Loading...
CCMtg05-17-10Min I ONGWOOD CITY (COMMISSION ILongwoodl. City (Commission Chambers 175 West Warren Avenue Longwood, Florida MINUTES ES May 17, 2010 7:00 P.M. Present: Mayor John Ca Maingot Deputy Mayor Joe Durso • Commissioner I.,ob Cortes Commissioner H G0 "N etch" .!. candy Commissioner I:,rian De Sackett Daniell Langley, City Attorney Kurt Ardaman, City Attorney Katrina Powell, City Administrator Sarah Me Mirus, City Clerk Tom Jackson, Police Chief Patrice Murphy, Assistant to the City Ad inistrator John ]Peters, Director of Public Won•hs /City Engineer Fran Melli, Director of Leisure Services 7La CALL TO ORDER. Mayor Maingot called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. 2. A moment of SILENT MEDITATION was followed by the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. 3. COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS. Ms. Minus read the following announcement: A. Senior Matinee win be held on Wednesday, May 19, 2010 from 1:30 p.m. until 3:30 g .m., Longwood Community 1 ,uillding, 200 West Warren Avenue. This month's feature is It's Complicated 4. RECOGNITIONS. . A. District #3 Nomination of the Business Person of the Month Award • for June 2010. Commissioner Cortes nominated Dr. William Ehlers, 434 Animal I ospital, for the Business Person of the Month.Award for June 2010. Nomination carried by a unanimous voice vote. CC 05- 17- 10/149 Bo Proclaim May 945,, 2010 as Police Week in the City of Longwood, Mayor Maingot read a Proclamation proclaiming May 9 -15, 2010 as Police Week. He presented the Proclamation to Chief Jackson and photographs were then taken. 5. !:;O 0,1 APPOINTMENTS. None. 6. PUBLIC INPUT. A. Presentations. Mr, Richard Mendola with the Special Olympics Seminole County will be giving a brief introduction of the Program. Mr. Richard Mendola, said he was with the Seminole County Special Olympics and he was an athlete and a global messenger. On behalf of all of the Special Olympic athletes of Seminole County, he thanked the Conunission for the opportunity and allowing him to speak tonight about the Special Olympics and how it has changed his life. He stated Special "Olympics provide individuals with intellectual disabilities from school age to adults the opportunity to train and compete. He advised the Seminole County Program has over fourteen (14) Olympic style sports such as basketball, track and field, soccer, volleyball, bocce, tennis, swimming, softball, gymnastics, power lifting, sailing, bowling, and equestrian. He said these sports are offered at no cost to the athletes and their families. He stated he was fortunate to get started in Special Olympics about five years ago when a member of the Seminole County Special Olympics Management Team asked him if he would be interested in Special Olympics. Since he has been involved he has made many friends and it provided the opportunity to become a global messenger. It.has built his confidence as a leader both on and off the field. He declared that one day he hopes to be a coach and be part of the management team. He advised that there are many athletes that live in Longwood. On behalf of these athletes, he requested that the City consider opening the door for them by allowing the use of courts, fields, or recognize their athletes by encouraging community participation, support, sponsors, and volunteers. B. Public Participation. Chief Tom Jackson said for nearly thirty (30 +) plus years, he has served the citizens of Longwood as a Police Officer. For the last thirteen (13) years, he has served as the Police Chief. He stated he has seen a lot of challenges in the community, the Commission, and City Administrators. He said he worked his way through the triple murders of the children on Georgia Avenue, and. the murder of the clerk at the convenience store. He declared he has tried to meet all of the challenges presented to him and he has been tasked with many things during his career. He announced that on May 28, 2010, he will serve his last day as Chief and a Law Enforcement Officer for the City of Longwood as he will be retiring. He said that he CC 05 -17- 10/150 hoped during his tenure as a Police Officer and Chief that he has met the Commission's anticipations and has not let them down. Judi Coad, 1695 Grange Circle, said May 28, 2010 was a day of great sadness and tragedy for the City of Longwood as we lose Chief Jackson due to his retirement. She stated that Commissioners Conies, Sackett, and Mayor Maingot's unfavorable votes last meeting had not one logical, fiscal, or safety related reason to vote no to the request that Chief Jackson brought before the Commission. His request was simple and was going to save the City approximately $9,000 and keep the Police Department intact with the same amount of officers on the force to protect the residents of this City. She stated that no matter