SUMMARY MINUTES OF A CHAPEL HILL
TOWN COUNCIL BUDGET WORK SESSION
FRIDAY, MARCH 1, 2002 AT 12:00 NOON
Mayor Kevin Foy called the meeting to order at 12:00 noon.
Town Manager Cal Horton prefaced the Departmental presentations with the reminder that, because of the short-fall in the State budget and reductions in revenues to the cities, both this year and probably next year, the departments are working on reductions in their budgets which will be presented to the Council at a later date.
Planning Director Roger Waldon said the key services provided by the Department fall into two categories: Current Development and Long Range Planning. He said one key issue was the revision of the Town’s Development Ordinance, noting that the next phase will be citizen workshops on the proposed changes. Mr. Waldon said the staff continues to provide support to the Town’s advisory boards and committees. He added that the Planning Department’s budget was mostly for personnel—92% of the budget, and the remaining for operations and equipment.
Key Programs or Services that are Going Well:
· Development Ordinance Revision
· Downtown Workshops and Model
· University Development Plan
· Schools Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance
Key Programs or Services that Could be Improved:
· Citizen information for citizen involvement
Council Member Wiggins asked, if most of the Department’s budget was personnel, how the Department could deal with any budget cuts, and where would they be. Mr. Waldon said the first thing to look at would be the non-personnel items and they are very few. He said if the Planning Department had to cut back significantly, positions would be at stake.
Mayor Foy asked if Mr. Horton was asking for across-the-board percentage cuts. Mr. Horton said at this stage all departments have been asked to identify potential of cuts, with the instruction that they go right to the bone, but not to recommend elimination of staff since there will be vacancies and positions that can be held open, resulting in salary savings. He said that lay-offs would create a sense of uncertainty that the Town would pay for for a very long time. Mr. Horton noted he would not be recommending any lay-offs to the Council.
Council Member Ward said that those citizens who had access to e-mail and the website have a much better opportunity to receive information directed toward the citizens, than those who did not have such access. He asked the Department to find a way to keep those citizens who did not have such access, informed about the issues involving the Town. Mr. Waldon said the Department was very aware of these problems, which needed to be worked on, and they were sending out information to citizens on the mailing list by the use of the U.S. Postal Service. He added that the Department also was depending very heavily on the local media sources.
Council Member Ward asked if it would be possible to have some suite of information at the Community Center. Mr. Waldon said the staff did pass along a lot of information at the Library, but it would be a good idea to go to the community centers.
Mayor pro tem Evans said she was concerned about revenue sources, since the development applications would be down this year because the Council has slowed down its approval process for the time being. She asked if the University paid application fees. Mr. Waldon said they did, but he could not predict how much revenue would be raised by those permits. Mr. Horton said there was some evidence that the economy was slowing growing back, and there had not been any decline in builder’s inquiries. He said the level of work for the engineers and building inspectors was down for new construction, particularly commercial, but they have plenty of work in catching up, adding they expect a rise in activity in the spring.
Mayor Foy asked if there was a way to keep the application fees in line with their costs. Mr. Horton said there was, and an intern who worked with him last summer set up a sampling method, so that all employees involved on development work were now filling out a report on a specific set of days during the course of the year, to collect the hours. He said the total hours would relate to the personnel salaries. Mr. Horton said there was a State law that the Town must keep its costs charges in line with the actual costs for providing the service. He said if the staff begins to see a trend that costs are not being covered it will bring this to the Council’s attention, with a recommendation to raise fees.
Council Member Ward said he thought the fee structure was calibrated on an annual base based on some national figure. Mr. Horton said they were not able to do that and it would probably be bi-annually in order to see a clear trend. He said the major staffs included were the Manager’s staff, Planning staff, Engineering staff, Inspections staff, and Public Works.
Council Member Wiggins said that Town Attorney Karpinos had made it very clear during the planning for rental licensing that the fees should be not more than the cost of administering the program.
Mayor Foy asked why the Operations Budget of the Department was so high for this fiscal year. Mr. Waldon said it was for consultants working mainly on the Development Ordinance and the Downtown Workshop and Model.
Mayor Foy asked if the Council had budgeted for these expenses. Mr. Horton said that the costs foreseen on the Development Ordinance had been budgeted for, and there was an adjustment in mid-year for the Design Workshops.
Item 2 – Public Works Department
Public Works Department Director Bruce Heflin introduced some of his staff present. He said the overall Department budget presented reflected a slight decrease in the budget from the current year. He said that overall the basic services provided are done well, such as responses to emergencies and special events. Mr. Heflin said the slow-down in the economy had lowered the turnover rate. He said the challenges were aging infrastructure and increased costs in maintenance operations. Mr. Heflin provided a brief description of Department divisions, and provided other information:
Capital Project Management
· Police Headquarters
· Hargraves Center
· IFC Shelter
· Museum Roof
· Fire Training Facilities
· Post Office/Court
· Public Works Improvements
· Residential Collection
· Estimate 7,360 tons collections this year
· FY 00/01 collections 6,861
· Curbside Service
· Began with 26 routes
· Currently at 13 routes; 1 contract route for Southern Village
· Reduced staff by 8 positions; 1 position left to reduce
· Yard Waste Collection
· Estimated total for FY 01/02: 2,700 tons
· Collection FY 00/01: 2,813
· FY 99/00: 3,171
· Scheduled Weekly Service
· Litter Collection
· White bags denote community service litter collection program.
