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Amended Item 1C MINUTES AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C REGULAR CITY COMMISSION MEETING DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14, 2016 CITY HALL, 800 SEMINOLE ROAD IN ATTENDANCE: Mayor Mitchell E. Reeves City Attorney Brenna Durden Mayor Pro Tem Jimmy Hill City Manager Nelson Van Liere Commissioner Harding City Clerk Donna L. Bartle Commissioner John Stinson Recording Secretary Della Giovanni Commissioner M. Blythe Waters Invocation and pledge to the flag Mayor Reeves gave the Invocation, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. Call to Order: Mayor Reeves called the meeting to order at 6:31 p.m. City Clerk Bartle called the roll and Mayor Reeves noted that a quorum was present. 1. Approval of minutes. A. Approve minutes of the Pre-Storm Briefing on September 1,2016. B. Approve minutes of the Town Hall Meeting on October 15, 2016. C. Approve minutes of the Regular Commission Meeting on October 24, 2016. Mayor Reeves asked if there were any collections to the above minutes. There were no corrections, so Mayor Reeves stated the minutes stand as submitted. Mayor Reeves explained the process for public comments and moved Item 2B out of order to address it at this time. 2B. Donation of Beach Handicap Chair- Cynthia Caudle Recreation Director Timmy Johnson, introduced Mary Bruner and Ken and Cynthia Caudle who donated a beach wheelchair to the City. Cynthia Caudle, 1474 Marshview Ct. presented the chair in memory of their father and brother who they lost two years ago within 24 hours of each other. She explained they recognized the need for beach wheelchairs so her family and friends came together and donated funds to purchase it. The Commission gathered for a photo with the Caudle family. Mayor Reeves thanked them and explained another way to donate to the city is by purchasing a park bench to commemorate someone. Mayor Reeves wished Commissioners Stinson and Waters a Happy First Anniversary serving on the Commission and thanked the entire Commission for the work they have accomplished. 2A. Presentation by Bill Brinton, Esquire, on Sign Code Rewrite. (This item was taken out of sequence and acted on at this time.) AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 2 Mr. Bill Brinton stated he was invited by City Attorney Durden to discuss the Sign Code. He explained the consequences of the 2015 Reed vs. The Town of Gilbert case, the need to rewrite the Sign Code, and his experience. Mr. Brinton suggested replacing the existing Sign Code with a brand new Code; address all areas of the Sign Code at the same time; and have a set of preambles that explains everything you are doing to the Sign Code and why you are doing it. He explained the process that took place last year with Jacksonville Beach and Judge Corrigan, which he was a part of. He also explained what happened in the Town of Gilbert case which cost over $1,000,000. He explained what local governments are allowed to do vs. what can and cannot be considered political and non-political/commercial and non-commercial which is no longer separated per the Supreme Court. He expressed his interest in helping the City rewrite the Sign Code. Commissioner Stinson asked Mr. Brinton if he had read the City's sign code and asked Mr. Brinton to explain his process and cost for effectiveness. Mr. Brinton admitted that he had briefly reviewed the Code and feels that the current Code is unconstitutional as it stands today. Mayor Reeves asked Mr. Brinton since a foundation for other cities have been done, could it be possible to "tweak" their foundation to accommodate Atlantic Beach. Mayor Reeves also indicated that research has shown that the City is currently not in violation with the existing code. Mr. Brinton explained his process at a reduced cost of$15k for the City and his involvement with Jacksonville Beach's sign code rewrite. Commissioner Hill pointed out that all codes and ordinances for the City need to be reviewed and that he finds it difficult to support the proposed cost since it is only for one code. He questioned Mr. Brinton on his representation and asked if the proposed cost includes a Binder to be defended at a later date. The question regarding a Binder was not answered, but Mr. Brinton indicated that George Forbes could give the figure on what was incurred overall. Mayor Reeves reiterated his earlier points and Mr. Brinton did also. Courtesy of the Floor to Visitors Mayor Reeves opened the Courtesy of the Floor to Visitors. City Clerk Bartle called each speaker to the podium. Chris Jorgensen, 92 W. 3rd St. Atlantic Beach thanked the tree clean up people. He addressed the signing of a contract by the City Manager without the knowledge of the Commissioners and questioned the lack of communication among the City's leaders. He was impressed with the presentation given by Atlantic Beach resident Kevin Bodge regarding the history of the beaches during a Beaches Watch event. Mr. Jorgensen spoke about the Commission Meetings being divided into two parts: Town Hall meetings where the items can be discussed at length, and Regular Meetings to finalize the business in order to scale back the length of the meetings and thanked Commissioner Stinson for the idea. In reference to the new Historical Plaque that was recently placed, he asked that the City give credit to the resident who took part in making it happen. He stated he does not understand why people believe the west side is not connected to this side of the City. Nancy Whittington, 1861 Beachside Court Atlantic Beach, representing the Beachside Homeowners Association,brought a Letter for Action to resolve a long existing problem regarding the drainage between 18th and 19th Street and numerous clearing requests made to the City which the Association felt was being ignored. She explained Public Works Director,Don Jacobowitz responded on October 28,2016 stating that he was advised AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 3 by the City Manager not to perform the service request because it was considered a private neighborhood and the street is not maintained by the City. She indicated that the Beachside developer's improvements were unanimously accepted into the City on June 22, 1987. In 2003,the City milled and paved the Beachside Streets. She referred to the list of City streets maintained by Public Works that was presented to the Commission on October 24, 2016, which on page 4 and 5 includes the Beachside streets. She gave City Clerk Bartle copies of her letter to distribute to the Commission. Since the timer stopped with three minutes left, Mayor Reeves asked what the issue was. City Clerk Bartle indicated she had no idea what caused it to stop. Mayor Reeves asked the City Manager to have the IT Manager straighten out the issue. No one else from the audience spoke so Mayor Reeves closed the Courtesy of the Floor to Visitors. 