if there is a hiring freeze within this City government, Chief Jackson was working within his yearly shortened budget with a large increase of calls for his officers. She said his request gives more money back to the City and would be keeping a full staff, but in their unconscionable wisdom, they voted no. She stated now we will be short an officer and probably more as others leave. She said Chief Jackson has taken large budget cuts over the last several years and has not increased his officers and now they purposely tied his hands on maintaining an effective and efficient Police Department. She declared in one fail swoop they depleted the morale of the whole Police Department by not standing behind them, plus they took the safety of this City and put it in jeopardy. She said this request was a no brainer. She affirmed the Commissioners were all put in office to protect this City and be fiscally sound with our finances. She stated this request was more than both. She stated the May 11 Meeting proved there were non- safety related employees who currently work on the staff until their job officially start. She said the Police and Fire are needed on a daily basis to protect our community. She declared the City Administrator offered no comments during this timeframe and inquired where she stands. She said that Chief Jackson recently stepped -in on behalf of the residents in Barrington and resolved a severe safety problem. She declared the loss of Chief Jackson was a travesty, especially because of the manner in which this occurred. She affirmed the next city will get an honorable and formidable man who cares about the city in which he works. She confirmed it was the City of Longwood's great loss and a tragedy in the way this Commission was fulfilling its mission. She stated she found it very hypocritical today the award they give to Chief Jackson after the week was over and after the vote they took against our Police Department. She said Longwood has certainly gone back to the City of Wrongwood: She stated as a resident she was grateful for Chief Jackson and sorry for their loss. 7, CONSENT AGENDA. A. Approve Minutes of the May 3, 2010 Regular Meeting. Approval of the May 2010 Expenditures. • CC 05-17- 10/151 C. Approval of the Monthly Financial Report for the Month of April 2010. Deputy Mayor Durso moved to approve the Consent Agenda as submitted. Seconded by Commissioner Cortes and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. 8. PU HEARINGS, A. Second reading and adoption of Ordinance No. 10 -1918, relating to the Professional Continuing Services Contracts. Mr. Langley read Ordinance No. 10 -1918 by title only and announced having proof of publication. Mayor Maingot opened the public hearing. No one spoke in favor or in opposition to the Ordinance. Commissioner Sackett moved to close the public hearing. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Durso and carried by a unanimous voice vote. Commissioner Sackett. moved to approve Ordinance 10 -1918 relating to Professional Continuing Services Contracts as it appears as Item 8 A. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Durso and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. 9. REGULAR It USINESS. A. First reading of Ordinance Noe 10 -1916 and setting the public hearing for June 7, 2010, relating to a Lease Agreement between the City of Longwood and T- Mobile South LLC. (The City Administrator • requests a continuuance on this Item until June 7, 2010.) Mr. Langley read Ordinance No. 10 -1916 by title only. Commissioner Cortes moved to continue this Item to June 7 Seconded by Deputy Mayor Durso and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. B. First reading of Ordinance No. 10 -1917 and setting the public hearing for June 7, 2010, . relating to a Le. se Agreement between the City of Longwood and Clear Wireless, LLC. (The City Administrator requests a continuance on this Item until June 7, 2010.) Mr. Langley read Ordinance No. 10 -1917 by title only. Deputy Mayor Durso moved to continue this Item to June 7 Seconded by Commissioner Sackett and earried by a unanimous roll call vote. CC 05- 17- 10/152 C. First I':eading of Ordinance No 104920 and setting the public hearing for June 7, 2010 amending the Fiscal Year 2009/2010 Budget. Mr. Langley read Ordinance No. 10 -1920 by title only. Ms. Powell said the City Attorney line is depleting fairly rapidly and in order for her to meet the requirements of paying the bills until the end of the year, she has requested a budget amendment in the amount of $50,000. She stated she also wanted to make the Commission aware that the City will be receiving $40,000 from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) as reimbursement for the costs we have acquired over the course of the work on State Road 434. She advised we would also be receiving money back from our