BUDGET WORK SESSION OF THE GREENBELT CITY COUNCIL held Wednesday, May 16, 2007, for the purpose of undertaking a final review of the FY 2008 budget.

Mayor Davis called the meeting to order at 8 p.m.  It was held in the Multipurpose Room of the Community Center.

PRESENT WERE: Councilmembers Konrad E. Herling, Leta M. Mach, Edward V. J. Putens, Rodney M. Roberts, and Mayor Judith F. Davis.

STAFF PRESENT WERE: Michael McLaughlin, City Manager; Jeff Williams, City Treasurer; David Moran, Assistant City Manager; Celia Craze, Director, Planning; Joe McNeal, Assistant Director, Recreation; Kenny Hall, Director, Public Works; Chief Jim Craze, Capts. Dan O’Neil and Tom Kemp, Lt. David Buerger, and Sgt. Jim Parker, Police Department; and Kathleen Gallagher, City Clerk.

ALSO PRESENT WERE: Leonie Penney and Elaine and John Henry Jones, FORA;  residents Leo Walder and Germaine Timmermans; Sylvia Lewis, GHI Board; Sheldon Goldberg, GEAC; Joan Falcão and Robert Fireovid, Greenbelters for an Informed Citizenry (GIC); and Jim Giese, Greenbelt News Review.

Prior to starting business, Councilmember Mach announced that she had been elected to the board of Clean Air Partners, a consortium that provides public outreach in the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan areas to encourage voluntary action to reduce air pollution and protect health.

Mayor Davis first asked if there was anyone in attendance representing an organization called Greenbelters for an Informed Citizenry (GIC), since she knew that others were in attendance because of their concern regarding a petition being left at people’s homes in selected neighborhoods asking that the tax rate not be raised this year.  At this time, no one was present to speak for GIC.  The Mayor asked if there were others who wished to speak; she said she would give people the opportunity to speak at the beginning of the meeting so they would not have to stay for the duration unless they wished to.

Leonie Penney, who lives in Woodland Hills, said she was very angry about the petition and that she spoke as a decades-long resident of a “non-GHI single family home,” which was the housing type being targeted by the petitioners.  She presented at some length her own analysis of how her taxes had increased over the years and enumerated the benefits she believed Greenbelt provided to its residents.  She said that she thought everyone who felt overtaxed in Greenbelt compared with Montgomery County should simply move to Montgomery County.

Mayor Davis read an e-mail she had received from David Falk of Lakeside, asking that Council not be misled by such a petition drive.  He said he had lived in a “non-GHI single family home,” for 43 years.  He said he was sure there were many people who would sign “any petition opposed to taxes, leaving those of us who value our city and its services with little means to counter the petition other than to start a petition war.” He said of all the taxes that might be opposed, the City tax should be the last.

Mayor Davis also cited a phone call she had received from Mary Chapman, a resident of GHI,  expressing dismay at the “slash-and-burn mentality” of the petition.  She said other jurisdictions’ services were not as good as Greenbelt’s and emphasized that support from other sources would be cut this year, making it all the more important for the City not to cut services.

Leo Walder, a resident of Lakeside, spoke in support of Ms. Penney and of the need for additional staff assistance in the Greenbelt Assistance in Living (GAIL) program.  He was critical of the petition, saying it had been distributed only selectively and was at best biased.

Mr. Putens said he had received two phone calls and one e-mail objecting to the petition, which had been received by residents of Greenbrook Estates.  He read the e-mail, which described the message of the petition as being “misleading and twisted” and emphasized that Greenbelt is a community that wants a high level of services and is willing to pay for that.  He said that as a previous resident of GHI, he found the references to GHI insulting.  He suggested that individuals who thought they could get better services for their money in Montgomery County should move there.  This individual also supported the increase in Council compensation.

