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Memo : Honorable Mayor Walter Ash Jr. If you sit on the Library Board of Trustees, the Parks Commission, the Harbor Committee, the Airport Committee, the Hiking, Biking and Pedestrian Committee, the Energy and Climate Committee or if you are the Police Chief, the City Clerk or the Public Works Director you want to provide the best facilities and the very best services you can for Belfast-- period. Their perspective is perfectly understandable and we should expect them to advocate for newer and better. They have dedication and passion without the obligation to raise the money needed to pay for what they think we need. That unenviable obligation falls to the City Council who has the tough job of sorting through all of these requests. The City Council alone must weed between all the things we want and make the difficult decisions about what is truly needed and more importantly--what we can reasonably afford. The annual budget process calls upon each of us to re-wrestle with the question of what is or should be the City’s role. What makes something a City taxpayer obligation? To what extent do public services incorporate the advancement of the social, cultural and economic well being of the community? This winter Council directed this City Manager to try to draft a recommended budget that holds the line on property tax spending. Such direction puts one at odds with the many who are charged with the responsibility to provide great resources and who call for more to deliver better services and better facilities. The attached budget is a tight one on both the expense and revenue sides. The recommendations in the attached proposed budget will not likely be supported by many who understandably want better but need to spend a little more to get there. I continue to encourage Department Heads, Committees and interested citizens to step forward in the budget process and freely disagree with any recommendation I make in this budget. I seek to make the best recommendation I can and at the same time make available to you the Council the broadest possible perspective before you make the final difficult choices The attached recommended budget for 2009-2010 features: - A smaller total spending plan than last year from $8,096,090 to $7,964,237 - an $11,500 total increase in property tax supported spending (less than .03%). -a smaller drawdown for Capital Projects upon Undesignated Fund Balance or “Surplus” $293,000 rather than $398,000 -$321,624 in reductions from Department expense request - over 80 recommended changes up and down to individual expense and revenue lines -a new position of “Facilities Caretaker” to maintain City Buildings and Infrastructure -the merger of the Cemetery Department with the Public Works Department - the loss- a taking actually- of $75,000 by the State of our portion of Revenue sharing (Yes if they did not take this revenue this budget would be $60,000 less than last year) - no proposed increase in salary for any City employee (Please remember that Union negotiations with the Police and the Public Works and Sewer Employees are underway) -realignment of duties for many non-union employees to respond to increasing demand for services unmatched by growth in staff -creation of office equipment reserves and training reserves so we don’t budget every year for money that may only need to be spent once in 3 or 4 years. The budgetary responsibility of City Council is aggravated by the statistical reality that the City tax bill is only 36% of the total property tax bill. Recently a person complained about something and be noted that they paid $4,000 year in property taxes. They did not realize that $2556 of that bill is for County tax and School tax. When I pointed this out they asked then what do they get for the $1,444 they do pay in City Taxes? It was a fair question. Here was my short answer: Plowing and maintenance of all City roads, a 24-7 Police Department, a Fire Department, Ambulance Service, a Library, Parks, recreational programs recreational facilities, community and cultural events, a Harbor and working waterfront, Planning services, Grant Services, Code Enforcement, Cable TV programming, discounts on boathouse rentals, social service response, Financial Management, storm water management and sewer line repair, an Airport, Transfer Station and recycling facilities, an industrial Park, Economic Development, Animal Control, Cemetery operations, State and Federal regulatory compliance and contact services, business and promotional assistance, Citizen Board participation and support, elections and information and access to public records and employees, assessment services, buildings and miles of infrastructure and of course- the administrative effort to try to make it all work. These are hard times for everyone and those concerns are very much heard inside the City Council Chambers. Citizens and business turn to us for support to do something. Fear like mold grows on its own inertia. In a time plagued by fear I caution all to keep fear to the reality they can actually see and touch. Part of that reality surprised me this week when I saw state labor statistics showing a 40% increase in unemployment in the City of Belfast from February of 2008 to February of 2009. We went from 7.5% in February of 08 to 11.2% in February of 09. The State average rate was 9.1 and the Federal rate was____. This number has weighed heavily on my thoughts and altered my recommendations on this budget in the last several days. We are, to be sure, not alone. Waldo County 11.1, Knox County 11.0, Lincoln County 9.1, Hancock County 12.5, Oxford County10.1, Piscataquis County 13.6, Washington County 13.6, Somerset County 12.5, Penobscot County 8.7. As I have shared these numbers with others they have also expressed surprise because we did not see a mill close, a manufacturer shut down a large employer lay off. Our numbers, I think, reflect two things: one that we are blessed with a diversified economy and two that the employment cut backs are in every piece of that diverse economy. There are things I wanted to propose in this budget like putting stairs between Belfast Common and Steamboat Landing, buying- yes I said buying-- the land on the corner of Belfast Common , funding a completely new sidewalk on the back side of the Gothic building and down the entire length of the north side of Beaver Street to connect the updated development in the back of the Hayford Block, the