[00:00:01]
NOT A GREAT START.[1. Call to Order]
MAY 14TH, 2026 TOWN MEETING.THIS IS THE TOWN OF CH I WILL, UH, ONCE AGAIN CALL THE ROLE OF THE ELECTED OFFICIALS IS THE COUNCIL MEMBER FOR WARD ONE HERE.
SEEING SIX OF THE SEVEN ELECTED OFFICIALS PRESENT TO CONDUCT BUSINESS, WE HAVE A QUORUM.
UH, WE ALREADY DID THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.
[Additional item]
WE DO A MOTION NOW TO EXCUSE THE VICE MAYOR AND THEN WE'LL CONTINUE ON AND FIX THE AGENDA.IS THERE MOTION TO EXCUSE, UH, VICE MAYOR BRIER? SECOND.
IT'S BEEN MOVED BY COUNCIL MEMBER FRY AND SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER GARCE.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS? THE MOTION PASSES.
FIVE ZERO VICE MAYOR BRINER IS EXCUSED THE APPROVAL OF THE
[3. Approval of Agenda]
AGENDA.COUNSEL, I AM SUGGESTING THAT ONE OF YOU MAKE A MOTION FOR CONSENT.
AGENDA GRANT REQUEST, RESIDENT INPUT COMMUNITY REPORT COMMITTEE REPORTS, PROCLAMATIONS, BUDGET AND TAX RATE.
VERIZON COVERAGE LIDC FOLLOWED BY CDBG.
ANY OBJECTION? MR. GALLOWAY? DO YOU HAVE ANY OBJECTION TO THAT? NO OBJECTIONS.
COUNSEL OR IS WOULD SOMEONE LIKE TO MAKE THAT MOTION SHALL MOVE? SECOND.
MOVED BY COUNCIL MEMBER FRY AND SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER TANZI.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE.
ANY OPPOSED? AND THE ABSTENTIONS AND THE OPINION OF THE CHAIR? THE AYES HAVE AT FIVE ZERO.
THE AGENDA AS AMENDED IS, IS APPROVED.
[4. Consent Agenda]
NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS NUMBER FOUR, CONSENT AGENDA, WHICH CONSISTS OF THE TOWN MEETING MINUTES FOR APRIL 9TH AND THE TOWN WORK SESSION MINUTES FOR APRIL 23RD, 2026.IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA? SO MOVED.
MOVED BY COUNCIL MEMBER TANZI.
IS THERE A SECOND? IT'S BEEN SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER GARCI.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS? THE CONSENT AGENDA IS ADOPTED.
ITEM FIVE IS THE GRANT REQUEST.
THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR WILL GIVE US HIS ADVICE AND REPORT ON THE GRANT REQUEST FROM CH GIVES BACK.
MR. GALLOWAY? MR. GALLOWAY, CAN YOU HEAR US? WE CANNOT HEAR YOU.
CAN ANYONE ELSE, UH, ON THE TOWN STAFF PRESENT THE STAFF REPORT FOR CH GIVES BACK GRANT'S REQUEST.
EXCUSE ME? HE SAID IF YOU COULD HOLD ON JUST ONE SECOND.
UM, LET US, WOULD ANYONE OBJECT TO MOVING TO RESIDENT INPUT AND THEN DOING THE GIVES BACK? ALRIGHT, THEN WE'LL MOVE NOW TO RESIDENT INPUT AND THEN COME BACK TO, TO MR. GALLOWAY TO GIVE THAT REPORT FOR ITEM FIVE.
[6. Resident Input]
RESIDENT INPUT WHERE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE INVITED TO PROVIDE UP TO THREE MINUTES OF INPUT OR ANY ITEM NOT, NOT UNDERLINED ON THE AGENDA.SO NOT ON PROCLAMATIONS, NOT ON LIDC, NOT ON CDPG, NOT ON THE BUDGET OR TAX RATE DISCUSSION AND NOT ON VERIZON.
IS THERE ANY RESIDENT INPUT EITHER IN PERSON OR ONLINE? MS. SLO, YOU ARE.
FIRST YOUR NAME, YOUR WARD, AND YOU HAVE UP TO THREE MINUTES.
SHOULD WE TALK ABOUT MOSQUITOES? AS WE KNOW, MOSQUITOES ARE A NUISANCE AND CAN ALSO CARRY DISEASES.
IF WE ALSO KNOW THAT SPRAYING PESTICIDES IS NOT THE BEST WAY TO DEAL WITH MOSQUITOES IN YOUR YARD.
ALL INSECTICIDES USED TO TARGET ADULT MOSQUITOES WILL KILL ALL INSECTS THAT COME INTO CONTACT WITH THE CHEMICALS, INCLUDING POLLINATORS AND OTHER BENEFICIAL INSECTS.
INSECTICIDES ARE EFFECTIVE FOR ONLY A SHORT PERIOD, BUT THEIR RESIDUAL EFFECTS CAN LAST SEVERAL WEEKS AND WILL
[00:05:01]
CONTINUE TO HARM POLLINATORS.SO WHAT CAN WE DO TO CONTROL THOSE PESKY MOSQUITOES? PUBLIC AGENCIES AGREE THAT CONTROLLING MOSQUITO POPULATIONS AT THE LARVAL STAGE IS THE MOST EFFECTIVE STRATEGY.
THIS MEANS ELIMINATING MOSQUITO BREEDING SITES.
ANY TEMPORARY STANDING WATER MOSQUITOES NEED AS LITTLE AS A TABLESPOON, I'M SORRY, A TEASPOON OF WATER TO LAY EGGS IN.
THEY CAN SUCCESSFULLY BREED IN ANY AREA OR CONTAINER THAT HAS STILL SHALLOW STANDING WATER FOR MORE THAN SEVEN DAYS IN OUR YARDS AND LANDSCAPES.
TEMPORARY WATER SOURCES INCLUDE DITCHES, HOLES AND TREES, LEAKY HOSES, WAGONS, AND OTHER TOYS.
KITTY POOLS CLOGGED RAIN GUTTERS, DRAINS AT THE ENDS OF DOUBT, SPOUTS OPEN TRASH BINS, UPTURN, LIDS, AND WHEELBARROWS.
SO EMPTY THESE CONTAINERS AT LEAST EVERY SEVEN DAYS.
YOU CAN ALSO TRY USING A MOSQUITO BUCKET THAT'S SIMPLY A BUCKET FILLED WITH WATER, ORGANIC MATERIAL, AND A MOSQUITO DUNK BTA.
THAT IS BACILLUS TH TH ISRAELIS.
THE ACTIVE INGREDIENT IN MOSQUITO DUNKS AND MOSQUITO BITS KILLS MOSQUITO LARVAE WITHOUT HARMING BIRDS BENEFICIAL INSECTS OR OTHER WILDLIFE.
THE BUCKET ATTRACTS MOSQUITOES TO LAY EGGS, THEN THE MOSQUITO DUNK PREVENTS LARVAE FROM DEVELOPING INTO ADULT, ADULT MOSQUITOES, INTERRUPTING THE LIFECYCLE AND REDUCING MOSQUITO POPULATIONS OVER TIME.
TO BUILD A MOSQUITO BUCKET, YOU'LL NEED A FIVE GALLON OR SIMILAR BUCKET.
YOU'LL FILL IT ABOUT TWO THIRDS FULL OF WATER, ADD A SMALL HANDFUL OF DEAD LEAVES OR GRASS CLIPPINGS, THEN BREAK UP THE MOSQUITO DUNK AND DROP ABOUT ONE QUARTER OF THE DUNK INTO THE BUCKET.
COVER THE BUCKET WITH A LID DRILLED WITH LARGE HOLES OR WIRE CLOTH SECURED WITH A ROCK OR ZIP TIES.
PLACE THE BUCKET IN A SHADED LOW TRAFFIC AREA.
NOW YOU CAN FIND MORE AT THE WEBSITE OF HOMEGROWN NATIONAL PARK.ORG.
MS. SALLOW, ARE THERE, IS THERE ANYONE ONLINE FOR RESIDENT INPUT? UH, I DON'T, I'M NOT AWARE OF ANY.
SO WE WILL CONTINUE IN THE ROOM.
IS THERE ANYONE IN THE ROOM WHO WOULD LIKE TO OFFER RESIDENT INPUT ON ANY OF THE TOPICS? NOT UNDERLINED ON THE AGENDA.
UM, YES, MR. FRED PRICE, IF YOU ARE ABLE TO SPEAK.
GOOD EVENING, AMERICAN COUNCIL AND TIME.
I'D LIKE YOU TO START FOCUSING AND LOOKING AT, I UNDERSTAND THAT THE, UH, CH TUXEDO PROPERTY, UH, WHICH IS NOW UNDER THE BOARD OF EDUCATION, IS SOON TO BE, UH, DEMOLISHED.
I'D LIKE YOU THE COUNCIL TO START LOOKING AT IN THE FUTURE OF BUILDING UP AND NOT OUT AND MASS TRANSIT DEVELOPMENT.
I THINK THIS IS THE OPPORTUNITY THAT WE WOULD, SHOULD LOOK AT AND BE PREPARED TO SEE WHAT IS GONNA HAPPEN.
WE NEED TO BUILD UP TRANSPORTATION AROUND THE METRO TRANSIT ORIENTATED DEVELOPMENT.
OTHERWISE, THE CHEVROLET METRO STATION HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE LOWEST RIDERSHIP AND WE COULD SEE LESS SERVICE THERE.
THANK YOU AND HAVE A GREAT EVENING.
PLEASE YOUR NAME, YOUR WORD AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
UH, SEAN THO MCGUIRE, WARD TWO.
GLAD YOU'RE STILL KICKING BUTT.
I'D SAY A LOT AND I AGREE WITH YOU.
AND TO GET MORE DEVELOPMENT IN A FLOODPLAIN, WHICH METRO IS BUILT IN.
I WAS LISTENING TO HER, UH, I DON'T KNOW HER LAST NAME.
SHE, UH, FIRST NAME SHEILA, I GUESS DUMPING, SITTING WATER AND BEING AWARE OF WATER BECAUSE IT BREEDS POTENTIAL.
EVEN TIGER, UH, MOSQUITOES IN WHICH, UH, THEY'RE INVASIVE SPECIES IN WHICH CAN CARRY, UH, DISEASES, I GUESS.
UH, LYME DISEASE, WELL THAT'S A STEER, BUT DISEASES THAT WE, THAT WOULD CALL IRRITATION AT A MINIMUM.
AND, AND OF COURSE, UH, RUIN A GOOD PICK OR, UH, PICNIC.
SO, UM, AND SO TO SENSE FOR EVERYTHING I'M GONNA SAY, I GUESS I'LL JUST SAY THAT AND I WAS LISTENING TO HER IDEAS.
I GUESS SHE'S TRYING TO TRAP MOSQUITOES SO THAT THEY DO NOT, SO IT'S HELPING THE ROUNDING AREA AND I GUESS DOES IT INCLUDE FLEAS? I WANT, UH, REDUCE THAT AND, AND, UM, INTERESTING TRAP SET UP TO CREATE, UH, THE, THE, THE, I HAD TO SAY LADY FEMALE EGGS LAYING AND THEN CREATING A HAZARD AND AWAR AND TO JUST KILL THEM, UH,
[00:10:01]
INVASIVE SPECIES THAT IT'S NOT COEXISTING WELL.SO I GUESS GOOD WAY TO GET RID OF TIGER MOSQUITOES THAT ARE EVASIVE FROM ASIA.
AND NOT TO SAY, BUT THAT THEY ARE EVASIVE FROM THIS CONTINENT.
THEN IT'S HAPPENED TO BE FROM ASIA, THE CONTINENT OF ASIA.
OH, I GUESS WE KEEP IN MIND ALSO WE SHOULD DEAL WHAT'S THE DEER TICK, UH, PROBLEM AND GETTING, UH, TICKS AND REDUCING TICKS, BUT SAFELY AND, UH, AND REDUCING EVASIVE PLANTS WITHOUT HAVING PESTICIDES TO DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD.
IS THERE ANY FURTHER PUBLIC INPUT? I'M NOT SEEING ANY ONLINE.
YEAH, THIS WILL TAKE ABOUT 30 SECONDS.
JUST A QUICK THOUGHT FOR MAYBE A FUTURE MEETING OR FUTURE MEETINGS.
UM, AS YOU SEE, WE'RE FACING THE COUNCIL, BUT WHAT WE HAVE ARE BACK TO THE PEOPLE.
AND FOR THOSE OF US WHO MIGHT HAVE VISUAL AIDS, I WAS WONDERING IF YOU MIGHT WANNA CONSIDER A DIFFERENT ARRANGEMENT OF THE LECTERN AT SOME POINT.
JUST THROWING THAT OUT THERE FOR FUTURE CONSIDERATION.
THAT'S, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF, UM, I GUESS ARRANGEMENT IMPROVEMENTS TO MAKE FOR THE YEARLY BUILDING, UH, FOR MEETINGS IN THE, IN THE MONTHS AHEAD.
UH, ONE THING AT A TIME THOUGH,
IS THERE ANY OTHER PUBLIC INPUT? ALRIGHT, SEEING NONE, THAT CONCLUDES RESIDENT INPUT.
[5. Grant Request]
BACK TO ITEM FIVE.MR. GALLOWAY, ARE YOU ABLE TO GIVE THE REPORT FOR ON THE CH GIVES BACK GRANT REQUEST? THANK YES, I AM MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES SIR, GO AHEAD.
YEAH, SO, UM, THE SHELBY GIVES BACK ORGANIZATION HAS SUBMITTED THEIR INFORMATION IN WHICH THEY HAVE, UM, THEY ARE WITHIN, THEY ARE IN GOOD STANDINGS OF THE TOWN.
UM, MAYOR COUNCIL, THEY ARE APPLYING FOR A $1,500 GRANT REQUEST.
UM, AND WHAT THEY WANT TO DO IS HAVE A COMMUNITY POETRY AND COMEDY NIGHT, UM, AND LOCAL STORYTELLING FROM CH RESIDENTS.
UM, UH, THEY WANT TO DO THIS IN JUNE.
UM, I DON'T SEE ANY REASON WHY, UH, THE TOWN WOULDN'T FUND.
THEY DID GET THEIR INFORMATION AND FOR ADVANCE, I DO KNOW THAT THERE WAS A HANG UP THERE WITH THE, UH, PAPERWORK, BUT THEY DID GET EVERYTHING SUBMITTED.
UM, I WILL GIVE THIS A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION MOVING FORWARD.
ANY COMMENTS BEFORE WE SEEK RESIDENT INPUT? GO AHEAD, MR. TANZI.
UM, DO WE HAVE A BREAKDOWN OF WHAT THE, THE FUND REQUEST IS FOR? LIKE, IS IT TO PAY FOR A OH, THANK YOU.
UH, SEEING NO FURTHER COMMENTS AT THIS TIME, IS THERE ANY RESIDENT INPUT ON THE, UH, REQUE GRANT REQUEST FROM CH GIVES BACK FOR $1,500.
UH, YOU GIVE YOUR NAME, YOUR WARD AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
MY NAME IS CARMEN JONES AND I'M REPRESENTING CH GIVES BACK, UM, WITH DTUS HERE.
UM, JUST A NOTE, UM, THE BUDGET BREAKDOWN FOR WHAT EXACTLY WE'RE PLANNING ON SPENDING THE MONEY ON IS IN THE PACKET, BUT THERE IS A SLIGHT DIFFERENCE IN THE AMOUNT THAT WE ORIGINALLY REQUESTED.
WE ORIGINALLY, WE ORIGINALLY REQUESTED $2,000, BUT THE GRANT THAT HAS BEEN PRESENTED TODAY IS FOR 1500.
SO IT'S ACTUALLY SUPPOSED TO BE $2,000 AND THAT'S WHAT WAS SUBMITTED TO THE TOWN.
GO AHEAD, YOU JUST TO GIVE YOUR NAME, SIR.
DONTAVIUS KING, UM, WARD THREE, UM, CH RESIDENT AND CHEVROLET GIVES BACK.
UM, I JUST HAD A COUPLE QUESTIONS.
UM, AS FAR AS THE GRANT, JUST TO BE CLEAR, LIKE, UM, WHEN IT COMES TO THE GRANT, THE $2,000 WE'RE REQUESTING, IT'S GOOD, BUT DO WE HAVE TO REAPPLY FOR A GRANT? JUST BEING CLEAR, DO WE HAVE TO REAPPLY EACH TIME FOR A GRANT? YES SIR.
BUT WE HAVE MORE THAN ONE LIKE ACTIVITIES WE WANT TO HAVE FOR THE COMMUNITY.
IS IT EACH TIME WE NEED TO PUT A NEW GRANT REQUEST IN? NO, YOU HAVE TO, WELL, I DON'T WANNA STEP ON MR. GALLOWAY'S TOES, BUT YOU
[00:15:01]
APPLY ONCE A YEAR.EVERY ORGANIZATION GETS ONE GRANT A YEAR OR ONE GRANT UP TO, I THINK IT'S $2,000 IS THE MAXIMUM THAT WE GIVE TO ANY SINGLE ORGANIZATION.
I GUESS YOU COULD BREAK THAT UP INTO TWO, BUT ALMOST NO ONE DOES THAT.
THEY USUALLY HAVE A CONSOLIDATED APPLICATION THAT COVERS ONE OR MORE ACTIVITIES THAT THEY MIGHT BE DOING THROUGHOUT THE YEAR THAT COSTS 1800 OR 2000 OR 1500, WHATEVER THEY'RE ASKING FOR.
SO THE MAX IS LIKE 2000 PER GROUP.
MR. GALLOWAY, IS IT 2000 PER TOWN ORGANIZATION? YEAH, IT'S 2000 PER TOWN ORGANIZATION? YES.
PER, PER FISCAL YEAR OR PER YEAR.
AND, AND, UH, ANOTHER QUESTION, I I JUST HAVE TWO MORE AND I'LL BE DONE AS FAR AS LIKE, UM, COMMUNITY VENDORS, BECAUSE I HAVE DIFFERENT PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WANT TO SHOWCASE THEIR, UM, LIKE SOMEONE I KNOW WRITES BOOKS, DOES POETRY, ARE VENDORS ALLOWED AT THE PAVILION AREA, LIKE TABLES? THAT'S A VERY TECHNICAL QUESTION FOR MR. GALLOWAY.
IF I CAN DIRECT YOU TO, UH, MS. WHITE, SHE CAN ASSIST YOU WITH YOUR EVENT SET UP AND ALL OF THAT INFORMATION.
SO NO VENDORS OR NO, NO, I I'M, I'M, I'M, I'M I'M DIRECTING YOU TO, UH, MS. WHITE, UM, OUTSIDE OF HERE.
BUT I, IT'S NOT A NO, IT'S A, WE HAVE TO THREAD THE NEEDLE CAREFULLY.
AND THEN THE LAST, THE LAST QUESTION IS, I KNOW THAT THERE AREN'T SPEAKERS AT THE PAVILION AREA, SO IN ORDER FOR, THAT'S WHY WE ASK FOR THAT AMOUNT OF MONEY BECAUSE I WOULD HAVE TO, I WOULD HAVE TO GET A AV AUDIO PERSON THAT I KNOW PERSONALLY ANY CHARGES FOR THAT.
SO AGAIN, THAT'S IN OUR BUDGET AS WELL.
AND HE CHARGES A LITTLE MORE BECAUSE HE'S BRINGING HIS OWN LARGE SPEAKERS FOR THE COMMUNITY.
AND IS THERE A WAY THE TOWN CAN HELP US PAY FOR THAT? I MEAN, NOT OUTSIDE THE GRANT.
I MEAN, WE DON'T HAVE A, A SOUND SYSTEM.
WHENEVER WE HAVE AN EVENT THERE, WE HAVE TO BRING OUR OWN SOUND SYSTEM.
AGAIN, MR. GALLOWAY IS THE EXPERT ON AUDIO
BUT, UH, BUT, SO NO, WE WOULDN'T HAVE ANY MEANS TO FINANCIALLY SUPPORT THE EVENT OUTSIDE OF THE GRANT APPLICATION.
YEAH, I JUST WANNA, I JUST WANNA BE CLEAR, THERE AREN'T A LOT OF ARTS AND A LOT OF CULTURE AND JUST TRYING TO PUSH THE ART FORM IN CH IT'S, IT'S DISAPPEARING AND THIS, THIS EVENT IS REALLY BIG FOR ME AND MY ORGANIZATION.
I THINK FOR THE TOWN OF CH TOO.
THAT'S THE ONLY REASON I ASKED THAT.
AND THAT'S THE ONLY REASON I BROUGHT UP THE UM, AC THING BECAUSE THE AV THING, IT'S LIKE HOW WE HAVE MONEY FOR A MILLION DOLLAR BUILDING BUT WE DON'T HAVE MONEY FOR SPEAKERS AT TOWN PARK AND I'VE BEEN IN CH FOR OVER 30 YEARS, SO IT JUST SHOWS A LOT.
IS THERE ANY OTHER PUBLIC INPUT ON THE CHEVROLET GIVES BACK APPLICATION? ALRIGHT, SEEING NONE, UH, WE'LL GO BACK TO THE COUNCIL.
UH, LET'S START WITH COUNCIL MEMBER WADE.
YEAH, JUST GET CLARIFICATION ON THE QUESTION.
UM, THE, I FORGOT YOUR NAME MA'AM, BUT YOU MENTIONED 2000, UM, IT SAYS 1500.
CAN WE GET CLARIFICATION ON THAT? SO MR, DID YOU APPLY, YOU SAID YOU APPLIED FOR THE 2000.
SO, SO THE DOCUMENTS THAT I HAVE AND THAT IT'S BEEN ADVERTISED INDICATES THAT IT'S $1,500.
UM, IT SAYS FUND REQUEST $1,500 AND THE ACTUAL BUDGET BREAKDOWN IS A TOTAL OF $1,500.
SO CHANGING THIS WOULD CHANGE MY REC POTENTIALLY CHANGE MY RECOMMENDATION BECAUSE I'M BASING IT OFF OF THE BUDGET THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE PLUS, UM, THE NUMBER THAT'S BEEN PRESENTED.
SO THE $2,000 GRANT REQUEST WAS EMAILED TO THE TOWN AND THAT WAS THE LAST PROPOSAL THAT I SENT.
AND THE ONE THAT'S CURRENTLY IN THE BOOKLET IS OUTDATED.
SO I THINK THAT WAS LIKE A MISSTEP ON, UM, WHOEVER ASSEMBLED THIS AGENDA, I CAN SHOW YOU GUYS THE EMAIL CONFIRMATION OF THE $2,000 AND WHAT THANK YOU FOR THAT.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THIS VERSION AND THAT VERSION? IS IT AUDIO VISUAL ONLY? YEAH, VISUAL.
THAT'S THE DELTA OF THE 500 VISUAL.
AND THEN, UM, WE GOT FIRM NUMBERS FOR THE COMEDIANS.
UH, SO ONCE WE WERE ABLE TO GET, CONFIRM THAT WE WERE GONNA HAVE MORE COMEDIANS AND THAT IS ALSO A PART OF THE ADDITIONAL $500.
UM, ALRIGHT, THANK YOU COUNSEL.
DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? COUNCIL MEMBER FRY? UH, NOT A QUESTION, BUT I DO RECALL THE LAST TIME IT CAME UP.
I THOUGHT THE AMOUNT WAS FOR 2000.
AND THEN YOU MIGHT BE RIGHT WAS SOMETHING HAPPENING.
SO FOR WHATEVER REASON WE DIDN'T
[00:20:01]
ACTUALLY GO OVER IT, BUT I SEE, UM, MS. RICHARDS HAS HER HAND UP.THE TOWN CLERK, THE SECOND DOCUMENT JUST WASN'T UPDATED ON THE CURRENT BUDGET.
SO WITH THAT SAID, IS MR. GALLOWAY GONNA RECONSIDER THE PROPOSAL BEING THAT IT WOULD BE INCREASED TO 2000? YEAH.
I, I I I'LL SAY THIS, LET'S GO AHEAD AND, AND MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS.
MY RECOMMENDATION WITH THE CONTINGENT THAT I MEET WITH CH GIVES BACK TO WORK OUT THE FINAL $500 BECAUSE I DO THINK THERE COULD BE SOME, YOU KNOW, SOME DIFFERENT WAYS THEY CAN USE THAT.
INSTEAD OF HIRING A A CONTRACTOR, I'LL GIVE THEM SOME CREATIVE WAYS TO, UH, GET AUDIO AND VISUAL THAT WOULD BE USEFUL FOR THEM MOVING FORWARD AND OTHER, UM, UM, EVENTS THAT THEY HAVE.
UH, UNLESS YOU HAVE FURTHER COMMENTS, WELL WHY DON'T ONE OF YOU MAKE A MOTION AND THEN WE CAN HAVE FURTHER DISCUSSION.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE COUNCIL MEMBER FRY, I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THIS GRANT REQUEST FOR CHEVROLET GIVES BACK FOR THEIR EVENT ON JUNE 20TH IN THE AMOUNT OF $2,000 UPON THE CONTINGENT THAT THEY MEET WITH MR. GALLOWAY.
SO THE MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL MEMBER FRY TO APPROVE THE GRANT REQUEST AT $2,000, UH, WITH A SUBSEQUENT MEETING WITH MR. GALLOWAY.
IT'S BEEN SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER LAG.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION OF THE MOTION? SEEING NONE.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS? THE MOTION PASSES FIVE ZERO.
THE GRANT REQUEST IS APPROVED AT THE $2,000 LEVEL.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR EVENT.
YES, I HOPE YOU ALL WILL BE THERE.
[7. Committee Reports]
ARE ON COUNCIL TO ITEM SEVEN COMMITTEE REPORTS AND AS ALWAYS WE START WITH THE REC COUNCIL.UH, WE JUST MET THIS PAST TUESDAY, THE REC COUNCIL.
UM, AS YOU KNOW, JUNE THE SIXTH, WHICH IS A SATURDAY, WILL BE THE ANNUAL PICKLEBALL SCHOLARSHIP TOURNAMENT.
UM, THIS IS TRULY AN AMAZING EVENT, UM, THAT HAPPENS FOR THE LAST COUPLE YEARS.
IT WILL START AT 9:00 AM ENDING AT 6:00 PM UH, WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW AS A COUNCIL MEMBERS TO REVIEW THE, UM, ACTUAL APPLICANTS AND, UH, WE HAVE SOME AMAZING TRUE APPLICANTS THAT WE, UH, HAVE LISTED.
IT'S A TOTAL OF FIVE SCHOLARSHIPS AT $1,000 A PIECE FOR EACH SCHOLARSHIP.
SO WE'RE TRULY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
IT WILL BE AT TOWN PARK, UH, IF IT RAINS IT'LL BE INSIDE.
AND AGAIN, THAT'S SATURDAY, JUNE THE SIXTH.
WE ALSO WILL BE IMPLEMENTING A NEW CLASS PILATES CLASS, UM, THAT WILL BE AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER GYM.
UM, IT'LL BE TWO WEDNESDAYS IN JUNE, JUNE THE THIRD, AS WELL AS JUNE THE 17TH.
UM, THAT WILL BE FROM 1:00 PM TO 2:00 PM UM, PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN MAT.
IT WILL BE A COST OF $10 PER, UH, PER UH, PERSON.
AND ALL LEVELS AND AGES ARE WELCOME.
HALF OF IT WILL GO TO THE INSTRUCTOR AND THE OTHER HALF WILL GO COURSE TOWARDS THE REC COUNCIL SCHOLARSHIP FUND.
AND THAT IS ALL WE HAVE TO REPORT.
ANY QUESTIONS FOR MR. WADE OR THE REC COUNCIL? HEARING NONE CHEVROLET DAY, UH, PLANS CONTINUE A PACE.
UM, WE HAD A 95 WEEK FORUM LAST NIGHT, UH, WHERE WE DISCUSSED, UH, PARADE ACTIVITIES.
UM, WE'RE STILL LOOKING FOR PEOPLE TO MARCH.
WE'RE OBVIOUSLY STILL LOOKING FOR PEOPLE TO WATCH.
UM, SO WE HOPE THAT WE HAVE BOTH OF THOSE, PLENTY OF THOSE, UM, BOTH ON THE SIDELINES AND MARCHING DOWN CHEVROLET AVENUE.
UM, MARK IT ON YOUR CALENDAR AND BE THERE OR BE SQUARE WE GO FOR MR. WADE.
UH, ONE RESIDENT ACTUALLY BROUGHT UP A GOOD IDEA.
UM, PLEASE INVITE EVERY SINGLE ELECTED OFFICIALS, UM, PREVIOUS MAYORS AND COUNCIL MEMBERS AND MAKE SURE THAT WE RECOGNIZE THEM, UM, FOR THEIR DEDICATION, UM, IN THE TOWN.
SO, UM, WE, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT CAN HAPPEN DURING, SOMETIME DURING THE WEEK OR THE DAY OF.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE A GREAT HONOR FOR THEM TO, FOR THEIR SERVICE TO YIELD BACK.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR MR. LEG HECK OR THE CH DAY COMMITTEE? HEARING NONE THE PLANNING BOARD REPORT.
[00:25:01]
MET, UH, YESTERDAY.THE PRIMARY TOPIC OF DISCUSSION WAS THE PORT TOWNS PRELIMINARY PLAN, UH, WHICH HAS BEEN RELEASED, UH, OBVIOUSLY IT'S NOT OUR JURISDICTION, BUT THERE ARE TWO, UH, FAIRLY SUBSTANTIAL REIMAGININGS OF INTERSECTIONS THAT AFFECT US.
ONE IS, UH, WHERE 2 0 2 INTERSECTS WITH FOUR 50 AT THE PUBLIC PLAYHOUSE AND THE OTHER ONE IS THE PEACE CROSS INTERSECTION.
THOSE ARE NOT TECHNICALLY RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT THEY ARE, UH, SUBSTANTIVELY DIFFERENT.
AND SINCE THERE IS ALREADY MONEY IN THE SHA BUDGET TO GO OVER 2 0 2 AND FOUR 50, WE, UH, DISCUSSED THAT TO SEE IF THAT SHOULD BE SOMETHING THAT COMES, UM, THAT THE PLANNING BOARD MAKES RECOMMENDATIONS ON TO SUBMIT TO, UM, SHA OR MDOT.
AND WE ALSO HAD A PRESENTATION FROM A RESIDENT, A TEENAGER, PHOEBE, WHO IS DOING AN INDEPENDENT STUDY ON THE SOON TO BE, UH, IMPLEMENTED ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT, UM, LAW AND IS TRYING TO ENGAGE WITH RESIDENTS TO SEE, UH, WHAT THEY THINK ABOUT IT, WHAT THE BARRIERS ARE TO IMPLEMENTING IT, ET CETERA.
IT IS STILL AN EARLY STAGE, BUT IT WAS A ENGAGING DISCUSSION.
UM, AND THEN WE, UH, MOST OF THE OTHER THINGS ARE, ARE SORT OF REPORTS TO ME THAT I THEN NEED TO FORWARD TO THE, TO THE RIGHT PERSON COMPLIANCE ISSUES AND, AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO IT WAS, WAS A PRODUCTIVE, UH, SESSION.
ANY QUESTIONS FOR MR. TANZI OR FOR THE PLANNING BOARD? I WANNA UH, JUST SAY I WANNA THANK THE PLANNING BOARD AND THE CHEVROLET GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE FOR BEING IMMENSELY HELPFUL IN PROVIDING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MY ORAL TESTIMONY TODAY TO THE COUNTY PLANNING BOARD ON THE HOSPITAL HILL PPS.
SO PLEASE PASS ON MY THANKS, UH, TO CARLO AND BRIAN FOR THAT.
IS THERE A REPORT FROM THE BOARD OF ELECTION SUPERVISORS? HEARING NONE.
IS THERE A REPORT FROM THE CH ETHICS COMMISSION ON THE EVE OF THE DEADLINE FOR THE FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE FORMS? HEARING NONE.
IS THERE A HOMETOWN HEROES REPORT, MR. GALLOWAY? SURE.
HOMETOWN HEROES APPLICATIONS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY JUNE 4TH TO BE HUNG BY JULY 4TH, 2026.
FORM SUBMITTED AFTER JUNE 4TH WILL BE HUNG IN JANUARY OF 2027.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTION, QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE COUNCIL FOR THE HOMETOWN HEROES COMMITTEE? HEARING NONE.
IS THERE A REPORT FROM THE YOUTH COMMITTEE? I BELIEVE THERE IS.
IS THERE NOT MS. WHITE? WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN STORE FOR US? THERE'S ALWAYS A REPORT FROM CHEVROLET YOUTH.
AS EVERYONE KNOWS, WE HAVE VOICES OF INITIATIVE AND SO WE ARE GOING TO BE DOING ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEWS, UM, OF ANYONE IN TOWN WHO WOULD LIKE TO APPLY.
THERE'S A VERY, VERY SIMPLE FORM ONLINE FOR THAT.
UM, AND ANNOUNCEMENTS WILL CONTINUE TO BE GOING OUT.
WE WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO SUBMIT.
WE WOULD LOVE TO CAPTURE YOUR VOICE AND BE ABLE TO SHARE IT.
UM, WE HAD A SPECIAL YOUTH COUNCIL MEETING JUST BEFORE THIS, WHICH IS WHY I WALKED IN A LITTLE LATER.
UM, COUNCIL MEMBER LALO HECK SHARED HIS EXPERTISE WITH THE YOUTH COUNCIL AND REALLY JUST MADE ME AND THEM JUST SO MUCH MORE CONFIDENT GOING INTO THIS.
AND WE ARE REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING THE INTERVIEW PROCESSES STARTED NOW THAT WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE EXPERTISE AND KNOWLEDGE.
THANK YOU TO COUNCIL MEMBER LALO.
IS THERE ANY COMMENT OR QUESTION FROM THE COUNCIL FOR THE C YOUTH COMMITTEE OR THE, THE YOUTH COORDINATOR? ALRIGHT, HEARING NONE COUNSEL, THAT CONCLUDES COMMITTEE REPORTS AND WE ARE
[8. Proclamations]
ON TO ITEM EIGHT.UH, FEEL FREE TO RAISE YOUR HANDS IF ANYBODY WOULD LIKE TO READ THESE, OTHERWISE I WILL READ THEM.
I'M GONNA START WITH, UH, WELL WHY DON'T WE DO THE COMMUNITY ONES AND THEN WE'LL FINISH WITH YEAH.
WITH, UH, WITH ASIAN AMERICAN NATIVE HAWAIIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER.
WOULD YOU LIKE THESE? YOU WANNA COME UP? YES.
[00:30:01]
A GREAT IDEA.GRANT, ARE YOU HERE? I'M GONNA HAVE TO READ CHRISTOPHER'S.
PERRY GRANT, IF YOU'RE HERE, PLEASE MEET COUNCIL MEMBER WADE AT THE PODIUM.
YEAH, I THINK YOU NEED THE MIC RIGHT THERE.
PERRY IS TRULY AN AMAZING TALENT.
SHE'S ACTUALLY A NEIGHBOR WARD ONE RESIDENT, AND I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO, YOU CAN FACE THEM.
SO WE TURN AROUND CORNER SIDE OVER HERE, POINT SIDE HERE.
