CITY OF VERO BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 16, 2017 6:00 P.M. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MINUTES CITY HALL, COUNCIL CHAMBERS, VERO BEACH, FLORIDA The invocation was given by Pastor Chris Sloan of Good Shepherd Church of God followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag led by Councilman Young. 1. CALL TO ORDER A. Roll Call Mayor Laura Moss, present; Vice Mayor Harry Howle, present; Councilmember Richard Winger, present; Councilmember Lange Sykes, present and Councilmember Anthony Young, present Also Present: James O Connor, City Manager; Wayne Coment, City Attorney and Tammy Bursick, City Clerk Mayor Moss commended the City Council. She said that this is the second meeting that they have had today. 2. PRELIMINARY MATTERS A. Approval of Minutes B. Agenda Additions, Deletions, and Adoption. There were no changes to the agenda. C. Proclamations and recognitions by Council. 1. Certificate of Appreciation to be given to Mr. and Mrs. Todd Biron Mayor Moss presented a Certificate of Appreciation to Mr. and Mrs. Todd Biron for restoring Patriot the horse, which is located at Pocahontas Park. 2. Certificate of Appreciation to be given to Mr. Tim Capra Mayor Moss presented a Certification of Appreciation to Mr. Tim Capra, City of Vero Beach Lifeguard, for his heroic efforts in bringing back to shore two (2) people who were caught in a rip current. 3. Memorial Day Proclamation May 29, 2017 Mr. Young read and presented the Proclamation. 4. Safe Boating Week May 20-26, 2017 Page 1 CC 05/16/17
Mayor Moss read and presented the Proclamation. 5. Vero Beach Wine & Film Festival June 8-11, 2017 Mr. Sykes read and presented the Proclamation. D. Staff/Consultant special reports and information items. 1. Mr. Tom Juliano, Chairman of the Marine Commission, to review their annual report. Mr. Tom Juliano, Chairman of the Marine Commission, gave an overview of the Marine Commission s 2016 Annual Report (please see attached). Mayor Moss referred to an earlier meeting where she brought up the Marine Commission and wondered if they would be taking the Lagoon project on as part of their mission. Mr. Juliano was very pleased that the Mayor asked that question. He said that the Marine Commission always considered the Lagoon an important part of what they do. Mr. Winger commented with the budget sessions coming up, he would like to know what upgrades the Marina needs. He recalled last year they were able to come up with $107,000 to cover some of the upgrades needed at the Marina. Mayor Moss mentioned that the Marina is on the Vision Workshop agenda scheduled for tomorrow. Mr. Juliano agreed that there were some critical things that needed to be done at the Marina. He will provide the City Council with a report on what needs to be done. Mr. Winger wanted to see what Mr. Juliano s recommendations are. Mayor Moss said it would also be helpful to know what the funds given last year were used for. Mr. Young also asked Mr. Juliano to provide them with a document showing if the slips are being utilized. He also wondered if having the Nina and Pinta at the Marina had an impact on the Marina. Mr. Juliano said that it would be easy to track how many slips are being occupied. He said that the Marine Commission receives a weekly report so he will just use that to figure out how many slips are being used annually. Mr. Young also brought up hurricane preparedness and wondered if this has been looked at for the Marina. Page 2 CC 05/16/17
Mr. Juliano will include in the report how the Marina prepares for a hurricane. Mr. Sykes commented on the need to have good management and marketing for the Marina. He said that the City of Vero Beach Marina does not always fair good in reviews. He asked the Marine Commission to look into that. He also would like to see how they are running the Marina now and if it could be run better. Mr. Juliano agreed that there was always room for improvement. He would try to include all of these things asked for tonight in a report and get it to City Council. E. Presentation items by the public (10 minute time limit). 1. Mr. Gary Froonjian to speak on Lagoon Matters Sponsored by Councilmember Richard Winger Mr. Gary Froonjian was at tonight s meeting to discuss Lagoon matters. He asked Mr. Juliano how they handle dumping at the Marina. Mr. Juliano explained that the Marina staff goes out to the boats that are being moored and offers to dump them, which is inexpensive. Mr. Jim O Connor, City Manager, added that the Marina offers the service of pumping out to any of their customers and it is free. He said they do not monitor every boat to see if this is being done. Mr. Froonjian commented that he met Mr. Jim David this past year and they have been discussing different ideas on how to mitigate the Lagoon. The muck on the bottom is now being addressed and a grant has been submitted for this project. He felt that the test will prove to be positive. They are moving in the right direction. He said that he grew up on the water and he respects it and teaches his children to respect it. He felt that Tallahassee was also making great strides. He thanked the Council for listening. He said that this has been a long journey, but it is paying off. Mr. Sykes agreed that those involved in saving the Lagoon have been frustrated for a long time about things not being done, but now that they have the community support it is time to keep up with the fight. F. Public Comment (3 minute time limit). Dr. Val Zudans stated that he was working today and could not attend the City Council meeting held this morning. He told Council that they did the right thing in approving the Letter of Intent (LOI). Mr. Joseph Guffanti said that he was here this morning making a couple of comments and he was accused by the Mayor of using profanity. He said that he most certainly didn t use profanity. He didn t come here to ask for an apology. He said now it is public Page 3 CC 05/16/17
