HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982-05-05 - City Commission Special Meeting MinutesF;811 NURTHWEST 88-tH AVENUE TAMARAC, FI, OR!DA ?3:321
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TANIARAC, F LOR I DA 33320
CITY OF TAMARAC, FLORIDA
CITY COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETING
MAY 5, 1982
PLEASE BE ADVISED of a Special Meeting of the City
Council to be held on Wednesday, May 5, 1982 at
1:30 P.M. in the West Conference Room of City Hall.
The purpose of this meeting is to interview candidates
for the position of Tamarac City Attorney. The list
of candidates to be interviewed and their scheduled
times will be available on the day of the meeting.
w
5/4/82
58.11 Nd_iYR'T'H1A1ES'T" 88-T'H AVENUE: e, T.A,M.!;iiAC:, i=LOi=RhDA 33321
"TELEPHONE. (305) 722-5900
EMAIL REPLY TO,
P.O. BOX 26010
TAf/IARAC. FLORIDA 33320
To: Mayor Falck and Councilmembers
From: Marilyn Bertholf, City C1erow/,6
Date: May 4, 1982
Subject: City Attorney Interviews
The candidates for City Attorney proposed by members
of Council have been scheduled as follows:
1:30
P.M.
Frank Kriedler
2:00
P.M.
Daniel Carbone
2:30
P.M.
James T. Schoenbrod
3:00
P.M.
Ronald Cohen
3:30
P.M.
Glenn Mednick
4:00
P.M.
John Henning
CITY OF TAMARAC, FLORIDA
CITY COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETING
Interviews for City Attorney Position
May 5, 1982
CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Falck called the Special Meeting to order on
Wednesday, May 5, 1982, at 1:30 P.M., in the West Conference Room at
City Hall. Mayor Falck read the notice of the meeting into the record
indicating the purpose for this meeting was to interview candidates for
the position of City Attorney.
1. Frank Kriedler 1:30 P.M.
2. Daniel Carbone 2:00 P.M.
3. ,lames T. Schoenbrod 2:30 P.M.
4. Ronald Cohen 3:00 P.M.
5. Glenn Mednick 3:30 P.M.
6. Jon Henning 4: 0 0 P.M.
7. Andrew DeGraffenreidt, III 4:30 P.M.
ROLL CALL: PRESENT: Mayor Walter W. Falck
Vice Mayor Helen Massaro
Councilman Irving M. Disraelly
Councilman Philip B. Kravitz
Councilman David E. Krantz
ALSO PRESENT: Patricia Marcurio, Secretary
2. Additional Public Member to the Burglar Alarm Committee - Discussion
and possible action.
SYNOPSIS OF ACTION: Agendized by Consent.
APPROVED appointment of Carey Nadel as
an additional member to the Burglar Alarm
Committee.
V/M Massaro said there is a Burglar Alarm Committee scheduled for Friday,
May 7 and in reviewing the Ordinance it says"not less than 4 members of
the public appointed by the City Council who shall serve at the pleasure
of the City Council". She said there are 37 appeals coming before the
Committee on Friday and she expressed her concern that there might be an
illegal board with only 3 members having been appointed.
V/M Massaro MOVED to Agendize by Consent the discussion and possible action
on the appointment of an additional public member to the Burglar Alarm
Committee. SECONDED by C/M Disraelly.
VOTE:
ALL VOTED AYE
V/M Massaro said this appointment will in no way affect the possibility
of an appointment by Council of another member of the public, hopefully
from the business community. She said Carey Nadel. has submitted his
resume which indicates that he does have a good education which would be
most helpful on this committee.
C/M Kravitz said he has not seen this application and V/M Massaro gave him
a copy to review. C/M Kravitz stated that this application did not mention
the Burglar Alarm Committee but he had indicated this verbally to C/M Krantz
and V/M Massaro. There were no other nominations and C/M Disraelly MOVED
that Carey Nadel be appointed as an additional member to the Burglar Alarm
Committee, SECONDED by C/M Krantz.
VOTE:
ALL VOTED AYE
Mayor Falck asked that the City Clerk notify Mr. Nadel, of the time and
date of the meeting as well as his new appointment to this position.
1 - 5/5/82
/pm
1. Interviews with Prospective Applicants for City Attorney Position.
SYNOPSIS OF ACTION: Interviews conducted -meeting recessed to 9 a.m., 5/10/82.
Mayor Falek introduced Mr. Frank Kriedler to Council and asked for his
observations to Council. Mr. Kriedler said he learned of the opportunity
of the City Attorney position being available and he investigated Tamarac
through the information of the Public Information Committee. Fie said he
was the City Attorney in Lake Worth and has resigned that position and is
now the Attorney for the Lake Worth Utilities Authority; which is the
only municipal entity in Palm Beach County that generates its own electri-
city.
Mr. Kriedler said the Lake Worth Utilities Authority handles sewerage,
water and other municipal functions. lie said after careful investigation
of the City of Tamarac he felt it was in his best interests to apply for
the job. Mayor Falck asked Mr. Kriedler how long he has been the Attorney
for the Utilities and Mr. Kriedler said approximately two years.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Kriedler why he terminated his position with Lake
Worth. Mr. Kriedler said there was a change in the Commission and part
of the new electees campaign platform, although it was a very minor plank
in his opinion, was that they were concerned that he was representing both
the City of Lake Worth and Utilities Authority. He said they saw potential
for a conflict there and he felt it best to leave. He said there was no
question of his legal ability since they retained him to handle two cases
that were on -going.
Mr. Kriedler said he was instrumental in drafting an Ordinance, which is
now under Federal litigation, requiring supermarkets that use optical
scanners to post the prices of each item on the product in the supermarket.
