Town of Ponce Inlet
TOWN COUNCIL MINUTES
Regular Meeting of September 17, 2009
1. CALL TO ORDER: Pursuant to proper notice, Mayor Goudie called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at 4300 South Atlantic Avenue, Ponce Inlet, Florida.
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Mayor Goudie led the attendees in the Pledge of Allegiance.
3. ROLL CALL:
Council present:
Mayor Goudie, Seat #1
Councilmember Derr, Seat #2
Councilmember McCormick, Seat #3
Vice-Mayor Davis, Seat #4
Councilmember Sturno, Seat #5
Staff Members Present:
Ms. Clauss, Interim Town Manager/Town Clerk
Mr. Gunter, General Manager of Public Works
Mr. Joulani, Director of Planning and Development
Mr. Marks, Chief Building Official
Ms. Richard, Development Review Clerk
Chief Scales, Fire Chief
Mr. Shepard, Town Attorney
Chief Thomas, Police Chief
Ms. Yoon, Planner
4. ADDITIONS, CORRECTIONS, OR DELETIONS TO THE AGENDA: None.
5. PROCLAMATIONS, PRESENTATIONS, AND AWARDS:
A. Proclamation recognizing October 2009 as Community Planning Month. Mayor Goudie read this proclamation and presented it to Ms. Yoon.
6. OLD/NEW BUSINESS REQUESTED FOR THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING:
A. Appointment of a member to the Historic and Archaeological Preservation Advisory Board. Ms. Clauss explained the vacancy of seat 1 on the Historic Board and said that both alternate members have declined the appointment and Ms. Ginger Bayer has been recommended for appointment by the Board. Ms. Bayer was present at this meeting and expressed her desire to serve. Mayor Goudie opened for public comment. Seeing none, Mayor Goudie closed public comment. Mayor Goudie moved to appoint Ms. Bayer to Seat 1 on the Historic & Archaeological Preservation Board, seconded by Councilmember Sturno. This motion PASSED 5-0 with the following vote: Councilmember Sturno – yes, Vice-Mayor Davis – yes, Councilmember McCormick – yes, Councilmember Derr - yes, and Mayor Goudie – yes.
B. Charter Section 6.07 – definition / direction regarding insured depositories. Note: the agenda notice advised that one or more members of the Banking Services Selection Committee may participate in discussions at this meeting. Mayor Goudie explained that a question has been asked about the definition regarding insured depositories. Ms. Clauss stated that the Banking Services Committee requested clarification during their discussions for the preparation of the RFP. Mr. Shepard referred to his memorandum regarding deposits and spoke about the Charter requirements and the State requirements for ad valorum. He quoted from a 2004 report on this issue. “Funds” means all funds, and
“insured” means FDIC. Gary Comfort, 85 Ocean Way Drive, a member of the Banking Services Committee, said he is concerned about this and is still not quite clear after hearing from Mr. Shepard. He spoke about FDIC funds and depositories, and feels the question is really more specific: do the funds themselves have to be insured or just the depositories as stated in the Charter and must all funds be insured at all times? He then spoke about teaming arrangements and referred to Florida Statute 280.03, which says all of the funds are governed unless they meet certain exceptions, and asked if we need to be concerned. Mr. Shepard stated thanked Mr. Comfort for the point of clarification and stated that yes, all funds must be FDIC insured at all times according to the Town Charter. He agreed that the teaming arrangements are a good idea to look into. Councilmember Sturno felt the intent was to have all funds insured. He spoke to a
representative of Fidelity who told him that they could handle all of our money and be sure that it is all FDIC insured. He suggested that the Committee look at some institutions such as that to see what they have to offer. It was agreed by all Council members to direct that funds themselves must be insured. Ms. Clauss asked if their desire was still to review the RFP at their October meeting. Council members agreed that it should be expedited and they can view via e-mail and comment. Mr. Comfort asked if they wish to exclude banks outside the local area or give preference to banks within a certain distance of town. Councilmember Sturno stated that he felt we should look at every bank, but it may be necessary to have a local bank where deposits can be made. All agreed. Vice-Mayor Davis asked about possible out-of-state litigation, to which Mr. Shepard replied that we can put in the agreement that, if we litigate, we
litigate here. Gary Smith, 4526 S. Peninsula, member of the banking committee, asked for clarification that this is only for the day to day banking, not longer term investments. He would not want an out of state bank if he was operating this Town, because of the daily business. He asked if we are now talking about all funds, or just the day to day banking funds. Mayor Goudie allowed Ms. Clauss to clarify and she stated it is just for the day to day funds, and there is a preference for a local bank but if they find a benefit with another bank to be worthy of the additional effort, they could have a local bank as well for daily deposits and wire the money to the primary bank that had been selected. Mayor Goudie opened for public comment. Seeing none, Mayor Goudie closed public comment.
