On Wednesday January 29, Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot (D) will be visiting The City of Frederick. In the morning at the Bernard Brown Center, the comptroller will discuss the opening of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, before visiting the Lebherz Oil and Vinegar Emporium, a small business. The VITA program offers free tax assistance to low to moderate income families. In the afternoon, he will visit North Frederick Elementary School which is slated to receive $6.6 Million in FY 15 and also stop by the local state Comptroller branch office in Frederick. I will be having lunch with him and his communications director Andrew Friedson at Brewers Alley in historic downtown Frederick. My interview with the Comptroller will appear on www.FrederickPolitics.com. Wednesday, January 29 • 10 a.m. Keynote Speaker: VITA Program The Earned Income Tax Credit Bernard W. Brown Community Center 629 North Market Street Frederick, MD 21701 • 11:15 a.m. Proclamation Presentation: Lebherz Oil & Vinegar Emporium 214 North Market Street Frederick, MD 21701 • 1:30 p.m. School Construction Visit – North Frederick Elementary 1001 Motter Avenue Frederick, MD 21701 • 2 p.m. Comptroller’s Frederick Branch Office Visit Courthouse/Multiservice Center 100 West Patrick Street Frederick, MD 21701 --- If, you want to continue to read articles like this one, please donate today to Frederick Politics by clicking on a Donation Button in the right hand margin of page - Thank You!
Today, The City of Frederick will hold another workshop on the proposed lease. Aldermen Shelly Aloi (R) and Karen Young (D) questioned various aspects of the proposed lease from The Keys during a city workshop held two weeks ago.
As a result, several minor tweaks to the lease were done, but still no attempt has been made to compare the lease offer from The Keys to the proposal offered by Frederick Atlantic LLC.
John Lavoie; managing member of Frederick Atlantic LLC, emailed me a side by side comparison of the two bids submitted to the City of Frederick.
After looking at this comparison, one can see why questions have been raised by the Aldermen.
For instance, in the capital expense section of the scoring, The Keys won by 3.0 points when their obligation was up to $100,000, but only obligated if the city matched.
The Frederick Atlantic LLC bid was for $100,000 through years 1-3 with no obligation by the city, with the money placed in a local bank account.
The overall average scoring by the city RFP review committee was 89.80 for The Keys and 80.35 for Frederick Atantic LLC.
Interestingly, the utility fees (estimated $150,000 annually) which are presently being negotiated between the city and The Keys were an obligation agreed to by Frederick Atlantic LLC.
Now, The Keys are requesting in their lease proposal, to receive the first $150,000 (now $125,000) in parking revenue to offset utility fees, whereas Frederick Atlantic offered to pay 100% of utilities.
Another question brought up in the previous city workshop was concern to the lack of "green initiatives" in the lease offered by The Keys.
This was an area in the RFP which was won by Frederick Atlantic LLC.
As to potential parking and signage revenues contained in the proposed Keys lease, it would be wise for the city to reconsider this as a revenue source.
First, the added cost of parking to attend a minor league baseball game will have an adverse affect on working families who want to take their families to see a game. As a result, this added cost would also most likely drive attendance figures down.
Second, in regard to additional stadium signage; what type of appearance will billboard advertising on the outer wall of Harry Grove Stadium present as one enters The City of Frederick?
When I emailed these concerns to Alderman Karen Young, she responded with the following:
"I agree that we should be very cautious about charging for parking. If this is about "affordable family entertainment", parking charges will defy that goal. The Keys used some very misleading assumptions in their parking revenue projection. My calculation shows $25,653 for the city. Is the juice worth the squeeze?
Furthermore, the Keys estimate over $250,000 in total income to the city. My calculation (taking out naming rights and using a more realistic parking projection) is $156,103. That's BEFORE our bond payments on the scoreboard. I am obtaining that number to get a better net income projection.
I agree with your signage observation. Do we really want to over-ride the LMC to make this deal work?"
In another email, Young indicated the projected cost for the city in 2012 to operate Harry Grove Stadium is $287,756. This figure includes operating expenses, maintenance and debt service.
