Attendee Name	Title	Status	Arrived
Robin Fisher	Chairman / Commissioner District 1	Present
Chuck Nelson	Commissioner District 2	Present
Trudie Infantini	Commissioner District 3	Present
Mary Bolin	Commissioner District 4	Present
Andy Anderson	Vice Chairman / Commissioner District 5	Present

 

 

 

The invocation was given by Pastor Jason Boetcher, Grace Lutheran Church, Merritt Island.

 

Commissioner Infantini led the assembly in the Pledge of Allegiance.

 

 

 

The Board approved the May 10, and May 24, 2011, Regular Meeting Minutes; and May 26, 2011, Zoning Meeting Minutes.

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher read aloud a resolution congratulating Akia Davis.

 

Akia Davis expressed her thanks to the Board; stated her father taught her how to play basketball; and her mother is her biggest cheerleader.

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-128, congratulating Akia Davis upon her many successes to date; and wished her the very best as she begins a new chapter in her life.

 

 

 

Commissioner Nelson read aloud a resolution proclaiming July 2011 as Parks and Recreation Month.

 

Jack Masson, Parks and Recreation Director, expressed his appreciation to the Board for the proclamation.

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-129, proclaiming the month of July 2011 as Parks and Recreation Month; and encouraged residents and visitors to enjoy the parks, trails, programs, and special places that enhance the quality of life in the community.

 

 

 

Pat Brown, Keep Brevard Beautiful Executive Director, stated Trash Bash was held on April 16th at 42 sites throughout the County; this year there were 1,907 volunteers who collected 48.6 tons of trash; and she expressed thanks to Waste Management because it sponsors the competition every year and provides the funding for the awards.  She announced the County District winner for this year is Commissioner Nelson's District, which won the traveling stained glass pelican for having the most volunteers and the most litter collected; and Commissioner Bolin's District won $500 for the most improved over last year, which will be donated to Harmony Farms, Inc.

 

Pam Rogan, Harmony Farms, Inc. founder, expressed her thanks to Commissioner Bolin; and stated some of the funds donated will go towards buying some paint rollers and brushes, and a weedeater, and the rest will be used towards the Horses for Heroes kick-off.

 

Ms. Brown stated the city winners for 2011 are: the City of Cocoa for the most trash collected and best performance over population overall; the City of Melbourne for best performance based on city population greater than 3,500; the City of Cocoa Beach for best performance based on city population of 500 to 1,500; and the Town of Melbourne Beach for best performance based on city population under 5,000.  She stated this year there was a school competition of the most students participating; the first place winner is Quest Elementary School receiving a $300 donation; and the second place winner is Suntree Elementary School receiving a $200 donation.

 

The Board acknowledged the presentation by Pat Brown, Executive Director, and Kristi Worley, representing Waste Management, with awards to Commissioners Nelson and Bolin for being this year's Trash Bash winners of the Commission District competition.   

 

 

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-130, recognizing and commending Captain Kjell Norma and his entire staff and crew members onboard the Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines "Monarch of the Seas" for their generous financial contributions and devotion to the Brevard County Sheriff's Office and Brevard County PAL's "Camp Chance" summer program for at-risk youth.  

 

 

 

Commissioner Bolin read aloud a resolution recognizing and commending Health First.

 

Michael Means, Health First President/CEO, expressed his thanks to the Board; and introduced David Schmitt, who is responsible for the in-house clinical and educational training.

 

Mr. Schmitt stated there are four key elements to the chain of survival, such as training, awareness, early activation, and CPR; to close that chain for the Commission and the citizens who attend the meetings, Health First would like to donate an automated external defibrillator; he hopes there is no need for it to be deployed; but if it is it will keep the citizens of Brevard County safer.

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-131, recognizing and commending Health First for all they do to make Brevard County a safe place to live, work, and visit.

 

 

Commissioner Bolin noted Mr. Schmitt is the son of previous Commissioner Sue Schmitt.   

 

 

 

Commissioner Anderson read aloud a resolution recognizing Human Resources Director Frank Abbate, for saving the lives of three Florida fishermen.

 

Mr. Abbate expressed his thanks to Board; stated he has been a passionate fisherman for many years; he has had the privileged of fishing competitively with his son and friends; the one thing he was taught was that it does not matter when heading out, but when coming in always keep an eye on the water; after a great day of fishing with his son's future father-in-law, he was quite enthusiastic at being able to aide the three gentlemen in need of rescue; and it is something he will always remember.

 

Captain Bloom, U.S. Coast Guard, presented a Certificate of Appreciation from the United Stated Coast Guard, Sector Jacksonville, to Mr. Abbate.

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-132, recognizing and commending Frank Abbate for reeling in his most important "catch" and saving the lives of three Florida fishermen.

 

 

 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated Captain Bloom and Chief Dube, U.S. Coast Guard, would like to present Lieutenant Ernest Brown with a Meritorious Service Metal.

 

Chief Dube read aloud a citation to accompany the Meritorious Service Metal to Lieutenant Ernest Brown, U.S. Coast Guard Reserve.

 

Lieutenant Brown expressed his thanks to Captain Bloom and Chief Dube for the honor of receiving the Meritorious Service Metal; it is not to be taken lightly, as it is one of the most significant non-combat awards that can be provided to individual Coast Guard members; he believes he was doing his job by serving his country and supporting his fellow citizens; and it is truly a blessing to be recognized and it is a pleasure to serve.

 

Commissioner Nelson expressed his thanks to the U.S. Coast Guard for running a great operation; and it gives everyone a safer feeling to go offshore.

 

 

Howard Tipton, County Manager, stated there will be a presentation by two members of the EDC, as well as Mike Williams, who is a contractor, business owner, and a community leader, about an award that was recently bestowed upon the Planning and Development Department; and it is a recognition for streamlining processes that makes development a little bit easier in Brevard County.

 

Mike Williams, Economic Development Commission (EDC), stated a council was formed two years ago made up of 19 industry leaders from engineers, architects, and developers, to builders; the goal of the EDC was to try to solve some of the impediments that hinder the economic development; and the permitting process is a major impediment of economic development.  He explained if Brevard County is up against another community to relocate a company, and all the incentives are equal, except that in Brevard County a permit can be obtained six months quicker, it would thereby allow for construction to start six months quicker; and stated Brevard County would be able to get that company over the competition.  He noted that is why permitting is very important for economic development; and Brevard County is unparalleled in the sense of having public and private sectors come together on this issue to make the community a better place.  He stated after the collaboration and changes the development council began to see that many local municipalities are going beyond the call of duty; and the council wanted to give them an award for their efforts.  He stated the council created S.N.A.P., which stands for Simplified Nimble Accelerated Permitting; the council created a scorecard and ranked the importance of each question on the scorecard relative to the private sector needs for building and site plan permitting; each municipality was graded from the scorecard; and some examples of questions are, how long does it take to turn around a permit, and when impact fees are collected.  He stated Brevard County is one of the four municipalities to win the certification; he congratulated Brevard County for its efforts in obtaining the S.N.A.P. certification by streamlining the permitting process; he hopes to have an open dialogue with the County and the private sector to find other areas to enhance the permitting process as well; he recognized staff for its aggressiveness in the streamlining permitting process; and noted Commissioner Infantini's help as well.

 

Commissioner Infantini expressed her thanks to Mr. Williams; one of her campaign pledges was to work to simplify the permitting process because it was one of the largest hurdles people had towards helping Brevard County grow in a positive way; and she appreciates all that has been done to simplify the process.

 

Dina Reider-Hicks, EDC Senior Director, Marketing and Policy Development, stated she has T-shirts to pass out to the Board so everyone will know they live in a S.N.A.P. community.

 

Chairman Fisher congratulated Lynda Weatherman, EDC President, for receiving the Florida Economic Council's "Professional of the Year" award. 

 

 

 

Commissioner Bolin congratulated the Fire Rescue graduates who were sworn in on June 24th; and expressed thanks to Satellite Beach Chief Lee Cody for all he has does in Satellite Beach, and wished him well in his retirement.

 

 

 

Commissioner Bolin stated on June 28th she hosted a neighborhood meeting; and it was well attended with over 250 people who came to talk about the issue of roads. She expressed her thanks to John Denninghoff, Gil Ramirez, Bob Kamm, and Nick Leff for their professional and informative presentation; and expressed her thanks to Duane Lundgren, Pineda Presbyterian Church, and the south area Parks and Recreation Department for their assistance at the meeting.

 

 

 

Commissioner Bolin stated on June 17th, she attended the groundbreaking for the new AF Tech  Building, which is the Air Force Technical Applications Center at Patrick Air Force Base; and noted Lieutenant Governor Jennifer Carroll commended the Brevard County Commission on its support of the military in Florida, and stated that she and Governor Scott are fully committed to keeping the military strong in Florida.

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher stated the Commissioners have letters in their Agenda packages in reference to the human space flight priorities; those letters are going to Congressmen Bill Posey, Senator Marco Rubio, Senator Bill Nelson, and Congresswomen Sandy Adams; and he is requesting a motion on ratification of the letters.

 

The Board authorized Chairman Fisher to send a letter to Federal Legislative Delegation asking for support of the Space Coast's human space flight priorities.

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher stated he attended the Indian community event at Viera High School, which is holding a conference all week long celebrating world peace; and there was representation of every faith group on the stage celebrating world peace and how important it is for the country.

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher stated the last Shuttle has flown; it is a feeling of happiness and sadness all at the same time; it has been a fun 30-year ride; and the Board will be discussing what it means for the community in a few items coming up on the Agenda today.

 

 

 

Commissioner Anderson announced Saturday, July 16, 2011, at 10:00 a.m. is the grand opening of Max K. Rodes Park, in West Melbourne.

 

 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated he will have his annual community appreciation picnic on Saturday, July 16, 2011, immediately after the ribbon cutting of the new Max K. Rodes Park; the Greater West Melbourne Athletic Association has donated some barbecue supplies; he will also be donating items; and some local stores are donating as well.  He stated it is a free picnic; and he encourages everyone to come out and talk with him, as it is used as a town hall meeting also.

 

Commissioner Infantini added for the record that there will be two elected officials present for the park opening.

 

 

 

Howard Tipton, County Manager, stated at 10:00 a.m. the Board will be discussing the North Brevard Economic Development Zone; stated Commissioner Infantini had requested there be time to present research that has been done on the impacts of Community Redevelopment Agency's (CRA); David Norman will be making the presentation to the Board; and it will consist of 10 minutes of presentation, and then questions and answers.

 

David Norman stated he is before the Board to present some concerns relative to the establishment of the North Brevard Economic Development Zone District; he represents a number of concerned citizens of Brevard County who have conducted a significant amount of research into community redevelopment programs and economic development districts; and the citizens and he are very concerned about the establishment of this district, especially in these tough economic times that taxpayers in all of Brevard County are faced with today.  He stated the research done was on a number of community redevelopment areas and districts within Florida and other states, and it shows the successes are few and the failures due to mismanagement are many; it can also be concluded from the research that two of the main reasons governments choose to establish special districts appear to be to establish a mechanism to issue bonds without a referendum approved by the voters; and it allows the movement of general administration funds into the hands of a board of non-elected political appointees who can then direct them to favored projects.  He stated after reviewing the Tax Increment Ordinance that was passed on May 24th for the North Brevard Development District, and the requirements set forth by Florida Statute Chapter 189, he does not believe a case for establishing the district was justified; Florida Statute Chapter 189.404(4)(d) states that an explanation of why the district is the best alternative must be provided in the Ordinance; the findings used to justify the tax increment Ordinance were nothing more than statements, with no back-up evidence about the economic situation in the County and job reductions at Kennedy Space Center (KSC), which in no way qualifies as an explanation as to why the district is the best alternative; stated as a matter of fact, no other alternative appeared to be considered; and the Ordinance itself did not even reference Florida Statutes Chapter 189, which is the governing document for a special district.   He stated since the Ordinance has already been approved, it appears the wheels are already in motion to begin planning for this district; on behalf of the group he represents he is present today to request something that would help mitigate the group's concerns about the establishment of the district at this time; the group is proposing that a public workshop be scheduled to address the group's questions as part of the initial planning process; it is felt that there are many unanswered questions that need to be discussed at the workshop prior to moving forward with this development district initiative; and some of the questions include the area of board member qualifications, what process is used to identify candidates and then to select members of the board, what are the required member qualifications in terms of education and experience, and how will the board membership be rated based on qualifications.  He inquired what is the job description of a board member, how does the board track expenditures, who is responsible for ensuring funds are being properly used, is there an oversight function, how often is the public informed of district projects and expenditures, who ensures that the district operates in accordance with Florida Statues, and is there a term limit on board positions.  He stated the taxpayers feel they should be actively involved in the planning process for this potential district and that a public workshop is a logical first step; he himself has spent 40 years in the military managing development programs for many types of customers; those customers usually put up the money to pay for the job and he had to plan and execute those programs; he did not do anything in isolation of the customer; he normally planned projects with a lot of customer involvement; and he had to gain their approval of a plan whenever it was time to start implementation.  He stated the analogy here is that the customers for North Brevard Economic Development Zone are the taxpayers of Brevard County who deserve to be heard in a workshop environment to understand how this special district will meet the requirements outlined in Florida Statue 189.404; the paying customer needs to be better informed and able to participate in the process; and among the desired workshop outcomes would be a better explanation and understanding of why this solution is the best alternative at this time, and how this economic development district will generate jobs, especially when there is already an Economic Development Commission, the Titusville Economic Development Commission, Space Florida, Enterprise Florida, Workforce Brevard, and other job creation initiatives that are currently going on.  He inquired what measures are being used to evaluate the success of this district; stated a workshop would be a positive first step; and he asked for the Board's consideration of a workshop and to table the proposed ordinance until a workshop is held.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated a lot of information has come out that many were not aware of; the Florida Power and Light plant has not been considered to be coming online and generating roughly $12 million in new tax revenue; $4.3 million of which would go to Brevard County; if this is approved as planned, about $3.5 million of that $4.3 million would go right into the special development zone; it was intended to benefit the entire County; and she thinks it would be a disservice to all of Brevard County if those funds were isolated and just set into one zone.

 

Motion by Commissioner Infantini, seconded by Commissioner Anderson to schedule a workshop and table Item V.H., Ordinance, Re:  North Brevard Economic Development Zone.  Motion failed, with Commissioners Fisher, Nelson, and Bolin voting nay.

 

Chairman Fisher stated he has no desire to workshop this topic.  Commissioner Nelson stated it is premature because the 10:00 a.m. time certain is for the purpose to have the discussion; if the Board wants to have a workshop a motion could be made at anytime; and he thinks the Board should hear the public first.  

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher called for the public hearing to consider ordinance for North Brevard Economic Development Zone.

 

Carol Westmoreland, Florida Redevelopment Association (FRA), stated FRA is devoted to advocacy, quality, and redevelopment; it does not mean advocacy for redevelopment that is not approved by the local process; she is not present today to get involved in the push and pull of what people think the facts are, or the issues mentioned by the previous speaker; FRA is available for the Board should a workshop be decided upon, to try to flush out the facts because Community Redevelopment Agency's (CRA) are very complicated; and there is a lot of misinformation about what and how they do what they do.  She stated her biggest concern is that folks do not understand that CRA's are created, governed, administered, and held accountable by the Board of County Commissioners; a CRA does not have to be a non-appointed board; 95 percent of the CRA's in the State of Florida are elected officials, so the folks who set up the CRA, the elected officials, are the administers of the CRA; and it is a separate legal entity, so there is still the governing of the Sunshine Law and other provisions of elected officials managing CRA's.  She state she was asked to talk about the proper role of a CRA, the benefits of a CRA, and what is not a CRA; the proper role is an economic development tool; CRA's loosen up private sector money, tighten up government spending, and is an investment of money; without the money there would be no accomplishments of the goals; and new money is needed from the private sector to invest in a certain area to accomplish these goals.  She stated without a CRA it is unconstitutional to use private money for public benefit; CRA's are temporary; their terms are limited and set by the Board; CRA's are created, crafted, and carefully guided by a transparent public policy process by law; and they are led and developed by citizens if done properly.  She stated CRA's are a dedicated funding for revitalization of an area; without this dedicated funding it would look the same as it does now, forever, and that is the theory; but a better benefit of a CRA is comprehensive planning, which brings in private sector business, merchants, residents, non-profit churches, and government, because government is doing the planning and it needs everyone else to be involved with the plan in place and the money to do it.  She advised a CRA is not a tax levy and it does not transfer monies from general revenue into a trust fund; CRA's are an increment, such as a development like FPL coming in and adding to the tax base, and depending on when the Board freezes the tax base those monies may or may not be part of the increment; the tax base gets set at "X" time in the continuum; the difference between that tax base level and the year after is the increment; and if the tax base is set after FPL arrives, that money will not go into the trust fund.  She stated it is not supposed to take the place of government expenditures that existed prior to the creation of a CRA; it is a fund for enhanced services and new projects designed to eliminate poor, physical, and economic conditions in an area; it is not a program that takes money away from residents; it is not a development fund; it is a citizens project fund if done correctly through the elected representatives that run the CRA and participatory action on the part of citizens; it takes a lot of discussion; it will require participation by citizens; it is a program that sets money aside; the tax level does not change; and stated that is the general process of how CRA's are managed in Florida. 

 

Chairman Fisher expressed his thanks to Ms. Westmoreland; stated the most interesting thing said is the misconception that it is going to be a tax increase, but that is not the case; residents all over the county will pay the same amount they have always paid; and inquired if he made a correct statement.  Ms. Westmoreland responded he is correct because of the increment concept.

