CITY
COUNCIL STUDY SESSION
PROPOSED
2003-2004 OPERATING BUDGET
May 12, 2003
PRESENT: Council Members Chavez, Chirco, Cortese, Dando, Gregory, LeZotte, Reed, Williams, Yeager; Gonzales.
ABSENT: Council Member Campos. (Excused)
STAFF: City Manager Del
Borgsdorf, City Attorney Richard Doyle, Assistant City Manager Mark Linder,
Budget Director Larry Lisenbee, Assistant Budget Director Jennifer Maguire,
Mayor’s Budget and Policy Director Joe Guerra, Mayor’s Budget and Policy
Assistants Julie Shioshita, and Jennifer Galliart, Assistant City Clerk Nancy
Alford, and Legislative Secretary Susan Davis.
Documents Filed: (1)
Proposed Operating Budget Binder for 2003-2004 from the Office of the City
Manager. (2) Budget Letter from City
Manager Del Borgsdorf, dated May 1, 2003. (3) Hard copies of the
2003-2004 Proposed Operating Budget Overview and the Economic and Neighborhood
Development CSA for Conventions, Arts and Entertainment, Fire, Housing, Office
of Economic Development, Planning, Building and Code Enforcement, Public Works,
and Redevelopment Agency, dated May 12, 2003.
Mayor Gonzales called the meeting
to order at 1:06 p.m., in Council Chambers, City Hall, and stated the City of
San José is facing an enormous challenge with this budget and some difficult decisions
will have to be made to protect the vital services that the people of San José
demand and deserve. He stated the difficult process of understanding how the
State deficit is impacting the City of San José will emerge after Governor
Davis releases his May Revised Budget on May 14, 2003. Mayor Gonzales stated
the challenge is not new to this Council, and the emphasis will be on those
services that the City of San José has provided with pride in the past,
building and rebuilding the neighborhoods, balancing the budget, and the most
important, stimulating the economy.
PROPOSED 2003-2004 OPERATING BUDGET
City Manager Del Borgsdorf introduced the Proposed Operating
Budget. He stated that Budget Director Larry Lisenbee will give a financial
overview, and then brief presentations will be made by the team leader of each
of the City Service Areas giving a short, comprehensive report of the entire
budget situation. He stated so many of the City of San José’s revenue sources
are tied directly to economic activity, i.e. declining sales tax, occupancy tax
in hotels, and air travel; construction has slowed; job loss has increased; and
all of those factors roll into the General Fund revenues and consequently into
the expenditures.
Budget Director Larry Lisenbee
gave a slide presentation of the Proposed 2003-2004 Operating Budget. He stated
that seven team leaders for the City Service Areas (CSA) will be giving
presentations.
Referencing Page 6 of the City
Manager’s Budget Message, Vice Mayor Dando requested Staff to identify how many
positions are being carried, where the vacant positions are, what that equates
to in dollars, and how many of those dollars are in the General Fund. Council
Member Yeager requested more information from Staff regarding the vacant
positions that are to be carried over, where staff is being eliminated, and
what unfilled vacancies are being continued.
Brief overviews for each City
Service Area were presented. Economic Director Paul Krutko, and Team Leader of
the Economic and Neighborhood CSA stated the partner departments of Convention
Arts and Entertainment, Fire, Housing, Office of Economic Development,
Planning, Building and Code Enforcement, Public Works and Redevelopment Agency
have been working through some difficult choices for about seven months now,
and the strategy that will be presented focuses on increased collaboration and
partnership both internally with fellow departments, other CSAs, and externally
with Community Based Organizations (CBO) partners.
Library Director Jane Light, Team
Leader for the Recreation and Cultural Services CSA, stated the focus has been
maintaining and protecting youth programs, and Strong Neighborhood Initiative
(SNI) Programs, identifying organizational opportunities, which in Parks,
Recreation and Neighborhood Services translates to the elimination of more than
40 vacant positions, managing operating and maintenance costs without
additional staff resources in new library facilities, and proposing program reductions
such as branch library hours, parks maintenance, programs at both community
centers and libraries, and proportionate reductions and support of the CBOs and
cultural institutions.
Deputy Chief of Police Adonna
Amoroso, representing Chief of Police William Lansdowne, Public Safety CSA,
Team Leader, stated that the strategy in developing this proposed budget was to
keep San José one of the nation’s safest large cities by focusing on basic
emergency police responses through the redeployment of selected positions,
exercising efficiencies and addressing some revenue enhancing opportunities.
Director of Transportation James
R. Helmer, Team Leader for the Transportation CSA, stated that the focus is to
maximize safety and service for all travelers, and the major service impacts
are elimination of the structural tree trimming program, reductions to
pavement, landscape and sidewalk maintenance programs and that preventitive
maintenance of street signs, roadway markings and traffic signals will be
reduced.
Director of Aviation Ralph G.
Tonseth, Team Leader for the Aviation CSA, stated their proposed budget
reflects a balance in strategy that began shortly after the September 11, 2001
tragedy, and are flexibly responding to changing national security threat levels
while working with CSA partners to fulfill responsibilities as an economic
engine by providing a major capital improvement program that will provide jobs,
facilities and amenities that will continue to make San José a world class
community to do business.
