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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-03-90 '--' MINUTES OF THE CITY COMMISSION MEETING HELD ON TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 1990 Mayor Dabbs called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. and announced that there was a quorum with all Commission members present. commissioner Foster said the prayer and Mayor Dabbs led the pledge of allegiance to the flag. PRESENT: Mayor Dabbs, Commissioners Johnson, Foster, Combs, and Woodson, City Attorney Woodson, City Manager Shapiro, City Engineer/utilities Director Shira, Public Works Director Brenner, and Deputy Clerk Resnik. ABSENT: city Clerk Grafton and Director of Planning Behrens. PRESENTATIONS AND PROCLAMATIONS civitan Awareness Week, April 9-15, 1990 Mayor Dabbs read the proclamation in its entirety in recognition of "civitan International Awareness Week". Day of Fasting and Prayer, April 13, 1990 Mayor Dabbs read the proclamation in its entirety in recognition of a "Community Day of Fasting and Prayer". ~ Law Day, U.S.A., May 1, 1990 Mayor Dabbs read the proclamation in its entirety in recognition of a "special day to be observed by the American people in appreciation of their liberties and independence and as an occasion for rededication to the ideals of equality and justice under law". Mayor Dabbs thanked the people in attendance for listening to the reading of each of these proclamations and voiced his support of these documents as being what he felt the Commission was all about. CONSENT AGENDA City Manager Shapiro asked that the Silver Glen item be removed from the Consent Agenda as he needed to discuss the item with the Commission. Mayor Dabbs pulled the item for discussion. Commissioner Woodson moved to approve the rema1n1ng items: approval of the minutes of the Commission meeting of March 20, 1990; approval of the Final Plat for Wesmere, Phase I; and approval of the Letter of Engagement for James A. Fowler, Esq., Commissioner Combs seconded, and approval was unanimous. ~ city Manager Shapiro explained that the Silver Glen, Phase I, Village 1 and 2 Plat was ready to be approved tonight but that staff recommended that a Hold Harmless Agreement be required of the developer since the retention ponds and median strip within the ~ Page 2 city commission Meeting April 3, 1990 housing development would be owned by the city and maintained by the homeowners' association. city Manager Shapiro said that the development had an approved Development Order dated sometime either in 1986 or 1987 that stipulated that a Municipal services Taxing Unit would be created to maintain these areas but that the City had no legal authority to establish such a taxing district. He said a proposed solution was made by staff and agreed to by the developer to have the homeowners' association be responsible for "routine maintenance" of these areas and the city would own the areas and be responsible for non-routine maintenance. City Manager Shapiro said if the city Commission opted for the Hold Harmless Agreement, then the motion should be to approve the Final Plat subject to the city Attorney drafting an agreement and the developer signing it. Steve Mellich, CCL Consultants, engineers for the developer, said the developer had no problem with signing an agreement that was mutually acceptable to both parties. commissioner Woodson moved to approve the Final Plat for Silver Glen, Phase I, village 1 and 2, Commissioner Foster seconded, and approval was unanimous. '-' COMMENTS FROM CITIZENS/PUBLIC sidney Rivard, 605 Jay street, Ocoee, said he was concerned with the amount of new housing being developed in the city and was worried about the traffic that these new developments would create on the roadways in the city. Mr. Rivard asked how many developments were planned. Mayor Dabbs said there would probably be about 3000 rooftops just along Clark Road. Mr. Rivard said he was concerned that the traffic and growth problems would get just like they are in winter Park where he said some of the older people are afraid to drive. City Manager Shapiro told Mr. Rivard that growth would not be able to burden the community because of new concurrency legislation that would force a moratorium if the necessary infrastructure or services were not put in place to handle the growth before the growth occurred. Mr. Rivard asked who would pay for the Clark Road project and city Manager Shapiro said it would be funded half by developers and half by impact fees. Mr. Rivard commented on the traffic problems that would result from the new developments along Silver Star Road and city Manager Shapiro responded that Silver Star Road was currently ..... \... Page 3 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 at about a "c" Level of Service and that Clark Road would be built within the next 18 months and would free up a lot of the traffic currently being handled by Silver star Road. Mr. Rivard asked why the City was approving so many housing developments and City Manager Shapiro said that the property owners had property rights. Commissioner Johnson added that if the City does not allow development, it will not get the tax money and that the development would still occur but would occur in the county. '-'" Ileana Tripp, 2202 Essex Drive, Ocoee, said she was a relatively new resident and was living in Coventry at Ocoee. Ms. Tripp explained that she was a cyclist and asked about the possibility of getting more bike paths in the City. Commissioner Combs said the City was in the middle of establishing its Comprehensive Plan and that the Traffic Circulation citizens' Advisory Committee was meeting this Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in the community Center and that Ms. Tripp may be interested in coming to the meeting and raising this issue since this is the type of information they needed to include in the Comprehensive Plan. Commissioner Combs suggested to Ms. Tripp that she telephone city Hall and speak with Lisa Claman, Associate Planner, in order to get involved with the citizen Advisory Committee. commissioner Foster said for informational purposes, that the city currently had some 20 miles of sewer lines but only one-half mile of bike paths and that something needed to be done to provide a safe environment. commissioner Johnson added that the issue of bike paths was raised at the public hearing on the widening of Silver Star Road and that that was being considered as part of the overall project. Ms. Tripp also asked about beautification programs for park and lake areas around the City and mentioned that the park by Coventry was not