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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFCS Minutes - 2021-01-18 - Final BudgetSPECIAL FINANCE & CORPORATE SERVICES COMMITTEEMINUTES JANUARY 18, 2021CITY OF KITCHENER The Special Finance and Corporate ServicesCommittee held an electronic meetingthis date, commencing at 12:33p.m. Present:CouncillorS. Davey -Chair Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors D. Chapman, K. Galloway-Sealock,J. Gazzola, B. Ioannidis, M. Johnston, S. Marsh, C. Michaud, D. Schnider and P. Singh. Staff:D. Chapman, Chief Administrative Officer M. May, Deputy CAO & General Manager, Community Services V. Raab, General Manager, Corporate Services J. Readman, General Manager, Development Services J. Lautenbach, Chief Financial Officer, Financial Services D. McGoldrick, General Manager, Infrastructure Services R. Hagey, Director, Financial Planning J. Bunn, Manager, Council & Committee Services/Deputy City Clerk D. Saunderson, Committee Administrator S. Goldrup, Committee Administrator 1.FIN-21-001-2021FINAL BUDGET The Committee considered Financial Services Department report FIN-21-001, dated December 7, 2020,related to the 2021Budget, which is primarily intended to provide updates on the Operating and Capital Budget presentations and provide information required by the Municipal Act.The Committee was also in receipt of a Council Report containing draft resolutions related to the 2021Budget for consideration this date. OVERVIEW J. Lautenbach advised the overall Operating Budget includes a proposed tax rate increase of 1.1%, whichequates to an additional $12 per year for the average Kitchener home. He stated the 2021 Capital Budget includes more than 400 projects with a total cost over the next 10 years of approximately $1.4B with $121M in 2021. It was noted that the City has received a total of $15.5M in Safe Restart Operating Funding from the Government of Ontario to assist with offsetting the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.The Committee was also in receipt of a Council Report containing draft resolutions related to the 2021 Budget for consideration this date. R. Hagey advised of the final budget day processand further noted today’s meeting will result in a resolution which will be forward to Special Council later this date. BOARDS Kitchener Public Library (KPL) M. Chevreau and A. Riddell, Kitchener Public Library (KPL), were in attendanceto respond to questions from the Committee. The followingmotion was brought forward by Councillor S. Marsh: “That operating funding for Kitchener Public Library (KPL) in the amount of $11,410,596 be approved; and, That KPL’s 2020 surplus be used to offset future overdue fine shortfalls; and further, That in addition to its typical inflationary increase, Council commit to increasing KPL’s operating grant by $100,000 as early as 2022 to permanently fund the elimination of overdue fines.” Councillor J. Gazzola requested paragraph 2 relating to KPL’s 2020 surplus be voted on separately Paragraph 1 of Councillor Marsh’s motion was then voted on and CarriedUnanimouslyon a recoded vote. SPECIAL FINANCE &CORPORATE SERVICES COMMITTEEMINUTES JANUARY 18, 2021-2-CITY OF KITCHENER 1.FIN-21-001-2021FINAL BUDGET(CONT’D) Paragraphs 2 and 3 of Councillor Marsh’s motion was then voted on and Carriedon a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway-Sealock, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. On motion by Councillor S. Marsh- it was resolved: “That operating funding for Kitchener Public Library (KPL) in the amount of $11,410,596 be approved; and, That KPL’s 2020surplus be used to offset future overdue fine shortfalls; and further, That in addition to its typical inflationary increase, Council commit to increasing KPL’s operating grant by $100,000 as early as 2022 to permanently fund the elimination of overdue fines.” Centre in the Square (CITS) R. Sonodaand D. Daub, Centre in the Square (CITS), were in attendanceto respond to questions from the Committee. A motion was brought forward byCouncillor B. Ioannidisto approve the CITS Budget,as presented. The following motion wasthenvoted on and was Carried Unanimouslyon a recorded vote. On motion by Councillor B. Ioannidis- it was resolved: “That operating funding for Centre in the Square (CITS) in the amount of $1,907,576 be approved; and That approval be granted for additional transitional