Thursday, September 29, 2011
YOUNGSTOWN
The latest round of cuts made by Mayor Charles Sammarone and his administration will save the city about $160,000 a year with an eye toward eliminating $189,000 more by changing a parking deal for VXI Global Solutions employees.
The city canceled a $90,000 annual contract with the Regional Income Tax Agency for that company to provide services related to overseeing Clean Ohio fund projects and joint economic development districts and zones.
A change in the law department after Anthony Farris replaced Iris Torres Guglucello as law director resulted in two full-time assistant law directors not being retained. The various moves, including hiring three part-time assistant law directors, will save the city about $70,000 annually, Farris said.
Also, the city is moving closer to no longer permitting VXI, a call center at the city-owned 20 Federal Place office building, to reduce its annual rent by $189,000 as part of a parking deal for the company at the nearby Plaza Parking Deck.
The deck at 16 N. Champion St. is in receivership and no longer owned by USA Parking Systems. Ampco System Parking is managing the deck.
After the city couldn’t come to an agreement in March with USA Parking to provide free parking for additional VXI employees at 20 Federal Place, the city told VXI and USA to work out a deal. The two companies signed a $189,000 annual contract for 700 spots at the deck in May with the bill covered entirely by the city. VXI takes out the monthly parking cost of $15,750 from the $25,000 rent it pays the city.
Between the time the two contracts were enacted, VXI employees parked at the Covelli Centre.
VXI employees complained about the walk and expressed concerns about the safety of the city-owned center’s parking lot.
Sammarone wants to have VXI employees return to the center, a plan that would cost the city no money. The city could provide a shuttle bus for VXI employees, the mayor said.
Attempts to reach Justin Payne, VXI’s managing director in Youngstown, on Wednesday by The Vindicator were unsuccessful.
The deck is specified in the VXI contract, but the deal also gives the city the right to provide nearby alternative parking, such as at the center, said T. Sharon Woodberry, the city’s economic development director.
The city could use that $189,000 to make improvements to 20 Federal Place, particularly the elevators, which are in bad shape, Sammarone said.
The mayor also plans to have a uniformed police officer patrol outside the office building at 20 W. Federal St. to keep that area safe.
A decision on the VXI parking contract is expected shortly, Sammarone said.
Sammarone, mayor since Aug. 1, had expressed concern about the parking contract when he was council president. He also complained about the $90,000 RITA contract while on council.
Under that contract, the city paid the money to RITA to have Sarah Lown oversee the city’s Clean Ohio and joint economic development districts and zones.
The board of control approved the annual contract in October 2010 without council approval. City council voted last week to end that contract.
The mayor said he has nothing against Lown, but the renewal was improper and if the position is needed it should be a city job with a person hired after taking a civil service test.
Also, with no plans to do JEDDs or JEDZs, Sammarone questioned whether the position is needed.
Meanwhile, major changes in the city’s law department will result in annual savings of about $70,000, Farris said.
There were three assistant law directors under Guglucello. Farris reduced that to one: Anthony Donofrio, who started Sept. 19.
Margaret Koval’s last day as an assistant law director was Sept. 2 while Dan Pribich’s last day is Monday. Farris hired three part-time assistant law directors: Rebecca Gerson, Robert Rohrbaugh and Kathy Thompson. They are paid a little more than half the salary of a full-timer and receive no health-care benefits for 20-hour work weeks.
Farris also promoted Dana Lantz, an assistant city prosecutor, to first assistant law director/housing prosecutor, increasing her annual pay by about $4,500. Lantz will focus primarily on prosecuting cases involving blight, quality-of-life issues, nuisance laws, and code enforcement.
These are the latest changes to city government since Sammarone replaced Jay Williams as mayor Aug. 1.
Sammarone canceled the city’s contract with DeVicchio and Associates, effective Dec. 1, that paid the company $75,000 a year to manage 20 Federal Place. Also, Police Chief Rod Foley, appointed by Sammarone, has reduced the department’s overtime by 63.7 percent in the most recent pay period, largely because of reassigning eight officers to patrol duty.