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The harbor seals at the Buttonwood Zoo have developed an eye disease, perhaps due to an inadequate facility. The building that houses veterans’ services still lacks accessibility ramps, while a leaky roof has created a mold issue. The high school football team can no longer play night games on Walsh Field because the old lights are failing.
Officials made their way into City Council on Monday night to ask for capital improvement funding, testifying about the “critical” needs in every corner of the city. After the council outright rejected an earlier $17 million proposal in January, Monday’s $12.6 million package passed without further cuts.
The plan will represent no significant increase to the city’s total debt, as older projects in the cycle of infrastructure spending have been paid off.
The annual Capital Improvement Plan “cut night” is the first milestone in the yearly budget dance, in which Mayor Jon Mitchell’s administration and City Council navigate their complicated pas de deux. This year, the council took an aggressive first step by outright rejecting the mayor’s initial proposal in January — sending back a $17 million capital plan without even discussing it.
That meant the EMS department didn’t get the chance to ask for new defibrillators they said they needed. The schools weren’t able to ask for a security upgrade with keyed building access. The Lawler library, which last year was denied a new heating system after it had failed in the cold, will again face next year’s winter with the broken system.
“The mayor received our message and came down on the amount,” said Ryan Pereira, the council president. He said that he wished the proposed amount for spending on road repair ($3 million) was higher, especially after this year’s brutal winter storms. But about the overall process, Pereira said, “Communications and dialogue is wide open in City Hall, making our city government more transparent and efficient.”
Christina Connelly, the chief operating officer, said she was “pleased with the outcome,” on Monday. “The original $17 million also represented critical needs. There wasn’t anything fluffy in there,” she said.
The give-and-take of determining the city’s highest priorities when residents are adamantly demanding tax relief has resulted in these complicated tradeoffs. This year, that meant the zoo staff prioritized its seals over black bears — the latter being the zoo’s signature animal featured on its logo. The seal habitat will get much-needed shade, a new water chiller, and a new “holding area” (where seals go when the tank’s water is replaced) to replace the current plastic kiddie pools. The bears will continue to live in their cramped space.
The Police Department whittled its request for seven new cruisers down to four. And overdue renovations to the city-owned golf course were tossed out.
New Bedford’s approach to debt remains highly conservative. About 2% of the general fund budget goes to debt service. And the City Council is opposed to raising the amount that the city borrows.
“We’ve always had in our minds about $10 million” of new capital debt annually, said Council President Pereira. He said he would be reluctant to incur more debt while the city’s growing pension obligation looms.
The administration’s position is that the $10 million benchmark is insufficient to keep up with needs when costs are rising. “We have to be responsible, and I don’t think it’s responsible in terms of keeping up with maintenance,” said Bob Ekstrom, the city’s chief financial officer, in a January interview. “We won’t be able to keep inching along with $10 million for nine years” until the pension obligation is fulfilled in 2035, he said.
In efforts to run a tight ship in recent years, the city has reversed its policy that all employees have an email address, has deferred long-overdue maintenance projects, and last year entertained closing library branches. Councilors and the administration alike find themselves in unpopular positions, whether they keep up with the rising costs or scale back on already tight services.
Passing the $12 million capital budget this year will address the most critical of critical needs, but does not resolve how the city will maintain its assets and accreditations until 2035, when state law mandates the pensions be fully funded.
The pension conversation received its own attention at Monday’s meeting. The council passed a new proposal from CFO Ekstrom to automatically divert 15% of all “free cash” to the pensions, on top of the city’s already-mandated spending on pensions. (“Free cash” refers to unspent funds at the end of the fiscal year.) On its own, the pension spending is already larger than any department in City Hall. It would be enough to fund a second police force with several million left over.
Other notable capital spending plans passed on Monday. These include repairing City Hall’s and emergency responders’ telephone system, which is so old that it cannot add any new lines. The city will purchase a new backup power system for City Hall because the current system has already failed and “will not sustain critical infrastructure,” the administration said.
Lastly, the lone elevator in City Hall is years beyond its projected expiration date, and will undergo a nine-month renovation. As one of the oldest operating elevators in the country, which has been humming since 1912, when the Titanic set sail, each piece must be sent out to a machinist who will remake the custom parts.
When that project begins, City Council meetings will move across the street to the library so that the meetings will remain accessible to attendees with disabilities. The library was New Bedford’s original City Hall building, but the institutions switched homes after a 1906 fire.
Email Colin Hogan at chogan@newbedfordlight.org
Even with a $550 Million Dollar Budget the mayor still doesn’t have enough money to run this city ? ? ? This year this administration continues to expand city government and spend money we don’t have and again the City Council is along for the ride.
For example how many residents in New Bedford do you really think feel that money should have been spent on a seal habitat (to provide much-needed shade, a new water chiller, and holding area) ? ? ?
I will say it again, this city council is a door mat for this Mayor (they just can’t say no). New Bedford residents get ready, this city council will be approving a new $600 Million Dollar Budget (if not more) and providing the residents of New Bedford with another year of Higher Taxes.
New Bedford had one of the lowest single family residence average taxes of any city in Massachusetts.
I will say it again, the City of New Bedford has the City Councilors it elected.
100% you lost all credibility along time ago. The city budget has more than doubled going up from $270 Mllion Dollars to $550 Million Dollars. Taxes and Property Values have done the same and most importantly with only 12% of voters coming out in New Bedford Elections, how can anyone say that any of these councilors really speak for all the residents of New Bedford. Time to stop with the complete nonsense.
Totally agree!
Which line items should be cut?
Your ‘complete nonsense’ is called democracy.
I will say it again, the school department wastes money, money that could less burden the taxes on our homes. We did not elect the superintendent! We should, the schools would be higher in education.
Should we elect all department heads?