He said the consumers of that area came to the Commission and requested
this, the Ordinance passed unanimously, Publix and Winn Dixie sued them
in Federal Court in Miami and the case is still pending.
V/M Massaro asked if the Utility belonged to the City. Mr. Kriedler said
it is a semi -autonomous agency. V/M Massaro asked Mr. Kriedler what he
meant by that. Mr. Kriedler said the Lake Worth Utilities Authority was
created in 1969 by a special act of the legislature. He said prior to
that time they had their own generating facility but it became a political
football and as the City Commission changed,the utility rates changed and
the people said they wanted more consistency on the Utilities Authority
so they arranged to have a special act passed to provide for an entity
called the Lake Worth Utilities Authority which can sue and be sued in its
own name.
Mr. Kriedler said the members of this Authority are appointed by the City
Commission to serve four year terms. The Authority members have longer
terms than the City Commission. V/M Massaro asked who applied for this
and Mr. Kriedler said they were private citizens as well as the City.
Mr. Kriedler said it is a form of public ownership. V/M Massaro asked
Mr. Kriedler what specific areas his work entailed at Lake Worth. Mr.
Kriedler said he handled most of the litigation for the City, handled legal
relations and negotiations for the City for the Police Union which was
formed under the auspices of the Public Employees Relations Act. Mr.
Kriedler said he handled Civil Rights litigation on behalf of the City
and generally administered from a legal standpoint the Workmens' Compensa-
tion settlements paid out by the City and general liability settlements.
Mr. Kriedler said this included his handling most of this himself and on
occasion referring matters to outside Counsel. He said he advised the
Police Department, all Department heads and the Pension Board. Mr.
Kriedler said Lake Worth has five separate pension boards; one for the
general employees, two for the Police and'two for the Fire employees.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Kriedler if he has had anything to do with Developer
Agreements of any kind. Mr. Kriedler said they have had three or four
projects in the City and he found there are two types of developers. The
first 10% want to do everything the City wants to add to the quality of life
in that particular development. The second 90% want to give the City as
little as possible probably because it will cost them money to do the best
job.
- 2 ` 5/5/82
/pm
Mr. Kriedler said as the City Attorney, in conjunction with the City
Engineer, the Planning Board and all the City offices look at projects,
It was his responsibility to draw up the documents to insure that the
developers put in what the City wanted,and some negotiation
with what the City and the developers had agreed on. He said he is aware
that the City must protect themselves in these areas.
Mr. Kriedler said the City of Lake Worth owns its own golf course and
in the maintenance and continued service of the golf course, the Lake
Worth City Commission appointed a Golf Advisory Board and it was his
duty to advise them. He said the City of Tamarac has 9 golf courses and
may one day purchase one or build their own golf course and he is familiar
with this area of law. He said the City owning their own golf course has
its pros as well as its cons.
V/M Massaro asked approximately how many people live in Lake Worth and
Mr. Kriedler said about 30,000 and the average age is comparable to Tamarac.
V/M Massaro asked if Mr. Kriedler had any experience with municipal
utilities and Mr. Kriedler said Lake Worth has an on -going suit with
Palm Beach County which started after he took over as Utilities Attorney
in 1980. in explanation, he said they had five sub -contractors who pump
their sewerage to Lake Worth, Lake Worth takes the sewerage and pumps it
to the County, the County takes the sewerage and pumps it to the lead
contractor who is the City of West Palm Beach who is the lead agency in
obtaining a great deal of Federal money to build this sewerage system.
Mr. Kriedler said they treat the sewerage enough so that it does not smell
as it is being pumped farther on. Lake Worth does have treatment plants
and part of the allegations of the suit are that the County is suing Lake
Worth saying that Lake Worth is not treating the sewerage properly and
they are installing a great deal of expensive equipment to put additional
chemicals into it after they receive it from Lake Worth and Lake Worth is
saying that the five sub -contractors are not doing their job.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Kriedler if he handled all the law work for the
utilities and Mr. Kriedler said he did. He said one of the projects that
Lake Worth Utilities Authority is considering is public ownership of Cable
TV. He said the City of Lake Worth has a non-exclusive franchise with
Teleprompter Cable TV which was recently purchased by Westinghouse and
the name was changed to Group W. He said there were continuing complaints
from the residents concerning the rates and service. The Authority has
informally directed Mr. Kriedler to determine the pros and cons of the
Lake Worth Utilities Authority starting its own system.
C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Kriedler if other Lake Worth City Attorneys handled
both the City and the Utilities. Mr. Kriedler said when the Utilities
Authority was first created in 1969 the City Attorney represented both and
the precedent was set. C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Kriedler if he had any
private practice at the same time as representing the City and Mr. Kriedler
said no. C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Kriedler, in reference to labor relations,
if his duties were only in relation to the Police Department. Mr. Kriedler
said in the City that is correct, the Utilities Authority had certain members
of the electrical workers that he represented.
C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Kriedler how much of Lake Worth is still undeveloped.
Mr. Kriedler said roughly about 10%, it has built up about 7 to 8% in the
last five years. C/M Disraelly asked how the Council people work in Lake
Worth. Mr. Kriedler said the Council people came to the meetings and
expressed their views. There was no liaison as there is here in Tamarac
between Council and the Boards or Committees. C/M Disraelly asked about
Planning and Development within the:City, was any single person involved
or were decisions made at the Council meetings. Mr. Kriedler said the
Chief Building Official was the City employee designated by the City to
meet with the Planning Board• He would take the Planning Board's recommend-
ations and bring them to the City Commission. If the City Commission
were concerned about something, they would attend the Planning meeting and
express their concern.
