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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012 11-05 CCM Joint Work Session with Financial Commission MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA JOINT WORK SESSION WITH FINANCIAL COMMISSION NOVEMBER 5, 2012 CITY HALL—COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Joint Work Session with the Financial Commission and the session called to order by Mayor Tim Willson at 6:30 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor Tim Willson and Councilmembers Carol Kleven, Kay Lasman, Lin Myszkowski, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Curt Boganey, Finance Director Dan Jordet, Public Works Director/City Engineer Steve Lillehaug, CARS Director Jim Glasoe, Assistant City Manager/Director of Building & Community Standards Vickie Schleuning, Police Chief Kevin Benner, and Sue Osbeck, Timesaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc. Others present were Financial Commission Vice Chair Steve Landis, and Financial Commissioners Tenesha Kragness, Dan Schueller, and Dean Van Der Wer£ INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW Mayor Willson introduced former Mayor Kragness, who stated the Council needed to get involved to assure the City newspaper gets out to everyone in the City since only 6,000 residents receive it. The Council discussed with the City Manager how this can be resolved. City Manager Curt Boganey stated this evening was a continuation of the budget discussions for 2013. He reviewed the agenda with the Council. POLICE DEPARTMENT Police Chief Kevin Benner outlined the Police Department Mission. He reviewed the responsibility of the department in the City and noted the department embraces the concept of community-oriented policing. They also strategically partner with surrounding police agencies to share information. Police Chief Benner reviewed staffing levels with the Council. He stated they are looking at making the juvenile officer a permanent addition in 2014 and will be looking to apply for a new grant for an auto theft officer in 2013 and 2014. He is not asking for the City to fund this position if they do not receive the grant. Mayor Willson indicated he was concerned with cutting the patrol officers from 29 to 28 in 2013 and 2014. Police Chief Benner stated the Drug Task Force Officer is a part of this number in 11/05/2012 -1- 2012 and will be removed in 2013 and 2014 but is still shown as part of the staff. Mayor Willson stated he wanted to make sure they will have things covered in the coming years. Police Chief Benner indicated everything will be covered. Mayor Willson stated he supports the strategy as explained by Police Chief Benner. Police Chief Benner continued with his presentation explaining other areas of the Police Department that are part of his budget. He reviewed the annual goals and strategies with the Council and explained how the department is working to reduce youth crime and crime at commercial properties in the City. He stated in 2013 the Patrol Division staff wage budget will increase 10%. The increase is the result of nine patrol officers receiving step pay increases as they achieve top patrol pay. Mayor Willson indicated he liked the direction this is going. He commented on what the City of Minneapolis is doing with Domestic Abuse and Ramsey County is doing with ankle bracelets for restraining orders, which he thought may come to Brooklyn Center in the future. Police Chief Benner described the domestic abuse actions that are being used in Brooklyn Park. Councilmember Ryan stated he received some concerns about activity at the Holiday Station Store at Xerxes and asked whether the Police Department could use the same successful action taken to resolve past incidents at the SuperAmerica on 691h and Humboldt Avenues. Police Chief Benner explained how they helped to deter crime at SuperAmerica, including monthly meetings with the store's managers to maintain visibility. He noted SuperAmerica Corporate will not allow a security company to be hired but he hopes Holiday will consider hiring West Tech for security. CENTRAL GARAGE Public Works Director/City Engineer Steve Lillehaug reviewed the vehicles and equipment in the City. There are 144 vehicles, and 104 pieces of small equipment that are being maintained in the Central Garage. He noted there are five people at the Central Garage and they do not recommend any changes to staffing at this time. He reviewed the strategic function of the equipment in the City, annual goals, three strategies of the Central Garage, and annual goal performance measures. Mr. Lillehaug then reviewed the capital outlay for City equipment. Councilmember Lasman noted there was scheduled replacement in 2014 for many Crown Victoria vehicles. Police Chief Benner stated the replacement vehicle will be a Ford Interceptor and the cost will remain the same. Mr. Lillehaug reviewed budget changes to the department, noting this department charges other departments for fuel and other costs incurred on the other department's behalf. He noted in 2013, there is a one-time payout of$18,400 for a lawnmower blade grinder. There will not be any purchases for minor equipment in 2013 or 2014. 11/05/2012 -2- CENTERBROOK GOLF COURSE Community Activities, Recreation and Services Director Jim Glasoe discussed the mission of Centerbrook Golf Course. He stated in order to be competitive they need to provide value and customer service to the public. He reviewed the history of the course, how financing was provided to the course, and staffing levels, noting there is only one full-time person and they are looking at reducing the part time hours in 2013. He then reviewed the annual goals, strategies, and budget highlights of the golf course. Mr. Boganey asked what the cash flow will be in the future. Finance Director Jordet explained they will need a one-time transfer in of$210,000 for the budget to break even for future years. He reviewed the cash flow from 2012 going forward through 2017 and stated they are looking for some indication that the transfer in is acceptable. Going forward, they will need $20,000 per year from outside sources. Mr. Boganey thought once the transfer in of$210,000 is done, they do not foresee the course losing money. He