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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRes2008-124Sponsored by: Oates CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL, OF THE CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA, ESTABLISHING COUNCIL GUIDANCE AND DECISIONS RELATING TO THE EFFICIENCY STUDY FOR THE CITY OF SEWARD DATED AUGUST 22, 2008 WHEREAS, the City Manager tasked City Administration to conduct an Efficiency Study for the City of Seward; and WHEREAS, the Efficiency Study consisted of three sections which addressed 1) challenges and constraints we face in our environment, the services and functions of the City, and the framework for evaluating efficiencies and human resources; 2) city wide efficiencies; and 3) the City's human resources; and WHEREAS, City Council held work sessions on September 2, 3 and 23, 2008 and October G, 2008 to discuss the Efficiency Shidy; and WHEREAS, City Council provided comments to Administration pertaining to each area of the study; and WHEREAS, Administration compiled the information provided by City Council for approval; and WHEREAS, upon City Council approval Administration wi I l implement Council's guidance and decisions relating to the Efficiency Sh-dy. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA, that: Section 1. Seward City Council approves and directs Administration to implement or take action on the following Efficiency Study items as listed below: 1. Attorney Expenses Support. The Council would like the City Manager to limit the City attorney participation in Cot-ncil meetings to those times where legal issues or support arc on the agenda. 2. Minimizing Paper Requirements Support. Reduce paper requirements but do not fully implement the total recommendation „r (Council and the Boards and Commissions will continue to receive paper packets). This CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 recommendation reduces the printing of packets, budgets, and Comprehensive financial Reports for the public, but makes these documents available online. All documents remain available to the public in hard-copy format for a fee. 3. (a). Vehicle/Property insurance Explore. Do not change property insurance at this time. Consider a reduction in the auto insurance coverage. (b). Health Insurance- Work with government agencies and organizations on health care reform legislation and research partnering opportunities with Providence to reduce insurance costs to the City. Support. 4. Purchasing Authority -City Manager and Directors Support. Increase purchasing authority to $50,000 for any City Manager. Report purchases to the Council thorough the manager's report, prior to purchase when possible. Later, Council guidance reflected a desire to exclude vehicle purchases from this authority. 5. Eliminate Driveway Snow Removal Do not support. 6. Library Hours- Change library operating hours from 1 September through 31 May to 3pm-Spm Monday-Friday Explore. Research patron flow and statistics for peak time. Do not change at this time. 7. City Event Insurance Requirement- City provides insurance coverage for events Explore. Continue to research. Consider City funding to the Chamber of Commerce, which would be used to buy special events insurance as determined appropriate by the Chamber. This would shield the City from liability, while supporting community events. 8. Vehicle Support to Teen/Youth Center from other organizations Explore. Continue shuttle from school to TYC but do not transport children to and from their homes; stop providing out-of--town transportation with current City vehicles for winter trips; research to determine if businesses could get tax credits for funding or providing vehicle support to the TYC. "~ CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 9. Non-profit Funding- City considers not providing funding support to non-profit organizations other than the Chamber of Commerce and if funding is provided it go through the Seward Community Foundation Support. Continue to provide support for the Senior Center, Boys & Girls Club and the Seward Museum in the General Fund. Ask the Seward Community Foundation to adjudicate funding to other non-profits in accordance with the guidance from Council. This does not prevent the council from considering exceptional out-of--cycle funding requests. l0. Library Usage Fee Support. Charge anon-refundable library card fee for visitor use oflibrary- i.e. eliminate the current practice of cutting a check to provide a partial refund of the charge to individuals. 11. Summer Hire of John Bird Continue to hire John Bird and see if it is feasible to make greater use of VISTA Volunteers. 12. Snow Removal Utilizing Overtime versus On-Call Support. Reduce overtime costs. 13. Hiring Part-Time Administrative Staff Support. Hire part-time staff when such an approach is cost effective. Council supports a second person for DMV. 14. Meter Reading- Contract out the daily reading of meters for customers moving in and out of locations (when connect or disconnect is not necessary), rather than utilize linemen Do not support. Attempt to implement at the renegotiation of TBEW contract in 2010. ]5. Communications -PBX/ Voice Over IP (VOIP) Support. Complete the PBX contract. 