Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout606 - MINUTES - City Commission MINUTES OF BUDGET WORKSHOP DANIA BEACH CITY COMMISSION JULY 26, 2004 - 10:00 A.M. 1. Call to Order Mayor McElyea called the workshop to order at 10:00 a.m. 2. Roll Call Present: Mayor: C.K. McElyea Vice-Mayor: Bob Mikes Commissioners: Bob Anton Robert Chunn Patricia Flury City Attorney: Tom Ansbro City Manager: Ivan Pato Deputy City Clerk: Miriam Nasser 3. Presentation and Discussion on the City Manager's Proposed FY 2005 Operating Budget Appropriations City Manager/Finance Director Summary Presentation City Manager Pato thanked staff for their hard work. He stated the City was in a position to allow the Commission to present a budget that was balanced at the present millage rate of 6.39%. He explained if the finances had not been managed properly they would have had to increase the millage rate to 7.11%. He indicated the budget was challenging and difficult to put together. He stated they would continue to monitor operating and capital expenses this coming year. He was pleased to report that the City's overall estimated net assets would continue to increase, but he was concerned that utilizing the Fund Balance of the future to balance the current budget was dangerous and an unacceptable approach to business. He stated they had to manage resources well. He asked Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, to present the operating budget appropriations for FY 05. Presentation by Finance Department Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, used a Power Point Presentation to demonstrate the highlights of the budget. She showed the increases of the fiscal year from 2004 to 2005, and stated they were from the pension plans. She pointed out the total funding for both the General Employees and the Police & Firefighters' Plans were over $1M. She indicated that under the budget they had accrued a three and a half percent COLA. She stated part-time salaries showed ® a 33 percent increase when compared to fiscal year 2004. She explained this was because the Minutes of Budget Workshop 1 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Frost Park Community Center was scheduled to open in mid-November, so they still needed to ® fund part-time employees. She indicated they also had to budget for lifeguards at two pools. She stated that in this budget they provided an increase of 15 percent for health insurance and that they would be going out for an RFP in August. She stated they budgeted eight percent for Workers' Compensation insurance. She explained the budget also included costs for the in- house attorney. She indicated that the total overall Personnel Services, which includes both salaries and fringe benefits, came to a 14 percent increase. She explained there was a zero percent increase in property and liability insurance and indicated that would also go out for an RFP. She explained that the BSO budget was for the new contract with an additional patrol effective July I". She then indicated the budget did not provide funding for any detail deputy in the annexed areas. She went on to state that election expenses were $107,234, which was a 122 percent increase compared to fiscal year 2003. She added this was the preliminary figure obtained from Broward County Supervisor of Elections. She indicated that a 50150 sidewalk repairs was included in the budget, per City Commission's recommendation. As well as a Grant matching of$50,000. She also stated that funds were allocated for neighborhood improvements ($60,000) and economic development ($50,000). She further explained that the City would be eliminating dispatching services with the City of Hollywood which represents $85,572. She clarified that with the in-house attorney the City will eliminate the retainer contract with Weiss- Serota (approximately $200,000). She stated that the overall increase for operating expenses from fiscal year 2004 was $272,000, which was roughly a two percent increase. Director Varney then indicated that they had provided the same funding as the last fiscal year, to private organizations, in the sum of $15,000 and indicated that it would be approved by the Human Relations Board. She also stated they provided a Contingency of $690,000 to fund for ® unforeseen circumstances, i.e. workers' compensation, property/liability insurance premiums increase, employee reclassifications and benefits for newly established positions in fiscal year 2004 and 2005. She stated that the fire reserve still remained at the 2004 level of$156,000, plus interest earnings. She explained the three cent gas tax was set up as a reserve for the Comprehensive Plan, and advised that it could not be used until the Comprehensive Plan was amended. The 2005 budget uses $390,000 of the three cent gas tax. She then spoke of fund transfers. She indicated that three years ago, both the Water Fund and the Sewer Fund had loaned approximately $1.5M to the General Fund to balance the budget. She stated they still owed $348,000 to each fund. She stated that since there was an additional fund balance increase last year, administration believed that it was prudent and fiscal responsible to refund both the Water and Sewer Funds in 2005. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked when the transfer, or refund, to the Water and Sewer Funds would happen. Patricia Varney indicated they would make monthly payments to the funds in fiscal year 2005. Vice-Mayor Mikes suggested it would be better to hold off on the refund until the end of the year so that it could be used as a back-up reserve. Director Varney advised that under Capital Outlay, the City only funded a minimal amount ($120,365) compared to fiscal year 2004 ($794,675) and referred to page 15 of the proposed Budget book provided. Minutes of Budget Workshop 2 Dania Beach City Commission Monday, July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Under Debt Service, Director Varney advised the City has no new debts for fiscal year 2005. Patricia Varney moved to the Beach Division and advised that it would now come under the Fire Department. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if beach employees would still fall under General Employees and not under the Fire Department. City Manager Pato assured the Commission that beach employees would remain under General Employees. Patricia Varney then spoke of enterprise funds. She stated that the enterprise fund included the Water Fund, Sewer Fund, and Stormwater Fund. She stated that the engineering cost was required in order for them to secure SRF construction funding. The transfer from the Water and Sewer Fund to the General Fund for overhead costs amounted to $442,000, and was an increase of$32,000, which is an eight percent increase compared to fiscal year 2004. She then spoke of program modifications, which are requests from the departments for any type of service above the current level. She stated they had requests for over $1.5M when the budget began. She indicated their recommendation was $211,000. She stated that the funded programs include a CRA Consultant ($90,000); an ADA Consultant ($25,000); Human Resources software ($15,000); Dania Beach Cruise Nights ($3,200), she clarified that the Department Head had requested funding to cover a a monthly event during a whole year, but funds have only been budgeted for an every other month event; a Recreation Leader for Frost Park ($20,000); and a full-time Marine Rescue Officer ($30,000). She explained that the Marine Rescue Officer we currently have does not provide full coverage for the north end of the beach. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated they had to staff the beach lots in the Hollywood area because they overlapped into the Dania Beach area. He asked who, if anyone, would be responsible if someone got hurt. He suggested having a meeting between Hollywood, the County and Dania Beach in order to share the responsibility in costs. City Manager Pato indicated he would speak to the City of Hollywood about liability. Other funded program modifications include: one engineering Project Manager with a net impact of$8,678. Commissioner Flury stated that Director Varney had costs listed, but not income. Finance Director Varney indicated that neither the expense nor the revenue was included at this time. She then explained that they funded the administrative staff for Code Enforcement for six months due to code violations. She also indicated that they reclassified the Payroll and Benefits Coordinator position into the Human Resources Specialist position. She specified that all new positions did not accrue any fringe benefits. Minutes of Budget Workshop 3 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. City Manager Pato explained that until new bargaining agreements were in place, with second tier benefits, they would not move forward with any new positions that included benefits. Patricia Varney then addressed the Capital Projects Fund. She explained that they funded the Northwest Community Outreach Center ($73,000); the ADA Transition Plan ($38,000); and beach improvements ($230,000). She indicated the Three Cent Gas Tax would fund the seawall repairs ($75,000), and the neighborhood sidewalks ($65,000). She turned to revenue sources and proposed an increase of base permit fees from $75 to $90 and mentioned that the last increase was done in 1999. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if the increase would be graduated fees. He asked if people paid the same base fee for both large and small projects. City Manager Pato stated it was a base permit fee. Ken Koch, Building Official; stated it would amount to a 20% across the board increase in fees. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated they should restate the wording to state that they requested a 20% across the board increase in fees since it had not been looked at since 1999. Commissioner Flury stated that after the correction, the lowest fee would be $60, rather than $75. Patricia Varney noted that included in the revenue sources for 2005 were two agreements that were currently under negotiations: 1) Harbour Towne - she indicated that when the contract is signed, the City would receive $125,000 to add to the 2005 budget, as well as a percentage rent; 2) AT&T Franchise - they should give the City $50,000 and some of this money will cover capital requests in the Commission Chambers. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked at what percentage Harbour Towne was at. City Manager Pato indicated it started at 5.5% and went to 8%. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked when it would go to eight percent. He indicated that the eight percent was for revenues. He indicated Harbour Towne did not have to do anything but maintenance, and that they should review the appraisal. He wanted to be able to use the Harbour Towne facility for events in a more flexible fashion. He also stated they should update the leases around South Florida and the marinas. He suggested they should review the appraisal for the August IOth agenda. Patricia Varney noted the proposed rate for FY 2005. She stated that the millage rate was 6.39; the garbage rate remained at $235.32 per year; the stormwater proposed no increase with the exception of $23 per ERU. She indicated the Florida Statutes changed in 2004 regarding stormwater, and stated they were no longer allowed to assess common areas. She stated that they engaged Fred Bloetscher to redo calculations required from the State. She indicated that the rate itself did not increase, except for the common areas. She moved to the fire assessment. She ® proposed $94.50 for residential units and stressed that they did not gain any additional revenue Minutes of Budget Workshop 4 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. from this increase. She indicated the increase was due to the increased volume of calls in residential areas, and because Griffin Mobile Home Park had been demolished. She stated they lost over 100 units. She stated they did increase the nursing home rate from 2.099 percent of the commercial rate to 2.8 percent and generated $11,000 in additional revenue. Vice-Mayor Mikes commented that residents did not really understand the cost of public safety. He stated they should include information on the costs in the newsletter to help people understand the cost to provide basic police and fire protection. He noted that it was around $300 per person for public safety, and requested that a per capita figure be available at the Public Hearing in September. Patricia Varney noted they increased the water rate, for operating purposes only, by 3.3 percent. She stated the total increase would come to 10 percent, due to the debt service project. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked how the water rate compared to other cities. Patricia Varney stated they requested a comparison from the consultant and indicated they should soon have the information. Commissioner Flury stated that she received complaints about the water bills. She stated a 10% increase would be a large increase. She noted that the project schedule drives the debt service, and it appears to be a fast-paced project schedule. She worried that it would not get completed and wanted assurances that it would. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that South Florida was getting into a water shortage situation. He stated they needed to refrain from anything that would subsidize water. He indicated that they could try to get people to be more efficient with their water use, and he did not want to subsidize water. City Manager Pato referred to a newspaper article which notified residents of the increase in water. Vice-Mayor Mikes suggested they could conserve more water if they could get landlords to upgrade to modern fixtures. Commissioner Flury stated that everyone was charged for water, but not for sewer. Patricia Varney stated how much money was spent for water and sewer and that the cost for most citizens would be $7.81 per month. She then moved on to other sources used to balance the budget. She referred to using the General Fund Balance, which was close to $1.5M. She stated they also used $50,000 of Recreation Impact Fees; $390,000 of the Three Cent Gas Tax; and $175,000 of the Airport Reserved Fund Balance, ($100,000 for legal fees and $75,000 for promotions). Commissioner Flury asked about the $500,000 that was appropriated last year. She wanted to know if it still remained there. Minutes of Budget Workshop 5 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Patricia Varney stated that $450,000 remained because $50,000 was used in 2004. Commissioner Flury asked if the$175,000 was in addition to the $450,000. Patricia Varney stated that the $175,000 came out of the $450,000 and went to legal fees. City Manager Pato stated they moved the funds from one fund to the other because they anticipated litigation costs due to the airport. Commissioner Flury stated that she thought the $500,000 was set aside as a restricted fund, and thought the $450,000 should stay. City Manager Pato stated he wanted to put the money where it was needed. He indicated that there was still a considerable contingency fund. Mayor McElyea asked what was the advantage of moving the funds. City Manager Pato stated that he believed moving the funds demonstrated they were prepared to back themselves up should they become involved in a legal issue with the County. Vice-Mayor Mikes agreed with City Manager Pato that they probably would have litigation with the County due to airport expansion. He stated that they expected the reserve funds to be utilized. He stated that they could replenish it and spend none of it. He noted that the airlines may not need or want the money. He stated that they would have the money available if needed. He indicated he would be comfortable keeping the funds restricted if additional cities also helped with the funding, if need be. Director Varney presented ways to reduce utilizing the fund balance. She suggested appropriating the Police Impact Fees for the debt service of the 803 building ($42,048). She also suggested they could reduce the reserve for the Fire Assessment Fees, and indicated that they could also reduce the Contingency Fund (which staff did not recommend). Patricia Varney concluded the budget presentation at 11:03 a.m. Commission Comments City Manager Pato indicated that the subsidies of nursing homes were gradually reduced last year. He noted that there were other tax exempt properties that should have been considered. Commissioner Flury stated she looked at the list of tax exempt properties and asked if the County determined whether a household was exempt. City Manager Pato indicated that it was with the County and that homeowners filed with the Tax Appraiser's office. • Minutes of Budget Workshop 6 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Commissioner Flury stated that it seemed that once a house gained tax-exempt status it did not appear that there was any follow up over the years. City Manager Pato stated that he would get an update of the properties for the Commission. Commissioner Chunn indicated that there was something called head and bed taxes for hotels. City Manager Pato explained that there were head and bed taxes, but they went to the County. Commissioner Chunn advised that a lot of