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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News Record, 2014-01-22, Page 22 News Record • Wednesday, January 22, 2014 County could expand staff, boost part-timers to full-time Budget briefs: What to do with laptops? Paul Cluff Goderich Signal Star A professional engineer and a plan- ning manager are among the new posi- tions that Huron County could add to the employee roster. After county council's Jan. 14 budget meeting, County CAO Brenda Orchard said it has been five years since the county had a professional engineer in the senior staff ranks. The expertise offered would be welcomed by the cor- poration and around the county council table, she said. The engineer will work closely with public works, offering an analytical eye for one of the most costly departments in the county. Money was freed up for the planning manager in part by not filling the vacant role of director of human resources, Orchard said. The salary difference left room for two county part-timers, includ- ing a human resources staffer, to be bumped up to full-time. A director of human resources would make about $160,000 but the planning manager post will likely top out at about $90,000. The planning department hire will free up Scott Tousaw, director of planning, to work on long-term projects, including a facilities review slated for this year. The planning manager will help with oversight within the department and work on projects that lower tiers want to get through. "They have been waiting a long time to get their official plans com- pleted," Orchard noted. The request for a planning manager actually came up from the lower tiers, as the county does planning for them, Orchard said. A consultant's report on how to improve county operations included finding more time for senior staff to work on `bigger projects: Other additions include a part-time business advisor that will be hired only if the county gets a grant from the provin- cial government and another 0.5 addi- tion for provincial offences, an expense offset by fine revenue. Provincial offences presented their case for additional staff to council last year, detailing a significant increase in workload. Another new position is a contract grant writer, which Orchard said could be pay for itself in government grant dol- lars. Another 1.5 staff will be added to the maintenance fleet, as EMS repairs shift in-house. A stewardship coordinator will be hired on a one-year trial. A stewardship group informed council last year that they lost grant money. The county pro- vided office space in the intern and council discussed funding the position. The stewardship coordinator would organize activities of the stewardship council, provide advice on planning applications (formerly provided by the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority) and apply for funding for environmental projects. That position would cost the county about $66,000 including benefits, but wouldn't start until midyear, so half that amount would impact the budget. Long-term care received top -up fund- ing for a staffer to balance the needs at Huronview and Huronlea, the county's homes for the aged. A waste management coordinator position did not find its way into the 2014 budget. It was deferred for consid- INDIAN RIVER ECT CITRUS TRUCKLOAD SALE IT ON SAT., JAN. 25TH - 12:30PM - 2:30PM China Palace Restaurant 20 LB. BOX OF FLORIDA Seedless Navel Oranges or Ruby Red Grapefruit X28.00 PER BOX www.indianriverdirect.com eration in a future budget. Central Huron Mayor Jim Ginn said residents could be con- cerned about the number of additional staff - the equivalent of 7.2. "We have asked staff to come back with a number of how much we are actually funding," Ginn said. Not hiring an HR director, as Orchard mentioned, allows portions of that salary to fund staff elsewhere. Ginn estimated the number would be closer to three. Howick Reeve Art Versteeg said the county shouldn't be increasing staff but it should be increasing efficiencies within the current workforce. Added Coun. Deb Shewfelt: "We need to streamline what we are doing." Orchard told the Signal Star that there would be significant cost savings across departments with new hires completing work internally that would alleviate the need for consultants and other outside help. BUDGET BRIEFS... A report on laptops for council, one of the first expenses council agreed to reduce when the budget process began, raised some points about their cost and how often they should be replaced. Some $32,000 was budgeted but that was sliced almost in half to $17,200, or about $925 each, at the first budget discus- sion. "How come we didn't come in with a lower figure to begin with?" Coun. Bernie MacLellan (Huron East) asked. Orchard said the $1,800 amount allocated for laptops was "an ideal world" amount. Coun. Tyler Hessel (Bluewater) said technology continues to get cheaper and free software can be downloaded. He spent less than what was budgeted for and purchased a tablet instead of a laptop. Versteeg questioned why laptops are replaced or new ones purchased after each election, or every four years. "Warranty," Orchard said. Councillors who are not voted back to the lower tiers get to keep their laptops. "We have 16 barely used computers here. Can't they go to the libraries? Versteeg asked. The reduced amount for laptops is included in the 2014 budget. Council received the laptop report for information...Per diems - a flat rate paid for meetings - will be evaluated in a report for a future county council. Shewfelt suggested the review instead of a rec- ommendation from Past Warden George Robertson for a yearly clothing allowance for the warden. Coun. Ben Van Diepenbeek (Ashfield-Colborne-Wawon- osh) suggested the honourarium paid to the warden each year ($11,500) is enough. The warden and councillors are paid per diems of $259.37 for full day county council meetings. For half day meetings, less than 21/z hours, they receive $148.21. WNW Bluewater Realty Inc. Brokerage Independently Owned and Operated ELAINE COOMBS Sales Representative bus :519-565-2020 cell: 519-525-9548 fax: 219-565-2024 email: elaine.coombs@hotmail.com web: www.sellingbayfield.com 95 Main St. South -Hwy 21, Bayfield. ON NOM 1G0 HURON RIVER VILLA MOBILE HOME PARK (formerly Clinton River Estates) OPEN HOUSE SATURDAY JANUARY 25,1 PM - 4 PM Four homes available now from $19,900-$49,900 New Park Ownership means that this park is being revamped and revitalized so please come meet the park owners to hear about the exciting changes that are in store for Huron River Villa! Per diems increased 2.25% on Jan. 1, 2012. Shewfelt didn't ask for a review of honourariums in his motion...Public works will use $4.2 million in reserves in 2014 for some major projects but long-term planning played into that decision, said Dave Laurie. "One of the big projects is the recon- struction of downtown Brussels," the public works director said. "We raised that money over three years and all of it ($2.4 million) is coming out. Our reserves fluctuate. Sometimes there is a surplus." Public works are also well prepared when "two or three storms" hit the region each winter, Laurie said. The most recent blast, which closed county roads for days, cost the county about $150,000, he estimated. County knocks budget increase down CONTINUED FROM > PAGE 1 budget set to increase by more than 5% in its first draft. A number of councillors questioned why the county has 26 reserve accounts, and if the $42 million sitting in them is too much extra cash to have sitting around. "I think over a period of time we lost track of what is there;" Coun. Deb Shew- felt said after council agreed on Cum- mings' recommendations, and also agreed to take more from the reserves to swipe another 1% from the proposed increase. The Goderich mayor said with the help of the county's asset management plan, "we can narrow it down to one or two reserves." In a report, Cummings said former staff drafted a reserve policy but he couldn't find any information that it was received by council and passed. Reserve balances have fallen under the direction of best practices and not policy, he said. "We have too much in reserves," said Coun. Bernie MacLellan (Huron East) who first suggested using reserves and surplus to arrive at the final increase. Staff should set targets on how much should sit in reserve accounts, Coun. Jim Ginn said after the meeting. "We have to do the responsible thing and have ade- quate reserves, but if they become exces- sive, then those dollars should have been left in taxpayers' pockets. There is no sense taxing people, putting it into a bank account and having no use for the money," said the Central Huron mayor. Shewfelt suggested there is enough room to invest reserves and put the interest into an infrastructure fund. The Town of Goderich uses some revenue from rentals, for example, for an infra- structure program. "I hope the adminis- tration will look at that and bring back a recommendation."