· FY to date 775 hours worked, 1322 bags of litter collected
· Supervised by Solid Waste Services Division
Council Member Harrison asked what it was about the curbside service that enabled the routes to go from 26 to 13 routes. Mr. Heflin said it was because they had gone to once-a-week collections and by going from the back yards to the front.
Council Member Strom asked when the Department would be moving and were there budget implications coming this year from having to vacate its premises. Mr. Heflin said the Department had acquired a property north of Town, and the element of uncertainty was what the University’s timetable was. He said the lease expires in 2006 and it was time to do some detailed planning. Mr. Heflin said they were hoping to get some money through the CIP for some of the preliminary painting that needed to be done. Mr. Horton said the staff felt it would need to spend between $50,000 to $100,000 in the next year.
Council Member Strom asked if there was any ongoing dialogue with administrators at UNC about the 2006/2007 deadline—had the Town made a formal request to push it back to 2010 or 2012. Mr. Horton said they had done that on more than one occasion and had been flatly and vigorously denied. He said between the two departments being moved, Public Works and Transportation, there would be costs of about $30 million. Mr. Horton said he hoped there would be funds from the federal and State governments, Carrboro, and the University. He said the General Fund was the only source for Public Works. Mr. Horton said that about a year ago, he had asked Carrboro if it would share the Public Works buildings but it had no interest. When Carrboro did express some interest, he said, the Council had already bought the property for the Chapel Hill Public Works. Mr. Horton said there was land adjacent to the site for Public Works which could be purchased for Transportation.
Council Member Strom asked when the Council would get a look at some pro forma financial models. Mr. Horton said probably not until the next fiscal year.
Council Member Strom said he would like to get a sense of what fiscal effect a 12-month delay would have, to put together some numbers connected with the timing.
Mayor Foy asked Mr. Horton to describe what a pro forma was. r. Horton said that it was a term used to describe a preliminary business plan for any particular enterprise or operation, so for any particular year costs could be projected. e said he, Mr. Baker, and Mr. Heflin would be working on the budget for the next few months, but they might be able to get a rough pro forma by the fall to give a sense of what kinds of costs would be involved. Mr. Horton said staff could put off some projects if the Council wished the pro forma done right away.
Mayor pro tem Evans asked if the Department had been able to maintain the planting of 200 trees per year, as she had requested in the past. Mr. Heflin said up until last year’s budget cuts, they had been able to do so, but this year they have planted about 80 trees, and may have some more planted to reach a target of 120 for this year.
Council Member Harrison asked if there was an adopted plan as to where the trees will be planted, or was it per request. Mr. Heflin said most of the tree plantings were replacement trees that had been dying. Town Forester Curtis Brooks said Chapel Hill was fairly limited to public property so there was not a master street tree planting plan, and the major tree plantings had involved park plantings, park and ride lots, and some NCDOT plantings that were done under direction of the Town.
Council Member Wiggins asked if there was an average cost to plant a new tree, or did it vary by location and type of tree. Mr. Heflin responded that, depending on the size and species of the tree, up to several hundred dollars per tree, although the smaller trees were much less. Mr. Brooks said that larger caliper trees like those planted downtown were in the $200-$300 range, and in parks and other such places the smaller trees usually cost about $60-$80 plus installation. Mr. Horton added that the installation costs were about 2½ to 3 times the cost of the tree.
Council Member Ward asked what the Town was doing now, including the street lighting in new developments, and having that development pay the cost. He asked if the developer paid the initial cost and after that did the Town take it over. Mr. Heflin said that in the case of street lighting it would depend upon the type of development, and the service would be taken over by the Town on a monthly basic rate, which was considered a public safety service provided by the Town.
Council Member Ward asked who paid for the decorative poles if they got broken and needed to be replaced. Mr. Heflin said that would be done by Duke Power.
Council Member Ward wondered if the collection of leaves could be modified to be collected before it rained and the rain swept the leaf sediment down the drains and into the streams. Mr. Heflin said there were concerns about organic materials being carried to the streams, but the larger concern would be the surface layer of imbedded solvents and grease that are trapped on the top layer of dirt of the street surface, and the street sweeper is able to pick up. Mr. Heflin said, in answer to the leaf pick up, what the Department endeavored to do was to distribute information to citizens daily about how and when the Department would be picking up leaves.
Council Member Ward asked if the snow removal was just on public facilities. Mr. Heflin said the first effort would be on public facilities.
