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CCMtg01-05-09Min LONGWOOD CITY COMMISSION Longwood City Commission Chambers 175 West Warren Avenue Longwood, Florida 1VIINUTES JANUARY 5, 2009 7:00 P.M. Present: Mayor Brian D. Sackett Deputy Mayor John C. Maingot Commissioner Joe Durso Commissioner Mike Holt Commissioner H.G. "Butch" Bundy Teresa S. Roper, City Attorney John J. Drago, City Administrator Sarah M. Mirus, City Clerk Richard Kornbluh, Division Manager of Utilities Tom Jackson, Police Chief Evelyn Cohen, Fire Department Laurie Mooney, Fire Cliief Carol Rogers, Director of Financial Services Ryan Spinella, Executive Assistant Paul Sizemore, Director of Community Services Fran Meli, Recreation Program Manager 1. CALL TO ORDER. Mayor Sackett called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. 2. A moment of .SILENT MEDITATION was followed by the. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. 3. COMMUNITY` ANNOUNCEMENTS. Ms. Mirus read the following announcements: A. .Florida Music will be held on January 16, 2009 from 6:00 p.m. until 9:30 p.m., Longwood Community Building, 200 West Warren Avenue. B. Movie. in the Park will be held on January 16, 2009 beginning at 7:00 p.m., Candyland Park, 599 Longdale Avenue. This month's feature is Kung Fu Panda. C. A Blue Grass Pickin° will be held on January 17, 2009 from 7:00 p.m. until 10.:00 p.m., Longwood Community Building, 200 West Warren . Avenue. CC 01-OS-09/ 1 4. RECOGNITIONS/PROCLAMATIONS. A. District #1 Presentation of the >~usiness Person of the Month Award for January 2009 to Betsey Flowers of Schakolad Chocolate Factory located at 2425 West State Road 434, Suite No. 187. Deputy Mayor Maingot read a brief biography on Ms. Flowers and presented her with the Business Person of the Month Award for January 2009. Photographs were then taken. B. Presentation of Certificate of Appreciation to Mrs. Judy Putz for all of her contributions to the Longwood Families in Need Program.. Mayor Sackett read an,electronic mail dated December 12, 2008 from Ms. Evelyn Cohen to Ms. Meli asking for Mrs. Putz to be recognized for all of her contributions to the Longwood Families in Need Program. He presented Mrs, Putz with a Certificate of Appreciation. Photographs were then taken. 5. BOARD APPOINTMENTS. A. District #3 Nomination to the Ethics Committee. Commissioner Holt nominated 1VIr. Randy Porter, 401 Tullis Avenue, to the Ethics Committee. Nomination carried by a unanimous voice vote. ~ 6. PUBLIC INPUT. ~ ~ A. Public Participation. None. 7. CITY ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT. No report. 8. .MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS' REPORT. District #1. No report. District #2. Commissioner Durso reported Mrs. Putz also made donations to the children in the Seminole County Program and thanked her for~her generosity. He said he would be attending the Tri-County League of Cities meeting. He referenced Item 9 C of the Consent Agenda regarding the Futsal Court. He asked than City staff develop. a low cost, high impact ad campaign to let citizens know of services that are available. He stated he had discussed with Ms. Meli regarding some ideas the City can use to let people know about the various programs. Commissioner Durso said he had some questions regarding the Severn Trent Contract. He requested information on December 15~' which he has not received. Mr. Drago said it was his understanding that Ms. Rogers was to have a meeting with Commissioner Durso to frame the financial information he was requesting. He .stated this meeting has not taken place. CC O1-OS-09/ 2 Commissioner Durso said he would still like a copy of the Contract. ~ District #3. No report. I District #4. Commissioner Bundy reported the Commissioners have all been contacted by the Dog Track regarding their expansion .plans as well as having • been contacted from the Church. He said when they were working with ACi regarding mixed-use and the design. standards that ACi has the ability to work with the City on economic development issues. He suggested with this project, and several other projects, it would behoove the City to have Ms. Rogers get some numbers from ACi and have them act as a City representative.