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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes-03/13/2000• March 13, 2000 The Council of the City of Waterloo, Iowa, met in Regular Session at City Hall Council Chambers, Waterloo, Iowa, at 5:30 p.m., on Monday, March 13, 2000. Mayor John R. Rooff in the Chair. Roll Call: Jordan, Krizek, Murphy, Gronen, Getty, Berry. Absent: Anders. Invocation by: Councilperson Harold Getty. Pledge of Allegiance: Erin Schmidt, Junior Girl Scout, Troop #170. 113462 - Jordan/Krizek that the Agenda, as amended to move the Budget Hearing to last item on the agenda, for the Regular Session on Monday, March 13, 2000, at 5:30 p.m., be accepted and approved. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. 113463 - Getty/Gronen that the Minutes, as proposed, for the Regular Session on Monday, March 6, 2000, at 5:30 p.m., be accepted and approved. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. Mayor Rooff read a proclamation declaring March 12 - 18, 2000, as Girl Scout Week. HEARINGS AND BIDS 113464 - Jordan/Murphy that proof of publication of notice of public hearing on proposed F.Y. 2000 Street Reconstruction Program, Contract No. 616, as published in the Waterloo Courier on February 25, 2000, be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. 113465 - This being the time and place of public hearing, the Mayor called for written and oral objections and there were none. Jordan/Gronen that the hearing be closed and oral and written comments be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. 113466 - Murphy/Jordan that "Resolution confirming approval of plans, specifications, form of contract, etc. in conjunction with F.Y. 2000 Street Reconstruction Program, Contract No. 616", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-118. 113467 - Jordan/Krizek that "Resolution ordering construction in conjunction with above said project", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-119. 113468 - Getty/Murphy to receive, file and instruct City Clerk to open and read bids and refer to City Engineer for review: Bid Base Bid & Base Bid & Bidder Bond Alternate A Alternate B Aspro, Inc. & Subsidiaries, Waterloo, IA 5% $2,999,049.24 No Bid Cedar Valley Corp., Waterloo, IA 5% No Bid $3,093,603.04 Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. March 13, 2000 Page 2 HEARINGS 113469 - Getty/Krizek that proof of publication of notice of public hearing on the Waterloo Housing Authority's Proposed Five Year Plan F.Y. 2001-2005 and F.Y. 2001 Annual Plan, as published in the Waterloo Courier on February 27, 2000, be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. 113470 - This being the time and place of public hearing, the Mayor called for written and oral objections. Linda Strator, 124 East Parker Street, stated at this point in time with no further information regarding the proposed use of Section 8 money for mortgages, she does not think this is something we can look at without additional information. Ms. Stator stated that when she called the Waterloo Housing Authority this morning, they did not have a lot of information on the use of the funds for mortgages. Ms. Strator stated that as a resident of Waterloo not receiving Section 8 and trying to purchase her own home, she thinks it is an unfair advantage that someone receiving Section 8 money is going to end up receiving a home that we as taxpayers are not offered. Deborah Collett, Housing/Block Grant Assistant Program Manager, stated that in regard to the agency plan, there is nothing in this document about using Section 8 funding for housing assistance. There was a federal notice that asked for comments on regulations to use Section 8 for down payment assistance. Ms. Collett stated that the article in the Courier was addressing a conversation that she had with the city council in which we were discussing a number of priorities and points of interest, one of which is homeownership in the City of Waterloo. The goal that is actually in the plan says that we will leverage private and other public funds to create additional housing opportunities, but before we would do that we would have to amend the plan, bring it to the council, have discussions on it, and then adopt it as a resolution. Ms. Collett stated that at this time it is not even in the final regulation form, that it was published as a proposed rule and as she went through the regulations today after a call from the public, there are six different key points in which HUD asked for input from the public. Ms. Collett commented it is nothing she is expecting to see very soon, but it is something that might be out there. Jordan/Berry that the hearing be closed and oral and written comments be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. PETITIONS FROM PUBLIC 113471 - Gronen/Murphy that communication from City Clerk transmitting request of John Deere Waterloo Works for an exception to burning yard waste to burn prairie grass located on the north side of their property along Donald Street during the period of April 3 - 21, 2000, together with recommendation of approval of the Fire Chief, Leisure Services Director and Superintendent of Recycling/Sanitation, be received, placed on file, and "Resolution approving said request", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-120. 113472 - Gronen/Murphy that communication from City Clerk transmitting request of Vern Fish of Hartman Reserve Nature Center for an exception to burning yard waste to burn prairie grass located within Hartman Reserve during the period of late March or early April 2000, together with recommendation of approval of the Fire Chief, Leisure Services Director and Superintendent of Recycling/Sanitation, be received, placed on file, and "Resolution approving said request", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-121. 113473 - Gronen/Murphy that communication from City Engineer transmitting request of MidAmerican Energy Company for a waiver for a concrete driveway to be located at 5 Lafayette Street, together with recommendation of approval, be received, placed on file and "Resolution approving said request", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adop and upon approval by Mayor assed No. 2000-122. March 13, 2000 • • PETITIONS FROM PUBLIC CONTINUED 113474 - Gronen/Murphy Page 3 that communication from Senior Planner transmitting request of Short's Travel to rezone from "R-4" Residence District to "R -4,C -Z" Conditional Zoning property generally located at the southeast corner of Ansborough and Ridgeway Avenues be received, placed on file and "Resolution setting date of hearing as April 3, 2000, at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers on the above described request", be adopted and City Clerk instructed to publish notice of same. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-123. 113475 - Gronen/Murphy that communication from Senior Planner transmitting request of Jerry Weekly to vacate, sell and convey the portion of alley abutting his property generally located on Court Avenue for $880.00 be received, placed on file and "Resolution setting date of hearing as April 3, 2000, at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers on the above described request", be adopted and City Clerk instructed to publish notice of same. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-124. REPORTS 113476 - Jordan/Krizek that communication from City Clerk transmitting February 2000 Financial Report, with total revenues in the amount of $4,833,446.12 and total expenditures in the amount of $6,194,670.81, be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. DOCUMENTS 113477 - Krizek/Jordan that communication from Superintendent of Traffic Operations transmitting an agreement with Black Hawk County to provide maintenance services for traffic signals and four street lights located at Dubuque Road and Lafayette Street/Plaza Drive and six street lights located at the intersection of Highway 218 and Black Hawk County Road C-57, be received, placed on file and "Resolution approving said agreement", be adopted and Mayor and City Clerk authorized to execute same. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-125. 