HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-19-2010 City Council budget minutesMayor King called the Study Session meeting to order at 6:O0PM.
ROLL CALL
PRESENT: Councilmembers:
Chuck Page, Howard Miller, Vice Mayor Jill Hunter,
Mayor Kathleen King,
ABSENT:
ALSO
PRESENT:
MINUTES
BUDGET & CIP STUDY SESSION
APRIL 19, 2010
Councilmember Susie Nagpal, Excused Absence
Dave Anderson, City Manager
Ann Sullivan, City Clerk
Barbara Powell, Assistant City Manager
Mary Furey, Administrative Services Director
John Livingstone, Community Development Director
John Cherbone, Public Works Director
REPORT OF CITY CLERK ON POSTING OF AGENDA FOR MARCH 19, 2008
City Clerk, Ann Sullivan, reported that pursuant to Government Code Section 54954.2, the agenda
for the meeting of April 19, 2010, was properly posted on April 15, 2010.
ORAL COMMUNICATIONS ON NON - AGENDIZED ITEMS
None
AGENDA ITEMS:
1. OPERATING BUDGET REVIEW
Finance Director Mary Furey presented the staff report.
Ms. Furey noted there is a revenue shortfall of $753,110 and expenditures continue to increase.
She provided handouts depicting budget shortfall corrections with additional one -time funding of
$140,000 from Grant CIP Funding Reimbursements for staff time and $100,000 for Internal Service
Fund transfers — for a total of $240,000.
Additional expenditure reductions of $515,110 were attained by voluntary salary reductions —
$211,360; operating expenditure reductions — $230,250; and reduced ISF chargebacks — $73,500.
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Total impact to the General Fund budget is a savings of $755,110 — leaving a positive budget
balance of $2,000.
DISCUSSION:
Councilmember Miller:
o Questioned which additional days City Hall would be closed due to the proposed 27 hour
furlough (3 days) for full time employees.
o Asked about the procedure for receiving property taxes from foreclosures.
Ms. Furey noted it was her understanding that the property taxes for foreclosures are applied
countywide in the first year and then applied to actual cities the following year. She added that this
wouldn't have much of an impact on the City of Saratoga as we have very few foreclosures
compared to other cities in the County.
Mayor King:
o Questioned whether or not the City would receive property tax dollars from foreclosures.
Councilmember Miller:
o Foreclosures in the City will have an additional impact on the General Fund from loss of
property tax revenues.
Mayor King:
o Asked how much the City's revenue was down from previous years.
Ms. Furey noted the City's revenue is down about $1 million from two years ago — 2008/09 actuals
$15.9 million and she expects an additional $800,000 less for 2009/10, with an estimate of $14.8
actuals.
Councilmember Miller:
o Continue to be cautious
o We are on the right path
o Surviving better than many other cities in the Valley
o Very pleased with staff's creativeness and thanked them for their efforts
Councilmember Page:
o Thanked staff for voluntary reductions, including the car allowance
o Encouraged staff to work out the furlough days
o Feels it is better to work with a reduced salary or reduction in hours than to have no job at all
o Commended everyone for their efforts
Vice Mayor Hunter:
o Was very impressed at how staff has stepped forward to help reduce expenditures
o Grateful for Administrative Department reductions
o Thanked staff for their efforts
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Mayor King:
o Grateful for reductions from top down
o Appreciates the reductions in the Administrative Department
o Nice to see the volunteer effort by staff as opposed to Council having to make the cuts
COUNCIL PREFERENCE REGARDING IMPLEMENTATION OF 3 DAY FURLOUGH:
Vice Mayor Hunter: Stagger the 3 days for all full time employees and not close City Hall
completely.
Councilmember Page: Close down City Hall completely and spread the 3 days out over the year.
Mayor King: Close City Hall completely on 3 additional Fridays spread out over the year.
Councilmember Miller: Close City Hall completely and Thanksgiving week would be most logical.
DIRECTION:
o Staff should research the foreclosure and property tax dollar issue that was discussed earlier.
o Staff should move forward with proposed salary reductions.
o Work with employee union groups regarding the 3 day furlough.
o Saratogan to be published in Recreation Guide 3 times a year, starting with the fall issue.
o Council approved staff's proposed FY2010 /11 General Fund Budget balancing plan and
directed staff to include these reductions in the proposed budget for Council's consideration
at the May 19, 2010 public hearing.
