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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes City Council - 03/04/2003 - 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 March 4, 2003, which were approved by the City Council on March 25, 2003. WITNESSETH MY HAND AND SEAL, this 25'h day of March 2003. Armando Chapa City Secretary SEAL MINUTES JOINT MEETING OF THE CORPUS CHRISTI CITY COUNCIL AND CRIME CONTROL AND PREVENTION DISTRICT BOARD OF DIRECTORS March 4, 2003 - 12:10 p.m. CITY COUNCIL Mayor Samuel L. Neal Jr. Brent Chesney Javier Colmenero Henry Garrett Bill Kelly Rex Kinnison Jesse Noyola Mark Scott City Staff Present Acting City Manager George K. Noe Acting City Attorney R. Jay Reining City Secretary Armando Chapa Assistant City Secretary Mary Juarez Police Commander Bryan Smith Dan Whitworth, Director of Park & Recreation Police Chief Pete Alvarez CRIME CONTROL DISTRICT BOARD Linda Bridges, President Vicky Alexander Larry Baker John Heldenfels W.L. Hermis Butch Pool ABSENT Mayor Pro Tem John Longoria Danny Mora Rose Marie Soto Isaac Valencia The meeting was called to order in the Sixth Floor Conference Room of City Hall. City Secretary Chapa checked the roll and verified that quorums of both the Council and the Crime Control District (CCD) Board were present to conduct the meeting. Ms. Bridges presented preliminary information on the FY 2003/2004 budget. She reported that the board is on course with the budget process. She reminded the Council that as of July 31, 2003, the pawn shop detail program will be phased out and the cost for the legal advisor will be assumed by the city. Ms. Bridges said that the public hearing for the crime control budget is scheduled for April 16. The budget is anticipated to be adopted on May 7, 2003. Ms. Bridges asked if the Council had any questions. Mr. Garrett asked if the seven dispatcher positions that were planned to be eliminated could be restored later as funds became available. Mr. McDaniel said yes, that currently five positions were filled and two were vacant for the crime control district. Mr. Garrett asked if the two positions that were unfilled would be eliminated. Mr. McDaniel said yes, they would be eliminated and that the cost for the other five positions would be absorbed by the city's general fund. Mr. Garrett asked that the seven positions be retained because police officers rely heavily on dispatchers to perform their duties. Commander Smith commented that the police department was usually short on dispatchers at any rate because the job was demanding and stressful. Mr. McDaniel said that he would offer some suggestions on how to retain the positions, possibly through fee adjustments, at a later date. Mr. Garrett emphasized that he thought that support personnel should not be taken lightly in the budget process. Minutes - Joint Meeting August 27, 2002 - Page 2 Deputy City Manager Noe reported on a land acquisition for a new shooting range. Mr. Noe said that the initial plan was to acquire property in the industrial district but this plan was not realized. An alternate site near the airport was found. He anticipated that the acquisition would be complete in late March. Mr. Noyola commented that seven dispatchers, one crime scene investigator, five office assistants and one legal advisor position were all scheduled to be eliminated. He asked if this was because of overtime overages. Mr. McDaniel replied that no, overtime was not the issue. Mr. Kinnison asked why the crime control district was striving for a balanced budget when it was going to realize a $2 million surplus. He said that initial concern about the outcome of the November election seems to have led to a push for a balanced budget. However, the voters overwhelmingly supported the crime control district. He also wanted to know why the cost for certain positions was going to be transferred to the general budget. His concern was that he did not want to see the general fund overtaxed by assuming these costs. Commander Smith replied that concerns about the outcome of the November election were not the sole criteria in evaluating the budget. He said there are still concerns about running into deficits in the long -run, specifically in Years 3, 4 & 5, due in part to the rising cost of hiring police officers. To plan for this, the crime control district is being conservative with the surplus. Mr. Kinnison noted that once a budget item is absorbed by the general fund, it is highly unlikely that it would ever be returned to the original department. Ms. Bridges asked Commander Smith to provide an update on crime control district projects. Commander Smith said that there were many good things to report. The crime control district had teamed up with the Junior League to clean up Navarro Park and Hudson Park. The North Beach Directed Patrol meeting, held two weeks ago, went well. The officers are working with business owners and 80% of all complaints have been resolved. He also reported the Corpus Christi Police Athletically is working with children in the North and West sides of town to increase the number of activities available to them. Their goal is to bridge the gap by providing sports activities, art classes, and guidance to the children in these areas. Mr. Kelly asked if there was any progress on installing lights at the T.C. Ayers recreation center. Mr. Dan Whitworth, Director of Park and Recreation, replied that this matter has not been resolved at this point because they do not have all the underwriting for the project complete. Mr. Kelly asked what was required. Police Chief Alvarez responded that initially, drug funds were going to be used to fund the project. Mr. Kelly asked if the drug enforcement funds could be redirected for lighting. Chief Alvarez said he needed to clarify this with the U.S. Attorney General to ensure that there was no conflict of interest. Mr. Kelly asked when he expected the opinion to be rendered. Chief Alvarez replied that the opinion was in progress. Mr. Kelly said that he had not heard any figures on the cost of setting up lights. Mr. Whitworth responded that the cost was substantial. Mr. Kelly asked if the work could be done in-house. Mr. Whitworth said that the city would have to coordinate with CP&L. There being no other business, Mayor Neal adjourned the joint meeting at 1:00 p.m. on March 4, 2003.