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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_Regular_01/14/2010MINUTES VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA VILLAGE COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 14, 2010 CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL The meeting was called to order by Mayor Pat Watkins at 7:04 p.m. A roll call was taken by Assistant to the Clerk Deanna Mayo. Present were: Mayor Pat Watkins, Vice-Mayor Tom Paterno, Council Member Jim Humpage, Council Member Vince Arena, and Council Member Calvin Turnquest. Also in attendance were: Village Manager Michael R. Couzzo Jr., Village Attorney Keith Davis, Assistant to the Clerk Deanna Mayo, and Department Heads. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Watkins gave the invocation followed by the pledge to the flag. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION: Council Member Turnquest moved approval of the agenda; seconded by Council Member Humpage; motion carried unanimously 5-0. PRESENTATIONS /PROCLAMATIONS 1. Presentation of the Village of Tequesta's Approved Budget for Fiscal Year 2009- 2010 as Submitted to the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards Program Ms. JoAnn Forsythe, Director of Finance, congratulated Michelle Gload, Senior Accountant for all the hard work she put forth and explained how beneficial the document was. Council Members offered their thanks and admiration for all the work the finance department presented on the project. CONSENT AGENDA MOTION: Council Member Humpage moved approval of the following consent agenda; seconded by Council Member Turnquest; motion carried unanimously 5-0. Manager Couzzo personally thanked the Manager of Nextera Landscaping, who was awarded the contract associated with item number four. Mr. Eric Nunez, Operation Manager for Nextera Landscaping, introduced himself and explained their capabilities. 2. MINUTES: 11/12/09 Regular, 12/3/09 Special, 12/10/09 LPA Minutes -Regular Council Meeting 1/14/10 Page 2 3. Resolution 1-10, Abandoning an Existing Utility Easement by the Nature Conservancy which Traverses Nature Conservancy property (the Preserve) 4. Resolution 2-10. Approving a Three (3) Year Proposal from Nextera Landscaping, LLC, of Wellington, Florida, for the Mowing and Maintenance of Various Right-of-ways in the Amount of $69,825.00 END OF CONSENT AGENDA COMMUNICATIONS FROM CITIZENS Carol Beresford, representing Hannah's Home thanked Council for donating bridge leftovers to assist them with their goal and distributed her letter of thanks. Cyrese Colbert, Gallery Square North Property Manager, requested Council revisit Zoning Ordinance 19-08. COMMUNICATIONS FROM COUNCIL Council Member Arena thanked employees and citizens for their contributions offered during the Toys for Tots holiday program and noted other Village happenings. Vice Mayor Paterno reported on the bridge progress and thanked all involved and encouraged everyone to get out and vote in the upcoming March 2010 election. Mayor Watkins thanked Chief McCollom and staff for their contributions on the bridge project. She also encouraged Internet and email participation from residents and mentioned Jupiter Elementary School Auditorium was requesting charitable donations. Council Member Humpage offered thanks to Mr. Bill Watkins for his aerial photo of Tequesta Bridge. REGULAR AGENDA NEW BUSINESS 7. Discussion and Possible Action on Cameras for Police Department Manager Couzzo suggested a trial project with the license plate recognition software noting the cost of approximately $25,000. Council Member Turnquest questioned the profile of the cameras. Manager Couzzo stated they could be seen but were not invasive. He also pointed out they were only used to monitor known criminal activity. Minutes -Regular Council Meeting 1/14/10 Page 3 Vice Mayor Paterno offered his knowledge of the system. Council Member Turnquest supported the venture and expressed his concern with the cameras being obvious. Vice Mayor Paterno pointed out different options for concealing the cameras through additional cost. Chief McCollom explained the alerting system and explained the data base updated regularly and offered additional data base for Tequesta officer's information. Mayor Watkins stated she was against intrusive intent but supported persistence with existing criminal suspects or activities. Chief McCollom explained the proposed would look for activity that appeared out of place and pointed out there were many options available for future needs as well. Council Member Humpage asked if night vision was an option. Chief McCollom clarified