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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFebruary 5, 2024 Council Minutes COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY JEFFERSONVILLE, INDIANA February 5, 2024 Regular Meeting Minutes The Common Council of the City of Jeffersonville, Indiana met for the Regular Meeting on February 5, 2024. Council President White along with City Clerk Gill called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. The meeting was open to the public in person as well as live streamed via the City Website using Zoom. INVOCATION: Rev. Dr. Sheiler Stokes from Bethel A.M.E Church led the invocation. Pledge of Allegiance: ROLL CALL: The roll call was conducted by City Clerk Lisa Gill and present in Council Chambers were Council President White, Councilperson Burns, Councilperson Semones, Councilperson Reed, Councilperson Webb, Council Vice President Hawkins, Councilperson Snelling, and Councilperson Stoner. Councilperson Anderson was absent. Let the record reflect that 8 Council Members were present in Council Chambers and 1 absent. APROVAL OF MINUTES: Councilperson Burns made a motion to approve the Minutes from the January 22, 2024 Regular Meeting, seconded by Councilperson Stoner; motion passed, 8-0. Council President White asked if there was any discussion. Councilperson Reed advised she received feedback from a constituent in regards to those minutes; she had given her address and wanted it redacted from the minutes. Councilperson Reed asked if that was something that could be done legally. Mr. Wilder advised the Council's rules indicated in order for someone to speak they must do certain things including giving their name and address for the record. The Council controls their rules and his recommendation was to follow the rules that have been set or to change the rules. Councilperson Stoner advised he remembered speaking to the Council several years ago and acknowledged it could be intimidating for an individual to put their address out and requested that Mr. Wilder add context as to why that had become part of the Council's rules for Public Comment. Mr. Wilder stated he believed it was added for transparency. Councilperson Stoner asked if anyone could come speak for public comment even if they were not a Jeffersonville resident. Mr. Wilder advised that was correct unless the Council changes their rules. Councilperson Semones advised Ms. Blessitt proposed she would still provide her address but her address would not to be put in the minutes. Councilperson Stoner said he would be in support of reviewing the Council rules in the near future and the rules for Public Comment could be addressed at that point to accommodate the request. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA: Councilperson Burns made a motion to approve the Agenda as presented, seconded by Councilperson Stoner; motion passed, 8-0. CLAIMS TO APPROVE: Civil City$2,513,146.77 Heather Metcalf-Controller stated the amount of the Civil City Claims was$2,513,146.77. Councilperson Stoner thanked all department heads for their team members who worked diligently on the claims as well as the finance team. Councilperson Stoner made a motion to approve the Civil City claims, seconded by Councilperson Semones; motion passed, 8-0. Parks$71,472.88 Heather Metcalf-Controller stated the amount of the Parks Claims was$71,472.88. Councilperson Reed made a motion to approve the Parks Claims, seconded by Councilperson Stoner; motion passed, 8-0. REPORT OF THE CLERK: Clerk Gill advised she had no comment other than to please address the email she sent in regards to the Council's Budget. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: 1. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-1 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation (Public Hearing) Mrs. Metcalf advised this was for the CSX Railroad project and there were no changes from the last meeting. Council President White opened the Public Hearing at 6:10 pm,there were no members of the community present to speak for or against the matter. Council President White closed the Public Hearing at 6:10 pm. Councilperson Stoner made a motion to approve 2024-OR-1 on the Third and Final Reading, seconded by Councilperson Burns; motion passed, 8-0. 2. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-2 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation (Public Hearing) Mrs. Metcalf advised this was appropriating cash already in the funds for sidewalks and there were no changes from last meeting. Councilperson Stoner thanked all the department heads for asking for this help, if the Council can assist in anyway, please feel free to ask anytime. Council President White opened the Public Hearing at 6:11 pm; Clerk Gill stated there were no comments sent to the Clerk's office. There were no members of the community present to speak for or against the matter. Council President White closed the Public Hearing at 6:11 pm. Councilperson Reed made a motion to approve 2024-OR-2 on the Third and Final Reading, seconded by Councilperson Burns; motion passed, 8-0. 3. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-3 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation (Public Hearing) Mrs. Metcalf advised this was a reimbursement for computer equipment for new Police vehicles and there were no changes since last meeting. Council President White opened the Public Hearing at 6:12 pm. There were no members of the community present to speak for or against the matter. Council President White closed the Public Hearing at 6:12 pm. Councilperson Stoner made a motion to approve 2024-OR-3 on the Third and Final Reading, seconded by Councilperson Semones; motion passed, 8-0. 4. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-4 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation (Public Hearing) Mrs. Metcalf advised this was for the Highway Department for the local match for the Community Crossing Grant and there were no changes since the last meeting. Council President White opened the Public Hearing at 6:13 pm.There were no members of the community present to speak for or against the matter. Council President White closed the Public Hearing at 6:13 pm. Councilperson Semones made a motion to approve 2024-OR-4 on the Third and Final Reading, seconded by Councilperson Reed; motion passed, 8-0. 5. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-5 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation (Public Hearing) Mrs. Metcalf advised this was in regards to 2023-OR-73 and there were no changes since the last meeting. Council President White opened the Public Hearing at 6:13 pm. There were no members of the community present to speak for or against the matter. Council President White closed the Public Hearing at 6:14 pm. Councilperson Snelling made a motion to approve 2024-OR-5 on the Third and Final Reading, seconded by Councilperson Stoner; motion passed, 8-0. 6. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-6 Ordinance of Transfer of Funds Within the Same Department Mrs. Metcalf advised this was in regards to the Performance Increase Pool and there were no changes since the last meeting. Councilperson Burns made a motion to approve 2024-OR-6 on the Third and Final Reading, seconded by Councilperson Reed; motion passed, 8-0. NEW BUSINESS: 1. Chad Reischl 2024-OR-7 Rezoning Change Request for Property Located at 4403 Hamburg Pike From PD (Planned Development toll (Business Park/Light Industrial) (Public Hearing) Chad Reischl, Director of Planning and Zoning was present on behalf of Larson Properties/Peterbuilt Trucking to request a re-zone from PD (Planned Development toll (Business Park/Light Industrial) at 4403 Hamburg Pike. The applicant would like to purchase this property to expand the Peterbilt site. This rezone comes with a favorable recommendation from the Plan Commission. Councilperson Stoner asked if the Peterbilt Company wanted to expand their lot and what they would place there. Mr. Reischl advised they intend on reconfiguring their entrance and exit area along with providing extra room for circulation of trucks and parking. Mr. Reischl advised nobody spoke for or against the rezone at the Plan Commission Meeting. Councilperson Stoner asked how the public was made aware of these requests. Mr. Reischl advised all property owners within 250 feet of the parcel were notified and a sign was put on the property and it was advertised in the newspaper. Councilperson Reed stated Peterbilt has been a good employer in the community for quite a long time and it did not seem like this would be a huge change and may help traffic flow. Council President White opened the Public Hearing at 6:18 pm. There were no members of the community present to speak for or against the matter. Council President White closed the Public Hearing at 6:18 pm. Councilperson Burns made a motion to approve 2024-OR-7 as presented, seconded by Councilperson Reed; motion passed, 8-0. 2. Donna Reed/Tony Waterson,CEO of Southern Indiana Works Presenting"Summer Works" Program Councilperson Reed introduced Mr. Tony Waterson of Southern Indiana Works and stated this program had been beneficial to other surrounding communities in getting the younger population aged 16-21 out working in the community. It would be grant funded in a lot of areas so with the Councils support, it would give them a net positive effect on some of the funding areas and help the Jeffersonville Parks Department along with the Animal Shelter. It would also have students doing some career development work and help them understand how the career world works. Tony Waterson President/CEO of Southern Indiana WORKS advised they are a non-profit organization that is governed by a Board of Directors. Their Board of Directors are also designated as a local workforce Development Board.They serve six (6) counties in Southern Indiana which include Clark, Floyd, Harrison, Scott, Washington and Crawford. Their mission is to lead a robust talent development system and cultivate a skilled workforce to advance the community economy and quality of life. There were two (2)things that they would like to do. They would like to work with all organizations, whether it is education or economic development and bring them together and push forward programming and initiatives to improve the workforce over the long haul. They focus on three (3)things: improving the economy, community, and quality of life. One of their priorities was to focus on the next generation of talent. They focus on bringing somebody from skill level A up to B by focusing on financial literacy, soft skills, employability skills, technical skills and digital skills. This program would help get the next generations ready for lifelong learning and prepare them for the future. In 2020 they started partnering with Kentuckiana Works and decided to model a pilot program such as theirs. In 2023 the pilot program was launched with three(3) municipalities and town governments which included the City of New Albany,Town of Clarksville and City of Charlestown. The program was funded primarily by Metro United Way. They were able to have nine (9)work sites with those three(3) municipalities, paid six(6)weeks of work experience at$15.00 an hour to eighteen (18) kids, and had seventeen (17)to complete the program.The general economic impact was about$27,000.00, but the lifelong impact was much more than that. There are career coaches and workshop coordinators to assist the participants with the skills they need to apply for employment. They would like to increase the number of students from 18 to 45-50 for this year's workshop which would have a pay rate of$15.00 an hour,20 hours a week. It would cost roughly $2,500.00 per participant to sponsor. They take on the role of employer to each participant and they cover each participant under their Workers Comp and Liability Insurance and each worksite has a work supervisor. All of the legalities fall under Southern Indiana WORKS. Mr. Waterson advised the Council they would like to partner with the City of Jeffersonville. Councilperson Reed advised that after speaking with Mr.Waterson,she felt a potential$10,000.00 sponsorship from the Riverboat Fund would be the best route.The funding would be a sponsorship for the program but the Council would also be funding the workers within the community and all the insurance and legal expenses would be covered and they would be in line with the other sponsors. Mr.Waterson advised they had received some funding from Metro United Way,Caesars Foundation of Floyd County, Charlestown and New Albany. The County Government and County Commissioners had been approached for sponsorships as well. Councilperson Burns asked if the municipalities participated in the program last year donated money or made contributions to the Pilot Program. Mr. Waterson advised that they were fully funded by a grant last year and could still do this without any additional investments.Their goal was to raise$200,000.00 by summer and they have raised around $75,000.00 so far. Councilperson Stoner asked Mr.Waterson to explain how they promote this program to the youth, community and the underserved communities. Mr. Waterson advised they are using social media and Spotify ads. Everything instructs individuals to the website to apply, soinworks.com. They also work with Jobs for America's Graduate Program. Councilperson Stoner advised it may be good to also speak