MINUTES
BOARD OF FINANCE
FEBRUARY 26, 2009
A REGULAR MEETING of the Board of Finance was held on Thursday, February 26, 2009 in the Council Chambers.
Those in attendance included Mayor Ryan J. Bingham, Comptroller Alice Proulx, and members of the Board of Finance Daniel Farley, Laurene Pesce, Thomas Scoville, and Wendy Traub. Board of Finance members Mark Bushka and James Zeller were absent.
Mayor Bingham called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
MINUTES #026
On a motion by Mr. Farley, seconded by Mr. Scoville, the board voted unanimously to accept the amended minutes of the regular meeting held January 20, 2009.
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC #033
On a motion by Mrs. Pesce, seconded by Mrs.Traub, the board voted unanimously to open the meeting to the public. There was no public participation.
WAIVE BLDG PERMIT FEES #055
On a motion by Mr. Farley, seconded by Mrs.Traub, the board voted unanimously to approve the Housing Authoritys request to waive the building permit fees of $1,059.00 and reimburse Diamond, Inc. $1,059.00 in regard to the Willow Gardens Roof Project, approved by City Council on January 20, 2009.
Mr. Farley said there are still questions that need to be resolved. Referencing the minutes of a November 2002 City Council Meeting, he said the Council approved a motion that any permit fees be waived for capital improvement projects for the Torrington Housing Authority.
He said that Corporation Counsel Ernestine Yuille Weaver felt that motion was ambiguous whether it was intended to be for perpetuity or whether that was for particular projects that were going on at the time. As a result he said the Mayor had made a suggestion in 2005 that any building permit fees that anyone wanted waived would be considered by the City Council and Board of Finance on a case by case basis.
Mr. Farley added that the housing authority says they have never paid for building permits except for the fees that we have to submit to the State. He suggested the Mayor or City Council get together with the Housing Authority and Building Department to clarify these issues.
Mayor Bingham said that for the last three years the City Council has without question abided to that 2002 vote. He said there have only been three projects in the last few years that have had building permit fees reimbursed.
The Mayor said he prefers handling this on a case by case basis as opposed to a Charter Amendment or Ordinance Change because the future can be uncertain and we want to avoid supplementing what might become a private entity.
Mrs. Traub said with a case by case basis, this same discussion would come up every time there are new members to the City Council and the Board. She agreed that if fees were collected upfront the cash flow would be visible.
Mr. Farley concluded there needs to be some clarity.
SECTION B #412
On a motion by Mr. Scoville, seconded by Mr. Farley, the board voted unanimously to consider business in Section B.
POLICE CAR PUSH BUMPERS #426
On a motion by Mr. Farley, seconded by Mrs. Traub, the board voted unanimously authorize payment of $1,075.50 to MHQ of West Hartford CT for (5) Police Car push bumpers from vehicle replacement contingency, line item #0309.888.5900.0120.
Mayor Bingham pointed out that this is half of the cost; the other half is coming out of the Police Department’s Asset Forfeiture program.
BUS: MAYOR & MEMBERS #443
On a motion by Mrs. Traub, seconded by Mr. Scoville, the board voted unanimously to consider business by Mayor Bingham and members of the Board of Finance.
Mrs. Traub said the Board of Education has submitted their proposal for administration; it has come in at 2.83, including staff reduction of almost 20 positions and no new programs. She will continue to monitor the progress.
Mayor Bingham reported on his trip to Washington DC, hoping that some positive financial things will come out of it. He met with HUD regarding our entitlement status, and will be meeting with OMB and the statisticians there to find out how they derived Torrington’s statistics. We want to be prepared for the 2010 census.
ADJOURNMENT #553
On a motion by Mrs. Traub, seconded by Mrs. Pesce, the board voted unanimously to adjourn at 5:20 p.m.
ATTEST: CAROL L. ANDERSON, CCTC
ASST. CITY CLERK
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