Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-27-2020 CC MinutesOn Y SEA HOME OF PELICAN ISLAND SEBASTIAN CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MINUTES WEDNESDAY, MAY 27, 2020 - 6:00 P.M. CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS 1225 MAIN STREET, SEBASTIAN, FLORIDA Mayor Dodd called the Regular meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. A moment of silence was held. Council Member Jim Hill led the Pledge of Allegiance. Mayor Dodd read the Civility Pledge. 5. ROLL CALL Mayor Ed Dodd Vice Mayor Charles Mauti Council Member Damien Gilliams Council Member Jim Hill Council Member Pamela Parris City Staff Present: City Manager Paul Carlisle City Attorney Manny Anon, Jr. City Clerk Jeanette Williams 6. AGENDA MODIFICATIONS A unanimous voice vote approved the removal of item, "13A - Update by Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce." 7. PROCLAMATIONS. AWARDS BRIEF ANNOUNCEMENTS Presentations p/proclamations, certit�cates and awards, and brief timely announcements by Council and Staff. No public input or action under this heading. 20.044 A. Proclamation for Chief J. Michelle Morris — Retiring with 33 Years of Meritorious Service to the Sebastian Police Department Mayor Dodd read and presented the proclamation to retired Police Chief Morris. 20.073 B. Proclamation — Code Enforcement Officers Aooreciation Week - June 1 — 5. 2020 Mayor Dodd read and presented the proclamation to Code Enforcement Officer Curtis Bloomfield. 20.055 C. Proclamation — Recoanizina Former Vice Mavor Sal Neglia for His Mary Years of Communitv Service Mayor Dodd read and presented the proclamation to Sal Neglia. Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Two Brief Announcements by Mavor Dodd: -He announced the Senior Center intends to stay closed until they reassess the Governor's plan to reopen meeting places on June 23. -He apologized to Council Member Gilliams and Council for closing the May 18 meeting early. -He announced that Sebastian is fourth highest city in the state and number one on the Treasure Coast to have responded to the Census and asked everyone to be sure to respond. Council Member added that people can respond by phone. Brief Announcements by Council Member Gilliams: -He reminded the public that the 4`" of July Celebration is cancelled. -He invited citizens to participate in the City meetings through Zoom on the computer. -He announced the pickleball courts are open. -He asked everyone to consider wearing a mask. 8. CONSENTAGENDA 20.074 A. ADorove the Piapvback to Broward College Contract #RFP-2018-167-EH to Authorize Shenandoah Construction to Clean. Reoair. Maintain. Televise and Install Stormwater Pioes for Fiscal Years 2020 and 2021 (Transmittal. Price. Acceotance. Award Council Member Gilliams pulled item A and asked that future items be placed under New Business. The City Manager explained the City's underground drainage system is aging and it was cost effective to slip line the pipe and run a new pipe through the aging pipe; in order to maximize the value, the City piggybacks existing publicly bid contracts. MOTION by Council Member Hill and SECOND by Mayor Dodd to approve the piggyback contract with Shenandoah Construction. Roll call: Vice Mayor Mauti - aye Council Member Gilliams - nay Council Member Hill - aye Council Member Parris - aye Mayor Dodd - aye Motion carried. 4-1 9. CpMMIY---E REPORTS & .P?) INTMENTS Cllffy commit ee reports and oun em er reg onal committee reports. No public input or action except for City committee member nominations and appointments under this heading. 20.049 A. Natural Resource Board tTransmittal, Application, Ad, List) i. Interview, Unless Waived, Submit Nominations for One Unexpired, Alternate Member Position There was unanimous support for Mayor Dodd and Council Member Hill's nomination of Patrick Powers to the unexpired position on the Natural Resources Board. Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Three 20.048 B. Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee (Transmittal, Application, Ad, List) I. Interview, Unless Waived, Submit Nominations for One Unexpired, Alternate Member Position Mr. Mauro introduced himself. There was unanimous support for Mayor Dodd and Council Member Gilliams' nomination of Richard Mauro to the unexpired position on the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee. 20.028 C. Planning and Zoning Commission (Transmittal, Applications, Ad, List) i. Interview, Unless Waived, Submit Nominations for One Expired, Regular Member Position Mr. Christino (current alternate member) stated that fresh ideas and voices are a benefit to the City and requested to be a regular member. Mr. Qizilbash stated he would like to serve again. Council Member Hill made a motion to appoint Mr. Carter and Mr. Christino to the regular member positions. Mayor Dodd seconded the motion. Vice Mayor Mauti commented on Mr. Carter and Qizilbash's experience and contributions to the Commission and asked that they remain. It was agreed that Council would make the appointments separately and Council Member Hill withdrew his motion to appoint Mr. Carter and Mr. Christino. Council Member Hill made a new motion to appoint Mr. Carter that was seconded by Mayor Dodd. A unanimous voice vote appointed Mr. Carter to another term. ii. Interview. Unless Waived. Submit Nominations for One Expired. Regular Member Position Council Member Hill nominated Mr. Christino; Vice Mayor Mauti nominated Mr. Qizilbash. Roll call: Council Member Gilliams - Mr. Qizilbash Council Member Hill - Mr. Chrislino Council Member Parris - Mr. Christine Mayor Dodd - Mr. Qizilbash Vice Mayor Mauti - Mr. Qizilbash Mr. Qizilbash was appointed for another tens on the Planning and Zoning Commission. 