Carl W. Mosher, Director of
Environmental Services, Team Leader for the Environmental and Utility Services
CSA stated focus is on managing the essential services that citizens need every
day including the Water Pollution Control Plant, storm and sanitary systems,
waste collection systems, street sweeping programs, and Muni and South Bay
Water Recycling systems, and they are proposing to change street sweeping
frequency to one sweep a month, to increase and adjust the rate structure for
the storm sewer fee, Recycle Plus rates, and Muni water program.
Director of General Services Jose
Obregon, Team Leader for City Facilities and Equipment, and a new support
structure, a combined Strategic Support CSA, stated a support CSA must provide
its services in a manner that allows the operational CSAs to continue to be
effective in the delivery of services to the external customers, and this will
be a challenge for the Strategic Support CSA in this coming year through redeployments,
efficiencies, and identification of alternate funding resources.
Mayor Gonzales requested Team
Leader names for each CSA be listed on future Study Session Agendas.
Economic
and Neighborhood Development CSA
Director of Economic Development
Paul Krutko, and Team Leader of the Economic and Neighborhood Development CSA
gave a slide presentation summarizing the CSA investment strategy as
collaboration and partnership, focusing on core services, restructuring for
efficiencies, maintenance of service levels through fee adjustments, proactive
postion freezing, use of reserves and managed position vacancies.
Acting Director for Conventions,
Arts and Entertainment Jim McBride gave a brief summary of Outcome 1, a strong
economic base focusing on business attraction and retention for jobs and
revenues, improved resident employment opportunities, improving industry
balance through economic development strategy, Convention Center marketing
diversification, and retaining loan program capacities.
Director of Housing Leslye
Corsiglia gave a brief presentation of Outcome 2, a diverse range of housing
opportunities focusing on continued leadership in the production of housing for
the region, strong focus on affordable housing programs, and continued priority
to implementing creative solutions to the housing crisis.
Director of Planning, Building
and Code Enforcement Stephen M. Haase gave a brief summary of Outcome 3, the
creation of safe, healthy, attractive and vital communities. The action plan
highlights working with the Redevelopment Agency and community partnerships to
maintain service, enhanced and alternative funding to maintain existing core
services, and reduction in services for long range planning and general code
enforcement.
Guy Duerke, President, and
Executive Officer of Home Builders Association of Northern California addressed
the Council regarding the 100% cost recovery, and stated the Home Builders
Association is working closely with the Planning, Building and Code Enforcement
Department regarding accountability, quality, and efficient delivery of
services.
Conventions, Arts and Entertainment
Department
Referencing Page 109, Performance
and Activity Highlights, Mayor Gonzales requested the figures that are
projected for the new banquet facility and the 4th Street parking
garage be included. Referencing Page 109, Performance and Research for the
Convention Facilities, Council Member Reed stated it is important in this
budget year to make more progress beyond the preliminary stage to save money,
and in conjunction with all the stakeholders, to discuss this at the next
Convention and Visitors Bureau meeting.
Office of Economic Development
Referencing Page 133, Office of Economic Development, Mayor Gonzales stated in regard to jobs created and retained by Chambers of Commerce assisted companies, when the point of discussing the next round of contracts is reached, he requested Staff to focus on that and return to Council for further discussion and action.
Council Member LeZotte requested that Staff list the number of jobs created and the number of jobs retained separately, and show a performance measure. Council Member LeZotte stated at the bottom of the Page 133, regarding tax revenues generated by OED actions, she requested Staff return with information on how that is determined.
Council Member LeZotte stated on Page 130 and 131 with regard to the small Chambers, regarding the performance of the small Chamber contracts, as a whole remains good, and she requested a performance measure for the monitoring of these particular Chambers. Director of Economic Development Paul Krutko stated in the Mayor’s 2002 Budget message there was direction to provide quarterly reports to the Council, which Staff has complied with, that the third quarter report will be delivered shortly, and it contains detailed work programs for each of the Chambers since July 2002.
Referencing Page 140, Council Member Chavez expressed concern regarding the downsizing of staff, and requested a citywide policy for the use of temporary workers and temporary agencies from Staff.
Fire Department
Referencing Fire, under Strategic
Support, Page 265, Council Member Reed requested Staff to monitor the money
being collected for fees to achieve cost recovery.
Housing Department
Referencing Page VII-30, Rental Rights and Referrals Program, and the allocation of Community Development Block Grants, and Healthy Neighborhood Venture Fund monies, Mayor Gonzales requested Staff to work with his office regarding setting the rate at the right amount and to determine how much it would take for full cost recovery for the programs.
Mayor Gonzales requested Staff to correct the typographic error on Page 319, Teacher Home Buyer Program, the forecast of 100 teachers assisted, in lieu of 70 teachers assisted.
On Page 327, Mayor Gonzales requested Staff to return with an estimate on the number of additional mediation hearings as a result of the new program.
Council Member Gregory made a comment requesting Staff incorporate the report on the Modified Rehabilitation Program into the quarterly report that comes to the Driving Strong Economy Committee.
The Council recessed at 4:55 p.m.
to meet again on Wedneday, May 14, at 8:00 a.m. in Council Chambers, to
complete the review of the Economic and Neighborhood Development CSA, beginning
with Planning Building and Code Enforcement.
NANCY ALFORD,
ASSISTANT CITY CLERK