Minutes - Council Work Session - 07/14/2015

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levy. She stated that the final budget document will include additional items as previously discussed including the Strategic Plan and CIP. She reviewed the proposed 2016 general fund budget noting that the strategic planning items are included as well. City Administrator Ulrich stated that this was something new this year in attempt to link the budget to the Strategic Plan. Finance Director Lund briefly highlighted the preliminary EDA budget and the, capital equipment requests which were composed by staff. She stated that the purpose of tonight's meeting is to determine if the Council is comfortable with a levy rate of 44 percent. She stated that perhaps additional discussion may be needed in the areas of personnel and charitable gambling. Mayor Strommen stated that it would be hard to determine the comfort level of the tax rate without knowing specifically what that would mean to the specific budget items. Councilmember LeTourneau stated that the City has made a commitment to road reconstruction and the message has been made clear that the item will affect taxes. He suggested that perhaps the issue of roads be pulled aside so the Council is better able to see the impact that item has alone. Finance Director Lund stated that the sealcoat item has remained constant and noted that Garnet Street is the only additional item with a cost of $40,606 in 2016. She noted that there will be additional roadway costs in 2017. Mayor Strommen stated that the personnel changes that may occur in 2016 would continue to have an impact in 2017 when the additional road costs come into play. Councilmember Kuzma asked for additional information regarding the personnel change proposed for the budget. Police Chief Katers provided the job description for the position of records technician. He stated that the department is in the process of hiring a lead records technician which would be a part- time position as well as the approved position. He noted that the department is short 1.5 FTE this year which will assist in offsetting some of the personnel changes. Councilmember Riley stated that the City had decreased staffing during the recession and it appears that the majority of the increase for 2016 is staffmg. He stressed that the City should not aim to rehire all of the previous staff positions: Mayor Strommen stated that she would like to see the five year staffing plan. She noted that the structuring of staff had also changed and believed it would be beneficial to see an updated organizational chart. City Council Work Session / July 14, 2015 Page 2 of 6