City of Bandon
CITY MANAGER'S NEWSLETTER
May 8, 2009
This newsletter is an informal report by City Manager Matt Winkel on the news, issues, and other items of interest from the City of Bandon. It will normally be posted once each month (on the Friday following the City Council meeting) on the City's WEB Page at www.ci.bandon.or.us, and will be e-mailed directly to all subscribers. Subscribers will also receive copies of City Council, Planning Commission, Parks & Recreation Commission, Committee for Citizen Involvement, and Water Resource Committee agendas via e-mail in advance of each meeting.
To subscribe or un-subscribe, or if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please e-mail to citymanager@ci.bandon.or.us. Your e-mail addresses will be kept confidential and not distributed or used for any purposes other than e-mail communications with the City of Bandon.
FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE
- City Council Goals For 2009-2011
- Fiscal Year 2009-2010 Budget
- Reduction In Force
- Employee Wage Freeze
- Property Tax Rates
- Water, Sewer, and Electric Utility Rates
- State Revenue Sharing Expenditures Approved For Fiscal Year 2009-2010
- Request To Delay Removing Sunset City From The Urban Growth Boundary
- Got Gorse, Scotch Broom, Or Blackberries? - Borrow A Weed Wrench!
- Bid Awarded For "Welcome To Bandon" Sign At Highway 101 & Seabird Drive
- Old Town Arches Maintenance
- Linda's Church Joke
CITY COUNCIL GOALS FOR 2009-2011
Every two years, following City Council elections, the City Council works on establishing their goals for the subsequent two-year period. These goals provide guidance to the City Council, appointed committees and commissions, and staff regarding the overall direction and priorities for the City over the next two years, and are used to prioritize projects for inclusion in the annual City and Urban Renewal budgets. After reviewing the prior goals and accomplishments, the City Council formulated and unanimously adopted the following 2009-2011 goals at their May 4th meeting:
GOAL #1: Ensure adequate Police and Fire Services.
GOAL #2: Continue to monitor and control basic infrastructure with special emphasis on putting settling tubes in the clarifier.
GOAL #3: Continue to monitor the Emergency Plan and Warning System and include community education and neighborhood meetings.
GOAL #4: Promote "Community Appeal" through the support of Beautification and Quality of Life issues including emphasis on reducing litter through education, enforcement and clean-up days.
GOAL #5: Pursue development of a pedestrian/bike trail with special emphasis on development of the Ocean Bluff Trail (Madison Avenue to Beach Loop) and the Table Rock Pathway.
GOAL #6: Preserve and protect the riparian and wetland areas of our city, our watershed, and our future potential water sources.
GOAL #7: Secure the remaining property to develop an east-side park.
GOAL #8: Promote the completion of the Business Registry.
GOAL #9: Work toward a coordinated, community-wide shuttle service.
FISCAL YEAR 2009-2010 CITY BUDGET
At their April 13th meeting, the Budget Committee unanimously approved, and forwarded to the City Council, the proposed budget for upcoming fiscal year 2009-2010 (July 1, 2009 - June 30, 2010). The budget will now be reviewed and considered for adoption by the City Council at their June 1st meetings. The proposed fiscal year 2009-2010 budget total is $19,800,664, which represents an 11.3% reduction below the current year's $22,320,696 budget.
Reduction in Force
Earlier this year, due primarily to declining General Fund revenues, the City was forced to lay off two employees (one in Finance and one in Planning). In addition, the Code Compliance Officer position has now been eliminated, with those responsibilities transferred to the Planning Department. To further reduce General Fund expenditures, the City Recorder's hours have been reduced from 40 hours per week to 32 hours per week. With the recent resignation of two police officers who returned to the County Sheriff's Department to be closer to home (they had been commuting daily from the Myrtle Point area), the City has two vacancies. To save money this year, and even more critically next year, the City will be filling only one of those positions. This will reduce the total number of sworn officers to 6, including the Chief, Sergeant, and four patrol officers. During the upcoming year, to hopefully allow the City to continue providing 24 hour police coverage into next year, the City will be examining several options such as possibly taking to the voters a public safety levy to partly fund police and fire protection services. With the reduction of the Police Department to 6 officers, and since one Police Officer will be out for several months on medical leave, and with a new beginning officer, the City is currently unable to provide 24 hour police coverage. The combined budget of the police and fire departments represents over 62% of the discretionary portion General Fund budget (funds not legally obligated to other purposes), so further reductions in the General Fund expenditures will be extremely difficult without additional impacts to the Police Department.
