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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/15/1994 Special Meeting 2 489 NOVEMBER 15, 1994 SPECIAL MEETING - BUDGET REVIEW The City Council met in session on this date at 9:00 a.m. for a special meeting for budget review, in the Council Chambers of City Hall, Yakima, Washington. Mayor Pat Berndt, presiding, Council Members Clarence Barnett, Ernie Berger, Bill Brado, Lynn Buchanan, and Bernard Sims present. Council Member Henry Beauchamp absent and excused. City Manager Zais, Director of Finance and Budget Hanson, Accounting Manager Robert Wheeler, and City Clerk Roberts also present. COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Glenn Valenzuela, Director of Community and Economic Development, introduced Don Skone, Planning Manager, Irene Gutierrez, Rebound Rehabilitation Administrator, Wendy Warren, Cable Communications Manager, Leonard Hall, Code Administration Manager, and Dixie Kracht, Block Grant Manager. It was the general consensus of the Council to review the policy issues and then review the Department's individual budgets. The Policy Issue (page 76) Initiate a 1995 Contract with Consulting Firm, under Economic Development, was reviewed. Mr. Valenzuela commented that staff would put out a Request for Proposals for a consulting firm to identify grants in the areas of economic development, and organize and schedule meetings with the appropriate people in Washington, D.C. Staff is following Council direction to seek a federal office in Yakima. Council Member Barnett referenced several policy issues relating to consulting firms and questioned if any of the services are being duplicated by local agencies, such as Yakima County Development Association (YCDA). He also questioned if several of these tasks could be combined into one contract. Mr. Valenzuela explained the mission of YCDA, whose primary function is to assist with industrial development. He thought the tasks could be combined into one contract, but felt that would be even more confusing. Mayor Berndt related how impressed she was when she was in Washington, D.C. with Scott Jackson, who had many contacts there and was familiar with how that governmental system works. I/ Policy Issue (page 77) Replace the Heating and Cooling Systems at Southeast Yakima Community Center, under Southeast Yakima Community Center, was reviewed. Mr. Valenzuela stated the Southeast Center needs some capital improvements, which would be funded from the Parks Capital Fund. Discussion followed regarding the appropriateness of funding being from the Parks Capital Fund, whether the furnace should be a central or zonal unit, and whether i 490 NOVEMBER 15, 1994 SPECIAL MEETING - BUDGET REVIEW Council should consider selling the Southeast Yakima Community Center. Policy Issue (page 78) CBD Promotion /Development Consultant, under Environmental Planning, was reviewed. Glenn Valenzuela explained this policy issue evolved from the Yakima Downtown Association's request to help fund a marketing specialist as a 50/50 I/ private /public partnership. This individual would be an extension of the Association's staff and would work with City staff on the 1995 Downtown Plan. Council discussed the funding source for this position. Policy Issues (pages 79 & 81) Upgrade the DA II Position to a DA III, under Environmental Planning, and Upgrade the DA II Position to a DA III, under Code Administration, were discussed. Mr. Valenzuela spoke to these two policy issues since they both relate to DA II position upgrades. Regarding the Code Administration DA II position, he reported there is no distinction between the functions performed by the DA III and the DA II. The Division has seen a significant increase in the volume of permits, etc. to be processed. Council Member Brado disagreed with Mr. Valenzuela's opinion regarding the continued trend in the building industry, indicating his belief that the strong local economic boom in the building construction will not continue. Policy Issue (page 80) Shift GMA Associate Planner to General Fund, under Environmental Planning, was reviewed and discussed. Council Member Buchanan requested staff attach a map to their annexation report indicating the areas proposed for annexation. Council Member Sims inquired if there is an organization that tracks gross domestic products enabling current trends to be analyze. Mr. Valenzuela suggested that the City include an economic forecast for the urban area (instead of region -wide) as part of the City's contract with YCDA. The Policy Issue (page 82) Irrigation Rehabilitation, under Housing, prompted a debate regarding Irrigation District 308, which is in dire need of rehabilitation. At issue was funding the rehabilitation of the irrigation system on a piecemeal basis over a number of years or whether that money would be better spent leveraging additional funds for the housing rehabilitation program. The Policy Issue (page 83) Upgrade Community Programming Assistant Position to Community Production Coordinator under Cable Communications, elicited comments on the high caliber of work performed by Randy Beehler. The Policy Issue (page 84) Allocate $10,000 for Professional Services for NII Grant Development, under Cable Communications, was withdrawn. Mr. Valenzuela reported that, given the newly elected Congress, it is staff's understanding this would not be a high priority item. /2 NOVEMBER 15, 1994 SPECIAL MEETING - BUDGET REVIEW The Policy Issue (page 85) Increase Professional Services to Augment Maintenance to Facility, under Capitol Theatre, was not discussed at this time since Council had met earlier today and heard from the Capitol Theatre Board and management. I/ Hearing Examiner Mr. Valenzuela commented that later today Council will consider the contract for Hearing Examiner services. In the near future, staff will recommend going out for bid for a Hearing Examiner Pro -tem. Council Member Barnett pointed out the statistics given as performance indicators do not correlate with the projected $41,000 budget. Environmental Planning Mr. Skone explained the Division has shifted all support administrative costs into one Service Unit. Overall, the total budget is up about $60,000; the majority of that due to the request to fund one planner from the General Fund, rather than GMA funds. Code Administration Mr. Valenzuela reported the Division's emphasis