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HomeMy WebLinkAbout32- Adminsitrator's Office CITY" OF SAN BERNARDINO REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION From: Lori Sassoon Subject: 9/80 Work Schedule Sr . Admin . Analyst Dept: Administrator ' s Office ORIGINAL Date: May 28, 1996 Synopsis of Previous Council action: 06/94 -- Pilot 9/80 work schedule extended through January 1995. 01/95 -- 9/80 schedule approved through July, 1995. 06/95 -- 9/80 work schedule approved through July, 1996. Recommended motion: That the Mayor and Common Council approve the 9/80 work schedule through December, 1997. Signature Contact person: Lori Sassoon Phone: 5122 Supporting data attached: Yes Ward: FUNDING REQUIREMENTS: Amount: Source:(Acct. No.) (Acct. Description) Finance: Council Notes: 75-0262 Ananrn Itom IVn 4O-L STAFF REPORT On June 12 , 1995, the Mayor and Council approved a one-year extension of the 9/80 work schedule for City Hall and the Economic Development Agency. The purpose of this report is to provide a review of the impact of the 9/80 schedule in several areas: - City service availability; - Impact on downtown businesses; - Congestion management/air quality regulations; - Use of overtime; and - Cost savings City Service Availability Many employers have adopted alternate work schedules for a variety of reasons. One of those reasons is that many customers are better served by the extended hours that result from such a schedule. City residents have continued to take advantage of those extended hours. Since the alternate schedule has been in place for some time, statistics regarding citizen contact during the extended hours were not tracked during the past year. However, during the first five months of 1995, 21, 221 residents accessed City services during the extended hours of operation. It should be noted that cities in the surrounding areas are also on alternate work schedules, including the 9/80, 4/10, and a rotating 9/80. These cities include: Barstow Ontario Chino Rancho Cucamonga Fontana Rialto Grand Terrace Upland Loma Linda Perris Montclair Riverside In order for the public to be able to access City Hall on all closed weekdays and holidays, the city has continued to contract with a service to answer incoming phone calls on those days. With this service, the caller is told that City Hall is closed, and is also informed of the day that normal business will resume. The service gives the caller the option to speak to an operator to either leave a message for a specific department, or to leave an emergency message (other than 911 calls) that is immediately forwarded to the affected department. The following is answering service activity for the first four months of 1995 compared to 1996. The general decline in the number of calls most likely indicates that the public has adjusted to the City's 9/80 work schedule: 9/80 Schedule Page 2 Calls answered: Jan Feb Mar Apr 1995 704 742 653 498 1996 295 479 498 571 Overtime Use In previous reports, overtime usage showed a reduction for non- safety City departments. (Police and Fire are not included, since the 9/80 schedule would not affect their overtime usage. ) As the following chart indicates, the use of overtime has continued to decline since the implementation of the 9/80 schedule: Overtime January - April, 1994 $294, 800 January - April, 1996 185 , 700 Difference: $109, 100 This decrease has resulted in an overtime savings of $109, 100 in the first four months of 1996 as compared to the same months of 1994 . Building Operational Savings The savings resulting from decreased utility and janitorial costs were measured after the first year of the 9/80 schedule. In that analysis, staff reported a $37, 000 savings in 1994 electrical usage over the 1993 costs. Since that time, the completion of various energy-saving projects has resulted in further reductions in overall utility costs. This has made it difficult to determine the amount of savings the City is continuing to realize by implementing the 9/80 schedule. However, by closing City Hall one day every two weeks, there is logically a cost savings. The City has also continued to experience a reduction in custodial costs since custodial services are not needed for two Fridays each month. This savings has amounted to approximately $4, 410 in only the first four months of 1996. Impact on Downtown Business The impact of the 9/80 work schedule on downtown businesses is best determined by examining data gathered when the schedule was first implemented. Staff compared sales tax information for the Carousel Mall with the City's total sales tax revenues for 1993 (before the 9/80) and 1994 (9/80 in place) . The total sales tax revenue figures were used to establish a baseline to evaluate economic 9/80 Schedule Page 3 activity in the entire City as compared to downtown sales activity. Sales tax activity for the period was as follows: Pre 9/80 (1993) Post 9/80 (1994) % Change Carousel Mall Qtr 1 169, 800 188, 042 Qtr 2 203 , 518 209, 466 Qtr 3 193 , 496 229, 007 Qtr 4 290, 817 272 , 247 Total 857, 631 8980,762 +4.7% Inland Center Qtr 1 198, 138 222 , 152 Qtr 2 195, 903 232 , 431 Qtr 3 236, 927 235, 380 Qtr 4 294, 725 339, 495 Total 925, 693 1, 029, 458 +11% During the comparison period, the Carousel Mall sales tax revenue increased an average of 4 . 7%, while the Inland Center Mall sales tax revenue increased an average of 11%. Clearly, other factors are have influenced the difference in the rate of growth between the two malls. However, both malls increased sales during a period when City-wide sales activity remained flat. That indicates that downtown businesses continued to experience increased sales activity despite the 9/80 schedule. Congestion Management, Air Quality, and AQMD Requirements The City has a Congestion Management Plan that provides traffic analysis and a mitigation plan for the downtown area. One major premise of the plan was City offices operating on a 9/80 schedule. Now that the Superblock project is underway, if the City were to revert back to a 5/40 work schedule, the traffic impact during peak hours would change. The need for traffic mitigation measures for the development could increase for both surface streets and freeways, potentially increasing traffic mitigation costs. Also, if the City reverted back to a 5/40 schedule, the City's Average Vehicle Ridership (AVR) would decrease. It is likely that in accordance with AQMD Rule 2202 (the employee commute reduction program) , AQMD would require the City to implement additional incentives to help raise its AVR. Recent newspaper articles have pointed out the affects of poor air quality on the health of San Bernardino County residents. Alternate work schedules are a proven strategy for reducing mobile source pollution. By maintaining the 9/80 schedule, the City has demonstrated its commitment to improving air quality in this area. 9/80 Schedule Page 4 Recommendation The 9/80 schedule has allowed the City to provide extended hours to the public, improve air quality, and reduce congestion in the downtown area. In addition, the schedule has produced a significant cost savings in reduced overtime and building operation expenses. It is recommended that the 9/80 schedule be continued through December of 1997 .