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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-06-26 - City Commission Workshop Meeting MinutesCITY OF TAMARAC CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP MEETING MONDAY, JUNE 26, 2006 CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco called the Workshop Meeting of the City Commission to order on Monday, June 26, 2006, at 9:30 a.m. in Room 105 of Tamarac City Hall, 7525 NW 88t" Avenue, Tamarac, Florida. PRESENT: Mayor Beth Flansbaum-Talabisco, Vice Mayor Edward C. Portner, Commissioner Patte Atkins -Grad, Commissioner Marc L. Sultanof, and Commissioner Harry Dressler. ALSO PRESENT: City Manager Jeffrey L. Miller, Deputy City Manager Michael C. Cernech, Assistant City Attorney Julie Klahr, and City Clerk Marion Swenson. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco led the pledge of allegiance. Commissioner Sultanof asked City Manager Miller to instruct staff waiting to make presentations to the Commission not to fraternize with the general public. Commissioner Sultanof spoke of members of the public who have made it known they wish to attend these meetings for the sole purpose of attacking the professional manner in which city business is conducted, and said he and the rest of the commission resent this. 1. PRESENTATION IN CONCERT WITH UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL OF THE H2U@WORK EMPLOYEE WELLNESS PROGRAM: Human Resources Director Swanson, Marlene Crep, Director of the H2U programs, Julie Morra, Coordinator for H2U, and David Goldberg, Director of Marketing and Business Development appeared. Human Resources Director Swanson introduced Benefits Specialist Caries. Ms. Crep gave a presentation on the H2U @ Work program and said this is a pilot program that will hopefully help with the rising costs of insurance, and spoke of the program goals and measurements. Commissioner Sultanof questioned a fee for the City of Tamarac employees, the ability of employees to attend the various programs, and physician referrals in conjunction with AETNA. Ms. Crep said University Hospital is working with Human Resources on a charge for the program and the program times will be creative. Vice Mayor Portner asked if seniors who attend trips offered by the City are better off than those who do not socialize and Ms. Crep said those who are socially connected are better off. Vice Mayor Portner asked if the program will be mandatory for all employees and Human Resources Director Swanson said it will not be mandatory. Commissioner Atkins -Grad expressed concern about privacy issues and spoke of identity theft emanating from hospitals. Ms. Crep said the hospital is HIPAA protected and the reports will contain no names. Commissioner Dressler questioned tracking and Ms. Crep said as many items as possible are tracked, e.g. number of people who sign up and participate in the wellness survey, the number of people who take the HRA, and how high end health insurance costs are affected. Commissioner Dressler said there is no question about the correlation between preventive testing, the ability to treat people June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 1 of 8 and accounting aspects, and we must measure how effective we are with education. Commissioner Dressler spoke of privacy issues. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned the $4,000 allotted for the fee and Human Resources Director Swanson said it is in the budget. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco expressed satisfaction that Tamarac is a pilot city for this program and questioned the impact on insurance rates. Human Resources Director Swanson said taking preventive measures is part of it; this is a different way to approach people. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked about family members of employees, as well as children, being eligible to participate in the program. Ms. Crep said there is nothing specific in the program for children, but if this is something the City of Tamarac wishes, it can be incorporated. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco moved out of the regular order of business on the workshop agenda to take up Item No. 6. 6. DISCUSSION RE: USE OF CITY EMBLEM: Vice Mayor Portner asked City Manager Miller to request that Mayor Joe Schreiber, wearing a City of Tamarac emblem shirt with the inscription 'Mayor' either leave the building or remove his shirt. Assistant City Attorney Klahr gave a presentation regarding wearing of an emblem or displaying an emblem or insignia of the City or holding oneself out as a public official if the individual is not currently in office. Only those filling that capacity shall display the insignia; actions could be taken based on the circumstances surrounding the activity. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked if this includes city employees and how this would be handled if the person no longer works for the city. Assistant City Attorney Klahr replied if one is no longer an employee of the city, administration retrieves certain items. The issue at hand is holding oneself out as a public official. Commissioner Sultanof said during a recent campaign one candidate was told they could not use the city seal on their letterhead. City Manager Miller said when someone leaves the city, staff retrieves the I.D., all city property and any uniforms on which the city seal is displayed. That is not the case with all employees, but they all know when they leave the city's employ they are no longer eligible to wear shirts or say they are in the official capacity of the city. It is up to the Mayor and City Commission to direct the City Attorney or City Clerk to send a letter to ex -city employee(s) and previous elected officials and would require an expression of interest. Commissioner Dressler confirmed paragraph 2 of the staff memo from the City Attorney, where it is at the discretion of the Mayor and City Commission whether to enforce the violation and questioned the fact that this could be discriminatory. Assistant City Attorney Klahr suggested the statute be enforced uniformly. Commissioner Dressler confirmed that while the Mayor and City Commission are setting policy, this would have no bearing on the honorific of calling someone Mayor or Commissioner; we are only addressing use of the city seal. On Vice Mayor Portner's request, all were in agreement. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned Commissioner Dressler's mention of a letter or policy and Vice Mayor Portner said he was not in agreement with a letter or policy. Commissioner Dressler said if the Mayor and City Commission take the position to establish a policy he would prefer counsel draft the policy statement and send same to the appropriate party. Commissioner Dressler questioned a writ of mandamus and how the notice would be worded. Assistant City Attorney Klahr explained a writ of mandamus is an order of the court to take action; the . June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 2 of 8 letter would be similar to a notice to cease and desist. Commissioner Dressler said he felt a letter would be appropriate. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco said she would also like a policy. On expression of interest all were in favor of a letter and policy except Vice Mayor Portner. Commissioner Dressier said he prefers to place this within the context of a policy as Tamarac is a leading edge city and we focus on programs to provide the highest level of service to the residents at the lowest cost. The Mayor and City Commission should address items based issues, not on personalities. City Manager Miller confirmed the Mayor and City Commission's direction is for the staff to come back with a policy implementing the law and a letter for the present situation. City Manager Miller said staff would bring same to the Mayor and City Commission at the next workshop meeting. 2. PRESENTATION REGARDING EVERGLADES RESTORATION PROJECT: Elbert Waters, Director, Broward Service Center, South Florida Water Management District and Laura Corey, Governmental Representative appeared. Mr. Waters gave a presentation and discussed major components, system modifications, challenges, the study, Interagency Team, the plan, and how much it will cost as well as who is responsible for payment. Commissioner Sultanof said the Everglades have shrunk considerably and part of the program has become a political football; the governor took money out of the Everglades Trust Fund. Commissioner Sultanof spoke about reclaiming waste water. Mr. Waters said the district has moved forward with SB444, to implement alternative water supply programs and programs to reuse water. Ms. Corey added Broward County is not good at using water again; utility companies are encouraged to reuse water. This is more difficult for older cities as the infrastructure is not in place. Vice Mayor Portner asked if the Corps of Engineers is still the lead agency and questioned fasttracking the 35 year project to 10 years. Ms. Corey said some components of the project are accelerated but the entire project is expected to take 35 years. Vice Mayor Portner asked if the $7.9 Billion is the total cost for the project and whether it is legal for the governor to take money out of the fund. Ms. Corey confirmed the total cost of the project and said she is not qualified to discuss legalities of the use of the funds. Commissioner Dressler asked what Tamarac can do to assist in this program, and suggested a resolution in support of the project. Mr. Waters said through Resolution the Mayor and City Commission could support the water conservation efforts; additionally, the District staff can meet with the Mayor, City Commission and city staff and become partners in this restoration project. Ms. Corey spoke of visiting the homeowner associations and speaking to them about keeping the culverts clean, educating residents and handing out brochures. City Manager Miller added the City of Tamarac has one of the best water conservation programs in the state. Director of Utilities Gagnon said the City of Tamarac has an aggressive water conservation plan; we have added a Water Conservation Specialist to the department and the City has a hands on approach, with the Mayor and City Commission leaders in this area. Commissioner Dressler questioned reuse of water and asked why Tamarac does not have its own wastewater treatment plant, and said as a leading edge city we need to look into this rather than rely on the county. Director of Utilities Gagnon said Tamarac is legally bound, and owns 10% of the wastewater treatment plant in Broward County; it may not be impossible to have our own plant, but it would be economically unfeasible. June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 3 of 8 Director of Utilities Gagnon said in his presentation to the Mayor and City Commission after their vacation, he would discuss other things we can do. Commissioner Atkins - Grad suggested restaurants not place glasses of water on tables unless the customers specifically ask for a glass of water. Vice Mayor Portner asked if there are supposed to be three storage units on U.S. 27 and Ms. Corey said there are impoundment areas for the C-9 and C-11 canals connected by a convergence canal. Mayor Flansbaum- Talabisco suggested rather than a presentation by Director of Utilities Gagnon at an upcoming workshop, a special meeting be scheduled for his presentation. All were in agreement. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco called for a recess at 11:20 a.m. and reconvened the workshop meeting at 11:35 a.m. with all present as before. 3. JUNE_28,_2006 AGENDA ITEMS: Due to the fact that Planning and Zoning Manager Ross had a prior commitment, Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco moved out of the regular order of business on the workshop agenda to take up Items 3(g) and 3(h). City Manager Miller congratulated Planning and Zoning Manager Ross on being chosen as Chair for the T.C.C., a subcommittee of the MPO. g. Item No. 8. PROJECTS RECOMMENDED FOR INCLUSION IN THE FY06 ANNUAL ACTION PLAN: (TR10988) Motion to approve resolution approving projects recommended for inclusion in the Fiscal Year 2006 Annual Action Plan for expenditure of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant Funds estimated to be $434,900 for the Seventh Program Year (Case No. 9-MI-06). Planning and Zoning Manager Ross gave a presentation. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco confirmed the Temporary Social Worker position is reimbursable by virtue of being a temporary position. h. Item No. 7. AMENDING CHAPTER 12, "LICENSE AND BUSINESS REGULATIONS": (T02118) Motion to adopt Ordinance on first _reading amending Chapter 12, "License and Business Regulations", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Tamarac, Florida, by amending Article II, "Occupational Licenses", by repealing Section 12-39, "Amount of Fee" of the City of Tamarac Code of Ordinances in its entirety and creating a new Section 12-39, "Amount of Fee" to conform with Chapter 205, Florida Statutes; modifying occupational license fees and classifications and establishing equity between license fees and establishing additional license classifications and fees (Case No. 7-Z-06); providing for codification. Planning and Zoning Manager Ross gave a presentation. Vice Mayor Portner questioned the fact that each individual must pay an occupational license fee in addition to the office within which they work. There was discussion regarding the reasoning behind the fees and Financial Services Director Chapman spoke about tax purposes and sub -contractors. Vice Mayor Portner questioned the equity with regard to Astrologers paying $924 for an occupational license while Auto Dealers may only pay $382. Commissioner Dressler June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 4 of 8 agreed this seems to be potentially unfair. Commissioner Atkins -Grad spoke of realtors in Coral Springs having to pay their own occupational license fees and said Tamarac's fees are less than Coral Springs. a. Item No. 6(c). INSITUFORM TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AGREEMENT_- INFLOW AND INFILTRATION PROJECT: (TR10980) Executing an agreement for the FY06 inflow and infiltration project for sanitary sewer rehabilitation with Insituform Technologies, Inc., utilizing City of Melbourne contract RFP #10-111-1-2005, valid through March 22, 2007, for an amount not to exceed $500,000.00; authorizing the appropriate city officials to administer the contract. Utilities Director Gagnon, Support Services Manager D'Amato, and Purchasing/Contracts Manager Glatz appeared. Director of Utilities Gagnon gave a presentation and said this would provide for increased flow. b. Item No. 6(e). JOINT PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT — HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE COLLECTION EVENTS: (TR10965) Executing an amendment to the Joint Participation Agreement with Broward County for Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events extending the agreement until June 27, 2007. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty gave a presentation and said 400 cars came through in 2001; 700 cars came through in 2005. The tentative date for the collection is September 17, 2006 at the Public Services Complex on Nob Hill Road. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned notification to the public and Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said it will be advertised by Broward County in the newspapers, and through our Public Information office. C. Item No. 6(f). AGREEMENT AMENDMENT — GRUBBS EMERGENCY SERVICES, INC.: (TR10977) Executing an amendment to the 2002 agreement between the City of Tamarac and Grubbs Emergency Services, Inc. for disaster recovery services. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty and Purchasing/Contracts Manager Glatz appeared. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty gave a presentation and said this is primarily a housekeeping matter to adjust the date of the agreement. Commissioner Sultanof confirmed the City will receive money from FEMA and Vice Mayor Portner questioned whether the contract was only for disaster recovery. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said we can use the contract for several items, such as the initial push after a storm, to clear all essential roads, for canal restoration and debris pickup. Mayor Flansbaum- Talabisco questioned places for the men and trucks to park and living arrangements if we do not have enough sites in the city. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said we do not promise them anything; they go wherever they can find a site. d. Item No. 6(g). AGREEMENT — BECK DISASTER RECOVERY INC.: (TR10978) Executing an agreement between the City of Tamarac and Beck Disaster Recovery, Inc. for disaster debris monitoring services utilizing Orange County Contract Number Y5- 1000B. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty and Purchasing/Contracts Manager Glatz appeared. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said the monitors are responsible to document that which is being June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 5 of 8 done as part of our disaster recovery. Since Hurricane Wilma we have needed more resources and we are planning ahead. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned living arrangements and Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said these are mostly local people. Vice Mayor Portner asked what else the monitors do and Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said they can do data entry also. Commissioner Sultanof confirmed reimbursement through FEMA for the monitors and Commissioner Dressler asked for a ballpark figure of what it will cost for future storms. Purchasing/Contracts Manager Glatz said our expenditure authority for the Beck contract is $250,000. e. Item No. 6(h). TAMARAC COURTYARD PHASE 2 FDOT LAP AGREEMENT: (TR10982) Executing a Local Agency Program Agreement with the State of Florida Department of Transportation for participation in the fiscal year 05/06 FDOT Work Program for the construction of the Tamarac Courtyard Phase 2. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty gave a presentation. Vice Mayor Portner asked about plastic roll down siding to prevent people from getting rained on while walking through the courtyard, and Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said this could be looked at during the design of the project; however, it is a maintenance issue and may be cost prohibitive. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked when the Mayor and City Commission would see the design and questioned the time frame for the project. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty said as soon as the agreement is executed it will be sent to DOT. We should have something out by the end of the summer. Commissioner Sultanof confirmed there would be benches. f. Item No. 6(k). 2006 EMERGENCY HURRICANE SUPPLEMENTAL URBAN AND COMMUNITY FORESTRY GRANT: (TR10991) Submitting an application to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for an Emergency Hurricane Supplemental Urban and Community Forestry Grant in the amount of $50,000 for the provision of trees lost on public property or rights of way in Tamarac during Hurricane Wilma; authorizing adherence to the three-year maintenance plan and execution of the Maintenance Memoranda of Agreement between the City and the Department of Agriculture in the event the award is approved; providing for a cash match of 25% in local funds in the event of approval. Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Doherty and Special Projects Coordinator Gresek appeared. Special Projects Coordinator Gresek gave a presentation, said due to program cuts only $50,000 is available this year, and spoke of the maintenance agreement attached to the project. Special Projects Coordinator Gresek said the notice of award would be made some time in September 2006. i. Item No. 6(i). PURCHASE OF ROOF TARPS: (TR10987) Awarding Bid Number 06-21 B to W.W. Grainger, Inc., for the purchase of the annual requirements for roof tarps for the City of Tamarac and on behalf of the Southeast Florida Governmental Purchasing Cooperative for a period effective upon award of the agreement, for a period of one year, with the option to exercise up to three (3) additional one (1) year renewals, authorizing expenditure in an amount not to exceed $100,000.00. Fire Chief Budzinski and Purchasing/Contracts Manager Glatz appeared. Purchasing/Contracts June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 6 of 8 Manager Glatz explained better pricing for more quantity by partnering with the South Florida Purchasing Group. Commissioner Atkins -Grad asked how large the tarps are and Purchasing/Contracts Manager Glatz said the sizes vary from 15'x20' to 30'. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned the initial order of 500 and Purchasing/Contracts Manager Glatz explained this is based on a five day supply. Mayor Flansbaum- Talabisco said she is pleased with the programs going into effect for the hurricane season; on the campaign trail the subject was premier on everybody's mind. Commissioner Sultanof asked if the $100,000 is budgeted and City Manager Miller said it is. Commissioner Dressler asked about including availability of the tarps in the Code Red message and Fire Chief Budzinski said we may want to target distribution of the tarps more appropriately, based on the assessment of the Building Department. 