- 3 - 5/5/82
/pm
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Kriedler how long he resided in Florida and he
answered that his mother moved here in 1958 and he attended elementary
school in Lantana and graduated from Lake Worth High School and attended
college in Florida. C/M Kravitz asked if he were to receive the position
as City Attorney would he be willing to relocate in Tamarac. Mr. Kriedler
said he would rather not move within the next year to give both Tamarac
and him time to adjust to one another.
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Kriedler why he is particularly interested in
becoming a City Attorney. Mr. Kriedler said City Attorney work is very
interesting, varied, concerns litigation, has aspects of meeting with
people and he enjoys this. He said he would not apply for a position of
Judge because he prefers the varied duties of City Attorney. C/M Kravitz
asked if Mr. Kriedler was involved with the issuance of the bonds that
Lake Worth was involved with. Mr. Kriedler said he was.
C/M Krantz asked Mr. Kriedler if he had done any trial work for the City
of Lake Worth. Mr. Kriedler said yes, litigation and appellate work. C/M
Krantz asked Mr. Kriedler what his objectives would be for the City of
Tamarac. Mr. Kriedler said the biggest objective would be the proper
development within the areas of the City that remain to be developed.
He said there may be some problems regarding the way the sewerage is being
handled and one area of dissension in the community is rates being raised
out of sight.
Mr. Kriedler said the other area to be considered might be the City owned
golf course. C/M Krantz asked Mr. Kriedler what his salary requirements
would be and he said he would request a salary of $50,000. He said since
it is so far along in the budget year he would not expect an increase in
the October budget but would expect consideration for an increase the
following October, as well as the other benefits of a general nature that
the previous City Attorney received.
V/M Massaro asked what Mr. Kriedler was referring to when he said "the
benefits the previous City Attorney received". Mr. Kriedler said he would
prefer to have the salary rather than participate in a Pension Plan, he
would provide for his own pension out of the $50,000 salary. Ile said he
would require a life insurance policy, health insurance, etc. V/M Massaro
asked Mr. Kriedler what his present salary is and he said $44,000 and the
17 or 18% Pension Plan that the City contributed to. He said there was a
generous provision regarding military leave, which amounts to about $3,000
per year.
Mr. Kriedler said in the City of Lake Worth, when he went for his military
duty as a member of the Navy Reserve, he received his pay from the Navy and
his pay from the City. This was for two weeks and had nothing to do with
his vacation. He said he understands that in Tamarac you must turn in your
military pay and then you can take your regular pay.
Mayor Falck said he was confused as to why a question would be raised con-
cerning a conflict between the City Attorney position and the Utilities
Tape position. Mr. Kriedler said in 1979-1980 the Commissioners got elected and
2 wanted to cut costs; part of their cost cutting plan was to have the City
Attorney do both jobs. There had been some prior friction and a law suit
between the City of Lake Worth and the Utilities Authority. The law suit
was resolved and the new City Commission wanted to resolve the friction.
He said they had the City Manager take over as Utilities Director and he
took over as Utilities Authority Attorney.
Mr. Kriedler said the voters decided they did not want the City Attorney
to do both jobs. Mayor Falck asked if the new City Attorney has been hired
for Lake Worth. Mr. Kriedler said they have one on a temporary basis on an
hourly rate of $75 an hour and it is a matter of discussion as to whether
they want a part time or full time City Attorney. C/M Kravitz asked Mr.
Kriedler if there was much need for special legal counsel while he was
City Attorney. Mr. Kriedler said no, there were two cases that were referrec
out because he was a witness in both cases. V/M Massaro asked if the Utilitj
Authority has anything to do with the sewer plant. Mr. Kriedler said yes,
They have electricity, sewerage and water and provided that to every area
in Lake Worth. Mayor Falck thanked Mr. Kriedler for his time and Mr.
Kriedler left.
- 4 - 5/5/82
/pm
Mayor Falck introduced Daniel Carbone to Council and asked for his
observations to Council. Mr. ar one said he is living in the unincorpor-
ated area of Broward County for eight months now. He said he is in private
practice on East Las Olas Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. He said he was a
village attorney, which is the equivalent of having been a City Attorney
here in Florida, for the Village of Saranac Lake which is adjacent to
Lake Placid, New York for four years. Mr. Carbone said he also held a
position as a County legislator which is in fact the same as a Broward
County Commissioner. He said this is an elected post for two years and
he did not run for reelection.
Mr. Carbone said he has experience in the writing of laws, the revision
of laws, conducting public hearings, attending and advising the Village
Board,which would be equivalent to the City Council, on day to day meetings.
He said he also had experience in reviewing Federal contracts as they
apply to funding and grants. He said he is licensed to practice law in
both New York and Florida.
C/M Disraelly said the Charter requires a full time City Attorney and he
asked Mr. Carbone if this would cause a problem. Mr. Carbone said he only
recently opened his office and he does enjoy private practice and as a
village attorney the position was only part time. C/M Disraelly said it
would require 100% and he asked Mr. Carbone why he would want to shift from
private practice. Mr. Carbone said he enjoys both, there is something nice
about being in public office and doing a good job for a community.
C/M Kravitz asked what would make Mr. Carbone change his mind about leaving
private practice to become a City Attorney. Mr. Carbone said certainly the
financial consideration is important but the people he would work with are
important too. Ile said his position as a part time Professor in Law School
was only a one semester stint and it was an opportunity to teach some young
people. He said he enjoyed his position as County Commissioner and had he
not moved to Florida he would have run for reelection and would have won.
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Carbone if he should obtain the position would he
be willing to move to Tamarac. Mr. Carbone said yes, there is no problem
there, he has a lease that elapses in July. V/M Massaro asked Mr. Carbone
how large a community Saranac is and he said about 10,000 people with a
large summer population. V/M Massaro asked Mr. Carbone what he did there.
