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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004-07-13 - City Commission Budget Workshop Meeting MinutesCITY OF TAMARAC CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING TUESDAY, JULY 13, 2004 CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Schreiber called the Budget Workshop Meeting of the City Commission to order on Tuesday, July 13, 2004, at 9:00 a.m. in Room 105 of Tamarac City Hall, 7525 NW 881" Avenue, Tamarac, Florida. PRESENT: Mayor Joe Schreiber, Vice Mayor Marc L. Sultanof, Commissioner Edward C. Partner, Commissioner Beth Flansbaum-Talabisco, and Commissioner Karen L. Roberts. ALSO PRESENT: City Manager Jeffrey L. Miller, City Attorney Mitchell S. Kraft, Deputy City Manager Michael C. Cernech, Finance Director Dona Newman, Management and Budget Officer Chris Sammartino and City Clerk Marion Swenson. Mayor Schreiber led the pledge of allegiance. OVERVIEW: City Manager Jeffrey L. Miller presented an overview of the FY05 budget. Management and Budget Officer Sammartino pointed out changes to the CIP which were recommended by the CIP Committee. Discussion ensued regarding bikeways and funding for bikeways. Finance Director Newman explained the CIP process and spoke of funding to be appropriated for programs in outer years. Commissioner Roberts questioned the fact that the salaries were not included in the budget, but were handed out as an added item, and asked if the figures represent current salaries or figures with the FY05 increase. Management and Budget Officer Sammartino said they are current salaries for employees as of July 2004; the memorandum speaks to salaries budgeted for FY05. Mayor Schreiber said each year the budget is different and fails to disclose items the Commission is used to seeing. BUDGET REVIEW: Fire Rescue: Chief Budzinski presented the Fire Department's highlights over the past year. Mayor Schreiber asked about the status of the old vehicles and Chief Budzinski said three were traded in and the others are being maintained for reserve units. Mayor Schreiber asked if the new vehicles are up to the same standards as other cities, and Chief Budzinski said ours are 'state of the art'. Commissioner Portner asked about the difference in cost for a regular vehicle and one that is 'state of the art'; Chief Budzinski said there is about a $46,000 difference. July 13, 2004 City Commission Budget Workshop 1 Commissioner Roberts asked if the $300,000 set aside for fleet could be used instead of raising the Fire Rescue Assessment fee. Chief Budzinski said he did not suggest doing that. Mayor Schreiber questioned the number of Lieutenants in the Fire Department and Chief Budzinski explained we are committed to having one officer (designated supervisor) on each responder unit for efficiency and safety. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-6 of the FY05 Proposed Budget and Chief Budzinski explained each shift has a designated Lieutenant. Commissioner Roberts questioned office furniture on page 7-4 of the FY05 Proposed Budget and Chief Budzinski said this was incorporated prior to receipt of the grant, so the $3,000 can be used elsewhere. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-7 of the FY05 Proposed Budget and asked where the Office Specialist would be stationed. Chief Budzinski said there is a vacant office in Station 15 and the person would be responsible for tracking, purchase orders, and data entry. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-11 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the decrease of the line item for phones. Chief Budzinski said the department was required to supply phone equipment for station 15 from last year's budget which equipment does not need to be replaced. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-12 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the decreased amount in line item 52-15. Chief Budzinski responded this was a one time investment out of last year's budget. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-12 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the decreased amount in line items 52-24 and 64-10. Chief Budzinski responded that new equipment will not be needed next year. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-3 of the FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the 15% change in salaries and Management and Budget Officer Sammartino explained this translates to the cost of the extra unit for a full year. Vice Mayor Sultanof asked about the number of calls made over the past year and Chief Budzinski said just over 10,000 calls which is a slight reduction over previous years, due to changes in the mutual aid agreements. Vice Mayor Sultanof questioned billing and collection and Chief Budzinski said money is coming in steadily. There was discussion about the amounts collected in connection with insurance, Medicare and self payment. Commissioner Portner asked who is responsible if two units respond to a call outside the City, and Chief Budzinski said under the agreement, the highest ranking officer from the home City is responsible for the emergency. Commissioner Portner questioned page 7-9 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the filing system and why it is movable. Chief Budzinski said for greater capacity. Commissioner Portner questioned page 7-12 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the $2 million increase and asked if we would see an increase