CCMtg10-16-06Min-, LOl~TOWOOD CI'T'Y COMMISSION
I~ Longwood City Commiission Chambers
175 West. Warren Avenue
Longwood, li lords
MI]vi.TT:ES
OCTOBER ].6, 2006
~:ao P.M.
Present: Mayor John C. Maingot
Deputy Mayor Dan Anderson
Commissioner Mike Holt
Commissioner H.G. "Butc:h" Bundy, Jr.
Commissioner Brian D. Sackett
Teresa S. Roper, Acting City Attorney
John J. Drago, City Administrator
Sarah M. Mirus, City Clerk
Tom Smith, Division Manager c-f Streets/Fleets
Carol Rogers, Director of Financial Services
Laurie Mooney, Fire Chief
Paul Sizemore, Interim Director of Community Services
Richard Kornbluh, Division Manager of Utilities
Tom Jackson, Police Chief
Ryan Spinella, Executive Assist;~nt
Absent: Richard S. Taylor, Jr., City Attorney (Excused)
1. CALL TO ORDER. Mayor Maingot called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.
2. A moment of SILENT MEDITATIO:w was followed by the PLEDGE OF
ALLEGIANCE.
3. COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS. The following announcements were
made:
A. Senior Matinee will be held on October 18, 20.06 from 11.:00 a.m. until
1:00 p.m., Longwood Community Building, 200 West Warren
Avenue.
B. A Blase Grass Pickin' will be held on October 21, 2006 from 7:00 p.m.
until 10:00 p.m., Longwood Community Building, 200 West Warren
Avenue.
C. CITYOFLONGWDOD FILL FESTIVAL
A Safe AlternativE~ to Trick or Treating
~ October 27t~`, October 2'8t~`, October 30th and October 31ST
Haunted House and 1loovil~.ie (Only) - 6:00-10: 00 p.m.
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FALL CARNIVAL
Tuesday, October 31S` HALLOWEEN
Haunted House and Booville
Games, Prizes, Food, Candy,lVloonwalk, Music and Lots of Fun
5:00-9: 00 p. m.
* * *Costume Contest Starting at 6: 00 p. m.
At the Longwood Police Department, 235 West Church Avenue
4. RECOGNITIONS.
A. District #5 Nomination of the Business Person of the Month Award
for November 2006.
Commissioner Sackett nominated Lyman High School, in care of Frank
Casillo, Principal, for the Business Person of the Month Award for
November 2006. Nomination carried by a unanimous voice vote.
5.
BOARD APPOINTMENTS.
A. District #5 Nomination to the Codes Enforcement Board.
Commissioner Sackett nominated Gail Brown for reappointment to the
Codes Enforcement Board. Nomination carried by a unanimous voice
vote.
B. District #1 Nomination to the Codes Enforcement Board.
Mayor Maingot nominated Bob Lomax for reappointment to the Codes
Enforcement Board. Nomination carried by a unanimous voice vote.
C. District #5 Nomination to the Codes Enforcement Board.
Commissioner .Sackett deferred the nomination.
D. District #2 Nomination to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.
Deputy Mayor Anderson nominated Abigail Shoemaker for reappointment
to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. Nomination carried by a
unanimous voice vote.
6.
PUBLIC INPUT.
A. Public Participation.
Jud~Putz, 2'80 West Warren Avenue, said she had questions for
Commissioner Bundy and hoped he would address them during his report.
She said he appeared before the Seminole County Planning and Zoning
Commission and testified in favor of the rezoning and land use change for
Mr. Towers Longwood Hills Project. She said he stated he was not
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__ speaking on behalf of the City Commission, but he was speaking as a City
~ Commissioner. She requested :he explain what he meant.by this and said it
was her understanding that a City Commissioner has no authority to .act on
his own, but only as a group.. She said he stated he was the District
Commissioner and that was why he was speaking, and he wore his badge.
