Minutes - Finance Committee

Malden City Hall

215 Pleasant Street

Malden, MA 02148

City of Malden

Meeting Minutes - Final

Finance Committee

Councillor McDonald, Chair

Councillor Taylor, Vice Chair

Councillor Condon

Councillor Luong

Councillor Sica

Councillor Simonelli

Tuesday, June 2, 2026

6:00 PM

City Hall

215 Pleasant Street

Room 105

Malden, MA 02148

Watch the meeting with Teams: https://tinyurl.com/5yxt6zz9

A quorum of the City Council may be present at this meeting. While no formal votes or actions

are anticipated by the City Council, members may participate in the discussion of topics listed

on this agenda. This notice is filed to ensure compliance with the Open Meeting Law should a

quorum of the parent body be present.

Roll Call

4 - Carey McDonald, Ari Taylor, Michelle Luong and Jadeane Sica

2 - Paul Condon and Chris Simonelli

Present:

Absent:

Also Present: Council President Linehan, Councillors Colon Hayes, Crowe,

O'Malley, Winslow

Mayor Christenson

Maria Luise-Special Assistant to the Mayor

Charles Ranaghan-Controller/CFO

Zaheer Samee-Assistant City Solicitor

Dora St. Martin-Director Malden Public Library

Dr. Timothy Sippel-Superintendent of Malden Public Schools

Sharon Rose-Zeiberg-Member of Malden School Committee Finance

Committee

Daniel Grover-Treasurer

Alex Pratt-Director of Office of Strategic Planning and Development

Councillor McDonald called the meeting to order at 6:06 PM.

There will be audio and video of this meeting via Teams.

Minutes to be Approved

283-26

Minutes of May 26, 2026 to be approved.

A motion was made by Councillor Taylor, seconded by Councillor Luong, that the

Committee Minutes of May 26, 2026 to be approved. The motion carried by a

unanimous vote.

Business

233-26

Order: The Mayor will submit the Fiscal Year 2027 Annual Appropriation Orders for

the General Fund.

Sponsors: Carey McDonald

Attachments: Mayor Christenson's Memo

Link to Proposed FY2027 Budget

FY 2027 Summary Report Expenditures by Department for DBB

Finance Schedule of Meetings

FY2027 Budget Overview May 4th 2026

FINAL FINANCE COMMITTEE SCHEDULE FOR DEPARTMENT

MEETINGS FY27 PROPOSED BUDGET

Please read this as my public comment at the June 2nd Public

Hearing 233-26

Comments for Open City Council Meeting Today 233-26

Finance Committee-Superintendent Presentation

Memo from CFO Reporting Error 6226

Mayor's Response to City Council Request to Amend the Budget

Revised Budget Appropriation FY27, as of June 4 2026

Councillor McDonald explained this is the last hearing with our department heads Dora St

Martin, Library, Dr. Timothy Sippel, Superintendent, Malden Pubic Schools and Alex

Pratt, Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development. They announced the

Finance Committee will recess at 7:00 PM for the Committee of the Whole Meeting and

conduct the Public Hearing of the Budget and we will reconvene for further discussion of

the Finance Committee Meeting once the meeting is over. Dora St Martin, Director of

Malden Public Library started with the Library FY27 Budget.

Dora St Martin, Director Malden Public Library said first she wanted to say is that we all

expected that things were going to be a lot worse so she could say thank you. The idea

of this budget was to maintain as much public forward facing and programs and services

as we could and to make sure that we didn't have to cut library hours, which was not only

affect some of our other revenue, but denied public access to their libraries. She

explained that the primary goal for the FY2027 library budget was to preserve as many

public programs and services as possible, specifically avoiding cuts to library hours,

which would impact both revenue and public access. The library department implemented

operational cuts by delaying certain expenditures, such as library binding, reducing office

supply purchases, and selectively cutting online databases, while prioritizing essential

services and leveraging state aid to maintain book services. She noted that 81% of the

library budget is allocated to staff, limiting the scope for cuts, and acknowledged ongoing

union impact bargaining for staff positions, which is being handled by the mayor's team.

Since 2014, the library has raised approximately $2.5 million through foundations, donors,

fundraising, and grants, with programs like the summer reading initiative funded entirely

by individual donors, and plans to continue these efforts.

Councillor McDonald asked Dora to verify if with this budget do we meet state minimum

spending requirements for the Massachusetts Library Board?

Mayor Christenson confirmed yes we will meet it.

Councillor McDonald welcomed Superintendent Sippel and let people know they could

find the schools budget it is on the schools website.

