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07-13-1998 - Budget Workshop CITY COUNCIL OF EDGEWATER BUDGET WORKSHOP JULY 13, 1998 6:30 P.M. COMMUNITY CENTER MINUTES CALL TO ORDER Mayor Allman called the Budget Workshop to order at 6: 30 p.m. in the Community Center. ROLL CALL Mayor Randy Allman Present Councilman James Gornto Present Councilman Myron Hammond Present Councilman Gary Roberts Present Councilwoman Judith Lichter Present City Attorney Nikki Clayton Present Interim City Manager Kenneth Hooper Present City Clerk Susan Wadsworth Present Police Chief Lawrence Schumaker Present INVOCATION, PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE There was a silent invocation and pledge of allegiance to the Flag. MEETING PURPOSE The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the FY1998/1999 budget. Overview of General Fund Budget - City Manager Interim City Manager Hooper identified how he was going to handle the budget adoption process . He informed Council at the end of the meeting they were going to go into a closed session where he would brief them about union negotiations. Tomorrow night they would talk further about the Enterprise Fund budgets . A member of the YMCA was going to make Council a proposal and discuss an offer on how to do something on a joint venture. They had a couple of other agencies that were looking for some independent funding from the City that would also be addressing them. At the end of tomorrow night he was going to be talking to Council about their thoughts on the millage rate. On July 20th he needed Council to authorize advertising of the maximum millage rate. They would also have two public hearings to be held on September 10th and September 16th. Interim City Manager Hooper then went through the Transmittal Letter/Budget Message Budget Proposal for Fiscal Year 1998/99. 1 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Interim City Manager Hooper then commented on the General Fund and described the Summary of Funds, Personnel Summary, Millage Rate Analysis, Tax Analysis, General Fund Budget - Revenues and Expenditures, Report of Cash Flow for May 1998 . Interim City Manager Hooper informed Council he had put a freeze on all capital equipment for the current fiscal year. He then commented on the Major Capital Equipment - New and Replacements for FY 1999. Interim City Manager Hooper explained for Councilwoman Lichter that roads would be considered capital and that anything $500 or more was considered capital . Interim City Manager Hooper then identified certain things that had been taken out of the budget and would be considered after the new fire station, new gymnasium and staffing. He believed there would be additional discretionary funds, in the range of $50, 000 to $60, 000, for Council to add items they wanted put back into the budget or they could lower the millage or put the money into contingency. Councilwoman Lichter wasn't aware they had that much money in Restricted Funds. She asked what the Reserve trust for lands, parks & open space was, which Interim City Manager Hooper identified was impact fees . Councilman Roberts asked about Interim City Manager Hooper proposing they don' t go with the Self Insurance Fund and if they would have funds at the end of this fiscal year that would not be used for the insurance program. He also asked what would happen when they went from a Self Insurance Fund to purchasing private insurance for the City. Interim City Manager Hooper explained each year in the past they had appropriated from every fund. Every fund or every department had put a certain amount of dollars aside that were put in the Self Insurance Fund, which reached a $1 .2 million trust and that money had been paid out over a period of time. This year' s program was going to eat up the fund balance in the Self Insurance Fund and would continue to pay for the premiums they currently had. He also identified they would advertise and get quotes for insurance. The City had a large deductible that would be decreased to $5, 000 . He explained that each year in the future there would be an allocation, value and cost to a policy, which would be less than they had been paying into the Self Insurance Fund. Councilwoman Lichter questioned the process they were going to follow, which Interim City Manager Hooper explained. He also commented on how they got to where they were. 2 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Interim City Manager Hooper then commented on revenues with regard to money the City receives from the County, the State and building permits. He didn' t think they could squeeze any more out of it. Councilwoman Lichter then commented on grants that were available for beautification. She then commented on what New Smyrna and Port Orange get in terms of grant money. She questioned if they should bring somebody onboard to help the City get grants . Interim City Manager Hooper informed Council they had made application on at least three State grants in the last month. He spoke of one of the positions he deleted being for a Grant Coordinator/Writer as he felt it could be handled in-house. Councilwoman Lichter questioned if the gymnasium was called the Senior/Youth Cultural Center or Senior/Youth Activity Center if there were other grants available other than just for a recreation center. Interim