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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-08-26 CC MIN Special Meeting4ggale,ir THE 111TNILACE OF. MIN E//TA CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES August 26, 2014 SPECIAL MEETING Mayor Harycki called the meeting to order at 4:30 p.m. 4:30 P.M. Present: Councilmembers Menikheim, Weidner, Polehna, Kozlowski, Mayor Harycki Staff present: City Administrator Hansen Police Chief Gannaway Fire Chief Glaser Public Works Director Sanders Finance Director Harrison MIS Specialist Rose Holman Library Director Lynne Bertalmio OTHER BUSINESS Budget Discussion Public Works Director Sanders introduced the proposed budget for Engineering/Streets/Parks /Sanitary Sewer/Storm Sewer/Signs and Lighting. Engineering has no increase in overall budget. Streets has an overall 4% increase. Councilmember Weidner asked if it would be feasible to set aside a lower amount each year in anticipation of large purchases, instead of $125,000 every two years. City Administrator Hansen commented that the City had to move to every other year to sell a bond issue, rather than every year, due to the slowdown in growth. Councilmember Weidner asked what would be the budget impacts if portions of Stillwater Township are annexed. Public Works Director Sanders responded that the township roads are in fairly good shape. The biggest impact would be added snow plowing. He is confident this will be covered in the proposed budget. Regarding Parks, Public Works Director Sanders stated that a line item was added for trail maintenance. There also were increases in maintenance of Teddy Bear Park and Washington Park. City Administrator Hansen noted the equipment in both parks is unique and expensive to maintain but must be maintained under the City's agreement with the donor, Mr. Armstrong. Councilmember Polehna noted that the City may need to contribute to an upgrade of the drill floor for the new armory if it is to be used by the community. Public Works Director Sanders stated the Sanitary Sewer budget is not out of the ordinary except for the metro waste charge which has increased. Councilmember Weidner asked if the Council could vote to automatically increase rates to match increases by the Metropolitan Council. City Administrator Hansen affirmed the Council would be able to do that. Councilmember Weidner suggested looking at this as an agenda item sometime in the future. City Council Meeting August 26, 2014 In the Storm Sewer budget, Public Works Director Sanders noted there are increases in storm water utility revenues to pay for certain projects. Also a line item increased from $20,000 to $99,000 due to a problem with the Washington Avenue storm sewer, with costs spread over a three year period. Public Works Director Sanders informed the Council that the budget for Signs and Lighting is unchanged, but electricity costs are increasing so it may need to be increased in the future. This budget is traditionally in a deficit, according to City Administrator Hansen. Councilmember Weidner asked how the City can bring this budget up to a manageable amount. Finance Director Harrison agreed the City should consider increasing rates to help offset the deficit. MIS Specialist Rose Holman introduced the proposed budget for MIS. There were few changes in the operating system budget. She asked for a full FTE which was reduced to a half FTE. The IT Department is really in need of another employee. The completion of the Fire Station and the remodeling of the Police Department will mean more equipment to maintain. Councilmember Kozlowski asked about hiring an IT consultant. Ms. Holman responded that probably would not be cost effective. Councilmember Menikheim expressed concern about the risks of operating the City's IT department at a minimum level. The Council discussed the MIS Department's support of the Water Board and the Library. City Administrator Hansen stated he recommended hiring a part time employee because he felt the Council would not approve the expenditure to support a full time employee. Councilmembers Weidner, Menikheim and Kozlowski responded that they would prefer to be presented with the full budget requests from the departments. Ms.t Holman explained the capital outlay requests and the Fire Department capital outlay items. The Council discussed moving the Emergency Operations Center to the new Fire Station. Mayor Harycki recessed the meeting for dinner at 6:15 p.m. Mayor Harycki called the meeting to order at 6:34 p.m. Councilmember Menikheim recused himself from the discussion as he is on the Library Board. Library Board President Tom Corbett introduced the proposed Library budget, informing the Council that the budget increase is about 1.9%, consistent with the salary increase anticipated to be negotiated. Earlier this year the Board adopted a strategic plan which dictated some of the budget direction. Mary Richie, Board Treasurer, stated the Board has been vigilant about remaining on budget and seeking outside funding. Ms. Richie and Library Director Lynne Bertalmio described the budget process. City Administrator Hansen explained the proposed budget for Mayor and Council. He cut $25,000 from economic development which made him uncomfortable. Councilmember Menikheim stated that he requests that the budget include "seed money" of $10,000-12,000 for filmmaker Mick Caouette of South Hill Films to do a documentary on Stillwater. Finance Director Sharon Harrison discussed the request of$10,000 in capital outlay for license management software. It would significantly help track various license revenues. Page 2 of 4 City Council Meeting August 26, 2014 City Administrator Hansen stated there are no big changes in the proposed Administration budget. There was a request for an.5 FTE in Administration,but he disagreed that the request was needed. There was an increase in electricity costs for City buildings. He included capital monies for miscellaneous building improvements. The unallocated portion of the budget is similar to last year. The Special Events budget has no major changes. Recycling is a pass-through, with a grant from Washington County paying for expenditures. There is no election next year, but there are ongoing expenses for the voting machines. The Community Beautification Fund involves grant funding for downtown planters. Councilmember Weidner questioned whether the City will need a $40,000 event coordinator in future years. City Administrator Hansen replied it is probably appropriate to retain the event coordinator next year but discuss it further after that. Councilmembers Menikheim and Kozlowski commented that the Council should discuss event policies in a workshop. Police Chief Gannaway stated the Civil Defense budget is unchanged. The siren representative recommended four different locations in Lowell Park, but the Parks Commission opposed the possible locations. Other options will have to be explored. There is no change in the budget for Parking. In regard to Police salaries, there are some step increases. He had requested two new officers and had to cut one of them. He would like to have a full time school liaison officer as the School District is already paying for half the salary. The Council discussed responsibilities of a school liaison officer. Currently this officer also does juvenile investigations. The other position requested was traffic enforcement officer. City Administrator Hansen stated he didn't think the City could afford two more full time positions. Finance Director Harrison informed the Council that based on the proposed budget, the levy would increase $727,000. The operating budget is up $232,000 or 3.06%. Property values rose 14%. The tax rate would decrease from 58% to 54%, but because valuations will rise, property owners will likely see a tax increase. The Council discussed the decision-making process and staffing needs. Councilmember Weidner said he is concerned about paying the event coordinator while denying more staff for the MIS Department. City Administrator Hansen confirmed that the MIS Department seems to need an employee more than any other department; this would be his recommended top priority. Mayor Harycki remarked he understands the need for a full time school liaison officer. City Administrator Hansen stated he feels the School District should fully fund the liaison officer. Councilmember Weidner recognized the need for a full time school liaison officer but he sees the staffing needs in other departments as well. Councilmember Kozlowski commented that the City's need for zoning enforcement seems great. Councilmember Polehna expressed concern about the backlog of building permits. The Council reached consensus that it would like to add funding for a full time MIS employee back into the proposed budget. City Administrator Hansen will bring this back to the Council. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Councilmember Kozlowski, seconded by Councilmember Menikheim, to adjourn the meeting at 8:35 p.m. All in favor. Ken Harieki, Mayor Page 3 of 4 City Council Meeting August 26, 2014 ATTEST: Larry nsen, Acting City Clerk Page 4 of 4