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City Commission Meetings: Minutes
MINUTES The City Commission of the City of Toccoa met in Regular Session at City Hall on Monday, September 8, 2008, five o’clock P. M. with Mayor Andy Pavliscsak presiding. The invocation was given by Reverend Paul Garrison followed by the Pledge Of Allegiance to the Flag. On roll call the following were present: Mayor Andy Pavliscsak And the following were absent:
Commissioner David Austin was absent due to his wife having surgery. Motion by Commissioner Troup, seconded by Vice Mayor Seib and unanimously carried to approve the Agenda as presented, a copy of this Agenda being attached as Exhibit “A”.
Under reports the following reports were heard:
City Manager Morse reported that Phase 1 of the Fernside Drive reclamation and resurfacing work had been completed. He advised the road was currently in a “tar & gravel” condition as it cured for about two weeks before it was resurfaced. He said he appreciated the public’s patience with the delays last week and dust. He reported as to Streetscape Phase 111/Sage Street, a pre-construction conference was scheduled with Martin Grading next week to begin the next phase of their streetscape work. He advised this project would be on Sage Street from Currahee Street to the Downtown Railroad Tracks. He said hopefully construction could begin soon after the meeting. Mayor Pavliscsak next recognized any visitors present who wished to speak on any of the Agenda items.
There were no persons present who wished to be heard.
I. CONSENT AGENDA:
A. Motion by Commissioner Troup, seconded by Vice Mayor Seib and unanimously carried to approve the Minutes of the City Commission Meeting held on August 25, 2008.
II. OLD
III. BUSINESS:
None.
III. NEW BUSINESS:
B. Presentation on Employee Benefits by Matt Bidwell of MSI Benefits Group, Inc. Vice Mayor Seib told those present Mr. Bidwell was there that day as part of that Committee that Mayor Pavliscsak had formed back when they began the process of not only budgeting but even before that. He said of course they had the Carl Vinson Institute study which created a lot of questions from the entire Commission. He said that was what they would be talking about was some of those study findings and maybe as a backdrop, he would like to introduce Matt Bidwell. He explained going back to May 29 when the Mayor appointed this Committee, they had to go back to the Carl Vinson Study and it was very comprehensive and it dealt with a lot of different conclusions of what Dr. Congrey and the Carl Vinson Institute determined to be pluses and minuses within the City. He said they did a lot, specifically wages and classification of employees. He said one thing they thought was rocking was to look at the benefits because when they looked at the total compensation plan they had to look at the benefits and wages. He added one of the things when they got into the budgeting process that became more apparent was that they really needed to know where they were, before they could determine where they needed to go. He added that was sort of the backdrop specifically to determine what the assets were. He explained specifically, the main object was to determine not only what their assets and benefits as employees of the City of Toccoa were but he also wanted them to give a detailed analysis of how their benefits compared to other municipalities. He advised that was one thing they would see included in the study. He said he also wanted them to look at the financial impact those benefits cost the City relative to other municipalities. He advised he participated on the Committee with Billy, Brenda and Emory and those people really did most of the work and Matt. He said they met initially not only when the appointments were made but they met on June 12, August 8, August 20, August 27 formally but they also had a lot of mini-meetings as well. He asked that Matt Bidwell come forward and give his presentation. Mr. Bidwell gave his presentation using the city’s video projection equipment, a copy of this presentation being attached to these minutes as Exhibit “C”. Following Mr. Bidwell’s presentation, Vice Mayor Seib advised he would come forward with the recommendations of the Committee, but before he did this he wanted to say this was not something that haphazardly occurred, this was something that went with a lot of thought and it was a unanimous consensus from the group, so everyone on the Committee would bring this forth before the Commission for their disposition.
Recommendation #1: Employees begin contributing $5/week for Single Medical Insurance.
Recommendation #2: Employees begin contributing an additional $10/week for Family Medical Insurance.
Recommendation #3: Employees begin contributing $5/week for Family Dental Insurance.
Recommendation #4: City of Toccoa provide Long Term Disability Insurance for City employees as a means of protecting them against a catastrophic event &/or major illness.
Recommendation #5: This Committee remains intact. This needed to be an on-going effort. They need to continue to pursue what the Carl Vinson Institute study recommended relative to employees salaries. They need to continue working with Brenda and Human Resources to continue looking at benefits. Recommendation #6: They transfer the cost savings from the benefit survey to the City Commission Reserve Account they already had established. The 2% that was budgeted they allocate that 2% equally to all employees. After further discussion, Vice Mayor Seib made the motion that the Commission consider accepting these six recommendations from the Committee as presented, and to allow for implementation of the recommendations to coincide with “Open Enrollment” which takes place the month of October for a January 1st effective date. The motion was Seconded by Commissioner English and unanimously carried.
C. Consideration to Declare Certain City Property as Surplus and authorization to Sell Such Property on GovDeals.com City Manager Morse explained that from time to time the City sold surplus equipment and vehicles at auction. He advised at this time they had several items that needed to be declared surplus and sold. He advised these items were no longer used and he would like to recommend they approve the entire list attached for surplus sale on GovDeal.com. Mayor Pavliscsak suggested they approve the list contingent upon seeing if the Airport Authority was interested in using the Chevrolet Lumina. Motion by Vice Mayor Seib to approve the list of surplus property with one exception being the Chevrolet Lumina. Motion seconded by Commissioner English and unanimously carried.
D. Monthly Financial Report by Finance Director. Finance Director Emory Stephens presented his financial statement for the month ending August 31, 2008, copy of this financial statement being attached as Exhibit “D”.
City Manager Morse told the Commission the proposed Millage rate was 7.19 mills; the same as 2007. He advised this millage rate would generate $l,435,607 in taxes an Increase of $10,173 over 2007. He explained this was not considered a tax increase because the additional revenues were generated from growth and not revaluation. He advised further that tax bills should be mailed not later than September 30, a copy of the City Toccoa Current 2008 Tax Digest and 5 Year History of Levy being attached as Exhibit “E”. Motion by Vice Mayor Seib that they maintain the millage rate at 7.19 mills. Motion seconded by Commissioner Troup and unanimously carried. Mayor Pavliscsak and Commissioner Troup brought out the importance of maintaining Travelers Rest as a tourist attraction. Mayor Pavliscsak remarked he would like for the Commission to officially write a letter to Governor Sonny Purdue asking that the Travelers Rest Historic Site not be closed due to the State Budget shortfall. Consideration to Change the Date of the Second Regular Commission Meeting in September. Motion by Commissioner Troup, seconded by Vice Mayor Seib and unanimously carried that the date of the next regular Commission meeting be changed to September 18th since the Mayor and City Manager will be out of town.
F. Recognition of Visitors Wishing to Speak on General Items. Mayor Pavliscsak recognized former City Commissioner Ferrell Morgan who addressed the Commission with a complaint about the condition of certain property on Locust Street. Mr. Morgan presented pictures of the property showing a dilapidated structure with overgrown weeds and brush. He asked that something be done to get the property cleaned up.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned by Mayor Pavliscsak at 6:45 P.M. #
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