~He stated this would be an opportunity for the City to move forward in a professional manner. He asked for a consensus from the Commission to have City staff contact ACi to come up with some numbers and a game plan, and then place this on as an agenda item. He declared this would be a good investment for the City. Mayor Sackett said he would be in agreement to have staff make those contacts to ACi to see what they can do to spur development. Commissioner Holt inquired if they were asking to look at ACi as a consultant to businesses coming to the community. Commissioner Bundy said ACi would be more of a Technical Facilitator for the . City. He stated they were already under contract with the City and the contract ~ could be amended. Mr. Drago said lie believed it was in their contract to act as the City's consultant when developers, come in for a design review.. Commissioner Bundy suggested they could formalize this more by placing a dollar amount. He said there were several projects on the board. He stated ACi has been great and it was unfair to impose on them something they normally get paid to do. It was the consensus of the Commission to have staff obtain the information from ACi and bring it forward at the February 2, 2009 City Commission meeting. Mr. Drago inquired if the Commission would be interested in tying this to a pass through fee with a large developer. Commissioner Bundy said as long as this was set up so the developer was paying the City. Commissioner Bundy said they have started the search process for the City Administrator. He stated they don't know how long this will take. He suggested CC O1-OS-09/ 3 _ r they direct the Personnel Manager to start making contacts regarding availability of Interim Administrators. ~ ~.J ' District #5. Mayor Sackett wished everyone a Happy New Year and to move ~ forward with a positive year.. 9. CONSENT AGENDA. A. Approve Minutes of the December 8, 2008 Special Meeting and the December 15, 20.08 Regular Meeting. B. Finance Division of the Financial Services Department recommends payment of approved and estimated bills for January 2009. C. The Recreation Division of the Community Services Department, recommends the City Commission approve a purchase order for the Futsal Court construction project at Candyland Park to Ovation Construction, Inc. in the amount of $53,695.73 and authorize the City Administrator to sign. all appropriate documents. D. Public Utilities Division recommends the City Commission approve a change order in the amount of $289,704.82 to Purchase Order Number 13087 for a total Purchase order amount of $636,816.82 for Blue Ox Enterprises, LLC to construct wader system pipe replacement in the Shadow Hills subdivision and authorize the City Administrator ~ ~ to sign all appropriate documents: Commissioner Bundy moved to approve the Consent Agenda as submitted. Seconded by Commissioner Durso. Discussion was ..held regarding Item D. Commissioner Holt said at the last meeting there were three Consent Items pulled for discussion. He had indicated he would be voting no on those three items. However, the vote ended up being on the entire Consent Agenda. He wanted to clarify that his intent was to vote no on those three items only. He inquired if, in the future, they could vote on those items separately. . Ms. Roper said they could vote separately on pulled items and then go back to the Consent Agenda for the remaining items. Motion carried by a unanimous roll call vote. 10. PUBLIC HEARINGS: None. CC O1-05=09/ 4 11. REGULAR BUSINESS. ~ A. The Community Development Division of the Community Services Department recommends the City Commission discuss a proposal by CBS Outdoor to remove the billboard located at the Township Plaza and rebuild it a few feet west of its current location and provide direction deemed appropriate. Mr. Sizemore said CBS Outdoor approached the City regarding the billboard; located on a piece of leased property out of the Township Plaza parcel. There is an existing billboard structure there and CBS is looking to make some improvements to it. The City's Sign Ordinance has provisions that set the number of billboards currently allowed in the City. He stated there was a provision for the removal of billboards. In order for that to happen and allow the billboard to be reconstructed, there has to be an agreement between the City and the applicant prior to proceeding with that process. He affirmed there were not a lot of specifics on the type of agreement that would be required of the stipulations to be involved. This would bel a legally binding agreement between the City and the applicant and places it at the Commission's discretion on whether to approve it. He said the Applicant requested this item be placed on the Agenda to discuss the feasibility of such an agreement prior to their moving forward with their legal teams working with the. City Attorney on drafting such an agreement.. ~ Bobby Hill, Real Estate Representative for CBS Outdoor, 2687 