A. CALL TO ORDER 7:05 P.M. B. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Town of Grant-Valkaria C. ROLL CALL (by Interim Clerk) Mayor, Del Yonts present Council Member, Seat 1, Joe Hackford present Council Member, Seat 2, Danielle Morgan present Council Member, Seat 3, Pat Bryan present Council Member, Seat 4, Cathy DeMott present Council Member, Seat 5, Dan Faden present Council Member, Seat 6, Jason Mahaney present D. ADDITIONS AND DELETIONS TO AGENDA E. CONSENT AGENDA: 1. Approval of the 11/21/06 Interim Council Minutes after their concurrence. Motion by DeMott; seconded by Morgan. 2. Approval of the 11/21/06. Motion by DeMott; seconded by Morgan. F. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: 1. (Yonts) - Clerk/Assistant Clerk assignment and duties: C. DeMott suggested that the council ask for volunteers for clerk functions. D. Burr volunteered to continue with assistant clerk duties through the end of the year. She further suggested that the council members take turns with phone duties. D. Faden suggested the clerk also utilize a tape recorder to assist in the taking of minutes. He further suggested that the interim clerk receive compensation for time and effort. L. Kolar will continue to manage to post office box and emails to town email list. D. Yonts reported that C. Hackford will take minutes for the 11/29/06 & 12/06/06 meetings. There will be further investigation into an individual who is a retired clerk and might be willing to offer assistance with clerk duties. 2. (Yonts) Sunshine Law discussion: D. Faden had questions as to whether any committee doing research or fact finding for the Town Council would be held accountable to the Sunshine Law. It was decided that this issue would need to be defined by the town attorney. D. Faden will formally write up and present these questions to the attorney and provide findings at the next council meeting. 3. (Yonts) Meeting schedule through December 31, 2006: There will be a Town Council meeting every Wednesday through December 20 th at 7:00pm. 4. (Yonts) Added C. DeMott will take over Chief Financial Officer (CFO) responsibilities from D. Yonts. Motion by P. Bryan; Seconded by D. Faden Page 1 of 6
G. NEW BUSINESS: 1. (Yonts) Meeting structure and rules a. Yonts reported that the meetings will be conducted in the same format as the interim council. It will be an open forum with discussion. Open discussions will be limited as necessary. D. Morgan had questions regarding a council seating arrangement. It was decided that there would be no formal seating positions. T. Reynolds requested that the council members be provided with name tags and ask that all cell phones be turned off or placed on vibrate during council meetings. 2. (Yonts) Web site and e-mail a. E-mail addresses: D. Yonts stated that all e-mail forwarding is working properly. It was suggested the council continue to use the Grantvalkaria.org website through Artemis. b.web site host: D. Yonts suggested the council continue to use Artemis as the web site host with D. Faden in agreement that the council continue to use the current system. Motion by P. Bryan; seconded by C. DeMott. c. Web site editor: T. Reynolds agreed to continue to act as the web site editor. Motion by J. Hackford; Seconded by D. Morgan d.webmaster: R. Kolar agreed to continue with webmaster responsibilities. Motion by C. DeMott; Seconded by J. Hackford 3. (Yonts) Certification of ordinances approved by Interim Council There were three ordinances not included in ratification during the 11/21/06 council meeting. It was suggested that the council certify all three under one advertisement. L. Kolar further reported that there would need to be a reading of the ordinances. The first reading will be followed by a second reading 10 days later. They will also need to be advertised and posted at the library. L. Kolar will continue with this responsibility. Motion by P. Bryan; Seconded by D. Morgan 4. (Yonts) Valkaria airport trimming of clear-zone and security areas Dell Yonts discussed the outcome of the recent trimming of the clear-zone at the Valkaria Airport. Trees that required trimming were cut off at the top and broken. Janice Walters addressed the council and read several memos/letters from the FAA and the US Fish & Wildlife. Her information outlined the maintenance of foliage and trimming of clear-zone and security areas at the Valkaria Airport. Linda Mason addressed the council and further stated that the wildlife around the airport was gone. Gopher turtles and scrub jays were also gone. She recommended that the town take Page 2 of 6
G. NEW BUSINESS - Continued: 4. (Yonts) Valkaria airport trimming of clear-zone and security areas- continued action by writing a letter to the county and establish a town ordinance that would allow for future land management control. John Mason addressed the council and added that the Airport Management had agreed not to cut the grass on the outside area for a period of 16 to 18 months so that the scrub growth had time to recover. Mayor D. Yonts pointed out that gopher turtles were not regulated at the local level. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife does not get involved when the Florida Fish & Wildlife is responsible. Kurt Lawrence addressed the council and reminded the council that they were the governing authority responsible for protecting the rural character of our town. He believes that the county has participated in illegal clearings in the past. Permits have been required but never pulled. He would like to see the council make the county accountable and abide by the law. He further proposed that the council 1) Write a letter to Brevard County asking for an explanation of their actions, 2) Write a letter asking the Fish and Wildlife office in Jacksonville to uphold the law, 3) Request an explanation from the Sheriffs Department regarding their use of harassing actions towards town members who were observing the condition of recent trimming in the clear-zone and security areas at the Valkaria Airport on the property of the Habitat golf course. Mylo Zonka from the Valkaria Airport Advisory Board addressed the council. Before Zonka could proceed, Yonts questioned Zonka to ensure his comments did not create a sunshine violation as both Yonts and Zonka are on the VAAB. Zonka reported the county attorney; Morris Richardson had advised him that no violation existed. Zonka continued and cautioned the council that the information presented was not true. He urged the council to become independently informed on the situation. Dylan Yonts asked if the council had any authority of the airport property. Council member - D. Faden stated that this was a legal question to be handled by the town attorney. Morris Richardson from the Brevard County Legal Office addressed the council and reported that all landing clearing and trimming was properly handled and approved through Fish & Wildlife and The St. Johns River Management. A site inspection had been preformed on November 28, 2006 and that clearing was deemed appropriate. Robert Staples asked M. Richardson if there were any permits for the clearing. M. Richardson stated that the clearing was in compliance with all necessary standards and guidelines. M. Richardson was further questioned by Dave Folts as to whether documentation was available. M. Richardson reported that he had all documentation with him and available to be reviewed. T. Reynolds stated that there were two issues, 1) improper acts by the airport in the past and 2) the council should address the county commissioner s office in order to avoid unrest in the future. Mayor D. Yonts stated that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife reported that all trimming and clearing was done as they had instructed (roller-cut) and believe that this recent project will improve the scrub habitat. Council member Pat Bryan stated that he agreed with T. Reynolds. First, the town attorney will need to look into the matter and verify exactly what happened and secondly the town will need to be made aware of any future events. Council Member Joe Hackford reminded everyone that a representative from the Sheriffs Department has offered to attend any meeting as requested by the town council. Council Member Dan Faden also agrees with Tim Reynolds. He reported that in the Page 3 of 6
