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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1985-10-22 - City Commission Workshop Meeting MinutesMAIL REPLY TO: P.O. BOX 25010 TAMARAC, FLORIDA 33320 5811 NORTHWEST 88T AVENUE TAMARAC, FLORIDA 33321 ELEPHONE (305) 722-5900 October 4, 1985 NOTICE OF JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING CITY COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION TAMARAC, FLORIDA There will be a Joint Workshop Meeting between the City Council and the Planning Commission,with the City Engineering Department participating,on Tuesday, October 22, 1985, at 9:00 A.M., in the Council chambers of City Hall, 5811 NW 88 Avenue, Tamarac, to discuss the Tract 27 Water Storage Tank. The public is invited to attend. Carol E. Barbuto Assistant City Clerk AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER POLICY OF NONDISCRIMINATION N THE BASIS OF HANDICAPPED STATUS s;; . � te.kr ^.,:. _,�, :.max. �°:�, ar'd��a ��;a:, ,, ���' '•zw�M� m.y�'�,;;,:.a�asYa`rac �,: ;• MAIL REPLY TO- P.O, BOX 25010 TAMARAC, FLORIDA 33320 5811 NORTHWEST 88TH AVENUE • TAMARAC TELEPHONE (305) 722-5900 October 16, 1985 NOTICE OF WORKSHOP MEETING CITY COUNCIL TAMARAC, FLORIDA FLORIDA 33321 1 There will be Workshop Meeting of the City Council on Tuesday, October 22, 1985, at 9:00 A.M., in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 5811 NW 88th Avenue, Tamarac, Florida to discuss Cardinal Industries projects Hidden Hollow and Greenview Apartments (in lieu of the previously noticed meeting on the Tract 27 water storage tank). The public is invited to attend and give oral input. Carol E. Barbuto Assistant City Clerk AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER POLICY OF NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF HANDICAPPED STATUS CITY OF TAMARAC, FLORIDA CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING October 22, 1985 Tape 1 CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Kravitz called the meeting to order on Tuesday, October 22, 1985 at 9:00 A.M. in the Council Chambers of City Hall. ROLL CALL: PRESENT: Mayor Philip B. Kravitz Vice Mayor Helen Massaro Councilman Sydney M. Stein Councilman Raymond J. Munitz Councilman Arthur H. Gottesman ALSO PRESENT• Patricia Marcurio, Secretary Mayor Kravitz read the call to the meeting into the record noting that the purpose of this meeting .is to discuss Cardinal Industry projects HIDDEN HOLLOW and GREENVIEW APARTMENTS. Mayor Kravitz called for a moment of silent meditation followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Jon Henning, City Attorney, stated that both Hidden Hollow and Greenview are in the site planning stages by Cardinal Industries and Hidden Hollow is located in Tract 41 and Greenview Apartments is located in Tract 2. He added that both projects are in Land Section 4, 5, and 6 which the City is working under court orders of the 1970's. He said Greenview has a deed restriction in which no children are permitted to reside in Tract 2. Richard Rubin, City Planner, stated that the City is presently processing applications for a total of 338 units for Cardinal Industries; 128 units for Greenview, 56 units for Hidden Hollow I, and an additional 154 units for Hidden Hollow Hollow II and III. He said 287 of the 338 units are proposed for one bedroom apartments, 43 are for two bedroom apartments, and 8 master suites. He said Hidden Hollow I site plan, located in Tract 41 on the north side of Westwood Blvd., was reviewed and denied by the Planning Commission on September 4, 1985, Greenview Apartments site plan was also denied by the Planning Commission on October 2, 1985, and the Planning Commission tabled Hidden Hollow II & III. He said City Code provides that projects will be submitted to City Council whether approved or denied by the Planning Commission and those projects are expected to be submitted for Council consideration within two to four weeks. Vice Mayor Massaro asked if Hidden Hollow II and III are also within Tract 42. Mr. Rubin said there are two vacant tracts of land that look like one large parcel. Mr. Henning said there is another vacant tract of land, Tract 37, on which there is a proposal for apartments by another developer. Larry Bender, Chairman of the Planning Commission, said the compatibility of the proposed Hidden Hollow apartments with the existing community is highly questionable. He said he has no objection to the construction of apartments but does object to apartments into an area which would create many problems to the surrounding community. He said the site plan for Hidden Hollow I is illegal, based on Tamarac's Code of Ordinances, Section 28-86 which states that the use of parking aisles as a principle means of on -site vehicular circulation is prohibited. He said he believes this site plan, with its current parking areas, is in violation of the codes. 