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Minutes 07-25-94MINUTES OF THE CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON MONDAY, ~ULY 25, 1994, AT 6:30 P. M. PRESENT Edward Harmening, Mayor Lynne Matson, Vice Mayor Matthew Bradley, Mayor Pro Tem Jose Aguila, Commissioner David Katz, Commissioner Carrie Parker, City Manager Wilfred Hawkins, Assistant to the City Manager Grady Swann, Finance Director Mary Munro, Budget Coordinator CALL TO ORDER Mayor Harmening called the budget workshop meeting to order at 6:30 P. M. PROPOSED PUBLIC HEARING DATE The first public hearing to consider the proposed millage rate and tentative budget was set for Tuesday, September 13, 1994, at 6:00 P. M., in Commission Chambers, City Hall. BUDGET PRESENTATION City Manager Parker reviewed her July 22, 1994 Memorandum No. 94-268 to the Mayor and City Commission, a copy of which is attached to the original minutes of this meeting, on file in the City Clerk's Office. DISCUSSION BY CITY COMMISSION Mayor Harmening referred to page 6 of City Manager Parker's Memorandum No. 94-268, which states that due to his 25 years of service, the Personnel Director is eligible for a retirement benefit of $63,100 per year at age 55. Mayor Harmening pointed out that the Personnel Director might be elibile, but normal retirement age is 62 in this City, unless you are an employee of 30 years of service. Mr. Swann advised that this was changed to age 55 with 25 years of service in 1989 or 1990. City Manager Parker stated that there is no actuarial reduction at age 55 with 25 years of service. Mayor Harmening felt that three years is a long time to live on a severance package of $58,471. He also felt it showed lack of appreciation and compassion to any employee who gives the City 25 years of service. Commissioner Katz referred to the total savings of this reorganization package for the City in the amount of $387,314, which includes the layoff of the Deputy City Engineer. He pointed out that the Deputy City Engineer is not funded in any way, shape, or form through ad valorem taxes. City Manager Parker advised that the $387,314 is the total savings to the City, not the total savings to the General Fund. Commissioner Katz stated that if this position is eliminated, the residents of the City would not save one penny in ad valorem taxes. City Manager Parker~confirmed this statement. Commissioner Aguila stated that the Engineering Department may not be funded from the General Fund. However, it is funded from the Utility Fund, which comes - 1- MINUTES .- CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA~ OULY 25, 1994 from monies that everybody pays for in service. Therefore, everybody pays for it by paying water and sewer or by paying taxes. The City saves money because we do not have to put into our rates to cover that expense. Commissioner Katz stated that the City's Water and Utility Fund is extremely cash solvent. Therefore, if anything, maybe the rates should be reduced. Concerning the layoffs proposed by City Manager Parker, Commissioner Katz read the following from page 61 of the Civil Service Rules, Rule XII, Separation and Disciplinary Action: Section 2. Layoff: The City Manager may lay off any employee in the classified service whenever such action is made necessary by reason of shortage of work or funds, the abolition of a position or because of changes in organization; however, no regular emloyee shall be laid off while there are temporary, provisional or probationary employees serving in the same class of position for which the regular employee is eligible and available. He pointed out that the person she proposes to replace the Building Official and Deputy City Engineer with is the new City Engineer, who is probationary for the next eleven months. City Manager Parker stated that the City does not have anyone serving in either of those capacities as a temporary, provisional or pro- bationary employee, and that the layoffs would be effective September 30, 1994, the end of the fiscal year. Commissioner Katz felt that City Manager Parker would be circumventing the Civil Service Rules, which will cost the City dearly. Commissioner Katz stated that in a letter to the Personnel Director, City Manager Parker stated that one of the reasons for his layoff is the reduction of the Department by 50 percent. He pointed out that City Manager Parker is increasing the amount of people in Personnel by one additional person. City Manager Parker explained that the current staff consists of four professional/ paraprofessional positions, two of which are retiring. The City is proposing to replace the Personnel Coordinator and split the Personnel Assistant between a Personnel Analyst and a new Clerk. Commissioner Katz pointed out that this would be increasing the Personnel Department by one additional person, not reducing the Department by 50 percent. City Manager Parker stated that she did not say she was reducing the Department by 50 percent. She said the current personnel is being reduced by 50 percent. She sees the retirement of the two long-time City employees as an opportunity to change the direction of the Personnel Department. Commissioner Aguila thinks this reorganization makes sense. CAPITAL OUTLAY REQUESTS Mayor Harmening referred to the request for four Toshiba surveillance cameras at a cost of $1,200. He noticed that the City Manager recommended $600, but only one camerawas approved. He asked for an explanation. Mayor Harmening referred to the Insurance Fund (93/94) under the comments column and asked if this refers to taking funding out of the current excess in the -2- NINUTES - CITY COMHISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP HEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA OULY 25, 1994 Insurance Fund. City Manager Parker answered in the affirmative. She explained that many Departments have requested ergonomic desks for carpal tunnel protec- tion. Because it is for carpal tunnel protection, the desks have been funded out of the Insurance Fund. She transferred all those payments. The desks will be purchased this fiscal year. Mayor Harmening referred to the carpet cleaning