Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1993-06-02 - City Commission Special Meeting MinutesCITY OF TAMARAC CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 2, 1993 CUL ZQOEMEg; Mayor Bender called this meeting to order on Wednesday, June 2, 1993 at 1:00 p.m. in the Conference Room #1 of City Hall. PRESENT: Mayor H. Larry Bender Vice Mayor Irving Katz Councilman Norman Abramowitz Councilman Henry Schumann Councilman Joseph Schreiber John P. Kelly, City Manager Dina McDermott, Assistant City Manager Mike Couzzo, Assistant City Manager/Director of Public Services Mitchell S. Kraft, City Attorney Karen Jackson, Secretary **************************************************************** 1. -W Any member of the public may speak to any issue which is on this meeting notice. Speakers will be limited to three minutes during this item. There will be a thirty (30) minute aggregate time limit for this item and speakers are encouraged to sign up in advance with the City Clerk prior to their participation. Carl Alper, resident of Mainlands, Section 23, expressed his concerns regarding the various portions of the Code which are not being enforced. He suggested that these portions of the Code be listed on a form for the Code Enforcement officers to follow for enforcement purposes rather than them having to read blueprints. Mr. Asper said he is unsure as to whether the Broward Sheriff's office is obligated to enforce the City's Code. Marvin Seidel, resident of Kings Point, suggested that the City hire from within, with the proper qualifications, if the Code Enforcement Supervisor position is approved by Council. 2. the transfer of $11,555 from General Fund Contingency Account 001-872-579-975 to various Code Enforcement accounts to fund a Code Enforcement Supervisor position through the end of Fiscal Year 1992/93 (tabled on 5/26/93). V/M Katz MOVED to APPROVE Item 2, SECONDED by C/M Abramowitz. Mr. Kelly requested that this item be held until Kelly Carpenter, Director of Community Development, arrived and Mayor Bender directed that the item be heard. C/M Schreiber questioned the need fo hiring a Code Enforcement Supervisor. Inspectors and found that they spend office handling paperwork and school the City needs more productivity and Department because the Inspectors are paperwork. r reorganization prior to He reviewed the logs of the 3 to 5 hours per day in the crossing guard work. He said more efficiency in the spending too much time on C/M Schreiber referred to Page 49 of the Code Enforcement budget. He suggested that the City consider a reorganization of the Department to save additional money. He recommended that the time spent in the office be reduced from 2.5 hours to 1 hour in the afternoon and possibly implement a procedure whereas the Inspectors are dropped off on -location to work a particular area for the day, which would be a cost savings due to the elimination City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 2 of four automobiles. C/M Schreiber said the system of reinspection should be improved. He said in the past there were three Inspectors but currently there are five. He asked if all five Inspectors are necessary and who their supervisor would be. He recommended that the Department be reorganized for the 93/94 budget and then implement whatever may be done later. Mayor Bender said the City is aware that the Code Enforcement Department is in need of a reorganization. He said it is important that the City establish close supervision in the Department. He said it is not possible to drop Code Enforcement officers off at a location and have a taxi service to take them from one location to another. He said he is not against having a Code Enforcement Supervisor but he wants this Supervisor to work in the field. He said the City is getting older, there are more violations and more inspections are needed. C/M Abramowitz said last year Ms. Carpenter made a suggestion to the City Manager that there were problems with the School Crossing Guards and recommended that the City become privatized in this field. C/M Abramowitz expressed his concerns with the Code Enforcement officers handling crossing guard duties. He said the way to eliminate this situation is through privatization. C/M Abramowitz said citizen complaints are a large portion of the Code Enforcement Officer's job and there are times when they are required to address the complaints prior to routine inspections. C/M Abramowitz asked how it is possible to supervise the Code officers in the field with someone who works in the office. He said a working supervisor would be worthwhile. C/M Abramowitz said the Code Enforcement sweep which was done in the City was overwhelming and the Building Inspectors had to pitch in and help. He said that sweep brought in a revenue of approximately $30,000.00. C/M Abramowitz expressed his concerns regarding the citations and the hearings which are held by the Code Enforcement Board. Discussion was held regarding these procedures. V/M Katz said he was on the Code Enforcement Board for some time. He said the one thing that he approved of which Steve Oxenhandler did was supervise the people in the field and they did their inspections effectively. V/M Katz said there are faults, such as in the alternative process of citations, where the citizen does not have to go back to the Code Enforcement Board. He said Code Enforcement Inspectors are required to be at every hearing, which means they are not in the field doing their inspections and they do not receive overtime for this. V/M Katz said the City currently has five Inspectors, each of whom has a different responsibility, two doing commercial and three doing residential. He said the City is in need of another Inspector to handle the workload. Discussion was held regarding the condition of the vehicles previously used by the inspectors. C/M Schumann expressed his dissatisfaction in past supervision of the Code Officers. He said there are currently 5 Officers under the direct supervision of the Community Development Director and now there is a request to increase to a sixth Officer, which would still be under the direct supervision of the Community Development Director. He asked how 6 would be handled when 5 are not able to be handled. He questioned the minimum requirements listed on the job description. E L, C/M Schumann said the job will first have to be posted in-house City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 3 and asked when the last in-house hire was conducted in the City in any job. Ms. McDermott said positions in the Recreation Department were the last in-house hires. C/M Schumann said the qualifications presented do not constitute a trainee to supervise five people who have been on the job as long as seven years. C/M Abramowitz asked for the definition of "trainee". He asked if the City is looking to hire someone who has never done this job or to hire someone with experience, who has to be trained according to the City's rules and regulations. Discussion was held regarding the job requirements. Mr. Kelly said when someone is hired or goes into a new position there is a probationary learning period. He said everything is different between cities or jobs. Mr. Kelly said there is always some type of resentment among employees when a new hire is present. C/M Schreiber said this all falls under the ability and experience to supervise and get the job done, not by the number of years. He said the City needs to address the problem of the number of hours being spent by the Code Officers doing paperwork. Mayor Bender said accountability is very important. V/M Katz said the Department does need reorganization but to reorganize anything information is needed from the immediate supervisor who deciphers the particular needs of the department. Ms. Carpenter explained the supervisory chain. She said she is expected to supervise her department in the office, be in the production mode approximately half of the time that she is working, i.e., writing ordinances, dealing in negotiations, etc., as well as supervise five individual Code Enforcement Officers on a one-on-one basis day after day. Ms. Carpenter said she is willing to continue to do that but the City is wasting its money and her resources having to do this. She said the most efficient way is to find one person to supervise the Code Officers. She said she does not feel that five Officers are needed, four would be sufficient with a supervisor, for a total of five Officers. She said the City is overmanned in the residential end of Code Enforcement. Ms. Carpenter said the City has Officers who belong to the Broward County Code Enforcement Association and Officers who belong to the Florida Association of Code Enforcement Officers. She said the City has one Officer who attends almost all of the meetings. Ms. Carpenter said prior to November, 1992, there were no Officers specifically assigned to commercial duty ever. She said since that time, the City has incorporated occupational licensing into the Code Enforcement Department and the City currently has two Officers who sweep the City daily looking for health and safety violations on commercial businesses. Ms. Carpenter said the Data Entry position was previously Administrative Secretary. She said until February, 1993, the officers input their own courtesy notices, which is why they spent so much time in the office. She said the Department now has a skilled Data Entry Operator who does all input for the Officers. Ms. Carpenter said the Code Officers do the following during their time in the office: 1) return phone calls between 7:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., between 1:00 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. and between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.; 2) researching property ownership; 3) review site plans; 4) review the boundaries of the common area; 5) write out City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 4 courtesy notices. Ms. Carpenter said it has been a major battle with the Code Officers to get them to understand that 2-1/2 hours is the maximum length of time that they can spend in the office. Ms. Carpenter said the Building inspectors spend approximately two hours per day in the office also. Ms. Carpenter said the Code Officers feel that she is taking away their ability to do their job by limiting them to no more than 2- 1/2 hours per day in the office. She said they feel that they are being punished by having that little time in the office. She said they want more time in the office to complete their office work. Ms. Carpenter said the Officers are expected to produce 100 cases on the average for the month of actual violations, which does not count the sweeps of the office buildings or the courtesy notices. She said in the past there was no way to track what the cases were until March, 1993. Ms. Carpenter said other duties that the Code Officers are expected to handle are deliveries, picture taking, and documentation of on -going