20.018 D. Police Pension Board of Trustees (Transmittal, Application, Ad, List, Code) i. Interview, Unless Waived, Submit Nomination for One Civilian Position There was unanimous support for Council Member Gilliams' and Council Member Parris' nomination of Andrea Ring to the Police Pension Board of Trustees. 10. PUBLIC HEARINGS - None 11. UNFINISHED BUSINESS - None Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Four 12. PUBLIC INPUT Andrea Coy spoke on Council Member Gilliams' accusation of criminal activity regarding the surplus sand at the cemetery during her term on City Council. (See attached) Christopher Nunn, Sebastian, described the process of government contracting and asked certain Council Members to resign. Andrea Ring thanked Council for the appointment to the Police Pension Board. Russell Herrmann, 586 Redwood Court, spoke on government transparency. (See attached) Nickolas Scheskowsky said he watched the petition process in action and was excited for the enthusiasm. Steve Smith, 158 Columbus, spoke on his radio broadcasting and news reporting experience. Michelle Morris, Sebastian, described the legitimate rental of Riverview Park by the recall committee. She also thanked Mayor Dodd and Vice Mayor Mauli for admitting their recent mistakes. Tracey Cole, Sebastian, stated she has 7,400 signed petitions in the boxes that she had with her. She asked the three Council Members to resign to save the citizens time and money. Nelson McCollum, Sebastian, asked why the August 28, 2019 meeting where the Graves Brothers annexation took place when the City was under a hurricane emergency. Graham Cox, 1213 George Street, asked that the City move forward with the Future Land Use Amendment, the Comp Plan Revision and the Integrated Pest Management Plan. (See attached) Bob Bedea, Sebastian, stated that since the canal spraying has been put on hold he has seen plants and wildlife return to the canal behind his house. Father Dave Newhart, asked Council to work together to reach a consensus. Jeff Holmestaff said he was not political but Council needed to stop because people are suing the City. Bob McPartlan cited the advice given by the former City Attorney that when Council Member Gilliams implies criminal activity was taken by former City council members after investigations were completed and found no criminal activity, the City could be sued for slander if he continued with his allegations. Mayor Dodd called for a recess at 7:28 pm and Council returned at 7:33 p.m. All members were present. Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Five A Zoom caller stated to Council Member Gilliams that one of the scariest things to happen during his life was the public cheering after the hanging of Saddam Hussein as he too thought he was doing the right thing. 13. NEW BUSINESS 20.075 A. Uodate by Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce Chairman of the Board Joel Stout !no backuol This item was pulled from consideration under agenda modifications. 19.155 B. Discussion (Der Council Member Parris) Recardinc the AD[ loved and Codified Recvclina Ordinance 0-19-07 for the Industrial Zonina Distnct Warrior Salvaoe (Transmittal. 0-19-07. Aonlication. Mao) 7:34 pm Council Member Parris stated that she would like to increase the ability to recycle and include automobiles, especially as the population increases. The City Manager described the recent code change to allow recycling with certain conditions. He noted if you change the zoning for one district, it would apply for the all industrial districts. Additionally he stated the City's current Comp Plan prohibits junk and salvage. Discussion followed if the Council wanted to have automobile recycling within the City. Mayor Dodd advised there are multiple steps that need to happen. MOTION by Council Member Parris and SECOND by Council Member Gilliams to modify the Comp Plan to allow auto salvage and then change the ordinance 0-19-07. Shannon Cook, Warrior Salvage, described the meetings he held with staff and was in possession of records where he asked to recycle automobiles before he purchased his property to run his recycling business. He asked for a reconsideration vote to include automobiles. AMENDMENT to the motion by Vice Mayor Mauti and SECOND by Council Member Parris to have the City Attorney prepare an investigative document to bring back to board at the second meeting in June. Roll call on the amendment: Council Member Parris - aye Mayor Dodd - aye Vice Mayor Mauti - aye Council Member Gilliams - aye Council Member Hill - nay Motion carried. 