Several times he said we and us when referring to the. City. She asked if
the City authorized him to make these statements. She affirmed he told the
County that the City agreed to allow 1Vlr. Towers to develop his land under
County permits and annex ui at a later date. She asked at what meeting the
Longwood City Commission voted to allow this. She said he also told the
County 1VIr. Towers withdrew his ,annexation request because he had run
into title issues with the property. She asked where this information came
from. She confirmed in checking the minutes of the Work Session of the
meeting where he requested a Work Session, he had stated that perhaps
questions could be answered and the property could be annexed into the
City. She said this was before the :Planning and 'Zoning meeting occurred.
She inquired when did he learn of the title issues and why didn't he :inform
the City Commission of this. She :Mated her final questions were; did he
feel he was acting in the best interest of the citizens of Longwood when he
testified. before the County as a City Commissioner on behalf of a
developer and how could he possibly have an impartial point of view
when this item comes before the City Commission.
JoAnne Rebello, 301 Loch Lomond Avenue, said on:August 7th the
~ Commission was approached. by Robin Butler, Seminole County Traffic
Engineering Department,. and DeL-e Schaffner, Seminole County School
Board. They asked the City i:o financially support a Driver's Education
Program after school. She said the reasoning behind this was because
funding had been cut by the State. She stated she would like to know why,
as it was never stated why. She said they were given a plethora.of statistics
stating the need for this program. She stated -she would like to hear and see
statistics that the program is working now for those students in summer
school and has it worked in t:he past. She inquired how many students who
have participated in this program have better driving records. She said
there was much discussion regarding the number of students who want to
participate and the out of pocket cost of. a private program, She stated she.
believed the figure was around $51)0 per individual. She declared the cost
proposed by the School BoaJ-d and presented to this Commission works
out to be $717.66. per student. She said, perhaps in the essence. of cost
savings, the School Board should consider vouchers for students. This
would be a cost savings of $:z17.6ti per student and works out to a cost
savings of $208,953.60. She stated- when asked if a fee could be charged,
the answer vvas "no", in order for the student to receive their half credit.
She affirmed when her children were in school they were charged to take
other classes., She .stated there could be a scholarship fund for those
students who really could not afford the program. She declared the State
law requires students with a aearners permit must have 50 hours of driving
experience with 10 hours being nil;ht driving. She stated responsibility not
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only lies with the :School Board, but also with the parents to teach children
that driving is a privilege. She said she was against a program costing
more through. the school system than it does privately. She stated she was
against any decision being made at this meeting regarding. this program
since it was not on the agenda.
7.
8.
CITY ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT:
1VIr. Drago reported he had only received one response from the Commissioners
regarding the date for the EAR Work Shop. Iie said he needed their responses in
order to set the date with Gail Easley.
It was the consensus of the Commission to hold the Work Shop on November
15th
MAYOR AND COIVIIVIISSIONERS' REPORT.
District #1. No report.
District #2. Deputy Mayor Anderson said he would like.the Commission's
consensus to discuss narni'ng the Clock Tower Park after Russ Hammond and also
to name the park and area outside the Hotel after .the Bistlines. He requested this
be placed on the agenda for discussion:
Deputy Mayor Anderson said in going through the Agenda Packets and
correspondence they were talking. with the residents regarding the lake at Jessup. ~
He stated the City was proposing if the residents will deed the portions of their
lots that are submerged; the City will take responsibility-for the maintenance. He
said he had been in contact with more than one resident on the lake off of Grant
Street. He said Mr. Sizemore had written a letter to one of the residents stating the
City could not take care of it because all of the property was private and the City
was. prohibited by the State from operating.. there.. He requested this be placed on
the agenda for discussion of extending the same arrangement in that area.
Deputy Mayor Anderson requested the consensus of'the Commission to write a
letter to Seminole County asking for clarification ofwho owns the property on
Longwood Hills Road. He said if it was the former owner's, the property is not
subject to annexation, or whether it is Mr. Towers, in which case it should be
annexed. He declared there was too. much going on there and would like Seminole
County to clarify who is the property owner of record as well as obfaining the
County's. position on this 'issue. He said with consensus he would write the letter.