 

Chairman Fisher stated he has a brief presentation on why North Brevard needs a North Brevard Economic Development Zone (NBEDZ); the County's unemployment rate is 10.8 percent with the majority of KSC layoffs still to come; the highest percentage of workers laid off from the Shuttle Program are residents of North Brevard; the projected layoffs in North Brevard equal a loss of $100 million in annual revenue; and with each job lost at KSC the ripple effect into the community is an additional 1.8 jobs. He advised more than 50 percent of the land in North Brevard is exempt from property taxes; the key commercial areas are exempt; and it has 20 percent of the County's population, but only one-tenth of the taxable value.  He stated the map shown is the proposed affected economic zone properties, with the ones shown in red having the potential to contribute to the zone; the district is larger than the actual incremental area, and the reason is the partnership with KSC, private business, and the City of Titusville; and the properties in red and green are where the funding will be derived from.  He stated the North Brevard proposal is the establishment of an Economic Development Zone with tax increment funding allowing the North Brevard area to formulate and focus a strategy on economic development and job creation; economic incentives are effective economic development, and community redevelopment requires the establishment of dedicated funding mechanisms; and there are competitors around the state doing this, such as Manatee County, Fort Myers, and the City of Jacksonville.  He stated the tax increment revenues generated by the establishment of the economic zone would be administered by a dependent special district focusing on North Brevard and the City of Titusville; the City of Titusville does not have to contribute, but it sees the wisdom to participate; and there is also support provided by the Chamber of Commerce. He stated the City of Titusville and the North Brevard community have started the Greater Titusville Renaissance Campaign, which was designed to realize that as a community it has to take control the its own destiny because there is nobody from Washington D.C. who is going to save the area; and there has been great participation among the citizens in North Brevard.  He stated the Brevard Dependent Special District's duties are to develop, approve, and recommend to the Board formal adoption of the Economic Development Plan, to administer and implement the Economic Development Plan, and to provide the Board with an annual report on the development and implementation of the plan; in the first five years the district's revenues will be 90 percent of the new construction revenues from commercial and industrial properties, with contributions from the City of Titusville, and public/private partnership; and there are some grant opportunities that hopefully will increase the revenues, along with traditional tax increments after the fifth year at 90 percent of the incremental value. 

 

He stated if new construction countywide is looked at in the last three years it shows the new construction values for fiscal year 2009-2010 were $444,401,981; fiscal year 2010-2011 were $305,102,302; fiscal year 2011-2012 is $210,398,625; and in the NBEDZ, new construction for fiscal year 2011-2012 is $3,795,180, which is 1.80 percent of the countywide total.  He stated the NBEDZ revenue construction model based on new construction would have been, in one year, $16,248 going toward the NBEDZ; in two years, $12,978; and the column on the right side of those yearly figures are dollars available for General Fund. He stated in the third year is when the Florida Power & Light (FP&L) plant comes online; it will generate an assumed $500 million value; the Property Appraiser calculates values with FP&L and their $1 billion number, plus the fact that it might have $200 to $250 million worth of pollution control in value, but by Florida law it can only tax 10 percent of the $200,000 of the pollution control; the value is somewhat inflated, but if the solar plant that was built is taken into consideration, FP&L stayed at one number; and the taxes come in once the Property Appraiser assessed it to about 40 to 50 percent of the values put in the newspaper and for the purpose of this construction. He stated in the zone 90 percent of the new construction dollars apply; he wants it to be understood that the plant will probably not be online until 2013, so the first two years of the zone has very little money actually going into the fund; when the FP&L comes online there will be a contribution of $2.8 million; the General Fund would get $352,000; the zone would get a total of $2.9 million, but there has been some misconception that in year two the zone again was going to get that FP&L money; the zone would get $3.2 million because of the way the first five years is designed; and the General Fund is still going to get contributions.  He stated unlike typical CRA's, where year one is when it starts paying it in, the General Fund would get $6.8 million from FP&L building in District 1; and the NBEDZ would actually get $2.9 million.  He stated the NBEDZ's accountability would be to the County; the City of Titusville will make appointments to the NBEDZ board; the board members must file financial disclosures; the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) may remove a board member before terms are up; the BOCC must receive annual reports on the development and implementation of the economic development plan; it must comply with all Florida sunshine laws; the board must prepare and submit for approval an annual budget to the BOCC in the manner prescribed by Florida law; BOCC approval is required for cash expenditures over $500,000; and the board must submit to pre-audits of expenditures, performance audits, and a financial audit.  He mentioned how he got to this point; the 'do nothing' option was not there for him; he went to staff and advised there is something called a Public Service Tax, which could create a countywide funding source; the Public Service Tax is tax on the purchase of electricity, metered natural gas, manufactured gas, and water service; those revenues are general revenues and could have gone into the General Fund and used by the entire Board; and it would have been a fund that would have generated $12 to $15 million for the entire Commission to use economic development.  He stated all the cities in Brevard pay the Public Service Tax today on their utility bills; people who live in the unincorporated area do not pay the Public Service Tax; his concept when presenting to staff was there needs to be a countywide funding source to do economic development; and economic development needs to stop using reserves.  He stated the surrounding counties of Volusia, Seminole, Orange, and Osceola charge the Public Service Tax; the current money that could have been collected into that Public Service Tax would have been about $12 million a year; he would have divided it among the five Commissioners; everyone would have had money for economic development; and it was his first choice to try to generate a pot of money and some additional revenue.  He stated he is at ground zero in North Brevard; the last shuttle has flown, and he does not have the luxury, or choice, to do nothing; in summary, this is a legal economic development tool with oversight and accountability being there through the Board; it was purposely designed for a short time period of the first five years, knowing that property values were going to jump; and it will get a boost from FP&L still contributing to the General Fund.  He stated if the Board is willing to create a Public Service Tax to create a fund for everybody he will stop his NBEDZ now, and there will be enough money for everybody; but that is not the case.

 

Pastor Jody Wells, First Pentecostal Church of Titusville, stated he is in favor of the North Brevard Economic Development Zone; he was born in Gainesville and moved to Titusville with his parents in 1972; prior to becoming a Pastor, he was employed by NASA for 16 years; he was the agency's media spokesman for the Shuttle Program from 1999 to 2003; and then he shifted to NASA's liaison to Governor Jeb Bush in the State Legislature in the final years of his career.  He mentioned he served in the time frame of NASA setting its sights to go to the moon and Mars; ultimately, he had to choose between NASA and a higher calling; and he will never cease to support America's human space flight program.  He stated the entire County faces unique challenges in the wake of the Shuttle Programs closure; there was such joy and tears with the recent launch of Atlantis; the loss of a proud heritage has created tears and fears as there is no program to look forward to at this time; everybody stands to lose a great deal in Brevard County; and as he understands it, North Brevard stands to take the greatest brunt of the job loss.  He stated he is not an expert on CRA's; he is pastoring a group of pastors who meet in Titusville weekly to pray for the citizens of Brevard County; he cannot tell of a time when the needs of North Brevard are not brought forward every week in prayer; and the Lord is trusted to be a provider, but there is a wisdom statement that comes outside of the Bible that tells the Lord helps those who help themselves.  He stated in 2005 he brought before the Board an annual briefing of NASA's status; he reported on the fact that the Space Shuttle Program was coming to a close, even when constellation was still alive and well, and there would be a gap between launch activities; the gap needed to be filled; and he thinks those were the days to have workshops, discussions, reviews, and long studies.  He stated he is very well versed in what happened in Titusville and North Brevard following the closure of the Apollo Program, and the down times after Challenger and Columbia; it does look like the greater portion of the burden is going to be in North Brevard; and whatever help the Board can give is greatly appreciated.

 

Reverend Earl Medlen stated he is against NBEDZ; anybody who is not against it is a traitor to the United States; he is against it because he feels it is unconstitutional; and inquired what part of economical development does the Board not understand, as it is not the Board's job to do.  He stated if the Board wants economic development he has a tool for the Board to use, such as getting government out of the way, out of peoples business, and making Brevard a business friendly place so people can move here and start a business without jumping through hoops, paying all kinds of fees, and getting Code Enforcement off of them. 

 

Francis Herr stated there has been six years of notice of the ending of the Shuttle Program; in six years nothing has been done and now the County is in a bind, which is a problem; and there is confusion among the Board and others about what is going to be done.  He stated a suggestion was made to have a workshop to try and iron out the issues, but obviously three Board members do not want to see the light of day in that aspect; the time for waiting is over; and it started six years ago with Board and its predecessors.  He stated he lives in Grant-Valkaria, which is zoned mostly Agricultural; and he has a family-owned business there, which is trying to do some things to help other businesses, but it is not doing well because it is a dead industry in that area.  He commented on his neighbor who has a successful business and continues to do well and bring in business from out of state.  He stated the Board should not be creating jobs; private enterprise should be creating jobs; his neighbor went out and did what it took to be successful; and he understands the dedication to NASA; but what the Board is asking is no different than if a small family-owned company were failing.  He stated it would be like him asking his neighbor to use his money and help others out; it is called wealth redistribution; and the answer would be no.  He stated he hopes the Board will consider that the public is not getting good feedback from a one-sided presentation with errors in it; the last time he was before the Board, Commissioner Anderson asked him why he was the only person who had an objection about what the Board was about to do, which was to declare Brevard County a drug free zone in need of federal aid; and stated there are more people here now and he wants the Board to recognize that.

 

Richard Ware stated he is opposed to the NBEDZ; he has spoken with Chairman Fisher, other members of the Board, and Titusville's City Council several times; his number one concern is that it is goes beyond the scope and directive of local government; local government is to provide two main things, which are infrastructure and public safety; and this goes well beyond those, as the Board is talking about spending money on private sector items, which goes well beyond what is entitled to government on a local level.  He stated there is no direct electoral accountability for Board members the way the resolution is written today; the Board is empowering people to spend up to $500,000 anytime a project is worthy; and there needs to be accountability directly to the people who elect the Commissioners to spend their money.  He stated anytime there are powers delegated to the Board, it allows for a distance and a layering of government that is not conducive to public trust; and it needs to be looked into about how the Board is going to be able to do things that go beyond the powers it is already granted as elected officials.  He stated the Board should create a fund that benefits the entire County; Chairman Fisher has looked at the tax option on utilities and other items, but no mention was made of creating a referendum to create a millage rate special tax fund; there was much done for Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) projects that would benefit the entire County; and because the Board is going beyond the scope of normal government, it should do as much as it has done for EEL because EEL went beyond the scope of public safety and infrastructure; and inquired why not create a voter referendum to approve a fund that would be funded through a millage rate increase after voter approval.  He inquired why North Brevard needs a zone when there are many other organizations already tasked with job creation and business development within North Brevard; and he inquired how much is to be spent per job for folks in Brevard County, the State of Florida, or nationally, of government and public money that is going to be justifiable.  He stated he is in the process of receiving the education and the certifications needed from the State of Florida to start his own business; he has yet to consider trying to get public funding to help him do so; all of his training is coming out of his own pocket; and he does not let government get involved with him starting his own business, as long as the statues are followed on how to conduct his business.  He stated it seems to him the goal is to add layers and expand the scope of government, but in doing so it reduces the accountability of the elected officials for the expenditures of money to the citizens that elected them; it may simply be an effort to capture and redirect public tax dollars in order to even out CRA dollar expenditures throughout the County; it seems to him it is a poor way to do it; and it needs to go back to the taxpayers for approval. 

 

Barbara Knick stated her concern is for the future of Brevard County; 20 percent of the population wants to get 90 percent of the taxes; in 2010 Kiplinger rated Brevard County as one of the five best places in America to retire; the factors evaluated were the cost of living, weather, number of doctors, taxes, crime rate, and recreational opportunities; and Brevard County is expecting to have 100,000 to 300,000 more people by 2020, which is an increase of 60 percent and offers a challenge to local government to keep infrastructure ahead of growth while preserving the environment.  She mentioned in 2010 Forbes Magazine ranked the area as the worst in country for finding a job; it did not say Titusville, it was talking about the entire County, as Titusville is not the only one with a problem; and Palm Bay has lost more jobs in the past two years and has not had help during that time.  She stated Commissioners are elected to represent the whole County; she does not understand why a Commissioner would vote to send money from one district to another; there is a large number of citizens who spent a lot of time to research CRA's, economic development zones, enterprise zones, and everything that goes along with that; there is probably more information gathered than the Board has; it has been found that these economic development zones are fraught with problems of mismanagement and illegal expenditures; and Brevard County has 19 CRA's and 54 special districts.  She stated this group of taxpayers present today wants the Board to do what it was elected to do and work for the whole County; she inquired if success is measured by how many ordinances and resolutions are passed, or how much money is spent; and she contends that success is measured by how much money the Board saves the taxpayers who elected them, and not by redistributing the wealth.

 

Milo Zonka stated much of the County is not going to be affected by the layoffs, but what is coming with the layoffs at KSC will have a trickling down effect throughout the other businesses in North Brevard of where those dollars used to be spent; the south part of the County could do something different, as Detroit did with cities 75 miles outside of it having been shattered by the fall of the auto industry; and every mid-western community where a major manufacturing source of jobs has been lost affects cities 20, 30, 40, and 50 miles away.  He stated he knows for a fact that his home value in Palm Bay will absolutely be impacted by the home values in Titusville; there are a lot of rhetorical arguments today about the scope of government; but the reality is the issue has been presented to us for many years and people say nothing has been done; and he counters that because those people should have been following its government when it mattered, because there were a lot of steps being taken.  He stated he stood in the United Space Alliance President's office six years ago; the white bulletin board in the office showed the famous gap that has been talked about for years; a way people can look at this is to take the word 'north' off of the title; he thinks the issue that a lot of people are having is with the word 'north'; but it is not about North Brevard, it is about Brevard County; and what happens in the north affects south, and vice versa.  He stated he wishes he had advice for the Board, but all he has to offer is parental advice, as he has raised five children and is questioned all the time about how he and his wife has done it; and his answer is zone defense.  He inquired if the Board would strike the word 'north' and make it a Brevard County investment; and stated for anybody who says Palm Bay is not benefiting from tax assistance, he can tell them he has many friends employed gainfully with the assistance this Commission offered to Embraer having employed hundreds; and he expressed his thanks to the Board for taking action for South Brevard.

 

Bob White stated he is speaking on behalf of all the people in red shirts today representing the rights of the taxpayers of Brevard County; the Board is dealing with a public that is wide awake, fully informed, and is not going to be easily swayed by a fancy presentation on an overhead projector; and this is a body politic that is fully capable of and has done its own research, own study, came to their own conclusions, and is easily justified as any conclusions that the Board may have drawn or that staff has come up with on its own.  He stated there is nothing rhetorical about the red shirt arguments, as they are arguments being made all over the country at this point in time, with less government, lower taxes, more personal freedom of responsibility to find the proper role and scope of what government ought to be; and the Board better be aware of it.

 

Penny Canales inquired if the proposal is a CRA or a special dependent district, and under what Florida Statute is it falling under.  Scott Knox, County Attorney, responded it is under F.S. Section 200.065, Chapter 189.404.  Ms. Canales stated she has a concern about CRA's in general because they are spending the tax money and are appointed officials and not elected officials; this special district board will have the power to take out loan, obtain bonds, spend tax increment financing (TIF) money that is put into district funds; and will also have access to cash expenditures and incentives without seeking the Commission’s approval.  She inquired how many times a year that could be done.  She stated she called the Department of Community Affairs and discovered the proposed ordinance is the only one that has ever been proposed and will be the only one in the state that operates under a TIF; it is a CRA Dependent Special District; and she thinks it takes the electorate out of being able to vote for those tax referendums that are going to do into this district.  She stated she is sure the Board is aware of what is going on in Satellite Beach; the first year it had its CRA it took out a $1.5 million loan to purchase property; that property is still off the tax roll waiting to be sold and developed in the CRA while taxpayers pay $100,000 a year in interest on that loan; and those are the types of things that concern her and why she thinks there needs to be a workshop before the NBEDZ is passed.  She noted while looking at the proposed ordinance, it reads at the end that the budget and reporting requirements listed Florida Statues 200, 218, 218.32, 218.32.1, 218.33, 218.34, and 218.345; but she could not find 218.34 and 218.345 in the Florida Statues; and inquired how the accountability that is placed in the F.S. 189 is not listed within the ordinance; and she is concerned that there needs to be a workshop.

 

Linn Walters stated he does not think it is proper for Chairman Fisher to give a presentation on the NBEDZ; he does not read Florida TODAY, he does not see the public hearing notices, and he does not always know what is going on in the County; and he expressed his thanks to Commissioner Infantini for taking time and making efforts to educate the citizens in her district.  He stated what he sees happening is Brevard is a County of five districts, but will be four districts with one special enterprise zone; he understands the situation that North Brevard is in, but it has been known for six years that the Shuttle Program would end; he thinks there needs to be a workshop so citizens can be educated on the 30 years of what is going to happen with the County's tax money; and he does not think the County should carve out a major portion of its area and focus tax money to be specifically spent in that certain area.  He inquired if another enterprise zone would be created for other parts of the County that have major employers that find they are not making it in the marketplace and moves from the area; and stated he does not want to see approval of the NBEDZ until further discussions take place.

 

Holly Woolsey stated she is a mother and a professional career woman who lives in Titusville, and she appreciated Chairman Fisher's presentation; she supports the NBEDZ to help stimulate the community and bring businesses and jobs into the area; but when she thinks about jobs she does not think of statistics or percentages, she thinks about people, and the fathers who have lost their jobs.  She stated her brother-in-law was laid off in April; he has two daughters in high school; he is a professional, but is mowing lawns and painting houses to support his family; without some type of relief he is going to have to leave the area to find other work; and it will tear the family apart because they cannot afford to leave with him.  She stated she is hearing NBEDZ will bring jobs to the community; it will protect the fabric of the community; and without it, the culture will be changing in the face of the community when people are sent out of the community to find jobs.

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Keith Rigler stated he has lived in Brevard since 1969 and has seen a lot of changes in Brevard County; he thinks it is schizophrenic for the State to pay $8.7 million, the County to pay $1.8 million, and Melbourne to pay $700,000 for Embraer; and the feds are telling businesses they need to pay more, but counties and cities are just giving away money.  He stated Chairman Fisher mentioned in his presentation that the County needs new revenue for the General Fund; and inquired if all the new businesses are going to be trapped in the 19 CRA's and the new one, where is the new revenue going to come from.  He stated it is going to come from existing business owners and residents, a lot of whom are leaving the County; and taxes are going to have to be raised to pay for all of these special things.  He advised he called Lee County and spoke with a woman there who said it is not an economic development zone county, it is a state enterprise zone; he spoke with its director and was told it had eliminated all of its CRA's because of corruption; he asked her about the 19,000 jobs that was mentioned and was told there is no way to account for that and she did not know after it ends if the businesses would still in business, and had no idea if the zone was even working properly.  He stated there are many things going on in North Brevard; he watched a 45-minute presentation by the Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) about the Port expanding and getting super-freighters from Panama Canal to come to redo the bridges; the Cocoa and Mims rail stations are being redone, which should bring in a lot of jobs; and that is what the Board is for, to make those jobs available.  He stated it is crazy what is going on at Satellite Beach; everyone claims Melbourne's CRA is great, but it just gave $20,000 to Meg O'Mally's, $10,000 to Dr. Filiberto, and $7,000 to Brown's Ice Cream for their facades; and it is not right because those places are making money and the taxpayers are giving them money to redo their facades. He stated all the things the Board is doing is taking away from the people who are struggling in Brevard County; since 2008, in Palm Bay, 23 percent of its workforce was construction and those jobs are gone; Brevard County has been hurting for a couple of years now; the more that is attempted to be fixed the more it is messed up; and if the Board was doing what it is supposed to be doing Brevard County would not be in this position.