Mr. Fireovid and Ms. Falcão had  arrived at this point.  Ms. Falcão asked that the tax rate not be increased in the FY 2008 budget.  She said her neighbors were all “incited” that the City would raise the tax rate rather than simply riding the tide of rising assessments.  She said Berwyn Heights was not increasing its tax rate.  She said they had targeted single-family homes intentionally since they believed that was where the impact was being felt most greatly.  She said the residents of Greenbelt did not think they needed “Cadillac services” in all areas.

Mayor Davis told Ms. Falcão that Council had heard from a number of people who were incited by the petition and that some of these comments had been made or read prior to their arrival.

Mr. Walder objected to the appeal to residents in larger houses, noting that in the United States we do not run our country on the basis of property owned.  He reiterated that surveys conducted unscientifically do not yield usable data.

Ms. Penney reiterated some of the points she had made earlier.  Ms. Falcão replied that she was not opposed to services as such but would ask that the City not always raise property taxes when it needed money. 

Mayor David responded that the revenue sources available to municipalities have become increasingly limited.  She added that she hardly thought this had been a tax-and-spend Council.  She said that, unlike most municipalities, the Greenbelt City Council goes into great detail in reviewing the proposed budget.  She said that, Ms. Falcão’s statement notwithstanding, she believed Greenbelt residents would be irate if Council reduced the City’s service level to that of Berwyn Heights.

The Mayor asked if anyone was present to speak on any other topics.  Germaine Timmermans, a resident of Belle Point, said she had spoken at a Council meeting earlier and would still like to see an increase in Council’s compensation.  She said that nearly 20 years was too long to go without a salary increase, especially considering the time that Councilmembers put in.

Elaine Jones spoke in support of the additional position for the GAIL program.  She talked about the importance of social services and of the economies of prevention over treatment.

Mayor Davis said she had comments from Sue Krofchik, a Lakewood resident,  who was supportive of the position of capital projects manager, as well as the additional Police Department personnel, but questioned the need for the GAIL position.  She asked whether this was work the county should be doing.

Ms. Mach asked Mr. McLaughlin if the City had looked into county marketing services.  He replied that they have been asked to work with municipalities and have said they are interested, but nothing ever happens.  The Mayor commented that there were many “ghost programs” of this sort at the county level.  In addition, she said County Councilmember Camille Exum had told her to anticipate cuts in funding for county services across the board because of the hospital system.

The Mayor then said she would go through the list of suggestions and requests that had been made at the first public hearing on the budget.  These included the following:

            Hiring Freeze: Ms. Mach said she had previously requested that positions be looked at critically when they fall vacant by attrition but that she would not propose more than that.  Mr. Herling said his impression was that staff was already overburdened and that more people were needed, not fewer.  Mr. Roberts said he did not favor a freeze either, though he did not think that the City should hire without the revenues to pay for new positions: that is, in general, the City should not raise taxes to create positions. He said that he, like others, was in the position of having all his costs go up much faster than his income.

            Don’t Give Gifts to City Volunteers: The Mayor said she would assume this included the appreciation dinner for City Council boards and committees as well as the gift that had been referenced at the hearing.  Ms. Mach said the value of the gifts was miniscule in comparison with value received and that volunteers had to be recognized.  Sylvia Lewis said her years with the Red Cross had taught her that it was a false economy not to show appreciation.  Mr. Walder agreed with her.  Ms. Falcão disagreed, saying that as a frequent volunteer, she felt as though a thank you was enough.  She said she felt uncomfortable at the advisory group dinner and would have preferred to have been asked to bring a potluck dish.  Mayor Davis said she knew many people appreciated having the opportunity to spend a night out without having to cook or clean up.

            Reduce Pension and Health Benefits for Employees: Mr. McLaughlin said the City did not compare benefits with the federal government, as Ms. Falcão had suggested, but did shop health benefits every few years.  He noted that dollars had to be weighed against the problems for employees in switching doctors when changing plans.  He said a number of years ago, the decision had been made to go with the Maryland State Retirement System, which had recently been upgraded, and he would not recommend making any change on that.  Ms. Lewis commented that GHI was very happy with the self-insured health savings plan it had adopted.  Mr. McLaughlin said the City was similarly pleased with its self-insured prescription plan.  Ms. Falcão again suggested that benefits for City employees should be reduced if they exceed those of federal employees.