Employee Wage Freeze
Due to projected shortfalls in several areas, and in an effort to avoid further layoffs, the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year includes a wage freeze for all City employees. The four current union contracts with the Police, Public Works, Clerical, and Electric bargaining units call for annual wage and cost-of-living increases. The City has, however, reached a tentative agreement with all union and non-union City employees, except for the Police bargaining unit (negotiations are ongoing), under which the employees have voluntarily agreed to wage freeze. In exchange, the City has agreed to allow one additional day off during each calendar quarter while the wage freeze is in effect. A complete wage freeze would save the City over $200,000 in the upcoming fiscal year, and will hopefully allow us to avoid additional layoffs this year, and the resulting reduction in level of public services.
Property Tax Rates
The City's permanent property tax rate remains unchanged at $0.46 per $1,000 assessed valuation, and the Local Option Street Levy will continue at $.85 per $1,000 assessed valuation. With increases in assessed valuation, the property tax rate for prior bond repayments was lowered by $0.13, from its FY 2007-2008 rate of $0.86 per $1,000 assessed valuation to a FY 2008-2009 rate of $0.73. Bandon's total fiscal year 2008-2009 property tax rate was $2.04 per $1,000 assessed valuation, which was $0.13 less than the prior year's $2.17. For comparison to Bandon's $0.46 permanent property tax rate, the permanent tax rate per $1,000 assessed valuation for the other cities in Coos County are Myrtle Point - $7.99; Powers - $7.39; Coos Bay - $6.36, North Bend - $6.18; Coquille - $6.10; and Lakeside has no permanent rate.
Water, Sewer, and Electric Utility Rates
At this time, the budget does not anticipate any immediate increases to the water, sewer, and electric utility rates. However, depending on actual beginning fund balances as we approach July 1st, and actual revenue and expenditure amounts as we proceed through the year, there could be a need for some utility rate increases. In particular, staff is looking closely at the possibility of needing a sewer rate increase as early as July 1st. If necessary, a recommendation in that regard will be made to the City Council at their June 1st meeting when the fiscal year 2009-2010 budget will be considered for final adoption. The City has also been advised by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) that wholesale power costs could go up between 10% to 20% on October 1, 2009. Actual impacts on retail electric rates, and a determination regarding how much can be absorbed, and how much would have to be passed on to the customers, will probably be made in September.
STATE REVENUE SHARING EXPENDITURES APPROVED FOR FISCAL YEAR 2009-2010
At their April 13th meeting, the Budget Committee unanimously approved, and forwarded to the City Council, the proposed fiscal year 2009-2010 budget for the expenditure of State Revenue Sharing funds. Those funds come from the State, as a share of the liquor revenues. In recent years, the City has utilized its State Revenue Sharing Fund as the source of money contributed to various outside organizations for service to the community. For the last several years, the City has also been trying to build some reserve funds for pothole and street repairs, but due to anticipated shortfalls in the upcoming year, those funds had to be transferred into the General Fund, primarily for police and fire protection. The budgeted expenditures for fiscal year 2009-2010 are as follows: Belloni Shelter Care - $600; Dial-A-Ride - $3,500; EAT (Everyone at the Table meals program) - $1,000; Bandon Historical Society - $3,500 Lions Club (4th of July Celebration) - $1,000; Neighbor to Neighbor Dispute Resolution Center - $700; RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program) - $1,000; Senior Meals Program - $3,500; BRAVO Reading Program - $3,500; Women's Resource Center - $420; Bandon Youth Center - $3,500; and transfer to the General Fund - $18,576.
REQUEST TO DELAY REMOVING SUNSET CITY FROM THE URBAN GROWTH BOUNDARY
On February 5, 2007, the City Council voted to initiate the procedures for removing Sunset City from the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB). In accordance with the Comprehensive Plan Annexation Policies, the Sunset City residents and property owners "voted" on the potential annexation, but the required percentages of property owners and residents was not obtained. So, the removal procedures were initiated, with the intent of swapping the Sunset City land area for all or part of the land area along the east side of Highway 101, which is currently outside the UGB. Although the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) would permit a simple swap for "residential" property east of Highway 101, moving the subject "commercial" property into the UGB would require stand-alone justification. Staff is continuing to work on this UGB amendment, but it has not recently been a high priority project due to the recent slowdown in commercial development projects.
At their May 4th meeting, the City Council reviewed a request from the Sunset City Neighborhood Association that the City delay taking final action on removing Sunset City from the UGB for at least one year. Their concerns revolved around such as police protection and street maintenance standards inside the City versus outside the City. There was some feeling from the residents that circumstances have changed, and that it may now be in the best interest of both the City of Bandon and the Sunset City residents to reconsider the potential annexation of Sunset City. After discussing the request, the City Council directed staff to proceed slowly with removing Sunset City from the UGB. This would provide additional time for the Sunset City Neighborhood Association to determine whether another annexation effort would be appropriate, to allow City staff time to re-examine the financial impacts of annexation, and to allow time to determine what options might exist with respect to contracting with the City for police protection. It was, however, recognized that circumstances could arise which would necessitate the City accelerating its efforts to remove Sunset City from the UGB. The vote was 5-1, with Councilors Claassen, Drew, Hundhausen, Procetto, and Vick voting in favor, and Councilor Tiffany voting in opposition. Councilor Tiffany remarked that she was not opposed to the concept, but felt a specific delay was not necessary since the UGB removal process would take 6 months to a year anyway.