maintained very well. city Manager Shapiro admitted that the City has not done a good job in maintaining its smaller parks but that it just did not have the staff and another problem was that they were not all irrigated. ci ty Manager Shapiro asked Ms. Tripp to telephone ei ther Ray Brenner, Public Works Director, or Jim Beech, Recreation Director, to work on getting the Coventry park cleaned up. Ms. Tripp said that overall she was very happy living in Ocoee and that the negative comments that she heard about the City were unsubstantiated as far as she was concerned. ~ '-" Page 4 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 SECOND READING AND PUBLIC HEARING Ordinance No. 90-08, Creatinq Chapter l8A of the Code of Ordinances Entitled Late Niqht Businesses, Stores or operations; Establishinq and Requirinq Certain Minimum security Measures to be Taken at Certain Businesses, Stores or operations of a Commercial Nature City Manager Shapiro read the ordinance by title only. Police Chief Boyd then introduced Gainesville Police Chief Wayland Clifton, Jr., who made a presentation on behalf of the ordinance. Chief Clifton said that three years ago, the City of Gainesville experimented with the "two clerk" ordinance and he believed it was the first attempt of this type of ordinance in Florida and perhaps in the nation. Chief Clifton said the Gainesville ordinance has prevailed in federal court. He said the Ocoee ordinance was similar to the Gainesville ordinance and he commended Chief Boyd on his initiative to attempt to get an ordinance of this type passed in the City. Chief Clifton said he has been Chief of Police in Gainesville since 1985 and had been speaking to many cities since the "two clerk" '-" ordinance was established there. He said the reason for the ordinance in Gainesville was that convenience stores were easy targets for criminals. He called the convenience stores "the poor man's bank card" and said that criminals knew that convenience store clerks had been trained to hand over money in the event of a robbery. Chief Clifton said the robberies usually netted the criminal $30-$50. Chief Clifton said in 1986, with the infiltration of crack cocaine, the convenience store robberies escalated and that 90% of the stores had been robbed at least once. He said in one year in Gainesville, there were 14 serious crimes and one homicide committed against clerks in convenience stores. Chief Clifton said Chief Boyd was attempting to get this ordinance passed in Ocoee because Ocoee had also experienced crime problems in this area. Chief Clifton commended Chief Boyd for proposing the ordinance and for the City Commission for considering the ordinance saying that it takes great courage to regulate a business; however, the businesses would only be regulated during "peak crime times". Chief Clifton said the Gainesville ordinance has been proof that the "two clerk" mandate during "peak crime times" works. He said in late 1986, early 1987, there were 61 armed robberies and 14 batteries involving convenience stores. Three years later, Chief Clifton stated, there was a 92% decrease in store robberies during ~ \.... ~ ~ Page 5 city commission Meeting April 3, 1990 the "peak crime time" and a 74% decrease overall. He said during that same period that the crack cocaine crisis has escalated crime overall. Chief Clifton said the decrease in convenience store crimes was done without assigning any extra police. Chief Clifton also said that since the adoption of the "two clerk" ordinance, there had not been any homicides or battery committed nor any convenience store clerks injured since the ordinance was enacted. Chief Clifton said the City of Gainesville performed a study on ABC Liquor stores versus the convenience stores since they thought that these appeared on the outside as being similar establishments for the criminal to approach to attempt a robbery. Chief Clifton explained that a liquor store generally has much more money in its cash register than does a convenience store but that there is almost always more than one person working in a liquor store at night during the "peak crime" period. He said this being one of the only differences, it may explain why the liquor stores were not more frequent targets. Chief Clifton said the Gainesville ordinance also takes into account lighting and sight distances for clerks. He said the ordinance was actually put together with the help of criminals insofar as asking them why they felt convenience stores were easy targets and why they chose them over other establishments to rob. Chief Clifton also talked about the Wilson study which he said the convenience store industry usually cites when making the argument against the "two clerk" ordinance. He asked the City commission to listen very carefully if this study was ever presented to them because the industry will not tell them that the ordinance does not work, but that they will probably say there are other external factors that have resulted in the lower crime rates. Chief Clifton said that by using either the additional clerk or the plexiglass the crime rate is reduced at no extra cost to the taxpayer. He said some states are looking to adopt this or something similar as state law. commissioner Combs said as a business owner he finds it hard to justify asking a small business owner to spend the money. He said he understood what it means in saving lives but that it was still hard for him to justify. \.r Page 6 city Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 Chief Clifton said this was a common concern but that in Gainesville's case, no store had been forced to close because of the increase in cost. Chief Clifton said that many stores already had two clerks working in the store at the same time during the day and that to solve the problem, they have merely adjusted the second clerk's schedule and put that person in the store - for stocking purposes or whatever - during the "peak crime period" in order to satisfy the ordinance requirement. Chief Clifton added that in regards to the extra cost to the businesses, that could be addressed by stating that a price can not be put on the death or serious injury of a person. He added that many businesses that have added the second clerk have probably also reduced their incidence of employee theft as well. Chief Clifton said the bottom line is that public safety should outweigh the economic hardship to the store owner. Mayor Dabbs said that his concern was also from a standpoint of regulating the businesses and asked what the charge was or the topic of the lawsuit of which Chief Clifton spoke about earlier. Chief Clifton said that the