with Jeffersonville Clark County Youth and NAACP and he felt this was a really good program. Councilperson Reed advised this was already discussed with Human Resources to make sure it would work well with their system and they advised they did not see any conflicts initially. Council Vice President Hawkins asked to hear from the Attorney about any kind of liability that the Council would be liable for. Attorney Wilder advised that Southern Indiana WORKS would be responsible for any liabilities. Mr. Waterson confirmed that was correct. Council Vice President Hawkins asked if all the municipalities were asked for the same sponsorship. Mr. Waterson advised that New Albany was asked for more because they previously participated in the program and were excited to start again. Councilperson Webb asked if the participants worked on weekends. Mr. Waterson advised this program would be for 6 weeks at 20 hours per week. The program would work with the sites to determine what the hours would be. These workers would not replace any City workers and would be a supplement so the participants could gain experience. Councilperson Stoner asked how the program would work with participants that did not have transportation. Mr. Waterson advised last year there was carpooling that would be offered again. Bus passes could be given, but that did not always work out. Council President White asked Mrs. Metcalf what fund this would come out of and she advised it was recommended to come out of the Riverboat Fund. Councilperson Reed made a motion to take appropriated funds from the Riverboat Fund to utilize youth program for this summer in alignment with the municipalities,seconded by Council Vice President Hawkins; motion passed, 8-0. Council President White asked what amount and Councilperson Reed advised, $10,000.00. 3. Kim Calabro 2024-OR-8 Ordinance Amending 2023-OR-69 &Ordinance Fixing the Salaries of Appointed Officers & Employees for All the Departments of the City of Jeffersonville Mrs. Calabro-Human Resources Director presented the amended Salary Ordinance. Mrs. Calabro advised the main change was to the Building Commissioner;the Building Authority decided to contribute an additional $6,000.00 to the salary given the nature of ongoing extensive issues the building was experiencing with maintenance. The salary would be split between the General Fund and the Building Authority and the percentage out of the General Fund would decrease. Councilperson Stoner made a motion to approve 2024-OR-8. Mrs. Calabro advised there was a second change. Councilperson Stoner revoked his motion. Mrs. Calabro advised the only other change to the Ordinance was not really a change;the newly hired Police Officers signing bonus was not introduced to the 2023 Council until after the 2024 Salary ordinance was submitted. When State Board of Accounts was contacted they instructed Mrs. Metcalf it would have to be put back in the Ordinance in 2024. Councilperson Stoner made a motion to approve 2024-OR-8 on the First and Second Reading, seconded by Councilperson Burns; motion passed, 8-0. 4. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-9 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation Mrs. Metcalf advised this was in regards to the change on the Salary Ordinance regarding the Building Commissioner. This was being funded by the Building Authority Fund. Councilperson Semones made a motion to approve 2024-OR-9 on the First and Second Reading, seconded by Councilperson Burns; motion passed, 8-0. 5. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-10 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation Mrs. Metcalf advised this was money that had already been received from insurance for the Highway Department's building that was struck by lightning. Councilperson Burns made a motion to approve 2024-OR-10 on the First and Second Reading, seconded by Councilperson Reed; motion passed, 8-0. 6. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-11 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation Mrs. Metcalf advised this was for the Parks Department to fund the utilities for the Depot. In the past, Redevelopment had paid them. Parks would be taking over the Depot, therefor they would need to take over the utilities; these funds would come from the surplus funds in the Parks Activity Fund. There would need to be a discussion to see if an increase was needed in the transfer that supported this fund for next year's budget. Council Vice President Hawkins asked if the bills were due now or if money was being put into these funds to be able to pay them throughout the course of the year. Mrs. Metcalf advised this would be to pay them throughout the year, however, these were estimated numbers because the Depot had not been open a full year. Council President White asked if Redevelopment had deeded the property over to Parks. Parks Director Paul Northam advised that had not happened. They have hired a manager for The Depot, Amber Powell and The Riverstage Director was Tara Young. When Dave Simpson left, his position was eliminated and the managers positions assumed those duties. Councilperson Reed asked if this was seen as a revenue generating option to have it open 12 months out of the year opposed to what it was before. Mr. Northam advised it was contracted out with another business and they didn't feel like it was appropriately programmed so they stepped in and were hoping to have two (2) to three (3) events each month over a nine to ten month period. Councilperson Stoner made a motion to approve 2024-OR-11 on the First and Second Reading, seconded by Councilperson Burns; motion passed, 8-0. Council President White stated he would encourage the Council's representatives on the Redevelopment Commission to see about additional funding from the Redevelopment to help locate activities. 7. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-12 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation Mrs. Metcalf advised this was for Riverstage Professional Services in support of a Juneteenth Concert. Councilperson Webb advised he thinks the Juneteenth Concert is a very good event that the Council should support. Councilperson Webb asked what the average cost of an event was every weekend. He stated it was his understanding that this year they were going to try to get the event funded by sponsorships. There was $125,000.00 appropriated last year for this event and sponsorships were supposed to identified for this year. He asked what the amount of sponsorship was gotten last year. Amber Powell, Manager of The Depot advised they received $10,000.00 last year. Councilperson Webb asked what sponsorship were there so far this year. Ms. Powell advised there was a $10,000.00 commitment and a $5,000.00 commitment. Councilperson Webb asked if there were 10 concerts planned at the Riverstage for the regular schedule. Ms. Powell advised that was correct and the average cost for the headlining band and production cost would be an average of$16,000.00 to$17,000.00 for each concert. Councilperson Webb pointed out the cost for this event would be equivalent to the cost of 10 concerts. Ms. Powell advised there were a couple of bands coming from out of town that will be a little more than average. Mr. Northam advised for those 2 bands and production it will be around $190,000.00. Councilperson Burns advised he agreed with Councilperson Webb, Juneteenth was a great concert, when the money was appropriated last year it was supposed to be seed money to get the event started so it could stand alone and that donations would be sought throughout the year to keep this event going. Ms. Powell advised the title sponsorship for the Riverstage was Shoe Sensation and their donation was$12,000.00 for the entire season. It's hard to get that much money donated for an event when you are talking 6 figures. Ms. Powell said the Juneteenth concert last year was a huge success, there was a lot of good feedback and appreciation from the community for doing something different in Jeffersonville. Councilperson Webb asked how long artist played. Ms. Powell advised the opening band played about 45 minutes, then a support DJ played about 2 hours in between sets, then Little John had an hour set. Councilperson Semones advised that the scope and scale of the Juneteenth concert far exceeds the regular weekend concerts. Ms. Powell agreed and advised it's on par with Jeff goes Country that has been happening for over a decade. There were many things that go into putting these concerts on. Councilperson Stoner asked how long Jeff Goes Country has been happening. Ms. Powell advised she thinks 10 years. Councilperson Stoner asked what the average amount that was spent on Jeff Goes Country. Ms. Powell advised around $120,000.00 to $125,000.00 between the artist fee and the production cost. Council President White advised the Juneteenth Concert was a huge success and it brought a lot of people out and could continue to bring in more sponsorships, Ms. Powell did a great job. Councilperson Webb advised that he agreed, however, the Riverstage will need work done soon. They need to determine how much can be spent on each concert and not spend over half of the Riverstage budget on one concert. Council President White encouraged each Council Member to go out and get one sponsor for this event. Councilperson Stoner stated whatever was approved tonight, it would go before the Parks Authority Board also. Councilperson Stoner said he understood the concerns but a big part of the Parks Department was quality of life and supporting programs to help with quality of life. Not all of those are meant to make revenue, not everything that is done will build revenue, but it is very critical for quality of life. The Juneteenth Concert was a huge success and he hoped to see it continue and get bigger. Councilperson Webb advised that he supports the event,just not the dollar amount and asked if an artist had been booked for this year yet. Council President White advised an artist had not been selected, the money had to be in place before an artist could be booked. Councilperson Burns advised at one time there were 10 concerts on the river and now this has been added along with the Depot. There's only so much money and if the spending continues, they would not have healthy reserves and therefore no money for raises for Police and Fire and Public Services. They needed to make sure they were being fiscally responsible. Council President White asked Mrs. Metcalf if this money could only be used for the Riverstage. Mrs. Metcalf advised that was correct; it was money that had accumulated over time because it had been appropriated to the Riverstage in past years, but not spent so it remained in the reserves. Councilperson Webb expressed concern regarding the condition and repairs that were needed to the Riverstage and asked how much the foam cost three years ago. Mr. Northam advised fifty some thousand dollars. Councilperson Webb asked if the Riverstage was still holding water. Mr. Northam advised yes, it gets pumped out every week. Councilperson Webb advised he supported this concert, however, the Parks Department needed to think about further down the road of how they can maybe accumulate money to buy another Riverstage and watch the spending. Councilperson Semones thanked Council President White for his challenge for each Council member to raise $10,000.00 to go toward this event. Councilperson Semones asked Ms. Powell if she could supply the Council with a sponsorship packages, Ms. Powell said she would get the Council the sponsorship package. Councilperson Webb asked if this money would be for all of the concerts. Council President White advised, no it was just for the Juneteenth concert. Council Attorney Larry Wilder advised he would send a bill for his January 2024 services and whatever that amount was, he would donate that amount. Council Vice President Hawkins asked if Jeff Goes Country had its own significant sponsor, Ms. Powell advised yes the naming sponsor in the amount of$12,000.00. Councilperson Stoner asked what happened to the surplus money at the end of the year. Mrs. Metcalf advised it would not go anywhere, it would stay in the fund. Councilperson Webb advised that he would be voting no, but that he would personally donate $1,000.00 to the Juneteenth concert. Mrs. Metcalf advised that all donations would still need to be appropriated by the Council, even the current $130,000.00 so that it could be spent. Council Vice President Hawkins asked how much was in the surplus fund. Mrs. Metcalf advised around a hundred thousand. Vice President Hawkins asked if there was a fund that had reserves in it to use if a new Riverstage needed to be purchased. Mrs. Metcalf advised the only Cumulative Improvement Fund was established two to three years ago by the Council for$50,000.00 and was mainly for the Turf Field, but it was not specific to the Turf Field, but was specific to the Parks Department. Council Vice President Hawkins asked if this Ordinance was to pass if there would still be around one hundred thousand in reserves. Mrs. Metcalf advised,yes, there should always be a reserve. Councilperson Semones made a motion to approve 2024-OR-12 on the First and Second Reading, seconded by Councilperson Stoner; roll call: Councilperson Burns-No Councilperson Semones-Yes Councilperson Reed-Yes - based on constituent feedback and economic build Council President White-Yes Councilperson Webb-No - stated he supported the concert and would personally donate $1000 Council Vice President Hawkins-No Councilperson Snelling-Yes Councilperson Stoner-Yes; motion passed, 5-3. 8. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-13 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation Mrs. Metcalf advised this was out of the General Fund for Police Department's HSA contribution. There was not enough budgeted for 2024. Councilperson Reed asked what was meant by not enough budgeted. Mrs. Metcalf advised that at the time the budget was approved, they were not sure how many employees would choose the high deductible plan insurance verses the HSA plan. New employees were hired, employees retired, some decided to change plans and therefore the HSA contributions were higher than what was budgeted. JPD Chief Kavanaugh advised with new hires, retirees and the change in the Insurance Carrier, there was no way to budget this correctly. Mrs. Metcalf advised the contribution amount did increase due to a change in Federal Law. Councilperson Burns made a motion to approve 2024-OR-13 on the First and Second Reading, seconded by Councilperson Stoner; motion passed, 8-0. 9. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-14 Ordinance of Additional Appropriation Mrs. Metcalf advised the next two (2) Ordinances were in conjunction with one another.There was a change in security for the Big 4 Park. Instead of being contracted out,JPD would handle this moving forward. The Parks Department had this contracted out to another company but now JPD would need the funds to pay overtime to do the security. Funds from Parks will be moved to Contractual Services for the Police department and then on the transfer, that contractual and general fund will be moved to the new overtime fund. It would be tracked so if it were ever contracted out again, it would show exactly how much would need to be pulled from the budget. An additional $77,007.60 from the General Fund reserves also was also needed. The overtime is Monday thru Thursday for the Big 4 Park only,just as the contract was. Council President White advised the park was serviced by a private security company that only hired police officers. There were some attacks being made by citizens against the company who provided this service. That company decided to no longer provide this service due to being unfairly attacked and because of that the city would have to absorb the cost to make sure the public was safe. JPD Chief Kavanaugh advised when the Big 4 Park opened in 2013, K-4 provided the security at a starting rate of$32.00 an hour and over the 10 year period it had increased to $37.00 an hour with an average of 96 hours in 4 days. He advised the Police Department would have to pay approximately 80 hours of overtime. JPD does have enough officers to cover this. They would be equipped with body cameras and use community policing. He also advised he is comfortable with timeframe and with JPD providing the security. The appropriation needed was $77,000.00. The overtime will be recorded in a new line so it could be tracked. This would be Monday through Thursday. Councilperson Semones asked if the current security company would no longer keep the contract and Council President White advised that was correct. Councilperson Stoner asked if the $77,000.00 would come out of the General Fund and Mrs. Metcalf advised it would. The other ones were from the LIT Economic Development Fund. Councilperson Reed thanked the Jeffersonville Police for taking this on. Councilperson Burns made a motion to approve 2024-OR-14 on the First and Second Reading, seconded by Council Vice President Hawkins; motion passed, 8-0. 10. Heather Metcalf 2024-OR-15 Ordinance of Transfer of Funds Within the Same Department Council Vice President Hawkins made a motion to approve 2024-OR-15 on the First and Second Reading by Councilperson Burns; Councilperson Semones confirmed this went with 2024-OR-14 and Council President White confirmed that was correct; motion passed, 8-0. Council President White asked Mrs. Metcalf if the 17 line statement had the updated numbers from last year after everything in the books was settled. Mrs. Metcalf advised that was correct and it showed the current percentages at the bottom. ATTORNEY COMMENTS: Larry Wilder-No Comment Les Merkley-No Comment DEPARTMENT HEADS: Chad Reischl - Mr. Reischl advised he distributed a copy of the 2023 Annual Report that his department put out for 2023. For anyone online who would like to see the report it can be located at cityofjeff.net/planning-zoning. JPD Chief Kavanaugh/Anthony Stewart-FOP President-Chief Kavanaugh was present with the FOP President Anthony Stewart. Chief Kavanaugh advised they submitted a letter to the Council outlining their request which referenced addressing the JPD Collective Bargaining Agreement. Chief Kavanaugh advised the Council the Administration supported the FOP 100 with the goal of action being negotiating the contract early for 2024 in order for a pay adjustment to take place in July of 2023. This action has been taken previously in 2022 by the Common Council while working with Human Resources and the Finance Department in order to bring Jeffersonville to a market rate. Chief Kavanaugh read part of the letter presented to Council (see attached) and advised he recently returned from the Chief's Conference and has spoken with other local Police Chiefs who were trying to recruit open positions at a higher rate of pay($62,000)than what the City of Jeffersonville offered and they will be looking at raising the pay rate during their next budget session. Council Vice President asked how much they were planning to raise their pay and Chief Kavanaugh said he did not know what the new base pay would be. Council Vice President Hawkins asked what State Police base pay started at and Chief Kavanagh advised approximately$70,000. Chief Kavanaugh discussed the retention bonus that was done last year which totaled $460,000 and broke down to approximately$5000 per officer. Chief Kavanaugh advised JPD was down 3 officers and a retirement was scheduled for February 15 and March 15 which will put them down 5 officers. Chief Kavanaugh said his request was to start the negotiations early and discuss a pay adjustment. He would like to work with HR and the Council and attempt to hire the 5 new officers at the new base pay rate established if they are able to get it signed by April or May. Chief Kavanaugh said this would help with recruiting, hiring, and then maintaining staffing. Jeffersonville has some of the most highly professional and best trained police officers that's recognized within the state. He takes pride with that and acknowledged some of the outcomes they have