10/22/85 /vg 1 Carl Alper, resident, asked Council to deny the application of the petitioner on the grounds that these developments are adverse to the morals and safety of the citizens and will undermine the general welfare, character, and stability of the neighborhood. He quoted legislature as to the City and the Planning Commission from Florida Statutes 163.165 and 163.185. He said he believes that when a family with children lives in a one bedroom apartment, it is harmful to the intellectual and moral health of the child. He quoted from books written by psychologists and said the courts of New York State have determined that it is child abuse for a family to live in a one bedroom apartment with children and he said he also believes that the housing authorities of the government also say it is improper. He agreed that the parking areas of the petitions submitted are in violation of the City Code. Norman Abramowitz, resident and President of the Woodmont Property Owners Association, said he visited the Cardinal project located east of University Drive on Southgate Blvd. and said the citizens are bitterly opposed to this project. He said it would have a damaging effect on the property values of Woodmont and the surrounding area and will have a demoralizing effect on Tamarac as a whole. Harold H. Newman, President of the Concerned Citizens of Tamarac, Inc. and resident of Westwood 23, said the proposed projects will result in the development of more than 2000 rental apartments in Tamarac in less than two years. He said the sewer and water services west of Pine Island Road are heavily overworked and now inadequate. He added any decision by the Council to approve any more rental apartments would be incompatible with the decision previously made by the Council when the City had the opportunity to annex the unincorporated properties on the north side of Commercial Blvd. He said the decision not to annex those properties was based on the fact that the properties contained rental apartments. Ed Keller, Spring Lake Villas resident, spoke against Cardinal Industries development and requested Council deny these projects. Bernie Hart, President of Tamarac Presidents Council, said Tamarac does not have the facilities for rental developments Tape 2 and quoted from Section 12.06 of the Charter, Residential Growth Control. Blanche Barzilay, resident of Fairways, said her objection is the low income factor and short term leases of these projects and asked the Council to enhance the quality of the life of Tamarac citizens. Arnold Bornstein, resident of Woodmont, requested the City Council review the rules and regulations placed on the builders of rental property and place extremely severe restrictions on them. Florence Bochenek, resident of Section 21, said Cardinal Industries' minimum lease is three months which creates a great turnover of tenants and the lack of recreational facilities creates liability to the surrounding residents. She said the existing Cardinal project only meets the minimum standards of landscaping. Mayor Kravitz said Council wants to work together with the people for the purpose and benefit of the citizens of Tamarac. I 1-1 v 10/22/85 /vg 2 Florence Bochenek asked if notice will be given to the general public when these items appear on the Council agenda. Mr. Henning stated that the regular City Council Meetings are held on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month except the month of August. He noted that Cardinal's projects are not on the agenda of October 23, 1985 and the next regular meeting is November 13, 1985 at 9:00 A.M. Lou Blatt, resident of Woodmont, asked if the Council would call a special meeting due to the severity of these projects. Mayor Kravitz said if he felt it was urgent enough and necessary, a special meeting could be called. Pearl Auerbach, resident of Westwood 21, asked if the Council has taken into consideration the water and sewerage problem once that property is inhabited. Leon Shapanka, resident of Section 23, requested a small map of the area be available for those who were not familiar with the area in question. Mr. Alper asked if rental developments can be forced to abide by the Code and the safety and moral standards of this community. Shirley Blumfield, Tamarac PAC Chairperson, asked why Cardinal Industries was refused permission for this type of housing in practically every City in Broward County except Tamarac. Mr. Henning, said that the City of Margate denied Cardinal permits to build and that case has not been concluded as yet. He said Tamarac is operating under the 1973 court order which other cities are not faced with. Martin Schoenfeld, Planning Commission member, asked Mr. Potash what the family rental policies of Cardinal Industries are. Richard Potash, Attorney representing Cardinal Industries, Inc., said Cardinal Industries does not contemplate constructing any efficiency units in Tamarac. He said Cardinal's policy regarding efficiency units is no children. He said there is an existing restrictive covenant for the Greenview development, no children under the age of 16. He said Hidden Hollow I, II, and III, as well as all of Cardinal's projects around