HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994-02-03 - City Commission Workshop Meeting MinutesCity Council Workshop Meeting
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CITY OF TAMARAC
CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1994
('_ALL TO ORDER: Mayor Bender called this meeting to order on
Thursday, February 3, 1994 at 8:00 a.m. in Conference Room #1
of City Hall.
ERMENT-L
Mayor H. Larry Bender
Vice Mayor Irving Katz
Councilman Norman Abramowitz
Councilman Joseph Schreiber
Councilman Henry Schumann
Mitchell S. Kraft, City Attorney
Karen Jackson, Secretary
1. DISCUSSION regarding Tamarac Elementary School multi -
tracking system.
Mayor Bender opened the meeting to public discussion and
comments at this time.
V/M Katz said the City scope of authority does not include
the power to determine what problems exist with schools and
they do not have the authority to dictate management of the
School Board or the operation of Tamarac Elementary School.
He said the school system is controlled by the mandates in
the Florida Statutes and Administrative Codes and Local
municipalities can only make sure fire and police safety
services are compulsory for schools.
V/M Katz referred to an item on the February 1, 1994 School
Board Agenda that read, "plan and implementation of your own
school". Ile said he agreed with the decision Mr.
Petrezullo made on his first day in his job to plan before
implementing a procedure. He said aspects of this issue were
discussed with Principal Bell and Rod Sasse, Head of the
Program Options Committee for the Deputy Program.
V/M Katz said the purpose of the workshop was to present the
plan to the School Board and Mr. Petrezullo and to explain to
Council and other interested parties how the program could be
implemented. He said the City desires to continue the good
working relationship with Tamarac Elementary School.
V/M Katz said the School Board, Principal Bell and the
parents of children attending the school are responsible for
the operation of the school system and Mr. Bell is present to
express his viewpoint.
Mayor Bender said problems regarding parking, traffic, before
and after school care for children and other related multi -
tracking problems will be addressed at this meeting. He said
Council members are elected officials and will listen to both
sides of the issue in order to generate the additional
information received at the meeting to the School Board for
their consideration.
V/M Katz said the City is not pleased with the school traffic
situation and promises to conduct a traffic survey in an
effort to analyze and improve it.
Mayor Bender said many newspaper articles said the schools
would utilize 25% more capacity if the program was
implemented. He said a different school classroom capacity
situation exists in Tamarac because Tamarac Elementary School
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uses classrooms in the City's Multi -Purpose Center and other
schools do not.
Mayor Bender said whether or not the classrooms should
continue to be used and additional benefits will be derived
from the proposed program should be examined. He said the
City has always endeavored to accommodate the needs of the
School Board.
Mayor Bender introduced Robert Bell, Principal of Tamarac
Elementary School at this time.
Mr. Bell thanked everyone present for the opportunity for
school representatives to present a brief program overview
and to advise an appropriate scenario for the students who
reside in the community.
Mr. Bell said year round education, double sessions, and
overcrowding in Broward County schools has been discussed for
over two years. He said there are many schools in Broward
County facing an exorbitant rate of growth.
Mr. Bell said the City of Tamarac has been extraordinarily
cooperative in working with Tamarac Elementary School in many
areas, i.e., gymnasium, classroom space, before and after
school programs, etc.
Mr. Bell said boundary recommendations for schools are made
in September to the Broward County School System. He said
the Boundary Committee consisting of representatives from the
Woodmont, Sunflower, Heathgate and the Inverrary areas, which
are the prime feeders for Tamarac Elementary School, met
during late September to examine the available options.
Mr. Bell said the group decided against doing nothing and
elected to examine a boundary change and everyone agreed that
sending Inverrary students to the overcrowded schools in
Castle Hill, Royal Palm, village and FIorizon was riot
practical.
Mr. Bell said the recommendation to the School Superintendent
and the School Board to make Woodmont students attend
Maplewood School was discounted. He said the option of
Sunflower/Heathgate students attending Morrow Elementary was
examined since Morrow Elementary was at their capacity of 830
students.
Mr. Bell said this option was eliminated in the Boundary
Committee discussions because of strong opposition from the
Sunflower/Heathgate representatives. He said at this time
double sessions were determined not to be a reasonable option
and the Boundary Committee decided the only reasonable option
left was to examine a modified school calendar of their own
design.