She added "Unless we charge for parking and make money from signage, this contract doesn't work. I am very uncomfortable signing a ten-year contract that depends on parking and signage revenues to break even!"
In addition to the above concerns, concession sales have never been discussed, but remains an irritation to many who attend a game.
While, the cost of admission has remained low, the cost of a hot dog, peanuts and even bottled water mirrors the price one pays at Camden Yards, the home stadium for the Baltimore Orioles.
It would have been nice to see an attempt made by the city to review who manages the concessions and have been given a suggestion price range.
Jack Boehmer, in a letter to the editor which appeared in the Frederick News Post on August 11, wrote how minor league baseball is big business, adding how when he was in charge of concessions at Harry Grove Stadium 15 years ago, he took in one million in six months.
With all the questions raised, slowing down to fully understand the ramifications of the proposed lease would be prudent. Careful review and consideration by the city aldermen should take place prior to ratifying a long term lease for the use of Harry Grove Stadium.
Stay Tuned...
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The dysfunction which exists at city hall was on display at last week’s workshop when newly hired city administrator Josh Russin made a poor attempt to present the details of the proposed Harry Grove Stadium lease with the Frederick Keys.
Apparently, City of Frederick Mayor McClement’s interpretation of the city charter as it relates to the relationship between the aldermen and the mayor is “I am the administrator and you are not”. Instead, the mayor views the aldermen literally as the legislative body as strictly defined in the city charter.
As Russin was repeatedly unable to answer questions asked by city aldermen Karen Young and Shelley Aloi in regard to The Keys contract, it became obvious the city aldermen had been kept out of the loop in regard to the recommendation process by the RFP review committee and subsequent contract negotiations with The Keys.
A similar situation is also currently playing out in the stalled contract negotiations between the mayor and the Frederick Order of Police.
In regard to the stadium lease, some of the aldermen were upset initially for they were not consulted before the mayor unilaterally issued a Request for Proposals (RFP).After considerable venting by some of the aldermen, the mayor allowed for their input in the writing of the RFP.
After allowing for input, which included, bonus points awarded to a team who was affiliated with a major league baseball team, communication from the mayor with the aldermen and the public stopped.
Who was on the city RFP review committee was never disclosed and there was never a presentation of the two offers received at a city workshop so the aldermen and public could see the difference in the two proposals which had been submitted.
Only, after a freedom of information request was filed by the Frederick Gazette, were the two proposals given the light of day, but not the scrutiny they deserve.
Only now, as Mr. Russin struggled to explain financial details of the proposed contract with The Keys is the comparison of the two offers beginning to emerge.
While, a “home field advantage” is understood in regard to the stadium lease, what transpired brings a whole new definition to the term.
Under questioning from alderman Young and Aloi, Russin failed to explain why The Keys were given the first $150,000 in parking revenue to offset utility fees when the offer from Frederick Atlantic indicated they would pay 100% of the utilities.
In addition, revenue splits on naming rights to the stadium, capital expense obligations, advertising on portions of the stadium and whether an analysis had been done on the more “up front” ($245,000) lease money offered by Frederick Atlantic LLC; were all questions the city administrator was unable to answer in a satisfactory manner.
Interestingly, a study obtained by the city on stadium naming rights and advertising was shared with The Keys during contract negotiations.However, the study was never given to Frederick Atlantic LLC until managing member John Lavoie asked for a copy at the city workshop held last week.
Russin repeatedly sought to compare the new Keys contract with their existing agreement, often citing the increase in the current $30,000 yearly lease amount.
What should be asked for and has never been done is a public presentation of the two offers received.
What is important to note is The Keys were not competing with themselves; they were competing against another entity.
A question I had was answered when after the workshop last week, Alderman Young asked city attorney Saundra Nichols in an email "I have a procedural question. Don't we (the Aldermen) have to accept the recommendation of the evaluation team's choice before we start modifying the proposed contract?".
The email response from Nichols stated "There is not a separate step for accepting the recommendation of the evaluation team. The Board of Aldermen is typically presented with the proposed final contract".
The city attorney response along with the approach taken by Mayor Randy McClement in governing may be technically correct.
However, the residents of The City of Frederick deserve more transparent and open government.