South Design Court, Sanford, said they have a billboard that has been in it's location for more than 20 years. They are proposing putting in an LED billboard. He stated one of their competitor's has an LED billboard in Longwood at 17-92 and 434. At that site, the structure supported the LED billboard ~ He affirmed the structure at Rangeline and State Road 434 was not strong enough to support an LED sign. He said the new billboard poles are vibrated into the ground and they would need to put in a new pole to support the weight of the structure. They have been working closely with the property owner and he was in favor of this. He stated they would like to know if the City would consider allowing them to relocate the sign just. a few feet over. Mayor Sackett .inquired if they were talking LED on one side or both sides. Mr. Hill said it would be on one side only, on the east side. He stated the maximum size for an LED was 672 square feet which is a little larger than the current sign. He advised they only make two sizes of the LED signs, 10 x 40 and 14 x 48. He said they would have to completely remove the existing sign and pole and put in a new pole and sign. CC O1-OS-09/ 5 Mayor Sackett asked Mr. Sizemore when the monument sign was reviewed, what did they discuss when it carne to billboard signs. He said the goal was to get rid of billboards in the City. Mr. Sizemore said the Ordinance was structured in such a way that it prevents new billboard signs from showing up. He stated that having the provision of requiring the agreement, means that if they want to remove one, they are required to obtain permission from the Commission to put a new sign in its place. He advised there were 19 billboard signs at this time and if one goes away with no agreement in place to replace it, then the number drops to 18 and there cannot be any .new ones. Mayor Sackett inquired if they could place conditions on the sign such as allowing the City to advertise on it. Mr. Hill said they were the largest outdoor advertising firm in the United States. They deal with cities and counties and follow their ordinances. He stated they wanted to discuss this with the City prior to negotiating a new lease. He advised they recently vibrated a pipe in the ground approximately nine feet from a building and this was a much more safe way to put a pipe in the ground. Deputy Mayor Maingot inquired how far from the curb was the existing I sign. ~ ~ Mr. Hill said they were currently at the 15 foot setback. He stated they did meet with FDOT regarding the expansion of State Road 434, and the sign will meet the setback requirements. Commissioner Holt said .this was not going to be a centered sign. He stated the road was coming through and they must be moving the sign because FDOT has told them it interfered with the road design. Mr. Hill responded in the affirmative. He said they obtained maps from . .the engineers in order to pick a spot. Commissioner Holt inquired what kind of bonds they had with vibrating the pole. Mr. Hill said they use subcontractors they have worked with for years that have multimillion dollar insurance policies. Discussion ensued regarding having LED advertising on .both sides of the sign. I CC O1-OS-09/ 6 Mr. Hill said the .marketing was not feasible at this time to advertise on both sides. He stated the eastbound traffic may support a tri-vision sign. Commissioner Durso asked Mr. Hill to clarify where they were proposing to move the sign. Mr. Hill pointed out on a photograph the area being proposed. Commissioner Durso inquired, if when the road is widened, will the base of the sign still meet the Code. Mr. Hill said it would be exactly across from the. same location. Commissioner Bundy said the outer most portion of the sign was required to have a 15 foot setback. He inquired if the State was acquiring additional right-of--way in this area. Mr. Sizemore. said as far as he knew, not at this time. Commissioner Bundy said once they get up to Rangeline Road there will be a merge lane. He stated if the State requires any additional right-of- way; it will not be within the 15 feet. I=Ie said he did not want to create a situation or problem in the suture. He stated the original plans called for a Fifth Third Bank in this area. He said the other LED signs are not allowed i to change their message more often than every five minutes due to public safety. Mr. Hill said this was an unusual situation where they don't have to go to the State; to obtain a State tag. He stated they want to make sure they are in the right -spot if this road. does expand. He has asked the property