If our tax dollars are paying their salary, YES!
Elected school superintendents aren’t a thing in the real world. Nobody with the requisite experience and qualifications would want the job knowing that perhaps the least-educated and least-economically prosperous electorate in the state has the final say to hire or fire them.
You do a lot of writing about what is being done wrong. I’m curious what your alternative solutions are.
I am surprised Hank, you have been around for some time, and while we don’t always agree, I am pretty sure you know where I stand.
But I will make it clear again, supporting non profits, expanding city government, the lack of economic development in the private sector, and spending money we don’t have while relying on state aid does not work.
After more than a decade our backs are against the wall because we have let the city budget more than double from $270 Million Dollars to over $550 Million Dollars, and to continue to raise taxes will drive residents and businesses out.
The solution has to be common sense, we can’t have what we can’t afford, time to make cuts across the board, in every department, reduce the size of government, focus on creating economic development in the private sector, and stop the spending of money we don’t have.
100% New Bedford needs change, new leadership in City Hall, and a new vision for our city.
You seem to supply cover ups and excuses for the incompetent. Jeff most of the time speaks with common sense! Most of the time! You should try to be a part of those exposing instead of a part of covering up.
Under Chapter 32 Section 22F of the Massachusetts Laws, employers are required to make the necessary contributions to the retirement
trust such that the plan reaches a full funding status by 2040.
They should have all employees in the city and school depts pay into the same percent, while working. Example someone with 40 years may be paying in only 2% where as current employees pay 8%. It’s a no brainier! As the needs go up, the contributions go up.
So first responders take a hit or an old system simply repaired. Overall it reads like NB is going backwards. But by golly I bet there is tons of funds for social programs likely with a percentage of fraud, and funds for special interest groups celebration’s.
What social programs does the city’s capital improvement money support?
Hank, do you really think the NBL is going to allow such a response, they completely omit any comment that contains any bit of truth.
New Bedford’s municipal pension system needs aggressive funding to achieve full funding status by 2040.
Full disclosure, in The New Bedford Light, of how the New Bedford municipal pension system benefits are calculated would be a great public service article.
Yearly publication of individual retiree benefits, by name, amount and by the NB Department involved, would facilitate knowledge about the system.
Also, the cost of “retired before fired” activity would become quite evident to the taxpayers of New Bedford, MA.
What New Bedford should really be considering at this point is significantly increasing tax rates on residential properties while exempting a certain portion of the valuation for owner-occupied primary homes as Boston does. I’m not sure of the exact figures currently but as of a few years ago they exempted the first $330k which amounted to a savings of almost $4k. Of course Boston property values are far higher so the threshold might have to be $100-125k in NB. I’m not sure if Massachusetts law permits it, but the other option would be a rate for owner occupied properties and a higher rate for income properties, which is what Providence does. Either way, there’s no reason for an owner occupant to be paying the same tax rate as a portfolio of three deckers.
In a perfect world a percentage of those landlords would be scared off by the tax hike and exit by doing condo conversions and thus offer some entry level ownership opportunities.
Maybe that’s a good thing! Pay to own. 3 floor house could count as 3 homeowners and 3 pay re taxes! 6 tenaments 6 homeowners, 6 re taxpayers.
Your idea, combined with the states rent control ballot question, if passed, will result in Landlords dumping their apartment buildings on the market so fast that there will be a local real estate crash and a subsequent consolidation of housing amongst the worst of the worst slum lords. So really watch what you wish for.
Another outcome is that it will dry up the margin that landlords use to improve their properties and they will fall further into disrepair and the only people that landlords will want to rent to are the people who allow for terrible conditions and refuse to complain (addicts, criminals and illegal aliens). That will also be whose kids are predominantly populating your local schools. Not a cheap demographic to educate, as we already know.
So be careful what you wish for.
Let it happen! We need properties available for local residents. As for local schools, they are on there own welcoming in the caravans that drop off at the PRAB and are welcomed with open arms. While local legals go without. As for homes, a landlord who keeps up their property is a requirement and those who don’t should pay penalties and if 3 times, lose the property. Make NB a city as itself, our own rules and regulations. Why not, no one else obeys the laws, no instead they go bankrupt, lie, and corrupt the system. They force their views down our throats. You need to watch out what you wish for.
That’s why you don’t give such an extravagant pay until they prove themselves. Take Darcie for instance, she deserves every penny plus more.
Wow, what a great idea! NB properties are abundant with non owner residing. Also if the owners are out of the City, have them pay a higher rate. What’s the worse that can happen? Locals would be able to afford properties and many a 3 family could house families and in laws. Single, could live with their families saving on apartments for others families. Think about it, many count on mommy and daddy for everything. Other countries do it. So maybe legal immigrants would want to do it leaving open housing for others.
A lot of good comments here, I will agree we have to be careful for what we wish for, creating a new tax class for out of town landlords would be hard to do, and you won’t get the support from our local politicians (it will hit their political contributions).
I have been saying it for while New Bedford is in tough shape, the Mayor will ask for more money in this year’s budget and Council will approve his request. The city continues to spend money we don’t have, expand city government, there’s no economic growth, and we have a City Council who is suppose to be the firewall for the taxpayers but can’t say no to spending requests and this all but guarantees higher taxes for residents and businesses.
I just watched the video. How come the article doesn’t mention the Z back asking for more money?
The New Bedford Light protects the Z and the question also has to be asked why weren’t some these Capitol Improvement issues incorporated into the city’s $550 Million Dollar City Budget (over a $25 Million Dollar hike that was approved by the City Council). Also last December as reported by the Light, the city gained another $13 Million Dollars in added revenue collected. Where did all this money go ? Why weren’t any of this dollars used for the these Capitol Improvements ? No Accountability just Spend, Spend, Spend.