been able to deliver in Jeffersonville over the last three to four years were sustainable in other places in the country it was not sustainable. Councilperson Reed asked what retention currently looked like at JPD. Chief Kavanaugh said he did have a couple of officers who were currently looking at their options. They have lost officers to the FBI and have officers who have left to go to a federal level position. In this generation of Police Officers one thing to look at and recognize is the ongoing interest in looking and seeing positions that are available. With the new climate and generation of workforce the market is vast and competitive. Chief Kavanaugh advised they had taken steps and measures with the Police Merit Commission and have worked to change things within the department to appeal to officers in order to help keep personnel. Council Vice President Hawkins asked if the request was to open the FOP contract to negotiate a new pay scale that would go into effect in July of 2024 and the new contract would take effect January 1, 2025. FOP President Stewart advised that was correct. FOP President Stewart recognized the JPD Administration for requesting input from the officers on how things could be improved within the department. The FOP sat down with the Administration last year and had good conversations and they took steps to make the workplace a better place to work but they can't get over the hump of $10,000 when recruiting new officers. His request tonight is to begin negotiations and open the current contract that expires December 31,2024 to adjust the pay salary. Mr. Wilder advised his opinion was that the Council was the Fiscal Body and their responsibility was to fund whatever contracts the Executive chooses to engage. He also advised that there is similar language in the Fire contract that existed and he suspected that some Firefighters may ask for the same thing and to be prepared for that. Mr.Stewart advised that it was his understanding that the Firefighters would not have to come to the Council that the other 92 people would just have to sign a new salary form once the JPD and FOP 100 got their stuff taken care of. Chief Kavanaugh advised what the letter that he presented, but did not go into detail about explains Mr. Merkley's work and legal opinion and how they arrived to the terms of the retention bonus and within that legal scope of opinion,what their ability to work within that team and not necessarily need the exact legal services of Mr. Wilder to make this work. Mr. Merkley advised he has said the same thing for almost 30 years; if the Council told the Administration to negotiate the contract they would agree but they could not do that if the Council would not agree to fund the contract.There were certain parts of both contracts that required the Administration and the Police Department to be involved in. Council President White asked that Mr. Merkley send the legal opinion the Council received last year to everyone again in regards to this matter and Mr. Merkley stated he would. Councilperson Stoner asked if they were asking to tweak the current contract and then do the other contract for 2025. FOP President Stewart advised this part of the negotiation should be very brief,whereas redoing the whole contract may take until sometime between June and August which would put them past the date in which they need to get some things done if they were looking for a July 15t target date;this contract that they were looking to open would be specifically articles involving salary and longevity only,therefore the whole contract would not need to be negotiated,that would give the other departments time to do what they needed to do before July 1,2024. Council Vice President Hawkins advised that even when everyone agreed, it still could take time to get everything completed. Councilperson Snelling recognized if something was not done the City could potentially lose some good officers. It was decided to hold an Executive Session to discuss the reopening of articles 20 and 27 of the JPD Contract on Tuesday, February 20, 2024 at 5:30 pm in Council Chambers with the regular City Council Meeting to follow at 6:00 pm. Councilperson Semones advised to be clear the next Council Meeting would be on February 20, 2024 at 6:00 pm due to the holiday on February 19,2024. Chief Kavanaugh wanted to make it publically known that they were not just asking for a pay raise they want to consider the market rate analysis and look at data from the department of Workforce Development and look at the data and the information that has been collected by FOP 100, and put all of those things together and work in conjunction on how the City of Jeffersonville looks at paying their employees to be able to perform and demonstrate their jobs for the citizens of Jeffersonville. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Mary Ruth Payton-2009 Hamburg Pike#90,Jeffersonville, IN 47130 Ms. Payton expressed her concerns regarding the homeless camp just across the creek from her home. She contacted Councilperson Burns and Police several times. It started out with about 2 tents and has expanded tremendously. There have been explosions and fires; she has found needles in her yard. She has contacted the owner of the property, Munich Welding and they posted No Trespassing signs. Someone from Exit 0 went out to the property and he was chased into the creek by the homeless people. Her home has been broken into twice now. It is getting really bad and something has to be done. Council President White apologized because he had told Ms. Payton her Councilperson was Councilperson Burns and he did not realize she was actually in his district and advised her he would get with Councilperson Burns to see what has been done and what else can be done. Councilperson Stoner thanked Ms. Payton for coming and said he thought this would be a good time to have conversations regarding the homeless problems, not that it hasn't been worked on and it will never totally go away. He would like to some feedback from the community regarding the unsheltered population. Councilperson Reed advised that the Homeless Coalition was willing to come and speak with the Council regarding what the appropriate plans are now. Council President White advised that the City will be in contact with Munich Welding and the appropriate City Departments to get the process started to get it cleaned up. JPD Chief Kavanaugh advised they will make contact with the people there and provide notifications so they may transition their property to other locations before the area is cleaned up; there is a procedure that has to be followed so please be patient. Kaitlin Blessitt-Jeffersonville Ms. Blessitt said she appreciated