cities get the hotel tax. Commissioner Flury indicated that they do indeed go to the County and the County determines the distribution. Mayor McElyea indicated that some cities imposed their own taxes on hotel rooms. City Attorney Ansbro stated'it may be a state law and indicated he would check into which cities do it. Public Services Department Fernando Vazquez, Director of Public Services, pointed to the primary element driving Public Services and the budget that was set up for Capital Improvements. He noted Commissioner • Flury's concern on the overall scheduling and necessity to get infrastructure in place to accommodate redevelopment, as well as the upcoming FDOT road construction. He noted that he wanted to restrict the actual CIP budget that was developed a few years ago. He noted that it was more of a precedence to develop a water distribution system to accommodate upcoming development. He showed a preliminary Output Water Model Hydraulic analysis of the existing system, which was a skeleton of what was already in place on the existing ground and it developed future demands. He explained that the water model designated whatever additional infrastructure was needed to support the existing system. He noted that fire flows were driving factors. He stated he was willing to come back to the Commission with a clearer output of what was needed for the investment. He noted that they were also establishing an Engineering Department. City Manager Pato asked Fernando Vazquez to share with the Commission the rapidly rising costs of pipes. Fernando Vazquez explained that during the past year they looked at $60-$90 per linear foot for a 12" PVC pipe. He noted anything above this should be a DIB, which provided more longevity and viability, especially with higher pressures. He stated that costs have risen substantially from $90 per linear foot to $160 per linear foot. He indicated this was due to the change in material, as well as additional construction costs. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if they could knock down the size of some of the feeder lines. Minutes of Budget Workshop 7 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Fernando Vazquez noted that the critical issue was the condition and structural integrity of the . existing pipes. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if PVC was the best thing for that size pipeline. Fernando Vazquez said that it was not. He stated anything above 12" should be DIB. He stated it took him three months to develop a model showing where pipes were located. He stated they did have a schedule in place that identified the FDOT construction projects and timeline for construction. He noted that it contrasted with the work that must be accomplished to get the waterlines in place before a five-year moratorium gets imposed on the City. He explained that he set up an accelerated schedule, and that in order for them to begin construction, the bidding phase must be in the third quarter of 2005 in order to begin construction in the last quarter of 2005 to be on target with the construction of Dania Beach Boulevard. Commissioner Flury noted they had half a million dollars for engineering fees in the budget and asked if they anticipated spending all the funds. Fernando Vazquez stated he anticipated spending additional funds. Commissioner Flury asked where he would get the rest of the money. Fernando Vazquez believed they had some up-front costs and explained that he had to sit down with the Finance Director and resolve the issues. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked how they could recover the costs without placing the burden of this on the taxpayers. City Manager Pato stated they used impact fees. He noted that in most cases, the developers contribute heavily, if not entirely, to these improvements. He stated the dilemma at the moment, in order to avoid moratoriums and meet FDOT's construction schedule, was to move quickly. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked how they could recover the cost. City Attorney Ansbro advised that there was a Water and Sewer Study underway to review the rates and bring them in line for future needs. He also stated that sometimes developers dedicate projects to cities as part of their development project. He indicated this would make the user, who was putting demands on the City, pay their fair share. He stated that the developers would have to pay. Vice-Mayor Mikes indicated they would have to borrow some money and call it a development upgrade project. He asked how much impact monies they had. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, indicated they had $700,000. She suggested that they borrow the money for 20 years and use the impact fees to pay the debt service. . Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that City Attorney Ansbro would have to work it out legally. Minutes of Budget Workshop $ Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Commissioner Anton asked if any of that was CRA money. City Manager Pato stated the County did not promise the City anything because they have not yet made a request. He stated that once the CRA Board of Directors officially sanctioned projects to bring to the County for funding, they could ask for grant monies to pay for infrastructure improvements directly related to those projects. He explained that they had to be project specific and not city-wide. Commissioner Flury asked if it was project specific, then would it be CRA specific. City Manager Palo stated they did not know the answer because it was a brand new concept. Commissioner Flury asked what City Manager Pato was recommending. City Manager Pato stated that they met with the County and discussed infrastructure, in general and they were very receptive. Commissioner Flury referred to revenues on page six. She noted impact fees and stated that they were zeroed out. She asked Patricia Varney where the impacts fees were listed on the revenue side. Patricia Varney noted they were in the Water and Sewer Funds. She stated that it was at zero because the impact fees could only be used for the expansion that was done. She stated that they were only using it for re-appropriating funds. She explained that they did not really have projects that could use the impact fees. She then pointed to page 129 and stated that there were impact fees for $250,000. Commissioner Flury asked if the current impact fees generated were $250,000. Patricia Varney agreed and noted that was what they estimated. Commissioner Flury noted that Miramar took their impact fees and doubled them for a regional park and new city hall. She suggested that they do the same thing in terms of doubling the fees. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if the CRA consultant would have expertise in this area. City Manager Pato stated yes. He proposed that the consultant handle everything from beginning to end, because they have expertise in real estate, planning, and infrastructure issues. He noted that they had political connections at the County level and knew exactly how the County worked. He stated that they were not individuals, but firms. He stated they would not engage in litigation issues. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated they had to move quickly with the water situation. • Minutes of Budget Workshop 9 Dania Beach City Commission Monday, July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. City Manager Pato noted they had opportunities and the Board of Directors for the CRA could choose a consultant and identify projects they wanted to bring to the County. He noted that the County was interested in having fees submitted to them by August 27th. He stated they would soon meet with the Board of Directors to approve the projects that were discussed, including infrastructure. Commissioner Flury noted that the Water/Sewer Department salaries, in general, had gone up and there was only one new person. She asked Patricia Varney where the big jump in salaries came from. Patricia Varney indicated there was a 20% increase due to the reclassification of positions. Commissioner Flury stated this was one of the best budgets she has seen since she has been with the City. She noted, however, that it was lacking some sort of information system. She indicated that there was no trending by line item where major categories were going over the last three years. She stated that they could talk in general about major projects, but they did not have any control over the budget. She noted that salaries could go up 18% per year and they would not know it. She said she hoped an information system would be in place in the next few years. City Manager Pato indicated