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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06272012 Minutes�� ����� ....,..-.-.._,;...., � ..:.-.r HOME OF PELICAN ISIAND SEBASTIAN CITY COUNCIL MINUTES REGULAR MEETING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27, 2012 - 6:30 P.M. CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS 1225 MAIN STREET, SEBASTIAN, FLORIDA 1. Mayor Hill called the regular meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. 2. Deacon John Dunlap, St. Sebastian Catholic Church gave the invocation. 3. Council Member McPartlan led the Pledge of Allegiance. 4. ROLL CALL Citv Council Present: Mayor Jim Hill Vice-Mayor pon Wright Council Member Andrea Coy Council Member Richard H. Gillmor Council Member Bob McPartlan Staff Present: City Manager, AI Minner City Attorney, Robert Ginsburg City Clerk, Sally Maio Deputy City Clerk, Jeanette Williams Community Development Director, Joseph Griffin Administrative Director, Debra Krueger Finance Director, Ken Killgore Public Works Director, Jerry Converse Greg Schmidt, Fleet Supervisor Deputy Police Chief, Greg Witt MIS Engineer Analyst, Rob Messersmith 5. AGENDA MODIFICATIONS Modifications and additions require unanimous voted of City Council Members None. 6. PROCLAMATIONS, AWARDS, BRIEF ANNOUNCEMENTS Presentations of proclamations, certificates and awards, and brief timely announcements by Council and Staff. No public input or action under this heading. A. Proclamation — SunUp ARC. Inc. — Non-Profit Orqanizations Unite Month — Julv 2012 — Accepted bv Executive Director, Chuck Bradlev Mayor Hill read the proclamation and presented it to Mr. Bradley and SunUp ARC clients. Regular City Council Meeting June 27, 2012 Page Two Brief Announcements A. 41S Annual Fourth of July Sebastian Freedom Festival - Parade 8:30 am, All Day Events in Riverview Park and Fireworks Along the Indian River Lagoon After Sunset — Wednesday July 4, 2012 Mayor Hill announced the Freedom Festival event which promises to be a full day of fantastic events. Ms. Coy said the North County Senior Focus Group is scheduled for August in the Chamber and Fellsmere has indicated they will partner with the City. Mr. Gillmor said the Go-Line celebrated their Millionth Rider this year at the Sebastian Post Office; and noted they hope to service By the River Senior Housing Development by September. 7. CONSENT AGENDA All items on the consent agenda are considered routine and will be enacted by one motion. There will be no separate discussion of consent agenda items unless a member of City Council so requests; in which event, the item will be removed and acted upon separately. If a member of the public wishes to provide input on a consent agenda item, he/she should request a Council Member to remove the item for discussion prior to start of the meeting or by raising his/her hand to be recognized. A. Approval of Minutes — 6/13/12 Regular Meeting 12.082 B. Approve Annual Fuel Contract with Glover Oil Company Based on Piggyback Pricing from School District of St. Lucie County from July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2013 (Public Works Transmittal, E-Mail, St. Lucie Contract, Cost Estimate) MOTION by Ms. Coy and SECOND by Mr. Wright to approve consent agenda items A and B. Result of the roll call vote: AYES: All NAYS: None Passed 5-0. 8. COMMITTEE REPORTS & APPOINTMENTS City committee reports and Council Member regional committee reports. No public input or action except for City committee member nominations and appointments under this heading. 12.072 A. Natural Resources Board (City Clerk Transmittal, Applications, Ad, List) i. Interview, Unless Waived, Submit Nominations for One Expired, Regular Member Position — Term to Expire July 1, 2015 Mayor Hill thanked Robin Graves for her service. Ms. Graves said she has enjoyed the past five years of service with the various activities of the Board. Gerald Deredita was not in attendance. Regular City Council Meeting June 27, 2012 Page Three Erwin Pollack said he is a new resident who recently viewed what is available in the City by completing the Sebastian Citizens Police Academy and he would like to give back to the City. Ms. Coy nominated Ms. Graves. There were no other nominations and Ms. Graves was appointed to serve another term. Mayor Hill urged Mr. Pollack to come to the Board meetings to give input and Ms. Coy let him know that his application would be resubmitted for future vacancies. 