 

Ed Priselac expressed his thanks to the Board for its service; and he stated he would like the County to take a few steps back and work more with the citizens of Brevard County.

 

Robert Jordan stated he could actually be the poster-child for KSC; he was employed for 32 years at KSC; and he was told on his first day that he was going to be laid off.  He stated he has totally enjoyed the experiences he has had at KSC, but he was let go; it was not devastating to him, it was exciting to him, because after 31 years of being a grunt engineer, senior engineer, manager, and a senior manager, it has been an extremely good experience for him; and he was able to learn and understand how Brevard County works.  He stated stated he is from a small town in Georgia that only had one high school; then he come to Brevard County, which has 86 schools; education was very impressing to him; he was blessed to be a part of the education system for such long time; and the last thing he wants is for Brevard County to go down.  He stated he has always been taught that when brothers and sisters are in trouble they need to be helped; when he meets someone they become his brother or sister and if he finds them in need, he is going to help them; and this is a time for Brevard County to sacrifice.  He applauds the folks who say no to the issue because they have one point of view; he applauds those who say yes because they have another point of view; and the point is everyone should love each other and do the things that are right, not politically right, but what is righteous under God.  He stated his life has not stopped because he lost his job; he has been blessed to be able to buy a business in Titusville; he has 14 employees; he is now President and CEO of a company, which he would not have been if this chapter in his life at KSC had not come to a close; and there is life after the shuttle; but things needs to be done to ensure help to all of the citizens of Brevard County.  He stated some speakers were talking about the government needing to get out of their lives; the first thing he thought about is if their house was on fire they would want the government to be there; if there is a burglary at their house they would want the government to be there; if there is a hurricane they would want the government to be there; the government educates the children; and all of the stuff talked about in a negative way is not helping the situation.  He stated he does not like negativity; if a person wants to be positive the right thing needs to be done by allowing the NBEDZ because it will help North Brevard and the County as a whole.

 

Marty Adams stated he has came to the conclusion that there desperately needs to be a workshop; a workshop is needed to talk about solutions to the problems being faced, and to try to create a solution to a problem before understanding what the problem is, is a rush to judgment. He advised he is one of the red shirts; and the red shirts are not opposing the ideas by the Board, they just want to contribute some ideas and suggestions of real alternatives.  He stated in a workshop there could be dialog; the public speaker format is not the proper way to have dialogue; the Board has certain perspectives of what is going on in their districts that the public may or may not have; and the dialogue of common thoughts needs to come together to see what could be done versus the things that cannot be done.  He stated he retired from Harris Corporation 15 years ago; he entered into new business as a broker; he has worked with small and large companies all over Brevard; he is told what their challenges and frustrations are; he knows of a company that has been in business for over 30 years, with over 30 employees, and wants to expand; but in order to expand a larger facility was needed; and before buying the land he went to the Permitting Department to see what is involved with the process and was told it involved a $150,000 impact fee on an existing structure.  He stated that $150,000 would be going towards something that did not benefit the owner or the existing employees; it would not help to grow the business; he realized it was the beginning of a regulatory permitting struggle; and the entire activity has stopped expanding.  He inquired what could be done together to create an improved climate; stated it is the private business sector that creates jobs; a workshop would help to look seriously at things that could be done as a team, that would be practical and useful to encourage businesses that exist to encourage other businesses that are looking to relocate to Brevard; and he thinks it would be amazing if Brevard County had a reputation of being a great place to do business.  He suggested the Board give serious consideration to conducting a workshop; a judgment does not have to be rushed; he does not believe a CRA or NBEDZ is the right way to go; and if it were he would be supporting it.  He distributed a handout to the Board about dissolving community redevelopment; explained the CRA industry could not come up with a single example across the state where blight was removed, thriving communities were created, and jobs were brought in sustainably.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated when she saw Chairman Fisher's presentation about new construction, it indicated that in fiscal year 2011-2012 only 1.8 percent of the countywide new construction went to the north district; she inquired if it is imperative to look at it, then why was only 1.8 percent received for construction; and stated rather than throwing money at it before knowing what the problem is, there might need to be find out what the problem is in North Brevard, such as too many regulations and permitting costs.

 

Scott Cuthbert stated he does not understand the complexities of 16 CRA's; but he does understand there is a 13-page Constitution that puts limits on government; picking and choosing economic winners and losers is not part of that document; there are 10 amendments to the constitution; and it says citizens have rights, and he does not think it is fair that tax dollars are taken from Palm Bay and sent it to Titusville when he does not get to vote for anybody in Titusville.  He stated Section 1.41 of the County Charter says property situated within municipalities shall not be subject to taxation for services rendered by the County exclusively for the benefit of property or residents not within municipal boundaries, nor shall property situated in unincorporated areas of the County be subject to taxation for the benefit, or of the property of residents within municipal boundaries; and stated if his taxes are going to be spent in North Brevard, benefiting Titusville, he thinks it is a violation of the Charter.  He stated if the proposed ordinance is passed, he wants a South Brevard economic development zone because the City of Palm Bay is in dire straits with jobs being sucked to the north; and after the South Brevard economic development zone is passed, he wants a Central Brevard economic development zone. 

 

Courtney Barker, Planning and Growth Director, City of Titusville, stated she is hearing a lot of negativity towards tax increment financing being in CRA's and economic development zones; there has not been any problems with Titusville's CRA; it has a good debt-to-revenue ratio, and is doing just fine; and she can tell the Board with absolute certainty that the downtown area of Titusville would not be in its situation today without the CRA.  She stated in the '90's the Commons Project was done; prior to that there were a number of vacant lots with some metal buildings on them; and after the Commons Project, centralized parking was provided for all the and businesses along U.S. 1; and a 12-story condominium project was built right across from the Commons Project, which brought in the most revenues and accounted for all the revenues in the downtown CRA.  She stated the reality is that no developer would have developed that project if it were not for the CRA; the revenues received from the condominium gave completion to the road project that was just finished with FDOT, which included resurfacing, replacing main water mains, streetscaping, and increased the number of pedestrian accesses and crossways.  She stated new businesses are coming into the CRA; a surgical center is now located in the middle of downtown; the CRA provided assistance to that project; there is a new kayak business getting ready to build a new building with fees waived due to the CRA-provided funds; and stated there are so many applicants for the facade grant that funding cannot be kept up.  She explained the reason for the flooding of applicants is because a major road project was complete and people saw the investments the City of Titusville made into the community.  She stated the County and the City would never have seen the revenues from the 12-story condominium because it would have never been built without the CRA; no developer would have built a condominium that sold for $300,000 to $500,000 per unit across the street from dirt lots and metal buildings; it is the basic premise of tax increment financing with County and city governments designating areas to prioritize future revenues and address needs; and she can guarantee in downtown Titusville, where regional stormwater was provided, there has yet been a developer tell the City it is going to provide stormwater at a cost that makes it available to everyone else and make it feasible for other private businesses to come in and utilize the stormwater, which is the reason the CRA is there to pick up and provide the gap that the private sector cannot fill.  She stated there is a need for economic development in the area; the area has the highest unemployment rate in the County; and concentration matters, which is why unemployment statistics are given in percentages, because when there are 10 or 12 vacant homes in one square-mile it makes a bigger impact than 10 vacant homes in 20 square miles.  She stated in regards to population, the synergy is not the same in North Brevard as it is in South Brevard; there are a lot federal and publicly owned lands surrounding North Brevard; and companies need to be attracted to the north area in order to provide economic development.  She stated she is a resident of Satellite Beach; she sees the benefits of a CRA every day with the facade improvements, private investments, and company locations because of the CRA and the investment by Satellite Beach into the private sector, which is what is protecting property values by keeping the private interest in the area and keeping the jobs coming in.

 

Commissioner Anderson stated he disagrees that the impact of unemployment is much different from Titusville than Palm Bay; there is no building going on in Palm Bay; and he inquired if the burden is being shifted so the jobs all go to Titusville versus some jobs in Palm Bay.  He stated people cannot afford to drive one hour to go to work, and he has a problem weighing the issue when a lot of his neighbors are not working in Palm Bay.  Ms. Barker responded she understands it is easy to draw that perception; it has to be looked at as, instead of a redistribution it is pledging future revenues of this area to that area, and instead of going to reserves every time an economic development project is needed, North Brevard is creating a fund that is specific for that purpose; and it is only based on commercial and industrial properties, so all of the residential growth in North Brevard continues to go into the General Fund.  Commissioner Anderson inquired if Ms. Barker agrees looking at a countywide approach is better than looking at a segment.  Ms. Barker responded North Brevard is hurting.  Commissioner Anderson countered so is Palm Bay.  Chairman Fisher inquired if a public service tax should be created.  Commissioner Anderson responded no, he does not want to create a tax, but he thinks a countywide solution is needed, not just a district solution.

 

Georgia Phillips, Space Coast League of Cities and City of Rockledge Councilwoman, stated after listening to public comments she wants everyone to think back to the year 2000, in Rockledge, and remember what U.S. 1, Barton Boulevard, and Barnes Boulevard looked like, as they were not very pretty.  She stated she wants to talk about CRA's and the improvements made into the community; a few years ago, she was at a neighborhood watch meeting, and there was a couple at the meeting who did not live in Rockledge, but they thought Rockledge looked nice to them; and they ended up buying property, living, and opening a business in Rockledge, which all came from redevelopment and the CRA.  She advised CRA's have a purpose and are worth the money spent on them.        

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Maureen Rupe stated for many years North Brevard has been the redheaded step-child, as far as appropriations go, or where a vision for economic development is concerned; due to the lack of business development in District 1, the District has 20 percent of the County's population, but only has one-tenth of the taxable property within Brevard County; and more than 50 percent of the land in North Brevard is exempt from property taxes because of being government owned, and key commercial areas in North Brevard are also exempt.  She stated there needs to be new and inventive ways to claw out from this economic disaster; people have expressed that they do not want their tax dollars spent in North Brevard; and she feels everybody should be working for the greater good of the County and not worrying about the benefits districts get from it.  She inquired what North Brevard gets from beach renourishment or the St. Johns Heritage Parkway; stated she does not oppose those because it is for the greater good of the County and she does not see the parochial vision because the Board is charged with the welfare and safety of the whole County, not just each individual's district; and there needs to be a pulling together for the benefit of the whole County.  She added she takes great exception to be called a traitor to the United States because she does not agree with someone else's opinion; and that is the kind of rhetoric that is dangerous and gestapo.

 

Pat Pasley stated it has been eight weeks since she stood before the Board expressing her concern about economic development zones; since then, she has spent countless hours researching the subject; and as she discovered information she is concerned with the many pitfalls and problems associated with these programs.  She went on to say that maybe the Board was not aware of the issues brought to its attention due to busy schedules, for surely if it knew just how ineffective CRA's are, it would not ever proceed with this proposal; economic development zones, or CRA's, do not address Chairman Fisher's main objective of jobs; and if a workshop would be held, it could flush things out.  She stated there was a comment made at a previous meeting that at least something is being done; it was said again at this meeting, but this is an economic environment that cannot afford experiments; the Board needs to be wiser about what it is doing to commit taxpayer money; there are for sale signs and empty buildings everywhere; people in the southern districts are hurting no less than in the northern districts; and in order to get out of this economic downward spiral the Commissioners should be acting on behalf of all of Brevard County, not just for their home district.  She added she was quite perturbed when she discovered a $1 billion next generation clean energy center is going to open in Cape Canaveral in 2013, expected to generate an additional $12 million in tax revenue in its first full year of operation, of which approximately $3 to $4 million of it will go into the NBEDZ.  She inquired if Chairman Fisher really thinks it is a fair deal for the taxpayers of the County.  Chairman Fisher responded yes.  She inquired if the remaining Commissioners believe it is fair to their constituents to bear the brunt of the consequences.

 

Frank Meyer distributed a handout to the Board and stated there were more than 25 people who did research on the job creation industry; the handout is a partial list of those organizations that had jobs to create economic opportunity; the original presentation stated that the unemployment rate in District 1 was 11 percent, but when further research was done, it was discovered that in the rest of the County the actual numbers of jobs was almost twice that; and when a percentage is used and the jobs are actually counted, the answer will be two different numbers.  He stated today's presentation provided some information that was not originally provided; one thing that came out of today's presentation is FP&L spending $12 or $15 million; and he has not had much time to research what it is all about, but it is his understanding that it becomes a 90/10 split with 90 percent going to Titusville, and 10 percent going to the rest of the County, which to him seems a bit unfair.  He stated a $500,000 expenditure through a purchase order was mentioned; there is no limit to how many of these purchase orders can be issued; anything over $500,000 has to come before the Board for approval; inquired how many of those over $500,000 expenditures have come to the Board; and stated his gut reaction is not too many because if $500,000 can be spent on Monday and the same $500,000 be spent on Tuesday, and continue to do so all week, then why spend anything over that needing Board approval.  He pointed out this will go on for 30 years; three Commissioners out of five can get this in motion, but according to statutes it will take a lot of effort to stop it; he would like the Board to take that into consideration; and he thinks the Board prematurely voted to not have a workshop that would help people get their ideas heard. 

 

Jim Tulley, Mayor of Titusville, stated he is an unemployed space worker, his layoff was voluntary, but the fact remains that if he were not the Mayor he would be unemployed; and he understands how many of these folks feel.  He stated the NBEDZ was addressed at the last City Council meeting; and the City wants to be a part of the plan and is looking at ordinances that are reflective of the last Ordinance passed by the Board.  He stated some would ask why the County is doing 90 percent and the City is only doing 40 percent; he explained the County's public safety is not funded directly from its General Fund, as it is a separate funding source; whereas, 60 percent Titusville's entire public safety comes directly out of its General Fund; and the remaining 40 percent is a choice made by the City to participate in this program with the County.  He stated he has heard a lot of commentary on CRA's not working, and in some cases it may be true, but the fact of the matter is, there are CRA's that do work; and as Ms. Barker stated a lot of activity has gone on in Titusville that could not have been done with its CRA.  He noted on launch day he spent several hours at Space View Park talking to visitors prior to the launch; he cannot tell the Board how many of those visitors commented on what a beautiful community Titusville is; and none of that would have been possible without a CRA.  He stated there has been a lot of discussion about the proposal having a negative effect on the General Fund; he thinks it will have a positive effect because residential was removed from the zone; it is only commercial and manufacturing that can be attracted to the zone, and it raises the property values of those commercial and manufacturing areas; and one would think, that as people come in to fill those spots in those jobs, the residential values will go up, which would also give opportunity for increased funding, or an opportunity to reduce taxes.  He stated he has heard from many people about the effects of government transparency, accountability, and scope-of-government; he personally has difficulty dealing with these because he hears both sides taking different points of view; he has not made up his mind if the board should be an advisory board, or if $500,000 too high; and stated maybe it should be $200,000 or less.  He recommended the Board not kill the plan simply because there are objections at this point; he is impressed with a lot of the friendly speakers wearing red shirts because the last two times he came before the Board it was mostly objections being heard, but today gave a different tone of having information, wanting to help, and being a part of the process; and he thinks the plan should not be thrown away because there are objections.  He stated the Board can figure out what is good and bad about the plan and tweak it necessarily; and if it requires a workshop, he would not be opposed to it.  He stated the plan should be about what government does, and in his mind government is about infrastructure, and it should be about building business and promoting infrastructure; and he has many ideas, should anyone come to a Titusville Council meeting.  He expressed appreciation to Chairman Fisher for his desire to be creative and trying to do something that may not have been done before; he thinks people get elected to think about doing things that had never been done before; and he expressed his appreciation to the Board for its service and consideration.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she has to give Mayor Tulley some credit because she knows the City of Titusville decided rather than the 90 percent Brevard County wanted to give to the NBEDZ, to give just 40 percent of the tax increment financing.  Mayor Tulley stated as he explained, it is strictly because of the way the City's budget is structured and different from the County's; the City did not want to risk 90 percent of its budget; and it was because of its difference in structure and protecting public safety.

 

Chairman Fisher inquired if there is a fire fee or MSTU in Titusville; with Mayor Tulley responding no.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated what she is referring to is the fact that the City of Titusville realized 60 percent of its budget goes to funding those services; approximately one-third of the County's budget funds the Sheriff's Office, which is outside of the law enforcement MSTU; and the law enforcement MSTU is paid by unincorporated residents of Brevard County; but the rest of the Sheriff's budget goes to the Detention Center, the DNA clinic, and other task forces. 

 

Chairman Fisher inquired if the General Fund funds all of the Parks and Recreation.  Stockton Whitten, Assistant County Manager, responded there are General Fund transfers in all three of the Parks areas in the North, Central, and South; and there are also voter-approved revenues in all of those area also.  Chairman Fisher inquired if North Brevard has a voter-approved funding source for parks; with Mr. Whitten responding yes.  Chairman Fisher inquired if is totally out of the General Fund; with Mr. Whitten responding it is a mix of both of those.

 

Commissioner Infantini noted the millage that is collected from the referendum projects in District 1 go to pay debt service because of the drop in property values; and so all of the funding for operating the parks in District 1 is coming out of the General Fund. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated that is incorrect; there is a District 1 MSTU that pays for the operation.  Commissioner Infantini stated she has the audit information, which she asked to be given to the Board.  Commissioner Nelson inquired if there is a District 1 Recreation District.  Commissioner Infantini responded yes, but that is not funding referendum projects.  Commissioner Nelson stated no, it is funding operation.  Commissioner Infantini stated according to the auditors it is coming out the General Fund.  Commissioner Nelson advised there is a District 1 Recreation MSTU that pays for operation.  Commissioner Infantini stated there is a District 1 Recreation District, but it does not fund referendum projects.  Commissioner Nelson stated it is funding operation, but Commissioner Infantini just said it was all General Fund.

