02-12-18 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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REGULAR MEETING February 12, 2018 We are skeptical that it really reflects the economic growth we've experienced. We would have to believe the overall value of real estate hasn't budged since 2010. We are working with the County Assessor's Office on that as it affects many other areas of our revenues. There was a per-acre is of land in our City and those findings are driving our dialogue with the Assessor's Office. analysis ty g When there is dense development, we have dramatically higher tax-value per acre. I know sometimes there is envy of places with a lot of big box stores. They certainly have value but even the most modest downtown establishment that is part of the Mixed-Use Development is likely to have a much higher per-acre tax value when we think about how we fund the operation of that land in the City. He then showed a map of taxable land in the City. Mayor Buttigieg went on, We are seeing some increase in overall property tax collections. It is up about two point two percent (2.2%) from 2015 to 2016 and we are hoping that will grow and perhaps accelerate. We did see property tax receipts a little lower than we budgeted by about half a percent but the Park Recreation Fund was higher than the previous year by about twelve percent (12%). So it sounds like this has to do with how the DLGF and the State sets the Parks levy. If that continues, we may want to recalibrate how we relate the General Fund to the Parks Fund but it should be good overall. I do want to mention one (1) thing that drove TIF receipts down quite a bit was a refund due to Meijer. That was a store that insisted,pursuant to a State law, a store that was open and serving customers be taxed the same as an empty abandoned store. We had a lot of concerns about that policy and I know it has been taken up from time to time in the State Legislature. I would point out that some stores in our community take advantage of that tax loophole and some do not and that is something to think about in terms of our community's relationship to the different retailers that we rely on. Mayor Buttigieg continued, Here is the annual reminder of the so-called fiscal curb coming in 2020. Our latest estimates place us at a possible $2.4 million reduction. This is outside of TIF so this is your Civil City dollars.The curb is a result of the elimination of the point five percent(0.5%) kicker we get on the property tax caps. If you added in TIF that would be another $3.8 million reduced but of course that is a lot easier to absorb as we are not relying on it for operations like we do the General Fund. As of now, that number is $2.4 million. That brings me to our expectation for deficits.Part of this is budget conservatism. When I showed you all this last•year,it would have projected a deficit looking forward. When we get to the actuals and the budget we are currently living in, we always find a way to bring it together. But, in a business-as-usual scenario when we are dealing with increased healthcare costs, increased pressure on finances and more costs for streets, curbs,and sidewalks,we would be at a$10 million deficit going into 2021. So the question becomes how we make sure we aren't just sticking to business-as-usual. He expanded upon a slide of the presentation that highlighted some initiatives. Mayor Buttigieg went on,First,we have talked about health care. We want to be doing everything we can to make sure that escalating healthcare costs don't harm our bottom line. Secondly,we are working on the PSAP 911 Call Center. I have a lot more confidence than I did six (6)months ago in the trajectory of it but we have to make sure the costs don't run away. We are starting to see a much more consistent flow of information including financial information.It is clearer now of how to get that into a pattern. Third,we are making sure we are in good shape with the Assessed Values of land in the City. It is not so much that the rates go higher but we want to make sure we have the right level of accuracy. Fourth, I want to mention that we are integrating our Purchasing Department. Right now we have about one hundred (100) people in the City who have some sort of purchasing authority. One (1) of the first things any business looks at when they are trying to make sure they are maximizing their dollars is that we have an as integrated as possible view on purchasing. We need to take advantage of volume discounts and better deals from vendors. We are currently in the process of getting to where we will have about twenty (20) or twenty-five (25) dedicated agents by the end of the year but we actually think we can get the number below that. We think that will yield savings. Similarly when it comes to facilities,we are trying to move in the direction where the maintenance of City-owned facilities have a common view and asset management. Mayor Buttigieg continued, So we will spend 2018 continuing to deliver on the key initiatives that were authorized in the budget for this year and that includes but is not limited to inclusive economic growth, place-making, supporting neighborhoods, quiet zones, safety, diversity, lead