as we go along. Chief Budzinski said there will be increases each year due to personnel costs. Commissioner Portner said fire and police services are most important services and there was discussion regarding cost to the City for these services. Chief Budzinski said Tamarac Fire Rescue runs an efficient and lean department. July 13, 2004 City Commission Budget Workshop 2 Vice Mayor Sultanof asked how increased population would affect the Fire Department. Chief Budzinski said typically communities allocate EMS and fire resources based on population. Tamarac is about average for Broward County, providing one unit per 12,000 people, but if the population increases to 65,000-67,000 there may be need in the future to increase staff for the platform truck or add another rescue unit. There was discussion about the possibility of Broward County taking over the Fire Services and Chief Budzinski said that decision would be up to the Mayor and City Commission; there is no mandate for going to the County. Mayor Schreiber said as the population gets younger less people will require the services of 911; we will always have enough money to provide basic police and fire services. We should look toward how we can improve these services. The Fire Department is the most popular department in the City as they save lives. Mayor Schreiber questioned page 7-11 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the increase in line item 15-02, incentive pay. Chief Budzinski said this is a contractual obligation. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-11 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular line item 64-02, and Chief Budzinski said this is for the office specialist. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7-12 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the increase in line item 54-02. Chief Budzinski said this is for paramedic recertification, which must be done every two years. Chief Budzinski showed the EMS Provider of the Year plaque that was awarded to the Tamarac Fire Department in conjunction with CLINCON. Community Development: Community Development Director King gave an overview of major accomplishments this past year, and spoke of development in Commerce Park, transition of the department, land use amendments and rezoning, and the fact that Tamarac now needs to think in terms of higher density. The Main Street project is the number one issue for Community Development and at tomorrow's commission meeting the Mayor and City Commission will vote on the contract with Iler Planning Group for creation of development regulations. The third phase of the Main Street Project consists of construction and advertising and marketing. Community Development Director King spoke of Occupational licenses, (the impending increase of occupational license fees, and streamlining the process), and economic development. Community Development Director King said all program modifications were taken out of this budget year so there is no impact to the City for increase in next year's budget. Vice Mayor Sultanof questioned the 10% of Commerce Park that is available and Community Development Director King said there are only two parcels that developers do not own, and of the 10% only 2% is undesignated property, owned by the Archdiocese of Miami. Mayor Schreiber questioned build -out and Community Development Director King said about 5 years, with Main Street looking at 10-15 years. July 13, 2004 City Commission Budget Workshop 3 Commissioner Roberts questioned page 2-3 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular Main Street infrastructure for $100,000. Community Development Director King directed the Mayor and City Commission to page 14-4 of FY05 Proposed Budget, the CIP, and said certain projects are being done by utilities and stormwater so there is a coordinated effort between the departments to do these projects now; putting the funds together is a comprehensive way of redesigning Main Street, Phase I from 94t" — Pine Island. By redesigning the road in the right-of-way when the property owners begin to develop, they will only be responsible for private property improvements. The CIP Committee looked at the funding and put it together as one project. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 14-4 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular engineering architecture for $190,000 and Community Development Director King said the money comes out of Stormwater, Utilities and general fund. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 5-3 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the 4% change in Planning and Zoning. Community Development Director King responded there was a request by the Building Department for additional support for Code Enforcement, and the position was transferred to the Building Department. The other office specialist will be compensated for additional duties, as shown in program modification page 5-11. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 5-7 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular 27% decrease in salaries, and Community Development Director King referred to the transfer of one position to the Building Department. Commissioner Roberts questioned advertising (page 5-10 of FY05 Proposed Budget) as the second priority, and asked what the first priority was; Community Development Director King referenced page 5-4 of FY05 Proposed Budget, and said the Evaluation Appraisal Report (EAR) is the first priority. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 5-12 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular line items 31-00 and 46-02. Community Development Director King said GIS has been under CIP, but is now going into a maintenance phase and annual funding will be incorporated into the general fund budget. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 7- 12 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular line item 40-01. Community Development Director King responded travel and training for GIS is incorporated into the budget, as well as conferences for several other staff members. Vice Mayor Sultanof questioned page 5-4 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular professional services and Community Development Director King said we are required by the State to do the EAR. Mayor Schreiber asked about CRA future plans, and spoke of build out and redevelopment. Community Development Director King said there are many ideas that will be looked into over the next year, and as the city becomes built out there is a need to remain vibrant, which is done through redevelopment. The Main Street program will take the lead in redevelopment. Commissioner Flansbaum-Talabisco asked about representation at trade shows, and Community Development Director King said there are advertising funds in the budget for national magazines. These will be assessed to see if they are beneficial to the City and we may need to shift into different trade magazines to promote other areas of the July 13, 2004 City Commission Budget Workshop 4 City. The Economic Development Manager will attend trade shows and we already have promotional materials ready to go. The City will take on a more aggressive advertising campaign. Vice Mayor Sultanof questioned properties previously discussed for annexation, and whether Tamarac lost out on its chance to annex those properties. Community Development Director King spoke of Oakland Park aggressively going after Mira Lago, North Lauderdale still trying to annex Kozy Kampers, and the possibility that the Airport area may go to Ft. Lauderdale. Community Development Director King said at the last workshop meeting where annexation was discussed the Mayor and City Commission indicated they would talk to the County Commission to see if funding for infrastructure for these areas would be available. Commissioner Portner said the people in the Prospect Road area have indicated they want to become part of Tamarac. There was discussion regarding annexation, and Commissioner Portner spoke of the areas as not being pristine, but still warranting consideration for annexation. Commissioner Portner said if it is the Mayor and City Commission's desire he, Deputy City Manager Cernech, Mayor Schreiber and Community Development Director King could speak with Broward County Commissioners Eggelletion, Graber, and Broward County Mayor Lieberman. There was discussion of whether this would be a Sunshine issue, and City Attorney Kraft said a good alternative would be a properly noticed workshop for discussion of annexation between the two governmental entities. Commissioner Flansbaum-Talabisco said she would like to have more information. City Manager Miller said staff would update the report previously submitted to the Mayor and City Commission and schedule discussions. City Manager Miller added he would spend time with Commissioner Flansbaum-Talabisco bringing her up to speed on the issue. City Manager Miller added that he did not recommend annexing the properties unless the County was willing to give us $1.9 million for infrastructure; Tamarac tried previously to get the County to take a stand on this, but it appears the bulk of the money is going to South and Central Broward, Mayor Schreiber called for a recess at 11:15 a.m. and reconvened the Budget Workshop meeting at 11:30 a.m. with everyone present as before. Human Resources/Risk Management: Human Resources Director Swanson gave the highlights of Human Resources and Risk Management over the past year. Vice Mayor Sultanof said he heard a great deal about Risk/Safety Manager Tomaszewski from Dr. Krause, Chairman of the Insurance Advisory Board, and she is doing an outstanding job. Vice Mayor Sultanof added that training is a big item and if people know their job they will stay here longer. July 13, 2004 City Commission Budget Workshop 5 Commissioner Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned page 9-6 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular line item 34-02. Human Resources Director Swanson said the Mayor and City Commission approved funding for a classification and compensation study this past year, using outside consultants. This is a one time cost, not to recur this coming budget year. Commissioner Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned page 9-4 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the reclassifications. Human Resources Director Swanson responded that over the past three years, functions outside Human Resources were transferred to the department. The department has been `flat' and everyone reported to the director. The creation of mid -level managerial positions gives staff the opportunity for career paths and allows Human Resources Director Swanson to focus on overall city issues, such as pension and salary and benefits. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 9-6 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular 13- 01. Human Resources Director Swanson said this is for training specialist Kay Reinert. Every time there is a new mandate, more paperwork is created and the new benefit coordinator is working on providing more education to employees regarding benefits. The non -bargaining position which is slated for 35 hours per week has been increased to 40 hours and must be compensated accordingly. Commissioner Roberts questioned the decrease on page 9-3 of FY05 Proposed Budget, and Human Resources Director Swanson said this was a one time cost for a consultant. Commissioner Roberts questioned the color printer on page 9-5 of FY05 Proposed Budget, and Human Resources Director Swanson said there is a need for a color printer due to the amount of training documents and information created for the employees. Finance Director Newman said IT makes the selection of equipment based on the department's need. Commissioner Roberts questioned the increase on page 9-6 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular line item 52-15, and Human Resources Director Swanson said this was for the six chairs that were in need of repair. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 9-10 of FY-05, in particular line item 58-00, and Management and Budget Officer Sammartino explained the general fund provides services for other departments; a charge back. The numbers are based on the general fund budget. Commissioner Roberts said the change in salaries reflected in page 9-9 of FY05 Proposed Budget, are not comparable. Finance Director Newman explained that departments have a different mix of bargaining and non -bargaining employees and the compensation schedule is different. Management and Budget Officer Sammartino added that the percentages are dependent also on what occurred during the past year. Commissioner Roberts said she felt it would be more reasonable to have the mid -range amount plugged into the budget. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 9-10 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular line item 97-00, and Management and Budget Officer Sammartino said that is a contingency item based on available revenue. City Clerk: City Clerk Swenson thanked the Mayor and Commission, the City Manager's and City Attorney's offices, and Department Directors for working so well with the City Clerk's office, and reviewed the highlights of the past year. Commissioner Portner questioned the $50,000 for the March 2005 election and City Clerk Swenson explained it is a reasonable amount based on the cost for the March July 13, 2004 City Commission Budget Workshop 6 2003 election. Commissioner Portner asked if the reference to electronic agenda backup in the Goals & Objectives section in page 8-22 of FY05 Proposed Budget refers to laptops, and if so, are they necessary. City Clerk Swenson said laptops are used with the electronic agenda backup on CD, and they can also be used in the same manner as regular computers, as well as for internet access. The equipment is there and we should avail ourselves of it as the City moves forward. Commissioner Portner asked about the cost savings and City Clerk Swenson said it is less costly to burn a CD than copy 10-11 agenda books. We are also looking at re -writable CDs for the future. Additional cost savings by virtue of using electronic equipment is in staff time and supplies. Commissioner Portner asked about training sessions and City Clerk Swenson said training is available to the Mayor and Commissioners on an individual basis. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 8-23 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular what the figure in the Other Operating category represents. Management and Budget Officer Sammartino explained the Other Operating category is a grouping of line items. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 8-25 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular line item 34-02, and City Clerk Swenson said it is anticipated that vendors, such as for the Alchemy program, will be called in to train new staff and for a refresher for veteran staff to keep all up to speed on the latest updates. City Manager Miller said since there is time, if it is the Mayor and City Commission's desire, they could review BSO's budget. All were in agreement. BSO: BSO Chief Dugger said the new contract is up for negotiation so the maximum of 5% was added to the budget, subject to negotiations. Mayor Schreiber questioned page 8-27 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular school crossing guards, and Commissioner Roberts said more crossing guards will be needed. Sunrise suspended their crossing guards on Commercial Boulevard, so Tamarac had to suspend theirs at that location also. However, with 100 choice seats going to Riverside Elementary School, there is a need for school crossing guards at Southgate Boulevard. Commissioner Roberts questioned page 8-27 of FY05 Proposed Budget, in particular the roll over of educational monies. BSO Chief Dugger said the monies came from forfeitures and $2.50 for each traffic ticket issued in the City of Tamarac. The funds will roll over until the fund is depleted or supplanted. It is used for specialized training, in particular for SEPTED, and we currently have three certified SEPTED Deputies. There being no further business to come before the Mayor and City Commission, Mayor Schreiber adjourned the Budget Workshop meeting at 12:20 p.m. Marion Swenson, CIVIC City Clerk July 13, 2004 City Commission Budget Workshop 7