Loading...
2022-01-26 Finance Committee Minutes - Open SessionFinance Committee Meeting Open Session January 26, 2022 MINUTES — OPEN SESSION FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING JANUARY 26, 2022 AT 4:45 PM MEETING CONDUCTED THROUGH ELECTRONIC PARTICIPATION Present: Mayor D. Noade Reardon Councillor G. Sullivan Councillor P. Radwan Councillor G. Norton Councillor D. Hickey Also Present: City Manager J. Collin City Solicitor M. Tompkins Commissioner of Finance and Treasurer K. Fudge Commissioner Transportation & Environment M. Hugenholtz Commissioner Saint John Water B. McGovern Commissioner Growth & Community Services J. Hamilton Commissioner Human Resource S. Hossack Senior Financial Manager J. Forgie Senior Financial Manager C. Lavigne Director Transit and Fleet I. Fogan Manager Procurement C. Roberts Director Corporate Performance S. Rackley-Roach Manager Corporate Performance E. Hatfield IT Manager S. Ranson Operations Manager J. Mascarenhas City Clerk J. Taylor Fire Chief K. Clifford Director Saint John Water K. Mason Manager Procurement C. Roberts Mayor's Strategic Advisor K. Stevens Operations Manager K. Loughery Administrative Officer R. Evans Administrative Assistant K. Tibbits 1 Finance Committee Meeting Open Session January 26, 2022 1. Meeting Called to Order Councillor Sullivan called the Finance Committee open session meeting to order. Moved by Councillor Hickey, seconded by Councillor Norton: RESOLVED that the agenda of January 26, 2022 be approved. MOTION CARRIED. 2. Approval of Minutes — November 24, 2021 Moved by Councillor Radwan, seconded by Mayor Noade Reardon: RESOLVED that the minutes of November 24, 2021 be approved. MOTION CARRIED. 3. Consent Agenda 3.1 Cyberattack - Restoration Costs and Recovery Estimate (Recommendation: Receive for Information) Ms. Rackley-Roach provided an update on the cost estimate regarding the cyberattack that occurred November 13, 2020. The city is on target with its estimate from March 2021. Costs are projected to be approximately 1.5% lower than the original estimate due to their ability to leverage internal talent and by leveraging maintenance and licensing agreements. It is estimated that 85% of the cost recovery will come from insurance. Moved by Councillor Radwan, seconded by Councillor Norton: RESOLVED that the report entitled Cyberattack — Restoration Costs and Recovery Estimate be received for information. MOTION CARRIED. 4. Business Matters 4.1 Fleet Relocation to Transit Business Case Mr. Fudge stated that the Capital Budget policy includes a framework which outlines how the city should prioritize capital spending. If a business case can demonstrate a positive financial impact for taxpayers, an adjustment to the capital budget can occur. After the approval of the 2022 capital budget a business case has been developed regarding fleet relocation to the transit building. An amendment to the 2022 capital budget of approximately $1.8M is recommended. The adjustment would be funded through the city's capital reserve. Mr. Hugenholtz reviewed the business case. It is proposed that the North depot services be transferred to the Rothesay Avenue facility, known as the "Barns", which currently houses part of the roadway maintenance service and the fleet services team. The fleet would then transfer to the Transit building which is currently under-utilized. The land that currently houses the North depot could be sold for development. The backbone of the financial plan is built on cost avoidance of future capital at the North depot as well as some revenue opportunity from the sale and redevelopment of that property. A $1.873M investment is required to enable a savings of over $2.9M over a 20-year period. Moved by Mayor Noade Reardon, seconded by Councillor Hickey: RESOLVED that the Finance Committee recommend to Common Council to amend the 2022 Capital Budget to include $1.873 million investment from the Capital Reserve Fund to relocate the North Depot services to Rothesay Avenue and relocate Fleet Services to the Transit Building. 2 Finance Committee Meeting Open Session January 26, 2022 MOTION CARRIED. 4.2 Performance Management Update Mr. Fudge stated that the performance management system will support the organization in developing measures to ensure that strategic goals are being met. The performance management system will deliver results and drive continuous improvement, while embedding performance management in service delivery. Ms. Rackley-Roach and Ms. Hatfield reviewed the submitted presentation and updated the progress made on the development of the performance management system, an overview of the framework for performance management and outlined the deliverables planned for 2022 and 2023. Mr. Collin noted that the City of Saint John currently does performance measurement, but every department is collecting its own data, using different methodologies in different departments. The goal is to have one methodology for the entire corporation and work towards continuous improvement that is already part of the culture. Moved by Councillor Radwan, seconded by Councillor Norton: RESOLVED that the Performance Management Update be received for information. LTA [0041I►[4L\ilk] k]I1191 4.3 Procurement Update Mr. Fudge stated that a procurement policy is fundamental to ensure that the goods and services the City acquires are the result of a transparent, fair, unbiased, consistent, timely and cost- effective decision -making process that applies a risk -management lens. It regulates authority levels and limits, with internal controls over various forms of procurement such as tenders, requests for proposals, and appropriateness of sole source. Ms. Forgie, Senior Financial Manager, provided background context on the modernization of the policy and the path forward with respect to the milestones, legal requirements, recommendations from the operational audit, policy updates under consideration, areas requiring further research, and spending and signing authorities. Mr. Collin stated that the commitment to Council is to have the new procurement policy in place by the fourth quarter of 2022. Moved by Councillor Hickey, seconded by Mayor Noade Reardon: RESOLVED that the Procurement Update be received for information. MOTION CARRIED. 4.4 Utility Fund Lone Term Financial Plan Uodate Mr. McGovern stated that the utility has seen significant progress over recent years. It has separated industrial costs from potable water costs with industry paying by-law rates on potable water, seen the completion of the Safe Clean Drinking Water project, and stabilized water rates through a significant focus on cost reduction. This is the 4t" consecutive year of stabilized rates, and the utility now has capital and operating reserves. Significant strides have been made to reduce debt by approximately 30% since its peak in 2017, despite the pressure of declining revenue. Although significant progress has been made to prepare the utility for the future, consideration must be taken with respect to the utility's large infrastructure deficit, universal 3 Finance Committee Meeting Open Session January 26, 2022 metering, revenue opportunities, long-term affordability of rates, and the long-term sustainability of the utility. This will be the first 10-year financial plan for the utility. Mr. Lavigne reviewed the submitted report titled "Utility Fund Long Term Financial Plan Update — Kick Off." Moved by Mayor Noade Reardon, seconded by Councillor Hickey: RESOLVED that the Utility Fund Long Term Financial Plan Update be received for information. MOTION CARRIED. Adjournment Moved by Councillor Hickey, seconded by Mayor Noade Reardon: RESOLVED that the Finance Committee meeting be adjourned. MOTION CARRIED. The Finance Committee open session meeting held on January 26, 2022, was adjourned at 6:30 p.m.