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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-GPA-2012-08.15GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY COMMITTEE CITY OF ITHACA, NEW YORK Regular Meeting 6:00 p.m. August 15, 2012 PRESENT: Alderperson Mohlenhoff - Chair Alderpersons (4) Murtagh, Rooker, Proulx, McCollister Mayor Myrick OTHERS PRESENT: City Clerk — Conley Holcomb Approval of the July 18, 2012 Minutes — Resolution By Alderperson Rooker: Seconded by Alderperson Proulx RESOLVED, That the minutes of the July 18, 2012 Government Performance and Accountability Committee meeting be approved as published. Carried Unanimously Charter Code Review 2.1 An Ordinance to Amend the City of Ithaca Municipal Code Chapter 342 entitled "Streets and Sidewalks" 4342 -8(C) entitled "Permit Application and Fee" to Request Authority to Set Such Fees By Alderperson Murtagh: Seconded by Alderperson Rooker WHEREAS, the City Code currently states that Street Permits have a fee of $10, except for permits pertaining solely to sidewalk repair, which have a fee of $5, and WHEREAS, the DPW Engineering Office recommends increasing the fees to $50 and $25 respectively so as to better reflect administrative and operational costs, and WHEREAS, the Board of Public Works concurs, and WHEREAS, in order to simplify future rate changes, the Board of Public Works wishes to set the permit rates similar to the way it sets rates for the parking garages, now therefore be it Ordinance 2012- BE IT ORDAINED AND ENACTED by the City of Ithaca Common Council as follows: Section 1. Chapter 342, Entitled "Streets and Sidewalks ", Section 342 -8(C), entitled "Permit Application and Fee," is hereby amended to read as follows: C. Fee. No permit shall be issued until the applicant therefor shall have first paid in cash or by rheGk pay other means acceptable to the City a fee of $10, exGept for sidewalk shall be as set, and amended from time to time, by resolution of the Board of Public Works. GPA Committee August 15, 2012 Section 2. Severability. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, then that decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance. Section 3. Effective date. This ordinance shall take effect immediately and in accordance with law, upon publication of notice as provided in the Ithaca City Charter. Carried Unanimously 2.2 An Ordinance to Amend the Taxicab Legislation Alderperson Rooker explained that an amendment to the City's Taxicab Legislation is not needed at this time; however, may be needed in the future. He announced that Tompkins County has received a wheelchair accessible taxi that was purchased with Federal and private funding (80% Federal / 20% Ithaca Dispatch). It was originally thought that because the taxi was purchased with Federal funds it was required to be used as a "shared ride" vehicle only. Dwight Mengel, Chief Transportation Planner, Tompkins County Department of Social Services has since reviewed the Federal guidelines and clarified that the New Freedom Program does permit the purchasing of a wheel -chair accessible taxi for use under exclusive -ride rules similar to the City's current legislation. He further explained that because the City has an exclusive ride policy, our taxicab services are not considered public transportation and therefore are not eligible to participate in Federal programs that offer affordable taxi service rates to people with disabilities, seniors, and limited income households. Mr. Mengel has offered to work with the City to explore shared -ride, exclusive -ride issues and options and review alternatives with nation experts who provide technical assistance to municipalities on taxi regulations. 2.3 Analysis of Boards /Liaisons /Committees: Chair Mohlenhoff reviewed a matrix she developed to assist the Committee in analyzing all of the City's boards and committees. The Committee worked through the matrix using the Board of Public Works and the Youth Bureau Advisory Board as examples. The following suggestions were made to improve this effort: • Develop definitions for the term "quasi- judicial" • Under the "Other Liaisons" category split out Liaison from / Liaison to • Change the title of the Legislative /Intermunicipal category to "Relationship to the City" • Change the title of the Membership Quotas category to "Membership Requirements" • Add a category — Frequency of Meetings • Add a category — Mission GPA Committee August 15, 2012 Discussion followed on the floor regarding Common Council workloads and priorities. Alderperson Rooker noted the importance of understanding what value the Committee adds to Common Council and the City of Ithaca organization. Chair Mohlenhoff will work with the City Clerk's Office on completing this matrix and will provide a status update in March with the goal of completing the analysis in December. Novak Report (overall progress) 3.1 Tri- Committee Meeting Update: Chair Mohlenhoff gave a quick update of the August 9, 2012 Tri- Committee Meeting: • Changes to the City's parking programs are being discussed through the Parking Ad -hoc Committee and will be forwarded to the City Administration Committee and then Common Council. • Graham Kerslick has agreed to revive and Chair the Ad -Hoc Capital Project Committee. He is waiting to receive a final report from former Alderperson Eric Rosario. • The City Administration Committee will work on a fee study through their Special Projects sub - committee • The Mayor is handling the Chief of Staff position — it is currently under review by the Civil Service Commission. • The Novak recommendation of revising the City's payroll process will be undertaken by staff later this quarter. The Human Resources Department will receive training on the "Smart Works" process and will use that to process map the payroll system and find efficiencies. Performance Measurement Development 4.1 City Report Card: Chair Mohlenhoff led a brainstorming session on what the development of a City Report Card should include. It was decided that the Report Card should be a companion piece to the City survey results. The