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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994-02-03 - City Commission Workshop Meeting MinutesCity Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - IZ Page 1 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 City Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - IZ Page 2 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 1 !l City Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - 1Z Page 3 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 City Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - ZZ Page 4 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. 1 1 City Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - Iz Page 5 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. City Council workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - IZ Page 6 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 City Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - IZ Page 7 1 IJ 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 City Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 - IZ Page 8 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. 1 E L1 City Council Workshop Meeting 02/03/94 -w IZ Page 9 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 r