CC03-19-2018MinPresent:
1
Absent:
1.
2.
3.
4.
1
LONGWOOD CITY COMMISSION
Longwood City Commission Chambers
175 West Warren Avenue
Longwood, Florida
MINUTES
March 19, 2018
6:00 P.M.
Mayor Ben Paris
Deputy Mayor Richard Drummond
Commissioner
Commissioner
Commissioner
Abby Shoemaker
Matt Morgan
Brian D. Sackett
Dan Langley, City Attorney
David P. Dowda, Acting City Manager
Michelle Longo, City Clerk
Clint Gioielli, Acting Police Chief
Lee Ricci, Human Resources Director
Chris Kintner, Community Development Director
Chris Capizzi, Leisure Services Director
Lisa Snead, Financial Services Director
Richard Kornbluh, Division Manager Utilities
Tom Smith, Division Manager Streets
Magdala Ridore, Human Resources Generalist
Commissioner Brian Sackett (Excused)
CALL TO ORDER. Mayor Paris called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
MOMENT OF SILENT MEDITATION
THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS. Ms. Longo read the following
announcements.
A. Senior Matinee will be held on Wednesday, March 21, 2018,
from 1:30 p.m. until 3:30 p.m. at the Longwood Community
Building, 200 West Warren Avenue. This month's feature is
Darkest Hour.
CC 03-19-18/1
B. The City of Longwood will host the Annual BarkFest on
Saturday, March 24, 2018 from 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. at
Arbor Park Dog Park, 1405 North Grant Street.
C. A Bunny Breakfast will be held on Saturday, March 31, 2018
from 8:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m., Longwood Community
Building, 200 West Warren Avenue. Adults are $9.00 each,
children from ages 3 to 10 years old are $7.00 each and
children from age 2 and under are free.
D. The 2018 Magic 107.7 Easter Egg Hunt will be held on
Saturday, March 31, 2018 from 9:30 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. The
hunt will be held in the Historic District of Longwood around
City Hall and will feature multiple games, food and hunts for
children of all ages.
5. PROCLAMATIONS / RECOGNITIONS
A. Nomination of the Beautification Award.
Deferred to the next meeting.
6. BOARD APPOINTMENTS. None.
7. PUBLIC INPUT
A. Public Participation.
Judi Coad, 1695 Grange Circle, Longwood. She said she noticed the
temporary project for chickens within the City coming back up. She
stated she spoke upon this about a year ago, and I am not for or against
this, but was asking that the City might want to add some parameters to
the situation if you reconsider having this ordinance. The program does
not address the chicken coop being enclosed by a privacy fence. By doing
so, the surrounding properties are not being exposed to viewing the coop
and the chickens. Having a neighbor with a chicken coop is not property
value enhancing to the neighbors. In addition, that will also help to deter
children, dogs, and predators from entering the area. By allowing the
chickens to roam free per the ordinance "under supervision" is basically
impossible. Chickens do not come when called, they just run. Based on
recently having this issue in two homes in my subdivision, they were in
the trees and everywhere else in the backyards consistently. She said once
a permit is given, I am requesting there be constant follow up by Code
Enforcement, such as a quarterly or annual check to see they are following
all the rules with an inspection. We shouldn't have to have the City cover
the cost of doing that, so we add a fee to that inspection if they choose to
have it. This is necessary for the health of the neighbors as well as the
owners. She said since we only have one Code Enforcement Officer, this
could maybe be handled by a Police Officer. The Commission has not
directed that penalty or fines would be held for not following those
CC 03-19-18/2
requirements, and this should be in place before considering this
ordinance. One other concern is that the ordinance does not address the
disposal of dead chickens and chicken poop, which carries bacterial
diseases such as salmonella, both when it is wet and dry. She also read
that dry poop can blow into people's air conditioners and be sucked up in
your units. She said she provided that information in print a year ago
when she spoke. She stated, I have since spoken with the City, and our
garbage company will not handle any of the chicken debris of either
nature, so it must be either taken to a landfill or disposed of properly
buried in the ground, which is the other reason I am asking that we have a
quarterly or semi-annual inspection of how this is being handled. This is
for the public's safety, and if we have a fee, then it wouldn't be of any cost
to the City. She thanked the Commission for their consideration.
8. MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS' REPORT
District #4. Commissioner Morgan thanked everyone for coming out and
for watching at home. He said this past weekend his son, Jackson, had a
Buddy Ball Game at Eastmonte Park. Buddy Ball works with buddying
up with special needs children, like his son who is autistic, and those who
have physical disabilities and mental disabilities, and this is their
opportunity to learn baseball or T-ball. He said Commissioner Sackett did
an amazing job in bringing out his grandson to his son Jackson's first
game, and trying to buddy him up within that game. The way it works is,
they reach out to high school/college kids to help the children individually
to play the game. It is a really cool concept, and it is probably one of the
most incredibly inclusive things I have ever witnessed. He said this has
brought a lot of joy to me and my family, and I want to thank Brian
Sackett, who is not here tonight, for bringing his grandson out to take part
in that.
Commissioner Morgan said he had a really amazing meeting with an
Orlando developer, John Barnecott, and we are still in the very beginning
stages of this. He reached out to me because of my athletic background,
and my different contacts I have made over the years, both professionally
and with amateurs. He said it is one heck of a state-of-the-art sport
complex brought here to Longwood. Again, we are still in the very
beginning stages of this, but this is something like four times the size of
the RDV Sportsplex. He said this puts it to shame and is not even
debatable. This will have seven indoor basketball courts, multiple
volleyball courts, potential indoor soccer fields, potential indoor football
field with AstroTurf for football players looking to train in their off
season. He said the facility, and this was my part of the idea I pitched to
Mr. Barnecott, that would really gain my interest in this facility, which is
to make one of the multiple buildings they want to bring here a Boys and
Girls Club. That is huge because as a youth myself, the Boys Club was
my babysitter. My mom would drop me off Friday, and back in those
days you could spend the night, and pick me up Sunday evening. He said
there were counselors and tutors there, and it was an amazing experience
CC 03-19-18/3
for me. I was not allowed to play sports until I was able to get all my
homework and studying done, and they had counselors there to help me
with this like local teachers. His idea was to start going around and do
some research on his own and reaching out to our local teachers and
coaches as well. He said what I have learned is they would be incredibly
interested to be a part of this project, and when the Boys and Girls Club
does open, we would have a specific learning center there where our youth
all over Seminole County would be able to come out and take part in this.
Children would be able to take part and learn what is important and
prioritize getting good grades. He said it would give our local teachers an
opportunity to make some extra money on the side by offering to be tutors.
The goal as well is to reach out to our own Longwood police and fire
departments and make them part of it and make them peer counselors as
well. It is a great thing for our youth, and he said I keep stressing we need
to have certain things here other than Reiter Park, which is going to be
amazing when it opens, that attracts people to our City for a change. To
not just drive by Longwood anymore, but social magnets that bring people
to our City and take part in our culture and see what we have here. It is
going to help benefit our local businesses a hundredfold, there is no
question about it. He said Mr. Barnecott set up a meeting with me first.
We then set up another meeting with Tom Krueger, our Economic
Development Manager, as well as our MVP in our City, Chris Kintner,
and we are doing what we can to move this along as fast as possible. Mr.
Barnecott tried to bring this up a year ago, but it fizzled out. He said once
I got elected, he wanted to have an athlete to be at the front of this, and he
has way more than me as an athlete. He has Grant Hill that wants to
invest in this, and Jason Williams that wants to invest in this. Both of
these are former MBA players, and there is a lot of good that could
definitely come out of this facility. It is not just an athletic center, but also
a Boys and Girls Club center, which is the most important part of it to me.