infrared lenses were on the cameras. He also discussed the importance of dispatch being part of the process. Marsha Neilson, 94 Beechwood Trail asked about the software's data storage. Chief McCollom replied the system offered rewind and the length of time recorded information would be stored would be a policy decision. MOTION: Council Member Turnquest moved approval; seconded by Council Member Arena; motion carried unanimously 5-0. Vice Mayor Paterno motioned an addendum for Council to authorize Manager Couzzo to execute a contract up to $25, 000 with anything over to be brought back to Council for approval; seconded by Council Member Turnquest; motion carried unanimously 5-0. Manager Couzzo noted the project was not funded and monies should come out of the 2009/2010 budget. OLD BUSINESS 9. Council Consideration and Approval of Various Donation Requests (Tabled from 12/10/09) Council Member Turnquest recommended the entire balance be donated to Haiti to assist with the earthquake disaster and noted he had inquiries from residents asking what Tequesta was doing for Haiti. Vice Mayor Paterno stated that he was not comfortable donating tax payer's money and preferred to leave it in the budget. Minutes -Regular Council Meeting 1/14/10 Page 4 Manager Couzzo suggested dividing the funds equally between Council Members to allow each one to donate as they desire. MOTION: Council Member Arena moved to authorize the Manager to divide the $9, 000 equally between the five Council Members; seconded by Council Member Humpage; motion carried 4-1 with Vice Mayor Paterno dissenting. Council Member Arena clarified each Council Member would specify their charitable portion of the funds and a charity or the funds could and would remain in the budget if not used by a specific date. Mayor Watkins encouraged residents to present their charitable preferences to the Village so that Council could be aware of resident's wishes. Council Member Humpage pointed out a resident involved charity, Adopt a Platoon who's biggest need was for postage and encouraged support. 10. Ordinance 20-09, Second Reading, Providing for a Uniform Time for the Appointment of Members for Boards, Committees and Commissions (First Reading 12/10/09) Attorney Trela White read Ordinance 20-09 title into the record. She then offered a brief description of the Ordinance. Mayor Watkins opened the hearing to Council for comment; there being none, she opened the meeting for public comment. There being no comments, the public hearing was closed. MOTION: Council Member Humpage moved to adopt Ordinance 20-09; seconded by Council Member Turnquest; motion carried unanimously 5-0. 11. Ordinance 21-09, Second Reading, Providing for a Uniform Time for the Appointment of Members for the Planning and Zoning Board (First Reading 12/10/09) Attorney Trela White read Ordinance 21-09 title into the record. Mayor Watkins opened the hearing to Council for comment; there being none, she opened the meeting for public comment. There being no comments, the public hearing was closed. MOTION: Council Member Humpage moved to adopt Ordinance 21-09; seconded by Council Member Turnquest; motion carried unanimously 5-0. Minutes -Regular Council Meeting 1/14/10 Page 5 12. Ordinance 22-09, Second Reading, An Ordinance amending the Comprehensive Plan, to update the Capital Improvements Element, Five Year Capital Improvements Schedule, as required annually (First Reading 12/10/09) Attorney Trela White read Ordinance 22-09 title into the record. She noted the Ordinance was approved by the Local Planning Agency and required by the State. Mayor Watkins opened the hearing to Council for comment; there being none, she opened the meeting for public comment. There being no comments, the public hearing was closed. MOTION: Council Member Turnquest moved to adopt Ordinance 22-09; seconded by Vice Mayor Paterno; motion carried unanimously 5-0. 13. Discussion on Special Exceptions Council Member Humpage voiced his concerns with the criteria and cost linked to special exceptions and felt an additional step would improve and modernize the procedure. Council Member Arena questioned if the Special Exception was connected to a person or the property. Attorney White explained the special exception went with the property and could have expiration. Council Member Humpage read his additional requirement which he felt should be number eight and suggested other verbiage appeared to be redundant and should be consolidated. Attorney White agreed with the need for modernization of the code and offered additional clarification regarding the item. Vice Mayor Paterno questioned postponement issues. Council