funding of $92,424 for the CITS to be disbursed from the Tax Stabilization Reserve Fund at the request of the CITS Board, with Council being notified of the request by email; and further, That any year-end operating surplus in 2021 be retained by CITS and be restricted to help fund its capital projects, but any deficit be split 50/50 between CITS and the City.” ENTERPRISE OPERATING BUDGETS Buildingand Golf A motion was brought forward by Councillor B. Ioannidis to approve the Building and Golf Enterprise budgets, as presented. The following motions were voted on and were Carriedon a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway- Sealock, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. On motion by Councillor B. Ioannidis– it was resolved: “That the 2021budget for the Building Enterprise be approved, as presented; and further, That the 2021budget for the Golf Enterprise be approved, as presented.” SPECIAL FINANCE &CORPORATE SERVICES COMMITTEEMINUTES JANUARY 18, 2021-3-CITY OF KITCHENER 1.FIN-21-001-2021FINAL BUDGET(CONT’D) Parking A motion was brought forward by Councillor B. Ioannidis to approve the ParkingEnterprise Budget, as presented. The following motion was then voted on and was Carriedon a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway- Sealock, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. On motion by Councillor B. Ioannidis– it was resolved: “That the 2021 budget for the Parking Enterprisebe approved, as presented.” Gas Utility A motion was brought forward by Councillor B. Ioannidis to approve the Gas Utility Budget, as presented. In response to questions, D.McGoldrickadvised the$1M in additional funding is required for the replacement based on the average number of meters, however the gas meters required for changeout fluctuates from year to year. For 2021 it was noted there are a large quantity meters being replaced. The following motion was then voted on and was Carriedon a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway- Sealock, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. On motion by Councillor B. Ioannidis– It was resolved: “That the 2021 budget for the Gas Utility Budget be approved, as presented.” Water and Sanitary Utility A motion was brought forward by Councillor B. Ioannidisto approve the Water and Sanitary Budget,as presented. The following motion was then voted on and was Carried on a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway- Sealock, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. On motion by Councillor B. Ioannidis– it was resolved: “That the 2021 budget for the Water and Sanitary Utility be approved, as presented.” Stormwater Utility A motion was brought forward by Councillor B. Ioannidisto approve the Stormwater Utility Budget, as presented. The following motion was then voted on and was Carried ona recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway- Sealock, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. SPECIAL FINANCE &CORPORATE SERVICES COMMITTEEMINUTES JANUARY 18, 2021-4-CITY OF KITCHENER 1.FIN-21-001-2021FINAL BUDGET(CONT’D) On motion by Councillor B. Ioannidis– it was resolved: “That the 2021 budget for the Stormwater Utility be approved, as presented.” CAPITAL BUDGET The Committee considered Issue Papers BD02 (Increased Funding for Small Scale Traffic Calming); BD03 (Additional Funding for Community Trails); BD04 (Using Reserves to Fund the Capital Pool); BD05 (Impact of Reducing Fleet Replacement Funding). A motion was brought forward by Councillor B. Ioannidisto approve Option 3: Increase the existing seasonal traffic calming budget in 2021 by 25% ($15,000) as outlined in Issue Paper BD02. In response to questions, J.Readman advisedin 2020 there was an increase to the traffic calming budget, however due to the COVID-19 pandemic, those traffic calming measures were not able to be implemented. Councillor B. Ioannidis’motion was then voted on and Carriedon a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor K. Galloway-Sealock and J. Gazzola voting in opposition. In response to questions regarding BD03 (Additional Funding for Community Trails), D. McGoldrickadvisedthere is no staff capacity in 2021 to complete this work. It was noted, even with updating existing trails, there is still a staffing impact (managing contracts, design, etc.) that involves significant work and would not be completed in 2021. A motion