charge from the industry was that of ~ injunctive relief, that the ordinance should not be allowed to take affect due to the economic hardship it would place upon these businesses. He said the u.s. Federal District Court judge in Gainesville ruled after three days of testimony that the public safety outweighed the economic hardships of the businesses. Chief Clifton added that this ruling took place before the city had the evidence that it has today insofar as the statistics of reduced crime. Mayor Dabbs asked about the bullet proof enclosures and whether or not they would withstand some of the guns available to criminals today, and not just the .38 caliber that was mentioned. Chief Boyd said that in these types of robberies, the .38 caliber is the most likely to be used (or something less powerful). Chief Boyd said this type of robbery is usually for a "quick fix" and that is why they see these types of handguns. Chief Boyd also mentioned that although the city of Ocoee had yet to experience the death or severe injury of a convenience store clerk, this ordinance was being presented in the hope of preventing this type of crime before it happens. Ralph Girvin, representing the Shell station at the corner of S.R. 50 and Maguire Road, said that although public safety is certainly an issue, it will cost a small businessman like himself a lot of money to bring his business into conformance with this ordinance. Mr. Girvin said the cost would be more likely in the neighborhood of $20,000 for an additional person, rather than the $9,000 that ~ \... Page 7 city Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 was stated in the information provided to the city commission. He said this cost was for salary, benefi ts, etc. that would be necessary and that he did not feel he could absorb these costs like a larger chain convenience store operation could. Mr. Girvin said that his store had experienced robberies in the past and that probably the majority of them occurred when there were two people on duty. He said usually the crime is shoplifting or a person drives away without paying for gasoline. Mr. Girvin said that although the Chief has the public good in mind and it is an emotional issue, he did not feel that it needed to be addressed in Ocoee since it had not shown itself to be a problem. Mr. Girvin said if anything, that the city should not go to such an extreme, especially for the smaller businesses that are not part of a large chain. He suggested that the City might do something that is not so much to such an extent or that the city may want to implement a new law in steps, but not all at once. Mr. Girvin said he had discussed this issue with County Commissioner Bill Donegan and that there had been studies done on New York city taxi drivers regarding knowledge of money available ~ within the cab. Chief Clifton said that Southland Corporation had tried this for at least 10 years by posting signs on the doors of stores that alerted people to the fact that there was only so much cash on hand in the cash register and that the rest of the money was in a safe that the clerks did not have the combination to. He said this obviously has not worked since the Southland Corporation was the second highest hit of the convenience stores in Gainesville. Chief Clifton said that phasing the program also does not work since other, less stringent methods, were first tried in Gainesville but that they did not result in less crime committed until the "two clerk" ordinance was established. There being no further publ ic comment, Mayor Dabbs closed the public hearing. city Attorney Woodson wanted to clarify several things. First, he said, Chief Clifton said that the Ocoee ordinance was based on the Gainesville ordinance. Attorney Woodson said that Foley & Lardner had written the ordinance and tailored it to Ocoee's needs. Attorney Woodson also wanted to mention for the record that the judge who had ruled in the Gainesville case was Judge Paul and that he was well respected and that this was proven by that fact that there had been no appeal to his judgement. Attorney Woodson also said that the Ocoee ordinance provides for an alternative to the "two clerk rule" in that it allows for a bullet resistent enclosure as an option to the additional clerk and ~ this would be a one-time cost rather than a yearly cost. \w Page 8 city Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 Attorney Woodson said from a personal standpoint that he had lived in and around Gainesville for about 15 years and that the Gainesville ordinance was passed at a time when people were really concerned about this issue. He also said that this ordinance before the Ocoee City Commission was very supportable legally. commissioner Johnson asked what the cost of the plexiglass enclosure would be and Chief Clifton said he did not have this information because the Gainesville ordinance did not provide this alternative. He estimated that it would probably be about the cost of an additional clerk for that year. Commissioner Combs asked whether this public hearing of this ordinance was advertised or sent to store owners/managers. city Manager Shapiro said the ordinance was advertised just as the City advertised every public hearing but that a special notice was not sent to convenience stores. City Manager Shapiro added that the issue had been the subject of a news story in the paper as well so that people should have been aware of this public hearing. ~ Mayor Dabbs said that he may have had some constitutional issue questions in his mind but that basically, Judge Paul had answered them. commissioner Foster moved to approve Ordinance 90-08, Commissioner Woodson seconded, and approval was unanimous. RECESS: 8:40 p.m. CALL TO ORDER: 9 p.m. OTHER BUSINESS Authorization to Proceed with Final Design: Wastewater Plant #2 Expansion to 2 MGD - City Enqineer Shira and P.E.C. City Engineer Shira said this item was asking the city commission to consider an addendum to the contract that the city had with P.E.C. in order to allow the firm to design the expansion of the A.D. Mims wastewater treatment plant. Dave Refling of P.E.C. presented the City commission with a proposal that P.E.C. and staff had come up with for the A.D. Mims plant site to expand the capacity from 1 MGD to 2 MGD. Dave Refling said there were four methods of construction that they had come up with as alternatives for the city to choose from: ......, '-- Page 9 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 1. Rina Steel - Dave Refling explained that this was the concept that Prima vista utilities originally proposed. 