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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes 2007-08-13 Special 08/13/2007 2761 STATE OF TEXAS )( CITY OF FRIENDSWOOD )( COUNTIES OF GALVESTON/HARRIS )( AUGUST 13, 2007 )( MINUTES OF A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE FRIENDSWOOD CITY COUNCIL THAT WAS HELD ON MONDAY, AUGUST 13, 2007 AT 4:00 PM AT FRIENDSWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY, 416 S. FRIENDSWOOD DRIVE, FRIENDSWOOD, TEXAS, WITH THE FOLLOWING PRESENT CONSTITUTING A QUORUM: MAYOR DAVID SMITH MAYOR PRO-TEM CHRIS PEDEN (left at 6:20 PM) COUNCILMEMBER LAURA EWING COUNCILMEMBER JOHN LECOUR COUNCILMEMBER JIM HILL COUNCILMEMBER LESLIE REID COUNCILMEMBER ANDY RIVERA CITY ATTORNEY JOHN OLSON CITY MANAGER BO MCDANIEL DEPUTY CITY SECRETARY MELINDA WELSH City Secretary Deloris McKenzie was absent from the meeting. Mayor Smith called the meeting to order. 4:00 PM—SPECIAL MEETING The Mayor stated he would like to vote on Item 5 of the agenda first if that was okay with Council. Discussion was held regarding the proposed FY2007-08 General Operating Budget for the City of Friendswood. The City Manager presented the budget and made a suggestion on the priorities that Council should work on to be prudent with the use of their time. The two issues Council should focus on are tactical and strategic, there are 3 key areas in the operating budget. Council will need to concentrate on Operations and Maintenance, Interest and Sinking Tax Rate and on the Decision Package and then focus on strategic, which is fund balance, Comprehensive Improvement Plan, debt, and revenue options. Administrative Services Budget Manager Katina Hampton passed out additional paperwork (Forces at Work) for Council's review. Mayor Smith asked when the tax rate is supposed to be adopted. City Manager Bo McDaniel stated no later than the second meeting in September. Administrative Services Director Roger Roecker stated September 15, 2007 is the deadline. Discussion was held regarding the tax rate, Council could vote on it tonight but will be adopted on September 17, 2007. Mr. McDaniel stated once Council decides on the tax rate the budget can be amended any time during the year as long as it balances but you cannot amend the tax rate once it is adopted. Mayor Smith suggested talking about the revenue side first then will discuss the expense side and then discuss the decision packages, would like there to be free dialogue between Council and Staff. 08/13/2007 2762 Councilmember Hill asked Mr. Roecker how much money the City had in the bank last year at this time compared to this year at this time. Mr. Roecker stated Staff is still projecting for the end of the year and do not have the fund balance projection, there is 6 million dollars in General Fund and it is $100,000 less than we were proposing to have at the end of 2008. Councilmember Peden stated on page 34 of the budget book there are 2 columns in the middle and it says there is approximately 2.5 million turnaround and asked if the City spent less than was thought would be spent. Mr. Roecker stated the biggest significance is in revenues. Councilmember Ewing stated they are waiting on figures regarding ballparks and asked if there will be another time available to discuss. Mayor Smith stated those items should be added this evening. Councilmember Reid asked what the difference was between doing this on September 17t" as opposed to the 24t". Mayor Smith answered that Council would meet every Monday in September and was trying to avoid Council attending and the Staff's time preparing for an additional meeting. Councilmember Reid asked about the sales tax revenues on page 30 and asked why is it projected to go down. Mr. Roecker stated he does not think it will, Staff budgeted $360,000 from budget to budget and is being conservative. Councilmember Reid had several questions about the budget and Administrative Services Director Roger Roecker answered. Mayor Smith stated sales tax revenues have been increasing over the years as well as expenditures and there have been numerous commercial ventures that have been coming in. Councilmember Peden stated he would like to conservatively spend the money instead of projecting higher, spend the money after we get it and not before, if we get more it goes into the fund balance and can spend on capital projects. Councilmember Ewing stated it is hard to make a prediction on the amount since it has gone up and down. Councilmember Rivera stated if we continue to do business the way we have we can anticipate more sales tax revenue. Councilmember Hill agrees with Councilmember Rivera but would like to take a conservative approach. Councilmember Reid stated there is a 4 year trend of increase and would like to increase projection. Councilmember LeCour stated he would like to leave