2. CIP REVIEW
Finance Director Mary Furey presented the staff report.
Ms. Furey provided handouts depicting new proposed projects that require new funding and would
require Council's approval, adding that a portion of the funding would come from the Capital
Improvement Plan (CIP) and from other sources.
She noted the total cost for the proposed projects is $495,000 and in addition to the $600,000 that is
available from the General Fund, there is another $116,983 funding left over from the Comer
Retaining Wall project. The total available funding for CIP projects is $716,983. She added Public
Works Director John Cherbone would be asking Council for $560,000 — leaving a total of $156,983
to cover other projects that may come up during the year.
Public Works Director John Cherbone addressed each of the proposed Capital Improvement Plan
projects and received input from Council on the following projects:
COUNCIL DISCUSSION:
Ravenwood Playground Equipment and Playground Safety Improvements —
Director Cherbone noted that ABAG conducted a safety assessment on all of the City's playgrounds
and determined that the playground equipment at Ravenwood Park needed to be replaced in order to
meet current safety and American Disabilities Act (ADA) standards. He noted that the Parks and
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Recreation Commission have been very instrumental in working with ABAG to assure the City's
parks are ADA compliant.
Mayor King:
o Would like Council to look at the replacement playground equipment scheduled at
Ravenwood Park.
Director Cherbone stated the Commission will continue to work on the selection of new playground
equipment for Ravenwood Park and will bring their recommendations to Council for approval.
Village Creek Trail Design Project —
Vice Mayor Hunter:
o Would like public education provided regarding any changes that affect the Village and the
Saratoga Creek trails.
Blaney Plaza Sound System & Lighting Improvements —
Director Cherbone noted they would be installing additional lighting to improve the safety aspect of
Blaney Plaza as well as improvements to the wiring system to facilitate a larger sound /audio system.
Mayor King:
o Suggested the Blaney Plaza tree should have white lights all year round and colored lights on
the tree only during the holidays.
o Suggested that the City provide a wi -fi hotspot to the improvements to Blaney Plaza.
City Manager Dave Anderson indicated that staff could accomplish it if Council so desired.
Key Pad Door Security — Phase I —
Recreation Director Michael Taylor provided a brief description of the proposed Key Pad Door
Security project, noting that it has been at least 30 years since there have been any changes to
building security. He stated Phase I would be the most costly, which would be an electronic locking
system that would automatically lock and unlock doors based on the City's hours of operation. He
noted the type of lock — a plastic card swipe or a scrambled key pad, etc, still needs to be decided.
Councilmember Miller:
o An ID badge could be issued to every employee with a computer system on the back of the
card. There would be an on -going cost of programming new employees
o Director Taylor noted staff would like it to be a low- maintenance system and would probably
go with a magnetic swipe cards. He added some of the doors at City Hall need to be re -done,
will need to purchase magnets, etc., all adding to the initial expense.
Councilmember Miller:
o Questioned how this project would be presented to the Council since there are several key
pad options.
City Manager Dave Anderson stated staff would start the process with a Request for Bids.
Director Taylor noted staff is also looking at the key pad security door that the Sheriff's Office has at
the Westside Substation on DeAnza Boulevard.
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Saratoga Prospect Center Site & Safety Improvements —
Director Cherbone noted many of the initial improvements at Saratoga Prospect Center were interim
improvements — such as the lighting, signage, and paving. He added the next improvement phase
would include a new monument sign for the facility, safety and parking lot lighting, repaving of the
parking lot, and relocation of the entrance to the site.
Director Cherbone stated that as soon as the money is available they can start the design process;
however, he didn't think any construction would begin until after the first of next year — early 2011.
Mayor King:
o Inquired about the primary use of the facility and when the picnic tables would be installed.
Director Taylor noted that there are a lot of recreational activities, including jazzercise that are held
at the facility. He added there are also a lot of reservation requests for wakes and memorials as well.
Director Cherbone stated the projected cost for this project does include the installation of the picnic
tables as well as an integrated sound system and a motorized projection screen to facilitate large
group meetings in Friendship Hall.
Mayor King:
o Inquired if there was enough funding to include a sound system and projection screen in
Grace Hall.
Director Taylor noted that both the Friendship Hall and Grace Building have bare windows and that
may present problems with too much lighting for screen presentations.
Council felt the window lighting didn't present a significant concern.
City Manager Dave Anderson suggested adding an additional $10,000 to the proposed Prospect
Center — Site & Safety Improvements CIP project, which should be enough to cover the Audio
Visual, screen projectors, and sound systems for both the Friendship Hall and Grace Building
remodel.
Council concurred with this recommendation.
Director Cherbone noted that the bids for the Village Streetscape Project came in a little higher than
anticipated; therefore, staff is proposing some deletions in the project at this time.
The proposed deletions are:
✓ The lighted portion of the crosswalks (this can be reinstated later on with grant funding)
✓ Fourth Street median (won't affect the bulb -out plan)
DIRECTION:
o Take an additional $10,000 from the remaining General Fund Reserve of $156,983 and add it to
the Saratoga Prospect Center — Site & Safety Improvements in order to install audio /visual,
screen projectors and sound system for both Friendship Hall and Grace Building.
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➢ Amended total for the Saratoga Prospect Center — Site & Safety Improvements = $175,000
➢ Amended General Fund Reserve Total for Future Projects = $146,093
o Approved Village Streetscape Improvements for $65,000
o Staff should move forward with all Proposed New CIP Projects
Mayor King noted that she feels Wildwood Park is under - utilized and suggested working with the
upper wooden deck to make it look like a ship for kids by adding a steering wheel and a sail. She
also recommended adding a hop- scotch diagram on the pathway.
Vice Mayor Hunter stated that it is very difficult to reserve Wildwood Park as it is always booked in
advance for activities.
Director Cherbone noted that he would look into Mayor Kings suggestions and that these
suggestions would be great projects for the Parks & Recreation Commission to research.
3. APPLICATION PROCESS FOR COMMUNITY EVENTS
Assistant City Manager Barbara Powell presented the staff report.
Ms. Powell provided a handout depicting the specific allocations approved by Council for Fiscal
Year 2010/11 and noted that Council had set aside $25,000 for community events in Fiscal Year
2010/11, of which $5,000 would be for City - related expenses (banners, special event permits) and
$20,000 for other event - related expenses.
Ms. Powell stated Council had not made any specific allocations for the following traditional
community events:
o Mustard Faire
o Memorial Day
o Fourth of July
o Saratoga Art & Wine Festival (previously a one -day event funded at $5,000, and is now
planned as a two -day event for FY 2010/11.
Ms. Powell concluded by noting that staff is requesting that Council provide direction regarding
funding allocation procedures for community events and whether a separate process should be used
for allocation of funding for the 2010/11 Saratoga Art & Wine Festival.
COUNCIL CONSENSUS:
The City will continue to fund the Saratoga Art & Wine Festival (previously known as Taste of
Saratoga) for one day only.
Council Funding Preferences For The Following Community Events:
EVENT:
Annual Tree Lighting
Mustard Faire
Art & Wine Festival
Unspecified Events
KING
$3,600 (max)
$4,000
$5,000
$2,500
PAGE MILLER HUNTER CONSENSUS:
$3,600 $3,600 $3,600 $3,600
$4,000 $4,000 $4,000 $4,000
$5,000 $5,000 $5,000 $5,000
$2,500 $2,500 $2,500 $2,500
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SUB -TOTAL $15,100
PLUS:
Arbor Day Celebration $ 100.
City -wide Garage Sale $5,000.
City Ceremonies (Joe's Trail) $ 500.
TOTAL ALLOCATED FOR COMMUNITY & UNSPECIFIED EVENTS: $20,700.
AMOUNT TO BE RETURNED TO THE GENERAL FUND: $ 4,300.
Community Event Funding Process for Unspecified Events:
Applicant can attend a council meeting and request funding; Council will determine allocated
amount.
There being no additional business, Mayor King asked for a motion to adjourn.
MILLER/PAGE MOVED TO ADJOURN THE BUDGET & CIP STUDY SESSION AT
8:OOPM. MOTION PASSED 4 -0 -1 WITH COUNCILMEMBER NAGPAL ABSENT.
Respectfully submitted,
Ann Sullivan, CMC
City Clerk
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