113478 - Krizek/Jordan that communication from Assistant City Engineer transmitting Storm Sewer Crossing Agreement with Chicago Central & Pacific Railroad in conjunction with F.Y. 2000 Sycamore Street Reconstruction and Vinton Street Storm Sewer Improvements, Contract No. 613, be received, placed on file and "Resolution approving said agreement", be adopted and Mayor authorized to execute same. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-126. 113479 - Krizek/Jordan that communication from Associate Engineer transmitting Completion of Project and Recommendation of Acceptance of Work performed by Earth Tech, Inc., of Waterloo, Iowa, in conjunction with Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive -Phases IV and V, STP -U-8155(34)-70-07, be received, placed on file and "Resolution approving said documents", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-127. 113480 - Krizek/Jordan that communication from Building Official transmitting 28E Agreement with LaPorte City to perform building and electrical inspection services be received, placed on file and "Resolution approving said 28E Agreement", be adopted and Mayor and City Clerk authorized to execute same. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-128. March 13, 2000 RESOLUTIONS TO BE ADOPTED 113481 - Krizek/Murphy Page 4 that "Resolution supporting submission to the voters of the City of Janesville, that part which lies in Black Hawk County, the proposition of imposition of a local sales and service tax at the rate of one percent", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-129. BILLS PAYMENT 113482 - Krizek that "Resolution approving Schedule AP640, pp. 1-84, dated March 13, 2000, in the amount of $1,417,985.38, a copy of which is on file in the City Clerk's Office", be adopted, together with recommendation of approval of the Finance Committee. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-130. TRAVEL REQUESTS 113483 - Krizek/Jordan that the following travel request, with expenses not to exceed amount shown, be received, placed on file and approved: 1. Joseph Chapman and Kristen Day, Police Officers, to attend Iowa Law Enforcement Academy in Johnston, Iowa, on March 27 -June 16, 2000, with costs not to exceed $5,041.82. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. MISCELLANEOUS 113484 - Getty/Murphy that the following beer and liquor license permit applications be received, placed on file and approved and endorsed applications forwarded to the Iowa Beer and Liquor Control Department and the following applications for Outdoor Service areas and fireworks display be received, placed on file and approved: 1. Beer & Liquor License Permit Application Class C Babe's Tap, 210 Division Street (Renewal) (Expires 3/14/01) (Includes Sunday Sales) Johnny Poppers, 910 West 5th Street (New) (Expires 3/1/01) (Includes Sunday Sales) Porky's Red Carpet Club, Inc., 1449 Newell Street (Renewal) (Expires 4/5/01) (Includes Sunday Sales) Civic Center Waterloo, West 4th & Commercial Streets (Renewal) (Expires 3/1/01) (Includes Sunday Sales) 2. Liquor License Permit Application Class A Knights of Pythias Furgerson Lodge, 244 Ash Street (Renewal) (Expires 3/8/01) (Includes Sunday Sales) 3. Liquor License Permit Application Class B Holiday Inn, 205 West 4th Street (Renewal) (Expires 3/1/01) (Includes Sunday Sales) 4. Application for Outdoor Service Area Iry Warren Memorial Golf Course, 1000 Fletcher Avenue (3/1/00 thru 3/1/01) South Hills Golf Course, 1830 E. Shaulis Road (3/15/00 thru 11/15/00) Porky's Red Carpet Club, Inc., 1449 Newell Street (4/5/00 thru 4/5/01) 5. Application for Fireworks Display Trinity Episcopal Parish, 4535 Kimball Avenue on April 22, 2000. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. March 13, 2000 • Page 5 BONDS 113485 - Jordan/Gronen that the report of the City Attorney and list of bonds filed with the City Clerk through March 13, 2000, be received, placed on file and report and bonds be approved. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. BUDGET HEARING 113486 - Krizek/Berry that proof of publication of notice of public hearing on proposed Fiscal Year 2001 Budget, as published in the Waterloo Courier on March 1, 2000, be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. 113487 - This being the time and place of public hearing, the Mayor called for written and oral objections. City Clerk Nancy Eckert reported that the city received a letter from Leon Mosley and the Gates Park Neighborhood Association supporting the proposal to use sewer funds to fund the Police Department and a letter from staff of the Lincoln Elementary School in support of the Police Department and the school liaison officers. Mayor Rooff read both letters. Jordan/Gronen that the above letters be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. 113488 - Mayor Rooff stated that in the last six years, we have had maybe two or three people at our budget hearing, but this year we did something different, we took primary government and placed it by itself, we went back to basics and asked what are we required to provide to citizens for their tax dollars. Then we culled out all of the special programming, and one of those special programs is the school liaison officers, we refer to them as resource officer. We also took out those programs we were currently providing and set them aside so that the citizens could review them with us individually. Mayor Rooff commented that he could see that those programs obviously are of great interest to the public. Mayor Rooff stated that instead of running the whole general funds straight through, including the Pass Throughs from state and federal sources and other sources of income we receive, such as the Road Use Tax, Community Development Funds, Sanitation and Sewer Funds, we thought we would break the budget out so that you would understand it a little more clearly, and at $16.49 per one thousand dollar, every program is intact. Mayor Rooff stated that we did not budget for four positions in Fire Rescue and about five positions in the Police Department because we cannot keep those positions filled because of turnover. Mayor Rooff stated that is not to say that if we could fill them and could get them into slots in the academy that we wouldn't fill them. Mayor Rooff stated there are enough contingencies in this budget, but why tax the citizens for positions that we can't fill on a regular basis, and that he would rather look at other sources. Mayor Rooff stated that he received a few telephone calls, including one that said do away with street sweeping and keep officers in the schools. Mayor Rooff stated that is a good suggestion except street sweeping does not get funded by your tax dollars but is funded with Road Use Tax. Mayor Rooff stated he wanted the citizens to have a good understanding of how the city budget works. Mayor Rooff stated that he was going to do a small presentation and then he would like to hear from the audience as to whether they want to be taxed for these services, do they want to consider other sources for these services, and what do the citizens feel is important. Mayor Rooff presented a graph depicting where the tax dollars go. For every dollar taxed, 21 cents goes to run Black Hawk County, 37 cents goes directly to the schools, and what we are talking about is 42 cents per tax dollar, which is used to run city government. Mayor Rooff presented the proposed budget. The first section is Primary General Fund Government. Police Operations has a 7.79% reduction because we put the DARE Program, the Street Drug Crime Unit, DART and Tri -County Drug Task Force into special programming. Mayor Rooff stated that if we put those programs back into the Police Department, the police budget would have increased about 3 percent. Mayor Rooff stated that Fire Rescue and Ambulance Service are the only two with significant increases. Fire Rescue will go up a total of 6.12% and Medical Services/Ambulance will go up 7.10%. Mayor Rooff stated that Ambulance Services was not touched at all because it is a revenue generator, and if we cut Ambulance we would have to cut corresponding revenues. After adding siren maintenance that we are required for Black Hawk County, the total Community Protection is up 1.02 percent. Mayor Rooff stated there is a March 13, 2000 Page 6 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED Substance Abuse Program we have