 

Greg Weiner, EDC, Business Development Senior Director, stated prior to joining the EDC he was the Director of Business Attraction for the State of Arizona; he was fortunate to be involved in hundreds of deals over the years, and he has a perspective that is not only Florida/Arizona, but he also understands the competitive pressures that all states, cities, and counties face.  He stated Chairman Fisher is taking some criticism because the issue has somehow turned into North Brevard versus the rest of the County; the NBEDZ has North Brevard in the title, but it impacts the entire County; and it is worth noting that Chairman Fisher's first impulse was to try and solve the problem on a countywide basis, which has challenges for a consistent funding source for economic development.  He stated the success in economic development requires a number of things such as, competent agencies like EDC, Space Florida, and Enterprise Florida, but that alone does not get the job done; there is competition on a project-by-project basis against states that are armed and loaded with incentives that do not exist in Florida; and there is competition with other counties and cities in Florida that have a lot more incentive power than Brevard does, but compete for the same thing.  He stated he heard a lot about what needs to be done, such as cutting taxes and regulation, and getting government out of the way; he agrees those are necessary conditions for success in economic development, but just doing those things will not ensure economic development success; as an example, Texas is well known for low taxes, no personal income tax, and no meaningful corporate income tax; and in addition, Texas' success has been driven by being highly committed to an incentive platform, which clearly overshadows Florida.  He pointed out one thing that gets lost is what people feel they are giving away; the real goal over time is to grow the tax base, and if it is done successfully there will be more dollars at the end of the day; and the seeds need to be planted to make the investment a successful one.

 

Commissioner Anderson inquired if the EDC's main function is to leverage local funds, whether they are funds from a municipality of the County with tax abatements, or an industry. Mr. Weiner responded he agrees that some of the things mentioned are tools.  Commissioner Anderson stated tools are important to a lot of people who are looking to relocate; 100 percent of residential taxpayers pay into the General Fund, and then $1 million comes from the General Fund to fund the EDC; he believes Chairman Fisher has his heart in the right place by trying to do the right thing, but after thinking about it over the June break he is concerned and would like to have a countywide approach; and inquired theoretically, can CRA's spend money as leverage to lure industry; with Mr. Weiner responding affirmatively.  Commissioner Anderson stated if the five-year CRA tax increment is taken with NBEDZ, it would give Chairman Fisher over $3 million to leverage to attract new business; District 2 would be given $2 plus-million, including the Merritt Island Redevelopment Agency; District 4 would be given $1.2 million; District 5 would be given $450,000; and District 3 would be given a little over $800,000.  He stated he is still not over the loss of SEMATECH, because Brevard County was fighting against people who were willing to write a big check and go into debt to get that company; and now he feels there is competition within the County by having the NBEDZ. 

 

Mr. Weiner responded he knows it seems like there is competition within the County, but he does not think that is the case; it is possible that a business located in Rockledge because of something the NBEDZ offered, could move its business; he does not think it is the intent, but he considers it to be the outlier and not the tradition; and what he thinks the conception is, is to develop an economic tool to bring businesses in by pilfering one district to another's. Commissioner Anderson stated it happened when he was on the Palm Bay City Council.  Mr. Weiner stated as somebody who ran a State operation, he can say it is unavoidable; companies have to move and there may not be a way to accommodate them in their present place; moves within geographic regions are generally not incentive driven; and in fact, Florida prohibits the use of incentives for that purpose.  Commissioner Anderson advised he would be hard-pressed to say that Eau Gallie, West Melbourne, and Palm Bay benefit if all the businesses relocate north, unless everyone is available to commute, and then there would be an infrastructure problems; and he would appreciate it if the EDC would present some options on a countywide solution, rather than just North Brevard and South Brevard.  He stated he is a County Commissioner, he not a District 5 Commissioner; and his neighbors in Palm Bay are going to ask him questions about why there is $3 million in place for incentives.  Mr. Weiner assured that at times things get hung up on where projects land; the EDC worked very hard to bring the AAR project to Brevard County with part of it in Melbourne and Palm Bay; and he would like to get a head count of where the people who work for AAR are living because he guarantees there are some living in Titusville.  He stated this is the kind of tool that positions, but not guarantees, accomplished goals.  Commissioner Anderson stated he has a lot of respect for Mr. Weiner, he needed to hear the information before entertaining the concept.  Mr. Weiner noted there is an item coming up on Agenda that is Palm Bay based.  Chairman Fisher noted he will support the item even though it might mean money going south.

 

Ayn Samuelson stated she is a small business owner and President of the South Patrick Residents Association, which has about 3,000 homes beachside; out of the six area directors, two have experienced layoffs from the space industry; what is being discussed is something that is an epidemic throughout the entire County; and it is interesting to be talking about philosophies of how to support economic development and ways to implement it, to bypass some of the issues of implementation and the unintended consequences of implementation.  She stated government's job is to create a climate favorable for existing businesses, and to encourage other businesses to come in and locate throughout the entire County; the business should be choosing where it would like to be located; and there should be an overhaul of regulations in taxes.  She stated her business is residential rentals; her husband is a general contractor and a professional engineer; they are both just devastated with permitting problems, regulations, and taxes that continue to be the same or higher, and everything seems to be against what she and her husband try to do for their survival; and there needs to be incentives everywhere for existing businesses.  She stated it is the Board's job to create ordinances, policies, and procedures that discourage opportunities for corruption; and inquired if debt is incurred through bonding within the NBEDZ, and will all of Brevard County taxpayers become responsible to pay the bond holders.  She reiterated she is not hearing about focusing on the citizens and their well being to help grow their businesses; she is hearing that more money is wanted; and she thinks it is the wrong attitude to have and everyone needs to transform their way of thinking about how government works and what it should be doing.             

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Kathy Meehan, Vice Mayor, City of Melbourne, and past President of the Space Coast League of Cities, stated she is present to show support for Mayor Jim Tulley and the City of Titusville, and the North Brevard Economic Development Zone Special District Ordinance.  She advised in the City of Melbourne there are three community redevelopment agency advisory committees, which are Downtown Melbourne, Babcock Street, and Old Eau Gallie Riverfront; those committees make recommendations to City Council, which are open to the public; and the CRA's are audited every year by an independent firm.  She stated she would like to talk about the success story of historic Downtown Melbourne, but it did not happen overnight; in the 1980's, Downtown Melbourne fell victim to the popularity of the malls; it was in disrepair with buildings boarded up and left vacant; employees were afraid to come to work; neighbors and visitors were scared to shop; and the town shut down at 5:00 p.m.  She stated the small business owners were left to deal with the visual decline; if it were not for the CRA, she does not think Downtown Melbourne would be present today; Downtown Melbourne started its CRA in 1982; the area expanded in 2006; also in 2006, Downtown was expanded to include South U.S. 1, down to University Boulevard; the tax increment monies are placed in a trust fund, which will enable local government to make improvements in a distressed area as an incentive; it is an incentive for new, private, investments; and today, there is night life in Downtown Melbourne, and it has become a destination for the Space Coast.  She noted she has received numerous positive comments about Downtown Melbourne; the small business owners bring life and vitality to the area; it takes a community approach for a town to succeed; and the old saying, "If you build it, they will come", is true.  She asked the Board to approve the proposed ordinance.

 

Stan Retz stated he is a resident and business owner in Titusville; his accounting firm in Titusville is the largest firm in North Brevard; his firm concentrates a lot on the construction industry; and so he has a pulse on the business community and construction in general.  He noted he is a registered republican, but he is not very happy with any of the organized parties right now; he has a lot in common with some of the people in red shirts; he supports less government, less taxes, and streamlining permitting; but he also supports the proposed ordinance.  He stated in some ways he thinks it is better to have a small pod that can be controlled; and he would rather see money go into a district where there is some control and accountability, than go into the black hole of the County General Fund.  He noted the people of North Brevard have supported a lot of projects throughout the County, including Embraer; people from Titusville drive to Harris Corporation every day to work; there are people from South Brevard who drive to Titusville to work; and in his firm he has had employees from Satellite Beach, Viera, Cocoa, and Rockledge.  He stated the people of North Brevard should not be penalized because Chairman Fisher came up with a unique idea; if an economic development zone makes sense in the two of the worst-hit areas, North Brevard and Palm Bay, then one can be considered for Palm Bay also; and it makes sense to capture those dollars and invest in those districts, because it is all about leverage.  He stated it seems like at one point the discussion was about $3 million that may get pulled out in the next five years, and $6 million to the General Fund; if the economic development zone is not done, it would be $9 million to the General Fund; and the proposed ordinance would capture those dollars and dedicate them to a specific purpose that will be the seed, and use it as leverage to make the whole County better. 

 

Walt Johnson stated he is the Vice Mayor of Titusville; the Mayor spoke for City Council this morning; but he is just speaking for himself.  He noted the question was asked as to why only one percent of new construction was in North Brevard in the years 2009-2010; and inquired why anyone would want to build a new development, or strip mall, or any kind of commercial area when Titusville is not only suffering from the overall economy that is bad nationwide, but also 9,000 layoffs; and that is the reason nothing was built during that time.  He advised for years Titusville contributed to economic development for Brevard County in general; other parts of the County benefited from that, with the majority of new businesses going to other parts of the County; Embraer is a perfect example of $1.8 million that came from the County coffers to give initiative and advantages to that company; and Titusville is very happy that Embraer came to Brevard County.  He stated people have asked why Titusville has not done anything for six years, but it has been doing things for 20 years; Titusville has had somewhat of a disadvantage; the City has wanted to have new types of businesses and diversify its base, because it was basically a one industry town, which is aerospace; and that has been Titusville's problem for some time.  He stated companies have come to Titusville and have said the area is nice, but they do not want to have to compete with the federal government and its salary levels, which is something called Davis-Bacon salary levels, which means the salaries are based on other federal properties throughout the country.  He stated there is an opportunity behind the Space Center layoffs, which is that there is a highly educated workforce that is now available; that workforce is now able to be marketed; and that is what Titusville has been talking about with the EDC, and with various other organizations; but it was soon discovered that there is no money to market the workforce.  He stated it has also been mentioned that the economic development zone is coming from redistribution of funds from other areas of the County; he does not know why that keeps getting said; he received an email last night from a business owner of industrial property as to why the County wants to raise the taxes on the industrial properties in North Brevard; but this has nothing to do with that whatsoever, as the money is coming from new construction, only in North Brevard, not from other areas; and it is being paid in North Brevard by businesses in North Brevard, and going back into North Brevard.  He noted several previous speakers said the Board is the Commissioners for Brevard County; they are entirely correct; the North Brevard section of the County is in desperate need of help; and requested the Board support the proposed ordinance.

 

Commissioner Nelson stated one thing that gets lost about the Titusville circumstance is that the industrial park is the Space Center; the problem is that the industrial park does not pay taxes; there was major construction that did occur over the last few years at the Space Center; the Air Force has done some major projects; NASA built one of the buildings for Orion, which was cancelled; and although there has been construction, it has never made it to the tax rolls, which makes Titusville a service community.  He stated without that balanced tax base Titusville will continue to struggle; the County must get other industries into the Titusville area to offset that; the federal government dangled the Constellation Program in front of the County; and it was known that although it was not ideal, there was going to be a gap, but at least there was going to be a future; but then the future was taken away.  He stated for people to criticize the County Commission for a national level policy decision is rough, because it cannot be overcome; and until there can be a significant industrial presence off of federal property, it is going to be a struggle. 

 

Mr. Johnson concurred with Commissioner Nelson; stated he personally brought businesses into North Brevard that were aerospace related, had them located in the industrial park, but they were convinced by the federal government to move out to the Space Center, where they did not have to pay for the lease of properties. 

 

Dave Pasley stated he supports the proposal for a workshop, but not the proposed ordinance; stated he has spent a lot of time researching the stupid project; and pointed out that he used the word 'stupid' because it is stupid.  He stated the Board has not provided the citizens with a model that works; and he will share his thought on that in a workshop.  He noted the citizens have no proof that the proposed ordinance is the solution; the Board brought forward Manatee County and Lee County, but that is bogus; they are not the same thing that is being proposed in North Brevard County; and the measure of performance is very small.  He noted there are a number of groups that do economic development; and inquired why there needs to be new bureaucracy.  He stated he was surprised to find out the power plant in North Brevard was part of the proposed deal; the question is what else is being planned that is not on the table; inquired if Farmton is on the table; and inquired how much money is going to be put into the proposed economic zone.  He stated the Florida Constitution reads, "Counties, school districts, special districts, and local government bodies with taxing powers may issue bonds, certificates of indebtedness, or any other form of anticipated certificates payable from ad valorem taxation, and maturing more than 12 months after issuance, only after a referendum."  He stated Attorney Knox can tell the Board that this was argued in the Supreme Court twice; the first time, the Supreme Court said it cannot be done; a year later, there were $13 billion in bonds that went out without referendum; and the Supreme Court changed its ruling.  He stated the Commissioners took an oath to support the Constitution, and that is in the Constitution; and inquired how many bonds are out there right now being supported by ad valorem taxes.  He reiterated that he would like to see a workshop.

 

Commissioner Nelson stated inquired if Mr. Pasley said the proposal is stupid; and inquired what would the benefit of a workshop be if Mr. Pasley's starting point is that the proposal is stupid.  Mr. Pasley replied his starting point would be to change the word 'stupid' to something worthwhile.  Commissioner Nelson inquired if Mr. Pasley is trying to convince the Board that the proposal is stupid.  Mr. Pasley stated his reason for wanting a workshop is to convince the Board that something needs done, but what is currently on the table is not the right thing. 

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J. J. Parrish stated he lives in Downtown Titusville, but works in Melbourne, so he experiences I-94 or U.S. 1 everyday; and noted a lot of Titusville's citizens commute. He stated his family has been in North Brevard since 1906; things are different now than they were at the end of the Apollo Program; but many things are still the same; the opportunity to recover is much better; and there are a lot of smart people who have spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get from where the area is to where it needs to be.  He added he has seen Titusville, in his professional life, ebb and flow as the Space Program went up and down; unfortunately, it does not look like business will ever be usual again in North Brevard; in preparation for the last Shuttle launch all he heard about was the national news media wanting to write horror stories about the death of a community; it is a terrible situation; and he understands other parts of the County has their own issues; but there is a very negative perception about the opportunity for future growth in North Brevard.  He noted on the other hand, there are tremendous opportunities; there needs to be a move from that perception to the opportunities; and he gives Chairman Fisher full credit for coming forward with this idea, as he is doing something that should work.  He stated North Brevard is where the focus needs to be; North Brevard is more than just Titusville; the whole situation being discussed impacts Merritt Island, Cape Canaveral, as well as the Melbourne area; and it may not be a direct effect, but it is certainly felt.  He stated he would like the Board to have some intellectual honesty with itself as it makes the decision and do what is right for Brevard County; and stated he supports the proposed ordinance.

 

Caroline Fausnaugh stated she heard a reference to root causes; then an hour and a half later she learned about the impact of Davis-Bacon wage levels on economic development in Titusville; she knows about Davis-Bacon wage levels in the federal government, but she had never linked those two things; and she has thought for 30 years in Titusville there has been manned space flight in the Titusville area, and asked herself why the area does not look better, and why has the area not economically flourished.  She stated it is not just a Titusville loss of jobs, but a nationwide loss of jobs that seems intractable; when you look at the recession since 1980, and the nationwide recovery from jobs, in each successive recession it has taken the country longer to get jobs back than in the time before; and so for 30 years the country has experienced something where it goes through economic collapses, but it takes longer and longer to recover from them.  She stated another topic today has been countywide economic development verses the fragmented approach, and how integrated should the County be in putting together a source of revenue and a source of funds that can be done for economic development; eight years is not very long; in eight years there is no person sitting on the current Commission that will still be there; and yet a commitment to an economic zone is for 30 years; and it is somewhere between three and four turns of the Commission before that time frame runs out.  She stated another underlying current she hears is a concern that the Board of County Commissioners will not be sufficiently vigilant in the oversight function; and there is also a concern with accountability and transparency.  She noted she also heard a discussion of what was included in the ordinance that would be oversight; but she would submit to the Board that having a Board of County Commissioners receive an audit does not indicate that the report has been read and delved into, or that it has been understood and its implications have been reflected on; and it is hard, in an open forum, to look at negative downsides, as people do not like to discuss their dirty laundry; but sometimes that is what is needed and it is what comes in the form of reports.  She stated she read the minutes from last year's workshop on the CRA's; she outlined 20 pages because she wanted to see what was talked about and what questions had been asked; what she found is that it was a workshop of positives; there was little in the minutes that discussed the problems being faced, the things that were kept from happening, and things that have happened, but are being prevented from happening in the future; and she submits to the Board that it has over 1,000 pages in each Board meeting package, which is very difficult to keep on top of.  She stated if the Board decides to go forward with the current plan she would suggest some modifications; consider setting a maximum funding limit of how much would go into it in the out-years; require that the plan include specific statements; specify what would be considered success, and that it be updated annually; there should be measures where the Board can compare actual performance to what it was planning to have happen; and that there be reviews of the issues in public hearings during non-working hours. 

 

Marcia Gaedcke stated she is the President of the Titusville Chamber of Commerce; as President of the Chamber of Commerce she gets to travel around Brevard County and the Central Florida region frequently; people ask her why she would want to be in Titusville, or why anyone would want to start a business in Titusville; and she also gets asked why Titusville is not talking about the problems the County is facing.  She stated she did not witness first-hand the end of the Apollo Program; but she knows the personal effect of the current downturn in the Space Program; it is extremely personal, as both her father and brother-in-law will be out of a job on July 22nd; but she is trying to put that aside.  She advised there is a grassroots initiative in Titusville called The Greater Titusville Renaissance, which is made up of several hundred people who are committed to working to benefit the citizens of North Brevard, and also the entire County; the faith-based community is also coming out united like never before to support their neighbors and friends; and there are a lot of people who have been doing a lot of things for a long time to try to overcome many of the things that have already been presented to the Board.  She stated North Brevard has an idea; there are several hundred people who are willing to roll up their sleeves and work to make the community a better place; and Titusville is asking the County to give a show of faith that it believes in North Brevard, that it recognizes North Brevard is an integral part of the economy in Brevard County, and that it supports North Brevard having a chance to determine its future, to diversify its economy off of government spending, and to be able insulate itself from the ups and downs of a government program.     She stated the community is committed to the work to take charge of its own destiny and prevent this from happening for a third time when the next program ends.  She noted a countywide program was mentioned earlier; she thinks a countywide program would be great; but Titusville is a place to start and it is action; and more rhetoric is not needed.   She asked the Board to support the initiative that has been brought forth by Chairman Fisher, and give to a show of faith to the northern part of the County that the Board represents.