winter of 1992-1993 the land had been cleared illegally. He would like for the council to research the situation and ask that the council be involved in any future activities 4 (Yonts) Valkaria airport trimming of clear-zone and security areas- continued approved by the county commissioner s office. Lynn Walters suggested that someone be appointed as a liaison to the county and airport manager. Council Member Cathy DeMott agrees with all. She further stated that the council will need to make sure that the land plan continues. The council should take a stern stand and not allow any future inappropriate clearing or trimming. County attorney Morris Richardson stated that land management will continue to proceed with future land clearing as required and according to proper procedure. Morris Richardson announced that the next advisory meeting would be on December 5 th at 7:00p.m. at the Port Malabar Library. Council Member Cathy DeMott suggested that the council established a Watch Dog committee to make sure that future clearing at the airport is done properly. Mylo Zonka stated that he likes the idea of establishing an open communication between Valkaria Airport management, the town of Grant-Valkaria and the county. He believes that the ability to communicate will resolve the majority of future problems. Mayor Dell Yonts stated that he will follow-up establishing future communications and the identification of the main task at hand. 5. (Yonts) Identification, prioritization, and assignment of tasks required to begin town Identification and assignment of County Items: Airport Interlocal Agreement with the Sheriffs Department Fire & Emergency Services Building Department Road & Bridge Emergency 911 Parks & Recreation Revenue Sharing FPL FY 06 Audited Financials by end of FY07 Identify other franchise fees Definition of ownership of roads Conditional Use Permit (CUP) specifically for Winnerz on 5890 U.S.1 *All above items to be handled by D. Yonts and volunteer D. Rabino. Identification and assignment of Non-county Items: Search for the Town Manager & Clerk D. Morgan & volunteer D. Burr Job description for the Town Manager & Clerk D. Morgan & volunteer D. Burr Job Search Committee for the Town Manger & Clerk D. Morgan & D. Burr Code Enforcement J. Mahaney and volunteer L. Landrum Conditional Use Permit P. Bryan and volunteers L.Kolar, J. Walter & D. Burr Page 4 of 6
Zoning P. Bryan and volunteers L. Kolar, J. Walter & D. Burr Comprehensive planning Land Use J. Walter, T. Wolfe & L. Landrum County Ordinances J. Mahaney and volunteer T.Wolfe Accountant C. DeMott and volunteer T. Reynolds Meeting Location & Cost J. Hackford Town Manager & Clerk office location D. Faden Grant Search D. Faden and volunteer R. Kolar Five Year Budget Plan C. DeMott and volunteer G.Wolfe Audited Financials C. DeMott Communications Service Tax J. Mahaney and volunteer L. Kolar Waste Management J. Hackford P.A System & Name Tags J.Hackford and volunteer J. Morgan Recording of Meetings Dylan Yonts Emergency Management & Grants Plan D. Morgan and volunteer G. Wolfe Review of Interim Council Decisions Mayor and all council members. Representative Committee (MPO, VAAB, League of Cities) Tabled till next meeting Town Newsletter / Advertisements D. Faden and volunteer Royce Post on web site T. Reynolds Town Name (Method) - C. DeMott Motion by P. Bryan; Seconded by J. Hackford 6. (Yonts) Financial Update D. Yonts reported receipt of a Gas Tax check for 4,000.00 and a Florida Today Newspaper bill for 200.00 H. MAYOR REPORT D. Yonts reported any annexations of future land would need to be reported to the Supervisor of Elections. He further reported that he received an invitation from myregion.org to attend The Central Florida Council of Mayors on 12/14/06 9:00 am to 11:00 am and a Newly Elected Officials Briefing on 12/14/06 from 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm. If any council member is interested in attending please contact D. Yonts no later than Monday, 12/4/06. I. PUBLIC COMMENT: Steve Eastwood from Valkaria Volunteer Fire and Rescue, Inc. addressed the council and ask them to consider their organization for future fire and rescue services to the Town of Grant-Valkaria. They are a 501c non-profit with 40 volunteer members. He reported that Page 5 of 6
they currently have one 660 rhino truck. He further reported that they lost their facility due to the hurricanes and is lacking a fire engine and brush truck. Mayor D. Yonts further reported that fire services will be available through the county through December 2007. Tonti requested contact numbers for the Mayor and Council Members for the Office of Emergency Management. D. Moore from the Interim Council inquired about payment for council expenditures personally paid by Interim Council member. She is requesting reimbursement when funding available. J. ADJOURNMENT: Motion made to adjourn. Motion by P. Bryan; Seconded by D. Morgan Meeting adjourned at 10:37 P.M. ATTEST: (Signature on File) Christine Hackford Interim Clerk BY: (Signature on File) Del Yonts Mayor 12/13/06 DATE: Page 6 of 6