because the Mayor made a public accusation. He wants an explanation and a retraction. He told Mayor Moss now it s her turn. He said that he was not trifling here maam. Mayor Moss said public comment is simply for your comments. She said that she appreciates his comments and she is not going to repeat what he said. She said the City Clerk Mr. Guffanti said that he didn t ask her to repeat it. He asked her to retract what she said because nothing that he said could be construed as profanity. Mayor Moss said that she was not even sure if he was the gentleman who said it, but there was something that she considered profane. She will not repeat it. If it s in the minutes of the meeting then the Clerk will Mr. Guffanti said well, let me speculate then Mayor Moss said that she will ask the Clerk to inform him. Mr. Guffanti said let me speculate then Mayor Moss said thank you sir. She said that she has no other comments to make, but she appreciates his comments. Mr. Guffanti said that s good. Now, he is going to make some more then. He asked how about that. He said that he thinks what she took objection to was the term of royal screwing, but due to her lack of sophistication and education she has no idea to what that refers. He said that s your problem. He said there s only one (1) substitute for brains maam and that s silence. He said when you don t know what you re talking about you ought to keep your big mouth shut. Thank you. Mayor Moss thanked Mr. Guffanti for his comments. She asked for any other comments. Mr. Brian Heady said that he is fired up. He said that when you make an allegation against somebody in your official capacity, there are people in the community that don t take it lightly when you make allegations against people and they come back and they ask you, geeze what did they say and your response is that basically you re not going to answer. He asked are you kidding me. He said you chastised a citizen saying he is profane and he is using profanity at a public meeting, but you can t identify what it was he said. You tell the world through a letter that the City Attorney is guilty of dereliction of duty. He said these are serious allegations and the other Councilmembers through their silence allows her to do it. He said that Rosa Parks didn t have a whole lot of friends so there weren t a whole lot of people who joined in when she tried to sit in front of the bus for fear. For whatever reason she didn t have a whole lot of help. But, she wound up changing the way they do business. He said the continued abuse of citizens, the continued false allegations by this Mayor is going to get the City in trouble again. He said that she accused him this morning and she accused Mr. Guffanti of profanity. He said that she went on a long diatribe about him, but wouldn t allow him to respond at all even though she spent however many minutes, a lot of them, and he would this time request equal time. If the Mayor can make comments about him, then his request is time at the next meeting for a presentation to respond. He said the Lifeguard has left. His interesting comment is that he saw needs and got it done. Mr. Heady said Michael Page 4 CC 05/16/17
Angelo said that he saw an angel in the stone and it chipped until he set it free. He said they heard that sons and daughters are dying in defense of their freedom and then you watch City where our freedoms are routinely stripped away and abused by this Council and if you allow the Mayor to continue by your silence, you condone and you re as bad as she is. He said at this point any clear thinking individual that watches the lunacy of the Mayor of this City this morning and this is the person that you say you have confidence in. He said oh my gosh and questioned really. Mr. Howle thanked Mr. Heady for his comments and told him that his time was up. Mr. Heady said and then you have the Vice Mayor who takes over. He said the points of the meeting the Vice Mayor just takes over. He said a couple of meetings ago Mayor Moss said time Mr. Howle said its three (3) minutes, his time is up. Mayor Moss said okay Mr. Heady said you people are ridiculous. Mayor Moss thanked Mr. Heady for his comments. She asked for any other public comments and thanked Mr. Howle for being such a gentleman. She said that she appreciated that. 3. CONSENT AGENDA 1. Agreement for Exchange of Use of Facilities and Equipment between the City of Vero Beach, Florida and the School Board of Indian River County, Florida ($1,200 for the use of a theatre for the Recreation Department s drama program and possible additional transportation costs if miles or fuel costs exceed the contract amount of 8,000 miles or fuel costs of $14,000, although this has not happened in the past.) Mr. O Connor reported that this is the yearly agreement for exchange of use of facilities and equipment between the City of Vero Beach Recreation Department and the Indian River County School Board. The contents of the agreement have benefited both the City and the School District in many ways, the most important being cost savings. This is a vital partnership for the function of the Recreation Department. 