problems throughout the City. She said the Code Officers are called upon to do the errands in the field because they are in the field. She said the Code Officers have been used to supplement the School Crossing Guards since well before she came to the City. She said the crossing guard situation continues to be a problem in the City and in other municipalities. She said there have been a number of absences due to illness and the taking of full-time jobs among the crossing guards. Ms. Carpenter said the most reliable people for the crossing guard jobs have been the mothers of children in school in Tamarac and the senior citizens. She said there is an ongoing problem keeping school crossing guards available to work. Further discussion was held regarding this problem. Ms. Carpenter said a Procedures Manual is being written for the Staff. She said in the past a Procedures Manual was written for the Code Officers but one was never provided for Staff. She said she and Mike Vonder Meulen spend at least 20 hours each on the Procedure Manual to date. Ms. Carpenter said the Policies and Procedures for the Officers in the field are as follows: 1) respond to complaints first; 2) sweeps; 3) Officers choose which area they are to handle for the day; 4) commercial Officers sweep their entire area each day looking for immediate health and safety violations; 5) citation process is used sparingly for non-residential uses and for renter - occupied residential. Ms. Carpenter said the Department tries very hard never to use the citation process for owner -occupant and C/M Schumann asked why. Ms. Carpenter said the Judge will look at it and state that it is a homestead. Mr. Kraft explained the court and lien process. TAPE 2 Discussion was held regarding the courtesy notice procedures. Ms. Carpenter said Tamarac is the only City using the West Satellite Courthouse for the citation process. She said the City's experience with the citation process in the courts has been absolutely dismal. V/M Katz said he spoke with Bob Lockwood, the Clerk of the Courts, and if the Department needs assistance he should be contacted. 1 Mr. Kraft said the City has had excellent cooperation from the City Council Special. Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 5 a County Clerk's office. He said every Judge runs their courtroom in their own way, which may need to be addressed separately. Ms. Carpenter said the Department does a lot of community outreach. She said the Code Officers attend meetings to speak to the neighborhoods and to educate them on common Code Enforcement problems. C/M Schreiber asked if there is a record maintained by the Code Officers as to how often their areas are covered and what system they use. Ms. Carpenter said each Officer is instructed to go from neighborhood to neighborhood and/or to respond to complaints; however, their steps are monitored. C/M Schreiber said some type of guideline should be set for them to follow. Discussion was held regarding the Code Officers' duties. C/M Abramowitz suggested that Council approve this on a six-month trial basis. He recommended the Department maintain five Code Officers with a Supervisor. C/M Schumann asked what the intent is for utilizing the Supervisor. Ms. Carpenter said the Supervisor would have various duties. She said as Supervisor to the Code Officers, she has taught the Officers to read the Code and site plans. She said the Supervisor would take over this and other training procedures. C/M Abramowitz said Code Enforcement is a major issue and needs to be handled properly. He said in order to keep the City in good shape there is a tremendous amount of knowledge that the Code Officers have to understand. He said having the Code Officers as School Crossing Guards is a waste. Discussion was held regarding this. C/M Schreiber asked if the City needs a Supervisor at this time for the Code Officers. Ms. Carpenter said Code Enforcement is a function which requires a lot of judgment on the part of the Officer. She said the issues are not always cut and dry. She reviewed the cases from the last Code Enforcement Board meeting. She said when the Officers have a problem currently they contact her for answers. Mayor Bender said Council is voting on the transfer of funds to provide for a Supervisor for the Code Officers for a six-month period and it behooves the City to provide the City Manager with the six -months to determine whether or not this reorganization is working. C/M Schreiber asked if the Motion should run until the end of the fiscal year and Mayor Bender agreed. VOTE: C/M Abramowitz - AYE C/M Schumann - NAY V/M Katz - AYE C/M Schreiber - AYE Mayor Bender - AYE City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 6 3. MOTION TO ADOPT Temp. Reso. 16472 approving a waiver to the provisions of the sign code requested by Hotz Plaza (CLUB SHOPPING PLAZA), 6301 W. Commercial Blvd., to allow a directory sign: - 15-feet high with a sign area of 70 square feet - With complex letters 8-inches high and tenant letters 10 and 6-inches high - With building name and tenant names of 11 and 8 square feet of individual name areas - 10-feet from the property line (tabled on 5/26/93) SYNOPSIS OF ACTj= TABLED to the Regular Council meeting on Wednesday, June 9, 1993 at or after 7:00 p.m. Mr. Kraft read Temp. Reso. #6472 by title. V/M Katz MOVED to APPROVE Temp. Reso. #6472, SECONDED by C/M Schreiber. Michael Pines, representative of Hotz Plaza, said his original sign was 15 feet in the area of 70 square feet and he