to provide for our employees, Animal Control, Human Rights Commission, Library Services, Cultural & Arts Center, Leisure Services - Parks, Leisure Services - Golf Courses, Leisure Services Sports and Young Arena all under Human Development, and they have a 3.56 percent cut overall from last year's budget. Mayor Rooff stated that Sullivan Center Maintenance, MET Transit Authority, Parking Facility Maintenance, Parking Facility Administration, Parking Facility Transfer - Debt Service, Planning and Zoning, Building Inspection and Central Garage are under Total Community Environment and they are down 7.22 percent from last year. Mayor Rooff stated that the City Council, Mayor's Office, Personnel Administration, Utility Replacement Excise Tax, Clerk/Finance, General Revenue, City Attorney, City Hall Facilities Maintenance, Risk Management - Liability Insurance, Printing Services, and Management Information Services are under Policy and Administration and are down 1.86 percent. Mayor Rooff stated that the Total General Fund for Primary Government is down 2.55 percent, and we are asking 5.95 percent less in tax dollars than last year. Mayor Rooff stated that we set out the special programs because citizens need to know how these programs work. We discovered this year that the DARE program costs the city $415,000, that's six full time officers and one full time sergeant, and that the Waterloo School District pays the city $85,000 to support that program, and with some support from the Catholic School the total support of the $415,000 comes to $111,000. Mayor Rooff stated that city taxpayers pay for the other $304,000. Mayor Rooff stated that the city believes officers in our schools are key to our future. Mayor Rooff stated that as a council, nobody wants to cut those officers, but the citizens need to know when they make their remarks tonight what we pay for here at the city, and we are willing to continue to pay for these services. Mayor Rooff stated that if citizens want us to tax them for it, he would like to have them say, yes go ahead and tax us for it, or would they rather have us take it from an interest bearing account or some other fund that we could move, which we don't like to do for operating expenses, we would rather do that for one time uses. Mayor Rooff stated that we also have the street drug crime unit. Mayor Rooff stated that he made a mistake with this program. We sent Chief Koehrsen to Boston to find out how they were putting police officers in the neighborhood and helping with the crime problems. He came back with a program and instead of the city taking it to Community Development and trying it for two or three years as a new program, we instituted the program using General Fund dollars. There is $195,000 that comes out of the General Fund that could have been funded by Community Development. Now that it is an existing program, we can't fund it through Community Development, but it does serve low to moderate income neighborhoods. Mayor Rooff stated that made us a little wiser and right now Community Development is working on special programming for fire and police because Fire Rescue has come up with a new program, Fire Pals, and they have federal funds, and if we serve a portion of that to low and moderate income neighborhoods then we should be looking at Community Development to help us with that program. Mayor Rooff stated that there are some contingencies in place for new programs. Mayor Rooff stated that we also have the DART and Tri - County Drug Task Force, and he doesn't think anybody wants to see us do away with the only effort we have to curtail drugs in the city, but those program are coming out of city tax dollars as special programs. Mayor Rooff stated that Chief Koehrsen has assured him that he can protect everyone and Fire Chief has assured him that everyone will be safe in their homes. Mayor Rooff reviewed Fire -House Inspection and the Regional Training Center. Mayor Rooff stated that the city had a shortfall last year in police and fire projected revenues, and we put them back into line this year. Mayor Rooff stated that Fire Chief Magsamen has been tasked with making the Hazardous Material Regional Training Center into something we have wanted it to be, but it has kind of fallen a little short. We have supported it, but when you have programs being run at the National Guard and the State Legislature looking at forming a whole new training center in Des Moines and Camp Dodge and we have this $2 million training center in Waterloo that no one will look at, it causes him to wonder what is going on, why aren't we being given the opportunity to do the training statewide, so the Chief has a mandate to do something about this and we are expecting we will have something to tell the citizens by July 1. Mayor Rooff stated that we cut $75,000 from the Mayor's Youth Initiative, and it sickened him to do that because the Jobs Training Partnership Act has said they are not going to fund jobs for kids this summer, and we have always funded programs for kids in support of that, and he is not sure $100,000 is enough. Mayor Rooff commented he feels it is a program we need. Mayor Rooff stated that KBBG is funded because it is the voice of 14 percent of our population and is a communication we need. Mayor Rooff stated that whenever he goes to KBBG to ask them to get the message out, they don't ask how much are we willing to pay, they just do it. Mayor Rooff stated he feels it is important that we keep that type of relationship. Mayor Rooff stated that funding the Community Concert Band has nothi to do with running city gov�ent, but it is a special program that in e past we thought was import Mayor Rooff stated that INRCOG Membership, Main Street Waterloo and Cedar Valley Economic Development March 13, 2000 • • BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED Page 7 are all things we fund in a small way so that we will have a future. Mayor Rooff stated that we took over Veterans Memorial Hall and spent a lot of time working with veterans, and he thinks we should continue to fund it. Mayor Rooff stated that we are funding Fairview Cemetery because if they go broke, its all ours. State Code requires the city to take over any cemetery that does not make it, so in the meantime we are trying to help them a little bit each year so that they can stay on their feet and keep their own people operating the cemetery. Mayor Rooff stated that the Park and Sanitation Departments have helped the cemetery in the past. Mayor Rooff stated that there is $755,399 in tax askings for those special programs, and they are included in the $16.49 levy. Mayor Rooff stated that we have a number of items that we call General Fund Pass Throughs. These are not moneys that we are taxed for, they are moneys that come out of Library taxes, Juvenile Justice Grant, Fire Pals Grant, Law Enforcement Block Grant, Symphony Payroll, Community Development Funds, Airport Operations and Telecommunications PEG funds. The total amount of Pass Throughs is $3,261,962 and have no impact on our budget or how we operate. Mayor Rooff stated that the Other Funds include Police and Fire Pension, which this year we will spend $1,615,000 for the Police and Fire Pension which we are required by law that those who have served our community in public safety have a pension. Although we question actuarially whether it should be that high, our legislature has set the rate. Mayor Rooff stated there is a Library Special Levy which was voted in 1993 that produces $390,491, Engineering Services are paid strictly with Road Use Tax, no tax dollars pay for engineering, traffic operations, street maintenance, street resurfacing, it is all Road Use Tax and One Percent Option Tax. Mayor Rooff stated that Sanitation is funded by garbage fees and the Sewer Plant is funded by sewer fees, there is an Unemployment Fund, Operation Pride, and Neighborhood Services. Mayor Rooff stated that the total General Fund will go from $30,915,125 in FY 2000 to $30,601,673 in FY 2001, which means we will run the General Fund at $314,000 less than last year and the tax askings are down 1.73 percent from $14,999,769 in FY 2000 to $14,740,761 in FY 2001. Mayor Rooff stated that Debt Service is moneys we have to tax for to do things such as purchase squad cars, fire equipment