16. Outsourcing- Especially, in the area of street maintenance and investigate contracting out or selling operations such as parking Support/Explore. Continue to outsource whenever such an approach meets requirements and CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 is cost effective. l7. Contracts and Leases -City encourage State to relocate to other facilities and redesign spaces to reduce annual lease costs Do not support. Do not implement at this time. The City should attempt to reduce lease costs and continue to work with the Forest Service to acquire or lease theirbuilding in the future as a location for Community Development and Electric Departments. 18. Seward Marine Industrial Center (SMIC) Upland Boat Operations- Contract the SMiC small boat lift and storage operation and if no bidders then close the operation Explore. Continue to research. 19. Property Tax Exemptions and City Services- City levee a fee payable by all residents, government agencies, organizations, businesses and property owners within the City limits for City services currently paid for through property taxes and further reduce property tax mill rate to offset this new charge to property tax payers Explore. Continue to research. 20. City Property- Lease, sell or develop city properties to earn revenue Support. Continue to lease current properties but always consider the advantages and disadvantages of selling undeveloped land. 21. Closing City Jail Operations Do not support. Do not close the jail, but pursue obtaining additional State funding. 22. Electricity Reduction Incentives and Rate Increases Do not support. Do not implement but work to encourage Stale programs. 23. Rights-of--Way and/or Franchise Fees- City authorized to institute procedures to charge users for use of City's rights-of--ways and for franchise fees Explore. Research and obtain legal opinions before bringing back to Council. 24. Seward Bear Creek Flood Service Area (SBCFSA) Property Tax Assessment- City work with KPB to withdraw from the SPCFSA and eliminated the .5 mil property tax assessment tonon-exempt property tax payers and levee a fee payable by all residents, CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 government agencies, organizations, businesses and property owners within the City limits for flood mitigation services Do not support. Continue existing relationship with the SBCFSA. 25. Marketing and Economic Development- Decide which organization will lead in economic development, then provide the resources necessary for an aggressive marketing & economic campaign Support. Designate $35,000 in the 2009 budget to establish a proposed economic development program for the City. 26. City Toilets versus Portable Toilet Rental (initiate a phased program to purchase its own portable toilets and pumping equipment) Do not support. 27. Floodplain Ordinance Support. An ordinance change is being drafted and will be brought before Council with the rewrite of the Seward City Code. ...r 28. Hospital Management Contract Support. Completed and approved by the City Council on September 8, 2008 by Resolution 2008-88. 29. Sell City Shop Property- Relocate the City Shop and sell the existing Shop property for the purpose of encouraging private development Support. Continue to pursue options. 30. Biennial Budget- Pursue transition from an annual budget cycle to a biennial budget cycle Support. Proposition establishing a biennial budget passed in the October 7, 2008 election. 31. Remote-Read Meters- Replace the electric meters with remote-reader meters when funding is available Support. Add to the 2009 State Priorities List. CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 32. Grant Writer Support. The Assistant to the City Manager and Mr. John Bird will assume this responsibility. 33. (a) Automate Reservations & Payment for Parking, Camping and Boat Launching Support. Proceed with a test to automate parking and launch collections. (b) Eliminate 2-hour Free Parking Do not support. Consider designating the central harbor lots free parking with a 2 hour limit. 34. (a) and (b). Purchase Energy Star Equipment and Laptops Support. Purchase energy efficient equipment and laptops as replacements are necessary. 35. Open Source Software- City converts to open source software and cease paying Microsoft Office site license upgrades Support. Supplement when available technology meets requirements. 36. (a,b,c & d). Energy- Lighting, Boiler Replacements, New Buildings Green and Water Heater Replacement Support. Implement as funding becomes available. 37. (a). Eliminate Travel with Personally Owned Vehicles- Use a city owned vehicles for business trips outside Seward Support. Implement when whenever safe city vehicles are available for travel. (b). Reduce Travel- Reduce travel and education/training to only those that are mandatory and/or can not be accomplished via distant learning or correspondence Support. 38. (a). Vehicle Replacement Criteria- City adopts the State vehicle replacement eligibility criteria by ordinance Explore. Continue to research and implement changes when feasible and most economical. CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 ,~ (b,c,d,e & g). Fuel Efficient Vehicles, Right-Size Equipment, Diesel versus Gas, Electric Vehicles and Police Vehicles Support. Test coolant and/or air heaters; consider purchasing 2 electric vehicles for the Parks and Recreation Department in 2009. (f). Lease General Purchase Vehicles Explore. Purchase vehicles and equipment of smaller dollar amounts (for example, passenger vehicles) but consider leasing vehicle and equipment of high dollar amounts (for example, heavy equipment). 