City Manager's Report 4/20/2009
Project Engineering
As Council is aware, HEB Engineers is pursuing engineering of several projects for the City in anticipation of some type of funding. We have been meeting regularly on the status of this effort. There were six projects in the mix for this engineering. One of those, the Shelby Street/Clean Power connector is on hold by HEB pending decisions to be made by Clean Power with respect to their project. The other five projects are Hutchins Street Reconstruction, Rt. 110 Sewer, and the 12th Street, Bridge Street (actually Berlin Mills Bridge) and Hillside Avenue Bridge Projects. Preliminary design assessment work on each of these projects is being carried out.
It is fairly clear that none of the projects are likely to receive stimulus funding. However, the three bridge projects are eligible for the State Aid Bridge (SAB) program wherein the state pays 80% and the City 20% of the project costs including engineering. We simply have to document that the retaining of the engineer was carried out in accordance with the so-called Quality-Based Selection process which it was.
The Route 110 Sewer Project and the Hutchins Street rehabilitation project are both being developed as part of the City's economic development efforts and are being pursued to the point of Pre-Design and an Engineering Report and Study. At the end of May, this will be submitted to USDA Rural Development for funding.
The Hutchins Street Reconstruction Project is being carried through schematic design which will allow us in May to submit an application for 80/20 funding through the NHDOT Transportation Enhancement program.
Senator Gregg Acknowledgment
Attached is a letter from Senator Gregg acknowledging the Mayor and Council's letter of support for federal funding appropriations for the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad.
New FRC Executive Director
Attached is correspondence from Denise Valley, President of the Family Resource Center Board of Directors. Kathy McDowell, has tendered her resignation as Executive Director of that organization effective at the end of June. The FRC has hired Tom Austin from St. Petersburg, FL to be the new Executive Director beginning May 4, 2009.
AVER Report
Attached is a quarterly report from AVER detailing its activities for the first quarter of the year.
Legislative Matters
The Budget Bills HB 1 the operating budget and HB 2, the trailer bill which enacts the statutory changes necessary to implement the budget were passed by the full house. This includes the return of the Rooms and meals tax distributions to municipalities. This still leaves Berlin $1M short of the revenue the City expected prior to the revenue sharing cuts. The Senate Finance Committee has already held three public hearings on this budget. None of these hearings were held near the North Country with the closest one being in Laconia on April 14th.
What is of most importance to municipalities in this budget is more what is not in it than what is in it. Revenue Sharing (except for Rooms and Meals) is not in it. Certain DES grants such as the 20% reimbursement SAG grants for wastewater improvements is not in it as these have been deferred until at least 2012. School building aid is not in it at the moment. If this remains omitted, it will be another $363k on Berlin taxpayers as the debt service has to be paid. The word seems to be though that this amount is likely to be restored in some fashion.