Niles panel: Produce revised plan by deadline or face sanctions
By Jordan Cohen
NILES
The Scarnecchia administration must produce a viable amended financial recovery plan by July 25 or face state-mandated sanctions that include a mandatory 15 percent cut in its budget – a slash that could mean reduced services and layoffs.
The order came in a unanimous vote Wednesday by the Financial Planning and Supervision Commission. The commission has been overseeing city expenditures since Niles was declared in fiscal emergency by state Auditor Dave Yost in October 2014.
Niles “has not progressed enough,” said Quentin Potter, commission chairman. “We need to address a plan that brings the city up to date.”
The commission had rejected the previous modified plan when it last met in April because the document did not contain provisions to cover the costs for needed building improvements. A few weeks after that meeting, Architect Bruce Sekanick determined several of those buildings to be in “critical” need of repairs.
“Sekanick said the Water Department building is unsafe,” said Councilman Barry Steffey, D-4th, finance chairman who sat in for council President Robert Marino at Wednesday’s meeting. “The Water Department should not have workers in that building.”
In the 46 days since Sekanick submitted his report, Mayor Thomas Scarnecchia, who also sits on the commission, has been unable to complete an amended five-year plan required by state law. The commission meeting scheduled for May was canceled to give the mayor more time to complete the latest version.
“I asked council for help,” the mayor replied to Steffey, “and you’re the only one who has come forward.”
The mayor said he has been unable to meet with some council members because many are on vacation. His comment brought a sharp rejoinder from John Davis, a fellow commission member and frequent critic of Scarnecchia’s.
“Don’t go on vacation,” Davis said. “We have to fix the problem.”
Potter explained that state law mandates reducing the budget to 85 percent of the current total “if there is a nonresponse.” The law requires commission approval of any spending exceeding the 85 percent level.
“You’re giving up control, and that’s not something I want to see happen,” the chairman said.
Scarnecchia went along with the rest of the commission and voted in favor of the deadline. It would mark the seventh amended version of the plan since the city was placed in fiscal emergency.
“We’ll get it done,” he told The Vindicator after the meeting.
Despite the edict, the city’s state-appointed fiscal supervisors had some good news. Niles has reduced overtime expenses in its departments by $50,000 compared with this time last year. The supervisors also said the city has substantially reduced bank-service charges, which the supervisors previously described as exorbitant.
The city also is awaiting approval of rebates totaling $1.2 million from the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District. Scarnecchia said some of the funds would be used to install more than 6,000 water meters that have been housed in the vacant Waddell Park Swimming Pool for two years.
The commission will have only two days to study the latest version of the recovery plan if the mayor submits it at the deadline.
The panel’s next meeting is scheduled for July 27.