Commissioner Morgan said we also had our City Manager selection
process, and we whittled it down to four outstanding candidates that I am
excited to both vet and meet in person. He wanted to thank Lee Ricci and
her team for an outstanding job the other day by sifting through all of this
and making sure we had the best opportunity to vote upon the four best
candidates that we felt were the strongest, and we had some outstanding
candidates. He said I am very much looking forward to that. He said he
has been invited to be a judge at the Brookdale Senior Center for
something called the Smoke Wars Bar-B-Q this Wednesday, which should
be fun.
Commissioner Morgan said he had a meeting with some citizens on behalf
of CERT. He is looking to have a meeting on Friday with both Chief
Peters and Chief Dowda to try to get some things more structured and
resurrect CERT.
CC 03-19-18/4
Commissioner Morgan said he would like to use Commissioner Sackett's
idea of when Reiter Park opens, make that our City's birthday celebration
also. He thinks that is a great idea of Commissioner Sackett. He also had
a meeting with Ms. Judy Coad regarding Barrington and taking care of the
front entrance, which has cracks in the foundation and needs a lot of
improvements. He said we had a Publix Citizen Awareness Participation
Plan (CAPP) meeting and had a very good turnout. Also, we had a
meeting with our local insurance provider for the City employees, for
which he thanked Ms. Ricci for setting up. He said the people that make
our City go around are our City employees, and to make sure we are
giving them the best service insurance possible.
Commissioner Morgan said this upcoming Saturday is the Police kickball
game at Central Winds Park in Winter Springs. I will be playing with our
Police Department, and then making my son's baseball game at 10:00
a.m., and somehow within that time frame, going to Longwood's Cutest
Dog Contest at Arbor Park. He said, please everybody here and watching
on Facebook, vote for Dog Number 5, Casper Morgan. He is the cutest
Lab on the planet.
District #5. No report.
District #1. Commissioner Shoemaker said she wanted to update the
public and the Commission on my Round -Up Program. She said I
submitted a draft proposal to Lisa Snead, our Finance Director, and expect
to continue working with her and staff after my busy tax season is over. I
hope to make a presentation to the Commission this summer. She stated, I
have a true passion for seeing this program come to fruition for the
positive results I feel will be accomplished.
Commissioner Shoemaker said I was very pleased to meet with Public
Risk Management. They were very professional, customer oriented, and I
feel they are a good steward of our premiums and services. She thanked
Ms. Ricci for arranging that meeting. She also attended the public forum
for the new Publix, and there was good attendance, and a lot of great
questions were asked.
Commissioner Shoemaker said Mr. Bill Bomar, with the Landings
Subdivision, called me to discuss subdivision concerns with landscaping
and street lights on Church Avenue after the completion of the paving and
issues with the retention pond and their rat and snake problems. Mr.
Dowda, our Acting City Manager, is working with Mr. Bomar and staff to
assist where they can to address his issues. Mr. Bomar extended an
invitation to me to attend their homeowners meeting and a tour of their
subdivision after my busy tax season is over. I am looking forward to
meeting with him and the residents of The Landings. In addition, two
other residents contacted me with unique concerns, and our Acting City
Manager, Mr. Dowda, is also working with these residents and staff to
CC 03-19-18/5
assist the residents within the City's capabilities. Kudos to our Acting
City Manager. He is doing a phenomenal job, and we are keeping every
resident as happy as we possibly can.
Commissioner Shoemaker said she attended Connelly's St. Patrick's Day
celebration, and there was a nice crowd. The corned beef and cabbage
was to die for, and I really enjoyed the band.
District #2. Deputy Mayor Drummond said on March 8t', I had the
opportunity to go to Orlando Health South Seminole Hospital. They have
a new ReHab Clinic there that opened a few weeks ago. They had a grand
opening celebration that was very nicely done, and I had an opportunity to
meet with many of the staff that work there. He said their facility is
beautiful and I talked with a few patients who had nothing but good things
to say about Orlando Health. They do both in -patient and out -patient
rehab and offer about any service you can imagine there.