4-1 Roll call on the original motion: Council Member Hill - aye Council Member Parris - aye Mayor Dodd - aye Vice Mayor Mauti - aye Council Member Gilliams - aye Motion carried. 5-0 Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Six 20.050 C. Resolution No. R-20-04 - Acceotina the 1st Quarter Financial Reoort and Recoanizina Necessary Amendments and Adjustments to the FY19/20 Annual Budoet (Transmittal. R-20-04. Reoort) 8:06 pm A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SEBASTIAN, INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, RECOGNIZING AMENDMENTS AND ADJUSTMENTS TO THE BUDGET FOR THE FISCAL YEAR BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2019 AND ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 2020 AS PROVIDED FOR IN EXHIBIT "A"; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICTS; PROVIDING FOR SCRIVENER'S ERRORS; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. MOTION by Council Member Hill and SECOND by Mayor Dodd to approve Resolution No. R-20-04. The Administrative Services Director/CFO spoke on some of the fund summaries. Roll call: Mayor Dodd - aye Vice Mayor Mauti - aye Council Member Gilliams - aye Council Member Hill - aye Council Member Parris -aye Motion carried. 5-0 20.050 D. Resolution No. R-20-07 - Acceotina the 2itl Quarter Financial Reoort and Recoanizina Necessary Amendments and Adiustments to the FY19120 Annual Budoet (Transmittal. R-20-04. Reoort) A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SEBASTIAN, INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, RECOGNIZING AMENDMENTS AND ADJUSTMENTS TO THE BUDGET FOR THE FISCAL YEAR BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2019 AND ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 2020 AS PROVIDED FOR IN EXHIBIT 'A"; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICTS; PROVIDING FOR SCRIVENER'S ERRORS; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. MOTION by Mayor Dodd and SECOND by Council Member Hill to approve Resolution No. R-2-07. Bob McPartlan said the Administrative Services Director has a commendable financial mind. Roll call: Vice Mayor Mauti - aye Council Member Gilliams - aye Council Member Hill - aye Council Member Parris - aye Mayor Dodd - aye Motion carried. 5-0 20.062 E. ADorove CSA #6 with Infrastructure Con suIt'nn,ao and Er meerm (ICE) for the Desi(kn of New Taxi Lane at the Sebastian Municioal Aimort in the Amount of $69.882.50 and Authorize the Citv Manager to Execute Aoorooriate Documents (Transmittal. CSA #6. Scooe) The City Manager reported the CARES Act will pay 100% for this project and asked for approval. Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Seven In response to Andrea Ring, the Mayor advised that the City cannot use Federal Aviation Administration funds to improve her street. MOTION by Council Member Hill and SECOND by Mayor Dodd to approve CSA#6 with Infrastructure Consulting and Engineering to design a new taxi lane. Roll call: Council Member Gilliams - aye Council Member Hill - aye Council Member Parris - aye Mayor Dodd - aye Vice Mayor Mauti - aye Motion carried. 5-0 20,076 F. Discussion (Per Council Member Parris) Council Workshops ssopm Council Member Parris requested workshops between Council meetings to discuss topics that citizens contact her about. Council Member Hill noted that a consensus of Council can request a workshop on a specific matter at any time; and any (topic) items can be brought up under her matters. Mayor Dodd said there are issues that need to be workshopped such as the Graves Brothers land use and noted the committees can workshop items such as the clay tennis courts where the public can comment. He said he was not opposed to holding workshops during their regular meetings to discuss certain, pertinent issues or assign the issue to the appropriate standing committee. Council Member Gilliams said he would like to workshop the design -build of the new Public Works Facility; as well as the spraying in residential yards; and 60 foot lots planned for the Spirit of Sebastian subdivision MOTION by Council Member Parris and SECOND by Council Member Gilliams to hold workshops on demand starting with the new Compound. Council Member Parris asked that the bid process be included in the workshop. The City Manager said the agreement hasn't been approved but the $510 is in the budget. He explained the contractor has been working at risk (they have expended funds) to bring the project into budget by designing it in phases and Council will choose which design they like best. He also explained the grant by the City will cover the lift station, and the sewer connection for the west end of the Airport on Roseland Road. The City Attorney advised that since the bid was awarded, he was not comfortable revisiting the bid at a workshop. Council Member Hill noted the agenda item was to discuss the holding of workshops not the new Public Works Facility; workshops have always been held as needed. Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Eight Council Member Parris withdrew her motion to hold monthly workshops and requested Council Member Gilliams to state her motion. He said he would like to have a workshop to look at the three contractors that presented proposals, how the process went through and the bids that came in. Mayor Dodd said that was in opposition to the advice of the City Attorney. Council Member Gilliams seconded the motion he stated for Council Member Parris. Mayor Dodd admonished Council that if they voted yes, they are doing that against the advice of the City Attorney; they could give direction to allow the City Attorney an opportunity to do some research. Council Member Gilliams said he wasn't interested in hearing from the Attorney unless he can back it up with Statutes. Public Comment Sharon Herman, Sebastian, asked how they can move forward if they are going to constantly re-evaluate every bid and every worker that was completed before the new Council Members came in; there is a lot to do. Louise Kautenburg, Sebastian, said there is an agenda with specific items that the public expects to be covered and their discussion has morphed into a specific workshop. She said the public practically never comes to workshops. Russell Herrmann, 566 Redwood Court, said the transparency is a process and when one Council Member asks a question, it is appropriate for another to answer; it would be appropriate to let the City Attorney check out what happened. Council Member Gilliams said he didn't have a problem with the City Attorney checking out what happened because he would be verifying his determination. William Usher, 660 Breakwater Terrace, asked if an audit would be helpful. Council Member Parris withdrew her motion. MOTION by Council Member Gilliams and SECOND by Council Member Parris to proceed with a June 17 Workshop to give the City Attorney time to see if the City violated the bidding process since the contractor was picked. If the City Attorney finds this would violate the bid proposal process, the June 17 workshop would be cancelled. Roll call: Council Member Parris - aye Mayor Dodd - nay Vice Mayor Mauti - nay Council Member Gilliams - nay Council Member Hill - nay Motion failed. 4-1 14. CITY ATTORNEY MATTERS - None Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Nine 15. CITY MANAGER MATTERS The City Manager stated COVID-19 testing was available for residents at the Eastern Florida State College in Palm Bay. He noted that he has asked for Senator Mayfield's assistance in procuring a Sebastian site. 16. CITY CLERK MATTERS - None 17. CITY COUNCIL MATTERS A. Council Member Parris cited Code Section 66-1 (1) & (2) which she said goes with the Civility Pledge. She may be considering the rescission of her vote on May 18 relating to Agenda Item 14a iv but needed to review the minutes. She cited a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt. Mayor Dodd asked the City Attorney to look into if they could reconsider the vote. B. Vice Mayor Mauti cited the meaning of ab inilio which he stated was taken from the intervener's pleading. Mayor Dodd said that was also in one of Judge Groom's orders. Vice Mayor Mauti asked for an updated schedule on the Comp Plan's revision. The City Manager said he would provide that. C. Council Member Gilliams asked for an update on the Scozzari Variance. The City Manager advised the Scozzari's have withdrawn their application and were going to submit a new variance for consideration. He said he is adamant that they look at the Wright Construction contract (to build the new Public Works Facility) because they are from the west coast and they need to keep the work local; in addition he felt that design drawings should come in under $200K; if there were no issues there, they could move forward. Council Member Gilliams said people needed to be tested for the COVID-19 virus to start tracking and tracing. He asked for consensus to determine if the Community Development Director had the authority to extend the Graves Brothers FLUM with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunities. He asked for early consideration of how much of a budget shortfall there will be because of the COVID-19 virus. He thanked Mayor Dodd for apologizing for closing the May 18 meeting early. He stated he was making public service announcements at Riverview Park on Saturday and a police officer asked him to leave. He has asked for an internal investigation. Regular City Council Meeting May 27, 2020 Page Ten He suggested that the City should consider selling items at the clay tennis courts to offset the cost of resurfacing the court. He asked for consensus to have the consent agenda items read aloud before approval. There was no consensus. MOTION by Mayor Dodd and SECOND by Council Member Gilliams to extend the meeting until 10:00 p.m. passed with a voice vote of 3-2. (Ayes: Gilliams, Parris, Mauti) (Nays: Hill, Dodd) Council Member Gilliams said he would like to see the Integrated Pest Management Plan back on track. He said there will be meetings and a Council Member has the right to call a special meeting. D. Council Member Hill thanked Mayor Dodd for keeping the meetings together and Ken Kilgore for the outstanding accounting. He said the Governors Executive Order requires the City not to have the 4' of July Celebration which requires a lot of planninia that should be underway at