has reduced the sign to 8 feet with a 1-foot apron and the area is to be 8 feet by 6 feet with an area of 48 square feet. He said if a sign cannot be placed on this location to give some type of identity it will be discouraging and they may lose tenants. Mr. Pines requested that the sign be accepted to avoid further business vacancies in the City. C/M Abramowitz asked if the area in front was measured and reviewed. Mr. Pines said it was measured and reviewed and the biggest discouraging point was the visibility due to the fact that it is so close to Steak and Ale. He said there is a large tree which is not on their property but is on Steak and Ale's property. C/M Abramowitz said Hotz Plaza has the right to cut any limbs that are overhanging onto their property and Mr. Pines said it is not the limbs but the actual base of the tree. C/M Abramowitz asked if he had considered changing the direction of the sign and Mr. Pines said, yes. C/M Abramowitz said every sign he has seen, other than the sign at Sunshine Plaza, is in the landscaping format. He suggested that an illuminated sign be installed. Discussion was held regarding the directory sign as it currently exists and what the Sign Code allows. C/M Abramowitz said by placing the sign in this direction would make it esthetically pleasing and not put the City in the position where others will be requesting the same consideration. Mr. Pines agreed to 9--inch lettering. C/M Schreiber asked what the maximum width is and Mayor Bender said the maximum is 6 feet high and 8 inches wide. Further discussion was held regarding the dimensions of the sign. Mr. Pines said he is willing to have the sign in an 8 foot by 5 foot area with a 1 foot base for an apron with 9 inch lettering. C/M Abramowitz recommended that this be drawn up and brought back to Council at the next meeting for final approval. City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 7 C/M Abramowitz MOVED to TABLE Temp. Reso. #6472, SECONDED by C/M Schreiber. VOTE: C/M Abramowitz - AYE V/M Katz - NAY C/M Schumann - AYE C/M Schreiber - AYE Mayor Bender - AYE C/M Abramowitz said at a previous meeting, the Council was disenchanted with the one City entrance sign on Southgate Boulevard. He said it has come to his attention that the creator of the sign is willing to rework the signs which will cost the City a certain amount of money. He said he observed the signs in the neighboring cities and there is a solution that may cost very little to the City. C/M Abramowitz said the logo on Tamarac's sign is no different than the size of the other logos that the other cities have but they put theirs on larger backdrops. He suggested that Staff review this option. Mayor Bender said there are certain areas in the City where larger signs cannot be used due to the median strip being very narrow. Discussion was held regarding the existing signs. Mr. Couzzo said he can request a waiver from the County for certain areas where a larger sign can be utilized. C/M Schreiber asked if luminous signs can be used and Mr. Couzzo said these signs can be operated by solar cell batteries and explained how this would work. He said he would create a prototype for viewing. C/M Schreiber said the City is getting more and more lawsuits for personal injury accidents which have occurred. He recommended that the City make a move forward in hiring a Risk Manager. Mr. Kelly said he would have a recommendation for Council by Friday. C/M Schreiber said this is a concern because no one has handled this since Ms. Tillman left. 4. MOTION TO APPROVE giving direction to the City Attorney to finalize the agreement between the City of Tamarac and Lennar Homes for 17 acres of land near Tract 27 to be utilized as practice soccer and baseball field. SYNOPSIS OF ANION: Agendized by Consent. APPROVED and will be brought back to Council at the Regular Council meeting on Wednesday, June 9, 1993 at or after 7:00 p.m. for final approval. C/M Schumann said he and Mr. Couzzo have held several meetings with Lennar Homes and they have agreed to let the City use the 17 acres which abut Tract 27. He said this would be used for practice soccer and baseball fields and it would be simple for the City to clear the brush and put sod down. He said the City has a Hold Harmless Agreement for Lennar Homes to sign at no cost to the City. He said the only stipulation is that the City has to give back the land within 120 days after Lennar has made the demand on the City to give it back. He said there is no time limit for the use of this property at this time. C/M Schumann MOVED to AGENDIZE Item 4, SECONDED by C/M Schreiber. VOTE: ALL VOTED AYE Mr. Kraft said he has been working closely with Mr. Couzzo over this agreement. He said it needs some fine tuning and requested City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 8 that approval not be given by Council until the draft has been finalized. TAPE 3 Mayor Bender said this will be on the agenda for June 9, 1993 for final approval. VOTE: ALL VOTED AYE Mayor Bender said he has received a number of letters complaining about the flooding in various areas in the City. He requested that the flooding problem be addressed. 