Crystal River debates budget relief

The City Council rejects the city manager's proposal for making up a shortfall, then approves almost all of the individual parts of the plan.

By JOSH ZIMMER

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 1, 2000

CRYSTAL RIVER -- Handing City Manager David Sallee a defeat Tuesday night, a divided City Council rejected his plan for balancing the city budget with nearly $500,000 in adjustments.

Even though the council eventually approved most of his proposals during an item-by-item discussion, council members Ray Wallace, Mike Gudis and Kyle "Joe" Chrietzberg ignored pleas to endorse the entire plan.

"If you do not approve this, I will have to get it (the money) from other sources," a frustrated Sallee said at the special meeting. "I will have to lay off people. We worked these numbers numerous times."

Gudis expressed disappointment with the amount of the budget transfers proposed. Chrietzberg wanted more details, suggesting the city auditors Williams, McCranie and Sutton should review the numbers before council voted on the plan.

"I'm just seeing numbers on the page," Chrietzberg said. "I would just prefer to have Mr. Sutton do the entire business."

"If they missed something, Mr. Sutton's going to have to be Mr. Houdini to pick it up," Sallee replied.

The staff plan, an attempt to balance revenues with year-to-date expenditures, highlighted the ongoing troubles in the city's Finance Department. Sallee and new Finance Director Carol Grivetti have acknowledged major fiscal problems within the city government, ranging from unbalanced accounts and computerized billing problems to delays in paying vendors.

Working closely with Grivetti, Sallee offered a plan to essentially balance the budget with a $500,000 differential between revenues and expenditures. A major problem is that the budget did not carry forward existing funds to pay for programs approved by the council.

But the question goes beyond balancing the books. The city has incurred or could incur some unexpected costs related to extra auditing and overtime performed by Finance Department employees implementing new computer software.

Confirming expenditures to date was Grivetti's first priority.

"On the expenditure level, we're pretty comfortable," she told council members.

Questions still linger about the revenue side of the budget, including imbalances between individual accounts and the general ledger, she said Tuesday night. One issue is the uncertainty over the amount of money in those accounts, she said.

The status of the city's contingency reserve account underscores the city's ongoing fiscal problems. To balance revenues and expenditures without laying people off, the council will have to use the entire $105,000 fund, which is set up every year to pay for emergencies or unforeseen costs, Grivetti said Wednesday.

Council members Paula Wheeler and Alex Ilnyckyj criticized Chrietzberg for wanting to bring in the auditors, characterizing it as interference.

"Unless they have a better plan," Wheeler said, "it's not Mr. Sutton's job to tell us how to run the city."

While recognizing the problems created by staff turnover and a botched computer software conversion, Chrietzberg said the staff's "track record . . . has not been very good."

The lack of support for Sallee and his finance department brought former council member and current mayoral candidate Ron Kitchen to the podium. He accused council members of ignorance about their own budget.

"The city manager didn't spend this money," he said. "You did. I think it's an extraordinary lack of leadership not to back your management."

Still, after rejecting Sallee's plan outright, the council agreed to review each proposal. Members approved each item except for one proposal, a $32,000 payment for special services, that may be paid later.

The disagreements strained the normal divisions on council. At one point, Gudis told Ilnyckyj to "shut up," to which a red-faced Ilnyckyj responded by pointing a finger in Gudis' face. "Don't tell me to shut up," he said.

Ilnyckyj's anger continued as he confronted Gudis outside the council chamber after the meeting. "You don't tell anybody to shut up . . . at a public forum," he said to Gudis. "You have no manners whatsoever."

Clearly disappointed by the council's action, Sallee acknowledged he has yet to win the confidence of several council members in his financial management skills. "You're going to see that improve," he said. "You have very good staff members, I think, for a city this size."

In other business Tuesday night, the council agreed on a negotiating stance with the owners of Pete's Pier.

The city owns the boat ramp, one of two public launch facilities in Crystal River, and the right-of-way into the complex. For months, the council has been trying to arrange a deal in which Pete's Pier would assume operating control over the facility while allowing the city to make some money off the property.

The offer is as follows:

terms would be a 5-year lease with a 5-year option at $5,000 a year.

Pete's Pier would handle all repairs, including compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act. The cost of fixing the dock, estimated at $1,700, could be shared 50-50.

Pete's Pier would provide insurance on the dock and ramp.

Pete's Pier would provide the city with a hold harmless agreement.

city residents with proper identification could launch for free but be charged for parking.

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