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09/24/2018Village of Deerfield Committee of the Whole September 24, 2018 Present: Harriet Rosenthal, Mayor Robert Benton Mary Oppenheim William Seiden Dan Shapiro Barbara Struthers Absent was: Tom Jester Also present: Kent Street, Village Manager Bob Phillips, Acting Director of Public Works and Engineering Justin Keenan, Asst. to Director of Public Works and Engineering Brandon Janes, WRF Superintendent Tyler Dickinson, Staff Engineer John Guccione, Project Manager Eric Burk, Finance Director John Sliozis, Police Chief Brian Budny, Deputy Police Chief Mary Anne Glowacz, Police Communications Director Jeff Ryckaert, Principal Planner Clint Case, Code Enforcement Supervisor David Fitzgerald, Management Analyst Matt Weiss, IT Systems Coordinator The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. Public Comment There were no Public Comments. 2019 Budget Overview - Finance Director, Eric Burk Mr. Burk provided an overview of the proposed 2019 Fiscal Year Budget. He outlined the budget review process, noting a public hearing on the budget will take place on November 5 and a public hearing on the tax levy will take place on November 19. He stated that last year the Mayor and Board agreed to a two-year capital program with $12 million in capital improvement over two years. This year’s proposed budget is in line with that decision. Mr. Burk reviewed the proposed property tax levy. The debt service levy has a 6.38 percent increase due to bonds. Staff proposed an abatement of half of the new bonds for one year. Overall, the $500,000 home will see about a $38 dollar increase for the year. Committee of the Whole September 24, 2018 Page 2 of 4 He reviewed the proposed general fund expenses and revenues. Both revenues and expenditures for the current year are higher than anticipated and may require a budget amendment. Mr. Burk noted the proposed budget fully funded the police pension with $1.1 million, which is higher than the actuarially required amount. Mayor Rosenthal inquired when the fund will be caught up so the funding ramp can end. Mr. Burk noted it would take some time. Trustee Seiden inquired if any new borrowing is in the budget. Mr. Burk noted that it was not. He noted that the possibility of taking over dispatching from Lincolnshire is included in the budget. Mayor Rosenthal stated that it is nice to see the improvements in the sewer and water funds. Mr. Burk noted this is due to public works reducing water loss through repairs and new meters. By the end of 2019, he projects a small positive balance in the water fund. Mr. Burk reviewed the revenues. He noted they are budgeted conservatively. Estimates are made using IML estimates, history and other trends. He noted the estimated sales tax revenues are up $200,000 due to new stores opening and the Walgreens subsidy. Mayor Rosenthal inquired about the new administrative fee charged by the State. Mr. Burk noted this amount has been lowered, but is still higher than it used to be. Trustee Struthers inquired if other headquarters would be willing to participate in agreements similar to those the Village has with Walgreens. Mr. Burk noted staff would be willing to work with any corporations. He noted that the home rule sales tax has also been adjusted up. Hotel and motel taxes are estimated to remain flat. Trustee Struthers inquired if the loss of Takeda will impact the hotel taxes collected. Mr. Burk noted that it could. Mr. Burk noted that building permits fluctuate based on the projects taken on each year. He believes the estimate for 2019 is conservative. He reported that the prepared food and beverage tax is expected to increase by $25,000 in 2019. He noted that the LDGF reduction is being partially reinstalled for 2019, but not to the full amount. Mayor Rosenthal noted that she gets the same comment from residents very often, that the property taxes in Deerfield are too high and people cannot afford them. She noted that it isn’t the Village that is raising their taxes, it is the schools and other taxing bodies. But property taxes are the main way to fund schools. As such, she believes that Village needs to keep its share of the property taxes as low as possible. She would like to keep the levy flat and to reduce the property tax burden. She noted that residents will no longer be able to deduct as much of their property taxes from their income taxes. As such, she would like to discuss getting rid of the property tax subsidy for garbage services and charging residents the full amount for scavenger. Trustee Seiden noted this would not help people with smaller houses that pay lower property taxes. Trustee Oppenheim noted that the services that residents get from the village are of high quality and people do not want to see services taken away. She is not in favor of cutting back services, but is willing to look at removing the scavenger subsidy from the tax rolls. Mayor Rosenthal inquired about the medical insurance increase. Mr. Burk noted it is higher than it has been in