Agenda Item 7B - Ordinance 5-14-61 - Time and place of meetingsCITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH
CITY COMMISSION MEETING
STAFF RE:PORT
AGENDA ITEM# 7B
SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
AGENDA ITEM: Ordinance No. 5-14-61: Amending Chapter 2 of the
Code of Ordinances, Admfuistration, Article II, City
Commission, Sec. 2-16, Time and Place of Regular
meetings, to provide for two regular meetings.
SUBMITTED BY: Nelson VanLiere, City Manager~
DATE: June 17, 2014
BACKGROUND: At the June 9, 2014 meeting, ·the City Commission discussed proposed ·
Ordinance No. 5-14-61 and decided to table the item until a full commission could be
present and to give Staff the opportunity to make some adjustments to the presentation of
the agenda items.
As previously stated, the goal of the Staff and Commission is to work together to produce
an agenda that is both informative to the public and allows for business to be efficiently
carried on month to month. It is clear that giving ample time for the public to weigh in on
important issues is a priority in Atlantic Beach. As a result of discussions from the
previous meetings, Staff has come up with a better way to meet those needs. Upon
approval of the attached ordinance, Staff can prepare agendas that will ensure items of
significant importance are discussed thoroughly and that those of a routine nature can
move forward.
The attached outline entitled: Agenda Preparation Guidelines has been amended to
reflect recent discussions and will be used as a guideline for agenda preparation. This
chart indicates how each type of item is to be considered in the compilation of the agenda.
Upon examination of the guidelines, you can see that most items, with the exception of
Action on Ordinances and Miscellaneous Business items, woulcf. appear only once.
Ordinances represent the creation of legislation and are required to be heard more than
once. Miscellaneous Business items represent a variety of items with varying significance
:fi:om agenda to agenda. In this Miscellaneous Business section of the agenda is where we
propose to give special attention.
As a solution to the problem of ensuring miscellaneous items are highlighted and
discussed in a manner that gives appropriate attention to them, Staff reviewed the rules
found in our code and determined that the existing agenda has a provision for this, but that
it has not been used for this purpose. Item #3 on the Agenda Outline was placed there to
consider any unfinished business from the previous meetings. Carryover items would be
placed in this section of the agenda in the order that they appeared in a previous meeting.
Items that originated in a special category such as Resolutions or Ordinances would stay
in their respective agenda categories. The process would be to place the appropriate items
on the agenda under. #8 Miscellaneo:us Business. They would be discussed and
considered as items the commission would want to move forward to the next agenda. The
subsequent meeting would then include those same items in #3 Unlmisht;Jd :Business
section of the Agenda Outline. ·
BUDGET:
AGENDA ITEM# 7B
SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
Staff will also implement the revised deadlines discussed in the previous meeting to allow
the Commissioners and the public an extra five to seven (5-7) days to review the agenda
before the meeting to allow for input and questions to be answered. This extra time will
prove significant for those involved in the preparations for a meeting. The deadline for
submission of all agenda items from either the Commission or staff, would be the
Wednesday (13 days) prior to the commission meeting. The agenda would then be
published and disbursed on the Friday after the deadline. All items to be considered on
the agenda will be submitted by the deadline in final fonnat form.
Also, as a result of the comments made at the May meeting, Staff has amended the
proposed ordinance to reflect the original meeting time as 6:30p.m.
In the event that the Commission chooses to call for a workshop, the expectation would be
to have those on the same meeting nights as the regularly scheduled meeting unless
specifically requested for another time. This will limit the strain on the commissioner's
schedule to only two nights a month in normal circumstances. The shmier agenda and the
expectation of doing City business two nights a month should streamline the process for
everyone.
No budget impact.
RECOMMENDATION: Approve Ordinance No. 5-14-61.
ATTACHMENTS: Staff Report dated April 18, 2014
Agenda Preparation Guideline Chart
Ordinance No. 5-14-61
REVIEWED BY CITY MANAGER -n t/tU., ;1CbU
Item
Approval of Minutes
Approval of Minutes
Co urtes y of the Floor to Visitors
Courtesy of the Floor
Presentation
Proclamation
Unfinished Bu siness
Miscellaneous items carried
forward f rom the preceding
meetings
Consent Agenda
Monthly Reports
Quarterly Re port
Annua l Report
Written Report on a spec if ic
project
Declare Property Surp l us
Award initial contract contract for
Bid
Award RFP
Extend Contract when allowed for
in the current terms.