2. Lease Agreement by and between the City of Vero Beach, Florida, and Youth Sailing Foundation of Indian River County, Inc., Memorandum of Lease (No cost to City Mr. O Connor reported that the Youth Sailing Foundation (YSF) wishes to continue their successful endeavors by renewing their lease for ten (10) years. The new term will be from May 1, 2017 through April 30, 2027 with a renewal option for two (2) additional terms of up to, but no more than, five (5) years each renewal term. Page 5 CC 05/16/17
3. St. John s River Water Management District (SJRWMD) Cooperative Funding; Contract No. 28390 Reverse Osmosis Plant (ROP) Expansion Amendment No. 1 (No cost; time extension only) Mr. O Connor reported that in 2015, the City Council authorized the Mayor to execute a Cost Share Agreement between the City and SJRWMD. In 2016, the City Council approved the Odor Control Replacement change order for the Reverse Osmosis Plant (ROP) expansion project, which also increased the contract time by 90 days. As a result, the City needs to increase the SJRWMD Cooperative Funding Contract by 90 days. He said Amendment No. 1 extends the current expiration date from this contract from July 30, 2017 to October 28, 2017 allowing time to perform the Odor Control Replacement. There are no changes to the scope of work or other contractual obligations. 4. Schneider Electric Final Payment Responder Outage Maintenance Software Project ($115,868.40) Mr. O Connor reported that Schneider Electric has completed the Responder Outage Maintenance Software Project. Staff would like to proceed with the final payment for the completion of this work. This program will identify outages and give an estimated time of when someone s electricity will be turned back on. Notices will be sent out to their utility customers next month notifying them that the City is offering this service. The customer can also go on the website and find out where the outage is. 5. Electric Power Systems (EPS) Final Payment 15kV Substation Switchgear ($18,211.00) Mr. O Connor reported that Electric Power Systems has completed the replacement of the substation switchgear and this request is to proceed with the final payment for the completion of the work. 6. Bid 070-17/PJW Substation 69kV SF6 Gas Circuit Breakers ($73,970.00) Mr. O Connor reported that the older oil filled breakers are going to fail and require replacement. The breakers will be installed at Central Beach substation to increase system reliability. He requested approval for the contract be awarded to the lowest bidder. Mr. Winger made a motion to renew the lease agreement with Youth Sailing and limit it to five (5) years. The rest of the Council was in favor of Mr. Winger s suggestion. Mr. Coment explained that the agreement has been executed by Youth Sailing, but he can modify the agreement and send it back to them. Page 6 CC 05/16/17
Mr. Winger hoped that Youth Sailing would be out there 50 years from now, but he just sees this a little cumbersome with the Vision Plan. Mr. Young said the intent will be to recommend from May 17 th to five (5) years and then at that point do the options. Mr. Winger said that is correct. Mr. Winger explained at that point when they bring back the options if the circumstances have changed this spot may not be where Youth Sailing wants to be. Mr. Coment commented that each of the renewals does require Council approval. Mayor Moss opened the meeting up to the public to comment on any items that appear on the consent agenda. There was no one wishing to be heard. Mr. Winger restated his motion that the Youth Sailing lease be renewed from May 1, 2017 through May 1, 2022 with the option for two (2) five (5) year renewals. Mr. Howle seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Mr. Rob Slezak, Recreation Director, spoke on item 3-1). He said that the City has had this agreement with the School District for over 15 years and it works out very well for them. The City is able to use the School District s buses without paying for gas or maintenance and in return the School District uses the pool at Leisure Square for a couple hours every day. Mr. Young referred to item 3-3) and asked Mr. Bolton to explain this funding. Mr. Rob Bolton, Water and Sewer Director, explained that they have the RO Treatment expansion, which will probably cost them somewhere around $3.5 million and of that the City applied for a grant about two (2) years ago and they received it for $900,000 from SJWMD and now they are just asking for an extension of time. Another item on their agenda tonight is the Odor Control System Replacement and delivery of this has extended past the original two (2) year window that they had with SJWMD so they are asking for a 90-day extension for the completion of that project. Mr. Sykes made a motion to approve the consent agenda. Mr. Howle seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 4. CITY COUNCIL MATTERS A. New Business B. Old Business 1. Storm Preparedness Hurricane Exercise Requested by Councilmember Tony Young Page 7 CC 05/16/17