            Use County Services Instead of City Services: Mr. Putens said, and Ms. Mach agreed, that the county is not able at this point to provide predictable and reliable services.

            Reduce Greenbelt Connection Service:  Ms. Falcão restated her opinion that the City should support services for the handicapped only and that there were more cost-effective ways to do that than a 10-passenger bus when only a limited number needed a wheelchair lift.  She said able-bodied seniors could use cabs with perhaps some voucher support from the City.  It was explained that the county provides the bus and an aide to assist passengers, which limits City support.  Mr. Putens said he was tired of hearing comparisons made between City and county services.  He said, “Look at the police.”  Mr. Herling said he preferred to get people out of cars and into buses.  John Henry Jones spoke to say that the need for the Connection could not be evaluated solely on the basis of who needed a wheelchair lift, since it serves many other people who are handicapped and have difficulties getting in and out of regular cars.

            Reduce Public Works Services: No Councilmembers were interested in pursuing this suggestion.

            Double-Up on Positions: The suggestion had been made to reduce positions by assigning two hats to employees when a position was vacated.  The Mayor said that while the need to fill positions should always be evaluated, most employees were already wearing at least two hats.

            Increasing Taxes on Rental Units: It had been noted that assessments on apartments seemed very low.  Mr. McLaughlin said he did not think the City had the authority to establish a two-tier property tax system and that he was not aware of any municipalities in Maryland that did so.  The Mayor suggested asking the state delegation to look into the low assessments.  Mr. Roberts said the disparity concerned him.  Mr. Herling pointed out that an increased assessment or increased tax rate would only be passed on to the renter, further reducing affordable housing. Ms. Falcão said there should also be concern for the affordability of single-family homes for longtime owners.

The Mayor moved on to ask Council if anyone was willing to drop from the list any items they previously proposed as add-ons to the budget.  Mr. Herling said he would drop his suggestion for park ranger coverage for Roosevelt Center, though he continued to think coverage of some type is needed.

Mayor Davis asked Mr. Hall why electronics recycling at Schrom Hills Park had been dropped. Mr. Hall replied that it was considerably more economical for the City to do it near the Public Works facility so that the collected items did not have to be hauled.

Mayor Davis asked which cars on the list the Police Department would replace.  Capt. O’Neil said that would not be decided until the time was at hand since the condition of the vehicles could change by then.

Mr. Herling asked if two rather than four tennis courts could be resurfaced.  Mr. McLaughlin said they have been done on a rotation of four at a time, so that there are now four of the same age.  He said he would also presume the per court cost was lower for four than two. Mr. McNeal added that courts #1-4 were done 10-12 years ago.

Mr. Putens asked Mr. McLaughlin to look into whether changing the rotation of the tennis courts to two rather than four could save money or not.  He also asked Chief Craze for additional information on the choice of gun and vendor proposed for the gun replacements for the department.

The Mayor asked Mr. Roberts what he wanted to remove from the budget in addition to the $70,000 budgeted for the capital projects manager position in order to eliminate the tax rate increase, keeping in mind that nothing could be eliminated that was funded under the collective bargaining agreement.  She said about $200,000 more was needed.  He said he had nothing else in mind at the moment.

The Mayor presented her proposal and asked for comment.  Ms. Mach suggested eliminating the quarterly Shred-It ($1,200), which was a nice thing but not necessary.  She asked for a breakdown on the $9,700 in additional Contribution Group requests and was told that FONDCA had requested additional funds to increase their pay for artists, the Greenbelt Arts Center needed additional operating funds because it is in a financial bind, and Greenbelt Boys & Girls Club needed an additional $5,000 to replace uniforms.  Ms. Lewis commented that she thought local businesses should be able to support more: for example, team uniforms.