Mr. Carbone said it was general practice of law as a part time position.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Carbone if he had experience with Developer Agreements.
Mr. Carbone said no, there were not many developers. V/M Massaro asked if
there was a utility there. Mr. Carbone said yes, --.there was a previously
existing utility.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Carbone why they left Saranac and he said his wife
wanted to pursue a career of her own and there was no opportunity there.
C/M Krantz said the Village of Saranac Lake had a City Manager form of
Government, was there any trial work involved? Mr. Carbone said yes.
C/M Krantz asked what Mr. Carbone's salary requirements would be and Mr.
Carbone said approximately $48,000. There were no further
questions and Mayor Falck thanked Mr. Carbone for coming.
Mayor Falck introduced James T. Schoenbrod to Council. V/M Massaro asked
about the area Mr. Schoenbrod worked in at Hallandale as Assistant City
Attorney. Mr. Schoenbrod said their Legal Department consisted of two
full time people, the City Attorney and he. Mr. Schoenbrod said his duties
ranged from handling appeals to drafting ordinances. V/M;Massaro asked what
he meant by handling appeals. Mr. Schoenbrod said the appeals from trial
court decisions; he said there were two cases when he started in February,
1980. Mr. Schoenbrod said he has drafted 75% of the Ordinances, research
in preparation of opinions to the members of the Commission.
Mr. Schoenbrod said he is also the City Prosecutor and is responsible for
those phases of code enforcement that commence after a code enforcement
officer has decided that someone has violated the Code. V/M Massaro asked
if the Administration would go to the City Attorney or to him and Mr.
Schoenbrod said they would go to both of them. Mr. Schoenbrod said that,
theoretically, any request for assistance would go through the City Attorney
- 5 - 5/5/82
/pm
but he handled many items as well. Mr. Schoenbrod said he would sit
with the Planning and Zoning Board as legal advisor, as well as the Police
and Fire Pension Board, and sometimes with the Development Review Board.
V/M Massaro asked if the City Attorney ever sits on those Boards and Mr.
Schoenbrod said no, the City Attorney and outside Counsel handle outside
litigation. V/M Massaro asked if Hallandale has its own municipal utility.
Mr. Schoenbrod said they have water and sewer but he has no experience
except to the extent of interpretation of the Sewer Hookup Ordinance.
V/M Massaro asked who would have handled the Water and Sewer Utility
Developer's Agreements? Mr. Schoenbrod said he really did not know.
C/M Disraelly said he gathered that much of Mr. Schoenbrod's experience
was trial court. Mr. Schoenbrod said non -jury trial in Florida and prior
to moving to Florida he was in court extremely rarely. C/M Disraelly asked
how long the City Attorney has been there and Mr. Schoenbrod said the same
length of time as he. C/M Disraelly asked if Mr. Schoenbrod currently has
a private practice. Mr. Schoenbrod said it has never been prohibited but
he does not want one.
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Schoenbrod if he would be willing to move to Tamarac
and he said travel from Hallandale would be strictly temporary since he
and his family want to move to North Broward anyway. C/M Kravitz asked
Mr. Schoenbrod why he is interested in securing this position and leaving
his position in Hallandale. Mr. Schoenbrod said he is not satisfied with
being an Assistant City Attorney. He said too much of his work is purely
routine and is all subject to supervision. Mr. Schoenbrod said another
factor is the difference in salary.
C/M Krantz asked Mr. Schoenbrod what his objectives would be for Tamarac.
Mr. Schoenbrod said he would like to achieve a position as an attorney
where he had some influence on how government affects people. He said in
Hallandale there is a very unfortunate degree of rigidity in the interaction
between government and the people, especially in the area of code enforce-
ment.
C/M Krantz asked Mr. Schoenbrod what his salary requirements would be and
Mr. Schoenbrod said the salary range for City Attorneys in Broward County
is between $40,000 and $50,000. Mr. Schoenbrod said he is less concerned
with the salary than he is with the kind of work he will be doing and the
kind of rapport he would be having with the City Council.
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Schoenbrod if there were any questions he would like
to ask Council. Mr. Schoenbrod said he would like to know what the
litigation responsibilities are. Mayor Falck said they would be pretty
much what the City Attorney wants them to be, Council does not dictate
if the City Attorney should handle something or send it out. Mayor Falck
said the City Attorney is expected to handle whatever he can. Mr.
Schoenbrod said his reason for asking is that he has no jury experience
and is not competent to assume court defense responsibility. Mr. Schoenbrod
said he would also like to ask what library facilities are available here.
Tape Mayor Falck said the City does have a rather complete library and Arthur
8 Birken made a point of routing to Council important information.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Schoenbrod what he earns now and he said his base
pay is $25,000 to which 15% is an add -on paid into a tax -deferred retirement
program; this totals approximately $28,500. V/M Massaro asked what the
purpose of this deferred compensation type of salary is and Mr. Schoenbrod
said the benefit is to the employee since it enables him to save without
feeling it at the moment and it completely escapes Federal Income Tax during
the years that the money is earned. Mr. Schoenbrod said the presumption is
that when you retire your tax level will be far less because some of your
income is gone. Mr. Schoenbrod said when you are over 55 you have the
option of withdrawing the money either in a lump sum or in periodic payments
or convert it into an annuity.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Schoenbrod if he gets a car allowance of any kind and
Mr. Schoenbrod said he gets mileage reimbursed. There were no more questions
and Mr. Schoenbrod was thanked for his time.
- 6 - 5/5/82
/pm
Mayor Falck introduced Ronald Cohen to Council members. Mr. Cohen said
for over three years he has been the Assistant City Attorney with the
City of Miami; there are thirteen Assistants and one City Attorney. He
said he has spent a great deal of time dealing with personnel and labor
matters; the City of Miami has approximately 3,200 employees. Mr. Cohen
said he has been Counsel to two Pension Boards; one for Police and Fire
and the other for the general employees. Mr. Cohen said there is much
litigation involved in their pension plan and he has been involved in a
great many civil rights suits. Mr. Cohen said he specialized in these.