stated he has a lot of confidence in the ability of the director to maintain the course and assure it maintains its budget and actually makes money in the future. Commissioner Tenesha Kragness thought at the last session they decided to set aside $5,000. Mr. Glasoe stated they realized their market is local youth, women, and non-golfers. The budget does not include the additional allocation. Councilmember Lasman stated she was pleased with the way customer service is being done at the course. She noticed that last year in Brooklyn Park, there was a free lesson for women, which was a fabulous idea. Councilmember Lasman suggested this be considered since it might be worth the investment if more people start golfing. Mr. Glasoe also thought it was a terrific idea and indicated he would pass along the information. Councilmember Myszkowski stated she was intrigued by the idea of a free golf lesson and liked the idea of reaching out to the community. She asked if they ever reached out to the local schools for practicing at the facility. Mr. Glasoe stated they have done this in the past and plan on reaching out again in the future. He noted they were looking at the Tiger Woods First Tee Program to see if that would work. Councilmember Ryan thought the customer service objective was spot on and indicated he would support the inflow of necessary funding for the golf course as long as the goal remained to get the course to eventually self-fund. Councilmember Lasman indicated she supported the inflow also, with cautious optimism. She thought this was still a great usage in the City and they should stick with it. Councilmember Lasman also indicated the one time transfer in of$210,000 should be made. Mayor Willson indicated he liked the idea of including youth and trying them to participate. Councilmember Kleven thought this sounded promising and supported the new ideas. 11/05/2012 -3- BUILDINGS AND COMMUNITY STANDARDS Assistant City Manager/Director of Building & Community Standards Vickie Schleuning outlined the Building and Community Standards mission. She noted there will not be any changes to the staffing levels in 2013 and 2014. Ms. Schleuning explained the department functions and reviewed its annual goals. Ms. Schleuning then reviewed 2013 initiatives, noting they need to maintain acceptable service levels and a strategy for rental housing improvements. She noted they are making headway with this. Ms. Schleuning reviewed the budget and noted there is an overall budget increase of 3.14%, some related to cost of living increases, Central Garage increase, and supplies increase. Mayor Willson noted code enforcement is still important to residents in the City so he would like to see that continue. Councilmember Ryan stated he has been watching the NSP Program and he thought staff had done a great job by using that program in a targeted way. He was also concerned about the CDBG program. He stated he appreciated the work that had been done and would continue to follow up with other elected officials on the CDBG program. Councilmember Kleven complimented Assistant City Manager/Director of Building & Community Standards Schleuning on the work that has been done in the City. Councilmember Myszkowski stated every department is a piece of improving the community and she thought it was an exciting time. She also thought it was impressive to see the department making it all work with the minimum"bare bones." Mr. Boganey stated with all of the discussion of the "fiscal cliff," it will be difficult to preserve CDBG, so that is something that needs to be watched. MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL Mr. Boganey outlined the Mayor and City Council budget for 2013-2014. Councilmember Ryan stated there is significant value through the organizations to the Council and he felt the dues were well spent. ADMINISTRATION Mr. Boganey outlined the Administration budget for 2013-2014. He noted within the department there is a lot of cross training to allow breaks and vacations because there is only one person per title. He reviewed the annual goals and strategies of the Administration Department. 11/05/2012 -4- FISCAL AND SUPPORT SERVICES Mr. Jordet outlined the Fiscal and Support Services for 2013. He noted they are currently working on allowing resident history of utility bills online. They have also started accepting online credit card and over the phone credit card payments. Mayor Willson felt an electronic format for financial information would be helpful to the Council. Mr. Jordet reviewed the budget. He noted legal is up $45,000 (11.85%) based on past experience and the joint powers payments will be going up. Insurance premiums will go down $34,000 (14.75%) from the 2012 budget. Councilmember Ryan thought Project Peace was important to the Police Department. Police Chief Benner confirmed it was important because it helps to address domestic violence in the community. He noted this program is located in the City and they receive great value for the cost of the program. Councilmember Lasman stated the City would still need to provide those services even if Project Peace did not help to fund them. MISCELLANEOUS Mayor Willson stated things were well structured and the departments are running well. He stated his appreciation for the work of City Manager Boganey to run all of these departments. ADJOURNMENT Councilmember Lasman moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded adjournment of the Joint Work Session at 9:04 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. 11/05/2012 -5- STATE OF MINNESOTA) COUNTY OF HENNEPIN) ss. Certification of Minutes CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER) The undersigned, being the duly qualified and appointed City Clerk of the City of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, certifies: 1. That attached hereto is a full, true, and complete transcript of the minutes of the of the City Council of the City of Brooklyn Center Joint Work Session with Financial Commission held on November 5 2012. 2. That said meeting was held pursuant to due call and notice thereof and was duly held at Brooklyn Center City Hall. 3. That the City Council adopted said minutes at its November 26, 2012, Regular Session. City Clerk Mayor 11/05/12 -6-