Mr. Fireovid and Ms. Falcão advocated for telling departments to cut by a certain percentage across the board as the federal government does, rather than attempting to eliminate specific items.  Mayor Davis replied that Greenbelt doesn’t do it that way.

Mr. Roberts said the Council should not ask citizens what items to cut out of the budget.  He said that is why the City has a professional staff.  He said Council should give general direction to staff, not nitpick individual items.  He said he would cut both police cadets ($68,000) instead of the one ($34,000) proposed to be cut by the Mayor.  He said he would also eliminate the park ranger program ($13,000), which he considered to be too minimal to have any effect.  At the Mayor’s request, Mr. McNeal described the program, which he said was minimalist, with a low budget and limited training.

Ms. Mach said she would stick with eliminating one police car and one cadet.

Mr. Putens said the process in Greenbelt is that the City Manager proposes the budget and the Council adds and subtracts based on the input they receive from citizens.  He said he liked the Mayor’s proposal.

Mr. Herling said he was okay with cutting one cadet and one car ($58,000) in order to add the marketing position he had proposed for $56,000.

Mr. Putens said he was warming up to Mr. Herling’s marketing position.  He asked Mr. Herling to provide a more specific description.  He thought it might be done on contract rather than being added as a permanent position.  Ms. Mach said she still favored a grants coordinator over the marketing position and did not think both work could be done by the same person.

In  response to a question from the Mayor, Mr. Roberts said he thought the capital projects work could be done without adding a new position.  Mr. McLaughlin said he thought the City’s track record in this area could be improved upon: e.g., the Planning Department staff had done yeoman’s work on getting to the bid stage for the Public Works facility, but it had taken too long.  There is a great deal of management work upcoming for Greenbelt Station—including roads, construction, and recreation—that cannot all be put on existing staff.  He added that there will be permitting fees coming in 2008, possibly upwards of $400,000, that can be earmarked for this purpose.

Mr. Putens said he had learned enough about the capital projects position to support it.  Mr. Roberts said he opposed raising taxes for this purpose.  The Mayor pointed out that the position had been covered without a tax rate increase prior to the conclusion of the collective bargaining negotiations.   Mr. McLaughlin added that Council had asked last year what the best use of the revenues from the increased fees approved last year would be, and this was the response.

In the final discussions, Council agreed to include the GAIL and capital projects positions to be funded in January, with Mr. Roberts opposed to any funding for the latter.  Mr. Herling, Ms. Mach, and Mayor Davis agreed to eliminate one cadet, with Mr. Roberts wishing to eliminate both.  There was agreement to eliminate one police car and to add the full $9,700 increase for Contribution Groups.  The $400 increase for Meals on Wheels was agreed to.  The City Council pay increase was kept in, effective December, but Mr. Roberts expressed a preference for putting the question on the ballot.  There was discussion of adding language to the charter that would tie a cost-of-living increase to that for staff.

Regarding extending CBA benefits to other staff members, there was agreement on acting pay being the same for all employee and on line-of-duty death benefits.  Council asked to schedule a work session on other benefit issues raised by the CBA.

The balance on the revenues side would be put into the Non-Departmental Reserve Account for the purpose of providing initial funding for a homeowner’s property tax credit program, piggy-backed on the state’s and modeled on Takoma Park’s.

Mr. McLaughlin thanked Council for its careful review of the budget and commented that he was not aware of any other municipality in which the Council was so attentive to the budget process.  The Mayor added that as things stood, this budget would maintain the service level Greenbelters expect.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:55 p.m.

                                                                        Respectfully submitted,

 

                                                                        Kathleen Gallagher
                                                                        City Clerk

 

City of Greenbelt, Maryland
City Offices, 25 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, MD 20770
Phone: 301-474-8000 FAX: 301-441-8248