insurance company for our work with Allied Veterans. She said she and the City Clerk have both met with the City Attorney to discuss the bills and how to go about meeting with them in the future to ensure we don't get charged. Commissioner Sackett moved to approve the budget amendment increasing funding for legal services, set June 7, 2010 as the public hearing date, and approve the first reading of Ordinance No.10 -- 1920 amending the Fiscal Year 2009/2010 Budget. Seconded by Commissioner Cortes. Deputy Mayor Durso inquired if this $50,000 will be offset by the money coming from FDOT and our work on the gambling issue. Ms. Powell said she hopes it will be offset, unless we receive large attorney bills in the future. Commissioner Cortes inquired, if in the worst case scenario, the money does not come through from FDOT in time and the money front Public Risk Management (PRM), does the Attorney feel confident this $50,000 • will finish off the year based on what we are expecting. Mr. Langley responded in the negative. He said without those reimbursements, he could not answer in the affirmative that this will pay for an additional five months of legal services. He stated with the reimbursements and provided the scope of legal services stays where it is now, this should be within that range or better. Commissioner Bundy inquired if this amount was not going to go back into the Reserves and would be left in the City Attorney's line item budget account. Ms. Powell responded in the affirmative. She said the budgeted amount has already been spent. She stated she wasn't sure that we can anticipate what our costs are going to be. She said the retainer services of $5,000 a CC 05 -17- 10/153 month will have to be paid until the end of the year and it was difficult to say what the additional fees will be. Commissioner Bundy said he can understand the difficulty in setting those numbers as we don't know what litigation may occur. He stated with what we have on our plate now, the $50,000 in addition to the reimbursements is what we will need to carry us through to the end of the year. Ms. Powell said she would hope they would not spend $100,000 from now to the end of the fiscal year. Commissioier Bundy said there are going to be nonnal housekeeping legal issues. He stated the $50,000 was not sufficient, without the reimbursements, to cover us through the end of the year, so the answer to Deputy Mayor Durso's question is that the hole will be in the Reserves. Commissioner Sackett inquired *what the fiord balance was. Ms. Powell affirmed it was less than $5,000. Commissioner Bundy said he wanted to make sure this was a realistic number so that they don't have to do another Ordinance at a later date. Mr. Langley said with the reimbursements and if there was no new litigation, they might be able to beat that number. However, he said to keep in mind that they have not billed for April. Commissioner Bundy inquired if there was a firm policy with regards to who generates contact with the Attorney and how this is being controlled. Ms. Powell said the Directors know that they need to come through her • before approaching the City Attorney. She stated the City Clerk approaches the City Attorney on her own. Mayor Maingot advised the current legal team had to deal with a considerable load of litigation that was handed over to them when they took over this job. He stated most of it has been cleared up. Mr. Langley advised they were through quite a bit of the litigation, but there was still some to go. He advised there was one large matter on the plate now and hopefully the insurance group will continue to support this effort. • Commissioner Bundy said that this was no reflection on the legal representation and they were doing a good job. He stated this caught us by surprise and did not anticipate. CC 05- 17- 10/154 Motion carried by a four /one roll call vote with Deputy Mayor Durso voting nay. D. Fir& 'coding of Ordinance No. 104921 and seeing the public hearing for June 7, 2010, amending Ordinance No 0994902, City Code Chapter 2, Sections 2 -336 and 2 -3370 Mr. Langley read Ordinance No. 10 -1921 by title only. • Mr. Langley said that Ms. Gayle Owens from Fishback Dominick has been handling the Codes Enforcement matters for the City. Due to a recent request for a rehearing, she spotted a potential issue with the Code and is suggesting clarification of the Code. He stated the current Code suggests that any order of the Special Magistrate may be reheard. So, even after something has been reheard and the Special Magistrate issues another order, that additional order could potentially be heard again. He said that was not the intent, nor was it the way the Codes Enforcement process has been operating. The purpose of the rehearing for a property in violation and is generally for a property that did not come into compliance, was issued a fine and the violator disputes the finding or amount of the fine. He affirmed this Ordinance allow for the alleged violator to contest the order and close the potential never ending process of rehearings. Deputy Mayor Durso left at 7:54 p.m. and returned at 7:56 p.m. Commissioner Cortes moved to approve Item 9 D, first reading of Ordinance No. 10- 1921, amending Ordinance No. 09 -1902, City Code Chapter 2, Sections 2 -336 and 2 -337, as presented, and set June 7, 2010 as a public hearing date. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Durso and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. E. Amend the City Attorney's Contract- !" etainerr Services. Mr. Langley said pursuant to the Commission's direction, the City Attorney and City Administrator Met on several occasions to discuss the City Attorney invoices to try and come up with a method and process to reduce billing. He stated there were questions about the retainer services and what those covered. He said they suggested to perhaps amend the retainer service provision in the contract so that the City would be guaranteed a minimum number of hours in the monthly retainer. He advised in the past.inonths they have exceeded thirty (30) hours, but there may be a situation where they may not. He explained this does two things; it establishes for the monthly retainer amount there will be a minimum number of legal service hours of thirty (30) hours. He stated the attorney rate for the City was $200 an hour. This gives a minimum of thirty (30) hours which is an effective rate of a little over $166 an hour which is an additional hourly discount. It also provides that the monthly retainer includes up to one hour of research per Commissioner arising out of CC 05 -17- 10/155 telephone calls to the City Attorney. He advised they do not charge pursuant to the retainer for telephone time with Commissioners. However, under the retainer, if they had to do additional work to research a question, they did charge for that. In order to try and reduce the bills further, they are trying to work with the City and provide for an additional one hour of research from the telephone calls for each Commissioner. Mayor Maingot inquired if less than thirty (30) hours were used, did the remainder of the hours go forward. Mr. Langley explained if they were working on other matters that were not under the retainer, they would move hours from those matters into the retainer. Commissioner Cortes inquired if we continued to go over forty (40) hours. Mr. Langley said he believed there has been a decrease this month in hours. He stated some months they will be putting in more than thirty (30) hours and based on the number of meetings they attend, most months will be over thirty (30) hours. Commissioner Bundy inquired if the Attorneys were still attending the Land Planning Agency meetings. Mr. Langley responded in the affirmative. He said they don't always have a Land Planning Agency meeting every month. Commissioner Bundy said unless there was something controversial, it may not be necessary for the City Attorney to attend Land Planning Agency or Board of Adjustment meetings. Ms. Powell agreed with that and stated that staff works closely with the City Attorney to bring them up to speed for what is coming before the Land Planning Agency or Board of Adjustment. She said unless it was something staff feels they need to be there, the Attorney could probably stop attending those meetings. Commissioner Bundy said the City. Attorney needs to continue receiving the agenda packets to review before the meeting. He stated if they see something of concern, they could contact staff. Deputy Mayor Durso moved to approve Item 9 E as presented and discussed. Seconded by Commissioner Cortes and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. It was the consensus of the City Commission that the City Attorney will no longer attend the Board of Adjustment or Land Planning Agency CC 05-17-10/156 meetings monthly, unless there is an issue the City Administrator or City Attorney has determined needs their input. F. Acceptance of Wildmere Village Cove for Public Maintenance. Ms. Powell advised the City has been approached by Wildmere Village Cove Subdivision wanting to dedicate their streets to the City for maintenance. She said staff was looking for direction from the Coin hission regarding this matter. Mayor Maingot said that from his point of view, the City was not in a position to entertain this request. Commissioner Bundy said he agreed with that and stated that Wildmere Cove was basically one street with a cul -de -sae and does not meet our standards. He stated there were some larger subdivisions that have streets that do not meet our standards and if doing this, the City could be asked to take those streets in. He advised that several years ago the residents in Longwood Green approached the Commission about taking over their roads. The consensus of the Commission at that time was that if the subdivision brings the roads up to City standards, then the City would consider taking them over. Mayor Maingot said the City doesn't want to take on any additional cost. He stated there was no relief in sight and at this point, they cannot entertain this request. Commissioner Sackett moved to deny acceptance of the Wildmere Village Cove for Public Maintenance, understanding budget concerns at this time. Seconded by Commissioner Cortes and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. 