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Description |
Enterprise Budget Workshop; 6:00 p.m. |
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Date |
6/22/2006 |
Location |
Palatka City Commission |
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Time |
Speaker/Item |
Note |
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Call to Order |
Mayor Flagg |
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Present |
Mayor Karl N. Flagg; Commissioners Mary Lawson Brown, Allegra Kitchens, James Norwood, Jr., and Georege E. Sanders |
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Also Present |
City Manager Allen R. Bush, City Clerk Betsy Jordan Driggers, Finance Director Ruby Williams, Police Chief Gary Getchell, WWTP Supt. Platt Drew, Public Works Director Woody Boynton, WTP Supt. Melvin Register, Golf Course Supt. Lynn Davis, Airport Mgr. Glenn Ball |
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Reading of Call |
Mayor Flagg called the meeting to order and read the following call dated June 16, 2006: TO MESSRS: MARY LAWSON BROWN, ALLEGRA KITCHENS, JAMES NORWOOD AND GEORGE SANDERS: You are hereby notified that a special workshop meeting of the City Commission is called to be held at the regular meeting place of the City Commission at City Hall, 201 N. 2nd Street, Palatka, Florida, on Thursday, June 22, 2006, to commence at 6:00 p.m. or as soon thereafter as possible following the 5:30 p.m. called meeting of the City Commission. The purpose of the meeting is to hold an Enterprise Funds Budget Workshop for the fiscal year 2006/07. /s/ Karl N. Flagg
Karl
N. Flagg, MAYOR
We
acknowledge receipt of a copy of the foregoing notice of a special meeting on
the 16th day of June, 2006 /s/ Mary
Lawson Brown COMMISSIONER /s/ George E.
Sanders COMMISSIONER /s/ James
Norwood, Jr. COMMISSIONER /s/ Allegra
Kitchens COMMISSIONER |
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Commence Budget Workshop |
Mr. Bush said the first page of the preliminary budget contains a memo outlining the Enterprise Funds and what they consist of. He asked the Commission to ignore the final page, which talks about reducing the Step In Grade program, as they will decide if they want to bring it up after the General Funds workshop. |
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Palatka Municipal Airport |
Mr. Bush noted the Airport is self-supporting with the exception of field mowing. He recapped current and planned improvements. As to T-hangars, the City will borrow its share of money to build them. He did not show grants in the budget, as the funds have not yet been secured. In closing, he stated the Commission should be proud of improvements to this facility over the last twenty years. |
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Mayor Flagg said they appreciated the tour, noting it was good to see all the past and present improvements and ongoing work. |
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Glenn Ball, Airport Manager, said they if they put in a public transportation facility, they would qualify for transportation funds. In two weeks Ride Solutions will have a 'bench stop' there. They are keeping their needs in front of congressional and legislative representatives. |
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Commissioner Norwood asked to the Airport's overall percentage of increase from last year and salary increases. Mr. Bush said everyone gets 5% across the board. They have talked about reducing it to 4% as cost of living doesn't come up to 5%, but when they do comparative studies, they are never higher than other cities' salaries. The 5% is working for them at this time. He has estimates on where the group health insurance and liability insurance will be, but if they come in substantially higher, he will be back with a revision, if necessary. They are trying to avoid that. Commissioner Kitchens said they shouldn't give any less than 5%. Historically, the City has given better raises than the County. As to the information they received from Mr. Nelson's office on homeland security, Mr. Ball said they've contacted Mr. Nelson's office, and are still looking at what they will qualify for. |
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Commissioner Brown said, as to insurance rates, if they have to only give 2% raises, they should be done at the top of the scale, while people at the bottom should get the full 5%. People are working hard for the City, and they need to keep employee moral up. Mr. Bush said he hopes they won't need to cut pay raises. |
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Utilities |
Mr. Bush said this year's budget includes a utility rate increase of 10%. He has attached the proposed increases (filed). They did not raise rates last year, but this year it is a necessity in order to meet this year's budget. There is a need to improve underground lines, etc. Even with the 10% increase, the City is still on the lower end of the rate scale. As to pages 13 - 16 of the proposed budget, it shows the existing and proposed rates. It comes to $3.60 a month on a minimum usage bill. |
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Commissioner Kitchens asked how many new lift stations have come on the system. Platt Drew, WWTP Superintendent, said they have 37 lift stations and will have one more come on line shortly. Commissioner Brown said they need to put user fees in place for maintenance on lift stations. |
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Water Treatment Plant |
As to the water plant, Mr. Bush said the increase is attributable to increased personnel costs and operating expenses. 85% of the new revenue for improvements will come from state grants, and he is seeking other grants to cover a large portion of the match. Commissioner Brown said next time they go for a grant, they need to contact their congresswoman, who can help with these matters. Mr. Bush said the currently on-going water plant improvement project is the largest single capital improvement project the City has undertaken. Palatka's water will be bottled-water quality once the improvements have been completed. |
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Wastewater Treatment Plant |
