MINUTES
SPECIAL JOINT MEETING OF THE
BOARD OF FINANCE AND THE
BOARD OF COUNCILMEN
MAY 20, 2003
A SPECIAL JOINT MEETING of the Board of Finance and the Board of Councilmen was held on Tuesday, May 20, 2003, in the Council Chambers to discuss the budget.
In attendance was Mayor Owen J. Quinn, Jr., members of the Board of Finance Theodore Miasek, Michael Nejaime (left at 5:30 p.m.), Diane Libby, Roger Dickinson, and Bruce Cornish, members of the Board of Councilmen Thomas C. Jerram, Marie P. Soliani, David M. Bascetta, Richard E. Dalla Valle (arrived at 5:00 p.m.), and James D. Reginatto, Comptroller Alice Proulx, and Public Works Director Gerald Rollett.
Mayor Quinn called the meeting to order at 4:41 p.m.
Mrs. Libby stated that Mayor Quinn had fulfilled the Board of Finance’s request to present the citizens of Torrington with a zero based budget. She inquired whether there were any priorities that should be addressed in the upcoming years that were not included in this budget because of the Mayor’s directive.
Mr. Rollett stated that significant building renovations at City Hall, the Street Department and the City Barn should be looked at in the not too distant future. He reported that the city missed an opportunity to purchase a key piece of property a year and a half ago that would have been beneficial to the street department. He suggested starting a property acquisition fund to take advantage of similar situations in the future. Mr. Rollett estimated a need for approximately $300,000.00 to $400,000.00 for the expansion of the street department in the next couple of years.
Mrs. Libby asked Chief Janelle if there were items on the wish list that would enhance his department.
Chief Janelle stated that increasing the number of staff would benefit the department and enable them the opportunity to provide a better environment. He asked the boards to keep the current staffing level for the upcoming year and revisit the possibility of adding several positions in the next budget year. They presently had seventy-three on board and he was holding off on two to see what the final budget result would be. (The current budget funded seventy-five positions.)
Chief Janelle stated that they were in the last year of a five-year plan instituted by former Mayor Gryniuk whereby the goal was to increase their staffing level to seventy-seven. It was his belief that the department could operate adequately at seventy-five for the present time. Chief Janelle thought it would be beneficial to start a new five year plan.
Councilor Bascetta asked Chief Janelle if the $16,400.00 decrease in his budget would be a detriment to the department.
Chief Janelle said he appreciated the flexibility he was given to reduce his budget by that amount and he would make it work. Approximately $8,000.00 earmarked for computer software would be eliminated. Although he would scramble for the remainder, it wouldn’t affect personnel or the level of public safety they will provide.
Mayor Quinn stated that it would be beneficial for the city to have funds available to reclaim and/or demolish blighted property.
Chief Janelle suggested using funds from fines imposed on blighted property owners.
Mr. Miasek inquired whether the city really wanted to become a landlord to these properties.
Councilor Soliani indicated that the city’s goal was to have property owners clean up their properties and not to become a landlord, however, in certain cases the city will have no choice but to become a landlord in order to rectify the situation. She explained that an attorney from the State’s Attorney’s Office in Hartford had been significant in educating the Blight Task Force in things the city can and cannot do as far as blighted properties are concerned.
Mr. Dickinson said he thought it would be beneficial to revamp the manner in which the Fire Department answered calls. This might represent an opportunity for the city to keep costs down. He estimated that it cost $1,600.00 every time the truck left the firehouse.
Mrs. Libby said it was an opportunity to be creative. She suggested researching what other communities were doing, looking at policies and schedules and setting new directives. They needed to target additional items and get started on them June 1st in order to address them in next year’s budget.
Mr. Dickinson disagreed. He thought they should handle this matter more aggressively. It was his belief that an immediate monetary target would make a lot of sense.
Mr. Cornish pointed out that the city had finished the past few years with a surplus, which he believed was a result of reduced spending and efficient management. He noted that the shifting of the solid waste burden to the contractors was a great initiative, and that the city had a full plate for the coming year, i.e., shared services, the review of the vehicle replacement program, rolling out vehicles from the fire department, etc.
Mr. Cornish suggested a number of items to review and develop prior to the 2005 budget. They included the following:
1) Support the volunteers and make better use of them.
2) Residential waste disposal
3) The hiring of a Finance Director
4) Redirecting our contract negotiators
5) Forming Blue Ribbon Commissions to deal with technical issues
6) A steady plan for Capital Improvements
Mr. Cornish would support the budget on the city side as proposed. He explained that the city’s increase to the budget would be 3.2% if the solid waste program was removed from the equation. If the Board of Finance imposed the same 3.2% growth on the Board of Education, the mill rate would come in at less than 2%.
Mr. Miasek stated that the city had come a long way in recent years and would benefit greatly from the expertise of a Finance Director. He agreed that we should move forward with initiatives and form Blue Ribbon Commissions to get a handle on the city’s future needs.
Mr. Nejaime said he also supported a Finance Director. He thought the city needed to be more diligent in negotiations. He supported the city’s budget and agreed that it would have to be brought in under two mills.