and park equipment, those things that are long term. If it is an automobile we only bond for three year, and a major piece of equipment could be funded for five to seven years, fire equipment can run for ten or fifteen years. Mayor Rooff stated that the Net Operating Budget for FY 1995 was $58,618,300 and for the proposed FY 2001 Budget is $52,245,052. In FY 1995 we had 552 employees and in FY 2001 we will have 548 employees. Mayor Rooff reviewed the city's long term debt. The Sewer Revenue Bond Debt is at $27.63 million and by FY04 it will be down to $19.87 million. The GO Bond Debt is at $53.04 million and by FY04 it will be down to $43.14 million, the GO Sewer Bond Debt is at $61.44 million and by FY04 it will be down to $55.36 million. The total debt is at $89.07 million, that is 4 percent of our total valuation. By FY04 the total debt will be $75.23 million. Mayor Rooff reviewed the property tax trends. In 1994 there was a $20.05 levy rate, and tonight's proposed levy rate if $16.49. If you owned a $100,000 home in 1994, with the rollback figure from the State and the levy rate from the city, your tax bill was $1,458. If your house had not appreciated and you still have a house worth $100,000, this year you would pay $905. But your property has increased almost 40 percent over the last six years. Mayor Rooff stated that if you compare last year to this year with the increase in the value of your home, your taxes are not going to go down, but up about seven percent even though we are asking for less money and we have a lower levy rate. Mayor Rooff reviewed the property taxes collected. In 1994 it cost $25.38 million to run city government and in 2001 it will cost $24.10 million. Mayor Rooff stated that we have certain funds that are for specific uses, such as the one percent option tax, which can't be used for anything but the streets. The sewer fund is meant to be used for sewer but it does collect excess amounts. We have used sewer funds to reimburse us for equipment, but we have never swept the sewer fund of excess revenues or interest, but that is a consideration. The sewer fund is a consideration, its tax money and if the citizens want to use it for something, we need to hear that. Mayor Rooff stated that the only way we are going to survive as a city, county and as a school board is if we start cooperating with each other and start regionalizing services. Mayor Rooff stated that he has called for four years for working with Cedar Falls on Fire Rescue. We only need seven fire houses, our response time is down to four minutes. Mayor Rooff stated we could literally save our cities hundreds of thousands of dollars in a year, millions over time, if we would just get together on that one service. Mayor Rooff stated that he would like to explore that, and he would like the city, county and schools not to purchase a piece of equipment if it is owned by another jurisdiction. Lets work on trying to share that equipment rather than spending March 13, 2000 Page 8 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED $100,000 for a bulldozer or $900,000 for a platform fire truck, we only need one in the Cedar Valley, lets locate it centrally and share it. Mayor Rooff asked why would each city, county, and school board try to maintain total separate ideas when it comes to sewer, garbage and equipment. Mayor Rooff stated we need to look at utilities and facilities. Mayor Rooff stated that the Legislature is about to impose a freeze on the levy. If they do that we will only be able to grow at 2 percent. We have been reducing operating cost by 1 percent. Mayor Rooff stated he does not want the state to come in and tell us how to do our business, but he would rather have them say get your act together and work more closely. Mayor Rooff stated that all the programs are in at the $16.49 levy. Mayor Rooff stated that Public Safety will not suffer under this administration. He has worked too closely with the two chiefs and this council has worked too hard over the past six years to build up their equipment and force. However, how we do is up for consideration. Peggy Morgan, Coordinator for Pathways, stated the she wished to speak to Item No. 63 on the proposed budget, that Pathways Substance Abuse is not being funded. Mayor Rooff stated that it was funded for $44,000 this year and was removed from the FY 2001 Budget because we felt we provide $8,500 for our own employees and wondered if the city should be responsible for Pathways. Ms. Morgan stated that for every dollar you put into substance prevention and treatment, you get $4 back in less jail time, less hospitalization, and less time on the street for police officers. Ms. Morgan stated that our children are in trouble and taking away funding for Pathways is another shot in the foot. Ms. Morgan stated it is a valuable program, our children are in trouble, and we must break the cycle of addiction. Ms. Morgan implored the council to look at this again. A representative from the Waterloo Schools stated he was in support of the DARE Program. The DARE Program teaches sixth graders about drugs. He stated if there is some way to find money for the program, it would make life easier for teachers and parents. Matt Knox, Waterloo Fire Department, asked for clarification that with this proposed levy would there be any cuts in positions rather than attrition or retirements. Mayor Rooff stated there are four fire positions that we are constantly trying to keep filled, and we don't want to tax for four positions that can't be constantly filled. We asked Community Development for some of the new programs and are looking at getting them funded by Community Development. Mayor Rooff stated that the $16.49 levy does not include the four positions, but we are looking for funding in other areas, and we would like to try to fund them in some area other than the General Fund. Mr. Knox asked that as far as the firefighters would there be a decrease of four people. Mayor Rooff stated that right now the fire department is operating at about six or seven because we just approved more overtime funds. Mayor Rooff stated we are looking at trying to only tax for positions that someone is in the job, and those extra positions we don't want to tax for them out of property tax levy, we want to find special programming funds for them. Mr. Knox stated we have 120 firefighters in FY 2000 Budget, and asked if the FY 2001 Budget has 116 or 117 firefighters. Mayor Rooff stated it is funded for 116 or 117, and the FY 2000 Budget was funded assuming $75,000 in turnovers. Mr. Knox asked for clarification on the phrase can't fill positions. Mayor Rooff stated that they are filled, but by the time you fill them, train them and get them on the job, someone else quits, and what we are saying is that unless you went up to 123 or 125, you would probably not be able to keep 120 and we are only budgeting for that shortfall. Mayor Rooff stated that if all of a sudden there were 120, we would look at the overtime budget and say we should be able to cut there. Mayor Rooff stated that we fund at a certain level we think the Fire Department will reach and then pump up the overtime because of the callbacks. Mayor Rooff stated that we are hoping to relieve the tax levy by looking at Community Development for the new programs, and that is why we have said there will be no new programs in any area of public safety that doesn't come through the test of whether or not they serve low to moderate neighborhoods and can be funded through Community Development. Mayor Rooff commented we have added ten firefighters since this administration took office. • • March 13, 2000 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED Page 9 Gene Redmon stated he would like to speak to public safety and the response in Waterloo. Mr. Redmon asked if in the budget are we talking about four reductions in firefighters or three reductions. Mayor Rooff stated that we are talking about three firefighters and one clerk. Mr. Redmon asked how much money there is in reserve without the sewer, garbage and option tax and other restrictive funds of which there are reserves. Mayor Rooff stated that in the General Fund right now we have $2.5 million and $1.4 million is unrestricted. Mayor Rooff stated that the Option Tax Fund carries a balance