2010-06-21Regular City Council Agenda

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Edward McCarthy, 7101 Princeton Mr. McCarthy asked if AT&T U-Verse is charging a $1.00 fee on his bill. Ms. Watson stated they were on U-Verse but AT&T is doing it voluntarily as Charter is doing it according to contract. He noted the Library has allocated to interest income of around $50,000 and they have no money and wanted to know where they are saving. He said some of the other funds as the Sewer Lateral fund have less interest so thought the allocation was incorrect. Mr. McCarthy stated that the City's policy of having the top twenty percent of the salaries in the County is bad policy. Lastly he asked if Public Works was allocated a million dollars does Public Works have to spend a million dollars. He wondered if they cut corners as in fixing streets, they really would be shorting the residents. Ms. Watson believed they are spending their entire budget. Rosalyn Borg, 7820 Cornell Ms. Borg asked for clarification on hand-out and thought it would help if she knew the City's priorities. She thought the City should budget only what is absolutely necessary. She asked where CAL~P's funding came from and Ms. Watson said that was the dollar on the cable bill. Ms. Borg asked who made up the deficit in CALaP's budget and Ms. Watson told her they used their reserves. She noted that Ms. Watson's examples of a tax on a $200,000 house was $2,746 but felt this was low and if it was used as an estimate it would be understating income. She said her house was appraised at $260,000 and her tax bill was $4,000. Ms. Borg thought the City had a generous and liberal benefit policy for City employees. She said that her employees had to pay a significant part of their health insurance. She thought maybe the employees could assume a larger share. Ms. Watson said the police and fire pay five percent toward their retirement plan and non-uniform pay three percent toward their retirement. an health insurance the employee pays fifteen percent and those choosing family plans pay twenty-five percent of the rates plus all pay a $250 deductible and the co-pay amount on prescriptions and office visits was raised. She noted the employees have received two years of increase along with the deductible increase and no salary increase. Ms. Borg asked about items under future evaluation; the closing of the Community Center or Heman Park pool and said staff needs to evaluate when it is used and maybe reduce time to correspond when it is most used or charging a larger fee. Ms. Watson said the center is very active on the weekends and recently has been renting it more. Ms. Borg said the estimate of outsourcing trash pickup to a private hauler is wrong as she use to be a hauler and felt there would not be a savings. She also notice a savings listed as reducing salting streets in the winter and she noted that in the twenty-two years she has lived here, her street has never been salted. Ms. Borg felt that turning responsibilities over to the residents would result in a messy city as there will be some that won't do it. Deb Carlin, 7132 Washington Ms. Carlin said she wants to live in an area that is safe. She wants good police protection and a really good fire department. Ms. Carlin noted that the City's infrastructure and safety remain a priority. She asked how much was the City Manager paid upon leaving and Mayor Pro-Tem Sharpe said she was basically paid, honoring her contract, plus vacation days accumulated. Donna Leach-Heimos, 7700 Amherst Ave. Ms. Leach-Heimos said $120,000 that was allocated for streets and curbs suggestion of being turned back to the residents to pay noted this land is considered to be an easement. She said she has also noticed the trash truck banging up curbs, damaging walls and the subdivision June 21, 2010 4 D-2-4