Tt was the consensus of the Commission to, proceed. _
Deputy Mayor Anderson said DeDe Schaffner was present and wondering about
the Driver's Education Program. He received a call from Robin Butler earlier in
the day and he told her he would. bring this up to the Commission. He said she had
been told that Mr. Towers wants to arrange for the donation of six (6) cars to the __i
School Board for the program if Longwood would pay for title and the other
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___~ work. He advised the cost would be approximately $3,000. per vehicle if the City
wanted to do that instead of funding. I4e said this would put the program through.
~~`~' He requested the Commission plaeE; this on the next agenda for discussion.
Mayor Maingot said he would like clarification on this matter through the City
Attorney.
Ms. Roper -said she would check into the pnatter.
Deputy Mayor Anderson said he was not sure if he was allowed to bring up this
issue since he was on the losing end of the motion.
District #3. Commissioner Holt reported he received a letter from'the
Department of Transportation asking someone to be at the Thursday, November
9, 2006 meeting from 3:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at the Altamonte Springs Hilton in
the Royal Palm Ballroom. He advised he would not be able to attend and
requested the City sent a represental:ive to this.
Deputy Mayor Anderson said he was planning on attending.
Commissioner Holt said hopefully e;veryone had. been able to facilitate the
Longwood Police Department in their request on the CERT Program. He affirmed
mowing was still an issue and requested the City Administrator look into the
matter. He stated there was a lot of `work €;oing on within the City and the j ob sites
needed to be clean and safe. He said. some questions had been brought forward
regarding the Driver's Education Prograrrp. and inquired if Ms. Schaffner could
come forward and answer some of t:he questions.
Ms. Roper advised it would be appropriate to find out whether the issue could be
readdressed prior to .having public input o:n it.
Distr-ict #4. Commissioner Bundy ,said t17.e Barrington homeowners had formed
their committee and had come up with Borne designs. He said he had discussed
with the City Administrator regarding the Commission coming early prior to the.
November 6th Commission meeting for a'VUork Session with them to address their
questions and review their designs fir the front entrance.
It was the consensus of the Commission to hold a Work Session November 6th
with Barrington homeowners from Ei:00 - 5:45 p.m.
Comrrrissoner Bundy said he would. provide the City Clerk with a list of their
questions.
Commissioner Bundy said he would continue to address anyone or any group
when someone makes a request. He said he was at the. Planning and Zoning
meeting at the County to clarify what the City Commission had agreed to at the
~~ Work Session with Mr. Towers. He said they had agreed he would develop under
the County rules subject to the City's desi;m standards and. Mr. Towers had
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agreed. He affirmed he did not feel a need to address Mrs. Putz's .questions as it _
was all stated in the public records.
District #5. Commissioner Sackett said Checker's had left town and their sign
needed to be covered or removed. He reported his family was recently honored
with his wife, Mary, being a National Philanthropist of the year. He advised she
was involved with Habitat for Humanity, Ovarian Cancer Society, and Make. a
Wish Foundation. He said last year the Relay for Life was held at Rock Lake
Middle School and so far, it was his understanding, it will be hosted again. He
advised the Relay for Life was an adventure by the American Cancer Society and
he has been encouraged to head up a team. He said the next meeting is October
24th and he had fourteen (14) volunteers so far. He stated he would donate his
month's salary as a Commissioner to pay for the registration of three teams.
Commissioner Bundy said'he'would match the challengeand donate his City
Commission salary to the effort as well.
Commissioner Holt also said to put him down for the same.
Commissioner Sackett said he was stopped. in the Candyland Park area by
someone who wanted to thank the Police Department for having more patrols in
that. area. He said they- have noticed people. taking care of their yards and this has
been a positive experience. He also received a thank you. from the people of
Devonshire who noticed the airboat being out on Mud Lake to take care of the
vegetation: He said the Candyland bal'1 fields looked as if they were.not being
maintained to a level he would expect them to be and questioned if it was a matter
of too much play or not enough water.