Deputy Mayor Drummond said on March 15t', Computech City, behind
Winn Dixie at 256 Rangeline Road, beautiful facility and they have won
awards for their architectural design of their building, and a lot of their
electricity is provided by solar panels on the roof. He said they have a
very interesting concept when it comes to their employees. They treat
their employees like they are a part of their family. They have sand
volleyball, a grass lot for football, basketball, and a fitness center. Right
now they have thirty (30) employees, but are planning to expand and can
hold up to fifty (50) employees. He said it is a great addition to the City of
Longwood. He said at both of those events, Tom Krueger was there. He
is very active in our community, both supporting existing built businesses
and constantly encouraging new businesses, and Brian Sackett was at
CompuTech also.
District #3. Mayor Paris said it is that time again for one of my favorite
charity events, the UCP Poker at the Palace in the Disney Springs area on
April 60'. He said he goes every year, and it is for a good cause and a lot
of fun. It gets bigger every year, and our esteemed City Attorney is one of
the driving forces behind organizing it every year. Last year, it raised
$40,000. He would like to see all of his fellow Commissioners out there
challenging me at the tables.
Mayor Paris said when you go to Arbor Park to Barkfest to vote for
Commissioner Morgan's dog, there is also going to be Mayor Paris's
basket I donated to the raffle to help raise some money for the City's Dog
Park.
9. ANY ADDITIONS OR DELETIONS TO THE AGENDA
Mayor Paris stated the Acting City Manager requests Item 1 OG be added
to the agenda.
CC 03-19-18/6
1
1
1
Item 1 OG added by a unanimous voice vote with Commissioner
Sackett absent.
10. CONSENT AGENDA
A. Approve Minutes of the March 5, 2018 Regular Meeting.
B. Approve the Monthly Expenditures for February and March
2018.
C. Approve the Monthly Financial Report for February 2018.
D. Approve waiving the rental fees excluding the attendant fee at
the Longwood Community Building for Karina Guerrero, an
employee of the City of Longwood.
E. Approve a total amount of $292,000 to Middlesex Paving, LLC
for the paving of Rangeline Road of which $281,821.75 is the
purchase order amount and $10,178.25 is #or contingency.
F. Approve a change order in the amount of $660,441.55 to the
Cathcart Construction Company purchase order #18-00472 for
the final pay application #10 related to the South Longwood
Sewer Phase I Project.
Added On. G. Approve a purchase order in the amount of $46,995 to
Tradewinds Power Corporation for an emergency generator
for The Landings Subdivision Stormwater Pump Station.
Deputy Mayor Drummond moved to approve Items I OA
through 1OG as presented. Seconded by Commissioner
Morgan and carried by a unanimous roll call vote with
Commissioner Sackett absent.
11. PUBLIC HEARINGS
A. Read by title only and adopt Ordinance No.1-8-2137,
approving the extension of the Non -Exclusive Franchises for
the Collection of Commercial Solid Waste and/or Recovered
Materials for an additional six (6) months.
Mr. Langley read Ordinance No. 18-2137 by title only.
Mayor Paris opened the public hearing. No one spoke in favor or
opposition to Ordinance No. 18-2137.
Deputy Mayor Drummond moved to close the public
hearing. Seconded by Commissioner Shoemaker and
CC 03-19-18/7
12.
carried by a unanimous voice vote with Commissioner
Sackett absent.
Deputy Mayor Drummond moved to adopt Ordinance No.
18-2137 as presented Item 11A. Seconded by
Commissioner Shoemaker and carried by a unanimous roll
call vote with Commissioner Sackett absent.
REGULAR BUSINESS
A. Commission discussion on the future of the Backyard Chicken
Pilot Program, which sunset on February 28, 2018.
