3.0 – Public Health Funding Collin Quigley, Kevin Gipson/Clay Goddard, Chris Coulter, Martha Mundt Mr. Tim Smith asked about discussing a property tax option to assist public health funding. Mr. Burris suggested a paragraph be added to explain the discussions, which are currently taking place with the local hospitals on how to reduce visitor costs. Mr. Coulter mentioned that the Health Department’s performance matrix is already up and running. 4.0 – Animal Control Collin Quigley, Kevin Gipson/Clay Goddard, Chris Coulter, Sheriff’s staff Mr. Burris asked whether elected officials have an option to combine funding for Animal Control as a package for a vote. Mr. Patterson stated that in absence of county regulations, the State Statutes require animal control cases be directed to the County Health Department, and then to the State Health Department. Mr. Coulter added that the State will often default cases back to the local authorities. 5.0 – Unfunded Environmental Mandates Greg Burris, Tim Smith, Chris Coulter Mr. Tim Smith explained that a clear path should be defined in regard to unfunded mandates. Mr. Burris stated this has already been brought to the national forefront and work on these issues is already taking place. 6.0 – Operational Issues – Unfunded Capital Needs, Life Cycle Replacement Costs, Fuel Costs Mary Mannix Decker, Jerry Moyer, Cindy Stein, Sheriff’s staff, Dan Patterson, Tim Smith, Chris Coulter, Mr. Burris asked whether there was a performance matrix for employee workspace, and suggested this should be included within a survey of the benchmark cities and counties. Mr. Moyer stated there is a safety space requirement for the number of people in a building. Mr. Coulter agreed, stating that the international building code is used for life safety and means of egress. Mr. Tim Smith expressed that this would be difficult to do across the board, and suggested it be done by facility. Mary Mannix Decker, Springfield Finance Director, reminded the group that part of being good stewards of buildings was to save money for repairs/maintenance. 7.0 – Operational Issues – Operational Issues – Employee Recruitment, Retention & Compensation, Wellness Program Collin Quigley, Sheila Maerz, Camille Knowles, Chris Coulter Mr. Coulter explained how in 2011 funds from the Highway Department and Sheriff’s Department were used to fund an employee wage study. It was determined that County employees are 21% below the average wage/salary when compared to positions at similar employers. Mr. Tim Smith suggested the City may want to have a similar survey done by the same firm, DB Squared. 8.0 – Stormwater Capital Needs Tim Smith, Kevin Barnes, Todd Wagner Mr. Burris suggested incorporating findings from the Stormwater Task Force.    9.0 – Capital Transportation Needs Tim Smith, Dan Smith, Kirk Juranas Dan Smith, Greene County Highway Administrator, stated it would be interesting to look ahead to a sustainable transportation system including future capital needs, especially since MoDOT appears to be struggling financially. 10.0 – Growth Planning Ralph Rognstad, Kent Morris, Chris Coulter Mr. Coulter explained that in regard to annexation, there is a performance matrix depicting residential versus commercial costs, including why annexation occurs. This topic should dovetail with the Stormwater Capital Needs topic. 11.0 – Economic Development Chris Coulter, Dan Smith, Mary Lily Smith Mr. Tim Smith explained how the City, County, and City Utilities partner with the Chamber of Commerce for economic development. With this partnership, all entities work together to draw new development to the area. Mr. Quigley asked how older properties within the City were going to be reused or in-filled in the future. 12.0 – Sales Tax Fluctuations/Difficult Budget Projections Mary Mannix Decker, Martha Mundt, Cindy Stein Mr. Burris asked whether there is anything that can be done to prevent sales tax fluctuations. Mr. Patterson stated that Sen. Bob Dixon had suggested looking at the tax code. Ms. Mannix Decker explained how there is a cutoff date on reporting and if missed it would fall to the next month. In addition, the State’s computer system is not updated and the 2% collection fee goes into the State general revenue fund, not towards additional staff to help with the issue. Major Kevin Spaulding, Greene County Sheriff’s office, added that other revenues besides sales tax were often unpredictable and late. 13.0 – Consolidated Functions Tim Smith, Chris Coulter, Greg Burris, Collin Quigley Mr. Burris suggested an option for a public forum with conversations on the pros and cons of consolidating and what the community feels as beneficial. Mr. Quigley stated that many assume there’s an overlap in services, and it is unusual for cities and counties to work as well together as Springfield and Greene County do. Mr. Tim Smith suggested they provide what options are available for consolidation and then proceed from there. 14.0 – Civic Engagement Issues Cora Scott, Dale Moore, consult with Dr. Stout at MSU Mr. Tim Smith noted that Missouri State University is also making efforts to promote civic engagement. In closing, Mr. Patterson suggested that once developed, all the performance matrixes be reviewed by Cora Scott, City Public Information Office (PIO) and Civic Engagement Director and Dale Moore, Emergency Management Specialist – Public Information Officer (PIO) to ensure they will be understood by the general public. Mr. Moyer suggested using only two matrixes per topic. Mr. Tim Smith agreed that if too many were included it could be overwhelming but they should be limited to the size of the problem covered in each topic. Another Task Force meeting will be scheduled in approximately three weeks to discuss any unfilled portions of the final report. Tentative dates for presentation before the City Council and County Commission are still scheduled for the end of October, first of November. With no additional discussion, the meeting dismissed at approximately 11:12 a.m. m:\data\wp51\storm2\vbrandon\joint city-county planning task force 072613\mtg. #23\joint planning task force, mtg. #23 091014.doc