October 26, 2010 Regular
Oct 26 2010
Call to Order
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Title
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Status
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Arrived
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Robin Fisher
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Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
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Present
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Chuck Nelson
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Commissioner District 2
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Present
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Trudie Infantini
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Commissioner District 3
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Present
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Mary Bolin
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Chairman / Commissioner District 4
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Present
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Andy Anderson
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Commissioner District 5
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Present
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The Invocation was given by Pastor Dean Corns, Calvary Chapel Melbourne, Viera.
Commissioner Andy Anderson led the assembly in the Pledge of Allegiance.
The Board approved the July 15, 2010 Workshop Meeting Minutes and August 3, 2010 Regular Meeting Minutes.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Commission Nelson read aloud a resolution proclaiming the Month of November 2010 as Puerto Rican Heritage Month.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-218, proclaiming the Month of November, 2010, as Puerto Rican Heritage Month.
Kimberly Burke, National Puerto Rican Day Parade Chairperson; expressed her thanks to the Board for the Resolution; this year's parade will be dedicated to Mayor of Aguada, which is the Town Cristobal Colon left in 1513 to discover Florida; everyone is invited to attend on November 14, 2010 parade in Palm Bay; there will be a banquet dinner on November 12, 2010 at the Crown Plaza in Melbourne Beach; and she announced David Mercado will be next year's Chairperson.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Commissioner Infantini read aloud a resolution proclaiming the week of October 30 through November 6, 2010 as the Week of the Family.
Michael Hennacy expressed his thanks to the Board for the support shown to families.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-219, proclaiming the week of October 30 - November 6, 2010 as the Week of the Family; and urges all residents to spend quality time with family members to strengthen relationships between parents and their children.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Commissioner Nelson read aloud a resolution recognizing Lowell Loadholtz for his distinguished Extension career.
Lowell Loadholtz expressed his thanks to the Board for the resolution, he is very humbled and living past 70 years of age good things happen to you; nearly 50 years ago a lovely lady named Dee suggested to him that they marry, and she has been a great supporter over their year's together. He stated he had the greatest job working with many government folks and the 4-H Program; and he would like for everyone to remember the 4-H Program is a Program that is in every county in the United States of America; and those 4-H Club Members grow up to be adults and become great citizens. He stated his wife and son have been great encouragements in his life and many individuals present with him today have been apart of the success and have enjoyed making good things happen for the young people.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-220, recognizing Lowell Loadholtz for his distinguished Extension career and strong support of the 4-H/Youth Development Program; and congratulated him on being inducted into the State 4-H Hall of Fame.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Chairman Bolin read aloud a resolution recognizing the month of November 2010, as National Indian Heritage Month.
John Ellis, Native Rhythms Festival Organizing Committee, Vice Chairman, stated the Native Rhythms Festival is an event that will be held November 12 through 14, 2010 at Wickham Park, to honor the Native American culture; and in fact, it is primarily the music of these folks that is being honored as world cultural music. He stated there will be professionals performing without their normal fees, it is a free event for families to attend, there will be no alcohol served, and no profanity; and the festival is a way to give back to the community, to raise the awareness of the Native American culture, and show appreciation for the indigenous people. He continued to express his thanks to the Board for the Resolution recognizing the Indian heritage.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-221, recognizing the Month of November 2010 as National American Indian Heritage Month.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Mary Bolin, Chairman / Commissioner District 4
SECONDER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Howard Tipton, County Manager read aloud a resolution opposing Amendment 4 on the November 2, 2010 Ballot.
Frank Kiser, Home Builder and Contractor Association of Brevard and the Melbourne Regional Chamber of East/Central Florida, to speak in support of this resolution; it is felt, that the process that is in place has worked very well for many years, it is unaffordable, the County taxpayers cannot afford this, it will be very expensive, it will cost a lot of jobs throughout the State of Florida not just Brevard County, it is felt that the public input is already in place in terms of the opportunity to appear before Planning and Zoning Boards, before this Commission in Public Hearings before any final decisions are made, it is a very complex issue in the Comprehensive Plan where most citizens are not aware of all the ramifications of the Comprehensive Plan; and he is strongly supporting the Board's adoption of this resolution.
Christine Michaels, Melbourne Regional Chamber of East/Central Florida and Jobs for Brevard, stated she encourages everyone to vote in opposition to Amendment 4; she would like to present the Board with a little bit of unbiased information that comes from a group called Florida Tax Watch, who are a private. non-profit, non-partisan research institute that has been in business for 30 years and track issues such as this; and she read aloud a letter of their thoughts about Amendment 4, "There is a general consensus in the business community that the Amendment would devastate the economy and have a chilling impact on development in the state, which would in turn, have a chilling impact on jobs and Florida's growth and well being. Amendment 4 should not be enacted, it could also introduce special interest groups that would be funded in attempts to convince a large number of people to vote for or against a given project; and Florida Tax Watch is currently conducting research to quantify the potential fiscal impact of Amendment 4, that study will be released soon, but preliminary findings indicate the Amendment would have serious long-term negative impacts on our economy." She stated the process that is in place is a major concern and she got from Howard Tipton, County Manager a scenario of how many votes this would have entailed over the past ten years, it was more than 400; and if a potential $60,000 price tag is put on a stand-alone referendum on any of these issues; there are millions of dollars the County would be forced to absorb. She encourages the Board to adopt its resolution opposing Amendment 4.
Tom Schuller, Farm Bureau, stated he would like to thank the Board for taking this stand today; he thinks everyone knows that Amendment 4 is going to cost jobs, money, and really hurt the economy; but he also thinks there is a bigger picture of Amendment 4 and he is glad that the Board is opposing it. He stated Amendment 4 will chisels away at some of the very basic rights, such as the property rights and a right for a representative form of government; our founders set us up as a representative republic and this flies in the face of what our founders had envisioned; the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees us the right to life, liberty, and property; and Supreme Court Justice, George Sutherlan said "Those rights are so entwined they are almost one and if you take a man and take away his liberty, you take away all that is worth living for and if you give him liberty and take away his property rights, which are the fruits of his labor you still make him a slave."; and he thinks a stand against Amendment 4 will show all the citizens of Brevard County and the State that Brevard County stands for property rights and liberty.
Suzanne Valencia stated Amendment 4 has nothing to do with taking away property rights; the Chamber of Commerce, the realtors, and the developers have spent millions of dollars to fight this, because they want to continue with their boom-and-bust plan for Florida; there is already enough property zoned in everybody's Comprehensive Plan to take care of all the building that needs to be done for the next 20 years; and there is no need to change the Comprehensive Plans, which has been done in every county and every city in this State.
Wayne Cooper stated he supports opposing Amendment 4; he is a member of the Planning and Zoning Local Agency Board; he believes the citizens of Brevard County have plenty of time to appose or approve certain changes to the Comprehensive Plan Amendment; and his concern is he has only been on the Planning and Zoning Local Agency Board for one and one-half year and the information they get on certain Comprehensive Plan Amendments is very detailed and difficult because of the volume of the paperwork involved with soil and water samples, traffic plans, and he inquired how does this information get to the public so they can make a decision when it is time for a vote; there are plenty of people who come to the meetings who oppose or approve the concerns; and stated the system is not broken and it does not need to be fixed. He stated to give this vote to the public, to make decisions after the many different boards make their recommendations to this Board will be a difficult process.
Commissioner Nelson stated he has said all along he does not support Amendment 4, but some reasons are little bit different; he thinks there needs to be elected officials who believe in good rough management, he is not sure that occurred over the decade of 2000 to 2010; and he thinks some decisions that were made were contrary to good public policy, which is why he ran for office and why he is present on this Board today; and he thinks a person should focus on electing people who represents their views and values. He stated he is concerned about the cost of this process; and this is the elected body that has the bull’s eye on it, by Amendment 4; and he is going to support the resolution, because in general Amendment 4 is not good for Florida, but he would like to see some efforts continued in growth management.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-222, opposing Amendment 4 on the November 2, 2010 Ballot.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Commissioner Fisher read aloud a resolution congratulating and supporting the YMCA's Let's Get Moving Brevard Initiative.
Cezar Conzalez, District Vice President of Brevard County Titusville YMCA Family Center, stated the "Y" is challenging the community to get active, healthy, and live a better lifestyle; and he expressed his thanks to the Board for being a partner with the "Y" on this initiative. He stated this cause is to strengthen the foundation of the community with three areas of focus being youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility, it is this cause that he is being responsible to go into the community and make a difference; over 25 percent of all residents in Brevard County are considered to be obese, which is an alarming statistic, it is an epidemic in all communities; and he thinks the YMCA can make a difference, but they cannot do it alone. He stated 20 years ago kids were seen outside playing, riding their bike, and playing hide-and-go-seek; he is challenging everybody to go out into the community and see if any kids can be found playing outside of the house, it is an epidemic that is getting worse, and the YMCA wants to do something about it; and the YMCA is challenging everyone to take 45 minutes a day to walk 10,000 extra steps, it will give out free pedometers at the Cocoa, Titusville, and Sun Tree YMCA locations; and follow-up phone calls will be made to ensure all who signed up for the challenge on November 1, 2010 are walking their extra steps.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-223, congratulating and supporting the Y's Let's Get Moving Brevard Initiative, which promotes better living by asking participants to take 10,000 steps and eat 100 fewer calories per day; and noted the "Y" is offering all Brevard citizens who register November 1, 2010 a free November pass to its facilities, a personal activity pack, and a free pedometer to record steps taken every day.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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RESOLUTION, RE: RECOGNIZING BREVARD COUNTY AS AN AIRBOAT FRIENDLY COUNTY
Commissioner Anderson read aloud a resolution recognizing Brevard County as an Airboat Friendly County and commends the Florida Airboat Association.
A representative from the Florida Airboat Association expressed his thanks to the Board for the Resolution, he knows the airboaters in Brevard County appreciate the recognition, and he would like to see everyone enjoying Florida's natural beauty.
