Board of Aldermen 03-09-2021 Page 10
in the plan was brought before us, it was made clear | thought that the money, the $775,000.00 would be used
to either provide some additional recreational facilities in that area. There’s a lot of development occurring and
being planned in that area so there’s a lot more units, a lot more people are going to be there. The need for
recreation is going to continue.
So now this resolution which is primarily to establish an Expendable Trust Fund to provide funds to the
Business & Industrial Development Authority for future development is fine but it has an additional paragraph
saying, “It is the intention of this Board that after closing, $250,000.00 from the sale of land on Bridge Street
and Sanders Street will be appropriated into this Expendable Trust Fund via a Supplement Appropriation
Resolution”. Now during the Committee Hearing, | thought it was clear that the primary purpose is to establish
this Expendable Trust Fund and it was stated that the ... designating the $250,000.00 from the sale of this
land was not binding. It was just to identify some source of funds, and the exact source of the funds and the
exact amount would be subject to further Resolution.
| felt that the designated, you know, taking $250,000.00 from the $775,000.00 is contrary to what the intention
was, that that money be used for recreational purposes. | happen to notice that the Capital Improvements
Committee just came out with a report. One of their priorities in the A Listing is developing, expressing the
need for additional soccer fields or at least time on soccer fields and they have designated a project at Mine
Falls, the soccer fields at Mine Falls converting them from a natural surface to an artificial surface which would
enable those fields to withstand much more intensive use and perhaps put up lights that would allow nighttime
use. Coincidentally the price tag on that project is $770,000.00. | have talked to the Mayor about this and he
said that the $770,000.00 is probably low; they probably need more money than that. But the $775,000.00
from this sale of the Bridge Street / Sanders Street Lot would go a long way in paying for that project, which
has been identified as a priority by the Capital Improvements Committee.
So during the Committee Hearing it was expressed by several people that this $250,000.00 was just — fulfilled
the requirement that in order to establish an Expendable Trust Fund, we had to identify the intended source of
the funding. It is not binding, but we had to at least identify the possible source of it. Since that meeting, the
Legal Department, and Attorney Bolton can confirm this, the Legal Department confirmed that, in fact, that is
not necessary to establish this Expendable Trust Fund. We don't have to identify the possible source of the
funding, how much the funding will be and where it will come from is subject to determination by future
Resolution, ideally part of the Budget Process. So the Legal Department advised me that removing that second
paragraph which identifies states the $250,000.00 would come from the sale of this Bridge Street / Sanders
Street Lot is not, in fact, necessary. We can establish the Expendable Trust Fund without endangering the
$775,000.00 which was intended for recreational purposes.
| would like to make a motion that second paragraph in the Resolution be struck so that the Resolution would
not contain that second paragraph, it would just contain the authorization for the Expendable Trust Fund.
Through you, Madam President, I'd like to ask Attorney Bolton whether or not what | said is true about it not
being necessary to have that identified in this Resolution.
MOTION BY ALDERMAN JETTE TO STRIKE THE SECOND PARAGRAPH BY ROLL CALL
ON THE QUESTION
President Wilshire
Attorney Bolton?
Steve Bolton, Corporation Counsel
Yeah that’s entirely accurate, there is no need for that second paragraph as far as legal requirements go. It
can be left in or it can be taken out as the Board wishes.