next year will be to educate the public about the new codes and work on code violations based upon neighborhood complaints. Council Member Buchanan suggested that staff review the new State building codes before they are adopted by the City and eliminate those that are not pertinent to Yakima. City Hall Mr. Hall commented that the plan for the City Hall heating repairs should be available soon, enabling us to go out for bids. Mr. Zais remarked that the space utilization in City Hall will be evaluated in 1995. After the Police Department vacates this building, it is possible that other outlying offices may return to City Hall. Other than a few generic comments, there was no discussion regarding the Economic Development, Office of Housing and I/ Neighborhood Conservation, and Cable Communications budgets. Rebound Plus Program: Mayor Berndt announced that this budget includes a reduction of one staff position. Ms. Gutierrez responded to Council Member Barnett's question about the lack of activity forecasted in 1995 for abatement of dangerous buildings. There is no funding available for that particular program; the funding for 1995 is /3 492 NOVEMBER 15, 1994 SPECIAL MEETING - BUDGET REVIEW from the Yakima County Substance Abuse Coalition and is targeted towards their programs. Metropolitan Yakima Comprehensive Plan Assistant City Manager Rice was available to respond to questions. ,There was discussion regarding the results of the Commuter Trip Reduction Program (CTR), which was contracted to the Conference of I/ Governments (COG). Mr. Rice suggested Council request a presentation from COG on the CTR program. Mr. Valenzuela reported the development of the Comprehensive Plan is on schedule and should be provided to Council in March. Trolley (YVTS) Mr. Rice suggested an informal meeting with the Yakima Interurban Lines Association to discuss some of the concerns expressed by Council relating to proposed capital projects. Yakima Convention Center Kathy Coffey, Manager of the Yakima Center, commented that 1994 expenditures will be under budget. The proposed expenditures for 1994 are lower than the 1994 budget and the projected revenue is higher than for 1994. There was no discussion about the Capitol Theatre budget since Council had met earlier in the morning with the Capitol Theatre Board members and executive director. CBD Capital Improvement Mr. Hanson reported the three primary expenditures for 1995 are the $15,000 policy issue for a CBD promotion /development consultant, $78,000 for the Yakima Mall expansion relating to the street vacation, and $21,000 to complete the CBD Lighting Project. Part of the downtown parking lot resources goes into this fund. The Council recessed at 11:00 a.m. and the meeting resumed at 11:05 a.m. CITY MANAGEMENT LEGAL DEPARTMENT Ray Paolella, City Attorney, introduced Assistant City Attorneys Larry Peterson and Paul McMurray and Legal Assistant Linda Spence. The Policy Issue (page 7), Hire Litigation Defense Attorney and Word Processing Typist, under Civil Division, was promoted by Ray Paolella. With the use of visual aids, Mr. Paolella stressed the savings which would occur by hiring staff versus utilizing consultant attorney services. It was noted that the hiring of /4 493 NOVEMBER 15, 1994 SPECIAL MEETING- BUDGET REVIEW another assistant attorney would not-eliminate the need entirely for outside services, but would reduce it enough to create a significant savings. Mr. Paolella also spoke in support of the Policy Issue (page 9), Restructure Professional Legal Class Specifications, which would create a tiered level for promotions I/ within the Department. He stated a key element of this policy issue is the paralegal service to assist the attorneys. Larry Peterson and Paul McMurray spoke in support of the two policy issues. CITY COUNCIL The Policy Issue (page 63) Rectuest from the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to Contract for Professional Services, under City Council, was considered. Mayor Berndt suggested this be considered with the requests from the other outside agencies. ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT Assistant City Manager Glenn Rice, City Clerk Roberts, Personnel Officer Sutton and Acting Purchasing Agent Ownby were available to respond to questions concerning the Administration Department budget. The Policy Issue (page 66) Purchase a Records Management System, under the City Clerk Division, was briefly reviewed. City Clerk Roberts circulated photographs showing the current overcrowded filing system and records vault, and the amount of records yet to be filed. Council Member Barnett commented about the number of file cabinets listed on the City's surplus list and Council Member Buchanan commented about the file cabinets that should become available in the Police Department. The Policy Issue (page 70) Reinstate DA II Position, under the Human Resources Division, was explained by Mr. Sutton. There is an insufficient number of staff in the Division to meet all the requirements of the Human Resources Division. The Policy Issue (page 71) Salary Survey for Supervisors /Confidential Employees, as well as the Policy Issue (page 72) Reclassification Studies for the Charter Civil Service Commission, under Human Resources, were outlined by Sheryl Smith, I/ Deputy Personnel Officer, and support was urged by Mr. Sutton and Mr. Rice. There was a commitment made to do a salary survey a few years ago when these supervisors and confidential employees were removed from the bargaining group. Mayor Berndt reminded Council members that when an increase is granted to the management group, it includes a wide range of positions at various salary levels, not just Department Directors. (Council Member Brado absent at 11:40 a.m.) /5 494 NOVEMBER 15, 1994 SPECIAL MEETING - BUDGET REVIEW The Policy Issue (page 73) Investigative Services, under Human Resources, was explained by Mr. Sutton. The Division is required to do more extensive work locally even though workers compensation is contracted to a third party administrator. There being no questions on the budgets for the Legal and Administration Departments, the meeting was adjourned at 11:45 a.m. I/ READ AND CERTIFIED ACCURATE BY: ) / 2-6t- f4 -7c3N6 COUNCIL MEMB R DATE C� r L MEMBER 'ATE ATTEST: ,,e . tea i CITY CLERK MAYOR 0.7 An audio and video tape of this meeting are available in the City Clerk's Office I/ /6