for the entire Library. He noticed that the City Manager recommended zero and under the comments column it says, "1 approved, further research, check IAQ Budget". City Manager Parker explained that this refers to the indoor Air Quality Budget. The City has allo- cated $1 million and some of this is for work on the Library. Mayor Harmening stated that the carpet in the Library needs to be cleaned desperately. Mayor Harmening inquired about the capital outlay request if $10,200 for an automated call distribution system to provide better customer service. City Manager Parker advised that this system allows for supervisors to listen in on calls to be sure calls are being answered promptly with correct information. She, Mr. Swann, and Hugh McCaffrey, the Communications Manager, explained the system. Incoming calls will be automatically transferred to an open line if a line is busy. This is not a voice mail system. Mayor Harmening referred to page 1 of the Budget, Assessed Valuation and Adopted Tax Millage. He recollected the City Commission telling City Manager Parker that there was not to be a tax increase. However a tax increase is shown. City Manager Parker advised that the total millage is exactly the same. Mayor Harmening stated that it still shows a tax increase. GENERAL FUND REVENUES (Page 3) Mayor Harmening asked why the delinquent taxes for 1992, in the amounts of $99,070 and $43,000, are not combined. Mr. Swann advised that those items came in separately, but that they are both for 1992. (Page 5) Mayor Harmening felt the Occupational License fees have been increased too much. (Page 7) Commissioner Katz referred to the $450,000 anticipated revenue from ALS transports and was advised that this is based on 100 percent of the estimated collections. Jim Ness of the Fire Department advised that the amount of the estimated billing is approximately $550,000. (Page 8) Commissioner Katz suggested a $15 or $20 charge be instituted to launch-each boat from Boat Ramp Park on weekends. He estimated this would bring in $200,000 and people who have worked for the City for eighteen to twenty-five years would not have to be laid off. -3- *should read, "...eighteen or twenty-five years..." {See 8/2/94 City Commission Meeting Minutes} MINUTES - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 In response to Mayor Harmening, City Manager Parker advised that even though State funds were used to construct this park, a charge can be instituted, as long as it is equitable to both City and County residents. (Page 9) 'Mayor Harmening asked what the estimated revenue for false alarms fines was based on. Mr. Swann advised that the number of false alarms have not decreased. He attributed the increase in the estimated revenue to the installation of more burglar alarms. (Page 11) Commissioner Katz asked if the City is within its legal bounds to transfer from Water and Sewer and Sanitation Administration. City Manager Parker advised that this question should be addressed to the City Attorney. She stated that the City has been doing these transfers for years. Commissioner Katz asked for the reason for the increase in transfer in Sanitation. City Manager Parker attributed this to the increase in costs. She advised that the administrative fee is calculated by an estimate of the amount of time spent by the various user Departments in the General Fund for the Enterprise Funds. Mr. Swarm added that it also includes all billing from Data Processing, which bills all the sanitation fees. Commissioner Aguila asked about the method of estimating transfer fees each year. He expressed concern that there is no rationale should these transfer fees be challenged. City Manager Parker advised that the City Commission has the authority to appropriate monies according to the bond covenants and the current City Code. Commissioner Aguila pointed out that the City Commission does this based on her recommendation and he would like to know that her recom- mendation is based on some facts. City Manager Parker stated that the transfer of the $1.5 million from Water and Sewer is the same level of transfer that has been done since 1992. Mr. Swarm believed that the administration fee was part of a study which was previously done. City Manager Parker advised that this study was done in I990 as a result of the first bond issue and that it was also part of the bond covenants that the City could transfer the ad valorem fee to the General Fund. She could not say that there is a formula specifically for these numbers. CITY COMMISSION (Pages 14 through 16) City Manager Parker advised that there are no personnel changes in the City Commission Budget. Mayor Harmening suggested cutting the City Commission's salaries by 10 percent, effective immediately. Since employees are being laid off, and in order to save the taxpayers' money, Commissioner Katz suggested cutting the City Commission budget 50 percent. He -4- MINUTES - CITY COI~ISSION BUDGET NORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 suggested having a Board breakfast instead of a dinner, and charging for spouses who want to attend. He also suggested eliminating the $3,000 membership fee for the Florida League of Cities. There was not a consensus of the Commission to either cut the salaries of the commission or cancel the membership to the Florida League of Cities. CITY MANAGER (Pages 17 through 22) Mayor Harmening noticed that operating expenses have increased. City Manager Parker recommended reinstituting the Clerk III, who was shared with the Data Processing Department last year, to a full-time position in the City Manager's Office. She also recommended downgrading the Public Information Officer from 35 to 34. Mayor Harmening pointed out that the City has not had a Public Information Officer for two or thee months now and has done well without one. Commissioner Katz recollected City Manager Parker saying that she was not going to fill this position. City Manager Parker advised that she evaluated this situation over the past few months to determine what the impact to the City would be. She stated that we have not been able to do the internal employee newsletter