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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-12-11 - City Commission Workshop Meeting MinutesCITY OF TAMARAC NOTICE OF WORKSHOP MEETING CITY COMMISSION OF TAMARAC, FLORIDA MONDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2006 CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco called the Workshop Meeting of the City Commission to order on Monday, December 11, 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, City Attorney Samuel S. Goren, and City Clerk Marion Swenson. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco led the pledge of allegiance. 1. DECEMBER 13s 2006 AGENDA ITEMS: a. Item No. 6(b). APPOINTING ONE RESIDENT TRUSTEE TO FIREFIGHTERS' PENSION BOARD: (TR11076) Appointing one resident trustee to the Firefighters' Pension Board to serve a two-year term ending January 8, 2009. City Clerk Swenson appeared. All were in agreement to reappoint Dorothy Cummings as the Resident Trustee to the Firefighters' Pension Board, City Clerk Swenson said she would revise the resolution to include Ms. Cummings' name for Wednesday's meeting. b. Item No. 6(c). APPOINTING ONE RESIDENT TRUSTEE TO POLICE PENSION BOARD: (TR11077) Appointing one resident trustee to the Police Pension Board for a two-year term ending January 8, 2009. City Clerk Swenson appeared. Commissioners Sultanof, Dressler, Atkins -Grad, Vice Mayor Portner and Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco said Mr. Rothman's credentials were exemplary. All were in agreement to appoint Mr. Charles Rothman as the Resident Trustee to the Police Pension Board. City Clerk Swenson said she would revise the resolution to include Mr. Rothman's name for Wednesday's meeting. C. Item No. 6(k). YOUTH SPORT LEAGUES AGREEMENTS: (TR11107) Approving the form agreement with the City's Youth Sport Leagues to provide for organized youth sports activities in the City of Tamarac; delegating the authority to the City Manager to approve future agreements with the Sports Leagues; further authorizing the appropriate City officials to execute such agreements between the City of Tamarac and the City's Youth Sport Leagues. Parks and Recreation Director Warner and Recreation Superintendent Zimmer appeared. Director of Parks and Recreation Warner explained this is a form agreement for the Tamarac leagues since TAF voted not to renew its contract with the City, beginning January 15 - We are looking at direct agreements between the City of Tamarac and the individual leagues and the resolution will delegate future authority to enter into these agreements to the City Manager. December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 1 of 8 Recreation Superintendent Zimmer provided a history of the youth and adult sports programs, the reason for dissolution of TAF, and the benefits if the City of Tamarac takes over responsibility. Recreation Superintendent Zimmer explained the transition and said the Recreation Superintendent will be the primary point of contact and individual sports will be assigned to current Recreation Programmers as liaisons. A mandatory volunteer training program is being developed through NRPA to focus on dealing with youths. Recreation Superintendent Zimmer said some funds in the existing bank account were used for concession stand equipment and the remaining funds are being donated to the City for background checks. Recreation Superintendent Zimmer added for year 1 the fiscal impact will be about $4,000.00 for background investigations and in year 2 it will drop to about $3,000.00. It is estimated that staff costs will be about $15,010.32 for 5 employees @780 hours. Director of Parks and Recreation Warner said the estimated first year costs for background checks have gone down since the staff memo was prepared because we were informed the Youth Football league is run through PAL. The agreements will include insurance and indemnity language. Commissioner Sultanof asked if additional staff will be needed and Director of Parks and Recreation Warner said at this time we are using existing staff and we will evaluate staff needs at budget time. Commissioner Sultanof questioned fees offsetting costs and Director of Parks and Recreation Warner said fees are based upon what is needed to run the leagues, such as uniforms, officials and insurance. City Manager Miller explained the agreements between the City of Tamarac and the leagues will spell out the responsibilities of the leagues and the City. Commissioner Dressler questioned the league covering indirect costs and Director of Parks and Recreation Warner said it goes back to the philosophy of how the City wants to handle it; it is recommended the City take charge of the programs. If the leagues pay the City back for staff hours, these costs will then be passed on from the leagues to the participants, which will result in increased registration fees. Commissioner Dressler questioned the fact that there was no distinction in the agreement between the leagues and participants and City Attorney Goren said this language may need to be tweaked to include additional protection for the City. Vice Mayor Portner questioned the reason BSO is no longer performing background checks, and Director of Parks and Recreation Warner said BSO only performs cursory background checks. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco said every year she receives many calls from parents who want this to happen; they see it as a win -win situation and this is a positive way to resolve recurring issues. Mayor Flansbaum- Talabisco said she sees this as adding another program to our roster and believes this will be successful and the leagues will grow. An evaluation will have to be done regarding the need for additional staff. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked for a review of the fiscal impact and Director of Parks and Recreation Warner said the $23,000 may reduce to $19,000 based on information he received regarding background checks, which must be done every three years. The background checks are more comprehensive than those done in the schools; they will be similar to background checks for City employees. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked for periodic updates. d. Item No. 7. AMENDING SECTION 10-183 OF THE CITY OF TAMARAC CODE OF ORDINANCES — MINIMUM DESIGN CRITERIA FOR CUL-DE-SACS: (TO2128) Motion to adopt Ordinance on first reading amending Chapter 10 entitled, "Land Development Regulations", Article V, "Improvements", Division 2, "Roads and Public December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 2 of 8 Rights -Of -Way", Section 183, "Minimum Design Criteria", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Tamarac, Florida to revise the minimum design criteria for cul-de-sacs; providing for findings and conclusions evidencing the intent of the City Commission to revise the aforesaid design criteria (Case No. 17-Z-06); providing for codification. Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech and Planning and Zoning Manager Ross appeared. Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech explained we are no longer doing residential development on a large scale from the ground up; we are now into mainly infill and redevelopment, which presents different obstacles to our code. When building new subdivisions, 600' for a cul-de-sac is a good standard. For redevelopment and infill the 600' could present problems. We looked at other cities and found our minimum design criteria are very conservative. The City Engineer, Fire Marshall and Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech agree there is no longer a need for conservative limitations. Some cities, such as Coral Springs, Lauderhill and Sunrise, have no maximum. We recommend a maximum of 1,500' with a caveat that a greater length can be requested if the City Engineer, Fire Marshall and Director of Community Development agree. Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech added page 3 of the ordinance will be replaced due to an inconsistency between the staff memo and the ordinance. Commissioner Sultanof said he is in favor of this ordinance. Vice Mayor Portner asked why Tamarac does not incorporate 'no maximum footage' so as not to limit developers, and Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech explained the reason for the 1,500' was a technical one; when we do residential planning, we do not want cul-de- sacs that go on forever; we will, however, allow developers to go beyond that if in our professional opinion there are no obstacles to the health, safety and welfare of the community and the people who reside on the cul-de-sacs. Beyond 1,500' we run into questions of public infrastructure and safety. Our fire apparatus must be able to navigate the streets, and in the instance of redevelopment with regard to utilities it may create an issue to tie new infrastructure into that which is existing. e. Item No. 8. CONSOLIDATED ANNUAL PERFORMANCE EVALUATION REPORT(CAPER)FOR FY ,2005-2006: (TR11083) Motion to approve Resolution approving the Consolidated Annual Performance Evaluation Report (CAPER FY 2005- 2006) for the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD)'s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Programs for HUD's Fiscal Year 2005-2006; Case No. 17-MI-06. Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech, Housing Administrator Bauldree, and Housing Coordinator James appeared. Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech said there are two goals for the CDBG Program; to maintain a supply of affordable housing units and provide public services and support for seniors in the City of Tamarac. We have not been as successful over the past few years providing housing assistance as we would have liked to have been. The City used outside consultants to administer the program, because we thought, at the time, it would be more efficient. Housing Administrator Bauldree said there have been a lot of issues in our housing program; many of which are beyond our control. Now that this division is fully staffed we have the ability to make our programs more available to the community. Mayor Flansbaum- Talabisco questioned Target Areas and Housing Administrator Bauldree explained December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 3 of 8 communities set aside after the 2005 hurricane season, due to extreme damage. These residences can receive an additional $10,000 in funding. Housing Administrator Bauldree said applications are going out on a regular basis and the Tamarac Community Center has been helpful providing residents blank applications. Much marketing has been done to advertise our programs and there has been a surge of educational programs to make residents aware that the programs are available. Additionally, the Housing Division of Community Development is working on a handbook for purchasing a home, budgeting tips and a spending plan. Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech said this is a good update as to where we are today and we intend to bring good news to the Mayor and City Commission in the future. The Mayor and City Commission regularly pass a resolution authorizing expenditures under this program, which will be brought to the Mayor and City Commission in the future along with amendments making it easier for the community to access the money. The cost of construction has increased since the last time such a resolution was approved and we may have to increase the amount of our awards. Deputy City Manager/Interim Director of Community Development Cernech acknowledged assistance from Community Development Staff and the Finance Department in bringing our program to this successful point. Vice Mayor Portner suggested those who oppose progress in Tamarac read the report. Commissioner Dressler said he does not want to see money left unused and asked if meeting the deadlines for distributing the funds ties in with our Sterling plan. City Manager Miller said we benchmark everything we do and we will be tracking this program as well. Housing Administrator Bauldree explained a portion of the money is still available but much of the $2 million is committed, and we are well on the way to assisting homeowners in Tamarac. Commissioner Sultanof congratulated staff on a good job. Vice Mayor Portner asked how bad the Vanguard Village and Southgate Gardens areas are at this point. Commissioner Atkins -Grad said in Vanguard Village not long ago about 40 homes were uninhabitable, and there are still 20 families unable to live in their homes. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco spoke about Neighbors Assisting Neighbors and the Community Christian Church assisting the residents. Additionally, the Mayor and City Commission's community outreach helps people meet with the County and State entities for assistance. Commissioner Dressler said in Southgate Gardens there are 108 units uninhabitable. Vice Mayor Portner asked about developers going in and redeveloping these areas. City Manager Miller spoke of various scenarios that might deter this from happening and said the City is assisting where it can. Commissioner Atkins -Grad said the property appraiser's office also assisted by allowing those displaced to only pay taxes on the land rather than the home. Vice Mayor Portner suggested a Town Hall meeting with the residents to explain options. City Manager Miller said the city will hold neighborhood meetings and try to identify strategies to encourage the influx of private money. Commissioner Atkins -Grad said it is hard to imagine demolishing neighborhoods. Commissioner Dressler said in Southgate Gardens we are dealing with people with multiple issues and differences, such as cultural and linguistic; there are legal restrictions and restraints on City government getting involved in contractual agreements with individual parties. This may be an economic development issue that impacts the tax base of the city. Perhaps the economic development foundation can be brought into play. We are doing everything the City can do at this time and encouraging outside developers may be perceived by December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 4 of 8 the legislature as circumventing eminent domain. City Attorney Goren spoke of the Kilo case and the inability of government to take privately owned land and reassemble for private use. City Manager Miller said our Building Department has done a yeoman's job working with private contractors and insurance companies for rehabilitation of dwelling units. City Manager Miller said he would submit a report to the Mayor and City Commission. Commissioner Sultanof said the federal government, with all its money, has not been able to clean up New Orleans; we are a local government with limited finances and laws. While our hearts reach out to these people, we are doing everything we can within the restraints placed upon us. We do not have the ability, legally or otherwise to bring in a developer and disburse an entire community. There are isolated pockets in the City that need attention and we should concentrate on these. Commissioner Dressler suggested when Senator Ring appears before the Mayor and City Commission on Wednesday evening we should ask him to explain what he can do to help us around these issues. Vice Mayor Portner said we are only limited by our imagination. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco said this board always touches on important points. From the time Wilma struck to date, these communities have come a long way, but not far enough. We have legal limitations but we can do better. Mayor Flansbaum- Talabisco asked for an update from staff as well as creative ideas, and said she defers to staff to take what Vice Mayor Portner said and within legal limits to see how much more we can do. City Attorney Goren spoke of the pending Lynch Bill and Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco suggested the City Manager Miller talk to Lobbyist, Ron Book. f. Item No. 9. ANNEXATION OF THAT PORTION OF UNINCORPORATED BROWARD COUNTY KNOWN AS THE BONIELLO GARDENS PROSPECT BEND CONTINENTAL PLAZA ANNEXATION AREAS: (TO2127) Motion to adopt Ordinance on first reading submitting to referendum the annexation of that portion of unincorporated Broward County known as the Boniello Gardens, Prospect Bend, Continental Plaza Annexation Areas, legally described in Exhibit "A" which is attached hereto; providing for notice of advertisement of the referendum election to be published in accordance with the laws of the State of Florida, the Code of Ordinances, and the Charter of the City of Tamarac, Florida; providing that this Ordinance, when adopted, shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the area proposed to be annexed, on the March, 2007 election ballot, and shall become effective as provided by the law; providing for the place and places where said election is to be held. City Attorney Goren and Economic Development Officer Berns appeared. Economic Development Officer Berns gave an update on the annexation and said petitions have been collected for the commercial area as well as the residential area, which enables us to take the next step in the process, a vote of the residents in the area. Economic Development Officer Berns thanked the City Attorney's office for their assistance. City Attorney Goren said the ordinance parallels the path of the state legislative delegation and the local Bill. Hearings will be held on December 18 and 21 on the local Bill. If the ordinance becomes effective, an election will be held in 2007 and based on the outcome of the election, annexation will take place September 2007. If the annexation has to go through the Bill process, annexation will take place September 2008. Economic Development Officer Berns' diligence with the petitions and support from the residents in the affected area has put us in a positive place.. The only open issue at this point is mail ballot vs. live election. The Broward County Supervisor of Elections has December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 5 of 8 determined there will be no mail ballot while there is a live election in the County, and as such, the ordinance may be tweaked to reflect a change in the election date for mail ballot, which is less costly than a live election. Vice Mayor Portner questioned the tax base for the commercial property involved and Economic Development Officer Berns said he would get that information. Commissioner Sultanof said he is delighted we are moving in this direction as we have missed many opportunities in the past, but his concern is the infrastructure and he would like written confirmation that the County will tend to the infrastructure. Commissioner Sultanof commended Economic Development Officer Berns and City Attorney Goren for their efforts. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned the two public hearings at the Broward Delegation and City Attorney Goren confirmed the first on the 18th is to read the Bill and the second on the 21 " is a public hearing at which representatives from the City should be present. g. Item No. 10. AMENDING THE CITY OF TAMARAC CODE OF ORDINANCES BY CREATING A NEW CHAPTER ENTITLED "S-2 RECREATIONAL DISTRICT": (TO2124) Motion to adopt Ordinance on second reading creating a new chapter within the City of Tamarac Code of Ordinances entitled, "S-2 Recreational District"; providing for findings and conclusions evidencing the intent of the city commission to create the aforesaid zoning category with its attendant uses, responsibilities and opportunities; providing for definitions; providing for scope; providing for purpose and intent; providing for multiple zoning requirements; providing for permitted uses; providing for general regulations; providing for landscape requirements; providing for building/structure heights; providing for plot size; providing for walls and fences; providing for design criteria (Case No. 15-Z-06); providing for codification. Vice Mayor Portner passed on discussion of this item. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked for an update with regard to Item 6(m) on the consent agenda. TERMINATION OF CONTRACT BETWEEN CITY OF TAMARAC AND SEAWOOD BUILDERS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF AQUATIC CENTER: (TR11112) Terminating the contract between City of Tamarac and Catalfumo Construction, L.L.C. d/b/a Seawood Builders for construction of the Caporella Aquatic Center; making certain findings and conclusions; authorizing the City Manager, City Attorney, and authorized City staff to take appropriate actions consistent with this Resolution. Public Works Director Strain and Director of Parks and Recreation Warner appeared. Public Works Director Strain said this is on the agenda due to insurmountable problems with the contractor. We initiated the 30 day notice on November 1, and the next step is to terminate the contract. Because of agenda requirements and deadlines, this item was placed