City Manager Hooper informed her they were already looking into that. Councilwoman Lichter commented on another source of revenue being the sale of the land for the fire station that they owned in the south end of town across from the railroad tracks . Interim City Manager Hooper informed her they were going to bring a request to Council in two weeks to declare that property excess, hire an individual to sell that property and bring that in in this current fiscal year to help offset the cost of the fire station. Reviews of all General Fund City Departments City Council Councilman Gornto questioned why Books, Publications and Subscriptions under the City Council budget had gone up so much, which Interim City Manager Hooper explained for him as it related to VCOG. He further explained there were three or four competing entities with regard to organizations the City was a part of and this all being lumped together in the budget. Councilman Hammond referred to Worker' s Compensation and questioned what they did in 1997 that they weren' t doing now as it related to the expense. Acting Finance Director Karen Rickelman explained the way Worker' s Compensation had been set up in prior years . Interim City Manager Hooper informed him staff would talk further with him about that. Councilwoman Lichter wanted to see a mural of historical scenes of the river put in Kennedy Park. She along with the Chairman of the Beautification Committee had met with Courtney Canova, who had also done murals in Deland, who said he would do the mural for $6, 000, which did not include the paint and scaffolding. She felt she could 3 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 raise part of the $6, 000 but wanted to include the $6, 000 some place in the budget. She wanted Council' s expression on this . Interim City Manager Hooper suggested they go through the whole budget, which included some savings . He urged the Council to talk of things they wanted to add to the budget. City Manager Interim City Manager Hooper presented the City Manager Department budget and described this was a budget presented with the City Manager' s office intact and did not include his contractual services . Finance Interim City Manager Hooper then presented the Finance Department budget. There was a brief discussion regarding there being a reduction in salaries as well as FICA taxes, Retirement Contributions, Life & Health Insurance and Worker' s Compensation as a result of the Finance Director position being deleted and not replaced. Legal Counsel Interim City Manager Hooper then presented the Legal Counsel budget, which included Professional Services for Nikki Clayton with an overall reduction in this budget of almost $4, 000. Interim City Manager Hooper identified City Attorney Clayton had the updated list on where they stand on the outstanding legal matters . He wanted to cover this at the end of the budget discussion. At the next Council meeting he wanted to go into a work session to further discuss the outstanding legal matters . Councilwoman Lichter wanted to speak further about the $106, 340 previously shown in Regular Salaries & Wages, which included Krista Storey and Robin Wolf' s salaries . Ms . Wolf' s salary was still reflected under Regular Salaries & Wages and City Attorney Clayton' s salary was being reflected under Professional Services . Additional changes were reflected in the budget as it related to the FICA taxes, Retirement Contributions, Life & Health Insurance and Worker' s Compensation and no longer having an in-house City Attorney position as this was now a contract position. Councilwoman Lichter questioned City Attorney Clayton having the potential of making up to $125, 000 . She asked the limit of the number of hours assigned. City Attorney Clayton informed her the maximum under the contract for this year was $120, 000 and next year was being proposed to be limited to $106, 000 and there was also a savings because there were no associated perks . 4 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Planning and Development Interim City Manager Hooper then presented the Planning & Development Department budget. Councilwoman Lichter again brought up someone being hired to do grants and make commission on getting the grants . Interim City Manager Hooper identified they had some staff that has some available time or if Council was interested they could seek professional grant writing capacity from a contract position. Councilwoman Lichter spoke of the cities that have just a grant person and mentioned Edgewater also using that person as she wasn' t sure if this was a conflict. Interim City Manager Hooper described they may be in competition with other cities for some grants . Councilwoman Lichter felt they needed someone within this community for grants and economic development emphasis . Councilman Roberts asked about the $10, 000 reduction in Machinery & Equipment. Ms . Plaskett described that was for the Building Division computer system. Councilman Roberts expressed concern with regard to Books, Publications and Subscriptions . Ms . Plaskett identified that this also included professional dues, seminars, workshops, training sessions and membership dues . Councilman Gornto expressed concern regarding the increase to Other Contractual Services, which Ms . Plaskett explained for