Work Session

WORK SESSION MEETING MINUTES AUGUST 11, 2025 PUBLIC OFFICIALS Present: Council President D'Shawn M. Doughty, Council Vice President Angela M. Blake, Councilwoman Michele R. Gregory and Councilwoman Sharon C. Dashiell Absent: Councilwoman April R. Jackson IN ATTENDANCE Mayor Randy Taylor, Deputy City Administrator Allen Swiger, Finance Director Sandy Green, Waterworks Director Cori Cameron, Dave Chiddenton, City Clerk Julie English, City Solicitor Ashley Bosche CALL TO ORDER The City Council convened in Work Session on August 11, 2025 at 6:26 p.m. in the Government Office Building Council Chambers, Room 301, located at 125 N. Division Street. PRESENTATION • Salisbury Adopt-A-Road Program - presented by Dave Chiddenton Mr. Chiddenton, from Wicomico Presbyterian Church, thanked the city council for approving their participation in the Adopt-a-Road program, proposing to maintain Fitzwater Street from Mill to Pemberton Drive with four to six cleanups a year. He shared past program materials, clarified safety procedures, and discussed signage, documentation, and coordination. The city confirmed they were finalizing legal forms, setting up an online sign-up process, and planning publicity to encourage more groups to adopt roads. • Water and Sewer Presentation Ms. Green and Ms. Cameron presented “Water & Sewer 101,” noting the water and sewer system was funded entirely by customer fees and not tax dollars. They noted that fees supported operations, capital projects, and debt service. A significant increase in FY29 when annual bond payments could rise from $150,000 to $3.6 million following retirement of a 2008 loan. Ms. Green added that the fund had a $3 million negative unrestricted balance and $93 million in projected capital needs for FY26–30, driven by inflation, higher chemical costs, and new PFAS filtration requirements. Council requested a list of overdue and upcoming projects with original and current cost estimates and a simpler explanation of the debt increase. Ms. Green and Ms. Cameron reviewed billing procedures, assistance programs, and clarified that water and sewer charges only fund the utility system. 1 ORDINANCE • Budget Amendment for Lawsuit Funds Ms. Green presented an ordinance to amend the FY26 budget, reallocating $2 million in anticipated PFAS lawsuit proceeds from the Water Sewer Fund to the Water Sewer Capital Project Fund, and shifting $1.5 million in project funding to be covered by these proceeds. The $469,900 difference will come from Water Sewer Fund surplus and be assigned to the PFAS filter project to cover upfront costs before state loan funds are received. Council reached consensus to move the ordinance forward. • Budget Amendment for Union Negotiations Ms. Green stated that on June 16, 2025, Council approved Resolution 3414 and three union side letters from wage reopener negotiations, resulting in wage increases not in the adopted FY26 budget. She added that the FY26 budget originally provided one-step salary increases in July 2025 and January 2026; negotiations added another step in July 2025 and increased Fire step increments from 2% to 2.25%, creating $1,336,784 in unbudgeted costs. Ms. Green explained that an ordinance was presented to amend the FY26 budget to cover these costs. Ms. Caton suggested adjusting the negotiation calendar (currently Oct–Jan) to align with budget information, and to consider guidelines or caps for wage increases tied to available revenue. She also noted options such as percentage-of-revenue formulas, guaranteed increases contingent on projected growth, arbitration subject to Council approval, or removing certain provisions from the labor code as a last resort. She mentioned that timeline changes may be acted on quickly, with broader wage policy changes requiring more analysis. She highlighted that the current union contracts run through FY26, providing time to review processes but suggested moving quickly with the timeline changes. Council reached consensus to move forward with the budget amendment. PUBLIC COMMENT (Agenda Items Only) The following public comments were heard: Speaker #1 expressed concerns about poor management and oversight in city projects and union contracts. He also noted ongoing issues with city water quality and suggested that any rate increases should target commercial users rather than residents. Speaker #2 criticized the 2026 budget amendment’s $1.3 million cost for union salary and fringe increases, questioned funding sources and fee hikes, and condemned ongoing mismanagement of the water and sewer funds. ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS Mr. Swiger praised the police department for a successful National Night Out, reminded everyone about Third Friday’s disco-themed event featuring the new downtown TAPS program for to-go alcohol, and announced the long-awaited Carroll Street repaving and restriping project starting next Monday. Mayor Taylor recognized Mr. Swiger, Mr. Lowe and Mr. Feliciano for their new assignments and noted that the city anticipates swearing in a new City Administrator soon. COUNCIL COMMENTS Ms. Gregory thanked Mr. Swiger and the field operations team for completing the long-awaited 2 sidewalk providing park access and was glad to hear the report of how National Night Out went since she was unable to attend. Ms. Blake was looking forward to Carroll Street getting redesigned and striped. She noted that the Blood Bank on Mt. Hermon Road was back open and asked everyone to consider donating blood and plasma. Ms. Dashiell praised National Night Out and the city’s quick response regarding the unsafe bridge. She highlighted the impressive hands-on training in the Junior Fire Academy for kids. She shared exciting developments at the local airport with an aerospace startup testing hybrid-electric drones and suggested revisiting previous housing questions to develop actionable solutions. President Doughty echoed the same thoughts for National Night Out and praised the community and volunteers. He highlighted the Junior Fire Academy and 911 Center operations, and encouraged continued public engagement, noting the next meeting was in two weeks. ADJOURNMENT The Work Session was adjourned at 7:25 p.m. _________________________________ City Clerk _________________________________ Council President 3