Commissioner Infantini stated she happened to be at the Camp Holly and was offered an airboat ride, to tour the St. Johns River; and she had seen parts of Brevard County that she had never seen before.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-224, recognizing Brevard County as an Airboat Friendly County; and commended the Florida Airboat Association and Brevard County Airboat Association for their work in promoting airboating as a traditional and environmentally friendly form of recreation in Brevard County and the State of Florida.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Scott Knox, County Manager, stated he distributed to the Board a proposed extension of the Platt agreement; the proposed extension extends the day for completing the tendencies in the contract from November 1, 2010 to December 15, 2010; and the reason is one of the conditions was the successful completion of the Comprehensive Plan Amendment, but the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) will not be making any decision on whether that is in compliance or not in compliance until November 1, 2010, which is the deadline in the current contract.
The Board approved the proposed Contract Extension Agreement between Sellers, F. Carlyle Platt, individually; F. Carlyle Platt and Janet Platt, husband and wife; F. Carlyle Platt Partnership, LLC, a Florida Limited Liability Limited partnership, f/k/a the F. Carlyle Platt Family Limited Partnership; Douglas C. Platt and Jeanne S. Platt, husband and wife; Caryl Ungerer and Robert Ungerer, husband and wife; Ronald and Judith Arnold, husband and wife; Sandra P. Lovett, f/k/a Sandra P. Platt; and Jeanne S. Platt and Douglas C. Platt, as Co-Trustees of the Jeanne S. Platt Revocable Trust u/a/d 9/17/98, and granted approval for the deadline to be change from November 1, 2010 to December 15, 2010.
RESULT: ADOPTED [4 TO 1]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
AYES: Robin Fisher, Trudie Infantini, Mary Bolin, Andy Anderson
NAYS: Chuck Nelson
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Jerry Sansom, Chairman, Florida Inland Navigation District, stated the Florida Inland Navigation District (FIND) is a special taxing district created in 1927, to be the local sponsor with the Army Core of Engineers to maintain Florida's portion of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway; and in the mid 1980's the FIND was given a task to work with local communities to facilitate waterway improvement projects, boating facilities, boardwalks, natural outlooks, and anything else that can help the public attach and reattach to the waterways. He stated FIND budgets approximately $12 million a year, to work with local governments up and down the eastern seaboard; the district is from Nassau County to Dade County; a couple of years ago it was only from Duvall County to Dade County because the original waterway started in the St. John's River and went down to Biscayne Bay; but the folks in Nassau County actually voted to tax themselves to join the FIND so that they could actually get some waterway improvements in their area. He stated in Brevard County there has been partnership for a significant number of projects; there are five on-going right now; three are in District 1 area such as, the Chain of Lakes Dock planning for $107,000, Catwalk construction at the A. Max Brewer Causeway for $128,000, and Marina Park boat facility for $330,000; the Indian Bay Channel Markers for District 1 and 2, which is a relatively small project; and a recently completed project for the South County Boat launch. He stated this year FIND has approved its recent budget and included in it are two projects; one, is for Brevard County which is a portion of the Blue Crab Cove land acquisition as part of the Stan Mayfield Working Waterfront and the other for the City of Titusville for $185,000 for the installation of a Mooring Field; and he would like to remind the Board that this year's grant submission schedule is encouraged for Brevard County to apply for. He stated last year the City of Titusville and Brevard County were the only entities that applied, which means there was not a lot of competition for the dollars, but he would like to encourage the Brevard County to again, apply and come up with good projects; and he suggested the Pineda area as a good area, since the Mooring Field study presentation is coming from the Parks and Recreation Department and it will help clean up the State and the environment. He stated in addition to the small scale Derelict Vessel Program, $25,000 can be applied for immediate needs and are also eligible for part of the regular grant program also and are not limited to the $25,000; and FIND would like to help with those types of projects; and FIND usually finds a way to fund all the projects that meet their minimum criteria. He stated there has been recent completion of a Christiansen Landing and Blue Crab Cove, he is able to present Commissioner Nelson and Infantini each a check; even though the Blue Crab Cove was recently approved, it is eligible for retroactive funding, since it is a land acquisition and has already been purchased by the County so as soon as the actual bill is received FIND will send the actual check that can be deposited in the bank; and Christiansen Landing needs the Agreement executed, then the funds will be available for deposit as well. He advised the total amount for both projects is about $1.1 million; FIND is willing to work with the County to help benefit the boaters and citizens of Brevard County; FIND really does enjoy the cooperative efforts made with Brevard County and are very proud to be associated with Brevard County; and he thinks Brevard County is doing an awful lot to assist the boating community. He noted this year FIND approved an additional category of project for funding, it is countywide master planning for boating actives, and it is sort of the next generation of what the County is already involved in where the cities and the counties all work together for a countywide master plan on identifying the needs for the boating community within a county; Palm Beach County just finished one; and the boating and waterways folks have a copy of one. He stated in the future there will actually be extra points given in the grant process, if a project comes in and it is part of the master plan so there can be assurance that FIND monies are part of a coordinated effort; and he thinks the Board will want to make sure that other folks in the community that are doing these projects can be apart of an ongoing coordinated effort to maximize all dollars.
Commissioner Nelson stated he has worked with FIND for over 20 years; and stated he thinks Brevard County is very fortunate to have some like Mr. Sansom because he brings knowledge of the waterways, he understand Brevard County and the industry associated with the waterway; and he has been a great advocate for Brevard County and he expressed his appreciation for all of Mr. Sansom's efforts.
Commissioner Infantini stated the Christiansen Landing is fantastic, she has been out on boats since she was about four years old from South Florida to Brevard County; and she thinks the facilities will stand through the hurricanes in the years to come.
REPORT, RE: MEMORIAL SERVICE AT SPACE VIEW PARK
Commissioner Infantini stated she had the opportunity to attend the memorial service at Space View Park in Titusville, to honor all of those individuals who gave their lives while performing their duties at Cape Canaveral Air Force station and Kennedy Space Center, it was a very well received ceremony, and it had great attendance; and she expressed her thanks to those who contributed with the space program.
REPORT, RE: FERTALIZER REGULATION ORDINANCE UPDATE
Commissioner Anderson stated implementation of a fertilizer regulation ordinance was discussed a few months ago; and he inquired when some information will be coming back to the Board.
Ernest Brown, Natural Resources Management Director, stated he spoke with the Space Coast League of Cities about the opportunity of partnership to come up with a uniform fertilizer ordinance for a countywide coordinated ordinance so individuals in organizations of the commercial applicators have uniformity across the County; there are nine cities already on-board to work with the County to develop a refined ordinance that would be collaboratively implemented across the County; and he would like for it to come back to the Board on November 9, 2010 for legislative intent and authorization to advertise to work with those cities to come up with an ordinance to work with countywide.
REPORT, RE: EARLY VOTING
Chairman Bolin stated she would like to bring attention to the lapel stick she has, it is time to vote right across the hall at the Supervisor of Elections Office for early voting; and she just wanted to make the awareness known and encourages all to vote.
APPROVAL, RE: CREATION OF FOUR PARCELS FROM A PARENT PARCEL FOR COLETTE DICHRISTOPHER
Commissioner Nelson stated he spoke with Mike DiChristopher in his office, he got the impression Mr. DiChristopher was going to follow the small subdivision such as drainage and calculation, to assist the County to prevent the kind of problems that created the ordinance in the first place; he has seen staff has some comments; and he inquired if Mr. DiChristopher had the chance to look at it.
Mr. DiChristopher responded no, he has just received them and he does come in under the old Ordinance; this could be a considerable expense and lead him to not be able to do what he wants to do; and without have the chance to look at every single item in the new Ordinance he cannot tell Commissioner Nelson if he can comply or not. Commissioner Nelson stated the intent was certainly not to reduce the number of lets, it was to get some of the basic information, and to be able to be assured that the kind of issues had in previous projects could be addressed so the road is not flooding out; and flood has been an issue but not with Mr. DiChristopher personally. He advised he does not want to delay this, but he also does not want to let the opportunity pass to have something approved that covers the flag stem and small subdivision drainage issues; he mention if Mr. DiChristopher could talk with staff at the end of the meeting to see if things are okay or continue to the next meeting.
Bruce Moia, MBV Engineering, stated he is the authorized applicant for Mr. DiChristopher who is the property owner; he did have a chance to read through the conditions and he thinks most of them have already been addressed. the site has been permitted from the St. Johns Water Management District (SJWMD), and the driveway is already constructed to a standard that would support the access vehicles that will be on the property; the drainage plans are in place, water and sewer are already installed and ready to be activated, the wetlands have been located, and the conservation easement has already been in place per the SJWMD, the location and elevation of the home sites have already been apart of the SJWMD permit, and he thinks the only possible problem there is with the conditions would be what design standards would be required for emergency vehicles; and if it is a standard residential requirement, then there is not problem, but if a big road is needed with a turn around at the end then there is a problem because that cannot be done being confined to the wetlands and the location of the driveway as it is. He stated he believes everything that would be an issue has all been addressed as a permitted site so all the drainage, the wetlands, the conservation easements, and the access has all been addressed; and basically all Mr. DiChristopher wants to do is divide two pairs of parcels as he can by Code now.
Commissioner Nelson inquired in terms of the road designed what would the standard require under the new Code. Robin Sobrino, Planning and Development Director, responded the County standards do require 22 feet of paving, a 2 foot gutter on either side, and whatever swale area is necessary to accommodate the drainage; she is glad to be working with the applicant knowing that the conservation easements do certainly constrain the width of the access driveway to make sure of the appropriate driveway base is place with appropriate drainage in place. Commissioner Nelson inquired what is being proposed to be built as an access to those. Mr. Moia responded there is no proposal to build a roadway, it is a proposal to build a driveway just like everyone has to their residence; the roadway standard would be inappropriate here, it is paved, it is asphalt, it has the required base in the upgrade, and it drains properly to a retention area, but it is just not going to be 22 feet wide with the gutter and swale's. Ms. Sobrino stated she would like to clarify the conditions made were to access a drive, it did not specify that it be a roadway. Commissioner Nelson inquired if the paving is already in place. Mr. Moia responded, yes; and it is already permitted and in place. Commissioner Nelson stated when they met in his office Mr. Moia told him that he was already in compliance with everything, he just wanted to verify everything today, he does approve the item; and the item can be moved back into consent.