39. (a). Motor Pool- Establish a small general purpose vehicle fleet from which employees could draw from and use for business Support. (b). Take Home Vehicles- Develop new take-home vehicle policy to validate requirements and reduce the number of take-home vehicles Explore. No immediate change to take home policy. 40, (a & e). Maintenance Shops & Vehicle Storage and Contract Vehicle Services- New maintenance facilities include at a minimum outside covered storage and sufficient maintenance bays and contract general purpose vehicle services with local automotive shops Explore. (b,c & d). Extend Vehicle Services, Burning Waste Motor Oil and Antifreeze Disposal Support. Extend vehicles services, continue collection and current use/disposal of waste oil and begin program to collect antifreeze for disposal. 41. Transfer Slip Electrical Billing & Payments to Harbor Support. 42. Flat Rate Harbor Electricity Fees Support. Continue to research and consider implementation next summer. CITY OF SEVVARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 43. Electronic Requisitioning & Bar Coding Support. 44. Electronic Time Sheets Support. 45. Credit Card Convenience Fee (charge a convenience fee for all credit card transactions) Do not support. 46. Cost Savings Suggestion Program (institute an employee suggestion program) Do not implement at this time. 47. New Copier Contracts Support. The new contract is completed. 48. Offer Time-Off Without Pay Without Overtime Increase Do not support. This is a City Manager's decision. 49. Offer Voluntary 36-hour Work Week Explore. 50. Hiring Recurring Unemployment Claimants- Develop a policy not to hire employees who work seasonally and choose to claim unemployment on a recurring basis Explore. Continue to research costs and savings and bring to Council before implementing. 51. Direct Deposit- Require all future employees to receive pay through direct deposit Support. Make this a requirement for all new employees and pursue implementation for all City employees. 52. Add Bar Code Printing to Utility Bills Support. CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 53. Retread tires and recondition batteries or purchase retread tires, reconditioned batteries & re-refined oil Support. Pursue this whenever safe and appropriate. 54. Early Retirement Program (encourage the State to open the window for early retirement and when opened take full advantage of the program) Do not support. 55. Library Automation- Stop providing computers for Internet access at the library and consider purchasing E book readers to increase its book selection Do not support. 56. Combining City and Borough Services Explore. Continue to disctiiss with the Kenai Peninsula Borough. Section 2. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption. PASSED AND APPROVED by the City Council of the City of Seward this 24t~' day of November, 2008. THF. CITY OF SEWARD, ALASKA Clark Corbridge, Mayor AYES: Valdatta, Dunham, Bardarson, Smith, Kellar, Kcil, Corbridge NOES: None ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None ATTEST: i //;~~~ J an Lewis, CM ~ity Clerk a av o ~+~ a ~qn;~.~~,- ."~ ~~ ~~~ e ~ ~ „~ ~'I tit ~ r~a.n ~~~ n~ f` m ;.. . S Mk .Q .Y 'r. r ~ ~ T u ~ ~ Y .,,f C ~C6~~ ~6~® s CITY OF SF,WARD, ALASKA RESOLUTION 2008-124 (City Seal) .,..5„~ g. ~ ° g ' -~ r ~ _ _ l'~ j € ~ r ~ .r i '°i . ,, - ins°J ~ _n 1 ° ~, • ITV °°O~ '>u$i~_ P-~ti°°° °°°da °, n°s°° ~~ `•• rrrrnrca+r~ Council Agenda Statement Meeting Date: Monday, November 24, 2008 To: City Council Through: City Manager Phillip Oate~ From: Executive Liaison Anne Baileyo-~"' U Agenda Item: Resolution 2008- (L4, Establishing Council Guidance and Decisions Relating to the Efficiency Study for the City of Seward Dated August 22, 2008 BACKGROUND & JCISTIFICATION: City Manager Phillip Oates tasked the city administration to conduct an Efficiency Study for the City of Seward. The study consisted of three sections addressing different areas within the City. Section 1 of the study addressed the challenges and constraints the City faces in our environment, the services and functions of the City, the framework for evaluating efficiencies and human resources. Section 2 addressed city wide efficiencies. Section 3 addressed the City's human resources. "Phis study was led by Mr. John Bird who provided discussions, recommendations, advantages and disadvantages for 56 areas of City government where efficiencies were possible. Due to the breadth of efficiency initiatives, the City Counci I held work sessions on September 2, 3 and 23, 2008 and October 6, 2008. During these sessions, the Council provided their comments pertaining to each area of the study. Staff has compiled the results of the work session discussions for Council's approval. Upon City Council's approval, Administration will begin implementing efficiency study actions as documented in Resolution 2008- IZq . CONSISTENCY CHECKLIST: Where applicable, this resolution is consistent with the Seward City Code, Charter, Comprehensive Plans, Land Use Plans, Strategic Plan and City Council Rules of Procedures. FISCAL NOTE: None Approved by Finance Department: b'~~t~% ~;y,2(?~u RECOMMENDATION: ~& Council approve Resolution 2008 ~ ,Establishing Council Guidance and Decisions Relating to the Efficiency Study for the City of Seward Dated August 22, 2008.