When I spoke with Frederick Atlantic LLC managing member John Lavoie the day after the city workshop last week, he said “the scoring of the RFP Review Committee did not account for the depth or substance of the proposal they tendered“.He added “they had tendered a proposal far superior to The Keys”.
Prior to approving a lease agreement with The Keys, the aldermen would be wise to request a detailed presentation from Mr. Russin of the two proposals received.
At a minimum, when negotiating the terms of the agreement with The Keys, the comparison should be with what was offered by Frederick Atlantic LLC and not the existing lease with The Keys.
After all, it was the inadequacy of the existing lease and failure to negotiate by The Keys which led to the RFP being issued.
In the future, let’s hope for more transparency from the mayor along with a move from him to communicate more fully with the city aldermen and involve them in the decision making process – city residents deserve it.
Stay tuned..
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We are now well into July and still no presentation to The City of Frederick mayor and board of aldermen has taken place.Yet, reports indicate contract negotiations with The Keys are ongoing.In fact, city administrator Josh Russin informed the press the three city employees (Russin was one of them) who were on the contract negotiating team
This is important for several reasons.One, there has been no formal action taken by the mayor and board to accept the proposal presented by The Keys or to authorize the mayor to pursue contract negotiations with them.
The other critical issue is the proposal presented by Frederick Atlantic, LLC expires as of August 15, 2011.Leading to the possibility contract negotiations with The Keys could drag on past August 15, leaving the city with no leverage in negotiations.
In addition, if the persistent rumors The Keys are for sale and The Baltimore Orioles are planning to move one of their minor league affiliated teams to their new Spring Training facility in Florida turn out to be true, where would that leave The City of Frederick?
The possibility the city would be left without any contract and without a team to play in Harry Grove Stadium could become a reality.
Unfortunately, it's been a public display of a learning curve by the current city administration on how to enter into a lease of a city owned property.
One has to hope Jack Lavoie, Managing Member of Frederick Atlantic LLC, a lawyer by profession, does not pursue legal action on this matter.
For years now, I have been calling for a city policy on the sale/lease of city owned properties, including a list detailing the disposition of each property. Availability for lease, sale or other, along with an expense/revenue projection for each should be a standard operating procedure. My question has been; how, in the world can one manage without knowing this information?
Alderman Michael O’Connor echoed my thoughts during the recent budget talks.
I brought up the lack of a city policy on leases and the lack of information on the disposition of city owned properties once again during discussions I had with the current four Democratic aldermen in January and February of this year.Republican Shelley Aloi was unable to schedule a time to meet.The topic came up as we were discussing the inappropriate sole source lease negotiations pertaining to city own space for use as a Restaurant.
During those same discussions, along with one I had with Mayor Randy McClement at the same time, the breakdown of the lease renewal of the Harry Grove Stadium was also discussed, leading me to opine in an earlier column dated April 20, the issuance of a Request For Proposals (RFP) by the Mayor was a good move.A move I hoped would be best for the City of Frederick.
What has happened since only highlights the inexperience of the current administration.
Secrecy has surrounded the entire RFP process with the details of the proposals submitted by the two bidders; Frederick Atlantic, LLC and The Keys, only made available after a freedom of information act request was submitted.
New City administrator Josh Russin initially informed me in a telephone conversation after the review committee completed their review in late May, the bids along with the committee recommendation to move forward in negotiating a contract with The Keys, would be presented to the mayor and board of aldermen in a workshop in June with contract approval hopeful in August.
Several recent messages left with Mr. Russin asking specifically what will be the process of approval have not been answered as of publication date of this column.I inquired if the plan was to present the two proposals and the committee recommendation to the mayor and board and then follow, based on mayor and board action, with the presentation of a contract for their action.
Surely, they can not expect the aldermen and mayor to consider a contract at the same time, as approval to negotiate a contract has not been given as I stated previously.
Time, is now of the essence, as the August 15 date nears the Frederick Atlantic LLC bid proposal expires. A difficult position to have put the city in.