whoever brought up her concern about her address being put in the minutes. She could not hear what the attorney had to say and said it would be great if they could get microphones as they cannot be heard when viewing online. Ms. Blessitt voiced her concern about her address being put in the Council Minutes. She asked if she comes to speak if she could just say she is a resident of Jeffersonville. Council President White advised stating your name and address for the record was a rule. She asked could she just write it on the public comment sign in sheet but it not be put in the minutes and said it was privacy concern. Ms. Blessitt asked if the Council would not allow her to speak if she did not state her exact address. Attorney Wilder advised those were the Council's rules unless they decide to change the rules. Ms. Blessitt also voiced her concern regarding the Vimeo videos not being labeled anymore and ask if that could be addressed. Ms. Blessitt thanked the Council for updating their website with the current contact information. Alice Butler-1773 Summer Place,Jeffersonville, IN 47130 See Attached Vanessa Omeokachie- Pebble Creek Drive,Jeffersonville, IN 47130 Ms. Omeokachie,the founder of Tray Budd, based out of Jeffersonville. This program helps to connect individuals with similar interest. Tray Budd currently has 10 various categories of events and experiences to match individuals with. The possibilities are endless. Tray Budd was established through her own struggles like looking to meet people, make friends, dating, etc. Tray Budd currently has connections on Linked In, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, etc. Last May the Attorney General released an 82 page report on the loneliness epidemic in the United States, which basically was deemed a public health crisis. Individual reporting to be the loneliness was between the ages of 18 and 30 years of age. That report can be found Google under Surgeon General Loneliness Epidemic. Ms. Omeokachie would like to partner with the City of Jeffersonville to address the ongoing loneliness epidemic. Councilperson Semones asked if Ms. Omeokachie has a specific proposal for the Council. Ms. Omeokachie advised that she could put something together, but not right off hand,The City puts on various events, so Tray Budd connects with individuals, but they also offer businesses an opportunity to post and promote their events on Tray Budd platform and allows the users to purchase tickets directly from the platform. Clerk Gill gave Ms. Omeokachie her business card so she could contact her with any questions. Councilperson Stoner asked Ms. Omeokachie is she started this organization herself, she advised,yes. Councilperson Stoner advised her to come to a Parks Authority meeting and contact One Southern Indiana. Councilperson Webb thanked Ms. Omeokachie for coming and hopes to be able to work with Tray Budd, the kids in Jeffersonville needs a place to go besides restaurants or bars. Ms. Omeokachie agrees with the Council and also encourages them to look into the older generation as well. COUNCIL COMMENTS: • Councilperson Burns—No Comment • Councilperson Semones—attended her first Planning Commission Meeting, they are doing great things, also the Arts Commission celebrated Painters Day, doing a lot of mural work in downtown Jeffersonville. Thanks to Chief Grant and Chief Kavanaugh for continuing to have dialogue with City Council members in the open line of communication, she is proud to support some of the measures today, specifically those that helped promote Historic Preservation and the Juneteenth concert. • Councilperson Anderson—Absent • Councilperson Reed—Thanks to the Jeffersonville Public Library for the programming they have put on for Black History Month, it has been great for the community. Good luck to the Jeffersonville High Cheerleaders at Nationals in Orlando Florida. • Councilperson Webb—we had a good meeting tonight, he is in support of Juneteenth but they need to work on getting sponsors. Remember, money can go very quick;the Council has had pretty good balanced budget,they need to keep it that way. • Council Vice President Hawkins—No Comment • Councilperson Snelling—No Comment • Councilperson Stoner—Thank you to the organizers of Clark County Cares,thanks to all of the Jeffersonville people who were involved with that. There was an event at JPD, thanks to Chief Kavanaugh for supporting that. At some point, he would like the Council to have a high level of conversation regarding the homeless and unsheltered community, maybe have an executive session to set some parameters for the dialogue. Also would like to discuss the rules of the putting people's addresses in the minutes. Thanks to Mrs. Gill, Mrs. Kiser and the Clerk's staff for all that they do to get things ready for the Council Meetings. • Council President White—No Comment ADJOURNMENT: Councilperson Semones made the motion to ADJOURN the meeting at 8:02 p.m. APROVED BY: (1Q U1Q Dustin White, Council President / ATTEST: Lira Gill, Clerk L.Kenneth Kavanaugh Jr. Mike Moore Lt.Col.Michael McVoy Chief of Police Mayor Asst.Chief of Police JEFFERSONVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT February 5, 2024 Council President Dustin White Council VP Scott Hawkins Common Council Members RE: Currently Addressing the JPD Collective Bargaining Agreement(CBA)/JPD Administration is Supporting the Bargaining Unit FOP#100/Goal of Action Negotiating the Contract(early) in 2024 for July 1st,2024,for a Pay Adjustment Dear City Council, The Jeffersonville Police Department Administration is respectfully requesting for the Jeffersonville City Council Public Safety Negotiating Committee to formally began the negotiating process with the bargaining unit of FOP#100, who is representing the Jeffersonville Police Officers.As Chief of Police, starting my 9th year as an executive, and as a Jeffersonville Police Officer continuing 30 years of service to the City of Jeffersonville, my belief is reasonable,fair, and financially equitable that a base pay adjustment "has opportunity to reasonably happen" within the negotiation process starting July 1, 2024. This is action of a pay adjustment is benefitting to all parties involved with the law enforcement contract negotiations. (The JPD police officer base pay is$59,714). Previously in the spring of 2023, the police administration working with the City Legal Department, Mayor's Office, Comptroller's Office, FOP#100, and the Jeffersonville City Council did approve a $460,000 retention bonus,this did equate to$5,000 per police officer.This request was made by the police department administration outside of the CBA upon the city legal department obtaining relevant contractual information. The