10. CITY ADMINISTRATSR'S REPORT. Ms. Powell said Chief Jackson will be leaving the City of Longwood on May 28, 2010 to further pursue some other aspirations and to retire. She stated he was a great Chief and he has 'served this community for thirty (30) years and the City of Longwood has been very blessed to have him here. She said he took a chance and brought her here as a Finance Director over a year ago and she will be forever grateful to him for that. She declared Chief Jackson has been awesome to work with and has confided in him a lot. She affirmed that when he gave her his resignation she didn't read it and ripped it up telling him that she would not accept his resignation. She said that she understands he has a great opportunity to go to and he will do great things there as well. Ms. Powell thanked the Finance Department for their work on the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). She said for many years the City of Longwood has had to ask for an extension on the CAFR and this year they didn't have to do CC 05- 17- 10/157 • that. She stated the Budget Work Session was very well put together by our finance group and made a nice presentation. Ms. Powell reported the Conunission has information before them on Dr. Clifford Bragdon who is with the Florida Institute of Technology. He would like to give a presentation Friday, May 21, 2010 from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. in the City Commission Chambers. She reported he would like to talk about providing an intermodal transportation project and he would demonstrate practical examples that can enhance our position with regards to intermodal transportation, residential living, educational achievements and strategic planning. She invited the Commission to join the Corrununity Development Staff on this presentation. She reported Ms. Bower has reached out to MetroPlan Orlando, FDOT, as well as Dr. Bragdon to try and get our intermodal issues worked out prior to SunRail corning online. Ms. Powell said they were in the process of planning for National Night Out. She stated staff has been asked to cut in various areas and they have stepped up to the plate and done that. She proposed that if food is served this•year that it is done by the Babe Ruth organization or the City receive sponsorships to do that rather than the City paying for food. She requested direction from the Commission with regards to this matter. Mayor Maingot suggested they look at having the two approaches as he did not think Babe Ruth would be able to carry it all. Commissioner Cortes inquired how much was spent on food last year. Ms. Meli advised $2,000 was spent just on food. Ms. Powell asked that sources be provided to Ms. Meli for sponsorships. Ms. Meli said she would provide a list to the Commission of items needed for National Night Out. She stated both donations of food or writing a check to the City would work. Ms. Powell asked for a vote from the Commission for her to appoint Commander Troy Hickson as the Acting Police Chief until a permanent decision is made. She said he stepped up to the plate as Acting Fire Chief and did great things there. Deputy Mayor Durso moved to confirm Commander Troy Hickson as the Acting Police Chief. Seconded by Commissioner Sackett and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. 11, MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS' REPORT. District #2e Deputy Mayor Durso said Chief Jackson knows how he feels about this situation. He stated the Chief will be sorely missed and his service to this community is greatly appreciated. He said when he was first elected he went after CC 05- 17- 10/158 the Budget issues. IIe stated to see the quality of work by the Finance staff over the past two years was nothing less than incredible. Deputy Mayor Durso said he would be attending the Florida Green Summit next week on behalf of the City. He advised there was a grant for this and it was not costing the City. He will be attending with Ms. Kelly Morrow who was one of the • key individuals in developing the Ordinance. District O. Commissioner Cortes said he also echoed the sentiments for Chief Jackson and thanked him for his service to the City. He stated that he has been receiving some