HomeMy WebLinkAbout08/25/1997 Work Session
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MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF
THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD
MONDAY, AUGUST 25, 1997
The city of Springfield council met in work session in the Jesse Maine Room, 225 Fifth Street,
Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, August 25, 1997, at 6:02 p.m., with Mayor Morrisette
presiding.
ATTENDANCE
Present were Mayor Morrisette, Councilors Ballew, Beyer, Burge, Dahlquist, Maine and Shaver
(6: 17 p.m.). Also present were City Manager Michael Kelly, Assistant City Manager Gino
Grimaldi, City Attorney Tim Harold, City Recorder Julie Wilson and members of the staff.
1. Inventory of Services Project - Department Review.
City Manager Mike Kelly presented the staff report on this issue. He explained that the
council would begin reviewing, on a department by department basis, the city's core or basic
services. The education, information, and feedback from this process will be useful in
upcoming budgetary discussions.
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The city council's review of services will take approximately three months. At the end of the
department presentations, council will be presented with both community and survey
information which will further assist in discussions and decisions concerning the city's budget
future.
Department presentations will focus primarily on the inventory of services data collection
from for each service. The forms were altered from the February 1 budget workshop forms to
present a clearer picture of services versus financial impacts associated with further budget
reductions.
City Manager's Office
Mr. Kelly discussed organizational leadership. He discussed the allocation of staffing
resources within the City Manager's Office. He explained that the majority of staff members
were involved in many service category areas. Council said it would be helpful to be
provided with information regarding FTEs prior to department reductions and position shifts.
Council discussed process and wanted to be able to ask questions as they came up. They did
not want to wait until the end of the presentation to do so.
Mayor Morrisette asked for clarification on how Mr. Kelly was able to oversee activities of
Management Team members. Mr. Kelly eXplained how he was able measure and supervise
department workplans.
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Mr. Kelly responded to questions from council regarding the project. He eXplained council
needed to be aware of mandated services, the consequence of service reduction, and review of
low-cost, high-benefit services.
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August 25, 1997
Page 2
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Council further discussed the process to be followed. Mr. Kelly said the staff presentations
would be adjusted according to the wishes of the council.
Mr. Kelly discussed citizen assistance services. Councilor Maine discussed the need to
review specific, discrete services, such as the "Your Opinion Counts" program, or Mayor task
forces. She said once the service program was identified, the value and cost could be
evaluated. Often many small services and tasks add up to a lot of work. Councilor Burge
said the cost to develop and support a task force should be evaluated prior to developing it.
Council discussed the need to be aware of the consequence of reductions for program and
service level changes. Council also asked the question of how staff could continue to achieve
service levels with possible reductions.
Mayor Morrisette discussed established expectations such as responding to citizens within a
given time. The need to lower expectations may need to be addressed. Councilor Shaver
wondered if policy decisions needed to be revised for the amount of time spent on individual
citizen responses or similar services delivered. Councilor Shaver suggested this item be
flagged for further review.
Mr. Kelly discussed the desire to get away from the budget process and focus on programs
and services delivered. Mr. Kelly discussed the philosophy of service. Mr. Kelly asked if the
one page summary provided enough information for review.
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Councilor Maine said she would like to be able to identify programs or services. This would
provide an opportunity to evaluate what program level services could be eliminated along
with identifying the impacts of the reductions.
Council discussed the option of having departments prioritize service delivery.
Councilor Maine discussed the need for staff to provide a clear description of what services
are. An example was citizen assistance. She asked if this meant staff was required to provide
copies of documents. This was the type of service that needed identification and clarification
to allow council the opportunity to identify and place a value and need on the service.
After council discussion, Mr. Kelly agreed that the future presentations would include less
philosophy and more specifics.
Councilor Maine restated she would like to be informed of any opportunity to recover costs
for services provided. She clarified it could be programs that are specifically named and
identified.
Councilor Burge clarified the need to have a breakdown in dollars. Councilor Maine
requested that FTE information be provided for both past and present staffing levels.
Councilor Ballew discussed the benefit of charts versus narrative information.
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Councilor Shaver discussed the difficulty in quantifying services provided by the City
Manager's Office. He appreciated the information provided by the City Manager. Councilor
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August 25, 1997
Page 3
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Shaver said he could review a sample of the next presentation and provide direction based on
council feedback.
Information Services (IS) Department
Assistant City Manager Gino Grimaldi reviewed the data collection forms for the Information
Services (IS) Department. He reviewed the FTE for IS and reviewed FTE changes during the
last fiscal year. He also explained that the service categories were listed in somewhat of a
priority order. He reviewed them as follows:
. Network Support
. Telephone Administration and Support
. Systems Maintenance / Product Support / Training
. Systems Analysis, Design and Implementation
. PC Support
. Regional Information Services (RIS)
. Administration
Mr. Grimaldi discussed IS alternatives. These included increased intergovernmental
cooperation, privatization, equipment replacement schedules, administrative support and
reduction in service levels.
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Mr. Grimaldi discussed the migration off the VAX computer system. He also discussed a
new Land Use Mapping System that will be implemented in the Development Services
Department. Council would like to know if new systems can be afforded and maintained.
Council again discussed the need to identify basic services, enhanced services, and the result
of program service elimination.
Mr. Grimaldi answered questions from council regarding IS services. Programmer Analyst
III Paula Guthrie answered questions from council regarding services provided along with
possible cost saving areas of concern.
Senior Network Analyst Chuck Orton discussed network and pc support services provided.
Human Resources Department
Human Resources Director Frank Hotchkiss reviewed the inventory of services summary.
Items included:
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. Discreet programs
· Services generally required to provide professional management and meet legal or policy
requirements
. Trends include greater management demands on technical personnel issues, pending
litigation and highly regulated benefits matters
· The major financial programs of benefits administration and risk management are regularly
reviewed for cost effectiveness
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August 25, 1997
Page 4
. Optional or discretionary services have been reduced or eliminated
. Many services require adherence to mandates
. Consideration of service reductions
Councilor Shaver raised the issue of varied service needs. He used labor negotiations as an
example. Mr. Hotchkiss responded that there were peaks and flows for service demands for
similar type activities.
Risk Manager Craig Gibons discussed the use of interagency cooperation related to liability,
workers' compensation and risk management. He discussed the differing philosophies
between different agencies.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m.
Minutes Recorder - Julie Wilson
Attest:
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Jul Wilson
City Recorder
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