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Chairperson Janice Snyder called the meeting to order at 4:40 p.m.
Members Present
Dr. Kate Carter, Superintendent of Schools, Board of Education
Chris Chemerka, Director of Finance and Operations, Board of Education
Carol Driscoll, Board of Education (Vice Chairperson)
Matthew Galligan, Town Manager (arrived at approximately 4:45 p.m.)
Michael Gantick, Director of Public Works
Patrick Hankard, Director of Facility Services, Board of Education
David Joy, Board of Education
Elizabeth Pendleton, Town Council
Janice Snyder, Town Council (Chairperson)
Members Absent
Dr. Saud Anwar, Town Council
Lisa Maneeley, Board of Education
Guests Present
Jeffrey Doolittle, Town Engineer
Clay Major, Facilities Manager
Brian Peck, Fire Department
Brian Reale, TIP Capital
Scott Roberts, Director of Information Technology
Jack Sloan, TIP Capital
Walter Summers, Fire Marshal
3. Approval of Minutes Previous Meetings
Mr. Michael Gantick made a motion to approve the May 8, 2013 Minutes; Ms. Carol Driscoll seconded that motion; and it was approved unanimously with one abstention from Mr. David Joy. Ms. Carol Driscoll made a motion to approve the October 23, 2013 Minutes; Mr. Michael Gantick seconded that motion; and it was approved unanimously with three abstentions from Mr. David Joy, Ms. Chris Chemerka, and Superintendent Kate Carter. Mr. Patrick Hankard made a motion to approve the December 18, 2013 Minutes; Councilor Elizabeth Pendleton seconded that motion; and it was approved unanimously with two changes from Mr. Michael Gantick; changing the word “repair” to “clear” on the second to last line in page 2, and changing “$287,000” to “167,980” on page 3.
4. Discussion Items
Status of Identified Capital Projects
Town Manager Galligan started the discussion by saying the Town has many projects that need to be considered. The Connecticut Education Network has given the Town of South Windsor access to the Network. It would open up the door for many projects concerning emergency operations, and the Town is submitting a grant application. The fiber network from the South Windsor High School would be able to reach the Town Hall. Eventually, the network could be shared with the Public Library and the Police Department. It would all be paid for by taxpayer money, but it would open the door to better communication on a local and national basis. This is important because in an emergency, personnel are spread out. The fiber would provide needed information between buildings that would be coordinated from the
Emergency Operations Center. Mr. Scott Roberts explained the Connecticut Education Network, also known as the Nutmeg Network, in more depth. The future grant money is questionable, so Mr. Roberts would like to apply for the grant as soon as possible while funds are still guaranteed. The project would start at South Windsor High School, connect to the Community Center, connect to the Police Department, and then connect to the Town Hall and Public Library. A digital easement would be provided to the Public Library that would upgrade their internet speed for free.
Ms. Carol Driscoll asked if there was any tie-in to the Fire Department. Mr. Roberts said at this point, the Fire Department would not be connected. A larger version of the grant plan would make the network a full loop that would connect all of the Fire Departments, Veterans Memorial Park, and the Public Works facilities. The grant, provided by the Office of Policy and Management, is only tied to the first phase of the project, which would cost approximately $135,000. The total cost of the entire project would be approximately $500,000. There would be a total of 48 fiber strands. The eventual goal would be to have inter-town communications during an emergency. Mr. Roberts said that one caveat is a make-ready charge.
Mr. Michael Gantick distributed Public Works Capital Project Needs FY 2014-2015 (Exhibit A). Exhibit A includes all of the Town’s Public Works needed projects. Mr. Gantick explained the projects and available grants. The total amount of available grant money is approximately $4,514,740. He stated that the Town is playing Russian roulette with some of the pieces of equipment that need to be replaced, such as the Town Hall boiler. The sidewalks repairs are an unfunded mandate from the Town Council, and there is no money left in that account.
Chairperson Snyder asked if there were any State properties available for debris sites. Mr. Gantick said there were none available. The State was having trouble finding a site for their debris during Storm Alfred. Debris sites cannot be too soft or else machinery would tear up the ground. The Barton property is a suitable Town debris site.
Mr. Gantick also proposed the first year of five years for road repair. This winter has been very bad for roads with all of the freeze/thaw cycles that have happened already. Spending $2 million for five years might not cover all of the needed road repairs. Crack sealing is only a temporary solution.
Chairperson Snyder said that she recalls approximately half of the projects in the Public Works list being on the failed referendum from 2012. These projects will not go away, and they will need to be taken care of at some point. She asked for an update on the paving and drainage projects from the successful referendum. Mr. Doolittle said that all referendum road and drainage repairs are basically completed. There is $200,000 left from the referendum bond.
Mr. Patrick Hankard will work on the Board of Education list, and once Superintendent Carter approves it, the list will be distributed to the Committee. The entire Committee will also fill out Project Forms for their respective proposed Capital Projects.
Mr. David Joy asked if Exhibit A was already prioritized. Mr. Gantick said it was not prioritized yet, and the challenge is to find money from the Town and the State to complete the projects. The list was made as a talking point for the Committee meeting. Mr. Joy said the Committee has a lot of homework.
Mr. Galligan said at one time, the Town Capital Projects Budget had over $3 million. Ms. Driscoll asked how to come up with that kind of money in the present. Mr. Joy said discipline by the Town Council was needed along with a funding mechanism. Chairperson Snyder explained the process to Mr. Joy There is a lot of work involved from the Committee, Board of Education, and Town Staff. The Board and Town Staff spend many hours reviewing and prioritizing projects. Then the Committee reviews what projects have been brought forward and prioritize all of the projects in a master list. Then a presentation for the Town Council is put forward. The Town Council should review the projects and provide either agreement or suggestions for revisions. Once the list is agreed upon, Town
Manager Galligan presents the Capital Budget in his Town Budget presentation.