2. Glass Fused Steel - Dave Refling explained that this would wear better than the Ring Steel. 3. Precast Concrete 4. Poured-in-Place Concrete Dave Refling explained that these were presented from least expensive to most expensive (with Ring Steel being the least expensive). He recommended to phase the construction to keep the initial cost down, yet still providing the additional needed capacity. Dave Refling recommended to combine some of the phases and to start construction later this year. He said they have also designed the contract to work with a golf course option if that in fact materializes. ~ Dave Refling said the difference between the alternatives of Ring Steel and Poured-in-Place Concrete was $2.9 million and $3.3 million respectively. He said the Poured-in-Place Concrete would have a longer life span than the Ring Steel plant. Dave Refling said they tried to keep it as simple as possible for the commissioners and did not mention operation and maintenance. He said they recommended the Poured-in-Place Concrete and that that was the option most often done with these plants. Mr. Refling said if it turns out that the City does not get enough money in from reserved capacity sales, the bidding can be set up so that the Precast Concrete alternative can work as a backup. He said the City would get a little less quality in terms of longevity, but that it would still be much better than the Ring Steel concept. Dave Refling then showed the Commission an overview of the existing and proposed Poured-in-Place Concrete and said that the Preliminary site Plan was ready to go to the 2 MGD facility. City Manager Shapiro said that he had acted as a "watchdog" over P. E. C. in their bid and said it was one of the better prices he has seen. He said the design fee was about 7-8%. commissioner Johnson asked about the previous discussions the Commission had had about moving the A.D. Mims Plant to the Chicone tract. City Manager Shapiro said the move does not make sense and that the remaining portion of the A.D. Mims site would be made into a park site and would create a positive feature. City Manager ~ '-" Page 10 city commission Meeting April 3, 1990 Shapiro said the wastewater treatment plant had been handled much better by the City than it had been handled when it was under private ownership and he commended Wastewater supervisor Holland for his efforts on beautification as well as the actual treatment of the wastewater itself. He said he personally had not heard any complaints from neighboring residents as of late. commissioner Johnson said when the expansion begins, the complaints from nearby residents will start again and he urged the staff to do everything they could to make the facility attractive and trouble free. He also said to make sure that the money for the expansion includes landscaping provisions. city Manager Shapiro said the landscaping would be done with City staff because it would be less expensive. Commissioner Johnson also said to make sure that operation and maintenance is provided for so that once the landscaping is in place, there is money for upkeep. city Manager Shapiro agreed that landscaping maintenance has been lacking and that the City was trying to improve in this area. \. Mayor Dabbs asked if everything being discussed this evening went along with the stipulation agreement of December 1987 and city Attorney Woodson said it did. commissioner Woodson asked if the pond in the southwest corner of the property would be moved as the property owners had been promised. City Engineer Shira said there would be modifications to the pond and there were plans to install an underdrain in the pond in a later stage but that the pond would stay where it was. Dave Refling said there would also be a pump station put in that would take some of the pressure off of the pond. City Manager Shapiro added that some of the problems with the pond were caused by poor maintenance and that Wastewater Superintendent Holland had done a great job in improving this area. commissioner Woodson asked about the photograph that was handed out to Commissioners and city Engineer Shira said it was a plant located in Mount Dora that was of similar design to the one that P.E.C. was designing for Ocoee. commissioner Combs moved to approve the authorization to proceed with the final design of wastewater treatment plant #2, Commissioner Johnson seconded, and approval was unanimous. ~ Presentation of 1989 Annual Financial Report - Elden McDirmit Elden McOirmit of McDirmit Davis & Company, P.A., the city Auditor, said he had completed the audit for the year ending september 30, '-" ~ ~ Page 11 city Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 1989. He pointed out the fact that the Finance Department had been awarded a certificate of Excellence in the highest standards and that Ivan poston, Finance Director, and his department are to be commended. Mr. McDirmit said the City had a total budget in excess of $24 million. He said that the revenues had increased and the expenditures had decreased and although these were not significant, they were at least going in the right direction. Mr. McDirmit reviewed some of the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report and pointed out that on Page 5, the right hand column showed a shortfall of $219,227 but that the End of Year Balance showed a balance of $184,822 which meant that the city had made up the deficit of the previous year. Mr. McDirmit said this could be attributed to good management and that the city should be commended. Mr. McDirmit said the report went through revenues and expenditures by fund through Page 9 and then Page 12-40 he did not review with the Commission stating that it was "good reading for accountants". Pages 40-55 he said were detail statements of funds and Pages 62- 83 were statistical data that gave an historic review of the City tax base, revenues, and expenditures over the last 10 years. He said this would probably be interesting for the commissioners to read if they had not already done so. Mr. McDirmit said Pages 84 and 85 was the Opinion Letter that stated that the aUditing firm had studied the internal control and that there were no material weaknesses to report on. He said the last page of the document dealt with the laws and regulations that the City needed to comply with and that there were no material areas of noncompliance to report on; however, he did point out some areas of general concern: 1. The City should consider a formal manual to establ ish continuity and consistency. city Manager Shapiro said that staff felt that the manual should be done by an auditor and explained to the City Commission that he had asked Mr. McDirmit to provide a proposal for such a manual. 