Council Member Ward said there was a concern about snow removal where pedestrians were affected and he would like the Department to look into this. Mr. Horton said this could be addressed by training employees how to remove the snow.
Council Member Ward asked if yard waste got thrown in the Landfill, and since it was not waste, he suggested using another name for it.
Mayor Foy asked what was going on with fines for carts left on the street. Mr. Heflin said the Department was still in the process of refining the instrument for levying fines and continued to put warnings on offending carts, trying to work from house to house to get response. Sanitation Superintendent Harv Howard said the Department staff has attempted to include everything in the ordinance on the citation, and the fine for a cart being left out through the following day of pick up is $25 per day for as long as the cart is left out.
Mayor Foy asked how the citation was delivered. Mr. Howard said it was a hand-delivered citation.
Mayor Foy asked if there had been a decrease in commercial collection pick-up. Mr. Heflin said there had been a slight decrease, but it had resulted in a decreased workload, so one commercial route had been cut and the position had been frozen. He said the vast majority of the businesses which had been interviewed had opted to try to get by with one commercial collection per week, especially in view of the declining economy and less business. Mr. Heflin said there had been a very dramatic reduction of the tonnage, but it had begun to creep up during the last few months.
Council Member Strom said he appreciated the effort the Department had put into reforms in the residential and non-residential pick-up during the last few years. He asked if the citation program had jurisdiction over recycling bins. Mr. Howard said the Department was looking at this issue.
Council Member Strom said, given the magnitude of the impending move of the Public Works Department, as well as the fiscal uncertainty, he would like to see the type of report discussed come before the Council in September, in order to digest the budget implications and the financing tools which would have to be done to make the move. Mr. Horton said the staff would work out some plan, but he was sure the Council would have to have a bond issue in order to pay for the planned project.
Council Member Harrison suggested that the Department send out a warning to advise citizens of the time line for citations and fines. Mr. Heflin said the Department actually gives three warnings.
Council Member Wiggins asked if the citation also included the yard waste collections. Mr. Heflin said it did.
Transportation Director Mary Lou Kuschatka presented the initial budget presentation for the Department with a series of slides.
Mission Statement—Transit
· Provide safe, convenient, affordable, reliable and responsive public transportation services to residents and visitors of the Chapel Hill, Carrboro and University of North Carolina communities,
· Be accessible, efficiently operated and supportive of a healthy environment and a sustainable local economy,
· Connect and coordinate with other transportation means in the Research Triangle area providing an alternative for local and regional travel.
Key Tasks
· Provide fixed route bus service, EZ rider service for the mobility challenged, and shared ride service for the communities of Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and the University of North Carolina.
· Operate the Tar Heel Express—a park and ride shuttle service for special events.
· Oversee the taxi franchise approvals and renewals according to the Town Code of Ordinances.
· Ensure compliance with State and federal regulations.
· Ensure that statistics are reported accurately and timely.
· Manage the Town’s on- and off-street parking services
Estimated Transit Revenues Assumptions
· Reductions have been made to reflect elimination of the intangibles and inventory tax exemption revenue stream. Revenue has also been revised to reflect the conversion to fare-free and the resulting change in revenue flow from the partners.
· State operating assistance funds continue to be shown based on recent discussions with State transportation officials.
Transit Expense Assumptions
· Personnel costs have been revised to include a reduced dependency on overtime for operators coincident with filling of vacant jobs.
· Operational costs include modest increases in budgeted amounts for diesel, gasoline, and electricity. Increases in operator wages reflect the adjusted level of service that took effect in January. Contributions to the General Fund have also been adjusted.
· An increased fleet size coupled with the challenge of hiring qualified mechanics will present on-going challenge.
Addition expense provided for:
· Operation of service to new Jones Ferry park and ride lot.
· A full-time safety and training manager.
· A part-time marketing coordinator.
· A part-time data entry/maintenance clerk.
· Conversion of one job and creation of a second to provide for mechanic helper positions.
Highlights of new routes.
25% rise in ridership with fair-free routes. Data collected daily.
Council Member Harrison asked Ms. Kuschatka to define bus-hour, and were the smaller buses significantly lower in terms of overall costs than the larger buses. Ms. Kuschatka said a bus hour was a revenue hour, noting that the small buses are 5-year vehicles and the large buses are 12-year vehicles. She said the labor costs to operate both are the same, that more maintenance was required for smaller buses and replacement costs would come every 5 years. She said she did not see any cost savings with the smaller buses.
Council Member Ward suggested that it would be nice to know if there was some vehicle that did not fit into replacement years that would fit into the community, especially in some of the areas of the Town, to accommodate certain types of ridership. Ms. Kuschatka said that every three years the American Transportation Association had an Expo, and she will be attending that to see what is available from the bus manufacturers.
Ms. Kuschatka continued with her presentation:
Mission Statement—Parking Services Division
· Provide on-street and off-street parking for Chapel Hill’s citizens and visitors in an efficient and courteous manner, and to
· Operate a parking enforcement system to ensure compliance with the parking regulations adopted by the Town Council
.
