08-25-99 vCITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH
800 SEMINOLE ROAD
SPECIAL CALLED MEETING
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 1999
6:00 PM
AGENDA
Call to order
0
1. Discussion and possible action concerning possible litigation with regard to the Mayport
Road/Atlantic Boulevard flyover
2. Any other business
Adjournment
MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CALLED MEETING OF ATLANTIC BEACH CITY
COMMISSION, HELD IN CITY HALL AT 6:00 PM ON WEDNESDAY AUGUST 25,
1999.
Present: Suzanne Shaughnessy, Mayor
Richard Beaver, Commissioner
Mike Borno, Commissioner
John Meserve, Commissioner
Theo Mitchelson, Commissioner
Also: Alan Jensen, City Attorney
Maureen King, City Clerk
David Thompson, City Manager
The meeting was called to order by Mayor Shaughnessy.
1.Discussion and possible action concerning possible litigation with regard to the
Mayport Road/Atlantic Boulevard flyover
Commissioner Meserve moved to cease spending any further tax dollars on legal fees
concerning the flyover design on Mayport Road. The motion was seconded by
Commissioner Beaver.
Commissioner Meserve said, in his opinion, the documents submitted by the attorney
indicated that the city did not have a very strong case. He expressed concern regarding some
of the comments made by Don Wolfson to the City Commission on August 9, 1999, which,
he said, conflicted with comments made to him by representatives of the Jacksonville
Transportation Authority(JTA). He said he called the JTA the following day to clarify any
misunderstandings and was satisfied that the JTA had not misrepresented the facts. He read
into the record a letter from Miles Francis, Executive Director of the JTA, a copy of which
is attached as Exhibit A. He believed the engineers had presented all the designs and the
JTA had determined that the flyover was the best solution at an affordable price, and he felt
it would be a waste of money to go to litigation. He felt the intersection should be improved,
and he hoped we could work with the JTA to make it as beautiful as possible.
With regards to the third paragraph on page two of Mr. Francis' letter, Mayor Shaughnessy
said that the JTA did not stop the design process at her request, but was stopped after the
joint meeting which had been held with the Neptune Beach elected officials and the JTA.
Commissioner Beaver referenced sections of the materials which he had received from the
attorney, which he felt, indicated the city did not have a strong case. He felt money spent
on a legal case would not be money well spent. Commissioner Beaver said he had received
more telephone calls on this subject than on any other, and almost all of callers were opposed
to initiating litigation.
Page Two
Minutes - Special Called Meeting
August 25, 1999
With reference to the letter from the JTA, Commissioner Borno said he did not think Don
Wolfson had accused the JTA of using the words"placebo" or "red herring." He said he felt
the intersection did need improvement, but he did not feel that the proposed flyover was the
best solution.
Commissioner Mitchelson said he was already on record as being opposed to the flyover.
He did not feel it would do what it is supposed to do. He said he had suggested shutting
down the intersection and doing a test to see if the flyover would help the traffic flow, but
the JTA was not willing to do so. However, he did not feel that proceeding with a law suit
would be in the best interest of the community.
The Mayor then invited comments from the floor.
J.P. Marchioli, 414 Sherry Drive, said he did not feel the flyover would improve the
intersection. He said that no comment had been made regarding the width of the flyover and
he did not feel that one lane would be sufficient to improve traffic flow. He felt that the
flyover would be more of a problem than a solution and said the project would eventually
cost $22 million.
Michael Hoffman, 176 Camelia Street, said he was opposed to spending any money
needlessly. He said he had talked to between 125 and 130 people in Section H and he said
that without any solicitation from him, about one-fifth of those had indicated they had a
problem with the project. He noted that the berms proposed by the JTA were three meters
high, and he had hoped they would be much higher. He also expressed concern regarding
the noise and indicated he had spoken with JTA and had asked them to put in some kind of
sound mitigation as a first step in construction. He said he felt his views were representative
of his neighborhood.
Pat Pillmore, 905 Camelia Street, was concerned that Section H would become a boxed-in
neighborhood and hoped some consideration would be given to this area during construction.
She suggested the Police Department conduct a traffic study before construction begins to
determine the best traffic routes for Section H residents. Ms. Pillmore agreed with earlier
comments regarding noise abatement and said that while the area has a heavy tree canopy,
there is currently considerable noise from traffic on Atlantic Boulevard, and she felt the
flyover would make it worse. She felt that the existing overpass would have to be replaced
and that part of the project should be done before the flyover. She also felt that consideration
of the Mayport flyover should have been postponed pending construction of the
Wonderwood Connector which, she felt, would change traffic patterns in the area.
Page Three
Minutes - Special Called Meeting
August 25, 1999
Mayor Shaughnessy reported that she had only received three negative calls during the entire
time that the flyover has been an issue. She said she felt responsible to the citizens of all
areas of Atlantic Beach and she found unacceptable the fact that the JTA wanted to wall off
Section H. She felt the flyover had unacceptable impacts on the quality of life for Atlantic
Beach residents and would divert commercial traffic into residential neighborhoods. She
agreed that the intersection needed to be unproved, but she did not feel that this was the only
option available to the JTA. She felt the design was injurious to the community and deserved
heightened scrutiny before the City should agree to this project. She felt that the flyover was
being forced on this conununity and pointed out that elected officials in Atlantic Beach and
Neptune Beach had voted 8 - 2 in opposition to the flyover. The Mayor also concurred that
Mr. Wolfson never credited a JTA staff member with words such as "placebo" or "red
herring." She felt that there was much that could have been improved by the JTA regarding
this project, and cited specifically, that the design of the bridge should have been made
available much sooner. The Mayor felt the Legislature had created a bureaucracy which was
very powerful and had almost no checks and balances.
The Mayor said she did not know if the construction of Wonderwood Connector, by itself,
would improve the traffic flow for Atlantic Beach, but she felt that the combination of the
two projects would bring increased traffic and congestion. The Mayor agreed with Ms.
Pillmore's suggestion that a traffic study be undertaken, and said the city would try to do
everything possible regarding noise abatement.
The Mayor said that the letter from the attorney indicated the city had grounds for legal
action, however, she felt it would be difficult to prove abuse of discretion. The City
Attorney concurred. The Mayor said that she did not fund the letter very encouraging and
while she would like to fight the flyover with every tool at her disposal, she did not feel we
should proceed with legal action at this point.
Commissioner Meserve agreed with Mr. Hoffman and Ms. Pillmore that the city needed to
work with the JTA to make sure that whatever goes in is as good as it can be for the residents
of Section H. He said that all the time and energy with respect to this project, had been
focused on design, and he felt that if the motion passed the city should work with the JTA
regarding sound mitigation. Commissioner Meserve said that Miles Francis had indicated
the JTA would be willing to work with the City regarding sound mitigation and
beautification, and he should be contacted as soon as possible. With respect to Ms.
Pillmore's comments regarding the impact of the Wonderwood Corridor, Commissioner
Meserve pointed out that Wonderwood had been taken into account in the traffic projections.
He also pointed out the existing overpass has been deemed to be structurally sound and will
not be considered for replacement for 15 - 20 years. He felt it was important to defend the
Page Four
Minutes - Special Called Meeting
August 25, 1999
interests of the Section H residents, not only during the construction of the flyover, but also
during the improvements to Atlantic Boulevard and the construction of the new span over
the Intracoastal Waterway.
Commissioner Mitchelson felt the City Commission needed a unanimous and unified effort
to proceed along the lines that Mr. Hoffman and Ms. Pillmore had outlined and work to
soften the impact of the construction on the lives of the residents who will be most affected
by the project. He also agreed that a study should be undertaken to see what actions, if any,
might assist the flow of traffic in that area. He also suggested the City engage in an effort
to relocate the retention pond which is currently proposed for an area which has beautiful
oak trees. Commissioner Mitchelson said he also recognized the need for an active park in
Section H, which the City Commission had been asked to consider in a recent petition from
the residents, and hoped the City would pursue acquiring land for this purpose.
The Mayor said she did not feel that the JTA had given a lot of thought to what the impact
would be on the neighborhood, and while she had not found the JTA to be very flexible
during discussions on this project, but she hoped they would be willing to work to lessen the
impact on the residents of Section H.
Pat Pillmore, said she felt JTA had not done a good job of communicating with the City. She
said there needed to be more human contact between governmental agencies and urged the
City Commission to continue with the law suit.
The Mayor said that while she felt the JTA had abused their discretion, proving that in a
court of law would be difficult. She felt based on the comments made by City
Commissioners that it was not the will of the City Conunission to continue with a law suit.
The Mayor called for a roll-call vote which carried unanimously with all Commissioners
and the Mayor voting in favor of the motion.
Following the vote, Commissioner Beaver said he agreed with the comments of
Commissioners Meserve and Mitchelson regarding the need to fight for the rights of the
Section H citizens. Since it appeared that the flyover was going to become a reality, he said
he would like the City Commission to direct the City Manager to meet with JTA
representatives to make sure that everything possible is done to make the project as palatable
as possible for the citizens.
Commissioner Mitchelson pointed out that the City Commission had adopted a resolution
opposing the flyover. He suggested that a resolution be drafted itemizing the points which
the City Commission feels would lessen the adverse impact of the project on the Section H
Page Five
411) Minutes - Special Called Meeting
August 25, 1999
community, and sit down again with the JTA with the express goal that they work with the
City to lessen the impact to these citizens to the extent possible. The Mayor requested that
Commissioner Mitchelson work with the City Clerk to draft such a resolution, following
which the resolution should be reviewed by the City Attorney.
Any other business:
Mayor Shaughnessy inquired whether the company responsible for the landscaping in Town
Center had begun their work. She commented she had noticed weeds in the Town Center
Landscaping and also in the Atlantic Boulevard medians. The City Manager said the City
did not have a contract with anyone for maintenance of the landscaping in Town Center and
said he would check into the maintenance of the Atlantic Boulevard medians.
The Mayor called a recess at 7:15 p.m.
The Mayor reconvened the meeting at 7:40 p.m. and there being no further discussion or
business to come before the City Commission, declared the meeting adjourned.
81A7n141-441.- ai..../4/11.4. rSUZANNESHAUJ1NESS
Mayor/Presiding Officer
ATTEST:
MA REEN KIN
Certified Municipal
III
EXHIBIT A Y 9046303166 T-632 P 02/03 F-835
MINUTES - AUGUST 25, 1999
MICHAEL D.STEWART
Chairman
JOHN S.PEYTON4-10i14111hi Vice Chairman
CYNTHIA B.AUSTIN
Secretary
L
HUEY R.HAWKINS
JACKSONVILLE TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY MARK H.MAHON
P.O.DRAWER 0 • 100 N.MYRTLE AVENUE • JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA 32203 DONALD R.McCLURE
TELEPHONE 904/630-3181 FAX-630-3166 CAROL S.SPALDING
MILES N.FRANCIS,JR.
Executive Director
August 25, 1999
The Honorable John Meserve
Commissioner, City of Atlantic Beach
800 Seminole Road
Atlantic Beach,Florida 32233
Dear John:
It has been brought to our attention that Don Wolfson has made statements to members of
the Atlantic Beach and Neptune Beach Commissions, and the public, of actions and
statements made by JTA concerning various design alternatives regarding the Atlantic
Bch./Mayport Rd. interchange improvement project.
The JTA, in concert with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) developed
eight possible alternative configurations to analyze relative to this project, with the intent
of selecting the best possible configuration for all those traveling through this busy, failed
intersection. Some of these were suggested by the FDOT, some by the design consultant
hired by JTA to perform the work. A preliminary analysis was made of all eight
alternatives. One alternative was dropped from the analysis process due to the initial
information which determined it was not an appropriate solution.
Upon completion of this preliminary evaluation, a public hearing was held at which time
all alternatives were discussed and the consultant presented recommendations for the
three final alternatives to continue studying. All of these alternatives were developed in
an open process considering that each of them was at least possibly viable. We believe
that a reasonable level of consideration was given to all of these alternatives and based on
comments that the public gave, JTA allowed the consultant to proceed with a more
detailed evaluation of the three selected alternatives.
liAPollyMeserven dodrnoed by PolyCmwd on 0I1/23/99 3:59 PM
PUTTING YOUR FUTURE IN MOTION
Aug-25-99 05:47pm From-JACKSONVILLE TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY 9046303166 T-632 P 03/03 F-835
Commissioner John Meserve
III 8/25/99
page 2
Mr. Wolfson was provided with documents prepared by the consultant summarizing their
evaluation and selection process of all the alternatives. It has been alleged that the
members of the JTA staff used the terms "placebo"and "red herring" in describing
particular design alternatives. No one on my staff has used or would use such terms in
describing engineering design concepts. As our project reports indicate, due
consideration was given to all alternatives recommended for study.
It should be clearly understood that the ITA held all required public hearings plus
additional public meetings, as fully advertised, during which alterenative designs were
presented and public comments were taken. All of the comments were properly reviewed
by JTA staff including our consultant and modifications were made where appropriate.
These reports were provided to Mr. Wolfson when he visited the Authority earlier this
summer and also provided as part of the material available at our formal public meetings.
These alternatives were discussed with technical staff of the FDOT, the City of
Jacksonville engineering staff and representatives of the Beaches area.
It also should be clearly understood that the JTA stopped its design process to again study
design alternatives at the request of the Mayor of Atlantic Beach. After extensive study
and review by FDOT and JTA staff, the alternatives were deemed inappropriate and
unsafe because of the necessity of closing streets and forcing traffic into residential areas.
IIIIn closing, I would like to point out that we have made significant changes in our design
at the request of Atlantic and Neptune Beaches including noise abatement berms,
relocation of retention ponds, access under the "flyover" at First St. and extensive
landscaping, where possible.
Sinceii ours,I /
PIP
1• 1. ran
Executive D or
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H:Tony\Meee'ra12.&vacua by Pa1yda sd on 0145199 4.59 PM
MINUTES OF ATLANTIC BEACH CITY COMMISSION BUDGET WORKSHOP HELD IN
COMMISSION CHAMBERS AT 7:45 PM ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 1999
Commission members present were the Mayor Shaughnessy and Commissioners Beaver, Borno,
Meserve and Mitchelson.
Staff members present were City Manager Thompson, Finance Director Van Liere, Public Works
Director Bob Kosoy, Assistant Public Works Director Donna Kaluzniak, Police Chief John
Campbell, Recreation Director Timmy Johnson, and City Clerk Maureen King.
Mayor Shaughnessy called the meeting to order. The Finance Director presented a list of
enhancements which had been suggested by the City Commission at the previous budget workshop,
along with suggestions from the City Manager and the Recreation Board, a copy of which is attached
as Exhibit A. Commissioners commented in turn, as follows:
Commissioner Borno reviewed the items listed under his name and added:
i) Improvements to the second block of Ocean Boulevard
ii) utilizing wetlands
Mayor Shaughnessy reviewed the items listed under her name and:
i) Deleted Johnston Island development
ii) Regarding Facilities Maintenance, the Mayor said she would like one person to be
responsible for coordinating all building maintenance. The City Manager advised that
building maintenance is included in department budgets but could be extracted and put
in one account. He felt the Building Inspector would be the appropriate person to
coordinate building maintenance.
Commissioner Meserve reported regarding a master plan which had been developed by Fleet Landing
and said he would like the City to develop a similar master plan. He felt this would add a lot
of stability in future budgeting. It was suggested that $25,000 be budgeted for this purpose.