3. Unfinished Business from Previous Meetings A. Public Hearing- Waiver No. 16-SAFW-241- Request for Waiver to allow a Finish Floor Elevation of 6.75 ft, in lieu of the minimum 7.5 ft. as required by City Code, Section 24-251(c), at 1201 Gladiola Street. Building Official Dan Arlington explained the waiver by highlighting the information in his staff report. He stated they are holding the Certificate of Occupancy because the house was built below the City's required Base Floor Elevation(BFE),but it does meet FEMA's requirements. He confirmed it does have flood insurance. Mr. Arlington believes technically the current height seems to be safe and does not affect any neighbors. He recommended approval of the waiver. Mayor Reeves opened the public hearing. City Clerk Bartle called each speaker to the podium. William Li, 4540 Southside Blvd, Jacksonville, 32216, introduced himself as the attorney representing the homeowner of the property,Mr. Yaranon,who is currently out of the country and unable to be here. He explained he is here to answer questions or concerns the City may have. He explained that Mr. Yaranon supports approval for this request. Cheryl Vonn, 1209 W. Plaza, stated she lives across the street from the proposed property and showed concern regarding the needed research for flood FNIP rates/results. She took pictures during high tide which showed water around the home on three sides from the creek. She asked what the City's liability would be to future homeowners if the waiver is granted. Mayor Reeves stated he will have someone get back to her with those answers. Gloria Casterline, 1080 W.Plaza Dr., stated during the construction,there were a few Stop Orders for different things and questioned why it was not caught during the inspections and during the survey. She also questioned whether it will set a precedence for other homeowners to do the same thing; will there be a penalty given to the builder for not doing what he was supposed to do; what kind of liability does the City have for not checking that permits were followed. She believes this house will affect the neighbors because it is on a corner,the dirt that is holding that foundation is slowly going into the waterway and the water is going to flood higher. She asked that those questions be answered. No one else from the audience spoke so Mayor Reeves closed the public hearing. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 4 Motion: Approve Waiver#16-SAFW-241. Moved by Hill, Seconded by Harding Commissioner Hill explained why he supports moving forward with approving this. The house meets other standards,just not the City's standards, and it allowed them to get insurance and required documents to move forward and for future sales so the house is not stuck in limbo. He believes it will be like any other older house that is grandfathered in. He asked the City Attorney to confirm that he is correct and once it is approved by us and goes forward,there will be no residual long-term problem and any future homeowners would have the same disclosures requirements because the deed will carry the information. City Attorney Durden explained that if the waiver is granted with the conditions that are in Mr. Arlington's staff report, which would be for the release to be approved and signed by the current land owner, Mr. Yaranon, represented by Mr. Li, and consented to by the lender, she believes that release would be effective to protect the City against liability from Mr. Yaranon and would run with the land from owner to owner. Commissioner Hill asked if he should restate his motion to include the language regarding the conditions. Ms. Durden responded that he should. Mayor Reeves asked that he wait until other Commissioners have a chance to comment in case there are other changes to be made. Commissioner Hill commented that his intention is to make sure that it is properly documented going forward. He wants to hear from other Commissioners to see if there are public concerns other than possible erosion issues which need addressing. Mayor Reeves called Dan Arlington to the podium to answer questions regarding why the City standards are higher than FEMA standards. Building Official Dan Arlington explained the two City ordinances stating one says all houses in Atlantic Beach should be above 7.5 feet and the second one says any house in a flood zone should be 2.5 feet higher than the BFE, the BFE is 5 feet, so the two agree. Atlantic Beach is trying to get above any future flood levels so that houses will be safe. Mayor Reeves asked if we approve this waiver tonight,will it affect our ratings at any time and do we get better ratings. Mr. Arlington responded yes to both and stated the language says that we cannot show a pattern of issuing variances and one variance will be on our annual review as a warning to not do it again. Mayor Reeves explained he has been told by three different citizens that Stop Work Orders were done on the house, but when staff was asked, he was told they have not done any. Mr. Arlington reported that he had asked the inspector that did all the inspections there and he never put a Stop Work Order on it. Mayor Reeves expressed adding something to the motion to address the following concerns: 1) The concrete needs to be removed; 2) The ditches need to be put back in the right grade to allow the water to drain towards the Intracoastal; and 3) There needs to be some type of penalty in order to reimburse the City for legal fees. Commissioner Waters believes that if we impose random penalties we are opening ourselves up to a big problem. She believes if it is not in our Code that a violation has a penalty attached to it, we cannot make up a penalty at this point, although she understands the desire to recoup some of our fees. She addressed the impact on the neighborhood noting it is a buildable lot in the neighborhood but the actual height of the house does not have AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 5 bearing on the impact to the neighborhood. She summarized the comments that were brought up and explained nothing we can do is going to be retroactive. She urged the Commission to keep in mind that there is a discussion of what we want to do going forward,but regarding this house,many of those things cannot be applied to it. She explained this is in a low-lying area, not only is there an impact to the City of granting multiple waivers which we will not take on,this house is finished,the City has a small portion of the culpability, and we have to make a decision about a waiver. She reiterated they need to separate what this case means to them going forward and what they can do regarding this specific house as they cannot do things retroactive. Commissioner Stinson agreed that fines cannot be assessed that are not in the Code, but the Commission does have the ability to require that contractors go back and meet the expectations and the Codes as they were written and agreed to upon the time the property was permitted. He explained when he asked how we are going to prevent this from happening moving forward, he