the sales tax projection as it is and if we do better put it in the fund balance. Mayor Smith stated where the rubber meets the road is in the decision packages. Councilmember LeCour asked about fines on page 34, it is his understanding that a portion of our fines go to the State. Mr. Roecker stated the projection is local and it is in net. Administrative Services Accountant and Utility Billing Supervisor Cindy Edge stated it is recorded as a payable. Police Chief Bob Wieners stated traffic citations are down by 11% due to increased criminal incidents and officers are being pulled away. Mr. Roecker stated this is revenue that has increased substantially and if it does not happen and we budget sales tax aggressively, sales tax will probably come in higher. A question and answer session was held regarding expense. Councilmember Rivera stated page 24 shows a significant drop in capital improvements. Mr. Roecker stated there are only 3.5 million dollars left of the bonds. 08/13/2007 2763 Councilmember Peden stated there was a line item for laptops for Council and the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) and does not think Council needs new laptops yet, can squeeze another year out of them and stated he only speaks for Council and not P&Z, his laptop performs well. Councilmember Ewing stated she noticed on the proposed budget under expenditures there is nothing on a cost of living raise. Mr. Roecker stated there is no COLA, only merit raises for employees and thinks will see some correction when the salary study is done. Councilmember Ewing stated she thinks that a cost of living raise across the board is important as well as consideration of inerit pay. Councilmember Rivera asked if the budget included the increase in minimum wage and Mr. Roecker stated it is not specifically addressed but we know it is happening. Mayor Smith stated we have no employees at that wage range. Councilmember Reid asked about the $50,000 that was budgeted for the streets and sidewalk plan. Councilmember Hill stated he would like to increase the street improvement budget, a couple hundred thousand dollars does not buy much concrete and would like to see it increased by $500,000. Mayor Smith asked how could we accomplish that when the crews are limited in what they are able to get to. Public Works Director Kaz Hamidian stated it is contracted out, the current contractor is good and has been giving us the same contract amount each year, the asphalt contract the City uses for street maintenance is doing well also. Mayor Smith asked Councilmember Hill if he means street replacement or patch and Councilmember Hill responded that it depends on the street. Councilmember Rivera requested to see the Pavement Study Master Plan first and then move forward with a comprehensive program to see where it is needed. City Manager Bo McDaniel stated if we spend the money on Laura Leigh Road it would not be a waste if we do it now. Mr. Hamidian stated the $50,000 study would take 2 months to complete and if there does not have to be a bid on the project again and the City uses the same contractor then 2-3 months will not be wasted going through the bid process and the work can get started faster and move forward quickly. Councilmember Peden stated on page 194 one of the problems was the money did not get spent in the year, the $800,000 budget for the last 2 years has not all been spent. Councilmember Hill stated we should not get behind in this or the roads will be worse and he would like the budget to be $285,000 more than what is already requested. Mayor Smith asked how much more do we want to get done and how are we going to pay for it? Councilmember Rivera stated he does not want to have to redo roads once the study comes out and the City should finance the study now so Mr. Hamidian can get the ball rolling in October. Councilmember Hill stated safe streets should be a basic service for citizens just like fire and police. Councilmember Rivera asked if the City can put approval of the study on the next agenda and Mayor Smith responded yes. Mr. Roecker stated 5% of the budget has gone to street repairs. Councilmember Rivera asked about background checks expenditures and Police Chief Wieners stated the Police Department only has to use it for specific types of hires. Councilmember LeCour asked about street and sidewalk operations such as street lights, electricity, clean up and others. Mayor Smith asked about legal services in Mayor and Council budget and if it could be reduced. Mr. Roecker stated legal services are underestimated so suggests not to. Councilmember Reid asked how many eSlates the City Secretary projected to have by 2010. Deputy City Secretary Melinda Welsh stated she was not sure of the total amount but the 6 requested this year did not get funded so it depends, there are nine eSlates at this time. Councilmember LeCour asked about what the Records Management Request is for in the City Secretary's budget. Mayor Smith answered that it was for software and not personnel. 