Mr. Young commented that he was assisting the City in their hurricane preparedness because there are a multiple of areas when looking at storm preparation that the City is doing and his background gives him passion in doing this. He attended the annual statewide hurricane exercise and commended the people at the Emergency Management Center. He said the community can be proud of what this Council has in regards to their Emergency Command Center. He also recognized the representation from the City on the employees attending that exercise. He would be happy to work with staff on different elements that should be addressed. He said as they move forward they are looking at the lessons that they learned from Hurricane Michael. One of the things was the pet shelter. They had people calling in to reserve a space. That did not work. Some people reserved a space, but did not bring their animal. So the next time it will be on a first come first serve basis. They need to be looking at how to get information out to the public and he asked the Council to think about that. 2. Order of Business Requested by Laura Moss Mayor Moss briefly gave the background on this item. She said this City Council moved forward Public Comment and City Council Business to the beginning of the agenda and that Resolution has passed. The latest item was just a matter of adding a very simple line item to the agenda. This would formulize having the dollar amount appear on the consent agenda. The origin of this was that at their very first meeting as a new Council, there was more than a million dollars in items on the consent agenda, but no one would know that just by looking at the items. Now the dollar amounts will appear after each consent agenda item and that will be very helpful. She thanked Mr. O Connor for providing this information. Mayor Moss recalled that Mr. Coment had suggested that a dollar amount be provided for the City Manager s items as well and she spoke to Mr. O Connor about that and he said that was fine with him. Everyone on the Council agreed to this change. Mayor Moss asked Mr. Coment to bring back a new Resolution adding this new language under the Consent Agenda and City Manager s Matters. Mayor Moss commented that Mr. O Connor was not at their last meeting and there were no dollar figures provided for the consent agenda items. She said this is one (1) good reason to formalize this. 5. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. ORDINANCES 1. An Ordinance of the City of Vero Beach, Florida, amending provisions of Chapter 60 related to Height Certification of New Buildings; Providing for Conflict and Severability; Providing for Codification; and Providing for an Effective Date. Requested by the Planning and Development Director The City Clerk read the Ordinance by title only. Page 8 CC 05/16/17
Mr. O Connor reported that with both of the Ordinances on tonight s agenda for public hearings they were prepared at the request of the City Council to have one (1) of two (2) cost saving measures for encouraging businesses in the City. Mr. Tim McGarry, Planning and Development Director, explained that what is being proposed with this Ordinance is that this Ordinance would eliminate Section 60.15(h) that requires any proposed building or addition resulting in a height at or within one (1) foot of the maximum height limits of the Code to submit a height certification application along with a $100 fee to the Planning and Development Department. The City Surveyor must then survey the completed building to ensure compliance with the height standards of the Code prior to issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy. He said that the Building Department does on site inspections. The City really doesn t have the equipment to determine the actual height of the building in the end, which could raise some legal issues. He said he has only seen about three (3) of these cases come to him since he has worked for the City. Mr. Winger said he doesn t agree to anything that would weaken the 35-foot height restriction. He watched the Planning and Zoning Board meeting when this was discussed and the idea was just to accept what comes in from the architect. He knows of instances in the City where the building was an inch too high. Mr. McGarry said if Council wants to keep this Ordinance on the books, he would suggest changing it and putting the requirement on the applicant. They would require the applicant to have a licensed surveyor do the measuring at the time when the roof trusses are being installed. Mr. Winger accepted Mr. McGarry s proposal. Mayor Moss stated that she also had some concerns with this Ordinance. She felt they might be sending the wrong message. She had the same concerns as Mr. Winger. Mr. McGarry said that he would make this change and bring the Ordinance back to Council for first reading. Mr. Howle recalled that he was a member on the Planning and Zoning Board and he knows that there were a lot of permitting processes that he felt could be streamlined. He asked Mr. McGarry to bring these things up if he knows of where this streamlining can take place. Mr. McGarry commented that there were probably a lot of development reviews that could be done administratively. He said this would save time and money for everyone if the applicant doesn t have to go through the hearing process. Mr. Young asked if the City requires permitting for putting in a water heater. Page 9 CC 05/16/17
Mr. McGarry said normally this would require a plumbing permit and the County handles issuing those permits. Mayor Moss stated that this Ordinance will be revised and brought back for first reading. 2. An Ordinance of the City of Vero Beach, Florida, amending various provisions of the Land Development Regulations related to Public Hearing Courtesy Notifications; Providing for Conflict and Severability; Providing for Codification; and Providing for an Effective Date. Requested by the Planning and Development Director The City Clerk read the Ordinance by title only. Mr. McGarry explained that this was another cost cutting measure. This Ordinance would amend the requirements for mailing courtesy notices of upcoming quasi-judicial hearings before the Planning and Zoning Board to owners of real property within 500 feet of the subject property. It replaces the requirement to send the notice to all owners of real property in a condominium to only sending the notice to the Condominium Association. Mr. Winger read an excerpt from the April 20, 2017, Planning and Zoning Board meeting when this item was discussed. He said that this strikes him as by living in a gated community or condo you are a second class citizen. Mr. McGarry said that they also post a notice on the property and it is advertised for a public hearing. Mr. Winger commented that they can post these signs in the summer time and because a lot of the residents are away they are not going to see the signs. He felt that they had the responsibility to notify the residents. He said there just seems to be a small amount of money required to do that. Mr. McGarry explained that this was a policy decision. Mr. Winger said that he would vote against it. Mayor Moss opened and closed the public hearing at 7:44 p.m., with no one wishing to be heard. Mr. Howle made a motion to approve the Ordinance. Mr. Sykes seconded the motion and it passed 4-1 with Mr. Young voting yes, Mr. Sykes, yes, Mr. Winger no, Mr. Howle yes, and Mayor Moss yes. B. RESOLUTIONS 6. PUBLIC NOTICE ITEMS FOR FUTURE PUBLIC HEARING Page 10 CC 05/16/17
Public Hearing will be heard on June 6, 2017 at 9:30 a.m. A) A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Vero Beach, Florida, adopting certain revised Vero Beach Municipal Electric System Tariff Sheets and Rate Schedules, Fees, Charges, and Amendments as provided therein; Providing for an Effective Date. Requested by the Finance Director The City Clerk read the title of this Resolution only and stated that the public hearing would be held on June 6, 2019 at 9:30 a.m. Public Hearing will be heard on June 6, 2017 at 9:30 a.m. B) A Resolution of the City Council of Vero Beach, Florida, approving the transmittal to the State of Florida Department of Economic Opportunity a package of proposed Evaluation and Appraisal Amendments to the Vero Beach Comprehensive Plan; Providing for Conflict and Severability; and Providing for an Effective Date. Requested by the Planning and Development Director The City Clerk read the title of this Resolution only and stated that the public hearing would be held on June 6, 2019 at 9:30 a.m. Mayor Moss encouraged Council to take a look at the Comprehensive Plan before they discuss adopting it at their next meeting. She wants Council to make sure that it reflects what they have in mind. She said they will be voting on it and their names are going to be on the document and they need to be sure that they are comfortable with it. She has not read the whole document yet. She was looking at some of the Planning and Zoning Board minutes and has been assured by Mr. McGarry that the suggestions made at the Planning and Zoning Board meetings have been included in the document, but she will check it herself. She said Dr. Zudans, Planning and Zoning Board member, had pointed out at some of the Planning and Zoning Board meetings that some of the items in the Comprehensive Plan did not reflect or were against positions that Council had voted on. She told Council that they needed to double check this to make sure that the document reflects what this Council has already voted on. 7. CITY CLERK MATTERS None 8. CITY MANAGER MATTERS A) Bid 270-15 (RO Plant Expansion) Odor Control System Replacement Owner Direct Purchase Mr. O Connor reported that the City is currently expanding the capacity of the RO Water Treatment Plant facility. During this project, it was determined that the existing Odor Control System is not functioning at acceptable levels. In accordance with Change Order 004-Odor Control System the City will purchase the BioAir Unit directly from the Page 11 CC 05/16/17
manufacturer. The contractor has proposed a deduction for this item of $404,184.00, which realizes a savings of $47,584.00 in taxes, bond costs, and profit reduction from 10% to 5%. He said that City Council previously approved this original Change Order for this system at their November 22, 2016 meeting. Mr. Winger made a motion to approve the purchase of the odor control equipment directly from BioAir Solution, LLC as an owner direct purchase in the amount of $352,600.00. Mr. Young seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. B) Bid 270-15 (Reverse Osmosis RO Plant Expansion) Change Order Multiple Mr. O Connor reported that the City is currently expanding the capacity of the RO Water Treatment Facility and a portion of the scope of the work was to install a new ethernet switch. The City has the staff available to complete the work. The contractor has proposed a credit to the contract for $3,162.00 to remove the ethernet switch from the scope of their work. A hydraulic issue was discovered concerning the sulfuric acid. To alleviate this problem, concrete pedestals are designed to raise the skids and tank. The additional cost is $8,948.00. In accordance with Change Order No. 004-Odor Control System the City will purchase the BioAir Unit directly from the manufacturer. The contractor has proposed a deduction of $404,184.00, which he realizes is a savings of $47,584.00 in taxes, bond costs, and profit reduction from 10% to 5%. City Council previously approved the original change order for this item at their regular meeting of November 22, 2016. Mr. Winger said that he was not clear on this. Mr. Bolton recalled back on November 22, 2016, the City Council approved the original change order for these projects and at that time, he said that there was a possibility that he would be bringing these items back to Council to vote on in order to accommodate the new expansion. The vendor they are dealing with now is giving them a deduction because of the savings in taxes, bond costs, and profit reduction. He said that he rolled in two (2) minor changes into the agreement that were just housekeeping measures. Mr. Young asked if this was a savings to the City of about $48,000. Mr. Bolton answered yes. Mayor Moss opened up this discussion for public comments at 7:54 p.m., with no one wanting to be heard. Mr. Young made a motion to approve the change orders for a total credit of $398,398.00. Mr. Sykes seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. C) Bid #080-16/PJW Substation 1 Equipment Relocation Mr. O Connor reported that in order to proceed with the demolition of the Power Plant building, a Request for Quote (RFQ) was issued by the City s consulting firm, Power Page 12 CC 05/16/17
Services, to identify the price for a new substation control house for relocation of electric components connected inside the building. He recommended going with the lowest bidder who is Pruitt Industrial Electrical Contractors, LLC, in the amount of $2,159,796.00. He said that this was the appropriate thing to do. Mayor Moss asked if they had budgeted for this. Mr. O Connor explained that they have the money available to make this work. He said the money was not budgeted in the Five-Year Capital Plan. Mr. Winger asked how big the building is going to be and where is it going to be located. Mr. Ted Fletcher, Utility Operations Director, said that the building is approximately 30 feet by 40 feet and will be located on the south side yard. Mr. Winger asked how they were going to screen this. Mr. O Connor said that there were some options. He said they could put vegetation around it or have a structure built. Mr. Winger expressed that he was not trying to push this back. He just wanted to see some plans for screening. Mr. Howle said that he would like to also see some screening. Mr. O Connor said that they could bring back some screening options. Mr. Winger commented that what they were doing here is putting another investment of $2 million into the utility. He notes that because this is another investment into the utility and without this they have an $8 million investment into the utility so this will put the investment in the year they are working on up to $10 million, which is a significant sum to be investing. He said another negative comment that he wanted to make was that in the long run they could decide to do something different with the property. So this makes it urgent that they be thinking about a vision for the corner where this property sits. The positive comment on this is that they are demolishing this property and it is $5.2 million less than what Florida Power and Light (FPL) thought that they could do it for. Mr. Fletcher said that he would work on getting some options and bring them back for Council s approval. Mr. Winger felt that this was the thing to do. He said they will be receiving comments from the public on what the public would like to see go on this property, so they have to do a decent job screening it. Mr. Young asked Mr. Fletcher to talk about the contractor that will be doing the work. Page 13 CC 05/16/17
Mr. Fletcher reported that the contractor is based out of Port St, Lucie. He said all their references have been checked. While, the City has never done work with them, Ft. Pierce and FPL have and they have both been happy with the work that the contractor has done. Mr. Young asked if there was a time line. Mr. Fletcher said that it would take eight (8) to 12 months to complete the project. Mr. Young commented that he visited the Transmission and Distribution Department and noted they are working on getting ready for the hurricane season. Mayor Moss opened the meeting up for public comments at 8:04 p.m., with no one wishing to be heard. Mr. Howle made a motion to award the contract to Pruitt Industrial Electrical Contractors, LLC in the amount of $2,159,796.00. Mr. Winger seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Mr. Winger reported that he read in the Press Journal that the Police Department was awarded a $400,000 grant from the State for the shooting range. Mr. O Connor was not sure about that, but would report back to the Council. Mr. Winger commented that the City shows negative interest in not only the General Fund, but the Electric Fund and every place else. He said the interest on their invested money is negative through the most recent financial report. Mr. O Connor said that is because they do not receive the interest reports every month. He said the City is not investing a negative interest. Mr. Winger suggested having some comments on this at their next meeting. He said that it interests him because it is $150,000 of negative interest on their investments. He would just like to know how they manage this. 9. CITY ATTORNEY MATTERS Mr. Winger asked for an update on the Old Diesel Plant. Mr. Coment stated that outside Counsel is pursuing discovery in trying to find out if the company who previously owned the Diesel Plant has any assets. He said a new attorney from the opposing side has been hired for these purposes. Mr. O Connor talked to the Police Officer who was at tonight s meeting who said that he was not aware of any grant money being awarded for the shooting range. 10. COUNCILMEMBER MATTERS Page 14 CC 05/16/17
A. Mayor Laura Moss s Matters 1. Correspondence 2. Committee Reports 3. Comments A) Next Coffee with the Mayor is Friday, June 9, 2017 at 8:00 a.m. at the Heritage Center Mayor Moss invited everyone to Coffee with the Mayor on Friday, June 9 th at 8:00 a.m. at the Heritage Center. B) Next Vero s Vision Plan Workshop May 17, 2017 at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall, Council Chambers Mayor Moss invited everyone to attend their next Vision Plan Workshop, which will be held tomorrow night. She said there are new items on the agenda that include the Marina and Recreational facilities. But, anyone is welcome to comment on any of the items listed on the agenda. She said for anyone who missed the other two (2) meetings that were held they can find them on the City s website. B. Vice Mayor Harry Howle s Matters 1. Correspondence 2. Committee Reports 3. Comments Mr. Howle reported that the Red Cross is holding an event on Friday. It is for their 100 years of local service. There are going to be exhibits, food trucks, aircraft, a retro Red Cross fashion show that local students are doing, and it will probably be a lot of fun and is free to the public. It is going to be held at the Corporate Air Hangar at 3450 Airport West Drive from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Friday. He just wanted to make everyone aware of that. The other thing that he wanted to say is that the Mayor refers back to the agenda often, as she should, and he wanted to read something as a reminder, and he knows they all want to go home, but asked that they give him just a minute here. He said that he is taking this from the small print as it s been called, All remarks shall be addressed to the council as a body and not to any individual member thereof, nor to members of the audience. No person other than Council and the person having the floor shall be permitted to enter into any discussion, either directly or through a member of the council, without the permission of the presiding officer. No question shall be asked a councilmember except through the presiding officer. The presiding officer may limit immaterial, unnecessary, or redundant comments, presentations, or request. Once a motion is made by a councilmember, no person from the audience shall address the council. No person shall make any personal, impertinent, slanderous, obscene, profane, inflammatory, untruthful, irrelevant, or immaterial remarks, or become boisterous while in the council chambers, or incite violence or fighting, or otherwise disturb the meeting, whether or not while addressing the council. Heckling or verbal outbursts in support or Page 15 CC 05/16/17
opposition to a speaker or his or her remarks displays of anger, rudeness, ridicule, impatience, lack of respect, and personal attacks shall be prohibited. He said so, in three (3) words it says that they have to have rules, they have to have respect, and they have to have a level of decorum. He said what happens in these Council Chambers often would leave people in contempt of court if it were a courtroom. He mentioned that he said nothing when the Mayor was being personally attacked and he is not going to let that happen again. He said they are going to follow the rules, they are going to have decorum, and they are going to respect one another. He said people can speak, they can speak for their three (3) minutes, and when their time is up then they need to sit down. He said that he is tired of it, so that s going to change. They are going to follow these rules to