Committee Reports
Committee Report
Action o n Resolutions
Reso lution
Action on Ordinances
Ordinance
Misce ll aneous Busine ss
Use-by-Exception ·
Waiver
Approval of Contract with
sign ificant importance and value
Appointment of members to a
sta nding Board or Committee
Establishing an Ad Hoc Committee,
then appointing its members
City Manager
City Manager Report
Reports and/or Requests from City
Commissioners and City Attorney
Announcements
Agenda Preparation Guidelines
Purpose Requires Special
Advertising
Action No
Informational-No Action No
Informational-No Action No
Ceremonial-No Action No
Action No
Acknowledge Rece ipt No
Acknowledge Receipt No
Acknowledge Receipt No
Acknowledge Receipt No
Action No
Action No
Action No
Action No
Informational No
Action *No
Action Yes
Di sc ussion I Action Yes
Di scussion I Action Yes
Discussion I Action No
Discussion I Action No
Discussion I Action No
Informational No
Informational No
Requires a
Public Hearing
for CC meeting?
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
*Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
No
A GENOA ITEM# 78
SEPTEMBER 8, 20\4
Standard# of
times needed
on the agenda
1
N/A
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
**2
1
2
1
2
1
N/A
Agenda Preparation Guidelines
AGENDA ITEM# 7B
SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
*Exceptions:
1. Ordinances and Resolutions to set the annual operating budget and millage rate require special advertising and
two public hearings.
2. Changes in Zoning District Classifications, Special Planned Areas (SPA's), changes to Land Development
Regulations and Comprehensive Plan Amendments require one public hearing at the Community Development
Board (CDB) meeting so the COB can make a recommendation to the Commission. They also require two public
hearings at City Commission meetings.
**
Notes:
Use-by-exceptions will be on the Commission Agenda twice. The first time, as a discussion only item and the
second time, as a public hearing and action item.
Variances are handled through the Community Development Board (COB) and require a Public Hearing. No Commission
action is needed.
Use-by-exceptions are heard by the Community Development Board (COB) for a recommendation, then to the
Commission.
Any agenda Item that requires action and does not have written information in the initial packet, will most likely require
an additional meeting in order to provide advance notice of the details and to allow time for citizen input.
CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH
CITY COMMISSION MEETING
STt\ FF RI~I'ORT
AGENDA ITEM# 78
SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
AGENDA ITI~l\1: Ordinance No. 5~ 14~61: Amending Chapter 2 of th~ Code of Ordin·unecs,
Administrution, Articlu IL_, City Commis.-;ion, Sec. 2~ 16, Time ancJ Place of
Regular meetings, to provide lbr two regulm· meetings.
SUBM ITT EO BY Nd:-;on Vttn Liere; City Manager tiQ_ _____ _
D)A'l'E; April t 8, 2014
UACKGROUNU; On April 81I\ 2013, the City Commission approved Ordinanee No. 5-13-58
amending the Code to J'cplncc one ·of the two scheduled meetings per month with
a workshop. This was done as n trial to addrcl.-ts complaints from the public thnt
111crc was not enough lime for dtizen input on the ngenda itt.::ms bdbre a vote. By
workshopping the upcoming agenda, cHi:.::cns have more time nnd opportunity to
be heard on all item.s beiotc a vote is cast.
Stuff has worked veL'Y hard to make the tnmsition into the one meeting a mnnth
sc11cdule successtul. However~ impkm011tntion of this new schedule hus b~;en
extremely difficult thr st~tff. Aller careful consideration, we believe we have
come up with an alternative thnt will ~ddrcss everyone's concerns.
Below is il list of unintended consequences that have been a chaUcngc to stftff
~ince ttrc inci!ptlon of ll one nle!eting pe-r month schcdu)c.
I. The agendas .m:e rQ!.tghly twice the size. This by itself would llot seem to he an
issue. Pleaso consider thnt each item is impott\Int and is tho result of staff's hard
work. The entire ugcnda must be indexed and pt~g.inated, copied and bound,
Hemmed and Ulllonded, dishibutcd and linked to web pages.
