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09-02-98 vt 1 I CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH SPECIAL CALLED MEETING 5:00 PM-WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1998 AGENDA Call to order 1. Discussion and related action on proposed Atlantic Boulevard/Mayport Road flyover 2. Discussion and related action on any other business Adjournment If any person decides to appeal any decision made by the City Commission with respect to any matter considered at any meeting,such person may need a record of the proceedings,and,for such purpose,may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made,which record shall include the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based. Any person wishing to speak to the City Commission on any matter at this meeting should submit a request to the City Clerk prior to the meeting. For your convenience,forms for this purpose are available at the entrance to the Commission Chambers. In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 286.26,Florida Statutes,persons with disabilities needing special accommodation to participate in this meeting should contact the City Clerk. 0 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CALLED MEETING OF ATLANTIC BEACH CITY COMMISSION HELD IN CITY HALL, 800 SEMINOLE ROAD, AT 5:00 PM ON WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1998 Present: Suzanne Shaughnessy, Mayor Richard Beaver, Commissioner Mike Borno, Commissioner John Meserve, Commissioner Theo Mitchelson, Commissioner Also: James Jarboe, City Manager Maureen King, City Clerk Absent: Alan Jensen, City Attorney The meeting was called to order at 5:30 PM by Mayor Shaughnessy. The Mayor explained that this meeting was based on a meeting that Commissioners had attended at the Jacksonville Transportation Authority(JTA)offices in Jacksonville and it had not been possible to start the meeting on time due to the fact that the JTA meeting had not ended until 4:45 PM. 1.Discussion and related action on proposed Atlantic Boulevard/Mayport Road flyover Commissioner Mitchelson gave a synopsis of the JTA meeting. He explained presentations had been made by JTA staff relative to two other options which had been considered including closing Florida Boulevard and designing a "flyunder"vis a vis a flyover. Both of these options had been discarded by JTA since it was felt that neither solution was more desirable than the flyover. He explained that the meeting with JTA was mainly in the form of a question and answer session and the City Commission had no input on the question of the flyover since JTA officials had met earlier and had voted to continue to endorse the flyover project. Commissioner Mitchelson pointed out it had been suggested that a temporary arrangement be considered where Florida Boulevard could be shut down, on a trial basis,for a few hours during rush hours. He felt this arrangement would have accomplished the desired free flow of traffic, would be less costly, and would not have the negative impact of redirecting the traffic through Atlantic Beach neighborhoods, JTA, however, had determined that they wished to proceed with the proposed flyover and did not want to undertake this type of experiment. The Mayor pointed out that Atlantic Beach was on record as an entity which was extremely interested in the outcome of the decision on the flyover. The city had made a request for a ground level traffic management solution on a trial basis. This was never tried or taken into consideration by the JTA. The JTA had indicated that they would run numbers and Atlantic Beach had expected to receive a report prior to a vote being taken, and the Mayor felt to do otherwise, was to make a mockery of the public process. Page Two Minutes - Special Called Meeting September 2, 1998 The Mayor reported the relative costs for the proposals given were $11 million for the proposed flyover; $15.8 for the flyunder,which would have eliminated the traffic signal and the bulk of the cost of this option being to 4-lane Royal Palms Drive and Penman Road; $9.1 million for a "limited movement" option which provided more options at the intersection of Mayport Road and Atlantic Boulevard, including a 2-way light, but no flyover. The Mayor reported that Mr. Hawkins, the DOT secretary, had indicated that the flyover would remove 60% of the traffic entering Mayport Road. She said she had asked on several occasions how holding cars on a ramp would help ease traffic on an overcrowded road and she had not yet received an answer to this question from anyone involved in traffic management. She indicated she would still like to get an answer to this question. The Mayor said that Councilman Brown had indicated that he had received no telephone calls regarding the flyover. The Mayor also reported that Mr. Hawkins had indicated to her that he felt the suggestion to close Florida Boulevard during certain hours, would work for now but would not handle future growth. She indicated that she had informed him that she did not anticipate significant growth since the beaches cities were nearing buildout. She felt the City should respond to the JTA regrading this matter. Commissioner Borno felt that the problem only existed for a couple of hours in the morning and evening, and that the cure was worse than the problem. Commissioner Meserve felt that both the ingress and egress to Mayport Road needed to be improved for the benefit of Atlantic Beach residents, particularly in the event of an emergency. He felt the JTA had considered various options and he would support whatever solution the JTA felt would best solve the traffic problems. Since the JTA had recommended the flyover it was his opinion the City Commission should not take any action that might prevent the project from going forward. He felt that while the proposed flyover might not be the perfect solution, it would help the traffic situation and he would rather see a 60-foot structure than nothing at all. He also felt that closing Florida Boulevard would have a negative impact on the businesses at the south end of Mayport Road as well as those businesses on Florida Boulevard in Neptune Beach. He also indicated he would support a solution which involved traffic management during rush hours, if that could be worked out. The Mayor reported she had received communications from the Metropolitan Planning Organization as well as other business associations who support the flyover for safety and evacuation purposes; however, she felt that these concerns have already been addressed since an evacuation lane from Mayport Road west on Atlantic Boulevard is already designed at ground level. She reiterated, her opposition was to the flyover. Page Three Minutes - Special Called Meeting September 2, 1998 Commissioner Beaver felt that JTA had considered other options but their main objective was to get the traffic off Atlantic Boulevard and had selected the flyover because of the impact other options would have on Royal Palms. He indicated he was not 100% in favor of the flyover but felt it was probably the best solution and would solve the traffic problems for the next 10 - 15 years. He also was opposed to closing off Florida Boulevard because this would push traffic into Atlantic Beach. He felt that it was important to trust the specialists whose job it is to design traffic systems. He felt that since the decision had already been made regarding the flyover, the city's goal should be to become more involved in the final design and landscaping plans so the project could be as aesthetically pleasing as possible. Commissioner Mitchelson pointed out that the suggestion to close Florida Boulevard had not been made by an Atlantic Beach official but he felt that the flyunder solution had merit and could be accomplished much more economically and much quicker than the flyover. The Mayor reported that a JTA official had indicated to her that new roads are usually at or exceed capacity within three years of completion, so it was her feeling that any solution would only be effective for three years. She felt that the traffic lights on Mayport Road should be synchronized now for optimum benefit. Further discussion ensued and the City Manager felt that there was no easy solution. He said he doubted that either the overpass or underpass would work and he was horrified at the thought of closing any street. The Mayor felt that the Atlantic Beach City Commissioners should focus only on the impact which this project would have on the citizens of Atlantic Beach. Commissioner Borno felt that the JTA should give greater consideration to traffic management through innovative ingenuity of existing traffic flow signals. Commissioner Beaver felt that the project would proceed and the City Commission should be involved in the final design, specifically east-west egress, lighting, landscaping, etc. Since Commissioner Beaver had to leave the meeting, the Mayor indicated she would entertain a motion to either support or not support the flyover. Commissioner Beaver moved to accept the proposed plan of the flyover and instruct staff to become very much involved in the final design phases of said plan. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Meserve. There being no further discussion,the motion carried on a roll-call vote of 3 - 2 with Mayor Shaughnessy and Commissioner Mitchelson voting nay. The City Manager reported that, based on previous direction from the City Commission, a meeting had been schedule to meet with JTA officials the following week. Commissioner Meserve stressed the importance of the city being involved in the location of the retention ponds. This action rescinded by the City Commission in special session on Monday, May 3, 1999 Page Four Minutes - Special Called Meeting September 2, 1998 Commissioner Beaver left the meeting at 6:35 PM. At this time the Mayor opened the floor to receive comments from the audience. Stephen Kuti, 1132 Linkside Drive, expressed disappointment that the decision had been made by JTA to proceed with the flyover. He felt that one additional lane at ground level on the south side of Atlantic Boulevard would have solved the problem. William McGee, 1835 Selva Marina Drive, felt the city had not been adequately informed regarding the design of this project, and should have had an opportunity for greater involvement. Discussion ensued and Mayor Shaughnessy felt that the City Commission should not have taken a vote on this issue since the Special Called Meeting had only been noticed for twenty-four hours. The Mayor moved to treat this important issue as we would an ordinance and give the public an opportunity to participate. She said she felt very uncomfortable that the City Commission had voted on this matter without first having received public input. She felt this matter was at least as important as an ordinance and the public,both pro and con, should have an opportunity to be heard. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Borno. Discussion ensued and Commissioner Meserve expressed concern that a Special Meeting had been called on this issue. He indicated his only concern in this matter was for the citizens of Atlantic Beach. He said the vast majority of the citizens with whom he had spoken regarding this project, were in favor of the flyover; however, he indicated he would support a ground level solution which would facilitate evacuation of the island during an emergency. Following further discussion, the motion and second were withdrawn and the Mayor moved to put this before the public for public input at the meeting on September 14 and put on the agenda as such. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Borno and carried unanimously. 2. Discussion and related action on any other business The Mayor presented a letter she had received as a member of Florida League of Cities Policy Committee on Environmental Quality and requested that copies be provided to the other members of the City Commission. The Mayor also presented a letter she had received regarding a six thousand year old historic site,the oldest archaeological find on the Eastern Seaboard, located on Dutton Road adjacent to the proposed Centex development. She requested that Commissioners be provided with copies this letter. Page Five Minutes - Special Called Meeting September 2, 1998 The Mayor also presented a letter she had received from the St. Johns River Water Management District in response to her request for clarification of their rules relative to such an archaeological site. She requested that this letter, also, be copied to the City Commission. There being no further business to come before the City Commission,the Mayor declared the meeting adjourned at 7:02 PM. SUZANNE SH SS Mayor/Pre• : g Officer ATTEST: MA EN KING ALJ Certified Municipal Clerk