Luzerne County Manager C. David Pedri began his annual State of the County address Tuesday with a “small story” about the basement lift that allows disabled visitors to access the county courthouse in Wilkes-Barre.

Security staffers expressed concerns the lift kept breaking down, wasting money on repairs and often forcing disabled visitors to wait trapped on the lift, embarrassed and inconvenienced.

The administration identified savings on other pending capital projects to free up $75,800 to replace the lift with a new warranty because disabled visitors shouldn’t encounter problems getting inside their taxpayer-funded courthouse, said Pedri.

“The state of the county? The county is in a state of constant improvement,” Pedri told the council.

He presented an optimistic financial outlook, announcing the administration projects the county ended 2016 with a $1 million surplus, stressing this is not an audited figure. If the dollar amount holds up when the audit is completed in June, the county’s deficit would decrease from $9.4 million to $8.4 million.

The county’s outstanding debt, including both principal and interest, has decreased from $420.87 million at the start of the customized home rule government in 2012 to about $325 million in 2016 — a reduction of $95.8 million, or 22.8 percent, he said.

Another new fiscal detail: the county’s tax base grew by $197 million from January to the end of November last year due to new construction, which equates to an additional $600,000 to $1.1 million in county real estate tax revenue.

Pedri said it’s the second largest tax base increase in 20 years. Taxable real estate now totals $20.14 billion.

Implementation of a new computerized assessment program is expected within 60 days, he added.

Purchased from Rochester-based Pictometry International Corp., this software uses information from aerial photography to pinpoint new structures and property additions that may not be on the tax rolls.

Artwork, baseball resolution

Pedri summarized developments in other departments, including the current inmate population of 482 at the county’s prison on Water Street in Wilkes-Barre. The prison was designed to hold up to 505 inmates but typically had been at or above capacity in recent years. He largely credited a prison task force formed to turn around overcrowding that has plagued the facility.

The manager expects to select a company in April to revamp the county’s website and said managers have started employee performance evaluations.

Among his major 2017 projects and goals:

• Repairing damage to artwork, plaster and tile inside the 107-year-old courthouse in Wilkes-Barre.

The county’s capital plan earmarked $970,000 for the work, and Pedri said a $475,000 settlement recently obtained from a contractor over leaks during courthouse dome repairs also is available. The county is seeking additional state funding for the project.

• Resolving litigation over the Triple-A baseball franchise purchased with Lackawanna County.

The counties have pending litigation initiated against each other in 2010 over which should keep $7.3 million, or half of the $14.6 million paid when the New York Yankees and Mandalay Baseball Properties bought the franchise through their joint SWB Yankees LLC in 2012.

“I want to see this come to settlement or litigation in 2017. We’ve been kicking this thing around long enough,” Pedri said.

• Addressing recommendations in Harrisburg-based Public Financial Management’s 2015 financial recovery plan.

Of the 66 initiatives proposed, the administration has completed 27 and is in the process of implementing another 15, he said.

Wren settlement OK’d

In other business Tuesday, a council majority:

• Approved a $378,428 settlement to close out litigation initiated by former county veterans affairs director Richard Wren over his 2009 termination.

• Rejected a proposed “responsible contractor agreement” that would have required prospective contractors to establish apprenticeship programs and meet other conditions to be eligible to perform construction projects over $125,000.

Pedri
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_david_pedri3_faa.jpg.optimal.jpgPedri

By Jennifer Learn-Andes

jandes@timesleader.com

Learn more

The State of the County report and update on compliance with the five-year financial recovery plan have been posted on the manager’s section of the county website, www.luzernecounty.org.

Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.