4. UPDATE ON HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS: Fire Chief Budzinski, Economic Development Officer Berns and Social Services Supervisor Cure-Persad appeared. Fire Chief Budzinski said these activities are a result of last year's experiences and preparation for the upcoming season. The message boards approved at the last meeting have arrived. Commissioner Sultanof spoke about propane gas being stored in Port Everglades and questioned the ability to use propane gas to fuel generators for buildings with elevators. Fire Chief Budzinski spoke of the Building Department's evaluation of a four-story building in Kings Point and the fact that in order to run the elevators, fire alarm system, emergency and exit lights, would take a 70KW generator; the cost of such generator, whether it would run on diesel or propane would be about $75,000 and that would be an issue for the condominiums. The capacity of the generator, not the fuel is the deciding issue. Fixed lighting and alarm systems draw relatively little power from generators, but it is a life/safety system. Building and Code Compliance Director Jones explained the elevators in Kings Point are set up on 480 volt systems while generators for gas stations or homes are on 110 volt systems. Emergency systems and lighting are modest draws. Commissioner Dressler confirmed it is up to the associations and homeowner associations to take care of the generators for their buildings. Commissioner Dressler spoke of issues of entitlement. Commissioner Sultanof asked if FEMA is involved and City Manager Miller said FEMA is more of a reactive than proactive agency. Vice Mayor Portner asked how other communities hit by storms in previous years have handled these situations and Fire Chief Budzinski said they have not, as these concerns are for those areas that are more populated. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco spoke of signage for pharmacies and gas stations that are hurricane ready. Fire Chief Budzinski explained the county's ruling on pharmacies, gas stations and other businesses that would become a part of the hurricane response network are allowed to advertise, but the rules of the program have not been worked out yet. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked what we could do to inform our residents that some businesses are hurricane ready and City Manager Miller said he would talk to staff about that, as there are issues due to the fact some businesses say they are hurricane ready but when the chips are down they are not ready; additionally, some businesses may be hit hard by a storm and may not be able to reopen. Vice Mayor Portner suggested signage for clubhouses and posting the memo attached as backup to this item. City Manager Miller explained Fire Chief Budzinski and Social Services Supervisor Cure-Persad have been speaking with the homeowner June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 7 of 8 associations and last year bulletins were posted at the clubhouses daily. Economic Development Officer Berns addressed difficulties after Hurricane Wilma with regard to obtaining gasoline. The legislature has ruled that stations along evacuation routes and corporate entities with 10 or more stations must be generator ready. Of the 12 stations in the City, seven are hurricane ready. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked Economic Development Officer Berns if he spoke with gas stations that border Tamarac, Lauderhill and Sunrise; Economic Development Officer Berns said if the Mayor and City Commission indicated specific stations he would approach them. Social Services Supervisor Cure-Persad spoke of the resident registry and said 73 homeowner associations have signed up for distribution of supplies and she has the names and phone numbers of those individuals who may need wellness checks after a storm. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked how many individuals signed up for Code Red and Fire Chief Budzinski said about 25,000. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco spoke of volunteers from faith based organizations. Economic Development Officer Berns said he had a good discussion with them and Training Specialist Reinert is coordinating a volunteer network. Vice Mayor Portner spoke of faith based organizations relative to the City of Character Committee and asked Assistant City Manager Phillips to look into this. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco said when the volunteer group gets going it can piggy back to the City of Character Committee. Commissioner Dressler said he is comfortable with faith based organizations working as volunteers as long as it is a diverse group. Fire Chief Budzinski explained we are encouraging participation at the front end and there has been interest from different groups. 5. DISCUSSION AND SELECTION OF VOTING DELEGATE TO THE FLORIDA LEAGUE OF CITIES ANNUAL CONFERENCE: Assistant City Manager Phillips gave a presentation. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco nominated Vice Mayor Portner to serve as the voting delegate and all were in agreement. 7. DISCUSSION RE: FLORIDA CITIES OF EXCELLENCE AWARD PROGRAM: Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco nominated City Manager Miller and City Attorney Goren for the Florida Cities of Excellence Award and all were in agreement. There being no further business to come before the Mayor and City Commission, Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco adjourned the workshop meeting at 12:50 p.m. Marion Swenson, CMC City Clerk June 26, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 8of8 1