and the Funfare Magazine, and we have no one to assist with special events for the City and school tours. Mayor Harmening felt the Funfare Magazine is a waste of time and postage. Commissioner Aguila felt that the City is not doing an adequate job of marketing itself in a positive light and that we need somebody to make an effort to pro- mote the good in the City. In response to Mayor Harmening, City Manager Parker advised that the revenue from the ads in the Funfare Magazine offsets the expense of the Funfare Magazine. Melody Green, Recreation Superintendent, advised that all the classes that the Recreation Department has are advertised in the Funfare Magazine and that the revenue generated from these classes to date is $376,000. She advised that this is the primary way we have to promote these classes. In response to Mayor Harmening, City Manager Parker advised that the net is $50,000. Mayor Pro Tem Bradley felt the Departments that have a lot of cOntact with the public would benefit from a Public Information Officer. He also felt it was important to market the City. In response to Vice Mayor Matson, City Manager Parker advised that in 1990, there were two Assistants to the City Manager. She stated that the Public Information Officer also serves as staff liaison to the Senior Advisory Board and the Children and Youth Advisory Board. Mayor Harmening wished to delete this postion; however, it was the consensus of the rest of the Commission to further downgrade this position to 30. -5- HINUTES - CITY COI~4ISS]:ON BUDGET NORKSHOP HEET:]:NG BOYNTOH BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 (Page 20) With regard to Memberships and in response to Commissioner Katz, City Manager Parker advised that the major membership fee is $1,500 for the Florida Innovation Group, which the City could do without. In response to Mayor Pro Tem Bradley, she explained the benefits of being a member of this organization. Mayor Harmening noticed that Business Meetings have increased. The only busi- ness meeting City Manager Parker and the Assistant anticipate attending is the State Conference. Therefore, City Manager Parker advised that this figure could be reduced to $1,000. (Page 21) In response to Mayor Harmening and Commissioner Aguila, City Manager Parker advised that line items 470.08, 470.10 and 470.17 have been combined and reduced. These accounts pay for registration fees for the City Manager, the Assistant City Manager, and the Assistant to the City Manager to attend various seminars around the State and the County. City Manager Parker has not budgeted any reimbursables for herself, and she and Mr. Hawkins do not plan to go anywhere during the remaining six months of this fiscal year. She hoped to be able to attend a seminar next year to get updated on various items that will impact the City. Commissioner Aguila stated that $1,500 does not get you very many seminars. Vice Mayor Matson felt that the City Manager's Office needs to keep up with their training. CITY CLERK (Pages 23 through 32) City Manager Parker advised that the main expense here is for the upcoming elec- tion. She also advised that the Deputy City Clerk position has been abolished. FINANCE (Pages 33 through 38) City Manager Parker advised that this Department has had three people cut out of it over the last four years. She proposed downgrading the Accountant I posi- tion, which is currently vacant, to Accounting Clerk II. CITIZEN SERVICES (Pages 39 through 44) City Manager Parker advised that no personnel changes are recommended in this budget. The capital outlay for this Department is the purchase of one AS/400 Terminal for $1,200. There is currently only one terminal out in the front. This second terminal will go to the mail clerk to allow her to reconcile the payment stubs as they come in and to change customer addresses and access customer accounts. In response to Mayor Harmening, City Manager Parker stated that the telephone answering system is for Utility Billing. -6- NINUTES - CITY CONHISSlON BUDGET WORKSHOP HEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ~ULY 25~ 1994 DATA PROCESSING (Pages 45 through 51) City Manager Parker advised that there was a request for a new programmer and two reclasses, which were denied. This is the Department that was sharing a clerk with the City Manager's Office. The Clerk III has been put back in this Department, as well as the City Manager's Office, full-time. Mayor Harmening referred to the paragraph on page 48, which states that the replacement of old AS/400 terminals and obsolete Microcomputer equipment is included in Data Processing's budget in an effort to keep the City up to date with current technology. Failure to do so may cause the City to fall behind and pose an enormous financial burden in updating the equipment at a later time. Mayor Harmening pointed out that most of this equipment has been getting cheaper. Therefore, if we do not replace them at the present time, we may be able to replace them with a higher standard at a cheaper price at a later date. Mike Munro, the Director of Data Processing, stated that we currently have several terminals that are six years old. IBM was going to drop the maintenance on them last year. However, there were so many of them that they extended it for another year. Mr. Munro replaced four terminals in this year's budget and is proposing to replace more next year. He advised that the old ones cost $3,500. The new ones cost $1,100. This price has been stable for about three years. However, now they have a three year warranty opposed to a ninety day warranty. He is trying to replace a few each year. (Page 49) Vice Mayor Matson asked about the Business Meetings for $2,600. City Manager Parker advised that this is an increase from the $2,000 presently in the budget for the State Conference for the Director, a software user conference for the Programmer Analyst II, and a software user conference for the Programmer Analyst I. In response to Vice Mayor Matson with regard to the Travel Allowance of $450, City Manager Parker advised that the employees are reimbursed twenty-six cents per mile if they go to another city for