owner: to allow relocating the sign further back. Commissioner Bundy said the billboard was there and they were not letting go of billboard locations. He suggested the Commissioners meet. individually with staff to let them know what they would like to include in the agreement. Mr. Sizemore can then forward this to Mr. Hill to review. Mayor Sackett said he would like to offer input to City staff to compile a document. Deputy Mayor Maingot said he would like to see this sign go away. Commissioner Durso said they have to negotiate with them so not to contribute further to the neglect on this property. He stated this particular urea was an area of potential significant economic development for the City. Having this sign there could either help or hurt. CC O1-OS-09/ 7 Commissioner Holt inquired if CBS Outdoor had to move the sign because of.the road expansion project. Mr. Hill advised they have not been told that, but the preliminary plans for the road expansion, which are not finalized, could have the tip of the sign lead -into the 15 foot setback. He stated they also mentioned how long it will be before this road expands. Commissioner Bundy said they could not make this billboard go away without writing. them a check. He stated they can renew the lease on the existing sign. He said he would rather see something newer and attractive there on which they can negotiate terms.. He declared this was a unique opportunity for the City., Mayor Sackett said they have a recommendation to meet individually with staff. He would like to see them all meet with staff within a week to ten days. Commissioner Durso requested staff to be proactive in setting up the meetings to get this done as quickly as possible. Commissioner Bundy moved that the. Commissioners meet with staff individually within. one week to ten days. Seconded by Commissioner Holt and carried by a four/one roll. call vote with Deputy Mayor Maingot voting nay. Mayor Sackett requested this be an agenda. item the first Commission meeting in February.. B. The City Clerk requests the City Commission discuss Section 2-313, Paragraph (t) Failure to attend meetings of the, City Code and give staff the direction deemed appropriate. 1VIs. Mires said this matter was briefly discussed at the December 15~' City Commission meeting under her report. The Commission requested she bring this item forward for further discussion. Mayor Sackett said the Code currently states, "Any member who fails to attend three meetings of a board and committee in a 12-month calendar year shall automatically forfeit his appointment and the city commission shall fill such vacancy as soon as possible." He stated they also discussed that this included special meetings, but not emergency meetings. He said if a member missed three meetings in one calendar year they could be re- appointed the next year. ~i CC O1-OS-09/ 8 Commissioner Durso said there were two changes he would like to see ~ made to the Policy. The first is changing it from three meetings per calendar year to another number per term. He stated, theoretically, it was possible to miss four meetings in a row and not face any consequence whatsoever. He said in his case, there was an appointment made through his District Seat that took effect after he took office and he had no input in this matter. That person was off the Board and re-appointed to serve, denying him. the right to appoint someone for the next three-years. The second change he would like to see is to include an election exception where a City Commissioner who is either resigning or is in a contested race for re-election may not make an .appointment or reappointment to any board or committee if the term of the appointment begins after Election. Day. He stated he would like the City Attorney to alter the subsequent sections to the Code to make those changes. He said it was only fair that. people who are elected be able to make appointments. He stated it is their responsibility to appoint people they believe will institute the policies and beliefs that they put forth as elected officials. . Deputy Mayor Maingot said he did not entirely agree with this, as the incumbent has the authority to make this appointment. To restrict that is denying them their right. Commissioner Durso said he would like to point out that he was denied ~ the right'to appoint a member to the Codes Enforcement Board fora three- year term by a Commissioner who made an appointment that took effect after he was a sworn Commissioner. Mayor Sackett suggested they first discuss the absences per calendar year versus per term: Commissioner Bundy said he