did not get a really direct plan. He reported there were comments about relying on software that the City is using that has been problematic for some time. He requested that the City adopt a Code that requires a survey prior to the floor being poured. He spoke about verifying the height and the pervious and impervious surfaces. He believes something needs to be done to ensure such a mistake does not happen again. Commissioner Harding expressed his concern about the City's liability if the waiver is approved. He indicated he commented at the last Commission Meeting about the lack of action on the City's part as well as the contractor's mistake, and believes we have to move forward on this. He stated if the homeowner, finance company, and insurance company are all aware of the Finished Floor Elevation and it does not meet the City of Atlantic Beach's requirements, but it does meet FEMA's, he does not see a cause to not approve the waiver. Mayor Reeves asked for confirmation from Dan Arlington that the City will only get a warning if the City grants a waiver. Mr. Arlington confirmed. Mayor Reeves asked Mr. Li to confirm that his client, Mr. Yaranon, is not in the military and that he is a contracted agent assigned for a private company working in Afghanistan. Mr. Li confirmed he is not in the military, but does not have the full details. Mayor Reeves asked City Attorney Brenna Durden if her legal fees can be included as a cost of doing business, not a penalty. City Attorney Durden explained that you can add conditions to the waiver such as reimbursing the City for a particular amount as opposed to categorizing it as a penalty,but reimbursement for the legal fees would be highly unusual for this. Mayor Reeves asked the builder, Mr. Putnal, whether he would agree to pay the legal fees if that is one of the conditions. Mr. Putnal stated he thought the money he paid to apply for the waiver covered that, but agreed that he would pay the fee. Mayor Reeves expressed concern about the City saying there were no Stop Work Orders issued and the residents saying there were and he is having to trust staff when they say we will not get penalized. Commissioner Hill addressed the legal fees stating he believes the City missed their responsibilities and should split the cost. He suggested that they change the City's process by making a signature on surveys a requirement of all permits so that we acknowledge the survey and keep the ISO rating lower. He explained that by adapting this change, it will show that the City has made significant changes to prevent this type of error from happening again. He asked the builder if he would be able to mitigate to a sufficient amount whatever method is necessary to stabilize the bank of the ditch in order to address erosion. Mr. Putnal explained there is a list of things that Public Works wants done, which he will do. He clarified that there were two Stop Work Orders from Public Works because the fence was knocked down. He reported they were corrected quickly and Mr. Arlington would not know anything about them because it was Public Works that did it. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 6 Commissioner Stinson confirmed with City Attorney Durden about what she said regarding assessing a fine as a condition of a waiver being highly irregular. She indicated that she did not say anything about a fine or a penalty. She stated she spoke to it just simply as a condition. She believes it would be improper for us to assess a penalty or a fine in any circumstance where that is not already in the Code. Commissioner Stinson confirmed with Dan Arlington that a survey is needed for the lot,but a foundation can be poured without a survey. Mr. Arlington explained that they require a survey showing the footprint on the lot. Commissioner Stinson asked for confirmation that it is not a survey of how the foundation is formed; it is a plan and the contractor does not go out and survey the foundation itself before they pour the concrete. Mr. Arlington explained it is drawn on the survey and some builders use a surveyor to give us a footprint of the building; others will draw a footprint within an allowable area. Commissioner Stinson reiterated his recommendation that they require a survey prior to the foundation being poured and he explained his reasons. Commissioner Waters agreed with Commissioner Stinson's recommendation stating we need to require the survey because it does answer multiple questions. She requested that the topic be on the agenda for discussion at the next meeting. She believes that if they grant this waiver, they must have action on that. Commissioner Hill clarified that he also said that. She believes it is her understanding from the City Attorney that we cannot assess a fee, but we can put a condition on the waiver to split the legal fees with the contractor. She agreed with Commissioner Hill that this is an imperfect system and while we bear some responsibility, there is not a specific fault until we put the survey on and say we did not get the survey we asked for. She believes they should split the legal fees. Commissioner Hill confirmed with Mr. Li that his client understands the current situation and consequences and that he is in agreement to sign a waiver to agree for the allowance. Mr. Li responded that he does not know about things brought up this evening, but he does know about the waiver, the release that he would have to sign and the potential consequences on this home for him going forward. Commissioner Stinson questioned whether it would make more sense to require the contractor to mitigate 5 years of flood insurance for our new resident rather than reimbursing the City$600 or$700. Commissioner Hill believes it would bind the City to the issue and he wants the issue to be over. He prefers that the City do their business with the builder as administrative correction so that he recognizes he built the slab at the wrong height and we recognize that we missed it and be done with it and go forward: Mayor Reeves said that he was appalled that two city departments are not communicating with each other about the Stop Work Orders. He believes they should be jointly involved in every project and they have missed it twice. He stated it upsets him. City Attorney Durden clarified that the current applicant is Mr. Yaranon. The former application that was submitted to the City was signed by the former owner who is no longer the owner, therefore, she has informed Mr. Li that one of the conditions is that Mr. Yaranon will have to provide us with an application. If the Commission chooses to approve it, another condition is that Mr. Yaranon must sign the Release and as part of the Release, the Mortgagee Joinder and Consent must be signed by the lender. She explained that both have to be properly executed and notarized. She stated that if there are any other conditions such as removing the concrete in the ditch, reconfiguring the drain so that it goes towards the Intracostal and possibly paying some portion of legal fees,we need to add those to any motion or amended motion that the Commission wants to make. She explained that the applicant is Mr. Yaranon, not the builder. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 7 Mayor Reeves questioned whether the cement in the ditches would have to be corrected anyway before they allow anyone to move in. City Attorney Durden stated he may be right; it could be a condition of the Certificate of Occupancy, but she wanted to make it clear that if it was going to be a condition of the waiver, then it needs to be so stated. If the Building Department says that those would be conditions for a Certificate of Occupancy, then she does not see a reason for them to be part of the waiver. Commissioner Hill explained he would like to modify the Motion to reflect that the current owner, Mark F. Yaranon, fully execute a release agreement and adjustment to reflect that the builder mitigate erosion issues as directed and that the builder make corrections to irrigation issues as identified. Mayor Reeves interrupted Commissioner Hill explaining that the Motion is with the owner,not the builder. Commissioner Stinson requested that they recess for five minutes to allow Commissioner Hill time to formulate the motion. Mayor Reeves called for a recess at 8:02 p.m. The meeting reconvened at 8:11 p.m. Motion: Approve Waiver Request#16-SAFW-241 with the following conditions: Application signed by Mr. Yaranon, Release with Consent, Reimburse City $1,000 for administrative costs, Mitigate drainage issues on-site, and Mitigate erosion issues on-site. Moved by Hill, Seconded by Waters Roll Call Votes: Aye: 3 -Harding,Hill, Waters Nay: 2—Stinson, Reeves MOTION CARRIED B. Removal of Hurricane Debris from Private Roads City Manager Van Liere explained the staff report and the recommendation. Motion: Approve the letter to FEMA and accept the signed permission to clear debris from the two gated communities as stated. Moved by Waters, Seconded by Harding Commissioner Stinson pointed out that the staff report indicates there are three communities and asked if the motion needs amending. City Manager Van Liere and Deputy Public Works Director Kayle Moore indicated that there are only two, so the motion remained unchanged. There was no further discussion. Roll Call Votes: Aye: 5 - Hill, Stinson, Waters, Harding, Reeves Nay: 0 MOTION CARRIED AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 8 C. Hurricane Matthew Debris Removal Activities City Manager Van Liere explained his informational report. He stated that shortly after he sent out an email indicating the need to increase the amount of the DebrisTech contract from $100,000 to $150,000, they reevaluated the work they were doing for us and the amount will probably be $105,000, not $150,000. He reported that they are done with the contracts and the debris removal and referred to the spreadsheet in the packet as he explained the expenses totaling$503,430.27. Mayor Reeves questioned the cost of$105,000 just to follow a truck. Mr. Van Liere explained that they bring in teams of people and they have to have a monitor to watch the truck pick it up and document where it went; have monitors at the place where they drop it off;have supervisors that follow them around and because of our canopy,we had to change to smaller trucks which meant we had five or six little trucks running around needing monitors. The more trucks we had,the more monitors we had to have. Commissioner Stinson questioned the number of people they used. Kayle Moore answered that he does not know the exact number but, from what he witnessed during the heaviest debris removal time, we had at least a dozen DebrisTech representatives moving around in the City and between two to four at the transfer site on Girvin Road to document the activities there. He explained that the FEMA reporting is apparently a very stringent and regimented process. An alternative solution would have been for us to use our staff to get training because you have to have certified training and get vehicles certified,which does not weigh in as a good option either. He stated he believes it was done right and is consistent with everything they needed in order to qualify for the reimbursement for the removal. Commissioner Stinson was wondering if there was a way to get around the $100,000 for monitoring in the future. City Manager Van Liere explained that while the monitoring was going on, our city crews were very busy clearing the debris from roads,parks and pathways. He believes they could have done it,but there are not enough people to have kept up with the haulers. Commissioner Stinson requested that the City Manager have a conversation with staff about what they did and whether they can improve on it in case this happens again. Mr. Moore agreed that it should be looked into. He indicated that a constraint would be that the team would need to be selected and given all the training early because of the tight timeframe of filing with FEMA. City Manager Van Liere explained that between now and the next hurricane season the City will need to get their own contracts for all three services. Commissioner Stinson requested that we educate the residents on the emergency clean-up process to avoid confusion in the future. Commissioner Hill commented that he is not happy with the expense, but it looks like it will be relatively low after the fact. He explained this was an incredibly unique event for us. He believes the monitors are more there for the non-biological debris household items which we had virtually none of. He explained the debris would have been different if the event was different and the monitors were probably watching stuff that did not need to be watched as much. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 9 D. Beautification and Natural Resource Preservation Advisory Committee Commissioner Stinson referred to his written report as he explained the background and draft charge for the Beautification and Natural Resource Preservation Advisory Committee. He indicated that he put together the charge based on the minutes of the Town Hall meeting on October 15, 2016 and there may be other things the Commission would like to add. He requested that they discuss the charge and either accept it or not. Motion: Adopt the formation and utilization of the Beautification and Natural Resource Preservation Advisory Committee as appointed prior and described in the Commission report, to study and make recommendations to the City Commission for the formation of a permanent committee, purposed with the responsibility for overseeing any recommendations adopted by the City Commission. Moved by Stinson, Seconded by Harding Commissioner Stinson apologized to the Commissioners who could not attend the Roundtable meeting last week. He explained that the item landed on his desk late and he requested the meeting in order to give everyone a chance to give input and make changes so that it could be brought to the Commission