Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-14-2001 Minutes MINUTES MAYOR AND COMMON COUNCIL AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO JOINT ADJOURNED REGULAR MEETING JUNE 14, 2001 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY BOARDROOM This is the time and place set for a joint adjourned regular meeting of the Mayor and Common Council and Community Development Commission of the City of San Bernardino from the joint adjourned regular meeting held at 2 p.m., Wednesday, June 6, 2001, in the Economic Development Agency Boardroom, 201 North "E" Street, San Bernardino, California. The joint adjourned regular meeting of the Mayor and Common Council and Community Development Commission of the City of San Bernardino was called to order by Mayor Valles at 4:08 p.m., Thursday, June 14, 2001, in the Economic Development Agency Boardroom, 201 North "E" Street, San Bernardino, California. ROLL CALL Roll call was taken by City Clerk Clark with the following being present: Mayor Valles; Council Members Estrada, Lien, Anderson, McCammack; Senior Assistant City Attorney Carlyle, City Clerk Clark, City Administrator Wilson. Absent: Council Members McGinnis, Schuetz, Suarez. COUNCIL MEMBER SCHNETZ ARRIVED At 4: 11 p.m., Council Member Schnetz arrived at the Council meeting and took his place at the boardroom table. BUDGET DELIBERATIONS - FISCAL YEAR 2001102 - DISCUSS & TAKE POSSIBLE ACTION CONCERNING PROPOSED CITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (EDA) BUDGETS (1) Mayor Valles stated that the purpose of this workshop was to receive as much information as possible regarding the City's budget. The Mayor added that she did not think the budget would be adopted because the Council had many questions. She requested that members of the Council write down their questions while the presentations were being made, and upon completion of the entire presentation their questions would be addressed. She noted that several Council Members would be leaving early due to graduation ceremonies and, consequently, they would lose their quorum. 1 6/14/2001 Mayor Valles polled the audience and learned that there were 10 people who planned to speak on behalf of the library. She asked that four speakers be selected to speak for the group. Dorothy Inghram, Inghram Branch Library. stated that she was proud of the library and requested the following: More money to obtain new books and other materials; more hours during the day; more hours during the weekend; and, finally, another librarian. Linda Cataldo, representative for Virtual Hi-Tech High, passed out a Project Overview Sheet, and explained that this technology innovation grant is currently represented by three high schools in three different districts: San Gorgonio in San Bernardino, Redlands High School in Redlands, and Eisenhower High School in Rialto. She stated that the program is based on chemistry, math, and Euglish, and students need access to the California Room in order to discover baseline measurements for water quality, air quality, soil, population, etc., so they can help businesses in the area when they need to make determinations about where to go in the future. Ms. Cataldo stated that future plans included having an internship at the Library with connections to the Library's web site as well as the City's web site; however, without a librarian available in the California Room, they could not provide this service to the community. Ophelia Roop, Library Director, stated that Ihey have not had a librarian since 1997, so the only time the California Room is open is when there is a volunteer. Jack Hill, member of the Library Board of Trustees, stated that the library needed to extend its hours of operation and was in need of more staff. Mr. Hill stated that ten years ago there were 38 full-time employees. and today there were only 27 full- time employees. COUNCIL MEMBER McGINNIS ARRIVED At 4:23 p.m., Council Member McGinnis arrived at the Council meeting and took his place at the boardroom table. Carl Clemons, urged the City to take a closer look at the money to be allocated to the various departments, stating that there was a definite need to provide for today' s youth. Marian Thompson, teacher, stated that she used the library regularly and agreed that the library needed to extend its hours as well as increase its staff. Father Guillen, Executive Director of the Libreria del Pueblo, stated that the library offers many services to the Latin American/Mexican community, but as a result of the increase of the immigrant population, the library is being used more and more 2 6/1412001 and needs to extend its hours of operation. Father Guillen requested that the City also look at increasing money for books and staff. Christy Chambers, Coordinator for the St. Johu's Success Center, St. John's Episcopal Church, stated that according to the Department of Education, children do better not only in school, but also in different social encounters when given the opportunity to participate in After School Programs. Ms. Chambers thanked the City for its past support, and stated that she hoped it would continue to support the After School Program. Sue Dawson, representative for the Humane Society of San Bernardino Valley, distributed a letter dated June 12, 2001, addressed to Mayor Judith Valles, requesting $30,000 toward operational costs of the new mohile spay/neuter van, which was donated by television personality, Bob Barker, to help stem the tide of animal overpopulation. Lynette Reschke, representative of the Howard Rowe Library, stated that the library needed additional staff, needed to extend its hours, and needed to expand. Mayor Valles stated that the budget was scheduled to be adopted by June 29, 2001. Council Member Lien announced that former Councilman Ed Wheeler had passed away and asked for a moment of silence. James