this point. He pointed out the 0 of July will still be the 4' but the celebration with fireworks will carry forward to September 5" in time for Labor Day. He said he understands the concerns of the public regarding the clay tennis courts and he looks forward to finding ways to make it more revenue neutral; his goal was to make sure that citizens have the amenities that they need. Council Member Hill noted the City of Sebastian has the fourth highest response in the state to the 2020 Census and invited the public to respond by phone at (844) 330-2020 or in Spanish (844) 468-2020. E. Mayor Dodd said he heard in the public input that the City is trying to hide under the COVID-19 to not get things done which is not true; the committees and boards will start again this month. He explained that the City cannot finalize the future land use map (FLUM) until they get out from under the 164 Process with the County which the City doesn't know how long that will take; from the City's prospective it would have been disastrous to have requested and receive a shorter extension. In regard to Council Member Gilliams' threat to remove him as Mayor, he said advised his that he can't do it. 18. Being no further business, Mayor Dodd adjourned the Regular City Council meeting at 9:36 p.m. Approved at the June 10, 2020 Regular City Council Meeting Mayor Ed Do dddd- - ✓ Wdha,ts, Crty C TO: Council Member Damien Gilliams City Manager Paul Carlisle City Attorney Manny Anon Sebastian City Hall 1225 Main Street Sebastian, FL 32958 SUBJECT: Cease and Desist Defamation of Andrea Coy Wednesday, May 27, 2020 On numerous occasions Council Member Damien Gilliams has accused me, Andrea Coy, and other former Council Members of wrong -doing and alleged criminal activity concerning the purchase of the cemetery property and the disposition of the sugar sand. As a newly elected official, Council Member Gilliams is using his position on City Council to verbally broadcast his slanderous remarks as well as using his city email account to defame and libel me in public records. In a City of Sebastian email dated Saturday, April 18, Council Member Gilliams accuses me of being in hiding because I gave 300000 to political friends. He goes on to say, "Shame on you. Short memories. You're WEAK! I GOT ELECTED TO CLEAN UP THE MESS. YOURE A DISGRACE TO THE UNIFORM. UNTIL YOU COME OUT OF HIDING AND TELL THE COMMUNITY WHAT HAPPEN ON THE CEMATARY, 1 HAVE NO RESPECT FOR YOU...." Misspellings, bad grammar, punctuation error;, the use of all CAPS, and allegations of theft of city property is Council Member Gilliam's idea of an appropriate email to send to a constituent I came before council on Thursday, May I asking Council Member Gilliams to apologize for his libelous email but he refused. To add insult to injury, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 around noon, Council Member Gilliams decided to double down and use a bullhorn to broadcast "Public Service Announcements" to a group peacefully assembled in Riverview Park, a venue which they had reserved and paid for their exclusive use. Once again my name was connected with Page l of 2 alleged unlawful activity. The slander continued the next day in Riverview Park. I have videotaped both instances of slander on May 20'" and May 218`. As if this is not enough, Council Member Gilliams continues to wantonly make libelous and slanderous allegations despite the fact that Florida Department of Law Enforcement has declined to pursue the issue due to lack of evidence. Because Council Member Gilliams is making these allegations in his capacity as a City Council Member, I am asking the City Council to formally admonish him and demand he immediately cease and desist the libel and slander aimed at Andrea Coy. Council Member Gilliams should also apologize to me and all the others he has tried to implicate in his fictitious scheme to turn a legitimate purchase of cemetery property into the crime of the century. This is my last demand for decency on my own behalf. Should Council Member Gilliams choose to continue his unsubstantiated allegations, I will seek legal remedies that may include Council Member Gilliams individually and the City of Sebastian. Sincerely, Andrea B. Coy c� 501 Palm Avenue Sebastian, FL 32958 CF City Clerk Jeanette Williams Mayor Ed Dodd Vice Mayor Charles Mauti Council Member Hill Council Member Parris Page 2 of 2 My name is Russell Herrmann, 586 Redwood Court, Sebastian I want to speak briefly about our fourth big issue, transparency in government dealings. The steps Dr. Cox discussed above -- completing one IPM and initiating work on another, working on the annexation future land use plan and working on the city comprehensive plan -- are excellent examples for how this city government can show progress in transparent decision -making. Start them up and use phone, a -mails and zoom to get on with this. Time is running short. With respect to lack of transparent decision making, I can only took at the way this city made decisions last year about the Graves Bros. annexation — done in the shadows. Lack of transparency and ignoring the residents' opinions last summer is what brought us to this