1. Mcclings. fltg twice ns kmg. A direct result of t_hc lengthy ngenda is that the
tncetings !alee t\vice as long because there <11'0 twice as many items to discuss.
3. Jho bureaucracy added to thc.J•ruxoval process slows thc~npproval of 1:outh1C
items down. For many important itemsl we recognize it is important to !:ilow
down and heur comments more thnn m'lcc. Routine items~ however, arc held up in
tha same timeline and ·arc not able to move forward de~pitc lillie o1· no comments
froJn the dtizcns. Consent item~ take only a ti::w minutes to puss in fhc meeting,
but n full three to fbu1' weeks to go through the entire atJproval process.
4. §taff prcpal'Ution seemingly never ends. As St?ff prepares fDI' Cmnmissi()n
meetings. we wdte proposals and research n tremendous amount ofinfimnotion in
pt·epamtion tor the meeting. Items of routine natme are discussed twice, more
important items four limes and sometimes~ if defenetl or as the result ot' nn initial
proposal that led to tho ac1ion, the agenda ilcm may need to be fresh in our minds
for six weeks t)S new items accumulate. We need to be ablo to take action and
move forward. ·
5. Eyg.[Y Agendn has been amended. Since the inGeption of the one meeting
schedule, we have had numerous special en lied meetings and every works hopped
agenda has been amended. As staff hies to mnke progress on .vrojccts or
contracts, we sit and wait through long workshops where no nction can be taken,
there was no discus:-:ion or commc11ts und yel we nmst wail anothet'lwo weeks for
~m approval.
AGENDA ITEM# 78
SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
6. Ordinances require an additional month for approval. Ordinances set policy and
require two meetings to approve. This is by design a method of seeking
additional public input.
7. Workshop forinat places the Commissioners on the floor for round table
discussions. This helps, but almost every meeting there is a special · called
meeting. This requires the cameras to be arranged differently and the sound
system is not as good due to the failure of Commissioners to speak into the mic.
We have bad numerous complaints about the citizens not being able to hear the
Commissioners when they ai:e seated in the workshop format. The public gets
confused about whether they are going to get action on an item or not. Staff is
unsure in some cases whether the invited speakers should come to a workshop,
Co:m:mission meeting or both.
8. Fear of missing an agenda deadline is real. Staff strives very hard to meet
deadlines. With only one meeting, the consequences of missing an agenda
deadline means either waiting ~other month for approval or requires that a
special called meeting be scheduled.
9. The meeting of most importance to the citizen is the workshop. This is where the
discussion talces place and this is the meeting the Commissioners need to be b"est
prepared for. The agenda is received two to tlu:ee business days ahead of the
workshop. Of course they can prepare over the weekend and have four or five
days max. This gives commissioners only a few days to meet with staff to get
questions answered and we are busy getting ready for the meeting too.
Solution:
The solution being proposed is to return to two regular meetings a month, move
the agenda deadline up to allow for publicizing the agenda a minimum of 10 days
prior to the meetings, and start the meetings 30 minutes earlier. Below are the
reasons this approach would work in reference to each of the above items.
• Items 1 and 2 are. addressed because the meetings will occur more often, each
agenda is smaller and therefore the meetings will be shorter. Also, returning to a
starting time for the meetings of 6:00 p.m. wo"J)ld allow staff and citizens to at
least get out 30 minutes earlier .. Thirty minutes may not seem like a big
difference but for those who have to be at work at 8:00 a.m. the next morning, it
does make· a difference.
e Item 3 -Consultant presentations or interviews of selected persons for contracts
can be approved in the same night) if desired. The option to defer has always
been available.
• Items 3 and 4 -Items of a routine nature can be ;:1pproved twice a month) allowing
staff to get projects started and allowing us to react and respond quicker to citizen
requests.
" Item 5 -Staff can prepare the reports for approva~ attend a meeting and move
forward to the next project. The constant preparation and attendance at long
meetings for items on the agenda that pass with no discussion is a waste of
everyone's time.
• Item 5 -The number of amended agendas will be greatly reduced. The number of
versions of agendas floating around is becoming ridiculous. The Clerk has to wait
until the last minute to publish the agenda to make sure all the amended portions
are included.
• Item 6 -Items of significance deserve either a deferral for more discussion, a
public hearing and or a second reading. Ordinances are policy setting legislation
and as such require two meetings to pass. Significant/complicated items, such as
AGENDA ITEM # 7B
SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
the Hu.mnn Rights OrdiiHmce, may. be discussed in n separate workshop. This has
nhvays been an option.
6 Item 7-All•ncctings can take place fn the fom1nl se1ting \Vlth the exception of the
workshops called to discuss chosen items of significnnc~. Th.:: quality of the
video will be better for lho viewing public und the professionalism will be
cnlumct::1d. Worl<shop settings should bo f(.)r htt\.)1111nl discu:mions of a limited
number of topics.
9 Hem 8 -The fear of misHing a meeting deudlinc will be greatly L'cduced when
there will be flnother meeting within n few wcel<s.
a ltem 9 -The change to .the agenda. process will allow Commissioners, staff,
citl:;-;cns nttd the press to t'eceive the ngcndn at leusl ·1 0 days in mivancc of the
meeting. This will allow Commissioners two weekends to review nnd ample lime
to talk with citizens ami gel \Vi Ill stall It will allow stoff tQ research and answcl'
11dditionul conce·rns of citizens after l'euding the reports. The agenda will be
published tbt~ t·ho public to review and !'llhl'fis nvailnbl0 to address concerns bclbro
the meeting ten· over a week It will allow the proos to publish information about
item::: of interest prior lo the meeting. This will lend to a better int<mncd public
and Commission and in turn lend to hcller dedsionmnking.
Keep in J\lind that wo lmv~ implemented ·other procccllii'CN to enhance
communications with the citiz~ns since the one meeting schedule wns
fmlJicmenlcd. We ore now videoti1ping meetings and providing clcctnmic
agendas for ·commissioners to use on city provided iPads. Management now
encourages commissioners to direct! y seck answers from staff if needed. This
tmhance.s tht: response time when ·gathering intonnuLion for mecti11g preparations.
BUDGir!'~ No budget impact.
RICCOMMENDATION: Approve Ordinance No. 5~14-61
ATTACHMENTS: .Ordinance No. 5-14-61
RJ~VIEW~l:D·BY CITY MANAGER;£/(J";r,;:ir.:::1 r~.
ORDINANCE 5-14-61
AGENDA ITEM# 7B
SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH, FLORIDA,
AMENDING CHAPTER 2 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES,
ADMINISTRATION, ARTICLE II, CITY COMMISSION, SEC. 2-16, TIME
AND PLACE OF REGULAR MEETINGS, TO PROVIDE FOR TWO (2)
REGULAR MEETINGS PER MONTH EXCEPT FOR DECEMBER AND
PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION ON BEHALF OF THE PEOPLE OF
THE CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH, FLORIDA:
SECTION 1: Sec.2-16 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Atlantic Beach, Florida, is
hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 2 16. Time and place of regular meetings and scheduled workshops.
(a) The regular meetings of the city commission shall be held on the second Monday of each month.
(b) Scheduled workshops of the city commission shall be held as follows:
(1) In the months of January through November, on the fourth Monday of the month.
(2) In the month of December, on the third Monday of the month.
(c) All regular meetings and scheduled workshops of the city commission shall be held in city hall at
6:30p.m.
(d) If the second or fourth Monday falls on a holiday, the regular meeting or scheduled workshop shall
be held on Tuesday immediately following the holiday.
Sec.2-16 Time and place of Regular meetings.
The regular meetings of the city commission shall be held on the second and fomih
Mondays of each month, except December, in city hall, at 6:30 p.m. If the second or fourth
Monday falls on a holiday, the regular meeting shall be held on Tuesday immediately following
the holiday. In the month of December, the regular meeting shall be held on the second Monday
of the month.
SECTION 2. This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon its final passage and adoption.
PASS ED by the City Commission on first reading this 11th day of August 2014.
PASSED by the City Commission on this second and final reading this __ day of __ 2014.
ATTEST:
Donna L. Bartle, CMC
City Clerk
Approved as to form and correctness:
Rich Komando
City Attorney
Carolyn Woods
Mayor, Presiding Officer