Beaver Street Parking lot and the back of the Main Street businesses which post pedestrian entry from Beaver Street. I think we should do every one of those things. However, to suggest some projects without giving you the opportunity to see all of the projects people want to see happen seemed a little shortsighted. I intend instead to add these to the long list of projects that we should make decisions about soon -- so that we can lay out a new and updated 5-10 years Capital Plan. I think we are all trying to do too much. I think we are diluting our resources too thinly over too many things, causing them to not come out as well as they should or within the timeframes, likely unrealistic at the outset, that people hoped for. We all share the hard frustration of good intention under matched by resource. There are proposals for something new or enhanced all the time. You can hear the cash register ring with each of these new or enhanced efforts. We want to tell everyone that we want to take your great idea forward and that we will somehow just make it happen. In reality we really can’t unless we can identify both the money and the human resources that are available to make that idea occur. Each of us wants to say yes to everyone but if we really don’t have the time or the money we are only fostering false expectations. I have seen in dedicated staff a passion with good intention that is beyond the limits of available time. “No” is tough love but it is still love. In hard times the City is no different than a family. Like a family, we may have to do without some things. We may have to do some things for ourselves that we used to buy from others. We may have to pick up some additional and unconventional responsibilities in order to move the ambitious agenda forward to a better day. We may have to look for efficiencies in everything we do. We may have to make due with less which includes doing less. With these thoughts in mind I recommend the following path to take us all to a better day. I.) City Council to prioritize, limit and control the agenda
II.) City Council, City Departments, City Committees to review and pass an operational budget for July 1, 2009 to June 30th, 2010. III.) City Council to oversee the creation of an updated City wide 5-10 year Capital Improvement Plan to be completed within 90 days. This will guide future spending and funding policy to be completed by July 31st. The goal is to close out Projects which can be closed out, move unspent money into surplus, make updated determinations on all existing and proposed Capital Reserves and Capital Projects so that they are aligned with an Updated Capital Improvement Plan that the Council supports so that we can identify short term and long term financial plans to fund these goals. I recommend a moratorium on further implementation of existing Capital Projects or new projects with exception of the Tot Lot Project, the High Street Project, the Coastal walkway, the Route 52 and Route 137 pedestrian improvements and traffic calming measures scheduled for this spring --until this collective assessment of both need and resources can be concluded. Here’s how we might proceed: A.) We survey demand by: -Asking every City Committee and department to take 45 days and review any existing Capital Reserve or Capital Projects which impact their responsibilities and report back as to which ones they still wish to proceed with, what additional items they think will need Capital funding in the next 5 to 10 years with estimated cost and finally to specifically identify what uses they would want to see any “General” Reserves or Projects already in place actually used for. -Collect this master wish list from each Committee and appropriate Department Head into a single document. B.) Determine what resources we have on hand to meet this demand - identify anticipated “Surplus” or Undesignated Fund Balance as of July 1, 2009. - Review all open Capital Projects with the pertinent Committees, Boards or Department Heads to see which Projects no longer need the funds that have been set aside for them. -Close out all inactive, complete or no longer desired Capital Projects and return those monies to the Undesignated Fund Balance or “Surplus” so you can see in one place how much we have that has not been designated for other spending -Convert any Capital Project entitled “General” to a project that carries a specific purpose so that you know what this money is actually earmarked for. -Look at existing Capital Reserves and reconfirm that those reserves still match what you want to see in your 5 year Capital Plan. -Convert any Capital Reserve entitled “General” to a specific reserve for a specific purpose so you know what this money is actually earmarked for. -Reconfirm that all remaining Capital Projects and Capital reserves constitute items that you feel should be in the update 5-10 year Capital Improvement Plan C.) Trim the 5-10 year request list for Capital Reserves or Capital Projects down to what a majority of you believes are truly needed and can be afforded by the City. By having everyone’s request you can more easily weigh any one need against the request of all others. D.) Develop a Funding Plan for the 5-10 year Capital Program: Funding Options: -Grants, donation availability -Review all outstanding Debt Service to determine whether the trimmed down list will have some items financed by future debt -Make annual transfers from Undesignated Fund Balance (“Surplus”) as available in keeping with any “Surplus” policy the City Council may adopt -Fund by annual budgetary contributions until budgeted amounts to build up a sum to address the needed project -See if any of these Projects can be done by using in house resources over time -Not fund, cross fingers and deal with it when it comes. IV.) Continue to work on Process improvements to promote better understanding of roles and smoother working relationships among Council, Committees and Staff Conclusion: My thanks to all of the Department Heads, Board members, Citizens, Businesspeople and Staff for their help in evaluating this spending and revenue generating plan. I particularly thank City Treasurer Rickie LeSan and City Financial Auditor Denise Beckett for their hard work, patience and stamina during these last three months. I have largely driven these talented women nuts during this period with my constant questions and changes on top of changes to these recommendations. |
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