Key Parking Services
· Operate Off-street Parking Facilities
· Rosemary St. Deck
· Lots 2,3,4,5 & 6
· Provide On-street Metered Parking
· 181 meters in Town Center
· Continue Parking Enforcement Activities
· Monitor Metered Parking
· Control No Parking Zones
· Patrol Residential Permit zones
Ms. Kuschatka said that parking revenues have remained consistent. Mr. Horton said the staff had been considering changes in the parking fees, and were looking into what other communities were charging, noting that the Town may have to consider a change this year. Ms. Kuschatka said the off-street revenues and enforcement had remained stable, and the off-street lot expenses will be for improvements of gates and ticket dispensers. She said the on-street expenses had been moved to each budget instead of all being in one budget.
Ms. Kuschatka continued:
Revenue /Expense Assumptions
· Expenses are based on continuation of routine daily operations and maintenance. We are currently studying the feasibility of adding a 4th enforcement officer to extend enforcement hours as well as to fill in for vacations and absences. This should provide for a meaningful increase in fine revenue as well as improve traffic flow in certain areas.
· Similarly, revenue projections are based on the current rates, although a study is planned to investigate the concept of a peak-hour rate differential.
Council Member Strom said there were cities that had machines where a person could pay for their parking fees with a credit card or large bills, and he would like to see it part of a proposal this year, together with the fee adjustments. Parking Services Superintendent Brenda Jones said it might be possible to move some of the meters from Lots 3 and 5 to new locations, and use the machines Council Member Strom suggested in Lots 3 and 5.
Council Member Ward said the ridership count was for people getting on board the bus, and asked if the figures could be skewed by people getting on and off more frequently, but not an increase in the number of people using the bus. Ms. Kuschatka said the transit numbers were just the amount of people getting on board, and she would not know how to count individuals getting on and off the buses. Assistant Manager Florentine Miller said that one of the reasons why the University encouraged “fair free” ridership was that employees could ride the bus to a meeting and back without having to use their car.
Council Member Wiggins asked what “Oversee the taxi franchise approvals and renewals…” entailed. Ms. Kuschatka said the taxi drivers needed to identify several things, and pass inspections and background checks, and several other items before they can get a taxi franchise to operate in the Town.
Council Member Wiggins asked if that included any review of the taxi fees. Ms. Kuschatka said the Department does not regulate the taxi fees, and does not charge a fee for giving a taxi franchise. She said several of the surrounding cities do charge a fee for a taxi franchise. Mr. Horton said that several years ago the Council decided to allow the deregulation of the fees that a taxi charged. He said it would be perfectly appropriate to charge a fee to cover the administration of the service, if the Council wished to do so, although that might mean an increase in fares.
Mayor pro tem Evans said she remembered removing some money from the parking fund to help balance the budget and asked how much money was in the fund and what was its purpose. Mr. Baker said the parking revenues were kept in separate funds, one of which was the off-street lots, noting that at the end of June last year there was about $400,000 in Fund Balance in that fund. Mr. Baker said that staff was recommending to take $100,000 from that fund to transfer to the General Fund. He said he thought that the Fund Balance would probably end up with $400,000, $100,000 of which was expected to be collected this year. Mr. Baker said the other fund was the on-street, and after expenses the net profit floats into the General Fund, which is usually a little more than $300,000. Mr. Horton added that the funds were accumulated as a reserve for potential payment of debt service, and to be available for improvements on the parking lots.
Mayor pro tem Evans said there were some areas in Town that had parking meters that were rarely utilized, which could be used for leased parking on certain streets, as an additional revenue source. She suggested adding some meters on streets where there were a few or none, adding that these would be used as a pilot project to see if it worked.
Mayor Foy asked to what extent the transit system’s budget would be affected by the General Fund difficulties. Mr. Horton said it would not be significantly affected, because the transit system budget was more insolated than other budgets, due to the fact that the majority of the funds coming into it were coming from other agencies. He said he was not expecting any larger demands on it this year. Mr. Baker said approximately $60,000 flowed into the Transportation Fund from the monies that come from the federal government.
Mr. Horton noted that the recommendations for additional personnel were reasonable and he was going to recommend them, especially a marketing position for transit. Ms. Kuschatka said the Department wanted to start with a half-time person to get the program going, and there were several issues that would be marketed.
Mayor Foy asked what kinds of skills would a person in that position be expected to have. Ms. Kuschatka said it would have to be a person who had a grasp of some of the marketing principles, but mainly able to do desk-top publishing with a computer, adding there were some very innovative kinds of marketing.
Council Member Ward asked for clarification regarding the $15 million plus the Town would need for the upcoming move and what would the contribution be from Carrboro and the University toward that move. Mr. Horton said that the Town would expect that Carrboro and the University would have to pay the proportion of costs for the new facility that was represented as the proportion of costs they pay for overall transportation operations. He said between federal and State, the Town should be able to collect 80% to 90% of the costs covered, and the other entities would then pay a proportion of the remaining percentage.