Mr. Cohen said he has been counsel to the Waterfront Advisory Board. He
said he has been with the City of Miami and has been thinking of moving on.
Mr. Cohen said he has also been involved as representative of the City of
Miami in a case challenging the results of the 1580 Census; the City of
Miami is 75 to 80% minority population. Mr. Cohen said this Census would
have a tremendous influence on the amount of money the City would receive
in Revenue Sharing Funds in the next two years. Mr. Cohen said this would
explain that he can handle the complicated and diverse litigation.
Mr. Cohen said he writes legal opinions all the time and many different
projects and is interested in municipal law even though there are certain
areas he has not specialized in. He said he goes to as many of the
municipal law seminars as he can, he is a graduate of the University of
Florida, undergraduate in political Science and his law degree is from the
University of Miami. He said he has done a little private practice before
he began his work with the City of Miami.
C/M Disraelly said because of the amount of thirteen Assistant City Attorneys
it is difficult to get the broad concept of the total position. Mr. Cohen
said this is not entirely accurate because one of the things you do get
is a chance to talk with many different attorneys and share opinions and
ideas. V/M Massaro said in a City like Tamarac there are many agreements
with developers and she asked Mr. Cohen if he had any experience along
this line. Mr. Cohen said not on a day to day basis, he has had some
experience with it but a contract is a contract and would not be that
different from what he has experience with.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Cohen if he had any exposure to municipal utilities.
Mr. Cohen said no, Dade County operates all the utilities, Miami does not.
Mr. Cohen said any City Attorney could learn this area with no problem.
C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Cohen if he has done much litigation and he said
yes, it concerned jury trial, non -jury trial and much administrative work;
about half of the time is spent in litigation.
C/M Disraelly asked if Mr. Cohen has done any work in union negotiations.
Mr. Cohen said he handles the labor relations and this is the area of his
expertise. C/M Krantz asked Mr. Cohen what his salary requirements would
be and Mr. Cohen said he is making $40,000. C/M Krantz asked if this
included fringe benefits and Mr. Cohen said no this is just straight
salary. Mr. Cohen said the problem with the City Pension is that in order
to receive any benefits you have to stay until you are 55 years old, after
15 years you are vested. Mr. Cohen said the problem is that the Assistant
City Attorneys do not stay 15 years so they have the International City
Managers' Association. Mr. Cohen said as a salary he would expect at least
$40,000.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Cohen what other benefits if any he receives in his
present position. Mr. Cohen said health insurance, group insurance plan,
12 days vacation leave, 12 sick days and 2 personal days. Mayor Falck
thanked Mr. Cohen for coming.
Mayor Falck introduced Glenn Mednick to Council members. Mr. Mednick asked
if there are any City Boards that the City Attorney serves on in an advisory
capacity. Mayor Falck said the Charter Board and the Planning Commission,
occasionally the Beautification Committee and any other committee needing
legal advice.
- 7 - 5/5/82
/pm
V/M Massaro said the City Attorney is also required to sit in on labor
negotiations. Mr. Mednick asked if most of the Boards meet during the
day or at night. C/M Disraelly said this is a daytime operated City for
99% of its operations other than Recreation and committees of that sort
and required night meetings such as Budget meetings that are required by
law. Mr. Mednick asked if the majority of the litigation is handled by
the City Attorney or dispersed to independent law firms. Mayor Falck
said most is handled by the City Attorney unless he decides it must be
handled by other Counsel and he recommends this to Council.
C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Mednick if he has had jury trial experience and he
said no. Mr. Mednick asked if the City Attorney is allowed to do any outside
work and Mayor Falck said he is not since the Charter specifically prohibits
that. C/M Kravitz said on Mr. Mednick's resume it states that he received
his degree in June, 1979 and he started working with the City of Hollywood
as an Assistant City Attorney in July, 1980; what happened during that year
in between; Mr. Mednick said that on the next page of his resume it states
that prior to graduating from the University of Miami he was a law clerk
for a firm in Miami as an Associate. The partnership dissolved in July,
1980 and at that point is when he became Assistant City Attorney in
Hollywood.
C/M Kravitz asked how many City Attorneys there are in Hollywood. Mr.
Mednick said there is one City Attorney, one Deputy and three Assistants.
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Mednick how long he is a resident of Florida and he
said he moved down in 1975. C/M Kravitz asked if Mr. Mednick would have
any problem traveling from Lauderhill to Tamarac and Mr. Mednick said no.
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Mednick why he is interested in leaving the City of
Hollywood and why he is interested in obtaining the position of City
Attorney with Tamarac. Mr. Mednick said one of the big considerations is
the traveling time he now has and a major consideration is financial.
Mr. Mednick said he enjoys municipal law very much but he is exploring the
possibilities of private practice. C/M Disraelly said of the areas covered
in the resume; civil/criminal litigation, zoning, real estate, Federal,
Constitution, contracts, etc. what area was a major activity? Mr.
Mednick said it would be hard to isolate that because he has gone through
phases working for the City covering all of these. Mr. Mednick said he
was the attorney for the Board of Adjustment , he was Municipal Prosecutor
and after that he handled litigation against the Everglades/Pitfall Ord-
inance, he was the attorney for the Civil Service Board, he drafts contracts
and ordinances, etc.
C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Mednick if he has been involved with water and
sewer. Mr. Mednick said he has some minimal contact with that. C/M
Disraelly asked if he has handled any bond issues and Mr. Mednick said no.
