Worksession Minutes
November 17, 2008

The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. Present were Mayor Calvo, Mayor Pro Tem (MPT) Lofgren, Councilmembers Attick, Dennison and Gourley. Also present were Town Administrator (TA) Murphy, Clerk Harper, and Gazette reporter Jordan Attebury.

1. Mayor

Announcements: There were none.

Calendar: The January 20 worksession was moved to January 26.

Minutes: On a motion by CM Dennison and second by CM Attick, the November 3 worksession minutes were approved 5 to 0.

Department reports: CM Attick reported that the tree lighting will take place on December 6, and that the Historical Committee (BHHC) is not planning an event for Presidents Day. A geocache installation event and a 100th anniversary celebration of the Taylor/Lofgren house are under consideration. The BHHC also agreed to help with the design of a plaque commemorating previous Town councilmembers. MPT Lofgren reported that Public Works have prepared for a possible snowfall this night. CM Dennison reported that she and Director Solomon attended a municipal infractions workshop at which abatement issues, among others, were discussed. CM Gourley reported that the Administration Department has distributed the menu for the upcoming employee holiday luncheon. Menu choices must be finalized by November 26. Mayor Calvo reported that MPT Lofgren was given a longevity award at the Prince George's County Municipal Association (PGCMA) legislative dinner. At the dinner, he was also reminded that the BHHC needs to designate a new Anacostia Trails Heritage Area (ATHA) liaison after the recent election of officers. Traditionally this role was carried out by the vice-chair.

Citizen comments: Mayor Calvo received a comment about broken playground equipment at Pop's Park, which was repaired by Public Works the same day. He also received many positive comments about the Town and Town employees when he went to vote at Berwyn Heights Elementary School. CM Dennison likewise received many comments during Election Day. She noted that electronic voting machines will no longer be used in the next elections. CM Attick received a complaint about a rental property. He asked at what point a nuisance violation can be filed. Mayor Calvo said that, if the Police have written up reports about particular nuisance incidents, it can be grounds for a nuisance violation. He should send an e-mail to Director Solomon, CM Dennison, Chief Murphy and himself when reporting a nuisance incident. CM Attick also forwarded a request from the member of a judo team to use the Town Center for practices 3 times a week. Mayor Calvo said that if the group provides the service for free they can use the Town Center when available, but probably only 1 a week. They also indicated that they would check with Community Center gym as a possible venue.

CM Attick continued that the traffic light sequence at the Pontiac Street/Kenilworth intersection has been changed, which allows Westchester Park residents to come out before the light turns green for Berwyn Heights traffic. This results in drivers, who wait on Edmonston Road, missing the green light. Mayor Calvo said that he wasn't aware of it but asked TA Murphy to set up an appointment with State Highway Administration (SHA) representatives to attend the December 1 worksession to discuss the Kenilworth intersection and to put it on the December 1 worksession agenda. CM Gourley said that some residents continue to rake leaves into the street and do not remove trash cans from the curb after trash has been collected.

Commercial District banners: Mayor Calvo said that many Berwyn Heights banners, which were installed in the commercial district 4 years ago, have become faded and worn. He has asked TA Murphy to look into replacing them. TA Murphy reported that the banners were produced and installed by F.W. Haxel Co. in 2004. They have a life expectancy of 5 years. The contractor confirmed that they will repair any banners that can be salvaged and replace others with the spares that were initially ordered. The contractor would also make new banners based on the old master for the original price of $100 - $125. Mayor Calvo said that any banners that are worn should be taken down. Public Works may need to borrow a cherry picker from a neighboring municipality. TA Murphy was tasked to order however many new banners are needed and to set a date with the contractor to have them installed. He should also find out if the background can be made of a different color.

Merit increases: Mayor Calvo said that TA Murphy has provided a memo, which proposes to model this year's merit categories on those established last year. The goal continues to be awarding merit pay in a way that is fair and affordable, as manifested in a bell curve in which most employees fall in the middle of the rating scale and fewer at the top and bottom. In this year's performance evaluations, 2 employees received top ratings, 8 employees' ratings fell into Class 3, 9 employees fell into Class 2 and 8 employees fell into Class 1. TA Murphy has provided cost estimates for two options, both of which are within budget: Option 1 would cost $12,077 in merit salaries plus $2,551 for indirect costs of FICA, pension and workers compensation. Option 2 would cost $9.046, plus $2,135 for benefits.

MPT Lofgren moved to adopt the Option 1 merit increases. CM Dennison seconded. The motion passed 5 to 0.

Legislative dinner agenda: Mayor Calvo said he liked the structure of last year's legislative dinner, which began with District 22 delegates giving a forecast of the upcoming legislative session, followed by a discussion of the Town's legislative priorities and an update of Town initiatives and problems. This year, Berwyn Heights does not have a particular bill that it would like to have passed, but will more broadly support legislative priorities of the Maryland Municipal League (MML) and the Prince George's County Municipal Association (PGCMA). Mayor Calvo said for him speed cameras for municipalities are a top priority. He asked other Councilmembers for input.

CM Gourley suggested looking into postponing the due date for paying a second installment of the County tax bill from December to February of the following year, so as not to interfere with holiday spending. Mayor Calvo said he would not support it, nor are the delegates likely to do so. The County tax billing schedule has already been adjusted to delay the first due date from May to September. Mayor Calvo asked if other Councilmembers wanted to pursue the issue. They declined. CM Dennison suggested requesting a specialty program for Greenbelt Middle School to make the school more attractive to Berwyn Heights families. An update on Berwyn Heights Elementary School and Parkdale High School should also be on the agenda.

Mayor Calvo said that he wants to give the delegates a detailed picture of Berwyn Heights revenues over the last 6 years to show how the composition has changed. To that end, he has compiled a chart that breaks down revenue trends by revenue source. While overall revenues have increased from $1.7 million in FY 2002 to 2.6 million in FY 2009, the breakdown reveals an increasing reliance on real property taxes and decreased importance of intergovernmental assistance, such as highway user revenues and police aid. Town revenues from fees and fines have also increased, particularly in code enforcement. Speed cameras would supplement such revenues. He supports MML calling on the General Assembly to set up a task force to study municipal revenues to better understand the challenges facing cities and towns, and help identify alternative revenue sources. Among the various proposals for new taxes under consideration, he favors sales taxes, such as a 1% restaurant sales tax. Councilmembers had no objections to a presentation on Town revenue trends. Mayor Calvo said that he will provide them with copies of his charts and work with TA Murphy on finalizing the agenda.

Municipal zoning authority: Mayor Calvo explained that the City of Greenbelt is seeking Berwyn Heights' support for new legislation, MG/PC 108-09, which would require the County Council to delegate certain limited planning and zoning authority to municipalities that wish to assume it. Among these would be “certification, revocation and revision of non-conforming uses, minor changes to approved special exceptions, vacation of municipal rights-of-way, and approval of certain detailed site plans.”

CM Dennison recommended that the Council support the legislation. She regrets not having supported the 2005 version of the bill, when she did not fully understand the significance of municipal zoning authority. Mayor Calvo said that while he does not oppose the legislation, it has no relevance for Berwyn Heights. Support should be offered in conjunction with better cooperation by Greenbelt on bilateral zoning issues, such as the Hercules Fence property right-of-way issue. MPT Lofgren agreed, noting that Greenbelt has been inflexible about negotiating the ownership issue of the green strip between Kenilworth Avenue and Edmonston Road. The Council agreed not to take a stand on the legislation.

At 8:25 p.m., the Council took a 10 minute break.

2. Parks and Recreation

M-NCPPC public hearing: MPT Lofgren explained that Park & Planning will hold a series of public meetings this week to identify the needs of communities for recreation programs, parks, trails and open space for 2010 and beyond. Community leaders and residents are invited to give input.  In the past, the Town has been very successful in receiving monies to improve recreational facilities and programs. He hopes the Town can send a representative and recommend a project for funding. He suggested replacement of the old, energy-inefficient flood lights at Sports Park as a possible project, which the agency may be considering. This would reduce the electricity bill of the Boys & Girls Club.

CM Gourley suggested exploring the possibility of funding new playground equipment for Pop's Park. MPT Lofgren said that the State has a grant program for that but Park & Planning is not likely to fund new equipment because Pop's Park is Town property. Mayor Calvo said that some residents have expressed interest in establishing a dog park in the vicinity, possibly at Paint Branch Park in College Park. CM Dennison suggested thanking them for the Natasha Street connector trail to the Indian Creek bike trail as way to keep project funding in place. She also thought more equipment for the weights room in the community center would be useful. CM Attick proposed a fitness area on the green space across from Sports Park. Mayor Calvo said that he is worried about asking for something that hasn't been vetted by residents. MPT Lofgren agreed, saying that that is why he is recommending more efficient lighting, as it is not likely to meet with any opposition from residents. He said he would attend the hearing to make the request.