 

Connie Smith stated a lot of people are upset because some people think that those in red shirts are against Brevard County; that is not right at all; those people are present because they are concerned; there are a lot of government programs that are not working; CRA's are tax dollars; and tax dollars mean a lot because that is what people work for.  She noted the company she worked for went bankrupt; she took a 40 percent cut in pay and benefits; her husband then lost his job; and they sold their house.  She stated what was nice was that her husband saved money; and they were able to downsize.  She stated she would like there to be workshop; she is confused on the drainage and stormwater that is done by the CRA's; and inquired if that is not what the County is supposed to do, and what is paid for with tax dollars.  She stated she talked to a business owner in the Merritt Island CRA; the owner told her he has some stuff going on; now she sees private businesses and public money, which is the tax increments, getting involved; and it is almost an incentive for the private business to let their businesses run down, because now the public money comes in.

 

Commissioner Nelson stated the County does not run sewer lines anywhere; people pay for sewer if they live on sewer; there are a variety of ways that sewer lines get extended; in some cases a developer pays for it; or in some cases it is an MSTU or MSBU; and there is no universal line item that citizens pay into that causes that to happen.  He stated it sounds like Ms. Smith's friend on Merritt Island probably applied for a facade grant; last year, the CRA on Merritt Island did 25 facade grants; it is a matching program; the business has to put their money into it, too; for $300,000 the business community put up $1.8 million in improvements; the CRA got a 6 to 1 return on that investment, which then improves the property value, which then creates additional revenue; and it is not a giveaway.  Ms. Smith stated it is not a giveaway, but what happens when someone knows that they can get a grant, which are tax dollars. Commissioner Nelson it drives other improvements, which then goes on the tax rolls, and then benefits everyone.  Ms. Smith stated as a taxpayer, it is her problem in the end; when people purposely do not keep businesses up, or make the wrong decisions about businesses, it is not her problem.  Commissioner Nelson pointed out that neither he, nor Ms. Smith, pay into the CRA's. Ms. Smith stated the General Fund loses that money.  Commissioner Nelson stated this is one reason why he would not want to have a workshop; and stated Ms. Smith's mind is already made up. 

 

Dub Drinnon stated rather than try to come up with new ways to collect and spend taxes, the existing ways should be corrected, with a focus on strengthening what is basic to government, and let everything else prove itself in private enterprise where it belongs.  What the Board is trying to do is fill the gap created by the failure of the Space Industry, which was never more than a defacto extension of the Defense Department of the federal government disguised as private enterprise; it is in a state of  collapse; and the collapse most probably is because of this bureaucratic status; and the collapse must not be allowed to extend to the government of the County in which it was ostensibly headquartered.  He stated it is hard to believe that so many citizens would be willing to submit to a taxing scheme, which would richly benefit those of one area at the expense of another; the result would be the establishment of a highly expensive, virtually autonomous, County of sub-government; and as desperate as the County may be for true free enterprise, commerce, and industry, it must not fall for this pie in the sky. 

 

Laurie Smirl stated she has listened to the opinions on both sides; one thing she has not heard is a better idea; she feels it is time to move forward and take action now; and then there can be time to come up with ways to have countywide economic development.  She stated she appreciates Commissioner Anderson's appeal and thoughts about how his area is suffering as well; and she can guarantee that if the North Brevard Economic Development Zone gets off the ground, the area will be willing to support anything in Commissioner Anderson's District.  She stated she would love to see a unanimous vote in favor of the item.

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Regina Weiler stated as a lifelong resident of Brevard County, she finds that this issue is relevant to her community and to her personal interests.  She stated she strongly urges the Board to vote against the funding for the Merritt Island Development Area and the creation of the North Brevard Economic Development Area; both of the areas will divert tax revenue from the General Fund to the two specific areas, and eventually they will raise County taxes on individual property owners to compensate the General Fund for the lost revenue; and over time, this will divert more and more of the tax revenue to the specific areas, and it will leave the General Fund with a greater burden falling on the taxpayers.  She noted Brevard County taxpayers do not have additional funds for an increased tax bill; many citizens in Brevard County are unemployed; many more are retired and on fixed incomes; the County does not have another golden goose from which to milk additional funds to pay higher taxes; and the danger that these development areas pose is undeniable to anyone who has a perspective of common sense, which is why she implores the Board to not vote in favor of funding the proposed ordinance. 

 

Matt Berringer stated he works throughout the County in each District working with seniors who have fallen through the gap in both social, medical, and custodial care; and he finds gaps for them in order to help them out.  He noted there are eight homes for sale in his neighborhood; a second renter moved into the neighborhood; a few of the residents have decided to leave; he sees moving vans more often now; the caretakers of the seniors throughout the community are their sons and daughters; if they are unemployed they do not have the resources; and that is another entire set of issues.  He stated there is a sense of pride in North Brevard, as well as in the South; that is a good sign of a community that is willing to roll up their sleeves, get to work, and stand behind something that is effective and gives them an avenue to go to work and try to do something.  He stated when it comes to the increased taxes or concerns for taxes, he falls in line to tune that he is not a fan of having to kick in money to a black hole; he sees the proposed ordinance as a mechanism that actually works; and it is tool to get businesses in the area that will employ people.  He stated many in the County are getting good at getting unemployment, food stamps, and government assistance; and there can be a mechanism given to people to allow them to do their due diligence to benefit the County.  He added he would be happy to support a similar ordinance for South Brevard.

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William Bender stated he supports the North Brevard Economic Development Zone; stated he is the face of the laid off worker; he has been out of work for four months; and he knows a lot of people in his community who have been out of work for a lot longer.  He stated he is present for self-serving interests, but he also understands that people are scared about what may happen to their families and livelihoods; something needs to be done to attract business; and he does not know anything about CRA's, but he knows that something needs to done to lure businesses to the area.  He stated it was mentioned that six years ago it was known that the Shuttle Program was going to end; but there was the Constellation Program that was going to continue the presence of America in space; but unfortunately, that was derailed last year.  He stated he sees the incentives and encouragement being made by the government to move the effort to the commercial sector; if incentives can be provided to bring the commercial sector to Brevard, he would think that the infrastructure at the Space Center could be available to the commercial sector through an economic development zone to add the incentives; and sees a potential win for the County through the North Brevard Economic Development Zone.  He stated he knows there are concerns about costs; he has always been told that it takes money to make money; but the uncertainty and concerns of doing nothing and spending nothing means the County will have nothing.  He stated he understands that Embraer and ARR have come to the County, but it is not enough; he and others have applied for positions to those places; and there are jobs there, but there are not enough of them.  He added if there is any way that he can personally support the issue, he would be happy to serve in any capacity.

 

Alice McDonald stated she was part of the research team that was mentioned earlier; the research team specifically sent out an email to each of the agencies; and the agencies were asked the following:  with respect to job creation, could you identify the specific programs that your agency has used in the past to create jobs in Brevard County; with the loss of Kennedy Space Center, what will be your focus for creating jobs in Brevard County; and stated the Board has the responses received from the agencies.  She inquired if the agencies are all trying so hard to bring economic development to Brevard County, and to create jobs, what new innovative idea can the Board tell its constituents that is going to expand on what they are already doing.  She expressed appreciation to the research team for all of the hours of research they have put into the pros and cons; she would recommend the Board allow some of the research and ideas from both the Board and the research team, to get together and discuss what can be done to help each other. 

 

Roger Gangitano stated he does not know a lot about CRA's; it seems to him that a countywide approach would be appropriate; it is not any different in the north part of the County when someone is out of work, than it is in the south part of the County when someone is out of work; he is in forced early retirement; he is a transplant from New York; he has lived in Brevard for 20 years; and he loves Brevard County.  He stated it is obvious that the Board is teamed up; he has watched Chairman Fisher look to the right, and speak to the people on his right, but ignore the people on his left in his comments.  He stated he does not think that is proper; it is commendable that the Commissioners have stepped up to the plate trying to do a community service; but the Commissioners work for the citizens; and he thinks that some of the Commissioners forget that.  He noted it was mentioned today that a workshop would be appropriate for people to get their views voiced to the Board; the Board voted on it before most people had a chance to speak; and the Board killed that idea before everyone could get up and state their reasons as to why they felt a workshop might be appropriate.  He stated what the Board did was condescending and arrogant; people such as himself are sick and tired of arrogance and condescending attitudes from leaders; and reiterated that the Commissioners work for the citizens.  He stated the Board should reevaluate the position it has taken; the Board is not above the citizens; stated Commissioner Nelson spoke out against a citizen earlier because he used the word 'stupid'; but the concept is that the citizen does not agree with the Board; and what Commissioner Nelson did was arrogant and condescending.  He stated a countywide approach seems appropriate; for all the good things CRA's might have done elsewhere, there is also a downside to that; and that should be discussed.  He stated he would like the Board to reconsider its position on a workshop.

 

Alice Kreitz stated she has watched the faces of three of the Commissioners throughout the meeting, and the condescending arrogance she has seen displayed is unbelievable; it is as if some Commissioners zone-out when people are not on their side; and she agrees that the Board should hold a workshop.  She stated the one thing that she would like displayed at every Board meeting is the old graph by Scott Ellis and Roger Shealy; the graph shows the population of Brevard County; the population has stayed the same; and the General Fund has peaked very high in the last few years.  She stated the citizens have paid enough taxes; they do not need more taxes; the citizens cannot afford more taxes; a lot of citizens are on fixed incomes; and those who are out of work can always move to another area.  She stated she is thankful to have a governor that has been doing a wonderful job in bringing jobs to Florida; and he is working to bring jobs to the Space Coast as well.

 

Peter Fusscas stated he spent 12 years in the legislature in the State of Connecticut; and he was the Assistant Minority Leader, which means he spent 12 years sitting in public hearings.  He stated the proposed ordinance is flawed in his opinion; he would suggest an amendment to Section 10, to add Chapter 189; and stated he shares Ms. Canales's concern that not all the provisions of Chapter 189 would be applicable to the North Brevard Economic District being set up.  He stated it is sad that people are losing their jobs and homes; the district that is being set up will not be operational for five years; no jobs will be created in five years; and the infrastructure investments can be easily done without forming a CRA or special district.  He noted a lot of officials look at is as free money; it comes out of the County's coffers; the municipalities do not have to raise taxes; and the money is distributed by the insiders within the districts and through the appointment process.  He stated there are better ways to create jobs; and there should be an economic environment that is conducive to producing jobs and attracting jobs.

 

Curt Leady stated he supports the proposed ordinance; there are obviously some dueling ideas on what should be done and what could be done; but it seems to him that what he knows is that the Board passed an ordinance a couple of months ago 3:2; Titusville passed the same ordinance 5:0; all of a sudden there are people in red shirts running around screaming and yelling; they are angry people; and he does not know why they are angry.  He stated he came to Titusville eight years ago from Seattle, Washington, where he was Vice President of Corporate Real Estate and Development for Bank of America; in Brevard he worked for Bernie Simpkins; and Mr. Simpkins once told him that he does not buy property north of S.R. 520 because all the money goes south of S.R. 520.  He stated the fact is that government cannot create winners and losers; but the fact also remains that Chairman Fisher is doing his job representing his District; and the citizens in District 1 voted for Chairman Fisher.  He noted there seems to be concerns about accountability; the Board knows there are thousands of commissions across the country that are established by a legislative body that have spending authority; and it is a red herring.  He inquired if it has every occurred to the audience, or certain members of the Board, that the people they are going to place on the Board probably know more about economic development than they do; and stated presumably people are going to be put on the Board who have a background in banking, finance, and economic development.  He reiterated he strongly supports the proposed ordinance, as it will be a godsend for Titusville.

 

Matt Chestnut stated he is the Economic Development Director for the City of Titusville; and stated the City's competition cannot be lost on the decision of the Board.  He stated a lot of time is spent trying to figure out what other cities are offering, so Titusville can stay competitive; a lot of times, businesses will say they are willing to relocate to North Brevard, but they need $8 million to do so, because that is what they are being offered by other states and cities; and that is one of the issues the City has.  He stated deregulation was mentioned earlier; economic development is one of the most deregulated fields there is; there are very few rules nationwide on economic development; and there is a vast openness of anyone's game.  He stated the private sector understands economic development is a deregulated process; the private sector comes in and looks at the bottom line; and the areas that have the incentives available are where the businesses go.  He stated as far as what can be offered to businesses, the Board and city commissions have the ability to waive impact fees and permit fees by a vote; there has to be a benefit to the community if those things are going to be waived, because those are costs that will be seen in time and effort by staff; and those are things the other communities can offer as well.  He stated Chairman Fisher's type of plan, whether anyone agrees with it or not, has been successful in other areas; and it can be done with proper oversight, such as public meetings under the Sunshine Law.  He advised the longer the process takes, the more backwards the North Brevard area moves, as well as the County; and he encourages the Board to pass the ordinance.

 

Scott Morgan, City Manager, West Melbourne, stated he has heard a lot of people talk about how long they have lived in Brevard County, and how much they care about it; unfortunately, he is still sort of new to the community, so he still has an outsider perspective; but what he has seen today is citizens talking to their elected leaders with differences of opinion, and the Board listening and being respectful.  He stated he knows each Commissioner takes his or her job very seriously and tries to serve the people to the best of their ability; he respects the Board for that, and he knows the Board respects its partners in local government; and he would argue that tax increment financing is neither a bad thing or a good thing, as it is a tool and is only as good as it is made good use of.  He noted as a manager he believes in results; if the Board decides to move forward, there a lot of people in the County watching who are going to expect results and demand results; as hard as it is on the Board to come to a decision, the next step is even tougher, because if the Board sets up this tool for itself, it better show results; and he encourages the Board to think about the next step. 

 

Mark Ryan, City Manager, Titusville, stated he commends each of the Commissioners for the job they are doing today and throughout their political careers.  He stated he grew up in Brevard County; he watched the Apollo Program end; he saw the Shuttle Program start, and now he has seen it end; he has seen the transformation of the County; what happens in North Brevard County impacts South Brevard County; and what happens in South Brevard also impacts North Brevard.  He stated the greatest example is that the entire County made a decision that Embraer was critical to the County to bring 200 jobs to the area; and the Board pledged $1.8 million to make it happen.  He inquired what was the source for that money; and stated it was the General Fund; and the money came from Titusville, Cocoa, Melbourne, Rockledge, and West Melbourne.  He stated unfortunately, what has happened is a change in dynamics for North Brevard; the Space Center has been the bread and butter; but through the change in political leadership, North Brevard has gone from a promised Constellation Program to the cancellation of the Constellation Program; the area went from a proposal of extending the Shuttle to ending the Shuttle; and there was a recognition by the Administration that because the region is so impacted by the end of the Constellation and the Shuttle, that it was promised $40 million, but that was cancelled also.  He advised now there is an opportunity to do something; failure is not an option; and doing nothing is not an option either.

 

Michael Powell stated he is present in two capacities; first as the President of Space Coast Economic Development Commission; and secondly, as the Executive Director of the Titusville-Cocoa Airport Authority.  He advised he has direct oversight for the Arthur Dunn Airpark, the Space Coast Regional Airport, and the Merritt Island Airport; two of the Board's vital airports are in District 1; Brevard County's industrial park is also in District 1, and is still vastly under-developed, although he knows Chairman Fisher is doing his best to try to get some incentives to help out the park; the Airport Authority has over 300 acres to the south of the industrial park; and he is asking the Board to help him help the Board.  He stated he actively and aggressively goes out all over the world trying to lure businesses to Brevard County, because it has one of the most highly educated and highly technical workforces anywhere; the Airport Authority has partnerships with Kennedy Space Center to expand the use of the Shuttle Landing Facility; and the Airport Authority is also pursuing a partnership opportunity with Port Canaveral, which is trying to expand its cargo operations.

 

Chairman Fisher stated some Commissioners have had two and a half to three months to look at the issue, but he has been looking at it since he has been in office. He stated he has always tried to figure out how to not use reserves for economic development; he has never been able to come up with a real solution to that problem unless a couple of things happen; one thing that could happen is an increase in taxes to create a pot of money for economic development; but he did not think that would pass in the current environment.  He advised the next option was to do a PST (Public Service Tax); half of the citizens pay it, and the other half of the citizens do not; and he does not believe that idea would get past the Board.   He stated the next idea was to keep taking money out of reserves, but everyone knows that that is not sustainable, and reserves are going down; he hears from citizens all the time that say to save instead of spend reserves; he hears people say there should be a countywide economic development zone; and inquired how to create a countywide economic development zone and how to fund it if people are not willing to pay taxes or pay a PST.   He advised another option would be to restructure CRA's; and a lot of the CRA's have proven to be very successful.  He stated a lot of people have said they have done research, but he has not heard anyone say they have a better plan and a way to fund it.  He stated he has taken money that is collected in one district and said it will be dedicated and used in that district; it is not an increased tax to people; there have been Commissioners who have criticized it; but he has not seen a plan that is better than the one that he has; and he is not saying his plan is perfect, but the last Shuttle has flown, and he needs to solve the problem.  He stated there is not a Commissioner on the Board that supports the County and realizes he or she is a countywide Commissioner, and has said so from day one, more than he is. 

 

Chairman Fisher passed the gavel to Vice Chairman Anderson.

 

Commissioner Fisher made a motion to adopt the North Brevard Economic Development Zone Special District ordinance.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated in regards to the red shirts, they do not represent anger, they represent frustration; she feels like there are takers and givers; and she feels like the residents of South Brevard are going to lose tremendously.  She stated she does not know how it is going down as a 3:2 vote; she does not know how it keeps being characterized as not a tax increase; the County Manager has proposed increasing the taxes this year by another 16 percent; last year it was 13 percent; and inquired where that money is going.  She stated if $4 million was not taken out of the General Fund to support CRA's last year, that is less of a tax increase everyone would have to pay; it is difficult to explain; and her level of frustration is extremely high right now.  She stated the County is subsidizing District 1 and the Merritt Island Recreation District for their referendum projects, out of the General Fund; there is already a lot of money coming out of the General Fund; and she does not know how there can be individuals that do not see that this is only benefiting one district, but it is a countywide problem.  She noted there are just as many unemployed individuals in District 3 as there is in all of the other Districts; stated it defies logic as to why the Board would pass a District program; the Commissioners are to represent the entire County, not to represent their own Districts; and she resents the fact that the Board is going to look out for one part of the County.

