The new city council decided to take a different approach to the annual budget review process this year. In the past, the process was quite simply a rubber stamp for whatever the city administration asked for. To call it a review process was something of a misnomer.

With income tight and property values falling, many councilpersons, including myself, believed that a tax cut was necessary. After carefull deliberation, four days of budget meetings and hours of discussion, I am happy to report that we completed the budget process on Monday, March 21st.

City Income Will Fall in 2008

Income expectations are expected to fall this year, largely due to falling property values within the city. As a result of these falling values, the city expects to take in approximately .3 mills less in property taxes this year compared to 2007.

Eliminate the “Assistant City Manger” Position

We reviewed and completed the various department level budgets, and I am pleased to report there were no reductions made to city services. There was one change in staffing levels, however.

The council opted to eliminate the “Assistant City Manager” position, which was left vacant after the retirement of Carl Renius in February of this year. Replacing that position will be a new “Assistant to the City Manager” position.

This change in status will likely result in the employment of a younger Assistant who has expectations of future employment in the capacity of an Assistant City Manager or a City Manger.

The expectation is that this change in position will save the city approximately $30,000.00 per year without any reduction in city services.

Core City Services

I am pleased to report that there will be absolutely no reduction in core city services in 2008-2009. In fact, several significant changes were added to various department level budgets that are likely to increase the effectiveness of city services. But at the very least, no cuts were made.

Discretionary Spending

The biggest difference that took place in this years budget review was how the council addressed dispensing the discretionary income. This is the portion of the income that remains after budgeting for all core city services. This year that amount approximately $832,000.00.

The council took a very deliberate and cautious approach to studying all items that were discretionary in nature. When the final budget was complete, I am delighted to report that we had a remaining balance of .9 mills after all spending was complete. The council decided to return this .9 mills to the taxpayers in the form of a tax cut for 2009. This equates to approximately $690,000.00 that will be returned to your pockets.

The Final Result

There were no cuts to core city services. Several enhancement were made to department level budgets. Spending was critically reviewed and the fat was cut out of the budget. Money was returned to the taxpayers. It’s a win-win situation. And best of all, not a single dime was taken from any of the city fund balances. Not one penny.

Some people said that it couldn’t be done. Guess what? They were wrong and I am delighted to say so!

The city council met on March 7th and March 8th to interview the five finalists for the vacant city manager position. We interviewed two candidates on Friday and the remaining three candidates during an all day Saturday session.

The interviews each lasted approximately two hours. Mark Nottley, our hired consultant, handled the interview introductions and opening round of questions. Then the council as a whole took over the interview process and each individual member was able to explore the areas they were interested in.

Terrific Group of Candidates

We were blessed with five finalists who all brought various skills and experience to the table. I am certain that each candidate would have been a solid choice to lead our city into the future. I thank them all for taking the time to apply and for participating in our hiring process.

One Candidate Stood Out

In the end, I thought the decision process was fairly easy. Early in the process, Mark Nottley had told us that in his experience one candidate generally stands out quite significantly from the rest of the interview pack.

Mark was right. One candidate did just that. He stood out among the rest and was the obvious choice to lead Rochester into the future. The council was unanimous in their vote and unanimous in their excitement for the chosen candidate.

Jaymes Vettraino - Our Choice

I am pleased to announce that Jaymes Vettraino of Kutztown, Pennsylvannia was chosen by the council to be the next city manager of Rochester.

Mr. Vettraino is a graduate of Michigan State University. He also holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from Lehigh University.

For the past five years, he has been the Manger / Treasuer for the Borough of Kutztown in eastern Pennsylvannia. Prior to this he was the city manager in Pen Argyl, Pennsylvannia.

Mr. Vettraino will bring a very customer oriented and forward thinking approach to our city, He understands the role of techology in city government and how to apply it to better serve the citizens.

Information technology and information dissemination is also something Mr. Vettraino understands and applies in the public sector. He explained to us his theory of Google/Starbucks/Walmart and how it applies to municipal management. In a nutshell, Mr. Vettraino believes that citizens want instant information (Google), specialized and individual service (Starbucks) and a terrific value (Walmart). The idea is simple, but the manner in which he described it was brilliant.

The Borough of Kutztown is located in eastern Pennsylvannia - about one hour from Philadelphia. The town has a population of five thousand, but this number is a bit deceptive because Kutztown State University is located within the city and has a student population of over ten thousand.

In addition, Kutztown provides both electric service utility and cable television / internet services to their residents, the university and the surrounding township. Needless to say, this adds a significant degree of complexity to the responsibilities of the city manager in their community.

What’s Next

Mayor Stuart Bikson is currently handling the final details of the salary, benefits and contract details with Mr. Vettraino. I am confident that within a matter of days Mr. Vettraino will “officially” be our new city manager.

The future looks bright. Very bright indeed.