Officials from the Pennsylvania Economy League presented a draft of the final report for the Strategic Management Planning Program (STMP) for the City of Bradford to City Council Tuesday.
Pa. Economy League’s LeeAnne Rogers, chief executive officer; Patricia Moorhead, director of financial and data analytics and Lynne Shedlock, project manager and director of communications, were in attendance to share the findings of the report.
Shedlock explained that the report takes into consideration demographics, a five year financial history and formulates projected revenues and expenses based on the demographics.
She began by noting that the City of Bradford has lost 1,000 people between 2010 and 2020. She noted the area’s height of population was in 1930, when the city was home to 19,000 people.
Both councilmen Tom Riel and Fred Proper questioned whether that number of people remain in residence in the area, as of 1930, the townships were not in existence. Research into this possibility was discussed.
Shedlock noted that the City of Bradford is suffering population loss both through a higher number of deaths than births and also from people moving out of the city. While Bradford does have a “nice percentage of working age people, who are the main taxpayers, you do have a slight decline in the 18-64 age group,” Shedlock stated.
She also noted that the number of owner-occupied residences in the city is declining, while vacant and renter-occupied residences are increasing. She stated this has implications for blight potential.
She also noted that the median house value for residences in the city is lower than that of both McKean County and the state of Pennsylvania. The per capita median income is also below the state and the county as a whole.
The majority of the housing stock in Bradford is 80 years or older, with 55% built in 1939 or earlier.
She noted this combined with the declining population can be an issue because “the old housing and roads are still there, and you have to take care of them.”
While evaluating the finances of the city, Shedlock noted that real estate is the main source of the city’s revenue at 60%.
The city’s biggest cost center, Shedlock reported, was in public safety. This includes not only the fire and police departments but also the ambulance service, code enforcement, zoning and property maintenance.
Moorhead noted that the city will see a few deficits in the near future, which could range from $300,000 to $1 million. This is if the city continues its operations as it has been, with no changes moving forward. The report, Moorhead stated, predicts that the city has a fund balance now but that it will reach equilibrium “and not a good equilibrium” in 2024.
Recognizing this potential situation, the report includes immediate recommendations, which include:
Shedlock also noted a recommendation would be to “include the OECD under the financial umbrella of the city for the purposes of transparency.”
Another recommendation was to discuss the possibility of contracts with outlying townships for mutual aid, as the city’s services are utilized by these residents without any compensation. Ambulance services are already paid for by other municipalities that used them. She noted that could mean not only police and fire but also the public works department.
Riel asked about the definition of mutual aid, pointing out instances where the city’s police or fire are the first responders to an incident that is outside the city’s boundaries. Shedlock and Rogers noted they would clarify the intended definition of mutual aid for the finalized report.
One suggestion for long-term sustainability was to explore home rule, which would allow for expansion of the Earned Income Tax credit that is currently locked in at a set rate. Another suggestion was to consider Act 47 for distressed municipalities and Act 205, if the city were to become eligible, which is for distressed pensions.
The Pa. Economy League is headquartered in Harrisburg but has a distributed staffing model, with workers in several areas of the state. The agency has sister organizations in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and has been doing this type of work or 86 years. The goal of the project is to foster good government that is efficient and cost-effective.
During the regular City Council meeting immediately following, council approved resolutions for:
Approved the EADS Group Inc. for construction inspection services for the Elm Street Bridge, noting OECD received five bids from PennDOT qualified construction inspection firms and a quote from the EADS Group for $242,290.97 for services for the project.