a seminar. Mr. Munro pointed out that this account has not been touched because the employees have been absorbing that cost themselves. PURCHASING (Pages 52 through 57) City Manager Parker advised that there are no personnel changes and no capital outlay in this budget. The only increase in this budget is a result of a COLA adjustment and some computer maintenance. PERSONNEL (Pages 58 through 64) City Manager Parker advised that this Department has requested another elec- tronic file cabinet and some computer equipment, both of which were approved. -7- HINUTES - CITY COHHISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP HEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ~ULY 25, 1994 CITY ATTORNEY (Pages 65 through 69) City Manager Parker advised that this budget funds a paralegal as a full-time employee and the City Attorney under a contractual arrangement. His retainer is $75,000 a year. To save the City money, Commissioner Katz suggested hiring a competent, full- time inhouse City Attorney with a trained assistant. PLANNING AND ZONING (Pages 70 through 77) City Manager Parker advised that a new employee (an Assistant Planner) is recom- mended for this Department. This Assistant Planner would handle part of the Comprehensive Plan review, which is due in early 1996. In 1989, this Department had three Assistant Planners, two Senior Planners, and a Planning Director, for a total of six professional planners. Four of these positions were eliminated over the last four years. With regard to the Comprehensive Plan, Mayor Harmening and City Manager Parker agreed that this is a perfect example of an unfunded mandate by the State. The capital outlay for this Department is a hardware and software package to assist in the mapping function of the City. Mayor Harmening suggested holding off filling the new position as long as possible. PROJECT HANAGEHENT (Pages 78 through 81) City Manager Parker advised that this position has been moved under Facilities and consists of only one employee. Commissioner Katz felt this position should be eliminated and the Facilities Superintendent be kept. FACILITIES MANAGEMENT (Pages 82 through 88) City Manager Parker advised that this budget reflects the deletion of the Facilities Management Superintendent. She reviewed the proposed building and grounds improvements. In response to Commissioner Aguila, she advised that the costs of these improvements were estimated by each Department. Some of these costs seemed low to Commissioner Aguila. City Manager Parker stated that City staff will provide the labor for some of these items. Therefore, the amounts shown are for materials only. City Manager Parker advised that the main increase in this budget is for contractual services for the new HVAC maintenance contract, in the amount of $85,217, day labor for the beach, fire alarm certification throughout City Hall, and the maintenance of five emergency generators, for a total of $134,437. -8- NINUTES - CITY CONNISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 CITY HALL/GENERAL ADMINISTRATION (Pages 89 through 91) City Manager Parker advised that line item 142.00 (health insurance) shows a lump sum negative, which will be distributed to the various Departments. In response to Mayor Harmening, City Manager Parker advised that the School Board requested $20,972 for the Title XX Child Care Program. The City is only funding $12,000, which is the same amount the City has been funding for the last several years. This is reflected in line item 988.00, Contribution to Human Services. Mayor Harmening pointed out that the City receives a tremendous return on this investment. City Manager Parker advised that it is a 6 percent local match. Therefore, the City would receive $93.90 from State and Federal funds for every $6 contributed. It was the consensus of the Commission to contribute $20,000 instead of $12,000. COMMUNICATIONS (Pages 95 through 101) City Manager Parker advised that there are no personnel changes in this budget. Because of the turnover in this Department, one dispatcher will be funded under the attrition method. One sergeant in the Police Department will also be hired under this method. Therefore, only twenty-one of the twenty-two personnel are funded in this budget. POLICE (Pages 102 through 128) City Manager Parker recommended funding the HUD grant officers which the City lost the HUD funding on. A therapist was requested, but was not approved. It is also recommended that the frozen Crime Scene Technician be funded. In addi- tion, she approved a new security guard position and explained that two security guard positions were previously approved by the Commission to assist with van- dalism and patrol of City facilities. In response to Commissioner Katz, City Manager Parker advised that the security guard position was requested by the Recreation and Park Department. The City Commission approved a program two years ago to hire two security guards to assist with the vandalism problem and as part of the minority hiring program. She explained that this program never got under way because the City had some success with minority hiring. However, the vandalism problem still exists, and the City has not had success in keeping its minority applicants. She stated that if they work as a security guard beforehand, perhaps they can work into the system a little more successfully. In response to Commissioner Aguila, City Manager Parker advised that the incen- tive pay {line item 121.00} is the education pay that the City pays out to its police officers, as in the State Statutes. Vice Mayor Matson asked for a status report on the K-9 Unit. Police Chief Thomas Dettman advised that the Veterans' Council for the Greater Boynton Beach area had made a commitment to donate $5,000 for the purchase of K-9 dogs. They have donated $3,500 and promised to come up with the additional $1,500 before -9- MINUTES - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ~ULY 25, 1994 the K-9 training school begins in mid October or November. He advised that there still might be a shortfall, depending on the cost of the dogs at the time, and supply and demand. Jack DeLoach