SHE ACTUALLY PARTICIPATED IN THE PRINCE GEORGE COUNTY TEAM VOCAL SHOWCASE AND DID AMAZING JOB, AMAZING VOICE.
AND YOU'LL SEE IT IN THE PROCLAMATION.
SO PROCLAMATION HONORING MS. PERRY GRANT, WHEREAS THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY ARE PROUD TO RECOGNIZE THE ACCOMPLISH ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF YOUNG RESIDENTS WHO DEMONSTRATE EXCELLENCE IN ACADEMICS, ARTISTRY, LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
AND WHEREAS MS. PERRY GRANT A WARD, ONE RESIDENT OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY, HAS BROUGHT GREAT PRIDE TO THE TOWN BY EARNING SECOND PLACE IN THE PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY TEEN VOCAL SHOWCASE HELD AT THE PRINCE GEORGE'S PUBLIC PLAYHOUSE, SPONSORED BY THE PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION, WHERE SHE PERFORMED HOPEFULLY DEVOTED TO YOU FROM THE MUSICAL GREECE.
AND WHEREAS AT JUST 14 YEARS OLD IN NINTH GRADE AND A NINTH GRADE STUDENT AT DUKE ELLINGTON SCHOOLS OF ART, SHE'S A THEATER MAJOR AND ACTIVE MEMBER OF THE SCHOOL'S MUSICAL THEATER ENSEMBLE.
MS. GRANT HAS DISTINGUISHED HERSELF THROUGH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, INTELLECTUAL CURIOSITY, AND DEDICATION TO LEARNING.
AND WHEREAS PRIOR TO ATTENDING DUKE ELLINGTON SCHOOL OF THE ARTS, MS. GRANT STUDY AS A VOCAL STUDENT AT THOMAS G PULLIN CREATIVE AND PERFORMING ARTS ACADEMY AND PREVIOUSLY EXCELLED AS A TAG STUDENT AT CAPITOL HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
AND WHEREAS MS. GRANT'S PASSION FOR PERFORMING ARTS HAS LED HER TO PERFORM THROUGHOUT THE WASHINGTON DC METROPOLITAN REGION AS A MEMBER OF THE CENTER STAGE OF ARTS PERFORMING GROUP AND THE URBAN NATION CHOIR DEMONSTRATING REMARKABLE DEDICATION, TALENT, AND PROFESSIONALISM AT A YOUNG AGE.
AND WHEREAS MS. GRANT ASPIRES TO CONTINUE HER EDUCATION AT A PERFORMING ARTS UNIVERSITY AND ULTIMATELY PURSUE HER DREAM OF PERFORMING ON BROADWAY, SERVING AS A INSPIRATION TO OTHER YOUNG ARTISTS IN THE COMMUNITY THROUGHOUT HER HARD WORK, CREATIVITY AND DETERMINATION.
AND WHEREAS MS. GRANT'S ACCOMPLISHMENT REFLECT POSITIVELY UPON HER FAMILY SCHOOL ORGANIZATIONS IN THE TOWN OF SHELBY AND SERVE AS A INSPIRATION TO OTHER YOUNG PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY.
NOW THEREFORE BE A PROCLAIM THAT THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY, MARYLAND DO BY DO HEREBY RECOGNIZE AND CONGRATULATE MS. PERRY GRANT FOR EXCEPTIONAL ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, ARTISTIC CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, AND EXTEND BEST WISHES FOR HER CONTINUED SUCCESS FOR ALL FUTURE ENDEAVORS.
YOU WANNA TAKE THE PICTURE? FAMILY? I WANNA HOLD IT UP HERE.
AND WHERE SHOULD WE TAKE IT? I KNOW.
PAM, YOU WANNA COME UP REAL QUICK? COME ON.
START A LITTLE TOWARDS, I'LL PUSH IT BACK.
SNAP A FEW AND THEN PASS IT OFF.
[00:35:02]
PROBABLY SIGN IT.IS SHE HERE? SHE ACTUALLY, SHE'S NOT HERE TODAY.
HOW DO YOU SAY THE FIRST NAME AGAIN? ANYBODY? SALI.
ALRIGHT, I'LL JUST READ IT OUT.
SO THE NEXT COUPLE PROCLAMATIONS ARE FROM OUR AMAZING, UH, SHELBY CAP CAPITAL HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
THEY ALL PERFORMED IN THE COUNTYWIDE, UH, BOOK WRITE, WRITE A BOOK.
I ACTUALLY HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND IT YESTERDAY AND IT, IT, THE, A LOT OF THE WARD WON RESIDENTS KIDS.
THEY WERE ABLE TO WIN, UM, DIFFERENT AWARDS ON FIRST FROM FIRST TO HONORABLE MISSION.
SO MS. BURKE, NORA BURKE, CAN SHE COME UP? YES.
HOW YOU DOING TODAY? ALL RIGHT.
PROCLAMATION HONORING MS. NOAH BURKE.
WHEREAS THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY ARE PROUD TO RECOGNIZE THE ACCOMP ACCOMPLISH ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF YOUNG RESIDENTS WHO DEMONSTRATE EXCELLENCE IN ACADEMICS, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP, AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
AND WHEREAS MS. NORA BURKE A WARD, ONE RESIDENT OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY, HAS BROUGHT GREAT PRIDE TO THE TOWN BY EARNING FIRST PLACE IN THE PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS WRITE A BOOK CONTEST IN THE FOURTH GRADE NONFICTION DIVISION DIVISION FOR HER OUTSTANDING BOOK ON DOMESTICATION OF CATS.
AND WHEREAS AT JUST 10 YEARS OLD AND FOURTH GRADE STUDENT AT CAPITOL HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, MS. BURKE HAS DISTINGUISHED HERSELF THROUGH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, INTELLECTUAL CURIOSITY, AND DEDICATION TO LEARNING.
AND WE, MS. BURKE IS ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN HER SCHOOL COMMUNITY THROUGH PARTICIPATION IN BASKETBALL.
SHE'S REALLY GOOD SOCCER AND GREEN CLUBS BY PLAYING THE FLUTE IN THE SCHOOL BAND.
AND WHEREAS MS. BURKE EXEMPLIFIES THE VALUES OF TEAMWORK, LEADERSHIP, AND SERVICE THROUGH INVOLVEMENT AS A JUNIOR GIRL SCOUT WITH TROOP 2 2 0 2 9 AT SHE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH.
AND WHEREAS MS. BURKE DEMONSTRATES EXCEPTIONAL COMMITMENT AND SPORTSMANSHIP THROUGH HER PARTICIPATION IN NUMEROUS A ATHLETIC PROGRAMS INCLUDING BASKETBALL, BASEBALL, SOCCER WITH THE ING BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB VOLLEYBALL AT THE SHELBY SWIM AND RACKET CLUB AND CATHOLIC YOUTH ORGANIZATION, 12 U GIRLS BASKETBALL AT ST.
JEROME ACADEMY HIGHSVILLE, I TOLD YOU SHE WAS REALLY GOOD.
WHEREAS MS. BURKE'S ACCOMPLISHMENT REFLECT POSITIVELY UPON HER FAMILY SCHOOL ORGANIZATIONS IN THE TOWN OF SHELBY AND SERVE AS A INSPIRATION TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY.
NOW THEREFORE, THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY, MARYLAND DO HEREBY RECOGNIZING AND CONGRATULATE MS. NORA BURKE FOR EXCEPTIONAL ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP, AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, AND EXTEND BEST WISHES FOR HER CONTINUED SUCCESS IN ALL FUTURE ENDEAVORS.
ALL RIGHT, PAM, YOU COULD COME UP PLEASE TAKE A PICTURE IF YOU WANT TO.
THREE, THREE BASEMENT REAL QUICK.
ALRIGHT WE GETTING THERE FOR AWARD ONE? WE'RE AWESOME.
WE GOTTA, OUR TOWN ENTIRE TOWN IS AWESOME TOO.
SEALY MOORE READ, I'LL READ IT.
UNFORTUNATELY SHE'S NOT HERE BUT I'LL READ IT FOR HER.
PROCLAMATION HONORING SEALY MOORE.
WHEREAS THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY ARE PROUD TO RECOGNIZE THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF YOUNG RESIDENTS WHO DEMONSTRATE EXCELLENCE IN ACADEMICS, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
AND WHEREAS MS. SEALY MOORE, A WARD, ONE RESIDENT OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY HAVE BROUGHT GREAT PRIDE IN THE TOWN BY ERNIE HONORABLE MENTION IN THE IN THE PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS WRITE A BOOK CONTEST IN THE FOURTH GRADE POETRY DIVISION FOR HER OUTSTANDING POEM INSPIRED BY HER ROOTS FAMILY AND COMMUNITY.
AND WHEREAS AT JUST NINE YEARS OLD IN FOURTH GRADE STUDENT
[00:40:01]
AT CAPITOL HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, MS. MOORE HAS DISTINGUISHED HERSELF THROUGH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, INTELLECTUAL CURIOSITY, AND DEDICATION TO LEARNING.AND WHEREAS MS. MOORE IS ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN HER SCHOOL COMMUNITY, COMMUNITY, THROUGH HER PARTICIPATION IN SCHOOL BAND BY PLAYING THE TRUMPET, SHE SEEKS OUT ALL OPPORTUNITIES TO FURTHER EXPLORE HER CREATIVITY.
AND MS. MOORE STUDIES THE PIANO ENJOYS TAKING REGULAR LESSONS IN SEWING AND FASHION DESIGN, WHEREAS MS. MOORE EXEMPLIFIES THE VALUES OF TEAMWORK, LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE THROUGH HER INVOLVEMENT AS A JUNIOR GIRL SCOUT WITH TROOP 2 2 0 2 9 WHAT IS WHAT WITH THIS 2 2 0 9 2 9 AS SHE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH.
AND WHEREAS MS. MOORE DEMONSTRATES EXCEPTIONAL COMMITMENT AND SPORTSMANSHIP THROUGH HER PARTICIPATION ATHLETIC PROGRAMS INCLUDING KIDS PITCH SOFTBALL WITH THE SHELBY BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB.
AND WHEREAS MS. MORRIS ACCOMPLISHMENTS REFLECT POSITIVELY UPON HER FAMILY SCHOOL ORGANIZATIONS AND THE TOWN OF SHELBY AND SERVE AS THE INSPIRATION TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT PROCLAIMED THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY MARYLAND DO HEREBY RECOGNIZE AND CONGRATULATE MS. SEALEY MOORE FOR EXCEPTIONAL ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
AND EXTEND BEST WISHES FOR HER CONTINUED SUCCESS IN ALL FUTURE ENDEAVORS.
ALRIGHT, MR. MILLER, MS. HERE, ANOTHER WARR ONE RESIDENT.
HOW'S ABOUT THAT
AND IT'S IS FI IS FINLAND FINNISH? YES, I DID HEAR THAT.
MS. MIAH MILLER PROCLAMATION HONORING HER.
WHEREAS THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY ARE PROUD TO RECOGNIZE THE ACCOMPLISH ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF YOUNG RESIDENTS WHO DEMONSTRATE EXCELLENCE IN ACADEMICS, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP, AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
AND WHEREAS MS. MEYER MILLER, A WARD, ONE RESIDENT OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY HAVE HAS BROUGHT GREAT PRIDE TO THE TOWN BY ERNIE.
FIRST PLACE IN THE PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS WRITE A BOOK CONTEST IN THE THIRD GRADE POETRY DIVISION FOR A OUTSTANDING COLLECTION OF FREE VERSE POEMS INSPIRED BY A SNOWY WINTER WALK THE SNOW CREEK PROBABLY DURING THAT TIME TITLE NIGHT WALK.
EACH POEM IS AC ACCOMPANIED BY A UNIQUE, UNIQUE MUSICAL SOUNDSCAPE THAT SHE COMPOSED AND RECORDED HERSELF.
AND WHEREAS AT NINE YEARS OLD, IN A THIRD GRADE STUDENT AT CAPITAL HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, MS. MILLER HAS DISTINGUISHED HERSELF THROUGH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, INTELLECTUAL CURIOSITY, AND A DEDICATION TO LEARNING.
AND WHEREAS MS. MILLER'S LOVES LOVE FOR ANIMALS, NATURE, ART, MUSIC, AND STORY, SHE ACTIVELY PLAYS PIANO AND LOVES TO SING.
WHEREAS MS. MILLER EXEMPLIFIES THE VALUES OF TEAMWORK, LEADERSHIP, AND SERVICE THROUGH HER INVOLVEMENT AS A JUNIOR GIRL SCOUT TROOP 2 2 0 2 9 AT SHELBY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH.
AND CAN I JOIN, IS IT POSSIBLE FOR ME TO JOIN
WHEREAS MISS MILLER'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS REFLECT POSITIVELY UPON HER FAMILY, SCHOOL ORGANIZATIONS AND TOWN OF SHELBY AND SERVE AS THE INSPIRATION TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY.
NOW THEREFORE BE A PROCLAIMED THAT THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF SHELBY MARYLAND DO HEREBY RECOGNIZE AND CONGRATULATE MS. MEYER MILLER FOR EXCEPTIONAL ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP, AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
AND EXTEND BEST WISHES FOR HER CONTINUED SUCCESS IN ALL FUTURE ENDEAVORS.
THIS IS ACTUALLY ONE OF THE AWARDS HERE.
YOU WANNA HOLD MY, SHE SAID I WANNA HOLD MY WARD.
DON'T FORGET THE REST OF THE FAMILY.
[00:45:01]
YOU MAY RECOGNIZE THE NAME OF THIS INDIVIDUAL.IT'S A PROCLAMATION HONORING MR. CHRISTOPHER R. WADE.
PROCLAMATION HONORING MR. CHRISTOPHER RWAY.
WHEREAS THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF CH ARE PROUD TO RECOGNIZE THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF YOUNG RESIDENTS WHO DEMONSTRATE EXCELLENCE IN ACADEMICS, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP, AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
AND WHEREAS MR. CHRISTOPHER RWAY THE SECOND AWARD, ONE RESIDENT OF THE TOWN OF CH HAS BROUGHT GREAT PRIDE TO THE TOWN BY EARNING THIRD PLACE.
AND THE PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS WRITE A BOOK CONTEST IN THE THIRD GRADE ILLUSTRATED FICTION CATEGORY FOR HIS OUTSTANDING BOOK, EXPLORING SCIENCE, GEOGRAPHY, TIME TRAVEL, AND A MAGICAL CLOSET.
AND WHEREAS AT JUST NINE YEARS OLD AND IN THE THIRD GRADE AT CAPITOL HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, MR. WADE IS AN HONOR ROLL STUDENT WHO HAS DISTINGUISHED HIMSELF THROUGH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, INTELLECTUAL CURIOSITY, AND DEDICATION TO LEARNING.
AND WHEREAS MR. WADE IS A VALUED MEMBER OF THE WIZE COMPUTING ACADEMY LEGO CODING AND ROBOTICS TEAM, WHOSE TEAM EARNED THE PRESTIGIOUS CHALLENGE AWARD AT THE 2025 FIRST LEGO LEAGUE COMPETITION DEMONSTRATING INNOVATION, TEAMWORK, AND PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLS.
AND WHEREAS MR. WADE FURTHER DISTINGUISHED HIMSELF AT THE 2026 SCRIPPS NATIONAL SPELLING BEE CHAMPION, OR AS THE SPELLING BEE CHAMPION FOR CAPITAL HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, SHOWCASING EXCEPTIONAL DEDICATION TO SCHOLARSHIP AND LEARNING.
AND WHEREAS BEYOND HIS ACADEMIC AND LITERARY ACHIEVEMENTS, MR. WADE IS A GREEN BELT IN TAEKWONDO WHO HAS EARNED GOLD MEDALS IN MULTIPLE TOURNAMENTS AND IS QUALIFIED TO COMPETE IN THE 2026 A A U TAEKWONDO NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN FLORIDA THIS SUMMER.
AND WHEREAS MR. WADE IS ALSO AN ACTIVE PARTICIPANT IN ATHLETICS AND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY, INCLUDING BASKETBALL, BASEBALL, SOCCER, AND THE CH BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB TENNIS WITH THE JUNIOR TENNIS CHAMPION CENTER AND GOLF THROUGH THE FIRST TEE AT THE PAINT BRANCH GOLF COMPLEX.
AND WHEREAS MR. WADE'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS REFLECT POSITIVELY UPON HIS FAMILY SCHOOL ORGANIZATIONS AND THE TOWN OF CH AND SERVE AS AN INSPIRATION TO OTHER YOUNG PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY.
NOW THEREFORE BE A PROCLAIMED THAT THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF CH MARYLAND DO HEREBY RECOGNIZE AND CONGRATULATE MR. CHRISTOPHER OUR WAY II FOR HIS EXCEPTIONAL ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, CREATIVITY, LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, AND EXTEND BEST WISHES FOR HIS CONTINUED SUCCESS AND ALL FUTURE ENDEAVORS IN WITNESS THEREOF.
WE UNTO SET OUR HANDS AND CAUSE THE SEAL OF THE TOWN TO BE AFFIXED THIS 14TH DAY OF MAY, 2026.
NO, WE CAN GET IT ALL TOGETHER.
ALRIGHT, NOW, COUNCIL MEMBER FRY IS GOING TO READ OUR ASIAN AMERICAN NATIVE HAWAIIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH RESOLUTION.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THAT RECEIVED.
UH, THEIR WRITE A BOOK IN THE POETRY AWARDS.
UM, I THINK, UH, THIS PROCLAMATION IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT THIS WEEK AS WE'VE SEEN, UM, SOME MARILYN LEADERSHIP, UM, MOCKING ONE OF THEIR COLLEAGUES, UH, INSINUATING THAT HE WAS A FOREIGN SPY AND OTHER STEREOTYPICAL THINGS THAT FOLLOW, UM, A LOT OF ASIAN AMERICANS AROUND, UH, IN THIS COUNTRY.
[00:50:01]
I HOPE THAT WHEN YOU HAVE OPPORTUNITY, NOT JUST IN INSTANCES AGAINST ASIAN AMERICANS, BUT IN ALL INSTANCES OF RACISM, THAT UM, WE ALL SPEAK OUT AND WE ALL SAY SOMETHING AND THAT WE ALL REALLY THINK ABOUT THE WORDS THAT WE USE, UM, BECAUSE WORDS MATTER.UM, AND IT'S, IT'S KIND OF THE POINT WHERE, UH, YOU CAN CHOOSE CERTAIN WORDS TO, UM, START WITH A LITTLE BIT OF DISRESPECT AND THAT CAN EASILY GROW INTO SOMETHING BIGGER.
SO, UH, THE PROCLAMATION CELEBRATING AND RECOGNIZING ASIAN AMERICAN NATIVE HAWAIIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH, A-N-H-P-I.
AND THAT'S WHAT I'M GONNA SAY FROM THE REST OF IT 'CAUSE IT'S A MOUTHFUL FOR MAY, 2026.
UH, THE SAME POWER AND UNITY STRENGTHENING COMMUNITIES TOGETHER.
WHEREAS THE MONTH OF MAY IS CELEBRATED NATIONWIDE AS A-A-N-H-P-I HERITAGE MONTH HONORING THE CONTRIBUTIONS, RESILIENCE AND LASTING INFLUENCE OF ASIAN AMERICANS NATIVE HAWAIIANS, DESI AMERICANS IN PACIFIC ISLANDERS THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES.
AND WHEREAS ASIAN AMERICANS HAVE HAD A LONG AND RICH PRESENCE IN AMERICA, BEGINNING WITH THE ARRIVAL OF FILIPINO SAILORS IN WHAT IS NOW MORRO BAY, CALIFORNIA IN 1587, CONTINUING WITH THE ESTABLISHMENT OF FILIPINO FISHING COMMUNITIES IN THE BAYOU OF LOUISIANA IN THE LATE 17 HUNDREDS AND EARLY 18 HUNDREDS, AND EXTENDING TO THE ESSENTIAL ROLE OF CHINESE LABORERS WHO BUILT THE TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD BEGINNING IN 1863 WORK FOR WHICH THEY WERE PAID POVERTY WAGES AND DENIED THE RECOGNITION THEY DESERVED.
AND WHEREAS NATIVE HAWAIIANS AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS ARE INDIGENOUS TO THE LANDS NOW ENCOMPASSED BY UNITED STATES TERRITORIES AND IS IT, IT IS ESSENTIAL TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE DISTINCT HISTORY OF COLONIZATION AND THE ROLE THE UNITED STATES HAS PLAYED IN THE DISPLACEMENT OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE'S TRADITIONS AND LANGUAGES.
AND WHEREAS THE UMBRELLA TERM ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN DOES NOT FULLY REPRESENT THE MORE THAN 50 COUNTRIES, HUNDREDS OF LANGUAGES, UNIQUE CULTURES, DIVERSE RELIGION, VIBRANT TRADITIONS, AND DISTINCT PATHS TO THE AMERICA THAT MAKE UP THIS COMMUNITY.
AND THAT THIS DIVERSITY RESERVES RECOGNITION IN ITS FULL BREATH.
AND WHEREAS EXECUTIVE ORDER 1 4 0 3 1 TITLED ADVANCING EQUITY JUSTICE AND OPPORTUNITY FOR ASIAN AMERICAN NATIVE HAWAIIANS AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS ORIGINALLY SIGNED ON MAY 28TH, 2021, WAS RESCINDED BY THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION ON JANUARY 20TH, 2025, LEAVING AA AND HPI COMMUNITIES WITHOUT FEDERAL LEADERSHIP OR INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT.
AND WHEREAS IN THE ABSENCE OF THAT FEDERAL LEADERSHIP, THE FEDERAL ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN COUNCIL ANNOUNCED THE THEME FOR MAY, 2026, A, A AND HPI HERITAGE MONTH AS POWER AND UNITY STRENGTHENING COMMUNITIES TOGETHER A CALL TO COLLECTIVE ACTION AND MUTUAL SUPPORT AT A CRITICAL TIME.
AND WHEREAS IN 2025 ALONE, MORE THAN 77,700 PEOPLE WERE ARRESTED, OVER 7,200 WERE DETAINED.
AND NEARLY 3000 ASIAN PACIFIC ISLANDERS WERE DEPORTED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
AND SINCE THESE ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS BEGAN, 46 PEOPLE HAVE DIED IN ICE CUSTODY, 10 OF WHOM WERE FROM ASIAN COUNTRIES.
AND WHEREAS CRUELTY DIRECTED AT IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES AND COMMUNITIES OF COLOR, PARTICULARLY BLACK COMMUNITIES, IS NOT NEW TO AMERICAN HISTORY.
AND THE STORIES OF JAPANESE AMERICAN INCARCERATION DURING WORLD WAR II AND THE CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT OF 1882 STAND AS STARK REMINDERS OF TIMES WHEN XENOPHOBIA AND RACISM OVERCAME THE CONSTITUTIONAL VALUES OF DUE PROCESS AND EQUAL PROTECTION.
AND WHEREAS THESE HISTORICAL INJUSTICES SERVE AS A WARNING AND AN OBLIGATION REMINDING ALL WHO GOVERN AND ALL WHO ARE GOVERNED, THAT SILENCE IN THE FACE OF PERSECUTION IS ITSELF A FORM OF COMPLICITY.
AND WHEREAS THE TOWN OF CH HONORS THE AA AND HPI TRAILBLAZERS, LEADERS AND EVERYDAY COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHOSE COURAGE AND PERSEVERANCE HAVE SHAPED THE PATH FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS, INCLUDING RIGHT HERE IN CH, WHICH HAS BEEN REPRESENTED BY ITS FIRST KOREAN AMERICAN ELECTED COUNCIL MEMBER SINCE 2019.
AND WHEREAS THE CH MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL REJECT ALL RACIST RHETORIC SLURS AND DEHUMANIZING LANGUAGE AND HOLD THEMSELVES AND THE COMMUNITY ACCOUNTABLE TO ADDRESS HARASSMENT AND DISRESPECT IN ALL FORMS SO THAT EVERY RESIDENT OF C FEELS SAFE AND WELCOME, PARTICULARLY DURING THIS PERIOD OF FEDERAL HOSTILITY TOWARD IMMIGRANT AND MINORITY COMMUNITIES.
AND WHEREAS THE TOWN OF CHEVROLET IS COMMITTED TO CELEBRATING THE DIVERSITY ACHIEVEMENTS AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF A AND HPI COMMUNITIES, NOT ONLY DURING THE MONTH OF MAY, BUT EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR AND REMAINS STEADFAST IN ITS COMMITMENT TO EQUITY IUS AND JUSTICE FOR PEOPLE OF ALL RACES, NATIONAL ORIGINS AND ETHNICITIES.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT THE CHEVROLET MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL HEREBY RECOGNIZE AND CELEBRATE THE CONTRIBUTIONS, RESILIENCE AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE A A AND HPI COMMUNITIES DURING HERITAGE MONTH REAFFIRM THEIR COMMITMENT TO DIGNITY, SAFETY, AND FULL INCLUSION OF OUR RESIDENTS AND CALL UPON THE COMMUNITY TO STAND TOGETHER IN THE SPIRIT OF, OF THE 2026 THEME OF POWER AND UNITY.
ALRIGHT, THANK YOU FOR THAT COUNCIL MEMBER.
WE WILL ALL SIGN IT AND THAT WILL GO INTO THE RECORD.
[00:55:01]
CONCLUDES PROCLAMATION.[11. Budget and Tax Rate Discussion]
ON TO THE BUDGET AND TAX RATE DISCUSSION.UH, I IS MS. MOCK ON AS WELL AS MR. GALLOWAY? NO, SIR.
MS. MOCK COULD NOT MAKE IT THIS EVENING.
UH, SO MY FIRST QUESTION, SO I THINK WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO IS WE'RE GONNA START WITH THE FUND BALANCE, THEN WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT EXPENDITURES AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALL AGREED UPON WITH THE, WITH THE SPENDING PLAN, WHICH AS PRINTED HERE IS 11,000,603.
UH, AND THEN WE WILL MOVE TO HOPEFULLY FAIRLY QUICKLY TO REVENUE.
UM, SO THE CURRENT FUND BALANCE AS OF JUNE 30TH, 2025, SO WHERE WE STARTED THIS FISCAL YEAR IS $5,142,761, UH, FOR 51 42, UM, 5,000,142.
UH, AND THEN MR. GALLOWAY, IF THAT IS TRUE, IS IT STILL YOUR BEST GUESS THAT THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR THAT ENDS IN FIVE, SIX WEEKS, WE WILL RUN A DEFICIT.
YOUR STILL, YOUR BEST GUESS IS THAT, THAT WE WILL RUN A DEFICIT OF $384,000.
OR SOME, SOMEWHERE CLOSE TO IT BASED OFF OF MY CONVERSATIONS WITH MS. MOCK.
UH, COUNSEL, ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT? SO WE'RE ALL DEALING WITH THE SAME SET OF FACTS, SO WE WOULD EXPECT TO START ON JULY ONE WITH A FUND BALANCE OF 4 7 6 0.
I MIGHT HAVE MESSED UP THE MAT SLIGHTLY, BUT SOMEWHERE AROUND 4 7, 6 0.
ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT? COUNSEL? THAT'S 51 42 MINUS 3 84.
ANYONE DISAGREE WITH THAT? ALRIGHT.
SO THEN THE QUESTION IS, UH, SO LET'S MOVE ON TO THE SECOND TOPIC THEN, WHICH IS THE SPENDING PLAN.
MR. GALLOWAY, DO YOU WANNA BRIEFLY OUTLINE CHANGES THAT YOU HAVE MADE TO THE $11,603,000 SPENDING PLAN? YEAH, I'LL JUST GO OVER THIS BRIEFLY IF YOU DON'T MIND.
MAYOR COUNSEL, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH YOU ABOUT THE BUDGET AGAIN, UM, IT'S BUDGET SEASON.
UM, UH, JUST ABOUT THE SPENDING PLAN, I'LL JUST SAY THIS TODAY, WE GOTTA MAKE A DECISION AS IT RELATES TO THE TAX RATE AS DOES DUE TOMORROW.
DO YOU WANT ME TO GO OVER WHAT EACH CENT WOULD REPRESENT, MAYOR, UM, AND
I THINK WE'RE, WE, WE JUST, WHAT I WANNA DO IS, IS SEE IF COUNSEL HAS ANY QUESTIONS FOR YOU OR CONCERNS ABOUT THE SPENDING PLAN AND THEN WE WILL HAVE SOME PUBLIC INPUT ON THE SPENDING PLAN AND THEN WE WILL TURN TO THE ISSUE OF REVENUE WHERE WE WILL ALSO ON WHICH WE WILL ALSO HAVE SOME PUBLIC INPUT.
SO COUNSEL, DO YOU HAVE ANY, UH, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT THE $11,603,000 OF EXPENDITURES? ANYTHING YOU WOULD LIKE TO CUT OR YOU'RE UNCLEAR ABOUT MR. WADE? YES, IT'S JUST, UH, FOR CLARITY, THE LAST MEETING WE HAD, IT WAS STILL A 25 20 5,802 DEFICIT.
CAN YOU JUST SPEAK TO WHAT WAS TAKEN OUT SO WE KNOW WHAT THAT WAS FIRST? YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN THROUGH A FEW ITERATIONS OF, OF THE BUDGET SINCE THEN, AND I THINK EVEN DURING THAT TIME WE MADE ADJUSTMENTS, UH, LIVE ADJUSTMENTS AS WE WENT THROUGH IT.
UM, I COULDN'T POINT TO ANY ONE THING BECAUSE I DO KNOW THAT THERE WERE SEVERAL THINGS THAT WERE, UM, UH, DEDUCTED DURING THAT TIME.
UM, SO NO, AS FAR AS THAT 25,000, BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE BUDGET NOW, IT SHOULD BE, UM, A BALANCED BUDGET WITH A A ZERO, UH, DEFICIT AT THE CURRENT PROPOSED, UH, TAX, UH, UH, INCREASE.
OH, MR. TANZI, YOU HAD YOUR HAND UP? I'LL WAIT.
I WAS JUST GONNA NOTE THAT, UM, ONE THING I HAD BEEN LOOKING FOR WAS THE FOOD SCRAP PROGRAM AND THAT DOES SEEM TO BE BUDGETED AT ZERO FOR FISCAL YEAR 2027 AND IT HAD BEEN LISTED AT SOMETHING HIGHER, LIKE 40 OR 45,000.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S ONE POINT I WAS GONNA BRING UP.
SO I WAS HAPPY TO SEE THAT THAT IS ALREADY ZEROED OUT.
AND REMEMBER WHAT, WHAT WE DID WITH THE FOOD SCRAP PROGRAM
[01:00:01]
FOR THIS ONE, WE REALLOCATED THAT TO A SECTION FOR PUBLIC WORKS, UM, THAT, UH, DESPERATELY NEEDED.SO WE DID ZERO OUT THAT, UM, AND WE HAVE BEEN IN COMMUNICATION WITH, UM, THE, THE ORGANIZATION TO TRY TO UH, UM, YOU KNOW, WORK OUT A DEAL WITH THEM FOR RESIDENTS.
BUT YOU ARE CORRECT THAT LINE ITEM HAS BEEN ZEROED OUT.
THE PUBLIC WORKS EXPENDITURES, UH, ARE DOWN $15,000 FROM LAST WEEK, I BELIEVE OVERALL THEY WERE AT 40 50 AND NOW THEY'RE AT 40, 35.
MR. WADE? YEAH, JUST GOING OVER IT, CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, THE NEWSLETTER IS THAT WAS, IS THAT THE NEWSLETTER PUBLICATION THAT THAT WAS ZEROED OUT? NO, THE NEWSLETTER WAS MOVED TO, UH, THE COMMUNICATIONS LINE ITEM UNDER GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.
I JUST KNOW THAT WAS ONE OF THE MAIN THINGS I WAS IN QUESTION WHETHER TO, UH, TAKE THAT OUT OR NOT, SIR, IT HAS NOT BEEN TAKEN OUT.
IT WAS, IT WAS RE MOVED TO MAKE IT MORE CLEAR, BUT IT'S STILL THERE.
UH, THE ONLY DIMINUTION I CAN SEE IN EXPENDITURES FROM LAST WEEK WOULD BE THE 15,000 NET DECREASE IN PUBLIC WORKS EXPENDITURES FROM 4 0 5 OH TO 4 0 3 5 COUNCIL MEMBER FRY.
UM, I'M JUST GONNA SAY ON THE RECORD AGAIN, I'M VERY SAD ABOUT MY FOOD COMPOST, BUT I UNDERSTAND THAT WAS A WANT NOT A NEED.
UM, THE T AND R ON HERE, I KNOW IT'S A SMALL AMOUNT, BUT IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THERE'S ANY ACTUALS FOR THAT FOR FY 26.
UM, IT WAS A PROGRAM STARTED I THINK TWO YEARS AGO, UM, BECAUSE WE HAD SUCH A HUGE FERAL CA CAP POPULATION.
IS THAT CORRECT? THAT TNR THAT IS CORRECT.
I'M JUST WONDERING IF WE JUST NEED TO PAUSE.
'CAUSE IF WE HAVEN'T USED ANY OF IT FOR THIS PAST YEAR, THAT'S NOT TO SAY WE WON'T NEED IT, BUT I WOULD RATHER REVISIT IT AS A, DO WE NEED TO BRING IT BACK VERSUS A, UM, SO WE CAN JUST BRING THAT 2,500 BACK IN.
IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT US TO PAUSE AND THEN IF IT BECOMES AN ISSUE, I CAN REAPPROACH THE, UH, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
I, I JUST KNOW THAT, UH, WE HAVE MADE A COMMITMENT TO AN ORGANIZATION WITH FUNDING, UM, AND WE CAN DEFINITELY REMOVE THOSE FUNDS.
MR. GALLO, DO WE KNOW, UM, BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING THIS PAST YEAR, IS THAT WHAT THAT IT'S, IT'S ZERO, CORRECT.
SO MAYBE WE JUST HAVE TO REVISIT WITH THEM TO SEE WHAT THAT PAUSE MAY BE.
I'M WONDERING IF I'M IMAGINING IT, BUT I THINK THERE MAY HAVE BEEN A VOLUNTEER, UM, NOT ISSUE, BUT MAYBE LIKE A HUMAN POWER THING.
LIKE THEY DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH VOLUNTEERS AT SOME POINT.
UM, SO YEAH, IF WE CAN PAUSE ON THAT.
UM, I WAS ALSO AT THE END OF THE LAST MEETING MENTIONED LOOKING AT THE TREE SERVICES.
COULD YOU EXPLAIN MORE WHAT THE TREE SERVICES IS? I'LL DEFER TO DIRECTOR BRAMAN, BUT JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE EVERYBODY IS IN AN AGREEMENT.
UM, BEFORE WE ZERO OUT THE TNRI DEFINITELY RECOMMEND IT.
ANYONE HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT? MR. WADE? JUST A FYI, UH, ACTUALLY I MET ONE OF THE, UH, INDIVIDUALS IN THAT ORGANIZATION.
THEY CAME TO MY HOUSE KNOCKING ON THE DOOR
I MENTIONED TO THEM THE, UM, JUST A DISCUSSION ABOUT USING THE SERVICES.