LEGISLATIVE INTENT AND PERMISSION TO ADVERTISE, RE: AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 62, ARTICLE XII, ENTITLED COASTAL SETBACK AND CONTROL LINES
The Board approved Legislative Intent and granted permission to advertise amendments to Chapter 62, Article XII, entitled Coastal Setback and Control Lines.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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The Board approved the division of property into four parcels, two of which will have access by easement, pursuant to Policy BCC-89.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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AMENDMENT TO EXISTING USE AGREEMENT WITH TERRY RILEY AND BARBARA RILEY, RE: USE OF A CERTAIN PORTION OF THE CRANE CREEK DRAINAGE DISTRICT THAT ABUTS THEIR PROPERTY AN EXISTING FENCE
The Board approved and granted permission for the Chairman to execute an Amendment to the Existing Use Agreement to extend the Agreement with Terry J. Riley and Barbara Riley for a year, until October 26, 2011, for use of a certain portion of the Crane Creek Drainage District, which abuts their property, for an existing fence.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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CONTRACT FOR SALE AND PURCHASE WITH THE WALGREEN CO., AND WAIVE PHASE I ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND SURVEY REQUIREMENTS, RE: BARNES BOULEVARD WIDENING PROJECT
The Board approved and authorized the Chairman to execute the Contract for Sale and Purchase with fees between Brevard County and The Walgreen Co.; and waived the Phase I Environmental Assessment and survey requirements for property needed for the Barnes Boulevard Widening Project.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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APPROVAL, RE: BUDGET CHANGE REQUESTS
The Board approved the submitted Budget Change Requests.
The Board accepted the Error and Insolvencies Report, as well as the Recapitulation of the 2009 Tax Roll.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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The Board acknowledged the Canaveral Port Authority's Resolution adopting the FY 2010-2011 budget.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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ACKNOWLEDGE, RE: MONTECITO COMMUNIY DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT RESOLUTION 2010-07 IDENTIFYING THE FISCAL YEAR 210/2011 MEETING SCHEDULE
The Board acknowledged the Montecito Community Development District Resolution 2010-07, identifying the Fiscal Year 2010-2011 meeting schedule.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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PERMISSION TO REJECT BIDS, CONDUCT NEGOTIATIONS WITH QUALIFIED COMPANIES, AND OPEN PURCHASE ORDER FOR SERVICES DURING NEGOTIATIONS, RE: BID #B-5-10-127, REMOVAL OF MULCH AND WOOD WASTE FROM THE COUNTY’S SOLID WASTE FACILITIES
The Board rejected all bids received for ITB #B-5-10-127 for the removal, transportation, and final disposal of mulch and wood waste from the County's Solid Waste facilities; and authorized staff to conduct negotiations with two know qualified contractors and open a purchase order for a period not to exceed 90 days while conducting negotiations.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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GRANT AGREEMENTS WITH DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, NORTH BREVARD CHARITIES SHARING CENTER, SOUTH BREVARD WOMEN’S CENTER, AND THE SALVATION ARMY OF MELBOURNE FOR HOMELESS PREVENTION AND RAPID RE-HOUSING GRANT PROGRAM (HPRP II) FUNDS
The Board approved and executed: (1) a Grant Agreement between Brevard County and the Department of Children and Families to receive HPRP II Grant Funds; (2) Agreements with North Brevard Charities Sharing Center, South Brevard Women's Center, and The Salvation Army of Melbourne for HPRP II Grant Funds; and (3) authorized the Chairman to execute subsequent modifications and amendments contingent upon approval of the County Attorney and Risk Management.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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REVISED RESOLUTION, RE: AMENDING THE BREVARD COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM SCHEDULE OF FEES AND CHARGES FOR OVERDUE DAMAGESOR LOST LIBRARY SERVICES, AND PROVIDING AND EFFECTIVE DATE
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-225 amending the Brevard County Library System Schedule of Fees and Charges for Damaged, or Lost Library Services, and providing an effective date.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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FOURTH AMENDMENT TO CATTLE LEASE WITH ROY F ROBERTS AND SONS, INC., RE USE OF SCOTTSMOOR FLATWOOD SANCTUARY PROPERTY
The Board approved and authorized the Chairman to execute the Fourth Amendment for the lease renewal with Roy F. Roberts and Sons Grove, Inc., to allow cattle grazing on a 112 +/- acre portion of the Scottsmoor Flatwoods Sanctuary Property, described in Exhibit A of the amendment.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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The Board granted Space Coast Area Transit permission to purchase eight Diesel Fueled Small Cutaway Coaches off the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) State Contract in the amount no greater than $704,000.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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ACCEPTANCE, RE: INTERNAL AUDIT PROPOSED RISK ASSESSMENT AND AUDIT PLAN 2010/2011; AND REAPPOINTMENT OF INTERNAL AUDIT COMMITTEE MEMBERS
The Board approved the Proposed Risk Assessment and Audit Plan 2010-2011; and appointed/reappointed Jack Armul, Mark Cherry, Sam Lenck, and John Walter, to the Internal Audit Committee, with terms expiring October 31, 2012.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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PERMISSION TO ADVERTISE AND APPOINT SELECTION COMMITTEE, RE: RFP FOR A NEEDS ASSESSMENT AND PREPARATIN OF A PRELIMINARY/CONCEPTUAL DESIGN FOR A COUNTY EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER (EOC)
The Board approved and authorized an advertisement for a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking qualified architect and engineering firms to perform a needs assessment and prepare a preliminary/conceptual design for a County Emergency Operations Center (EOC); appointed a Selection Committee consisting of Robert Lay and Lacy Davis, Emergency Management; Bradley Hall, Fire Rescue; Steve Quickel, Facilities, or his designee; and Mike Breickner, Brevard County Sheriff's Office; appointed a Negotiation Committee consisting of Robert Lay and Lacy Davis, Emergency Management; Bradley Hall, Fire Rescue; Stockton Whitten, Assistant County Manager, or his designee; Steve Quickel, Facilities, or his designee; and Mike Brickner, Brevard County Sheriff's Office; authorized Robert Lay to enter into a contract with the most qualified vendor pursuant to the RFP; and authorized the Chairman to execute final agreement and renewal option, if any.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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The Board approved the billfolder, as submitted.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Eric Wicks, Attorney, stated he is representing his friend Brandon Tabatto, whom is present today; Mr. Tabatto was denied a Special Event Permit for a community tradition known as Merritt Island Terror Nights; and for the past five years, this haunted house has brought the Merritt Island community together, it has provided entertainment for families. He stated economic hardships have been discussed and all communities are facing, it is during a recession like this that lives become more difficult and as a result family entertainment has become a costly endeavor; the haunted house relies on donations; Mr. Tabatto does not charge an entrance fee; this provides families with the opportunities to share quality time together; and a percentage of the proceeds collected will go to noble causes, such as, the Riverview Fellowship Church of God and Brevard County Public Schools. He mentioned this is the first year Mr. Tabatto was asked to obtain a Special Event Permit, in which he complied, with all of the required necessities in order to obtain that permit; and he is providing the Board with some paperwork now to review; and he was contacted by Mr. Tabatto after he exhausted the appellate process of denial of the Special Event Permit. He stated Mr. Tabatto feels by approaching the Board today this will be the last and only chance to see that the Merritt Island Terror Nights continue; there were two reasons that were stated as a basis for the denial of the permit, which is parking and accessibility; he has provided the Board with documentation reflect a letter from a local church that will allow parking as well as local residents allowing parking on their lawns; and in addition to that, there will be documents showing what Mr. Tabatto has invested in this haunted house this year, as well as, his obtaining assurance in order to have this special event.
Mr. Tabatto stated he now has parking permission from eight of his neighbors and the Riverview Fellowship Church of God; the accessibility issue now has a traffic plan to help keep it at a minimum; the event is located at 1137 South Banana River Drive on Merritt Island; the guests will take South Banana River Drive south towards the event, in which they will park and visit the attraction, they will stay no longer than 15 to 20 minutes, there is a four-man parking crew with florescent vest and flashlights directing traffic further south, to take one of the many side streets and head west to New Found Harbor Drive, then heading north to the State Road 520 intersection for a complete exit; and it will keep traffic at a minimum and one-way. He noted this is an event that helps keep kids out of trouble and off of the streets; there is a great five-year track record; the economy in the condition that it is in, it is great to have a free event in the County, with no obligation to donate; and with donations given 20 percent will be given to the church and schools totaling 10 percent each. He added he has already worked with the Fire Marshal for inspections; there are fire extinguishers in place; there are no Code issues, he believes he has met every requirement with safety; and has resolved the parking and traffic issues.
Commissioner Nelson inquired if Sheriff Parker had the chance to review the parking proposal. Mr. Tabatto responded no, he has not. Commissioner Nelson stated Mr. Tabatto is a victim of his own success, it started out small and over the years it has got bigger and bigger, which is a good thing, but being in the back of a residential area, and the event takes place on three consecutive weekends, it not just one single event. He stated he had an opportunity to talk with Sheriff Parker and he inquired if there is any way Mr. Tabatto can come up with a plan to accommodate traffic and parking; and was told by a Lieutenant there is no way of doing it, but at that time the traffic and parking plans were not arranged; and due to the successfulness of the event another location needs to be found for next year, he suggested maybe next year Mr. Tabatto could work with the Parks and Recreation Department to help find a location, because as the event gets bigger, it creates a problem for neighborhoods. He stated Banana River Drive is abut 20 feet wide, it is a very quite residential area; and he thinks the real question is how to get past this year. Mr. Tabatto advised he has spoke to the Lieutenant who suggested attending this meeting to see if he could resolve this issue with the County; the traffic and parking plan has not been presented yet; but when he turned in the appeal to the County Manager's Office, he had a petition filled out by residents within 500 feet or more throughout the entire neighborhood stating they are fine with the event. Commissioner Nelson stated over the years he has been involved with putting on a number of events; one of the things that needs to worried about is the kids running around cars, it is not a good thing; there are no sidewalks and being able to get to the parking area safely is a concern to him; and he is willing to authorize fininishing out this year's event, but next year, it needs to be understood, it is not a good location to have this type of event. He stated he would love to see Mr. Tabatto be successful with the event, it is just not the place to have the event; and he inquired if is his Grandmother's property. Mr. Tabatto responded yes it is her property; and the event will be moved next year. Commissioner Nelson stated he is will to work with Mr. Tabatto to see if he can help locate another location for next year's event, because he does want to see it continue; and he thinks the event can make it through the weekend with the parking plan in place and coordinate with the Sheriff's Office; and his is willing to approve the permit to complete this year.
