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Richard D. Woycik, Chair
James S. Belden
Daniel Amaral
Chris LaRocque
“DRAFT”
Legislative Council Public Works Sub Committee
Minutes for Meeting of March 22, 2010
Attendees: Richard D. Woycik, Daniel Amaral, Chris LaRocque, James Belden
Richard Woycik, Chair, opened the meeting at 7:40.
Public Participation: No members of the public were in attendance.
The meeting began with unanimous approval of Minutes Dated February 3, 2010.
Mr. Woycik stated our purpose to discuss Town of Newtown Department Budgets to include the following:
- Mr. Woycik described that there would be a reduction of one employee from the Building Department reflecting a reduction in labor cost relative to reduced activity and revenues in this department. The group agreed that the remainder of the budget appeared acceptable.
- Mr. Woycik and Mr. Amaral had attended a meeting with Mr. Hurley recently to discuss Budget. It was stated that many aspects were clarified during this meeting. The group discussed the continued need for work on methods and systems to achieve greater efficiency and that previous suggestions will continue to be implemented.
- A new grader for road work is the sole Capital item for $135,000 to complement the $127,000 in the '09-'10 Budget for this item.
- Other matters discussed included proper bidding practices and use of contractors vs. employees, overtime costs and ways to reduce labor costs.
- Mr. Woycik will discuss again with Mr. Hurley the questions surrounding overtime charges
- Discussion ensued regarding the comparison of salt and sand costs and use of contractors for road sweeping, drain cleaning
- Concern over costs of repairing curbs damaged by plows and the least expensive way of repairing, which Mr. Woycik will pursue with Mr. Hurley.
- The group discussed the contractual pricing of landfill services and recycling, including wood chip removal. Mr. Belden, with waste management experience, suggested the per ton cost of waste disposal and handling services appeared to be consistent with market prices, but perhaps increased revenues could be gained through tip fees at the facility. Mr. Woycik will pursue this with Mr. Hurley.
- #650 Public Building Maintenance
- Discussion on cleaning contracts for various buildings
- It was stated that no new vehicles would included in the Budget and that the existing fleet appears to be highly utilized but Mr. Larocque suggested perhaps a reservation system could be pursued for cost savings in future.
- #110 Social Services
- #220 Commission on Aging
- #370 Newtown Health District
- #375 Tick Action Committee
- #490 Land Use
- LUD would be reducing labor through elimination of one Building Inspector position and agreed that the department had sufficiently reduced other areas due to Budget constraints.
- Mr. Woycik described the meeting with Ms. Mangold of P&R and that the largest topic was Dickinson Park and the several projects there including skate park and new recreational amenities. P&R has $50,000 available to put towards the skate park. It was agreed that plans for various projects appeared to be well organized and timed for implementation.
- Discussion included the existence of a Fund Surcharge account accrued over time was available for P&R to use for projects. Mr. Woycik will ask further regarding the use of these funds and eventual allocation of monies.
- Mr. Amaral expressed concern over Capital monies and need.
The group discussed the need to have the questions raised answered prior to any action. Mr. Woycik will follow up and schedule another meeting for action on the Budget recommendations for these departments.
The meeting adjourned at 9:00PM. No further meetings were scheduled at this time.
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