SO SHE DID, I FORGOT HER NAME, BUT SHE DID ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE WERE WALKING OUT THE DOOR AND SHE WAS PROVIDING INFORMATION.
UM, BUT I WOULD SAY WITH THE CURRENT STATE OF THE BUDGET THAT, UH, PAUSE WOULD DEFINITELY BE SOMETHING THAT I WOULD, I WOULD BE IN FAVOR OF.
AS TO THE, UH, TREE SERVICE BUDGET.
TREES, PLANTING, TRIMMING, UM, REMOVING, GRINDING THE STUMPS AND EVEN DOING SOME, UH, ADDITIONAL PLANTINGS, WHICH WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA TALK ABOUT, UM, LATER WITH, UH, LIKE THE, UH, THE BUMP OUTS.
WE'VE BEEN USING SOME HELP ON THERE.
BUT, UM, AND JUST SOME FEEDBACK FROM, UH, DR.
FEATHERS IS THAT, UM, HE INDICATED TO ME HE COULD, HE COULD, UH, EASILY SPEND OR HE'D BE RECOMMENDING RIGHT NOW WE'D SPEND 60 MORE THOUSAND DOLLARS JUST THIS YEAR.
SO THAT'D BRING THAT ACTUAL UP TO LIKE 1 91.
UM, AND WE USUALLY KEEP ABOUT 10% IN RESERVE JUST IN CASE SOMETHING HAPPENS IN JUNE.
[01:05:01]
I'VE ACTUALLY ASKED HIM TO SLOW UP ON SOME OF THAT TILL I GOT MY HANDS AROUND SOME OF MY BUDGET LINE ITEMS TRYING TO COME IN AT OR ABOVE WITH THE SURPLUS.'CAUSE YOU CAN SEE MY OVERTIME.
I THINK IT'S EVEN HIGHER THAN THE 95 96 THAT'S, THAT'S LISTED THERE.
BUT, UM, SO, UM, WE'D LIKE TO, UH, UM, KEEP IT A AT OR AS CLOSE TO 200,000 AS POSSIBLE.
YOU WANNA THE THE PLANTINGS, IS THAT THE FREE TREE PROGRAM? YES.
IS THAT YOUR, WELL, WELL THERE'S ALSO PUBLIC AS WELL, SO WE PLANT PRIVATE TREES, BUT WHEN, WHEN PEOPLE REQUEST THEM, THEY'RE ALLOWED UP TO THREE UP TO THREE.
AND THEN WE ALSO PLANT, UH, UM, STREET TREES.
AND HOW MUCH IS THAT ABOUT? DO WE KNOW WHAT, WHAT THAT ACTUAL TOTAL WAS THIS LAST YEAR OF HOW MANY FREE YEARS? I DON'T HAVE THAT FIGURE IN MIND.
I WILL SAY THOUGH THAT, UM, DR.
FEATHER HAS, UH, LED THE WAY TO GETTING GRANTS FROM CBD.
HE'S WORKED WITH JOE'S EMPORIUM AND OTHERS TO ACTUALLY COORDINATE TREE PLANTING.
SO WE HAVE TRIED TO DEFER THAT OR DEFRAY THAT COST TO GRANTS AND, AND, AND OTHER ENTITIES.
BUT WE'RE, WE'RE WELL ON OUR WAY TO PLANTING WELL OVER A THOUSAND TREES IN 10 YEARS.
I'M JUST SEEING WHERE WE CAN PAUSE SOME THINGS JUST BECAUSE THIS YEAR IS GONNA BE A HARD YEAR.
UM, AND I KNOW THAT I'M NOT COMFORTABLE WITH 5 CENTS.
I ALSO KNOW I'M NOT COMFORTABLE SPARING ANY OF OUR PERSONNEL.
UM, AND SO TRYING TO FIND WHAT THOSE, YOU KNOW, SO LIKE IF, IF WE, I THINK WE TRY TO DO A HUNDRED TREES A YEAR.
IS THAT RIGHT? UH, WELL, BECAUSE WE WERE DOING A HUNDRED WITH RESPECT TO THE PRIVATE TREES, WE, WE, WE SET UP A TIME PERIOD WE TAKE REQUESTS.
I MEAN THAT, THAT, THAT COULD VARY.
WE COULD HAVE A HUNDRED PEOPLE CALL IN AND WANT, UH, THREE TREES.
COULD WE REDUCE THAT TO ONE TREE PER HOUSE JUST FOR THIS YEAR? AND WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE? OR COULD THERE BE A SMALL SUBSIDY VERSUS IT BEING FREE TREES? UM, I BELIEVE WE COULD DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UM, 'CAUSE ONE THING I DO WANNA NOTICE AS WE GO THROUGH THIS BUDGET AND WHATEVER WE FINALIZE, THERE'S ALWAYS RANDOM EXPENDITURES THAT COME UP THROUGH THE AIR.
AND UNLESS IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S WITH PUBLIC SAFETY OR AN EMERGENCY, I REALLY THINK THAT, UM, THE ONLY OTHER EXCEPTION SHOULD BE IF WE GET A GRANT WHERE THEY SAY YOU HAVE TO MATCH IT MM-HMM
THAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING AT THOSE KIND OF EXCEPTIONS.
SO I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR GRANTS, UM, BUT I WOULD CONSIDER TRYING TO BRING THAT TREE, THAT TREE SERVICES DOWN.
UM, BUT WOULD LIKE TO ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT THAT WOULD MEAN.
LIKE, YOU KNOW, IF WE DO 50 HOUSES, LET'S SAY WE NORMALLY DO 50 HOUSES, RIGHT? AND THEY GET TWO TREES EACH, LIKE IF THEY DO ONE INSTEAD, WOULD LIKE, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE AND WHAT IS, HOW MUCH COST DOES THAT DIFFER? WELL, I APOLOGIZE, I DON'T HAVE THE EXACT BREAKOUT, BUT, UM, LET, LET, LET'S JUST SAY THAT THE, YOU KNOW, PLANTING OF TREES, NEW TREES IS, IS PROBABLY IN THE RANGE OF, UM, 15,000 PLUS OR MARUS, UH, UH, A YEAR.
UM, THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT WE CAN WORK WITH.
UM, UM, YEAH, I'D LIKE TO KEEP IT ABOVE 175.
WE'VE ALREADY CUT IT FROM WHAT, TWO 20 DOWN TO 200? UM, YEAH.
AND, AND, AND SO WORKING WITHIN, YOU KNOW, WORKING WITHIN SOMETHING ABOVE 1 75 TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF TREES EITHER STREET AND OR PUBLIC THROUGH ROLLING THAT OUT, MAYBE, YOU KNOW, FOR, FOR A YEAR OR SO, LIMITED IT TO ONE TREE PER HOUSE, UM, WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO WORK WITHIN THAT.
YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES IT'S EMERGENCIES, YOU KNOW, WHEN THERE, WHEN, WHEN WE HAVE AN EMERGENCY CALL.
BUT, UM, THERE'S A LOT OF PRUNING THAT GOES ON AND I THINK THAT, UH, AT LEAST WHAT I'VE SEEN, HE, HE, UH, INDICATES, I SHOULDN'T COMMENT ON THIS, BUT FROM WHAT I'VE SEEN, OUR, OUR, OUR TREES ARE STAINED IN THE AIR, LET ME PHRASE IT THAT WAY.
THE BRANCHES ARE STAYING UP IN THE AIR OR WE'RE TAKING THE BRANCHES DOWN RATHER THAN MOTHER NATURE, MORE SO THAN WHEN I FIRST GOT HERE.
SO WOULD ANYBODY THANK YOU FOR THAT? WOULD ANYONE BE OPPOSED TO TRIMMING DOWN THIS BUDGET ITEM AND THEN ASKING MR. GALLOWAY AND MR. BRAMAN TO COME BACK WITH A POLICY CHANGE THAT WE WOULD ENDORSE, SUCH AS MAYBE ONE TREE PER HOUSE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT? I, I, WHAT I HEAR MR. BRAMAN SAYING IS THAT WE CAN'T REALLY GO BELOW 1 75, MAYBE 180, AND CONTINUE TO DO WHAT WE'RE DOING.
SO IF WE WANNA DO LESS, LET'S SAY I'M SPIT BALLING HERE, 1 71 60.
WE NEED TO MAKE AN AFFIRMATIVE SERVICE.
MR. TANZI, DID YOU HAVE YOUR HAND UP? UM, I, I'M OPEN TO TO THAT.
UH, JUST WANTED TO ADD, UH, CHARGING SOMETHING MODEST FOR THE TREES IS STILL MUCH CHEAPER THAN, UH, THAN GETTING THEM YOURSELF.
SO I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT NUMBER WOULD BE, BUT YOU COULD STILL BE SUBSIDIZING THEM, UM, AND ENCOURAGING IT WITHOUT INCURRING THE ENTIRE,
[01:10:01]
UH, COST.I HAVE SOME OTHER THING, BUT I, I DON'T WANNA MOVE ON FROM TREES UNTIL WE'RE, SO I THINK THAT COULD BE, THAT'S A GREAT IDEA.
AND I THINK THAT COULD BE CERTAINLY ONE OF THE POLICY REMEDIES THAT THE STAFF COME BACK WITH.
IN ORDER TO MEET THE TOP LINE TREE NUMBER THAT WE GIVE THEM.
DID YOU I WOULD CONFIRM WITH THAT, AND I HAD SAID THAT TO DIRECTOR BRAMAN AS WELL, THAT IF WE WERE TO INSTITUTE A MODEST COST WHERE PEOPLE ACTUALLY PAID FOR THE TREE, THAT WOULD BE FINE WITH, YOU KNOW, WE COULD INSTITUTE A PROGRAM WHERE PEOPLE PAID FOR THE TREE.
UH, DO YOU HAVE A NUMBER IN MIND? COUNCIL MEMBER? I HAD A QUESTION.
HOW MUCH DOES A TREE COST? IT VARIES.
IT CAN BE, UM, 50 TO 150 TO $200.
UM, THE QUALITY OF TREE THAT WE'VE BEEN PURCHASING, UM, IS SUBSTANTIALLY BETTER THAN WHEN I FIRST GOT HERE.
AND WE'VE ALSO HAD A MUCH HIGHER SUCCESS RATE WITH, UM, SURVIVAL.
UM, AND IF I MAY JUST, I, I WAS TRYING TO ACTUALLY WORK WITHIN THE 1 75 TO 200 RANGE, BUT, UM, WHEN SOMEBODY DOES PAY FOR A TREE, IT DOES COME IN, THAT REVENUE DOES COME INTO THE TOWN, BUT IT DOESN'T GO INTO THAT LINE ITEM THAT WOULD REQUIRE A BUDGET ITEM.
SO LET'S JUST SAY WE COLLECTED $5,000 IN TREES.
THAT DOESN'T GIVE US DIRECTLY 5,000 MORE TO SPEND OUT OF THIS LINE ITEM.
WE'RE GONNA QUICKLY MOVE ON FROM TREES SOON.
WHAT DO YOU ABSOLUTELY NEED? IF WE'RE GONNA REDUCE, LET'S SAY, ONE, THREE PER HOUSE TYPE OF THING, WE'RE REDUCING THAT.
AND THEN THE OTHER COSTS THAT GO WITH THAT, WHAT WOULD YOU ABSOLUTELY NEED IN THAT MINOR? UM, I WOULD YOU SAY 1 75 IS THE NEED NUMBER? OH, FOR SURE.
TO MAINTAIN THE CURRENT LEVEL OF SERVICE, UM, ADEQUATE LEVEL OF SUR.
SO IF WE REDUCE IT, THEN IT COULD COME DOWN.
IF THE SER IF WHAT WE'RE PROVIDING SERVICE-WISE, IF WE'RE LOOKING AT, I BELIEVE WE'D BE ABLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE PRUNING AND THE, AND, AND, AND THE TREE MAINTENANCE.
UM, AT, AT 1 75, UM, ADEQUATELY, UM, THE PLANTING OF THE NEW TREES, I THINK WE'D HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, EXAMINE THAT CLOSER AND TRY TO WORK WITH, UH, TOLBERT ON, OR DR.
FEATHER ON, YOU KNOW, FINDING THAT NUMBER AND NARROWING IT INTO SOMETHING LESS THAN THE 1 75 FOR THE PRUNING AND, AND MAINTENANCE.
IS ANYONE OPPOSED TO 1 75 NETTING US $25,000? ARE WE, ARE WE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE, UH, FEE FOR THE TREE, THOUGH? UH, WE'RE NOT GONNA CREATE A FEE AT, AT 8:46 PM THAT'S NOT ALREADY ON THE FEE SCHEDULE.
THAT'S SOMETHING THAT THE STAFF CAN RECOMMEND AS FAR AS A FEE FOR THIS.
BUT TO YOUR POINT, IT WOULD COME BACK IN ON THE REVENUE SOMEWHERE ELSE.
WE STILL NEED TO FIND WAYS TO GET REVENUE.
SO AT SOME POINT WE, THEY'RE GOING DO THAT.
THEY'RE ALSO GONNA TELL US OKAY, WHAT THEY CAN'T DO AT 1 75, UH, NEXT MONTH.
MR. TANZI, DO YOU HAVE A DIFFERENT TOPIC? DIFFERENT TOPIC, SO AHEAD.
UH, SO SOME IDEAS THAT HAVE COME TO ME, UH, THAT I THINK ARE WORTH DISCUSSING, UH, THOUGH SOME MIGHT BE MORE MODEST SAVINGS.
UH, A FEW PEOPLE BROUGHT UP DAYTIME EVENTS, LIKE RESIDENT APPRECIATION DAYS AND ASKED WHAT THOSE COST US.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE, THE COST IS SINCE THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, DURING THE DAY.
SO I WAS GONNA ASK, UH, MR. GALLOWAY TO EXPLAIN THAT OR ESTIMATE THAT.
UH, SECOND, A LOT OF PEOPLE TALKED ABOUT THE NEWSLETTER.
UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE TALK ABOUT MAKING IT DIGITAL PRIMARILY AND OPTING IN AND THINGS LIKE THAT, WHICH OBVIOUSLY IS NOT GONNA ALL HAPPEN TONIGHT.
BUT THERE, I DO THINK IT'S WORTH EXPLORING WAYS TO, UM, KIND OF TIGHTEN IT UP.
SOMEONE WHO WAS, WHO WAS IN THIS WORLD, TALKED ABOUT HOW IT'S A FAIRLY HEAVY, UH, PAPER STOCK, SO YOU MIGHT EVEN SAVE MONEY BY CHANGING THE, THE PRINT QUALITY.
SO I DON'T KNOW THAT WE HAVE TO SET A A NUMBER, BUT I THINK WE CAN APPROACH IT ONE TO TWO WAYS, CUT THE BUDGET MODESTLY AND SAY, LET'S FIND THAT MUCH IN SAVINGS.
OR SIMPLY ASK FOR, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT TO BE A PLACE WHERE WE MIGHT BE UNDER BUDGET THIS YEAR IF WE, UH, EXPLORE THAT.
UH, FINALLY, LAST, LAST TIME I ASKED ABOUT HOW TUITION ASSISTANCE IS, UM, SET UP, BECAUSE I NOTICED THAT THE ACTUALS, I DON'T HAVE THAT PAGE, BUT ANYWAY, THE, THE, IT DIDN'T LOOK,
[01:15:01]
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S GROWING AND IT ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE WE ARE SPENDING, UH, MORE THAN WE ARE BUDGETING, UH, FOR IT.AND SO I'M WORRIED THAT THAT IS A FALSE NUMBER.
SO I'D LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT HOW WE ALLOCATE TUITION ASSISTANCE.
AND IN THE SAME VEIN, UM, WHERE IN THIS BUDGET COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENTS AND BONUSES ARE HANDLED.
UM, 'CAUSE I, I THINK THAT IS THE KIND OF PLACE WHERE WE CAN, UM, BE CAUTIOUS IN TIMES OF, UM, YOU KNOW, FISCAL, YOU KNOW, TIGHTENING.
SO RESIDENT DAYS OR DAYTIME EVENTS LIKE THAT.
UM, POTENTIAL SAVINGS ON NEWSLETTER AND POTENTIAL SAVINGS ON TUITION ASSISTANCE, COST OF LIVING AND BONUSES.
I DON'T KNOW IF WE WANNA HANDLE ALL OF THOSE, IF WE WANNA BREAK THEM UP, BUT THAT'S WHAT I HAVE ON MY LIST.
I'LL GO AHEAD AND HANDLE ALL OF THOSE AT ONE TIME.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBER TANZI FOR, UH, YOUR QUESTIONS.
AS IT RELATES TO RESIDENT EVENTS, THE, UH, CALLS FOR RESIDENTS EVENT ARE REAL NOMINAL.
UM, UH, IT'S STAFF TIME PROBABLY TAKES ABOUT TWO HOURS TO PLAN THE EVENT.
MOST OF THE FOOD ARE THINGS THAT WE GET ARE DONATED TO THE TOWN.
UM, ANYTIME WE HAVE A BREAKFAST OR, OR ANY TYPE OF FOOD, THE FOOD IS DONATED.
UM, SO IT'S COSTING US STAFF TIME.
WE HAVE ABOUT THREE STAFF MEMBERS THAT ARE HERE ANYWAY, UM, AND THEY'RE STILL PERFORMING THEIR DUTIES WHILE ALSO HAVING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
UM, FROM TIME TO TIME WE BUILT, WE, WE WILL HAVE TO PURCHASE, UH, SMALL THINGS THAT DOESN'T NORMALLY GO OVER $100.
SO THAT'S IT AS IT RELATES TO, UH, RESIDENT APPRECIATION DAYS.
DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS AS IT RELATES TO THAT? NO, I, I THINK THAT'S, UM, IT'S GOOD TO HEAR THAT THAT'S MOSTLY DONATED FOOD SINCE THAT WOULD BE THE, THE MAJOR LINE ITEM THERE.
SO AS IT RELATES TO THE NEWSLETTERS.
UM, I THINK IT WAS INDICATED IN THE LAST MEETING THAT YOU ALL WANTED US TO, UH, TAKE THIS BACK AND FIND CREATIVE WAYS TO, UH, UH, CUT THE COST IN OR BRING IN REVENUE.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING, UM, IN TWO WEEKS IS, UH, GETTING WITH THE COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST PROFESSIONAL TO COME IN AND ADVISE US ON ALL THINGS COMMUNICATION.
THE NEWSLETTER WILL BE A TOPIC OF DISCUSSION AS, UM, THERE ARE SOME THINGS THAT WE, WE COULD ADJUST.
UH, WE WILL BE WAITING ON THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS AND I'LL BE HAPPY TO PROVIDE THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS AFTER, UH, WE GET MORE INFORMATION.
BUT WE DO KNOW AS FAR AS GETTING SPONSORSHIP IS ONE OF 'EM, THAT'S BEEN A TOPIC OF DISCUSSION IN OR ADJUST, ELIMINATING A CERTAIN PORTION OF THE NEWSLETTER AND THEN JUST KEEPING IT TOWN OF CENTRIC WITHOUT ANY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION'S INVOLVEMENT.
UM, SO WE HAVE BEEN, UH, HAVING INTERNAL DISCUSSIONS ABOUT WAYS TO REDUCE THAT NUMBER.
UM, BUT WE HAVEN'T BEEN DIRECTED YET BY THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL TO DO SO.
ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS AS IT RELATES TO THAT? SO THAT, THAT SECTION OF THE, OF THE BUDGET IS $162,000? UM, THERE'S NO PAGE NUMBER, SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT PAGE I'M ON, BUT 5 2 0.
UM, CAN WE REDUCE THE 1 62 TO SOMETHING LOWER AND THEN, OR REDUCE THE NEWSLETTER LINE ITEM TO 30,000 INSTEAD OF 40 AND ASK THE STAFF TO FIGURE OUT HOW THE, LET US KNOW, LET US MAKE IT A POLICY DECISION ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO CONFORM TO THAT.
I MEAN, UH, I, I'LL JUST TELL YOU WRITE OFF, DO YOU SEE WHAT I'M SAYING? THAT THAT'S GOING TO CUT THE NEWSLETTER IN HALF ALMOST.
AND IF WE'RE GOING TO BE MAKING A POLICY DECISION, WE'RE ALMOST SAYING TONIGHT THAT WE'RE GONNA BE ELIMINATING, UM, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION INPUT OR ADVERTISEMENT.
BUT, UM, IT'S 1 62 FOR THE CATEGORY.
SO WHAT IF WE SAID COUNSEL ONE 40 FOR THE CATEGORY, AND THEN WE'LL FIGURE IT OUT? I'M OPPOSED BECAUSE, BECAUSE SOME OF THIS STUFF IS, IS, YOU KNOW, WITH A SL WITH OUR, SOME OF OUR CONTRACTUAL
[01:20:01]
SERVICES THAT WE HAVE WITH WEBSITE, WITH ZOOM, WITH SWAG, IT, YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THINGS THAT RUN THE DIGITAL COMMUNICATION.I MEAN, WE CAN TAKE THE, THE NEWSLETTER PRINTED COMMUNICATIONS DOWN, WE CAN START MAKING POLICY DECISIONS AS FAR AS TRYING TO MODIFY IT.
HOWEVER, THAT NUMBER PROBABLY WILL BE AROUND THAT NUMBER OR EXCEEDED, UNLESS WE MAKE SOME TREMENDOUS POLICY DECISIONS AS IT RELATES TO THIS COUNCIL MEMBER FRY.
UM, SO I KNOW THAT IN THE PAST WE'VE THOUGHT ABOUT THE NEWSLETTER AND LIKE ASKING THE QUESTION, HOW MANY PEOPLE ACTUALLY READ THE NEWSLETTER? CAN THEY JUST SEE IT ONLINE? AND, YOU KNOW, WE COULD GO BACK AND FORTH AND I THINK THAT, UM, WE ALMOST REVISIT IT EVERY YEAR.
BUT WHAT WE REALIZE IS THAT THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY WHO DO READ THE NEWSLETTER, UM, AND THAT IS THEIR MAIN SOURCE OF GETTING INFORMATION ABOUT THE TOWN.
YES, THEY COULD GO TO THESE OTHER THINGS, BUT THIS IS WHAT THEY'RE USED TO.
WHAT I WOULD LOVE TO SEE WITH THE NEWSLETTER IS THAT ONE, UM, IT JUST GET PRETTIER.
'CAUSE IT'S JUST THIS, YOU KNOW, NOT TO SAY THAT THE FORMAT OF IT IN A WAY, AND I, I CAN SEE THAT BEING DONE WITH GETTING THE SPONSORSHIPS AND THINGS.
UM, AND AGAIN, I GO BACK TO BRUIN HEIGHTS BECAUSE WHEN I SAW THEIRS, I WAS LIKE, WOW, THIS IS REALLY PRETTY, IT'S IN COLOR.
AND WHAT I WAS TOLD WAS THAT THE ADS ACTUALLY BRING IN, SO IT PAYS FOR THE NEWSLETTERS ITSELF AND THE POSTAGE, BUT IT ACTUALLY BRINGS IN A LITTLE BIT MORE, RIGHT? SO IT, IT, YOU KNOW, SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN CONSIDER.
UM, AND, BUT I WOULDN'T BE COMFORTABLE BRINGING THIS LINE ITEM DOWN TO 1 62 AND SAYING, HEY, STAFF, FIGURE IT OUT IF, AND I KNOW, YOU KNOW, I DON'T REALLY LIKE THIS EITHER, BUT I'M, I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT AND BE CREATIVE BECAUSE I KNOW WE ALL HAVE TO MAKE SACRIFICES.
BUT, UM, TAKING THAT FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE WITH THE IDEA, BECAUSE WE DON'T WANNA MAKE POLICY CHANGES DURING THIS MEETING, UM, WITH THE IDEA THAT THE GOAL IS TO SOMEHOW BRING THAT BACK AND WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO REVISIT THAT LATER.
SO PUTTING A PAUSE ON POTENTIALLY OUR, UM, MAYOR AND COUNCIL TRAVEL BUDGET CONFERENCING, UM, WITH THE IDEA THOUGH, THAT BY THE TIME IT IS TIME TO ACTUALLY COME IN JANUARY, THAT WE WILL HAVE FIGURED OUT THAT THERE IS MONEY FOR THIS STUFF VERSUS IT COMING FROM HERE WITH LIKE A POLICY CHANGE OR REDUCING THAT BUDGET DOWN.
UM, AND THEN MAYBE EVEN ASKING STAFF TO REDUCE THEIR CONFERENCE BUDGET, WHICH I DON'T WANNA DO, BUT I, I'D RATHER IT COME FROM US THAN FROM THEM, AGAIN WITH THE GOAL THAT WE'LL FIGURE OUT WHERE WE CAN MAKE UP THE MONEY SO THAT WE DON'T ACTUALLY HAVE TO, BUT THAT, THAT WOULD BE A BETTER PLACE TO ELIMINATE VERSUS HERE WHERE IT MIGHT ACTUALLY BE A, A EFFECT INTO A POLICY CHANGE UNINTENTIONALLY.
WHAT DO YOU GUYS WANNA DO WITH THIS ITEM, JOHN? UH, I MEAN, I THINK WE COULD, LET'S LEAVE IT ALONE FOR NOW, BUT I THINK WE SHOULD LOOK AT A, SOME SORT OF A SURVEY AND PEOPLE CAN OPT IN FOR WHETHER OR NOT THEY ACTUALLY WANNA RECEIVE THE NEWSLETTER BY MAIL.
I MEAN, MINE SORT OF GOES RIGHT INTO THE RECYCLING BIN, YOU KNOW, WHEN I GET IT IN THE MAIL AND, YOU KNOW, SO YOU WANNA LEAVE 1 62 HERE AT THIS POINT? I THINK, YEAH, IT'S, IF MR. GALLOWAY SEEMS FAIRLY OPPOSED TO REDUCING THAT AT ANY POINT.
CHARLIE, WHAT DO YOU WANNA LEAVE HERE? I THINK I, I, I THINK I JUST WANNA REMIND, UM, ON OUR LAST BOARDWALK ALSO, WHEN, UM, THAT WE HAD A CHEVY STATION APARTMENT, UM, THERE WAS A CONSENSUS IN WHICH, UM, OUR RESIDENTS DON'T REALLY PAY ATTENTION TO THE NEWSLETTER WHEN IT GETS MAILED OUT TO US.
UM, WE DID DISCUSS FINDING NEW, UM, LIKE WAYS TO COMMUNICATE WITH RESIDENTS AT WARD FIVE IN WARD SIX.
UM, PERHAPS MAYBE LIKE A DIGITAL, DIGITAL THING.
YOU MAY, IT WILL DEFINITELY CUT COST, BUT, UM, BUT THERE DEFINITELY WAS A THING WHICH PRESIDENTS JUST DON'T, DON'T READ THEM.
I MEAN, I THINK THAT'S, BUT IF WE'RE GOING TO DO A DIGITAL NEWSLETTER, WE HAVE TO FIND A BETTER DIGITAL PRESENTATION BECAUSE IT DOESN'T APPEAR WELL DIGITALLY.
UM, THEY DID, THEY DID AGREE THAT THEY, THAT THEY WOULD ALSO, YOU KNOW, HELP US SEND ANY BLAST EMAILS, UM, YOU KNOW, TO ALL RESIDE TO ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS AT WARD FIVE AND PART OF WARD SIX AND CHEVY STATION APARTMENTS.
SO THAT'S PROBABLY SOMETHING THAT WE COULD ALSO LOOK AT.
[01:25:01]
SAVE US SOMETHING DURING THERE IN THE LINE ITEM.UH, SO I KNOW THAT IN THE PAST CONVERSATIONS WE'VE HAD, THEY SAID THAT IF WE WERE TO DO, 'CAUSE WE'VE THOUGHT ABOUT THE SURVEY, BUT IF WE WERE TO DO THAT, AND LET'S SAY, YOU KNOW, I OPT IN, HE OPTS OUT WHATEVER, THAT IT COSTS MORE THAN DOING A BLAST TO THE WHOLE TOWN.
BUT I AM CURIOUS ABOUT IF WE KNOW FOR SURE THAT IN, IN OVER ONE SIXTH OF THE TOWN AT SHE STATION APARTMENTS, IF WE WERE TO OMIT THAT NUMBER OF UNITS, WHICH AGAIN, ONE SIXTH DOES THAT REDUCE, BECAUSE IF WE ALREADY KNOW THEY'RE NOT GONNA LOOK AT IT AND WE GIVE THEM SOME OTHER FORM, SOME DIGITAL FORM, A PRETTIER DIGITAL FORM, UM, OR USE CHEVROLET STATION, UH, MANAGEMENT COMPANY TO PUT SOMETHING OUT THAT COULD BE A COST SAVINGS BECAUSE YOU'VE JUST REDUCED HOW MANY, UM, MAILERS GO OUT AND HOW MANY YOU PRINT.
OKAY, DAVID, AND THEN CHRIS, CHRIS CAN GO, I'VE, I'VE SPOKEN.
I MEAN, I, I'LL JUST SAY I THINK IT'S BANANAS TO LEAVE 1 62 HERE, BUT I DON'T THINK I HAVE FOUR VOTES TO GET RID OF THE 1 62.
UM, I THINK THAT MAYBE THE, AND AGAIN, I REMEMBER THE WAR WALK WALK THE, UH, FOR, UH, COUNCILMAN GAR THAT THEY DO LITERALLY THROW IT AWAY.
AND FOR ME, I CAN SACRIFICE PAPER AS WELL.
UM, BUT WE DO NEED TO CUT THE BUDGET SO WE CAN LOOK AT, UH, IF IT'S ONE SIX OF THE TOWN, IS THERE A CALCULATION THAT WE CAN DO NOW TO DEDUCT THAT? ALRIGHT.
UM, YEAH, OR WE TRIM AN, WE, WE TRIM AN AMOUNT OF MONEY FROM HERE, 12,000, 22,000.
UM, THIS IS GONNA BE TOUGH FOR MR. GALLOWAY TO DO IN HIS HEAD, BUT, UM, MY WORRY ABOUT JUST SAYING LET'S GO DIGITAL IS THAT THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO DO WANT TO GET THE PAPER EDITION.
AND SO EVEN IF YOU DO OPT IN, IF THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO THAT, OR IF THEY'RE NEW RESIDENTS AND THEY DON'T KNOW IT EXISTS, IT BECOMES A CONCERN.
SO I WAS GONNA ASK, I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT IT COSTS US TO PHYSICALLY SEND THESE TO PEOPLE'S HOUSES AND IF IT COSTS MORE BECAUSE IT'S SO SUBSTANTIAL.
BUT COULD WE SAVE MONEY BY SENDING A, YOU KNOW, ONE PAGER SAYING, THIS IS THE NEW NEWSLETTER, HERE'S THE QR CODE TO, TO READ IT.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A PAPER EDITION, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THEM AT TOWN HALL OR SOMETHING SO THAT PEOPLE ARE STILL GETTING SOMETHING AND MAYBE YOU ONLY SEND THAT EVERY QUARTER, RIGHT? JUST SO TO REMIND PEOPLE THAT IT EXISTS.
UM, AND THE, THE REASON I SAY THAT IS I DON'T WANT TO CUT BUDGETS ARBITRARILY.
UM, AND I WOULD RATHER HAVE BACKUP VERSIONS LIKE THAT, THAT PRESERVE THE NEWSLETTER, BUT SAVE MONEY THEN ACCIDENTALLY SAY, WELL, THE NEWSLETTER'S ABOUT TO BECOME A WHOLE LOT THINNER, AND THEN MAYBE IT'S NOT WORTH PRESERVING ANYWAY.
IF IT DOESN'T HAVE COMMUNITY GROUPS PARTICIPATING, THEN I DON'T KNOW WHAT, WHAT PEOPLE WANT THE NEWSLETTER FOR, YOU KNOW, ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM US.
SO THAT, THAT'S MY CONCERN IS I, I I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IF THERE ARE OPTIONS LIKE THAT, THAT ARE STILL SAVE US MONEY, BUT DON'T DENY AWARENESS OF THE NEWSLETTER TO THE PEOPLE WHO MIGHT NOT CHECK ONLINE OR WHO MIGHT HAVE JUST MOVED TO TOWN AND WOULDN'T KNOW THAT THERE IS A NEWSLETTER.
SO ARE THERE, DO YOU HAVE A SENSE, MR. GALLOWAY, OF WHAT IT COSTS TO PHYSICALLY SEND THIS? AND IF IT IS MORE, BECAUSE IT
WELL, I'M SAYING IF THAT'S, IF THAT'S A REAL NUMBER, IF THAT'S A, WE SPEND $10,000 ON POSTAGE, THEN, UH, AND IT COSTS 10,000 BECAUSE THE THINGS ARE SUBSTANTIAL, WELL THEN SENDING A ONE, ONE PIECE, ONE PAGER VERSUS A THICK THING, THAT MIGHT BE FIVE OR 10 GRAND RIGHT THERE.
SO I'M TRYING TO SEE IF MR. MR. GALLO A SENSE OF WHERE WE SPEND MONEY IN THAT.
SO E EVERYTHING THAT WE, YOU KNOW, WE, I FEEL LIKE WE GO OVER THIS EVERY YEAR.
YOU KNOW, WE DO THIS AT THE BULK COST.
OKAY, SO WE HAVE A DISCOUNT BECAUSE OF THE BULK COST, AND I'M SURE THAT THE PRICE WILL BE THE SAME IF WE ELIMINATE IT.
UH, THE CHEVROLET STATION, A PARK APARTMENTS NOT THE SAME AS, NOT THE SAME AS, UM, THE TOTAL PRICE, BUT THE BULK PRICE FOR US THAT WE WOULD GET AS FAR AS OUR DISCOUNT, I'M SURE WOULD REMAIN THE SAME.
ONE THING THAT I WOULD RECOMMEND IF WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF TALKING ABOUT CUTTING, THAT WE CAN CUT IT.
BUT I, I, I'LL GIVE YOU THIS AS A PUSH AND PULL.
WHAT, WHAT IF WE JUST DID THE NEWSLETTER EVERY OTHER
[01:30:01]
MONTH, BUT WE KEEP THE DIGITAL NEWSLETTER EVERY MONTH.WOULD THAT BE SOMETHING THAT THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL WOULD BE CONSIDERING? WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT MAKING A NEWSLETTER POLICY AGAIN AT 9:03 PM WITH NO PUBLIC NOTICE.
WHAT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT IS WHETHER WE TRIM THE 1 62 OR LEAVE IT AT 1 62 FOR THE CATEGORY.
I'M NOT HEARING ANY REAL INTEREST IN CUTTING THIS, ANY OF THIS VERY LARGE ITEM, WHICH IS SURPRISING AND DISAPPOINTING, BUT IT'S OKAY.
I'LL GET OVER IT AND WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ITEM, WHICH I BELIEVE WAS DAVID'S QUESTION ABOUT THE COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT.
AND THE MERIT, I JUST DON'T KNOW.
SO WE ARE WE, ARE WE DONE WITH THAT NOW? IT, I MEAN, I, YES, THERE'S NO, THERE'S, THERE'S NO APPETITE ON THE COUNCIL FOR CHANGING THE 1 62 NUMBER.
SO THE NEXT THING I THINK WAS TUITION ASSISTANCE AS IT AS IT RELATES TO TUITION ASSISTANCE.