This issue also illuminates the growing rift Democratic alderman Kelly Russell has with alderman Karen Young (D) and mayor McClement (R). Russell has battled the mayor over his lack of communication with aldermen on administrative issues. An issue, which over the years and other past administrations, has surfaced due to the nature of charter government which establishes a legislative (board of aldermen) and administrative (mayor) body.
Russell and Young have been sparring for quite some time over various issues. The most recent issue being the negotiations with the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) on the extension of a contract. Russell, a former city police officer, called for an end to the secret talks and asked for more openness in the process.
Leading Young, who has called for more transparency in regard to the Harry Grove Stadium lease, to respond the city should be consistent with their policies.
Young and Russell have expressed differences on both of these issues, with Russell supporting The Keys and the FOP and Young favoring a bid process for Harry Grove Stadium and pointing out the money is not there for raises and pension contribution for the FOP.
The Harry Grove Stadium lease has illustrated the need for a policy on the lease of city owned property and the creation of a system to enable the management of the same.
Let's hope new city administrator Josh Russin moves forward soon on developing a policy to present to the mayor and board for their consideration.
Stay Tuned...
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Perhaps, it is his experience as a former host of a local weekly political discussion show and news broadcaster, which has helped shape Michael O'Connor as he considers the issues that come before him.
In a recent sit down conversation, I found him to be very reasonable and willing to look at various sides of an issue.
An opinion shared by the other aldermen I have interviewed recently. A common statement I heard from other board members was Michael was very good at making sure everyone expressed their thoughts when the board debated an issue. While, the current board does not always agree, discussion on issues have been amiable, helped in part, by Michael's demeanor.
The lone male and one of four Democrats elected to the all new five member board of aldermen, he never once mentioned the make of of the board during our conversation.
Balancing the budget continues to be the main emphasis for elected officials across the country in all levels of government and The City of Frederick is no exception.
After facing budget cuts in their first year in office, a projected 9.9 million deficit needs to be addressed when Republican Mayor Randy McClement unveils his budget.
O'Connor is ready to examine thoroughly the proposed budget and add his input. Workshops and public meetings will be scheduled over the next couple of months as the budget must be approved prior to July 1.
The purchase of land (Hargett farm) for a city park under the previous city administration has added to the financial burden. The bonded funding mechanism continues to strap the city coffers and also limits uses of the property.
With money scarce to build out the park, suggestions are plentiful as to what else could be done with the property. O'Connor believes a cost analysis on allowable uses would be helpful in this regard - I agree.
Moving on past a discussion of the budget, Aldermen O'Connor is excited about the staff and committee work underway in a number of areas, including, but not limited to sustainability, a shared use pathway, and area plans for the west end and east side of Frederick.
The failure of the city to reach agreement on the renewal of the stadium lease with the Baltimore Oriole single-a minor league team "The Keys" is the issue that he has received the most feedback from residents; many of them who have said they do not want to lose the Keys baseball team.
The mayor recently issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the lease of the stadium and O'Connor is looking forward to reviewing the proposals. While, he is not anxious to lose the Keys baseball team, he would not commit to a position on the issue until he has the opportunity to review the proposals submitted to the city.
The alderman's approach to this contentious issue is another example of how O'Connor brings moderation to the board of aldermen.
When I asked him if he ever thought about running for mayor, he answered with "I am happy being an alderman, for now".
Keep an eye on Michael O'Connor; a thoughtful man, who takes his elected position seriously.
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The first fourteen months on the job has kept City of Frederick Democratic Alderwoman Kelly Russell busy as she deals with her committee assignments, constituent concerns and agenda items. She is enjoying her role as alderwoman for the City of Frederick and is looking forward to serving the remainder of her first term in office. At this point, the retired police officer is leaning toward running for another term.
In a sit down interview and follow up conversations, she said "the relationship between the aldermen and mayor has been cordial and professional. Sometimes, she said, it is the agenda items, or rather, a lack of items on the agenda, which has caused her the most frustration during her first fourteen months in office".
A woman who takes her elected position seriously, Kelly wants to see even more communication between the mayor and board of aldermen along with more transparency to the public.
She understands the difference of roles between the mayor, who is the elected administrator and the board of aldermen, who are the legislative body in the city's charter government.