 

Commissioner Nelson stated when he was Chairman of the Board he visited Toledo, Ohio, to try to get a manufacturer of solar film that was interesting in coming to Brevard County; he had two Commissioners who were angry that he went to Ohio to bring a business to his District; but the reality was that there were three sites being considered, two in District 1 and one in District 5; and there were none in his District.  He stated he has always believed that the County is a single County; later today, the Board is going to be asked to vote on beach renourishment; the last time he looked, Merritt Island did not have a beach; the renourishment going along on Cocoa Beach is being taken care of by Port Canaveral; and the Board is looking at spending $9 million of local money to match $33 million of Federal money to keep houses and businesses from falling into the ocean; and so the Commissioners do look at is as more of a comprehensive and broad-based decision.  He stated contrary to popular belief, he actually did support the St. Johns Heritage Parkway; his only concern was the one deal that was presented to the Board; and he still supports the Parkway.  He advised he has said repeatedly that each District has different and unique problems that need to be dealt with as a County Commission.  He noted one thing that is troubling is that it is impossible to correct all of the mis-information that is heard at the podium; he is not sure where it is coming from, but he suspects he knows; the reality is that there are no dollars associated with the item if it is approved today; there is no money coming out of the General Fund to fund this at this time; and even then, the argument is that if it is successful, then there will be money.  He stated his hope is that it is successful, because if the Board does not see the economic benefit, and does not see an increase in the tax base, then there will be no money.  He noted when talking about fairness, Palm Bay and Merritt Island, from Pineda to the Space Center, have basically  the same taxable values; Palm Bay has twice the population of Merritt Island; the taxable value this year in Palm Bay dropped 24 to 25 percent; on Merritt Island it dropped 14 percent; and Merritt Islanders are going to be paying more proportionately into the County's General Fund this year.  He stated that is the system; it may not be fair, but that is the system the Board is stuck with; the tax value and tax base of the entire community needs to be improved; and the current item is the mechanism in which to do that.  He stated the next step, which will take multiple meetings to get through would be to come up with a development plan; he has heard some valid points that may need to be part of the plan; the reality is that on an annual basis, any County Commission can undo this; there are a variety of ways of doing that; the point is that there will be oversight; and the one option the Board does not have is to do nothing.  He stated he would like to commend Chairman Fisher; at one point Chairman Fisher was criticized for having made the presentation; he thinks that is leadership; and at some point in time, each Commissioner has been an advocate for something in his or her District, which is what they are elected for.

 

Commissioner Bolin stated in District 4 she is in the middle of everything; she has been supportive of all of the geographic areas, whether it be north or south; when Embraer was suggested to the Board she voted for it; Embraer was not going to be located in District 4, but it was important for all of Brevard County; and noted in District 4 all of the municipalities have CRA's.  She advised her unincorporated area is Viera, which is new, and so she does not have the blight that other older communities may have; and she is in a situation where she can try to assist all of the areas of Brevard County. 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated previous Commissions and voters of Brevard supported referendums such as EEL and Parks and Recreation; that took a lot of property off the tax rolls; it is a recurring problem in North Brevard; now the Board is basically subsidizing those lands through initiatives such as Chairman Fisher is proposing to try to get healthy again; and the next time people vote on something that takes property off of the tax rolls in the name of parks or the environment, they need to think twice, as it is not a free deal.  He advised he cannot support the item because he is fearful there will be a house-divided situation; it is known that the FPL project is going to dump in $2 million right away; he has a hard enough time competing with other states and cities, and now the Board is going to compete between north and south; and a county divided will never succeed. 

 

Scott Knox, County Attorney, stated he would recommend a change to Section 10 of the proposed ordinance, which is to say the district shall comply with all applicable budgeting laws and financial reporting laws, included in but not limited to, Florida Statutes, Chapter 189, Chapter 200, and Chapter 218. 

 

Commissioner Fisher advised he will amend his motion to include that recommendation.  Commissioner Infantini inquired if Commissioner Fisher would also exclude the FPL Plant, because the economic incentives are not bringing it in, and that those tax revenues should be excluded going forward.  Commissioner Fisher  advised no, he will not. 

 

There being no further comments or objections heard, the Board adopted Ordinance No. 11-18, creating the North Brevard Economic Development Zone Dependent Special District; providing for the creation of the District; establishing District boundaries; providing for a governing board; providing for the membership, organization, and compensation of the governing board; providing for functions, duties and powers of the District; providing for budgeting and financial disclosure, noticing, and reporting requirements; providing methods for financing the District; providing for a declaration that the creation of the District is consistent with the approved local government comprehensive plans; providing for Titusville consent for areas within the City limits; providing for severability; providing for an effective date; and amended language in Section 10 to read, "The district shall comply with all applicable budgeting laws and financial reporting laws, included in but not limited to, Florida Statutes, Chapter 189, Chapter 200, and Chapter 218."

 

 

 

Mike Knight, Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) Program Director, stated EEL has been working in partnership with the United States Air Force (USAF) for the scrub acquisitions in the County in an effort to provide a mitigation offset opportunity for the USAF; preserving lands at the Air Force station through conservation easements will allow for an opportunity to offset those impacts in the future; and the Board does not have to continue setting aside the land on the Base for those efforts.  He noted the Air Force has provided funding to the EEL Program to support a 50/50 cost share with any scrub properties that meet that criteria; there have been two acquisitions so far, Coastal Jewel in Malabar; and the FPL property that just closed yesterday in Rockledge.  He stated the Air Force has come forward with an offer for additional monies to support further purchases; and the current Agenda Item is for the Board to consider the acceptance of $1.2 million from the Air Force, which can be used for any scrub related acquisitions that the Board chooses to follow through with; and by accepting the money, the Board is not obligated to use it unless it decides to follow through with a purchase in the future.  He noted what the Air Force would get is a conservation easement over the appropriate portion of the parcel if it is acquired; and what is unique about this particular request is that there have been discussions about the Air Force requesting management funding to support the management of these properties in the future, and  $200,000 of this $1.2 million is available for management of these sites. 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated he would like to be very clear on this; the Board has $1.2 million to spend on land acquisition; and $200,000 would remain available for management of those lands.  He added he has already vetted this with the County Attorney, and the remaining EEL bond proceeds can be used for operations and maintenance; his concern is getting into a situation of purchasing a piece of land for $1.5 million, and spending $500,000 out of money that could be used for maintenance of all land; and inquired how the Board ensures that it will only spend up to that $1 million for land acquisition. 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated it is 50/50.  Commissioner Anderson responded correct, but his concern is that he does not want to spend anything that could be used in the general management of the other lands.  He inquired how much the EEL Program has minus the $1.2 million.  Mr. Knight responded $5.2 million.  Commissioner Anderson stated what he is saying is he does not want to spend any of that $5.2 million outside of the $1 million being given to the Board for land acquisition, although the Board has to match it; and inquired what the Board's portion of the match is.  Mr. Knight responded it is a 50/50 match. 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated EEL would be down to $4.2 million, and that makes him nervous.  He stated he is against buying any more land anywhere because there is not enough money to maintain the current land without going to referendum, which would fail, or having a super majority vote of the Board, which is not going to happen either.  He stated he is not there yet, especially after the conversation the Board just had about North Brevard.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated the EEL Selection Management Committee has been talking about trying to find a way to get more money into the EEL Program because it is running out; she does not believe it is prudent to spend another $1 million on purchases when the Board cannot operate what it has because there is not enough funding; and she cannot support the purchase because she does not want to have to go back out to referendum and borrow more money.  Chairman Fisher stated he does not think the Agenda Item is to purchase land, it is to accept the money. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated he views this differently, as it is kind of compartmentalized in terms of it coming with the maintenance money; and he believes more importantly this facilitates the Air Force's mission; and if it is not done then they have a new problem to deal with and he believes that Board is just fostering that partnership for the Air Force to make improvements to their facilities that they need; it comes with the money to take care of it; and stated the Board may still have the other issue but at least this one is straightforward. 

 

Chairman Fisher stated he is supportive of the item, but not exactly the way it is structured; and inquired if it was possible for the match to not be 50/50.  He added if it was a 90/10 match or something along those lines, then the Board may be getting $100,000 from the EEL fund and not $100,000 from the Air Force.  Mr. Knight responded that would be a question for the Air Force, but he would be for spending less money on any acquisition. 

 

Keith Winston stated he is the Executive Director of the Brevard Zoo, and also the Chair of the Brevard Nature Alliance.  He advised Brevard Zoo has been working with Florida Scrub-Jays since 2008, when they were approached by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC) to develop a technique to trans-locate and move them from small populations where they are dying out, to larger populations where they are stable; it turns out there are three populations in Florida, and they are the only populations in the world; and in some places they are very common and many can be seen in certain places, but it does not mean that as a group they are doing well.  He advised among the three populations, the only one that is doing well is the one that happens to be on Cape Canaveral; and that is why the Air Force is so interested in trying to buffer and support the other mainland populations, so that they can expand their facilities.  He stated it is important for two reasons; the Brevard Nature Alliance runs the Birding Festival in the County, which brings a huge economic impact to the north, and people come from all over the world to see this bird; there are also jobs associated with this; and millions of dollars in terms of the festival, the Zoo, and the visitors that come.  He stated if these two mainland populations peter-out, one of which is along the Atlantic Coastal Ridge, then the Cape Canaveral population will become the only remaining population; and he worries at what the airport will be able to do with their lands if they are really hamstrung.  He advised the $200,000 is enough money to easily maintain these properties from what he has heard; and hopes the Board considers it. 

 

Lieutenant Colonel Bryan Wellman commented on the importance of the Department of Defense's (DOD) Reign in Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI) program to the 45th space wing at Cape Canaveral USAF Station.  He added the program works in conjunction with the EEL Program, as was mentioned, and he greatly appreciates the support of the Board; and this year, there is an additional $1.2 million: $1 million for land acquisition, and $200,000 to address concerns of maintenance of the property.  He noted he understands the maintenance of the property is a concern and the Air Force has tried to work the issues within the boundaries and rules of their program.  He stated these funds are provided by Congress to limit any development or use of real property that would be incompatible with military installation missions, or to preserve the off-base habitat to relieve current, or to avoid future environmental restrictions, and using the funds to avoid future environmental restrictions.  He advised Cape Canaveral Air Force Station has one of those meta populations that were spoken of earlier, with this habitat and other land use constraints such as safety zones around the launch complexes, flood plains, wetlands, and etcetera, there is a concern of constraints to future development towards preserving this vital national asset that is located in Cape Canaveral.  He noted the REPI program in conjunction with the EEL Program is allowing to create and maintain these Scrub-Jay habitats off base and allows development of land on the Cape for future use for potential future commercial or government launch programs.  He advised with the REPI program, the County provides some of the land acquisition costs through the EEL program and typically the County purchases land in that 50/50 mix with the Air Force; they purchase the conservation easement on all or part of the land, and in addition the Air Force can provide natural resource management dollars when funding is available.  He added he would like to emphasize that the DOD's REPI program, in conjunction with the EEL Program, is not only about saving the threatened and endangered species, such as the Scrub-Jay, but is also about allowing future growth in both government and commercial missions at Canaveral Air Force Station. 

 

Chairman Fisher inquired if the Air Force would accept something different from the 50/50 proposal.  Lieutenant Colonel Wellman responded it would, but the question of percentage split gets into the competition of the project funding for the County with other projects in the Department of Defense and the Air Force; and there is a maximum points gained in matrix that the program managers use to determine which projects get funded.  He stated they have been successful in maxing those points in the past; and actually these particular land acquisitions here are held up by DOD of how to do it correctly.  He stated the Air Force looks at the County as a valuable partner and is there to offer funding and to try to maintain competitive projects for the future.  He noted if they take less than a 50/50 split, or leave something on the table in that regard, future projects will be less competitive, because the DOD looks at that past performance. 

 

Commissioner Infantini inquired if the Board could not select property in District 1, because they have been mentioning how much property in District 1 is already government owned, and she does not think it is a good idea to purchase more so that Commissioner Fisher would have less tax base to generate revenue.  She added Grant-Valkaria is a municipality that is very small, as is Malabar; she prefers that it does not come out of there either, because they are very small municipalities and do not have a lot of tax base either; and stated she does like the idea of the 90/10 split. 

 

Lieutenant Colonel Wellman responded the Board's consideration is the areas that are put into conservation, contiguous with areas already in conservation gains greater point value and is more protective of the species, due to the ability of the Scrub-Jay. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated the point he would like to make is that the purchases are in conjunction with existing lands that are already managed, so there is a big benefit.  He added it ultimately comes down to which land is available for the most reasonable price; and he is aware a lot of work in Malabar has been done about which lands could or could not be bought, and it has finally been worked out with no issues on the ones that were identified.  He added he would hate the Board get into a position where it was penny wise and pound foolish; he believes the match the way it is set up puts the Board in a good position to support the Air Force, which has the ability to do that.  

 

Commissioner Anderson stated he is not going to support it because he does not want to put the Board in the situation where General Fund money is going to support Environmentally Endangered Lands, it was not the will of the voters, and it is headed down that road in three to four years; and it is going to be a big issue with him when that time arrives. 

 

The Board executed the Agreement for a Deed of Easement accepting the FY11 funding of $1,200,000 from the United States Air Force (USAF) to acquire lands through the Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) Program. 

 

 

 

 

Howard Tipton, County Manager, pulled Item III.B.16., Resolution and Conservation Easement to St. Johns River Water Management District, for Development of Mitchell Ellington Park, from the Consent Agenda, to bring back to the Board at a future date. 

 

Commissioner Nelson advised he will be voting nay on Item III.A.10., Resolution, Re: Authorizing the Installation of Two "No Parking on Streets Between Midnight and 7:00 A.M." signs in the New Georgiana Settlement Subdivision; he has been consistent in not wanting to put no parking signs in, which are in support of homeowner regulation rules versus public safety; and noted it is in his district.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she will be voting no on Items III.A.3., Approval, Re:  Mosquito Control Tentative Detailed Work Plan budget for FY 2011-2011; Item III.C.9., Approval, Re:  Billfolder; and is pulling for discussion Item III.A.10., Resolution, Re: Authorizing the Installation of Two "No Parking on Streets Between Midnight and 7:00 A.M." signs in the New Georgiana Settlement Subdivision. 

 

 

The Board approved legislative intent and permission to advertise an ordinance amending Article II, Section 2-73 of the Brevard County Code of Ordinances, changing the name of the Agriculture and Extension Services Office to the University of Florida Brevard County Extension Service. 

 

 

 

 

The Board approved legislative intent and permission to advertise an amendment to Chapter 14, Sections 14-36, 14-49, and 14-50, Brevard County Code of Ordinances, related to Dangerous Dog Definition. 

 

 

 

The Board authorized the Chairman to sign the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Agriculture Environmental Services, Detailed Work Plan Budget - Arthropod Control, for fiscal year beginning October 1, 2011 and ending September 30, 2012, to quality the Brevard Mosquito Control District as a State Certified Program. 

 

 

 

The Board Adopted Resolution No. 11-133, supporting the Brevard County Shore Protection Project and request State cost-share funding as match for federal and dedicated local match.  Estimated FY 2012-13 costs for these projects total $49,686,243 including $33,083,111 federal, $6,731,361 State, and $9,871,771 local funds, with all local match being provided by the Tourist Development Council's (TDC) Dedicated Beach Improvement Fund. 

 

 

 

The Board authorized the Chairman to execute Amendment No. 9 to Contract 05BE1 between Brevard County and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) Bureau of Beaches and Coastal Systems for Feasibility, Design, Permitting, and Monitoring of the Mid Reach Shore Protection Project; authorized the County Manager or designee to execute task orders, change orders, or contracts to accomplish the scopes of work approved in the contract; and authorized any necessary budget change requests. 

 

 

 

The Board approved legislative intent and permission to advertise and amendment to Chapter 62, Article X, Division 4, entitled Wetlands Protection. 

 

 

ITEM III.A.7., RESOLUTION, RE:  BOARD SUPPORT OF THE SPACE COAST TPO COMPLETE STREETS PROGRAM

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-134, supporting the goals of the Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization's Complete Streets Policy, Guiding Principles, and Project Implementation Criteria in order to promote safe, multi-modal transportation facilities for all segments of Brevard's population. 

 

 

 

The Board authorized disbursement of educational facilities impact fees in the amount of $3,678,774.33 to the School Board of Brevard County in accordance with the terms of the Interlocal Agreement; and authorized the Budget Office to execute any budget changes required to implement this disbursement. 

 

 

 

The Board executed Binding Development Plan with David E. and Karen S. Mumme for property located on the south side of Lake Washington Road, approximately 810 feet west of Turtlemound Road. 

 

 

 

The Board executed the Contract for Sale and Purchase and accepted the easement from Ira L. Lightsey, Reverend and Registered Agent of St. Mary Missionary Baptist Church, Inc. for the CDBG Wiley Avenue Improvements Project; and waived the appraisal, Phase I Environmental Assessment and survey requirements on the property located in Mims, Section 17, Township 21, Range 35. 

 

 

 

The Board executed the Contract for Sale and Purchase with Viola Yount for a portion of property located at 2250 North Banana River Drive, Merritt Island, lying on the north side of Banana River Drive, contiguous to Kelly Park, Section 18, Township 24, Range 37.

 

 

 

The Board accepted a Surety Performance Bond from Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America, for a possible signal associated with Stadium Corners Viera Publix #1398. 

 

 

 

The Board granted permission to advertise for a Public Hearing to be held on August 9, 2011, to confirm the preliminary assessment roll for the Powell Road Dirt Road Paving MSBU; and authorized the advertisement for the Uniform Method of Collection per Chapter 197, Florida Statutes. 

 

 

 

The Board approved Conservation Easement, Owners Affidavit, and adopted Resolution No. 11-135, for conveyance of the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) associated with the Chain of Lakes Regional Stormwater Park. 

 

 

 

The Board accepted an easement from Racetrac Petroleum, Inc., in favor of Brevard County for the proposed sidewalk associated with the construction of RaceWay #121, located in the southeast quadrant of U.S.1 and Main Street in Mims, Section 17, Township 21 south, Range 35 east. 