Ivlr. Drago said he -had placed a memo in the Commission mailboxes regarding
this issue. He stated when Ms. Meli spoke to the turf specialist.he said. to take the
fields down one day would not accomplish. what, they wanted.' He said they do
take the fields down twice a year for.four weeks. In the professional's opinion that
was what they can do relative'to use. He advised the. residents were. also using the
fields more as the Commission intended.
Mayor Maingot said the fields were being mowed constantly; therefore,, there was
no root development. He stated growth came with root development.
Commissioner Sackett reported he.had an upcoming meeting with the people
from Winsor Manor who desire to get involved in the process of changing their
entry. He reported he could not find two volunteers for the CERT Program and
requested Commissioner Holt. to put forth two volunteers on his behalf.
9. CONSENT AGENDA..
A. Approve Minutes of October 2, 2006 Regular Meeting.
B. Finance Division of the Financial Services Department recommends `,J
payment of approved and estimated bills for October 2006.
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~ C. Finance Division of the Financial Services Department recommends
approval of the Monthly Fiinancial Report for September 2006.
I~
D. Streets/Fleet Division of tlne Public Works Department .recommends
the City Commission approve a purchase order with Streicher Mobile
Fueling, Inc. in the. amount of $198,000 for the purchase of gasoline
and diesel fuel for the fiscal. year and authorize the City
Administrator to sign all appropriate documents.
E. The Streets/F1eet.Division and the Utilities Division of the Public
Works Department .recommends the City Commission approve the
purchase of six (6) 2007 Ford pickup trucks from Don Reid Ford, in
the amount of $112,254.00 and authorize the City Administrator to
sign all appropriate documents.
F. The Community Development Diivisiion of the Community Service
Department recommends the City Commission approve awarding a
work authorization with Metzger & Willard, Inc., for professional
general engineering services for snot-to-exceed amount of $27,500
and authorize the City Administrator to sign all appropriate
documents.
G. The Community Development Division of the Community Services
Department recommends the City Commission approve the purchase
order to All American .Aquatics Company for the amount of $32,860
for aquatic management services and authorize the City
Administrator to sign all. approp~°iate documents.
H. City Administrator recommends the City Commission approve an
agreement with Sandhill Homes, Inc. in the amount of $.77,620 and
authorize the City Administrator to sign the necessary documents.
Commissioner I=Iolt rrxoved to approve the Consent Agenda, as
presented, Items 9A-H. Seconded by C.omrnissioner Sackett and
carried by a unanimous roll. call vote.
10. PUBLIC' HEARINGS.
A. City Administrator recommends the City Commission read by title
only and adopt. Ordinance 1`10. 06-1815, which authorizes a fifty (50)
year lease with option to purchase City property to the Northland
Community Church with th.e CitJ~ of Longwood.
Ms. Roper announced having proof of publication. She then read
Ordinance No. 06-1815 by title onl.~.
Mayor Maingot opened the public hearing: No one spoke in favor or in
opposition to the Ordinance.
CC.10-1b-06/:335
Commissioner Holt moved to close the public hearing. Seconded
by Commissioner Sackett and carried by a unanimous voice vote.
Commissioner Holt moved to adopt Ordinance No. 06-1815,. as
presented, Item 10 A. Seconded by Commissioner Sackett.
Deputy Mayor Anderson reported he attended the Columbus Harbor
Homeowner's Association meeting last week and presented the general
outline of the lease to them. He stated they would probably be contacting.
the City Administrator to see if they can enter.into a lease for the other
portion of the property for the Homeowner's Association.
Motion carried by a unanimous roll call vote.
11. REGULAR BUSINESS.
A. Thee Finance Division of the Financial Services Department
recommends City Commission read by title only, set November 6,
2006 as a public hearing date and approve the first reading of
Ordinance 06-1816 which amends the Fiscal Year 05/06 Budget.
