Minutes; Evansville, Wi Finance Committee: May 2008

City of Evansville
Finance & Labor Relations Committee

Regular Meeting
Thursday, May 8, 2008, 5:30 pm
City Hall, 31 S. Madison Street, Evansville, Wisconsin

MINUTES

I. Call to Order. The meeting was called to order at 5:30 pm by Chair Tom Cothard.

II. Roll Call. Present: Chair Cothard and Alderpersons Mason Braunschweig and Diane Roberts. Also present: Administrator Dan Wietecha, Finance Director Lisa Novinska, Dave Rossmiller, Tracy Schroeder, and Sandi Konkel.

III. Approve Agenda. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Braunschweig, to approve the agenda as presented. Motion approved unanimously.

IV. Minutes of April 3, 2008, Meeting. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Roberts, to waive the reading of and to approve the minutes as presented. Motion approved unanimously.

V. Citizen Appearances. None.

VI. Water and Light Bills. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Roberts, to approve the Water and Light bills in the amount of $846,621.57 and authorize their payment. Motion approved unanimously on a roll call vote.

VII. City Bills. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Roberts, to approve the City bills in the amount of $1,157,209.59 and authorize their payment. Motion approved unanimously on a roll call vote.

VIII. Unfinished Business:
a. Youth Center Agreement. Wietecha noted that the YMCA had indicated three areas of the contract with which it disagreed:
1. The AWARE program shares the building, but all the electric expense is borne by the YMCA. The Committee indicated that this should be worked out between the YMCA and AWARE and need not be addressed in the contract.

2. The proposal deletes a sentence from earlier agreements regarding the YMCA’s ability to request additional funding from the city, with no obligation to the city. Wietecha recommends striking the language since it may be considered an implied obligation for the city to provide additional funding. The YMCA prefers to keep the language since striking it sets the wrong tone. The Committee kept the revision as drafted.

3. The YMCA set its budget based on the unapproved figure of $38,550 and requests having that amount in the agreement. The Committee said that it is an important program but what would essentially be a $4,000 budget amendment is a lot. The additional funds are to be used for maintenance. In response to a question, the Committee indicated that if not all the money were needed for maintenance then it might be reasonable for it to be applied toward programming, but the Committee would not make such a promise.

Cothard made a motion, seconded by Brausnschweig, to recommend to the Common Council approval of the agreement with YMCA of Northern Rock County for operation of a youth program, contingent upon the YMCA signing the agreement prior to the Council meeting. Motion approved unanimously on a roll call vote.

b. Lifequest Contract. Wietecha noted that an additional provision regarding the city’s statutory immunity needs to be added to the final version. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Roberts, to recommend to Common Council approval of the contract with Lifeline Systems dba Lifequest for assignment, assumption and collection service. Motion approved unanimously.

c. Union Contracts. The Committee did not meet in closed session. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Braunschweig, to recommend to Common Council approval of the 2008-2010 agreement with Teamsters Local Union #579. Motion approved unanimously on a roll call vote.

IX. New Business:
a. Co-op Student Position. Wietecha noted that committee approval is expected before any department head fills a vacant position. With the current co-op student going on to college, this position will become vacant mid-summer. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Braunschweig, to permit the Finance Director to fill the position.

b. State Trust Fund Loan. Wietecha said that this was a loan taken out as part of the development agreement with North Prairie Productions. The city is now incurring interest costs on the loan while construction is on hold. By paying back the loan, the city can save additional expenses and still have the ability to take a new loan when construction re-starts. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Braunschweig, to recommend to Common Council approval of payoff of State Trust Fund Loan #02007116.01 in the amount of $1,939,098. Motion approved unanimously on a roll call vote.

c. Note Anticipation Notes. Wietecha explained that a past bond issue is recommended to be included in the Note Anticipation Note issue. The 2000 GO Refunding Bonds are scheduled to be paid off in two years, so it is reasonable to include them in this short term debt. By doing so, the city will save about $10,500 in interest over the two years. Cothard made a motion, seconded by Roberts, to recommend to the Common Council issue of $1,185,000 in Note Anticipation Notes. Motion approved unanimously on a roll call vote.

X. Adjournment. Braunschweig made a motion, seconded by Roberts, to adjourn. Motion approve unanimously at 6:10.