Mr. Bush said the increases shown are attributable to personnel and operating costs. Due to the increase in lift stations, they propose to add one mechanic's position. Some "next step" reuse grants are not listed, but have been requested. Commissioner Norwood asked that an ordinance be drafted that requires new developments to pipe for reuse water use. Mr. Bush said if a development occurs somewhere around Francis, it will cost millions to pipe water out there. Commissioner Norwood said the City should install the infrastructure to get it there. Also, the water will be cheaper once it gets there, and will not eat up the water plant's capacity. Mayor Flagg said they need to set up a 'service' area to pipe reuse water to areas that will be of higher benefit to the City, rather than imposing undue burdens on builders further away from the WWTP. Commissioner Norwood said if they require builders to lay the infrastructure, it would make it easier to transfer their systems onto reuse water and off city water. Mayor Flagg said he favors a plan to extend reuse lines throughout the City in order to give citizens an option, but it should be kept to a service area that will bring the highest benefit. Mr. Bush said they have set a goal to remove 100% of the effluent from the river. They are building on that plan each year. The SJRWMD would like to be able to say that the City has met that goal; they are moving towards that goal incrementally. There are many financially feasible options. |
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Water Distribution and Wastewater Collection Dept. |
Mr. Bush said increases this year are due to capital improvements, and are in line with the department's goal of replacement of lines throughout the city in order to improve water quality and quantity throughout the City. The Department has made great strides in recent years toward meeting this goal. |
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Woody Boynton, Public Works Director, said they are extending the reuse lines to Moseley & Twigg and possibly further down Moseley to tie the Middle school in to the reuse line. As to the capital improvement increases, to say there is a significant increase is misleading. $90,000 in Better Place funds were made available for slip lining. They could not slip-line the lines on S. 13th so they need to be replaced. The rest of the projects are capital improvement projects. Two of them may fall under Better Place funds. Commissioner Norwood asked if they have done anything to relieve the flooding in the Napoleon and 15th Street area. Mr. Boynton said they need to make a slight adjustment to the 'tailwater' in the drainage system north of the Railroad tracks. Most times when the area floods, it is due to the leaves covering the grates on the storm drains; this is due to faulty design of the grates on the S.15th Street storm drain project. When the grates are free of obstructions and free flowing, they drain just fine. Mr. Bush suggested they contact the railroad “track master” due to the placement of a fiber-optic line. Commissioner Norwood asked if they have come up with any options on the Prospect Street/S. of Twigg Street drainage. Mr. Boynton said he has nothing proposed this year; it falls more under stormwater utilities, which is a Street Dept. function and falls under the General Fund. |
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Mayor Flagg asked how the rust elimination program is coming along. Mr. Boynton said they've replaced very few water lines, so they will continue to receive rusty water complaints. They've undertaken a significant flushing system in order to minimize those concerns. They have 70 miles of old cast-iron pipe; they will always have a rust consideration because of that. Sometimes it is not due to the pipes; they have a significant number of older homes in the community with rusty lines and old plumbing, and changing out their lines won't alleviate that. Mr. Bush said they've spent well over $1 million in replacing seriously rusty lines, and the complaints have lessened greatly because of that. They are replacing lines each year, 'chipping' away at those 70 miles of lines. Mr. Boynton said they have no line replacements planned for this year. They could do some replacement in conjunction with the riverfront development project. Mayor Flagg said they don't need to put new development on old lines. |
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Commissioner Sanders said they used to have complaints of low water pressure, and asked if those complaints have lessened. Mr. Boynton said they addressed complaints through water line renewals, which is the pipe that is the service line from the main to the house, and it improves the problem; it is a connection problem rather than a distribution problem. Mr. Bush said when Central States went off line they capped the line. There is money in the budget to replace that line, and once that happens, there will be a huge boost in pressure. Mr. Boynton said they are working with Mr. Matthews to obtain an easement in order to do that work. |
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Public Comment |
Askew Vickers, 207 N. 18th Street, said the paving of 18th Street was started but never completed. Mr. Bush and Mayor Flagg assured him the paving would be completed. Mr. Boynton said they plan to include that in the paving plan for next year. The plan is still under development. |
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Water Administration |
Mr. Bush said the decrease in funding results in a transfer of duties to other funds. Personnel levels remain the same as previous years. |
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Ruby Williams, Finance Director, said as to level of service, customers can fill out a debit request and their bill will be debited from their account every month. They can also pay by credit card. On-line bill pay will cost around $300,000, as they will need to redo the entire system. The new software is scheduled for procurement in a few years, when the money becomes available. Mayor Flagg said they need to promote existing options. Mrs. Williams said they can post that. They are charged fees every time someone makes a credit card payment, and they cannot recoup those fees from the cardholder. This year they have spent $1,400 in fees to allow customers to charge their bills on credit cards. As to exceeding draft amounts, the customer makes that option when he/she fills out the bank draft forms. It is the same fee whether is it credit or debit. They can only recoup handling fees when they withdraw money from a customer's account. |