I DO HAVE SOME PEOPLE THAT, YES, GO AHEAD.
ARE I DO HAVE SOME PEOPLE THAT ARE GOING TO BE, UH, GRADUATING, UH, THIS FALL.
UH, YOU KNOW, THAT ONE THING WE HAVE BEEN PUSHING THE NEWSLETTER.
CAN YOU REPEAT YOURSELF? SORRY, MR. GALLOWAY? YEAH.
ALSO, YES, TURN OFF YOUR MICROPHONE SO THAT HE CAN TALK ABOUT TUITION ASSISTANCE.
I DO HAVE PEOPLE THAT, THAT WILL BE GRADUATING THIS FALL AND THAT WOULD CONCLUDE THEIR, THEIR, THEIR TUITION ASSISTANCE.
I DO BELIEVE THAT THE NUMBER THAT WE PROVIDED, UH, WILL BE AN ACCURATE NUMBER, UH, FOR THE UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR AS IT RELATES TO THAT.
UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS AS IT RELATES TO THAT COUNCIL MEMBER? UM, TANZI, I MEAN, I'D STILL LIKE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS THE POLICY? IS IT PER PERSON? IS THERE A, YOU KNOW, A CAP? IS IT PER, YOU KNOW, DO YOU HAVE TO HAVE BEEN HERE A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME? LIKE I, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT OUR TUITION YEAH REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM IS.
I CAN, UH, I'LL SEND YOU A COPY OF THE POLICY.
YOU DO HAVE TO BE HERE FOR A YEAR BEFORE YOU ARE ELIGIBLE.
YOU HAVE TO GET IT APPROVED BY YOUR DEPARTMENT HEAD, AND THEN THE DEPARTMENT HEAD AND THE ACTUAL EMPLOYEE HAS TO GET IT APPROVED BY THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR.
IT HAS TO BE SOMETHING RELATED TO YOUR ACTUAL JOB OR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATIVE RELATED.
AND IS IT, I MEAN, IS THERE A CAP? IS IT A PERCENTAGE? ARE, ARE WE PAYING FOR THE ENTIRETY OF THIS, UH, TUITION? THERE, THERE, THERE IS NO CAP ON THAT AS FAR AS IN THE POLICY.
I CAN SEND YOU THE POLICY COUNCIL MEMBER.
SORRY, I'D FORGOTTEN ABOUT THAT.
SO, UH, LET, UH, DO YOU WANT, DO WE WANT TO GO BACK TO THE, UH, FIVE 20 OR DO WE WANT TO TALK ABOUT COLA AND MERIT? I GOT, I'M SORRY, MAYOR.
I WOULD LIKE TO, FOR US TO TAKE 10,000 OF THE NEWSLETTER UNDER THAT LINE ITEM.
SO SPECIFICALLY NEWSLETTER, $40,000, TAKE 10,000 OUT OF IT.
UM, I, I BELIEVE, AND THAT'S A TOUGH DECISION, BUT BETWEEN SPONSORSHIPS AND THE CREATIVE WAY OF THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR SAYING MAYBE EVERY OTHER MONTH, I THINK SPEAKING TO THE PUBLIC, THAT AT THE END OF THE DAY, THIS $10,000 GETTING TOWARDS WHERE WE NEED TO GET TO IS BETTER THAN RAISING TAXES, UH, FOR THIS.
SO THE $10,000, YOU CAN HAVE ONE OR TWO CORPORATE SPONSORS TO COME IN AND PAY FOR $10,000 IN A HEARTBEAT WITH THE MARKET THAT WE LIVE IN.
SO I'M, I SUGGEST THAT WE TAKE $10,000 OFF OF THAT.
ALRIGHT, IS THERE ANYBODY ELSE? IS THERE, ARE THERE ANY OTHER THUMBS UP FOR THIS IDEA? I GOT ONE AT THE END HERE, ANOTHER ONE HERE.
THAT SHOULD BE FINE THEN COUNSEL, WE WILL NEED TO PUT, AND THAT'S FINE.
WE'LL PUT THE NEWSLETTER ON AN UPCOMING WORK SESSION AGENDA, AND WE WILL DISCUSS THE IMPLICATIONS OF HAVING 30,000 THERE.
AND WE WILL HAVE A PUBLIC DISCUSSION AND, AND WORK OUR WAY CREATIVELY OUT OF IT.
UM, OKAY, SO, UM, THAT TAKES US TO COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT.
MR. GALLOWAY, I BELIEVE, AND I'M, I'M NOT GONNA, DON'T LET ME PUT WORDS IN YOUR MOUTH.
I BELIEVE YOUR PERSONNEL COSTS FOR SALARY ONLY, I SHOULDN'T SAY PERSONNEL.
SALARY COSTS FOR THE TOWN ARE APPROXIMATELY $4.3 MILLION APPROXIMATELY.
AND BAKED INTO THE NUMBERS IN THE EXPENDITURES ACROSS THE THREE DEPARTMENTS IS, IS A 2% COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT, 2% COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT, AND A 2% MERIT.
UM, THE COST OF THE MERIT IS APPROXIMATELY 87 8 0 3.
[01:35:01]
TO THE SAME.I'M, I'M SORRY, THE MERIT IS UP TO 87 0 3.
THE, UH, MERIT IS APPROXIMATELY THE SAME THING, COMBINED TOTAL OF 175,606 FOR ALL STAFF.
UM, AND WHEN COMPARING THE RECOMMENDATIONS TO NEIGHBORING JURISDICTIONS SUCH AS LAUREL BOWIE, RIVERDALE PARK, AND SEA PLEASANT, THEY'RE ALL MOVING FORWARD WITH COLAS DUE TO THE COMPETITIVE LABOR MARKET.
I'LL STOP THERE AND ASK THE CHIEF OR DIRECTOR BRAMAN IF THEY HAVE ANY COMMENTS TO ADD THERE, PLEASE.
MR. BRAMAN, WHY DON'T YOU GO FIRST SINCE YOU'RE HERE, AND THEN CHIEF, RAISE YOUR HAND IF YOU ARE WISHING TO MAKE A COMMENT, SIR, GO AHEAD.
WELL, I CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND THE TOUGH BUDGET TIMES, BUT, UM, THE PERSONNEL ARE WHAT MAKE CHEVROLET WORK.
I MEAN, WE DO HAVE SOME GOOD PROGRAMS. WE DO HAVE SOME GOOD ANGLES.
WE ARE GETTING GRANTS, BUT THE PERSONNEL ARE THE ONES THAT WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD PARTICULARLY, I WOULD THINK IN, IN ALL DEPARTMENTS.
BUT PARTICULARLY MY EXPERIENCES IN PUBLIC WORKS, UM, I DO BELIEVE THERE WOULD BE A, UM, A MORALE HIT POSSIBLY MORE.
UH, IS THERE ANYONE FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WHO WANTED TO COMMENT? OH, I SEE CHIEF, UH, YEAH.
UH, CHIEF MORRIS, YOU HAVE YOUR HAND UP.
ARE YOU ABLE TO TALK? UH, YES, SIR.
SO I'LL, I'LL ECHO MR. BRAY'S COMMENTS, BUT I'LL ALSO ADD THIS.
UH, I'M, I'VE ALREADY SPOKEN WITH CHIEFS FROM BOWIE, LAUREL CITY, RIVERDALE PARK, C PLEASANT, UH, LAUREL CITY'S RECEIVING IT, THEIR, THEIR POLICE DEPARTMENT'S RECEIVING AN 8% PAY RAISE THIS YEAR.
THEY'VE GOT A 30% PAY RAISE NEGOTIATED OVER THE NEXT FOUR YEARS.
UH, THE, THE MUCH SMALLER, BUT CER CERTAINLY, UH, SIMILAR IF NOT MORE, UH, INCREASES IN THE TOWN OF BUOY.
AND AS WE PRESENTED, THE DEPUTY CHIEF AND I PRESENTED ON APRIL THE SECOND.
UH, YOU'VE GOT A SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT IN YOUR POLICE DEPARTMENT, BUT I KNOW, UH, BUT I, BUT I KNOW, UH, HUMAN NATURE, UH, IT, IT'S LIKE WATER.
IT TAKES THE PATH OF LEAST RESISTANCE.
AND THE REALITY IS THAT, UH, YOU'VE GOT A, UH, WE, WE'VE GOT, UH, UH, TREMENDOUS STAFF, UH, ACROSS THE BOARD HERE IN THE TOWN.
AND IF THEY'RE NOT COMPENSATED FAIRLY, THEN I'M CONFIDENT THAT THEY WILL GO ELSEWHERE AND, UH, WE'LL WATCH OUR INVESTMENTS WALK OUT THE DOOR.
I'M JUST A STRAIGHT SHOOTER, MAYOR, YOU KNOW, THAT, UH, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
SO I CALL BALLS AND STRIKES AND I'M NOT GONNA CUT.
UH, CUT, CUT ANY, UH, CUT ANY SLACK ON, UH, ON, ON MY COMMENTS.
I'M JUST BEING PERFECTLY CANDID AND HONEST.
I KNOW WHAT THE, UH, I KNOW WHAT THE COMPETITION IS OUT THERE FOR POLICE OFFICERS THROUGHOUT THE STATE.
I KNOW WHAT THE SHORTAGES ARE ON ALL OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENTS, AND I KNOW THE QUALITY OF THE MEN AND WOMEN THAT SERVE ON THE CHEVROLET POLICE DEPARTMENT.
LET ME ALSO, BEFORE I FORGET, I WANNA PUBLICLY COMMEND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR THEIR RESPONSE TO MONROE STREET THIS WEEK.
UM, ABSOLUTELY A HORRIFIC SITUATION THAT OUR, UH, YOUNG OFFICERS HAD TO RESPOND TO.
AND, UM, ONCE AGAIN, DONE WITH EXCEPTIONAL PROFESSIONALISM.
UH, MR. TANZI, I WAS GONNA ASK, UH, THE DEPARTMENT HEADS, UM, WHICH DO YOU THINK IS, UH, MORE LIKELY TO, OR WHICH AFFECTS MORALE MORE THE COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT OR THE PROSPECT OF A MERIT, UM, BONUS? UM, YEAH, BECAUSE PSYCHOLOGICALLY THEY ARE DIFFERENT THINGS, RIGHT? ANY THOUGHTS, MR. GALLOWAY OR MR. BRAMAN OR MR. CHIEF MORRIS? I'LL YIELD TO MY TEAM AND THEN I'LL, I'LL, I'LL COME ON THE BACK END.
UM, YES, THANK YOU, MR. GALLOWAY.
UM, SO I RECALL WHEN THE, UH, UM, WHEN INFLATION OR THE CPI WAS 9%, I THINK WE CAME IN WELL UNDER THAT.
UM, BUT WE HAD MORE TO GIVE AND, AND, AND THAT STILL WAS A DIFFICULT, UH, UM, IT STILL WAS DIFFICULT FOR, FOR ACCEPTING, UM, TO, TO SPLIT IT.
I, I MEAN, THEY'LL KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.
ONE, ONE PART OF ME SAYS THE CALLER RAISES THE WHOLE PAY TABLE.
SO PEOPLE HAVE FURTHER TO GROW, BUT THE MAYOR ACTUALLY THEN RECOGNIZES 'EM FOR THEIR GOOD WORK.
SO IT'S, IT'S, UM, I'M NOT SURE THERE'S A WIN-WIN HERE.
I I THINK IT'S MORE SPLITTING THE BABY AND THE BABY MAY NOT LIVE CHIEF ANYTHING, UH, FROM THE LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSPECTIVE? NO, I JUST MENTIONED WHAT LAUREL CITY IS, UH, IS, IS LOOKING AT FOR INCREASES.
[01:40:01]
BUOY IS, UH, GIVING, UH, UH, THREE AND A THREE AND A QUARTER AND A 2% COST OF LIVING AND MERIT INCREASES.UH, THE TOWN OF RIVERDALE PARK IS A TWO AND A HALF AND A TWO AND A HALF.
SO I AGREE WITH, UH, STEVE, THIS IS, UH, THIS IS SPLITTING THE BABY.
AND, UH, QUITE FRANKLY, IF WE'RE GONNA ROB PETER TO PAY PAUL, UH, PETER'S ALREADY BEEN ROBBED, SO THERE'S NOTHING LEFT TO PAY PAUL, MR. GALLOWAY, I'LL JUST SAY THIS, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE BUILT A REPUTABLE ORGANIZATION AND I DO NOT WANT TO SEE THAT BE IN DANGER OF STAFF WALKING OUT BECAUSE OF NOT RECEIVING OUR, OUR MERIT AND OR A COLA.
SO I WILL SAY, UH, THE COLA AT 87,000 IS 2%.
THAT IS BARELY IN KEEPING UP WITH INFLATION.
UM, WE COULD GO LOWER, BUT WE'RE GETTING FURTHER AWAY FROM ACTUAL INFLATION.
I MEAN, WE MAY HAVE TO, BUT THAT'S JUST THE REALITY.
UM, 2% IS ALREADY PROBABLY NOT REALLY INFLATION, NOT REALLY HITTING INFLATION, UH, ON THE MERIT.
UM, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND THIS CORRECTLY.
IT'S PEGGED IN THE BUDGET AT 87, BUT WE WOULD NEVER GIVE OUT 87 BECAUSE NOT EVERYBODY IS GETTING 2% MERIT.
PRESUMABLY SOME STAFF ARE GETTING TWO, SOME STAFF ARE GETTING 1.5, SOME STAFF ARE GETTING ONE, SOME STAFF ARE GETTING 0.5 BASED ON THEIR MERIT.
CORRECT? I MEAN,
THAT'S, I MEAN, THAT'S, THAT'S A GOOD POINT.
SO WE COULD PERHAPS COUNSEL TRIM BACK THE MERIT AND THEN THE DEPARTMENT HEADS, LET'S SAY YOU SET THE POOL INSTEAD OF THE POOL BEING 87, WE SET THE POOL AT 60.
THEY WOULD HAVE TO AWARD MERIT BASED TO THE HIGHEST PERFORMERS, UH, UNTIL THEY GOT THROUGH 60,000 INSTEAD OF GETTING THROUGH 87,000.
I, I THINK THAT'S APPROPRIATE.
PERSONALLY, I'M, I'M GENERALLY, UM, OF THE OPINION THAT WE HAVE TO MAINTAIN THE COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT THAT WE CAN AFFORD SINCE LIFE CONTINUES TO BECOME MORE EXPENSIVE.
UH, BUT I THINK THAT, I DO THINK THAT MERIT IS THE KIND OF PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN UNDERSTAND IF WE HAVE TO BE, UM, MORE CAREFUL WITH THAT MONEY MERIT IS WHERE WE WOULD HAVE TO BE, UM, CAREFUL.
I I WILL SAY, UH, BUOY JUST HAD TO PASS AN 18 CENT PROPERTY TAX, UH, RATE, UH, INCREASE.
AND SO I UNDERSTAND THAT EVERYONE IS, UH, COMPETING AGAINST EACH OTHER FOR STAFF.
UM, BUT AT, AT SOME POINT THE NUMBERS HAVE TO BALANCE.
AND SO I, I'M GENERALLY OF THE OPINION THAT WHAT MICAH SUGGESTED SOMETHING LIKE A 60,000 MERIT BUDGET RATHER THAN A 87,000 MERIT BUDGET IS A WAY TO GIVE US THE MONEY WE NEED TO SHOW APPRECIATION FOR STAFF WITHOUT IT BEING EXACTLY THE SAME NUMBER.
IS THERE CONSENSUS TO ON THE COLA AT 2% OR IS THERE A DESIRE TO TRIM BACK FROM THE 87,000 FOR A COLA? CAN I SAY ONE THING ABOUT WHAT, UH, POINT THAT COUNCIL MEMBER TANSEY JUST BROUGHT UP, MAYOR, JUST BE REAL QUICK.
BOWIE DID GIVE AN 18, AN 18 CENT TAX INCREASE.
I SPOKE TO THE ACTING CITY MANAGER LAST NIGHT.
UM, BUT THEY ALSO GAVE
UM, YOU KNOW, THEIR SITUATION IS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT THAN OURS.
UM, AND, AND, AND I'LL JUST LEAVE IT AT THAT.
WE CAN USE THEM AS AN EXAMPLE, I GUESS EXAMPLE AS A TAXING SITUATION THAT WE DON'T WANT TO BE IN.
I THINK 18 CENTS IS RIDICULOUS, HOWEVER, THAT'S WHERE THEY ARE RIGHT NOW AND THAT'S WHAT THEY HAVE TO DO.
UH, WE'RE IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SITUATION.
SO ARE WE GOING WITH 2% COLA? YES.
$87,000 IS 2% ACROSS THE BOARD BECAUSE OUR PERSONNEL COSTS ARE 4.3 SOMETHING MILLION DOLLARS.
SORRY, NOT PERSONNEL, SALARY COSTS.
NOT SEEING, I'M NOT SEEING ANY DESIRE TO MESS WITH THAT.
SO WE WERE GONNA LEAVE THAT THERE.
WHERE ARE WE AT ON COLA MERIT? OH, COLA, I'M SORRY.
[01:45:02]
INTEREST IN MERIT AT 60,065? I'M OKAY WITH 60 PERSONALLY.ANY, ANYONE WANNA ARGUE AGAINST 60,000? OKAY, MR. BRAMAN, YOUR HAND WAS UP.
SO WE HAVE A GRADE AND STEP SYSTEM.
AND SO IF YOU DO, IF YOU DO PERFORM SATISFACTORILY, YOU DO GO UP A A STEP.
AND SO THERE'S NOT A ONE OR ONE AND A HALF OR PERCENT IN THERE.
SO IF YOU'RE UNSATISFACTORY, YOU GET ZERO 2%.
UM, AN IDEA THAT, UH, I HAD WAS THE MERIT COULD BECOME EFFECTIVE, UM, JANUARY ONE.
AND SO AT LEAST PEOPLE HAVE A MERIT COMING BECAUSE POTENTIALLY EVERYBODY COULD BE SATISFACTORY OR BETTER.
I UNDERSTAND THAT IN, IN, IN, IN A LARGE GROUP, THAT'S NOT ALWAYS THE CASE, BUT THAT WOULD ACTUALLY CUT THE, UH, THE COST IN HALF.
SO KEEP THE MERIT SYSTEM IN PLACE, BUT JUST HAVE IT ACTIVATE, OR THE INCREASES ACTIVATED ON JANUARY 1ST WOULD HAVE THE COST AND THEN KEEP THE PERSONNEL SYSTEM AND THE EVALUATION SYSTEM ALL INTACT.
SO YOU ARE SAYING BECAUSE OF HOW YOUR SYSTEM WORKS, JUST HAVING A SORT OF ARBITRARY NUMBER DOESN'T WORK? 'CAUSE IT'S NOT SO DISCRETIONARY.
IT'S BASED OFF WHETHER OR NOT THEY'RE SATISFACTORY OR NOT.
BUT IF WE HAD TO GO INTO EFFECT IN THE NEW CALENDAR YEAR AND EVERYBODY GOT A MERIT, IT WOULD BE HALF THE COST.
AND, AND THE WAY, THE REASON WHY I BRING THAT UP AND, AND, AND OTHERS MAY DISAGREE WITH ME, BUT, UM, WE USED TO HAVE HALF EMPLOYEES WERE WERE BASED UPON WHEN YOU WERE HIRED, HALF EMPLOYEES WOULD BE EVALUATED AND, AND, AND THEY'D GET THEIRS.
UM, IN JANUARY, THE OTHER HALF IN JULY, UM, WE, WE'VE MOVED TO, IT'S ALL BEING IN JULY.
THIS WOULD JUST MOVE THAT ONE PART TO JANUARY.
SO JULY THEY'D GET THE COLA AND IN JANUARY THEY'D GET THE MERIT.
AND YOUR SCHEME WOULD COST HOW MUCH IN THIS BUDGET? WELL, IF EVERYBODY GOT THE MERIT, IT'S 87,000.
BUT IF IT'S FOR A HALF FISCAL YEAR, IT'S HALF THAT.
SO 44,000 AND THAT'S, THAT'S IF EVERYBODY GETS A REALLY GOOD PERFORMANCE EVALUATION, UH, AGAIN, WE HAVE A BINARY SYSTEM.
MAY BE DISAGREEMENT AMONGST US.
THANK YOU FOR THAT MR. CHIEF MORRIS.
SO I, I, I, UM, RESPECTFULLY DISAGREE SLIGHTLY WITH MR. BRAMAN, UH, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AS, AS HE EXPLAINED, WELL, NUMBER ONE, THIS MAYOR AND COUNCIL OR THE, THE, THE MARIN COUNCIL TWO YEARS AGO PASSED A, UH, SALARY SCHEDULE FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT THAT HAD BEEN LONG OVERDUE AND WE WORKED DILIGENTLY ON WITH MUNICIPAL SOLUTIONS TO COME UP WITH THAT CREATES A STRUCTURE SO THAT, AS MR. BRAMAN INDICATED, WHEN INDIVIDUALS GET A SATISFACTORY PERFORMANCE EVALUATION, UH, THEY GET THAT MERIT INCREASE.
UH, BUT I, BUT I WOULD ALSO STATE THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT GOT AWAY FROM THE PROCESS OF PAYING MERIT INCREASES IN JULY AND JANUARY LAST YEAR.
SO WE GROUP THOSE THAT ARE IN THE FIRST THREE MONTHS OF THE FISCAL YEAR, THE SECOND THREE MONTHS OF THE FISCAL YEAR, AND ON THROUGH THE FOURTH AND PAY THEM IN THAT PARTICULAR QUARTER.
BUT I DON'T THINK THAT IT'S, UH, UM, MATHEMATICALLY CORRECT TO SUGGEST THAT THAT NUMBER GETS CUT IN HALF BY MOVING IT TO JANUARY, BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT DIFFERENT SALARY LEVELS ACROSS THE BOARD.
UH, 2% OF A HUNDRED THOUSAND IS, UH, IS MORE THAN 2% OF 50,000.
SO I WOULDN'T WANT TO SUGGEST, AND, AND STEVE, I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, BUT I DON'T THINK MATHEMATICALLY THAT THAT NUMBER JUST ARBITRARILY CUTS IN HALF.
SO WE ARE GONNA ARRIVE AT A NUMBER VERY SHORTLY FOR THE MERIT.
UH, AND THEN THE THREE OF YOU ARE GONNA WORK IT OUT.
WELL, AND THAT NUMBER IS, I, I WAS GONNA ASK CLARIFYING QUESTION.
SO I MEAN, THIS, THIS MIGHT BE LESS A MATTER OF DEBATE THAN WE THINK.
IF WE NOW HAVE PAYMENT STRUCTURES THAT ALREADY HAVE THIS WORKED OUT THAT SEEMS RESTRICTIVE, WE, WE HAVE A, A PAYMENT SCHEDULE OR A PROMOTION SCHEDULE THAT, THAT BUDGETS IN 2% FOR MERIT.
HOW IS, HOW IS THAT SET UP? SO THAT THAT'S, THAT THAT'S NOT ADJUSTABLE, RIGHT? THAT, THAT, YEAH.
'CAUSE I WASN'T HERE TWO YEARS AGO FOR THE, FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
THE, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT DIDN'T HAVE A SALARY STRUCTURE.
[01:50:01]
DARTS AND, UH, THEY DIDN'T HAVE ANY SORT OF A RANK STRUCTURE IN PLACE.OF COURSE, UH, THREE YEARS AGO, WE ONLY HAD FOUR OFFICERS ON THE DEPARTMENT, NOT COUNTING MYSELF AND THE, AND THE, UH, FORMER CAPTAIN.
SO THE, UH, TOWN UNDERTOOK A SALARY SURVEY FOR THE ENTIRE TOWN, AND THEY CREATED A SALARY STRUCTURE FOR CIVILIAN PERSONNEL, UH, BASED UPON, UH, THE JOB DUTIES, KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES.
AND LIKEWISE, DID A, DID ONE FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, UH, FOR THE SWORN STAFF ON THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO MIRROR WHAT IS NATIONALLY ACCEPTED FROM, UH, FROM THOSE, THOSE STANDARDS.
SO THE SALARY STRUCTURE FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, AND FRANKLY FOR THE, UH, AGAIN, MR. UH, GALLOWAY CAN CORRECT ME IF I'M, IF I'M WRONG, UH, IT BUILT IN THOSE PERCENTAGES SO THAT IF AN INDIVIDUAL RECEIVES A, PER A SATISFACTORY PERFORMANCE OF VALUATION, THEY GET A 2%.
IF THEY DON'T GET A SATISFACTORY PERFORMANCE EVALUATION, THEN THEY GET NOTHING.
SO IT'S, UH, IT'S, THERE'S A, IT'S A, IT'S ONE OR THE OTHER.
AND I, I DO WANT TO ALSO ADD THAT WHEN, UH, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WAS WORKING ON OUR BUDGET, WE ALREADY FACTORED IN THE QUARTERLY, UH, INCREASES VERSUS, UH, UH, VERSUS, UM, AN IMMEDIATE INCREASE IN JULY AND AN IMMEDIATE INCREASE IN, IN A, A SUBSEQUENT INCREASE IN JANUARY, DEPENDING UPON WHEN PEOPLE WERE HIRED.
SO WE ALREADY FACTORED IN THOSE SAVINGS.
BUT DOES, HOW ABOUT COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENTS? IS THAT, IS THAT THE ONLY PLACE WE HAVE FLEXIBILITY THEN? IF THE MERIT STRUCTURE IS ALREADY BAKED INTO THE SCHEDULE, DOES THAT MEAN THE COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT IS THE ONLY REAL CHOICE WE HAVE? THE COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT IS BAKED IN THERE AS WELL.
WELL, NO, YOU'RE USING, YOU'RE USING THE WORD BAKED IN DIFFERENTLY.
BOTH OF THEM ARE SUBJECT TO THE APPROVAL OF THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
THEY ARE INCLUDED IN THE DOCUMENT IN FRONT OF YOU IN THE 4.3, I THINK MILLION DOLLAR SALARY, UH, EXPENSES.
I GUESS MY POINT IS MORE HAVE PEOPLE SIGNED CONTRACTS SAYING THAT THEY'RE GONNA GET THIS? I SURE HOPE NOT.
WELL, THAT'S WHAT I'M ASKING IS, IS THIS, HAVE WE ALREADY AGREED TO THIS PAYMENT STRUCTURE IN SOME LEGALLY BINDING WAY OR, AND THEREFORE FORFEITED OUR ABILITY TO, TO HAVE THIS DISCUSSION, THE SALARY STRUCTURE WAS PASSED BY THE MERIT AND COUNCIL AND PUT INTO PLACE.
SO AS IT RELATES TO THE MERIT INCREASES, UH, IT IS CERTAINLY, IT'S WITHIN THE PURVIEW OF THE MERIT AND COUNCIL TO SAY WE'RE NOT GONNA OFFER ANY MERIT INCREASES, UH, IN A OR, OR, OR ANY COST OF LIVING INCREASES.
THAT'S POLICY DECISION FOR THE MAYOR COUNCIL.
RECOGNIZING THE CONSEQUENCES OF THOSE DECISIONS AS IT RELATES TO THE STAFF.
I MEAN, I HAVE TO BE HONEST HERE THAT I FEEL LIKE THE THREE OF YOU ARE BACKING YOURSELF INTO ZERO, NOT INTO 60.
SO I'M, I'M, I'M A LITTLE CONFUSED ABOUT THE DIRECTION OF THE CONVERSATION.
I THINK IT'S CLEAR YOU'RE NOT GONNA GET 87.
I'M NOT, I'M SOMEWHAT OF A NEGOTIATOR, SO I WILL JUST SAY IT'S CLEAR YOU'RE NOT GONNA GET 87.
SO WE, WE NEED A NUMBER BETWEEN ZERO AND 87 AND THE NUMBER'S FALLING BY THE MINUTE.
I WOULD SAY YES, COUNCIL MEMBER FRY.
UM, I THINK I'VE STATED I'M AGAINST THAT 5 CENTS, BUT I'M NOT WILLING TO SACRIFICE HER PERSONNEL BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT MAKES, UM, OUR SERVICES AND THE THINGS ABOUT CH SO SPECIAL BECAUSE WE, WE GET TO HAVE THOSE RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE PEOPLE WHO WE INTERACT WITH, WHETHER IT'S ADMINISTRATION, PUBLIC WORKS, OR POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UM, IT ALSO PROVES ME A LITTLE BIT THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS BEFORE WE'RE LOOKING AT OTHER PLACES TO CUT OR P OR PAUSE FOR FREEZE OR WHATEVER YOU WANT TO CALL IT.
UM, BECAUSE AGAIN, WANT VERSUS NEED, I THINK MOST OF US FEEL THAT WE NEED A 24 HOUR POLICE DEPARTMENT.
SO, BUT I, BUT THERE, I THINK FOR THE MAJORITY OF IT, RIGHT, I THINK, UM, MOST OF US FEEL THAT WE NEED TWO TIMES A WEEK TRASH, RIGHT? SO THE PEOPLE WHO DO THAT FOR US, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT LETTING THEM KNOW THAT WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT CUTTING THINGS FOR THEM BEFORE WE'RE LOOKING AT CUTTING OR PAUSING THINGS ELSEWHERE.
SO THAT'S WHERE I'M NOT COMFORTABLE.
[01:55:01]
WE WE DON'T DO IT, BUT THAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING EVERYWHERE.AND THEN THAT MIGHT BE LIKE A FINAL LAST RESORT.
BECAUSE THAT MESSAGING TO ME IS VERY UNCOMFORTABLE.
ESPECIALLY BECAUSE WE SPENT THE TIME TWO YEARS AGO TO GO THROUGH, UM, A COMPENSATION AND THE, THE SALARY SCHEDULES BECAUSE WE KNEW THAT WE WERE A LITTLE BEHIND AND WE WANTED TO BE AN EXAMPLE TO THE COMMUNITIES AROUND US THAT WE ARE THE PLACE THAT WE ARE THE PLACE YOU WANNA WORK.
RIGHT? UM, BECAUSE WE ARE THE PLACE YOU WANNA LIVE.
I'M NOT COMFORTABLE GOING DOWN.
I MIGHT BE A LITTLE MORE COMFORTABLE IF WE'VE EXHAUSTED OTHER ALL POSSIBILITIES.
FIRST, DO YOU WANT TO TABLE THE MERIT DISCU MERIT DISCUSSION AND TALK ABOUT OTHER OPTIONS RIGHT NOW? I MEAN, WE CAN, I, I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE ON MY LIST OF IDEAS ABOUT STUFF TO CUT.
UM, WE CAN PUT A PIN IN THE MERIT AND LEAVE IT ALONE AND, AND JUST TAKE OUR $35,000 IN SAVINGS SO FAR.
AND THEN 37 500 IT WAS 25,000 AND 10,000, 2,500 CASH.
HOW COULD I FORGET? SO, UH, WE COULD PAUL PUT A, PUT A PIN IN IT AND GO TO THE PUBLIC.
MY GENERAL OPINION IS THAT, UM, I AM ACTUALLY ON ALONG THOSE SAME LINES WITH, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER FRY RE REGARDING THIS.
ESPECIALLY BECAUSE OF, UM, AS YOU ALL, UM, THE, THE SUPPORT MAKING SURE THAT OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT IS THEIR FIRST TIME HAVING A FULL, FULL 24 HOUR POLICING, UM, IN THE BUDGET THAT I WOULD, I WOULD NOT PARTICULARLY TOUCH THAT.
IT'S JUST MY OPINION AND THE MERIT IS, IS FOR ALL DEPARTMENTS.
I KNOW THAT THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING.
BUT BECAUSE, BECAUSE OF THAT REASON, THAT'S WHY I'M JUST SAYING I TOUCH IT.
THERE'S NO OFFENSE TO THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT AS WELL, BUT FOR THE FACT THAT IT'S OUR FIRST TIME HAVING FULL 24 HOUR FULL STAFF AND WE CAN ALWAYS ADJUST DURING THE FIRST READER, THE SECOND READER.
SO ARE WE DONE WITH MERIT? OKAY.
ARE THERE OTHER IDEAS AT THIS TIME BEFORE WE TURN TO THE PUBLIC? YES.
SO AGAIN, I'M THROWING CONFERENCES BACK ON, UH, THE TABLE, NOT, AND POTENTIALLY NOT JUST FOR MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
UM, I DON'T KNOW HOW IT WOULD AFFECT MORALE AMONG STAFF.
I KNOW SOME OF THE, UM, CONFERENCE IS FOR OUR STAFF AND OUR POLICE AND STUFF.
SO I WOULD DEFER TO EACH OF OUR DEPARTMENT HEADS ON, YOU KNOW, WHAT POTENTIALLY THERE COULD BE IN A FREEZE LIKE THAT.
WOULD IT BE MEANING SENDING ONE OR TWO LESS PEOPLE? WOULD IT, YOU KNOW, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? UM, ALSO, UH, FOR DON'T KILL ME, BUT THE FIREWORKS MOSTLY BECAUSE I THINK IT'S SO BELOVED IN THE TOWN THAT IF WE WERE TO REDUCE THAT A LITTLE BIT, THE TOWN WOULD RALLY AROUND IT AND WE WOULD FIND WAYS OUTSIDE OF OUR BUDGET TO BRING IN THAT FUNDING.
SO WHETHER THAT'S SPONSORSHIPS, UM, WHICH WE NORMALLY DO ANYWAY, UM, BUT MAYBE JUST, YOU KNOW, GETTING A COUPLE MORE SPONSORSHIPS OR WHATEVER THAT MIGHT BE TO COVER THE FIREWORKS.
UM, 'CAUSE I THINK THAT WAS WHAT, 16 K? OR MAYBE EVEN JUST REDUCING THAT DOWN.
UM, I WOULD SAY FOR OUR GRANTS, I THINK WE'RE KIND OF, WE, WE KIND OF USUALLY HIT THE LIMIT FOR GRANTS.
SO I DON'T KNOW THAT WE COULD REALLY BRING THAT DOWN, BUT WE MIGHT NEED TO.
AND WAS THAT LOOK LIKE MAYBE IT'S NOT A $2,000 CAP, MAYBE IT'S A $1,500 CAP PER ORGANIZATION PER YEAR FOR, FOR THE MOMENT.
UM, SO THAT IT DOES COME DOWN, UM, OH, CODE THE UNIFORMS FOR CODE.
WE SPENT $97 SO FAR THIS YEAR.
WE HAVE, I KNOW IT'S ONLY A THOUSAND DOLLARS.
UM, I MEAN OUR, OUR, DOES OUR CODE OFFICER NEED MORE UNIFORMS? HE'S BEEN WITH US FOR LIKE TWO DECADES.
YOU WANNA DO 500? I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS.
LIKE, I DON'T KNOW WHAT CODE, LIKE WHAT MORE.
YOU KNOW, SO LIKE, YOU WANT TO TAKE THAT ONE NOW? I, I MEAN I'M, I'M OKAY WITH IT, BUT I JUST, I WOULD LIKE FEEDBACK ON THAT.
'CAUSE I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S REALISTIC, IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING AT.