Mr. Kintner presented the Item and gave a brief background. He
said the Backyard Chicken Pilot Program sunset February 28,
2018, and -at the August 15'h Commission Meeting, the
Commission voted to adopt an ordinance that established a
temporary backyard chicken pilot program. The program was in
effect from that date until February 28`h. Immediately following
February 28 h, when it sunset and had not received any
applications, we received two requests for applications
immediately following the sunset of the program. He said that is
why you are. seeing this before you tonight. The question staff has
is direction on would the Commission like to see a reinstitution
and extension of the temporary nature of the program, make the
program permanent, or take no action at this time. The temporary
program allowed up to fifty (50) permits for people to keep up to
four (4) hens per residence. There is provisions in there to make
sure the area is clean and safe. There is a provision in there for the
backyard to be fenced. There are some other concerns Ms. Coad
mentioned that could be included in a future ordinance, such as
ventilation relating to existing air conditioners that could be looked
at going forward. He said we could also reach out to Seminole
County that has a program they made permanent and draw from
them. If the Commission wanted to move forward on a temporary
or permanent basis, we could make some tweaks to the current
program. He said staff is looking for direction on the program
tonight, move forward with something temporary, permanent or
take no action.
Mayor Paris said he would like to see staff move forward. He said
if Seminole County has implemented a program, and Winter
Garden has implemented a program, and several surrounding
cities, so no need to reinvent the wheel. He has had backyard
chickens, and he would like to give that benefit to our citizens.
Commissioner Shoemaker said she would like staff to move
forward and have an ordinance that makes this permanent because
I agree with the Mayor. It is nice that you can have it, whether you
CC 03-19-18/8
choose to or not. She also stated, possibly incorporating some of
the things Ms. Coad brought to light. It sounds like she has done
some homework, and there are some concerns of public safety.
Commissioner Morgan said one of the things he saw countywide
was turning the chicken poop into compost and using it on your
vegetable garden. He asked how does that not get into the air
conditioner ventilation system and give people salmonella.
Mr. Kintner said what we would want to do on that is provide
guidance, and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has a page
where they talk about backyard chicken programs, and they talk
about how to remain safe. He said we would want to reach out to
them and to Seminole County IFAS Extension because they do the
training classes for it. He said maybe we could incorporate the
requirements into the ordinance rather than best practices relating
to those specific issues. He said Ms. Coad brought up some good
things that are taught at the class, but if not part of the ordinance,
we would not be able to enforce it.
Commissioner Morgan said he has seen chickens around
Longwood and asked how come there was nobody that signed up
for a permit.
Mr. Kintner said there are some areas that are zoned in the County
agriculturally and follow different rules and are treated more like a
farm and not restricted to the four hens.
Commissioner Morgan said he would definitely like to support this
moving forward, but with a little more structure behind it. He
asked if everyone is being educated on how to properly compost.
Mr. Kintner said they do have to attend a training class and
demonstrate that they have done so. He said they will also have
these types of concerns incorporated in the ordinance and if they
are not doing it that, it will be a code enforcement violation.
Deputy Mayor Drummond said he isn't sure he wants chickens in
his neighbor's yard, but as long as we have a proper ordinance and
enforcement, I don't have a problem with it.
Mr. Kintner said it does require a Homeowner Owners Association
approval and would be an extra step for someone.
Mayor Paris stated, Mr. Kintner has been given guidance -and will
bring something back to the Commission.
CC 03-19-18/9
B. Read by title only, set April 2, 2018 as the public hearing date
and approve the first reading of Ordinance No. 18-2138
authorizing an Easement Agreement with Embarq Florida,
Inc. d/b/a CenturyLink at 235 West Church Street.
Mr. Langley read Ordinance No. 18-2138 by title only.
Mr. Kornbluh presented the Item.
Commissioner Morgan moved to approve Ordinance No.
18-2138 and set April 2, 2018 as the public hearing date.
Seconded by Commissioner Shoemaker and carried by a
unanimous roll call vote with Commissioner Sackett
absent.
C. Read by title only and adopt Resolution No. 18-1458,
authorizing the Fiscal Sustainability Plan (FSP) for the South
Longwood Septic Tank Abatement Project Phase I.
Mr. Langley read Resolution No. 18-1458 by title only.
Mr. Kornbluh presented the Item.
Commissioner Shoemaker moved to adopt Resolution No.