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Palatka Golf Club |
Mr. Bush said if revenues remain good, the budget should remain balanced. A Pro was hired to boost membership and improve youth golf programs. Rates will increase on October 1 from $21 to $23 per game for seniors and from $14 to $15 per game for members. Population growth should increase demand for play time. As to the substantial debt the course has run up, anticipated growth should counteract that debt and the fact that the course has lost players to other courses that have sprung out around it. Upscale growth will bring more players to the course. |
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Commissioner Brown said when they were visiting the golf course today some gentlemen told her that the City needed to put more money into the golf course. These gentlemen live in the County. They need to approach the County about providing money for the golf course, as many of its users live in the County. As to the non-member rate, Mr. Davis said it is not increasing. It is $27 during the week and $32 during the weekend. Summer specials started in June; the weekend rate drops to $20.00. They don't want to increase it. Previously they stopped allowing the senior golf rate, which was a very unpopular decision, so they went back to it. For a single membership rate, it's around $804/year with tax, and a family membership costs around $1,100. They haven't raised those fees in two years. |
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By consensus the Commission directed Mr. Bush to approach the County about providing funds for the golf course. Mr. Bush said the youth program has really taken off. Mr. Davis said his salaries increased by $90,000 so he had to come up with new revenues. Increased participation is the key; rates are almost at the ceiling. He is currently over-budget on advertising. Commissioner Brown said pictures of the golf course are impressive. Commissioner Norwood said cable advertising is warranted. Commissioner Brown said Time Warner Cable is supposed to give them community service time. |
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As to allowing personal golf carts on the course, Mr. Davis said from a liability standpoint, it is not a good thing to allow. Mr. Bush said, as to new development, they will be working with developers on bringing growth and play to the golf course. |
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As to roof replacement money, Mr. Davis said they need to look to Better Place Funds. This will be a substantial cost and he cannot identify money from his budget to make those needed improvements. Mayor Flagg said they can get more for their money when they combine departments for roofing bids. |
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Commissioner Norwood asked how often Better Place Plan Committee meets. Mr. Bush said they don't actually meet. Every year during budget deliberations, he sends a list of proposed expenditures to the members, and they send him their comments. As a whole, proposed expenditures are met with approval. Commissioner Kitchens said this method works well; she speaks from her experience on this Committee. |
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Sanitation |
Mr. Bush said stability in this fund attests to the responsible leadership of the Public Works Director. To balance this budget, they propose to increase residential fees from $9 to $10 per month, and increase commercial fees from $1.75/yd to $1.90/yd for pick up. This is necessary to bring reserves back up to where they need to be. Personnel levels have remained constant over the last 20 years. When growth necessitates adding additional routes and equipment, they can be added. Mayor Flagg asked if it is still in the best interest of the City to try to maintain two garbage/trash pickups per week during holiday weeks, as that just pushes the two pick-ups closer together. An additional pickup may not be needed. Mr. Boynton said they tried that during the last Thanksgiving holiday, and it generated a lot of complaints. People are accustomed to twice per week pick-up. The amount of garbage they pick up on the 2nd day is usually insignificant, and amounts to a four-hour route. If they don't pick it up, it makes for a heavier day the next week. The large piles of yard trash aren't mounting up as quickly as they did because they now have two clamshells. For consistency's sake, they chose not to minimize the two pickups per week schedule. Mayor Flagg said education can be a good forerunner to change. Mr. Boynton can make the call, but if they are running their trucks for a less-than-full route, this is unnecessary wear-and-tear. They can be more efficient. When citizens know in advance they will only have one pick-up that week, they can make adjustments. They should implement this on a trial basis over the next three holidays. |
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Commissioner Sanders said people are blowing grass clippings into the storm sewers, and they need to try to eliminate that. This is happening with residential as well as commercial properties. He sees it happening all the time. Mayor Flagg said it is not a violation of the code, but they need to try for voluntary compliance from citizens. Commissioner Sanders said they need to amend the Code to make this practice illegal; Commissioner Kitchens concurred. Mayor Flagg said the community needs to be educated on what this does to the environment. As to Commissioner Norwood's question, Mr. Boynton said the bridge is swept every Friday morning, and Hwys.17 and 20 are swept every other week. Commissioner Norwood said he notices a lot of trash on the bridge. As to Mayor Flagg’s question about the lights on the bridge, Mr. Boynton said FDOT can’t keep them lit due to a separation in the poles, and this is an equipment defect. They are hoping FDOT will resolve that this summer. Commissioner Norwood asked that a few times a week they make a trip to pick up large debris from the roadways between sweepings. |
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Mr. Bush said, as to utility rate increases effective prior to October 1, they will pass those ordinances in conjunction with the budget, prior to October 1. |
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Adjourn |
At 8:22 p.m. upon a motion by Commissioner Brown, seconded by Commissioner Kitchens. |
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