the amount of manual work the Water/Sewer Department went through in the past couple of years was incredible. He stated that as they move forward, they would be able to upgrade the Department and provide a history. Commissioner Flury commented that this year's budget was a marked improvement. Vice-Mayor Mikes agreed with Commissioner Flury and stated that an item by item breakdown was important. He stated that he had been through four City Managers and the first one was good at picking up trends. He then explained they went through a period of time where the City Managers did not want the Commission to know too much. He stated that the budget was getting better and that salaries increased in many cities. Director Vazquez concluded his presentation. City Manager Pato indicated that Director Vazquez would be able to provide the Commission with a copy of the Public Services timeline chart if they so wished. Human Resources Department Mary McDonald, Director of Human Resources and Risk Management, asked if there were any questions for the Human Resources budget. City Manager Pato asked if she could recap reclassifications and changes made to Civil Service. Mary McDonald stated that over the past year they had run into a number of Human Resource issues, including Union negotiated classifications. She stated they negotiated with the Unions to determine which positions were Union eligible. She explained they had to re-class positions that Minutes of Budget Workshop 10 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. were once Union eligible, but now ineligible. She indicated that the City has a compensation plan that separated between Union and exempt positions and gave a three percent increase. She noted that there was a higher pay range for those who were not in the Union, and stated they also dealt with issues of promotion. She indicated that in the past, the City had promoted certain individuals and not given them the percent increase they were entitled to under the existing CBA's. She explained that this came out in the form of a grievance and stated they went back retroactively and paid those increases. Commissioner Flury stated that Water Utilities' regular salaries were up 26 percent; Water Utilities' administration was up 38 percent; Water Fund line item was up 21 percent. She stated they were significant increases and the total increase was 15-16 percent. She indicated that it would be nice to have a list to compare salaries from year to year. She noted that based on the number of employees it looked excessive. Mary McDonald stated the list of reclassified positions was available. Commissioner Flury asked if any line item that exceeded the budget would come back to the Commission at mid year. City Manager Pato indicated it would. Unfortunately the numbers were not available to present to the Commission at mid year adjustments. He further apologized for not having brought these figures earlier to the Commission. Commissioner Anton indicated that a breakdown would help explain some of the increases. Commissioner Flury asked if they could talk about health insurance. She asked what they were doing to control the costs. Mary McDonald stated they were self-insured and explained the Third Party Administrator has a case management function that they provide to Human Resources. She stated she was including a request to have a Third Party Case Manager in the RFP if they were still self-insured. She indicated she did not know what type of insurance plan they would be facing. She turned to Workers' Compensation and stated they started a program with the Fire Department and were working with a safety consultant to help monitor and identify risk areas. She noted that they were launching a training series that would allow them to mitigate accident costs. Commissioner Flury asked if they had budgeted a 25 percent increase for health insurance. Mary McDonald indicated it was a 15 percent increase. Commissioner Flury then asked about the line item on page 10 and noted that life and health insurance was at 24 percent. She wanted to know what else was in there. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, stated the largest increase was $100,000. She indicated that she made an error last year when she budgeted for retiree insurance. She explained that according to the pension plan, the City should be paying two thirds of the cost. She stated that Minutes of Budget Workshop 11 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. last year they budgeted for two thirds, and a reimbursement of one third. She indicated that they really funded one third. She stated this year she realized the error, and corrected it. City Manager Pato thanked Mary McDonald. He stated the rising cost of benefits, (i.e., pensions, health insurance), were alarming and that this was a national problem. He stated the average operating costs from last year went up by almost 14 percent. He mentioned an article which cited Pembroke Pines as borrowing $90M over a 20 year period to enhance the retirement plan for public safety. He noted a comment from the article as saying that the strength of the Union sometimes caused difficulties for elected officials to say no. He indicated that he was concerned about the ability to afford what was offered in the past, and the ability to negotiate changes. He stated that it would be particularly challenging to Risk Management and Human Resources to control costs. Fire Rescue Services Fire Chief Ken Land explained that it was Cassano's first year doing the budget. He stated that they went back and completed a five year study of the department and indicated that square mileage had increased 28.2 percent; population 61.8 percent; City budget increased 47 percent; fire budget 30.67 percent; personnel 1.8 percent; alarm responses 51.1 percent; and fire rescue revenue increased 92.6 percent. He indicated the department brought in $3M of their $8M assessment, impact and transport fees. He stated the per capita for Police and Fire in Dania Beach was around $500; the Fire Department was around $260. He stated they had some surveys done that came back positive. He indicated the surveys showed a four minute response time to calls, and noted that the national average was eight minutes, placing them in the top seven percent nationwide. He stated they saved money by changing their dispatch to Broward County. He explained that once the radios were paid, the City would see a cost savings of $90,000 to $100,000. Commissioner Flury asked if there was an increase in false alarms. She also indicated that they received less revenue in transport fees and trips were up 92 percent. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, indicated that 58 percent of those bills would be received. City Manager Pato asked how the figure could be improved, and why insurance companies were not paying for transport fees. He asked what system was in place to go after insurance companies that did not pay. Deputy Fire Chief Cassano indicated there was a three year trend and noted that transport fees were up 14 percent a year and their average rate of revenue was up 14 percent. City Manager Pato stated there was still 42 percent uncollected. Deputy Fire Chief Cassano agreed and stated they should consider cities that do not bill individual citizens, but only billed insurance companies. He indicated they raised the rate that was allowed, by insurance, to charge for a BOS or AOS transport. He pointed to the City of Minutes of Budget Workshop 12 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Margate and indicated they did not charge residents directly, but they charged insurance companies. Fire Chief Ken Land stated that they had a problem with the collection agency. Commissioner Flury indicated there was no need for a collection agency for insurance companies. City Manager Pato stated that he would look into it. He stated the collection problem could be solved, and suggested follow-up by the billing department. Deputy Fire Chief Cassano indicated a lot of cities had instituted a Compassion Policy, where, given a fine set of guidelines, people are allowed to offset the bill through the Attorney's Office. He stated they have people who request an offset, and that they write off the rest. He stated they did not have the authority to do write offs. Vice-Mayor Mikes advised they needed to look at who did billing and collection. He stated that he believed some people abused the transport. He indicated some people were using the transport for doctor visits, and that type of activity became very expensive for taxpayers. He stated citizens were entitled to City services, but they were not permitted to abuse the services. He indicated that he spoke to a specialist to examine the current policies. Fire Chief Ken Land agreed with Vice-Mayor Mikes and stated that many people did not have the opportunity of see a private doctor. He indicated that 60-70 percent of the patients seen needed IV solutions, EKG, and drug therapy because they waited so long for treatment. Vice-Mayor Mikes indicated they needed to speak to regional hospital services to see if there were programs available to prevent this problem. Fire Chief Ken Land explained that the City had so many large buildings and new construction, so instead of firefighters doing collections and inspections, they are doing planning review. He indicated that was the reason they asked for a field inspector. Commissioner Flury stated that she appreciated what Fire Chief Land said, but she indicated that under Plan Review they budgeted $37,000 in income, and two years ago they had $80,000. She stated the revenues were not going in the same direction, and noted that there was no connection between increased workload and revenue. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if the Fire Department, like other departments, could have a nonlinear situation and delivery of services. He asked why they could not have qualified part-time people to smooth out the peaks. Fire Chief Land explained that Fire Fighters in Broward County had to be certified before they could be inspectors. He indicated that it was hard to find part-time inspectors. Minutes of Budget Workshop 13 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Vice-Mayor Mikes suggested that some retirees from the Fire Department could work part-time. • He noted that they would not be able to do 100 percent of an inspector's workload, but they could relieve part of the workload of the regular inspector. Fire Chief Land agreed and stated that they would do that. Commissioner Flury commented that she thought they had the best Fire Department and EMS service. She understood the Fire Department was busier than last year, and stated that it would be nice to figure out a way for them to get credit for the things they had done. Vice-Mayor Mikes referred to some of the people who used the transport service and stated they really should be in a social program to keep them healthy. He stated that they needed to connect those people to that third party and should not have had their health condition degenerate to such a point that they had to be on an emergency transport. Deputy Fire Chief Cassano stated they did have some primary health care networks they refer patients to. He explained that 911 was a force of habit for many people. He indicated that people often call 911 when they have a cold or the flu. He stated that their protocol had been revised in regards to the calls. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that the Fire Department was now performing emergency services rather than taking patients to a place where emergency services were done. He stated that was not the intent of the service. He restated that people were abusing the service and commented on • the expense of the services. He indicated they had to be more aggressive in the collection of money. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, asked the Commission to refer back to the 2001 revenue for transport, which was $395,000. She indicated that in 2000 it was $376,000 and in 1999 it was $400,000. She stated that they did show an increase in revenue, in a way. Commissioner Flury indicated there was no relationship to that revenue and their trips. City Manager/Information Services/General Administration Commissioner Flury noted that they just went through a conversion in Finance, Human Resources, and Payroll. She asked if they would have the ability, within the finance system, to give the Commission summary information by major expense category. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, stated they would have that capability. She referred to page 10 and said it would be similar. Commissioner Flury wanted to see trending for major expenses and revenues. Patricia Varney indicated they could do that. Minutes of Budget Workshop 14 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. City Manager Pato indicated there were no significant changes to General Administration. He ® stated there were no significant changes to the City Manager's Office. He noted the only increase was related to salaries, but stated that it was the same as the rest of the budget. Commissioner Flury asked about City Manager Pato's salary. She noted that he did not have expenses or his car listed. She asked if there was any merit increase for him. City Manager Pato said there was not. He stated that it would be up to the Commission to recommend one. He spoke of the results of the performance evaluations. He noted the Commission was provided a form, which was standard use in many cities. He indicated that his average score was 8.497 percent. He noted five percent was acceptable, and above five is highly acceptable. He stated he was very pleased and that he had received several criticisms, especially from Vice-Mayor Mikes. He indicated they were very generous and critical in the right areas. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if he received a COLA raise. City Manager Pato indicated he did. Commissioner Flury asked where the 8.497 percent fell. City Manager Pato explained that they created merit increase programs for the executive staff. He stated that an acceptable range would be around three percent. He noted that in his particular case, it would be in the commendable area, which would rate a four to five percent raise. Commissioner Flury asked if five was the maximum. City Manager Pato indicated that it was the maximum, but he stated there was also a bonus formula that could contribute. Commissioner Flury asked if he received the COLA but not the Merit increase. City Manager Pato indicated that he never received a Merit increase. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated he would support a Merit increase raise for City Manager Pato. Commissioner Flury suggested they use the same formula as for employees. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated he would support any increase, and commended City Manager Pato for a good job with the airport. He stated that City Manager Pato never dealt with ad valorem. Commissioner Anton stated he would support Vice-Mayor Mikes' suggestion. Commissioner Flury indicated that she would support the 4-4.5% increase. Minutes of Budget Workshop 15 Dania Beach City Commission Monday, July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Vice-Mayor Mikes moved to the possible turnover of the Marina, parking area, and area that ® parallels the beach. He asked City Manager Pato to get them back into the hands of the City so they could rebuild the beach. He stated he would entertain a bonus for that. City Manager Pato indicated that was a project specific, end-result oriented objective. He said he would take the possible turnover as a challenge. The meeting broke for Lunch at 1:00 p.m. The meeting reconvened at 1:30 p.m. City Attorney Services City Attorney Ansbro stated that the City had no ongoing litigation that was not covered by insurance. He stated that was because he worked with Mary McDonald, Director of Human Resources and Risk Management, and the insurance companies to obtain defense coverage for pending cases. He noted the ADA lawsuit was settled without any out-of-pocket costs being paid by the City, as it was all covered by the Florida League of Cities. He also mentioned that the "vehicle forfeiture" suit was being handled by attorneys who are paid by the City's insurance. He referred to the page in the budget which indicated his "salary", but he pointed out that it was his total compensation, since it included pension, car allowance, and salary. He stated his concern about keeping his assistant. He noted that they were under a retainer agreement with his Firm, Weiss Scrota, until October 1st. Then, the transition would go into effect and his ® compensation and benefits would begin. He stated that he was told by Patricia Varney and City �I Manager Pato that if the City did not have signed Union contracts, he and his assistant would not receive benefits. He felt this was not the intent of the Commission. City Manager Pato stated that his comment did not concern City Attorney Ansbro, but it would affect his assistant, who would be a General Employee. City Attorney Ansbro stated some of the salaries were incorrect (in a survey he passed out), and his concern was for his assistant. He wanted to pay her a flat salary of $40,000, plus benefits, which was critical