on the agenda. The letter sent to the contractor served its purpose and much progress has been made in the last 30 days. Director of Parks and Recreation Warner agreed most of the outstanding issues have been rectified. Public Works Director Strain said it is our intention, unless something catastrophic occurs in the next few days, to pull this item from the agenda. Director of Parks and Recreation Warner spoke of a soft opening for the Aquatic Center in the near future, as some schools are scheduled to begin swim lessons in February. Commissioner Dressler questioned incentives for completion prior to anticipated completion date or, in the alternative, disincentives. Public Works Director Strain said there are no incentives for early completion but there are penalties for late completion. December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 6 of 8 1 City Attorney Goren said due to the potential of adopting the resolution on Wednesday, he would suggest the matter not be discussed during this public forum. 2. DISCUSSION RE: SOLAR ENERGY: Vice Mayor Portner spoke of the rising cost of fuel and utilities and questioned the ability of the City to come up with an incentive plan for Tamarac residents who install solar panels in their homes. City Manager Miller said this could be looked into from a staff and legal perspective, in order to determine the City's authority in this matter. City Manager Miller said he would also research the franchise agreement with FPL to make sure we have the authority to provide incentives, and he would bring back a report in a few weeks. Commissioner Dressler echoed Vice Mayor Portner's concern about energy and fossil fuel usage, and also asked staff to look into the use of bio-fuels for city equipment and machinery. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked that hybrid vehicles also be looked into. Commissioner Atkins -Grad said while she was in Reno she noticed that extended stay motels do not change linens for guests during their stay unless specifically asked to do so, in the spirit of water conservation. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco suggested Commissioner Atkins -Grad call the managers of extended stay motels in Tamarac to see if they would consider adopting this type of conservation, or, if in fact, they already subscribe to this method. Vice Mayor Portner thanked Assistant City Manager Phillips for the backup to this item. 3. DISCUSSION RE: CREATION OF MAIN STREET RESTORATION PROJECT SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS: Financial Services Director Chapman and City Attorney Goren appeared. Financial Services Director Chapman said we need to look at options to fund infrastructure improvements (roads, sidewalks and under grounding of electric lines) for our Main Street Project along 57th Street from 94th Avenue to Pine Island Road. Currently, we have $1.5 million in our CIP designated for infrastructure and the actual cost is upwards of $6 million. In essence, we have a $4.5 million shortfall. The question is "who pays"? If the money comes from the general fund then all the taxpayers in the City of Tamarac will have contributed to the fund for specific improvements for a specific district, even though people from other cities will enjoy the benefits of the project. It may be unfair if the entire city pays for this. Financial Services Director Chapman recommended a Special Taxing District for the property owners; debt out 20-30 years and the assessment will be on the tax bills each year; as property is sold, a discounted amount is paid to the assessment. The Mayor and City Commission will have to pass a resolution allowing for assessments; the property appraiser has extended the deadline from January 1 to March 1. The item is currently on the County Commission meeting agenda for December 12, for the Commissions' approval. At this point, Financial Services Director Chapman asked for an expression of interest to move forward with a study by an outside firm for specific costs for each individual property owner. Vice Mayor Portner said he is not in favor of a special assessment. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco questioned the need for a consultant and Financial Services Director Chapman said an independent outside consultant gives confidence to everything that is looked at with an eye to fairness to each individual taxpayer. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco said the city is trying to contribute as much as possible and we have $1.5 million set aside. We are also looking for money from Washington. If things go according to plan we could come up with more money and this equation can change. December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 7 of 8 City Attorney Goren said the Mayor and City Commission could reduce the assessment. Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco asked for an expression of interest to move forward with an independent study and all were in agreement except for Vice Mayor Portner. There being no further business to come before the Mayor and City Commission, Mayor Flansbaum-Talabisco adjourned the workshop meeting at 12:05 p.m. Marion Swenson, CMC City Clerk C December 11, 2006 City Commission Workshop Page 8 of 8