Town Office Building January 22, 2013
Lower Level Conference Room 5:30 P.M.
First Selectman Mailhos called the meeting to order at 5:30 P.M. with Selectmen Littell & Blessington, Animal Control Office, Tina Binheimer, WYFSS Director, Tara Bergeron and residents. Business Manager, Donna Latincsics arrived at 5:35 P.M.
- Animal Control
- Youth, Family & Social Services
- Land Use
- Parks & Recreation
Youth Family & Social Services:
WYFSS Director, Tara Bergeron presented her budget. She is requesting an increase of $5,230, or an 11.6%. The increase mostly accounts for a reimbursement to United Services who has been providing free mental health services to our Town for over 20 years.
Discussion was held on the WYFSS Fund Balance. First Selectman Mailhos asked if any of that was going to be used this year. Ms. Bergeron asked for clarification as to what should be done with the funds. She has been told to use it as a savings account and not touch it, but was also told that she should apply it towards the upcoming fiscal year. Donna Latincsics stated that the fund balance is healthy and suggested applying the $5,000 to supplement the requested increase. She added that the Board of Finance would most likely be in favor of that as well. Donna clarified that the money is the result of years the revenues exceeded the expenses which builds up over the years. First Selectman Mailhos said you could save it up to purchase some type of capital improvement. Selectman Littell
suggested a Senior Van.
Leo Mercado added that it might not look good if you are requesting an additional $5,000 if you already have $29,000 in your account, which could easily cover the expenses. First Selectman Mailhos warned that the BOF will want to show sustainability, but since the account is healthy, it wouldn’t hurt to use it this year. Ms. Bergeron said she does not have a problem with using it this year and added that she has never been sure what the obligation is to use that money. She thinks of it as a rainy day fund which would be used in an emergency situation.
Selectman Litttell stated that he is not a fan of the grant process because the end of the year it does not get returned to the Town and then the next year you (the requestor who has the grant) is asking for more money from the taxpayers and leaving a balance. It is his opinion it is different from an endowment fund and it should be used up fully before asking for more money and if you need something, you should ask the Board of Finance to cover the request. He added that he would like to see the fund balance used up to cover the departments request. Selectman Blessington agreed and suggested using the money in increments to offset the requests might be a better idea. BOF Chairman Schoppmann clarified that this is his opinion, and he is not representing the Board of Finance, but like any other fund,
it has to be sustainable because you don’t want to create artificial spikes in the mil rate. If you want to start using that fund, you want to make sure it lasts for a long period of time.
Discussion was held on the fund balance and how it has grown substantially over the past few years. Donna stated that the growth comes from grants, revenue from programs that are held and is also the result of frugal management. First Selectman Mailhos stated that Tara has been doing a great job.
First Selectman Mailhos recommended taking the $5,000 from the WYFSS fund balance to even out the requested increase.
Selectman Littell asked for clarification for the increase of the United Services increase. He asked how the increase came about. Ms. Bergeron gave an analogy of taking broccoli from the supermarket, with the mindset of not wanting to pay for it; but the store keeps letting you take it. She said it is not right that we keep getting services from outside agencies provided to us and we are not paying for it. She has data to prove what they have been providing for us and it is not fair that we haven’t paid for it. She added that it is important to provide for mental health and stated that she put this in her budget back in October, much earlier than the tragedy in Newtown happened. Mental health services are extremely important and we cannot afford to fund them fully as a town, so we turn to United
Services, which is a non-profit resource in our region. Selectman Littell asked how the number came about. Ms. Bergeron said the request was on a per client basis- 60 cents per person and they serve anyone who needs it.
Animal Control:
Tina Binheimer, Willington Animal Control Officer presented her budget. She is requesting an increase of $818, or 3%. The van and gas repairs have been increased. The land line has been removed, thus the telephone line item has been eliminated. The heat will also show a decrease as there are no longer dogs there for a long period of time. The increase reflect the repairs that were recently done to the pound, as a result of a State inspection. Advertising line item also shows an increase of $20.00, which is a state statute, that any dog that is impounded over 7 days must be advertized in a local newspaper.
Kelly Trueb asked the status of the request to increase the kennel fee at the pound. Selectman Littell stated that the board was seeking clarification on the redemption fee. ACO Binheimer explained the fees are different; there is a redemption fee, which is state regulated of $15.00 but there is also a boarding fee, which we charge $5.00 per night. Neighboring Towns are charging between $10 and $15 per night. She is requesting to change the fee from $5 to $10. First Selectman Mailhos stated we will add to the agenda to talk about it again.
ACO Binheimer added that the residents have been great and have donated all of the food. She has not had to purchase any dog food or treats since she has been here. We have also added 8 Kuranda beds – one for each of the kennels and all were donated to the Town.
Land Use:
No one from Land Use was present to discuss the budget that was presented. First Selectman Mailhos said the budget looks straight forward and flat, other than the request for $18,928.00 to fill the Assistant Zoning Agent position. First Selectman Mailhos stated that the Board needs to decide if we should support it or not. She added she does not see a letter of request to support the need to have the position filled. She added that she thinks it would be helpful to everyone if it were filled, but the position should be altered to help the business. Selectman Blessington added that once the position is filled, that person would report to Susan and Susan reports to God and that is it – and he has a problem with that. Selectman Blessington suggested that she (Susan) should come in to fight
for the position. First Selectman Mailhos said we can leave it in, but she would like it to be noted that the BOS does not support it when it goes before the Board of Finance.
Parks & Recreation:
Donna Latincsics presented the bottom line figure as requested by Parks & Recreation. It shows a bottom line transfer increase of $4,335. First Selectman Mailhos said the Recreation Director was hesitant to give us the detail, as the Recreation Commission hasn’t voted on their budget yet. First Selectman Mailhos stated she believes one of the requests is for the Town to pick up a larger percentage of field maintenance costs. For example, currently mowing is in the budget and the Recreation Department is using the program fees to offset the costs. Selectman Blessington commented that the Rec Commission should make a line item in their budget to keep transparency of where the money is going. First Selectman Mailhos said their fund balance is getting low and she believes they would rather not have
to raise costs of the programs such as basketball or pond passes to offset those costs. First Selectman Mailhos reminded Selectman Blessington that the school fields are also involved in the maintenance.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:25 P.M.
Respectfully submitted,
Robin Campbell
Robin Campbell
Administrative Assistant
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