Mr. Joy asked if an outline could be created that would include the Capital Projects process and a possible timeline for preparation.
Status of Resolution to Create Ordinance for Funding
Town Manager Galligan suggested that the original April 20, 1998 resolution for the Capital Budget Policy should be mentioned in the resolution. Ms. Carol Driscoll suggested adding the revised July 2012 policy as well. Town Manager Galligan said that there are certain principals from the April 20, 1998 Resolution that would help inform the Council of their responsibilities. Both versions of the policy should be included in the ordinance.
Town Manager Galligan said there are a few ways to fund Capital Projects. One way is called pay-as-you-go funding which goes into the budget. Items that should be funded this way are fleet, cars, computers, or anything that has a useful life of approximately five years. It keeps debt down. Town Manager Galligan said this method of funding has to go back into the budget. There is no reason that Public Works should need to bond for paving. The ordinance should solidify an amount for those items that will be added every year into the budget.
Another funding mechanism is pay-as-you-use. This is debt. There are major projects that will cost a lot of money that will be bonded over twenty years. These projects would be buildings such as schools or public facilities.
Another funding mechanism is leasing. This method is useful because computers, fire trucks, and other items that get wear and tear can be handed back for new items. It keeps maintenance costs low. There are short-term and long-term leases that can be used for different assets. Town Manager Galligan said that in the Public Works budget, there used to be an account called Capital Account 410. There used to be $375,000 in that account for equipment. Every year, a new truck would be bought as part of a long term plan to replace old trucks. The Town Council wiped out that account. When 30 inches of snow fell during Storm Charlotte, there was one point during the snow removal operations when eight trucks were broken at once. Town Manager Galligan said that the Town cannot band-aid
problems anymore, and something has to be done with replenishing budgets. It does not matter which Town Council has been in charge, budgets are still wiped out. Leasing will probably be used more now since $3 million will not be put back into the budget immediately.
Town Manager Galligan suggested for the ordinance that the Capital Projects Committee should be established and make it firm that if the Town Council does not agree with the Capital Projects amount, the Capital Projects Committee will reconvene. This will hopefully eliminate last-minute slashing of the Capital Projects budget by the Town Council. Getting the Town Council involved as early as possible is important. Ms. Driscoll said that despite the Committee’s hard work and information given to the Council, the Budget continues to get slashed.
Councilor Pendleton asked if the funding mechanisms also reflect the School projects. Town Manager Galligan and Mr. Patrick Hankard agreed that the mechanisms affect every project. Town Manager Galligan said that an ordinance will provide teeth just like the pension ordinance. The ordinance states that the Town Council must fund the ARC or else they have to change their policy. However, changing the policy will not reflect well with the ratings agency. Therefore, the pension ordinance is very strong. Town Manager Galligan would like to make the Capital Projects ordinance just as strong.
Town Manager Galligan also discussed the Buckland Road sidewalks. He would like to create a special service district in order to connect sidewalks to that area. A bond could be floated in that area, and the landowners would become the Board of Directors. They would be able to decide how much they want to pay for their area. It would not affect others who would not want to pay for those sidewalks. It would become a special taxing district. Mr. Joy asked if this was discussed during the December 18, 2013 Capital Projects Committee meeting. Town Manager Galligan said it was discussed. Mr. Joy asked if it would be reviewed by the Committee. Town Manager Galligan said it would as it will affect some other sidewalk funding.
Town Manager Galligan discussed policies from other towns. Scottsdale, Arizona, has a public policy in capital that states when the general fund budget is done, 5% of that amount should be transferred to capital. The Town of South Windsor has $100 million in the operating budget, so 5% would be $5 million. Other towns have policies that state the capital budget should never go below $3 million and never go above $10 million. Town Manager Galligan wants to have a strong policy in the ordinance regarding a minimum capital budget such as 3%. Chairperson Snyder also said that the Town Manager should be recommending what will be coming off of debt in 2015. Town Manager Galligan suggested placing in the ordinance that any year where new debt is not coming on but old debt is coming off that the money
previously budgeted for the old debt should be put into capital. If the Council can keep the fund balance at 7% and meet ratings agencies guidelines, anything over 7% should go into capital. All of these items should be included in the ordinance.
Chairperson Snyder said that Town Manager Galligan needs to draft the ordinance. Town Manager Galligan said he is working with the Town Attorney to draft a formal ordinance. He warned that there will be some resistance, but the Capital Projects Committee should be like the Pension Committee where decisions are meaningful. Town Manager Galligan discussed the Town’s current ratings from Standard and Poor’s and Moody’s.
Chairperson Snyder discussed the Committee’s to-do list. Mr. Joy requested to receive any information by email before the next meeting and to have hard copies available for the meeting. Staff needs to complete the project description sheets. Town Manager Galligan will work on the ordinance. Chairperson Snyder will provide a description of Capital Projects procedure.
Town Manager Galligan discussed the generator lease that is going through TIP Capital. He also mentioned that he was working with ClearEdge Power to get a fuel cell at South Windsor High School. It could use virtual metering and get credits for electricity. The fuel cell would last for twenty years. Chairperson Snyder asked if there is a listing of all projects being handled by TIP Capital. Mr. Brian Reale and Mr. Jack Sloan will be creating a list of all items that the Town is leasing through them.
5. New Business
None
6. Old Business
None
7. Adjournment
A motion to adjourn was made by Ms. Carol Driscoll at 5:40 p.m.; the motion was seconded by Mr. David Joy; and all were in favor.
Respectfully submitted,
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Ashley Summers
Recording Secretary
(Approved 2/19/14)
Exhibit A Public Works Capital Projects Needs 2014-2015
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