Mrs. Libby turned the meeting over to the Board of Councilmen for their questions and comments.
Councilor Reginatto stated that a two-mill increase was too high. He felt the city should negotiate much harder on pensions and benefits, formally approve a vehicle replacement plan, combine positions and have all staff work consistent hours. In terms of hiring a Finance Director, he would support it if he could be shown where it would create a savings.
Mr. Dickinson explained that the city didn’t have the management ability to see whether an event did well or not and a Finance Director would be able to track that kind of activity.
Mayor Quinn indicated that he had made a number of attempts to resolve the $219,000.00 matter with the Board of Education. In fact, he shared a document with the Superintendent and the Chairman of the Board, an olive branch so to speak, which he considered a first step in a resolution, however, not everyone totally agreed with his compromise. He asked Mr. Murphy if the matter had been brought before the entire board.
Mr. Bourque indicated that the matter would be better directed to the chairman of the board of Education.
Mrs. Libby indicated that a resolution should be reached this week, and if the Board of Education was unwilling to talk to the Board of Finance, they would have to look at the $219,000.00 with the budget cuts.
Mr. Nejaime said they were looking at the Board of Education for the same kind of decreases as they received on the city side and that they expected the mill rate to be less than 2%.
Councilor Reginatto asked if there was any way to guarantee that the problems at the Middle School wouldn’t be targets of cuts.
Councilor Bascetta stated that the city had made a commitment to the parents and students of the Middle School to take care of those problems.
Councilor Bascetta said it was time to bring municipalities to the standards of the industry sector. He suggested an impact tax on developers who develop land in Torrington, adding to the burden of schools, roads, and services. He stated that Torrington had to attract new industry and the boards had to take a hard look at the vehicle replacement plan.
Councilor Jerram suggested setting a fair tax rate at the beginning of the budget process rather than at the end. This would allow all managers the flexibility to determine their priorities and take the unknowns out of the equation. In addition to the savings the city was going to realize from tipping fees, he felt that waste disposal should be researched further for additional savings. He thought the vehicle replacement plan should be fine tuned. Implied savings should be realized to offset the cost of a Finance Director. Perhaps that position should be placed on a contract basis at first to measure its merit. He asked the Board of Finance what it would take to bring the mill rate to 37.5.
Councilor Dalla Valle stated that safety was paramount in the City of Torrington, therefore, he didn’t believe any cuts should be made to either the Police or the Fire Department.
He had no objection to the hiring of a Finance Director as long as it wasn’t another tier of bureaucracy. They needed to look at ways to reduce costs prior to bringing in a Finance Director.
Councilor Dalla Valle said he would oppose the vehicle registration fees. He didn’t see a need to go after another $17,000.00 from the haulers after charging them $1,364,000.00 in tipping fees. This seemed like a double burden to the trash haulers who, in turn, would pass it onto the commercial establishments and trickle down to the taxpayers.
He stated that a 2-mill increase was much too high. He inquired as to what the mill rate was at this moment on the city side.
Ms. Proulx indicated that the mill rate on the city side was .05.
Councilor Dalla Valle asked the Board of Finance why they would allow the Board of Education to come in with a 1.5 mill increase when they city was bringing in a .5 mill increase.
Mr. Cornish explained that the city side was actually at a 3.2% growth in real spending if you were to disregard the impact of the savings from the solid waste. If the same 3.2% growth was to be imposed on the Board of Education, the mill rate would come in just under a 2-mill increase.
Councilor Dalla Valle indicated that Mayor Quinn had found a way to reduce the city’s budget and he felt the same onus should be placed on the Board of Education. It was his belief that they should be given the challenge to be creative and present a reduced budget.
Councilor Soliani indicated that tax relief to the residents could be accomplished by increasing the tax base of the city by the revitalization of downtown Torrington. She advocated setting up a blight fund so they could start working more aggressively on getting Torrington cleaned up. She wholeheartedly supported a Finance Director. Cross training should be a priority. Lastly, she felt strongly about future renovations to City Hall.
Mr. Rollett explained that the Council would have to approve two Resolutions in regard to setting the license fee at $250.00 and to specify that the city will pay nothing for all no residential solid waste. While the licensing of vehicles could begin on July 1, he suggested giving the haulers two month’s notice on the tipping fees. In regard to Councilor Dalla Valle’s suggestion to phase in the licensing charge, Mr. Rollett agreed that the increase from $10.00 to $250.00 was significant and the Council may want to choose a compromise of $40 to $50 per truck.
MOTION TO AMEND REGISTRATION FEES #3200
Councilor Dalla Valle made a motion to change the request for a $250.00 vehicle/roll off registration fee to a $50.00 vehicle/roll off registration fee with the eye in looking forward to going up in a year or so, depending on what the market bears. Councilor Jerram seconded the motion. Unanimous.
The Council scheduled an emergency meeting immediately following this special joint meeting in order to adopt the two resolutions needed for the vehicle/roll off registration fees and the tipping fees.
On a motion by Councilor Jerram, seconded by Councilor Dalla Valle, the Council voted unanimously to adjourn at 6:10 p.m.
ATTEST: Joline LeBlanc
Asst. City Clerk
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