C/M Krantz asked Mr. Mednick what his expectations are regarding salary.
Mr. Mednick said he was hoping for $40,000 a year; his current salary is
$25,000 a year but he is trying to consolidate two incomes into one so
that his wife can stop working. C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Mednick what would
induce him to go into private practice versus municipal law. Mr. Mednick
said financial pressures are important and the possibilities with a private
firm as compared with the City as concerns the future are his two major
considerations.
C/M Krantz asked what the population of Hollywood is and Mr. Mednick said
130,000. V/M Massaro asked Mr. Mednick if he has any other benefits with
his salary. Mr. Mednick said two weeks vacation, health insurance for
himself, not his wife, no group life insurance; there are two pension plans
available, a contributing plan and non-contributing. C/M Disraelly asked
Mr. Mednick if he has done work in union negotiations. Mr. Mednick said
he initially became involved when the City had a strike two years ago.
V/M Massaro asked if there is a car allowance available and Mr. Mednick
said there is just a mileage reimbursement. Mayor Falck asked Mr. Mednick
if he has any experience with franchises and he said yes, he was involved
with negotiations with FP :&'L and he drafted some contract modifications
to the franchise. Mayor Falck thanked Mr. Mednick for coming.
- 8 - 5/5/82
/pm
Mayor Falck introduced Jon Henning to Council members. Mr. Henning said
he made his application because he felt it would be an opportunity for him
to help the City and be progress for him too. He said his background is
such that he can be of help to Tamarac. He has quite a bit of experience
in the court system plus municipal experience which he had with the City
of Fort Lauderdale as their Assistant City Attorney.
C/M Kravitz said according to Mr. Henning's resume he has been the Assistant
City Attorney with Fort Lauderdale for approximately a year and a half,
prior to this he was the Assistant State Attorney. C/M Kravitz asked how
many City Attorneys Fort Lauderdale employs. Mr. Henning said there are
four in-house Assistant City Attorneys and one part-time City Attorney.
There are three Attorneys besides those that work strictly with the Police
Department as legal advisors, they have an attorney for the Organized
Crime Division and they have recently hired an attorney just to do
forfeitures.
C/M Kravitz asked if there is anything special that he works on as Assistant
City Attorney and Mr. Henning said he has been doing many cases and litiga-
tion and the cases include anything from car accidents, false arrest allega-
tions, injunctions involving the use of property, personnel matters, civil
service relations with employees, etc. Mr. Henning said the Fire Fighters
of Fort Lauderdale are unionized and there are no other unions at this time
for City employees and he has worked for the Insurance Advisory Board.
Mr. Henning said he has recently been involved in the development and
redevelopment of a housing project. C/M Kravitz asked what Mr. Henning
pe does with the items listed on his resume; namely, ordinances, resolutions,
contracts, legal opinions, etc. Mr. Henning said much of the work is
delegated in the office and they receive a project from start to finish.
He said Ordinances require publication and amendments to the code of ord-
inances, there are occasional amendments to the code, resolutions are passed
on one meeting and do not require publication. Resolutions can include
the City taking some particular action or recognition of an employee, the
adoption of contracts where the City will make a formal acceptance of a
contract before it is executed.
C/M Kravitz asked Mr. Henning in which area most of his work has been.
Mr. Henning said about half of his work has been court cases and the other
half has been in-house advice and projects in City Hall. C/M Kravitz asked
if he were employed by the City of Tamarac would he be willing to move here.
Mr. Henning said he lives east of Tamarac, just north of Commercial Blvd.
and it would not be that far. C/M Kravitz asked why he is interested in
leaving Fort Lauderdale and why he would be interested in being City
Attorney of Tamarac. Mr. Henning said he would like to serve the community,
have a greater impact on the advice of the Council; the City Attorney in
Fort Lauderdale is very good and seems to like his job and has no indication
of leaving.
Mr. Henning said he feels Tamarac is his neighbor to the west and he would
not apply for just "any" City Attorney position but would like to work in
Tamarac. Mr. Henning said he had an opportunity to the State Attorney's
office when he was in charge of the County Court system to work with all
municipalities.
C/M Kravitz left the meeting at 4:20 P.M. C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Henning
if he had any experience with union negotiations. Mr. Henning said he has
been aware of it but not immediately responsible for it except for the
insurance areas. C/M Disraelly asked if the Assistant City Attorneys of
Fort Lauderdale have outside practices and Mr. Henning said no. C/M Disraelly
dsked, based on his past experience as State Attorney, what were the functions?
Mr. Henning said the last two years were more in an administrative and
teaching capacity,for the first four years he was going to court every day.
C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Henning if he intends to stay in the public sector.
Mr. Henning said yes but he has no plans after Tamarac and would not use
this for a stepping stone, he would stay with Tamarac as long as he can
be of help.
- 9 - 5/5/82
/pm
C/M Disraelly asked Mr. Henning about the Fort Lauderdale agendas when
they refer to Workshop Meetings which are separate and apart from their
meetings open to the public. Mr. Henning said they are open to the public,
there is a closed circuit TV and they try to have people in the hall waiting
for their item then they go into the Chambers and have Public Hearings.
Mr. Henning said they meet at 8:00 and go. to 10:00 and the Public Hearings
start at 10:00 on the first and third Tuesday of each month.
C/M Disraelly asked if the Council people are part time and Mr. Henning
said he does not think many of them make a habit of spending half a day
or more, they do not come in every day. C/M Disraelly said the Mayor of
Tamarac appoints Council members as liaison in certain areas and they
have committees. Mr. Henning said in Fort Lauderdale it is primarily out
of the City Manager's office and there are many Advisory Boards. A
Commissioner generally does not participate on an Advisory Board matters.
C/M Disraelly asked who initiates the Ordinances in Fort Lauderdale? Mr.
