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Wilkes-Barre going after delinquent sewer and recycling accounts to offset fee increases

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Luzerne County election inquiry panel lists numerous problems

WILKES-BARRE &mdash; City council&rsquo;s meeting Thursday night offered a preview of the upcoming budget hearing with residents speaking against and in support of proposed fees increases and Mayor George Brown warning of layoffs without them.
				This year is bad enough with a projected $4 million deficit from lost revenues due to the effects of the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic on the economy, Brown told the five city council members who met in a combined work session and public meeting at City Hall.
				But next year could be worse if council doesn&rsquo;t approve the proposed $53.2 million budget balanced by the extra $2 a week residents are being asked to pay for sewer and recycling fees, Brown warned.
				&ldquo;Folks, I&rsquo;m trying to tell you something, I don&rsquo;t know where I&rsquo;m going to get the money to run this city next year if there&rsquo;s not a cooperation from city council on that budget,&rdquo; Brown said.
				Council asked for more time to review a plan to improve the pension plans and reduce their $146 million unfunded liability.
				&ldquo;This is heavy stuff,&rdquo; Tony Brooks, vice chairman of council, said after listening to a lengthy presentation from the representatives of Pension Funding Solutions LLC on the fine points of the plan.
				Council also shot down two of the three applications for grant money for city projects the mayor listed as priorities and instead asked if the money could be used for COVID-19 related programs for residents.
				The only Local Share Account program application approved was the one for $150,000 for the purchase of three police cruisers.
				Brown sounded disappointed that the applications for City Hall improvements and a new Emergency Operations Center at a city-owned building near the former dog park in Hollenback Park.
				&ldquo;These are things that are going to come out of the city expenses one way or the other whether it&rsquo;s in the general fund budget or whether it&rsquo;s a request through LSA,&rdquo; Brown said.
				There&rsquo;s no guarantee the applications would be approved and the funding source. The city might end up paying out of pocket for a new HVAC system at City Hall rather than relying on the LSA funded by revenues from the nearby Mohegan Sun Pocono casino in Plains Township.
				Brooks, who along with council members John Marconi and Beth Gilbert McBride voted against some of the LSA applications, relayed the support of the fee increases from an 81-year-old constituent in his council District B.
				The woman lives on $700 monthly Social Security benefits, Brooks said. Factoring in the fees, increases in Medicare and the tax hike in the Wilkes-Barre Area School District, she will be hard hit, he said.
				&ldquo;As you can see she is living on the edge, on the margins. My heart breaks for her and many more like her in the same situation,&rdquo; Brooks said.
				Brooks encouraged residents to attend the Nov. 12 budget hearing that starts at 6 p.m. Like the council meeting it will likely be online due to the restrictions in place during the pandemic on the size of public gatherings.
				Several residents calling in to the meeting and sending in emails opposed the hikes advocated wage freezes and concessions from the unions representing city employees.
				During his five minutes to comment Bob Kadluboski read salaries and benefits of council members who are considered part-time employees.
				In total, council members receive $116,455 in salaries and benefits, said Kadluboski relying on information from the city.
				&ldquo;My proposal is this, we&rsquo;re done,&rdquo; Kadluboski said.
				So what I&rsquo;m asking everybody to do, we&rsquo;re done, give up all these benefits,&rdquo; Kadluboski said and told the council members to follow the lead of Brown and City Administrator Charlie McCormick who took pay cuts and refused benefits.

Mixed reaction to proposed fees in proposed Wilkes-Barre budget