Ms. Roper read Ordinance No. 06-1816 by title only.
Commissioner Holt moved to approve the first reading of ~
Ordinance No. 06-1816 and set a public hearing date for
November 6, .2006, as presented, Item 11 A. Seconded by Deputy
Mayor Anderson.
Commissioner Sackett inquired if this could be passed on as a savings to
residents.
Mr. Drago explained what was' taken in was paid out. He said this was for
solid waste.
Mayor Maingof pointed out the Ordinance had two Attorney-names listed.
He affirmed Theresa S. Roper was the Acting City Attorney and her
signature should be the only signature required. He requested Richard
Taylor's name not be produced on any subsequent Ordinances. He asked
for the Ordinance to be amended so Theresa S. Roper's signature is on this
Ordinance .and future Ordinances.
Mr. Drago said when Mr. Taylor submitted his letter of resignation it was
effective immediately. He stated when he spoke to each Commissioner
individually his preference was to pay Mr. Taylor a monthly retainer
rather than a lump sum amount. He also said it was not.his~intent to have
Mr. Taylor review any new documents relative to the City due to his not
being able to .finish these. He said the. Roper firm was under contract with ~
the City and providing the service without seeking a private .firm or
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_.~ individual over and above whatwas contractually done between the City
and the Ropers. He stated Ms. Roper did not legally have to be approved
I~ as the Acting City Attorney since she was under contract with the City.
Ms. Roper concurred and sai:d it was required under the City Code that she
would handle any new business during her tenure as Acting City Attorney.
She advised she had also discussed this with Mr. Taylor and he made it
clear he had resigned.
Motion carried by a unanirlous~roll call vote.
B. City Administrator recommend, the City .Commission read by title
only and adopt Resolution No. 0.6-1157 supporting the Seminole
County-wide referendum on the November 7, 200.6 ballot to dedicate
0.2 mills of ad valorem tax over aten-year period for the acquisition
of environmentally sensitive lands and. to acquire and develop
recreational trails .and pedestrian bridges.
Ms. Roper read.Resolution No. 06-1157 by title only.
Deputy Mayor Anderson moved to adopt Resolution 06-1157.
Seconded by Commissioner Holt and carried by a unanimous roll
call vote.
~-' C. City Administrator recommends the City Commission hear a
presentation from the City's De~~elopment Design, Team regarding
market trend analysis and take action the Commission deems
appropriate.
Mr. Drago distributed an agenda o:c~ the presentation. He said several
months ago the Commission embarked on a different process to identify
how to improve the City. Through an RFP they secured the services of
ACi to do the-market trend analysis relative to retail and housing and how
the City can be positioned in the m:arketplaee now and in the future.:He
affirmed the first part was to do a study that Mr. Adams and his team will
present. The second part was. to develop the design standards relative to
the positioning strategies.
Larry Adams,. representing ACi, said he and his team would be presenting
their report to the Commission,. Administration, and the community. He
said their task has been to address :Longwood's future by using strong
economical principles. He said three were five goals that were required of
Task One. The first goal would be to analyze value-relevant to Longwood
regarding the trends and data. in the market ,place. The second goal would
be to identify the drivers of those trends and how they would affect the
economics of the community and how they would strengthen Longwood's
future. Goal three is to create an alignment with those trends that would
increase investment. Goal four is to strengthen what they believe is
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important in any community; its uniqueness~and story of place. The fifth ._
goal is to implement with some valid standards and processes that sustain '
a quality-of--life and economic value. `~
Mr. Adams said we all know Longwood today and looking at it for what is
here. He said they were looking at the CSX railroad, County Road 427,
State Road 434~tliat takes one to I-4, the Health Center, industrial areas;
and the Historic Downtown area as well as the proposed Commuter Rail
Station. He declared the green areas throughout the neighborhoods and the
lakes were impressive. He reviewed various slides on Longwood and
some of the history on the development of Longwood, Florida in
comparison to Longwood, Boston. He stated with all of the evolution of
Longwood, they commended the citizens of the community for
withstanding all of the new commercialization over the years until today
and the fact that they have protected it.