9. PUBLIC HEARING - None 10. UNFINISHED BUSINESS - None 11. PUBLIC INPUT Sandy VanDerMeulen, Sebastian, said she was disappointed with the quick dismissal of the request to raise the 343 foot flag pole on the riverfront as the memorial is a credit to the 911 first responders and those who are serving today. She asked Council to pursue it a little more than they did. Jim Sunnycalb invited everyone to Riverview Park on June 30 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. to enjoy his model trains. Tina Cafro said she requested the handicapped boat ramp at the Yacht Club last year and cited the $15,000 ramp appropriation in the FY11/12 budget, noted planks were to be installed last July, but nothing has been done. She asked that the planks be installed for the disabled boaters. The City Manager responded funds have been appropriated, staff has looked at a couple of concepts to lower the south dock, noted the water wipes out the planks so they are looking for the right solution. Ben Hocker said he read in the paper there will be a campaign kickoff at the Working Waterfront and he asked if that was permitted on City property. Mayor Hill replied there was no prohibition. Mr. Hocker said the fish market is the only completed part of the $4M project and it seems the waterFront has gone stagnant. He noted there are campaign signs in the right of way and asked staff to issue a statement to those candidates. Mayor Hill confirmed the City owns the land, one building is renovated with an operational business, the waterfront is currently utilized by the fishermen and the City is looking to lease out the remainder of the Hurricane Harbor building, and finalize improvements to the waterfront property. The City Manager said staff has had conversations with the primary lessee as to different ways to structure the existing lease; there are a couple of drafts under review by the lessee which he hopes to bring to Council and the public within a month or so. Regular City Council Meeting June 27, 2012 Page Four 12. NEW BUSINESS 12.083 A. Resolution No. R-12-16 — Lease Between the City of Sebastian and the Phoenix Group, LLC (Community Development Transmittal, Phoenix Plan, Lease, R-12- 16) A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SEBASTIAN, INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A LEASE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF SEBASTIAN AND THE PHOENIX GROUP, LLC; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICT; PROVIDING FOR EFFECTIVE DATE. The City Attorney read the title of Resolution No. R-12-16. The Community Development Director let them know that the Phoenix Group from Herndon, Virginia, requested the use of office space which can be accommodated by using the space designated for National Aperture which is not ready to move in until 2013. MOTION by Ms. Coy and SECOND by Mr. Gillmor to approve Resolution No. R-12-16. Mr. Gillmor congratulated the Community Development Director for his efforts in bringing activity to the Airport. There was no public input. Result of the roll call vote: AYES: All NAYS: None Passed 5-0. 12.084 B. Resolution No. R-12-17 — Sebastian Municipal Airport Joint Participation Aqreement (Communitv Development Transmittal, Scope of Work, JPA, R-12-17) A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SEBASTIAN, INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION JOINT PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT WITH THE FDOT TO PROVIDE FUNDING FOR RUNWAY AND APRON REHABILITATION AT THE SEBASTIAN MUNICIPAL AIRPORT; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICT; PROVIDING FOR EFFECTIVE DATE. The City Attorney read the title of Resolution No. R-12-16. The Community Development Director let them know that during the October FDOT inspection, there were deficiencies found in the runway markings and the FAA plans to install a GPS approach to Runway 4 and 22 that will require additional markings. Through discussions with FDOT and the FAA, it was suggested to apply for this grant as well as a later FAA grant. He asked for approval of the resolution as well as funding for the City's match. MOTION by Mr. Gillmor and SECOND by Mr. Wright to approve Resolution No. R-12-17 There was no public input. 