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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_Workshop_8/3/2020MINUTES WORKSHOP MEETING VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA, FL AUGUST 3, 2020 6:00 PM ZOOM/YOUTUBE CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL The meeting was called to order by Mayor Abby Brennan at 6:00 p.m. A roll call was taken by Deputy Clerk Mary Ann Grieser. Present were: Mayor Brennan, Vice Mayor Stone, Council Member Brandon, Council Member Prince, and Council Member D'Ambra. COMMUNICATIONS FROM CITIZENS Ray Ray's Speed Fab made a comment on YouTube asking: Is it a merit bonus or raise? A bonus does not raise you hourly. Council acknowledged that a bonus would not raise the hourly rate of pay. AGENDA ITEMS MOTION: Council Member Frank D'Ambra made a motion to approve the agenda; Council Member Bruce Prince seconded the motion. Carried 5-0 (opposed:) (abstained:) (absent:) 1. Continue Discussion Regarding Fishing From the Bridge Council discussed the feedback they had received from residents regarding fishing from the Tecluesta Drive Bridge and realized it had been predominantly negative. Vice Mayor Stone asked Council to consider safe alternatives for those that would like to fish from the bridge. Attorney Davis weighed in on the idea of having only children fish from the bridge and opined it could not be an option. Council agreed to end the discussion on fishing from the bridge and asked that the current ordinance be enforced. MOTION: Council Member D'Ambra made a motion to approve the adenda; Council Member Prince seconded the motion. Carried unanimously 5-0. 2. Discussion on Community Center Plan Design Phase Manager Jeremy Allen revealed that the Community Center was moving towards the next stage which included: authorization of architectural plans, design development, and the construction document phase. REG Architectural Firm would be placing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a construction manager within the next few weeks. Council Member D'Ambra asked if there was any ability to compress some of the items, in order to achieve an earlier start than the proposed March 2021 date. Manager Allen felt there could be some opportunities to improve the timeline. Council Member Prince advised doing the demolition and site work soon, in order to save time. 3. Review Proposed FY 202012021 Budget Manager Allen offered some updates to the proposed budget and revealed there was still a $197,000 decrease in revenues. There were some pieces of the budget still missing but information was being received daily. Tequesta Fest could be eliminated leaving a balance of $20,000 for community events and the other $30,000 to supplement employee wages. There was also a $750 incentive for the non -union personnel, as well as the .33% increase and the yearly merit increase program. There were some changes in personnel, with an employee being split between the water department and the general fund. Two public works employees and 4 dispatchers were also a part of the change in budgetary numbers. Council Member D'Ambra asked about the surplus in the building department fund and the pension payout. Manager Allen offered an update and revealed there was a plan to move the money and create an entirely separate building fund. Additionally, an administrative fee, gathered from three years prior, would be added to the fund going forward, as it had not been charged in prior years. The retirement benefits were explained with sick and vacation time sell -back options included. Several different scenarios involving Covid-19 and sick time were discussed and it was explained that if an employee was exposed at work, the Village would cover the sick time. However, if an employee was exposed outside of work, they would need to use their own sick time. Vice Mayor Stone encouraged Council to return the yearly Council salary increase of 2%, in light of the fact that many employees were only receiving a .33% increase this year. Mayor Brennan felt the Council was paid a minimal amount currently and that there had been no increase to their salary for many years. Council Member D'Ambra felt the 2% was set low already and was appropriate. It was mentioned that Council had discretionary funds that could be placed back into the fund. 4. Discussion of Charter Amendments and Process to Implement Term Limits; Terms; and Districting. Attorney Keith Davis explained 3 possible scenarios regarding term limits. Any changes would involve approval by voters and a charter amendment. Additionally, it was noted that this was not typically the norm for smaller municipalities. Districting was a broad and complex topic and Council agreed the term limits and districting needed further discussion. Council recommended bringing term limits and districting to another workshop and requested the meeting be widely publicized. 5. Discuss Florida League of Cities 2020 Proposed Resolutions Council believed the items were very generic although they had questions on the resolutions regarding Covid-19 and broadband. Mayor Brennan believed that "home rule" was part of the resolutions and would give the individual municipalities the ability to go by their own local needs. Council would need to receive more detailed information on the subject before making a decision. Council Member Stone mentioned that in the future, offering a courtesy of leaving a pamphlet at the door of residents whose signs were pulled by code enforcement would be appreciated. Additionally, he felt the new golf cart signs were misleading as they did not take "street legal" carts into consideration. Also, less signage was ideal instead of having so many signs throughout the Village. A beautification committee was brought into the conversation and Manager Allen would look into the creation of such a group. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:38 PM MOTION: Council Member D'Ambra made a motion to adjourn the meeting Vice -Mayor Stone seconded the motion. Carried unanimously 5-0. Respectfully submitted, � Lori McWilliams, McWilliams, MMC Village Clerk Note: These summary minutes are prepared in compliance with 286.011 F.S. and are not verbatim transcripts of the meeting. A verbatim audio record is available from the office of the Village Clerk. All referenced attachments are on file in the Village Clerk's office.