08/13/2007 2764 Mayor Smith stated fire training and field improvements are not absolutely necessary per President of Friendswood Volunteer Fire Department Rick McFee. Councilmember Rivera asked how the City does fire training. Fire Marshal Terry Byrd stated we have our own facility but wanted to improve on it. Councilmember Peden stated we need to meet with our Fire and EMS people in a workshop to talk about their vision, he met with them on Sunday and they have a 15 year plan and the City would need to take a hard and fast look at how we fund these departments, they have a concern about the future of volunteers. Mayor Smith asked Mr. Byrd how he is doing with personnel and Mr. Byrd answered that they were funded for a part-time position last year. Mayor Smith asked if the Fire Marshal's office were where they wanted to be and Mr. Byrd stated the part-time employees have full-time jobs so it is hard and the fire inspections are okay. Mr. Byrd stated he is having trouble with the 24 hour callout with only 3 employees and Councilmember Rivera asked Mr. Byrd if they would do better with a part-time or full-time employee and Mr. Byrd answered with a full time employee. Councilmember Rivera stated he recommended a full- time position be created for the Fire Marshal's office and Mr. Byrd stated they can take existing funds to fund this position. Councilmember Reid asked about developers going through the Development Review Committee and why does the City not make it mandatory. The City Manager Bo McDaniel stated we just do not. Mayor Smith stated we could look at this later to make it mandatory and require a fee. City Manager stated it is developer friendly right now and Councilmember Ewing asked if we could look at it later and Mayor Smith responded yes. Mayor Smith asked if the City is short-handed in the Community Development Department budget and the City Manager stated we can contract some of the inspections out and contract out other things in the crunch. Community Development Interim Director Les McMahen explained that we are using in-house employees when we can but contract out other services. Mayor Smith asked if there were enough funds to pay a Community Development Director. The City Manager stated he hopes the study will show what that position needs to be paid. Councilmember Rivera stated 2 years ago we had 19 people in that department and now there are 17 and asked if 17 people is enough with added responsibilities that Council will put on them. The City Manager stated you will have to have a larger core base due to increasing population but can contract out for those peak times and would not want to lay off employees later. Councilmember Reid asked what a GIS system is and Councilmember Peden explained it is a mapping overlay. Mayor Smith asked about an item on page 152 and asked Public Works Director Kaz Hamidian about electricity expense and Mr. Hamidian stated Public Works pays for the power on street lights for all the City and the number goes up when we add subdivisions, street lights are maintained by Texas New Mexico Power Company but Public Works pays the electricity. Councilmember Peden asked if we can change signal lights to LED lights and Mr. Hamidian stated we only maintain Sunset Drive. Mayor Smith asked who we use for electricity and Administrative Services Director Roger Roecker stated the City uses PP3 which is an aggregate pool between county and cities. Councilmember Peden asked if we add streetscaping what budget would it go under and the City Manager answered under Community Services and asked about Melody Lane. Councilmember Peden asked about the Library expansion project drawings for$34,000. He stated he did not think there had been a consensus from Council on whether to expand the Library or move it. Council should meet with the Library Board again about building a new one or expanding it but should not spend the money until we know which one the City is going to do. Library Director Mary Perroni stated she added it to the budget just in case Council does get a consensus on expansion or building a new library. A question and answer session was held regarding streetscape program for signage, traffic lamps and other items. Councilmember Peden stated this should be included in the capital budget, TxDOT would do it for you but you have to pay it and TxDOT gives you credit for current poles, it is visual economic development. Councilmember Ewing stated the Community Appearance Board has great ideas for this. 08/13/2007 2765 City Manager Bo McDaniel stated he still needs consensus confirmation on street maintenance, street study, meeting with the Fire Department on