the past due to having higher claims. She also inquired about capital outlay for Community Development. Mr. Street noted that the Village Hall building is starting to age and requires some building repairs, so those have been increased across departments. Committee of the Whole September 24, 2018 Page 3 of 4 Capital Projects Mr. Phillips outlined the proposed 2019 capital project plan. He noted the 2019 proposal is approximately $6 million. He noted that staff continues to work with government partners to leverage grant funds. Many of the roads and bridges that are eligible for federal funding have been reconstructed over the past five years, meaning fewer Village projects may qualify moving forward. Trustee Oppenheim inquired about spending on engineering for projects that do not get federal funds. Mr. Phillips noted the engineering would be needed for the projects even if they do not get federal funding. Trustee Oppenheim stated that the water and sewer system projects will help reduce water loss and reduce I&I. She noted it will also help protect homeowners from flooding. Mr. Phillips reported that the Water Reclamation Facility’s EPA permit may require some plant updates to reduce phosphates. Mayor Rosenthal inquired if some of the corporate residents could help fund the Lake Cook Road landscape median project. Mr. Phillips noted that staff will reach out. Trustee Struthers inquired about ensuring that new construction does not cause flooding. Trustee Oppenheim inquired about staff education outreach to residents regarding flooding and drainage issues. Mr. Philips noted staff tries to work with residents and educate them regarding flooding and drainage issues and possible outcomes. Trustee Struthers inquired about the drainage at Tennaqua. Mr. Phillips noted some improvement has been made with a new storm sewer line. Trustee Oppenheim inquired about the Walden School parking lot improvement and whether the school districts work well with the Village regarding construction requirements. Mr. Philips stated they are working well with District 109. Mayor Rosenthal inquired about the I&I reduction incentive program. Mr. Philips stated there are more than 1,000 sump pumps connected to the sanitary sewer system and about a dozen have used the incentive program. Mr. Street noted the focus on the capital program is just for the 2019 year, as the funding level for 2019 was set last year as part of a two-year program. Trustee Struthers inquired about the storm water impervious surface fee. She would like to see people who install more impervious surface to pay more. Mr. Phillips noted the proposed options include ones based on water consumption use and impervious surface coverage. Departmental Budget Requests Public Works and Engineering Mr. Phillips outlined the 2019 Public Works and Engineering budget. He noted that the Deputy Director of Public Works and Engineering position has been eliminated and will not be refilled following the retirement of Barbara Little. Trustee Struthers inquired about the consulting fees in the water division. Mr. Phillips noted they are temporary as the longtime foreman retires and Committee of the Whole September 24, 2018 Page 4 of 4 new staff are trained. Trustee Seiden inquired about the loss of Takeda on the water system. Mr. Phillips noted that the Village owns the water main. Trustee Struthers inquired if the drainage districts help remove debris in the river branches during storm events. Mr. Phillips noted Public Works does that now as they are on site during events and are able to make quick decisions in real time. The drainage districts do have more clearing work planned. Community Development Mr. Case and Mr. Ryckaert outlined the proposed Community Development Department budget. Trustee Oppenheim inquired about the contractual services budget line. Mr. Case noted most of them are pass-through costs. Mr. Burk noted that it also includes some Village Hall building repairs. Police Chief Sliozis reviewed the 2019 proposed budget for the Police Department. He noted that personnel is the main cost of the department. They are seeking no new personnel positions, but are looking to replace Gerry Zachar with a social worker. He noted that they are in communication with Lincolnshire to take over police dispatching. He noted that they do not intend to add employees if they take over this service, but may increase the part time and overtime hours. They have fewer than 25 officers and only a few on the street at any given time. He noted that the department is young, so the officers will be getting step increases over the coming years, so the personnel services line items will be higher than the cost of living increase. There being no further business or discussion, Trustee Benton moved to adjourn the meeting. Trustee Oppenheim seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 8:31 p.m. The next budget Committee of the Whole meeting will take place on Saturday, October 20, 2018, at 9:30 a.m. Respectfully submitted, David Fitzgerald, Management Analyst