By Stephanie Petrellese

The Garden City Board of Trustees has approved the 2009-10 budget, which calls for the average-assessed Village homeowner to pay an additional $302 in Village taxes. Trustees voted 5 to 2 in favor of the budget after a public hearing held during the Board's annual organization meeting on Monday evening.

Deputy Mayor Donald Brudie and Second Deputy Mayor John Watras voted against the budget. Trustee John Mauk was absent.

The Village tax levy increase is 5.91 percent. The approved 2009-10 budget totals $52,728,207, a decrease of 4.6 percent from last year's budget. Last year the average homeowner had to pay an additional $171.36 in Village taxes per year.

"The Board of Trustees was faced with very difficult choices of how best to balance the service expectations of the residents with the difficulty presented by the current economy," said Mayor Robert J. Rothschild.

The Mayor called upon all department heads to turn back a minimum of two percent budget surplus over the next year, without reducing the level of services currently being provided, to help reduce the tax rate for 2010-11.

He said trustees were aware of the "unusual and difficult circumstances" being faced as soon as they began their budget work sessions earlier this year. The economic climate caused a $944,000 revenue shortfall due to a decrease in state aid from mortgage taxes and a minimal return on Village investments. Other revenue components made up some of the shortage, so the ultimate revenue shortfall totaled $579,524. This year the Village will tap into the retirement reserve as a way to increase surplus and will only hold once percent instead of two percent.

The majority of capital projects were deferred. However, major infrastructure projects such as road, curb and sidewalk repairs, sewer renovations and technology investments still remain.

Ten positions were eliminated, including two firefighters, five police officers, one civilian police dispatcher, one Dept. of Public Works laborer and one building inspector. The staff reductions results in a total benefit savings of $171,297. Four of the officer positions are currently not filled.

Mayor Rothschild said the Village will be looking for concessions and givebacks during current and upcoming union negotiations. The Village is currently in collective bargaining negotiations with the Professional Firefighter's Association to replace a contract that expired in May, 2008. Negotiations with the Police Benevolent Association are set to begin soon as the Village's contract with the PBA expires in May. The Civil Service Employees' Association, which represents all of the labor and craft employees, as well as the professional employees in the Dept. of Public Works, will see their contract with the Village expire in May, 2010.

Deputy Mayor Donald Brudie voted against the budget because he did not want to see any cuts made to the police and fire departments. "I think we can get over this," he said. "I think if we see those cuts we can regroup and go forward." He said he was primarily voting against the budget because he is disappointed that the Board was not able to adopt a budget with a zero tax increase.

Trustee Nicholas Episcopia responded to Brudie by saying that a zero increase would have meant many more budget cuts. He said the protection of citizens remained a priority during the budget process and he was satisfied at the compromise they arrived at by the end of the work sessions. "We think that what we did was make some alterations to our budget when it came to our services to protect, our fire and police services," he said. "We didn't make any massive cuts." He said the Board and staff will work to make the government more efficient. "This was a very trying experience for everybody... I think we have done the best we can."

Second Deputy Mayor John Watras said he was voting against the budget because he believes the tax increase is too much of a burden for residents, many of whom have lost their jobs. He works on Wall Street and said he receives resumes every day from Garden City residents looking for work.

Mayor Rothschild experienced his first moment of Board tension in his new position when Watras and Episcopia exchanged heated words. After Episcopia's response to Brudie, Watras asked him what he thinks will happen next year. Episcopia responded angrily that revenue could have been generated by the private development of the Historic Main Building at St. Paul's, which Watras opposed. He said Watras actually was in favor of spending $14 to $15 million to mothball the building.

Watras responded that since the St. Paul's issue has dragged on for so long it is now very expensive to save the building. "Since we have gone on and made this such a mess, it has gotten a lot worse. By inaction we have created an action."

Garden City resident John Mixon expressed concern with the cuts to the police and fire departments. "They always look to cut the things that save our lives," he said.

Mayor Rothschild responded that both Fire Capt. Harry "Gil" Frank, who is commanding officer of the Headquarters Company, and incoming Fire Chief William Graham, who will lead the volunteer firefighters for one year, have expressed a willingness to work together to maintain the same level of services in the fire department.

Patricia DiMattia, president of the Central Property Owners' Association, said changes need to be made in the way the Board makes its decisions. She said the POAs were left out of the budget process this year, and expressed a desire to see the report issued by the Citizens' Budget Review Committee. The POAs are responsible for annually authorizing the committee to review the budget. Mayor Rothschild agreed that the POAs should see the report, and advised DiMattia to work with the Joint Conference Committee of property owners' associations.

DiMattia also hailed former Trustee Thomas Lamberti, who announced in October that he would not run for re-election because at the time thought that Trustee John Mauk would run for mayor. He accused Mauk of exhibiting "intemperate behavior" during several executive sessions. Mauk responded at the time that every trustee was guilty of not being cordial during executive sessions. Lamberti did not waver in his decision, even after Mauk later decided not to run for the position. Lamberti attended Monday's meeting and sat in the audience. DiMattia said she appreciated Lamberti's honesty and referred to him as an advocate for the Village and the CPOA.

Garden City resident Ronald Tadross said if he was a member of the union he would be concerned about the stability of the Village's pension and health care system given the Village's budget problems. Village Counsel Gerard Fishberg responded later in the evening that pensions will never be lost, even if the Village goes bankrupt, because they are controlled by New York State.

Tadross had left the meeting by then, but when contacted by the Garden City News for a response, said that it is still possible that the state could cut the pension, just like the federal government did to the airlines. He called upon the Village's fire and police unions to make concessions to insure the Village's future financial health.

At the meeting, Tadross said residents deserve an explanation as to why the Garden City School District is proposing a tax levy increase of 1.57 percent and the Village is several times higher at 5.91 percent. "There needs to be a reconciliation," he said. The Board did not respond.

Tadross also felt disheartened after he read a recent letter in the Garden City News by former Trustee Thomas Lamberti, who claims the Board did not listen to the Citizens' Budget Review Committee. "I sit there as a resident and I say, 'these guys aren't pulling for me.'"

Don Capp, who works for commercial real estate developer Steel Equities, owner of the office building at 1399 Franklin Avenue, also expressed concern about the firefighter cuts. He said there was a fire in the building, and it was saved by the department's quick response.