I DON'T, IT'S JUST SAYS UNIFORMS. I DON'T LIKE IS IT A T-SHIRT? LIKE WHAT IS THAT? NO, THEY, THEY, THEY ARE, UH, WE CAN PUT IT
[02:00:01]
AT ZERO.UM, I HEARD YOU TALK ABOUT FIRST THE TRAVEL BUDGET.
UM, SO GENERAL GOVERNMENT IS AT 20,000.
I THINK MAYOR AND COUNCIL'S AT 20,000.
UM, I HAVE TO FIND EACH ONE INDIVIDUALLY AND, AND MAYOR, CAN I JUST SAY I WOULD, I, IF THERE'S ANY FREEZING OF THOSE THINGS, I, I WOULD LOVE FOR THAT TO BE REVISITED IN JANUARY IN THE HOPES THAT WE'VE FOUND ALL THIS ADDITIONAL GRANT MONEY OR SOMETHING ELSE THAT WILL HELP US TAP INTO BEING ABLE TO, UM, STILL HAVE FOLKS ATTEND THESE THINGS.
UM, BUT I, I MEAN IF WE'RE LOOKING AT YEAH, I UNDERSTAND.
YEAH, SO I'M JUST, AGAIN, IT'S NOT WHAT I WANT.
UM, BUT THEN I HAVE TO ASK ALSO, IS THIS WHAT WE NEED? UM, AND SOME OF THE FEEDBACK I RECEIVED FROM MY RESIDENTS WAS LIKE, WELL, MY, MY BUSINESS OR, YOU KNOW, MY PLACE OF WORK HAS ALREADY PAUSED ON THESE THINGS.
I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY YOU GUYS ARE CONSIDERING IT.
AND I WAS LIKE, BECAUSE YOU KNOW, IT'S A LOT OF LEARNING THAT HAPPENS, UM, AT, AT THESE CONFERENCES.
BUT, UM, SO I'M TRACKING 20,000 FOR THE PUBLIC WORKS, 60,000 FOR THE POLICE, 20,000 FOR THE FRONT OFFICE AND THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL WAS 20,000.
UM, DO WE WANNA JUST DO 10% ACROSS THE BOARD? I'D LIKE SOME FEEDBACK FROM OUR DEPARTMENT HEADS ON WHAT THEY FEEL TOO, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THIS IS SOMETHING.
ANY, ANY, ANY COMMENTS FROM THE THREE DEPARTMENT HEADS ON A 10%? YEAH, I'LL MAKE A COMMENT.
I'LL MAKE A COMMENT ON BEHALF OF, UH, ALL THREE OF US.
UH, INITIALLY, IF YOU REMEMBER RECEIVING THE INITIAL BUDGET, THOSE LINE ITEMS WERE HIGHER THAN WHAT THEY WERE.
I THINK THAT WE LOOKED AT POTENTIAL CONFERENCES THAT WE HAVE COMING UP AND SOME ARE, ARE REQUIRED, SOME ARE NECESSARY.
AND, AND SOME ARE REQUIRED BASED OFF OF SOME OF THE OSHA TRAININGS THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE FOR PUBLIC WORKS.
SOME ARE REQUIRED FOR THE POLICE, UH, TRAININGS THAT, UH, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS TO HAVE.
I MEAN, IF WE WANT TO DO A 10% CUT ACROSS THE BOARD, IT'S SURELY THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL'S PREROGATIVE.
BUT MY PROFESSIONAL RECOMMENDATION WAS TO REMAIN AT AT AT THE CURRENT LINE ITEMS. IF MAYOR AND COUNCIL WANTS TO CUT IT, THEN MAYOR AND COUNCIL PLEASE CUT IT.
ALRIGHT, COUNSEL, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO, JOHN? I MEAN, THIS IS, IT'S KIND OF LIKE, IT'S LIKE DEATH OF A THOUSAND CUTS HERE.
I MEAN, IT'S LIKE, YOU KNOW, IT'S, I MEAN WE'RE, I FEEL LIKE THERE'S BIGGER FISH TO FRY OUT THERE AND WE'RE SORT OF TRYING TO NITPICK AND FIND THE LITTLE FISH WHEN, YOU KNOW, IT'S, THESE ARE LIKE 0.001% OF THE BIGGER NUMBER HERE.
AND WELL, TECHNICALLY EVERY NUMBER IS 0.01% OF A LARGER NUMBER.
BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S, I THINK ARE, ARE, ARE YOU SAYING THERE'S BIGGER FISH THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS TONIGHT? THAT THAT'S BECAUSE TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT WHEN WE ADDRESS ALL THE FISH? YES, I AM.
BUT, BUT DO YOU HAVE OTHER FISH? BUT WHAT I'M SAYING IS THAT LIKE, I DON'T THINK THAT JEOPARDIZING OUR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OR TRAVEL AND TRAINING IS WHERE WE SHOULD BE FOCUSING OUR EFFORTS RIGHT NOW.
I WAS GONNA SAY, I TEND TO AGREE WITH TOWN ADMINISTRATOR THAT THEY'VE ALREADY CUT THAT NUMBER.
I THINK IF WE'RE GONNA CUT SOMETHING, WE'RE GONNA CUT THE, THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL'S BUDGET BECAUSE WE KNOW WHAT, WE KNOW WHAT WE USE THAT FOR.
AND SO WE CAN MAKE IT A INFORMED AND COMPLETE DECISION ABOUT IF WE'RE GOING TO FIND, YOU KNOW, SHARE MORE OF THE COST OR ONLY HAVE HALF OF US GO OR WHATEVER.
SO I THINK IF WE'RE GONNA CUT, UM, TRAINING, TRAVEL AND TRAINING, I THINK THE, THE FIRST NUMBER WE SHOULD BE LOOKING AT IS MAYOR AND COUNCILS.
UM, JUST, WELL, I'M LOOKING THROUGH THIS THROUGH THE, UM, THROUGH THE PUBLIC WORKS PROPOSED BUDGET.
UM, I KNOW THAT WE HAVEN'T YET GOT THE BUILDING FULLY TURNED IN BY, UM, I GUESS OUR CONSTRUCTION PEOPLE THAT WE HAVE.
UM, I KNOW THEY HAVE IN THE LINE ITEM FOR AUTO REPAIR OUTSIDE
[02:05:01]
SHOP.UM, SINCE WE'RE LOOKING INTO POSSIBLY GETTING THE, THE BUILDING, I GUESS THE BUILDING ENTIRELY THIS YEAR, UM, IT'S $50,000 REALLY, UM, UH, NEEDED TO, UM, FOR AUTO REPAIRS SINCE WE HAVE, I I BELIEVE LAST TIME WE HAD, UM, SOME, UH, PUBLIC WORKS GUYS I GUESS, UH, CERTIFIED AS MECHANICS FOR OUR TRUCKS OR, OR OUR VEHICLES.
UM, JUST WANNA KNOW IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE COULD PLAY WITH.
ALRIGHT, LET'S, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
SO WE'RE, IS THERE ANY INTEREST, I MEAN FOR, I'M ON TEAM COUNCIL MEMBER FRY ABOUT THE TRAVEL AND TRAINING, BUT I DON'T THINK WE HAVE THE SUPPORT FOR THAT.
SO, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER FRY, DID YOU HAVE AN ANOTHER ITEM THAT I FORGOT? I THINK I SAID FIREWORKS.
IS ANYONE INTERESTED IN THE FIREWORKS LINE ITEM? NO, YOU DID SAY THAT.
LET'S GO TO COUNCIL MEMBER GARAS ABOUT THE AUTO REPAIR AND THEN WE'RE GONNA HEAR ABOUT JOHN'S FISH, WHICH I HEAR ARE BIG.
UM, WHAT, SO THAT LINE ITEM USED TO BE HIGHER EVEN WHEN WE DID HAVE A GARAGE.
UM, SO THERE STILL ARE, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE HAVE NEW PICKUP TRUCKS, THERE ARE TIMES THAT WE DO NEED TO STILL DEAL WITH DEALERSHIPS ON SOME OF THESE, YOU KNOW, COMPLICATED, UH, UH, UH, MATTERS.
WE'VE ALREADY REDUCED PARTS, UH, DOWN.
UM, THOSE TWO ARE SORT OF SYNONYMOUS SOMETIMES, BUT I, I WOULD BE, UM, I I WOULD, I WOULD BE RELUCTANT TO SUGGEST CUTTING, UH, THE OUTSIDE REPAIR.
THAT'S MORE OR LESS THE LABOR.
WE STILL, WE STILL NEED TO SHOP THINGS OUT AND OVER TIME WE ARE GONNA TRY TO GROW THE GARAGE.
YES, WE DO HAVE SOMEBODY THAT DID GET A SE UH, CERTIFICATION IN DIESEL.
UM, AND SO WE ARE GROWING THAT, BUT, UM, AT THIS POINT I, I WOULDN'T, I WOULDN'T BE CONFIDENT IN SAYING CUT THAT.
ANY FOLLOW UP COUNCIL MEMBER? GAR? UH, NO SIR.
YOU HAVE A FISH? NO, I, I FOLLOW UP ON THAT ONE.
SO, UH, WE JUST WENT, WE JUST DIDN'T TOUCH IT.
WELL, YOU HAVE AN AUTO REPAIR FOLLOW UP.
SO I KNOW THAT OUR ACTUALS ARE ODD BECAUSE WE DON'T REALLY HAVE A, WHEN WE WERE AT FULL CAPACITY, WHATEVER THAT MEANT, UM, HERE, 'CAUSE IT ONLY GOES BACK TO 2024, BUT THE ACTUALS ARE MEANINGFULLY LOWER THAN WHAT'S BUDGETED AT LEAST IN FISCAL YEAR, UH, 2025.
BUT EVEN, UM, MOST OF THEM FOR 2024 AND THE ACTUALS ARE MEANINGFULLY HIGHER FOR AUTO REPAIR.
BUT THE OTHERS, AS OF, YOU KNOW, TWO WEEKS AGO, UM, ARE STILL PRETTY, PRETTY LOW RELATIVE TO THE BUDGETS.
UH, IS THERE, I MEAN, THE ACTUALS AS OF A MONTH AGO WERE ONE 17 AND THEY, THEY MAXED OUT UNDER ONE 60 IN FISCAL YEAR 2024 AND 2025.
BUT WE NOW HAVE IT LISTED AS 2227.
CAN YOU, UM, EXPLAIN WHY YOU THINK THE THE COST WILL GO UP? IS IT BECAUSE WE'RE COMING INTO THE NEW BUILDING? WELL, FIRST OF ALL, I, I DON'T VIEW, UM, THIS BUDGET AS, UH, USE OR LOSE.
SO, UM, I ACTUALLY TRY TO CONSERVE THE BUDGET EVERY YEAR AND I, I SPEND PUBLIC DOLLARS LIKE THEY WERE MY OWN DOLLARS.
AND THEN A LITTLE BIT MORE CAREFULLY, UM, WE HAVE, ALTHOUGH YOU ALL HAVE, UH, BEEN VERY SUPPORTIVE, WE STILL HAVE A VERY OLD FLEET.
SO LIKE ONE OF OUR TRASH S TRUCKS IS STILL A 2014.
NOW, I'M NOT PROPOSING REPLACING THAT AT THIS POINT.
WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GOING TO, YOU KNOW, UH, RUN IT FURTHER.
BUT, UM, WE RUN INTO SOMETHING.
SO WE HAD ONE OF OUR, UH, UH, PRIMARY, UH, WE HAVE TWO, TWO, UH, TRUCKS THAT WERE, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE F FIVE FIFTIES, THEY WERE PRIMARY SNOW TRUCKS.
UM, UH, A COUPLE YEARS AGO BOWEN ENGINE, THAT WAS, THAT WAS $26,000.
THAT WAS $31,000 AT THE LA AT THE, UH, AT THE DEALERSHIP.
SO I LOOK AT THIS AS I MAY NEED TO FALL BACK ON THIS FLEET AND WE DON'T HAVE A FLEET REPLACEMENT, UH, UH, PROGRAM.
SO THIS IS SORT OF MY FLEET PATCHING UP PROGRAM.
SO I AM VERY SYMPATHETIC TO THAT POINT, AND I TRUST THAT YOU SPEND IT LIKE IT'S YOUR OWN AND IT'S NOT USE OR LOSE.
SO I, I'M VERY GRATEFUL FOR THAT.
UM, I PERSONALLY WOULD RATHER, WE CAN'T HEAR YOU.
SORRY, I DIDN'T REALIZE MY MIC WAS OFF.
SO I'LL I'LL SAY THE SHORT VERSION OF THAT.
AND I, I BELIEVE YOU, UM, ARE ARE CAREFUL WITH MONEY.
SO I'M, I'M VERY GRATEFUL FOR THAT PERSONALLY.
[02:10:01]
CLOSER TO THE ACTUALS IN FISCAL YEAR 2025 AND 2024 WITH SOME, SOME BUFFER AND THEN MAKE A BUDGET AMENDMENT IF WE HAVE TO, IF SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY COMES UP.BECAUSE THE, THE DIFFERENCE IS SUBSTANTIAL.
I MEAN, FROM, IF YOU, IF YOU ROUND, UH, FISCAL YEAR 2024 TO ONE 60 AND YOU GO TO, UH, TWO FISCAL YEAR PROPOSED BUDGET OF 2 27, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A $67,000 INCREASE THAT'S, THAT'S, UH, SUBSTANTIAL AND IT'S AS A PERCENTAGE IT'S EVEN, AND IT'S EVEN HIGH, YOU KNOW, EVEN MORE DRAMATIC I THINK.
SO WOULD YOU BE COMFORTABLE CUTTING THAT AND UM, US MAKING BUDGET AMENDMENTS IF SOMETHING, UH, EXTRAORDINARY DOES HAPPEN? LIKE, LIKE THE ENGINE FAILURE YOU DISCUSSED? WELL, IN MY EXPERIENCE, STAFF TRIES TO AVOID A, UH, BUDGET AMENDMENT.
UM, UM, I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR CHARTER SAYS, BUT WHAT I'VE, I'M ACCUSTOMED TO IT REQUIRES SUPER MAJORITY IS NOT HAPPY WITH GO AHEAD.
AND SO, AND, AND SO, UM, UM, THAT'S AT LEAST MY PHILOSOPHY.
UM, I DON'T KNOW THAT THE ACTUALS COMPARING THE 24 AND 25 TO 26 AND 27, WE'VE PICKED UP SOME OF THE NUMBERS.
SO FOR INSTANCE, WE HAVE A, UH, UH, A, UH, UH, THE, UM, RATED STORAGE ROOM THAT HAS OUR, OUR, OUR OILS AND, AND, AND, AND GREASES FOR THE, UH, NEW MACHINE THAT'S JUST $17,000, RIGHT? THERE IS THE QUOTE.
I HAVE TO JUST FILL THAT UP AND WE'RE GONNA NEED TO FILL IT UP.
UM, YOU KNOW, AT LEAST THREE QUARTERS OF THE WAY FOR, FOR, UH, THAT'S, I'M, I'M ACTUALLY THINKING NOT FILLING IT UP ALL THE WAY FOR TESTING PURPOSES.
SO WE'VE HAD TO TICK UP SOME NUMBERS.
UM, I WAS HOPING TO BE IN THE GARAGE.
THAT'S WHY 20, UH, THAT'S WHY 26, UM, TICKED UP BUT HASN'T ALL BEEN SPENT.
AND, UM, AND, AND THESE, SO IN SOME OF THESE OTHER AREAS, THOSE ARE ANTICIPATIONS FOR INCREASED COSTS, AT LEAST INITIALLY FOR THE GARAGE OPENING UP.
SO YOU THINK OF THESE AS SORT OF TRANSITION COSTS OF MOVING INTO OUR NEW FACILITY? WELL, I WROTE A NARRATIVE THE OTHER DAY, AND ONE OF THE THINGS, AND I THINK IN OUR SLIDESHOW THIS NEXT YEAR, AND PROBABLY EVEN THE YEAR NEXT AFTER THAT, FY 27 AND 28, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO LEARN WHAT THE, WHAT THE TRUE OPERATING COSTS OF THIS BUILDING.
BOTH THE OFFICE SPACE AND THE UPSTAIRS, BUT ALSO THE GARAGE AREA.
UM, SO YES, I'M, I'M, I'M RELUCTANT TO, UM, CUT AND, AND, AND FIND THAT I'M, I'M RUNNING INTO A PINCH AND THEN RELYING UPON A BUDGET AMENDMENT, UM, AT THIS POINT.
BUT AGAIN, I, I, I THINK, I THINK FUTURE YEARS, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO LOOK BACK AND SEE WHERE WE'RE AT.
COUNCIL MEMBER, ARE YOU RECOMMENDING TRIMMING BACK ANY OF THE EXPENDITURES IN 7 3 0? WELL, I'M, I'M CURIOUS.
I THINK, I THINK THESE ARE MORE NATURAL CUTS THAN THE, UM, THE COMMUNICATIONS NUMBERS WE HAD SINCE THOSE HAD ACTUALS THAT WERE CLOSER.
SO I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR WHAT OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS SAY, BUT I, I CAN'T KNOW THESE NUMBERS, SO I CAN'T, I CAN'T JUST MAKE UP A NUMBER.
I MEAN, WHAT SPECIFICALLY ARE YOU, ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, UH, THE ONES THAT WERE 1 0 0 MOST, UH, DRAMATIC? UM, WERE, WERE, THE PARTS ACTUALS WERE MUCH LOWER.
UM, SOME, I UNDERSTAND GARAGE TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT, OBVIOUSLY WE'RE MOVING INTO A NEW, NEW FACILITY AND A DIFFERENT FACILITY.
UM, SO I'M, I, THOSE ARE EASY FOR ME TO SEE ARE THE ACTUALS ARE NOT REPRESENTATIVE.
BUT THE, THE ONE THAT JUMPED OUT TO ME WAS VEHICLE REPAIR PARTS.
AND, UM, AS COUNCIL MEMBER GARCIA SAID, UH, THE AUTO REPAIR, THAT, THAT'S NOT AS TRAUMATIC OF A, OF A, OF A JUMP.
SO VEHICLE PARTS, DO YOU WANNA EACH, DO YOU WANT TO TRIM EACH ONE BY $5,000? DO YOU WANNA, I MEAN, THEY'RE, THEY'RE PRETTY, THEY'RE THEY'RE PRETTY DIFFERENT NUMBERS.
YOU MEAN THE FIRST TWO OR, I WAS TALKING ABOUT 1 0 0 1 0 5.
ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT ONE I WOULD LOVE PERSONALLY, I WOULD LOVE TO, TO TRIM THOSE BY FIVE AND, UM, AND BE OPEN TO UNDERSTANDING THAT THERE MIGHT BE SOME, SOME COST THAT WAS UNFORESEEN THAT WE HAVE TO ACCOUNT FOR LATER.
WAS THERE A THIRD LINE ITEM THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADJUST? NO, I DON'T THINK.
AND THAT IS A SAVINGS OF $10,000 48,000 THOUSAND.
JOHN, YOU HAVE THE LAST WORD AND THEN WE ARE GOING TO THE AUDIENCE.
UM, I'D LIKE TO ASK ABOUT, I'D LIKE
[02:15:01]
TO ASK ABOUT CONTRACTUAL TEMPORARY LABOR FOR PUBLIC WORKS.CAN YOU GIVE US A NUMBER? 7 0 701 4 1 1 4 1.
THIS IS THE $190,000? THAT IS CORRECT.
MR. BRAMAN, CAN YOU JUST REFRESH, RECAP WHAT YOU SAID LAST WEEK ABOUT THE USE OF THIS VERSUS GO AHEAD.
WE'RE USING TEMP LABORERS TO BACKFILL SOME OF OUR, WELL, WE HAVE SIX FROZEN POSITIONS, UH, OVERALL, BUT, UH, MAINLY THE FOUR FROZEN LABOR POSITIONS.
UM, WE DON'T HAVE TO PAY FRINGE AND WE DON'T HAVE TO, UH, UH, ON THAT.
IT'S JUST A STRAIGHT DOLLAR AMOUNT.
UM, AND WE'VE BEEN, UM, WELL, SO WE, WE RELY ON THEM.
UM, IN FACT, THE LINE ITEMS THAT YOU JUST CUT WERE ALREADY CUT BACK, UH, UH, PRIOR TO THIS, THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
SO, UM, WE, WE, WE NEED THE, WE NEED THE, THE HELP AS EXACTLY THE COST.
I'VE BEEN ASKING, UH, MR. CARDENAS TO, TO, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN GETTING MY HANDS AROUND SOME OF THESE NUMBERS IN THE OVERTIME FOR, FOR ONE IN THE 54,000 IN RETIREMENT GOING UP, TRYING TO COME IN WITH, UH, NOT, YOU KNOW, OVER BUDGET.
UM, SO WE HAVE CUT BACK, UH, RECENTLY ON THAT, BUT I, I FULLY EXPECT TO COME NEAR TO SPENDING THE, THE ENTIRETY OF IT THIS YEAR.
UM, AND WE FROZE ANOTHER LABOR FOR THIS YEAR, AND THAT'S WHY WE WENT UP.
COUNCIL MEMBER, ARE YOU SUGGESTING CHANGE COMING DOWN FROM THE 1 9 0 NUMBER FOR 1 4 1? THAT WAS MY IDEA.
I WOULD'VE SAID, WHAT ARE PROPOSING 50? I WOULD'VE SAID ONE 50.
ANYBODY ELSE WANT TO GO WITH 180 1 70? DID YOU HAVE A COMMENT? COUNCIL MEMBER, WADE? ABOUT ONE FOUR.
1 4 1? OR YOU HAD YOUR HAND UP OR SOMETHING ELSE? YEAH, I JUST SAW THAT FROM THE ORIGINAL BUDGET.
UM, I THINK IT WAS CUT BY 10,000 ALREADY.
I'M LOOKING AT THE ORIGINAL ONE.
SO, UM, I ORIGINALLY PROPOSED TWO 20.
WE'VE BEEN, WE'VE BEEN CUTTING BACK THE USE OF THEM.
THAT'S WHY SOME OF OUR ACTUALS ARE LOW.
WE TRYING TO REALIZE WHAT THE IMPACT OF THE SNOW STORM AND SOME OTHER THINGS WERE ON OUR BUDGET.
WELL, YEAH, BUT THE, THE ORIGINAL ONE THAT WAS PRESENTED TO US WAS AT 200.
OKAY, SO HE'S ALREADY CUT IT ONCE.
DOES ANYBODY WANT TO COME DOWN FROM ONE 90? SOUNDS LIKE JOHN'S WILLING TO, IS ANYONE ELSE WILLING TO COME DOWN FROM ONE 90? CAN I, CAN I ASK A QUESTION ABOUT THAT? WHAT HAPPENS IF WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH IN THAT BUDGET? SO WHO, WHAT, WHAT CONTRACT DOESN'T GET, UH, ASSIGNED OR, OR WHATEVER? UM, WELL, UM, IF WE CAN'T HIRE THESE, THEN WE HAVE TECHNICALLY LESS PEOPLE ON THE TRUCK PICKING UP THE TRASH, SO IT AFFECTS ONE OF OUR CORE SERVICES.
OR WE CAN PULL THE MECHANIC AND HAVE HIM RIDING ON THE BACK OF THE TRUCK, WHICH I DON'T THINK IS COST BENEFICIAL.
UM, AND SO WE'LL BE TAKING, REMEMBER WE'VE FROZEN, WE HAVE FIVE LABORERS FROZEN, SO WE'RE TRYING TO BACKFILL FIVE POSITIONS, AND RIGHT NOW WE HAVE A CDL POSITION.
SO IN, IN ESSENCE, BACKFILL SIX POSITIONS WHEN IT COMES TO, SO IF WE DIVERT OUR REGULAR STAFF TO RIDING ON THE BACK OF THE TRUCK, UM, THEN, YOU KNOW, UH, UH, DEPENDING UPON THE SEASON, BUT THE OTHER MAINTENANCE ITEMS GET DEFERRED AND THE CCL FIXES TAKE, YOU KNOW, TWICE AS LONG OR THREE TIMES AS LONG.
UH, EE EVERYTHING WILL JUST TAKE MUCH LONGER TO GET IT DONE.
WE'LL GET THE TRASH DONE, BUT WE WON'T BE VERY, UH, UH, COST EFFECTIVE AT IT.
AND WE, AND, AND, AND EVERYTHING ELSE WILL BE MUCH SLOWER.
SO PERSONALLY, I THINK THIS IS A PRETTY GOOD, PRETTY EFFICIENT USE OF MONEY.
SO I, I WOULD KEEP IT SINCE IT HAS BEEN CUT ALREADY.
I'M NOT SEEING A LOT OF SUPPORT FOR MOVING OFF OF ONE 90.
JOHN, WHAT'S YOUR NEXT IDEA? UM, NOT SUPPORT IT.
I GOT WHAT DO YOU WANT IT TO BE? TAKE 10,000, I SUPPOSE.
ANYBODY ELSE? DAVID? I THINK WE SHOULD KEEP IT.
I, I ACTUALLY THINK THAT, I THINK THAT'S GOOD USE OF MONEY.
I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T MEAN TO CUT YOU OFF.
I WAS GONNA SAY IT'S GIVEN HOW MUCH ALL NUMBERS GO UP WHEN WE HIRE SOMEBODY, UH, WE PAY FOR RETIREMENT AND, AND BENEFITS AND ALL THAT.
I ACTUALLY THINK THIS IS, THIS IS WHERE YOU WANNA HIRE THE MECHANIC.
YOU WANT TO HIRE THE SPECIALISTS WHO,
[02:20:01]
WHO KNOW OUR, OUR TOWN.AND IF YOU'RE GONNA HAVE, UH, EXTRA MONEY FOR TEMPORARY LABOR, LET IT BE ON THE BACK OF THE TRASH TRUCK.
AND IIII WAS PERSUADED BY THE, THE FACT THAT IF WE HAVE TO PULL PEOPLE 'CAUSE PEOPLE NEED GET PICKED UP.
I MEAN, I WOULD SUPPORT IT AT 180, BUT THAT'S STILL ONLY THREE.
HEARING NO FURTHER, UH, IDEAS, IT'S TIME FOR RESIDENT INPUT ON, WE ARE DOWN TO $11,555,000 IN THE SPENDING PLAN.
WE HAVE TRIMMED OUT 48,500 IN ABOUT TWO HOURS.
IS THERE ANY MAYOR, COUNCIL, MAYOR, COUNCIL, CAN I, I THINK THERE WAS ANOTHER TRIMMING THAT DIDN'T GET PUT IN ON THIS ONE.
IT'S ON THE MAYOR AND COUNCILS.
CAN I, UH, POINT YOU IN THAT DIRECTION? GIMME ONE SECOND.
THAT'S STILL BUDGETED THERE AS 5,000.
WE AGREED TO PUT THAT TO 2,505.
THAT WAS TRIMMED DOWN TO 2,500.
RIGHT NOW WE HAVE A, A SURPLUS OF $51,000 BASED OFF OF THAT.
JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU INCLUDED THAT IN YOUR NUMBERS.
I DID NOT, BECAUSE IT'S NOT IN, SO IT'S BECAUSE IT WASN'T IN THE, WHAT I HAVE IN FRONT OF ME.
UM, SO I THINK THAT TAKES US TO 11 MILLION 5 52 AND SEVEN SOMETHING, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
IS THERE ANY PUBLIC INPUT ON THE $11,552,000 SPENDING PLAN? MR. MAYOR, CAN I POINT YOU IN ANOTHER DIRECTION AS WELL? I'M SORRY.
DO YOU, YOU HAVE ANOTHER CLERICAL ERROR IN WHAT I'M HOLDING IN MY HAND.
NOT A CLERICAL ERROR, JUST ANOTHER AREA WHERE, UH, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT CAN, UH, PERHAPS MAKE A CUT.
SORRY MA'AM, FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
UH, OUR ACTUALS IN 2024 WERE 19,000.
OUR ACTUALS IN 2025 WERE 39,000.
AS I INDICATED, UH, AT THE, I BELIEVE LAST WEEK, UH, THE, UH, POLICE DEPARTMENT UNDER THE, UH, GREAT WORK OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF HAS SOLICITED THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN DONATIONS IN BOTH MATERIAL GOODS, UH, FOOD AND UH, UM, UH, AND SOME MONETARY DONATIONS FOR OUR PUBLIC SAFETY DAY.
UH, AND SO CUTTING 15,000, WE'LL TRY TO MAKE IT WORK, UH, IF IT'S, UH, PAID BY THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL, IF WE HAVE TO SCALE BACK IN SOME OF THE AREAS, WE CAN DO THAT.
BUT I WANT TO ASSURE THE COMMUNITY THAT THERE'S A DISTINCT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND COMMUNITY POLICING, RIGHT? WE DO COMMUNITY POLICING EVERY DAY.
AND ON TUESDAY, THE, THE DEPUTY CHIEF KNOCKED ON EVERY DOOR, UH, IN AND AROUND THAT, UH, UM, PARTICULAR SCENE AND HAD CONVERSATIONS, AS DID SOME OF OUR OTHER OFFICERS WITH EVERY RESIDENT IN THAT IMMEDIATE AREA.
SO I, I DON'T WANT OUR COMMUNITY TO THINK THAT CUTTING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FUNDS SUGGEST THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO CONTINUE TO DO THE GOOD WORK WE DO IN COMMUNITY POLICING.
THIS IS 601 5 0 AND WE ARE TAKING IT DOWN TO $15,000, UH, WHICH SAVES US $15,000, WHICH I BELIEVE COUNSEL GIVES US A TOTAL SAVINGS OF $66,000 OFF OF THE 11 6 0 3 THAT WAS PRINTED.
ANYONE DISAGREE WITH THAT? OKAY.
MS. MOSELEY, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
YOUR NAME, YOUR WARD, AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
UH, JULIA MOSELEY, 50 YEAR RESIDENT OF WARD TWO RETIRED FIXED INCOME.
IF I COULD ASK A QUESTION FIRST BEFORE MY THREE MINUTES START.
I THINK A LOT OF US IN, UH, THE AUDIENCE ARE NOT QUITE UNDERSTANDING, UM,
[02:25:01]
WHAT'S HAPPENING TONIGHT.IN OTHER WORDS, UM, YOU, YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY PASSING A FINISHED BUD BUDGET IN JUNE.
IS THERE A VOTE TONIGHT? AND IS THAT JUST ON CONSTANT YIELD? I THINK WE'RE ALL ASKING EACH OTHER THAT IN THE AUDIENCE.
UH, SO WE ARE GOING, THIS $11,537,000 SPENDING PLAN WILL BE THE ONE INTRODUCED AT THE FIRST READER NEXT WEEK.
OBVIOUSLY THAT HAS TO INCLUDE REVENUE.
AND SO WHAT WE WILL DO IN A FEW MINUTES IS SWITCH TO THE REVENUE CONVERSATION AND WE WILL BE DECIDING THE TAX RATES AND PERHAPS SOME CHANGES TO THE FEE SCHEDULE IN ORDER TO HAVE THAT PUBLISHED IN THE FIRST READER.
SO, AND THAT'S PRESENTED TO THE TOWN BUT NOT ADOPTED, CORRECT? UH, IT WILL BE PRESENTED AT THE, AS THE FIRST READER AND INTRODUCED NEXT.
SO, SO THE ONLY, I MEAN, WE'LL DO A STRAW POLL ON THE TAX RATE AND THEN THAT'LL BE PUBLISHED AND THEN THERE WILL NOT BE A VOTE PER SE UNTIL JUNE 11TH ON THIRD READER AND FINAL ADOPTION.
AND SO THAT COULD, WHAT'S DECIDED TONIGHT COULD CHANGE.
AND WHAT EVEN HAPPENS AT THE FIRST READER NEXT WEEK ABSOLUTELY COULD CHANGE.
SO, SO THE 11,000,537 IS NOT SET IN STONE RIGHT EITHER, BUT IT IS THE FINAL FIRST DRAFT THAT WILL BE INTRODUCED NEXT THURSDAY.
I THINK THAT'S WHAT FOLKS WANNA KNOW.
UM, SO I GUESS NOW MY THREE MINUTES.
UM, YOU JUST CANNOT RAISE OUR TAX RATE AGAIN AND YOU ABSOLUTELY CANNOT RAISE OUR TAX RATE.
5 CENTS, I THINK YOU'VE HEARD FROM FOLKS IN TOWN.
UM, MY NEXT STATEMENT IS, THANK YOU MAYOR.
THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER FROM WARD TWO AND ONE FOR PUSHING THIS BACK TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO SPEAK AND BE HEARD.
UM, THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL DID NOT RAISE OUR TAX RATE LAST YEAR, BUT BECAUSE OF THE CONSTANT YIELD ISSUE, OUR TAXES WENT UP.
IF THIS YEAR, MAYOR AND COUNCIL KEEP OUR TAX RATE AT WHAT IT IS NOW, TAXES WILL GO UP $264,177 IN, IN ITS ENTIRETY.
AND THAT IS 170 TO $200 TO THE AVERAGE HOMEOWNER.
IT IS NOT A TAX RATE INCREASE.
SO, UM, SO IN ORDER NOT TO RAISE OUR TAXES, TAX RATE, EXCUSE ME, WE NEED TO CUT UP TO $470,000.
SO I AM SUGGESTING THE FOLLOWING $336,000 IN CUTS.
AND SOME OF THEM YOU'VE ALREADY DISCUSSED TONIGHT.
UM, AND IT'S A LITTLE UNCLEAR BECAUSE THE PUBLIC DID NOT GET THE REVISED BUDGET FROM LAST WEEK UNTIL MID MEETING.
SO HERE I GO AND MAYBE HAVE A LITTLE LEEWAY.
UM, I ESTIMATED I'M KIND OF PROUD OF MYSELF THAT, UH, THAT COLA AT 2% WOULD BE, UM, WELL THAT, EXCUSE ME, THAT, UH, 90,000 WAS THE AMOUNT.
SO I WAS ONLY OFF A FEW THOUSAND.
BUT, UM, IF, IF YOU CUT COLA TO 1%, THAT'S A $45,000 SAVINGS, I WOULD NOT TOUCH MERIT.
'CAUSE THAT TAKES AWAY, UH, SOME FLEXIBILITY ON THE PART OF YOUR PROFESSIONAL STAFF.
AND IT ALSO, IF I'M REMEMBERING CORRECTLY, KIND OF MESSES UP YOUR STEP SYSTEM.
AND IT MEANS PEOPLE MISS AN INCREASE WHERE 1% CUT IN COLA.
SO TUITION, ALL MY OTHER, ALL MINE EXCEPT FOR ONE, ARE NOT, ARE REDUCTIONS, NOT CUT CUTS.
SO TUITION ASSISTANCE, ALL DEPARTMENTS WOULD BE 20,000, THE ONE, AND THE BIG THING IS A ONE AND A HALF CUT.
ALL DEPARTMENTS, WE'VE ALL HAD TO DO THIS IN OUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE THAT'S NOT ONEROUS.
AND YOU HAVE A PROFESSIONAL STAFF THAT COMES TO 48,000, 63,000, 61,000 PER DEPART PER DIVISION.
[02:30:01]
PROFESSIONAL PEOPLE, THEY CAN FIND THAT.AND THEY ARE BETTER AT FINDING THOSE CUTS IN TRAVEL OR UNIFORMS THAN YOU ARE HERE TONIGHT.