2. The City needs to ensure that staff provides adequate documentation for travel and meal charges. Mr. McDirmit said that charge slips need more information on them such as who attended the meeting, what was '-" Page 12 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 4. 5. 6. 7. ~ 8. the business discussed, and the purpose of the meeting. He said this comment was due to the fact that this was usually the highest scrutinized area. 3. The city needs to deal with outstanding checks in a more expeditious fashion, whether this means writing off bad debt or handling the matter through collections procedures. The city should consider interim financial reports, especially for the utility revenue funds. Developer Deposits The City needs to have a backup system for its computer system. The uncollectible accounts receivable should either be written off or sent to a collection company There were slight over expenditures in the General Fund and the Gas Tax Fund. Mr. McDirmit said although there was excess money in the Funds, the City should not spend more than it budgeted. Mr. McDirmi t also recommended that the City consider hiring an accountant because the City's financial report was getting more sophisticated. Ci ty Manager Shapiro said that the accountant position was in the mid-year budget request if funds were available. Mr. McDirmit said overall the City had made great progress and he had sensed a much more positive attitude in staff during his time spent at city Hall. He said he enjoyed working with everyone. Ivan poston, Finance Director, added that it was a great relief to have the financial report completed and he was glad to hear that at least two Commissioners had already read the report. Mayor Dabbs commended the city Manager and Finance Director poston and staff for the fine work. Good Homes plaza, A.G. Development Group - Appeal Impact Fees city Manager Shapiro requested that the developer be allowed to speak first and then staff would give its opinion. City Manager Shapiro did add that he did not appreciate receiving the extra ~. '-' Page 13 city Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 material that the developer handed out at the meeting, especially because he had advised the developer, in writing, that the city would need all such material ahead of time. city Manager Shapiro first asked that the Commission wait until the next Commission meeting to consider the item because of the lateness in receiving the material but then rescinded his request. Allen Goins, President of A.G. Development Group, said he would withdraw the additional material, if necessary, rather than having the item pulled from the agenda. Mr. Goins said it was background information and not something that the commission was being asked to vote on. City Manager Shapiro said he did not have a problem with the material after looking at it briefly but stressed that everyone needed to follow the same rules as far as submitting material to the city commission in advance. Mr. Goins said the purpose of addressing the Commission was not to ask for a repeal of impact fees but rather for the Commission to consider that at the time the developer placed a contract on the land for the shopping center, the company did so with a certain ~ monetary amount in mind for impact fees and now those amounts were significantly more than they planned for. He said in August the developer made a proposal to its lender and that attempting to get financing for this sort of project was very difficult in the current real estate environment. He said lenders were especially worried about project timing. Mr. Goins said basically that staff had been very cooperative and that it was one of the best staffs that he has worked with. He said the City cooperated with the developer in that it allowed them to combine Preliminary and Final Engineering approvals in order for the proj ect to be completed in the time it needed to be for financing reasons. He said at the January 4, 1990 Development Review Committee meeting there were several items questioned by the city's consulting engineer. Because of this, Mr. Goins said, the decision was made on the part of the developer to revert back to the two step process and to take the plan, as a Preliminary Plan, through the Planning and Zoning commission and city Commission. He said on January 16 the City Commission approved the Preliminary Plan and at that same meeting, under a separate agenda item, the increase to the transportation impact fee was also approved by the commission. Mr. Goins said he did not actually find this out until February 5 when he was told that his project would fall under these higher fees. '-' \... Page 14 city commission Meeting April 3, 1990 Mr. Goins said the pre-lease and outparcel sales are based on the budget of the project set in the beginning. He said the impact on the project as far as the increase in impact fees was as follows: $516,000 (original impact fee amount) versus $752,000 (with the increase); as well as the police and Fire impact fees that had also recently been adopted bringing the total impact fee amount now to $790,000. Mr. Goins said because of this, a shortfall has occurred and that even though the developer could make some adjustments, it could not make up for this substantial change. Mr. Goins said that although his project had accumulated a 53% increase in fees, he did find a possible source of recuperating some of this loss by having the City issue credits for off-site improvements as outlined in the Yeager Development Agreement in section 2, Page 7. Mr. Goins listed some of the improvements that he felt should be considered for credits: the additional lane on Good Homes Road which he felt was for general public use, the right turn lane onto Good Homes Road, going from two to four lanes northbound, and the right hand turn southbound on Good Homes Road. ~ Mr. Goins said the traffic study they had done showed that only 16% of the total peak afternoon traffic and zero percent of the total peak morning traffic would be actually a result of the shopping center, so peak traffic periods are not heavily attributed to this project. He said he was therefore asking consideration by the city for off-site credits for some of the improvements. Mr. Goins read from the Developer's Agreement, Exhibit D, Paragraphs 2.1 and 5.4 and asked for the city to recognize these as off-site improvements, therefore allowing credits to be issued. Mr. Goins said he felt that the developer had made a good faith effort to work with staff and that to the best of his knowledge, he had complied with what staff had