7:15 pm Regular City Council Meeting June 27, 2012 Page Five Result of the roll call vote: AYES: All NAYS: None Passed 5-0. 12.085 C. Cancel or Reschedule Auqust 8, 2012 Reaular City Council Meetinq to Accommodate Earlv Votinq in Chambers (Citv Clerk Transmittal) The City Clerk said she didn't realize the extent of the Supervisor of Elections expected turnout for the primary that will affect the August 8th meeting and asked to reschedule the meeting. Mayor Hill suggested canceling the August 8`h meeting with the proviso a special meeting could be called if necessary. Ms. Coy suggested cancelling the 8th and 22"d meetings and having one August 15tn Mr. Wright cautioned that people are programmed into coming the second and fourth Wednesdays and he didn't know if moving the days would create conflicts. Mayor Hill added that it would create a four week gap between meetings, and suggested cancelling the meeting on the gtn MOTION by Mayor Hill and SECOND by Mr. Wright to cancel August 8th meeting passed with a unanimous voice vote. (5-0) 12.086 D. Discuss FY13 Millage Rates for DR-420 The City Manager let them know that the Citizens Budget Review Advisory Committee met last night and Mr. Herlihy was present to give a report of their findings. Ed Herlihy, Chairman, Citizens Budget Review Advisory Committee said revenue is down materially, assessed valuation went down 6.3%, and the biggest decrease was the proceeds from FPL franchise fees because of the nationwide fuel adjustment. He said in the past, loss of revenues have been covered by the general fund surplus but it should be kept around $4M. He said the Committee has long been advising a tax increase is inevitable and with a 5-1 vote, they recommended a roll forward millage rate of 3.7166 and a one dollar increase per month for the stormwater fee which will be a$20-50 dollar increase for the average home owner. The City Manager said the general fund has been cut 20%; they should stay in the $9.8M operational block and adjust taxes up or down based on future assessments or develop other strategies. He recommended a one dollar increase in the stormwater fee per month, and set the estimated millage rate at 3.7166 for the TRIM notices which will be a slight increase. 7:21 pm Regular City Council Meeting June 27, 2012 Page Six Tina Cafro asked what constituted an average home. The City Manager explained with the 13,000 units in the City, they divide the residential property value by the total assessed value bringing the average house to a FY12 value of $135,000, reduce that by 6%, and apply various millage rates to determine what the average increase or decrease will be. MOTION by Mayor Hill and SECOND by Mr. Gillmor to set the DR420 at 3.7166 mills representing a tax increase of $147,419. Ms. Coy clarified this rate is for the TRIM notice, is not set in stone and the public will have more meetings to express their opinion. Mayor Hill pointed out in 2009 they raised $4.276M in taxes and this year they are down to $2.78M which is a 35% reduction in the taxes with a spending reduction of $1.5M off of $4.2M which is a pretty good reduction; if they go to 3.7166 rate, they would be at 31 % less than what was spent in 2009 and still raising $1.34M in taxes. Mr. Wright cited the negative economic factors such as high unemployment, low private wage levels, property values continuing to decline, and the wealth of the community is down 30-40%. He said the reserve fund was $6M in 2000 and is down to $4.7M; noted $800,000 has been pulled out during the last two years because anticipated revenues haven't come in. Services have been pulled away from departments to an enormous extent citing the postponement of maintenance, lack of funds for road paving and equipment repair, and deficiencies in computer equipment; he said after the possible increase this year, he was concerned with the following year so he asked the City Manager to see where the funds are going. In their review, he said 70% of ad valorem taxes went to public safety in 1988 and with the increase in millage rate it will be up to 140% now which is unsustainable. He said we enjoy terrific police service and to continue they need to increase the revenue, discuss salaries and benefits, look at retirements and turnovers in personnel to get the level back to 100% within five years as they cannot continue to defer maintenance and not staff the City. He said