of about $5 million per month because it comes in so fast we can't get it programmed, the Sewer Fund has about $6 million, with $1.7 million unrestricted, there are $118,000 carryover in Sanitation, $134,000 carryover in Road Use Tax, and $7 million of unprogrammed bond money. Mayor Rooff stated that the auditors have told the city that at the end of the year we can gift any carryovers that we want except for Option Tax and Bond Funds. Mayor Rooff stated that we could gift the Sewer Fund for a special fund, but we have hesitated to do that for operating expense because it just fixes the problem now and not in the future. Mayor Rooff stated that the cost for three firefighters and one clerk in the Fire Department is about $200,000. Mayor Rooff stated that we will be operating on less revenue in the FY 2001 Budget because we lost valuation. Mayor Rooff stated last year we had $500,000 in expected revenues in police and fire which did not materialize and we have to make up that shortfall. Mayor Rooff stated that we have $635,000 in salary increases, $250,000 increase in health insurance costs, and that is why we asked our city departments to cut 5 percent out of last year's budget to make up those costs. Mr. Redmon stated that his concern is public safety. The Ansborough Avenue station was closed in 1993 and reopened in June 1996 with nine or eleven firefighters, and the city had to hire additional firefighters to replace those people who did not come back. Mr. Redmon asked the council to reconsider any cuts in the Fire Department while trying to make the numbers for the budget work. Mr. Redmon stated that when he looks at the three firefighters in Keokuk and others since then, and looks at the number of fires we have had in the state of Iowa and victims of the fires, the number of people that have been injured, including firefighters, he would hate to think something like that would happen in Waterloo because of the saving of $200,000, to lose a firefighter or a victim. Mayor Rooff stated that setting the budget $200,000 less does nothing to impact whether the city is safe or not. Mr. Redmon stated he would hate to think that with this budget trying to cut firefighters and/or police that in six months, a year or two years down the road, we would say we made a mistake and should not have done that. Mr. Redmon asked the council to reconsider the budget and the firefighter situation and to look for other ways where public safety is not involved. Mr. Redmon stated he hates to see anyone laid off, but he asked the council to look elsewhere for $200,000 instead of jeopardizing public safety. Jill Denniston, a teacher at East High School and formerly a DARE teacher, stated she was here tonight as messenger for students at Central Middle School and Walnut Ridge Baptist Academy who have written letters asking the city to keep Liaison Officers in the schools. Ms. Denniston stated that the jest of most of the letters is that yes they learn about drugs and they know why they are wrong and learn how to deal with peer pressure, but the officers are their friends and role models. Ms. Denniston stated that the kids feel safe going to school knowing that the officers are there. Ms. Denniston stated that young people this age don't really care about taxes and don't understand that process, but this is one way to get them involved so they will know that their voices will be heard. Ms. Denniston stated its a great pat on the back to the Liaison Officers that these young people feel so highly of them and oftentimes we don't give enough praise to those people. Nancy Showers, 3715 West 4th Street, thanked the Mayor and Council for all the time they give to this job. Ms. Showers thanked the council for reopening Fire Station #6, and she knows they worked very hard to do get that opened, and it is working, doing the job it needs to do. Ms. Showers stated that if she could choose one service, it would be public safety. Ms. Showers stated that she thinks all the taxpayers lined up behind her are concerned with the public safety issue and their family's safety. Ms. Showers stated that one of the concerns closet to her heart are the children of Waterloo and we need to make sure they feel safe. Ms. Showers stated we need to make sure the children feel love and valued, and she feels it is our responsibility. Ms. Showers stated that it is up to us to make sure they know about fire safety, they have to know what to do to prevent injury and what to do to keep themselves out of harms way. Ms. Shower stated that for the past two and a half years she has had the opportunity to work with Waterloo Fire Rescue through the Fire Pals Program. It is an exciting program and it is working. Ms. Showers stated the March 13, 2000 Page 10 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED firefighters go into the elementary schools working in the classrooms and working with the after school programs teaching young children fire safety and prevention, they put on bike rodeos and help teach the correct and safe way to install children's safety seats. Ms. Showers stated she is in favor of the Waterloo Resource Officers and the DARE and DART Programs being in the school. Ms. Showers stated that both the Waterloo Police Department and Fire Rescue are working hard to keep our kids safe. Ms. Showers stated that she hopes we do not cut these services as they are the ones who are teaching our children. Ms. Showers stated that she hopes we do not make cuts in the response units as then we will all be in trouble. Ms. Showers stated that we voted to tax ourselves for better streets and schools, and she thinks that most everyone feels we pay taxes for essential services and Public Safety is an essential service. Ms. Showers stated there are non-essential items in the budget, that if budget cuts are necessary, it should be made somewhere else and not Public Safety. Denise Dunn, Project Coordinator for the Cedar Valley Promise, stated that she was speaking in support of the Resource Officers in the schools. Ms. Dunn stated that Cedar Valley Promise was developed as a result of Black Hawk County's participation in America's Promise as led by Colin Powell. Ms. Dunn stated that in 1997 Mayor Rooff was one of the original community leaders who participated in America's Promise. Those community leaders returned with a renewed commitment to make an even greater difference to our children. Ms. Dunn stated that the Cedar Valley's Promise represents parents, neighbors, government, education and youth serving organizations to provide all our of children the support, assets and resources necessary to achieve their potential. Ms. Dunn stated that they are pleased with the city's continued commitment to and participation in the Cedar Valley Promise. Ms. Dunn stated that the Resource Officers are an integral part of the community's participation in the prevention efforts and creates a safe environments for our children. Ms. Dunn stated that the Cedar Valley's Promise would like to express their sincere appreciation for the continued support of the safety environment for our children through the Resource Officers. Ms. Dunn stated that as a mother she wanted to express how impressed she has been with the Resource Officers, and they represent the community's value and how we value our children. Ms. Dunn stated that the Resource Officers make a difference and make our children feel safe. Linda Strator, representing North Central Action Team, stated that the Action Team was started through a joint grant between the Waterloo Police Department, the Waterloo CCI and the Village Initiative. Ms. Strator stated that due to a survey sent out to the people in the north central corridor, three tough issues were identified. The number one issue dealt with drugs. At that time about one-third of all drug-related problems in the city were within the north central corridor. Ms. Strator stated that her group has worked with the Police Department to help work toward combating and reducing drug-related activities in our area. Ms. Strator stated that with the current proposed budget for the city, we are looking at possibly losing approximately six police officers and cut backs in the DARE Program, Street Crime Unit and the Tri -County Drug Task Force. Ms. Strator stated that she believes that if