THE ONLY CUT, HOMETOWN HEROES, 4,000 CONSTITUENT SERVICE AND STRATEGIC PLANNING, ALL DEPARTMENTS 10,000, UH, OVER TIME, ALL DEPARTMENTS.
I WOULD NOT ELIMINATE, UH, UM, FIREWORKS ON OUR 95TH ANNIVERSARY.
I WOULD CONSIDER DOING THAT IN PREV IN SUBSEQUENT YEARS.
BUT YOU CAN NOT PROVIDE GOLF CARTS.
YOU CAN CUT CHEVROLET DAY BY 5,000 WITHOUT RUINING THE DAY.
UM, ALL GRANTS, OUR GRANTS HAVE CONTINUALLY GROWN AND GROWN AND GROWN ALL GRANTS TO TOWN GROUPS AND ORGANIZATIONS.
I WOULD TAKE 5,000 OUT OF THAT.
UH, I TOO HAD 10,000 TO COME OUT OF THE CONTRACTORS.
UH, MY CONCERN ON THAT IS ARE THEY EARNING A LIVING WAGE? I'M ASSUMING WE KNOW THAT THEY ARE.
WHEN I SAW THAT NUMBER NEW BUILDING, UM, CONTINGENCIES, I WOULD TAKE 20,000 OUT THIS BUILDING.
I WON'T GO INTO WHAT THIS IS DRIVING OUR BUDGET, BUT I WOULD TAKE THAT OUT AND THE NEWSLETTER, A LOT OF DISCUSSION TONIGHT.
I WOULD REDUCE THAT THIS YEAR BY 5,000 BY TAKING OUT COLORING PAGES.
AND I WOULD JUST REDUCE THE SIZE BY 25% AND THEN ENGAGE YOUR RESIDENTS OVER THE NEXT YEAR AS TO WHAT THEY WANT.
YOU NEED TO HEAR FROM ALL OF US AS TO WHAT WE'RE WILLING TO GIVE UP.
UM, FOR EXAMPLE, TRASH PICK PICKUP.
I WOULD NOT CHANGE IN THIS BUDGET BECAUSE MR. BRAMAN CAN'T POSSIBLY GIVE YOU AN ANSWER THAT IT WOULD SAVE $50,000 THAT'S BEEN FLOATED OUT THERE.
DO YOU NEED A NEW TRASH TRUCK TO PICK THE SAME AMOUNT OF TRASH UP, YOU KNOW, IN, IN HALF THE TIME? HAVE THAT AS A TASK FOR MR. BRAMAN.
UM, FIREWORKS I'VE, I'VE MENTIONED, UM, IN THIS IS IMPORTANT.
IN 2020, IN 2020, CHEVROLET'S TAX RATE WAS 51 CENTS.
STARTING THIS YEAR WITHOUT THE 5 CENT INCREASE, IT'S 58 CENTS.
YOUR RESIDENTS CANNOT SUSTAIN THAT.
MORE IMPORTANT THAN THAT IS FIVE YEARS AGO, 2020, THE AMOUNT OF TAX PAID TO PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY WAS 86 CENTS WITH NO TAX RATE INCREASE.
CHEVROLET IS NOW PAYING 91 CENTS.
CAN WE, DO YOU HAVE ANY, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE ON, ON EXPENSES? 'CAUSE WE'RE, WE ARE GONNA DO, WE'RE GONNA DO REVENUE SEPARATELY.
SO DO YOU HAVE ONE MORE COMMENT ON EXPENSES BECAUSE I WANNA MAKE SURE EVERYONE HAS A CHANCE TO COMMENT ON EXPENSES.
UM, I HATE A DIFFERENT MEETING IS HOW WE GOT HERE IN THIS DEPLORABLE CONDITION.
HOWEVER, I AM CONCERNED THAT IT IS SOMETIMES PUT OUT THERE THAT IT'S THE POLICE 24 7 PROFESSIONAL POLICING THAT WE NOW HAVE IS WHAT IS BREAKING THE BUDGET.
IT CERTAINLY AFFECTS IT, THIS BUILDING AFFECTS IT, BUT ALL DEPARTMENTS, GENERAL GOVERNMENT, MAYOR AND COUNCIL SALARIES, ALL OF IT HAS AFFECTED US.
FOR EXAMPLE, AND I'M NOT PICKING ON PUBLIC WORKS 'CAUSE I THINK YOU'RE TERRIFIC IN TWO YEARS.
IN TWO YEARS FROM 2025 TO 2026, NOT COUNTING THIS NEW BUILDING, THE PUBLIC WORKS BUDGET WENT UP BY $550,000.
IT IS TIME TO CUT EXPENSES AND NOT MAKE THE ASSUMPTION THAT WE'RE GONNA SOLVE EVERYTHING BY A BIG TAX INCREASE.
AND THIS YEAR THAT WAS 5 CENTS AND WE CAN'T DO IT.
AND THERE WILL BE, YEAH, WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO HAVE REVENUE COMMENTS AND THEN WE ARE GONNA HAVE A REVENUE DISCUSSION AND PUBLIC COMMENTS.
UH, MR. PRICE, DO YOU HAVE YOUR HAND UP FOR REVENUE? UH, EXPENSES MAYOR? UM, YES.
JUST WANNA ASK MAYOR AND COUNCIL TO, EXCUSE ME, I HAVE TO HEAD OUT TO WORK, BUT I WILL BE, UM,
[02:35:01]
ONLINE.MR. PRICE, DO YOU HAVE YOUR HAND UP FOR EXPENSES? GO AHEAD AND UNMUTE YOURSELF AND TRY TO SPEAK YOU JUST, YOU'RE STILL MUTED ON MY SCREEN.
AM I ON MUTE? YEAH, GO AHEAD SIR.
YOUR NAME AND YOUR WORD AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES ON EXPENSES.
IF YOU'RE TALKING, IT'S A 25 FOOT PRICE.
SO WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA PAUSE YOUR MUTED.
YOU'RE, YOU'RE BREAKING UP I THINK.
WE'RE GOING TO GO BACK TO THE ROOM AND THEN, UH, WE WILL COME BACK TO YOU MR. PRICE, IF YOU'RE ABLE TO GET A BETTER CONNECTION.
YOUR NAME AND WARD AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES ON EXPENSES.
ALRIGHT, THANK YOU MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS.
MY NAME IS LANE THOMPSON, WARD THREE.
UH, AND I'M GONNA TAKE LESS THAN THREE MINUTES.
MY THOUGHT PROCESS IN THINKING ABOUT THIS IS A LITTLE INTERTWINED WITH EXPENSES AND REVENUE, SO BEAR WITH ME, BUT IT WILL BE, UM, SORT OF TAILORED TO EXPENSES.
AND I'M GONNA GIVE YOU A MOTIVATIONAL PEP TALK REAL QUICK.
'CAUSE I KNOW IT'S BEEN A VERY, UH, DETAILED AND THIS IS A PAINFUL PROCESS.
BUT I JUST WANNA REMIND YOU ALL, UM, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU ALL FOR GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS AND REMIND YOU WHY IT'S SO IMPORTANT THAT, UM, PROPOSED 5 CENT INCREASE TO THE PROPERTY TAX RATE IS VERY, VERY CONCERNING.
UM, AND I NEED FOR YOU ALL TO UNDERSTAND WHY.
I WANNA GIVE YOU SOME OF MY PERSPECTIVE.
AS A PERSON THAT WORKS IN TAX WITH A NUMBER OF RESIDENTS HERE IN TOWN, THE TAX BILLS OVER THE PAST YEARS HAVE COME UP, NOT JUST AS WAS MS. MOSLEY POINTED OUT, NOT JUST FROM THE TOWN, BUT FROM THE, THE COUNTY AS WELL.
AND OTHER TAX BURDENS THAT PEOPLE ARE FACING HAVE BECOME HONESTLY ASTOUNDING.
AND WE ARE AT A POINT THEY ARE NOT SUSTAINABLE.
AND WE'RE AT A POINT IF WE ENTERTAIN THESE INCREASES, WE ARE ESSENTIALLY LOOKING AT PRICING, MIDDLE PRICED, MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES OUT OF CHEVROLET.
IT IS JUST ABSOLUTELY NOT SUSTAINABLE.
THERE ARE THIS 5 CENT INCREASE.
I KNOW IT'S AN EASY GRAB, RIGHT? BECAUSE EVERY CENT THAT WE RAISE THIS PROPERTY TAX IS GONNA YIELD A LITTLE LESS THAN A HUNDRED K.
SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING AROUND A 500 K SHORTFALL, UH, THERE'S YOUR EASY ANSWER.
I YOU ALL ARE NOT TAKING IT AS THE EASY ANSWER.
I CAN TELL THAT TONIGHT AND FOR THE WORK YOU'VE DONE IN THE PAST, AND I APPRECIATE THAT.
BUT I JUST WANNA ENCOURAGE YOU TO KEEP AT THIS.
PLEASE KEEP DOING IT BECAUSE IT'S SO IMPORTANT.
UH, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IF YOU DON'T TAKE THAT EASY GRAB, WE NEED YOU TO BE THE, THE DISCIPLINED PEOPLE AND MAKE THE HARD CHOICES.
WE HAVE CLEARLY OVEREXTENDED OURSELVES AND GOTTEN USED TO LUXURIES OF PAYING FOR THINGS THAT WE CAN'T KEEP DOING IN THE SAME WAY IN THE CURRENT FINANCIAL CLIMATE.
SO WE NEED YOU ALL TO TIGHTEN THE BELTS RATHER THAN JUST PASSING THIS OFF TO THE RESIDENTS WHO WILL THEN HAVE TO MAKE HARD CHOICES ABOUT CAN THEY PAY FOR THEIR KIDS TUTORING FOR THIS YEAR? 'CAUSE THAT EXTRA $500 WAS GONNA GO FOR THAT.
OR MAYBE IT WAS GONNA GO FOR IMPROVING A PIECE OF, UM, FALLEN INFRASTRUCTURE ON THEIR PROPERTY THAT BOTHERS THEIR NEIGHBORS.
THESE THINGS REALLY, REALLY DO MATTER.
SO I'M ASKING YOU TO PLEASE KEEP THAT IN MIND.
AND WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE EXPENSE SIDE OF CUTTING, PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH WHAT WE, WHAT WE CARE ABOUT, WHAT THE RESIDENTS CARE ABOUT IS WE CARE ABOUT OUR POLICING AND WE CARE ABOUT CORE SERVICES FROM BOTH THE TOWN FRONT OFFICE AND THE UM, PUBLIC WORKS.
AND WE WANT THAT PART TO BE DONE AS EFFICIENTLY AS POSSIBLE.
I HAVE NOTHING BUT THE GREATEST RESPECT FOR MR. GALLOWAY, MR. BRAMAN TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT HAPPENS.
BUT I'M HEARING SOME, THERE'S RESISTANCE, RIGHT? EVERYBODY HAS IS TRYING TO DO THEIR BEST, BUT YOU'RE JUST GONNA HAVE TO TIGHTEN THAT BELT A LITTLE BIT MORE.
WE NEED YOU TO FIND THOSE CUTS.
WE'RE REALLY TRUSTING YOU TO DO SO.
UH, MR. PRICE, IF YOU'RE OUT, MR. PRICE, IF YOU'RE OUT THERE, PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF.
UM, JUAN, YOU HAVE YOUR HAND UP? CORRECT? OKAY.
YOUR NAME, YOUR WARD, AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES ON EXPENSES.
UM, I GUESS JUST TO START OFF, I AM VERY HAPPY THAT THE TOWN DOES HAVE 24 HOUR POLICING.
[02:40:01]
AS A QUOTE UNQUOTE NEW RESIDENT TO THE TOWN, IT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT, YOU WANNA FEEL SAFE, ESPECIALLY IF ANYTHING HAPPENS, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN CALL SOMEBODY.UM, PUBLIC WORKS, OBVIOUSLY GARBAGE HAS TO BE COLLECTED AND IF IT JUST MATTERS, IF IT MAKES SENSE TO BUY QUOTE UNQUOTE A NEW TRUCK THAT HELPS THEM BRING DOWN EXPENSES THROUGHOUT A COUPLE YEARS, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU SHOULD LOOK INTO.
MAYBE IT IS MORE COST EFFECTIVE TO GET A NEWER TRUCK THAT REQUIRES LESS REPAIRS OVER AN OLDER TRUCK.
UM, FOR THE NEWSLETTER, YOU GUYS HAVE A REALLY GREAT WEBSITE FROM THE LOOKS OF IT, EVERYTHING WORKS GREAT.
WHY NOT PUT AN ELECTRIC VERSION ON THE WEBSITE THAT PEOPLE CAN JUST CLICK ON WHENEVER THEY FEEL LIKE IT.
AND IF ANYTHING, MAYBE IF SOMEBODY DOES WANT A PHYSICAL COPY, HOLD IT AT CITY HALL AND HAVE THEM COME PICK IT UP THERE.
YOU DON'T REQUIRE TO HAVE THAT MANY COPIES ON HOLD.
AND IF YOU DO AFTER A COUPLE MONTHS, YOU'LL KNOW HOW MANY YOU NEED TO PRINT AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
UM, OBVIOUSLY I KNOW THAT YOU GUYS WERE ALSO TALKING ABOUT THE TREES, UM, BEING SOMETHING THAT YOU WANNA TAKE A LINK TO.
I HAVE NOTICED THAT SOME PRIVATE PEOPLE THAT PLANT TREES ARE CHARGING MINIMUM $300 FOR INSTALLATION ON JUST THE TREE.
THAT'S WITHOUT BUYING THE TREE.
SO I KNOW SOME PEOPLE BE, MIGHT SAY, HEY, I PREFER A FREE TREE, I GET THAT.
BUT IF YOU HAVE TO PAY 50, A HUNDRED, 175, WHICH IS STILL, I WANT TO SAY, WAY UNDER MARKET FOR A SOLID TREE, MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION AND SAY, YOU KNOW WHAT, WE'LL CHARGE FOR THE TREE, BUT OBVIOUSLY WE'RE INSTALLING THE TREE FOR FREE.
YOU ARE SAVING ON THAT ASPECT AS WELL.
THAT'S JUST SOME THINGS THAT, UH, MAYBE YOU GUYS WANNA, YOU KNOW, TAKE A LOOK INTO AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND THEN OBVIOUSLY AS, UM, THE LADY BEFORE ME WAS SPEAKING ABOUT THE TAXES.
I KNOW IT'S QUOTE UNQUOTE 5%, 5 CENTS, EASY TO GO.
BUT IF IT'S POSSIBLE TO NOT BRING UP TAXES, LIKE SHE SAID, TO HAVE SOME PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN LIVING IN THE TOWN FOREVER AND NOW THEY MIGHT HAVE TO MOVE OR LOOK OUT ELSEWHERE.
AND I MEAN, FOR ME, OBVIOUSLY, I, I LIKE THE CHIEF SAID FOR THE OFFICERS, IF YOU HAVE GOOD OFFICERS, LAST THING YOU WANNA DO IS LOSE THEM.
UM, I GUESS YOU GUYS HAVE TO LOOK AT CONTRACTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, BUT I'M NOT OPPOSED TO PAYING THE COPS A LITTLE BIT MORE.
IF THEY'RE GOOD, EVERYTHING IS GOING TO, YOU KNOW, WORK OUT FOR THE RESIDENTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
UH, SEEING NO FURTHER PUBLIC IMP OKAY, JUST ME.
SHEILA'S GONNA HAVE THE LAST WORD ON THE, NO, IT'S NOT MUCH OF A WORD.
SO, UM, UNDER THE NON DEDE DEPARTMENTAL, UM, 5, 10, 100, ET CETERA, UM, WE HAVE OUR EXPENSES FOR MUNICIPAL BUILDING SUPPLIES, UTILITIES, ET CETERA.
THAT I PRESUME THE, HERE, THE MUNICIPAL BUILDING MEANS THE BUILDING ON THE HILL, THE COMMUNITY CENTER, IT'S GOT ABOUT SIX DIFFERENT NAMES, RIGHT? UM, IF THAT'S THE CASE, WHERE DO WE HAVE THE SAME EXPENSES FOR THIS BUILDING NOW I KNOW IT HAS TO SOMEHOW BE SPLIT UP BETWEEN PUBLIC WORKS AND US.
WE ARE USING A LOT OF ELECTRICITY, YOU KNOW, AND I DON'T SEE IT HERE ANYWHERE.
IS IT UNDER PUBLIC WORKS? IT SHOULD BE SPLIT RIGHT? BETWEEN GENERAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS.
NO, IT'S IN, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO PAY THE PAY USE, RIGHT? TO PAY.
ALL THE UTILITIES ARE LUMPED TOGETHER.
YOU'RE GOING TO LUMP THE, THESE, THIS, THIS, SO THIS MUNICIPAL BUILDING FIVE 10, MM-HMM
WELL, YES, BUT IS THAT REALLY THE CASE? YES.
I SWEAR
ALRIGHT, ARE THERE FURTHER? YES.
PUBLIC INPUT ON EXPENSES, PLEASE COME UP.
A LITTLE DIFFERENT THINGS CHANGED, BUT I THINK IT'S WORTH A QUICK LOOK.
FIRST OF ALL, JUST WANNA SAY, TIMES ARE TOUGH.
AS WE ALL KNOW, PEOPLE ARE STRUGGLING.
PEOPLE IN THIS TOWN ARE STRUGGLING, BUDGETS ARE HARD.
THANK YOU ALL FOR, UM, REMOVING.
ONE THING I WAS GONNA TALK ABOUT TONIGHT REALLY QUICKLY WAS THE, UM, COMPOST FOOD SCRAPS PROGRAM.
UM, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT NEEDS AND WANTS.
IN MY MIND, THIS PROGRAM SHOULD, IT WAS REALLY EXPENSIVE.
WE, WE, AS YOU SAID, DEATH BY A THOUSAND CUTS.
HOW LONG DID IT TAKE US TO GET TO $51,000? CUTTING HAIR.
[02:45:01]
CUTTING THERE IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO FUND THE POLICE AND THE PUBLIC WORKS.AS WE SAID, THIS PARTICULAR PROGRAM ONLY SERVED A SMALL NUMBER OF PEOPLE.
UM, WHEN YOU LOOK AT IT WAS 6% OF THE ENTIRE TOWN WAS BEING SERVED.
IT WAS 19% OF THE TOTAL SANITATION BUDGET WAS THE COST.
IT'S ACTUALLY SHOWING THAT THERE WAS NO EXPENSE.
BUT WE DID ACTUALLY PAY $15,000 TOWARD THAT THIS YEAR.
AND IT'S GREAT TO HOLD BACK AND NOT HAVE TO DUMP, UH, YOU KNOW, TO KEEP, UM, TO DIVERT TONNAGE.
BUT DOLLARS AND CENTS ARE THE AMOUNT OF TONNAGE THAT WAS DIVERTED BY WHAT WE WOULD'VE PAID TO JUST DUMP IT AT THE TOWN.
OR I'M SORRY, THE DUMP WAS $1,122.
BUT WE WERE BUDGETING $45,000 FOR THIS.
SO WHAT I SUGGEST IS WHEN THIS SORT OF THING COMES BEFORE MAYOR AND COUNCIL LOOK DEEP DIVE AND LOOK AT THESE NUMBERS, NUMBERS DON'T LIE.
OKAY? WELL NUMBER ONE, NUMBER TWO, AND AGAIN, I'M THANKING YOU ALL FOR RECOGNIZING THAT THAT WAS A A A A WANT AND NOT A NEED BY JUST ELIMINATING 45,000 EACH PENNY.
UH, IT WAS ROUGHLY EACH PENNY ON THE TAX RATE IS ROUGHLY 94,000.
BY ELIMINATING THIS SINGLE ITEM, IT WAS A HALF A CENT RIGHT THERE.
NOW THAT BEING SAID, I'M NOT OPPOSED TO COMPOSTING.
LEMME FIND MY THIRD THING HERE.
AND THE PA PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, YOUR GREEN TEAM, UH, OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE, WHO WAS THIS GREEN TEAM REPRESENTATIVES FOR SUSTAINABLE MARYLAND.
WE'VE BEEN TO SEVEN DIFFERENT TOWNS, SPENDING MANY HOURS DRIVING UP AND DOWN OLIVER MARYLAND MEETING WITH THEIR GREEN TEAMS. WHAT ARE THEY DOING? WE COME, WE TALK ABOUT IT.
I MENTIONED THAT THESE TOWNS HAD COMPOSTING PROGRAMS. NOBODY CAME TO ME AND SAID, HEY, HOW ARE THEY DOING IT? WHAT, WHAT ARE THEY? HOW DO THEY PAY FOR IT? SO PLEASE USE YOUR VOLUNTEERS.
LISTEN TO WHAT WE BRING TO YOU.
DON'T IGNORE US AND BRING YOUR OWN LITTLE PET PROJECTS.
IN FACT, I HAVE CALLS IN RIGHT NOW.
I JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT THIS THIS WEEK.
BUT I HAVE CALLS IN TO THE GREEN TEAM MEMBERS THAT I MET BEFORE AT VARIOUS TOWNS AND I'M GONNA APPROACH THEM AND SAY, HOW DO YOU DO IT? AND MAYBE IN A FUTURE DISCUSSION WE CAN BRING A SUSTAINABLE, AFFORDABLE COMPOSTING PROGRAM TO THE TOWN.
SO AGAIN, THANKS FOR ELIMINATING THIS IN THE FUTURE.
LONG TERM, 30 YEAR RESIDENT WARD SIX.
I WANNA BEGIN BY STATING THAT AT THE HEARING LAST WEEK, YOU ALL SET BEFORE US AND PROMISED THAT YOU WERE GONNA COME BACK THIS WEEK WITH TAX CUTS LOOKING ACROSS ALL DEPARTMENTS.
I WANT TO GIVE CREDIT TO COUNCIL MEMBER WADE AND COUNCIL MEMBER LAGO CLOSE ENOUGH, RIGHT FOR AVERTING THE VOTE AT THAT TIME, WHICH IS WHY WE ARE HERE TONIGHT.
HOWEVER, THIS PROCESS SEEMS LIKE IT IS ARBITRARY AND THE DISCUSSION THAT YOU ARE HAVING BEFORE US, THE PUBLIC LOOKS LIKE SOMETHING THAT YOU ALL SHOULD HAVE HAD IN PRIVATE AND COME WITH US WITH THE, HERE'S THE DETAILS.
AND WE DON'T SEE THAT, UM, UNLIKE TAX, TAX INCREASES THEY LAST FOREVER.
WE ARE SAYING THAT WE DO NOT WANT A TAX RATE INCREASE, THAT THERE IS ENOUGH PORK IN OUR BUDGET THAT WE CAN CUT IT.
WE AGREED LAST WEEK TO IDENTIFY WANTS VERSUS NEEDS.
AND I DON'T THINK THAT'S STILL CLEAR YET.
IT'S LIKE YOUR OWN PERSONAL BUDGET.
SOME THINGS YOU JUST HAVE TO LET GO.
YOU MAY NOT HAVE THAT COUNTRY CLUB MEMBERSHIP.
YOU HAVE TO LET IT GO FOR A YEAR OR TWO UNTIL YOU ARE ABLE TO GET YOUR FINANCES ON TRACK.
BUT I THINK WE MOST DEFINITELY DO NOT NEED TO BE LOOKING AT A TAX UH, INCREASE.
I AGREE WITH FORMER MAYOR MOSLEY AND HER POSITION.
I THINK MOST OF THE RESIDENTS THAT HAVE BEEN VERY VOCAL LAST WEEK AND THIS WEEK, WE DO NOT WANT A TAX RATE INCREASE.
YOU'VE HEARD THERE ARE OTHER AVENUES FOR WHICH WE CAN BALANCE OUR BUDGET AND WE EXPECT THAT YOU ALL THE EXPERTS WILL MAKE THOSE CUTS,
[02:50:01]
MAKE THOSE HARD DECISIONS.YOU CAN'T HAVE EVERYTHING YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO.
ALTHOUGH WE WOULD LIKE TO, WE CAN'T.
THIS IS A YEAR THAT WE HAVE TO TIGHTEN OUR BELTS.
WE, I, LAST WEEK I TALKED ABOUT JUST WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THE HOMEOWNERS AND FORECLOSURES, THE RATES.
WE HAVE A CITIZEN BE HERE IN CHEVROLET THAT IS AGING.
WE PROMISE TO HAVE AGING IN PLACE AS AN OPTION AND I'M CONCERNED THAT THAT'S NOT GONNA BE A REALITY.
SO I URGE YOU ALL TO TAKE UNDER SERIOUS CONSIDERATION WHAT YOU'VE HEARD FROM YOUR CONSTITUENTS AND WHAT WE WANT.
IT SEEMED KIND OF ODD SOME OF THESE LAST MINUTE DISCUSSIONS.
UM, AND A GENERAL COMMENT I'D LIKE TO MAKE, UM, ON THE BUDGET, YOU KNOW, WE JUST DID GET IT, WE DIDN'T GET IT TILL AFTER THE MEETING STARTED, BUT I THINK IT SHOULD HAVE SOME SORT OF SUPPORTING DOCUMENT THAT EXPLAINS SOME OF THESE THINGS.
THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF JARGON IN THERE THAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND.
UH, ONE OF THE EXAMPLES IS THE, UM, UNDER THE, UH, PERSONNEL SERVICE OR UNDER THE CON CONTRACTS RATHER THE, UM, PROFESSIONAL SERVICES PM UTILITIES.
I DON'T, I'M NOT SURE WHAT THAT IS.
I THINK IF IT WAS ACCOMPANIED BY SOME SORT OF EXPLANATORY DOC EXPLANATORY DOCUMENT OR A LINK TO ONE ONLINE, IT WOULD BE, I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL.
UM, I WAS CURIOUS WHY THERE WAS, THERE WAS NO DISCUSSION OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE, UH, SALARIES AND BUDGETS, UH, IN THE BUDGET.
I'M, THAT JUST SORT OF SURPRISED ME AND I WASN'T SURE WHY THAT HAPPENED.
IT SEEMED TO ME THAT EVERYTHING ELSE WAS FAIR GAME AND I'M NOT SURE WHY THAT WASN'T, OR AT LEAST IT DIDN'T COME UP AS A TOPIC.
UM, AND THEN THE LAST THING I WANTED TO MENTION, UM, I'M WONDERING IF, UH, THE TOWN IS USING AS MUCH ADVANTAGE AS IT CAN OF THEIR EXPERTISE THAT'S IN TOWN TO DO SOME OF THESE THINGS THAT ARE BEING BUDGETED FOR.
UM, I NOTICED THERE'S AN HR CONSULTANT.
I REALIZE THERE MAY BE CONFIDENTIAL CONFIDENTIALITY ISSUES, ET CETERA ON THAT, BUT I'M SURE THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT ARE HR EXPERTS THAT ARE EITHER EMPLOYED OR RETIRED AND HAVE A LOT OF EXPERTISE AT THE TALENT TO LEVERAGE.
SIMILARLY WITH THE UM, UH, UH, COMMUNICATIONS, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE A LOT OF US THAT HAVE WORKED IN COMMUNICATIONS.
I I WORKED IN SCIENCE COMMUNICATIONS.
IT'S DIFFERENT, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF, OF AVAILABLE TALENT THAT I THINK PEOPLE WOULD LIKE TO VOLUNTEER AND, YOU KNOW, HELP THE TOWN MAKE USE OF THEIR EXPERTISE FOR NOTHING.
SO I JUST WANNA ENCOURAGE YOU TO EXPLORE THOSE OPTIONS WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO THE ACTUAL SPENDING THE MONEY.
IS THERE ANY OTHER PUBLIC INPUT ON THE EXPENDITURE PLAN? OKAY, COUNSEL, UM, HOLD FOR A SECOND.
I'M ACTUALLY LIVING IN WARD FOUR FOR OVER 30 YEARS.
I ACTUALLY, IT'S ACTUALLY A FAMILY ESTATE AND I'VE GREW UP IN THAT HOUSE.
UM, MY ONLY CONCERNS IS BASICALLY FROM WHAT I'VE, WHAT I'VE ACTUALLY LEARNED TONIGHT.
THIS IS MY FIRST TIME I'M ACTUALLY COMING TO THE TOWN HALL MEETING IN SO MANY YEARS.
UM, IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S SO MUCH GOING ON AND I DON'T THINK THAT ANYONE HAS PRETTY MUCH ANY IDEA ON HOW MUCH THIS IS AFFECTING ALL THE RESIDENTS OF, INCLUDING MYSELF.
UM, THIS TAX BILL EACH YEAR SINCE MY FATHER DIED, HE PASSED AWAY IN 2024 REST OR SO.
THE TAX BILL HAS BEEN GOING UP AT LEAST THREE TO $4,000 EACH YEAR.
I LITERALLY JUST PAID $11,000 3, 650 AND 63 CENTS THIS YEAR.
AND HONESTLY, I HOPE ALL OF YOU ALL CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT BECAUSE IT'S ACTUALLY ANNOYING.
AND PEOPLE BEHIND ME ARE, CAN EVEN, UH, YOU KNOW, ADMIT THE SAME THING.
UM, I HEARD YOU ARE MISSING TREES.
HOW MANY MORE TREES ARE SHOVELING EAST? THERE'S SO MANY TREES HERE.
AND THE NEWSLETTERS, I THROW THOSE AWAY AS SOON AS I LOOK AT IT.
SO YOU COULD I LOOK ON THE WEBSITE BEFORE I LOOK AT THE NEWSLETTER? PEOPLE HERE BARELY CHECK THEIR MAIL AND THIS BUILDING IS NICE.
WHAT, WHAT ABOUT THE COMMUNITY CENTER? WHEN THEY GONNA UPGRADE THAT INSTEAD OF HAVING PEOPLE USE THE COURTS? YOU SEE THERE AIN'T BEEN NO UPGRADES UP THERE IN YEARS.
AND THEN THESE STREETS, I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW WHERE THIS MONEY GOING TO AT THE END OF THE DAY.
I JUST HOPE YOU ALL CAN REALLY GET THAT TOGETHER HONESTLY.
'CAUSE RIGHT NOW I'VE BEEN HERE FOR THREE HOURS OR TWO AND A HALF, THREE HOURS.
IT DON'T SEEM LIKE ANYTHING GOT ACCOMPLISHED.
UH, WE WILL COUNSEL, I GUESS WE NEED A MOTION TO EXTEND THE
[02:55:01]
MEETING TO HAVE A REVENUE DISCUSSION.WHAT TIME IS IT TO EXTEND THE MEETING? REALISTIC? 30 MINUTES.
CAN WE TAKE FIVE MINUTES THOUGH? WE BE, YOU WANT A FIVE MINUTE BREAK? IS THAT WHAT YOU SAID? I, UM, I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO EXTEND THE MEETING TILL 1105 TO INCLUDE A FIVE MINUTE BREAK.
DOES ANYONE WANT A SECOND? SECOND.
UM, OKAY, IT'S BEEN MOTIONED AND SECONDED.
IS IT? SORRY, WHO SECONDED IT? DAVID.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? OKAY, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS? ALL RIGHT.
THE MOTION PASSES FOUR TO NOTHING.
THANK YOU FOR 30 MINUTES TO FINISH THE MEETING.
ALRIGHT, WE'RE GONNA RECONVENE NOW AND DISCUSS THE, UM, REVENUE SIDE OF THE EQUATION AGAIN.
WE'RE, UM, UH, WE ARE GONNA START WITH, WELL I DEFER TO MR. GALLOWAY ON WHAT NEEDS TO BE DISCUSSED WITH THE OTHER ELEMENTS THAT ARE NOT TAXES.
I THINK THE ONLY THING REALLY ON THE AGENDA IS THE FEE SCHEDULE.
UM, SO LET US DISCUSS, UNLESS I'M CONFUSED AND I'M MISSING ANOTHER ELEMENT.
LET US QUICKLY DISCUSS ADJUSTMENTS TO THE FEE SCHEDULE, WHICH I THINK IS, UM, SERVICE CHARGES.
AND THEN, UM, AND THEN WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE TAXES.
MR. GALLOWAY, AM I RIGHT THAT WE'RE TALKING, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE FEE SCHEDULE, WE'RE DISCUSSING THE $2,800 PROJECTED FOR SERVICE CHARGES? OR IS THAT ALSO LICENSES? YEAH, THAT'S, UH, THAT'S ALSO LICENSES.
UM, SO LOOK, UH, IF YOU WANT TO GO OVER THE FEE SCHEDULE, UM, I WANT TO THANK MS, UH, SHANNON.
SHANNON LUCKETT FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UH, SHE, UH, IS RUNNING POINT ON FEE SCHEDULE TONIGHT.
UM, SO I'LL DEFER TO HERS JUST SO THAT SHE CAN GIVE A BRIEF OVERVIEW ON WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BE RECOMMENDING MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
JUST TO GIVE YOU A, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION.
THIS FEE SCHEDULE HADN'T BEEN CHANGED, UM, AND THE ENTIRE TIME SINCE I'VE BEEN IN CHEV.
OKAY? SO, UM, MS. SHANNON AND TEAM DID A LOT OF DUE DILIGENCE IN COMPARED THE FEES TO OTHER MUNICIPALITIES IN THE AREA.
UM, AND TONIGHT WE'LL BE MAKING THE RECOMMENDATIONS ACCORDINGLY.
SO I'LL TURN IT OVER TO MS. SHANNON SO THAT SHE CAN GIVE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WHAT THE FEE SCHEDULE WOULD BE.
SO THE 180 1 AND THE 2,800 ARE REFLECTIVE OF ALL OF THIS BEING ADOPTED? NO, IT'S NOT.
WE HAVE NOT INCORPORATED ANYTHING IN THE REVENUES.
NOT, NOT ANYTHING OFF OF THIS FEE SCHEDULE.
UH, SO, OKAY, SO THE 180 1 AND THE 2,800 DON'T REFLECT ANY CHANGES, COUNSEL.
WE'RE GONNA ASK THEM, THE STAFF TO GO THROUGH THE SCHEDULE.
IF YOU DON'T LIKE SOMETHING, YOU GOTTA SPEAK UP AND NOT THREE ITEMS LATER.
UM, I WOULD JUST BRIEFLY WANNA SAY THAT THIS FEE SCHEDULE WAS COMPARED TO PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY GOVERNMENT.
HYATTSVILLE, BLADENSBURG AND RIVERDALE WERE THE THREE MAIN MUNICIPALITIES I COMPARED IT TO.
AND IT IS NOT FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE TOWN MAKING INCOME OFF OF IT, IT IS SOLELY TO BASICALLY BAKE BREAK EVEN.
UH, WE ARE PAYING AN ASTRONOMICAL AMOUNT, UM, FOR OUR CITIZENS.
BUT WHEN IT COMES TO THE SERVICES OF STAFFING, MATERIALS NEEDED, ET CETERA, UM, MAYOR, DID YOU WANT ME TO GO THROUGH THE LINE ITEMS? WOULD YOU LIKE TO GO THROUGH THE LINE ITEMS AND HAVE YOUR COUNCIL STOP? YEAH, WHY DON'T YOU GO AHEAD.
AND WE'RE GONNA INTERRUPT YOU WHEN WE DON'T LIKE SOMETHING.
