Minutes 03/30/2015 - Laserfiche WebLink

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March 30, 2015 We have maintained the quality of basic services and added several new services that have enhanced the overall value for our citizens. This occurred during a period when the tax rate remained stable but, because of declining assessments, our tax revenue declined. Our goal with this budget is to continue delivering basic services with high customer service and to fully fund the operation of the new facilities. This Budget also provides $277,000 in funding for three new positions and supplemental salaries in support of quality service delivery:  A new Real Estate Appraiser position is included to direct resources towards uncaptured real estate improvements. The cost of this position is expected to be offset by additional real estate tax revenue.  A Contract Specialist position is recommended to provide resources to an understaffed procurement function, with particular focus on contract administration.  A City-funded secretary is proposed to provide administrative support to the three judges in the General District Court. In addition, I recommend a 15% salary subsidy for employees of this Court, in order to ensure that their pay is competitive. Additional fines from new hearings for non-payment of tolls will offset 100% of the cost of these enhancements. Enhanced Public Safety for Our City We have a critical public safety need for a new $4.5 million Fire Station to serve the Truxtun neighborhood and the area south of I-264, and this budget includes funding for the design and construction of this new Fire Station. Our former Fire Station Number Six used to serve this area; however, the City closed this station and tore down the facility approximately 15 years ago. I understand that it was the City’s intention at that time to build a new Station Six, and the 2008 Truxtun Neighborhood Strategic Plan includes the location for such a station. Our calls for service south of I-264 are increasing, and the existing stations that are closest to this area of the City must negotiate railroad tracks in order to get to this neighborhood. It is unacceptable to have emergency response vehicles held up by a train in responding to a fire. This proposed facility would include three apparatus bays and the support area needed to berth ten people at this station. In addition, it would include the necessary administrative area for our entire Fire Administrative personnel. As such, we would relocate the “Fire Headquarters” from the rented office space on Crawford Parkway to this new Station Six. Its construction would be similar to that of the Broad Street Station Number Four. We will staff Station Six by relocating existing equipment and personnel, so the impact of this new station on future operating budgets will be minimal. In summary, in addition to serving the Truxtun neighborhood, this new Station Six would be the first responders for emergency events on the new extension of the Martin Luther King Expressway, and it would provide overlap coverage for Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Cradock, the southern Victory Boulevard corridor, and the southern Effingham Street corridor. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is the nationally recognized authority on fire and building safety. NFPA Standard 1710 requires that fire units respond to fires within four minutes or less, and this new station will ensure that we meet this life safety standard for this part of our City. Quality of Life You asked me to include exempting those veterans who are 100% disabled from the payment of Personal Property tax as part of this budget proposal, and I have done so. According to the Veterans Administration, there are 205 disabled veterans in Portsmouth. We estimate that there are 95 surviving spouses of disabled veterans. We have a high level of confidence in this 300 person estimate because it is of the same order of magnitude as the 199 disabled veterans who currently participate in the real estate exemption program. In addition, not all of the disabled veterans who live in the City are homeowners.