TOWN OF GRANBY
BOARD OF FINANCE
REGULAR MEETING
DECEMBER 10, 2007
PRESENT: Michael Guarco, Chairman; Gordon Bischoff, Scott Kuhnly, Frederick Moffa, OD; and Al Wilke. Francis Brady arrived late.
OTHER ATTENDEES: William F. Smith, Jr., Town Manager; Barbarajean C. Scibelli, Administration Finance Officer; and Mark Neumann, Board of Selectmen
Michael Guarco, Chairman, called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. He commented Mr. Brady called and said he would be arriving late to the meeting.
ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS
ON A MOTION by Al Wilke to nominate Michael Guarco as Chairman of the Board of Finance, and to nominate Gordon Bischoff as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Finance, seconded by Frederick Moffa, OD, the Board voted (4-0-1) Michael Guarco as Chairman and Gordon Bishoff as Vice Chairman for the next term of this Board. Mr. Kuhnly abstained.
Mr. Wilke commented that these two people were very committed to their position and the Board.
MINUTES
The Board reviewed the minutes of November 19, 2007. ON A MOTION by Gordon Bischoff, seconded by Al Wilke, the Board voted (3-0-2) to approve the minutes as presented. Dr. Moffa and Mr. Kuhnly abstained.
STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTS
Chairman Guarco asked Barbarajean Scibelli about the Budget Operations report for November 2007. She indicated revenues and expenditures looked to be on track, but she was not finished reviewing the report.
Gwen Van Dorp, Superintendent of Schools, indicated the Board of Education’s November Statement of Accounts is similar to last month’s reporting, but the Board of Education has not received it yet. Superintendent of Schools commented there may be a deficiency for bus fuel and there may be a favorable forecast for vocational tuition.
Chairman Guarco commented the auditors will be attending next month’s meeting to discuss 2007 finances. He indicated the auditors are late in reporting due to a Board of Education personnel setback.
CONSIDERATION OF PLUS-ONE BUDGET AND DISCUSSION ON FISCAL 2007
The Board of Education Plus-One Budget will be taken up at the next Board of Education meeting and will be made available to Board of Finance members as soon as possible.
Town Manager Smith reviewed the Plus-One Budget for 2006-07. Summarized in the memo, the Plus-One budget does not represent all final needs of the town that may be incorporated into the 2008-09 Budget, adjustments of less than $5,000 are optional for reporting, and items not in the current budget are carried forward into the next Plus-One Budget, along with any new items identified. Town Manager Smith indicated the Board of Selectmen endorsed the Plus-One budget but realize that priorities have to be set and not all items will be funded.
Barbarjean Scibelli further explained the Plus-One Budget items, including wages and salaries, fringe benefits, staffing, fire department, new personnel, snow removal, solid waste & recycling, gasoline, diesel, parts, and heating oil and electric.
In response to a question, Mr. Smith commented about the increasing support needed for emergency management activity due to the high volume requests for training, reporting, and meeting attendance from Connecticut State Department of Homeland Security. Another increase is the government access television needing funds to run the airways, add and establish live drops in other buildings, and other items to televise events. The Board agreed the service that the cable community television provides the town is beneficial in getting information disseminated. The approximate total of the Plus-One Budget is $548,000 or approximately 6.6%.
Town Manager Smith updated the Board about the steps taken to go green for Granby by 2010. He indicated the town’s portion of the lawsuit award against CRRA is approximately $184,000, which is a little more than budgeted.
Superintendent Van Dorp indicated the Board of Education Plus-One Budget was approximately 7% . Some of the items involved were health, teacher positions, program enhancers, support positions, and fringe benefits.
OVERVIEW OF REVALUATION
Town Manager Smith distributed a memo from Susan Altieri dated December 10, 2007 regarding revaluation 2007 increases. He indicated that there is some information about the revaluation on the town’s website. Town Manager Smith commented the average increase in town wide real estate is approximately 28% since 2002. Town wide real estate includes farmland, commercial property, public utilities, industrial property, and homes. It appears the real estate market has risen the most in the value between $150,000 to $275,000 (35%). He reported there was little action during the informal review process. Adjustments still need to be completed to formalize a grand list.
It was concurred that an article about revaluation should be placed in the February 2008 Drummer issue.
CONFIRM DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The next regular meeting will be on January 14, 2007 at 7:30 p.m., at the Police Department Community Room. The tentative agenda for this meeting is the auditor's report, Plus-One Budget for the school, budget guidelines, and revisit the revaluation article.
ADJOURNMENT
ON A MOTION by Gordon Bischoff, seconded by Francis Brady, the Board voted unanimously (5-0-1) to adjourn the meeting at 8:45 p.m. Mr. Kuhnly abstained.
Respectfully submitted,
Patricia I. Chieski
Recording Secretary
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