advised that the $4,500 in the budget is for maintenance of the dogs. At the request of City Manager Parker, Chief Dettman explained the emphasis for the upcoming year, which will be on community policing and patrol. He will focus on dispersing the bicyle patrol unit throughout the community to cover more geographic area. The results experienced have been tremendous. Many times the bicycle patrol officer has arrived at the scene before the patrol car. He envisioned more bicycles and less patrol cars. He stated that bicycle patrol offers a higher degree of mobility and personal police service than foot patrol. In response to Mayor Pro Tem Bradley, Chief Dettman felt it would not be appropriate to expand the Community Policing Program in the schools. He stated that we are at a very appropriate level. He was invited to St. Petersburg Beach next Thursday to accept an award for being one of the few municipalities in the State of Florida that has accomplished such things as D.A.R.E., School Resource, Juvenile First Offender, and Recreation, Athletics and Policing. Chief Dettman felt these type of educational programs will make the difference. He advised that for a City the size of Boynton Beach, the Police Department has come to the point where it is doing as much as it should be doing. Now enforcement needs to be strengthened through community policing on bicycles and foot patrol. Vice Mayor Matson referred to Commissioner Katz' suggestion to charge a fee for launching boats from Boat Ramp Park. If approved, she suggested using some of this money toward more community policing. City Manager Parker advised that eight patrol vehicles are replaced every year, at a cost of $162,000. The Police Department recommends leasing vehicles instead, which would cost $66,000, plus 6 percent interest. At the end of the lease period, the vehicles can be purchased for $1. The vehicles would stay in the fleet and rotate like the regularly purchased vehicles. Leasing the vehicles made sense to Commissioner Aguila. In response to Commissioner Katz, Chief Dettman had no objection to using smaller vehicles for the detectives. MAYOR HARMENING DECLARED A RECESS AT 8:53 P. M. THE MEETING RECONVENED AT 9:02 P. M. The number of police sergeants was reduced from twenty-two to twenty-one. This will not affect the bottom line, since twenty-two have not been funded. FIRE (Pages 129 through 140) City Manager Parker advised that Fire Chief Floyd Jordan has reallocated person- nel. As a result, he would like to set up funding for three-man rescue units. Funding has been proposed for the promotion of three firefighers to accommodate this reallocation. - 10 - HINUTE$ - CITY COHI~I$$IOH BUDGET WORKSHOP HEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 Chief Jordan explained that three firefighter positions (one each from Shifts A, B and C) will be upgraded to Fire Lieutentant. The three firefighter positions will not be replaced. The purpose of this reorganization is to (1) reassign personnel and place them where the work is being done (80 percent of the work load is EMS), and (2) improve the operational efficiencies of the Department. Three people will be assigned to rescue units based on the number of personnel on duty each day. The operational efficiencies will be improved by eliminating one vehicle (the paramedic officer's vehicle). The paramedic officer and the firefighter who are currently assigned to this unit will be reassigned to Rescue I. The officer currently assigned to the aerial truck will be reassigned to Rescue III. The firefighter who was assigned to the paramedic officer's unit will be reassigned to Rescue II. This leaves one unit without a supervisor. Mayor Harmening asked what the upgrade would cost. Chief Jordan advised that it would cost a total of $8,200 a year. Commissioner Katz asked why the upgrades are necessary. Chief Jordan explained that one supervisor is needed for each rescue unit. City Manager Parker pointed out the reduction in overtime in the budget and attributed this to Chief Jordan's efforts. It is recommended that a third of the bunker gear be replaced with lightweight bunker gear. In response to Commissioner Katz, City Manager Parker advised that it would be too expensive to replace all the gear at one time. Chief Jordan added that it would cost approximately $18,000 per shift. In response to Commissioner Aguila, City Manager Parker advised that line item 468.00 is for the services of the firm who bills for ALS transports. In response to Commissioner Katz, City Manager Parker stated that some of the members of the Fire Department feel that the ad valorem taxes (the other source of revenue that funds the majority of the Department) should be kept at a set rate and if they get these additional revenues in, it should be additional money on top of the set ad valorem. The City has taken the position that as salaries and expenses increase in the Department, the ad valorem taxes are just one method of funding the entire expense of the Department and additional revenue is counted in as part of the total revenue pool that goes to fund that Department. In response to Commissioner Aguila, Chief Jordan advised that the hydraulic cutter and ram, which was not approved, is getting old and he wanted to replace it. The $5,300 was put in the budget in case it needs to be repaired. City Manager Parker felt we could get an additional year out of this equipment. In response to Commissioner Aguila regarding the Mobile UHF radios for seven ALS units, Jim Ness advised that the State requires this particular type of radio. However, it has never been enforced because there are some problems with com- puter systems in this area. The State is currently reviewing whether or not they are going to enforce these radios. - 11 - HINUTE$ - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP HEETiNG BOYNTOH BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 BUILDING (Pages 141 through 151) This budget reflects the lay off of the Building Official. City Manager Parker confirmed for Commissioner Katz that State Statute and the City Charter require a Building Official and that the person she is