Lindsey Starr with Global Retail Strategies, aNational/International Retail
firm, reviewed the study of the economics on the Retail Analysis of
Longwood. She stated since there were not suitable retail offerings for the
people of Longwood, you are seeing an outflow of retail sales. In turn, the
retailers are suffering from this and not doing quite as well as they could.
She affirmed that retail. acts as a revitalizing force in a community and can
reclaim those dollars that are out-flowing and help Longwood compete
affectively against retail centers such as the Altamonte Mall and Seminole
Town Center. It can also promote more growth in the area. She said with `..J
the Commuter Rail coming in they will find more people will desire to
live in Longwood. She stated Longwood currently does not have the retail
infrastructure to draw people off of I-4 and there was not .enough
advertisement to bring people into Longwood. She aff rmed Longwood
did have some .great economic drivers such as Orlando Regional South
Seminole Hospital. The Commuter Rail. Station will be a huge economic
driver. She reviewed photographs of the surrounding. retail areas. She said
Longwood had this amazing historical character to the downtown area
where boutiques and dining establishments fit. well. She stated- Longwood
was doing a .good j ob with supermarkets and specialty foods, but needed
to concentrate on restaurants, apparel, and specialty retail. She affirmed
Longwood did not have anywhere to spend leisure and entertainment
dollars. She reviewed models of how expenditures were being utilized and
what was being retained in Longwood. She showed models on how more
.could be retained in the City. She reviewed areas to focus on for
restaurants .and retail growth. She said the three main formats that were
taking precedence in retail at this time were the Power Centers and Outlet
Centers followed by Lifestyle Centers, and the new wave. was mixed-use
Town Centers that combine many different amenities. She said the newest
format was the Omni Center which is a combination of all. She reviewed
Longwood today and Longwood's possibility for the future. She said
Longwood needed to make a choice whether they wanted to take a chance ~
in having a more exciting format for retail.
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~ Daryl Spradley, Senior Vice President of Charles Wayne Consulting, said
Longwood had significant opportunities to revitalize its retail, introduce
~~
medical clusters and office opportunities. He stated within those was an
opportunity to integrate residential housing. He reviewed the. growth rate
during various periods of tirr~e, He said Seminole County had a net
migration of approximately 8Q% and the natural increase was
approximately 20%. The median a,ge for the State was about 41 and
Longwood's median age was 40. ~-1e said employment growth drives the
residential housing sector and the State of Florida was in the. top five (5)
formations in the ..nation. He stated in 2005 the. Orlando metro area
produced almost SO,Q00 jobs: He affirmed the unemployment rate in
Orlando as of August was 3.2%. He stated approximately 43% of
Seminole County leaves to work in another County. He said this was a
testimony to Seminole County beuig a place to live. He stated the Town
Center type of development and the Commuter Rail System will make
Longwood very convenient. He sai`.d one of the most important
demographics to study was h.ouseh.old income. He stated the Orlando
MSA was at $68,000 annual household income. He reviewed the
distribution within the four counties and Seminole County was
approximately 20% higher on the average. Longwood's housing units
were three quarter single fancily anal about 23% were multi family. He said
this team would show the opportunity to create a substantial number of
~; residential units with the Town Center developments.
Commissioner Bundy left the meei:ing at 8:41 pm. and returned at
8:42 p.m.
Mr: Spradley reviewed statistics and said they expect growth in multi
family homes. He stated there would be opportunities for infill growth in
Longwood. He said the trend. toward multi family developments would
occur very strongly in urbanized areas for the demographics. of young
singles and married couples who were well .educated and had a high
income who relish the live,. work and play environment.
The Commission recessed at 8:45 p.m. and. reconvened at 8:57 p.m.