Council Member Ward asked when the Town would have the opportunity to lock in those State and federal monies. Mr. Horton said the process has begun to seek the money, and the staff has been in touch with Congressman Price, who has always been helpful in obtaining funds for the Town. Mr. Horton said there is never a time when the financing can be locked in because the federal government could always change its mind, in case of an emergency. Carrboro and the University have not been asked to contact Congressman Price, because, Mr. Horton said, it was usually better to have only one voice in pursuit of the funding. He said they would be asked to join with the Town to make the Town’s voice stronger later.
Parks and Recreation Department Kathryn Spatz introduced her staff, and presented a slide presentation that noted key services and facilities of the Department.
Proposed Addition
Additional Camp Site: Use school sites
· Option A: Specialized camp for 25 to 30 youth with disabilities
· Option B: 3rd Summer Day Camp site for 100 youth
· Staffing: $45,000
· Supplies $5,000
· Transportation/Other: $8,000
· Total Estimated Cost for Program $58,000
Immediate Concerns
· New playground fall surfaces at Hargraves/Oakwood/Umstead playgrounds
· Bleacher replacement at Cedar Falls & Ephesus
· Erosion along Cedar Falls/Hargraves walking areas
· Fence replacement at Hargraves and Umstead fields
· Cedar Falls tennis courts and Hargraves basketball court
Council Member Strom said one of the slides of one of the park sites showed the expense, but not the revenue side. Ms. Spatz said there were but they were difficult to estimate, but maybe 25% of the cost would be recovered.
Council Member Kleinschmidt asked how someone knew they could qualify for a complete fee waiver, and was there a clear explanation of the fee waiver. Ms. Spatz said it had not been advertised because that might put the Department in the position of waiving almost all fees. She said it mostly was done through the on-site staff at the particular park to discuss the fees with the parents of the children. Ms. Spatz said there was some research being done to see if the County Social Services had the criteria.
Council Member Kleinschmidt said he felt the system could be too arbitrary. Mr. Horton said fee waivers had been done enough in the past so that people thought they could get them if they wished. He said it would come to having a written policy that could be posted. Ms. Spatz said there was no system for fee reductions, so theoretically there could be 100% fee reductions.
Council Member Ward asked where the transportation costs would go regarding a third summer camp being opened. Ms. Spatz said the costs have been built into the budget for providing transportation from the Hargraves Park, without a pool, to the Community Center pool. She added there are field trips, but the costs were minimal.
Mr. Horton said he had instructed the staff to either repair or remove something that was seen to be dangerous, because the Town could not afford not to provide safety for the community. He said that simple repairs could usually be done, but if it was going to cost several thousand dollars to repair, it would have to be shut down until the Town could afford to restore its operation.
Mayor Foy asked for an explanation of the $81,000 from Orange County. Mr. Horton said that Orange County made a contribution to the Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation Department’s budget each year as a gesture of support, and in return they receive an entitlement for citizens not from Chapel Hill to use the programs without having to pay an additional fee. He said at the same time the Town paid $47,000 to support the Department on Aging Services, a $30,000 contribution to the Senior Center, $6,000 to the Economic Development Program, and $12,000 to the RSVP. In addition, Mr. Horton said, the County makes a contribution of about $230,000 to the Library.
Mayor Foy asked how these figures were arrived at. Mr. Baker said it had gone from $66,000 in 1982 to $81,000 currently.
Mayor Foy asked if the Parks and Recreation Commission should make a presentation to the County Board for increased revenues. Ms. Spatz said they had done this for two years, but not last year. Mr. Horton said the County had not been as responsive to the requests from the Parks and Recreation Commission as they had to the Library Board. He said the staff could provide a presentation to be made either by the Parks and Recreation Commission or the Council to the County. Mayor Foy said what was persuasive was the services provided to non-Chapel Hill citizens.
Council Member Wiggins asked if the Town had a fund to aid families who could not pay the fees. Ms. Spatz said there was no scholarship, just the waiver of fees, but the Parks and Recreation Commission had been talking about setting up a fund, and sometimes the money was provided by a private family, but there is no formal fund.
Mayor pro tem Evans asked if the Clean Water Preservation Fund set up for Linear Park still existed and was it used for that park. Assistant Director Bill Webster said that was an NCDOT Enhancement Grant, and the Department was currently in the middle of the engineering of that project. He said next week the staff was going to try to secure the easements, and several of the landowners served on the Committee.
Mayor Foy asked about the Clearwater Trust Fund. Mr. Webster said that was not doing well right now, and the landowners have asked about double the appraised values on the properties. He said if even one of the property owners could not be convinced to sell, the Grant probably could not be used. Mr. Webster said there were three remaining owners, but the price remained at $25,000 an acre asking price. Mr. Horton added that there had been a number of people working on this and they had suggested some creative approaches, but the landowners had not been realistic about what the values were and had little interest in selling.
