Jamestown City Council

Council will hear budget presentations by the Department of Public Works and Parks Department at 6:30 p.m. tonight in the Police Training Room.

The proposed 2023 executive budget features no tax increase and 3 new positions. The tax levy is proposed to remain at $23.69 per $1,000 of assessed property value, which it has been since 2020. It has a 0.06% increase in the overall levy.

The spending plan increases appropriations by $660,000. Mayor Eddie Sundquist said due to the growth of the Jamestown’s tax base, the City has decreased the percentage available to tax under the New York State Constitutional tax limit to 88%, down from 99.1% in 2020.

Expenditures in the budget continue to be driven by health insurance, but the budgeted amount is down $1.61 million dollars from last year in part due to 170 retirees signing up for a Medicare Advantage plan that saved the city money. Jamestown will receive $500,000 from the New York State Financial Restructuring Board for implementing that Medicare plan.

Under revenues, sales tax is projected at $8.54 million, which is an increase from the 2022 budget of 5%.
The new positions proposed include two positions initially proposed in the 2022 executive budget but never hired: a new building maintenance mechanic and a Deputy Public Works Director. The third new position being proposed is a Parks Assistant. All three positions would be funded using general funds.

Jamestown City Council is required to adopt a final spending plan by the end of November.

The budget summary and full budget packet can be found on the city’s website at jamestownny.gov/budget.

During the regular work session, Council will review a resolution to purchase a Bearcat SWAT vehicle for $247,516.

They also will review a resolution requesting $91,683 in American Rescue Plan funds to purchase Springbrook financial accounting and payroll software. This new software would replace the KVS accounting system implemented in the early 2000s that has had service phased out. The staff report said the new software has new features, including online portals for each employee to see payroll and tax data. The annual cost of the software would be $19,405 with those maintenance costs included in the 2023 executive budget.

Council also will continue discussion on proposed ARP funded programs.

The Housing Committee will meet at 6:15 p.m., followed by budget hearings at 6:30 p.m., and then the remainder of committee meetings at 7:00 p.m. The full work session will take place at 7:30 p.m. in the fourth floor Police Training Room. The public is invited to attend all meetings with the full work session being streamed online at jamestownny.gov.

Jamestown City Council

After a presentation at last Monday’s work session, the proposed resolution was amended to only allow 8 hunters to receive licenses with the two sites for hunting limited to Jones Memorial Park and the wooded area behind the Allen Park Ice Rink.

Council Member at Large Jeff Russell had suggested to Council member Tom Nelson that maybe the program could be limited to Ward 6, since most of the deer complaints had come from that Ward. Ward 5 Council member Grant Olson said he’d welcome deer hunting in his ward as well.

Under the resolution, hunters would be allowed to take down 4 antler-less deer between the hours of sunrise and sunset, seven days a week, between November 1st and December 31st.

Also under new business, Council will vote on a contract with the Civil Service Employees Association, or CSEA. The agreement runs from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2024.

Council vote on a resolution to contract with Stark Tech Group for $918-thousand-173 dollars to illuminate the Washington and South Main Street bridges and the BPU Coal Silo. Downtown Revitalization Initiative funds will be used for the project.

Other resolutions on the docket include an agreement to allow Medicare-eligible city retirees to voluntarily move to a Medicare Advantage plan. Council Member at Large Jeff Russell said the potential savings to the city could be up to five-figures a year.

And a $36,680 grant from FEMA for fire prevention and safety training will be voted on. The grant will allow children from around the county to be educated on fire safety and that free smoke alarms will be provided to children as well. The grant allows for an ad campaign in conjunction with the Chautauqua Children’s Safety Village to promote the classes, fire prevention and safety more broadly.

Jamestown City Council

Council member-at-large Jeff Russell said he was part of a committee made up of representatives from the city administration, and active and retired employees who worked on developing this plan over the last eight months.

Russell said most of the costs to the city came from members using their health insurance, so they looked at retirees 65 and older and their spouses and having them voluntarily move over a Medicare supplement program, “If they choose to move over, they’re going to be able to try this plan for approximately one year. At the end of one year, if they don’t like what they see or if they don’t think that it’s going well they can move back over to the city’s self-funded plan. The other thing we came up with is they’re going to get health insurance for free for a period of five years. At the end of five years, the retiree would be locked into at the current rate that they’re paying right now.”

Russell said the potential savings to the city could be up to five-figures a year.

The staff report states plan was developed over the last eight months by a City Health Insurance Committee made up of representatives from City Council, City Administration, and active and retired employees.

The committee determined an optional Medicare Pilot Program from Highmark Western New York would help lower healthcare costs for all participants. The proposed agreement would have the City pay all healthcare premiums for five years for Medicare-eligible participants, with the option for the participants to return to the City’s self-funded plan within one year should they choose.

The potential savings to the city are dependent upon the total number of enrollees. The city could potentially save $1,580 per participant per year, and on average could save up to $1,800 per year per participant in the initial five years.

In his 2021 Executive Budget proposal, Mayor Eddie Sundquist had proposed switching retirees over the age of 65 from the City’s self-funded healthcare program to a medicare supplemental plan, which Sundquist said would result in $1.1 million in savings. City Council pulled the proposal last year after current and retired union members spoke against the proposal and picketed in front of City Hall. The proposal had also drawn concern from city council members.

The difference in the proposal appearing before Council tonight is that it’s an optional program for retirees.

The Chautauqua Region Community Foundation will be reporting out to Jamestown City Council tonight on feedback received at public input sessions about the City’s American Rescue Plan Master Plan.

Four public input sessions were held this summer on the plan to spend $28 million received in recovery monies from the Federal government. The CRCF compiled comments at those sessions as well as private sessions held with local organizations and businesses.

City Council is expected to act on a resolution this month to accept the master plan ahead of the Mayor’s Executive Budget being released on Friday, October 8th.

City Council also will hear a presentation by the Deer Management Ad Hoc Committee. The committee, led by Council member Tom Nelson, has proposed a resolution to allow bow hunting in designated areas of the city between November and December in order to reduce the number of deer.

The Public Safety Committee will revisit a special event permit application by Shults Management Group for the company’s 50th Anniversary event on Saturday, September 25th. The application had been tabled last Monday due to questions about the insurance certificate, a request for police payment and permit payment not received in the Clerk’s office.