MINUTES
BOARD OF FINANCE
APRIL 26, 2005
A REGULAR MEETING of the Board of Finance, adjourned from April 19, 2005, was held on Tuesday, April 26, 2005, in the Council Chambers.
Those in attendance included Mayor Owen J. Quinn, Jr., members of the Board of Finance Daniel Farley, James Zeller, James Nichol, and Bruce Cornish. Also, present was Comptroller Alice Proulx. Absent was Board of Finance member Joseph Nader, and Corp. Counsel Albert Vasko.
Mayor Quinn called the meeting to order at 4:10 p.m.
MINUTES #010
On a motion by Mr. Cornish, seconded by Mr. Zeller, the board voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the regular meeting held March 15, 2005.
Mr. Farley inquired whether Mr. Dickinson was still a member of the board since his name wasn’t mentioned in the minutes as absent.
Mayor Quinn noted that Mr. Dickinson had resigned from the board.
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC #050
On a motion by Mr. Cornish, seconded by Mr. Zeller, the board voted unanimously to open the meeting to the public. There was no public participation.
CARDINAL ENG. # 060
On a motion by Mr. Cornish, seconded by Mr. Zeller, the board voted unanimously to approve the payment of $1,747.50 from Sanitary Sewer Capital Improvement Fund #490 to Cardinal Engineering Asso. Inc. for engineering services on the East Main Street/New Harwinton Road Sanitary Sewer Improvements.
GORDON, MUIR & FOLEY #070
On a motion by Mr. Farley, seconded by Mr. Zeller, the board voted unanimously to approve the payment of $930.00 from Contingency to Gordon, Muir & Foley LLP for professional services rendered in the Southwest School matter.
BUS: MAYOR & MEMBERS #080
On a motion by Mr. Cornish, seconded by Mr. Zeller, the board voted unanimously to consider business presented by Mayor Quinn and members of the Board of Finance.
Mr. Nichol stated that he was recently promoted to Chief Operating Officer at the bank where he worked.
Mr. Zeller inquired how the board should direct questions they may have in regard to the budget.
Mayor Quinn explained that he and Ms. Proulx had streamlined the budget procedure, and that any questions could be directed through the Comptroller or him. Department heads could also be asked to attend the next Board of Finance meeting, should the need arise.
In looking at the proposed Board of Education budget summary, Mr. Zeller said it looked as though the revenue was quite constant. It was probably good to keep in mind that, to the extent that the revenue is constant within the Board of Education’s budget, any increase is really going to be borne by the taxpayers of the City of Torrington. If you have a $4 million increase and your tax base is about the same, even though the effect on the budget may be 7%, the effect on the taxpayers is probably more likely to be around 15%.
Mr. Farley inquired why the Board of Education’s budget had an increase of 14.5 teaching positions with an enrollment of approximately 70 additional students.
Mr. Cornish stated that the additional teaching positions were a result of block scheduling and the situation at the high school whereby a number of students are spread throughout the district. He would be happy to ask the Board of Education to explain this matter during their May 10 presentation. He urged each board member to make their concerns known to the Board of Education as soon as possible so they can be fully prepared to explain them on May 10. Likewise, the board should do the same on the city side prior to the May 12 public hearing.
Mr. Farley inquired why the total number of custodians had remained the same even though Southeast School was closed.
Mayor Quinn stated that they could get an answer for Mr. Farley.
Mr. Farley pointed out that Mr. Rollett had increased his budget by $19,000.00 last year because the city was taking over the field maintenance at one of the schools.
Ms. Proulx stated that the city was billing the Board of Education for supplies necessary for field maintenance. That created an impact on our revenue.
Ms. Proulx stated that the city side’s net increase at this time was 3.1% over the present budget, net to net. She agreed with Mr. Zeller that the net to net on the Board of Education budget was closer to 11.17% when you compared the net revenue on both sides. The grand list was $1.85 billion before adjustments. Certificates of Corrections were expected next week.
Mayor Quinn noted that a lot more information was forthcoming. The Board of Finance will do whatever is necessary to establish a mill rate they feel comfortable with.
ADJOURNMENT #500
On a motion by Mr. Cornish, seconded by Mr. Zeller, the board voted unanimously to adjourn at 4:34 p.m.
ATTEST: JOLINE LeBLANC
ASST. CITY CLERK
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