Council Member Kleinschmidt asked if there would be a stated policy to present to people who come to the parks and asked for fee waivers, to state how one could qualify. He said he did not want people to lose a fee waiver, if there was a mechanism for one. Ms. Spatz said the staff could develop criteria, and it was a work in progress. Mr. Horton said the staff would prepare a written statement noting how it had been done in the past, and the Council could suggest how they wanted it done in the future.
Council Member Wiggins said an important part of this was that families who needed help would get it. She said she wanted the expenses covered, but it was important that children who needed the benefits of summer camp should get it. Council Member Wiggins said there were resources in the community that could help, and it was important to keep the programs available. Mr. Horton said that would be a case of the Commission, acting in its role as friends of Parks and Recreation, to develop a campaign to raise the resources.
Council Member Ward suggested that a marketing person could be used on Town-wide issues for the various departments, such as Transportation and Parks and Recreation. Mr. Horton said there was real value in marketing all of the services of the Town to inform the citizens of the services that are available and the funding of them. He said he would hope to get something back to the Council as soon as he had time to develop a proposal for a marketing program.
Mr. Horton said that one of the excellent services provided by the Library was “Dial-a- Story,” 968-0222.
Library Director Kathy Thompson introduced her staff and the Department’s proposed budget draft. She briefly described the services offered by the Library and other issues.
2002-2003 Revenue Estimates
· State aid: $ 31,000
· County support: $249,300
· Fines and fees: $120,000
· Library Gift Fund: $ 90,000
· Total: $445,300
2002-2003 Revenue Issues
Orange County support
· $249,300 this year
· Support is low compared to Chapel Hill’s contribution
· Support is low compared to other counties in the State
Library Gift Funds
· Annual contribution increased from $45,000 to $95,000 this year.
· Additional gift funds may be needed next year
2002-2003 Cost Estimates
Personnel $1,315,200
Operations 547,300
Capital 0
Total: $1,862,500
Key Cost Issues
· Personnel costs include a 4.5% increase for contract employees for nine months of the fiscal year
· The materials budget (books, periodicals, audiovisual materials, etc.) includes our anticipated vendor cost increase of 2.5% to maintain the current level of service
Services Going Well
· 5.2% increase in use
· 5-Year Services Plan completed
· Children’s programs are in demand and well-attended
· Internet service is heavily used
Services to Improve
· More in-house coordination and maintenance of technology:
· Internet stations
· Computer work stations
· Library automation system
· Additional programs for children
Key Programs that could be improved
· Public internet stations and staff computers require more maintenance support than is currently available
· Public demand for children’s services outpaces the library’s ability to deliver
Proposed Additions
· Add 13 Library Page position hours ($4,700 per year) to:
· Maintain alphabetic arrangement of children’s picture books, and
· Shelve 5% more books and materials next year. This is 35,6000 more materials than the 730,000 materials shelved last year.
· Replace the Administration area copier ($6,000):
· The existing copier is 8 years old and undependable
· Staff manually collates packet information for the Town, Library Board, Friends and Foundation because the machine’s collating feature is sporadic
· Second-year replacement has been requested
She said the Library could also use a marketing person, and more volunteers for pages and to mend books.
Item 6 - Housing Department
Housing Director Tina Vaughn introduced her staff. She said her formal budget would be presented to the Council on Monday, because it had already been submitted to HUD (Housing and Urban Development) according to federal law. She said the Department was not proposing any major changes or additions in the budget. Ms. Vaughn said the total budget for FY 2002-2003 was about $1,600,000, about a $143,000 increase over the current budget and the Department was in the situation where the expenditures will be more than the expected revenues. Ms. Vaughn said the Department would have to use $163,000 of the Fund Balance, which should leave, by the end of June, $389,000 in Fund Balance. She noted that this was within the HUD guidelines.
Programs and Services that are going well
· Customer service to residents of public housing
· Enforcement of lease requirements
· The preventive maintenance program that is key to assuring that the public housing apartments are safe
· Excellent response time to repair requests, including 24-hour emergency repair services
· The applicant screening process
· The time frame for refurbishing and filling vacant apartments. Vacant apartment are refurbished and occupied by a new public housing family within 20 days.
· The ACHIEVE! Family Self-Sufficiency Program has 6 participants. We continue to have an excellent relationship with our partner agencies.
· The Five-Year Refurbishing Program is going very well. There are no occupied apartments that are not within our five-year refurbishing standard
· Cooperative relationships with the schools and area human services agencies
Programs and Services that could be improved
· Continue to identify ways to increase residents’ participation in community meetings.
· Continue to encourage residents to communicate with staff regarding family or neighborhood problems.
Mayor pro tem Evans suggested that the department might find some business that might donate food, in order to get people to attend the meetings. Ms. Vaughn said they had tried that but with no success.