Dr. Timothy Sippel, Superintendent Malden Public Schools shared his screen with a

presentation (see attached). He started by explaining the school district's FY2027

budget totals $102 million, with net school spending including $27 million in municipal

costs such as health insurance, retirement, and facilities, and is governed by Chapter 70

state law, which sets minimum spending requirements and funding formulas. A decline

in student enrollment, particularly among English language learners, was noted as a

factor affecting state aid, with foundation enrollment figures including students in Malden

Public Schools and those attending other public schools, but excluding vocational and

charter school students. The district anticipates 77 students in out-of-district

placements, with tuition and transportation costs partially reimbursed through the circuit

breaker program, though reimbursement only applies after certain thresholds and covers

up to 75% of eligible expenses. A $1.2 million error in health insurance reporting was

identified and corrected, leading to amended budget submissions and implementation of

internal control changes, as outlined in a memo from the CFO/controller, which will be

shared with the council. The school department receives several federal and state

grants, including Title I, IDEA, and circuit breaker funds, with recent changes in grant

amounts due to programmatic adjustments and transitions between federal and state

funding sources. The budget honors collective bargaining agreements with the Modern

Education Association, including cost-of-living increases for teachers and support staff,

and reallocates staffing based on enrollment and programmatic needs, particularly for

students with disabilities.

Councillor McDonald asked Alex Pratt to share his budget highlights with the committee

Alex Pratt, Director of Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development and

began by stating approximately 75% of department staff costs are covered by federal

grants, and since the merger with the redevelopment authority in July 2021, the

department has secured nearly $50 million in grants, supporting programs such as

housing rehab, down payment assistance, and community outreach. The department will

not backfill a retiring clerk, requiring increased collaboration and reduced silos among

remaining staff to maintain operations and resilience in the face of a smaller team. He

also explained the department maintains separate budgets for CDBG, HOME, and other

grant-funded projects, with annual action plans and budget details available on the

department website, though grants outside the general fund are not included in the city’s

main budget documents.

Councillor Winslow said one of the things we have not had a transportation plan around

staff consistently until the past two years. He thanks Mayor Christenson for putting that

forward its a new addition to the budget over the last two years. What's the hope of

having a transportation plan and making us more competitive for these important grants?

What value does this raise?

Alex explained the 44 million in grants that we've brought in since July 21, about $14

million of that have been competitive transportation grants,the addition of a transportation

planner has enabled the department to secure $14 million in competitive transportation

grants, making the city more competitive for state and federal funding, and supporting

projects such as Broadway and Greenway improvements.

Councillor McDonald appreciates the point about the money they have brought in and

asked Alex if he could provide them with the list of the competitive grants that OSPCD

has helped us out to get in the last year

Alex said sure we can do that

Councillor Crowe said she noticed you have the City Budget at $477,000 but what is the

bottom line budget

Alex said if you're looking at how much we're spending annually, including on grants, that

changes into the year or rehab program has a couple different grants that it allows on, I'd

say on the staff side, you're looking at again, 1.1mill, if you're looking at our projects,

you. 2 mill from CDBG, 2 million from home and another 2 million from the rehab program

that varies from year to year and then when you're looking at the planning and everything

on the side of the various all sort of river works project this year, I think we're spending

13 million projects in a year, which is a really big deal. That is all grants needed, but

that's not a part of the year over year. it'll fluctuate.

Councillor McDonald explained just to highlight your point then, that if it's at 20, if you're

distributing $20 million to the benefits of the city and we're spending 400,000 out of the

general fund then

$20 million is coming into the City that is great. They clarified the proposed budget and

the annual appropriation funds only covers the general Fund and other funds that the

Council approves, so grants that we receive that are outside the general fund and outside

our approval don't show up. We have to look separate for that.

Alex said so much of what we do is so much of what we do is there's grants It starts to

overstate it. The grants number is 75% of our staff or more.

Councillor O'Malley addressed questions about increased communication and

miscellaneous expenses

Alex clarified that communication includes ads and translation services, while

miscellaneous covers payments to DEP, insurance, and other operational costs.

Councillor McDonald thanked Alex and stated the committee will now stand in recess at

7:12 PM and explained we will leave the Teams meeting on but we're going to turn off the

camera and the sound.

Councillor McDonald reconvened the Finance Committee Meeting at 9:04 PM and asked

the committee following that public hearing, is there any discussion or comments that

folks want to raise, and then if folks would like to raise suggestions about changes and

like to see now would be the time to do so.

Councillor Winslow considered offering discounts to residents who opt for electronic

billing,

Dan Grover Treasurer clarified that legal obligations require mailing bills unless residents

elect electronic delivery, and that charging for mailed bills is not permitted.

Councillor McDonald agreed to include electronic billing and mail reduction as a topic for

future investigation, aiming to identify potential budgetable savings and efficiencies.

Councillor Winslow mentioned professional services in various offices which could be

dedicated to language access. He also brought up the events they have taken a

significant cut on such as 4th of July but there are also $8,000 dedicated to public

safety days maybe taking 50%. He mentions these are a few minor things in reach to

fund language access funds.