No items were discussed under 3. Public Safety and 4. Public Works.

5. Administration

FY 2008 audit: TA Murphy briefed the Council on the FY 2008 audit. He said that with a different audit supervisor the audit process went smoothly this year. The results of the audit were very favorable: revenues exceeded expenditures for the 4th year in a row and that all special reserves were fully funded. The surplus increased and no funds had to be taken from surplus to buy the new leaf machine and pickup truck.

Mayor Calvo commented that transfer of funds to the reserves is not an automatic result of revenues exceeding expenditures but depends on the Council's budget decisions. In his mind, the key highlight is that the surplus increased after fully funding all reserves, which is a result of sound fiscal management on the part of the Council. Another important point to be made is the decline in indebtedness. Debt on a 1996 infrastructure bond is down to $255,400 in principal and will be completely paid off in FY 2010. This leaves debt of approximately $13,200 in principal on 2 police cars, which will paid off in FY 2012. After that the Town will be debt free, unless there is a reversal in the admission to the State Pension System. This is significant because the Town at that point can transfer between $150,000 to $200,000 to the reserves, rather than $70,000 to $90,000 it now transfers, and fund larger road improvement projects. Mayor Calvo added that, next fall, he would like to implement a road renovation program, which grades every block of road annually. Based on that evaluation, priorities for renovation would be assigned and a regular repair schedule devised.

FY 2009 expenditure report: TA Murphy provided a profit and loss statement for the first 4 months of FY 2009. He said that there are two troublesome areas: highway user revenues (HUR) and interest income. Due to the fiscal pressures on the State budget, HUR revenues are now projected to come in at $178,000 as opposed to the $193,000 budgeted. Interest income from investments has declined from the 4% to 5% earned 3 years ago to 2.2% now. Having looked for the best returns, TA Murphy switched funds out of money market accounts and CDs and invested them with the Maryland Local Government Investment Pool (MLGIP). Some commercial bank CDs also have good returns but require a long-term commitment.

Mayor Calvo said that investing in CDs is probably the best option right now, even if funds are tied up for extended periods. He suggested checking into Branch Banking & Trust Co. (BB&T), which is a holding company of different banks throughout the South. It would allow the opening multiple accounts with separate FDIC insurance under one owner. In response to CM Attick, TA Murphy said there is approximately $1 million available for investing, of which perhaps half could be invested in CDs.

Mayor Calvo said that he is waiting for the 1st quarter actuals on income tax receipts to get a better idea of how well they match projections. Personal property taxes were down last year but are slightly up this year after a rate increase in Public Safety Taxing District (PSTD) personal property taxes. On the bright side, business licensing fees are up, as are cable franchise fees, rental license fees and other code fees and fines.

Commenting on high gas expenditures, Mayor Calvo said that in the long run he would like to convert to natural gas vehicles. He plans to talk to Greenbelt about their fleet of natural gas vehicles to get a better idea of the challenges and benefits. In sum, he said it is advisable to be frugal as several key revenue sources are lagging. However, he is less concerned than TA Murphy because no operating expenses were funded from surplus, and the Police and Public Works Departments usually come in under budget. He does not see where the department directors can save a lot of money without cutting necessary expenses.

Christmas-New Year holiday schedule: TA Murphy proposed to give Town employees the Friday after Christmas and New Year’s off instead of Martin Luther King’s Birthday, President's Day, or Good Friday. Mayor Calvo said that he opposes the swap. He does not like to give up holidays throughout the year, which provide needed rest periods, in exchange for long weekends at the end of the year. If employees do not want to come in on the Friday after the holidays, they can take liberal leave. His main concern is with the service schedule. He proposed to reduce trash collection to once per week, perform recycling in half a day with 2 trucks and add temporary staff for the following week's heavier trash collection. The Town office should be open but does not need to be fully staffed. There were no further objections.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:53 p.m.

Signed: Kerstin Harper, Town Clerk

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