SO THE TOP IS THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT FEES, ADMINISTRATIVE FEES.
WE DIDN'T HAVE PRIOR ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES FEES.
WE ARE GOING BASED OFF OF PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY.
YOU'RE NOT GONNA GO INTO YOUR LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENT BESIDES A MUNICIPALITY, UM, TO GET THE NOTARIES
[03:00:01]
OR COPIES.SO WE HAD TO LOOK TO SEE WHAT THE BANKS AND CREDIT UNIONS WERE CHARGING.
IN COMPARISON, THAT IS TOTALLY BREAKING EVEN ON WHAT THE MATERIAL COST IS.
UM, THE NEXT ONE IS BUSINESS LICENSES.
SO WHAT WE DID IS WE COMPARED IT TO HYATTSVILLE AND WE BROKE THE BUSINESSES DOWN INTO FIVE TIERS.
OBVIOUSLY YOU CANNOT HIT YOUR HOME HOME-BASED BUSINESSES AS MUCH AS YOU ARE WITH THE TIER ONE, TIER TWO, UM, HOMETOWN HEROES.
IT IS A INITIAL FEE OF $250 A BANNER AND A RENEWAL FEE OF $75 A BANNER.
SORRY, I'M TRYING TO GO QUICKLY 'CAUSE I KNOW EVERYBODY IS EXHAUSTED.
PAVILION FEE, THIS ONE DID RAISE QUITE A BIT.
HOWEVER, WE ARE STILL COMING IN LOWER THAN OUR OUTSKIRTS.
REGARDING, REGARDING THAT ONE, IS THAT PAV? WE HAVE A LOT OF PAVILIONS.
IS THAT FOR ONE PAVILION OR THE ENTIRE PAVILION? THAT'S ALL THREE PAVILIONS FOR 180, YES.
HYATTSVILLE CHARGES PER HOUR DEPENDING ON IF IT'S A SMALL PAVILION OR A LARGE PAVILION.
WE DID ALSO, WHEN WE WERE CALLING AROUND TO ALL THE MUNICIPALITIES AND THE GOVERNMENT, THE PG COUNTY GOVERNMENT, THE PARKS AND RECS, THEY ARE ALLOWING THEIR PAVILION USE TO OUTSIDE OF THEIR TOWNS.
SO OUR PAVILION USE IS STRICTLY FOR TOWN RESIDENTS.
$180 IS THE BIGGEST FACTOR IN, IS PAYING PUBLIC WORKS.
I MEAN, SET UP CLEAN UP TO HAVE THEM COME IN ON A WEEKEND.
AND IT'S NOT JUST A SATURDAY EVENT, IT'S ALSO THEY HAVE TO COME RIGHT BACK IN ON THE SUNDAY.
WE ARE JUST STRICTLY BREAKING EVEN ON THE I HUNDRED $80.
YOU WANT SOMEONE TO PAY THREE 50 TO RENT.
I'M SAYING IF YOU MIGHT, IF YOU BIRTHDAY PARTY, I, I RENT IT ALL THE TIME AND I I LITERALLY GOT THE PAVILION FOR THE ENTIRE DAY.
WHERE IN THE COUNTY CAN YOU RENT? SO I A CIVILIAN FOR THE ENTIRE DAY.
UM, BUT YOUR, YOUR COMPARISON AROUND IT, YOU, WE STILL WITH A $50 JUMP TO $175 JUMP THE CITIZENS IT, IT'S PART OF US GIVING BACK TO THEM AS WELL.
SO THEY'RE ALREADY SEEING THE, I THINK YOU COULD HAVE DIFFERENT RATES FOR RESIDENTS AND NOT RESIDENTS OR COMMUNITY GROUPS OR SOMETHING.
'CAUSE I'M, I'M COMMITTEE CHAIR FOR THE CUB SCOUT.
FOR THE CUB SCOUT PACK AND SOMETIMES WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE EVENTS THERE AND I MEAN, WE'D HAVE TO REALLY CUT BACK USING IT EVEN AT 1 75.
SO, UM, THIS IS TO RESERVE IT SO WE CAN EASILY CONFIRM IF SOMEONE IS A RESIDENT OR NOT IF THEY'RE RESERVING IT.
SO I I DON'T MIND, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER WADE'S NUMBER, IF IT'S SOMEONE FROM OUTTA TOWN, UM, RENTING, DO WE EVEN ALLOW PEOPLE OUTTA TOWN? SO WE DON'T EVEN ALLOW PEOPLE OUTTA TOWN NO SIR.
SO, UM, YEAH, I I I COULD IMAGINE 1 75, BUT THAT WAS THE VERY FIRST ONE THAT I, UH, I MARKED BECAUSE THERE ARE COMMUNITY GROUPS THAT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT AND HAVE EVENTS AND MOST OF THOSE ARE, ARE NOT GROUPS THAT HAVE REAL REVENUE.
NOW I WILL SAY WHEN THE GROUPS THAT WE LOOKED AT MS. WHITE AND I DID TOGETHER, THE ESTABLISHED AGREEMENT WITHIN THOSE GROUPS WILL STILL BE HONORED.
UM, PARTICULARLY WITH THE FIELD RESERVATIONS.
IS IS MS. WHITE, I'M SORRY, SHE'S GONNA TALK ON THAT ONE BECAUSE SHE DEALS DIRECTLY WITH THE GROUPS.
IT'S JUST EXPLAINING THAT WE BOTH STAY WITHIN THE FACILITY USAGE POLICY WHEN IT COMES TO COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS OR COMMITTEES RESERVING OUR FACILITIES.
THEY'RE NOT CHARGED FOR THEIR RESERVATIONS.
INDIVIDUALS CHOOSING TO USE IT.
SO YEAH, GOING BACK TO WHAT I'M SAYING, I'VE DEFINITELY, I UNDERSTOOD THAT THAT COMMUNITY EVENTS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH TOWN, THAT'S DIFFERENT FOLKS, WE GOTTA REALIZE THAT THE END OF THE DAY YOU CAN RENT A, THE PAVILION FOR EIGHT HOURS FOR AN ENTIRE DAY, $350, ALL DUE RESPECT THAT THEY A PARTY.
I, FOR MY, MY KIDS HAVE USED IT.
I WOULD PAY EVEN, IT'S NOT $350, I THINK THE NUMBER OF $180 COMPARISON TO ANY OTHER PLACE THAT YOU WOULD USE AROUND THIS.
AND AGAIN, THAT $180 YOU CAN USE ALL TAKE UP ALL THREE PAVILIONS.
AT THE END OF THE DAY, THAT'S A STEAL AND I GET IT.
UM, IT MIGHT NOT SOUND POPULAR, BUT WE'RE NOT GONNA RAISE THIS FOR ANOTHER WHAT'S 10 YEARS.
SO, SO IF IT'S, IF IT'S, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY,
[03:05:01]
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE TRYING TO FIND OUT, AND I GUESS IT'S NOT REVENUE, BUT TOWNS DO MAKE MONEY.HENCE THE REASON WHY HYATTSVILLE, I'M NOT SAYING GO OUTSIDE OF THE TOWN, BUT HERE'S THE REASON WHY HIGHSVILLE ALLOWS PEOPLE OUTSIDE, BECAUSE IT IS A REVENUE ASPECT.
AND I THINK IN SOME WAYS WE SHOULD LOOK AT THAT AS A REVENUE GENERATOR BECAUSE OF THE FACT THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT RAISING OUR TAXES.
IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT A, IT'S NOT A A A NEED, IT IS A LUXURY TO RENT A PAVILION.
SO I THINK IT SHOULD BE AT A HIGHER RATE.
I THINK IT SHOULDN'T BE THE WHOLE DAY.
I DON'T KNOW WHY WE'RE RENTING IT OUT BY DAY.
UM, THE WAY PUBLIC WORKS IS THE WAY THEY ARE SET UP.
THEY'RE COMING IN THREE HOURS AT THE START OF THE SATURDAY EVENT AND THEN COMING BACK IN ON SUNDAY.
IN ORDER FOR THAT TO HAVE MULTIPLE EVENTS, YOU'RE GONNA BRING THEM IN FOR AN ENTIRE DAY.
THEY'RE ALREADY GONNA HAVE TO ALTER THEIR SCHEDULE.
IT'S, WE DO NOT HAVE THE, I GUESS I'M CONFUSED.
THIS IS A PAVILION, RIGHT? WHY IS PUBLIC WORKS COMING IN FOR THREE HOURS FOR THE TABLES ARE LIKE PHYSICALLY ATTACHED TO THE PAVILION.
SO, UM, FRIDAY NIGHT, BOYD PARK PAVILIONS USED SATURDAY MORNING, THERE'S A TON OF TRASH.
WE HAVE TO PICK THE TRASH UP FOR THE NEXT PARTY.
SO IT'S CLEAN FOR THE NEXT PARTY.
ARE THERE FOUR? WE ALSO CLEAN THE FACILITIES AND, AND THERE ARE SOME OTHER HOUSEKEEPING THINGS THAT PUBLIC WORKS DO IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THAT THE SPACE IS PREPARED FOR THE NEXT RENTER.
ALL RIGHT, COUNSEL, ARE THERE FOUR, WHAT ARE THEIR FOUR VOTES FOR 180? SO WE GOT A HAND OVER THERE.
SO I THINK, UM, I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW WHAT RATES NORMALLY ARE, BUT IF, IF I KNOW WHAT WE WERE CHARGING BEFORE WAS PROBABLY TOO LITTLE.
I THINK, UH, WITH COUNCIL MEMBER WADE IN THAT IT COULD GO, DEFINITELY GO UP.
I THINK WITH THE FOUR HOUR THING, IF IT, WE COULD ALSO LOOK AT WHAT THAT HOURLY COST IS.
BECAUSE IF YOU DO IT THAT WAY, IT MAY BE WORTH IT TO PAY SOMEBODY FROM PUBLIC WORKS TO, YOU KNOW, AND HAVE THAT BECAUSE YOU'RE BRINGING IN ENOUGH TO COVER WHATEVER THAT EXTRA EXPENDITURE MIGHT BE WITH LIKE, HAVING SOMEBODY COMING IN.
BUT IT JUST DEPENDS ON WHAT THAT HOURLY RATE WOULD BE TO SPLIT THE DAY.
SO, AND, AND SO IF IT'S TOO LOW, I, I MEAN IT, IT'S JUST WORTH IT TO THINK ABOUT IT.
BUT ALSO, UM, OH, I FORGOT WHAT I WAS GONNA SAY.
ALCOHOL PERMIT, ALCOHOL PERMIT, UH, REMAINS THE SAME.
IT SHOULD BE A HUNDRED DOLLARS.
I'M NOT SURE IF WE FALL UNDERNEATH OF PG COUNTY GOVERNMENT AND WHAT THEY CHARGE.
I WOULD HAVE TO LOOK INTO THAT.
IT GO FOR ME, IT GOES BACK TO, IT'S A, IT'S A LUXURY.
SO IF YOU WANNA BRING ALCOHOL, IT'S A HUNDRED BE $125 IS, IS IS A DROP IN A DIME.
WHY ARE YOU PAYING $25 FOR IT? ALRIGHT, SO A HUNDRED DOLLARS IS FINE.
I MEAN IF, IF THAT'S THE WILL OF THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
ANYONE HATE A HUNDRED DOLLARS? I DON'T HATE IT.
WITH ALCOHOL PERMITS, DOES THAT REQUIRE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SECURITY FOR AN EVENT LIKE THAT THE POLICE WOULD HAVE TO PATROL OR LIKE ANYTHING LIKE THAT? I MEAN WE ALREADY DO IT.
WHEN THERE'S LIKE EVENTS PERIOD, WE ISSUE ALCOHOL PERMITS.
WELL NO, I KNOW YOU AGREE AND I KNOW LIKE IF WE WERE TO DO ONE AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER, WHICH IS FOR PROM BECAUSE WE DON'T REALLY, YOU KNOW, BUT THAT IT REQUIRED HAVING A POLICE ON HAND BECAUSE OF MAYBE THE AMOUNT OF ALCOHOL ON, BUT, BUT THAT DOESN'T CHANGE.
I JUST RECALL 25 OR A HUNDRED.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYING? YEAH.
DO WE, I MEAN DO WE ALREADY DO IT? YES.
WE ISSUED MULTIPLE ALCOHOL PERMITS LAST YEAR, RIGHT? YES.
YEAH, I THINK A HUNDRED'S GOOD VENDING PERMIT.
ANYBODY OBJECTED TO 75? I'M OKAY WITH THAT.
WHAT ARE WE ISSUING THOSE FOR? WHAT, WHAT ARE WE ISSUING THOSE FOR? SPENDING PERMITS? YEAH.
IS THAT FOR LIKE WHEN THERE'S A COMMUNITY MARKET AND THEY'RE COMING AS A VENDOR OR LIKE FOR AN EVENT? WHAT DEFENSE IS, DO WE ISSUE VENDING PERMITS? VENDING PERMITS WOULD BE, FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOUR BILLING RESERVATIONS HAD A SPECIAL REQUEST.
TYPICALLY IF IT GOES OUTSIDE OF THE SCOPE OF A NORMAL BILLING RESERVATION, WE ASK THEM
[03:10:01]
TO SUBMIT A SPECIAL EVENT PERMIT AND THAT IS WHERE THEY WOULD LIST WHETHER OR NOT THEY WILL HAVE MAYBE A FOOD TRUCK IN THE PARKING LOT.IF THEY HAD FOOD TRUCKS, THE RESIDENT WOULD BE CHARGED $25 OR WHATEVER THE PERMIT COST IS AND THEN THE FOOD TRUCK VENDOR WOULD PAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR UH, PAYING THAT RESIDENCE.
SO THE RESIDENT WOULD UP FRONT PAY US THE COST OF HOWEVER MANY VENDORS THEY WANT TO HAVE AND THEN UM, THEY WOULD COLLECT FROM THEIR VENDORS.
OUTDOOR TOWN COURT RESERVATION.
WITH CODE COMPLIANCE BILLING PERMITS DID CHANGE.
UM, WE WERE ORIGINALLY CHARGING $15 FOR THE FIRST $1,003 FOR EACH ADDITIONAL A THOUSAND.
WE BUMPED IT UP TO $25 FOR THE FIRST THOUSAND AND $5 FOR EACH ADDITIONAL THOUSAND.
WE STRICTLY THEN IT'S WHAT HYATTSVILLE IS DOING.
UM, AND THAT HADN'T BEEN OKAY.
DRIVEWAY APRON, UM, WE UPPED THAT TO A HUNDRED DOLLARS.
THAT IS, IT REQUIRES LUIS FROM PUBLIC WORKS TO GO OUT TO FOR INSPECTIONS AND WE WERE, WE WERE MISSING OUT ON MONEY.
UH, TRYING TO BREAK EVEN ON THAT.
RENTAL LICENSE IS A HUGE JUMP, BUT WE ARE IN PAR FOR EVERYONE MUNICIPALITY WISE AROUND US.
AND THIS IS RESIDENTS AND, AND MULTIFAMILY? WELL, YES.
SO EVERY RESIDENTIAL UNIT IN TOWN.
SO WE WERE CURRENTLY LOVE IT CHARGING A HUNDRED DOLLARS ANNUALLY.
UM, AFTER RESEARCH WE FOUND OUT THAT EVERYONE ELSE WAS CHARGING $300 ANNUALLY AND THEN IF IT FOR THE INITIAL APPLICATION AND THEN IT WAS A $200 ANNUAL FEE.
AFTER THAT WE KIND OF MET THE HAPPY MEDIUM.
WE ALSO ADDED IN A REINSPECTION FEE OF A HUNDRED DOLLARS.
IT, I MEAN IT'S HAVING OUR CODE ENFORCEMENT AND LAW ENFORCEMENT AND PUBLIC WORK SOMETIMES GO OUT THERE AS WELL AND IT'S KIND OF TRYING TO PUSH EVERYBODY TO BE COMPLIANT THE FIRST TIME AROUND AS WELL.
REINSPECTION FEE IS FOR RESIDENTIAL.
WHAT IS THAT? WE, SO IF THEY ARE FAILING THEIR RENTAL GOT IT.
INSPECTION, WE GO OUT AND REINSPECTION, WE HAVE TO GO CHARGE EM.
A HUNDRED DOLLARS SUPER SOLICITOR PERMIT.
WE WERE ONLY CHARGING $10 A DAY.
SO WHY DO WE EVER GIVE OUT A SOLICITOR PERMIT? YEAH, EXACTLY.
I DON'T, WE DON'T GIVE THEM OUT.
IT WAS IN, IT'S IN THE TOWN CODE.
UM, AS THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR CAN GIVE OUT A UH, PERMIT AND THAT WAS THE $10 FEE WAS THE FEE.
I'VE NEVER GIVEN ONE OUT SINCE THE TIME I'VE BEEN HERE.
BUT YOU KNOW, WE SAID SINCE IT'S IN THE TOWN CODE, LET'S GO AHEAD AND MAKE IT $200.
ANYBODY GOT A PROBLEM WITH A THOUSAND DOLLARS? YEAH, I WAS GONNA SAY MAKE IT 500.
I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T GET MAD ANYWAY.
$1,000 FOR THIS SOLICITOR PERMIT.
WHY? I MEAN, WE'RE NOT GONNA ISSUE ONE ANYWAY, BUT IF SOMEBODY GIVES US A THOUSAND DOLLARS, ARE WE GONNA ISSUE IT? CAN WE GIVE HIM NO, I MEAN THAT'S THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR'S DISCRETION.
HE HAS ACCORDING TO YOUR CHARTER, THE AUTHORITY TO DO THAT.
IF YOU WANT, TAKE THAT AWAY FROM HIM.
MAYOR DO WE FIND SOLICITORS IF THEY DON'T HAVE A PERMIT? YES, THEY CAN BE FINE.
THEY CAN RECITE IT AND FIND, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FINE IS.
MAYBE WE'LL FIND OUT LATER IN THIS.
THE SAME, THE SAME IN THIS ADVENTURE.
RESIDENTIAL ZONE PARKING PERMIT THAT INCREASE FROM $10 TO $20 AND THE VISITOR PASS WENT FROM $2 TO $5.
IS THAT WHAT THE TENDER MEANS? IT ORIGINALLY COST $10.
YEAH, YOU HAVE $20 PER VEHICLE AND THEN VISITOR PASSED $10.
YES, IT ORIGINALLY THE PRICE WAS $5 PER A PERMIT PER VEHICLE REGISTERED TO THE RESIDENCE.
AND IT WAS $2 PER VISITOR PARKING PERMIT.
WE GAVE ONE FOR FREE, THEY COULD BUY ONE AND IT'S A MAX TWO PER HOUSEHOLD.
SO THAT WAS ORIGINALLY WHAT IT WAS.
JUST SO IT'S CLEAR RESIDENTIAL ZONE PARKING IS LIKE BY THE METRO.
IT'S, IT'S WHERE WE HAVE PEOPLE REGISTER SO THAT YEAH.
SO THREE IN YOUR, IT'S ALSO OAK STREET.
SO, UM, I PERSONALLY THINK THAT THE PERMITS SHOULD BE CHEAP.
THE FINE SHOULD BE HIGH BECAUSE THOSE PEOPLE HAVE NO CHOICE LIKE THIS.
THEY, THEY HAVE TO HAVE ONE OF THESE.
[03:15:01]
KNOW WHERE THE FINES ARE FOR THAT, BUT I THINK, YEAH, SO I'M GLAD THAT THE RESIDENTIAL ZONE PARKING FINE IS, IS 75.BUT I, I DON'T THINK, UH, I DON'T THINK WE NEED TO MAKE MONEY ON THE ZONING, UH, RESIDENTIAL ZONE PARKING PERMIT.
'CAUSE THOSE PEOPLE HAVE TO GET IT BECAUSE OF WHERE THEY LIVE.
I ALSO HAD A QUESTION, IS THIS ANNUALLY? YES.
YEAH, I WOULD AGREE WITH THAT TOO BECAUSE, UM, YEAH, BECAUSE FOR THOSE RESIDENTS WHERE WE MAKE IT ZONED WHILE WE DO IT TO HELP THEM SO THAT THEY HAVE PARKING, IT ALSO IS LIKE THEY DON'T HAVE A CHOICE.
AND THEN WITH WITH HOSPITAL HILL COMING TO LOCKWOOD.
I KNOW THEY HAVE IT, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S LIKE ENFORCED RIGHT NOW.
'CAUSE THERE'S NOT REALLY ANY TRAFFIC LIKE THAT WHERE PEOPLE YEAH, NO, NO ONE WOULD WORK.
BUT AT SOME POINT LIKE THAT PART OF WARD ONE IS DEFINITELY GONNA NEED THAT.
SO THAT'S A LITTLE, ANYBODY OBJECT AS KEEP GOING BACK TO $10 PER VEHICLE? IS THAT WHAT IT WAS? YES.
WASN'T IT ORIGINALLY $5 PER VEHICLE? $2 PER VISIT OR GET PASS? SO I'M OKAY WITH THE VISITOR PASS BEING 10.
UM, YOU WANNA GO BACK TO FIVE OR 10? WHAT DO YOU THINK? DO YOU WANNA GO UP TO 10? COUNCIL MEMBER FRY? I THINK 10.
I THINK WE COULD SAVE THE MINUS COST US.
SO $10 AND $10 FOR THOSE BOXES.
ANIMAL VIOLATIONS, 25, 50 AND A HUNDRED.
WHAT WAS IT? WHAT IT, ANIMAL VIOLATIONS.
THESE ARE IN THE CODE, SO WE WE'RE NOT ABLE TO CHANGE ANY OF THESE.
I HAVE THE ONE THAT HAS CHAPTER FOUR, CHAPTER FIVE, CHAPTER 10 AND 18.
THIS IS SO THE CHANGE THAT WE HAVE TO DO A CHARTER CHANGE OR LIKE A CODE CHANGE? YEAH.
SO WE SHOULD LOOK AT ORDINANCE CHANGE FOR ALL THESE.
WE WOULD LIKE TO LOOK AT AN ORDINANCE CHANGE FOR CHAPTER FOUR.
SO WE DON'T NEED TO LOOK AT THE REST OF THIS PAGE.
WE CAN FLIP THE PAGE OVER SIGN VIOLATIONS.
WHO DO WE CITE FOR SIGN VIOLATIONS? WHAT IS A SIGN VIOLATION? WE'RE FOR SIGNS POSTED TO THE PUBLIC RIGHT AWAY.
UH, SO IF WE FIND THE CULPRIT, THEN THEY'RE FINED $50 FOR THE FIRST OFFENSE.
ANYBODY WANNA GO HIGHER? I WOULD BE HAPPY TO GO HIGHER FOR ROOFING COMPANIES AND WINDOW COMPANIES.
ANYBODY OBJECT TO 100? 200? I THINK I'M OKAY WITH 50, BUT I THINK THE SUBSEQUENT ONE SHOULD BE MUCH HIGHER.
LIKE A FIRST, LIKE A FIR YOU KNOW, LIKE BEING LIKE, HEY, 50 BUCKS, YOU DON'T DO THIS AGAIN.
BUT IF YOU KEEP COMING BACK 50 AND 200.
INDUSTRIAL PARK COVENANTS VIOLATIONS.
THAT'S NOT PER SIGN, RIGHT? I APOLOGIZE.
WORK CITED IN THE
ALRIGHT, WE WANT THAT IN THE ORDINANCE AS WELL, MR. GALLOWAY.
NOTHING ELSE ON HERE IS IN CAN YOU, CAN YOU, CAN YOU REPEAT THAT, THAT LAST BIT? WHO IS THAT? YES, THE INTERPRETER.
THE SIGNED VIOLATIONS ARE ALREADY IN THE TOWN CODE AND SO THEY CAN'T BE, UM, THEY CAN'T BE MODIFIED IN THIS PROCESS.
SO WE HAVE TO REVERT TO THE, UH, EXISTING, UM, FEE FINES.
I INDUSTRIAL PARK COVENANTS VIOLATIONS.
ANYBODY HAVE A PROBLEM WITH 400? NO.
NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED BESIDES, UH, VEHICLE RELEASE WENT FROM $50 TO A HUNDRED DOLLARS MIMICKING THE OTHER MUNICIPALITIES AROUND US.
THERE IS A WANT TO GO TO THE SPEED CAMERA VIOLATIONS BEING INCREASED BY THE MILEAGE, UM, THAT YOU ARE OVER ALSO MIMICKING THE MUNICIPALITIES AROUND US AND S AND FOIAS.
UM, WE ARE INTAKING AT THIS POINT, GISELLE AND I WOULD PROBABLY SAY ABOUT ONE TO TWO A WEEK
[03:20:01]
FOR MPIS.UM, WHETHER IT'S FOR COLLEGE OR CITIZENS, IT DOESN'T JUST AFFECT THE CITIZENS OF CH YOU KNOW, IT'S FOR DOMESTICS COMING INTO TOWN, ACCIDENTS, WHEREVER IT MAY BE.
AND WE HAVE PAID OUT ATTORNEY FEES, UM, LIKE, LIKE CRAZY IN THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS.
SO THE $400 THAT YOU'RE SEEING IS NOT ALWAYS GOING TO BE $400.
IT'S, WE INTAKE THE FOIA, WE LET THEM KNOW THAT THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF A PROCESSING TIME, BUT TWO HOURS IS INCLUDED.
THAT'S FOR THE TOWN TO COME TO ME.
I GO TO MY CHIEF AND THEN THE TOWN ATTORNEY AND WE COME BACK.
THERE ARE INSTANCES WHERE THE FOIA CAN BE PRESENTED RIGHT THEN AND THERE.
AND THEN THERE ARE SITUATIONS WITH LONG DRAWN OUT CASES JUVENILES INVOLVED.
I HAD ONE THAT WE PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE CHARGED $4,600 FOR AND WE DIDN'T GET TO BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THIS IN PLACE.
SO, SO, SO THIS IS UP TO $400 BECAUSE IF THEREFORE YOUR REQUEST THAT THE CHIEF, MYSELF AND MR. BRAMAN ALONG WITH ATTORNEY DELOCHE TO BE INVOLVED, THEN THAT WOULD BE THE MAX PRICE.
AND IT APPLIES TO ALL THE FULL, ALL THE MPIA REQUESTS, NOT JUST THE POLICE ALL YEAH, ALL, I MEAN THIS IS, I I DON'T WANNA RAISE IT.
'CAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S WEIRD THAT THIS IS THE MARYLAND PUBLIC INFORMATION ACT IS THERE, LIKE THERE'S GOTTA BE SOME GUIDELINES WE HAVE TO FALL IN THERE, HAVE SOME GUIDELINES THAT, THAT MAKE ME GO, YOU GUYS JUST DID SOME TERRIBLE THING TO ME AND I WANT THE RECORDS AND NOW YOU'RE GONNA BANKRUPT ME SO I, I CAN PROVE THAT I WAS, YOU KNOW, MISTREATED BY THE TOWN.
MAY I HAVE MY CHIEF SPEAK FOR US ON THIS? HE IS THE EXPERT IN THIS, SO I APOLOGIZE.
SO LET ME, LET ME FIRST CLARIFY SOMETHING ELSE THAT SHANNON SAID.
I WANT TO CLARIFY WITH REGARDS TO THE AUTOMATED ENFORCEMENT, WE ARE NOT RAISING THE FINES.
THE STATE RAISED THE FINES AS IT, UH, PERTAINS TO NUMBER OF MILES PER HOUR OVER THE SPEED LIMIT.
SO THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH, UH, UH, AN ACTION ON OUR PART.
WE'RE JUST CON WE'RE WE'RE JUST COMPLYING WITH THE LAW AS IT RELATES TO THE MPIA, UM, UH, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER TANZI.
THIS ISN'T A MATTER OF PEOPLE SAYING, I WANNA SEE SOMETHING BECAUSE SOMEBODY DID SOMETHING NEFARIOUS TO ME.
UH, MOST OF OUR NPIS, A LOT OF OUR NPIS ARE OVER CHILD CUSTODY DISPUTES BECAUSE CHILD CUSTODY EXCHANGES OCCUR OUT IN THE PARKING LOT.
AND THEN THOSE CHILD CUSTODY DISPUTES BECOME, UM, UM, UH, CHALLENGING FOR THE PARTIES THAT ARE INVOLVED.
AND WE ARE REQUESTED TO TURN OVER, UH, VIDEO FOOTAGE OF THOSE CHILD EXCHANGES.
UH, WE, WE, ONE OF 'EM RECENTLY REQUIRED US TO GO TO COURT, UH, BOTH SHANNON AND UH, LIEUTENANT GLEASON TO TAKE BOTH REDACTED AND UNREDACTED VERSIONS OF THE CHILD CUSTODY EXCHANGE BECAUSE I HAD CHILDREN IN THE VIDEO, WE HAVE AN, WE, THE, THE LAW REQUIRES US TO PROTECT THE IDENTITY OF, UH, OF JUVENILES.
WHETHER THEY'RE CHARGED WITH A CRIME, WE'RE INVOLVED IN A CRIME, UH, SO WE'RE COMPLIANT WITH THE LAW AND WE'VE GOT LAWYERS THAT ARE SAYING, NO, WE WANT UNDER REDACTED.
SO INSTEAD OF US PROVIDING UNREDACTED, WE WENT TO COURT.
JUDGES HAVE ABSOLUTE QUALIFIED IMMUNITY.
SO LET THE JUDGE MAKE THE DECISION.
AND IN THAT PARTICULAR CASE, THE JUDGE MADE THE DECISION TO TURN OVER UNREDACTED, UH, UH, UH, VIDEO TO BOTH, UH, BOTH ATTORNEYS ON BOTH SIDES.
SO THIS ISN'T, UH, THIS ISN'T STUFF THAT'S NECESSARILY INVOLVING THE, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AS MUCH AS IT IS, UH, RECORDS THAT WE JUST HAPPEN TO HAVE.
SAME WAY WITH BODY WORN CAMERA FOOTAGE WHEN WE RESPOND TO DOMESTIC DISPUTES.
AND, UH, AND THE, AND IT SEEMS LIKE THAT'S, THAT GENERATES SEEMS TO GENERATE A LOT OF OUR REQUESTS FOR BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE.
AND ALL OF THAT STUFF HAS TO BE REDACTED.
IT TAKES A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF TIME.
ALL OF THIS HAS TO BE REVIEWED BY MR. DELOACH.
AND THE LAW IS VERY CLEAR THAT WE CAN CHARGE THE ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH ALL OF THESE REVIEWS AND, AND THESE RUN INTO THE THOUSANDS.
SO, UM, YEAH, EVERYONE CHARGES UNDERSTAND THAT AS WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS, UH, THIS IS NOT AN INEXPENSIVE COST TO, TO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, BUT WE HAVE TO, UH, RESPOND TO THESE MPIA REQUESTS.
SO ARE ARE WE SAYING WE WEREN'T CHARGING BEFORE? WE WERE NOT CHARGING AND WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN.
SO WHY NOT $50 AN HOUR? BECAUSE MY RATE OF PAY IS CONSIDERABLY HIGHER THAN THAT.
AND I USUALLY SPEND FIVE TO SIX HOURS LOOKING AT THESE THROUGHOUT THE COURSE.
AND THEN YOU'VE GOT MR. DELOACH AND HIS, UH, HIS SALARY FOR, UH, FOR LOOKING AT THESE, SOME OF THESE CASES AND, AND, AND THE CASE I JUST SPECIFIED, UH,
[03:25:01]
BOTH, UH, SHANNON AND LIEUTENANT LISA SPENT HOURS IN COURT.YEAH, NO, I MEAN, I, I GET IT.
I MEAN, BUT IT'S UP TO THE MAYOR.
UH, IT IS UP TO THE MAYOR COUNCIL, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, THESE ARE NOT INEXPENSIVE VENTURES.
AND I THINK WE SHOULD HAVE A PER HOUR COST.
I JUST, 400 SOUNDS LIKE A LOT.
AND A LOT OF THEM ARE NOT POLICE RELATED.
SO IT'S SUPPOSED TO SAY UP TO 400, RIGHT, MR. GALLOWAY? BECAUSE YOU HAD SAID THAT'S UP TO, IT'S NOT THAT IT'S GOING TO BE 400 UP TO 400 BECAUSE IF, IF IT'S A PD THING AND YOU HAVE TO HAVE CHIEF ON IT, THEN THAT'S GONNA SUBSTANTIALLY RAISE WHAT THAT PER HOUR COST MIGHT BE.
BUT IF THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S JUST LIKE, I DON'T KNOW, ASKING FOR, I KNOW SOMETHING BASIC FROM ADMINISTRATIVE SIDE, RIGHT? THEY WANTED TO SEE SOME PAPERWORK OR SOME FINANCIALS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
THAT'S ONCE IT GOES BEYOND THE TWO HOURS WOULD BE MORE MAYBE POTENTIALLY LIKE THE TOWN CLERK COST OR WHOEVER ELSE MIGHT BE PULLING THAT INFORMATION.
SO IT WOULDN'T BE 400 GO AHEAD.
EACH, EACH PERSON THAT COMES INTO THE TOWN AND IS REQUESTING THE MPIA IS THEY, WE ARE TAKING THAT INITIAL REQUEST AND THEN THEY ARE COMING OVER TO THE PD AND THAT IS WHEN CHIEF AND I GATHER OUR HEADS AND SAY, OKAY, THIS IS HOW MUCH WE HAVE, WHAT IS IT PERTAINING, OUR JUVENILES, ET CETERA.
WE GO DOWN AND THAT IS WHEN WE WILL BE ABLE TO SAY, YES, WE DEFINITELY NEED THE TOWN ATTORNEY INVOLVED.
OR YES, I NEED TO REVIEW SHANNON, WHAT YOU HAVE DONE.
I MEAN, SERGEANT BYER, IF YOU NEED, IF YOU'RE NEEDED FOR THE OUTSIDE CAMERAS.
I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO EXTEND THE MEETING FOR ANOTHER 30 MINUTES.
ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS? THE AYES HAVE IT.
AND THEN THAT IS, THAT IS WHEN I GO BACK TO GISELLE AND I SAY, PLEASE CONTACT E YOU KNOW, SO AND SO I UNDERSTAND YOU ARE SETTING THE HOURLY RATE DURING THAT CONVERSATION.
YOU WANT US TO SET THE UNIVERSAL HOURLY RATE UP TO $400 AND THE HOURLY RATE WILL BE BASED OFF OF THE SALARIES OF THE INDIVIDUALS INVOLVED.
SO THE ANSWER TO MY EARLIER QUESTION WAS YES, YOU ARE SETTING THE HOURLY RATE DURING THAT CONVERSATION.
I'M, I'M STILL, I'D WANT TO DO MORE RESEARCH ON THIS.
'CAUSE I'M STILL TRYING TO IMAGINE BEING THE PARENT OF A CHILD IN A DOMESTIC DISPUTE AND SAYING, I DON'T HAVE $4,600, BUT THE ONLY WAY TO PROVE THAT THIS THING HAPPENED IS TO DO THIS REQUEST.
AND SO NOW I LOSE MY CHILD BECAUSE I CAN'T PAY WHATEVER YOUR RATE IS.