7. PUBLIC HEARINGS / QUASI-JUDICIAL MATTERS:
A. Bay Tree Project at 4966 South Peninsula Drive.
i. Request for approval of a minor replat to combine this property with a portion of the right-of-way known as Ponce Street and the easterly 10 feet of Lot 60. Mr. Joulani presented this item via the attached Power Point and staff report (Attachment 1). Jim Morris, 4876 S. Peninsula, spoke on behalf of the applicant. Councilmember Derr inquired as to whether the slips could be rented out to others by the individual owners of them. Mr. Morris stated that the members of the LLC would not be permitted to rent their boat slips. He then clarified the membership interest in the LLC. Councilmember Derr asked about the riparian lines and whether they will be affected by the replat. Mr. Morris responded that they are a product of
ownership and explained the line on the property. In response to Councilmember Derr’s question about dock setback requirement, Mr. Joulani read section 5.6.5.I of the LUDC, which permits a different setback if approved by the state. Vice-Mayor Davis asked about the commercial use not being permitted, and why could there not be commercial use if the property is zoned commercial. Mr. Joulani replied that this lot does not meet the size requirement for commercial use. He explained that in the regulations for B-2 districts, the requirements are different for different type of uses: commercial is 15,000 square feet; recreational use is 8,000 square feet. Mr. Morris clarified that this is formalizing what was done when the right-of-way was vacated. Mayor Goudie opened for public comment. Seeing none, Mayor Goudie closed public comment. Vice-Mayor Davis Moved to APPROVE the minor replat for Bay Tree with the condition that the
applicant shall pay all costs for recording the minor replat and the applicant meets the dimensional requirements only if the use remains as a private recreational facility, seconded by Mayor Goudie. This motion PASSED 5-0 with the following vote: Councilmember Sturno – yes, Vice-Mayor Davis – yes, Councilmember McCormick – yes, Councilmember Derr - yes, and Mayor Goudie – yes.
ii. Request for approval of a variance from setback requirements for off-street parking and loading. Mr. Joulani presented this item via the attached Power Point and staff report (Attachment 2). Vice-Mayor Davis asked why this is a Council rather than Board of Adjustment (BOA) variance, to which Mr. Joulani replied the BOA reviews only Article V variances, all others are reviewed by Town Council. Mr. Joulani said that a letter was received from the adjacent property owners in support of the variances. Councilmember McCormick referred to the checkered past as to violations on this property and said he doesn’t like what he sees. Mr. Morris said he doesn’t either, and is trying to remedy them through this process. Councilmember
Derr referred to the application, page 2 of 3, which requests a variance for the shed. Mr. Morris said they have withdrawn that request. Mayor Goudie opened for public comment. Seeing none, Mayor Goudie closed public comment. Councilmember Sturno moved to APPROVE the variance from setback requirements for off-street parking and loading for Bay Tree with the condition that should there be an intensification of use on the parcel, this variance shall be reconsidered by the Town Council and that this variance is requested and justified based on the use of the property being private recreation/yacht club. Therefore, should the use of the property change from the proposed private recreational use to any other use including commercial, this variance approval shall become null and void, seconded by Mayor Goudie. This motion PASSED 5-0 with the following vote: Councilmember Sturno – yes, Vice-Mayor Davis – yes, Councilmember McCormick –
yes, Councilmember Derr - yes, and Mayor Goudie – yes.