because if she did not receive benefits, he would lose her to another firm. He stated she was critical to his office and that he wanted to hold on to her. He explained that she would be an exempt employee and asked the Commission to agree to provide her benefits. City Attorney Ansbro further mentioned he was happy to be working at City Hall and be able to offer full service to staff. Mayor McElyea wanted clarification as to the amount of the compensation. He asked if it would be $40,000 a year. City Attorney Ansbro responded it would be $40,000 a year. Mayor McElyea stated that City Attorney Ansbro's assistant was in a different category and not part of the City Pay Plan. Minutes of Budget Workshop 16 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Commissioner Flury stated most high-quality, experienced legal secretaries received reasonable figures. She indicated that she did not have a problem with the compensation. Commissioner Chunn stated he would support the compensation as well. Mary McDonald, Director of Human Resources and Risk Management, stated that the $40,000 was not the issue. She stated that the problem was that they were still working within the range of the existing Pay Plan. Commissioner Flury stated that when they made the decision to bring the legal department in- house; they agreed to bring in the attorney and the attorney's secretary. She stated she did not think that because there was a bad system in place, that they should penalize the person. She stated it was not the assistant's fault that they were in the midst of a bad system. She suggested that they pay the $40,000, and put her on as a regular employee with benefits. Commissioner Chunn stated that he supported Commissioner Flury's suggestion. City Manager Pato stated they told department heads they could not hire anyone, with benefits, until such time as the Union negotiations were completed. He asked Commissioner Flury if she wished to make an exception to this. Commissioner Anton asked how many employees were full-time, without benefits. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, indicated there were two employees last year; and three this year. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that he did not have a problem with the basic salary. He indicated that it was a new hire and that they were trying to implement a two-tier system like other cities have done. He stated that it would be a problem if they made an exception to the New Hire policy for the assistant. He indicated that it would cause friction among other employees that were in a similar situation. He restated that he had no problem with the salary, but stated that he would like to see the assistant under the same benefit program as other employees. City Attorney Ansbro stated that if she could start with the current benefits, he would ask her to agree to take the second tier benefits when implemented. Vice-Mayor Mikes indicated the two-tier system applied to everybody. He again stated that the assistant should not be an exception. City Manager Pato stated that he would like to see the assistant receive, by October 1st, the benefits currently offered by the City. Then, they could be rolled back when the new plan was in place. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that would not be a problem. City Manager Pato indicated they may be challenged by the Union if they made the exception. Minutes of Budget Workshop 17 Dania Beach City Commission Monday, July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that he did not want to get animosity from the Union; he did not want to cause a huge problem with the employees; and he wanted to be fair to all employees. City Manager Pato stated that it was about the long term cost to the City over an employee's tenure. Commissioner Flury suggested that they utilize the current benefits for the legal secretary. She suggested that when the new second tier structure was in place the benefits would revert to the new second tier structure. She stated that they should simultaneously offer what was offered to the legal secretary to the Union people. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if they would have the proposed second tier schedule ready by October 1 st,2004. City Manager Pato stated they would. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if they could implement it for these special cases. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, stated that with a second tier level, insurance deductions would be higher. She stated that many people would do it as a pre-tax, and there would be other things to think about as far as IRS rules. ® Vice-Mayor Mikes suggested they agree that Finance will create something by October lst that would place employees either on the old or new plan. He wanted a plan that was applicable for all. City Manager Pato clarified Vice-Mayor Mikes' position and indicated that by October I't they would have a clear idea of what the plan would be, and that benefits for the people who were hired now, or converted from fulltime temporary, would be adjusted. City Attorney Ansbro stated that he appreciated the effort. City Manager Pato stated they had some questions they needed to ask the Labor Attorney and then they would come back to the Commission. Vice-Mayor Mikes indicated they would cover everybody and stated they could not give City Attorney Ansbro a special situation. City Attorney Ansbro thanked the Commission. Tim Ryan, Special Legal Counsel, reported they did very well with Code Enforcement. He stated they collected $224,000, which is $50,000 above the projected collection for that point in the year. He stated they had been successful in court with Code cases. Minutes of Budget Workshop 1$ Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Community Development Department rLarry Leeds, Community Development Director, asked if there were any questions. Commissioner Flury asked why occupational licenses, building permits, and building zoning. revenues had gone down. Larry Leeds indicated that building and occupational licenses were expected to remain flat, and that occupational licenses were expected to go down $10,000. He stated that building permits and building and zoning fees also showed a reduction. Commissioner Flury stated that she was a little bit surprised because she thought there were a lot of projects on the board. Larry Leeds indicated that they did have a lot of projects, but he expected the bulk of the major redevelopment to occur the following fiscal year. He noted they were just beginning site plan review of the new projects. He stated the CRA had three potential projects where people would be asking for flex units. He stated they would attempt to tie the Special Exception approval with conditions relating to a developer paying his own way. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that he was bothered by the redevelopment of the airport. He indicated that they needed a better handle on projects that were speculative and taking up a lot of time. He wanted to know if they could better identify the principles of what they were doing with the properties. Larry Leeds stated that one way to avoid this was to be discerning in what they chose to allocate to flex units. He stated people pay fees for the Community Development Department to review their plans. He stated that if the contractors pay the application and cost recovery fees, the Department was obligated to review the project and not pass judgment. City Attorney Ansbro indicated it did happen that way. He stated that when people come in, the Department either knew who they were because they had a track record; or had never heard of them; or they were somewhere in the middle. He stated that if people were serious, then the City was supportive. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked what they do in terms of determining who the builders really were and who the beneficial owners were. Larry Leeds indicated that staff time was very important. He stated that he wanted to devote staff to projects that would amount to something. He stated that the Commission could say no to a project, but it was hard for staff to say no. City Attorney Ansbro stated they could be pragmatic and ask who the people were, what projects they had completed, and what their track record was. Vice-Mayor Mikes suggested they get more information from developers. Minutes of Budget Workshop 19 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Larry Leeds stated they were now asking City Attorney Ansbro to research who really owned the property. He explained that they wanted to know if they had the right to submit the application. He stated that he did see a lot of this speculation coming. Commissioner Flury referred to professional services. She noted that it was mostly electrical, plumbing, and building inspections. She asked if they were reimbursable. Ken Koch, Building Official, indicated that they were the contract services that were used. He stated that they used the County to provide inspection service because they did not have a plumber or electrician on staff. He stated it was not reimbursable and indicated that it was paid by permit fees. He stated the money was collected as permit fees, went into the General Fund, and then paid out of the General Fund directly to the contractor. Commissioner Flury asked if a permit fee would be larger if they used the County's mechanical inspector. Ken Koch stated it would. He explained that a permit fee was all inclusive for every amount of time from when the permit application was received to when the application was closed and filed away. He indicated that every portion of the money spent in their operation was collected through the permit fee. Commissioner Flury asked if that was a prudent thing to do with a City their size, in regards to utilizing the County's inspectors. Ken Koch stated, in his estimation as a professional, it was not a good thing to do. He indicated that he should have staff personnel. He stated that the County had become short staffed, and that in the past two weeks he was unable to get a Structural Plans Examiner to come in and review a plan's package application. He indicated that he needed extra electrical help and the County did not have the staff. He stated that it hurt him because he was unable to provide a good quality service for his customers. He explained that even though they collected the fee, they could not get the help out there. Vice-Mayor Mikes wanted to know if someone had a project, did they walk in with an attorney. Larry Leeds indicated that they did not walk in with an attorney, but they did walk in with an architect. He also stated that they did not provide referrals for attorneys. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that they seemed to be getting one law firm that was getting a huge disproportion in the amount of projects coming before the Commission. He asked City Attorney Ansbro for the appropriate way to deal with this issue. City Attorney Ansbro stated that he does not recommend anyone, but he spoke to attorneys who practiced before the Commission and had credibility. He stated there are five or six that had been down to the Commission. He indicated that he did not know why that particular lawyer was getting all the cases. Minutes of Budget Workshop 20 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. City Manager Palo stated another element was that many people in the City who are active in the real estate market, know which attorneys are capable of approaching the City. Vice-Mayor Mikes indicated that they had to be careful about setting up one law firm for doing business with the City. Commissioner Anton stated that it did seem strange that the same lawyer showed up with projects. He stated that he saw the same person approach the County Commission. Larry Leeds stated that they did not make any recommendations regarding contractors, architects, attorneys, engineers, or any professional because it was a bad business practice and unethical. Department of Finance Commissioner Flury stated that she was happy, but had a comment about franchise and electrical. She stated that she still did not understand why the dollars were not connected. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, stated that this year they received $8,000 from the Florida League of Cities, but could not count on the same thing next year. She stated that if any Commissioner had any concerns with line item revenues she would sit down with them and review the trend history for the last five years. She agreed with Commissioner Flury that they ® were conservative. BSO—Police Services Chief Bryan Cowart stated that this budget year represented the beginning of their second five- year contract with the City of Dania Beach. He indicated they had seen a reduction of one staff member assigned to BSO by eliminating a clerical position in an effort to reduce costs. He stated that they asked for a reclassification of the Clerical Specialist to Community Service. He stated that there was a proposal within the contract that stated on or after July 1, 2005, with the City Commission's approval, the Sheriff's Office would create an additional patrol zone to annexed areas. He explained the Law Enforcement Trust Fund was back under City control. He stated that the new contract increased the responsibility of the Sheriff's Office for repair and maintenance of the BSO. He stated with the reduction of staff, they found it necessary to scale back the front desk hours to Monday through Saturday from 8:00 a.m. — 5:00 p.m.; and 8:00 a.m. — 4:00 p.m. on Sundays. He stated that the substation would be staffed 9:00 a.m. — 5:00 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. He indicated that they would continue to provide security and traffic enforcement at no cost to the City for up to three City sponsored events. Commissioner Flury asked when they approved the use of the special detail officer. City Manager Pato stated it was approved mid-year. • Commissioner Flury wanted to know if there was an expiration date on it. Minutes of Budget Workshop 21 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. ® City Manager Pato indicated that it expired on September 301h Chief Cowart stated that it was a total of thirty weeks. Mayor McElyea stated there would be a problem with not having anyone at the substation window. Chief Cowart explained that the decision to reduce the hours was a monetary decision. He agreed they needed to provide service, and that he looked at different options as to what they could do. He stated they could install a phone, which would go directly to the dispatcher. He indicated with the opening of the 803 substation, they tried to fulfill their duty of providing services to the citizens of the North West community. He said the reason they placed the substation at 803 was to enhance the level of service. He indicated that they staffed the station with community service aides from 9:00 a.m. — 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. He advised that with the reduction of the civilian staff, the personnel hours did not add up to the obligations that they undertook. City Manager Pato asked how their revised hours compared to other cities. Chief Cowart stated that the City of Oakland Park's front desk area was open between business hours and they were not open on weekends. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that they probably did not get many calls at that substation during the off hours. He stated that they really needed to call on resources outside of that point. He indicated that if they wanted a telephone line to dispatch all they needed was a phone link. Chief Cowart explained that they were now utilizing a detail deputy who was assigned to the west side of the City. They had the priority of patrolling the newly annexed areas to enhance visibility. He stated that the new deputy was not just specifically assigned to the annexed areas. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that he believed the intent was to put that deputy in place. City Manager Pato stated that when the idea of a detail deputy was brought up, all they did was fund the position for the balance of FY 2004. In budgeting for the new fiscal year, having a full compliment of deputies to start in July was the only means they had at the moment. He stated they had options and they agreed that if the Commission approved July 1st, then they would fund the five deputies. But, he stated this could suggest that they would fund the five deputies effective October 1st and use the funding to have continuous coverage in the western areas through a detail deputy, or two. He stated they would have an opportunity to use the funds if they adjusted their timetable slightly. Commissioner Flury wanted the role of the special detail officer clarified. She stated that they approved it with the understanding that the deputy would not support the other zones, but rather that person would be exclusively used in the areas west of I-95. Minutes of Budget Workshop 22 Dania Beach City Commission Monday, July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Commissioner Anton stated that it was specific to supplement the services to the west. He stated ® that the detail deputy cannot be used to replace a deputy that was out sick. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked for the cost. Commissioner Anton indicated it was $32,000. Chief Cowart clarified that the cost from October 1st through the end of June, would be $32,760. Vice-Mayor Mikes suggested they keep the detail deputy. All agreed to keep the detail deputy and move money to fund the position. Department of Parks and Recreation Kristen Jones, Director of Parks and Recreation, introduced Mehgan Heaps, Senior Program and Facilities Manager. She stated they had a new aquatic center and that the new Frost Park Community Center would be completed in November this year. She stated that the basketball courts at C.W.Thomas Park were being renovated and indicated they had a lot of programs going on. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked about the cost of operating the Aquatic Center. • Kristen Jones stated that they would be presenting the Splash Card fee schedule to the Commission. She stated that the Splash Cards would explain most of the revenue coming into the facility, which will offset the operating expenses. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked what they expected for net cost to the City to operate the center for a year. Patricia Varney, Director of Finance, indicated that the net cost was $164,000. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that they had projected $11,000 in fees last year. He advised them to be more careful and realistic when they estimate prospective projects. Kristen Jones stated that they had to do a lot of adjustments with the chemical costs, lifeguards, and training. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if they had safety signs at the pools. Kristen Jones stated they had signs that were approved by the Red Cross. She stated the South Florida Water Polo tournament generated revenue of$500.00 a day. Mayor McElyea asked why the lights remained on at night at Frost Park. • Minutes of Budget Workshop 23 Dania Beach City Commission Monday, July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Kristen Jones explained that they had a lot of vandalism. She stated that they installed cameras ® and explained that the contractor was putting in an alarm for his own equipment. Commissioner Flury asked if they had a Park Manager at each of the parks. Kristen Jones stated that they requested a recreation leader, which was a management position. She stated they would be funding one at Frost Park and that she had two other managers; one at P.J. Meli Park; and the other went back and forth between the C. W. Thomas Park and P. J. Meli Park to fill in the gaps. City Manager Pato stated that the computer lab was still at the trailer until the Outreach Center behind 803 is completed. He stated that Kristen Jones and her staff needed to be at the trailer because of the computer programs. He stated that they ultimately would be behind 803. Commissioner Flury stated that she hoped that Kristen Jones and her secretary could be set up with the computers, but everyone else should be in the park. Mayor& Commission City Manager Pato stated that the City had always extended COLAS to every aspect of the City's operation. He stated that if this City Commission wanted them to include a COLA in the Commissioners' salaries, the Commission needed to let them know. He stated that they would continue to fall further behind as other issues increase. Vice-Mayor Mikes stated that if the politics were taken out, the COLA would be done. He suggested that if it was stated that the Commission was treated the same as others there would not be a problem. He stated that there were a certain number of people who were working class people who really could not afford to put twenty to forty hours a week into this without some compensation. He indicated that there were some groups that were wealthy and the compensation did not matter for them, but he cited that those people only made up a certain segment of the population. He stated that they did'not get the working class person often enough. He also stressed that there were many people who were not concerned about a salary because they made it through their own business. He indicated that City Managers started being evaluated for not only what they did for the City, but for what they did for private agendas. He advised that it would be a good idea to take the politics out and the COLA should be the same as it was for the rest of the employees. Commissioner Flury agreed with Vice-Mayor Mikes. City Manager Pato stated that every time Commissioner Chunn gets involved with events he takes time off from work. He acknowledged that it was costly for Commissioner Chunn to do this. Commissioner Chunn conceded that it was. Minutes of Budget Workshop 24 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Vice-Mayor Mikes moved to the NOISE Conference. He stated that Mike Smith refrained from . paying the NOISE membership bills. He reported that NOISE contacted him and he told NOISE to copy him on the billing and he would make sure that they got paid. He advised that they should pass a resolution that indicated that they would be a NOISE member unless otherwise stated. He maintained that he likes that the organization represents them before Congress. Commissioner Anton stated they would make sure the membership was maintained with NOISE. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if it should be delineated in the budget. He then shifted to the Centennial event. He asked if they were all set with funds for the Centennial events. He stated that they had people coming in from Denmark. City Manager Pato indicated that they budgeted for that. He noted that he sent a historic book from the City to Butterworth. He confirmed that they were preparing a presentation box that would include a letter signed by the Commission to give to the Governor. Vice-Mayor Mikes confirmed that they did need a nice presentation box and a well written cover letter and suggested that they send them to influential people. Commissioner Anton praised Kathy VanNoorden for her work at the NOISE Conference. He stated that the most important thing they received from the Conference was the letter from the airlines, which indicated that they wanted a cost benefit analysis. He reported that people from all over the country attended the event. He indicated that some people were pro-airport, others were not. He stated that some were looking for funding. He indicated that all these people were competing for funds. He acknowledged that it was an excellent conference. Vice-Mayor Mikes noted some other results of the NOISE Conference. He stated that they had elected officials from Davie and Scott Marder at the Conference. He stated that these representatives left the Conference more knowledgeable and more willing to work together. He advised that they had to try to gain allies and set up a round table with the adjoining cities to get the cities to work together. He stated that the members pay their memberships and dues to have access to experts in various fields. He indicated that another positive thing was that a higher up from the FAA attended the Conference. City Clerk City Manager Pato stated that the budget was essentially the same as last year with the exception to election costs. He commented that it was higher this year than two years ago. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if part of the cost was from recovery damage. City Manager Pato stated that he did not think this was a one shot deal. He indicated they thought this would become the standard for the cost of running elections. Vice-Mayor Mikes asked if they were still using Boisey-Waiters as a storage center. • Minutes of Budget Workshop 25 Dania Beach City Commission Monday, July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m. Deputy Clerk Miriam Nasser replied that the storage place was closed, but all of the records were • now with Archive America. She stated they needed to address the Archive America issue because they took the records. Commissioner Flury asked if they were doing anything with Boisey-Waiters this year. City Manager Pato stated that he wanted to follow-up on that. He told Mayor McElyea that they would speak about the issue. City Manager Pato further asked the Commission if they had any questions regarding tree preservation, donations, or any other funds. Vice-Mayor Mikes complemented City Manager Pato and his staff on a good budget. 4. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 3:25 p.m. CITY OF DANIA BEACH C.K. Mc lye '` Mayor-Commissioner Attest: ! QC'XJ Louise Stilson City Clerk Respectfully submitted by Jill Fiorentino APPROVED: September 14, 2004 • Minutes of Budget Workshop 26 Dania Beach City Commission Monday,July 26,2004- 10:00 a.m.