Councillor Linehan was going to take a step back and take a larger higher view of what

we heard and also from councillor's that could not be here. Councillors have reached out

with me with a desire to be added back in with the linguistic support there are two in the

building which are the language access position and then there's the public facing

election support and constituent support. She also feels we need to discuss the Ward

4th of July bucket as well that Councillor Sica put in as a resolve we got a lot of

community feedback that constituents didn't want to see the rollback of community

services and ward services . She suggests cutting back on the amount was in there but

not getting rid of them. None of these are fixing anything but putting a band aid on. We

have a major problem ahead.

Councillor Taylor discussed restoring the city clerk position with a language access

component, debated funding levels for Ward and at-large Councillors, and considered the

impact of language access services on community engagement, culminating in a formal

motion to request the Mayor restore these funds proposed allocation of $7,500 for Ward

Councillors and $2,500 for Councillors-at-Large and for reallocating professional services

funds $40,000 to support language access in the City Clerk's Office $107,500 total. She

would also like to see us really focus on kind of those smaller ways that we can recoup

some of the money and looking at other areas to save possibly if we need to look at

raising fees, fines or things like that which will help us go forward.

The following motion was made by Councillor Taylor, seconded by Councillor Luong, on

behalf of the Finance Committee, formally request the Mayor consider the following

changes: adding back in the language access component in the City Clerk's Office

$40,000 and also restore some of the City Council funds: $7,500 for Ward Councillors

and $2,500 for Councillors-at-Large. The motion carried by a unanimous vote totaling

$107,500.00 Roll Call Vote: Taylor-yes Sica-yes Luong-yes McDonald-yes Passes 4/0

Councillor Sica mentioned she put in the motion to resolve the 4th of July funds so she

wouldn't agree to that but would like to approve putting back the funds for the language

access position in the Clerk's Office.

Councillor Crowe discussed whether the clerk’s job description should be updated to

reflect expanded responsibilities

Carol Ann highlighted the importance of language access for community meetings and

constituent services, noting that the clerk, Anna, provides translation in multiple Asian

dialects and supports outreach to isolated communities. She also clarified that Anna is

a contract employee working 17 hours per week, and acknowledgment of state mandates

requiring translation of certain documents. Existing systems for translation include

language lines, vendor services, and multilingual staff, with the clerk coordinating and

facilitating access to these resources, especially for public-facing departments.

Councillor Luong explained in Ward 7 her services have been irreplaceable where we

have a large Asian Population. She asks what systems have been put in place to

replace the other language access position

Maria said we have language lines, pocket talks, vendors for translations, most

departments have been trained and know these resources are available. Dan and

Kamala and those the two offices that are most public facing that have most foot traffic

during the day.

Carol Ann said we don't have to go very far for language access on the second floor. Ana

is very good with the outreach and just knowing how to find the resources, we actually

see people in the Chinese community that will plan their trip to City Hall.

Councillor Crowe asked if there are limitations to the mitigation funds are there any

restrictions of things you couldn't use them for.

Chuck explained mitigation funds are restricted to capital improvements such as trees,

benches, and playground equipment, and cannot be used for community events, with

availability varying by ward and recent allocations being unpredictable. Ward

improvement funds are different they can be use for Wards events. Mitigation funds can

only be used for capital improvements.

Councillor McDonald said from the Chair they are willing to support this.

Councillor Linehan mentioned the Community Connections grant was identified as a

resource to support community organizations and events, supplementing ward funds and

enabling broader community engagement.

Councillor McDonald asked if there were any other proposals

Councillor Sica made the following recommendation would be the gardner for $17,100 she

said Julie does wonderful things in the Community Garden but she also has volunteers

who help her with the community fridges. She also has residents who help by

volunteering behind the scenes. She would hope Julie would still stay on but suggests

having students from the High School to help her out. She is just stating for the record

that might be a line item we can look at. It's a small amount but could bridge a little of

the gap.

Councillor Winslow discussed the potential for creating a nonprofit organization to

support community gardening and fridge programs, drawing on examples from other

communities and emphasizing the need for sustainable funding beyond ward allocations.

Councillor thanked everyone and stated we will be convening in finance and expect this to

be on the floor so that you can think about next week prior to the Full Council Meeting.

The committee will continue discussion of the FY/27 Proposed Budget with the

following Departments:

Dora St Martin-Director, Malden Public Library

Alex Pratt-Director, Office of Strategic Planning and Development

Dr. Timothy Sippel-Superintendent, Malden Public Schools

Jen Spadafora-Finance Chair, Malden School Committee

Other departments and budget areas as needed

The Committee will recess at 7 pm for the budget public hearing. Following the

public hearing, the Finance Committee may reconvene to consider a vote on

amendments or motions proposed for the FY/27 Appropriation Order.

Adjournment

A motion was made by Councillor Sica, seconded by Councillor Taylor, that this

meeting be adjourned at 9:52 PM.. The motion carried unanimously.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, please contact Maria Luise, ADA

Compliance Coordinator at mluise@cityofmalden.org or 781-397-7000 Ext. 2005

For instructions on enabling live translated captions in Teams, please visit: