Minutes of the Board of Finance meeting held on Tuesday, July 19, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. at the Old Lyme Memorial Town Hall Meeting Hall.
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Present:~~~~~~~~~~ Regular Members:~ Christopher Kerr, Janet Sturges, David Woolley
Alternate Members:~ Adam Burrows, Robert Jose, David Kelsey
Bonnie A. Reemsnyder, ex-officio
Nicole Stajduhar, Finance Director
Mary Jo Nosal, Selectwoman
Absent:~~~~~~~~~~~ Regular Members:~ Andrew Russell, H. P. Garvin, III
~Alternate Members:~~Bennett Bernblum
Tim Griswold, Treasurer
Skip Sibley, Selectmen
Guest: None
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~Mr. Kerr called the meeting to order at 7:31 p.m. Mr. Bernblum could not make this evening’s meeting and appointed Mr. Burrows to vote for him in his absence. Mr. Garvin will not be attending this evening’s meeting as well. Therefore, a motion was made Mrs. Sturges, seconded by Mr. Woolley, to have Mr. Jose vote for Mr. Garvin in his absence. Motion carried.
Approval of June 13th Special meeting Minutes
The minutes of June 13th Special meeting were reviewed.
There being no comments, a motion was made by Mr. Jose, seconded by Mrs. Sturges to approve the minutes as written. Motion carried.
Approval of June 21st Regular meeting Minutes
The minutes of the June 21st Regular meeting were reviewed.
There being no comments, a motion was made by Mr. Jose, seconded by Mrs. Sturges to approve the minutes as written. Motion carried.
Approval of July 7th Special meeting Minutes
The minutes of July 7th Special meeting were reviewed. In the second sentence, delete the word “overage”.
There being no further comments, a motion was made by Mrs. Sturges, seconded by Mr. Burrows to approve the minutes as modified. Motion carried.
Board of Finance Meeting July 19, 2016
Review of Monthly Financial Reports
Mrs. Stajduhar outlined the Financial Report Notes for June 2016. Under Revenues, the Property tax, total tax collections were $54,572, over 100% of total tax department budget collected. Beach Sticker revenue is at $19,905 collected ($31,000 for the year, budget $28,000), and the Parking Lot revenue is $34,768 ($127,755 for the year, budget $95,000). OLVNA reimbursement was $5,027 for 2014/2015 year. Grant revenues received are $49,358 from LOCIP and $44,453 from FEMA for the 2015 blizzard. Other revenues included $38,400 repayment from the Bus Barn. Total revenue collected exceeds budget by $311,000 with additional revenue to be recorded.
Expenditures included Special Deductions – Pension $36,525 of 4th quarter employer contribution. The Parks and Recreation seasonal wages are $17,744 for approximately 40 staff members. The Ambulance Fuel/Other line paid $7,755 to date which comprises both fuel and Comcast costs to bill OLVAA. Old Lyme Fire Department – Fire Fighters expense paid $20,092 to Shipman for turnout gear. The Municipal Police paid $18,242 in wages to Rangers for approximately 14 staff members. “Transfer Out” in the amount of $75,000was paid to Open Space, per budget.
Capital Expenditures include: Cross Lane Tennis Courts and Basketball Courts - $2,800 from current year carryover and $14,800 from carryover to re-do basketball and tennis courts. Senior Center Furniture - $2,000 from carryover and $3,500 from carryover. Cross Lane Boiler paid $25,000 to Greg Landry on a $33,000 invoice.
The percentage of general government budget spent to date (without Capital or RSD#18 included) = 85%.
Under Other Funds, the Bus Barn paid back $60,000 to Revaluation and General Fund using FY2015/16 rent income.
Mrs. Stajduhar reviewed the Hains Park Boathouse project as of June 30, 2016 and the Harbor Management Dredging Grant that was used to dredge Four Mile River Road and the Black Hall River. The total grant appropriation was in the amount of $1,814,074 and the project came in at $1,557,497. The State has requested the balance of $256,577 to be returned to the State.
Old Lyme Fire Department – Cross Lane Boiler
Mrs. Stajduhar stated that an invoice was received for the Cross Lane Boiler in the amount of $33,000, however, only $25,000 was budgeted, therefore, creating an overage of $8,000. Mrs. Stajduhar stated that she was not made aware that the boiler repair/replacement was going to be over budget before the work was done. There is an account called the Public Building Improvement Fund with a balance of $22,000 and she could take the $8,000 overage from there. There was a discussion in regards to the expenditure taking place without notification to the Finance Director. Mrs. Stajduhar was not involved or informed in the expenditure process. Mr. Burrows said that if the town followed a Requisition and Purchase Order process, the town would be made aware of the amount before monies are released. The Requisition for work to be performed, and then a release in the Purchase Order process, would make everyone aware before major work gets done. It was decided that this overage will be
paid out of the Public Building Improvement Fund this time with the Fire Department officials being made aware that they need to follow the procedures that were previously discussed.
Board of Finance Meeting July 19, 2016
A motion was made by Mrs. Sturges, seconded by Mr. Woolley to seat Mr. Kelsey in place for Mr. Russell in his absence. Motion carried.
A motion was made by Mr. Kelsey to approve the overage amount of $8,000 for the boiler replacement at Cross Lane and also to ask the first selectwoman to notify the fire department officials that if they have incurred an expenditure in excess of 10% of a budgeted amount without giving immediate notification to the Boards of Finance and Selectmen, then such overage will be the responsibility of the Fire Department solely. Mrs. Sturges seconded the motion. Motion carried.
LED Lighting
Mrs. Reemsnyder stated that a committee was formed to investigate changing the present street lights over to LED lighting. There are 380 town –owned lights that could be replaced. She reached out to CCM for recommendation and was given the names of two companies that are CCM approved. The company Tanko Corporation, from San Francisco, gave a presentation and a quote for $115,000 with a rebate of $45,000 from Eversource, leaving the town’s cost at approximately $70,000. . Tanko offers maintenance and a service contract with several options available. Another advantage for the change-over would be having the lights with GPS coordinates that can be incorporated into the GIS mapping system. The second company was named Real Term from Massachusetts and their quote was considerably
higher.
Middlesex Paramedics Agreement
Mrs. Reemsnyder reported that a meeting at the RiverCOG was held with First Selectmen of the towns that utilize the Middlesex Paramedic Service and a small committee was formed to review the Grant Application. Westbrook’s First Selectman offered to have his town attorney sit on the committee and review the document as well.
An advisory committee comprised of EMS and municipal officials, and Middlesex Hospital representatives will be formed to discuss matters related to service and financial performance measures in regard to the Middlesex Paramedic Services, including the amount and calculation of municipal grants.
The agreement is that Middlesex Hospital will make available licensed Paramedics for services to Old Lyme. The terms of the grant will begin at the beginning of each fiscal year in the amount of $1.00 per-capita (7,603 persons or $7,603) and will increase $1.00 at each renewal term. The town would have the option to terminate the agreement with a 30-day notice. Mrs. Reemsnyder stated that towns have to have a paramedic service in place and it has always been provided with a bundled agreement with the Ambulance Association. The town’s paramedic services have always been handled by Middlesex and with State cuts, hospitals are falling short financially. The reasoning for this grant is to have the towns help fund the hospital’s deficit. It should be noted that L & M has tried this grant
agreement with the six towns that they currently handle, and the towns rejected their request. L & M is struggling financially and will be addressing a bundling of paramedic services with their six towns again in the future. Mr. Kelsey stated that if the town agrees with the agreement, the annual amount will continue to escalate over time.
Board of Finance Meeting July 19, 2016
Old Business
WPCA/Task Force Update: Mrs. Reemsnyder reminded board that the WPCA drafted Amendment No. 3 which included assistance and advice to the WPCA, updates to the Report and Environmental Impact Evaluation (EIE) for the Connecticut Environmental Policy Act (CEPA) process, as well as follow-up meetings and coordination with Town officials and CT-DEEP. She stated that the proposed Amendment also included assistance and advice to the WPCA, updates to the Report and EIE for the CEPA process, as well as follow-up meetings and coordination with Town officials and CT-DEEP in the amount of $24,948 commencing in July 2016 and are anticipated through November 2016.
New Business
Health District Discussion: Mrs. Reemsnyder reported that she has received a proposal from Ledge Light Health District Board of Directors. Ledge Light has agreed to hire the town’s health department’s administrative assistant and have Old Lyme as her primary workspace for the first two years of employment with Ledge Light. Based on the anticipated expenses to Ledge Light, which depend largely on the anticipated installation of public sewers in certain beach communities, they propose that a transition fee of $60,000 be paid for the first two years. After this, payment could continue or be eliminated, based upon the actual operational expenses of Ledge Light. After the three-year transitional period, the annual payment from Old Lyme would revert to a straight per capita
formula equal to that of the other member municipalities.
Selectman’s Report
Mrs. Reemsnyder gave a Boathouse Hains Park Improvement update. The Contract was signed with Scope Construction and an agreement has been drawn up changing land ownership from the Regional District #18 to the town. Construction is scheduled to begin on August 8th.
Since the Sound View Improvement Project was approved at the Town Meeting, it is hoped that construction will begin after Labor Day.
The new Police/Fire Boat is in the water and in operation. The previous boat, the Privateer, will be going up for auction shortly.
Rogers Lake was treated for the weeds on July 5th. Results are already evident in the lake. Wells in the surrounding area have been tested and the results from the testings came back with no chemicals within their water source.
The Mid-Summer Festival will be taking place next week, beginning Friday evening, July 29th with a concert on the lawn of the Florence Griswold Museum and ending with the fireworks provided by the town, scheduled for Saturday evening, July 30th.
Board of Finance Meeting July 19, 2016
The Special Town Meeting was held last evening. The Construction costs for the Sound View project, acceptance of Queen Anne Court as a town road, and Resident Trooper department costs were all approved.
Mrs. Reemsnyder stated that the new audio equipment that Mr. Sibley has been working on with Sennheiser, will be installed shortly.
Mrs. Reemsnyder summarized a meeting held on July 7th regarding the status of the NEC Future decision. The principal concern was that the railroad bypass would devastate the community, as it would pass through the heart of our historic and commercial district. Also, the environmental impact of the possible bypass on the Connecticut River estuary is also extremely worrisome. At that meeting, the Commissioner explained how the NEC Future study came about. The meeting lasted for about two hours. The Commissoner encouraged the group to continue to ask the FRA to come to Old Lyme for a public information session and to forward questions to them.
Mr. Kerr stated that the next Board of Finance meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, August 16, 2016 at 7:30 p.m.
A motion was made by Mrs. Sturges, seconded by Mr. Jose to adjourn the Regular meeting at 9:20 p.m. Motion carried.
Respectfully Submitted,
Michele E. Hayes
Secretary
Michele E. Hayes
Office Manager
Selectman's Office
Town of Old Lyme
52 Lyme Street
Old Lyme, CT 06371
tel. 860.434.1605, x-212
fax. 434.1400
M-F, 9-4pm
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