General Services, Health and Environment Committee - Regular Meeting

Good. Okay. 29th. Okay. Welcome everyone to the October 29th caucus and work session of all common council. Um, Mr. Gimenez, please call the role. Adams, anane Valerie [snorts] Clark is absent. Ki Frell here. Flynn Frederick is absent. Towi is absent. Johnson. Keegan here. Kimbro

here. Love here. Robinson is absent. Zamer here. Nine present. We're also joined by council president Cory Ellis, city clerk Chenika Jackson.

Corporation councel Robert McGee, deputy corporation councel Brett Williams, research council Robert Wer, legislative director Brian Aimenez, and Junior Legislative Aid Carly Johnson. Okay. Um, jumping into the agenda, uh, for meetings from the previous meeting, I will be offering the October 9th as well as October 20th meeting minutes for approval.

Uh, Kelly, yes. I have a question. [snorts] Are we having a public hearing on the budget on Monday? We Is it scheduled? Did I miss it? It's not It was not noticed in the agenda that went out, but I thought the uh consolidated schedule for the finance committee did include a public hearing on Monday. You have that, Brian, or no? Yeah, we had to push that one out to um the second meeting in November. So, the public hearing will be held on the same night that it's planned to actually adopt the budget. Sorry.

So, the public hearing on the the second public hearing on the budget Jordan is the first meeting in November. Yeah. The Times Union has been having some issues with its publishing that the timing of it just was off. All right. It which means the public hearing will be held on the same night that we're scheduled to actually adopt the budget. Correct.

Okay. That's close. I mean, there's no way to adjust the schedule to allow to have it earlier. So, you can you can you can have a different meeting, schedule a special meeting to do the budget. Think about that. Great. Mr. Johnson.

So, just to follow up, what if um someone comes in and makes a outstanding point or points in opposition of the budget and um it like it doesn't give us the opportunity to have that conversation with our constituents or you really don't have a time to, you know, um take in the point that's made. So, I'mma uh kick it back. What do you suggest? How do we um it it could just get pushed off. It just wouldn't pass. It just if it if members weren't comfortable, we just have to do it the next meeting, which pushes it off. But

I mean, there two [clears throat] by law. How many public hearings do we have to have out on budget? Well, one. Okay. It was already. So, if council members wanted another one, you would just have to call a special meeting. Would that have to be a council meeting or could it just be a public hearing meeting on the budget where you could advertise it, you know, give it the proper notice and just have a public hearing on the budget, but the special meeting without it being a special council meeting? You can have a meeting, a council meeting just for the purposes of holding a public hearing as long as you have a cool. Oh, okay. So, we don't have to pass anything.

I'm not suggesting that. And I'm just wanting I thought we were going to have it on Monday um a meeting before we would ordinarily act on the budget but you know we have in the past held special meetings to adopt the budget um because you have until the end of the month. So I don't I don't I'm just you know I'm just as I said I thought we were having the uh hearing on Monday. Yeah. if we if we're not comfortable moving forward with an end, we'll just have to plan a special meeting. So, uh,

Kelly, just I have one other thing budget related and, um, apologies that my email did not I wrote it up but did not send it on Friday. um any of our bonding ordinances, we usually wait to pass those until after we're done with the budget process. So just because they pass through the committee does not mean that we'll be voting on them until um after we adopt the budget. And there is flexibility with that. So usually they're happy if we vote on them um in like January. So even if we don't vote on them immediately, it should be completely fine. But any bonding ordinances that we pass through the committee, we do that mainly so we don't have to that it's a lot on the committee and any council members that are attending. So if we pass them through and staff um so we pass them through then we can hold them.

Well, that that was my second question on the budget. Um because I [clears throat] didn't know if the intent I the finance committee has been moving bonding ordinances out as they've been meeting. They they are part of the capital budget and ordinarily you would have a discussion holistic discussion on the capital budget before you begin to move things out. So, I didn't know if the intent was to peacemeal past bonding ordinances that are part of the capital budget as opposed to a

a whole budget that also includes the capital budget. We don't usually so we usually talk about the capital budget in terms of like when we talk with the treasurer and I mean it's really something we talk about specifically the broader concept when we're talking about um debt and borrowing. So I at least since I've been on the finance committee we haven't done a fullcale discussion of the capital projects. It's usually the full-scale discussion is with the treasur when we're talking about the debt and and bonding specifically. I think that there will be further discussions that come up but probably more on that. Um and we've definitely I mean when I was chair one of the years we did go through and um vote on them as we went through. Um, it's not always possible to do, but it is something that it's a lot easier to talk to the people who are here instead of having different people come in to talk about the different bonding ordinances after we've already gone through the budget process.