these cutbacks become reality, all the hard work by these units will be for nothing. We will see a back slide for everything we have worked towards. Ms. Strator suggested rather than cutting police employment and the drug related task force that money be taken from the sewer funds to maintain and expand the same areas the city is looking to cut. Mayor Rooff stated that all of these programs are in the $16.49 levy except for the Pathways Substance Abuse Program. Mayor Rooff stated the city feels it could better utilize Community Development funds because we have Housing Authority funds that could be transferred to Community Development for our housing. Mayor Rooff stated no one is talking about firing firefighters and police officers, but we are talking about the problem of keeping them filled. Mayor Rooff stated that we can't keep police officers in the slots because we cannot get slots at the Academy. Mayor Rooff stated that the city has asked them if we could train the new officers at our Hazardous Material Training Center, to let us train our officers here, and we cannot get the State to let us do that. Mayor Rooff stated that the city does not want to tax for positions we cannot fill. Mayor Rooff stated that all we are doing tonight is setting the levy, all of the details will be worked out in the next three months. In answer to a questions regarding the funding of KBBG, Mayor Rooff stated that he has always included KBBG in the budget because we rely on them to get our message out on the low to moderate income programs. Mayor Rooff stated that 14 percent of our population is African American, and KBBG is the voice of the African American community. They get the word out so we can get people involved. Mayor Rooff stated that we have to plan for the future with the programs we invest in, that we are already losing our kids, we have to have a reason for them stay. Mayor Rooff stated thae biggest part of the work March 13, 2000 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED Page 11 force we can develop lies in the African American community. Mayor Rooff stated that we need to find these youngsters and give them an opportunity, and KBBG is our voice in the community. Julie Everett, a teacher at St. Mary's School, stated that her six graders are currently in the DARE Program, and they discussed it as a class and came up with a lot of good reason why we need the program. Things such as it shows students to respect police officers, whether in school or out in the streets, it doesn't just teach stay off drugs, but it teaches them to respect themselves which allows students to say no to drugs. Ms. Everett stated that she doesn't think it matters where the money comes from as long as it is there to keep them in the schools. A citizen residing at 543 Reed Street and representing Tri -County Headstart, stated that she is here in support of Fire Rescue and the police officers. She stated that all of their staff are trained at the Haz Mat Training Center to institute the fire safety program they have for pre-schoolers. She stated they have the Fire Pals, and they provide field trips to the fire house. They do not want to have cuts in public safety but to keep it at the same status quo or to even take it higher and support more Fire Rescue personnel and more Resource Officers that could be utilized in our community. She stated that she is very grateful that HUD is paying for police officers to be at Prairie Parks, and she is concerned when HUD stops paying for that what will the center and children have to face everyday. She stated everyone here is in support of Fire Rescue and the Police Department and don't want to see any cuts. She stated that the Governor's Task Force for Early Education says that for every dollar spent on quality early education and care saves $7.16 in future costs on special education, crime, welfare and health care. Reverend Jay Burt, 520 Cutler Street and Pastor of Mount Calvary Missionary Baptist Church, stated that he supports the School Liaison and no cuts in the Police Department and Fire Rescue. Reverend Burt asked what the Mayor's Youth Initiative Program is geared for. Mayor Rooff stated that the children who make the most use out of the Mayor's Youth Initiative are African American kids and kids who don't have the ability to do things in the normal way in terms of going out applying for jobs. Mayor Rooff stated we give them activities, education and try to keep them directed. Mayor Rooff stated that we have various programs that give kids an opportunity to work and giving them a little self-esteem and teaching them some skills. Reverend Burt stated that he is concerned about cuts in that program, and he feels it is a vital program for our children. Reverend Burt stated that items 13-17 on the front page of the proposed budget shows a lot of Leisure Services programs that took four or five percent cuts, and have line items of about $5 million, and we are talking about only $100,000 for the Mayor's Youth Initiative. Mayor Rooff stated that there is about $6 million in Leisure Service programs, and the Library has a lot of programs for kids. Mayor Rooff stated that the Park Department has all of the playground programs, and Young Arena and those programs. Mayor Rooff stated that it is a lot of money, but there is a lot of infrastructure to keep up. Mayor Rooff stated that it doesn't seem like we should cut $75,000 from a program that directly helps kids and still have millions in these other programs. Mayor Rooff stated that the city will work on that over the next three months, tonight we are looking at the levy rate and what that should be and where it should come from. Mayor Rooff stated that the Liaison Officer Program is in the budget, but we are looking at how we will fund that program. The program is currently funded by tax dollars. Reverend Burt stated that he believes there are other options, and he is in favor of whatever it takes to keep these programs, that it is our kids who matter. Liz Crawley spoke on behalf of Grant Elementary School staff and students. Ms. Crawley stated that she understands the programs are still secured but wanted to encourage the city to continue to work with the Waterloo Schools and any other resources to continue the School Liaison Program and the Fire Pals Program. Ms. Crawley stated that both these programs are irreplaceable. They both provide for our youth, and that Grant's staff and students have build wonderful relationships with the Police and Fire Departments. Ms. Crawley stated that our youth are being taught to make good choices at early ages. Ms. Crawley stated that she is hoping that we will work really hard as a community to find ways and resources that will continue to allow these people to come into the school buildings and work with our kids, to work in the classrooms and with staff so that we can continue to make sure our kids are ready for the next century and ready to be good community members. Ms. Crawley stated that if we want to look ahead to a positive future within our community, we need to March 13, 2000 Page 12 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED provide these interventions for our youth. Ms Crawley stated that she is concerned that cuts may require them to do more things not involving the schools and she feels we can't replace these programs because they are doing wonders for our children, and she hopes the city will continue them. Jerry Shatzer, 1829 West 9th Street, stated that he has heard a lot of lobbying tonight by public safety employees. Mr. Shatzer stated that all his family has been in the private sector and has never lobbied for anything. Mr. Shatzer stated that what he has noticed is that decisions this council have made have been politically and not business wise. Mr. Shatzer stated that there have been discussions on ways city government could become more self-sufficient, and one thing people should remember that when city government was originally formed, it was formed for the containment of the people within the boundary of the city. Mr. Shatzer stated that when transportation came along, this opened and all of sudden city government was more involved with people moving within the boundaries of the city. That means that we should take advantage of our police department, stock