electronic mails from constituents and he thanked staff for matters that have been resolved rather quickly. Commissioner Cortes congratulated all graduates from the colleges and universities. He said he had the pleasure of being at his daughter's graduation from Oklahoma University. He stated that he would like to see something in the works for the Special Olympics. District #4, Commissioner Bundy said that the City had a health fair recently and he had several calls recently from employees who were told the additional tests ran were free and they are now being charged. Ms. Powell advised that when she was a participant she was advised there was a cost to those additional tests and she chose not to take them because there was an associated cost. Commissioner Bundy said the provider indicated there was no cost to these additional tests. He stated this was a mandatory health fair and to use it to generate revenue when you have a captive audience was questionable on our carrier's part. Ms. Powell said she knew of several people who took those tests and she will check into this matter. She advised the mandatory tests were free and these were • additional optional tests. Commmissioner Bundy said Chief Jackson has been a close friend for a good number of years and one of his most trusted advisors. He stated the Chief has been one of the greatest assets the City of Longwood has ever had. He said this was a man who has served thirty (3 years and has only taken three sick days in his career. He stated the City's buy out policy on sick days was limited to 240 hours. IIe affirmed this person was leaving $85,000 on the table in sick days. Ms. Powell requested permission from the Commission to waive the persomiel • rules on the issue of whether or not he can take a specific amount of hours with him. She said she would like to give him all of his sick and vacation time if the Commission will allow this. She stated she meant to ask this during her report. CC 05- 17- 10/159 Commissioner Bundy moved to waive the personnel rules to allow Chief Jackson to receive all of his time on the books. Seconded. by Commissioner Sackett and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. Commissioner Bundy declared that he, Mayor Maingot, and Commissioner Sackett have been here since the start of the Heroes Memorial. He said he would like to bring forth a resolution at the next City Commission Meeting to name the park area around the Heroes Memorial to the Tom Jackson Heroes Park. Commissioner Bundy moved to name the park area around the Heroes Memorial the Tom Jackson Heroes Park. Seconded by Commissioner Sackett and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. Ms. Powell asked the Chief if this should say Thomas S. Jackson, Jr. Chief Jackson said he sincerely appreciates this gesture. However, in all respect to this request, he would much rather that Park be dedicated to Karl Strohsal and himself. He stated in his term as Chief he saw a lot of things and served a lot of people. He said while he appreciates that very generous consideration, the lowest part of his whole career was when he had to preside over the service of losing Sergeant Strohsal and it would mean more to him if the Park was named in his honor. Commissioner Bundy moved to rescind the previous motion and substitute it by bringing forth a resolution naming it the Jackson- Strohsal Heroes Memorial Park. Seconded by Commissioner Cortes and carried by a unanimous roll call vote. District #5. Commissioner Sackett echoed what Commissioner Cortes stated about graduation. He said the high school graduations would be occurring the week of June 7 and he wished all the graduates safety as they travel to the event and as they celebrate. He stated he received a call from the Longwood Vets about a rescued tortoise that weighed about twenty -six (26) pounds. He said the tortoise was placed in his pond, escaped heading towards State Road 434, and was now back in the pond staying there. Commissioner Sackett suggested Ms. Meli stay away from Candyland Park this weekend during the closing ceremonies. He said Mr. Warren Brown was looking for some money from the City for Field #1 as drainage was poor. He stated Babe Ruth was willing to pay for half of the work and he told Mr. Brown good luck at this budget time. He said the field was in need of repair and suggested at best it be looked at next year. Commissioner Sackett said the way Mr. Richard Mendola made his presentation showed how proud he was of the Special Olympics. He stated he would connect with them to see how we can help out. He advised Internet Cafe's are popping up throughout Seminole County and he is glad Chief Jackson was our Acting Administrator at the time and business was taken care of. He said Chief Jackson CC 05 -17- 10/160 has his act together and has the compassion and common sense that has served this City so well for his thirty (30) years. IIe commend Chief Jackson for what he has done with the 9/11 Ceremonies. He declared we will miss him. District #L Mayor Maingot reported on May 5 he attended the Council of Local Governments in Seminole County (CALNO) Meeting where County Commissioner Michael McLean gave an overview of the County's 2010/2011 budgeting process building from a zero base budget. On May 10 he attended the Longwood Area Chamber of Commerce and on May I l he had a meeting with Mr. Dominic Cabello in reference to highway safety and the effort to limit the size and weight of trucks. 