Funk, Director of Development Services, introduced the City of San Bernardino FY 2001-2002/2005-2006 Capital Improvement Program, and stated that it represented $27 million in improvements to the community. Ray Casey, City Engineer, stated that they spent the last year focusing on design issues, accelerating the design process, and actively pursuing federal state aid funding. Mr. Casey stated that the City also focused on the projects it had already received funding for, but had not started. Mr. Casey reported that they recently received authorization from Caltrans to move forward on a number of projects including the seismic retrofit of a number of bridges throughout the community. Mr. Casey provided an assessment of some of the projects accomplished over the last eight to ten years, projects forecast for the coming year such as asphalt repair, slurry seal, street rehabilitation, etc., and major infrastructure improvements such as the 1-215 and Route 30 Freeway expansions, State Street connection, Vision 20/20, intersection improvements, grade separations, etc. Mayor Valles suggested that if any of the Council members had questions regarding the CIP, they could contact Mr. Casey. 3 6/14/2001 Mr. Wilson stated that the next phase of the presentation was to discuss the Mayor's recommendations regarding spending priorities and called the Council's attention to the Preliminary Summary Budget. Council Member Estrada asked how they could evaluate the priorities when they had not heard from each Department and did not have the opportunity to ask questions. Mayor Valles stated that she hoped the Council had already been looking at the individual departmental budgets and made reference to Priority 3: Provide adequate staffing levels to meet service demands, which she suspected was one of Ms. Estrada's concerns. Mr. Wilson stated that it was agreed to not have each department present their budget, but noted that department heads were available to answer any questions. Mayor Valles clarified that the purpose of the next two meetings was to answer any questions the Council may have after looking at each department's budget. Council Member McCammack stated that they had a presentation at the Personnel Committee meeting regarding a request for an additional amount of money to fund library staffing. Ms. McCammack indicated that she did not believe the request was part of the budget document and did not feel concerns of that nature from other department heads were part of the document before them. She also wondered whether there were other needs they should know about. Council Member Estrada stated that they would not know what the specific needs were unless the department heads presented them. Council Member McCammack asked if Ms. Estrada needed to know that the request for the I ibrary was $190,000. Council Member Lien stated that the process has been that the Mayor brings the budget to the Council along with recommended changes. The Council then studies the budget, and based on what they feel mayor may not be included in the budget, they begin to make necessary adjustments. Ms. Lien indicated that she would like to hear the suggestions that were outside the budget so she could bring her concerns forward. Council Member Estrada stated that she had been with the City long enough to know that presentations were made by the department heads and the Council members were given the opportunity to ask questions. Mayor Valles stated that she didn't think they placed department heads in that position. 4 6/1412001 Council Member McCammack stated that she would have liked to have seen each department's wish list, knowing that they could never meet that financial expectation within a short period of time, but felt it would provide some forethought in future years as to how to layout those priorities. Mr. Wilson stated that he would distribute the list to the Council following the meeting. Council Member McCammack stated that Council Member Anderson called for an emergency personnel meeting regarding the library issue so that the item could be discussed before being brought back to the Council. Mayor Valles stated that every department head has had an opportunity to request the positions they needed. She noted that the City had to deal with dollars and priorities, not emotions, in order to maintain City and Economic Development Agency financial stability (Priority 1 of the City's adopted goals). COUNCIL MEMBER LIEN LEFT At 5:15 p.m., Council Member Lien left the meeting. CITY CLERK CLARK LEFT At 5:20 p.m., City Clerk Clark left the meeting. Mayor Valles stated that they had gone through the policy governance process many times wherein the City Administrator and department heads are given certain parameters and they return with their recommendations. Council Member McCammack asked if the library had become the exception to the rule. Mayor Valles stated that they had the right to do what they did. Council Member Anderson asked why they would consider reevaluating and shifting funds when the percentages had already been worked out. Council Member Estrada asked why they were dealing with it, if it had already been worked out-all they had to do was approve it. Ms. Estrada stated that they entrusted the Mayor and staff to put together a budget with some guidelines, which were not written in cement. Mayor Valles stated that she would make the recommendations and ultimately the Council could accept or reject them. The Mayor stated that the Council could ask questions of anything they disagree with and make recommendations. She stated that the Council ultimately had the right to make any decisions. The Mayor noted that staff 5 6/14/2001 had attended workshops, and had completed prioritizations, team building, and goal setting in order to prepare the document. As elected officials, the Mayor stated that it was their responsibility