Excuse me. [clears throat] But I'd also recommend that you uh I wouldn't wait until January or whatever to pass. would try to get all the bonding ordinances passed before this year is out rather than having a new council coming in with six new members and then kind of definitely starting and everything else. I mean ordinarily we in the past you would have sometimes let them uh roll over to January or February uh but that was uh the council continued I think when we've had situation like this when it was the last year last term you last year of the council you try to complete all of that and that it all up

but so so we won't be doing the bonding ordinance these bonding ordinances then on on Monday if I'm hearing correctly What what was your question, Richard? You said were we going to go as we go along just pass the ones that are that are up? I mean, they've been discussed. I mean, we could we could there's no nothing that says we can't because they're just sitting there. So, but I I've defer to finance the finance team for that. So, however they want to do it. Um, on to uh local laws. Uh, Mr. Ki's local law e local amending the charter in relation to requiring a mid-year update to the annual financial plan. That'll be a referral to finance. [snorts] Then, uh, next uh, Mr. Kanti's uh local law held B 2025 uh amending the charter and adding uh the civic inclusion and rights protection section. Uh passed uh it passed the the human resource human rights uh committee the other day. Uh and we'll be moving forward with voting on that. Then next uh by Mr. Berin, Ordinance 611125. It's uh USD ordinance uh in relation to uh parking lots and MUFM zoning district. That's a referral to planning.

And next on to um ordinances held Mr. Kanti's um ordinance uh 219125 uh that's an ordinance to repeal chapter 75 policy documents repository that's a referral to uh council operations on uh 113 and we're anticipating it passing being able to move forward with that should be a quick meeting on that the next uh ordinance is Mr. Johnson's 229225 uh ordinance authorizing the sale of 27 Alexander Street uh to Rosemary Krispy that passed. We'll be voting on that. That passed

finance on the 218125. Miss Frederick's is that up? I have it on my count. Oh, yeah. Yeah, I I missed it. Yeah. Okay. So, no, that that one was an earlier one or one from earlier this year, not part of the 2026 fiscal year. There was a different issue involved. I don't have a problem with that one because I think it was there was also a time frame time timeliness issue on that. DGS has asked if the council could move that one along because there time is of the essence um on that one as far as them being able to pay for the Yeah, it's amending a 2023 one that's already adopted. Um, so 1381 is a yes. Yeah. 138125 I that I skipped over. Yeah.

Okay. Be voting on that. [clears throat] Next uh in the bonding ordinances uh ordinance, excuse me. Yeah. Ordinance 5510125. This number uh by Miss Frederick uh authorizing certain purchases uh for recreation and court resurfacing. Those were not passing through. So those are don't want them to pass.

Right. The the rest of the um bonding ordinances we're not moving.

Yeah. We'll go ahead and update the agenda to reflect that. Okay. And so, um, on to, um, I know it's not listed on here, but, Miss Frederick's ordinance 60102, uh, 25 that was referred to finance. Is that the one, um, that you're referring to, Mr. Williams? Yes, that that's the one uh which amends a previous ordinance which sold uh a number of parcels or authorized the sale of a number of parcels to the uh land bank for uh development of the south end project that they're doing. Um the original ordinance had a few of the um it had a few parcels on there that are actually not being sold and then it was missing a few parcels that are being sold. So, it's just correcting those errors. Um project is still the same otherwise. Um so just asking that that forego review at the finance committee and be passed on Monday. Um the land bank has asked us to try to move that one along if we could so they can secure all their necessary funding and get the project moving.

Okay. So we'll release that from committee and and uh vote on it.

Next um under resolutions introduced uh Miss Keegan's resolution 1241125. this resolution from the common council in recognition of Native American Heritage Month. Uh we're all typically co-sponsors on that. Um we'll be voting on that. Then next uh Mr. Flynn's uh resolution 125 11125 resolution the common council recognizes November 2025 is epilepsy awareness month. All co-sponsors will be voting on that. Uh then next uh by Miss Frederick, it's uh resolution 1261125. It's resolution of common council reappointing Francis Cosgrove as a member of the board assessment review. Uh I think uh discussion schedule for it's a referral to finance. Excuse me. Uh then next uh Mr. Valeran's resolution uh 127 11125 uh resolution reporting Gabriella Saba Mora to the sustainability commission uh that's referral to planning. Uh next uh by also by Mr. Ballerin uh 128 111125 resolution of common council reappointing Jod Schmidz Anderson to uh sustainability the sustainability commission is the referral to planning. Okay. And then lastly um we're going to be taking up uh Mr. Clark's resolution 121 10125. is the resolution authorizing the public hearing regarding acquisition and imminent domain of those couple of addresses on wrap road. We want to do a

uh an executive session so we can discuss that. That's why Mr. McGee is here. So the motion you're going to say something. Yeah. So, my uh my ordinance 34125 on accessory entertainment went through the came back from the county planning board. So, I believe it's now ready. And can we put that on for passage? We should be able to amend it. What? We we should be able to amend the agenda for that. Okay. So, that's the uh the cabaret which is now the accessory entertainment. That's all done. Okay. Thanks. So, you got you got it up there, right?

Yeah. It's 3:4125. Have to. And Mr. Valerin, thank you. Um, I just had a quick question. Uh, the residential parking, what what uh I know it passed committee. What more do we need to do to get this pushed through? So, the residential parking permit uh that needed the public hearing that's currently scheduled for November 17th. 17 and we can vote on it on the 17th as well. We should be able to same conditions would apply to the budget. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Sounds good. Thank you. So, we could also we just put that on the agenda for the 17th. Thank you.

All right. So, did a motion to enter executive session to discuss the acquisition of uh real property? To discuss the acquisition of real property. Real property. Okay. Can I get a second? All in favor? I Okay.