recommending to replace the Building Official with is not a Building Official. However, he will be a certified Building Official by the State by the date of the reorgani- zation (October 1st). She explained the two methodologies by which he will be able to do this. Commissioner Katz felt it was a mistake to replace someone with ten years of experience with a probationary employee. He asked if she expects this gentle- man to be a long-term employee. Commissioner Aguila felt the question is whether or not it makes sense to combine Building and Engineering. Commissioner Katz pointed out that maybe we are combining these Departments under the wrong person. City Manager Parker advised that she reviewed the qualifications, education, and experience of the current Building Official. The State requires a Building Official to be a certified P.E. with a seal and the current Building Official cannot obtain his P.E. certification in a short number of months. Therefore, he does not meet the educational criteria for this position. The City Engineer also needs to be a P. E. with a seal. Mayor Harmening felt there is an opportunity to eliminate a few more positions in the Building Department if the City wants to save money. City Manager Parker advised that the inspectors have been receiving a travel allowance of $225 a month for the last six years. She stated that they use their cars extensively from 8:00 A. M. to 5:00 P. M. for inspections, and recom- mended increasing the travel allowance to $250 per month. In addition, the Building Department requested that the inspectors receive golf type shirts to wear to identify themselves as City employees. Currently, they arrive at a job site in an unmarked, personal vehicle, without a uniform. Commissioner Aguila asked her to look into leasing the shirts from a company that cleans them too. He felt this would be cost effective. The Personnel Director, William Sullivan, advised that he looked into leasing uniforms several years ago and it would significantly increase expenses. A person would be needed to collect the dirty clothes and reissue the new ones, and to haggle with the cleaning company if a shirt is missing or comes back with holes in it. Commissioner Aguila advised that the City of Delray Beach leases uniforms and it is cost effective. City Manager Parker will have this looked into again. Occupational Licensing has requested $16,000 to do a rewrite of the occupational license system. City Manager Parker recommended this be done inhouse by the City's Computer Programmer. It will take three or four months longer; however, she felt it was worth it rather than contracting it out. - 12 - *There 15 no requirement that a Bulldlng Offl¢lal be a Professional Engineer, The State requires that the Building Offtclal be certified, (see CJt~ Commis- sion Heetlng of 8/2/94) C MINUTES - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 CODE ENFORCEMENT (Pages 152 through 159} City Manager Parker advised that this budget increased less than $4,000 this year. She pointed out that Marshall Souther serves some of his time in this Department and some as Construction Coordinator in Community Improvement. Commissioner Katz suggested the Construction Coordinator position be eliminated and Mr. Souther work for Code Enforcement full time. He advised that the City needs another full-time Code Enforcement person and he did not think much was being done in terms of construction coordination. City Manager Parker advised that we are currently constructing three houses and Mr. Souther handles all construction inspections, bidding of plans, and review of items for those three homes. Vice Mayor Matson inquired if there is so much building going on that there is nobody to do this in the Building Department. City Manager Parker advised that Mr. Souther was a building inspector, but the City transferred him three years ago, when several building inspector positions were eliminated. Mr. Hawkins stated that it is very important to get the best for the buck and Mr. Souther has to be very effective with dealing with contractors. He said it requires personal attention from someone who understands the program, the quali- fications of the program, and knows how to deal with people. Commissioner Aguila asked how many hours Mr. Souther spends in each Department. City Manager Parker advised that Mr. Souther works for Code Enforcement two days a week and for Community Improvement three days a week. Commissioner Aguila suggested Mr. Souther spend three or four days in Code Enforcement and the remainder in Community Improvement. Mr. Hawkins stated that the City needs somebody who is going to devote some attention to this program to protect the City's interest. City Manager Parker stated that she will look at allocating Mr. Souther's time a little more appropriately. She stated that he does a lot of coordinating be- tween clients, contractors, and banks. These clients have not dealt with the system and it takes a lot more time than it would on a normal construction proj- ect. ANIMAL CONTROL (Pages 160 through 164) City Manager Parker advised that the only change in this budget is the purchase of a pick-up truck as a replacement vehicle. Commissioner Aguila commented that it is amazing how much these people do with so little resources. Commissioner Katz asked if there is any way to increase the amount of Hav-a-hart and Tomahawk traps. Mr. Eichorst advised that he has ordered three more this year, which would give the shelter seven. - 13- *C~n~nlsslon Katz requested that Tomahawk traps be removed since he has never heard of them, He further stated that he believed Hay-a-hart should be spelled "Hav-a-heart", (See minutes of 8/2/94 City Commission Meetina) MINUTES - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, Z994 At the request of City Manager Parker, Mr. Eichorst explained the new rabies vaccination program. He advised that two veterinarians in Boynton Beach are proposing to aid the animal shelter in a low cost vaccination program. When someone picks up an animal from the shelter, they will receive a coupon to get the animal a rabies shot at a low cost. PUBLIC WORKS (Pages 165 through 176) City Manager Parker advised that the Administrative Assistant position was split. She recommended reclassification of the Administrative Assistant to Administrative Assistant/Recycling Coordinator. In an agreement the City approved several years ago, the City agreed to designate one employee as Recycling Coordinator. The Administrative Assistant in Public Works has been serving this function for a number of years. She has been doing the City's recycling grants and has expanded those duties to encompass talking to homeowner groups and assisting the Solid Waste Authority with recycling. Due to this reclassification, this budget shows a decrease. The Sanitation budget will reflect an increase of 0.5 in personnel. In addition, City Manager Parker recommended a fax machine for the Public Works yard. In response to Commissioner Katz, City Manager Parker advised that the take-home vehicles in Public Works are for the Director and the Assistant Director. Commissioner Katz pointed out that these gentleman are paid lots of money and if there is an emergency which warrants their presence, he felt it goes along with the job description. He felt the concept of take-home vehicles in other depart- ments needs to be addressed also and stated that it is an unnecessary expense for the taxpayers to bear. He asked how many times employees with take-home vehicles are called back to work. City Manager Parker stated that there are thirty-six take-home vehicles. The majority are in the Police Department. Vice Mayor Matson inquired how many times employees with take-home vehicles have been called back to work. City Manager Parker will review all the logs to see if all the employees with take-home vehicles really need them. Vice Mayor Matson pointed out that the backup material indicates that the Utility Director and Deputy Utility Director attend Sewer Board meetings. However, she has not seen them at a Sewer Board meeting in over a year. She stated that the City pays these employees high salaries and does not see why the City has to furnish them vehicles to come to work when there could be a vehicle at the City at their disposal. City Manager Parker stated that many of these employees handle City business on their way to and from work. Carel Fisher, Deputy Director of Public Works, advised that the savings would be minimal to keep the vehicles at the City and not take them home. He pointed out that there are not enough parking spaces for all the vehicles. Commissioner Aguila felt the vehicles that are taken home are less likely to be vandalized. Mayor Pro Tem Bradley suggested that the employees who are on call twenty-four hours a day use their own vehicles and that the City give them a vehicle alloca- - 14 - #INUTES - CITY COI4NISSION BUDGET WoRKSHoP NEETING BOYNTOH BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 tion. City Manager Parker advised that there are Department Heads who receive a travel allowance instead of a take-home vehicle. This made more sense to Commissioner Aguila than take-home vehicles. Vice Mayor Matson pointed out that the employees with take-home vehicles have a fuel card. Therefore, the City is paying for their fuel too. City Manager Parker advised that the savings by parking the vehicles would primarily be on fuel and a little on wear and tear and mileage. Mr. Fisher stated that a take-home vehicle would not average close to a car allowance. The take-home vehicles are hand-me-down police cruisers. He said what we really are addressing is a little bit of gasoline. He stated that the cost of these vehicles has paid for itself in police service. Vice Mayor Matson suggested selling the used police cars to bring in revenue. She was in favor of starting to phase out take-home vehicles. Mr. Eichorst stated that the take-home vehicles are used for daily business. A couple of years ago, he went on thirty-seven calls in two months. Mayor Harmening inquired about the cost to the City in terms of insurance. City Manager Parker advised that the City requires the employees who receive a vehicle allowance to carry $100,000/$300,000 business insurance and that the City be a named insured and receive certificates for those people. ROADS AND STREETS (Pages 171 through 176) City Manager Parker advised that there are no personnel changes in this budget. She recommended that the street resurfacing budget continue to be set at $120,000 a year. This will show up in the Gas Tax account. She pointed out a new item in this budget. The County is now charging the City $10,000 to dump the dirt from the street sweeper at the landfill because they said the dirt is hazardous waste because it contains oil and debris from the road. Mayor Harmening suggested stockpiling the dirt and turning it over once. After about three months, have it tested, and present the results to the County. Mr. Fisher advised that it is contaminated with trash and cannot be used any- where. The debris would have to be screened out of it in order for it to be used. He believed if it was tested the day it was swept up, no more contami- nates would be found in it than on any street or swale area. He stated that the rain washes it into the swale. But once picked up in a sweeper, the County says it is contaminated. Mr. Fisher advised that $10,000 has been budgeted for extreme emergencies and this amount would not cover a massive operation. - 15- MINUTES - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 City Manager Parker distributed the street sweeper schedule and asked the Commission for input. Mayor Harmening suggested that all streets in the City that have a curb be included on the schedule. LIBRARY (Pages 177 through 191) City Manager Parker advised that the hours of the part-time librarian have been increased. The total positions have been reduced from thirty-six to thirty- five. Because the County has opened a new branch out west, the City is not receiving the McNaughton leased books that they were funding and had to pick up some of that expense. The electricity in the library is still fairly expensive. As part of the indoor air quality, we are looking at that whole system, but we are still