Mr. Adams reviewed how to apply the research. He said Longwood sits in
a very enviable position in terms o:E' numbers of people and average: daily
traffic volume. However, it is considered a pass through. The introduction
of the Longwood Station for the. Commuter Rail is a new attribute. He said
they needed to look atimplementingthe numbers, what are the best
qualities, and how to strengthen the community with this information.
• Most importantly, is it sustai:nable`' He declared the historic quality was
one of the most important qualities and.a unique identity. He said it
needed to be brought out in other ways than it currently was. The next
~- quality is health. As they begin to look at Orlando Regional South
Seminole Hospital there will be some challenges and opportunity to
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maintain a campus feeling in the land around Phis area. He said other
challenges would be to integrate transportation and parking. He stated one ~
of the great community partnerships Longwood has is with the strong
Orlando Healthcare System. He affirmed if the parking for the Commuter
Rail just becomes a parking lot that would be a sad occasion. He said if
there is nothing there, people do not get off the transit system. This could
become the basis for some wonderful new development around. this
location and be sensitive fo the surrounding neighborhoods. He.said the
commercial area along the corridor of State Road 434 needed to be made
friendly for walkers. He discussed small, but critical mass lifestyle mixed
use development. He said there were opportunities along this corridor for
sense of place. The other opportunity for new trends and individualized
store fronts would belong along 17-92 to help serve the community. He
affirmed they needed to work on linking these three qualities and
economic drivers would. merge. He stated the pathways into Longwood
needed to be treated very carefully and strengthen their experience. He
said one of the greatest trends today is the reconnection with nature and
the desire by people to have awareness in nature. He emphasized the lakes
such as Island Lake and others that turn their back on that environment.
He said these were great opportunities for quality.
Professor Charles Bohl, said he has a varied background, but his real
interest was land use. planning and urban design. He stated community
design was imbedded in all of our standards and regulations. He affirmed
it was a question of whether to be proactive and come up with our own ~- .
community vision or be left with an. ad hoc collection of standards and
codes. He stated they were now beginning to talk to communities on what
their preferences and visions were. He said the big message was that they
needed to prepare. which is why Longwood brought ACi -in to .help prepare
the way. He said they have heard a lot of great data this. evening and
Longwood was in a great position. He declared when they speak about the
"market" it was not any one market; but many marleets. He reviewed
various demographics for household groups. He discussed applying the
Placemaking .Approach to create more walkable, more diverse,, and more
mixed use places. He said every community has a street or place that
characterizes the community and what they are about. He stated,
unfortunately, over the years codes have been formulated that prevent
these great planes from being constructed or rebuilt. He affirmed instead
of building, subdivisions with all the same kind of homes and market rates,
communities were being built that have a whole range of market values.
He reviewed photographs of various communities. He discussed bringing
the workplace and home back together. How do .you get there? He said it
needed to be articulated in a visual language all can agree upon, and then
you can start to envision what could be. Once there, is a vision you can
move on to creating a plan and then implementation. He reviewed
photographs of various developments.
1
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. -~ 1VIr. Adams thanked the Commission for their time. He said these were the
~ recommendations they would like the Commission to consider acting on
this evening. He affirmed the two positioning strategies, based on all of
this, were to first create the design. standards and, special area design plans
for the economic drivers they know is there.. Secondly to go forward. they
need a specific plan tied spe~~ifically to the Commuter Rail to obtain the
$4.18,000 federally earmarked for Longwood.
Commissioner Bundy said they were talking about developers on a
national scale. He said they would need to mass a tremendous amount. of
the commercial property here for ~~ small scale project and what would
these developers want in return.