iii. Request for approval of a variance from the requirements of the surfacing materials for driveway and parking. Mr. Joulani presented this item via the attached Power Point and staff report (Attachment 3). Mr. Morris said that they will be using gravel or crushed concrete in the right-of-way area at the request of Mr. Gunter. He said that their use is very light and they have not had any issues with the shell in the driveway in the past five years. The handicapped space will require a hard surface of some type to meet ADA requirements. Vice-Mayor Davis asked Mr. Joulani to note these two sections during the LUDC rewrite so that a variance is not required for shell surfacing. She would also like him to look at the BOA hearing these types of
variances. Councilmember Sturno agreed that a variance should not be required to permit a shell or gravel surface. Mayor Goudie opened for public comment. Seeing none, Mayor Goudie closed public comment. Vice-Mayor Davis moved to APPROVE the variance from the requirements of the surfacing materials for driveway and parking for Bay Tree with the condition that should there be an intensification of use on the parcel, this variance shall be reconsidered by the Town Council and that this variance is requested and justified based on the use of the property being private recreation/yacht club. Therefore, should the use of the property change from the proposed private recreational use to any other use including commercial, this variance approval shall become null and void and that the applicant shall comply with all ADA standards and requirements including the requirements for parking surfacing, seconded by Mayor Goudie. This motion PASSED 5-0 with the
following vote: Councilmember Sturno – yes, Vice-Mayor Davis – yes, Councilmember McCormick – yes, Councilmember Derr - yes, and Mayor Goudie – yes.
iv. Request for approval of the final development plan. Mr. Joulani presented this item via the attached Power Point and staff report (Attachment 4). Mr. Morris confirmed that they are not requesting the four dry slips that were allocated by the slip allocation ordinance at this time. Councilmember Derr asked if there is a way to track inspections so this type of violation would not occur in the future. Mr. Joulani responded that the new software is capable of flagging expiration dates. Councilmember Sturno stated that he does not want the Town to assume the additional responsibility of notifying people that their permits are due to expire or that an inspection is due. Councilmember Derr agrees, but feels that there should be some way to
notify these people before this type of thing occurs. Mr. Morris said that they entered into an agreement with the town about five years too late, and if there had been a cessation of activity earlier, there would not have been an issue. Councilmember Sturno referred to the letter regarding solid waste and asked if they do generate any. Mr. Morris replied some, which is taken to the curb for pick-up. Councilmember Sturno referred back to the DRT notes and asked what the unbalanced dry stack retaining wall is. Mr. Marks replied that the two sides on an unbalanced wall are uneven. Councilmember Sturno then referred to the violations and whether there were fines imposed and collected. Mr. Joulani said that notices of violation were issued, and they were given a certain amount of time within which to come into compliance. He said that when there is a range of issues, you have to give more time for the property to come into compliance and
fines are not imposed until the time has run out and if the property is still not in compliance. Mayor Goudie opened for public comment. Seeing none, Mayor Goudie closed public comment. Mayor Goudie moved to APPROVE the final development plan for Bay Tree with the condition that should there be an intensification of use and/or a change in ownership of the property, the landscape buffer requirements of Article VIII of the Land Use and Development Code shall be complied with in its entirety and that there be a review and approval by the Town Council of the minor replat and that there be review and approval by the Town Council of the request for variance from section 6.5.10.A. and that there be review and approval by the Town Council of the request for variance from section 6.5.10.B.2. and that there be review and approval by the Town Council of the request for variance from section 6.5.3.G. and that should there be an intensification of use on the parcel, this
final development plan review shall be reconsidered by the Town Council and that should the use of the property change from the proposed private recreational use to any other use including commercial, this Final Development Plan approval shall become null and void, seconded by Councilmember Sturno. This motion PASSED 5-0 with the following vote: Councilmember Sturno – yes, Vice-Mayor Davis – yes, Councilmember McCormick – yes, Councilmember Derr - yes, and Mayor Goudie – yes.
8. PUBLIC HEARINGS / NON-QUASI-JUDICIAL MATTERS: None.
9. CITIZENS’ PARTICIPATION: None.
10. ORDINANCES (FIRST READING) AND RESOLUTIONS: None.
11. FROM THE TOWN COUNCIL:
A. Councilmember Derr, Seat #2 thanked staff and everyone involved in the budget process and reiterated her thanks for Ms. Clauss for her work and asked that she reconsider putting her name in the ring for the job.