Discussion ensued and it was agreed to try to shorten the individual lists to three items.
At this time the Mayor called on DeJean Melancon who presented a revised proposal dated August
3, 1999, for Bull Park improvements and estimated the cost of of the improvements would be
between$230,000- $240,000, plus design fee. He said the only major change from the original plans
was that the playground equipment had been changed to metal instead of wood, and the"turn-down"
curbing had been deleted. He recommended the City Commission budget $250,000 for the project.
A copy of the revised proposal is attached as Exhibit B. Discussion ensued regarding the proposed
improvements and it was noted that the City Commission had previously approved a budget of
234,000 for Bull Park improvements.
Page Two
Minutes - Budget Workshop
August 25, 1999
Commissioner Borno said he would like to pursue the construction of an active park in Section H
He pointed out a couple of sites which he felt might be appropriate and suggested that staff check
with owners regarding the availability of those parcels.
Commissioner Meserve said he would like to budget funds to assist property owners to connect to
the city sewers. He felt the city could charge interest for such assistance and repayment could be
included on utility bills.
Discussion ensued and Commissioner Mitchelson pointed out that some of the items listed would
be at no additional cost and others would be carried out by staff.
The Mayor and Commissioner Borno both indicated they would like to budget funds for
improvements to the second block of Ocean Boulevard, and it was agreed to budget an amount of
65,000 for this purpose.
Commissioner Beaver supported the development of a soccer field and suggested a possible location
on Levy Road. He said he would also like to see something done with Fraser Park and suggested the
Beautification Committee and Cultural Arts Board come up with some ideas. He said he would like
to develop a tree give-away program which would be funded through tree mitigation funds. The
Mayor also, said she liked the idea of establishing an oak tree bank.
Commissioner Beaver inquired as to the feelings of the City Commission regarding the possibility of
purchasing the Pic 'N Save building. City Manager Thompson reported regarding various options
which are currently being considered for that building.
The City Commission then considered the items listed under"City Manager" and concurred with his
request for an additional detective, two patrol officers and one-half records clerk. With regards to
City Hall maintenance,the City Manager advised that it was his recommendation to replace the tiles
in the lobby area, and to repaint the entire interior of the building. There was general consensus
among the City Commission to delete the $10,000 requested for a pay and classification study.
Discussion then ensued regarding the recommendations of the Parks and Recreation Board. The
Mayor felt that more park programs were needed and Mr. Melancon suggested the City Commission
budget the money, and programs be approved based on their merit. Following further discussion it
was agreed to budget $25,000 for programs and events, with emphasis on programs, and let the
Recreation Board present their recommendations regarding new programs.
Commissioner Meserve said he would like to get a cost estimate for building a bulkhead at the
drainage canal at City Hall, and include this in the budget.
410
Page Three
Minutes - Budget Workshop
August 25, 1999
Discussion ensued regarding the proposed Adele Grage Community Center feasibility study and it
was felt that the suggested figure of$15,000, was excessive. It was suggested to also look into the
feasibility of closing in the second floor of City Hall. The City Manager said that it was inconvenient
for the Purchasing activities to be separated from the Finance Department and he felt the current
situation was fraught with problems. He felt that centralization of these departments would be more
convenient and efficient. Following further discussion it was agreed to budget $3,000 for this study,
and to include in that figure a study of the feasibility of closing in the second floor in City Hall.
Discussion ensued regarding Russell Park maintenance and Commissioner Beaver expressed some
concern regarding Little League finances and said he would like to see an accounting of their
resources. Other Commissioners concurred. The Mayor, however, felt the City should maintain the
baseball fields since the fields belonged to the City.
Discussion ensued regarding the use of CDBG funds and the City Manager said that the City
Commission approved how the funds would be used. He said, initially, the funds had been used for
housing rehabilitation only, but last year CDBG funds had been used 50/50 for rehabilitation and
infrastructure improvements, such as sidewalks.
