Mayor and Board of Aldermen Public Meeting – May 18, 2023
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Mayor and Board of Aldermen Public Meeting – May 18, 2023
The Mayor and Board of Aldermen held a regular public meeting on May 18, 2023, at 7:00 PM in City Hall. The meeting included a proclamation for Kids to Parks Day, four public hearings on FY2024 budget and related ordinances, and two appointments to city boards. All items were approved unanimously.
Proclamation
- Mayor Michael O'Connor proclaimed May 20, 2023, as Kids to Parks Day in the City of Frederick. Recreation staff described activities at Baker Park from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM, including bubbles, chalk art, kite making, and wildflower seed balls.
Public Comments
- No members of the public spoke during either public comment period.
Public Hearings
- Item 1 – Master Schedule of Administrative and Regulatory Fees (FY2024): City Clerk Phyllis Hane presented the annual fee schedule, noting two corrections: (1) the sidewall permit fee of $75 was moved from the Building Department to the Engineering Department, and (2) the payroll lien admin fee, previously missing, was set at $2. The Board approved the ordinance with the added $2 fee by a 5-0 vote.
- Item 2 – Employee Positions, Grades, and Civilian Pay Scale (FY2024): Budget Director Katie Barkle presented the proposed position schedule, which had been part of the FY2024 budget and discussed at nine public hearing sessions. The Board approved the ordinance 5-0.
- Item 3 – Tax Rate for Assessable Property (FY2024): Staff presented a special ordinance to adopt the tax rate unchanged from the previous year: 73.5100 cents per $100 of assessed real property value and $1.55 per $100 of assessable business personal property. The ordinance was approved 5-0.
- Item 4 – FY2024 Budget Adoption: The budget, including a mayor-issued amendment on May 12, 2023, was presented. The Board noted the extensive public input process (nine hearings) and approved the special ordinance 5-0.
Appointments
- Tara Zachariah was appointed to the Sustainability Committee for a three-year term (May 19, 2023 – May 18, 2026). Approved 5-0.
- Zachary Buono was appointed as Neighborhood Advisory Council 11 Coordinator for a two-year term (May 19, 2023 – May 18, 2025). Approved 5-0.
Key Outcomes
- All four public hearing ordinances were adopted unanimously (5-0) for FY2024: fee schedule, employee pay scale, tax rate, and budget.
- Two appointments to city boards were approved unanimously.
Aldermanic and Mayor Comments
- Alderwoman Ash thanked staff and the mayor, emphasized the collaborative budget process, and raised concerns about population growth exceeding the comprehensive plan, noting six annexations in process. She called for greater advocacy for city residents on county-level issues such as school redistricting and infrastructure (e.g., US 15, Hillcrest Elementary).
- Alderman Russell promoted the “Behind the Garden Gates” garden tour hosted by Celebrate Frederick on May 20–21, 2023, as a fundraiser for the city’s Fourth of July celebrations.
- Alderman McShane and Alderman Shackelford thanked staff and residents for their input. Alderman Shackelford also recognized upcoming high school graduations.
- Mayor O'Connor praised the board’s thorough budget process, noting that the budget document underlies all city actions, and thanked staff for their early planning and responsiveness.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening and welcome to the mayor and board of Alderman regular public meeting for the 18th of May. We begin with the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. This is a proclamation for Kids to Parks Day, May 20th, 2023. Whereas May 20th, 2023 is the 13th Kids to Park Day organized and launched by the National Park Trust held annually on the third Saturday of May, whereas Kids to Parks Day empowers kids and encourages families to get outdoors and visit local parks, public lands, and waters. Whereas Kids to Parks Day will broaden children's appreciation for nature and outdoors, whereas the city has arranged to offer family-friendly activities at Baker Park to underscore the importance of recreating responsibly. Now therefore I'm Michael O'Connor, mayor of the City of Frederick, to hereby proclaim May 20th, 2023 as Kids to Park Day in the City of Frederick, and invite and encourage all to spend a morning in beautiful Baker Park to celebrate. I'm going to present this to our recreation supervisor. And give you the microphone. Okay, thanks. Um yes, so we do this every year, and uh obviously we want kids every single day to enjoy their park system, but this is you know a day to kind of specialize it. And I have here program coordinator Delaney who will describe what we're actually going to be doing that day. Hi, so I'm gonna be in Baker Park on Saturday with some small activities for kids like uh bubbles, uh chalk art. We're gonna make kites and uh some wildflower seed balls. So should be pretty fun. Starting at 11. Yeah, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. So moved. Second. Motion by Alderman Shackleberg, second by Alderman Kazemchak. All those in favor. Five zero, thank you very much. April 26th, 2023, closed session. So moved. Motion by Alden Shakovir, second by Alderwoman Gazemchek. All those in favor. That is five-zero. Thank you very much. Uh Mayor's comments. Um, I think I will uh refrain at the moment. Alderman at comments. Alderman Shackleford. No comments, thank you. Alderman McShane. No, thank you. Aldermancek. No, thanks. Alderman Russell. All right. Moving right along. We offer two opportunities for public comment at our meetings, an opportunity to address the mayor and board about any item, whether it's on this evening's agenda or not. Comments are limited to five minutes per person with a reminder that the proceedings are being telecast and recorded. You can also provide e-comments prior to the meeting using the city's website. Is there anyone who wishes to make public comment at this time? Seeing none, we have no consent agenda this evening.
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