the municipal secretary desktop reference manual - Southwestern ...

premium for family coverage. These are benefits that neighboring townships, as well as those
across the state, have enjoyed for years. We have been able to offer them with minimal increases
in expenditures. Road Department personnel remains at 3 full-time employees, with one
additional part-timer employed during paving season. Staff is frequently told by visitors that our
roads are among the best maintained in the area.
Our truck fleet contains a 1996 one-ton dump, a 1987 tandem (both debt-free), and a
1992 tandem, for which is owed approximately $20,000.00 (half at 5% and half at 2% interest
rates). This is the only form of indebtedness the jurisdiction generally incurs. During the past
five years equipment has been added systematically to ensure superior road maintenance levels.
A 20 ton trailer was acquired to haul equipment and supplies to job sites. By utilizing municipal
equipment on the road turnback project (leasing it to ourselves) it was possible to purchase a
nearly-new backhoe/loader which provides the much-needed capacity to supplement the Road
Department's older backhoe. A bucket truck, which will be used to trim trees on local roads, was
purchased jointly with another local government. Other equipment shared with neighboring
municipalities includes a self-propelled paver, a rubber-tired roller, a ditcher, and a brush
chipper. Joint purchasing of specialized equipment and performing much of our own
maintenance has expanded work-performance capability at minimal cost. Thus, we have been
able to preserve our revenue for purchasing needed road materials. In 1995, $78,000.00 will
have been spent on paving and tarring/chipping materials, not including the road turnback
project).
Another concern of the Administration is providing sufficient recreation facilities for a
variety of purposes. While allocating only about $5,000.00 annually for park improvements and
maintenance, the municipality has managed to improve its playground, add picnic facilities and,
most recently, has graded and seeded the third athletic field.
An accomplishment of note has been the installation of our "doublewide" office building.
Fashioned from two single construction-site office trailers, the staff has done the bulk of the
work in converting the two units to an administration building with office spaces and a meeting
room. The project was completed with less than $20,000.00 of municipal funds. Having a
well-equipped municipal office is a necessity in today's world. Working within our modest
budget, we have acquired office furniture (mostly used, some of it donated), a computer,
high-speed copier, fax machine, VCR and monitor (for general and road maintenance training
courses), and three fire-proof filing cabinets.
A small portion of our annual budget is allocated for training, seminars, and municipal
association-sponsored events. Our personnel utilize these opportunities for discussing common
problems with peers, and to bring back valuable information on new techniques for solving
municipal problems and increasing our ability to effectively perform our jobs. The value of
funds expended for training has been eclipsed by the dollars saved or acquired as a result of our
application of new methods and improved productivity.
VIII-32