Henning said basically they would be initiated by the City Manager, a
department head or a Commissioner. C/M Krantz asked Mr. Henning what his
present salary is and Mr. Henning said the;total benefits come to $43,300,
this includes salary, car allowance and deferred compensation. C/M Krantz
asked Mr. Henning if he had any idea what he would expect from Tamarac and
Mr. Henning said coming here would be progress and he would want at least
that much and perhaps something more. Mr. Henning said part of this could
be deferred in lieu of a pension.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Henning how much notice he would have to give and he
said he would want to give at least two weeks. He had some travel plans
that he was hoping to continue with and would be back on May 26. Ile said
June 1 would be fine. Mr. Henning said he believes there is a health
insurance program with the City which is paid for by the City for the
employee but not for dependents. Mr. Henning said in his present job he
has 21 vacation days accummulated per year, 1.0 to 12 days for sick leave
plus there were what they call Management Days where certain employees
were given additional vacation days to compensate for long hours.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. Henning if he had anything to do with Developers
Agreements. Mr. Henning said he has had some exposure to that working
with it but has not specialized in that area. C/M Disraelly asked if he
has any experience with water utilities and Mr. Henning said he had some
work with the Waste Water Contracts.
Mayor Falck asked Mr. Henning if he handled the litigation on self-insurance.
Mr. Henning said he did, the City of Fort Lauderdale was self -insured until
August, 1980 and at that point they took on.an insurance carrier for Police
Professional Liability which would not include the accidents with the
Utilities truck and minor cases; there is a 6 month waiting period with
sovereign immunity and public liability. Mr. Henning said he handled most
of these cases and most litigation. Mayor Falck asked what involvement
Mr. Henning had with the Pension Fund. Mr. Henning said he knows some of
the problems but has not handled this himself; there are two Pension Plans
in Fort Lauderdale, a general employees fund and the Police and Fire have
a separate fund.
Mayor Falck asked Mr. Henning if he has dealt with franchise and Mr. Henning
said he has some experience along this line. There were no further
questions and Mayor Falck thanked Mr. Henning for his time.
Mayor Falck introduced Andrew DeGraffenreidt III to Council members and
suggested that a Reconvened Meeting be held Monday, May 10, 1982 at 9.0.0
A.M. prior to the already scheduled 9:30 A.M. Special Meeting for the
purposes of finalizing the selection of City Attorney. This was agreed
upon by all present. Mr. DeGraffenreidt asked if there was possibly any
outstanding matters that must be concluded within the next three months.
Mayor Falck said he does not know and would have to look at the Litigation
Report; everything is on -going and he is unaware of anything that might have
a specific time element.
- 10 - 5/5/82
/pm
V/M Massaro said Alan Ruf, the Acting City Attorney will remain as the
Consulting City Attorney and he will help to acclimate a new City Attorney.
V/M Massaro asked Mr. DeGraffenreidt what his duties were as,-Deputy'City
Attorney of Hollywood. Mr. DeGraffenreidt said there are 5 Attorneys, 4
Assistants and 1 City Attorney,and he has worked in almost every area of
municipal law. He said most of the day to day legal decisions fall to the
Deputy and Assistants and his area of concentration has been with respect
to Land Use Plan and Developing/Zoning Regulations in addition to litigation.
Mr. DeGraffenreidt said he has also represented enumerous bond
proceedings, purchases, contracts, etc. V/M Massaro asked if his litigation
was primarily on Zoning and Land Use? Mr. DeGraffenreidt said it ranged
but the concentration was in Zoning and Land Use. V/M Massaro asked who
does most of the trial work in his City and Mr. DeGraffenreidt said he does,
those that are not referred elsewhere. V/M Massaro asked Mr. DeGraffenreidt
if he has had any dealings with Developers Agreements and he said yes, most
take the form of Planned Unit Developments under their Court Ordinance.
V/M Massaro asked who does the negotiating with those Developers Agreements?
Mr. DeGraffenreidt said most of the time its Bob Davis,the Management
Director and himself. V/M Massaro asked if he has had any exposure to
municipal utilities and Mr. DeGraffenreidt said no, very little. C/M
Disraelly asked how much work he has done in the Utilities area and Mr.
DeGraffenreidt said on a day to day basis they have had various discussions.
C/M Disraelly asked if he were involved in the 201 Program and Mr. �I
DeGraffenreidt said he has not participated in this.
C/M Disraelly said when Mr. DeGraffenreidt mentioned Developers Agreements
he said they then create an Ordinance which becomes the Developers Agreement.
Mr. DeGraffenreidt said this is required as the Planned Unit Development
Ordinance works. Mr. DeGraffenreidt said.there are three types of plans:
residential, commercial and family -living. C/M Disraelly asked if Mr.
DeGraffenreidt had anything to do with the creation of those Ordinances
and Mr. DeGraffenreidt said no, they were drafted before he came to the
City of Hollywood although there were certain recommendations that he made
-
that were later adopted.
C/M Krantz asked Mr. DeGraffenreidt if he has given any consideration to
the course of objectives that he would pursue if he were appointed City
Attorney. Mr. DeGraffenreidt said not initially but were he appointed
City Attorney,he would be once again legal counsel to a client, no different
than any other client;before he could formulate a plan of action with
respect to anything,he would have to know what the City's concerns are,
the goals, the resources, etc.
C/M Krantz asked Mr. DeGraffenreidt if the $33,700 noted as his earnings
includes benefits, Mr. DeGraffenreidt said yes, the City makes their own
contribution towards a Pension Plan and employees are not required to
participate, this is in addition to the salary of $33,700. Mayor Falck
asked what the vesting period is and Mr. DeGraffenreidt said ten years.