the letter T. Mayor Moss said that she certainly was in agreement with that and she has requested the aid of Attorney Coment in that regard. She said if Mr. Coment sees things getting out of hand, and personally she thinks this evening it was out of hand, she would appreciate it if Mr. Coment would intervene at that point. She thinks that would be helpful. Mr. Coment said something that he could add to what Mr. Howle just Mayor Moss said and I appreciate the Vice Mayor for bringing that matter to light. Mr. Coment continued stating and it comes up regularly on agenda items that there is no set time limit. He said if Council wants to put a time limit on other items on the agenda, he can certainly put that into the rules. It s entirely up to Council, but right now they have the three (3) minute time limit in place only for Public Comment and they have a 10 minute time limit on Presentation Items by the Public. He said as far as agenda items go it really falls on the Mayor to, like when someone becomes repetitive or redundant or is getting off topic, then she needs to rein them in. Mayor Moss said that she would be in favor of maybe having a time limit if they re allowed to. She said that she thought they could override it by a vote and asked Mr. Coment if that was right. Mr. Coment said sure. Mayor Moss said that she doesn t know how the other Councilmembers feel about time limits. Mr. Winger said that he is not in favor of time limits, period. Mayor Moss said some people tend to filibuster. Mr. Winger said be that as it may. Mr. Howle said that he would recommend that there be a time limit and they could vote to let anyone continue if they see fit. Page 16 CC 05/16/17
Mayor Moss said that s what she is thinking. To have a limit and they always can vote to override it and not Mr. Howle said you can t let people go into perpetuity. Mayor Moss said well, yes, that is a problem. Right now someone could speak for 24 hours, literally. That s the way it stands. She suggested that Council think about it. She said they don t need to make a decision tonight. It has been a long day. She said to the community, in her opinion, what was said earlier today was profane and she is not going to repeat that comment. But, that was her response this evening. That was profane language and it is not the kind of language that needs to be used. She said sometimes they have students attend their meetings and that s a terrible example to set for them. Thankfully the high school students were not here this morning to hear that kind of language. She said if they heard that in high school the teachers would say don t do that. She said that s such a poor example for the community and in her opinion was profane and that s why she labeled it as such. She said that she thinks it is within her rights to do that, to call it profane. She then thanked Vice Mayor Howle for his comments. C. Councilmember Richard Winger s Matters 1. Correspondence 2. Committee Reports 3. Comments Mr. Winger reported that he took a boat ride with Dr. Gilmore and noted that the Lagoon continues to deteriorate. D. Councilmember Lange Syke s Matters 1. Correspondence 2. Committee Reports 3. Comments Mr. Sykes commented that Dr. Gilmore has a great wealth of knowledge. The things that concern Dr. Gilmore also concerns him (Mr. Sykes). He said that fishing reports have been good because they are getting a lot of species moving into their area because it is better than other areas. Mr. Sykes read into the record Resolution No. 2017-046 that was adopted by the Board of County Commissions of Indian River County, Florida, urging the City Council of the City of Vero Beach, Florida, to vote in favor of the full sale of the Vero Beach Electric System (please see attached). He asked the Clerk to put this Resolution on the City s website. E. Councilmember Anthony W. Young s Matters 1. Correspondence 2. Committee Reports 3. Comments Page 17 CC 05/16/17
Mr. Young thanked Mrs. Bursick and Mrs. Swan for providing him with trinkets to take to the 50 students that he talked to about government at Rosewood Elementary. He thanked Mr. Paul Mills, from the City s Information Systems, for helping him to be able to get his City e-mails while he was out of town this weekend. He recognized their local Police Officers as yesterday was National Law Enforcement Day. Mr. Young noted that tomorrow prior to their Vision Plan workshop he will be attending a Treasure Coast Regional League of Cities luncheon in Stuart. Mr. Young mentioned the importance of this morning s meeting and expressed his concerns for the future of this community in terms of Memorial Island. He knows that their City takes great pains to make sure it is kept in great standings. He hopes the future vision retains that. He is still digesting this morning s meeting and hopes moving forward their passion also stays on other matters. Mr. Young commented that the centennial planning is continuing and he will keep Council up to date. Mr. O Connor brought up the grant for the shooting range. He found out that a grant application had been made through Senator Debbie Mayfield s office, but they have not received any word on whether they will receive the money or not. 12. ADJOURNMENT Tonight s meeting adjourned at 8:28 p.m. /tv Page 18 CC 05/16/17