document should be 8 pages, dedicating one page per topic (road maintenance, how tax dollars are spent, Commons retail meets resident needs, public parking availability, confidence in Fire Dept, confidence in Police Dept, Quality of life in City), and one page for a statement from the Mayor. A one page score card with a link to the larger document could be developed and mailed with utility bills. Simple color coding should be used as a visual indicator of progress made (green, yellow, red). It was recommended that the document be developed in -house by Jason Tucker, PIO Writer, and that it take the place of the December community newsletter. The 2013 Report Card should be based on the goals of the soon to be developed Strategic Plan. 4.2 Review Public Information Budget City Clerk Holcomb presented the 2013 Public Information Budget that was submitted to the Mayor as part of the City Clerk's Office budget as follows: 41 GPA Committee August 15, 2012 A -1316 Account 2012 2012 Actual 2013 Budget 2013 Budget Number Adopted as of 6/30/12 -10%/-l% No Staff Red Budget 5435 13,950 2,514 45,000 45,000 Line 435: Contractual Services: This line is the public information budget. This includes: Newsletter Writer /Printer Supplies: $15,000 Website Upgrade $10,000 City Survey $ 7,000 Television Production $ 2,000 Idea Scale /Budget Simulator $ 6,000 City Report Card $ 5 Goo Discussion followed on the floor regarding the need to conduct another city -wide phone survey in 2013 as the last survey was conducted at the end of 2011. It was decided to remove the phone survey funding for 2013. It was noted that as it has been decided to develop the City Report Card in -house as part of the newsletter, the budgeted amount for that item should be removed as well. Discussion followed on the floor regarding the funding for Idea Scale / Budget Simulator. It was recommended that the City pursue options to "piggy- back" or share with Tompkins County on the Idea Scale software and to look for ways to reduce this budget item such as utilizing trial periods, etc. City Clerk Holcomb explained that the line item for the website upgrade was simply a place holder as she was unsure whether the Department of Information Technology had budgeted for this item. Committee members voice their desire to keep the public information budget as lean as possible in light of the City's financial situation; however, Alderperson Proulx noted that some budgets may need to increase to meet the City's priorities. City Survey 5.1 Develop Timeline Chair Mohlenhoff noted that based on the previous budget discussion the survey schedule should be adjusted. The Committee indicated that they were comfortable conducting a survey every 2 -5 years, keeping the original survey questions and data as the baseline for future surveys. The next city -wide phone survey will be scheduled for 2014 after the strategic goals have been developed. Discussion followed regarding the tools that are available to collect supplemental data until the next survey is conducted. El GPA Committee August 15, 2012 Public Information and Communications 6.1 Review of New Website Design and Feedback City Clerk Holcomb reviewed the new website design and features and reported on the public feedback that has been received to date. She explained that the site is still a work in progress and that changes will continue to be made to improve the accessibility to information. Discussion followed on the use of the City's Facebook page on the homepage, the banner photos, and the community calendar. 6.2 Report from Communications Sub - Committee: Social Media Policy Alderperson Murtagh reported that the sub - committee reviewed the City's Social Media Policy and deemed it sufficient and flexible enough to support City operations; however, it could be updated to remove references to programs that are no longer relevant. He noted that some logistical details remain unclear in relation to the requirement that sites be moderated (ie. who is responsible for moderating them, how often do they check the site, what about weekends, etc.) Further discussion occurred as to whether the policy includes City boards and commissions. If it does, questions arise such as how is the policy enforced and who is held accountable for it, and who monitors whether violations of Open Meetings Law occurs? Neighborhood Association Communication Alderperson Murtagh reported that he spoke with 2 neighborhood association leaders to ascertain what their thoughts were about improving communication between the City and neighborhoods. He felt the best approach would be to develop a list of questions to ask each neighborhood association president /representative and then analyze the information provided. Once the analysis is complete a plan can be developed that will meet the needs of the neighborhoods. Alderperson Murtagh stated that he will work to secure a student intern to assist with the project and he will supervise the work. It was decided that the project deadline should be December with a status update at the October meeting. Common Council Training and Development: 7.1 Common Council Rules of Procedures Alderperson Proulx reviewed a memo that he distributed to GPA Committee members proposing amendments to the Common Council Rules of Procedure related to vacancies and the removal of Council members from office. He outlined several questions that require clarification before the amendments can be finalized. Discussion followed on the concept of having a search committee for prospective new Council members, timelines for filling vacancies, interviews or candidate presentations, and the use of standard application forms. It was decided to use the existing application form for vacancies on other boards and committees. '61 GPA Committee August 15, 2012 With respect to removing Council members from office, it was determined that the issue required further review with the City Attorney, so this item was deferred until the September meeting. Adjournment: On a motion the meeting adjourned at 9:00 p.m. Julie Conley Holcomb, CIVIC Deborah Mohlenhoff City Clerk Chair