HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes City Council - 05/30/2000 - JointI HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Joint
Council Meeting of the City of Corpus Christi of May 30, 2000, which were approved by the City
Council on June 13, 2000.
WITNESSETH MY HAND AND SEAL, this 13th day of June, 2000.
A/ahtn5fr@‘--
rmando Chapa
City Secretary
SEAL
MINUTES
JOINT MEETING OF THE
CORPUS CHRISTI CITY COUNCIL AND
CRIME CONTROL AND PREVENTION DISTRICT BOARD OF DIRECTORS
May 30, 2000 - 12:08 p.m.
CITY COUNCL,
Mayor Samuel L. Neal Jr.
Mayor Pro Tem Dr. Arnold Gonzales
Javier D. Colmenero
Melody Cooper
Henry Garrett
Rex A. Kinnison
Betty Jean Longoria
John Longoria
Mark Scott
City Staff Present
City Manager David R. Garcia
Assistant City Attorney Jay Reining
City Secretary Armando Chapa
Police Chief Pete Alvarez
Recording Secretary Rachelle P. Ramon
CRIME CONTROL DISTRICT BOARD
Leon Loeb, President
Larry Baker
Linda Bridges
W.L. Hermis
John Heldenfels
Jose Olivares
ABSENT
Jeanette Bazar (Crime Control District)
Danny Mora (Crime Control District)
Isaac Valencia (Crime Control District)
Mayor Neal called the meeting to order in the Basement Training Room of City Hall. City
Secretary Chapa checked the roll and verified that a quorum was present to conduct the meeting. Mr.
Loeb verified that there was a quorum of the Board of Directors of the Corpus Christi Crime Control
and Prevention District.
Mr. Loeb said the board had submitted to the Council the district's budget for fiscal year
2000-2001 which is basically in conformance with the five-year plan originally proposed for the
district. He said the board met on May 26, 2000 and heard staff's recommendations for reducing the
scale of several crime control district programs
Police Commander Bryan Smith, Crime Control and Prevention District Coordinator,
referred to the district's budget and financial forecast for the five-year plan as well as a forecast for
Year 6 (FY 2003-04). He said the upcoming Year 3 budget (FY 2000-01) reflects no major changes,
although the Year 6 projections show an approximate $1.4 million yearly deficit if revenues and
expenditures continue as they are. He said they are proposing curbing expenditures to match
revenues so as to have a balanced budget in Year 6 and beyond. Cmdr. Smith pointed out that there
is concern the voters will not reapprove the crime control district after the fifth year if the budget is
not balanced.
Council Member Betty Jean Longoria said she wanted to ensure that the quality of the crime
control district programs is not lessened as a result of personnel expenditure needs. Cmdr. Smith said
Minutes - Joint Meeting
May 30, 2000
Page 2
that recurring manpower expenditures are a major part of the budget, especially due to the long
process involved in hiring police officers. He noted that this budget situation has occurred because
revenue growth has not been as high as originally predicted by the interim board of the district and
city staff. In addition, the assumption was made that the 1/8 cent tax would also be applied to utilities
and telecommunications. However, that did not occur and as a result, revenues have been even
further decreased.
Mayor Neal asked Cmdr. Smith what the board was recommending. Cmdr. Smith referred
to Option 1 of the expenditure reductions which, if approved, would be effective FY 2003-04. That
proposal includes not hiring the last 10 of the original 50 police officers and reducing support staff
as follows: 6 dispatchers; 4 crime scene tech I's; and 2 pawn shop detail workers. He said the idea
is to implement those reductions over time through attrition as possible. Responding to Council
Member Kinnison, Mr. Loeb said adjustments will begin to be made in FY 2001-02, although a few
adjustments may be made toward the end of FY 2000-01.
In reply to Council Member Gonzales, Mr. Rudy Garza, Acting Budget Director, said that
if the program continues as is, including if the final 10 officers begin the police academy in August
2001 as scheduled, it would result in a deficit of $872,106 according to the plan forecast for FY
2002-03. Mr. Garcia said that at the end of the fifth year, the district would have $5 million in
revenues but it would cost $6.1 million in order to maintain the program in the future. He added that
at the end of the fifth year, they would have to ask the voters to reauthorize the program with another
1/8th cent tax for a set period of time. However, there would be no new programs and a deficit would
result because of the expenses incurred in the first five years of the program.
Dr. Gonzales said the main goal of the crime control program was to hire 50 additional police
officers. Council Member Garrett asked if the cost of the 50 police officers also included support
personnel and equipment and Mr. Loeb said it did not --it was merely the cost for the officers. He
added that without the support staff, some of the officers would have to be taken off the street to fill
civilian positions. Mr. Loeb said it was Chief Alvarez's opinion that it would be better to forego
hiring the last 10 officers and have the necessary support staff in place.
Responding to Council Member Scott, Cmdr. Smith said that Option 1 of the budget
reductions includes paring down the operation of the juvenile assessment center to the bare
minimum. He said they are also looking at some new state grants that will be available in the next
year or so to pay for case managers. He added that they are considering using on -duty personnel to
absorb overtime costs. Cmdr. Smith further responded to Council members' questions about the
proposed reductions. Mr. Loeb added that if the board and the Council expect to ask the voters to
reauthorize the crime control district, it is important to present them with a sustainable program
which demonstrates that they have done their best to manage the available resources.
Dr. Maria Luisa Garza, Director of the Gulf Coast Council of La Raza (GCCLR) Runaway
Shelter, said that a week ago Cmdr. Smith asked her to develop a proposal to absorb the activities
of the juvenile assessment center. She noted that the assessment center is not licensed to keep youth
Minutes - Joint Meeting
May 30, 2000
Page 3
for a 24-hour period but GCCLR's runaway shelter is licensed to do that. She described the process
that is followed at the shelter. She said the total cost of their proposal is $160,000 because they do
not have the overhead expenses that the district has.
In response to Mayor Neal, Chief Alvarez said there will be a police academy graduating on
July 7th with 20 officers, 10 of which are through the crime control district. A brief discussion
ensued about the academy and hiring for attrition.
Referring to the district's budget, Mr. Loeb said the board's intent at that meeting was to
present the Council with the preliminary FY 2000-01 budget, and he noted that a public hearing on
it will be held during the June 13th Council meeting. He said the board did not need Council
approval at that time on the proposed reductions that were discussed, but he encouraged the Council
members to share any concerns they might have about the plan or other suggestions with the board
members.
Responding to Dr. Gonzales, Ms. Bridges explained the differences between Dr. Garza's
program at the runaway shelter and the juvenile assessment center's program, which is a certified
holding facility. She noted that if the center's services were contracted out to a third -party provider,
such as GCCLR's shelter, they would lose some grants because they can only be used by
governmental entities. She said the feeling was that while Dr. Garza's program is an excellent one,
it is a piece of the picture whereas the assessment center is the bigger picture. Ms. Mariah Boone,
director of the assessment center, further described the center's operation, including statistical
information. A discussion ensued and Council Member John Longoria commented on the need to
maintain efficient operation of the assessment center, including having a system that tracks the
youths' progress.
Ms. Paige Dinn informed the Council that Youth Opportunities United (YOU) has been
working on a comprehensive strategy to prevent juvenile crime. She said a subcommittee of YOU
met with three local judges who said that the information they are receiving from the juvenile
assessment center is very helpful, such as whether the offender is a truant or a curfew violator. She
further discussed the importance of reliable information to address the issues that arise.
Mr. Abel Alonzo said the crime control board wants to run the district's programs in the most
effective manner possible. He said he is aware that Dr. Garza is very committed to youth and he said
she should have provided data about her proposal.
Mayor Neal thanked the crime control board for their efforts. Council Member Colmenero
asked that Dr. Garza and GCCLR be kept informed about these issues.
There being no further business, Mayor Neal adjourned the joint meeting at 1:30 p.m.
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