him. Councilman Roberts felt the Building Department budget should have come after the Planning and Development Department budget due to the Planning & Building Departments being split. Interim City Manager Hooper commented on services and morale increasing. He spoke of the building permit time turnaround had dropped from eleven days to three or four days . Overall the split was a positive move . Economic Development Councilwoman Lichter presented questions regarding the money that had been taken out of the Economic Development budget. Ms. Plaskett described John Moore, Chairman of the Economic Development Board, was in attendance to present the Board' s budget, which he did at this time. He spoke of not asking for any more money than they knew they could spend. He then commented on the $17, 000 that is given to the VCBDC and the Chamber of Commerce. He further spoke of asking for money in the past for things that was never spent. 5 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 There was then a brief discussion regarding the publication done by the Economic Development Board and the Board soliciting donations to pay for a majority of the brochure on Edgewater. Mr. Moore further commented on what they had spent money on so far this year. He felt the Economic Development Board was one of the best boards in the City as far as what they do for the amount of money they spend. Councilwoman Lichter felt when they made their decision in terms of the Chamber and County organizations that it may play a role in the future way the Economic Development Board goes . She felt they needed to make sure the City was getting its money' s worth, if they were bringing in anything and if it was worthwhile. If those answers were not positive, she felt they needed to do something to help increase the tax base. She felt the Economic Development Board may play a different role than they have in the past and that they needed to get a little more competitive and a little more aggressive in terms of economic development. Mr. Moore spoke of new businesses that are interested in relocating to the area that don' t want to deal with the Council or the Economic Development Board because of politics . Mr. Moore informed Council the Economic Development Board was asking for money to pay for their membership dues and publications . If they had any projects in the future they would come back to Council and ask for money on an as needed basis . He spoke of the Economic Development Board also trying to raise money for new projects which he felt they could do in the future as well . Mayor Allman called a recess until 8 : 00 p.m. Personnel Interim City Manager Hooper briefly presented the Personnel Department budget. Councilwoman Lichter asked about Office Supplies being budgeted within each department and ordering City-wide instead of individually through each department as she felt this would be cheaper. Interim City Manager Hooper felt it was a very small amount and spoke of not having a room to put them in if they stock them. Ms . Rickelman identified the City Clerk' s Department ordered the standard office supplies for the City but each department ordered special supplies . City Clerk Interim City Manager Hooper briefly commented on the minor increase to the City Clerk Department budget as a result of the Microfiche Printer which City Clerk Wadsworth further commented on. 6 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Other Governmental Services Interim City Manager Hooper then highlighted the changes to the Other Governmental Services Budget. Councilwoman Lichter asked about Misc Personnel Costs and Misc Personnel Burdened Cost which Interim City Manager Hooper informed her he would describe that for them in the closed session about the union negotiations . Councilwoman Lichter then asked about Other Contractual Services, which was for Janitorial Services for City Hall as well as some Software Services . There was then a discussion regarding the City Hall Computer and upgrade to the year 2000 as well as computers that were included in the budgets within other departments and if there was any value to the existing computer system. There was further discussion regarding the City purchasing computer systems that were compatible and the City currently having a patchwork computer system. There was also discussion regarding it not being uncommon to have computers that are outdated or obsolete three years after you buy them and the need to do something so they aren' t running into this every few years . Maintenance (City buildings and grounds) Interim City Manager Hooper highlighted the decrease to the overall Maintenance Department Budget with regard to City buildings and grounds . City Engineer Fegley further described what the three personnel in the Maintenance Department do. He also commented on reasons for the decrease to Repair & Maintenance. Councilwoman Lichter questioned there being overlapping between Recreation and Maintenance with regard to repairs . Councilwoman Lichter commented on work that needed to be done to the Shuffleboard Building at Kennedy Park and questioned if it would be Maintenance that would do that, which City Engineer Fegley informed her they would. Councilwoman Lichter then commented on seeing an overlapping with Recreation being required to do the medians, which she felt should be a different department. 