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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-12-12 Finance Committee MinutesTown of Reading b Meeting Minutes 'SJ9 _lNCORQOPP� Board - Committee - Commission - Council: Finance Committee Date: 2017-12-12 Building: Reading Public Library Address: 64 Middlesex Avenue Purpose: Budget Meeting Attendees: Members - Present: I0I8 JAN 25 A c� 50 Time: 7:00 PM Location: Conference Room Session: Version: Chair Peter Lydecker, Mark Dockser, Vanessa Alvarado, Paula Perry, Anne Landry, David Neshat Members - Not Present: Marc Moll, Eric Burkhart, Paul McNeice Others Present: Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Assistant Town Manager Jean Delios, Administrative Services Director Matt Kraunelis, Finance Director/Town Accountant Sharon Angstrom, Assistant Finance Director/Treasurer Endri Kume, Administrative Assistant to the Town Manager Brendan Sweeney, Network Administrator Kevin Furilla, Police Chief Mark Segalla, Deputy Police Chief David Clark, Fire Chief Greg Burns, Deputy Fire Chief Paul Jackson, Health Agent Laura Vlasuk, Veteran's Agent Kevin Bohmiller, Assistant Director of Facilities Kevin Cabuzzi, Elder and Human Service Administrator Jane Burns, DPW Director Jeff Zager, Assistant DPW Director Jane Kinsella, Conservation Administrator Chuck Tirone, Bill Brown, Barbara Melanson, Virginia Adams, Erin Gaffen, George Kachen, Amy Cole, Sherri Vanderakker, Linda Phillips, John Arena, Barry Berman, Dan Ensminger, John Halsey, Andrew Friedmann, Bob Holmes Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Brendan Sweeney Topics of Discussion: Mr. Arena called the Board of Selectmen meeting to order at 7:00 PM The Board of Selectmen then went into a brief discussion recapping recent meetings and events in town, followed by a period of public comment. Chair Peter Lydecker called the meeting to order at 7:08 PM FY19 Budget Review Town Manager Bob LeLacheur began by explaining the differences in the budget formation process this year as compared to years past, specifically citing how the town has begun the process a month earlier than normal. The reasoning behind this is to involve the public earlier in the process so that they can better understand what goes into the creation of the budget. Mr. LeLacheur highlighted that this meeting specifically was NOT presenting a balanced budget, but rather was a chance for Department Heads to present to the Selectmen what they would need in order to achieve level services. Mr. LeLacheur noted how the Department Heads themselves are always wary of the Town's ability to spend Page 1 1 money to cover certain departmental needs, and commended the exceptional teamwork of the Department Heads in working with what they have been given recently. In going into further detail in the changes of the budget formation process Mr. LeLacheur noted that the town had taken a focus more on staffing levels and specific employee numbers in the past rather than service levels themselves, an approach that the Schools use and one that Mr. LeLacheur decided to employ with these December budget meetings. After these December discussions Mr. LeLacheur noted that he will then create a Town Manager's balanced budget that will be available towards the end of January. The reasoning for this approach is to allow for public input on budget requests before the Town Manager creates the first draft budget. Mr. Berman specifically cited how much more input he feels he has in the budget process this year as a Selectman when compared to years past. Elaborating on this he noted how the budget formation process had normally been a private process with Town staff, and is now being opened so that the public can truly explore the costs behind running the town. Mr. Arena built off this point, referencing the Selectmen's survey, and citing how this was one step that the town has taken to improve communication. The Selectmen then asked a few clarification questions, to which Mr. LeLacheur reiterated that the December budget meetings are strictly outlining what we need as a town to provide level services, and are not presenting a balanced budget. Public Services Assistant Town Manager Jean Delios gave an introduction of her role and her department, outlining the many volunteer boards, committees, and commissions that work directly with public services. She noted how the planning/zoning boards - Community Planning and Development Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals - take a significant amount of work by staff to make sure that the necessary actions by those boards are all addressed. She outlined the roles of the other public services boards as well as the miscellaneous working groups that are tasked with addressing needs such as wayfinding. Ms. Delios then brought up the department's organizational chart and began to