to decide whether it conformed with the goals as set forth and either approve it or make other recommendations. The Mayor stated that the City had a lot of staffing needs and had to analyze the cost implications for all of them. Mr. Wilson stated that they would now move on to the Mayor's Recommendations for the Budget Excess. Mayor Valles stated that budget excess actually referred to discretionary monies and was in addition to the surplus. Barbara Pachon, Director of Finance, explained how they arrived at the budget excess of $3.4 million. Prioritv: Financial Stabilitv. Mr. Wilson stated that the Mayor recommended contributing an additional $3 million to the budgeted reserve, which would increase the reserve balance by 10 percent, to $9.9 million. Prioritv: Image Enhancement. recommendations were developed by maintenance and improvements: Mr. Wilson stated that the following Public Services relative to infrastructure . Additional contract concrete curb/gutter/sidewalk repairs: $175,000 . Additional contract street repair: $100,000 . Additional contract tree trimming (4500 trees): $174,000 . Contract tree removal, stump grinding, and tree replacement: $141,100 . Facilities repairs and improvements ~primarily health/safety/regulatory issues): $260,000. (Facilities Management Program Change Requests, Fiscal Year 2001/02.) . Partial funding for additional parking at the CYSA Soccer Complex: $150,000 . Verdemont Fire Station design and engineering: $150,0000 . Other items: . Increase CVB funding: $20,000 . General Plan updates: $180,000 6 6/14/2001 Prioritv: Provide Adequate Staffing Levels. Mr. Wilson stated that the following items were recommended for approval by the Personnel Committee: . Facilities Management reorganization: $ll,400 . Addition of four part-time Animal License Checkers . Fire Department reorganization . Finance Department reorganization . City Clerk's Office reorganization . Add one additional Sanitation Route Supervisor in the Refuse Division: $47,100 Mr. Wilson stated that there were two pending issues before the Personnel Committee: . Public Works Division/Development Services Department reorganization: $45,200 . Add one Lieutenant in the Police Department: $126,100 Prioritv: Provide More Effective Blight Abatement/Beautification: . Project Curb Appeal (through Los Padrinos) will cut weeds, remove debris and litter along major arterials; 6-month pilot project with areas serviced every 10-12 days: $25,000 . Beautification of vacant lots/pocket parks - landscape and/or provide decorative accents on vacant lots throughout the City: $100,000 Other General Fund Items: . Reduce Area Tax by 50 percent effective July 1: $54,700 . Establish a Utility User's Tax (UUT) electricity rebate program for the months of July and August 2001: $1.5 million (estimated) . Fire Department - safety clothing replacement and washing, other operating expenses: $61,000 . Police Department - pistol range reconstruction materials (labor provided by the Army Corp of Engineers): $100,000 . Form "Facilities Expansion Board" to evaluate furure facilities needs Other Funds: . Sewer Fund - set aside funding to enhance sewer maintenance services (via contract or additional employees). Specific plan to be presented in Fall 2001: $100,000 . Information Services Fund - various PC, software, and bandwidth upgrades. Specific plan to be presented in Fall: $380,000 7 6/14/2001 Council Member Anderson asked that a discretionary fund be established for supplies for the Council Office. Council Member McGinnis asked if assistance was available to help people change from septic to the City's sewer system. Mayor Valles stated that the $100,000 that was proposed would not even begin to address the real problems that exist in San Bernardino. Council Member Schnetz stated that last year they budgeted money to help people who were experiencing problems with old sewer laterals, and asked how many people took advantage of the program. Lynn Merrill, Director of Public Services, stated that he did not believe anyone took advantage of it, but recalled that the program was handed over to the Economic Development Agency because of low-income issues. Council Member Schnetz stated that he would like to fund an additional $75,000 to the lateral program. Council Member McGinnis stated that he had two items of concern: (1) The poor condition of the City yard and the possibility of moving it to a City-owned building, and (2) the need for a contingency plan for animal control. Council Member Schuetz stated that this was a deficit budget and he was concerned about getting too many wish lists fulfilled because he believed this would be the last year of excess numbers in the budget. Ms. Pachon pointed out that the CIP Budget for 2001 to the next fiscal year was different than the City's budget document because they had to go to print with the budget document. Ms. Pachon suggested that the Council look at the Five Year CIP document, make changes, and once adopted, the changes would be incorporated into the final budget document as part of their regular reconciliation. Mayor Valles stated that at the next two workshops members of the Council could ask questions and provide feedback and recommendations. Ms. Roop asked if the library's needs would he addressed at the next workshop. Mayor Valles answered that they would bring up the matter at the next meeting. Council Member McGinnis asked Ms. Roop to provide Council with a list of the library's needs prior to the next meeting. 8 6/1412001 ADJOURNMENT (2) The meeting was adjourned at 6:07 p.m. The next joint regular meeting IS scheduled for 8:00 a.m., Monday, June 18, 2001, in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 300 North "D" Street, San Bernardino, California. RACHEL G. CLARK City Clerk By~d4/ J~~) Linda Sutherland Deputy City Clerk No. of Items: 2 No. of Hours: 2 9 6/14/2001