was brought forward by Councillor P. Singh to approve and add to the 2021 base budget Option 1: Repair and replacement of pedestrian bridges,and refer Option 2: Development of New Trails, and Option 3: Upgrade of existing walkways and trails to the base 2022 budget, as outlined in Issue Paper BD03. Councillor M. Johnston left the meeting at this time. Councillor P. Singh’s motion was then voted on and Carriedon a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor K. Galloway-Sealock and J. Gazzola voting in opposition.Councillor M. Johnston was not in attendance and accordingly did not vote. The Committee recessed at2:32 p.m. and reconvened at 2:42p.m., Chaired by Councillor S. Davey with all members present. TAX SUPPORTED OPERATING BUDGET Operating Budget Issue Papers/Strategic Items The Committee considered Issue Paper BD06 (Huron Brigadoon Community Centre Delayed Opening); BD07 (Increasing Capacity of the Assisted Services Winter Program); BD08 (Freezing Council and Non-Union Management Salaries for 2021); and, BD09 (Public Input). A motion was brought forward by Councillor K. Galloway-Sealock to approve recommendation to delay $255,000 in operating funding for the new Huron Brigadoon Community Centre until 2022, as outlined in Issue Paper BD06. Councillor Galloway-Sealock’smotion wasthenvoted on and was Carried Unanimouslyon a recorded vote. SPECIAL FINANCE &CORPORATE SERVICES COMMITTEEMINUTES JANUARY 18, 2021-5-CITY OF KITCHENER 1.FIN-21-001-2021FINAL BUDGET(CONT’D) The following motion was brought forward by Councillor S. Marsh: “That staff be directed to hire four additional full-time equivalent by-law inspectorsto address proactive sidewalk winter maintenancefor the remainder of the currentwinter season.” In response to questions, M.May advisedeven with an expedited recruitment process, the proposed by-law inspectors would not be in place until mid-March at the earliest. Councillor S. Marsh’s motion was then voted on and LOSTon a recorded vote, withCouncillors D. Chapman, M. Johnston and S. Marsh voting in favour, and Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, J. Gazzola, K. Galloway-Sealock, P. Singh and S. Davey voting in opposition. The following motion was brought forward by Councillor S. Marsh: “That staff be directed to reportbackprior to September 2021, related to impacts of hiring additionalproactive bylaw inspectors for the 2021-2022 winter season, and to make any additionalrecommendations for improving our sidewalk snow clearing strategies.” Councillor S. Marsh’s motion was then voted on and CarriedUnanimouslyon a recorded vote. RESOLUTIONS Councillor P. Singh declared a pecuniary interest with respect to Capital Projects 901002007 Ottawa Street –Charles to Expressway’ and 701205129 ‘Stirling/Mausser’ as members of his family own property in the vicinity of the subject projects. Accordingly, he did not participate in any discussion or voting regarding those matters. Councillor B. Ioannidis brought forward a motion: “That Capital Projects 901002007 Ottawa Street –Charles to Expressway’ and 701205129 ‘Stirling/Mausser’as outlined in FIN-21-001, dated December 7, 2020, be approved.” The following motion was then voted on and was Carried on a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway- Sealock, M.Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. Councillor B. Ioannidis brought forward a motion: “That the balance of the recommendations related to the 2021 Capital and Operating Budget, save and except Capital Projects 901002007 Ottawa Street –Charles to Expressway’ and 701205129 ‘Stirling/Mausser’,be approved,as outlined in the draft resolution sheet circulated to members of Council this date.” The following motion was then voted on and was Carried on a recorded vote, with Mayor B. Vrbanovic and Councillors B. Ioannidis, C. Michaud, D. Schnider, D. Chapman, K. Galloway- Sealock, M. Johnston, P. Singh, S. Marsh and S. Davey voting in favour; and, Councillor J. Gazzola voting in opposition. On motion by Councillor B. Ioannidis– it was resolved: “That the balance of the recommendations related to the 2021 Capital and Operating Budget be approved,as outlined in the draft resolution sheet circulated to members of Council this date.” SPECIAL FINANCE &CORPORATE SERVICES COMMITTEEMINUTES JANUARY 18, 2021-6-CITY OF KITCHENER 2.ADJOURNMENT On motion, this meeting adjourned at 3:33p.m. J. Bunn Deputy City Clerk