Member Humpage stated regular inspections were required to keep a permit active. Manager Couzzo stated all previous requirements would still be necessary with the proposed item as an addition. Attorney White noted difficulties with the time limits stated within the code. Vice Mayor Paterno noted a previous special exception and felt the special exceptions should be difficult to obtain. Manager Couzzo confirmed that the proposal was only to make it easier initially but Council would always give the final approval. Council Member Turnquest felt the proposed facilitated in getting an answer with less cost to the developer and did not make receiving the special exception itself any easier. Attorney White reiterated Council would grant conditions of approval for any site plan. Vice Mayor Paterno pointed out additional concerns. Council Member Humpage noted positive aspects of his opinions along with tax revenues. Mayor Watkins asked for consensus. Manager Couzzo asked Council consensus for a draft on consideration of a modified Ordinance. Minutes -Regular Council Meeting 1/14/10 Page 6 MOTION: Council Member Humpage moved to move forward with the Ordinance; seconded by Council Member Arena; motion carried 4-1 with Vice Mayor Paterno dissenting. Manager Couzzo confirmed legal will develop draft for the Ordinance with first reading held in February. 14. Discussion and Possible Action on Signage Specifications for the Fountain of Honor Mayor Watkins discussed a letter from Mr. Carlton Stoddard regarding the Fountain of Honor signage, font and the word memorial. She suggested asking the engraver for suggestions and recalled Council's decision regarding the word "memorial". Council concurred the Fountain of Honor was not established to be a memorial. STANDING REPORTS • Village Attorney Attorney White noted a law suit challenged by 20 municipalities coming to summary judgment February 22, 2010 regarding Bill 360 which includes unfunded mandates. • Village Manager Manager Couzzo stated the bridge demolition was going well with four test piles commencing the following week. He explained there could be changes with the State to expedite the opening of the bridge before total completion on a limited manner. Manager Couzzo noted a Public Safety Pension meeting on January 22, 2010 and suggested Council hold a Special Meeting simultaneously so they could be available during the pension meeting. He commended Finance on their involvement and long time efforts in developing a budget document which offered a better understanding to residents. ANY OTHER MATTERS Council Member Humpage voiced his concerns with the Village Code relating to signage and quoted section 78.745. Manager Couzzo reminded Council Member Humpage that the issue had been addressed many times. He then asked Attorney White for clarification and a possible moratorium on the issue. Minutes -Regular Council Meeting 1/14/10 Page 7 Vice Mayor Paterno reiterated that Council had discussed change many times with no revisions approved. Attorney White recalled the same. Manager Couzzo voiced his concern with where to draw the line and referred to several items found in front of the local business he felt were objectionable. Attorney White stated several drafts regarding the Ordinance had been created after direction from Council after numerous Workshops and nothing had been done after that point. Mayor Watkins asked if the drafts could be resent to Council for review and feedback. Dottie Campbell, 30 Eastwinds Circle, stated pictures of signs brought in by her staff to tonight's meeting were taken today and in her opinion looked worse than some of the items meant to draw attention for business's. She felt items placed outside of shops were done within good taste for with specific trade in mind. She also felt the Village operated on a different set of rules and made reference to specific actions during the past Harvest Festival. Vice Mayor Paterno reiterated on the upcoming Pension Board meeting and asked everyone to attend. He also felt that the pension board had their own Attorney and Council could go to Attorney White if they had any questions. Council Member Turnquest and Vice Mayor Paterno requested the agenda be delivered earlier than it had been. Manager Couzzo replied the agenda could be distributed on Wednesday, the week before the Council Meeting. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Council Member Humpage moved to adjourn; seconded by Vice Mayor Paterno; the motion to adjourn carried unanimously 5-0; therefore, the meeting was adjourned at 9:14 p. m. Respectfully submitted, Deanna Mayo, Assistant to the Village Clerk