Howard Tipton, County Manager, stated he appreciates the support, he wants the Board to know as the appeals are looked at, with special events that go on, the County always tries to get to a yes, it is his first appeal in one year, and in his time here he has not had the Sheriff's Office so steadfast in their opposition to something and they were not supportive at all; and it is a very bit part of this discussion and if there is resolution to the problem, he is confident the event will be held safely, which is the key to Commissioner Nelson's concern.
Commissioner Fisher stated he thinks the commitment from the church was not in place until now.
The Board approved Special Event Permit for Merritt Island Terror Nights, as requested by Brandon Tabatto.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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PUBLIC HEARING, RE: AMENDING EMS ORDINANCE, CODE OF ORGDINANCES, CHAPTER 42, SECTION 88 - EMS ADVISORY COUNCIL, AND CREATE CHAPTER 42, SECTION 108 - LOCAL EMS GRANT; AND APPROVAL OF EMS TRUST AWARD GRANTS FOR 2010
Chairman Bolin called for the public hearing to amend EMS Ordinance, Code of Ordinance, Chapter 42, Section 88 - EMS Advisory Council, and create Chapter 42, Section 108 - Local EMS Grant; and approve EMS Trust Award Grants for 2010.
Larry Collins, Fire Rescue Director, stated the annually received Emergency Medical Services (EMS) grant, which is received annually in the State of Florida, is designed to be administered at the County level, with a competitive bid process; the Board may recall last year when this was brought before the Board, it is part of the process to eliminate the matching component that had been in place for a number of years, which the Board agreed upon, it was further agreed upon to bring the process back to the Board for an ordinance that would codify it; and Dennis Neterer, Assistant Fire Rescue Director has been working on the item and has a lot of the history if there should be a need for questions.
Commissioner Infantini inquired if the benefits and disadvantages could be explained to her by removing the matching process. Mr. Neterer responded the obvious benefit would be to the local EMS providers who are now are not going to be required to come up with their own funding during these tough times; the money comes from the State of Florida, without any match, so at the local level, staff feels it is appropriate to invest through a grant process without any requirement.
There being no further comments or objections, the Board adopted Ordinance No. 10-21, amended Chapter 42, Section 88 - EMS Advisory Council and created Chapter 42, Section 108 - Local EMS Grant to clarify intent; to eliminate local match requirement for EMS local grand awards; to clarify the process for grant awards; providing an effective date; and providing for inclusion in the Code of Ordinances of Brevard County, Florida.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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PUBLIC HEARING, RE: PETITION TO VACATE PUBLIC UTILITY AND DRAINAGE EASEMENT ON PLUTO AVENUE, PORT ST. JOHN, UNIT 7 - DANIEL R. HERLINGER
Chairman Bolin called for the public hearing for petition to vacate public utility and drainage easement on Pluto Avenue, Port St. John, Unit 7, petitioned by Daniel R. Herlinger.
John Denninhoff, Public Works Director, stated this vacating petition for an easement on a lot in Port St. John; there have been no objections received; and staff has no problems with it.
There being no further comments or objections, the Board adopted Resolution No. 10-226, vacating a public utility and drainage easement on Pluto Avenue, Port St. John, Unit 7 petitioned by Daniel R. Herlinger.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Chairman Bolin called for the public hearing to amend Chapter 94, Brevard County Code, Solid Waste.
Euripides Rodriguez, Solid Waste Management Director, stated on August 26, 2010, he came to the Board with Legislative Intent, to do some minor changes to Chapter 94, it will not change any level of services required to come up with the information for the disposal charges for individual calculation; and he is trying to codify it. He stated there are no problems right now, but in the future it is needed so there are no future issues.
Commissioner Anderson inquired this if this is basically telling him, that if he ripped a room out his home, he is responsible for getting that material to the landfill. Mr. Rodriguez responded, that is correct. Commissioner Anderson stated it is currently being picked up by Waste Management as part of regular services; and he inquired if he is correct. Mr. Rodriguez responded no it does not; under their contract they are in no obligation to pick it up, it does happens where small stuff is picked up, but normally stuff that fits inside of a bag will be picked up, because the bag is not opened to see what is inside to be picked up. Commissioner Anderson stated his concern is there is an expectation right now in unincorporated areas that if a person puts a piece of plywood out, it currently gets picked up. Mr. Rodriguez responded yes it does. Commissioner Anderson stated if that is going to be shut down on the residents, he inquired how is it going to be communicated to them, because the residents think they are paying a fee for that service, because it wasn't put into the contract, it is not the residents fault that they can no longer do weekend projects and have their debris hauled off; and he can already tell where this is going to go, he is going to get calls from constituents telling him their services were taken away, that was being provided without a reduction in fees. Mr. Rodriguez advised if the Board feels uncomfortable about that portion, it can be pulled out, he feels his most important just of this is to be able in the future to enforce people giving him information of disposal fees. Commissioner Anderson stated he understands and he would hate for a person to put a piece of paneling up and it just sits out there because now the contract is codified. Mr. Rodriguez mentioned generally it is taken into consideration, it is picked up, but if the Board does not feel comfortable with it, that portion can be taken out; and the most important part of this for him, is the flow of information in the future. Commissioner Anderson stated he is fine with it; he was just looking for a way to not penalize the customers.
Commissioner Infantini stated she has the same concerns, Section 1, Paragraph B, does eliminate the opportunity, before people break up debris and place it into a garbage can, as long as it does not exceed 50 pounds; she does see it being struck through; she would like to have the strike through removed, because she does understand that a garbage bag will not be opened and are not wanted to be used as much, but in so many areas there are garbage cans which the debris can be seen; and she does not want cans not emptied because a little piece of drywall is seen and the can is not emptied; and she would like to have that portion struck through and then she will be fine with the ordinance.
Commissioner Fisher stated in part of the report it says align the Code to mirror the current contract Waste Management; he inquire if County is relying on the Code to mirror Waste Management or negotiate the contract to meet County Code. Mr. Rodriguez responded no, the contract right now says Waste Management is under no obligation to pick up construction and demolition, it is realized that it is picked up in certain small incidences, with no issues; and there have been no issues in the past and he does not expect it to be an issue in the future. Commissioner Fisher inquired if there is a Code that say that Waste Management will pick it up; and what does it mean to align the Code to meet the current contract. Mr. Rodriguez responded if the contract says that Waste Management is under no obligation to pick it up; specifically they do not have to pick it up; the Code says if it is a basic small project, it can be picked up, which means there is a conflict in paper; and in reality what happens is Waste Management goes out and actually picks up those small projects, so in reality there is no conflict, but in paper there is conflict. Commissioner Fisher inquired if a conflict is now being created and if the systems is working well currently. Mr. Rodriguez responded the system is currently working fine.
Mel Scott, Assistant County Manager, stated this is intended to be a clean up Code, as apposed to being a academic exercise so that the real world experience the homeowner has as their residence is perfectly lined up with what the contract and Code says; there is a conflict now in this Code, which needs to be cleaned up, to align the Code to what the contract is; but the real life experience at the curb-side is if there is a small amount of debris it will be picked up, but debris from an addition to a home, under the contract it say Waste Management is under no obligation to clean up that debris and the Code will mirror the contract, to align the two. He stated what Mr. Rodriguez is telling the Board is the experience for the homeowner will not change.
Commissioner Fisher stated he is still confused; the Code says that they do not have to pick up the debris. Mr. Scott advised it is the other way around. Commissioner Fisher stated the Code says they do and the contract says they do not have to; and at this time they are currently picking it up. Mr. Scott responded that is correct. Commissioner Fisher stated is it done on Waste Managements own discretion of what is too much. Mr. Scott responded that is correct. Commissioner Fisher stated if the modification is done, it is giving Waste Management more of a chance to not pick anything up. Mr. Scott stated that point could be argued. Commissioner Fisher stated he is inclined to leave it as it is, because it seems to be working.
Commissioner Infantini stated she did say she was okay with it as it is, but there is another strike through that states currently on or before September 15th, to hold public hearing and set a budget for Solid Waste Management, with a rate resolution to incorporate a schedule of the annual collection and recycling program assessments, which is strickened; and she does not want it to be, she would like it to be known in the public hearing process. She stated this year the Board has received a tremendous amount of information from residents in public hearing and she would like to remove that strike through of the County no longer publishing the rate schedule prior to September 15th; and she thinks it needs to remain in place.
Mr. Rodriguez stated it was stricken through from the County Attorney's Office, he believes the intent was to align all the assessments to read the same.
Scott Knox, County Attorney, stated Mr. Rodriguez is correct; there does not want to be a conflict in one set of rules versus another set of rules; the State law governing assessments does not require this public hearing if the Board is not changing the rate.
Commissioner Nelson stated he thinks it should be left as is at this time; and it can be clean it up when there is a new contract.
Commissioner Infantini stated the problem she has with changing the rate schedule is right now it is publicized before and during all of the budget discussion; the new wording says the Board can pass through a public hearing just like regular meeting as this one; the Board could change the rates at any regularly scheduled meeting, as long as it was property noticed; she does not think that the public is always paying attention to all of the small changes on the Agenda's, as much as they are at budget times; she would like to leave it the same, she does realize it is conflict with other fees that may be assessed, but this one really helps highlight it and bring it to the publics attention if the Board decides to raise the rates the public will be well informed.