car racing, paintball, soccer, and not make it a little function but a large function and make it so there are additional charges that would go into the general fund of the city for furnishing police, etc. Mr. Shatzer stated that he noticed in the Fire Department we have new blood, very well educated, highly intelligent people. Mr. Shatzer stated he would like to see a lecture program developed by the Fire Department where they can go around to various schools and charge for the lectures, and this fee could go into the general fund. Mr. Shatzer stated that the systems people could develop a software program which would fit the city's agenda which could be sold to other cities, and the city would receive the revenue. Mr. Shatzer stated that the city should hold a contest within the city itself, with a $500,000 prize, for the city employee who comes up with the best idea to raise additional revenue. Mr. Shatzer stated that we need to stop looking at city government as city government but look at city government/business. Joy Lowe asked where did the money come from that is in the sewer fund and how does it get there and is it tax money. Mayor Rooff stated that it mainly comes from the fees paid by citizens and that he believes it is a tax. Ms. Lowe stated she would like to see Public Safety continued at all costs, the DARE Programs, all the public safety programs, and that the School Liaison Program is very dear to her heart. Ms. Lowe stated she would like to see the Pathways Substance Behavior Program to be continued funded. A citizen asked why are we spending $1 million in Leisure Services and Golf but we aren't even spending half of that in our School Liaison Program, which is an investment in our children, and he asked why not. Mayor Rooff stated that golf generates revenue and is a stand-alone program and actually gives money up. The citizen stated that Jesse Cosby funding is being lowered from $10,000 to $9,000, and he would like to see that funding raised. Mayor Rooff stated that Jesse Cosby deals with a lot elderly people, not youth, and the city funds that every year. Mayor Rooff stated that the city does not fund Martin Luther King because Hawkeye Community College runs that program, and the city does not fund another governmental agency. Mayor Rooff stated that what we said is that we can cut programs and cut taxes, use reserves and cut taxes or leave the levy at the rate it is because the state is threatening with locking in it. Mayor Rooff stated that we have a lot of options and the discussion tonight is to set the levy rate and get input from the community. Mayor Rooff stated that the levy rate determines how much citizens will be taxed. In response to a question, Fire Chief Magsamen stated that the reason for the turnover in the Fire Department is because of normal retirements or due to job related injuries and that we have a slight turnover where people take on other occupations. T.J. Reed stated that his area covers an area where there are a lot of crimes and a lot of drugs, and he is concerned that the city is cutting the police, we should be building the force up and putting money into it and putting money where it is needed the most. Mr. Reed stated there is a serious drug problem that he sees every day. Wayne Nathem, 548 Cloverdale, stated the city has a one cent local option tax which maintains the streets, we collect sewer revenue, and just increased sewer fees, and he feels it would send the wrong message if we take funds from the sewer fund to use elsewhere. Mr. Nathem stated that once you get your hands in the pot, the money never goes back. Mr. Nathem stated if the city needs money for the Fire Department how about taxing the people who use the services. Mr. Nathem stated if you go out on a fire call, there should be a fee just like we do for the ambulance service. • • March 13, 2000 Page 13 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED David Becker, an employee of Pathways Behavior Services, stated he really appreciates the funding they have received in the past. Mr. Becker stated that they feel they are an important value to the community. Mr. Becker stated that the majority of the money from the city goes to cover some of the operation and some goes to pay for someone to go into the school system to try to reach some of the kids in school who have drug abuse programs. Mr. Becker stated that as far as the $8,500 for the employees substance program, Pathways does provide that service for the city. Mr. Becker stated that Pathways was the low bidder to provide that service. Jim Lind stated that he is involved in a business that has had significant price fluctuations lately, and it is going to be kind of tough for him to raise too much noise about raising property taxes when people have to pay a little more at the pump. Mr. Lind stated he would like to talk about the process, not the bottom line dollars or what the levy is going to be. Mr. Lind stated that the nuts and bolts of the budget are very important, but he thinks the process is something that has been damaged this time. Mr. Lind stated that the percentages of the bodies that affect taxpayers, the City of Waterloo, Black Hawk County and Waterloo Community School District, all three hearings are being held on the same night at the same time, which is a major conflict to allow citizens to express their concerns regarding these budgets. Mayor Rooff stated that we set our meeting for 5:30 p.m. so that citizens could make both hearings because we have to have the certified budget in Des Moines by Wednesday so we had to do it tonight. Mayor Rooff stated that the county usually held their hearing a week before us, and he didn't realize the school was holding their hearing tonight, but the process has worked in the past as we all held hearings on different nights. Mr. Lind stated that it is also the first day of Spring Break and many people are out of town who would have liked to come to the hearing. Mayor Rooff stated that Spring Break happened to fall at this time slot this year but in past years it was later. Mayor Rooff stated that maybe we could look at all the schedules next year and try to set our hearing so it would not conflict with any other hearing. Mr. Lind stated that his biggest concern is the presentation of this year's budget to fire the firefighter first, fire the police officer first. Mr. Lind stated he didn't know if that was an intent or just how it was reported. Mr. Lind stated that in every article the press has talked about the DARE Program and firefighters, outside agencies, Street Crime Enforcement Unit, and the Youth Initiative Program. Mr. Lind stated that these are all important issues. Mayor Rooff stated that nobody is going to get fired. Mayor Rooff stated that we wanted to focus on police and fire and all those important issues because they have been buried under a $100 million budget. Mayor Rooff stated that we believe in them and that is why we set the levy rate to cover them but we just wanted to hear input and support from the citizens. Mr. Lind stated that public perception is Public Safety is going down to the bottom of the barrel. Mayor Rooff stated you wouldn't know that by the amount of money we put into public safety. Mr. Lind stated he would like to see us in the future rather than ask if the citizens want to fund the DARE Program or whatever the hot item might be, that each line item or area have a mission statement, goals and what have they done. Mr. Lind stated that he believes every one of those items should be measured in order to be funded, and that takes ongoing oversight. Mayor Rooff stated that we are measuring each program and look at results of those programs. Robert Sieglaff, 914 West Third Street, asked if the Mayor is saying we have a surplus in the sewer fund. Mayor Rooff stated there is a surplus and the reason we raised the sewer fees was for our bond status. Mayor Rooff stated that parity is required in order to keep our bond status, and the city has to have 1.25 times the principal and interest payment in current revenue, and that is why we had to raise the fees. We only had 1.13, and they will not allow us to use the excess funds for parity. Mr. Sieglaff stated that we should not use the sewer fees for other things, that any organizations the city wants to