18-1458 as presented Item 12C. Seconded by
Commissioner Morgan and carried by a unanimous roll call
vote with Commissioner Sackett absent.
D. Read by title only and adopt Resolution No. 18-1459,
establishing the time of payment for certain Seminole County
impact fees from prior to permit issuance, to prior to the
scheduling of a pre -power electrical inspection, or approval of
final electrical power.
Mr. Langley read Resolution No. 18-1459 by title only.
Mr. Kintner presented the Item.
Deputy Mayor Drummond moved to adopt Resolution No.
18-1459 as presented Item 12C. Seconded by
Commissioner Morgan and carried by a unanimous roll call
vote with Commissioner Sackett absent.
E. Approve the reorganization of the Police Department's
administrative staffing structure.
Acting City Manager Dowda presented the Item and went over the
changes. He said he is confident that this reorganization will
CC 03-19-18/10
improve efficiency, increase our ability to complete law
enforcement duties as well as community relations. He said it will
also reduce salary and benefits. As you likely know, in 2017/2018
the Longwood Police Department budget included an Assistant
City Manager as well as a Commander's position. It would be my
proposal to eliminate those two positions upon the planned
retirement in May of 2018 of our current Police Commander, and
then replacing those staffing positions with a Deputy Chief of
Police, one non -sworn Police Administrative Manager, and one
Administrative Assistant. He said I honestly believe these changes
will result in positive reductions in our salaries and benefits of
approximately $189,634. The addition of a Deputy Chief of Police
will bring us into parity with all other law enforcement agencies in
Seminole County, as well as our fire department, who has a
Deputy Fire Chief. He said it will designate a clear, second -in -
command in the agency and promote succession planning as well
as development of future leaders. The additional Police
Administrative Manager, as well as the Administrative Assistant
will allow us to establish an administrative bureau. This will take
some of the administrative duties away from law enforcement
personnel, consolidate them into that bureau so that law
enforcement officials can focus on enforcement and leadership
planning, controlling and directing, as they are designed to do
rather than more administrative duties. Also in this agenda, I am
proposing a reclassification of a position. He said we have
recently had a resignation in the last week of someone who holds a
Public Safety Administrative Coordinator position. That position
was previously a Senior Administrative Assistant. He said I would
like to return it to that pay grade from a pay grade nine (9) to a pay
grade (5), which will result in an even greater cost savings -of
approximately $11,000 to $12,000. All totaled; I expect that this
reorganization could save an estimated $201,000 in the next fiscal
year.
Mayor Paris thanked Acting City Manager Dowda and said he
appreciates him going through all the points. When it comes to -
police work, I look to your guidance heavily, so I am 100% in
support of this, and good work.
Commissioner Shoemaker agreed with the Mayors comments.
She said she 100% trust and support your judgement in this being
necessary and feels confident about the numbers, because I know
you worked with Ms. Ricci and Ms. Snead, and I am happy for the
department.
Deputy Mayor Drummond said he had the chance to meet with
him personally, and he explained this to me, and he believes this is
a great move for city administration for the police department.
CC 03-19-18/11
Commissioner Morgan moved to approve the
reorganization of the police department's administrative
staff and structure. Seconded by Deputy Mayor
Drummond and carried by a unanimous roll call vote with
Commissioner Sackett absent.
13.. ACTING CITY MANAGER'S REPORT
Acting City Manager Dowda said there was a proposed budget calendar
prepared by Finance Director Snead placed on the dais for them and he
wanted to call attention to two dates listed. One is May 14, 2018 and the
other June 11, 2018. He said he wanted to check and see if these dates
would fit into their calendars. He stated these meetings are typically set
for 4:00 p.m.
The Commission was fine with these dates and the dates will be confirmed
with Commissioner Sackett when he returns.
14.. , CITTY ATTORNEY'S REPORT. No report.
15. CITY CLERK'S. REPORT. No report.
16. ADJOURN. Mayor Paris adjourned the meeting at 6:47 p.m.
i S I�C AAC
City Clerk
,4
n aris, Mayor
CC 03-19-18/12