planning issues, beautification issues on signage, sales tax income, and a full time employee for the Fire Marshal. Councilmember Peden left the Council meeting at 6:20 PM. Mayor Smith stated to start at page 274 which is Decision Packages (not included in the budget). Mayor Smith asked that next year the City gathers the Fire Departments budget needs earlier in the budget process. City Manager Bo McDaniel stated he thinks since the Fire Department is a contractor that Council should decide on budget issues for them, with the exception of capital items such as fire equipment, and assumes items asked for are needed and stated he met with Fire Chief Jeff Smith and President of Friendswood Volunteer Fire Department Rick McFee regarding their needs. Mayor Smith asked about handheld radios and Police Chief Wieners stated the EMS and Fire Department have not been switched to the 800 service yet and will try to get some with grant money, it can be spread out over two seasons and still get what they need. Mayor Smith suggested reducing modifications to Fire Station #3 to $30,000 and suggested other cuts and additions. Community Development Interim Director Les McMahen asked if they could do $50,000 on Fire Station instead of$30,000 and Mayor answered yes, it is for fire station modification to make the new fire truck fit. Mayor Smith asked about a document camera requested in the budget and City Manager Assistant Nick Haby explained that it is a digital image that will be projected onto the screen. Mayor Smith stated it is better communications and he also thinks we need to have additional eSlates, the City needs to maintain control of elections. Councilmember LeCour stated he does not think changing signal poles from hanging wires to galvanized poles or adding signage is a good idea and he is against funding this and does not think it will improve economic development, would like more information. Mayor Smith stated he believes making improvements to our entryway is beneficial and it is the "sizzle to our steak", thinks it should come out of the Reserve Fund and do it immediately. Councilmember Hill stated he would like to have renderings first before approving this. Councilmember Ewing stated it is in a very tentative state so there are no drawings that have Friendswood on it and also has some examples from other cities. Councilmember Hill stated this should not be in the budget but it should be brought before Council. Councilmember Ewing stated the Community Appearance Board did not ask to put it in the budget and it was Councilmember Peden's idea to do it this way. City Manager Bo McDaniel stated he can get more information to Council at the next meeting regarding these items still in question. Councilmember Reid asked to clarify questions about the budget sources and the process. Mayor Smith stated most of the fire budget requests are repeated annual requests and asked if we fund those with increased sales tax projection would that change the effective tax rate. Mr. Roecker answered that it would not and Councilmember Hill stated we need to worry about the citizens already here and not worry about beautification for people entering the City and need to do more ballpark improvements. Mayor Smith asked for consensus from Council to increase sales tax projection and what would be funded would be for Fire and EMS and would be a part- time paramedic, part-time paid medic, increase administrative support hours, volunteer pension fund, annual performance increase full time staff, cost increase, per call stipend, community events awards banquet increase and half of the radios. Increase sales tax projection to$75,494 and make it$125,494. **Councilmember Rivera moved to approve the proposed tax rate for 2007 and scheduling public hearings on the proposed 2007 tax rate for August 27 and September 10, 2007, as required by Section 26.05 of the Property Tax Code and to keep the effective tax rate of.5764+ 3%. Seconded by Councilmember LeCour. The motion was approved 6-0. 08/13/2007 2766 *'"'Councilmember Rivera moved to approve scheduling August 27, 2007 and September 10, 2007 for a public hearing on the purposed 2007 tax rate. Seconded by Councilmember Hill. The motion was approved 6-0. ****Councilmember Rivera moved to approve scheduling a public hearing for the proposed City of Friendswood Operating Budget for FY2007-08 for September 10, 2007. Seconded by Councilmember Reid. The motion was approved 6-0. "*Councilmember Rivera moved to approve the acceptance of the streets, drainage and utilities for Sterling Ridge Subdivision for the contractor's one-year maintenance period. Seconded by Councilmember Reid. The motion was approved 6- . i The meeting was adjourned at 7:38 PM. / � , '� M or vid J.H. Smith Attest: � � �� fR�lpd r P � �,�� Deloris McKenzie, TRMC tt p City Secretary *. * � �.�t�� �,l