7 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 There was further discussion regarding this department handling building maintenance. Engineer Interim City Manager Hooper commented on City Engineer Fegley' s salary being split between the Engineering Department and Public Works, which had an overall $70, 000 deduction when you added the two departments together. Councilwoman Lichter was confused with City Engineer Fegley' s position. He was serving as Engineer as well as overseeing Public Works. Councilman Gornto pointed out in the original budget they were provided Operating Supplies was $8, 500 and was now zero and Machinery and Equipment was $3, 300 and was now zero. Interim City Manager Hooper informed him those were cuts in the budget. There was further discussion regarding what the items were that were removed from these two items in the budget and why. Police Interim City Manager Hooper then briefly presented the Police Department budget. Police Chief Schumaker explained what was included in Professional Services for Councilman Roberts . There was further discussion regarding CET' s involvement with the Police Department computer system. Councilwoman Lichter then asked about Repair and Maintenance not including computers . Police Lieutenant Bill Britain identified what would be included in this line item. There was further discussion regarding there being two buildings within the Police Department to maintain and the fact that the Police Station never closed. Councilman Roberts asked what Other Contractual Services included, which Lieutenant Britain identified. There was further discussion regarding the $17, 000 that went towards the Humane Society. Councilman Hammond questioned if they were getting their money' s worth at $4, 000 a month that was being paid to CET. Police Chief Schumaker spoke of not having the talent, the equipment or the people that could write the programs . He didn' t know how to do it any cheaper as there was no competition for this type of thing. 8 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Councilman Roberts questioned Communication Services going up over 50% and if that was for the 800 megahertz system. Police Chief Schumaker explained they applied for and received a grant to allow their laptop computers to transmit from the car without using the 800 megahertz . Lieutenant Britain identified it ran around $47 per month per unit and commented on CET' s involvement with this . Councilwoman Lichter questioned Oak Hill asking them again to do some services for them and if it was customary that they do these things for free. Police Chief Schumaker informed her the County wanted $8, 000 but the City was doing it for free. He then commented on the Pilot Program they had with Oak Hill . He wasn' t sure if Council wanted to revisit that. He confirmed it wasn' t a great task to complete whatever Oak Hill needed per day with the City' s dispatchers . Councilwoman Lichter questioned what Rentals and Leases covered, which Police Chief Schumaker identified for her. Councilman Roberts asked about the considerable difference from 1996 to now with regard to Debt Service, which Ms . Rickelman identified for him. Councilman Roberts then asked about the jump in Operating Supplies from 1996 to 1997, which Police Chief Schumaker explained for him. Lieutenant Britain further commented on opening the shooting range and the price of ammunition for 35 sworn officers ran about $10, 000 a year for the required training. Police Chief Schumaker commented on the $24, 000 that was removed from the budget for a new generator. He also spoke of the need for a computer to download the information from the laptops . He filed for a Law Enforcement Block Grant for $17, 000, which they were going to use to purchase three 800 megahertz radios for the Police Chaplains . There was then a discussion regarding the training and courses being identified under Books, Publications and Subscriptions . The expenses for hotel and travel came under Travel & Per Diem. Lt. Britain also commented on being reimbursed $2 for every traffic citation that goes into the educational fund. Police Chief Schumaker spoke of not getting back anywhere near what they generate. They generate $10, 000 to $12, 000 a month in fines and forfeitures of which they get $4, 500 back from the County. If they could keep within the City the money they generate out of traffic stops, which they could not, it would be in the $120, 000 to $130, 000 a year of which they get about $60, 000 a year. Councilwoman Lichter questioned where the rest of the money went. Police Chief Schumaker wasn' t sure where it went but he knew it didn' t come back to the City. 9 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Police Chief Schumaker identified they had 13 marked vehicles and were replacing two of the 13. They had 21 . 5 officers using 13 vehicles . He further identified their rolling stock. Interim City Manager Hooper identified the cost of the Police Services compared to other cities our size fit almost exactly in the cost per capita and the $2 . 