Mr. Bell said this plan was recommended to the School
Superintendent and the Board and there were further
discussions at PTA meetings, Parent Advisory Meetings, School
Improvement Team Meetings and at Recreation Board. Meetings.
Mr. Bell said City Council representatives discussed this
issue at these meetings and some of the controversy that
surfaced from the recommendation to the Board on February 1,
1994 was Legitimate. He said the reason Tamarac Elementary
School did not contact parents regarding year-round education
last year was because the Board asked parents in the entire
district to vote on the issue.
Mr. Bell said the reason Tamarac Elementary did not approach
the Board was because the recommended Broward Educational
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Plan Initiative (BEPI) growth document was not received,
finalized or approved by the School Board and was the primary
reason Tamarac Elementary School could not advise the
students' parents of the double session option. He said long
before the BEPI report was presented to the Board three weeks
ago the parent- elected representatives were addressing this
issue and agreed this option was the most viable one
available.
Mr. Bell said this issue ended on the Board Agenda without
very many workshops and this program cannot be assembled in a
short period of time because it requires a lot of work.
Mr. Bell said during the process he was communicating with Ed
Doyle and, since that time, changes in personnel have been
made. He said Mr. Doyle constantly provided information on
this subject to his Supervisors and Council members.
Mr. Bell said in early September he discussed with Mr. Doyle
the ability for the recreational program to support this
program and the need to address the on or off -site
intercession possibility. He said off -site intercession was
recommended but it is currently unavailable and year-round
intercessions, also known as summer school, would be on -site.
Mr. Bell said they want to continue a cooperative child care
venture with the City of Tamarac or with the YMCA, JCC,
Taravella High School or other private approved providers.
Mr. Bell said the school's capacity is 673 and currently
there are 1,201 students representing 176% capacity. He said
Tamarac Elementary School has a two-story 12 classroom
addition currently under construction but the primary concern
is the school's B-1/2 acre site. He said students in 12 of
the 16 portable classrooms would be placed into the 12
classroom additions if the building was available today.
Mr. Bell said the Art, Music and Science classrooms at the
Multi -Purpose Center, were originally intended to be used for
one year or until the two-story structure was completed.
Mr. Bell said the latest projections indicate another 70
students will be enrolled in Tamarac Elementary School next
year and the school is concerned about the safety of children
entering and exiting the building. He said if the school
subdivides 1,270 students as projected, a five tract system
would prevent approximately 250 students from entering and
exiting the school at any one time.
At this time, Mr. Bell said he would answer questions
regarding his presentation.
V/M Katz said a similar problem existed when Hallandale
changed to a multi -track system because their intercession
was off campus. He said the City acknowledges their
agreement for funds to build this facility and that other
programs should also be allowed to utilize the facilities.
He said Council could be responsible for repaying the money
for the building if the City allows encroachment into other
areas.
V/M Katz said other alternatives regarding 250 of students in
an intercession must be examined. He said the YMCA and other
places contiguous to the City may be available and the best
plan should be discussed with Council before a presentation
is made to the School Board.
Mr. Bell said Mr. Doyle told the school the City would
subdivide the gymnasium to provide extra space for their
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school day Physical Education Program. He said this extra
space is a viable option for consideration.
V/M Katz said Mr. Bell and the School Board should not reach
a premature conclusion until Council approval.
C/M Schumann asked what happens to the City's HRS status if
this plan becomes effective.
Mr. Bell said Mr. Doyle said Council approved an expenditure
for a screened type of subdivision in the gymnasium.
C/M Abramowitz asked who made the approval.
Mr. Bell said Mr. Doyle said subdividing the gymnasium was
approved and if that information was incorrect, he was
misinformed.
C/M Abramowitz asked Mr. Bell to clarify his statements
regarding the 12 room annex. He said he wanted to know if
the portable classrooms had to be removed for building or
could remain and be used in addition to the new building.
Mr. Bell said plans to remove the portables when construction
is completed are not final. He said it is logical for the
Broward County School Board to remove some portables to
accommodate the growth of other schools. He said the School
Board decided not to allocate money for building additional
portables; therefore, the existing portables on 191 sites in
this district are moved each year to the growth areas.
Mr. Bell said Tamarac Elementary School conducts a portable
classroom survey on the number of on -site classrooms, purpose
of use, projected needs, etc., and a committee determines how
many portable classrooms will be moved.
C/M Abramowitz said everyone understands the desperate need
for additional classroom facilities. He asked if the
overcrowding problem could be eliminated if the school
retained 17 portables and increased their staff.
Mr. Bell said everyone present should ask themselves if this
room could accommodate thirty more adults at this very
moment. He said the room could accommodate the additional
people but only with overcrowding.
Mr. Bell said students currently visit the library and the
computer lab only once a week and the school cannot utilize
previously used assembly programs because they do not have
use of the cafeteria.
Mr. Bell said support services are strained in most of the
Broward County schools, and when permanent facilities are
constructed and the use of portables is eliminated, children
will be placed in a nice permanent facility that does not
contribute to the square footage of the media center.
Mr. Bell said in anticipating the students 21st century
technological needs, students currently use computer
equipment in the media center only once a week because of
overcrowding. He said the school could enroll 70 more
students for next school year but additional cars would be in
the car pool lanes and there would be more buses. He said
doing nothing to resolve the problems associated with
overcrowding is not in the best interest of the children.
Mayor Bender said a logistics problem existed when he served
on the School Board Facilities Committee and hundreds of
thousands of dollars are spent to move and reassemble
portables that could be used to build permanent facilities.
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He said temporary facilities break down and are unable to be
used after they are moved a few times. He asked why the
facilities should be moved if 70 additional students are
projected to attend the school.
Mayor Bender left the meeting at this time.
C/M Schreiber said the two story -addition or the use .of the
support areas each week will not solve the overcrowding
problem if the portables are removed. He said the School
Board is placing a band -aid on the situation instead of
providing a new school.
Mr. Bell said the school operating at 176% capacity is not
right and because the problem has occurred for many years, a
problem exists with the School Board and the State of
Florida.
Mr. Bell said schools are not built in Tamarac because of the
presumption that Tamarac's population is primarily older
people. He said Council should support efforts to obtain a
new school because the alternatives suggested at this meeting
do not solve the problem because the same scenario will exist
in one or two years.
Mr. Bell said approximately 1,000 new family dwelling units
will be constructed in the future and asked where the
children living in these units will attend school. He asked
Mr. Bell if the maximum classroom student capacity is set by
the Board of Education.
Mr. Bell said classroom capacity is set according to the
Southern Association standards and Tamarac Elementary
currently meets their class size standards. He said
kindergarten classes are limited to 25 students but if a
para-professional is added, the limit is increased to 30
students.
Mr. Bell said in first, second and third grades, only 28
students are allowed but if a para-professional is added, the
limit is increased to 33. He said in fourth and fifth
grades, the limit is always 32 students, with or without a
para-professional.
C/M Schreiber asked if teachers could handle another five
students in their classes.
Mr. Bell said the school district decided to abide by the
standards set forth by the Southern Association, an
accrediting agency that resides over seven states. He said
Dade County, Palm Beach County and other school districts
chose not to follow these guidelines.
C/M Schreiber said Council is not able to make a decision
until the School Board approves the multi -track system. He
said many people oppose the system and wanted to know what
Council is supposed to do.
V/M Katz said the School Superintendent wanted a plan prior
to presentation to the Superintendent and the School Board.
He said Council will need information on the demand for
additional services and whether or not money from the City of
Tamarac is necessary before making any decisions.
There was discussion regarding the Tamarac Elementary School
contacting Council to request an Expression of Interest.
C/M Schumann asked what impact a multi -track system will have
on the City of Tamarac.
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Mr. Bell said seven separate parent meetings begin on Monday
evening and information will be given regarding the details.
He asked for volunteers to serve on one of six different
program option committees currently available. He said at
the last parent meeting his committee began to address
specific questions.
Mr. Bell said he expects someone like Ed Doyle or a Council
representative to serve on the Child Care Committee to make
recommendations to the core committee regarding child care
and to specifically answer parent and Council questions. He
said he does not have all the answers and the -.Board only gave
them the right to plan and, hopefully, provide acceptable
answers to parents, Council and other interested parties.
Rod Sasse, Administrator for the Broward County
Superintendent of Schools, said Mr. Petrezullo examined this
issue for Broward County and a process, policy and plan
needed to be examined. He said Mr. Bell has been very frank
regarding their intentions and Council's questions need to
be answered through community discussion.
Mr. Sasse said Broward County schools have problems with
accommodating growth and more than one solution is available.
He said other issues can be examined during their planning
process. He said he attended the meeting to advise everyone
that the Superintendent of the Broward County School Board is
interested in helping the City with their problem.
Mr. Bell said they are studying the growth rate to determine
if a new school needs to be built in this area. He said the
1987 317 million dollar bond issue provided money to build
the current construction for the two-story addition but since
that time 10,000 additional students that were not
anticipated entered Broward County.
Mr. Bell said this problem can be handled in another manner.
For instance, on the front page of the Metro section of the
Sun Sentinel today, an article appears regarding two teachers
in one school that have 55 students and the article states
that the situation is working well for them because they like
the City and the unions. He said there are still other
options to examine and they will cooperate with the City.
C/M Abramowitz asked for the disposition of the proposal and
if a school on Pine Island Road was considered. He said the
possibility of the school being built within two years is
controversial because everyone shares the same desire to help
the children.
C/M Abramowitz said this has been discussed many times with
the Broward League of Cities. He said a plan for
implementation is unavailable, Council is not part of the
decision making process and Council does not want the
children to be a victim of the political process.
Bruce Hoffman, candidate for Council, District Four, said he
attended this meeting to discover the reason for Council
involvement in school matters. He said although V/M Katz
answered many questions, this matter should be addressed by
the parents and the school district and the City should
provide assistance when it is requested.
A parent said if no new funding comes into Broward County in
the next five years, Tamarac and Banyan Elementary will be on
the slate for a school. She said if a bond issue and the
penny sales tax does not go through, they will be on the
slate but that will not help tomorrow's problem. She said
there have been discussions regarding an earlier date to find
property for the school and this subject is currently slated
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on the five year plan of the Facilities Task Force assessment
for 1997 and 1998 for completion in 1998 and 1999. She said
that piece of property is the reason this issue was discussed
at the beginning of BEPI.
V/M Katz said the property on Pine Island Road and Commercial
Boulevard belongs to the hospital district.
C/M Abramowitz said he approached the School Board six years
ago regarding the possibility of building a new middle school
on 50 Street for Tamarac, Sunrise and Lauderhill to share. He
said the Broward County League of Cities is involved because
of money and they are being urged to support the penny sales
tax or the bond issue. He said the School Board has problems
with interpretation and is, therefore, not respected by the
general public. He said a school is very necessary.
A parent expressed her opinion regarding the approximate
1,250 students projected for next year, the multi -tracking
system decreasing the number by 250, on -site intercessions
bringing back 50% of the children, and every family in the
school being disrupted to save 125 students. She said
Council could push for a new school, a penny sales tax or
something else that will help.
A resident asked why the City would support with such vigor a
band -aid solution instead of the other BEPI recommendations.
She said she served on BEPI under Mr. Sasse's guidance as a
School Board Liaison and there are many solutions that are
not as costly that would not divide the community in the
manner of multi -tracking. She suggested delaying a decision
until the community unites with a permanent solution. She
said she would like to work with the City in this endeavor.
V/M Katz said the City and Council are limited in their scope
of authority to recommend to the School Board how to conduct
their business. He said he can voice personal support or
objection but cannot make suggestions or recommendations.
A resident expressed their opinion regarding decisions of the
school impacting the City, the responsibility of leaders of
the community, and how constituents look to Council for
protection and to make sound judgments on their behalf. She
said evidence on the impact to the community is questionable
and she believes Council should be actively involved in this
process. She said this could impact the City budget for
Parks and Recreation support services and Tamarac provided
excellent services to the School District in the past.
V/M Katz said Council can discuss this issue in further
detail when Mr. Bell and the School Board approach Council
with a plan.
C/M Schumann said when the School Board and Mr. Bell approach
Council with their plan, Council may be asked to underwrite
the shortcomings of the Broward County Commission and the
legislature because the problem is funding. He said now they
have a new ADF tax which will double again next year and he
asked if anyone knew where that money would be placed.
C/M Abramowitz said that money is allocated to construction
of new sewers and Council has been asked to underwrite and
pick up the slack for the shortcomings caused by the agencies
with the authority to act.
V/M Katz said he agreed.
Bonnie Pomerance, parent of two children in Tamarac
Elementary School, expressed her opinion regarding the
necessity of Council involvement and the increased tax burden
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for facilities for children from three other cities. She
said Riverside, Nob Hill, Southgate and Morrow Elementary
Schools are not overcrowded and should be considered an
option.
Mr. Pomerance said she does not want her children to attend a
school outside of Tamarac next year and intercession and
multi -tracking systems are not a viable option. She said
year-round school will prevent summer school and camp and add
stress on the Mutli-Purpose Center and other City facilities
Mrs. Pomerance said the suggestions are a result of
mismanagement. She said growth was anticipated almost ten
years ago and buildings were built overlooking water. She
said no one stated that overcrowded situations mean children
are not educated properly.
Mrs. Pomerance said there is no evidence at this time that
indicates a multi -tracking system will alleviate anything
except overcrowding provided an off -site intercession exists
which Tamarac does not have at this point. She said there is
one other multi -tracking facility in this County and it. is
working out well for them.
Mrs. Pomerance asked how we can experiment at the risk of
children and families. She said they obtained 461 signatures
on a petition to the School Board and it was ignored and the
plan continued.
Mr. Pomerance said Council has the ability to influence their
decision because they want to listen to the City and how
citizens will be affected monetarily and with traffic. She
said the School Board paid $33,000 for staffing, not for
police and fire services, before and after school, etc .
V/M Katz said this proposal will not be accepted if 400
parents of children who attend this school voice their
objection at the future Tamarac Elementary School meetings.
C/M Abramowitz said this situation is the worst one he has
ever observed in Tamarac. He said he is a representative of
the Department of Elder Affairs for Broward County and the
senior population is concerned for its children. He said the
last 300 million dollar construction bond that was passed
never would have been passed without the senior citizen
participation.
C/M Abramowitz said 800 new personnel were hired from the
construction bond. He said the School Board prefers a twenty
acre school site which does not exist in Tamarac. He said
Mr. Bell's plan to move the children who did not live in
Tamarac to other schools was opposed by many parents. He
said everyone wants the children's needs to be supplied and
everyone has different views.
A parent said the plan is unclear, more parents need to be
involved and referred to a newspaper article regarding lack
of parent involvement in these issues. He said his child
brought today's meeting notice home one day before the
meeting.
V/M Katz said the workshop was held for Mr. Bell to provide
information on his plans and initiatives to the parents of
children who attend Tamarac Elementary School and other
interested citizens.
V/M Katz said Mr. Bell will have to define a plan before the
City can intercede and make a decision.
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There was discussion on the School Board not predicting
growth accurately, multi -track education as a pilot program
to be approved in utilization. There was further discussion
on the strives toward resolving the growth problem and the
precedent set in Virginia regarding an initiation stage for
multi -track education.
VIM Katz said the Broward County study, education of the
County Commission and developers being denied the amendment
to the comprehensive land use plan were a result of his
initiatives. He said Council should make an unbiased
decision on the best plan for the citizens. He said he
agrees that parents should receive an adequate meeting notice
and there is need for a before and after school program with
staffing for 10,000 students.
A parent said the national educational crisis exists and the
politics associated with the crisis should cease. He said
the perspective regarding education should be examined in
greater detail. He said in the long term schools are
necessary, but in the meantime, a plan needs to be
implemented even if it is a band -aid solution.
This parent said children are the most valuable resource and
discussions that bring action are necessary. He said money
is required to build new schools and the people of the
community need to support the parents' plea. He said the 461
people who signed the petition were not informed of all of
the facts concerning the entire situation and signed for
their own personal interest.
This parent said he would drive his children 20 miles to
school to improve their education if necessary and if another
person was not willing to do the same, then they do not have
the right perspective on their children's needs. He said the
opportunity to learn is being denied to the children.
With no further discussion, Mayor Bender ADJOURNED the
meeting at 9:10 a.m.
Carol A. Evans, CMC
City Clerk
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