Council Member Kleinschmidt asked how the transfer of certain funds how that had impacted the budget. Ms. Vaughn said it did not have an impact. She said she had moved the funds for appliances from the Public Housing Operating Budget to the Capital Fund Renovation Contract, and will work the cleaning of gutters into the schedules of the refurbishing crew, instead of contracting it out.
Council Member Strom said there was a significant change in the Dwelling Rents, and a change in the Capital Equipment Budget. Ms. Vaughn said the big change in the Dwelling Rents came as a result of a decrease in real income. She said that utilities went up so larger amounts are being deducted from the gross rent, to comply with HUD rules, so the amount that the residents paid the Town went down.
Mayor Foy asked how utility increases affected the rents. Ms. Vaughn said there was a utility allowance for each public housing neighborhood, depending on bedroom size. She said the gross rent is based on 30% of the adjustment income, and the utility allowance is subtracted from the gross rent.
Mayor Foy asked how the utility rebate went up. Ms. Vaughn said it was based on the rates that the utility company charged. Mr. Horton said this was done on a formulaic basis that HUD controlled and then HUD takes the utility increase into account and contributes more.
Ms. Vaughn said the Capital Equipment budget was up because no capital equipment purchases were made last year, but in 2002-2003 the Department needs to do some vehicle replacement of a truck and a van. She added that in past budgets there were some contractual items, called contract costs, but purchasing guidelines have changed Town-wide. Ms. Vaughn said this means that the costs are not capitalized in the past year’s budget, because they were contracted out, but are now reflected in the new budget.
Mayor pro tem Evans praised Ms. Vaughn for the remarkable turn-around that public housing had taken over the last eight years. Mr. Horton said the Department maintained the best maintained public housing in the United States.
Mayor Foy asked where Fund Balance came from. Mr. Horton said it was created in the same fashion as Fund Balance in the General Fund, by being a little conservative in estimating revenues.
Mayor Foy asked if the Fund Balance was used last year. Ms. Vaughn said estimated about $81,000 was used. Mr. Horton said it was still his hope to use no Fund Balance.
Mayor Foy asked a question on the statistics sheet that did not seem to add up. Mr. Horton said there were specific rules that applied to handicapped or non-handicapped persons and the rules for their eligibility.
Council Member Wiggins asked Ms. Vaughn to repeat what she had said at the Monday meeting about a question of children being displaced because of renovations to housing. Ms. Vaughn said that, during renovation of public apartments, families are given their choice about remaining in their current neighborhood during relocation, or being relocated to another apartment in another neighborhood. She said they were always asked their choice and if children had to relocate to another school that would be a family choice.
Interim Human Resources Director Anissa Graham-Davis briefly describe her budget request.
Mission Statement
· To manage programs for the employees of the Town of Chapel Hill
· To provide data to the Manager, Council, departments and the public concerning employee salaries and benefits
· To provide assistance to departments in developing and maintaining a qualified and effective work force
· To assist in the administration of policies that are fair and in compliance with laws and ordinances.
Ms. Graham-Davis noted that the reduction of requested personnel expenses for 2002-2003 was due to a lower salary to the Assistant Director than the former incumbent; no longevity for the new Director or Assistant Director; 4 ½ month vacancy for the Occupational Health and Safety Officer (OSHA) position; and, no salary and benefits paid for the Director position temporarily. She said this would explain the decrease from the original budget of –6.2%. She said the operational costs were mainly the same, which are made up of Employee Assistance Program contract, employee recognition and appreciation activities, and medical program oversight.
Kay Programs or Services that are Going Well
· Turnover in the first half of the year has dropped 32%
· Number of applications is up 23.6%
Kay Programs or Services that Could be Improved
· Explore alternatives for oversight of OSHA program issues town wide
· Continue recruitment efforts using the internet and using on-line capabilities for applicant communications.
Council Member Wiggins asked if each person would be responsible for following OSHA guidelines since there was no person for OSHA oversight. Mr. Horton said each department head would be responsible for management control in his/her work areas. He said there was a half-time person working in the Public Works Department where there was the largest exposure and the most complex exposure. He said one objective in the future would be to turn that into a full-time position.
Mayor Foy asked what the Workers’ Compensation experience had been like. Mr. Baker said it had gone up about 15%-20% in the last couple of years, and the experience rate has been stable. Mr. Horton said the staff was grateful to Ms. Graham-Davis for the way she had served as interim Director.
Council Member Wiggins asked whether the Workers’ Compensation was supposed to go down, since the Town moved to curb-side collection. Mr. Horton said eventually there would be improvement, particularly in the sanitation section.
Engineering Director George Small outlined the Department services.
· Operation and management of the computerized traffic signal system in Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Provision of comprehensive traffic engineering services.
· Development and administration of the Geographic Information System (G.I.S.) and associated data-sharing network. Provision of comprehensive G.I.S. training and services.
· Management and development of the Stormwater Management Program regarding water quantity and quality. Provision of comprehensive stormwater and drainage engineering services.