requested. He restated that he was now in the position of facing a 53% increase in fees and although he wanted to be a responsible developer, he did not feel that the credits should be overlooked. He also felt that as a developer, they should have been given "reasonable warning" of the increase in impact fees. He said he felt like a child in an ice cream shop who is told that the ice cream costs a dime, but finds after going home and getting the money, that the price has gone up to 15 cents. city Manager Shapiro said that the staff report handed out to the Commissioners outlined that cities have reacted to shortfalls in impact fees in different ways but that under the current concurrency rules, the city was obligated to make sure the cost .... '-' Page 15 city commission Meeting April 3, 1990 associated with growth was appropriate. He stressed that the city was responsible for charging what needs to be charged and that that is why staff recommended in the Development Review Committee meeting to deny the request for a repeal of any impact fees. City Manager Shapiro said that he was not aware of the Yeager Developer Agreement until today and that staff would need to look at the Developer's Agreement to see what the intent was and to see what it had to say in regards to off-site improvements. He said the staff needed the city Attorney's opinion on the intent of the Developer's Agreement, especially in regards to signalization and credits. city Attorney Woodson said there were two issues being discussed: 1. rollback or "break" on impact fees because of the increase in the fee that occurred during the development review of this project '--' Attorney Woodson strongly supported staff's position not to grant a reduction in fees. He said the study done on the impact fee level and the process of getting the new ordinance adopted was advertised. He stressed that if the city gave back to one developer, it would have to face the fact that other developers who were in the same position would also want consideration. 2. credit for off-site improvements '-' Attorney Woodson explained that the 1988 Developer's Agreement addressed this and did stipulate that the cost of signalization should be credited and the cost was outlined in the bid. As for the other off-site costs, Attorney Woodson said, the Developer's Agreement said that credits should only be issued for improvements that were considered off-site and not for near site or on-site work. Attorney Woodson said the city's Consulting Engineer stated that all improvements being done by the developer are either on-site or near site improvements and therefore should not be credited. Attorney Woodson said the developer's engineer (who Attorney Woodson said for the record was a "well thought of firm") stated that there were improvements that should be considered off-site. \..,. Page 16 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 Attorney Woodson said the city Commission should also know that the Developer's Agreement also speaks to access points for the project, however the developer does not want to follow the Developer's Agreement to the letter for this issue. Attorney Woodson said this issue was also addressed in the verbatim transcript of the Development Review Committee meeting minutes that the Commission had received as part of their packets. ~ commissioner Foster said that he would like to see the City avoid this (increasing the fees on current development projects without the knowledge of the developer) in the future. He said he felt morally obligated to stick with the first fee since it was an unwritten agreement, so to speak. He said the developer thought one thing when he decided to develop in the City and then was later faced with something different. City Manager Shapiro disagreed and said that this fee was due at the time of building permit and was subject to change until that point in time. Mayor Dabbs said the City did not have a written contract with the developer regarding impact fees. He said the Developer's Agreement covered certain things and that the City would have to abide by those things, but he did not understand Commissioner Foster's reasoning when it came to the City having an obligation to the developer regarding impact fees. He said under concurrency legislation, the city has an obligation to make sure its fees are adequate and to change them if they are not. Mayor Dabbs said that the issue needing to be resolved seemed to be whether or not the developer was providing any off-site improvements and what credits that would possibly mean for the developer. City Manager Shapiro said that the Developer's Agreement states that the developer would be allowed two cuts on Good Homes Road (This Developer's Agreement was based on the entire tract owned by Mr. Yeager which has now been subdividied into two tracts, of which the Good Homes Plaza occupies one.) but that staff has no problem with allowing the shopping center two cuts on Good Homes Road for its project, in fact, staff feels that two cuts are necessary. City Manager Shapiro said the Developer's Agreement also calls for two cuts on State Road 50, although the staff had voted (in a very close vote) to recommend that three cuts be allowed. ~ \... Page 17 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 City Manager Shapiro said he wanted to point out staff's position. Mayor Dabbs said this showed him that staff was trying to cooperate with the developer as Mr. Goins said earlier and that the developer had received a fair hearing. commissioner Foster asked what the concern was with publix about having a convenience store on the outparcel and City Manager Shapiro said that publix was one of the toughest anchors a developer could have in a shopping center in that they want no competition whatsoever and no buildings or signage blocking the front of the store from the road. City Manager Shapiro said that publix had recently begun efforts to keep banks out of the shopping centers they were in because they were considering going into the banking business and wanted no competition there either. commissioner Combs explained that he would have to abstain from voting because he was in the bidding process for the steel to be used in building the shopping center. ~ Commissioner Woodson asked for clarification as to what the Commission was being asked to vote on. City Manager Shapiro said the Commission would need to decide whether to allow staff and the developer to work out the issues regarding cuts and credits and whether they wanted, as a commission, to make sure that certain things were made a part of this process. ci ty Manager Shapiro said in