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Home My WebLink AboutB. Discussion Of School System Vis-A-Vis Local Government (Ocoee)TO 'ski DATE: "CENTER OF GOOD LIVING -PRIDE OF WEST ORANGE" CITY OF OCOEE 150 N. LAKESHORE DRIVE OCOEE, FLORIDA 34761-2258 (407) 656-2322 MEMORANDUM City of Apopka, Ocoee & Winter Garden Ellis Shapiro, City Manager November 5, 1997 MAYOR • COMMISSIONER S. SCOTT VANDERGRIFT COMMISSIONERS DANNY HOWELL SCOTT ANDERSON SCOTT A. GLASS NANCY J. PARKER RE: COOPERATIVE PLANNING -CITY, COUNTY & SCHOOL BOARD CITY MANAGER ELLIS SHAPIRO As we now know, the (1) one cent Sales Tax has failed in Orange County. By November 10, 1997, we should know what, if any, State support the School Systems can expect to overcome the statewide problem of our over crowded Schools. It is apparent that Intergovernmental Communication between local Governments and the School Board must become a very high priority if long term planning for school sites is going to happen. Currently, Ocoee City Commissioner Scott Glass, serves on the Florida Public School Construction Study Commission and has traveled the State with this board taking testimony and visiting school sites in Florida. Mr. Glass would like to spend a few minutes to discuss what his board has found and what measures may be suggested to improve this problem when they report to the State Legislature later this year. Respectively Submitted, ES3w:sm:20 MOV -10-97 MON 01;43 PM CITY OF ORLANDO (L. A.) FAX NO. 4072462854 P.01 r - . TO: Ellis Shapiro, Ocoee City Manager FROM: Scott A. Glass, Assistant City Attorney DATE: November 10, 1997 RE: Public Schools Construction Study Comatission Thank you for affording me the opportunity to address the City of Ocoee, City of Apopka, City of Winter Garden, joint commission meeting this evening. As we discussed, due to illness in the family, I may not be able to attend. As you requested, I am faxing you this update on the Commission and its work. I hope that Tam able to attend this evening. In the event that I cannot, however, I would appreciate it if you would distribute this to the respective board members and anyone else who is interested. The 1997 Legislature adopted HB 2121 which, among other things, created the Public Schools Construction Study Commission. As, I have stated before, I do not believe the name of the Commission accurately reflects its mission. The Connnission is charged with studying. in detail and recommending, by January 2,1998, appropriate reforms to the planning and siting of public schools, and reforms related to school concurrency throughout the State of Florida. Given the tenor and content of our meetings to date, the Commission would be more appropriately named the School Planning and Concurrency Study Commission. In any event, the Governor appointed 7 members of the Commission, the President of the Senate appointed 5 members, and the Speaker of the House appointed 5 members. I was appointed by Speaker Webster. We have held public meetings in Tallahassee, West Palm Beach, Tampa, Jacksonville, and Orlando. These meetings have identified the two biggest impediments to the successful provision of adequate public schools in our state. The first is a general lack of coordinated planning between school boards and local governments. The second is the inherent conflict presented by the Florida Constitution which establishes school districts and charges them with providing a uniform system.. of public education. As a result, local governments, which have permitting authority -pursuant to their police powers, cannot utilize their police powers to implement concurrency with respect to public schools because constitutional control of schools is placed is a separate and equal division of government. Our next scheduled meeting is in Tallahassee on November 201b and 21n. We hope to begin drafting and voting on our recommendations at that meeting. Some of the proposals. on the table with respect to planning and siting are as follows: NOV-10-97 MON 0143 PM CITY OF ORLANDO (L. A.) FAX NO. 4072462854 P. 02 1. Amend §235.15, F.S., to requite school boards to do not only a 5 year educational plant survey but also to encourage or require school boards to prepare a 20 year educational plant plan. 2. Amend Chapters 163 and 235 to require that school boards and local governments utilize the same source for population projections and other demographic material. 3. Amend § 163.319I, F.S., to strongly encourage and reward local governments and school boards who annually conduct a joint meeting to coordinate school plans with local growth management plans. 4. Create incentives and penalties for local governments that do or do not comply with the requirement of § 163.3177(6)a, F.S., that each local comprehensive plan identify the land use categories in which public schools are an allowable (not conditional) use. 5. Create incentives and penalties for school boards that door do not comply with § 235.194, 1:.S., which requires school boards to submit general educational facilities reports to local governments within their jurisdiction annually. 6. Amend Ch. 163, F.S., and Chapter 9J-5, F.A.C., to require a public schools facilities element in all adopted comprehensive plans. Include a provision for the development of a model public schools facility element by the Department of Community Affairs and the Department of Education. Provide funding for training by DCA and DOE for local governments and school boards on the development of such an element. With respect to school concurrency, the general consensus is that it should not be mandated nor should it be prohibited. It should remain an option at the local level. It appears that the Commission will recommend, however, that the State provide some more definite guidance, particularly after the outcome of the Broward County case, as to what must be done in order to properly implement school concurrency. To .this end, the following proposal& are on the table: 1. Extend the current moratorium on school concurrency until a complete state policy on school concurrency is enacted by the Legislature_ and implemented by rules adopted by the Department of Community Affairs. 2. Amend Ch. 163, F.S. to direct the DCA to commence and complete in a timely manner a thorough rule malting process in order to promulgate minimum criteria for school concurrency to implement statutory requirements. It is anticipated that extensive public workshops and hearings would be heldprior to fmal promulgation of rules. 3. § 163.3180 (b), F.S., provides that if a local government elects to extend the concurrency requirement to public schools it must first conduct a study to determine how the requirement would be met and shared by all affected parties. This section should be amended to specify what must be contained in the study and who must participate. It should also be determined NOV-10-97 MON 01:44 PM CITY OF ORLANDO(L. A.) FAX NO. 4072462854, P. 03 whether the study shall be binding on the local government if it should elect to proceed with adopting school concurrency. 4. Amend § 163.3180 (b), F.S., to clarify that a financially feasible capital facilities plan as required is one which meets the requirements for financial feasibility set out in Chapter 163 and Chapter 9J-5, F.A.C. 5. Amend § 163.3180 (b), F.S., to require that school concurrency be adopted, if at all, on a countywide basis so all schools are subject to the same level of service standards. 6. Amend § 163.3180 (b), F.S., to require a countywide level of service standard if school concurrency is adopted. 7. Amend § 163.3180 (b), F.S., to require a countywide service district so that a concurrency determination for a specific development will be based upon the availability of school capacity countywide, not just in the current attendance zonc for that development. 8. Amend § 163.3180 (b), F.S., to eliminate the requirement that all municipalities in a county enter into an interlocal agreement adopting school concurrency. Replace this requirement with a requirement that something less than all of the municipalities enter into such an interlocal agreement. 9. Amend § 163.3180 (b), F.S., to exempt charter counties from the requirement that all municipalities sign the interlocal agreement if county voters authorize a charter amendment which requires countywide school concurrency under state guidelines. 10. Create a statutory definition of "availability" for public schools so that it is clear when school facilities must be available to support the impact of permitted development. In light of the time it takes to acquire. a site, design, and build a school, the. school should be determined available and the development concurrent if the school will actually be open within three to five years of issuance of a certificate of occupancy for the development. Please note that these are proposals on the table. They have not been voted on by the full Commission and 1 do not agree with all of these proposals. Moreover, additional proposals may be placed on the table at our next meeting. cc: Howard Tipton, C.A.O. Rick Bernhardt, Director of Planning & Development Jean Roush-Bumctt, Chief Assistant City Attorney