Commissioner Anderson stated it seems the consensus is to not make any changes to the ordinance at this time.
There being no further comments or objections, the Board took no formal action to approve revisions to Chapter 94 amending Solid Waste regulations governing disposal of Solid Waste from residential and commercial properties.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
SECONDER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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RESOLUTION, RE: AUTHORIZE AND ASSIST UNIVERSAL ASSISTANCE GROUP INITIATIVE TO PROVIDE U.S. VETERANS HOUSING, VOCATIONAL TRAINING, AND JOB PLACEMENT
Ian Golden, Housing and Human Services Director, stated at the Board's last meeting the Universal Assistance Group (UAG) came before the Board asking for support through a resolution; the Board requested UAG go back and meet with some community groups, he is sure UAG can speak of the groups it met with, but the Board also asked UAG to met with Glen McGuffie, Veterans Services Team Manager. He stated the proposal is a good idea; the items that UAG is looking to do for veterans are needed in the community; the concern is there is not a lot of experience from the UAG themselves who were registered with the State in mid September and as far as he knows UAG has not done any housing yet, which is one of the items they are looking to do, he is urging caution to the Board when making recommendations to UAG, because they need to do some more work in the community and with the Veterans groups that are out there, to get some more experience; and then come back to the Board.
Jason Jones, Universal Assistance Group, stated the UAG Corporation itself was founded in 2006; UAG is just a sub corporation of a larger corporation; there are two letters he would like to provide the Board with; one, from the supervisor at the Vocational Rehabilitation Office, who UAG currently have a contract with since 2006 that show provided services for individuals with disabilities; two, from Paul Whitmore, Veterans Transitional Facility.
Chairman Bolin inquired if this letter has experience in housing. Mr. Jones responded it just the vocational training. Chairman Bolin stated so this is a letter of experience and training not housing. Mr. Jones replied that is correct; training and employment services in the jobs that UAG were able to get for people with disabilities in the community.
Commissioner Infantini stated she is not sure what all the resistance is about; she has not really seen the Board provide so much resistance to an organization that is not asking for any money, only a letter of support, and she is a little bit baffled because she has seen what UAG has done in the community in Palm Bay, it is outstanding; she has seen where the Board has awarded excessive sums of money from Housing and Human Services, to developers, to bail out projects, and UAG is not asking for any money; and at this time she would like to make a motion that we accept and give a resolution of support, which is all she believes UAG is asking for. She advised she thinks UAG has a good track record in the community in the past; and she wants to see it move forward.
Mr. Jones stated this request is similar to the projects in Palm Bay; there were never any State or city funding received, for the project that UAG built, it had over 300 riders at our BMX facility in Palm Bay with many coming from across the State; the very next weekend the American Bicycle Association held a large National, which is was one of their biggest races; and took kids over there and came home with two National trophies from riders in Brevard County. He stated he will provide whatever information the Board may need.
Commissioner Infantini inquired if prior to doing the BMX Park have there been other parks in the past. Mr. Jones responded no. Commissioner Infantini stated it was your first event. Mr. Jones responded yes. Commissioner Infantini stated she wanted to show the Board, that sometimes first time people can really do an excellent job, because they do extra homework to make sure they are a success, rather than getting into something, and getting over their head, and being a failure.
Mr. Jones stated the housing component is something new that UAG wants to do; however, the vocational training, the employment services programs, and with his prior experience in residential treatment, he feels strongly that he has a background that could support a program to run any type of residential treatment type program.
Chairman Bolin stated she acknowledges Commissioner Infantini motion.
Commissioner Fisher inquired why a resolution is needed from the Board.
Scott Rickard, Universal Assistance Group, responded the reason UAG is asking for the resolution is, to get an endorsement from local elected officials and as citizens of Brevard County, it will be for the betterment of all of citizens in Brevard County, and the endorsements will show it as a plan and it will look good; and it is needed in the community. He stated he thinks if this is done in Brevard County, it will raise capital, he has spoken with Congressman Bill Posey's office, to have a meeting, UAG was planning to be in Tallahassee this week, but decided to cancel that trip and meet with the Board today. He stated UAG's goal is to be apart of the community and work with the community, to help better the Vietnam Veterans of Brevard (VVB) and the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans help with vocational rehabilitation.
Commissioner Fisher stated all of that great work can be done without having the Brevard County Commission involved, unless there is a benefit of having it involved. Mr. Rickard mentioned the benefit of having the County involved is, it is an endorsement from the local community, as well as local government organizations. Commissioner Fisher inquired what value it serves. Mr. Rickard responded UAG would like an endorsement just like the Airboat Association received. Commissioner Fisher stated those type of resolutions are feel good resolutions, but he inquired what the value of the service is. Mr. Rickard responded the importance is, it shows validation as a citizen of this County that UAG is trying to move forward with something to help the Veterans of Brevard County; and UAG is not planning to only do this within Brevard County, but in the next level of the State and Federal levels. Commissioner Fisher inquired if there is some financial gain with this. Mr. Rickard responded no, it is for the Veterans. Commissioner Fisher stated he knows of a question that came out from some of the people UAG talked with was it disclosed some investors and other people that are involved, and that was something that UAG did not want to share. Mr. Rickard advised this is basically a service that will be privately funded, to provide similar services that Community Housing Development Organization (CHODO) provides; it provides similar services that Section Eight provides; and it provides similar services that Veterans Service Center (VSC) provides, without public funding. Commissioner Fisher inquired if there is Federal funding. Mr. Rickard responded no, it is charitable based without public funding; and are not going after Federal funding. Commissioner Fisher advised there are no Federal or State dollars involved.
Mr. Jones noted it is the same concept, he used to build the facility in Palm Bay with.
Mr. Rickard advised UAG will be using organizations like Economic Development Commission (EDC) at the State level and at the Federal level, to provide services for the citizens here in Brevard County, State, and country; and as he mentioned to the Board the last time UAG met with the Board, UAG was floored that there is one facility in the country that takes Veterans with their families, it took 20 years to get that facility to be put in place, which was done by Floyd Marco and Bill Vionos; UAG has spoken in detail to the Veterans State Coalition, two weeks ago; UAG has met with the entire State Coalition of the Veterans and has spoken with George Taylor, whom was very supportive of what UAG is trying; and he thinks UAG has the buy in from the people whom he has spoken about; and it was just miscommunication, He stated UAG has been dealing mostly with the Veterans Transition Facility (VTF), because UAG felt that VTF was benchmarked in the country of what is going on; and VTF has a 65 percent success rate; and in 20 years have had no incidents.
Commissioner Fisher stated he has spoken with Mr. Taylor; and he inquired why it is not being supported. Mr. Golden responded it is not that the idea of the services is not supported, it is due to the lack of experience found through discussions with Mr. McGuffie; there is a CHODOS process that any agency has to go through, to come and get that designation, with UAG's board make-up being looked at in experience of its board members, the financials, the experience doing similar projects before it can get that designation; and similarly, when funding is given out for housing projects, it is part of an Request for Proposals (RFP) process; and where all those named items are addressed and reviewed by the Affordable Housing Council prior to coming to this Board for funding recommendations. He stated the ideas is supported and there is a need for these services in the Veterans community, but there is not enough about UAG itself; and it is not that is no supportive there just needs to be more learned about UAG.
Commissioner Fisher inquired if UAG provided any of that type of information to CHODO. Mr.
Rickard responded he has not been asked for that information, he met with Mr. McGuffie, and he thought the meeting went well, he told Mr. McGuffie if he has any questions, to please follow up with him; and he has not heard of any questions from Mr. McGuffie.
Mr. McGuffie stated he did meet with UAG and he thinks he fairly reported in his report that the Board UAG has were a pain during that meeting; after having sat here and listening to UAG tell of needed services in the community, he still stands by his report, and he urged that there needs to be more experience gained by UAG in the local veterans reintegration community, for him to be able to make a firm recommendation to this Board, as he does not know enough about UAG, at this point in time. He stated he is supportive of any additions in the community that will help Veterans.
Commissioner Anderson stated the thing that he is confused about is UAG, is not asking for any public funding; and he inquired why CHODOS has to be worried about, because they are not asking for public money and UAG can ask him for money; and it is not a requirement of a private investor to have those recommendations, or is it. Mr. Golden responded Commissioner Anderson is correct, UAG is not asking for public funding, they are the ones who brought up the similarity to CHODOS, which is why he wanted to provide the Board with a little background on CHODOS, but for staff's position the Board is basically endorsing an agency, if it provides support; and for staff to be able to recommend an agency for endorsement, he needed more information.
Mr. Jones stated he met with the local Vocational Rehabilitation Office (VRO) yesterday, in Cocoa; VRO has gone to Tallahassee, to ask for assistance for providers for employment services, because there are not enough services in the North end of the County; he does not understand why he has to explain all the things that UAG is doing, he has a letter from the VRO; UAG's financials are public record, if any one should want to see what UAG has done revenue wise through the Department of Education Vocation Rehabilitation Services that are provide; and UAG provides an outstanding service and the records speak for themselves. He stated he would like the support of the; but if he cannot have it, it is fine, and UAG will continue to move forward.
Commissioner Nelson stated he thinks one of the things that has struck him was, it says to endorse a plan, and it sounds like there is something that is already in place; and he is suggesting to endorse an initiative, which is a little bit early in the process to say that UAG is going to work with the County, because everything else then tracks fine, because it says UAG is going to work with the local Veterans groups, but when it says endorse a plan, it sounds like there is something in place, and he has not seen a plan, but if you are asking the Board to endorse a plan, that is a document that says what UAG is going to do specifically; and some of our Veterans groups may not agree with because it they have not seen it either.
Mr. Jones stated under the Vocational Rehabilitation Contract, it is their choice to work with an agency, it is not something that any one is going to be forced to do, and UAG will provide a quality service; and it is the choice of the individual if he or she would want to work with UAG or not.