budgeting $100,000 for the electric. Mayor Harmening stated that the carpet in the library should be replaced. City Manager Parker recommended replacing it with tile. Commissioner Aguila stated that this would generate more hard surface in an area that is already very noisy. He suggested spending a little more money on a very high quality, high traffic proven carpet. Commissioner Katz noticed that $125,000 was requested for books, but only $115,000 was allocated. He felt the library needs to restock its books. He pointed out that the City saved $13,900 tonight from City Manager memberships, the PIO, and the City Manager Business meetings and spent $8,000 of that, leaving $5,900. He suggested putting that into books. Commissioner Aguila felt $115,000 was adequate. Vice Mayor Matson would rather use the money to offset the millage rate. In this year's budget, City Manager Parker recommended funding a new reference disc database {Local Area Network) and some additional compact disc databases for reference. RECREATION AND PARKS (Pages 192 through 227) City Manager Parker advised that the Recreation Department recommends reclassifying the Recreation Leader (Grade 15) to Recreation Specialist. This would cost the City $936 a year. The Department also recommends reclassifying the Recreation Supervisor I at Ezell Hester to Recreation Supervisor II, at a cost of $2,267. In addition, the Department recommends increasing the hours of the Maintenance Worker from 30 to 40, at a cost of $4,316. The Department also recommends hiring a new clerk. City Manager Parker explained that the Clerk in the Planning Department was unable to work in the Planning Department because of the sick building syndrome. She was transferred to the Art Center. Therefore, this position is reflected in the Recreation budget as a new Clerk. The City is still funding a Clerk's position in the Planning Department and is hoping to hire someone who can work in that building once it is cleaned. City Manager Parker advised that the City Commission has previously discussed Phase III of Ezell Hester and improvements at Sara Simms Memorial Gardens. Funding for these items has not been included in this budget because there was no clear consensus. Phase III of Ezell Hester would cost approximately $615,000 - 16- MINUTES - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 and the improvements at Sara Simms Memorial Gardens would cost approximately $1o,ooo. Mayor Harmening noticed that an Irrigation Specialist was requested in this budget. He pointed out that whenever it does not rain for a while, you can see a considerable amount of dead or dying grass. When it rains a normal amount, it is difficult to tell how well the sprinklers are covering. He stated that some- body needs to monitor this more thoroughly. Mr. Frederick advised that there are 55 irrigation systems, 8,000 heads, about 550 valve systems, and all kinds of wells and pumps throughout the City. Many of the systems are old and were designed improperly and there is no overlap. Therefore, there are a lot of brown spots because of the wind. He said he requested an Irrigation Specialist so that more time can be spent redoing those systems and making upgrades and improvements to them. There are too many systems for the current three-man crew to cover. Mayor Harmening pointed out that Leisureville has a lot more than 8,000 heads. Mr. Frederick stated that they are all contained in one area, not spread out all over the City. City Manager Parker advised that the City has battery operated controllers, which are not as reliable as electric controllers. She also advised that homeowners to not face the problem of vandalism that exists in some parks. In response to Commissioner Katz, Mr. Frederick explained the difference between the Park Superintendent and the Park Supervisor. The Park Superintendent is the administrative head of the division and handles the management portion. The Park Supervisor is the key field man who supervises all the grass maintenance crews and all the specialty crews for the entire City. This year, a Grounds Maintenance Supervisor had been requested to provide the Park Supervisor with assistance, but it was not approved. Vice Mayor Matson inquired about the acreage mowing. Mr. Frederick explained that the acreage crew runs the large tractors and mows the vacant lots and large land tracts such as the landfill. They supplement the regular crews. Vice Mayor Matson noticed that it states in the budget that an alternative to in- house mowing would be to designate a lot mowing contractor using hourly rates as the basis for billing owners. Mr. Frederick advised that this relates to the vacant lot mowing program only. The City spends overtime money to mow those lots, in the hopes that the bills will be paid when sent out. Many times, the City does not get that money. One option would be to contract this out. However, the City will probably still not get the money. City Manager Parker pointed out that the City does some aquatic weed control in the City maintained canals. Mr. Frederick advised that the City has been contracting this out for about five years now. Commissioner Katz asked if any money was budgeted for removal of Melaleuca trees. Mr. Frederick advised that $10,000 was requested but not approved. - 17 - MINUTES - CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JULY 25, 1994 City Manager Parker reviewed the capital requests on pages 226 and 227. Mr. Frederick advised that the $50,000 for the little league ground improvements is for a major changeover on the number 2 field. The poles and lights will be upgraded to a brand new system. The wooden poles presently there have been there for twenty-five years. The purpose of the lighting system is to meet the current lighting standard of little league baseball. The senior field also needs replacing and Mr. Frederick will probably request this changeover next year. ADJOURNMENT The City Commission ended their review this evening at this point. The meeting properly adjourned at 10:25 P. M. ATTEST: qRecordi ng Secretary (Four Tapes) THE CIT~ OF;~/N ON BEACH ~~~~~~~ Mayor  k~" Commissioner - 18 -