 

 

 

The Board acknowledged the termination of the unrecorded Lease Agreement dated June 15, 1972, with the State of Florida, Department of Highway Safety Motor Vehicles, thereby releasing Lessee of all rights and obligations as referenced in aforesaid Lease; and authorized the Chairman to execute the lease termination. 

 

 

 

The Board accepted the sidewalk easement from Nitin M. Hate' and Vidya N. Hate', as Co-Trustees of the Nitin M. Hate' Revocable Trust, dated October 26, 1993, on property located on the southeast corner of the intersection of Dixie Avenue and Draa Road, Titusville, Section 33, Township 21 south, Range 35 east. 

 

 

 

The Board approved the Interlocal Agreement with the City of Palm Bay for the installation and maintenance of landscaping on Palm Bay Road from Minton Road to Robert J. Conlan Boulevard (excluding the area within the I-95 interchange); authorized the Chairman to execute the agreement; and authorized the County Manager to execute annual renewals after the original 10-year agreement term is completed. 

 

 

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-137A, and executed the Conservation Easement in favor of the St. John's River Water Management District for the Barnes Boulevard Widening Project. 

 

 

 

The Board executed the Contract for Sale and Purchase with Space Coast Credit Union in the amount of $108,127.00 (inclusive of all attorney and expert fees), plus closing costs, on property needed for the Barnes Boulevard widening project; and waived the Phase I Environmental Assessment and survey requirements. 

 

 

 

The Board approved scheduling August 18, 2011, which has already been designated as a Workshop, as a "Solid Waste Collection Workshop". 

 

 

 

 

The Board executed Amendment 2 with Ashbritt Environmental and Crowder-Gulf Joint Venture, Inc., for inclusion in the Florida Department of Transportation's "E-Verify" as part of their "Disaster Debris Removal Services" Agreements. 

 

 

 

The Board executed the Supplemental Settlement Agreement with Farmland Reserves, DBA Deseret Ranches, for Solid Waste Permit for Cell 1 at the U.S. 192 Site. 

 

 

 

The Board Executed the Permit and Right-of-Entry Agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE) to permit the USACOE to enter property at the Central Disposal Facility for the purpose of conducting atmospheric and climatic tests. 

 

 

 

The Board approved payment of award to Dennis Hart, who submitted a recommendation (EIP #384) under Brevard County's Innovations Program, to convert payment for sludge hauling from volume-based to weight-based. 

 

 

 

The Board reviewed and approved the budget change requests. 

 

 

 

The Board acknowledged receipt of the FY 2012 proposed budget for Chaparral Community Development District.  

 

 

 

The Board acknowledged receipt of the FY 2012 Proposed Budget for Heritage Isle at Viera Community Development. 

 

 

 

The Board acknowledged receipt of the FY 2012 proposed budget for Montecito Community Development District. 

 

 

 

The Board acknowledged receipt of the FY 2012 proposed budget for Baytree Community Development District. 

 

 

 

The Board acknowledged the receipt of the FY 2012 proposed budget for Viera East Community Development District. 

 

 

 

The Board certified the Local Option Gas Tax revenue percentage allocation; and directed the Clerk's Finance Department to submit the allocations to the Department of Revenue. 

 

 

 

The Board acknowledged receipt of 2010 certified audit reporting ending September 30, 2010, for the Town of Palm Shores. 

 

 

 

The Board approved recommended changes to Board Policy BCC-23 - Tangible Personal Property. 

 

 

 

The Board awarded proposal P-3-11-12 to Dr. John McPherson MD, DBA Space Coast EMS, to provide Medical Director Services for the Brevard County Fire Rescue Department. 

 

 

 

The Board granted permission to bid and award an additional project being completed under the U.S. Department of Energy - Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant; and authorized the Chairman to sign the associated contract. 

 

 

 

The Board executed First Responder Agreements with the Cities of Cape Canaveral, Cocoa, Cocoa Beach, Indian Harbour Beach, Melbourne, Palm Bay, Rockledge, Satellite Beach, and Titusville, and the Towns of Indialantic, Melbourne Beach, and Melbourne Village, for FY 2010/2011, to allow allocation of EMS funding, as approved, with the adoption of the current Fiscal Year Budget. 

 

 

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-137 with the Town of Malabar to provide E911 dispatching services for the remainder of the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011 for the amount of $4,750, with annual payments of $9,500 for fiscal years 2011/2012, 2012/2013, and 2013/2014; and directed the County Manager to execute the Interlocal Agreement. 

 

 

 

The Board authorized the County Manager to execute an agreement with Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) for the implementation of the local child care licensing and enforcement program; and further authorized County Manager to execute subsequent modification amendments to the agreement, upon review and approval by the County Attorney and Risk Management. 

 

 

 

 

The Board approved the creation of a Long Term Gopher Tortoise Recipient  Site on the EEL property known as North Buck Lake Scrub Sanctuary; approved Selected Management Committee (SMC); approved revisions to the Sanctuary's Land Management Plan; authorized the Chairman to execute an Interlocal Agreement with Titusville-Cocoa Airport Authority (TCAA); and authorized the Chairman to execute a Conservation Easement in favor of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC) for the North Buck Lake Scrub Sanctuary Long Term Gopher Tortoise Recipient Site. 

 

 

 

The Board executed an Agreement with the Office of the State Attorney for the Prosecution Alternatives for Youth of Brevard Program. 

 

 

 

The Board executed the Grant Agreement, and adopted Resolution No. 11-138, for submittal to the Florida Commission for the Transportation Disadvantaged (CTD) for $1,095,960 in CTD funds; and authorized the Chairman to sign any amendments or addendums contingent upon County Attorney and Risk Management approval. 

 

 

 

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-139, qualifying Barn Light Electric Company as an eligible business under the County's Tax Abatement Program; and authorized a public hearing to consider adopting an exemption ordinance. 

 

 

 

The Board authorized the Chairman to sign and execute Interlocal Agreements, Memorandums of Understanding, and any other necessary documents for the implementation of the Public Safety Interoperable Communication Grant Program, with Counties of Volusia, Indian River, and Lake, and the State of Florida, Department of Management Services, Bureau of Public Safety. 

 

 

 

The Board executed 2011/2012 Emergency Management Preparedness and Assistance Grant Agreement; and authorized the County Manager or designee to submit and execute any additional changes, documents, or amendments required under the grant contract. 

 

 

 

The Board executed the 2011/2012 Emergency Management Performance Grant Agreement; and authorized the County Manager or designee to submit and execute any additional changes, documents, or amendments required under the grant contract.  

 

 

 

The Board scheduled an Executive (closed) Session with the County Manager and appropriate staff to discuss ongoing collective bargaining negotiations for the Rank & File Agreement with the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 2969, to be held at the end of the Regular Board meeting on July 26, 2011. 

 

 

 

The Board appointed/reappointed Daryl A. Bishop, Carolyn Brown, Matt Chesnut, William Chivers, Dale Coxwell, Carol M. Craig, Judy Gizinski, Terrel E. Horne, Jr., Frank Huston, Reverend Joe McDowell, George Mikitarian, Al O'Connell, Dr. Jack Sidoran, Patricia Stratton, Colleen Rupp, and Lynda Weatherman to the Brevard Workforce Development Board; reappointed  D. Travis Proctor, Barbara Wall, William Potter, Pamela Gatto, and Mr. Philip Nohrr to the Educational Facilities Authority; appointed Robert Jordan to the Economic Development Commission of the Space Coast; appointed Linda Behret to the Environmentally Endangered Lands Procedures Committee; and appointed Henry Parrish III to the Historical Commission. 

 

 

 

The Board approved the Billfolder, as submitted. 

 

 

 

The Board granted permission for the Sheriff's Office to participate in the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program; designated the Sheriff's Office as the point of contact; and authorized the Chairman to execute the grant documents and any necessary budget amendments. 

 

 

 

The Board granted the Sheriff's Office to apply for and accept the FY 2011 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) - Local Solicitation; and authorized the Chairman to execute the necessary grant documents and any necessary budget amendments. 

 

 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated the item involves installing enforceable "No Parking" signs between specific hours within a Homeowners Association (HOA); and the issue has to come before the Board for approval in order to make it legally binding.  She added she asked John Denninghoff, Public Works Director, to show her where 50 percent of the residents were in support of this signs; and it came back that only the HOA wants the signs.  She stated it is her concern that the residents who are not active in their HOA meetings do not even know about the possibility of the signs; she could approve something as long as she knew that at least 50 percent of the residents want it; but not if it is just for a few people running the HOA.

 

Commissioner Nelson stated there was a similar request in Commissioner Bolin's district in which he voted in opposition of placing signs that were enforcing homeowner time constraints and rules; and he is being consistent in that regard. 

 

Chairman Fisher stated one of his concerns he would like to address is a family with three cars, such as his family for example; and inquired how that would affect their ability if all the vehicles would not fit in the driveway.  He inquired if a person like him would be in violation if their child parked on the street. 

 

John Denninghoff, Public Works Director, stated if the "No Parking" signs were posted, that person would be in violation if they were to park in the public road right-of-way.  He added most of these people would already be in violation with most of the cases that have come before the Board, because the subdivision has deed restrictions that prohibit parking in the road, but they are usually not enforced; and the HOA is looking to the public to provide the "No Parking" signs.  He advised Board Policy BCC-80 is what staff follows before bringing an item such as this to the Board; and in the case of an active HOA, it is only the HOA that is required to bring it; and if there is no HOA, a petition is required with minimum participation level, which would be more along the lines of going to the individual homeowners.  He noted it is the Board's Policy, and the Board can change it. 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she does not believe it was approved last time when it was in Commissioner Bolin's district; and the homeowners never brought it back.  Commissioner Nelson noted it was approved. 

 

Mr. Denninghoff stated presumably if law enforcement wanted to issue a ticket or citation, if the signs are there, then that person would get that citation for parking there during those hours. 

 

Chairman Fisher inquired if there was any reason why there is no one from the HOA present to speak for or against this item.  Mr. Denninghoff responded they probably believed they did not need to be here; and offered that he could bring the item back to the Board at a later date, asking the HOA to be present.

 

Chairman Fisher stated maybe staff can get that done and the Board can make sure that it is comfortable with the majority of the homeowners in that area.  Mr. Denninghoff inquired for clarification, if he is to bring it back as soon as the HOA can get set up to come to the meeting. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated with the issue of not having 50 percent participation, the residents need to be polled, so that when they come back there are no questions. 

 

The Board tabled consideration of the resolution authorizing the installation of two "No Parking On Streets Between Midnight and 7:00 A.M." signs in the New Georgiana Settlement Subdivision to the August 23, 2011, meeting. 

 

 

 

 

Maureen Rupe stated at the last regular Board meeting the public was led to believe that this would be an automatic extension of the meetings, so the working group did not attend the meeting.  She noted under the County Manager's reports, Commissioner Infantini brought forward people to speak; it was obviously planned, as the speakers came from out-of-county; and she would like to bring to the Board's attention that on December 16, 2008, there was discussion in the County Commission and a motion was made by Commissioner Infantini seconded by Commissioner Anderson, to direct staff to get the Agenda's to the Board at least two weeks in advance, and also directed that there be no add-on items after one week.  She added it was then pointed out that Commissioner Infantini had put add-on's in and apologized for that in saying "I promise I will not place anything else on the Agenda as an add-on."  She advised Commissioner Anderson also agreed that he would not put anymore add-on's on the Agenda, as everything he does as a Commissioner is for the benefit of the citizens, and making sure they can get to the meetings.  She stated she honestly believes that an add-on is not as bad as bringing something up under a report, taking action on it, and completely blind-siding members of the public.  She added the public had no idea that was coming up or there would have been speakers there.  She stated she will be coming forward at the next regular Board meeting with a Citizen's Request from the Partnership for a policy.

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she would like to correct the record, what actually happened was her staff found out at 4:00 p.m. that under Board Reports it was going to be brought up, and the Board had no notice about it until the Monday before the meeting at about 4:00 p.m.; and when they did figure out it was going to be brought up, they tried to contact people.  She added it was not her that put it on the Agenda, it was the County Manager. 

 

Ms. Rupe stated Commissioner Infantini brought those people forward to ask for no extensions; and for it to be finished that day.  She added she does not feel that is right, and action should not be taken under Reports when the public does not know about that Agenda Item. 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated he is unaware of who Commissioner Infantini contacted, but he knows that a couple of members from the Farm Bureau, Mr. Shuler and Mr. Alafaya, knew about it sometime in advance because he was going to show up to speak; Mr. Shuler had called him after the last Working Group meeting saying that he was concerned about a few things; and he asked Mr. Shuler to bring them to the Board.  He stated he does not know if he was there in response to something that was done, or if he was coming anyway to speak. 

 

Ms. Rupe stated Commissioner Infantini called them up to the podium. 

 

 

Chairman Fisher called for the public hearing to consider Merit System Policy, Leave Revisions.

 

There being no comments or objections, the Board approved revisions to the Merit System Policy IX, Leave, in accordance with Chapter 82 of the Brevard County Code of Ordinances, Personnel. 

 

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher called for the public hearing to consider public comments for FY 2011-2016 Brevard County Home Consortium 5-year Consolidated Plan and the FY 2010-2011 Annual Action Plan.

 

Ian Golden stated this Item is the public hearing that is required for the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME as part of those programs; HUD requires that every five years a Consolidated Plan needs to be completed, which is where it sets priorities for those two programs; and also on an annual basis an Annual Plan is completed, which is kind of the implementation plan for those priorities.  He noted this item, per HUD regulations, went out for public comment starting on June 9, 2011, and as of this date, staff has not received any public comment.  He stated the Public Hearing is the next step, and then it will be brought back for approval from the Board at the next meeting. 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she will not be approving this because she would like to re-prioritize the projects that are coming before the Board to be used with CDBG money; she thinks there are better projects that would be better suited in this new economic environment; and she will not be approving this Agenda Item.

 

There being no further comments, the Board conducted the Public Hearing, as required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the purpose of receiving public comments on the goals and priorities set forth in the HOME Investment Partnership (HOME) Consortium's 2011-2015 five-year Consolidated Plan, and the recommended HOME and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding priorities set forth in Brevard County's 2011-2012 Annual Action Plan.

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher called for the public hearing to consider a resolution vacating right-of-way on Pine Road in Morningside Beach Subdivision, as petitioned by Michael DiChristopher.

 

John Denninghoff, Public Works Director, stated the Item is a vacating request from Michael DiChristopher; it is a right-of-way on east Merritt Island; and it was brought to the Board previously, and there were discussions about the easements and access for other property owners that were inside that same subdivision.  He stated a lot of the language has been worked out; and at this time it is being brought forward in its current form; and it does provide for an easement for the property owners within the plat; however, there are some concerns that have been raised by one or two of the property owners.

 

Donald Voorhees stated there is a small lot on a canal, number 27, on the aerial map, and that is his property; he purchased the parcel in 1985 at the same time he purchased the property across the street at 1300 North Banana River Drive; but he currently resides in Jacksonville.  He stated he has intentions of moving back to Brevard County, which he loves; and he would like to develop that parcel of land.  He stated currently he is talking to land owners to purchase more land so he can do something with that parcel and make it buildable.  He inquired about the right-of-way that Mr. DiChristopher has come up with to get to the property; he has talked to him on a couple of occasions and needs clarification, because he has found out now that the easement will allow all homeowners to use that parcel on this specific area of Morningside Beach, but it would only be used through a locked gate in which the residents would have to get a key from him or somehow have access to that; and it would not allow them on a daily basis to access their property.  He stated he would like to know if it is a public or private easement; he has also heard it would be a utility easement; and inquired if he will have the ability as a landowner to connect to the utilities that are there, and will they be County or city utilities to connect to further down the road.  He stated if he cannot get through that easement, the only way he has to get to his parcel would be to come up through the center of the project, all the way around through the end, back around, and back to his lot; and it would be a hardship for him to get to his parcel, because he has access through Pine Road. 

 

Chairman Fisher inquired if he only has one lot there.  Mr. Voorhees responded yes, number 27.  Chairman Fisher inquired if Mr. Voorhees is actually on River Road and not Pine Road.  Mr. Voohees responded he is on Pine Road. 

 

Mr. Voorhees stated he found out that a few years ago Mr. DiChristopher purchased the canal; and anything he does, as far as developing on his lot, would need approval from Mr. DiChristopher.  He added he moved there in 1985, when he lived at 1300 Banana River Drive, and he was not aware that anyone could purchase a canal and restrict the use of landowners on that canal; and he would like further clarification on that. 

 

Kevin Markey stated Mr. DiChristopher was here this morning, but regrettably did not anticipate the length of today's meeting and is on a plane at the moment, so he will look to staff, and perhaps Commissioner Nelson, to help him clarify or correct if he is off-base with any of the facts.  He advised Mr. DiChristopher does own the fee simple interest to the bottom of that canal; and he believes it is more legally a ditch, because it is not a navigable body of water, and he could not own it.  He advised the subdivision was platted in 1925; there are 20-foot wide lots; for all practical purposes, it is largely an un-buildable subdivision; Mr. DiChristopher owns approximately 60 lots; and to address Chairman Fisher's question, he believes Mr. Voorhees incorrectly refers to his lot as 27, when it is actually 37.  He added Lot 27 does not abut Pine Road; and inquired if Mr. Voorhees was positive that his Lot is 27. 

 

Mr. Voorhees stated on his map it shows Lot 27.  Commissioner Nelson inquired if there were two plats to the subdivision.  Mr. Markey stated he believes there was a re-plat, and that may explain the confusion, which is fine, as that has been the assumption all along.  Commissioner Nelson stated he believes the question is going to be what did the Board approve at the moment it approved it, because he remembers a lengthy conversation about this circumstance; and it was not even related to being on the canal, or being inland. 