· Provision of land surveying services including boundary, construction, and as-built surveys in addition to land records research.
· Provision of engineering design services and construction supervision on capital improvement projects and associated public infrastructure improvements.
· Provision of comprehensive and timely review of development and redevelopment proposals.
Mr. Small noted three sources of revenue: the sale of cemetery plots was a high source of revenue; the primary source of revenue was engineering permits; and, a moderate source was the services provided to Carrboro for traffic services and water quality testing. He said the engineering permit revenues were very difficult to project each year. Mr. Small said the operating budget provided no increase, and areas cut this year were some intern assistants who assist in data collection for water quality testing and traffic engineering. He said both of these areas were very important, and he hoped to get funds into the budget for next year.
Mr. Small said one responsibility area that could change significantly in the coming year was stormwater management, and the Department was investigating implementation of a stormwater utility to provide a revenue source for stormwater services beyond the routine operating budget items and to comply with federal and State mandates regarding stormwater quantity and quality controls. He added that there was an increasing desire of citizens for the Town to get involved in assisting with stormwater management problems. Mr. Small said the Department was investigating the potential use of automated traffic enforcement technology to supplement existing resources. He said the two priorities for added personnel were a Traffic Engineering Technician and a G.I.S. Specialist.
Council Member Harrison said he would not like to see reductions in force in the Department, because once those specialists were gone they usually ended up working for the government, adding he would not like to see that happen.
Mayor pro tem Evans asked if the G.I.S. was available to the citizens. Mr. Small said much of that information was on the website, and the Department also sells the maps.
Mayor pro tem Evans asked if the Department allocated resources for training and updating, and how much of the budget was allocated to training. Mr. Small responded about 10% of the Operations budget, around $12,000, was used for training. He said the staff does try to cross-train people, so they can function in several areas, and some of the professional engineering people have required professional training for their license renewals.
Council Member Wiggins asked how much a cemetery lot cost. Mr. Small said $500 for a resident, $250 for a cremation space, and an internment fee of $450. He said the Town was on the high end for charges compared to some other cities, and non-residents fees are double. He said there are many lots still available.
Council Member Strom asked how time-consuming it had been for Mr. Small and his staff to work on the Development Ordinance and what had his role been. Mr. Small said about half of his staff had been involved in the work at different times. He said that Draft 2 included the written comments made by the Engineering Department.
Inspections Department Director Lance Norris described his Departments budget.
Services Description
· Enforcement of the N.C. State Building Codes
· Chapel Hill Code of Ordinances
· Minimum Housing Code and the Development Ordinance
He showed the various revenue sources, noting that commercial remained fairly constant, but there were spikes in the developments such as Southern Village and Meadowmont.
Estimated Revenue for Fiscal Year 2002-2003
· Estimated Inspection permits $600,000
· Estimated Re-inspection permits $75,000
· Total $675,000
Department Base Budget
· Personnel Requested $546,510 +.07 % increase (for an apprentice)
· Operations Requested $67,550 0% change
· Total Requested $614,060 +.07% increase
Key Services That Are Going Well
· Dilapidated Vehicle Enforcement
· Minimum Housing Enforcement
· Zoning and Sign Inspections
Services That Could Be Improved
· Increased training for Inspections Department personnel regarding code enforcement and the new North Carolina Building Code.
· Purchase of a new permitting software program to improve record keeping and service to the public.
Mayor pro tem Evans asked about the sign violations, and what happened to operations which continually put the signs back up after requests to take them down. Mr. Norris said the person responsible for the sign is notified that it is in violation of the code, and if the sign is not removed by the owner, it is removed by the police. He said a second notice is then issued, and after a few days the sign is destroyed, adding there was no fine involved. Mr. Horton said the Town would have to go through a civil process to fine the owner and that would cost more than a fine.
Mayor pro tem Evans asked if aspects of the new Building Code got incorporated into the Development Ordinance. Mr. Norris said they did, and the staff was making sure that they matched each other, for instance, the definitions.
Mayor pro tem Evans asked how soon after a request did the Town provide inspections. Mr. Norris said for the past year the Department was getting to the inspection 90% of the time by the next day.
Council Member Harrison asked if there was an estimate of how many of the homes in Chapel Hill were substandard in terms of the Minimum Housing Code. Mr. Horton said the staff would have to be charged by the Council to inspect every home in Chapel Hill.
Mayor Foy asked, if the Council adopted the Rental Licensing Ordinance, how Mr. Norris anticipated incorporating that into his Department. Mr. Norris said the start date would be June 30, 2002, and the biggest part of the program would be that the information would go out to the public, and determining what structures met the definitions of the Ordinance. He said the staff would draw from a wealth of knowledge that the Orange County inspectors had.
Council Member Wiggins complemented the Department for continuing the apprenticeship program, adding she thought it was a good thing that the Town did with high school students. Mr. Norris agreed that it was a great program, and it gave the student an opportunity to learn from the ground up.
The meeting adjourned at 3:55 p.m.