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MANAGER’S
REPORT TO: MAYOR AND HONORABLE CITY COUNCILORS FROM: Joseph J. Slocum, City Manager DATE: Friday, August 31, 2007 Please review my attached Memo on my recommendations for changes in City offices. I wanted some feedback and support from the Council on this proposal. I would appreciate your thoughts either under communications or if necessary as an added agenda item. I forgot to ask Bobbie about this before her day off. Thanks. Here is my report on the agenda: 11.B Discussion and Action on two potential appointments to the Comprehensive Planning Committee. I am supplying you with excerpts from the City Charter, the State Statute referred to in our City Charter and a portion of the Belfast City Code. These combined laws specifically outline the powers and duties of the Comprehensive Planning Committee. (Gray) The Committee and the Plan are required to take inventories of many things affecting land use and growth management. These items are specifically spelled out in state law. They include inventory of significant water and natural resources, transportation systems, residential housing including affordable housing, current and projected land use and development patterns etc. The Committee then is required to make assessments under these inventories according to other specific state guidelines including the identification of growth areas, the development of standards, timely permitting procedures and the adoption of policies prohibiting incompatible development. The Committee is required to follow a strong process of public participation and input. Eventually the Committee must recommend an actual “Plan” for formal approval. The approved Plan must under State law include both strategies and timetables to implement programs or changes needed to bring the City closer to the approved Plan. If you hate zoning then you hate Comprehensive Plans. If you believe in preserving the character of resources and areas of your community so that you won’t have an industrial facility or major highway built next to a residential area - then managing the City’s growth and development through the process of Comprehensive Planning is your thing. I note that I am currently struggling with the Belfast Comprehensive Plan. My understanding is that many amendments and updates were proposed by the Committee several years ago but may have never been formally adopted. I will come back and discuss this issue with the Council at a future date when I have a better assessment of what the Belfast Comprehensive Plan actually is- what it actually says. The Comprehensive Plan is potentially the most important guidance document City Managers, Department Heads, Committees and Board Members and Elected Officials can have. Whatever we do- it should either be consistent with what has been approved as the Plan or- where our proposed actions are inconsistent with the approved Plan- then we either have to change our approach or change our Comprehensive Plan. Finally -one of the other responsibilities of the Comprehensive Planning Committee is to “monitor the implementation of the policies contained in the Comprehensive Plan”. I hope this background helps with the appointment process. 11.C Belfast Maskers’ use of Steamboat Landing for 2008 Production: City Departments had a good experience with the 2007 performance. We had a major wedding at the Boat House at the same time and everything worked out fine. We put this request up for discussion because of the number of days involved in the request and the potential conflict with the Celtic Celebration request. I attach the request from the Celtic Celebration and my letter of August 7th to the Celtic Board of Directors, which has not been responded to yet. I spoke with Donna Hughes and apparently there was some confusion. She thought they would automatically be put on this agenda and was unaware of my August 7th letter requesting detail and a financial report. City Clerk Roberta Fogg has asked the Celtic sponsors to get in touch with the Maskers’ before the meeting to see if the two groups can work the apparent conflict out. (Pink) 11.D Discussion and action on Library Roof Bids. I spoke with Diane Mende and to John Spadola on the best way to present this difficult issue to the Council and to the Community. With Mayor Hurley’s approval, I would request that his desk be relocated by the podium where he can use the microphone from the podium, this way John Spadola can stand with a diagram of the library roof facing the audience and the Council. This will allow everyone at the meeting and at home the ability to see John’s presentation. I asked Steve Norman to have the Board of Trustees present at this meeting. (Green) There are a variety of issues to wade through here. I have asked John Spadola to tell “the story” of what brought this large request for funds to the Council. Here is an outline: - they had problems with the roof for years; - the former contractor responded many times but they had continuing problems in other areas; - brought in a roof expert Robert Fulmer who gave them an initial estimate of $100,000 to do the repairs to what was thought to be in need of repair; - The library had Mr. Fulmer do a more invasive inspection where portions of the roof were actually cut out. Here he discovered that most of the entire roof needed to be done at considerably more cost which was then estimated to be $300,000; - John Spadola was hired by the Trustees to prepare bid specifications; - John felt that there were some issues with the roof, not related to the improper installation seven years ago, which should also be addressed because the library had other problems from the roof. For example, the original roof had gutters; the design of seven years ago did not call for gutters. The library’s experience without gutters the last seven years has not been great. Water drops down and enters the building under first floor doors and there is a lot of dampness close to the foundation that they are concerned will cause mold. People also get wet from the roof water pouring over the entrance; - John created within the bid package alternatives to the bid that largely but not completely would identify what portion of the bid related to the prior improper installation and what portion is new needed work based upon the Library’s experience with their new roof over the last 7 years. At this writing I have still not seen the actual bid packages so this is all based on my conversations this week with John; - When the Library met with the Council in July there were several financial representations that may not have been clear. This includes the fact that the $300,000 cost estimated by Mr. Fulmer may/did not have included the price of scaffolding. (Presently understood to be an additional $78,000). It also did not include money for Robert Fulmer pre Bid $42,782 or for construction management. It also did not include $69,600 for Mr. Fulmer to act as Project management and administration. It also did not include $20,000 for John Spadola’s fees. Late yesterday afternoon John Spadola brought in his Memo on the Cost Summary. He provides two values. The first responds to the bids and the estimates from the consultants at $578,220. The second number $638,200 calls for unbid work to modify “cladding” on the front entrance wall. John will have to explain this. I asked John if someone from the Library is going to a make a request from the Council to fund some of this expense. He advised he understood the Chair of the Trustees would ask the Council to fund 100% of this expense. I have heard nothing from the Library. I have only heard from John Spadola. Council will need to decide what should be funded and secondly how. Fund sources could be City Surplus (unrestricted Fund Balance); Library funds budgeted or trust funds, City Trust Funds or municipal borrowing. Council members have asked me about other financial resources available to the Library and specifically about the $75,000 the library asked for last year which has not been spent and what Trust Funds the Library itself has that might be able to help with this matter. With respect to the $75,000, this was for some renovations and purchases the Library wishes to make as part of a Capital campaign. It has suggested to me that some of this is for furniture that is less than 10 years old, but I have no information on that. I don’t know how much of that $75,000 was for discretionary work or for needed repairs. As for investments the library has several. Some are held by the Trustees because they were given to the Trustees. Others are held by the City because they were given to the City for the Library. Trustee Held Library Investments: I met with our Auditor this week on an unrelated matter and took the opportunity to review the 6/30/06 Audit of the Library at that time. These investments total about $1,500,000. I attach a copy of Note #2 “Cash and Investments” from the Audit ending 6/30/06. Mr. Dorr said that the Johnson Fund (balance as of 6/30/06 $296,991.43) was “unrestricted” meaning that it could be spent any way the Trustees wanted it to be spent. The other funds are restricted. I do not have any other information on these monies but I left a message today for Steve Norman to see if he has any information to suggest this is not accurate. City Held Library Investments; These also total about $1,500,000. The City budgets $40,000 from this investment every year to pay for the annual operating cost of the Library which directly reduces taxpayer expense every year. I am trying to figure out what the restrictions are on the trusts that set up these investments. I did not ask the auditor because they are not broken down between restricted and unrestricted in the City Audit. I attach the Statement of Fiduciary Funds (Trust Funds) for the City as of 6/30/06. John Spadola hopes to get work started soon and said the work would go into February 2008. 11.E Election Warrants: Bobbie prepares these and can answer any questions that you may have. (Blue) Have a nice Labor Day weekend.
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