Discussion ensued regarding land acquisition and the Mayor said she felt the City should budget
sufficient funds to purchase any land which may become available which could be used for parks,
particularly land which was adjacent to existing parks. The Commission concurred and agreed to
budget $250,000 for land acquisition.
The Finance Director distributed graphs illustrating revenues received in recent years. Commissioner
Beaver noted that there was a considerable increase in grant revenues. He acknowledged that Karen
Scheffer of the City of Jacksonville, had been helpful to Atlantic Beach in securing grant moneys and
pointed out that she was no longer with the City of Jacksonville. Commissioner Beaver inquired
whether Atlantic Beach should hire an in-house grant writer. The City Manager pointed out,
however, that it was often very expensive to administer grants.
There being no further discussion, the Mayor declared the meeting adjourned at 9:55 p.m.
Maureen King
City Clerk
Exhibit A
Minutes - August 25, 1999
One
Cost Time On-Going Funding
al"ommision Request
Borno
Additional five police officers
r West of Mayport active Park development
Soccer in Russell Park
City Hall Improvements/Expansion 3,‘,00
Mitchelso "7 D "Va0
Police detectives
Maintenance of City Hall
Park Maintenance
Sea Oats Planting
Beautification of Mayport Road
Oak Tree Bank
Fire Contract Review
Shaughnessy
Town Center Improvements Am? Iztt7Gk 0.510 V)
Bike Path System 3 9-
DOT link Parks
Shade Trees on Seminole Road -e- vlo a,. Lj4-,4(
Hazardous Waste pick-up point - cteuk-Q4ekko.
Privatization of Water&Sewer Utility operations
Facility MakieRarice l}eio. -.
Meserve
Master Plans(Comprehensive City wide)
Mayport Road Beautification
Landscape maintenance people or equipment
Sewer hook-up funding
Police communication radio system foo M1kz
City Hall bulkhead for ooze mitigation
Beavon
JtY-. f-77 1L :L1 Y1'1 YHKKS HNL KtUKtH11U .
ExhibitB
Minutes - August 25, 1999
August 3, 1999
TO: Mayor Shaughnessy and City Commission
FR: DeJean Melancon, Chairman Parks and Recreation Advisory Board
RE: Bull Park Recommendations
The Board held a regular meeting on July 28,1999 and voted to recommend the following
budget adjustments to Bull Park.The bid adjustments are taken from the bid submitted by
ABBA Construction.
I. Curbing and Sidewalk-delete perimeter concrete curbing and sidewalk from the bid
package. Sidewalks should constructed where new parking areas will require
sidewalks to be replaced. (Bid items#2b, 7b-c, 8a-d are budgeted at$62,667. The
board believes 50-60% can be saved). Anticipated savings $32,667.
2. Playground Structure-delete Timberform(wood) Structure from the bid package.
Under a separate bid replace with a Steel and Aluminum Structure similar to recent
installations at Russell Park and Atlantic Beach Elementary. Set budget at $50,000.
Bid items #2d, 3a-d, 7a are budgeted at$92,767).Anticipated savings $42,767.
Before purchasing a system discuss with Karen Scheffer,City of Jacksonville,
Department of Parks about possible joint funding of the playscape.
3. Heat Pump Conversion-recommend deletion,bid#21-$6,319.
4. Plants-recommend separate bid, anticipate a 10% savings-$5,200.
5. Mobilization Cost-reduce to$30,000 because of deleted items. Anticipated savings
5,391.
Summary: Total reductions are initially estimated at $92,344. These estimates are the
opinion of the Board and must be verified with the selected contractor. These changes
preserve the original design principles. In summary the Board believes the Bull Park
project can be constructed for$250,000 with the above modifications and other
miscellaneous reductions.
Recommendation: The Board recommends the Commission approves a budgeted
amount of$250,000 and authorize Staff to move forward with the project.
od4,