GOT SCOTCH BROOM, GORSE, OR BLACKBERRIES? - BORROW A WEED WRENCH!
The City of Bandon has six Weed Wrenches available for removal of invasive plants. Use of a Weed Wrench is FREE, with a $25 deposit, and they are available at City Hall, 555 Highway 101. Call (541-347-2437) or stop by to reserve or pickup your Weed Wrench today. This program is being sponsored by the Coquille Watershed Association, with funding provided by the Bureau of Land Management.
The Weed Wrench is great for pulling woody weeds (such as Scotch broom, gorse, and blackberry root wads), giving you more permanent control than just cutting because you can remove roots and all. When you use the Weed Wrench to pull tough, well established weeds you save stress on your back and can pull more in less time without the usual aches and pains. The Weed Wrench is an alternative to herbicides and can be an efficient, safe, selective, permanent means of eliminating unwanted shrubs and sapling trees. Soil disturbance is minimal and desirable plants are maintained. It will work on virtually all woody plants. Jaw placement is easiest on straight vertical stems and becomes more problematic (but not impossible) on multi-stemmed plants or plants that lay flat against the ground. Use in yards and pastures, for trail clearing, removal of noxious weeds, and more! The six Weed Wrenches available at City Hall are the medium duty devices, with a jaw capacity up to 2 inches. Each one is 53 inches long, and weighs 17.5 pounds.
BID AWARDED FOR "WELCOME TO BANDON" SIGN AT HIGHWAY 101 & SEABIRD DRIVE
The Beautification Committee solicited bids for constructing a new "Welcome To Bandon" sign on the excess right-of-way property on the northwest corner of the Seabird Drive and Highway 101 intersection (adjacent to Billy Smoothboar's restaurant). This property was opened up and made available when Seabird Drive was moved south as part of the recent Highway 101 widening project. The sign will be virtually identical to the one which was installed several years ago at the intersection of Highway 101 and Route 42S. Some slight improvements have been made to the Lighthouse Logo, which will also be made to the old sign when it is repainted. To keep ongoing costs as low as possible, very low maintenance landscaping and ground cover will be installed.
Since 2005, the City has been annually adding some Community Beautification Fund money into a separate line item specifically reserved for this second "Welcome To Bandon" sign. All of the money in this Fund comes from the 5% franchise fee paid to the City by Bandon Disposal, the City's garbage collection franchisee, and is dedicated to miscellaneous beautification projects such as landscaping maintenance and installing the cranberry benches which are located throughout the community. The Beautification Committee's cost estimate for constructing the sign was $35,000.00, which has now been accumulated and included in this year's budget.
One bid in the amount of $30,053.50 was received from Bob Butler Construction of Bandon, and recommended for approval by the Beautification Committee. The City Council awarded the bid at their May 4th meeting by a vote of 4-2, with Councilors Hundhausen, Procetto, Tiffany, and Vick voting in favor, and Councilors Claassen and Drew opposed, expressing the opinion that this was not the right time to spend money on this project in light of current economic conditions.
OLD TOWN ARCHES MAINTENANCE
The City has been reserving some funds each year for maintaining the arches at the entrances to Old Town. Since the arches are now in need of repainting, and the letters are beginning to corrode, that restoration project has started. Weather permitting, the work should be completed within the next few weeks. It involves pressure washing and repainting the arches, and replacing the lettering. The old lettering was powder-coated aluminum, which will be replaced by plastic lettering. The new lettering has a lifetime warranty, so it will hold up much better. The color will be changed from blue to cranberry, which will match the Old Town street lights. In addition, the City is having new lighthouse logos made, which will feature Bandon's Coquille River Lighthouse instead of the "generic" lighthouse tower which had previously been on the arches.
LINDA'S CHURCH JOKE
Linda didn't have a particularly funny joke this month, but she did ask me to advise everyone that, "Due to recent budget cuts and the rising cost of electricity, as well as current economic conditions, the 'Light at the End of the Tunnel' has been turned off!"
HA! HA! Ha! HO! Ho! HA! Ha! ha! ha! ha!
ANYTHING ELSE?
Do you have any questions, input, or suggestions? Are there any topics you want addressed or covered in the Newsletter? If so, please let me know at citymanager@ci.bandon.or.us. For more complex questions or issues that may take significant discussion, please feel free to contact me by telephone at (541) 347-2437, voice mail ext. 229, so we can schedule an appointment.
Also, remember to visit the City of Bandon WEB page at www.ci.bandon.or.us, where you can get more information on this wonderful place in which we live.
That's it for now. Have a good one!