B. Councilmember Sturno, Seat #5 said the budget process was long, but good and he appreciated the hard work of the town manager, department heads and staff; we accomplished a very good goal. He attended the last WAV meeting, and said that as a result of lack of funds and support, they voted to disband. He thinks something will have to be done with water going forward and we’ll see how it unfolds. He has a list of items that WAV needs to sell. He said there was a discussion at the League of Cities about the change to transporting patients and will comment further in a later item. He asked that Chief Scales might be permitted to speak about the Town’s response to a recent tornado when he addresses another
emergency services item later in the meeting.
C. Vice-Mayor Davis, Seat #4 echoed comments regarding the budget process. She then listed the following events: Coastal Cleanup this Saturday; PICCI Caribbean Nights also that evening; Hob-Nob for candidates is October 6th at the Community Center; Symphony Night September 27th; October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and asked that it be a presentation at the October meeting.
D. Councilmember McCormick, Seat #3 invited all candidates to join in at the Hob Nob and hoped that the residents will attend and get to know their candidates. He is trying to establish a website to dispel rumors during the election to prevent a repeat of last year’s election season and that all questions will be asked and answered. He also stated that he looked at the origins of Bay Tree and feels that the whole thing really smells. The vacation of the right-of-way gave away a piece of premium land in exchange for the dog park property, which at the time was practically worthless.
E. Mayor Goudie, Seat #1 spoke about the meetings he attended at the Florida League of Cities conference in August. He then echoed appreciation to staff for their work on the budget.
12. FROM THE TOWN MANAGER. Ms. Clauss corrected a misstatement regarding the Haynes lien that was on last month’s agenda. Though the warranty deed showed the property on Jennifer Circle had been sold for ten dollars, they have since learned that the warranty deed is not a reliable tool for this information. The HUD form shows the property was actually sold for $265,000 and that the lien due was withheld during the course of that sale. Ms. Clauss stated however that code enforcement had advised the title company that the lien amount was $1,250 less than the actual. Due to this internal error, the lien has now been released for the lesser amount of $29,250 and the restructuring of the code enforcement division will hopefully resolve this
going forward. No additional legal time was spent on this matter. Ms. Clauss then asked that members be thinking about who they would like to appoint as the Council’s representative on the Canvassing Board, as they will need to do so next month – the appointment must be of a Council Member who is not on the ballot so they have three options available.
13. FROM THE TOWN ATTORNEY. Mr. Shepard gave updates on pending litigation: Prosperity Bank is on track for settlement but moving slowly due to the bank’s attorney and an order in the Pacetta case will be presented to Council once amended for a scrivener’s error. He said that the Florida Municipal Attorney’s Association newsletter that he has been recently forwarding to them gives a synopsis of news stories regarding legal cases and is often instructive on things not to do. It is informational in purpose only but he thought they would like to see it.
14. CONSENT AGENDA:
A. Approval of the Town Council special meeting minutes – July 27, 2009
B. Approval of the Town Council special meeting minutes – August 3, 2009
C. Approval of the Town Council special meeting minutes – August 17, 2009
D. Approval of the Town Council regular meeting minutes – August 20, 2009.
E. Approval of the Town Council special meeting minutes – August 24, 2009
F. Approval of the legal bill dated September 4, 2009.
G. Approval of extending the interlocal agreement of the East Volusia Local Government Fire-Rescue and Emergency Medical Services Automatic Aid and Closest Unit Response System through September 30th, 2010.
Mayor Goudie read the items A through G proposed for approval on the consent agenda. Vice-Mayor Davis requested the removal of item D. Councilmember McCormick requested the removal of item G. These items were added under New Business for discussion. Mayor Goudie opened for public comment. Seeing none, Mayor Goudie closed public comment. Councilmember McCormick moved to APPROVE items A, C and D-F on the consent agenda, seconded by Mayor Goudie. This motion PASSED 5-0 with the following vote: Councilmember Sturno – yes, Vice-Mayor Davis – yes, Councilmember McCormick – yes, Councilmember Derr - yes, and Mayor Goudie – yes.