Russell feels the city charter spells out clearly what she feels is an important balance of power relationship between the mayor and the board of aldermen when it often says, in regard to major issues, the mayor can act only with the advice and consent of the board.
When it comes to important issues such as the reviews underway of the city charter, the city employee pension plan, city employee policies and procedures, the Keys lease of the city owned stadium, and the upcoming budget, communication has not always been as forthcoming from first term Republican Mayor Randy McClement as Russell would prefer.
Adding to this conundrum, has been the inability of the mayor to fill the executive assistant position, left vacant when Rick Weldon resigned to take a similar position with the Town of Brunswick.
It was clearly evident, during my sit down conversation with Kelly, she is enthusiastic about her elected position and has enjoyed working with her fellow members of the board.
She spoke of the many projects and committee work underway by the City of Frederick, including the Bicycle and Recycling Ad Hoc Committees, on which she sits as city alderman liaison.
With an eye on the future, she believes increasing recycling in the city and developing a larger shared use path system are both beneficial for city residents.
The work also being done developing the Golden Mile and East Frederick area plans is also exciting to for her to see.
However, the lack of discussion to date on the upcoming budget, where a projected 9.9 million deficit exists is troublesome to alderwoman Russell.
In their first year in office, the mayor invited a couple of the aldermen at a time to meet with him and department heads to discuss budget requests. A process which was not repeated this year.
In regard to the charter review process, the committee was chaired by Randy McClement with the work completed during the former mayor Jeff Holtzinger administration. Yet, it was never presented to the public and voted on by the board of alderman.
The recommendations from that charter review committee remain to be presented to the current board of aldermen with the required public notice prior to their review and approval by the board.
Ms. Russell is looking forward to when the recommendations from the charter writing committee are presented to the public and the board of aldermen for review and comment.
One change she would like to see in the charter is the reinstatement of the residency requirement for senior level city positions.
The city employee policy and procedures and pension plan are other issues Russell is anxious to proceed so the board of aldermen and the public can provide input.
The aldermen and Mayor McClement could not agree on the cost of a proposal to review possible employee pension changes. So, the mayor proceeded with a reduced sized contract on which he had authority per the city charter without aldermen approval. The results of this study remain to be presented, creating additional angst among some board members. It is now scheduled to be presented to the board next week.
The possible loss of the Baltimore Oriole Farm Team; the Frederick Keys, is another example, according to Kelly, of where she would like to see more communication between the mayor and the board of aldermen.
When former Mayor executive assistant Rick Weldon was apparently unable to reach agreement on a lease renewal of the city owned stadium, Mayor McClement last week issued, on his own, a request for proposals (RFP) for the use of the stadium.
What is developing into a contentious issue, Kelly feels it would have been helpful had the board of aldermen been kept abreast of the negotiations with the Keys. Now the RFP has been issued, she is hopeful the board aldermen can be involved in determining the process for rating the RFPs received.
She also hopes Keys management have not been dissuaded and chose not to respond to the RFP.
The possible loss of the Frederick Keys to an Independent League team might bring additional dollars in a lease to the city. But, the loss of attendance and the loss of added value throughout the City of Frederick, could be substantial.
Another unsettling recent development was the city negotiation with a sole source on the lease of city owned space. No apparent policy exists for the lease of city owned property, something Alderwoman Russell would like to see in place.
Alderwoman Russell, is also hopeful Mayor McClement will soon find a replacement for his departed hand picked executive assistant Rick Weldon.
Former Republican Mayor Jeff Holtzinger and former Republican alderman Joe Baldi have been reported as being interested in the position.
While, the mayor is able to choose who he wants in the position, he needs board approval for a permanent hire. The replacement process of the position by the mayor, so far, has been done in executive session, out of the public spotlight, which is allowable under the state of Maryland open meetings act.
While Alderwoman Russell was unable to discuss what takes place in executive sessions, I do not believe either of the aforementioned names would receive board approval, if presented to them by the mayor.
The mayor has decided not to advertise for the position, instead relaying on word-of-mouth as the recruitment process he is using to fill this position. A similar process as used by former mayors to fill appointed positions.