the 2014 projections include an $80,000 estimated deficit but there is an $110,000 savings in the City Clerk's office and a$100,000 in other areas so we are looking at continued substantial reductions in personnel and departments going forward and need to keep the City nice. He said the City Manager's and Budget Committee's recommendation is reasonable. Mr. McPartlan concurred with Mr. Wright; the City has done a tremendous job in squeezing everything they could, agreed with staff's recommendation in sending out the TRIM notices. Mr. Gillmor said they have known this would be coming, they have done everything they could creatively to make the ship sail; this will provide the same amount of dollars; and thanked all of the employees for working hard. 7:36 pm Regular City Council Meeting June 27, 2012 Page Seven Mayor Hill pointed out in 1999 the milage rate was 6.9 and tonight they are going to 3.7166. Result of the roll call vote: AYES: All NAYS: None Passed 5-0. 13. CITY ATTORNEY MATTERS — none. 14. CITY MANAGER MATTERS The City Manager said he and Ms. Coy received a number of phone calls about price increases for the social events held at the Senior Center. He said Ms. Coy contacted Home Depot which is interested in contributing materials to upgrade the kitchen, bathroom, new carpet, ceiling fan fixtures and paint if the City's crew gutted out the old Building Department building which would give the folks somewhere to play cards for free. He said the only expense may be the electricity from noon to 3:00 or 4:00 p.m. and if approved, Ms. Coy had a letter ready for Home Depot and indicated it will be ready in the fall. Ms. Coy confirmed that the Vero Beach Senior Center increased the annual fee from $5 to $25 but waived an increase in Sebastian because programs are non-existent. She did note the game fee went up from $1.00 to $2.00. She met with George, Manager of Team Depot, who has measured the building and is ready to go. She said she had a letter for Home Depot as well as a letter to the Senior Resource Center requesting the game fee go back to $1.00 until the City location is ready which she hoped to be September 1St Ms. Wright complimented Ms. Coy for her efforts in helping the Seniors. There was Council consensus to send out letters to Home Depot and the Senior Resources Center. 15. CITY CLERK MATTERS — none. 16. CITY COUNCIL MATTERS A. Council Member McPartlan Mr. McPartlan said he was looking forward to the parade; noted the eternal flame is out on the Four Chaplains Memorial and asked if it has been fixed yet. The City Manager said the wind keeps blowing out the flame and AmeriGas is looking at safely encasing the flame somehow. B. Mavor Hill Mayor Hill reiterated the Fourth of July is a wonderful event; he will be walking with the Girl Scouts in the parade; and invited the public to come out to the event. C. Vice Mayor Wriqht Mr. Wright said his favorite part of the Fourth is fireworks as they have been terrific and well worth it to see. He asked everyone to enjoy the holiday. Regular City Council Meeting June 27, 2012 Page Eight D. Council Member Cov Ms. Coy thanked Council on behalf of the citizens who play cards and board games at the Senior Center for the new location. E. Council Member Gillmor Mr. Gillmor said in regard to the flag pole, he explained that the gentleman who wants to bring the flag pole might bring a car dealership as well to the City and he asked the City Manager if he could look into how that will economically benefit the City. The City Manager said based on the conversation at the previous meeting the flag pole seemed questionable but he did express to Mr. Hargreaves that if Mr. Stewart is interested in bringing a dealership to Sebastian we could help with a location along with a benefit package and provided his and the Community Development Director's contact information. Mr. Gillmor said if Mr. Stewart wanted to put the flag pole on his property he would be all for it. Ms. Coy cautioned they are making assumptions based on third party hearsay and suggested the Community Development Director speak directly to Mr. Stewart, find out the deal, and bring it back to Council. 17. Being no further business, Mayor Hill adjourned the regular meeting at 7:49 p.m. Approvec�jat th,e July 11t", 2012 Regular City Council meeting. ' Ji Hill, Mayor ATT ST: � � � Sally A. Mai , MMC — City Clerk