IF, IF I GO TO THE SUPREME COURT AND SAY, I WANT THESE RECORDS, AND THEY SAY, SORRY, SUPREME COURT JUSTICES COST $2,000 AN HOUR.
LIKE THAT'S THAT THESE LAWS ALRIGHT, COST MONEY.
DOES ANYBODY WANT TO SET AN MPIA PROCESSING FEE OR JUST SKIP IT? CAN WE? ALRIGHT, WE'RE GONNA LEAVE THIS.
I THINK COUNCIL MEMBER FRY IS RIGHT.
WE'RE GONNA LEAVE THIS ONE BLANK AND WE'LL REVISIT IT NEXT WEEK.
ANYBODY HAVE A PROBLEM WITH ANY OF THIS? SO WE, IF YOU AREN'T A MARYLAND TAG, YOU GET A HIGHER TICKET THAN IF YOU ARE A MARYLAND TAG AND THEN IT SAYS NON, SO THEN CHEVROLET IS SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
SO IF YOUR VEHICLE IS NOT REGISTERED IN CH HOWEVER IT IS REGISTERED IN THE STATE OF MARYLAND, YOUR FINE IS $100.
AND IF YOUR VEHICLE IS NOT REGISTERED IN THE STATE OF MARYLAND AT ALL, YOUR FINE IS $250.
AND IF IT IS REGISTERED IN C THERE IS AND YOU'RE OBEYING THE LAW, YOU, YOU OBEY THE 30 DAY LAW AND YOU DON'T GET, OH, THIS IS, THIS IS SIMPLY FOR BEING HERE TOO LONG WITH, UH, RIGHT.
THE MAIN CHANGES WERE COMPARISON COSTS OF HOW MUCH THE RECYCLING BINS AND RAIN BARRELS ARE WERE COSTING.
SO WE JUST COMPARED INVOICES AND RAISED THE FEES THERE.
UM, BRINGING BACK MULCH DELIVERY AND THE BI, I, THE BIGGEST THING IS TO CHARGE FOR THE
[03:30:01]
CHARGING STATION.YEAH, THAT'S, I I NOTED THAT ONE.
UM, I'M CURIOUS HOW YOU'D OPERATIONALIZE THAT, BUT IT'S ALSO WAY MORE THAN IT COSTS FOR THAT AMOUNT OF ELECTRICITY, RIGHT? LIKE I, I CHARGE MY CAR, IT COSTS ME LIKE SEVEN BUCKS.
SO, UM, MY WORRY IS RIGHT NOW I HAVE A CHARGER.
MIKE HAS GOT A CHARGER, BUT SOME PEOPLE CAN'T CHARGE AT HOME.
UM, AND SO I, I WORRY THAT THIS IS, IS GONNA BE A, YOU WOULD NEVER HAVE, YOU KNOW, PROHIBITIVE.
UM, AND IT, I DON'T THINK THAT'S WHAT IT COSTS US.
WHAT, WHAT IS THE COST TO US? COUNCIL MEMBER FRY, DID YOU COMPARE THIS TO OTHER? YES.
UM, AND ARE THOSE CHARGING STATE CHASE STATIONS, LIKE SIMILAR POWER LEVEL, WHATEVER THAT IS THAT THEY HAVE? SO WE ARE SIGN, WE ARE COMING IN SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER.
THE LOWEST THAT I FOUND IN THE SURROUNDING AREA IS HYATTSVILLE.
THEY'RE $1,250 FOR THEIR YEAR.
THEY ALSO HAVE A PROCESSING FEE THAT'S NOT TACKED ON AND THEY HAVE SOMEONE WITH, BECAUSE THEY HAVE 24 HOUR POLICING MONITORING THAT YOU CAN ONLY HAVE A FOUR HOUR TIME PERIOD OR YOU'RE TICKETED AND YOUR VEHICLE HAS TO GET OUT OF THERE.
SO WE THOUGHT WE WERE COMING WITH A HAPPY MEDIUM WITH A MEMBERSHIP FEE COSTING ABOUT $900 A YEAR.
AND WE DO OFFER 24 HOUR POLICING.
BUT LIKE YOU GUYS DID SAY WE DON'T HAVE THAT MANY ELECTRIC VEHICLES TO WHERE WE'RE REALLY GONNA HAVE TO PUT A TIME PERIOD ON IT.
I FEEL LIKE THAT, THAT THAT NUMBER IS INCREASING AND THEN ONCE YOU DO A MEMBERSHIP, FOLKS MAY 'CAUSE LIKE YOU'RE SAYING IF THIS IS A RATE THAT SEEMS TO BE MAYBE COMPETITIVE, THAT THEY WOULD PREFER TO, DEPENDING ON, I I DON'T KNOW HOW ELECTRIC, I HAVE A HYBRID.
SO YOU'RE NO, UNFORTUNATELY WE HAVE ACHAR, THE CHARGING STATIONS NOW DON'T HAVE METERS ON THEM.
SO THE ONLY WAY TO DO THAT IS TO GET ALL NEW CHARGING STATIONS.
OR WE HANDLE IT LIKE WE DO WITH THE PERMITS.
THEY HAVE A PERMIT AND HOW WE POLICE THAT FROM THERE.
YOU EITHER HAVE A PERMIT OR YOU DON'T AND YOU GET FINED FOR NOT HAVING A PERMIT.
IN WHAT'S THE FINE FOR THAT? IS THERE A FINE, IS THAT, IS THAT ON HERE? IT WOULD BE OTHER GENERAL PARKING VIOLATIONS PROBABLY.
ANYBODY JOHN? UM, I JUST HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE SORT OF THE RECYCLING RAIN BARREL COMPOST BINS.
WERE THE, SO THOSE FEES, ARE THOSE MORE OR LESS SET AS AS A PASS THROUGH? OR ARE WE MAKING MONEY ON THE PURCHASE OF THOSE ITEMS? YOU'RE LO UH, YOU'RE ACTUALLY LOSING QUITE A FEW DOLLARS.
UM, AND THAT WAS WITH COMPARISON TO HYATTSVILLE? UM, UNFORTUNATELY, YOU KNOW, I, I KNOW FOR A FACT THE RAIN BARREL WE'RE LOSING $7 EACH AND EVERY ONE.
UM, IT, IT WAS A LOT OF GIVE OR TAKE IN THAT I DON'T THINK WE SHOULD BE LOSING MONEY ON, ON, ON THINGS LIKE SUCH AS THIS.
YOU SAID THIS IS TO BREAK EVEN.
LET'S MAKE SURE WE BREAK EVEN.
I THINK WE SHOULD MAKE MONEY OFF OF IT, BUT I DEFINITELY DON'T THINK WE SHOULD BE LOSING MONEY ON, ON THIS PARTICULAR SERVICE.
IS THIS WHAT, WHAT DOES IT COST? IF I WERE TO GO OUT BUY A RAIN BARREL, IF I WERE TO GO AND BUY MY OWN RAIN BARREL, NOT FROM Y'ALL, LIKE SOMEWHERE ELSE IS THE COST 80 STREET? 70 TO A HUNDRED.
SO THIS IS, SO EVEN IF WE WERE TO MAKE IT WHERE WE BROKE EVEN IT WOULD STILL BE CHEAPER AND YOU WOULDN'T HAVE TO DRIVE SOMEWHERE FURTHER AWAY.
I DON'T THINK THEY STILL HAVE THE RAIN BARREL REBATE PROGRAM.
UM, MAYBE ONE DAY THEY'LL BRING IT BACK.
UM, SO WE COULD TECHNICALLY EVEN POTENTIALLY GO UP TO LIKE 70 AND THAT WOULD MAKE $3, BUT I DON'T KNOW.
YOU WANNA DO RAIN BARREL AT 75? YEP.
ANYBODY HATE THAT IDEA? AT LEAST BREAK EVEN.
UH, ANYTHING ELSE? ARE WE, WE'RE NOT DOING THE DELIVERY FEES OR WE ARE, WE DECIDE DO THE DELIVERY OH, THE OPTIONAL $5 DELIVERY FEE IS OFFERED TO THE CONSUMER.
ANY, ANYTHING ELSE IN PUBLIC WORKS? NO, WE'RE GOOD.
ALRIGHT, WE'RE BACK TO THE PAVILION THEN.
WHO HAS A NUMBER THAT CAN GET A COUPLE SUPPORTERS? LET'S LOOK AT $250.
ANYBODY FOR TWO 50 WENT DOWN FROM THREE 50.
YOU HAVE A ALL DAY RENTAL? YEAH.
SO THAT'S FOR ALL DAY? YEAH, ALL DAY.
[03:35:02]
BASICALLY EIGHT HOURS.THERE'S NOWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD.
YOU BETTER GET A PAVILION FOR EIGHT HOURS.
HOW MUCH HIGHER IS THAT THAN ITS CURRENT FEE? IT'S CURRENTLY 50.
ANYBODY? HOW ABOUT 180? I COULD DO 180.
ANYBODY ELSE? HOW ABOUT 200? OKAY.
I MEAN FIRSTLY I, WE, WE ALREADY AGREED ON ALCOHOL, DIDN'T WE? I'M NOT TRYING TO REOPEN THINGS THAT WE ALREADY AGREED ON.
WAIT, WHAT DID WE GO TO ALCOHOL FOR? SO I AGREE WITH 200.
EVERYBODY AGREE WITH 200? 200? I MEAN, I GUESS I COULD LIVE WITH 200.
DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT ALCOHOL, JOHN? WELL, WHAT DID WE DECIDE ON ALCOHOL THEN? 100.
ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FEE SCHEDULE? ANYBODY.
ANYTHING ELSE BESIDES TAXES WE NEED TO DISCUSS? MR. GALLOWAY, BY THE WAY, UH, IN ADDITION TO THAT QUESTION, IF WE IMPLEMENTED EVERYTHING THAT SHANNON OUTLINED PLUS THESE OTHER TWEAKS, DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH MORE MONEY THIS GETS US? IS IT 10,000 MORE? IS IT 12,000 MORE? UH, WELL I CAN TELL YOU WE GET $55,000 JUST FOR, UM, THE MULTI-FAMILY UNIT RENTAL FEES.
SO THAT WOULD, THAT WILL DOUBLE.
WE'RE GOING TO, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO IN AND INCORPORATE THE NUMBERS ON THE REVENUE SIDE.
BUT I THINK, I THINK I HEAR YOU GUYS, YEAH, I THINK I HEAR US ON THE REVENUE SIDE UP 75,000.
I'M GONNA GUESSTIMATE, BUT YOU'LL GIVE US A, A MORE FIRM NUMBER ON THE FEE SCHEDULE.
ANYTHING ELSE TO DISCUSS BESIDES TAXES? NO, I'M NOT SEEING ANYTHING.
DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING MR. GALLOWAY? NO, SIR.
SO WE ARE AT FINALLY AT REAL ESTATE TAXES.
WELL LET, LET ME REVIEW, I THINK WE'RE FINE.
AT TPP BUSINESS 1 45 TPP UTILITY 1 45.
ANYBODY WANNA DISCUSS THAT? I THINK WE'RE AT 1 0 3 FOR MULTIFAMILY REAL ESTATE.
ANYBODY WANNA DISCUSS THAT? OKAY.
MR. GALLOWAY'S REVENUE PROJECTIONS HERE INCLUDE 5 CENTS ON THE REAL ESTATE SIDE AT 62 99 FOR THE SINGLE FAMILY.
UM, WITH THE FEE SCHEDULE, HE'S UP SOMEWHERE AROUND, OR THE REVENUE IS UP AROUND 11,000,006.
LET'S CALL IT SIX 70 TO BE CONSERVATIVE.
UM, I'M NOT HEARING A LOT OF ENTHUSIASM FOR 5 CENTS.
DOES ANYBODY WANNA MAKE A RE A PROPOSAL FOR, UH, THE 5 7 9 9 RATE? ANYBODY? WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK ABOUT? 61? 61 IS 3 0 1, RIGHT? 1 0 3.
I LIKE THAT YOU USE THE RIGHT DECIMALS.
THAT WOULD TAKE US TO 61 CENTS.
AM I ADDING THAT RIGHT? CORRECT.
AND IT WOULD BE NEARLY 2 CENTS LESS THAN THE RECOMMENDATION.
ANY COMMENTS ON THAT? UH, NOBODY'S GOING HOME UNTIL WE HAVE A PROPERTY TAX RATE.
ANYBODY WANNA DO 40 CENTS? I MEAN, JUST WANNA MAKE SURE YOU'RE AWAKE.
WAIT, WHAT DID YOU I SAID DOES ANYBODY WANNA DO 40 CENTS TOTAL?
I MEAN, WE COULD DO ANYTHING WE WANT 26.
UM, MICAH, WHAT, WHAT DOES 61 GIVE
[03:40:01]
US? 61 CENTS.61 CENTS WOULD LEAVE US WITH A DEFICIT SOMEWHERE IN THE RANGE OF, THAT WAS TRICKY, DAVID.
UH, SO I THINK IF WE STAYED AT 5 CENTS, WE HAVE A SURPLUS FROM 11 6 70 MINUS 11.
537 IS A SURPLUS OF $135,000, LET'S CALL IT.
SO LET'S SAY FOR ARGUMENT'S SAKE, AND AGAIN, I'M GUESSTIMATING ON THE FEE SCHEDULE, I'M TRYING TO BE CONSERVATIVE IF WE'RE ALREADY POSITIVE, WHAT'D I SAY, JOHN? 1, 1 35.
DID YOU SAY REVENUE ESTIMATED 75,000.
I ESTIMATED THE FEE SCHEDULE INCREASE AT A 70 70,000.
I'M GONNA SAY THAT WE'RE UP, UH, WE'RE UP 1 35 JUST TO BE A LITTLE MORE CONSERVATIVE.
I MEAN, BUT SO THEN, UM, WE WOULD BE ONLY HAVING TO TAKE, LET'S SAY 60,000 OUT OF THE FUND BALANCE.
MAYBE 65 BECAUSE WE SAVE YEAH, BECAUSE, BECAUSE WE WOULD BE DOWN 180 8, BUT SINCE WE'RE UP 1 35, WE'RE DOWN, I DON'T KNOW, 50, 60.9.
YEAH, WE'RE MAKING IT EVEN VERSUS ALL THE 0.9 NINES AND STUFF.
I MEAN, WE COULD GO, WE COULD GO TO 60 AND THEN WE'D BE DRAWING.
YOU'RE REALLY TAXING MY MATH SKILLS.
YOU, WE'D BE DRAWING 1 45, 1 50 OUTTA THE FUND BALANCE, WHICH I THINK IS STILL AN ACCEPTABLE YEAH, THOSE ARE BOTH, I MEAN, THAT GETS US A LITTLE BIT.
YEAH, IT GETS US PRETTY CLOSE TO THE FLOOR, BUT IT STILL PUTS US ABOVE 4.5 MILLION.
WHICH IS CLOSE TO 1.6 MILLION.
I THINK SO DO YOU WANNA GO? I'M OKAY WITH 60 CENTS.
SORRY, DAVID, DID I CUT YOU OFF? NO, IT JUST, OKAY.
THAT'S AN ACCEPTABLE NUMBER TO ME.
THAT, THAT LEVEL OF, UH, FUND BALANCE.
YEAH, I MEAN, AGAIN, WE'RE RUNNING A DEFICIT AND WE DON'T HAVE A, A SUPER GREAT FUND BALANCE, BUT, BUT WE PROBABLY HAVE AN ACCEPTABLE FUND BALANCE IF WE'RE DRAWING, FRANKLY, DRAWING LESS THAN 200 OUT OF THE FUND.
BALANCE IS PROBABLY STILL NOT IRRESPONSIBLE IN MY OPINION.
UM, THIS IS THE LAST YEAR WE CAN DO THAT IS MY OTHER FREE ADVICE.
UM, BECAUSE IF WE'RE AT 4 5, 4 0.5, THEN WE'RE AGAIN 4.5 NEXT YEAR.
NEXT YEAR IT'S NOT, WE'RE NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO GO BELOW 4.5.
IF ANYTHING, OUR BUDGET WILL BE LARGER AND THE 4.5 WILL BE A LESS OF A CUSHION.
SO, OR WE COULD SPLIT IT AND GO SIX SIX, YOU KNOW, SIX 60.5.
DO YOU WANNA MAKE A MOTION? NO,
I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO UH, SET IT AT 0.60.
IT'S 60 CENTS REFLECTING AN INCREASE OF 2.01.
IT'S BEEN MOTION AND SECONDED AT 60 CENTS.
OKAY, SO, UM, ALRIGHT, WE'RE GONNA HOLD THE MOTION FOR NOW BECAUSE WE WANT TO GET FROM THE PUBLIC.
SO IS THERE, UM, ANY OTHER PROPOSALS THAT ANYBODY WANTS TO MAKE BEFORE WE HEAR FROM THE PUBLIC? OKAY, HEARING NONE.
IS THERE ANY PUBLIC INPUT ON THE REVENUE DISCUSSION? TWO.
TWO SO FAR, INCLUDING POSSIBLY 60 CENTS, SIX 0 CENTS.
WHAT IS, SO THIS IS NOT TAX INCREASE.
WHAT IS THE 60 CENTS IDENTIFIED? DEFINE 60 CENTS.
IT, WELL, FIRST OF ALL IT'S A RATE INCREASE FROM 57 99 TO 66 0.
SO AT A RATE INCREASE OF 2 0 1 AND AS, AS WAS ALLUDED
[03:45:01]
TO OR SAID EARLIER, YOUR TAX, YOUR TAX PAYMENT WAS ALREADY GOING TO INCREASE BECAUSE YOUR ASSESSMENT PROBABLY WENT UP.SO LIKE YOUR ASSESSMENT WENT UP A LITTLE BIT AND YOU'RE PAYING A LITTLE MORE AND NOW YOU'RE PAYING A LITTLE, A LITTLE MORE.
WELL, IS IT POSSIBLE TO TAKE FROM THE, UH, WHAT DO YOU CALL THE BALANCE REMAINING BALANCE 140, $48,000 INSTEAD AND PUT THIS OFF FOR ANOTHER YEAR AND ASK MAYBE WE DON'T NEED TWO TWO POINT, WHAT IS IT? 0.02 WHATEVER, OR RAISING TWO 50.
WAS IT 66.06 60 CENTS OF THE RATE OF THE WHATEVER.
SO PUTTING OFF THE FIVE OR TWO POINT PERCENT INCREASE, 2.2% INCREASE AND TAKE IT FROM THE FUND BY $148,000.
WELL, I'LL JUST SAY, OR WHATEVER EXACTLY YOU SAYING, I MEAN, I DON'T, WELL GO AHEAD AND FINISH YOUR COMMENTS.
WELL, I DIDN'T BRING A CALCULATOR HIM.
YOU SHOULD HAVE BROUGHT A CALCULATOR.
I'M TRYING TO FOLLOW YOUR MATH.
DRAW DOWN FROM THE RESERVE BY WHATEVER THE, WELL YOU CANNOT SAVE BY CUTS, UH, NEC, WELL, UNNECESSARY CUTS, I MEAN UNNECESSARY EXPENSES.
SO BY 148, WHATEVER THE DEFICIT, DRAW IT DOWN AND JUST SAY, OH, WE CAN'T BALANCE IT.
BUT NEXT YEAR WE'LL MAKE A SOLID EFFORT.
AND WHEN WE CAN SAY TO UH, UH, THE GOVERNMENT, EXCUSE IT TO THE LOCAL PEOPLE THAT YOUR GOVERNMENT NEEDS THE MONEY, WE CAN'T CUT IT.
AND YOUR SERVICES HAVE A COST.
THIS IS PROOF THAT YOU NEED A TAX INCREASE.
RIGHT NOW IT'S LIKE, HEY, WE NEED A TAX INCREASE.
I DELAY AND JUST DRAW IT DOWN AND WE HAVE A DEFICIT OF 149,000 AND DRAW IT DOWN FROM, I CAN DISAGREE ABOUT THE SURPLUS AMOUNT, BUT LET'S JUST SAY FROM YOUR 44,000,007 BLAH, BLAH, BLAH FIGURE.
IS IT FOUR FIVE NOW? 4.758 OKAY.
OKAY, BECAUSE THIS SAID 4 5 6 2 OH, WHAT IS THE UNASSIGNED FUND BALANCE? IS THAT IT? YEAH, WHEN I SAY FUND BALANCE, I'M TALKING ABOUT THE UNASSIGNED FUND BALANCE.
IT'S 4.758 IS OUR, LET ME BE CAREFUL HERE.
THAT IS OUR BEST GUESS OF WHAT THE FUND BALANCE WILL BE IN SIX WEEKS.
GO AHEAD AND CONCLUDE YOUR COMMENTS.
I'D PUT OFF A TAX INCREASE, EVEN 2.2% AND DRAW DOWN FROM, UH, WELL THEN ANOTHER ONE FORTY EIGHT, A HUNDRED FORTY $8,000 FROM THAT.
SO A 148,000 ON EXACT MATH FROM, UH, FOUR, FIVE AND SIX WEEKS, 4 5 6 2 1 70 $6 AND PUT OFF THE 2.2% INCREASE.
ONE MORE YEAR AND TAKE TO THE PUBLIC IS NECESSARY.
I WILL SAY YOU HAVE ME DRINK IT AT 60 CENTS.
WE'RE ALREADY DRAWING INTO THE FUND BALANCE.
A FEW THOUSAND THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
I CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT WE SAID AND THEN TO, IF WE WERE TO NOT RAISE TAXES AT ALL.
SO I WOULD ARGUE, AND OTHERS CAN HAVE THEIR OWN OPINIONS, WE COULD NOT BORROW THE WHOLE THING.
WE COULD NOT BORROW 200 PLUS WHATEVER, 1 35 OR WHATEVER WE SAID, UH, FROM THE FUND BALANCE IN ORDER TO AVOID A TAX INCREASE.
SO, UM, TURN, IF I GO JUST BACK TO THIS FEE SECTION, WHICH IS A LOT OF IT IS, UH, PIE IN THE SKY BECAUSE AS WE KNOW, NO SOLICITORS EVERY APPLY FOR A SOLICITOR SOLICITOR'S LICENSE.
THEY JUST APPEAR AT YOUR DOOR.
UM, AND LIKEWISE, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW BECAUSE I I DON'T FIND IT ANYWHERE, UM, WHETHER ANYBODY HAS UM, EVER HAD TO PAY A FINE FOR AN INDUSTRIAL PARK COVENANTS VIOLATION.
I DON'T THINK THAT MOST PEOPLE KNOW WHAT THE COVENANTS ARE IN THE INDUSTRIAL PARK.
UM, THE INDUSTRIAL PARK COVENANTS, UM, UM, ONE OF THE PROVISIONS IS THAT THERE WILL BE NO CHURCHES IN THE INDUSTRIAL PARK.
AND THE INDUSTRIAL PARK HAS A CHURCH AT LEAST ONE.
UH, SO I'M NOT SURE WE, WE CAN'T COUNT ON MANY OF THESE FEAST.
I KNOW MR. GALLOWAY TOLD US SOME OF THEM ARE, CAN BE COUNTED ON, BUT, UM, AND THE, I THINK THE MAYOR NEVER GOT HIS QUESTION ANSWERED ABOUT THE FOIA MPIA FOIA, UH, PROCESSING FEE.
IT'S CLEARLY UNDER THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
SO I THINK THAT IT DOESN'T APPLY TO,
[03:50:01]
UM, FOIA UH, REQUESTS FROM THE GEN GENERAL GOVERNMENT SIDE.AM I RIGHT MR. GALLOWAY? WELL GO AHEAD AND WAS THAT YOUR FINAL, THE END OF YOUR COMMENT? ALRIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
UH, WE WILL REVISIT THE FOIA FEE NEXT WEEK AND PERHAPS ADD A FEE RIGHT NOW IT'S STILL BLANK AND IT'S UNCHANGED AND SO IT'S JUST LIKE IT ALWAYS WAS.
IS THERE ANY OTHER PUBLIC INPUT ON THE REVENUE SIDE? UM, YES.
JULIA MOSLEY, WARD TWO, UH, NOT FOR TONIGHT, BUT I'D LIKE TO THROW THIS QUESTION OUT FOR MAYBE NEXT WEEK.
UM, I MENTIONED THAT, UM, CH TAXES SINCE 2020 HAVE GONE UP FROM 51 TO 58 CENTS, BUT ALSO THAT PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY WHAT WE PAY, THAT'S NOT ALL MUNICIPALITIES.
WHAT WE PAY IN CH IN THAT SAME, UH, TIMEFRAME.
AND, AND REALLY I'M ONLY TALKING THROUGH 2024 BECAUSE THOSE ARE THE RECORDS YOU CAN ACCESS OFF OF THE STATE NUMBERS.
UM, THAT HAS GONE FROM 86 CENTS TO 91 CENTS.
NOW PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY CAN'T RAISE THEIR RATE PARK COMPLAINING CAN, AND THAT'S SIGNIFICANT PART OF THE PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY.
MY UNDERSTANDING, AND I COULD BE WRONG, IS THAT THAT'S A NEGOTIATED CREATED, I DON'T KNOW WHAT OTHER TERM TO USE RATE.
SO MY QUESTION IS FOR MS. MOCK AND THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR AT A LATER TIME IS WHY HAS THAT GONE UP SO HIGH? AND IT DOESN'T APPEAR THAT SOME OTHER MUNICIPALITIES ROUND US HAVE GONE UP IN A SIMILAR AMOUNT.
SO THAT'S A THAT'S A QUESTION I TOO WOULD BE FOR YOUR FUTURE CONSIDERATION.
CONCERNED ABOUT A FOIA REQUEST.
I DID A FOIA REQUEST LAST YEAR.
UM, NOT, I UNDERSTAND WHAT CHIEF IS SAYING AND I AM ABSOLUTELY SYMPATHETIC FOR SOME KIND OF RECOUPING FEES THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT IS DOING.
BUT I ALSO THINK A RESIDENT OF TOWN, I'M CONCERNED ABOUT SOMEBODY IN SEVERE FINANCIAL STRAITS NOT GETTING THE INFORMATION THEY NEED FOR CUSTODY BATTLE.
I'M ALSO CONCERNED THAT A RESIDENT OF TOWN WOULD HAVE TO, FOR A SIMPLE FOIA REQUEST, HAVE AN ONEROUS FEE.
SO THAT ALSO IS FOR THE FUTURE.
I'M PLEASED TO SEE THAT YOU'VE DROPPED BACK DOWN TO A SOMEWHAT REASONABLE, UH, AMOUNT ON TAX, UH, INCREASE ON A RATE INCREASE.
I THINK I, I STILL MAINTAIN IT SHOULD NOT GO UP.
UM, MR. MAYOR, YOU ASKED AT THE LAST MEETING, YOU ASKED MS. MOCK AND THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR WHAT WAS A REASONABLE, A HEALTHY FUND BALANCE FOR A TOWN OUR SIZE WITH THIS BUDGET? YOU DID NOT GET AN ANSWER.
THE ANSWER YOU GOT WAS IT'S BEST TO BALANCE THE BUDGET.
WE ALL KNOW THAT THERE'S SOME INDUSTRY STANDARDS RECOMMENDATIONS FROM LEAGUE OF CITIES, FROM PEW, FROM OTHERS I THINK ARE TOO LOW, PARTICULARLY SINCE MARYLAND'S RAINY DAY FUND HAS DROPPED BELOW THE MEDIAN OF 50 STATES.
BUT MY RESEARCH AND IT SHOWS THAT IT'S A RECOMMENDATION OF ANYWHERE FROM 16 TO 25% OF YOUR YEARS EXPENDITURES OR OPERATING BUDGET.
SOME RECOMMENDATIONS ARE THREE MONTHS WORTH.
MY FINAL COMMENT IS I BELIEVE THAT UH, A DRAWDOWN, WHICH THE MAYOR IS RIGHT, YOU CAN'T DO AGAIN NEXT YEAR OF 200 TO 250 IS STILL IN THE OKAY.
I THINK A LOT OF WHAT YOU'VE PUT YOURSELF THROUGH TONIGHT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE WEEKS AGO.
AND UM, SO I AGREE WITH SOMETHING.
UM, COUNCIL MEMBER BRINER SAID THIS NEEDS, THIS ISN'T A GOOD PROCESS.
YOU KNOW, WE TALKED AT THE LAST MEETING THAT HOTEL MOTEL MIGHT BE LOOKED AT, UH, TAXES, WHICH I THINK IS A REAL POSSIBLE REVENUE.
I ALWAYS STRUGGLE TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY TAX IS A HUGE LINE ITEM BUDGET.
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I ONLY HAVE THE NUMBERS MID MEETING, BUT I DON'T THINK THEY WERE LOOKED AT.THE TOWN ADMINISTRATOR SAID AT THE LAST MEETING THEY HAD NOT BEEN LOOKED AT IN THE SEVEN YEARS HE'D BEEN HERE.
MY QUESTION IS, WHY, WHY HAVEN'T THEY BEEN LOOKED AT AND WHY ARE WE DISCUSSING THAT TONIGHT? I WOULD RECOMMEND, I DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE IN THIS NOON 'CAUSE I HAVEN'T GONE HOME AND GONE OVER IT.
TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY IS A BIG LINE ITEM.
HOTEL MOTEL IS A REASONABLY BIG LINE ITEM AND I DON'T THINK YOU NEED A RULES COMMITTEE.
I THINK YOU NEED WHAT WE USED TO HAVE, WHICH WAS A FINANCE COMMITTEE.
SO THIS PROCESS WOULD BE EASIER FOR YOU AND EASIER FOR US.
UH, MR. GALLOWAY, CAN YOU JUST CONFIRM THAT, UM, THE TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY IN THE HOTEL THAT THOSE ITEMS WERE ALL UPDATED, THE NON-TAX COSTS, THE NON-TAX REVENUE, THE NON-REAL ESTATE TAX REVENUE IN THE FOUR HUNDREDS IS WORTH ABOUT $2.6 MILLION.
IS THAT ACCURATE? BASED ON THE NEW RATES? BASED ON THE NEW RATES, THE TPP UTILITY, UH, WAS ADJUSTED.
THE TPP BUSINESS WAS ADJUSTED TO, UH, BE REFLECTED OF THE 1.45 THAT WE RECOMMENDED.
AS FAR AS HOTEL MOTEL, UH, WE'RE STILL WAITING ON THE ACCOUNTANT TO PRO TO PROVIDE THE RECOMMENDATION THERE.
WHAT, WHAT'S THE OTHER TAX MAYOR? I THINK THAT WAS IT.
OKAY, SO THE MOTEL HOTEL MOTEL TAX IS AT ONE 10.
THAT ONE 10 RIGHT NOW IS ACCURATE.
IS THERE ANY OTHER, I THINK WE ONLY HAVE TWO INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVEN'T SPOKEN.
DO YOU HAVE ANY FURTHER COMMENTS ABOUT, UM, REVENUE? NO.
UH, SO COUNSEL, WE ARE BACK TO THE MOTION, I BELIEVE.
COUNCIL MEMBER TANIA AND COUNCIL MEMBER LOICK, WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING NO, WE'RE GONNA VOTE AND THEN WE'RE GONNA GO HOME.
UH, WOULD ONE OF YOU LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION? I'VE LOST TRACK NOW.
ALRIGHT, SO COUNCIL MEMBER TANZI MADE IS MAKING A MOTION TO SET THE REAL ESTATE TAX RATE FOR SINGLE FAMILY DETACHED HOUSES AT SIX 0 CENTS.
AND THAT MOTION IS BEING SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ECK.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION OF THE MOTION? I WILL SAY JUST PUBLICLY THAT I PLAN TO VOTE YES IF NECESSARY OR WOULD VOTE, UH, IF MY VOTE IS NEEDED.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS FROM COUNCIL MEMBERS? HEARING NONE? I'LL CALL THE QUESTION.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION SAY AYE.
ANY OPPOSED? NAY? ANY ABSTENTIONS? ALRIGHT THEN THE MO MAYOR CAST THE FOURTH AFFIRMATIVE VOTE AND THE TAX RATE, UH, RATES ARE SET.
IS THERE A MOTION TO ADJOURN THE MEETING? THE RATES ARE SET AT SIX ZERO AND 1 0 3.
IS THERE A SECOND ON THE MOTION TO ADJOURN BUT NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO.
ALRIGHT, IS EVERYONE, I MEAN, EVERYONE CLEAR ON WHAT WE DID? WE SET THE TAX RATES BY A VOTE OF FOUR TO ONE AT SIX ZERO AND 6 0, 0 0 AND 1 0 3.
AND THEN NOW THAT WE'RE DONE THAT JOHN HAS MADE A MOTION TO ADJOURN THE MEETING.
COUNCIL MEMBER TANZI HAS SECONDED THE MOTION.
IS THERE A DE DEBATE ON THE MOTION TO ADJOURN? I JUST HAVE A COMMENT VERY QUICKLY.
I JUST WANNA PIGGYBACK OFF OF WHAT THE FORMER MAYOR MOSLEY SAID ABOUT THE, THE, THIS CONVERSATION NEEDING TO HAPPEN EARLIER.
AND I'VE ALREADY REQUESTED, UM, AND TOLD MR. GALLOWAY AS WELL AS SOME OTHER PEOPLE THAT I THINK NEXT YEAR WE NEED TO HAVE A BUDGET HEARING AT LEAST A WEEK, IF NOT MANY WEEKS PRIOR TO THE CONSTANT YIELD SO THAT THIS KIND OF DISCUSSION, WHICH SHOULD HAPPEN IN A PUBLIC SPACE,
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I KNOW SOMEBODY EARLIER SAID THAT WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT.AND THEN COMING, ALL OF THIS DISCUSSION SHOULD BE HAPPENING IN A PUBLIC SPACE.
AND I THINK IF WE CALL IT A BUDGET HEARING AND NOT JUST A BUDGET MEETING, IT WILL DRAW THE PEOPLE OUT TO UNDERSTAND BECAUSE AT THE CONSTANT YIELD VICE MAYOR RE IS, RIGHT, THAT IS WHERE WE ACTUALLY ARE SUPPOSED TO VOTE ON IT.
BUT THAT'S WHERE, THAT'S WHEN WE ACTUALLY GET THE, UM, ENGAGEMENT FROM THE COMMUNITY.
SO IN THE FUTURE, SO THAT WE'RE NOT EXTENDING OUR MEETINGS FIVE TIMES AND DOING ALL OF THIS, UM, I HOPE THAT NEXT YEAR WE CAN HAVE A BUDGET HEARING AHEAD OF TIME AND ALSO PRESENT, PRESENT THE BUDGET IN A DIFFERENT WAY SO THAT THE COMMUNITY, UM, CAN UNDERSTAND IT A LITTLE BIT MORE BEFORE THEY EVEN COME INTO THE MEETING.
IS THERE ANY FURTHER DEBATE ON THE MOTION TO ADJOURN? HEARING NONE.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS AND THE OPINION OF THE CHAIR? THE AYES HAVE IT FOUR ZERO AND THE MOTION THE MEETING IS ADJOURNED.
WE WILL SEE YOU IN A WEEK FOR A SPECIAL BUDGET MEETING AT SEVEN 30 TO INTRODUCE THE FIRST READER OF THE BUDGET.
IS IT SCHEDULED? HAS IT BEEN PUBLICLY ANNOUNCED FOR SIX 30.