5 million price range. Councilwoman Lichter was amazed at the $17, 000 that was being paid to the Humane Society and wanted to speak to Animal Control Officer Robin Feger about this . Interim City Manager Hooper agreed to have her contact Councilwoman Lichter directly. Police Chief Schumaker commented on the difficulty they had with the Humane Society several years ago. They wanted more money than the City wanted to spend. They were given an ultimatum to either ante up or go up to Halifax. For two years they traveled back and forth to Halifax. Eventually an agreement was made and a contract was settled on. When compared to the County and New Smyrna, the $17, 000 was not out of line. Animal Control responded to upwards of 350 calls per month and was taking several dozen a week up there for one reason or another. As a result of Animal Control Officer Feger' s effort in getting most of the animals in the City licensed, they were able to return a great deal of the animals back to their rightful owner. When the owner picks up the animal at the Humane Society, the City is reimbursed a sum of money for the animal being reclaimed. Councilwoman Lichter informed Interim City Manager Hooper he didn' t have to have Animal Control Officer Feger contact her as she was able to get more information from Police Chief Schumaker' s presentation. Fire & Rescue Interim City Manager Hooper commented on the substantial changes for the Fire Station and the staffing. Councilman Roberts asked why they should hire a Chief since Acting Fire Chief Tracey Barlow was doing a great job running the department the way it was going now. Acting Fire Chief Barlow identified there would still need to be two on the administration side. Councilwoman Lichter asked Acting Fire Chief Barlow if he had a need for more, upgrading or better or if they were on par where they should be with regard to vehicles. Acting Fire Chief Barlow identified he was asking for replacement of the Chevrolet Station Wagon which was a 1989 with 115, 544 miles and was a Code Enforcement vehicle that was handed down to the Fire Department. He planned on putting together some type of fleet replacement program next year. The two primary apparatus now were ten years old, which was the life expectancy of a fire apparatus . 10 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Councilman Roberts questioned why Operating Supplies was jumping $26, 000, which Acting Fire Chief Barlow identified was a result of just about doubling the career portion of the department and the costs associated with doing that. There was then a discussion regarding the current volunteers being considered first for the career positions before looking outside and the cost effectiveness of retaining some volunteers the City has already trained verses training them and they leave the City to go to another City. Councilman Roberts then asked about Utility Services, which Acting Fire Chief Barlow identified, was for utility bills . This included what they anticipated would be spent for Fire Station 57 . Councilman Hammond asked about Rentals & Leases, which Acting Fire Chief Barlow explained for him. Councilman Roberts questioned the $24, 000 increase to Machinery & Equipment, which Acting Fire Chief Barlow explained was a result of circumstances that happened in this year' s budget. Fire Chief Barlow then commented on the Squad Truck and the Advanced Life Support Fire Apparatus . Councilwoman Lichter felt the Fire Station on U. S . #1 was in such a prominent place in the City and needed some planting or something in the front area to make it more attractive since it was a City building. Acting Fire Chief Barlow informed her he had allocated $2, 000 to improve the exterior of the site under Repair & Maintenance. He further commented on their plans for improvement to Fire Station #55. Civil Defense Acting Fire Chief Barlow presented the Civil Defense budget for hurricane shutters for Fire Station #55 and communication equipment to enhance their Emergency Operations Center. Councilwoman Lichter asked if there were grants available for Civil Defense, which Acting Fire Chief Barlow informed her they were pursuing. Councilwoman Lichter questioned if the CERT program paid for itself, which Acting Fire Chief Barlow commented on. Interim City Manager Hooper spoke of making application for 50°% of the first year' s funding for the additional personnel. Building 11 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Interim City Manager Hooper and Building Official Dennis Fischer presented the Building Department budget. There were four employees working in the Building Department. Mayor Allman informed Mr. Fischer he had talked to several people since he had been back and he had no complaints . They were very glad he was back in Edgewater as they were. Interim City Manager Hooper spoke of morale being up in the department. He shared Mayor Allman' s sentiments as there hadn' t been any complaints . He informed Council the time for permit turnaround had been greatly reduced. Because they were wrapping up pretty quick, Interim City Manager Hooper suggested Mayor Allman take some public input towards the end of the meeting, which Mayor Allman agreed to do. Public Works Councilman Hammond asked about Machinery & Equipment, at which time City Engineer Fegley identified the items that were included in this line item. City Engineer Fegley then commented on the reduction to Road Materials & Supplies . Library Interim City Manager Hooper then presented the Library budget. Councilwoman Lichter