Commissioner Nelson stated he would be comfortable with endorsing an initiative to develop, because that is moving it forward, and it says that UAG are going to continue to work and come up with a plan so the Board will have the opportunity to review it and have comments.
Commission Fisher stated he agrees with Commissioner Nelson and if it stated to support a local transitional and permanent housing for vocational rehabilitation and it not say endorse a plan, and have it say to support local transitional and permanent housing, and when it gets towards the bottom, it cam be reviewed by the Commissioners and the State of Florida to support a plan, and to improve the work supported in there, because there is no plan in place right now, but it is supported by the local transition and permanent housing vocational rehabilitation and employment services in Brevard County; and the Board can then support it, but we are not endorsing it.
Commissioner Infantini stated she amends her motion to say what Commissioner Fisher said.
The Board reached consensus to support the Universal Assistance Group's initiative to provide U.S. Veterans housing, vocational training, and job placement in Brevard County.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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AUTHORIZE PUBLIC HEARING, RE: CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION, EFFECTIVE UPON COURT APPROVAL, TO INCREASE THE WATER RATES OF SAN SEBASTIAN WATER, LLC
Richard Martens, Utility Services Director, stated at the beginning of the summer, he was notified that a small privately owned water utility company, in Micco is abandoning their facility and service to their customers for financial reasons; the Circuit Court appointed the County, as a receiver of the system to address this issue, the Board authorized a loan from utilities reserves, to provide emergency funding to pay the bills, and keep the system operating; and instructed him to proceed, to see if another private owner could be found, to take over the ownership of that system; the details are included in the report that is attached to the Agenda Report; but basically the underlying financial problems of the system still exist. He stated the revenues are about 50 percent of what normal expenses are; repairs to the system are still in the works, and addressing some of the regulatory issues that happened during the failure of the private system; his attempts to locate a new owner have been marginally successful, the response from a number of the operators of these small private utilities around Central Florida, and it now is down to one interested company; and their primary concern today is with the reaction he had from a number of utility operators, is that this is a very difficult and financial condition for this utility and no one is really interested in stepping up, to assume the ownership operation and responsibilities of this system, if in fact, it continues to lose $2 for every dollar of income or spend $2 for every $1 of income that comes in. He stated the Public Service Commission has on their own volition exempted this utility from Public Service Commission regulation until such time, it is again owned by a investor owned or private ownership, and that status situation is up to the Board of County Commissioners, to establish what the appropriate rates, fees, and charges might be for this system as the receiver; and with the concurrence of the Court with everyone is looking to the County to what is necessary to manage the system. He stated the item for the Board today is to advertise for a public hearing for November 23, 2010 where the Board would consider raising the rates of this 50 customer water system, which will do two things; one, it will allow the income to approximate the expenses; and two, to improve the marketability of this system; and he is hopeful and optimistic, that with the rate increase in place the Board might come back with an offer this year or early next year with some type of agreement to transfer ownership. He mentioned he and Commissioner Infantini met with about 40 percent of the customers using the system, in the beginning of the summer at an evening meeting at the South County Community Center; the customers are aware that this is coming, they knew that the system had failed because those revenue dollars are about half the expenses and if the system was going to continue that revenue needed to double; and the interesting fact is, there are about 100 houses in the effected subdivision, 50 of them are water customers, 50 of them are not, and one time there was a Homeowners Association with a requirement that everyone connect to the water system; and if there were double the number of customers this revenue would be real close; and he thinks it probably would not be in this situation.
The Board as the court-appointed receiver for the San Sebastian Water, LLC water system, authorized a public hearing on November 23, 2010, to consider adoption of a resolution, to be effective upon court approval, to increase the water rates of the San Sebastian Water, LLC in order to support continuing operations and facilitate the transfer of the system to a new private sector owner-operator.
Commissioner Infantini stated she would like to thank Mr. Martens, for all of his effort that he has done, to make sure that water stayed flowing to the residents of this community; and she is sorry that rates had to be doubled, to get there.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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CONTRACT FOR SALE AND PURCHASE WITH SALEM ROCKLEDGE, LLC, AND WAIVE PHASE I ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND SURVEY REQUIREMENTS, RE: BARNES BOULEVARD WIDENING PROJECT
John Denninghoff, Public Works Director, stated this is a contract for sale and purchase with a piece of property for the Barnes Boulevard widening project, it is a piece that has been negotiated for a very long time, as the property was up for sale, and the previous owner did not want to negotiate; a subsequent purchaser was not interested in negotiating with the County until they had actually acquired it. He stated the nuts and bolts to this agreement as it is presented to the Board for consideration, is to purchase the property at appraised value, plus approximately $7,150; and the purpose of the $7,150 is to cover the costs of the installation of a PVC fence; this is a assisted living facility; and the concern is with what will become their neighbor is a retention pond, which can be a problem for some of the assisted living patrons; and are asking in effect, to provide the fence form them. He stated the basic cost for such a project if it were to go to eminent domain for the acquisition would be far in excess of $7,150.
The Board authorized the Chairman to sign the Contract for Sale and Purchase between Brevard County and Salem Rockledge, LLC; and approved waiving the Phase I Environmental Assessment and survey requirements for the Barnes Boulevard Widening Project.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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PERMISSION TO AWARD TO LOW BIDDER, OR PURCHASE USING AN EXISTING STATE OR OTHER FLORIDA GOVERNMENTAL CONTRACT, RE: HEAVY EQUIPMENT BUDGETED FOR PURCHASE IN FY 10/11, VALUED AT $1,004,323
Euripides Rodriguez, Solid Waste Management Director, stated at the last Board meeting the Board authorized him with permission to rebuild certain parts of his equipment and this is rest of the list that was approved during the budget process; he is seeking authorization to go out for bid; and all maintenance history will be reviewed.
The Board granted permission to award to low bidder, or purchase using an existing State or other Florida governmental contract, the heavy equipment budgeted for purchase in FY 2010-2011, consisting of one compactor (four years old), one front end loader (six years old), and one roll off truck (seventeen years old) (approved budgeted item added to substitute roll off trailer and increase efficiency).
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
.
Commissioner Infantini inquired if this offer is available to all State Representatives; she thinks some of them are in non-county subsidized housing; and she is in favor of this, she just wants to make sure it is available to all of the elected officials. Stockton Whitten, Assistant County Manager, responded the County does not offer, it waits for them to ask.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-228, and executed Lease Agreement, allowing the non-competitive lease of County property, office space in the Brevard County Government Complex North, to State Representative Elect Tom Goodson.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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Commissioner Nelson stated he will go ahead and move the item, because there have been terrible problems with those stretchers resulting injuries to the employees, as well as potential injuries to those being transported.
Commissioner Infantini stated her concern is the useful life is only two years; the research that she was able to find indicated this is useful when there are two-man crews, and right now she thinks there are three-man crews; and she was not sure if this is trying obsolescence of the three-man crew. She stated she also found these can be purchased with State grants; she knows those grants are extremely competitive and they have not awarded the grants yet; and she does not know if this is a time sensitive issue and perhaps seeks grant funding rather than moving forward on purchasing these right now, because the County has done without these types of lifts and are back saving lifts for the Firefighters; but at the same time, the ones that she seen awarded were mainly awarded $8,000 per unit; and she would rather wait for grant funding and hold off on this for a few months.
Larry Collins, Fire Rescue Director, stated he is not totally aware of grant funding being available for this, he can tell the Board there was a study done from October 2009 to June 2010, in terms of injuries to the personnel there have been 33 injuries associated with the manual-lift cots; this is really important to the health and well being of the personnel; there are liability issues attached to patients who unfortunately are dropped, and he will let Scott Knox, County Attorney deal with those issues; and Fire Rescue is trying to keep its personnel healthy, it is an important item for Fire Rescue today, to move forward, and these items are budgeted. He mention two people have always been ran on the rescues and he does not know where the third person came from, it may be a first responded vehicle goes with them only in certain instances; in other instances the crew themselves must deal with the patient; and one additional area experienced nationwide is the patients are getting larger, it is getting more difficult for staff to stay healthy and deal with larger and larger patients. He stated the company that provides Marchman and Baker Acts have a special unit to deal with large patients.
Howard Tipton, County Manager, stated he thinks the warranty was for two years, and then purchase additional labor to support the stretchers; and he thinks the useful life is five to seven years.
Commissioner Infantini stated she did notice there was an extended warranty, with an additional five year extended warranty that can be purchased, and she thinks that is a good ides; she does want the grant funding to be pursued, because she thinks Apopka received $8,000 a piece for 20 units, another municipality in Florida received $8,000 a piece for 38 units, which is a lot of funding; and now it is budgeting to spend $13,000 a piece; and she would rather spend grant money to purchase these. She stated if this is not rushed into, she can Lori Helton contact her with information she found.
Mr. Collins stated his preference is to move forward with the item.
Commissioner Nelson stated if it a loved one of Commissioner Infantini's own maybe she would feel differently about it; he thinks the Board needs to move forward; and does not mean not to look into grant opportunities and delaying this is putting the Firefighters and citizens at risk further than it needs to be.
The Board approved to standardize the Stryker Stretcher products; and approved award of the purchase of 38 Stryker Stretchers to the lowest qualified bidder, in an amount not to exceed the FY 2010-2011 budgeted amount of $500,000.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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RESOLUTIONS, RE: ENVIRONMENTALLY ENDANGERED LANDS PROGRAM (EEL) SANCTUARY MANAGEMENT MANUAL REVISIONS
Suzanne Valencia stated on October 20, 2009 the Board gave direction to Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) staff to make some changes to the qualification for applicants for the Selection of Management Committee; on November 10, 2009 there was a lot of discussion about the possibility of adding someone from the Tourist Development Commission (TDC) to the Recreation and Education Advisory Committee (REAC), which created a lot of confusion for the EEL staff, because there was no clear direction for staff; the EEL Program has been very success for the past 20 years and Brevard County is a poster-child for land conservation in the State, because it is science based; and she has read the proposed changes and she is totally in favor of it, because science based people need to be on the Selection of Management committee.