5. MOTION To AREBW the funding and positions for two (2) temporary full-time drivers and one (1) full-time social worker for the Social Services Program with funding from Fiscal Year 92/93 and AUTHORIZE $25,000.00 for the Social Worker salary and $7.50 per hour for the drivers. Agendized by Consent. APPROVED authorizing the City Manager to allocate funding not to exceed $15,000 for these positions through the end of the fiscal year 1992/93. Mayor Bender said Council and Staff has been talking for quite some time about getting professional drivers for Social Services. He asked how much time is needed to hire these drivers. Mr. Kelly said the City is not in the position to go for the permanent full-time positions for the drivers, which would require them to receive all of the benefits. He recommended this be placed in the budget for October. C/M Schumann MOVED to AGENDIZE Item 5, SECONDED by C/M Schreiber. Mr. Kelly said the City has sufficient monies in the budget in the account to provide for these monies now without having to go to Contingency. V/M Katz asked if the City has developed a job description for the Social Worker and the drivers and Mr. Kelly said, yes. VOTE: ALL VOTED AYE C/M Abramowitz said there was a Social Services meeting held and there are certain things that are considered when talking about a driver. He said Meals on Wheels is the most successful program in the City for which four residents deliver over 800 meals every week. He said he agrees that a Social Worker is needed in the Social Services Department. C/M Abramowitz said he would like to see every volunteer remain on the job under the direction of a professional Social Worker. He said the Meals on Wheels program has four drivers, who are very good. Mayor Bender said the funding is already available. Ms. McDermott said in the original proposal to Council, the amount of $25,000 was allocated for the Social Worker and $7.50 per hour for the temporary bus driver. Discussion was held regarding the funding. C/M Schreiber asked when these drivers will be brought onboard and Mr. Couzzo said possibly July 1, 1993. C/M Schreiber asked if this position would be based on a 40 hour week and Mr. Couzzo said, yes. u LJ 1 Discussion was held regarding the salaries of these positions. City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 9 C/M Abramowitz said the drivers will not be driving continuously from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. He suggested that these drivers be available as chauffeurs when needed. V/M Katz said that would increase the risk to the City. Mr. Kelly requested that Council approve the salary of 125,111 for the Social Worker. C/M Schreiber said it is necessary to allocate a set amount of money to cover the balance of this fiscal year and he recommended $15, 000. Mayor Bender said Council should act on a Motion to authorize the City Manager not to exceed $15,000 for the remainder of the Fiscal Year 92/93 for the Social Worker and 2 drivers. C/M Schreiber MOVED to APPROVE Item 5, SECONDED by C/M Schumann. VOTE: - ALL VOTED AYE Mayof_Bflndar said he receives numerous calls daily regarding the perpetual -':problem with the canals and there is a program being considered at present. He recommended that the City consider hiringa-contractor to treat and clean the canals twice per year, with the City's Public Works Department to maintain it afterwards. He said there has been a lot of rain whicii'changes.the contour of the canals. He said the City needs to make a concerted ,effort to clean up the mess. C/M Schreiber suggested that the City require developers of any future developments which border on a canal or perimeter to build a sea wall. Mayor Bender said there is no simple solution to this. He said he has requested that a Letter go out to all of the residents with their utility bills addressing the canal problems and the proposed solutions. Mayor Bender suggested that consideration be made to charging $24.00 per homeowner for maintenance of the waterways. C/M Schumann asked if the four employees that the City has for this will be able to maintain the canals between clean ups. Mr. Kelly said anything that would be done would be an improvement from the present. Further discussion was held regarding the canals and the possible solutions to the problem, including the use of sterilized carp. V/M Katz said within the next couple weeks, he would be making a presentation to Wayne Huizenga regarding the possibility of placing an ice hockey arena in Tamarac utilizing Land Section 7. He said he would follow up with Council regarding this. 6. MOTION TO APPROVE the City Administration selling 49 shares of Equitable Company, Inc., stock dated July 22, 1992 with proceeds to go back into the General Revenue. 5=2JIS OF ACTION Agendized by Consent. APPROVED Mr. Kelly said it has been requested by the Finance Director that the Council agendize a Motion to Approve the sale of 49 shares of Equitable stock to become money to come back to the City of Tamarac. He said Ms. Blasi's explanation is that Equitable Company, Inc., currently supplies the City's subsidized life insurance for our employees. He said in 1992, Equitable sent to the City 49 shares of corporate stock due to the City being a City Council Special Meeting 6/2/93/KJ Page 10 policy owner. He said the City, by Charter, cannot own or buy corporate stock. He said the stock currently sells for $20 per share. He recommended that the stock be sold and the money go back into the City's funds. C/M Abramowitz MOVED to AGENDIZE Item 6, SECONDED by C/M Schumann. VOTE: ALL VOTED AYE C/M Abramowitz MOVED to APPROVE Item 6, SECONDED by C/M Schumann. VOTE: ALL VOTED AYE With no further business, Mayor Bender ADJOURNED this meeting at 3:00 p.m. CAROL A. EVANS CITY CLERK CITY OF TAMARAC APPROVED AT MEETING OF 8- b �i� L BENDER MAYOR ,1 ` :. 1 1