the country, one infant under the age of one is permitted in a one bedroom unit and once the child reaches the age of one year, the lease will not be renewed. He said Cardinal's policy is to accept two children of either sex under the age of six in a two bedroom unit and once the age of six is achieved, Cardinal will only accept two children of the same sex between the ages of six and twelve. He said only one child over the age of twelve is permitted in two bedroom units. He said at the end of July, 1985 there were a total of two infants and four children in the 62 unit complex at Southgate. He said Cardinal anticipates less than five children in the 56 units of Hidden Hollow I and proportionately the same numbers for phases II and III and none under the age of sixteen at the Greenview development. He explained that the minimum lease considered by Cardinal is three months, with certain conditions and added that in one year there has only been one three month lease in the Cardinal development on Southgate Blvd. He read questions that are filled out by the rental manager of which one "no" answer could disqualify a prospective tenant. He said the one tenant that was granted a short term lease at Southgate is a civil engineer transferred to this area by his employer, and entered into the short term lease in order to find a permanent residence in this area. 10/22/85 3 _. /vg Mrs. Bochenek asked Mr. Potash who checks the age of the children when they reach the maximum age requirement. Mr. Potash said the tenants must disclose that type of information before they lease and if they are in violation of their lease, they are evicted. Mr. Alper said that Cardinal has these leasing policies but he has learned that Cardinal builds these developments and then sells them to people who do not have the same policies and read a phrase which he obtained from Cardinal which states, "A significant part of Cardinal's effort is devoted to the development of rental apartment projects wherein we acquire the land, arrange financing, build the projects, and sell the entire project to investor clients." Mr. Potash said the statement, out of context, does not change anything he previously stated. He said all these arrangements, known to the City Attorney and City Staff, are what is known as Limited Partnership Syndications, where Cardinal remains the general partner and its policies govern and are adhered to. Mr. Henning said the zoning laws refer to various classifications but do not distinguish rental apartments from ownership and the laws refer to the land use. He said another developer, Oxford Industries, is also building rental apartments in Tamarac. He said there are no new condominiums proposed in the City and the ones that are being built are obviously not sold out and are being converted to rentals. C/M Gottesman asked if this is a government subsidized loan and asked who actually owns this property. Mr. Potash said there is no government involvement whatsoever and it is a limited partnership with Cardinal Industries the general partner. Tape 3 C/M Gottesman said he will look very carefully into the parking regulations which he feels are not within the bounds of the City's parking regulations. C/M Munitz said it is very easy to vote no because of the morals, safety, welfare, life styles, and property value problems involved but the City is faced with a court decision and said there must be a way, in Judge Weissing's decision, to give the people what they want. C/M Stein said the areas that these developments are in are serviced by the northwest force main which breaks down and backs up consistently and said he was told that not even one more home should be added to the northwest service. He said Mr. Greenwood has asked him to ask the Council to get outside engineers to do the same study as the in-house engineers to substantiate the fact that time is needed to install the northwest force main and not allow any further development in this area until it is installed. He said a moratorium should be declared for the area involved. V/M Massaro said she has been looking for every legal means to stop the influx of rental projects in the City. She referenced the project at McNab and NW $$th Avenue and said, in order to protect the people, the City went to court and lost the decision. She said the City must be extremely careful that it has a legal position if it goes to court and added that money is presently being spent to upgrade the utility system. She said this will be fought as far as possible but repeated that the City must have a concrete legal position. 1 n Ll 11 10/22/85 /vg Mayor Kravitz said this workshop meeting was called for the Public's input and Council will consider all the information. He ADJOURNED the meeting at.10:50 A.M. LI N- ASS ISTANT CITY CLERK This document was promulgated at a cost of $94.05 or $2.61 per copy o inform the general public and public officers and employees about recent opinions and considerations by the City Council of the City of Tamarac. 10/22/85 5 /vg