Doug Sphar stated while preparing to speak for this item, he went to Brevard County's website to review the item, and there were no ELL's material listed, it makes it hard for a citizen to prepare if some of the materials are not on the website. He stated he is the Chair of REAC, he supports the proposal to add the TDC, as a voting member of REAC; the EEL properties are a key component of Brevard's increasingly important echo tourism industry; the TDC will make an important contribution to REAC, as it works with the Selection and Management committee and EEL staff, to involve recreation and educational strategies for the various EEL properties; REAC recently visited the Jordan Scrub Sanctuary and have plans to visit Fox Lake Park; and REAC will have discussions about those properties, which will be helpful of how to best use those properties for education and recreation purposes. He stated he would like for the Board to approve the TDC to have voting membership on the REAC.
Kim Zarillo stated she supports the proposed language, she is the only person that serves on the Selection and Management Committee and the Program Procedures Committee; there are three different committees consisting of 21 people going through all the language changes is time consuming; and she appreciates what is being done and she hopes the Board does too. She stated she thinks it was already in place to have non-voting participation, by some of these important outside organizations for tourism and economic development; adding a person to a committee may not get the results that the Board is looking for, it is always great to have another mind-at-the-table, but maybe there should be thoughts of the bigger picture with the economic conditions in Brevard County, and she thinks maybe there should be some kind of charrette with the EDC, TDC, and their marketing committee or a subcommittee and the REAC; and she would like to open that idea up to think about at some future date because everyone is concerned about the economic condition. She stated the sanctuaries that are in place are basically helping the County in tourism; and if the Board would look at the visitor statistics at some of the education centers because in some areas there is access, but no ticket taker.
Michael Knight, Environmentally Endangered Lands Program Manager, stated on October 20, 2009 is when direction was provided from the Board, to staff, to broaden the criteria for the Selection and Management Committee to include a TDC member for echo tourism; following the October 20, 2009 meeting on November 10, 2009; there was significant discussion by the Board about the concept of placing that position on the REAC committee, but there was no written direction given at that time, as to how to proceed in which direction REAC should wrestle with; and it was quite an undertaking for the committees to decide which direction to take. He stated this was brought before the Program Procedures Committee and the Selection Management Committee by staff, as per Board Policy those recommendations have to come to the Board by those committees, it cannot come from staff, and it has to be recommended and approved by those committees before moving forward. He stated the committees are recommending the replacement of TDC appointee on the REAC committee along with some additional recommendations to revise and clarify the Selection Management Committee membership selection process and criteria, as the Board has requested; and the recommendations are before the Board today for recommendation.
Commissioner Fisher stated he remembers the Board having a long discussion on this; the REAC is an advisory board and they do not have any power. Mr. Knight stated REAC is advisory to the Selection Management Committee. Commissioner Fisher inquired if the Selection Management Committee where is the major decisions are being made. Mr. Knight responded that is correct; the recommendations coming to the Board would be from the Selection and Management Committee and the Program Procedures Committee. Commissioner Fisher stated it was his concern of where the recommendations were really coming from towards the Board; and by putting someone one the TDC or REAC does not give diversity amongst that groups, which is really what is important; and the views the EEL's properties as part of the overall long-term economic development and echo tourism; and the direction Brevard County needs to go in with EEL's in some areas of some properties and that diversity was not going to be there if they are not in the voting capacity. He stated he thinks that was the direction given to Mr. Knight to come back to the Board; and he inquired if that is in place. Mr. Knight responded that is correct from the direction given on November 10, 2009 about TDC; there was a lot of confusion of what direction the Board was interested in going. Commissioner Fisher stated he still feels the way he did, he has told EEL's before that the mindset needs to move; EDC, TDC, and EEL have to be at the same table with recommendations and power to make some difference in the echo tourism community; and if somebody from EDC or TDC does not get the same amount of power as the Selection and Management Committee to have a vote in it, that one vote will probably not make the decision, but will give input in those conversations. He stated he is still supportive of having individuals from the EDC and TDC be a part of the Selection and Management Committee and not on REAC.
Commissioner Anderson stated he has had several discussions about REAC, but he thinks the Board direction was to try to get somebody on the Selection and Management Committee; and he is inquired if Mr. Knight recalls it to be that way. Mr. Knight responded during November 10, 2009 there was discussion about placing TDC on REAC, but there was not any discussion about doing one or the other and it was not really clear. Commissioner Anderson stated it was a long discussion; he thinks the intent by a couple of Board members was to get some additional insight on the Selection and Management Committee; and it certainly was discussed, but maybe the direction was not as clear and he would have to look at the minutes.
Commissioner Infantini stated the next item addressing this item, if the wording could be changed, because it looks like instead of being more flexible with the Selection and Management Committee, it looks like it will be more restrictive; and at Florida Technical Institute the English Department is working on recreating the Selection and Management Committee Manual, because it has been written up in prior audits as being not really user friendly, it was well thought out, but not well organized, and they are working on restructuring it; and she suggested tabling the items until the recommendation is to change the language to incorporate a member from the EDC and the TDC on the Selection and Management Committee. She stated like Commissioner Fisher was saying it will help give diversity rather than looking at just the science where it needs environment and the community needs for economic development.
Commissioner Fisher stated it stated before in the language that it did tighten things up and then all of the sudden all EEL Selection and Management Committee Members came out of their shell and it became an all; there has to be a minimum of six years of environmental science, it just seems like the Board made things tighter; and he inquired if he is correct. Mr. Knight responded there were a couple of criteria that he would characterize as being relaxed in a couple of the items that were actually removed and there were some areas that were further clarified, he thinks what happened is the committees chose to treat these two issues separately choosing EDC with REAC because EDC has dealt with the criteria membership in a different light. Commissioner Fisher stated he thinks it actually tightened it up and it was not the purpose of what the Board was trying to do at all, it sounds like the Selection and Management Committee did opposite of what the Board directed it to do.
Commissioner Nelson stated he is curious because he does not remember asking FIT to do anything for the Board; and he inquired if the Board asked FIT to take one of the County's documents. Mr. Knight responded the committees had quite a bit of discussion with Program Procedures Committee about the idea of reformatting the manual as Commissioner Infantini stated to make it a little bit more user friendly for the average person to read and understand the process along the way; there was a thought process that it approach FIT's Technical Writing Group to see if there might be any opportunities available since there is no funding to facilitate a project; an interest has been expressed, it looks like it will be primarily facilitated through the students; and it is a matter of finding a student interest in that type of particular project. Commissioner Nelson stated he still has some concerns with putting non-technical people on the Selection and Management Committee because he really does believe the original intent was to have this almost a balance of review done by the scientist, with the recreational use, and the procedures to be separated so that there is diversity, he thinks the difficultly is having non-technical folks making the acquisition decisions, and if he was on the EDC what value is there to buy environmental property, he does not see how EDC fits into the decision process because EDC may not care if it is scrub habitat or wetlands; and he does not get the connection between that process, he thinks once a site has been identified, the uses can be looked as to what can be and should be based on the environment. He stated he is still not supportive of expanding the Selection and Management Committee to non-members who do not have expertise in certain areas.
Commissioner Infantini stated she would like to clarify the way FIT ended up receiving this had nothing to do with her; a member on the Program Procedures Committee ran into Dr. Catanese, FIT President when he was jogging one day, a suggestion was made, and Dr. Catanese said there just may be some people who can help. She stated 20 years ago EEL's had a mission which has been met, but now she thinks the mission needs to be redirected; there are people on the TDC that can help the County maximize the lands that it has or any potential future acquisitions, which she doubts will be many; she thinks it is a good time now for science to meet the echo traffic potential; and she agrees with Commissioner Nelson of the need for diversity at this point, it is not as much of a science base now, it is how can the lands be maximized to meet the populations coming in.
Commissioner Fisher stated if there are 10 people in a room and they all thought alike scientifically, some of the creativity and diversity can be lost of what can come out of that group, he thinks he has supported these EEL's purchases enough that have come before the Board; and this one he has a conflict with because he believes part of the Board's responsibility as taking these properties off the tax rolls is to get the maximum best use for them so the taxpayers can enjoy them and benefit from them, he does not believe when there are 10 scientists in the room with the first thought of it having an environmental impact and that is the reason why it needs to be bought; but he wants somebody in that room that has a way to create some activities and open it up to the public for use.
Chairman Bolin inquired if the Selection and Management Committee is the group that makes the decision of the land use. Mr. Knight responded the way the process is currently set up is the Selection and Management Committee reviews, approves, and moves the approval of the Management Plan forward to the Board for modifications to the Management Plans, it may deal with things related to research, cooperative partnerships with other agencies; and primarily it looks at the sites ecological health and the decisions surrounding the management of it; and he noted when a Management Plan is being approved there is a process where the REAC reviews the recreation plan that is proposed by staff. He stated there has not been a situation where the REAC has recommended something to the Selection and Management Committee that has not been approved; there has been a few back and forth discussions of opinions that is moved back and forth between the committees; by time the board gets to review it, it has a plan that the committees support; and there has always been support from the Selection and Management Committee for any recommendations coming from REAC.
Commissioner Fisher stated he does not know how this is done because it did not come back with the recommendation; he does not know if this should be pulled and gone back to the Selection and Management Committee; his recommendation would be to have somebody from the EDC and TDC on the Selection and Management Committee and REAC.
The Board tabled consideration of resolutions revising the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program (EEL) Sanctuary Management Manual (SMM) and the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program Recreation and Education Advisory committee (REAC) membership, as approved and recommend by the EEL Program Procedures Committee (PPC) and the Selection and Management Committee (SMC), to a future Board meeting; and directed staff to add someone from the Tourism Development Council (TDC) or Economic Development Commission (EDC) to the Selection and Management Committee (SMM) and Recreation and Education Advisory Committee (REAC).
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
.
The Board tabled consideration of resolution revising the Land Acquisition Manual (LAM) of the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program (EEL) related to Selection and Management Committee membership criteria, as approved and recommended by the EEL Procedures committee and Selection and Management Committee, to a future Board meeting.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Trudie Infantini, Commissioner District 3
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
.