explain how it has changed over the years. Using a color -coded system Ms. Delios noted how the department has morphed to accommodate losing positions, but highlighted certain positions that need to be brought back, such as an assistant department head role as well as a full- time building inspector, among others. When questioned by the Selectmen about how the loss of these positions has affected her department Ms. Delios explained that she has had to personally cover many of the responsibilities that these positions held, leaving her less time to focus on the long-term planning of the town and managing her department. The Selectmen additionally asked Ms. Delios if she could line up current salary allocations to the organizational chart and summarize this data in a concise memo, which she said that she would work on. One specific position that was focused on in this discussion was the Economic Development Director. Andrew Corona, who had been the Economic Development for the last year or so, had recently left due to an opportunity for his family elsewhere. The Selectmen noted the great work that Mr. Corona did and how huge of an impact the position has had for Reading's long-term economic development goals. Ms. Delios addressed additional positions on the organizational chart as well, explaining the changes among the administrative staff and inspectors, and why various sub -departments need additional staff to cover their expanding roles. Moving from personnel to the services themselves, Ms. Delios focused on how the department has recently been able to adapt to tough circumstances. She outlined how various forms of collaboration between sub -departments help bridge the gap made from unfilled positions. She did however note areas where services have been directly affected, such as Elder Services (who do great work now but have a large amount of programs and senior center repairs that they have been unable to enact). Ms. Delios then noted the high Page 1 2 efficiency rate in the permitting department, specifically that the department issues 73% of their permits either the same or the next day, and how if cuts coupled with the high number of expected permits to be issued in coming years comes to fruition then that is a service that will most likely suffer. There was a discussion between the Selectmen and Ms. Delios regarding the role of fees in resolving this issue. Mr. Dockser specifically was hoping to see what the potential impact of any fee changes would like. However, Ms. Delios felt it would be prudent to hold off on raising any permitting fees this budget cycle. Continuing with her presentation Ms. Delios highlighted recent improvements in the way that the public services department operates, from streamlining permitting to increasing their technological usage to finding innovative ways to collaborate with other towns in the region. She then addressed the 40B concerns at the urging of the Selectmen, noting that the town is close to meeting the state mandated 10% affordable housing number and has a two year safe harbor from the provisions of the state's 40B law that will run into 2019. Moving along she noted the great work of Chuck Tirone in conservation, the work of the historical volunteers, the work of the health department, and especially the work of elder and human services. With elder and human services specifically Ms. Delios commended the programs, such as the Memory Cafe, that her department has worked tireless to implement. George Katchen, 66 Colburn Road, noted the importance of these programs and alerted Ms. Delios that when he recently talked to seniors in town about a potential override that they were hesitant to fully support the town as they feel that their needs are overlooked. Ms. Delios continued providing updates on the various sub -departments and concluded by looking at a line -by-line analysis of what the costs for the department would be to reach level services. As Ms. Delios went through her line -by-line analysis Mr. Dockser asked about a more in- depth look at the FTEs (Full -Time Equivalents) for the department. Mr. Halsey agreed that this data could be valuable, but is tough to pinpoint those numbers in relation to the true value and equivalence of service provided by the department. Mr. Friedmann agreed with Mr. Dockser, however, and additionally voiced a request to incorporate the FTE numbers into the equation. Ms. Alvarado echoed Mr. Dockser and Mr. Friedmann's request with regards to the FTEs. Mr. LeLacheur interjected to explain that the FTE numbers do not paint as black and white a picture as one may think, and that looking at the needs with regards to service level rather than solely FTE numbers gives one a better understanding of the impact that various cuts would have on a department. At this time Mr. Arena called for a brief recess Mr. Arena called the