N1r. Adams said the chicken and e;;g question was the right question to
ask. He said they live in the private sector world. He said they have talked
to investors and large developers: who are their clients. He stated they first
want. to see demographics then they ask how difficult would it be to work
with the City of Longwood.:FIe said they purposely tried not to point to
any particular area during their presentation. He said the challenges are
there. to transform and there <~re developers trying to purchase land in the
City. The .issue is whether they carp get in a_nd develop prior to the City
developing these standards. lie ad~~ised these standards could happen very
quickly. He said the incentive is that Longwood works on a land-use basis
~ rather than zoning. He stated developers are looking for an efficient
approval process. He confirmed they have had meetings. with developers
and they would prefer this not be divulged at this time.
Discussion ensued regarding development of design standards.
Mr. Adams said the. design standards should.not:be watered down, but
they would be flexible stand~~rds acid apply differently to different places.
Commissioner Holt inquired how they could work with DDT in getting
people to slow down on State; Road 434 with the widening occurring or to
get off of it onto the side streets.
Iylr. Adams said now was the time 'to think about this issue. He stated one
thing that would have to be done to slow people down was to create some
critical mass along the commercial corridor and the gateway.
John Cunningham said our roadways were dismantling of our
environment. He referenced other ~:reas in France and the town squares in
Savannah, Georgia wherepeople have thought through the planning and
creation of these areas. He stated they saw these large roads as an
opportunity.
l~
Commissioner Holt moved 'to extend the meeting. Seconded by
Deputy Mayor Anderson and carried by a unanimous voice vote.
CC 10-16-06/341
Deputy Mayor Anderson suggested starting working. with DOT and ~_
having them reveal the extent of required space fore the widening of 434. ~
Commissioner Sackett referenced the pathway roads such as Rangeline
Road and inquired if these areas were to stay residential.
Mr. Adams said they were being very .careful .about introducing any retail
that would be forced upon neighborhoods or invade neighborhood areas.
He stated they would want to discuss transportation and how the systems
would be integrated.
Deputy Mayor Anderson said the aspect of visual codes grabbed his
attention and was the key to make this successful. He said the process he
just experienced with the Liberty Plaza project worked well. He inquired if
they needed direction from the Commission when putting these up as
position strategies and what is the time line from now and someone
applying to build.
Mr. Adams said they would need approximately four months to get this in
place. He stated they had interim standards. now that were working. He
said with approval tonight they could move immediately forward. He
stated Longwood had a requirement that takes the responsibility of
communicating with the surrounding neighbors in the CAPP program and
they would strengthen that. He recommended getting, this information out
that Longwood was ready to embrace the higher level.
Mayor Maingot inquired if they would be publishing this to potential
developers.
Mr. Adams said they would not be pointing to specific sites. He said the
market would take care of that issue. He advised it was the data they
would be publishing.
Mayor Maingot said Longwood was the pearl in Central Florida and they
had one chance to do this right. He stated they wanted to maintain the
character that exists in Longwood in terms of the historic background.
Mayor Maingot moved to move forward as expeditiously as
possible, but as carefully as possible to design a product with an
awful lot of thought to capture the size of the market spoken about,
to capture the ambiance they want and expect for the people and
will attract the right type of developer. Seconded by Deputy Mayor
Anderson and carried by a unanimous voice vote.
Commissioner Bundy suggested each Commissioner set aside time to
meet individually with the design group. ~
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_~ Deputy Mayor Anderson said l1e vvould like to see a presentation at a
Town Hall meeting to show what direction the City was moving and to
~~ hear the voices of the residents.
12. CITY ATTORNEY'S REPORT. Ms. Roper reported they had received a letter
and proposal from Mr. Hill on behalf of NIr. Towers that, needs to be discussed by
the City Commission to determine vvhethe.r or not they desire to agree with the
proposal as set forth.
It was the. consensus of the Commission to hold a Special Meeting on October
23rd at 6:00 p.m.
13. CITY CLERK'S REPORT. No report.
14. ADJOITRN. Mayor Maingot adjourned tl.ie meeting at 10:27 p.m.
iii'
ATTEST:
John~Olaingo
~.., r
~ Sarah M. 1VIirus, CMC, City Clerk
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