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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05232005 CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND . CITY COUNCIL MINUTES OF THE WORKSHOP SESSION OF MAY 23,2005 CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The City Council of the City of Port Townsend met in workshop session this twenty third day of May, 2005, at 6:35 p.m. in the Waterman & Katz Building Cedar Room. Deputy Mayor Michelle Sandoval presiding. ROLL CALL Council members present at roll call were Freida Fenn, Kees Kolff, Geoff Masci, Laurie Medlicott, and Michelle Sandoval. Frank Benskin and Catharine Robinson were excused. Staff members present were City Manager David Timmons, City Attorney John Watts, Public Works Director Ken Clow, Finance Director Michael Legarsky, and Administrative Assistant Peach Stebbins. 2006 BUDGET/POSSIBLE BALLOT MEASURE . City Manager David Timmons presented a draft Budget Calendar and gave further details on the list of "Budget Issues and Challenges for 2006" which was attached to the agenda bill. The process for the budget has been moved up by a month and a half for this year with anticipated completion in mid-November. Mr. Timmons presented Council with an overview that anticipated revenue growth will be 1.6% while projected expenses growth will be 3.2%. Factors that will drive the 2006 budget are listed in the "Budget Issues and Challenges for 2006." In brief: Expenditures will be affected by increases in State PERS, medical benefits, and L&I. The General Government employee contract rates will be open for review this year. . Expenses are also driven by employee turnover (half of all City employees are over 50.) Alternative employment strategies we can utilize in the future are contracting, job sharing, and hiring experienced retirees who are looking for alternative employment. Other factors driving expenses are energy costs, deferred maintenance, technology catch-up, and public/private development that drives infrastructure investment. . Real estate construction is increasing while retail sales are going down. The budget for 2006 will be real estate driven. Councilor Sandoval asked if the trend for projected revenue growth has been consistent over the years. Mr. Legarsky responded that it is a 1 O-year trend line for General Fund Revenues and it has been consistent at 1.6%. Mr. Timmons pointed out that with a pattern and trend of an increase in real estate development, there is a need to keep up with upgrading infrastructure. Councilor Sandoval asked about the possibility of a PDA to deal with the impact of new development. Mr. Timmons replied that it would only work for street and above ground improvements. Councilor Masci recommended that the General Government Committee look at standards from an engineering standpoint and develop a policy for new development. He would like this bookmarked for General Government Committee. Mr. Timmons talked about influences on Interlocal Agreements. An earlier review of contracts with county and non-profits would help with the budget process. Reviewing the Interlocal agreements: . - Jail is the biggest expense because higher bond rates cause more people to stay in jail. The laws have created longer jail times for offenses. There needs to be a study on definition and costs of city prisoner versus county prisoner. - Because of our aging population there are higher call volumes for Dispatch and public services. - Interlocal with the Health Department will remain the same. -District Court costs are stable. - Technology costs are going up and we should look at the possibility of having our own IT person. - We also need to consider off-site impacts of fire and EMS contracts with State Parks. Councilor Masci asked if a contract with the Parks for our Police might be considered. - Animal Control services will remain the same. I n-house review: . . - Competing for staff time: Record requests are increasing due to land issues. Neighborhood issues are on the rise and are more diversified. Permit applications are being done more and more by novices who need to be walked through the development process. Also competing for staff time will be the process of elections this year and clarification of issues. - We need to implement unfundated mandates into the 2006 budget. Fire performance measures become effective in 2007, but the plan must be done in 2006. The fire district annexation leaves unanswered questions that will need to be massaged into the plan. - Public Works Director Ken Clow mentioned that David Wright has been assigned the Stormwater Plan to help us as we go into the 2006 budgeting process and that we are working with an interim document for 2005. He also mentioned that the Low Impact Development Manual is available. - Mr. Timmons said that Larry Southwick has been hired to get us to the inventory level of transportation planning. - The Water System Plan is underway and needs to be adopted in 2005. - The Golf Course plan will be designed in 2006. . - Currently the north wall of City Hall still needs to be done. We are on schedule and still within the contingency window. - Designs will be accepted this year for the piling replacement at the Wave Gallery. We need someone to design and permit the shoreline work. Ken Clow said the Statement of Qualifications is done for this project. - Skatepark bids have been extended out until June 5. - The School District is moving forward with their facilities plan and they have asked us not to make any investments in the pool at this time. - Police Department site selection is progressing well. - Library capital campaign for Library Foundation will begin soon. - Sims Way LID is set for 2006. - Wastewater facility upgrades need to be outlined. Revenue: . - Finance and Budget Committee will look at user fees and admissions tax. . - L TAC and B&O compliance needs to be implemented. - Need to look at partnership agreements for 2006 - police-city/county, city mgr/county administrator, YMCA, et al. - Our bonding debt can be structured over 20 years. City Hall LID could be a bond as it relates to refinancing. Councilor Masci asked what our total bonding capacity is. Mr. Legarsky will get that figure. He mentioned that our legal debt margin is high, but our debt repayment capacity is lower. Mr. Timmons stated that our cash flow is looking good for the future. - Our Utility taxes are 10%/10%/10% for water/sewer/storm and we could charge cable 6%. - Property taxes - new construction - we'll see bigger numbers. but the reappraisals will not give us more money. The June City Utility Newsletter has an information article on the reappraisals. General information and discussion: . We are in the process of revising budget forms. The capital side will have more information and control to deflect public criticism. We also are working on a more accelerated CIP process to help study the budget. Taking a look at requiring each department budget to submit cash flow. This will help manage payments and give Council more information to look at for the budget process. Councilor Medlicott asked if the non-profits could be notified earlier. Councilor Fenn suggested a public announcement for non-profits to apply and participate. Mr. Timmons felt we could put it in an rfp format and we could clarify intent. Councilor Medlicott mentioned that the L TAC opportunity fund is already published for this year. Councilor Sandoval asked if the foot ferry to Victoria was still in the works. Mr. Timmons said immigration guidelines need a holding area that meets their requirements. The project has not been taken off the table, but it has slowed down. Ken Clow covered the cost of road construction: 12th street is $80,000 which is only 2 blocks behind Henery's Hardware and part of that inflation is because flagging requirements are way up. . Mr. Timmons said Council needs to be aware of the difference between retail vs construction - what is trend? They also need clarification on where growth is occurring - motels vs state parks. Councilor Medlicott said L TAC is looking at non-licensed establishments and how much money is unaccounted for. . B&O needs to be studied - breaking out by category to see areas to explore. At the June 6 Council Meeting, Council will hear from the EDC about growth in the county. Our community profile indicates that change in demographics is becoming drastic. Trends in health care (a growing industry), infrastructure relating to real estate development, retail development (Sequim knows this growth trend), transportation to urban centers, and the growing number of fixed-income residents who will be more mindful of money. People who want services, access to parks & recreation, public safety, communication services - quality of life issues. They want to preserve what we currently have. These are all areas that need to be considered for the future budget process. Councilor Kolff wanted to know the soonest we would know our options as they begin the budget process. Mr. Timmons assured Council that the end of June would be a good target to put a plan in place. ADJOURN There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m. . Minutes by Peach Stebbins Administrative Assistant Attest: ~cK~ Pamela Kolacy, CMC City Clerk .