C/M Krantz asked what his salary requirements would be here and he said
he would like to be considered at a minimum of $43,000.
V/M Massaro asked if he gets a car allowance where he is now and he said
he is reimbursed for mileage only. C/M Disraelly asked how many unions
there are there and he said three, he was involved with the unfair labor
practice litigation but not the negotiations themselves. The labor nego-
tiations were handled by the Director of Personnel. V/M Massaro asked if
he has been involved in sitting in on Boards and he said since the beginning
of his legal career with Broward County he has and with the City of Hollywood
he has sat with Planning and Zoning Board, Board of Appeals and Adjustment
and with the Community Redevelopment Agency.
C/M Disraelly asked which of the Attorneys would sit at the Council meetings
and Mr. DeGraffenreidt said most of the time the City Manager would be there
but in her absence he is required to attend. V/M Massaro asked how familiar
he is with the Land Use Plan and he said considering that lawyers are given
to disagree with what it means, he understands it as well as anyone else.
C/M Disraelly asked if they have had many changes in their revisions to the
11 - 5/5/82
/pm
Land Use Plana Mr. DeGraffenreidt said yes,there have been many revisions.
C/M Krantz asked how many Council meetings Hollywood has per month and
Mr. DeGraffenreidt said there are two meetings per month with workshops
in between and often special meetings. Mayor Falck asked if he has had
anything to do with franchise and he said he worked with the Cable TV
franchise and they were considering franchising garbage earlier this year
to raise revenues. V/M Massaro asked Mr. DeGraffenreidt if he might know
the rate that the Cable TV system has to pay the City for the franchise
and he said he does not recall. There were no further questions and Mayor
Falck thanked Mr. DeGraffenreidt for his time.
Tape 3. Trip by C/M Krantz and Mayor Falck to Orlando to make presentation for
3 PIC to the State Education Group - Discussion and possible action.
SYNOPSIS OF ACTION: Agendized by Consent.
Council APPROVED trip to Orlando by Mayor
Falck and C/M Krantz at the City's expense.
C/M Disraelly MOVED to Agendize by Consent the permission for the Mayor
and C/M Krantz to take a trip to Orlando in order to make a presentation
for the PIC to the State Education Group, SECONDED by V/M Massaro.
VOTE: ALL VOTED AYE
C/M Disraelly MOVED that Council recognizes the fact that the Mayor and
C/M Krantz will be traveling to Orlando to attend a meeting of the State
Education Committee on May 7 and 8 at the City's expense. SECONDED by
V/M Massaro.
Mayor Falck said he does not believe his expenses will be very much because
a large portion is being paid by the State and some is being paid by the
self-insurance fund which he must attend on behalf of the City on Friday
morning.
VOTE:
ALL VOTED AYE
THE MEETING WAS RECESSED AT 5:00 P.M. TO 9:00 A.M. MONDAY, MAY 10, 1982.
ATTEST:
�v4ct �-_ I
ITY CLERK
This public document was promulgated at a cost of 11201. or t* 7
per copy, to inform the general public and public officers and employees about
recent opinions and considerations by the City Council of the City of Tamarac.
CITY OF TAX R
City Clerk
- 12 - 5/5/82
/Pm
VOTE 1: Recreation Board
ATTACHMENT 1
47
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c L A vs KI
RECREATION BOARD - VOTE 2.
I
ATTACHMENT 2
VOTE 1 - REDISTRICTING COMMITTEE
VOTE: 2 REDISTRICTING COMMITTEE
ATTACHMENT 3
April 28, 1982
`J cousvl
Mr. Robert Cunio
269 Giralda Avenue
Coral Gables, Florida 33134
Dear Mr. Cunio:
7y4
4/ir
Ile
Engineering Division
2020 Wilton Drive
Wilton Manors, Florida 33305
(305) 563-0808
Re: Frontage Road on University Drive adjacent to
Lyons Commercial subdivision No. 3
In response to your letter regarding the design of the
subject frontage road, I offer the following comments:
1. The purpose of the frontage road is twofold, as it
both serves to provide controlled access to the
ultimate 6 lane divided trafficway and -"also serves
as a "local" street for vehicular circulation and
access for the subdivided commercial lots.
2. There are several acceptable design concepts for the
frontage road ranging from a 2 lane, two direction flow
on each side of a grade separated mainline roadway to
a one lane, reverse flow with angle "overflow" parking.
The 2_lane concept without parking would offer the most
potentialfor providin maximumcapacityto the Un-
versi Drive trafficway corridor. µThe one walow with angle "overflow" parking offers the
p � ___ anacity
least otentialforprovLdAn maximum corridorc _butdoesmaximize the usa� „_of�he,40footfrontage
dThis maximum usage design was
originated on the Powerline Road corridor, where the
depth of the adjoining property and the provision for
required onsite parking was minimal.
4. Our records indicate that the design concept for the
frontage road in the 200 trafficway corridor has varied
BROC,ARD COUCITY BOAR❑ OF COUt1TY COGit,.lSSIOtdERS
F.'areie Rr-.ch Horr.:rd Craft Hov.-ard C. Forman Jack Fried Fran Gross Anne L. Kolb Gerald F- Thompson
An Equel Opp3rtunity Employer
t
Mr. Robert Cunio
April 28, 1982
Page 2
in response to development features, needs and right
of way impact.
We would be walling to discuss with you and with staff of
the City of Tamarac any design proposal for the subject
frontage road which meets current highway design standards,
is supported by the property owners in the subdivision,
and which is not contrary to any City regulations or
requirements.
Very truly yours,
Henry P. Cook, P.E.
Assistant County Engineer
HPC:LES:ls
CC: John M. Gerren, Jr.
Lee Billingsley
Dick Rubin, City Planner, City of Tamarac
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