TOWN COUNCIL FY26 BUDGET WORK SESSION Monday, March 31, 2025 at 6:00 PM nDD * 1900 * Council Chambers - 15000 Washington St., STE 100 Haymarket, VA 20169 TRCINT tp.lwww.townofnaymarket.ory MINUTES I. CALL TO ORDER A Budget Work Session of the Haymarket Town Council of the Town of Haymarket, VA was held this evening in the Council Chambers, commencing at 6 PM. Vice Mayor Matthew Gallagher called the meeting to order. PRESENT Vice Mayor Matthew Gallagher Councilmember Joe Pasanello Councilmember Mary Ramirez Councilmember Alexander Beyene Councilmember Ken Luersen Councilmember Justin Baker ABSENT Mayor Tracylynn Pater II. AGENDA ITEMS 1. FY26 Budget Work Session Vice Mayor Gallagher asked Town Treasurer Roberto Gonzalez to lead the discussion on the proposed FY26 budget. He stated that when working on the budget, he and the Town Manager tried to stay align with the strategic plan. Those being financial accountability, essential services, long term planning, managing the revenues and expenditures and economic stability. Mr. Gonzalez started with the revenue side of the budget. He has proposed a flat tax rate at .105 which would increase the revenue coming from commercial property and residential properties that have completed construction. He stated that staff is proposing the same rate because the taxes have been lowered the past two years and a tax refund three years ago. He stated that with the proposed projects in the CIP, the town needs to look to the future. He shared that with this rate, the revenue will increase by 13.6%. Mr. Gonzalez highlighted major line items for Council to review. Mr. Gonzalez stated that the representatives will be at the April 28th work session. After Mr. Gonzalez went over the revenues, he asked if Council had any questions or discussion on any revenue line item. The was a discussion on the proposed real estate tax rate. Councimember Pasanello asked for comparisons on different tax rates and, if possible, how it would impact the budget. Mr. Gonzalez stated that he will present the comparisons but feels very strongly that the Town needs to watch out for the Town. He shared that the Town is not getting any help from the County. He stated that he feels the reduced tax rates could hurt the residents in the long term. A discussion followed on the proposed tax rate. There was also a discussion regarding a presentation from VMLNACO who discussed the town's tax rate. The Council also asked for the data on the number of new homes that would be assessed this year since their completion. Mr. Gonzalez stated that he could bring those numbers at the next meeting. There was a discussion on the fee schedule and the capital improvements plan. Mr. Gonzalez shared that ARPA funds would be available for one time expenses. Councimember Pasanello stated that it would be helpful when working on the expense side to see where the pots of money are for some of the projects. There was a discussion about the funds in escrow. There was also a discussion on the proffers. Mr. Gonzalez shared that some of the proffers can not be part of the budget because they are a pass through to the County for schools and such. He stated that there are some proffers that can be used. However the Council would need to decide how the funds will be used. Mr. Gonzalez showed on the expenditure side the tracking of the proffers and the ARPA funds. There was a question if the Town had any under performing assets. Mr. Gonzalez shared that there is currently space in the Town Hall that is not rented because they are not ADA compliant. A short discussion on making the second floor ADA compliant through the Town center master site plan. There was a short discussion with Chief Sibert on the DMV grant revenues. Chief Sibert shared that everything is looking positive. Chief Sibert shared additional information on the grant and annual audit. The Town Council asked for any surplus in previous years. Mr. Gonzalez stated that the surplus is at the bottom of the revenue page for each year. There was also a question on consumer utility taxes are trending down especially since there are more homes. Mr. Gonzalez stated that he would follow up. In the interest of time, Mr. Gonzalez briefly went over the expenditures of the budget. Mr. Gonzalez shared that since there was an increased interest from Council to attend conferences this past year, he did a budget amendment for that line item. He shared that he kept the conferences and education for Council the same as the amended amount to accommodate those wishing to attend conferences this upcoming year. He continued onto the administrative line item and shared that he added a 2.5% COLA with a possible 3% merit increase. Mr. Gonzalez also addressed the health insurance, general liability insurance, software contract and legal and auditing fees line items. Mr. Gonzalez continued onto the Police department line items. He brought attention to the COLA and merit increases, dmv grant, health insurance and vehicle line items. Mr. Gonzalez shared the public works line item that showed the increase in the trash service fees. He also addressed the pest control services, landscaping services and snow removal services. He continued with the engineering fees, the Planning Commission, ARB and BZA line items. He addressed the debt obligation line item by sharing that this would be the Town's last payment on the loan which the Town will then have zero debt. The park sidewalk will be complete and will not need to be in this upcoming budget. The Town Center plans have also been removed since it will be funded through the ARPA funds. He also stated that he reduced the blight mitigation expenses because of the legal procedures that need to be in place to enforce. He continued to the CIP funds. He shared that this budget is funding alot of the CIP projects that the Council addressed during their strategic planning sessions. Because of the time running out and the Council needing to move forward to the Work Session, Vice Mayor Gallagher suggested that the Council add this item to the Work Session agenda to further discuss the expenditures of the proposed budget. There was no objection to adding this item to the Work Session agenda. III. ADJOURNMENT With no further discussion at this time and due to the time limit for this meeting, Councilmember Ramirez moved to adjourn with a second by Councilmember Beyene. The motion carried. Motion made by Councilmember Ramirez, Seconded by Councilmember Beyene. Voting Yea: Councilmember Pasanello, Councilmember Ramirez, Councilmember Beyene, Councilmember Luersen, Councilmember Baker Submitted By: Approved By: Aaphialyn LoAnk Kimberly Henry, Clerk of'Council TracyLynn Pater, Mayor