tonight, fully revised and amended, for approval. He stated that if changes are needed,they can make them. Commissioner Waters commented on whether or not they should have any action item capacity. Mayor Reeves clarified that this is the charge for the Advisory Committee and the charge is needed so that they can go ahead and start. Commissioner Stinson explained the purpose of the charge and further explained his written report. Commissioner Hill expressed interest in adding generic language that would allow them to bring other matters to the Commission. Mayor Reeves explained that the Commission has time to work this out and do it right. Mayor Reeves called for a roll call vote and after the first vote, which was from Commissioner Stinson, Commissioner Waters explained she intended to amend the motion. Mayor Reeves indicated that he would suspend the rules and go back to discussion. Commissioner Stinson proposed to withdraw his motion and wait until the November 28th Commission Meeting to allow Commissioner time to work with the City Clerk, City Manager and anyone else they need to in order to include language in that document. Commissioner Waters commented on the amount of work Commissioner Stinson put into the draft and explained her reason to want to amend the language in the document. Commissioner Stinson officially withdrew his motion. Motion: Adopt the formation and utilization of the Beautification and Natural Resource Preservation Advisory Committee as appointed prior and described in the Commission report, to study and make recommendations to the City Commission for the formation of a permanent committee, purposed with the responsibility for overseeing any recommendations adopted by the City Commission with supporting language to also include blanket language that allows the Committee to look at issues that they deem necessary. Moved by Hill, Seconded by Waters AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 10 Commissioner Stinson asked for clarification that they are including this language for the Advisory Committee that we are creating. Commissioners Hill and Waters responded, yes. Commissioner Hill explained that it could be made No. 11, if needed. City Attorney Durden believed the intent of the change was to add a No. 11 to the third page of the report and that it would be something along the lines of "that they could recommend any other issues that they deem appropriate to the City Commission. Votes: Aye: 5 -Harding, Hill, Stinson, Waters, Reeves Nay: 0 MOTION CARRIED 4. Consent Agenda ALL MATTERS LISTED UNDER THE CONSENT AGENDA ARE CONSIDERED TO BE ROUTINE BY THE CITY COMMISSION AND WILL BE ENACTED BY ONE MOTION IN THE FORM LISTED BELOW. THERE WILL BE NO SEPARATE DISCUSSION OF THESE ITEMS. IF DISCUSSION IS DESIRED, THAT ITEM WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA AND WILL BE CONSIDERED SEPARATELY. SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION AND STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS HAVE BEEN PREVIOUSLY SUBMITTED TO THE CITY COMMISSION ON THESE ITEMS. A. Approve all employee insurances listed on the staff report effective January 1,2017 through December 31, 2017 and authorize the City Manager to sign related insurance and insurance renewal documents. City Clerk Bartle read the consent agenda. Mayor Reeves asked if any Commissioner wanted to pull an item from the Consent Agenda for discussion. Motion: Approve the Consent Agenda Item A. Moved by Waters, Seconded by Stinson Commissioner Waters thanked Cathy Berry for getting the rate increase down from 26%to 8%. Votes: Aye: 5 - Harding,Hill, Stinson,Waters, Reeves Nay: 0 MOTION CARRIED 5. Committee Reports A. Appointment of a City Commissioner to Chair the Board Member Review Committee. Mayor Reeves stated he would like to reappoint Commissioner Stinson to serve another term as Chair of the Board Member Review Committee. Motion: Reappoint Commissioner Stinson to the Board Member Review Committee. Moved by Hill, Seconded by Harding AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 11 Mayor Reeves thanked Commissioner Stinson for serving this year and explained that Commissioner Stinson wants to look into how we can improve the boards and committees. Commissioner Stinson requested that they have a discussion about training for new board members. Mayor Reeves agreed to discuss it after this vote is taken and while they are still under Committee Reports. Votes: Aye: 5 -Harding,Hill, Stinson, Waters, Reeves Nay: 0 MOTION CARRIED Commissioner Stinson explained his interest in having the Florida League of Cities provide training to our board and committee members and the conversation he had with FLC. He reported that he discussed this with City Attorney Durden and she has followed up on it and has some options if the Commission is interested. City Attorney Durden spoke about the need for training and listed options based on conversations with the Florida League of Cities as follows: 1) 3 %2 hr. video available that covers training regarding Chapter 112, Ethics, Voting Conflicts, Sunshine Laws and Public Records. This option is offered at no cost and would need coordination with the IT Department to make sure it could be shown on the screens in the Chamber. 2) In the first quarter of 2017, the Florida League of Cities will be coming to Northeast Florida area to provide the same type of training for any interested parties. Last year they did this in Orange Park and at the City of St. Augustine Beach. 3) In addition to the above options, the Florida League of Cities will give an Advisory Committee presentation which they would be willing to pay for if we have between 20-40 people show up for the training in Atlantic Beach. This training is slightly different. It is about being a member of an advisory committee or a standing committee and how to conduct business. She recommended that the City Commission direct the City Manager, City Clerk and City Attorney to work together to find a date for the video and do it sooner rather than later. She stated it would be beneficial and productive for the committee members to hear the information from an expert. Discussion ensued about the benefits of training and the three options given by City Attorney Durden. City Manager Van Liere suggested providing a link to the training video and having new members sign a form indicating that they had the training prior to their first meeting. Commissioner Hill suggested having staff meet with Commissioner Stinson to work out the details. Commissioner Waters recommended that if they go with the option of online viewing, there needs to be some kind of mechanism or test at the end of the video that proves completion of the training. 6. Action on Resolutions There were no resolutions. 7. Action on Ordinances AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 12 There were no ordinances. 