then asked what their relationship was to the county in terms of the Library. Interim City Manager Hooper informed her it was the City' s building and the City maintains it and provides the Operating Supplies . The County provided the staffing and the capital, i.e. the books and paid the power bill . Councilwoman Lichter felt it was a confusing situation and also mentioned the new Regional Library in New Smyrna. She felt the County should be responsible for repairs to Edgewater' s library. She also commented on the County wanting to close Edgewater' s library and have them consolidate with the Regional Library. Councilwoman Lichter asked what was going on with the parking lot at the Library and if they were losing parking spaces . Interim City Manager Hooper informed her they were for the widening of SR 442 . Parks & Recreation 12 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Interim City Manager Hooper highlighted the changes to the Parks & Recreation Department budget. Mayor Allman stated he understood with the older boys that a great majority of the rest of the County was going to conjure up a Babe Ruth League for baseball. Parks & Recreation Director Jack Corder informed him they did. Mayor Allman asked if they were going to be following suit. Mr. Corder informed him he had it in the budget to expand the fields so they could follow in that area. Councilwoman Lichter questioned if the Shuffleboard building at Kennedy Park was used by the people that play shuffleboard. Mr. Corder identified for her what the building was used for. There was further discussion regarding work needing to be done to the Shuffleboard building, including the restrooms, which would be looked at for next year. Councilman Roberts questioned the $16, 000 increase to Miscellaneous which Mr. Corder identified included money for the median at the north end of U.S. #1 . There was further discussion regarding the beautification of the first median on U.S. #1 at the north end of the City. Councilwoman Lichter questioned if Beautification should have its own line item within the Parks & Recreation Department budget to make things more clear. Interim City Manager Hooper informed her they could do that. Councilman Roberts suggested each year putting so much in the budget per island and work their way down from the north to the south. Councilwoman Lichter commented on beautifying the entrances to the City, which she felt could be a first step. Mayor Allman asked about the Debt Service Interest which Mr. Corder identified it was for the 800 megahertz system. Interim City Manager Hooper wanted direction on the beautification of the two medians . He asked if Council wanted them to do this right away or put it into next year' s budget. Mayor Allman felt they needed to do something right away. Councilwoman Lichter felt they needed to do something. She further spoke about a deal that was made with DOT because of the trees that were taken as a result of the widening of SR 442 . She spoke of the Beautification Committee hanging in there for years and not getting much done. She felt it helped their image and economic development. She also mentioned water being the main problem with the beautification of the medians . 13 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Mike Visconti, 316 Pine Breeze Drive, suggested they use a tank in a pickup truck filled with water to water the trees and whatever plants were put in. The Beautification Committee had a plan and was hoping to get it implemented soon. Councilwoman Lichter felt just dong two would be worthwhile to start and the rest could be implemented later. Interim City Manager Hooper agreed to take a look to see how fast they could get it going. Interfund Transfers Interim City Manager Hooper then made a presentation regarding Interfund Transfers . Interim City Manager Hooper suggested they take some citizen comments . Mayor Allman called a recess at this time. The meeting resumed at 9: 30 p.m. Mayor Allman asked if anyone from the public wanted to speak. The following citizens spoke: Carolyn Goings, 120 Pelican Place, spoke of putting in a petition to have their street paved. They were willing to pay 2/3 with the City paying 1/3 . She could not find where this was in the budget. Interim City Manager Hooper informed her there wayothisoshouldoworksinn the current budget for that and sugg ested the future. Councilwoman Lichter identified this came to them a couple of meetings ago and that residents on Pelican Place and Lincoln Road both signed the petition. The older residents on these streets are having dust problems . A tentative price was worked out with the Engineer to present to the Council. Interim City Manager Hooper further commented on the process going forward. Ms . Goings questioned under Parks & Recreation how they determine what is most important. Interim City Manager Hooper commente on nrthere being a couple of ways to approach it and how the p nte Councilwoman Lichter pointed out they established goals and certain needs had been identified over the years for their youth and seniors with regard to an indoor recreational facility. Ms . Goings questioned if they researched the fact and had samples of cities where this was done and it did help. Councilwoman Lichter commented on the questionnaire that was sent out to the residents five or six