sorry impass with today's council rancor. Hiding behind the emergency declaration has been a big mistake for this administration and this council. Government, open discussions and honest decision -making have suffered badly. We know we must fix this by working together. We know what the reform members want. The reform agenda is clear. We have listed them above in the remarks by Dr. Cox. What does the recall crowd want? Nothing positive and constructive. Dislike, nay hatred, of Damian Gilliams is not a useful step forward. Theirs is not a constructive agenda. Letting lose a stream of Facebook and Twitter hatred of Damian, Pam Parris and Charles Mauti is not living up to the ideals of civility you have posted on the council wall. Let's just reflect for a moment on what is happening at the national political level and see what applies here. The president has systematically fired the messengers — the inspectors general — to four federal agencies, messengers who bring him what he thinks is bad news. That is what you have been trying to do to Damian — muzzle the messenger. He asks questions about the affairs of this administration. It's his job to do that. In fact it is the job of each one of you to ask questions, not just wave a magic wand over the administration actions. It is also insulting to, at best ignore, at worst condone the hatred and threats that are being spewed by the recall group on their Facebook and twitter pages. This has got to stop. Civil discussion has to start right now. Transparency of decision making is a crucial action this city council and city administration can start right now. Thank you. Comments to Sebastian City Council May 27 2020 for the Public Input section of the council agenda regarding getting back to work on issues supported by the majority of city residents My name is Graham Cox. I live at 1213 George Street, Sebastian. It is unfortunate that the city government has come to a screeching halt on long term issues that affect all of us — namely, 1) the future land use plan for the Graves Bros. property annexation; 2) completion of the 2030 revised comprehensive plan; 3) the preparation of integrated pest management plans for the city parks and recreation areas and for the city's canals and ponds; and 4) serious efforts to bring civility and real transparency to city government. I will talk about the first three issues and leave it to Buzz Herrmann to discuss the fourth item, transparency and civility in city government. I discussed briefly the future land use plan and the amendment to the city comprehensive plan when I spoke here May 14. I urged you then and do so again now to get to work on this. The city administration has asked for and been granted up to another year by the state Office of Economic Development to hold its second public hearing on this annexation and future land use planning issue. Do not use the pending court decision as an excuse for inaction. We should not wait for a year to get together all the affected interests and start to prepare for and design an outstanding future land use development plan for the Graves Bros. property, a plan that meets the 11 basic principles of smart growth development. The city administration is also hiding behind the emergency declaration to avoid publicly discussing the revisions to the comprehensive plan. The city should not wait to move along with its comprehensive plan revisions. We need to see a new timetable to discuss each element of the comprehensive plan and have these discussions in full public view. Next issue: preparing integrated pest management plans. It is sad but true that it has taken the city nearly four years to acknowledge the need for, and then act to prepare these integrated pest management plans. The Natural Resources Board sub -committee worked well with Brian Benton and Kimberley Haigle in February and early March to look at the pest management issues in the parks and recreation areas. The corona virus emergency declaration seems to have put a hold on this work. I would simply urge you to take transparency seriously here, authorize more meetings of the sub -committee and if necessary use modem technology — as we are seeing tonight — to schedule conference calls and Zoom TV to hold remote meetings and get the job done. With respect to the IPM for the canals, I know the start of this task was awaiting completion of the parks and recreation IPM. But given the three month delay I see no reason why this work cannot move forward in a parallel fashion, again using conference calls and Zoom to gather the broader community thinking on this issue. The year 2020 is moving along very quickly; waiting for the perfect moment to start and finish this canal IPM is not necessary. I have confidence in Ken Griffin to get this job started and completed by the end of year deadline. The future of the Lagoon water quality depends on a host of small but meaningful actions throughout the watershed, actions to stop the flow of harmful chemicals to the lagoon. Ending the poisoning of our canals and ponds is one of these small but critical steps. I leave it to Mr. Herrmann to take up the government transparency issue. Thank you.