fund is fine but it should not come from the property owners. Mr. Sieglaff stated that he has not heard too many people suggest how to cut the budget, they want to raise the budget, and he would like to see the city cut the budget. Mr. Sieglaff stated that he doesn't believe the police force is doing their job like they should because they there is money they could get if they would get out there and write tickets and do things they are suppose to be doing and that money cold go into the pot. March 13, 2000 Page 14 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED Gary Pappenheim stated that he feels it is very important that we keep firefighters intact. Mr. Pappenheim stated that he understands they are 20 percent of the budget. Mr. Pappenheim stated that he has seen in his position as president of a machinist union, once you lose positions it is hard to get them back. Mr. Pappenheim stated that if the city is expected to grow we need to keep our fire stations open, man them and make sure they are trained. Mr. Pappenheim stated that the city cannot control turnover. Mr. Pappenheim stated that he believes its important we keep the moneys we have for the training programs we have and keep people who are in their jobs and replace people as they leave. Mr. Pappenheim stated that every time you have less people means more hours of work, and any time your work more hours statistics show you could have more injuries. Mr. Pappenheim stated that it is hard to believe we can't find people to fill these jobs, they pay well, with good benefits. Mr. Pappenheim stated that he lives on Courtland Street, and Station #5 has been dropped some and he would like to see that brought back. Mr. Pappenheim stated there is construction on 18th Street now and we have to depend on other stations close by, and he feels that puts more danger on our community and our families. Mr. Pappenheim asked the council to reconsider, look the budget over again and try to keep the positions as he feels we need them. Kevin Powers, a member of the Association of Letter Carriers, stated that he believes this mayor and council has a moral obligation to protect the citizens and protect the workers. Mr. Powers stated that he would hate to see firefighters killed because of cuts in the budget. Mr. Powers appealed to the council to reconsider the budget cuts. Mayor Rooff stated that the city is not firing anybody, but has separated the special programs and public safety and said that we either have to tax for them at the levy rate we are at or find the funds somewhere else. Mayor Rooff stated that we can fund every position at $16.49, we have left a gap of three in fire and four in police that is a turnover rate that isn't funded, but if we could get the bodies in there we have a contingency to fund them. Mayor Rooff stated that we hoped that the debate would be do we use the tax levy as a means to pay for all of these jobs or do we use reserves in other funds. Mayor Rooff stated that we have had people say don't use the excess sewer funds, some say use the funds, we hoped there would be more of a debate on that. Russell Lowe, We Care Neighborhood Association, stated that he came to the meeting to discuss whether we were going to raise taxes or lower them or whether we were going to use sewer funds to pay for positions. Mr. Lowe stated that he only wants the city to use money where you can continue to get money, if you can't continue to get money from the sewer fund, then we don't want to bother that. Mr. Lowe stated that he only wanted the city to use funds that would always be available. Mr. Lowe stated that he wants safety, and the only way he can be sure he will have safety is to pay for it. Councilperson Getty stated that several times this evening it has been alluded to the state freeze, and he would like to ask what would the state freeze do to the city. Mayor Rooff stated that the Governor told him today that this is a live round, the Farm Bureau is pushing this and what it is going to do to cities that have experienced good growth is to allow them to set their standards at whatever their levy rate is at and grow by two percent. Mayor Rooff stated that for community like us that have lowered the levy rate, it could hurt us. Mayor Rooff stated that our focus has been the cost of running government, and we are running government for less money. Mayor Rooff stated that we are trying to be creative with programming without being labeled as raiders of funds, we try to be responsible. Mayor Rooff stated that we have money in funds and we have a levy rate that is set to cover our budget. Councilperson Getty stated that he supports the $16.49 levy. Councilperson Getty stated that the council has discussed the budget many times and many hours, and he feels the money is there to fill the positions in public safety. Councilperson Getty asked if between now and the next month or two that an investigating committee be set up of Councilpersons Gronen and Berry and himself to look at the Mayor's Youth Initiative Program and look at the Pathways Program. Councilperson Krizek stated that on February 29 Mayor Rooff went to Des Moines to present a plan to the Governor, and we have to budget money somewhere if we happened to be awarded this grant because we have to have money set aside, and she asked Mayor Rooff where the money is going to come from. • • March 13, 2000 BUDGET HEARING CONTINUED • Page 15 Mayor Rooff stated the funds would come from the private sector and this city's ability to position funds that could be used as the city's match. Mayor Rooff stated that is why he takes exception with the criticism of the process because this process was geared to bring everything into focus. Mayor Rooff stated that he liked the comment not to take funds from something that won't be replenished. Mayor Rooff stated that we could take funds that will be replenished and not being used and put them into an special account for future use, we will be money ahead because the time will come we will need to have funds available for livability standards. Mayor Rooff stated we are losing our kids everyday in this state, and Iowa is an aging state and Waterloo is an aging city, and we need to make sure we have reasons for our young people to stay, both in opportunity and livability standards. Councilperson Krizek read a letter from Gary Plumber, President of the Waterloo Chamber of Commerce. Getty/Murphy that the hearing be closed and oral and written comments be received and placed on file. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. 113489 - Councilperson Jordan stated that he supports the $16.49 levy. Councilperson Jordan stated he would like to lower the levy, and he feels Mayor Rooff conveyed the message well that public safety and schools issues won't be a problem. Councilperson Jordan stated that he wanted to reiterate that this council will not lower public safety, that this administration has worked too hard in the past six years to build it up, and we are not going to lower it. Councilperson stated that he wanted to send a strong message that the DARE Program and Fire Pals Program will not be cut. Councilperson Berry stated that she agrees with Councilperson Jordan in supporting the levy at $16.49, and is really pleased that the community came out to express their opinions. Councilperson Berry stated that a lot of the programs, such as the DARE Program and the Pathways situation, affects a lot of her constituents and the citizens in her ward, and it is good to know that we can guarantee that we are going to have the DARE officers in the schools and find a way to make our public safety work and continue to protect our city. Councilperson Berry stated that Mr. Lowe said it best because one of her concerns is make sure we have the continued funding to support the special programs that we have been talking about tonight. Jordan/Murphy that "Resolution approving F.Y. 2001 Budget in the amount of $102,168,053.00, with a tax levy rate of $16.49097 per one thousand dollars of valuation", be adopted. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Resolution adopted and upon approval by Mayor assigned No. 2000-131. ADJOURNMENT 113490 - Getty/Jordan that the Council adjourn at 7:55 p.m. Ayes: Six. Absent: Anders. Motion carried. Nancy Eckert City Clerk