8. Miscellaneous Business (Discussion only) A. Discussion on Special Magistrates (Mayor Reeves) Mayor Reeves stated he is removing Items 8A and 8D from the agenda tonight for a later date. B. Sign Regulations Rewrite City Attorney Durden spoke about the documents in the agenda packet and Mr. Britton's presentation. She recommended that the Commission ask Mr. Britton to undertake the complete rewrite and replacement of our sign code which would also include the coordination of any definitions or any other provisions that would need to be coordinated with the sign code within our set of ordinances. She would like the Commission to authorize the City Manager to execute an engagement letter with Mr. Britton with a lump sum of $15,000 for him to complete the rewrite. She strongly disagreed with lifting other cities' work explaining it is not an easy task, it is first amendment issues and they need to reflect our community, not another city someone else. She stated she could not do this work for $15,000; she does not have the background that Mr. Britton has; and he is a very valuable source for us. She offered to answer questions. Mayor Reeves questioned Mr. Britton about his rate of pay. Mr. Britton responded that his normal hourly rate is $485, but he reduces it to $250 for projects like this. He explained his experience and the value in using his services. Mayor Reeves explained that he needs to feel comfortable with the cost when he is faced by citizens. He expressed concerns about the possibility of people testing the city. Commissioner Stinson asked the City Manager how we would come up with the funds to pay for it. City Manager Van Liere stated that if we use Mr. Britton, we would have to amend the budget to pay for it since the legal budget that we have is tight anyway without this. He reminded them of the discussion in the Budget Workshop about redoing all of our regulations and that we were going to come back and visit that with an amendment on a larger scale before we talked about just doing this piece by itself. Commissioner Stinson began making a motion to direct the City Manager and the City Attorney to execute an agreement with Mr. Britton and Rogers Towers. Mayor Reeves reminded him that the item is on the agenda for discussion. Discussion ensued about the process. Commissioner Stinson explained that the issue was brought up almost four month ago and we have not done anything to draft a new ordinance. City Attorney Durden changed her recommendation and believed the direct should be that the City Manager and City Attorney bring back a proposal from Mr. Britton to the Commission Meeting on November 28th for approval. Commissioner Hill explained his concern of moving too fast on the project and would like to wait for options to be proposed. He indicated his concern of paying an outside attorney to deal with all of our ordinance issues. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 13 Mayor Reeves asked if the City Manager has any other options. City Manager Van Liere indicated that he believes the only other option would be to let staff take a stab at it and then have a legal review of the draft after it is done or some kind of partnering with someone who has expertise. City Attorney Durden explained this is not a planning issue; it is a First Amendment legal issue. It is not going to be the Planning Department staff who can understand the complexities that go along with that. She believes it would be inappropriate and highly unfair to ask them to do something that is a completely legal issue. She explained there are still ongoing cases regarding Sign Codes and First Amendment issues. She stated she is not opposed to trying to find other options, but she believes there is no better option for us here. She pointed out that there are times when outside counsel is highly appropriate and highly beneficial to the local government and believes the City will need to use outside consultants to do these big revisions. She expressed appreciation for the concern about the idea there may be another less expensive way to accomplish this, but she does not know of any and she believes she is probably in a better position to understand what other options may be available to the City. Mayor Reeves agreed with the City Attorney noting it is complicated when dealing with the First Amendment and clarified that Reed v. Town of Gilbert, Arizona was over a year ago. Mr. Britton spoke briefly about the case and explained that you cannot make distinctions between different categories of non- commercial speech and everybody thought, up until Reed came out, that you could make distinctions between election signs, temporary directional signs, and free speech signs,but you cannot now. Mayor Reeves suggested that the Commission direct the City Manager to move forward, look at this and bring options back to the Commission. Ms. Durden explained what she believed to be consensus which was to direct the City Manager to bring back any potential options that may be available, including a proposal from Mr. Britton. Commissioner Hill thanked Mr. Britton for his time. Mr. Britton spoke about past issues he witnessed in Atlantic Beach and reported that there is over $2,000,000 sitting in a Tree Trust Fund and that money is available to the city as well as the rest of the county. He suggested having the new Advisory Board look into where the city can put large trees which would be paid for with monies that has been collected for the purpose of planting trees. The consensus was to direct the City Manager to move forward with this project and report back to the Commission with any potential options that may be available including budgetary options. C. Discussion on Medical Marijuana Moratorium City Attorney Durden explained her staff report and the supporting documents. She requested that the Commission discuss their concerns about the Medical Cannabis in the sense of the impacts here in Atlantic Beach and ask if they want to consider a temporary moratorium to allow the City time to adopt appropriate provisions to address the dispensary and cultivation of medical cannabis within our city limits. She spoke about conversations taking place between staff and the current six authorized entities in the State of Florida and that they recognize the City will need time to address the impacts and to decide on the conditions. She explained that the temporary moratorium does allow the City the time to do that and recommended that if the Commission has concerns about these companies, the dispensing and cultivation, and the business that they are going to bring to the beach areas, then the appropriate thing would be to consider a temporary moratorium. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 14 Mayor Reeves reported that he has received several calls from the group wanting to meet and when he saw that other cities were looking at it, he questioned whether it should be done or not. He asked City Attorney Durden if the moratorium requires two public hearings. City Attorney Durden responded that it does. He asked if the Community Development Board could be one of those hearings. City Attorney Durden responded yes. Commissioner Hill confirmed his understanding of what a Moratorium is vs. a Restriction and indicated that he likes the idea of a moratorium and seeing how other areas are handling the same issue. Commissioner Waters spoke about restrictions placed on businesses and the perception that the Commission is not business-friendly. She expressed the need to address this topic the same way they address other issues regarding businesses. Commissioner Hill explained the side effects of that industry. Mayor Reeves explained he is not looking at the issue as attacking any business and stated he wants to hear how the public feels about it. Commissioner Waters explained it is complicated when they have this discussion and the City is getting ready to embark on code rewrites. She believes that how they go about rewriting the Code is also at the heart of this issue whether or not they pass the moratorium, they have to do something with it in the future. She questioned how this moratorium and this issue fits into a bigger picture. Commissioner Hill indicated that he is in favor of the moratorium until the details are worked out. Mayor Reeves asked for a consensus. Commissioner Hill spoke in support of the moratorium. Commissioner Harding stated his desire to protect the community and suggested a two-year Moratorium. He stressed the need to be prepared if this is going to come to our community. Mayor Reeves clarified that it is Medicinal not Recreational. City Attorney clarified that the issue is currently up for review in Jacksonville Beach and Neptune Beach and has not yet been adopted. Commissioner Hill recognized that the people voted for legalization in Florida and reiterated his concerns about the potential effects it may have on the community and the businesses. Commissioner Waters addressed the rewriting of codes and the regulation in relation to the Moratorium. Mayor Reeves explained there will be discussions on that in the future when they work on the zoning code. The consensus was to move forward on this. D. Agendas/Commission Meetings (Mayor Reeves) Item 8D was removed from the agenda tonight by Mayor Reeves for a later date. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 15 E. Monthly Roundtable Meetings (Commissioner Stinson) Commissioner Stinson reported on the Roundtable Meeting that he, Commissioner Hill and Mayor Reeves attended last week explaining that he wanted to discuss whether the Commission is interested in having regular Roundtable Meeting. He explained the advantages of having the meetings and his desire to improve their efficiency as a Commission. Mayor Reeves spoke in support of Roundtable meetings. He explained what prompted the last roundtable meeting and summarized the discussion. He suggested having the Roundtable meetings once a month or every Thursday before a Commission Meeting and set a time limit on that meeting. Commissioner Stinson added that the whole idea was for it to be voluntary and believes it would make it easier for Mr. Van Liere to sit down with a group all at one time to get questions answered rather than having to meet with all five Commissioners individually. He reiterated his desire to improve efficiency and explained his idea of putting an ending time on the Commission Meetings,prioritizing the items and moving items not covered at that meeting to the next meeting. He believes the Commission should look for ways to do better. Mayor Reeves reiterated his support for the meetings. Commissioner Hill stated his concern regarding issues of time commitment, locations, and the potential to progress an agenda without the full Commission being there. He agreed that they get more done by having the Roundtable Meetings because the environment allows for more free-thinking. He believes the most productive times are at pre-meeting workshops immediately prior to the Commission Meetings because of the tight timeline and the public viewing us. He suggested adding a period of time during meetings to notify citizens that the item they are interested in is being discussed at a future workshop. Mayor Reeves stated he would like to have a civics class once a year to educate the public on how government works. He reported that the City Manager indicated he did not want to do it because it takes staff and time and does not want to do anything for any individual Commissioner unless he has the consensus of the whole Commission. Mayor Reeves explained that he does want to waste time at Commission Meetings on discussions that could be done at Roundtable Meetings and he expressed support for live- streaming/videotaping those meetings. Commissioner Waters agrees that the Roundtable Meetings have been productive and they do help improve communication and understanding between Commissioners. She explained she is skeptical that they actually make the Commission more efficient at the Commission Meetings. She believes they would run the risk of adding more time to their schedule in the interest of being more efficient but not actually accomplishing that goal. She spoke about the previous schedule where there was one regularly scheduled workshop and one regularly scheduled Commission Meeting per month and wondered if doing that again would help. She explained her schedule and asked that they consider scheduling meetings on Wednesdays or Fridays, and no Saturdays due to her schedule. She believes it would work if they have a one-hour workshop before every other Commission meeting. Mayor Reeves explained his concern for Commissioner Waters' schedule and not wanting to leave her out. Commissioner Waters suggested a trial that has an automatic sunset. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETIlmm Page 16 Discussion ensued about the differences between the Town Hall meetings and Roundtable meetings. Mr. Van Liere asked whether Courtesy of the Floor is required at all of our public meetings. City Attorney Durden stated that at certain kinds of meeting such as workshops where you are just working with each other, it may not be absolutely necessary. She further stated she does not know the answer at this time, but offered to confirm it. Commissioner Stinson referred to the agenda he handed out at the Roundtable Meeting last week which explains his thought process and stated they can have a discussion about it in a future Commission Meeting. He explained he is trying to condense what they do to be more efficient with their time. He expressed concern for staff having to work their normal work day then staying late into the night attending meetings. Commissioner Harding apologized for missing the last Roundtable Meeting due to issues that arose. He agreed that Roundtables are a good idea as long as they are not last-minute meetings. He believes that Wednesdays will work with his schedule and agrees with having workshops or roundtables if it will help improve on efficiency and get everyone out at a decent hour. Commissioner Stinson apologized for the last-minute timing of the last Round Table meeting. Commissioner Waters spoke about the benefits of setting times on the meeting agendas as proposed by Commissioner Stinson. 