meeting back into session at 9:16 PM. Administrative Services Administrative Services Director Matt Kraunelis then began the presentation on his department, noting all of its subdivisions - Town Clerk's office, Human Resources, Town Manager's office, Operations, and Technology. Mr. Kraunelis cited that although some offices are short-staffed, particularly the Town Clerk, the staffing needs are not too extreme. The specific position that was referenced was additional help in the Clerk's office, as there are administrative employees that are shared by the many subdivisions, creating a need in the Clerk's office when those employees are elsewhere. Additionally Mr. Kraunelis noted the recently created HR Generalist position that has been shared with the Schools, as both he and Mr. LeLacheur clarified to the Selectmen the divide in this employee's time between these two departments and how the salary burden is divided. Ideally Mr. Kraunelis noted that he'd like to be able to bring in another HR Generalist so that one could be dedicated solely to the Schools and other solely to the Town. Mr. Kraunelis analyzed departmental expenses as well, clarifying the fluctuation in election expenses depending on the year. Finance Finance Director/Town Accountant Sharon Angstrom began by outlining the department and its divisions - Assessing, Accounting, Collections, and Treasury - while noting irregularities Page 1 3 such as the fact the town has a shared Assessor with Wakefield whose salary is allocated as a departmental expense, rather than a wage itself. Ms. Angstrom focused primarily on accounting, due to both the pivotal role that the department plays in administering MUNIS software throughout the town as a whole as well as the need for another Accountant to help staff the department. When questioned by the Selectmen Ms. Angstrom explained how she was originally just the Town Accountant but then later took on the role of Finance Director as well, and now finds that she has to commit so much time to accounting duties that she is spread too thin to adequately address all of her responsibilities as Finance Director. After Ms. Angstrom concluded her presentation Mr. LeLacheur noted that hers was the last of the departmental presentations for the night, and at that time Mr. Arena called for another quick recess. Mr. Arena called the meeting back into session at 9:59 PM, and at this time the Finance Committee left the room to deliberate in the hallway outside (Ms. Landry had left the meeting by this point in time). The Finance Committee then began to debrief and discuss the meeting. Initial discussion expressed frustration with the meeting, and Mr. Dockser noted his concern with what he deemed as a 'wish list" approach by the town rather than a realistic assessment of what the town can afford. Another point of concern was the role of the Finance Committee within the meeting itself, and Ms. Alvarado specifically noted how she would rather the Finance Committee be set up alongside the Board of Selectmen in a similar format to the November Financial Forum, in order to fully participate in the conversation. Mr. Dockser began further discussing his points made earlier in the meeting about the importance of the departmental FTE numbers in this process. George Kachen, 66 Colburn Road, explained the focus on services rather than specific staffing levels that Mr. LeLacheur stated would be the purpose of these December budget meetings, and why that should be the primary focus as opposed to the departmental FTE numbers that some members of the Finance Committee were focusing on. Ms. Perry called Mr. LeLacheur into the discussion to talk over with him the Finance Committee's concerns with how the meeting was run. As Mr. Dockser again presented his earlier points about how the FTE numbers need to play a more prominent role in this stage of the budget discussion Mr. LeLacheur noted how this was done in the town in prior years and often made the overall communication of town needs difficult. Reiterating points that he had made earlier in the meeting Mr. LeLacheur stated how this approach mirrors much more of how the Schools look at budget planning, and by identifying what each department needs to achieve level services it will be much easier to communicate funding requests as well as illustrate which services will suffer in the event of various cuts. Mr. LeLacheur conceded that the FTE numbers and budget specifics will be much more prevalent in the formation of the balanced budget in January, but that these initial meetings were to paint the picture of where we are now and what is needed to achieve level services in Reading. Mr. Dockser made a motion to adiourn at 10.42 PM seconded by Ms Alvarado which passed by a vote of 5-0-0. The meeting was adjourned by Mr. Lydecker at 10:42 PM Respectfully Submitted, Secretary Page 1 4