1-le reported that on May 13 he attended the Memorial Service for Ms. Evelyn Ilicks, who had been the Crossing Guard at Rangeline Road and E.E. Williamson. He also attended the 2010 Seminole County Tourism Week Celebration on May 13 and the Awards Ceremony. On May 14- he attended the Forest Lake Education Center School of Excellence Award Celebration under the organization of the Seventh Adventist School System. He also attended the Lyman Iligh School Chorus fund raising activity at the Community Building on May 15 On May 16 was the grand opening of the Pace Brantley School for mentally challenged children which he attended. IIe said this was another moving and inspiring situation. Mayor Maingot declared it's hard to add to what has been stated earlier about Chief Jackson. IIe said any time he has asked the Chief for assistance he has come to the forefront. Approximately two years ago, his son graduated from the Police Academy and needed some advice for which Chief Jackson was right there for hire. He thanked Chief for showing his son the right direction. He stated sometimes they cannot arrive at the decision that pleases everyone. He said the Commission did what was appropriate at the time and only time will tell whether their decision was right or not. IIe declared that does not take away from the tremendous service and dedication the Chief has offered to this City and each Commissioner on various degrees. He most sincerely thanked Chief Jackson for his service and the leadership he has given the City and for stepping up to the plate a year ago. He said he was very pleased that the Commission joined together to honor him in perpetuation at the location of Heroes Park for the service and dedication offered to this City. He stated that Chief Jackson will be missed and he will be moving on to better things and said he was envious of the lovely location he has in North Carolina. 12. CITY Y ATTORNEY'S REPORT. Mr. Langley requested direction from the City Commission regarding foreclosure cases. He said the City gets named in mortgage foreclosure cases often when there are Codes Enforcement liens against the property. He stated when the City gets sued the City Attorney is asked to defend those cases. however, in certain situations, it may not be financially feasible or economical to have the Attorney spend time defending those particular cases if the lien is of a low amount. At times, the City's lien may be inferior to the mortgage and it may be a situation where we are not likely to receive any money. He suggested having the City CC 05 -17- 10/161 Administrator or staff analyze the cost benefit analysis of sending mortgage foreclosure lawsuits to the City Attorney for defense. Mayor Maingot suggested this be handled under the City Attorney's report. Commissioner Bundy said that in order for the City Attorney to come to the Commission with a report, he will be required to spend time to analyze the foreclosure case. He stated the City Administrator would be in a good position to determine whether the case should be passed on to the Attorney. He suggested leaving this to the City Administrator's discretion. He said he would . feel comfortable in allowing the City Administrator to work with the City Attorney to determine which cases to bring forward to the Commission. Commissioner Cortes inquired if the lien amnesty ordinance that was being worked on would address some of these issues. Ms. Powell said that was only when the Commission was ready to waive liens. She stated these were liens that have been determined are excessive. Mr. Langley said he would still like to know when the decision is made not to send the case to him as they still see the dockets. He asked for clarification if the decision was to have the City Administrator analyze the mortgage foreclosures. Commissioner Bundy said to have the City Administrator review these and work with the City Attorney to work out a system to determine which cases to try and collect. Mr. Langley wished Chief Jackson good luck in his future endeavors. 13 CITY CLERK'S REPO T •''° No report. 14. ADJOURN. Mayor Maingot adjourned the meeting at 9:04 p.m. Ifie John Co ■ ,!/ t, Ma; or ATTEST° . ' ./ / Sarah M. Mires, MMC, MINA, City Clerk • CC 05- 17- 10/162