that way, this would not have to come back before the City Commission again. commissioner Johnson said he would like to know about the distances between cuts on State Road 50. City Manager Shapiro said the cuts meet DOT standards. Attorney Woodson said the Developer's Agreement denoted specific distances between cuts on State Road 50 and he thought he remembered them as being 400 and 800 feet. commissioner Johnson moved to deny the appeal presented by the developer for a reduction in impact fees and to go back to the original Developer's Agreement to determine whether the developer was owed any credits, Commissioner Woodson seconded, and the motion passed with a 4-0 vote with Commissioner Combs abstaining. water/sewer capacity Developer Agreements Attorney Woodson said the City held the capacity sale last month and that these are the developer agreements for water and sewer for ~ each developer. Attorney Woodson explained that there were two \... Page 18 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 other developers who were still working on developer agreements with the City and that those agreements would be forthcoming at a subsequent Commission meeting. Attorney Woodson said that all together, there were $160,000 collected in water capacity fees and $476,000 in sewer capacity fees. He explained that unlike the Letters of Credit that were accepted at the previous sale, cash was the only means available this time. Attorney Woodson suggested that the motion should be to approve all ten (10) of the developer agreements (all in one motion) and to authorize the Mayor to execute them. Commissioner Combs made that motion, Commissioner Foster seconded, and the motion passed 4-0 (Commissioner Johnson was out of the room). The Developer Agreements approved were as follows: Centex, Water and Sewer; Skylark, Water and Sewer; LaKenDon, Inc., Water and Sewer; Whitehill Group, Ltd., Water and Sewer; and FHB Development Corp., Water and Sewer. \. STAFF REPORTS City Manager Shapiro stated that there were no additional staff reports to be made at this time. COMMENTS FROM COMMISSIONERS Commissioner Combs asked the City Manager to look into getting the roadway striped at the corner of McKey and Bluford by D.J. Auto Sales. Commissioner Combs also mentioned that with the advent of year round schools, he would like the City to look into the possibility of some sort of "baby sitting" for lack of a better word, so that children would not be left at home alone during those periods of time when school was on hiatus. He suggested that perhaps the City's Recreation Department could have something for the children during the two week periods that the children had off from school. City Manager Shapiro said he would look into it but that he would like to see a program of this nature pay for itself by charging those people who use the service. He said he would bring it up during the budget process. ~ Commissioner Combs also mentioned that he was stressing voter registration and that as a member of Kiwanis, this club had membership drives to encourage people to register as well. \.,... Page 19 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 He also wanted to mention that Cablevision had raised the rates again. City Manager Shapiro said he would put this on the next agenda and ask a representative from the company to attend to explain the need for an increase. commissioner Combs said he had spoken with Chief Boyd about bullet proof vests in light of the recent happenings and asked whether the City could mandate the use of these vests since it provides one for every officer. City Manager Shapiro said the City does purchase one for every officer but was unsure as to whether the City could force the officers to wear them. Chief Boyd said the City could enforce this since it purchases one for each officer. City Manager Shapiro said he was against mandating the use of vests and that there was a difference of opinion amongst police officers as to the pros and cons of wearing vests. Commissioner Combs reminded staff that they were to get with the boyscouts about doing odd jobs for the City and that Mr. Coleman had still not been contacted. City Manager Shapiro said he would handle it. \.. commissioner Combs let everyone know that there was a possibility that a golf course could be developed in Ocoee and that the bankers were scheduled to come to the city in a few weeks to meet with City staff. commissioner Foster thanked the City Manager and the Code Enforcement Officer for taking care of the problem he had talked to them about in Pioneer Key Park. He asked that the City continue to monitor this. commissioner Foster also said that he wished the City Engineer did not have to leave the meeting early because he needed help setting his watch ahead and he figured that City Engineer Shira could figure out how to do it. commissioner Woodson reminded everyone to send in their Census forms if they had not already. He also mentioned his desire to have all new developments in the City have an Ocoee address. Commissioner Woodson also read a memorandum that the City Clerk had written in anticipation of her being at a City Clerks' conference as he thought it was very witty. ~ Commissioner Johnson asked Chief Boyd how Lt. William Walker was doing after hearing he had recently had a heart attack. Chief Boyd said they were running some tests and that he may need to have \.. Page 20 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 surgery. Commissioner Johnson told Chief Boyd to let Lt. Walker know that the City was thinking of him. Commissioner Johnson said that the City Commission had verbally agreed to cover any outstanding expenses that the Lions Club incurred as a result of the 1988 Christmas Parade. He said this had slipped through the cracks but that he thought the Commission should stand by its word. Commissioner Johnson moved to approve the payment of $1,500 to the Ocoee Lions Club to come out of the City'S contingency fund, Commissioner Combs seconded, and approval was unanimous. commissioner Johnson also said that during the mid-year budget review, the City needed to look at its labor force to make sure it had the necessary personnel to maintain areas within the City such as parks and landscaping, otherwise the City should not bother to put in landscaping in the first place. \. There was also a comment about Dominos Pizza parking on a dirt lot and the City Manager said he would alert the Code Enforcement Officer to the problem immediately as he too had noticed this. Mayor Dabbs asked about the broadcasting system for the Commission chambers. City Manager Shapiro said it was not budgeted