Russell feels it is important for the mayor to fill this critical position and if a suitable candidate is not presented to the board soon, feels perhaps the board should ask the mayor to advertise for the position.
Alderwoman Russell believes, while the city charter provides for the mayor to be the administrator, it also clearly states with the advice and consent of the board of aldermen.
She believes good government is best achieved through communication and with transparency - I agree.
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Karen Young is one of four members of the Young family serving in elected office in Frederick County, Maryland. She preceded the election of her husband Ron and two of his sons; Blaine and Brad, who all won election last year.
The year before, Karen was the top vote getter in the City of Frederick alderperson race, earning the mostly ceremonial nod, as Mayor Pro-Tem.
During that 2009 city campaign, she earned my respect as she tirelessly campaigned, taking nothing for granted.
She exhibited her private sector experience during that campaign, when she utilized online surveys to help her see what were some of the issues important to voters.
She has continued using surveys to reach out to voters over the first fourteen months in office.
In a recent sit down conversation over coffee, Karen shared some thoughts with me about her short time as alderperson.
I had asked for the meeting as I was interested in hearing her thoughts on her first year in office.
She was particularly enthusiastic about her experience serving as a member of the legislative committee with the Maryland Municipal League.
The committee was focusing on trying to recapture their share of the state highway user funds. The drastic reduction of funds a result of the tough state budget balancing act of Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley's (D) administration.
She had set up a meeting with the Frederick News Post Editorial Board in hopes of receiving media attention and hopefully their support.
She was successful on both counts, receiving a nice write up on January 26, which highlighted the three million in reduction of funds the City of Frederick had received from the state from FY 2007 to FY 2011.
The Frederick News Post followed up with an editorial on January 30, which threw their support behind her efforts and those of the Maryland Municipal League to restore highway user funding to municipalities in Maryland.
She has my support as well. However, with the state facing tough choices in balancing the budget, I am not overly optimistic municipalities across the state will have highway user funds restored to anywhere near FY 2007 levels.
During our conversation, I informed Karen she had caught my attention when I read how she objected to the attempted sole source lease of city space at a sweetheart deal.
This has been an issue with city owned properties for quite some time as set procedures on selling/leasing have not consistently been in place.
She agreed a procedure should be in place and followed by city staff. As a result of her intervention in this case, a notice of thirty days for interested parties to submit a proposal was advertised by the city.
A move in the right direction. However, the individuals negotiating terms previously had much longer than thirty days to discuss with city staff acceptable terms of a lease.
Discussion of the erection of a fence along the once "golden mile" came up in passing, with Karen commenting it looked better than she would have thought and with some landscaping, could look even better.
She acknowledged, without much prodding on my part, it did not address the need for improved safety for pedestrian crossing or the larger need of redevelopment of the area.
As time was winding down and Karen needing to head off to her editorial board meeting, I let her know I was interested in meeting again to discuss her priorities for the next year.
In the meantime, I asked if she would email me a list. Following is the list I received from her:
My 2011 priorities (fiscal 2011/2012):
1. Balanced Budget
2.Road and Bridge maintenance
3.Comply with state waste water management requirements in a fiscally responsible manner
4.Pension and benefit reform
5.FOP contract
6.Harry Grove Stadium contract
7.Road improvements and expansions (other than maintenance issues)
8.Create more structured debt policy
9.Create a leasing policy for city properties
10.Implement Containment Laboratory Community Advisory Committee
11.Next phase of Carroll Creek Park
12.Develop a Sustainability Plan
13.Other (charter review, reduce trash increase re-cycling, revisit rental registration/licensing, revisit land value tax, implement revised employee policies and procedures manual)
14.Develop a long-term plan for Hargett Farm.
An ambitious list and one I look forward to discussing with her when we meet next.
Keep an eye on Ms. Young, as I suspect she will continue to exhibit her strong work ethic and desire to address the concerns of voters.
It also may not be too early to consider the thought of Karen Young running for Mayor in 2013. A question I did not have the time to ask her during this meeting.
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Editor's Note: In response to reader requests, this is the first of what will be a series of columns based on interviews with city elected officials.
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