years ago with regard to what the City needed where this was 14 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 identified. She further spoke of lacking a community/activity center and the need for something for the youth to keep busy or they would be getting in trouble. Councilman Hammond stated when he ran for office during his campaign he went to the budget meetings and didn' t know what was going on. He was told it was a bare bones budget at the time. He wasn' t satisfied and felt they could do more trimming. Interim City Manager Hooper commenting on this budget being different than what they had seen in the past. He spoke of there being money in the unrestricted General Fund reserve. There were things that could always be cut. He spoke of changing services to be done more cost effective and reorganization. He felt there were a lot of things they could do that were more cost effective than what was being done now. Councilwoman Lichter felt every action had a counter reaction. She further commented on the City Manager position being a 40-hour per week job and not a 20-hour per week job. She felt money made money and that they needed an economic development/grant person that could focus on making money. Councilwoman Lichter spoke of being negligent about purchasing the house next to Dustin' s which she felt would have made a gorgeous historical society. Councilman Hammond felt there were things in the City that could be done away with or put in another department, which was what he was looking at. He felt they needed to bring something in to help stimulate the economy so they would have some money to do some projects. Mayor Allman asked what the reserves were at. Interim City Manager Hooper informed him 15% to 25% . Councilwoman Lichter was hoping they would let her allocate $6, 000 in the Parks & Recreation budget for the mural . Councilman Hammond expressed concern with vandalism and graffiti . Councilwoman Lichter informed him it would be in Kennedy Park and the type of paint that would be used the graffiti would not stay on. Councilman Hammond spoke of not being in favor of this . Councilman Roberts pointed out they would still end up with unrestricted funds after doing the fire station and the gymnasium projects that maybe they could lower the millage rate. Interim City Manager Hooper described if Council wanted him to present them with some alternatives that may save expenditures or increase revenues that he could do that. 15 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 Councilman Roberts felt it was great the budget had been tightened up but that they would have a lot more surplus money than they really needed. He questioned what they do with the excess money. Mayor Allman suggested they spend it next year. Interim City Manager Hooper also mentioned using it towards the road program. Mayor Allman felt the budget looked good. By lowering the millage rate they weren' t saving the citizens that much money and the City wasn' t benefitting from that. He agreed with Councilman Hammond on the mural, that it was too pricey at this time but he did agree with the location for the mural . Councilman Roberts commented on economic development and liked the idea of taking some of the organizations out of the budget. He felt they could get better results by offering financial incentives to developers rather than paying fees to organizations that were countywide. He couldn' t see the City spending the money they have every year and not benefitting from it. He felt they could do a lot on their own. He also didn' t agree with hiring someone to write grants . Councilwoman Lichter pointed out they could cut their own salaries at $4, 800 each, plus the Mayor. She did the same job in Cheshire, Connecticut and didn' t get paid anything. City Attorney Clayton commented on a letter the City received from SunTrust who was offering $500, 000 interest free loans . It was in view of the fire matters and for that purpose FEMA might be funding them in terms of disaster grants . Interim City Manager Hooper identified it was due and payable at the time they received reimbursement from FEMA. He couldn' t recommend they borrow the money and felt they were fine. City Attorney Clayton then provided Council with reading material for a more detailed discussion at a later time. City Clerk Wadsworth informed Council Mr. Heeb had called and asked Council to set up a workshop meeting on August 4th, August 6th, August 10th or August 12th to discuss concerns of the "Citizens for Responsible Government." None of those dates worked for the Council so Interim City Manager Hooper agreed to look into some new dates later in August as he felt all of the Council should be there. Interim City Manager Hooper informed Council they were going to adjourn and go into an executive session. He then identified the staff members that would be present as well as Council . Interim City Manager Hooper informed Council tomorrow night they would start at 6: 30 p.m. and further commented on the presentations they would hear and the items they would be discussing. 16 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998 ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to discuss, the Workshop adjourned around 10 : 00 p.m. Minutes submitted by: Lisa Bloomer, CMC 17 Council Budget Workshop July 13, 1998