for but that a sound system was in the Capital Improvements Plan for next year or the year after. Mayor Dabbs said he has been told by his wife and children that it is very difficult to hear anyone other than the Commissioners themselves. Mayor Dabbs said he had received a call asking about a new policy regarding burial plots that the City Manager had devised. City Manager Shapiro said he had originally told this person he was going to take a policy to the City Commission for approval but after considering it, he felt it would be better handled on a case by case basis. He added that this is not uncommon for cities who own cemeteries. Mayor Dabbs said he had received a letter regarding voter registration yesterday and had turned it over to the City Manager to give to one of the civic organizations. Mayor Dabbs said the FLC's Legislative Action Day was scheduled for May 2. ci ty Manager Shapiro recommended that the Commissioners all fly since it is such a long drive there and back in one day. City Manager Shapiro said the program runs from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and that ~ it is a good four (4) hours drive each way. He said if the \..- Page 21 City Commission Meeting April 3, 1990 Commissioners decided to drive, they would have to leave around 5 a.m. and would not get home until 10-11 p.m.. City Manager Shapiro requested that each Commissioner call Fran Gosnell at City Hall and let her know if they plan to attend and whether they would rather fly or drive. Commissioner Johnson said that the City could ask Cablevision to attend the next Commission meeting, but that it would probably be a waste of time since they would probably give the same story they always do. City Manager Shapiro said that Telesat had done some work in the eastern portion of the City but that he had not heard anything else from the company. He said the City can not stop a company from raising its rates. ADJOURNMENT: 11 p.m. ~ ~~ ATTEST: ~ FORM 88 MEMORANDUM OF VOTING CONFLICT FOR COUNTY, MUNICIPAL, AND OTHER LOCAL PUBLIC OFFICERS ! \',TNAi\IE FIRST NAME MIDDLE NA:\IE NAME OF BOARD, COUNCIL, COMMISSION, AUTHORITY. OR COMMITTEE - !,-" Combs, Vern City of Ocoee Board of City Commissioners ,\IAILlNG ADDRESS rHE BOARD. COUNCIl., COMMISSION, AUTHORITY, OR COMMITTEE ON WHICH I SERVE IS A UNIT OF: 150 N. Lakeshore Drive XCITY COUNTY : : OTHER LOCAL AGENCY CITY COUNTY Ocoee, FL 34761 Orange NAME OF POLITICAL SUBDIVISION: City of Ocoee DATE ON WHICH VOTE OCCURRED MY POSITION IS: April 3, 1990 x ELECTIVE APPOINTIVE X WHO MUST FILE FORM 88 This form is for use by any person serving at the county, city, or other local level of government on an appointed or elected board, council, commission, authority, or committee. It applies equally to members of advisory and non-advisory bodies who are presented with a voting conflict of interest under Section 112.3143, Florida Statutes. The requirements of this law are mandatory; although the use of this particular form is not required by law, you are encouraged to use it in making the disclosure required by law. Your responsibilities under the law when faced with a measure in which you have a conflict of interest will vary greatly depending on whether you hold an elective or appointive position. For this reas.on, please pay close attention to the instructions on this form before completing the reverse side and filing the form. \...- INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLIANCE WITH SECTION 112.3143, FLORIDA STATUTES ELECTED OFFICERS: A person holding elective county, municipal, or other local public office MUST ABSTAIN from voting on a measure which inures to his special private gain. Each local officer also is prohibited from knowingly voting on a measure which inures to the special gain of a principal (other than a government agency) by whom he is retained. In either case, you should disclose the conflict: PRIOR TO THE VOTE BEING TAKEN by publicly stating to the assembly the nature of your interest in the measure on which you are abstaining from voting; and WITHIN 15 DAYS AFTER THE VOTE OCCURS by completing and filing this form with the person responsible for recording the minutes of the meeting, who should incorporate the form in the minutes. APPOINTED OFFICERS: A person holding appointive county, municipal, or other local public office MUST ABSTAIN from voting on a measure which inures to his special private gain. Each local officer also is prohibited from knowingly voting on a measure which inures to the special gain of a principal (other than a government agency) by whom he is retained. A person holding an appointive local office otherwise may participate in a matter in which he has a conflict of interest, but must disclose the nature of the conflict before making any attempt to influence the decision by oral or written communication, whether made by the officer or at his direction. IF YOU INTEND TO MAKE ANY ATTEMPT TO INFLUENCE THE DECISION PRIOR TO THE MEETING AT WHICH THE VOTE WILL BE TAKEN: '-"'.1 should complete and file this form (before making any attempt to influence the decision) with the person responsible for recording the minutes of the meeting, who will incorporate the form in the minutes. · A copy of the form should be provided immediately to the other members of the agency. · The form should be read publicly at the meeting prior to consideration of the matter in which you have a conflict of interest. (I I fiR\! ~Il Ill-Xli PAGE I IF YOU MAKE NO ATTEMPT TO INFLUENCE THE DECISION EXCEPT BY DISCUSSION OR VOTE AT THE MEETING: . You should disclose orally the nature of your conflict in the measure before participating. . You should complete the form and file it within 15 days after the vote occurs with the person responsible for recording the minm:..."J of the meeting, who should incorporate the form in the minutes. DISCLOSURE OF STATE OFFICER'S INTEREST I, Vern Combs , hereby disclose that on April 3 90 . ,19_. (a) A measure came:nr=wiitI:am~ before my agency which (check one) ----XX- inured to my special private gain; or _ inured to the special gain of , by whom I am retained. (b) The measure before my agency and the nature of my interest in the measure is as follows: ,...J ~ !(}LZiJ Date File I J-eAAA/ ~)?~ ;)o/c;o Signature NOTICE: UNDER PROVISIONS OF FLORIDA STATUTES ~Il2.317 (1985), A FAILURE TO MAKE ANY REQUIRl~ DISCLOSURE CONSTITUTES GROUNDS FOR AND MAY BE PUNISHED BY ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING: 17vlPEACHMENT, REMOVAL OR SUSPENSION FROM OFFICE OR EMPLOYMENT, DEMOTION, REDUCTION IN SALARY, REPRIMAND, OR A CIVIL PENALTY NOT TO EXCEED $5,000. CE FOR'.l 88 - 10-86 PAGE 2