Jeffersonville Police Administration in cooperation with FOP#100,Jeffersonville Mayor's Office and City Council recognizes the current climate and challenges faced by law enforcement across the nation, especially in Jeffersonville. Numerous steps and measures have been implemented, then discussed and or suggested, and some action(s)taken regarding reinforcing the agency benefits, recognizing the pay rating positioning within the state and local area.This evening, a direct actionable response to our agency request acknowledging Jeffersonville Police Officer Pay and Compensation being addressed by the willingness to enter contract negotiations early with the intent of having a goal for a pay adjustment July 1, 2024.This action was previously taken by the city council in July of 2022 with the City of Jeffersonville Civilian Employees,while considering market rate(s) accordingly and reviewing the market rate analysis data as a standard for City of Jeffersonville.The market rate data was within the greater metropolitan area referencing the department of workforce development market rate analysis. 641* 2218 E. 10TH STREET JEFFERSONVILLE, IN 47130 PHONE: 812-283-6633 FAX: 812-670-3020 L.Kenneth Kavanaugh Jr. Mike Moore Lt.Col.Michael McVoy Chief of Police Mayor Asst.Chief of Police JEFFERSONVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT The executive leadership of this city, along with the city council has displayed a good faith of willingness to address the financial aspect of police officer base pay for Jeffersonville Police Department through the retention bonus application while communicating with the FOP and police administration. Strategically,this is another opportunity within the process to address the base pay through the pay adjustment process working with the bargaining unit.The Council Public Safety Negotiating Committee can engage in this process while financially being effective that should clearly set the bar for addressing police officer pay now and in the future years. • Recognizing an opportunity for leveraging the contract negotiations early targeting July 1, 2024, as six months early defined date under the current police officer collective bargaining contract • The police administration will be advocating and available to answer operational questions within the contractual negotiating process working w/ FOP President Anthony Stewart and Public Safety Council Negotiating Team • Understanding the need for Jeffersonville Police Department(in totality) being a second-class city and positioned as reasonably competitive within the state base pay rating and local region of market rate analysis within the workforce development ranking for the profession of police officer base pay compensation So, recognizing the constraints within the recruiting process and hiring the best possible candidates for our agency, while retaining the best highly skilled police officers,who clearly demonstrate professional policing services in Jeffersonville and Southern Indiana. Our daily job-performance and professional policing capabilities support building trust and confidence in Jeffersonville Police and Jeffersonville Public Safety. The police administration genuinely appreciates the support and patience of everyone involved and contributing to the process as we work (and partner w/ FOP#100) collectively to enhance the overall quality of life financially and professionally for ALL our employees. I appreciate your time and consideration from the Jeffersonville City Council position. Sincerely, ).___,, r / -...- -:___ Chief Kenny Kavanaugh Jeffersonville Police Department cl, 2218 E. 10TH STREET JEFFERSONVILLE, IN 47130 PHONE: 812-283-6633 FAX: 812-670-3020 ( c 9 Public trust in our elected officials has been seriously eroded — from the local to the national level. People are desperate for change — that was evident when we elected 4 new city council members in November. Unfortunately, a few of you ran unopposed or you might have been replaced as well. This was not about Democrat vs. Republican. It was merely a vote for change that will hopefully be for the better. To restore public trust, there must be more transparency and accountability. The previous council rarely asked questions. It became a joke among the council members to see how quickly they could race through the meeting and perhaps set a new record. Their record, by the way, was 5 minutes! Those of you who were part of the prior council should be ashamed. The taxpayers deserved better. There were 24 regular meetings and 11 of them lasted less than 30 minutes. 8 lasted between 30 and 58 minutes. Only 5 lasted more than an hour — the longest meeting lasted only 1 hour and 19 minutes! When you talk about being more transparent and communicating with the public, I hope that your first step towards that goal would be to spend more time during the public meetings discussing pertinent information. Keep your microphones on and use the whiteboard behind you to display details of what is being presented. It is your job to ensure that taxpayer's money is spent wisely. It is also important that you know exactly what you are voting for. 1. Ask more questions. Dig deeper. Don't believe everyone who comes before you and everything that is given to you. Do your own research and find out the details. Too often the council has voted without any meaningful discussion --- and some of the information that has been presented to you has been incorrect (like the information regarding the recent purchase of police vehicles.) 2. Stop making motions to approve every item on the "1st and 2nd reading". Some things are important enough to deserve time to research, to gather more information and to ask questions — then come back for a second more informed reading. You recently hired the council attorney when most of you were unaware of what his contract entailed, had never seen his contract or even knew how much he was to be paid. Yet, you voted anyway! That's NOT transparency. 3. Make sure your legal department responds to open records requests promptly. Be glad when citizens are involved. They may just discover something that you missed — or need to know. Unnecessarily delaying responses to open records requests creates mistrust. 4. Allow people to be heard — even if it exceeds 3 minutes. In 2023 there were 16 meetings with NO public comments. None. Six meetings had only 1 speaker — and 2 meetings had 2. When taxpayers care enough to take the time to address the council, they should be extended the courtesy to be heard for a little longer if necessary. An extra minute or two would be appreciated. I have more to say — but my time's up so I guess I will have to come back next time! Thank you for listening. Alice Butler