 

Mr. Markey stated he was just trying to give the Board some context.  He added that right-of-way for example, was platted as 20 feet wide, but on the ground it is eight feet wide; it is not something that has been maintained nor have there been any improvements in the subdivision in the 80 years that it has been in existence.  He stated he has gone back and forth with the County Attorney and staff for language for the easement; everyone felt that it was an acceptable form; and that is why it is on the Agenda.  He advised it is a private easement; exclusive to the persons that are eligible to utilize it; it is only for access, and ingress and egress, it is not for utilities, water, sewer, cable television, or any of those things; and he supposes at some point, should Mr. DiChristopher choose to develop his property and has a binding development plan with the County that contemplates the consolidation of those 60 lots to five buildable lots, he is setting aside the land to set up that infrastructure.  He stated everyone else is left to the same devices as they always have been in terms of whether or not they get utilities.  He advised if it is gated, Mr. DiChristopher clearly understands Florida Law presently provides that if he grants someone an access easement he has to give them access by the easement, so he would make the keys to locks or gates readily accessible. 

 

Mr. Voorhees stated from talking to Mr. DiChristopher, he had mentioned it would not be an easement that he could drive over daily; if he needed a key, he would have to go to Mr. DiChristopher and get the key, but there was no way that he could use the easement daily to get to his land, it would be just a part-time type of thing; and from the development plan it looks as if Mr. DiChristopher wants to take the area that was asked to be abandoned of the 20-foot right of way, and is now asking for abandonment of it, and that will be between the homes; in other words, there will be the canal with boat slips, and Mr. Markey is saying it is not a navigable canal, when in fact it is; and he has lived there for 17 years and boats have been up and down that canal several times, and it is full of manatees as well. 

 

Mr. Markey stated he used  the term 'navigable' in a lawyer's sense; he grew up on a street over there, and has been well aware of the property for over 40 years, so he knows the canal is usable.  He advised what he meant by navigable is that in Florida, one cannot own property in what the federal government considers a navigable stream; and a lot of canals in the County are called 'ditches' to avoid that issue. 

 

Mr. Voorhees stated to clarify, it is not just a ditch, boats can be run down it and always has been and it still is a manatee breeding ground because they can go back there where there is no boat traffic.  He stated environmentally, it is a very sensitive area, but his major concern is if he could take his motor home up this easement and place it on his lot; and inquired if he would be able to do that because Mr. DiChristopher stated the easement was not designed for that. 

 

Mr. Markey responded the easement does not extend all the way to Mr. Voorhees' property.  Mr. Voorhees advised he understands that, but as far as the easement goes, from that particular point to his lot is 100 feet or less, it would be his responsibility to get across that to get to what portion of the County road that he could use. 

 

Mr. Markey responded his guess is that conversation transpired when Mr. DiChristopher wanted to at first condition the grant of easement on people being denied access otherwise, but through discussions with the County that has been relaxed and whomever in the subdivision that wants to use the easement, may.  He added there are no conditions that say it cannot be used for a motor home or can only be used on certain days, it is all day every day. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated he would like to continue this because he would like to go back to the Binding Development Plan as it relates to the utilities, because Mr. Voorhees believes that there is access for utilities, and Mr. Markey believes there is not; and he is not sure what the Binding Development Plan says because the Board does not have it.

 

Chairman Fisher stated after reading the minutes he was under the impression that all of the property owners were going to have access to that.  Commissioner Nelson stated he agrees with that, he believes this is a utility question, and if it includes the utilities or how it is being addressed within the five lots being developed. 

 

Mr. Voorhees stated his concern was access through a locked gate, driving through homeowners' backyards to get to his particular parcel; inquired if the easement allows him to do that; and stated from talking to Mr. DiChristopher, that is not the intention of the easement. 

 

Mr. Markey responded the intention of the easement is access and he clearly has access for utilities for his properties because they all touch and abut each other; and he does not believe it was ever agreed that it was his responsibility to provide utility access. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated he does not think he is supposed to provide it; the Board did not discuss what would have been reasonable, and those utilities were being provided and could be extended.  He is not aware that the Board would have agreed to give access, but block utilities, as that would not have made sense from an approval process.  He added it was substituting an easement for a right-of-way, and that right-of-way allowed the ability to have utilities.  He stated he believes the item needs to be continued to see if the issues can be worked out.

 

Mr. Denninghoff stated staff would need a little bit of time to do this, so he would suggest continuing it for at least two months, which would be the Board Meeting on September 6, 2011; and three months would be October 4, 2011. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated the Board will try for September 6, 2011, and if needs to continue it can be done at that time. 

 

Billy Joe Brewer stated he does not own land there; he went through this meeting a year or two ago, and Mr. DiChristopher wanted to build a road along the canal, but that cannot be done per County Code.  He stated he thought the canal was 20 feet away, but now has eroded to where it is only eight feet away; and he is still building a road next to a canal, and inquired where the water is going to go.  He stated the roadway was supposed to be built on the east side of the homes when he got approval, which would have been away from the canal; and he feels the government should have to buy it if it cannot be worked out, unless it is wetlands.  He advised Mr. DiChristopher should draw up a complete plan so that everyone can see what he would like to do; and inquired what it is that he really wants.  He noted he is piecing this together and from a developer and site contractor's perspective, he has seen people who have pieced things together and it has not turned out for the best for the County or the citizens, because it was pieced. 

 

There being no further comments heard, the Board continued the public hearing to consider a petition to vacate a right-of-way on Pine Road in Morningside Beach Subdivision, to the September 6, 2011, meeting. 

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher called for the public hearing to consider a resolution vacating public interest on property on Tomlin Drive in Catalina Village Subdivision, as petitioned by Brevard County Parks and Recreation Department.

 

John Denninghoff, Public Works Director, stated this Item has also been before the Board previously.  He added the neighboring property owner had voiced some concerns, and all of them have been addressed; the primary concern was that staff was going to turn that property into a public park, and that is exactly opposite of what staff was doing; and staff is actually vacating the County's interest in the property, which was really not an interest of deed in the first place, so at this point there are no objections. 

 

There being no comments or objections heard, the Board adopted Resolution No. 11-140, vacating public interest in Section 36, Township 24 south, Range 35 east - Catalina Village Subdivision. 

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher called for the public hearing to consider a resolution vacating public drainage easement in Sleepy Lagoon, as petitioned by Sandra A. Waldinger and Mary Helen Velkoff.

 

John Denninghoff, Public Works Director, stated this is a vacating request and no objections were received. 

 

There being no comments or objections heard, the Board adopted Resolution No. 11-141, vacating a public drainage easement (Green Turtle Cove) in Sleepy Lagoon. 

 

 

 

Chairman Fisher called for the public hearing to consider a resolution vacating public utility easement in Sea Park Homes, Fourth Addition, as petitioned by Mark and Kelly Palace.

 

John Denninghoff, Public Works Director stated staff did receive an objection to this item; he would like some more time to address that objection; and would like to continue it to the August 23, 2011, Board meeting. 

 

There being no further comments, the Board continued the public hearing to consider a petition to vacate the public utility easement in Sea Park Homes, Fourth Addition, to the August 23, 2011, meeting. 

 

 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she wanted to let the auditors have time to present their summary of conclusions because they have spent a lot of time and energy on this; she feels it is important because a lot of money is spent on the audits; and it is nice to know what good audits contain. 

 

Jill Reyes, RSM McGladrey, Inc., stated this is a follow-up to a report that was issued last July, to present updated information after the defeasance of the debt that occurred in March, and after the audit was issued after the external auditor.  She added they have prepared this report for the Board to look at where the Parks and Recreation Department is going in the Fiscal Year 2012 budget, which the Board is getting ready to review.  She advised the executive summary has a lot of that information about where the reserves lie, and where the balance forward is coming from, specifically with referendum projects where those balance forwards lie and where that millage is going; and the other revenue sources that the County uses in those areas that are not General Fund transfer, such as the Special District Taxes and the Multiple Service Taxing Units (MSTU). 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated when she spoke to Ms. Reyes, she told her RSM McGladrey, Inc.   only looked into referendum projects.  Ms. Reyes apologized and stated the referendum was specifically looked at, and what was looked at was the where the millage was being spent; as of Fiscal Year 2011, the referendum millage of .8 in the north area, and .8 in Merritt Island is set aside for debt service, and that is what they were looking at; and that specifically is the millage set aside for referendum.  She added there are other revenues that go into those areas. 

 

Commissioner Infantini inquired how much was coming from the General Fund to fund the referendum projects; the report stated the Merritt Island referendum Ad Valorem millage is currently 100 percent allocated to debt service, so this would be as of 2010; and as a result, there is no designated funding as a result for operation and maintenance of the referendum projects.  She added when she met with the auditors they discussed it did point out that it is correct, that 100 percent of the funding for the referendum projects is coming from the General Fund.  Ms. Reyes responded yes, that is correct; she does not know the specific dollar amount; and it is not broken down by park, but she can say that Merritt Island is now included in the Central Area Operations, so it is all in one general transfer of approximately $4.5 million. 

 

Commissioner Infantini inquired if 100 percent of the millage for District 1 is going to debt service.  Ms. Reyes responded yes.  Commissioner Infantini stated the Board would need to be funding those parks and operations.  Ms. Reyes advised there is a reserve in District 1; it has some operating millage reserved; and she believes it will carry through Fiscal Year 2012.  Commissioner Infantini stated she thought she said it would be used up.  Ms. Reyes stated yes, by Fiscal Year 2013. 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she is trying to make everyone aware of how much money is going into General Fund operations, because the Board originally thought it would have enough millage created from property taxes to both operate the parks in the referendum projects and pay off the debt service, but that is not the case; and she wants to make sure everyone is on the same page because there is different types of information available. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated the North Brevard Referendum never intended to use the referendum dollars, it was always going to be MSTU; North Brevard has a district-wide MSTU; and in going back to the actual minutes of the meeting when it was approved in 1999, it was always Commissioner Scarbrough's intention.  He added as it happened, there were some dollars that came available.  He noted there were 15 projects on Merritt Island, 14 were renovations of existing parks that were already being maintained, and there was one new one associated with the referendum. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated he does not think anyone would put a bond out and say that taxes would not increase.  Commissioner Infantini responded he put out a flier that citizens' taxes would not increase if the bond was approved.  Commissioner Nelson inquired if she was insinuating that he put the flier out, because he was not in the Director position at that time, so he did not do anything.  Commissioner Infantini responded she did not say he was responsible, she meant as a County it put out a flier; and she wanted to highlight that it was a little miscalculation of funding and availability and it is not actually paying for it. 

 

Commissioner Nelson inquired how much General Fund is going to Parks versus what was going to them prior to the referendum.  Ms. Reyes responded there is a general revenue transfer chart in the initial report from last year. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated the point is that the General Fund transfer has also dropped down significantly over that time and has not increased to offset, it has actually decreased as part of the overall reductions the Board has been approving. 

 

Ms. Reyes concurred, and in the initial report there is an overview of the revenue for both total Ad Valorem and General Fund, and the General Fund; and the peak occurred in 2007, and has steadily declined since then. 

 

Chairman Fisher stated Brevard County has a world-class park system, and he does not believe it needs to be apologized for or needs defending; the voters passed referendums to build it; the Board should be proud of that; and will manage through the economic times that it is in.  He added he is sure it is not working out exactly how everyone though it would at the time it was approved, but it will get figured out. 

 

Debbie Goode stated she is part of the internal audit team; and she has the Library Services Financial Review.  She added to summarize and highlight, Library Services has been getting more volunteers, cutting expenditures, and is looking at how long they could self sustain.  She stated Libraries have about three months of money set aside for expenditures before the tax revenues come in; in an emergency, if they would need a lot of extra money, three months is a decent amount to have; so there may be quite a bit of future repairs down the road because they have been delayed with the revenues staying where they are; and the expenditures were going down.  She stated they looked at Orange, Volusia,  Osceola, and Indian River Counties; and people are using the libraries now more than ever, along with the internet terminals. She stated there is always the option to close libraries; she is not suggesting that, but in looking at the financial conditions and all the issues of what can be done with the situation of funding, there are some recommendations, but nothing of huge significance; and they are working on a three-to five-year schedule for repair and maintenance of roofs and air conditioning units to see what costs may be. 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated one of the issues that consistently comes up with libraries, or library supporters, is the request for additional revenues for repair and maintenance; Ms. Goode's report stated that they are unsure of what is needed; and it mentioned a three-to five-year outlook on what libraries need for repair and maintenance; but also that they overstated their budget and under spent their budget when it came to that.  He added what he is hearing is every year the libraries are falling apart; but according to the auditors' report, they are not spending everything allocated to them for repair and maintenance. 

 

Ms. Goode stated what she believes is happening is a zero-based budget where they are carrying all of their money forward every year and there is a big pot of money for repair, maintenance, capital items, or whatever may be needed; and it has always been a big number to spend all in one year; but if it all needed to be spent in one year would really be the question. 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated the budget amounts are misleading and historically inconsistent with actual results; and it is hard for the Board to make a determination of whether additional revenues are needed for additional maintenance on facilities if the report is not accurate.  He stated Mr. Tipton has assured the Board that staff has taken the auditors' report to heart and is making some changes in that regard. 

 

Howard Tipton, County Manager stated the recommendations are taken to heart, not just in libraries, but across the organization; and staff is, in many cases, just trying to get through the storm to a better day where maintaining things in a more proactive manner can be achieved.  He noted the ability to carry the larger numbers forward is largely going away as the balance forward continues to go down; and will get better at forecasting the needs, although some of them may be ultimately unfunded. 

 

Stockton Whitten, Assistant County Manager stated the balances forward are only three months, and they are going down; and even though the maintenance line item is under spent, the Board can see what it is carrying forward from year to year is decreasing.  He noted there was previous discussion on this item about the fact that the budget is going to be split into a maintenance budget and capital improvement and repair budget, but it does not give them the additional dollars, it just helps account for those limited dollars better; and the bottom line to this particular point of discussion is the fund balances are shrinking to where they only have two or three months of an operating reserve. 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated he appreciates that, but since the budget discussion has started, he is sure that will be a topic of conversation whether they go to maximum allowable amount before a tax increase for Library Services, which he will oppose; however, he would like to see those critical needs listed by facilities; and if there are some facilities that are just not able to be maintained, the Board needs to talk about that somehow. 

 

Mr. Whitten stated one of the good things that is being done in Facilities is the undertaking of the facilities condition assessments of all of the buildings so staff can at least program out and deliver to the Board and general public the needs that are associated with all of the buildings in inventory. 

 

The Board held discussion on the Audit Committee Report for Parks and Recreation and Library Services Financial Condition Reviews. 

 

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-142 and executed an Agreement with Community Services Council of Brevard County, Inc., for use of Cuyler Park Annex, Port St. John Community Center, Cocoa West Community Center, Woody Simpson Community Center, and South Mainland Community Center-Micco to provide services for senior citizens. 

 

 

 

Jack Hisey, President and CEO of Honor America Incorporated, stated he also serves as the curator of the Liberty Bell Memorial Museum. He added they have made some rather major changes at the museum over the past year; they have gone back to their original focus, which is to be a civics education resource for the community and an American Heritage and History Museum; and they have completely reset the museum to share that story of America, especially to children and young families in the community.  He stated a big piece of that story is the Space Program, and the north County is extremely fortunate to have the Kennedy Space Center Visitor's Center, the Astronaut Hall of Fame, and the Space Walk of Fame; and there is no interest in becoming a space museum, but he does believe that is a piece of America's story that he would like for the museum to tell.  He stated the Board has had on display in the Government Center Building "C" lobby, for a number of years, a model of the Space Station; Bob Springer, a retired Astronaut and Marine Corps Aviator, has agreed to work with him to incorporate that story into the museum; and he would like to display the Board's Space Station model at Honor America for as long as it would allow him. 

 

Commissioner Infantini stated she thinks it is a good idea, and she would agree to let Honor America borrow the Space Station model.  Commissioner Anderson inquired if Honor America will place something on the model stating it is on loan from Brevard County, so the taxpayers will know it is just on loan.  Mr. Hisey replied affirmatively. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated the first question is if the Board is going to make the Space Station model available for loan; and secondly, his fear is that just because Mr. Hisey saw it first, it does not mean there are not others who would be interested in making a proposal.  He stated additionally, he would like to see how it is going to be displayed; and a conceptual design of the display would make him more comfortable.

 

Commissioner Bolin stated she has been in that museum many times, and was on the museum Board at one time; she feels very comfortable loaning the model to Honor America because she has seen all of the precious items in the museum and they are well taken care of with much respect; and she feels confident that it will be displayed well.  She pointed out that if someone else wanted to borrow it, then they should have stepped up; and if someone else comes forward then maybe a time schedule can be worked out. 

 

Howard Tipton, County Manager, stated given the nature of the property, the Board can direct staff to develop an agreement that would allow the transfer and provide for its return under certain conditions.  Commissioner Infantini inquired if the model will be kept insured.  Mr. Hisey replied Honor America has liability insurance on the museum, but it is more for individuals being injured on site; there is an alarm system and a secure facility; and Honor America is also fortunate to be next door to the fire department.

 

The Board approved loaning the International Space Station (ISS) model to Honor America, Inc.; and authorized the County Manager to create and execute an agreement with Honor America, Inc., for the display at the Honor America/Liberty Bell Museum, in Melbourne, Florida.

 

 

 

Howard Tipton, County Manager, advised the Item is a targeted industry resolution for Project Megalo; staff is unable to disclose the name of the company at this time, as Brevard County is in competition with other locations; but staff feels good about this particular project.  He explained the business is looking at a 7,000 square-foot lease expansion in Florida; in Brevard County, they are looking at Palm Bay; it would provide 50 jobs, with 20 advanced degree jobs and 30 direct labor jobs; and the jobs are anticipated to be developed over a three-year period, with the average wage being $40,000.  He stated the project itself will research, design, and produce the following products: advanced biological diagnostic systems, substance detections systems, cleaning validation systems, environmental detectors, and custom nanomaterial-based solid state optical fibers. 

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-143, qualifying Project Megalo as a Qualified Targeted Industry.

 

 

 

Commissioner Anderson stated in the future, the Board needs to have a discussion about tax abatement and the responsibilities of companies to expand to local contractors; and noted often, companies will hire contractors from somewhere else and then those contractors hire local sub-contractors, and the subs are not being paid. 

 

The Board adopted Resolution No. 11-144, qualifying Project Megalo as an eligible business under the County's Abatement Programs; and authorized a public hearing to consider adopting an exemption ordinance.

 

 

.

ADJOURNMENT

Upon consensus, the meeting was adjourned at 3:59 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

ATTEST:                                                         __________________________________

                                                                        ROBIN L. FISHER, CHAIRMAN

                                                                        BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

_________________________                      BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA

MITCH NEEDELMAN, CLERK