felt strongly about attendance to board meetings. He stated if you are going to participate, this was part of the responsibility. He said he would like to see removing the wording. "calendar year" and have it a rotating 12-month and you. could also say five meetings within a term. He stated several of the boards do not meet monthly. He suggested they could state five times within a term or three meetings within any 12-month period. Deputy Mayor Maingot said he would like to see one possible exception to • this; if a person in good standing happens to fall. ill after missing two meetings: Commissioner Durso said if someone does fall ill, that Commissioner can theoretically understand and re-appoint that person. He stated there was a lack of accountability and people can skirt the rules. CC O1-DS-09/ 9 Mayor Sackett asked the City Clerk if other cities had anything similar to • this. He said he liked the idea of term, but did not know what the magic number would be. . Commissioner Bundy said you didn't want to make it too many. He stated to address Deputy Mayor Maingot's concern; they already have the ability to re-appoint. ~Ms. Minis stated that she could research that information. Mayor Sackett inquired if the notification came after missing two meetings. Ms. Minis responded in the affirmative. Mayor Sackett said they also needed to include when notification would occur. He asked the City Attorney if there was any problem with changing the wording. Ms. Roper said as long as it was not in the Charter. She suggested they also needed to define what a meeting was. In her opinion, as it stands now, it would be any meeting, including emergency meetings. Commissioner Bundy said prior to the current. Ordinance, each Board ~ wrote their own rules and regulations. He stated their.intention previously ~ was to include regular meetings and special meetings, but not emergency meetings. He said this was an oversight by whoever drafted the Ordinance. Mayor Sackett reiterated they will use the wording "per term". He requested the City Clerk research what other cities are doing, He said they were discussing five meetings. Commissioner Bundy said it would overlap. Ifyou miss three in any 12- month period you are off the board, or if you miss five in a term. Ms. Roper inquired if they were going to exclude emergency meetings. She suggested to include "with permission" or "excused" so that they are not automatically excluded. Commissioner Durso said that was reasonable.. It was the consensus of the Commission that the Chair of the Board determines if a member is excused from an emergency meeting. Commissioner Durso said the second part would basically prohibit a Commissioner who is resigning and/or running for re-election in a - CC O1-OS-09/ 10 contested race from making an appointment that would take effect after ~ ~ Election Day. Mayor Sackett inquired if this would be legal. - ~ - Ms. Roper said she would need to research the rights of a sitting Commissioner and whether this can be prohibited. - Mayor Sackett asked the City Clerk to forward the information she obtains to the City Attorney. He requested the City Attorney .draft something for the Commission to review prior to-the meeting. Commissioner Holt clarified if the 12-month period commenced upon appointment and a member can only miss three meetings within the 12- month period or five meetings within a term. - Ms. Mirus responded in the affirmative. 12. CITY ATTORNEY'S REPORT. No report. 13. CITY CLERK'S REPORT. Ms. Mirus reported the Martin Luther King, Jr. Award will be presented at the next meeting. Also, at the February 2nd Commission meeting the JOY Awards will be presented. Commissioner Bundy inquired when the Resolution would be brought forward that the Commission reached a consensus on regarding eliminating At Will Contracts, and who would be presenting it. Mayor Sackett said he thought it was coming through the Attorney's Office. Ms. Mirus said she understood it would be the Attorney's Office since Commissioner Bundy spoke to Mr. Roper regarding the matter. Commissioner Holt inquired about the information provided to them from the City Attorney's. Office.. Ms. Roper said the Commission had requested Mr. Roper to provide periodic updates on all litigation. De~uty Mayor Maingot said he would be having surgery on Wednesday, January 14 and he was riot sure whether he would be able to attend the January 19~' Commission meeting. CC O1-OS-09/ 11 14. ADJOURN. Mayor Sackett adjourned the meeting at 8:46 p:m. A L~~ C! Brian D. Sackett, May ATTEST: '~j Sarah M. Mirus, CMC, MBA City Clerk ~I CC ~01-OS-09/ 12