15. OLD BUSINESS: None.
16. NEW BUSINESS:
A. Historic restoration project at 143 Beach Street.
i. Update on project.
Mr. Marks ran through the PowerPoint (Attachment 5) showing the original and newly exposed sections of the house and cottage, and pointed out the original paint on the exterior, porch roof and interior ceiling. He said that the archaeologist is cataloging artifacts and will present them to either Council or the Historic Board.
ii. Selection of paint colors.
Mr. Marks showed the color selections recommended by the Historic Archaeological Preservation Advisory Board and asked if Council would like to approve these as presented or select alternative colors. Vice-Mayor Davis moved to APPROVE the recommendations from the Historic Archaeological Preservation Advisory Board for the paint colors for the 143 Beach Street restoration project to be as follows:
Old Post Office
Exterior Siding- Extra White
Exterior Trim-Ellie Gray
Meyer-Davis House
Interior Walls- Maison Blanche
Interior Ceilings- Black Bean
Front Porch Ceiling- Leave “as is” with existing paint
Exterior Siding-Rookwood Dark Brown
Soffits- Maison Blanche.
This motion was seconded by Councilmember McCormick. This motion PASSED 5-0 with the following vote: Councilmember Sturno – yes, Vice-Mayor Davis – yes, Councilmember McCormick – yes, Councilmember Derr - yes, and Mayor Goudie – yes.
B. Code enforcement case regarding 134 Old Carriage Road. Mayor Goudie asked if this has been resolved as a result of the earlier discussion in which Council directed minimum maintenance of this property and others which may come through Code Enforcement. Ms. Clauss concurred, stating that she will advise Council if any further issues surface.
With the hour approaching 10:00 p.m., by unanimous consensus Council agreed to extend the meeting until 10:15 to complete the remaining items.
C. EVAC’s notice of cancellation of contingency transport agreement. Ms. Clauss explained that the Town had received a letter from EVAC that this agreement was being cancelled. They had no prior notice that this was a consideration. Chief Scales further explained that we no longer have any official option regarding transporting and could face a fine if we do so. Councilmember McCormick asked what would happen if there were a disaster and EVAC was too busy. Chief Scales replied that technically we could not transport. Councilmember Sturno said he was told that this is strictly political and no waivers would be granted. He feels we ought to fight this, and in a life and death matter, he would like for them to instruct the
Chief to transport. County Council directs via State Statute. Ms. Clauss suggested that she could work on this from the manager-to-manager level and would bring this up at their meeting next week, Chief Scales could work with EVAC, and perhaps the Council might contact the County Council on this. Vice-Mayor Davis asked if the Statute allows them to preclude others to transport. Mr. Shepard referred to franchise agreements, but said there is a distinction due to public safety. He will look at this further if Council desires. Vice-Mayor Davis requested authorization of one-hour attorney time to research. All agreed.
Chief Scales then spoke about the recent tornado. He responded to Port Orange and helped to rally resources to help. Our guys helped for a good 3-4 hours while keeping a crew here in town. He said he noticed that in Southeast Volusia, the municipalities work very well together in an emergency.
D. Town Council special meeting minutes – August 3, 2009. Vice-Mayor Davis referred to lines 82-88 for possible corrections concerning their decisions on the wiring and shutters. Ms. Clauss will pull the notes and revise the minutes to reflect any inaccuracies.
E. Extending the interlocal agreement of the East Volusia Local Government Fire-Rescue and Emergency Medical Services Automatic Aid and Closest Unit Response System through September 30th, 2010. Councilmember McCormick asked if this was something different than EVAC. Chief Scales replied that this does not affect EVAC; this is an agreement between the East Volusia municipalities to assist one another.
17. ADJOURNMENT. Mayor Goudie adjourned this meeting at approximately 10:10 p.m., announcing the special council meeting for adoption of the millage rate and budget scheduled for September 24th, 2009 at 6:00 p.m. and the regular meeting scheduled for October 15th, 2009 at 6:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Jeaneen P. Clauss, CMC,
Interim Town Manager/Town Clerk
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