9. City Manager A. 90-Day Calendar (November 2016 through January 2017) City Manager Van Liere referred to the 90-Day calendar and explained the holiday schedule; there is only one meeting in December and the Town Hall meeting scheduled for January 21,2017 has no topic. He asked to be informed if anyone has a topic they wish to discuss at that meeting. City Manager Van Liere reported on the following topics: Intended to introduce the new Community Development Director Drew DeCandis tonight,but he left already. Mr. Van Liere reported that Mr. DeCandis drafted the chicken ordinance and will be on the next agenda. Historical Marker placed at Russell Park. Garbage schedule for Thursday, Thanksgiving will be moved to Friday; Friday moved to Saturday. His assistant, Yvonne, will be out for 4 or 5 weeks after tomorrow for knee surgery. The Grant for improvements to the Adele Grage Center is cunTent1y number 4 in the rankings for approval. There have been coyote sightings, complaints, and requests for the city to do something. Information has been put on our website to educate residents. He does not believe the City should take a position of trying to eradicated coyotes in general. His understanding is that if you remove them, they come back and believes it is more about educating pet owners about how to protect their pets. He stated he can be directed to do something different if the Commission does not agree. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 17 Mayor Reeves asked Mr. Van Liere when he would be prepared to provide the procedure for interviewing the police chief and give a storm briefing. City Manager explained that he met with Vic Gualillo today about the storm report. They plan to compare reports submitted by Public Works and Public Safety,then met with the group which includes Commissioner Harding. After that, they will produce a report on the storm. He explained that he spent most of this past weekend going back over resumes and job applications and only 4 or 5 of the applications have the credentials that are needed. He stated he needs to get a selection group together and schedule interviews. 10. Reports and/or requests from City Commissioners and City Attorney A. Mayor Pro Tempore Appointment Mayor Reeves reported that this topic was discussed at the Roundtable Meeting last week with Commissioner Hill. He thanked Commissioner Hill for serving and explained that he wants to move that appointment around on a yearly basis in order to give others the opportunity. Commissioner Hill thanked him for the opportunity. Mayor Reeves explained the role and reiterated his intention to rotate it. He explained the thought process he used while he was deciding who to nominate. Motion: Appoint Commissioner Stinson as the Mayor Pro Tem. Moved by Reeves, Seconded by Hill Commissioner Hill explained there were no conflicts in tasks while he served as Chair of the Board Member Review Committee and Mayor Pro Tern and he expressed his confidence in Commissioner Stinson. Mayor Reeves reported that he did not make his decision until today. Votes: Aye: 5 -Harding,Hill, Stinson,Waters,Reeves Nay: 0 MOTION CARRIED Commissioner Harding • Received urgent message from Atlantic Beach Elementary asking him to speak regarding his 24-year career in the military at a Flag Raising Ceremony held on Thursday. Stated he was proud to represent the City of Atlantic Beach and all the veterans that he served with over the years. Commissioner Waters • Thanked all of our Veterans. Stated we owe our liberty to the lives of our veterans and those soldiers who have died in their service to our country. She thanked her Uncle Dick and her Grandfather who served. • Congratulated Melissa Beaudry for receiving a GRANT to start a Fleet Farms endeavor for residents to grow foods in front yards for farmlets. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 18 City Attorney Durden • Reminded that the last meeting of the Maritime Management Plan will be held on Dec. 6 at South Beach Park Community Center in Jacksonville Beach and distributed a flyer. Commissioner Waters (continued) • Reported that she has been working with the City Manager to get a chicken ordinance into effect and Coyotes are one of many predators for chickens. She encouraged those that are interested to read about enclosing a hen house. She reported the coyotes carry a disease and suggested that outdoor animals be on tick prevention. City Clerk Bartle • Wished everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. Commissioner Stinson • Thanked Ms. Calverley for her work on the Historical Marker. Recognized Derek Reeves for doing a great job as Interim Community Development Director. • Reported the Board Member Review Committee will meet after the November 28, 2016 Commission agenda is finalized. He reminded everyone that he will not be here on November 28th and explained that if they want the agenda amended to include the recommendation, the City Clerk could do the Committee report for him, otherwise it can wait until December 12th He suggested they contact Ms. Bartle and copy Mr. Van Liere if they have a preference. • Complimented the Commission on a great year. • Wished everyone a Wonderful Thanksgiving. Commissioner Hill • Reported his attendance at the Veterans Day ceremony at Beaches Veterans Memorial Park. He stated he was honored to represent the Mayor there. • Spoke about coyotes being a threat and encouraged the citizens to hire a trapper in order to save them. Mayor Reeves • Thanked the Commission for the past year. • Recognized Timmy Johnson and his staff for working hard on the 90-year anniversary and explained a schedule of events was provided in their mailboxes. • Reported the Beaches Museum is going to set up an Atlantic Beach exhibit at Adele Grage for the month of December. • Explained he was glad to see advertisements at Town Center regarding charity event and the City of Atlantic Beach shown as a sponsor. He thanked Mr. Johnson. • Reported the Tree Lighting will be held on December 3rd at Town Center. • Thanked Commission Hill for serving as Mayor Pro Tem. . • Clarified that he was not downtown at the Veterans parade as people commented, he was out of town with family. Commissioner Hill (continued) • Stated he is proud to be an American and to see our community stay together as it always does during the election. AMENDED AGENDA ITEM 1C DECEMBER 12,2016 November 14,2016 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING Page 19 Mayor Reeves (continued) • Stated the State Marker was a great thing for our City and is the first one that our City has ever had. and being proud of Advisory Committee • Excited about the new Advisory Committee. Adjournment There being no further discussion, Mayor Reeves declared the meeting adjourned at 10:26 p.m. Mitchell E. Reeves Mayor/Presiding Officer ATTEST: Donna L. Bartle, CMC City Clerk