The Board approved and authorized the County Manager or his designee to execute agreements with the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration's Low Income Pool, upon approval of the County Attorney and Risk Management; accepted a cash donation; and approved an increase of $115,422 in the Housing and Human Services Departments General Fund transfer for the required Low Income Pool match.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
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SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT RELATING TO FLORIDA GAS TRANSMISSION, INC. V. BREVARD COUNTY, CASE 05-2010-CA-050547-XXXX-XX
Scott Knox, County Attorney, stated this is the Florida Gas Transmission, Inc. versus Brevard County case, in which the County has property which is being condemned by the gas company; there have been discussions about settling the case for about two weeks; there is an order of taking coming up in early November; and there have been agreement points reached, which are set forth in the Agenda Item that consist of six, however he does not have the finalized agreement yet; and today he is asking for the Board to approve authorization of the Chairman to sign an agreement that recognizes and incorporates the six bullet points, once it is prepared, he is hopeful to have it back to the Board on Thursday; and if that is not possible, there needs to be authorization for the Chairman to sign it, because it void the order of taking that is set for early November. He stated Mr. Decatur is present today from The Viera Company whom is part of this lawsuit as well, they are participating in the settlement agreement by contributing to the cost of relocating the pipe, which is conflicting with the alignment of the roadway that is going to constructed in the future; and John Denninghoff, Public Works Director has also been involved.
Commissioner Infantini stated on the interest rate of 3.25 percent, which is what the County would be obligated to pay The Viera Company on the monies they fronted the County to relocate the pipe, it was found that the five year treasury rate was about 1.16 percent and she thought the interest rate was a little excessive because most places she is looking at will not give 3.35 percent for five year; and one of her recommendations is cut the interest down to what the prevailing interest is now for a five year time frame to 1.25 percent.
Jay Decatur, General Council for The Viera Company, stated unfortunately the treasury rate is not the rate that The Viera Company enjoys on its borrowed funds; due to the current state of the economy The Viera Company's operating revenues are not sufficient to fund their day-to-day operations; monies have to be borrowed either internally or through credit lines; all of their sources of money far exceed the 1.1 percent; and he has provided the County Attorney's Office with the interest rate calculation for their current line with SunTrust Bank, which is in excess of today's prime rate of 3.25 percent; and he thinks it is a very fare rate given the voluntary assumption of this obligation by The Viera Company ahead of the time when it would ordinarily fund these mitigation dollars for the Washingtonia Extension. He stated these are not dollars out of the County's coffers; and this interest will be represented by an additional credit of mitigation amounts that The Viera Company ultimately has to fund for the Washingtonia Extension.
The Board authorized the Chairman to execute a settlement agreement relating to the Florida Gas Transmission line condemnation case, subject to the County Attorney finding the settlement agreement is in substantial compliance with the points raised.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Chuck Nelson, Commissioner District 2
SECONDER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
.
Howard Tipton, County Manager, stated this item is a request to approve a lease and funding agreement, with the Brevard Cultural Alliance; the total amount is $150,000; $100,000 is for pass-through grants to organizations; $45,000 for Program and Management Services; and $5,000 for managing the Arts in Public Places Program; and he is asking for the Board's approve of this item.
The Board adopted Resolution No. 10-229, and executed Lease and Cultural Arts Agreements with Brevard Cultural Alliance, Inc. for property located at 2725 Judge Fran Jamieson Way, Building C, Room 307, Viera.
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Robin Fisher, Vice Chairman/ Commissioner District 1
SECONDER: Andy Anderson, Commissioner District 5
AYES: Fisher, Nelson, Infantini, Bolin, Anderson
.
BOND RESOLUTION, RE: SUBORDINATED SALES TAX REFUNDING REVENUE BOND, SERIES 2010
Chairman Bolin inquired what the pleasure of the Board.
Commissioner Nelson stated the Board will be saving $160,000.
Commissioner Infantini stated on one hand she supports this, but on the other hand she is concerned because the County in such a bad financial situation that keeping debt outstanding when there is opportunity to pay it off; she is curious to where the Board is going to find the funding; this current the Board raised tax rates to be able to keep paying all of these expenditures, she knows in the original budget it was set that the Board was going to be refunding this $20 million, so she does not really know where it is going to get the extra funding for next year; and she inquired if it is the Board’s idea to raise taxes again next year so that they can pay all these extra expenses.
Commissioner Nelson inquired if Stockton Whitten, Assistant County Manager can explain. Mr.
Whitten responded he can provide some clarification on the Item; there is approximately $20
million in debt that is outstanding for 16 years right now; what this item does is refinance that
$20 million over the same 16-year amortization schedule; and saves the County $160,000 in the
Whitten responded he can provide some clarification on the Item; there is approximately $20
million in debt that is outstanding for 16 years right now; what this item does is refinance that
$20 million over the same 16-year amortization schedule; and saves the County $160,000 in the
annual debt service payment.
Commissioner Infantini stated if the County over-borrow, in anticipation of higher costs, should
it not paid back now instead of holding onto it and spending it, because it did not cost the
County as much as it expected it to cost us, if she borrowed $200,000 to build a house and it
only costs $120,000 to build, should she hurry up and pay back that $80,000 so she did not owe
extra money, or should she just go add a whole bunch more additions to her house that she
did not actually originally budget for. Mr. Whitten replied he actually thinks this allows the County us to be in a better position to pay off the $20 million that is outstanding, if he has her
point taken correctly, the $20 million is a due-to-note from the Board to some bank and over the course of the 16 years, if this refinance is not done a certain amount will be paid; but if the Board does the refinancing it will be paying each year on that amount $160,000 less. Commissioner Infantini inquired there is no opportunity to pay it back early. Mr. Witten responded there is nothing to pay it back with, he means there is $20 million mortgage that is debt-out-there, these are not new dollars, and this is just taking that $20 million over the 16 years, taking advantage of the interest rate savings, and reducing the annual debt payment on that.
it not paid back now instead of holding onto it and spending it, because it did not cost the
County as much as it expected it to cost us, if she borrowed $200,000 to build a house and it
only costs $120,000 to build, should she hurry up and pay back that $80,000 so she did not owe
extra money, or should she just go add a whole bunch more additions to her house that she
did not actually originally budget for. Mr. Whitten replied he actually thinks this allows the County us to be in a better position to pay off the $20 million that is outstanding, if he has her
point taken correctly, the $20 million is a due-to-note from the Board to some bank and over the course of the 16 years, if this refinance is not done a certain amount will be paid; but if the Board does the refinancing it will be paying each year on that amount $160,000 less. Commissioner Infantini inquired there is no opportunity to pay it back early. Mr. Witten responded there is nothing to pay it back with, he means there is $20 million mortgage that is debt-out-there, these are not new dollars, and this is just taking that $20 million over the 16 years, taking advantage of the interest rate savings, and reducing the annual debt payment on that.
Commissioner Fisher stated this is just like refinancing a house.
Commissioner Infantini stated then she accepts.
The Board reached consensus to adopt Bond Resolution No. 10-230, authorizing the issuance
of Subordinated Sales Tax Refunding Revenue Bond, Series 2010, in the aggregate principal
amount of not to exceed $20,000,000, to refund a portion of the County’s outstanding Sales Tax
Refunding and Improvement Revenue Bonds, Series 2001, in order to achieve debt service
savings for the County; and authorized the Chairman and County Manager, or designee, to sign
all necessary bond documents.
Commissioner Infantini inquired if China got the best of Chairman Bolin, because it sounds
like she has a got a bit of a cough.
Chairman Bolin stated there is one more item by Howard Tipton, County Manager.
Mr. Tipton stated there is a workshop coming up on October 28, 2010, which is two days from
today; this is a Board requested workshop on transportation, and it will be a large and encompassing discussion; and in fact, it is becoming so large and difficult to manage, that it
is being looked at, to break it up into two pieces; the first one will take place on Thursday, the
second one will take place on a regularly scheduled workshop on November 18, 2010; and he is
today; this is a Board requested workshop on transportation, and it will be a large and encompassing discussion; and in fact, it is becoming so large and difficult to manage, that it
is being looked at, to break it up into two pieces; the first one will take place on Thursday, the
second one will take place on a regularly scheduled workshop on November 18, 2010; and he is
asking the Board on Thursday it is one of the most important discussions this Board can have is
for direction on how to spend the dollars that are, bond proceeds that are from savings from
projects that have come in under budget, as well as dollars that have not yet been allocated that
are from interest earnings and some other areas; and on November 18, 2010, maintenance,
drainage, transit, and the Transportation Planning Operations (TPO) priorities will be discussed and it is going to be a very long day on November 18th, in terms of trying to get all of that done,
but he does believe that moving forward with the expenditure decisions and the direction, will
allow the County to go ahead and take advantage of the low prices that are being seen now, as
well as if there is an opportunity to get these projects moving earlier and get some people to
work. He stated the Board's direction will certainly be carried out, it is just going to be over two
workshops, and that is how the Agenda will be worked; and he inquired if the Board is okay with
it with how to proceed forward.
for direction on how to spend the dollars that are, bond proceeds that are from savings from
projects that have come in under budget, as well as dollars that have not yet been allocated that
are from interest earnings and some other areas; and on November 18, 2010, maintenance,
drainage, transit, and the Transportation Planning Operations (TPO) priorities will be discussed and it is going to be a very long day on November 18th, in terms of trying to get all of that done,
but he does believe that moving forward with the expenditure decisions and the direction, will
allow the County to go ahead and take advantage of the low prices that are being seen now, as
well as if there is an opportunity to get these projects moving earlier and get some people to
work. He stated the Board's direction will certainly be carried out, it is just going to be over two
workshops, and that is how the Agenda will be worked; and he inquired if the Board is okay with
it with how to proceed forward.
Commissioner Fisher stated that is fine.
Chairman Bolin stated it sounds like Mr. Tipton has permission to do so.
The meeting adjourned at 11:38 a.m.
ATTEST: _________________________________ ROBIN L. FISHER, CHIARMAN BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA
___________________
SCOTT ELLIS, CLERK