Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_Miscellaneous_07/27/1994_Public Safety Committee c �f VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA Post Office Box 3273 • 357 Tequesta Drive Tequesta, Florida 33469 -0273 • (407) 575 -6200 Fax: (407) 575 -6203 o A 4 f�cN COUN�y VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES JULY 27 1994 I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL The Tequesta Public Safety Committee held a regularly scheduled meeting at the Village Hall, 357 Tequesta Drive, Tequesta, Florida, on Wednesday, July 27, 1994. The meeting was called to order at 8:36 A.M. by Chairman Ron T. Mackail. A roll call was taken by Betty Laur, the Recording Secretary. In attendance were: Chairman Ron T. Mackail and Co- Chairman Joseph Capretta. Village Staff present were: Village Manager Thomas G. Bradford, Village Clerk Joann Manganiello, and Department Heads. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA The Agenda was approved with the addition of discussion of proposed a communications tower requested by Co- Chairman Capretta. III. DIRECTION REGARDING FIRE- RESCUE SERVICE REQUEST PROPOSAL. (James M. Weinand, Fire Chief) Fire Chief Weinand reported a letter had been received from Jupiter's Town Manager requesting a proposal from the Village to service the Town of Jupiter with fire and ambulance protection, since they believe they have been paying one to two million dollars too much to the County. Fire Chief Weinand requested direction from the Committee as to their interest in this proposal before proceeding. Mr. Capretta suggested that Jupiter, Palm Beach Gardens, Tequesta and North County Ambulance Service join together to form a North County Fire Rescue District which would provide service to northern Palm Beach County. Village Manager Recycled Paper Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 2 ----------------- - - - - -- Bradford reported that Palm Beach Gardens was also asked to provide a proposal to Jupiter and that a meeting was scheduled for July 29, 1994, with Palm Beach Gardens' City Manager and Fire Chief to discuss joining together to provide service to Jupiter. Co- Chairman Capretta stated the Village should respond favorably to Jupiter's request for a proposal in order to keep the door open for further discussion; and should inform Palm Beach Gardens that the Village is interested in Jupiter's request but is more interested in our proposal to form a North County Fire Rescue District. Chairman Mackail reported at a recent Municipal League meeting response was not favorable to a request by a representative of Palm Beach County Advisory Fire Rescue that municipalities with their own fire rescue services communicate directly with the County to avoid duplication of service, location of fire stations, etc. Chairman Mackail also reported the town of Highland Beach had saved a net $750,000 by establishing their own fire station, and also that he had invited Frank Harris, Juno Beach Mayor, to attend the meeting scheduled for Tequesta's presentation to the town of Jupiter. Capretta suggested a letter to Jupiter and Palm Beach Gardens with copies to Commissioner Karen Marcus stating the right solution for best service and lowest cost would be the North County concept; that this is the opportune time to proceed because of the current situation in the ambulance business; and that Commissioner Karen Marcus should support this since she is the North County Commissioner. He also suggested that Tequesta should go to the newspapers to start the idea that this is the right solution. Village Manager Bradford remarked that Commissioner Marcus would want Palm Beach County to participate but that this should be avoided. He stated Tequesta had proved establishing an independent fire service could be done and Tequesta could save Jupiter money as well as making enough profit so that no tax increases would be necessary for 2 -3 years. Co- Chairman Capretta suggested Mr. Bradford prepare a proposal for Jupiter that would accomplish this. Chairman Mackail proposed that a second plan also be developed to include Juno Beach in the event Jupiter would accept, whereupon Co- Chairman Capretta suggested a proposal should then be made to Palm Beach County by the Village of Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 3 ----------------------- Tequesta to service all of the unincorporated areas of Palm Beach County within the Tequesta area. Village Manager Bradford suggested a fallback position to help Jupiter figure out how to provide service on their own. If the whole concept were to fail the first time, elected officials would eventually push it through, over time. Co- Chairman Capretta observed this strategy had worked in the past, and when the public became aware they were paying two million dollars too much, officials would have to respond. IV. OVERVIEW OF RAMIFICATIONS OF PALM BEACH COUNTY ASSUMPTION OF ALS TRANSPORT (James M. Weinand, Fire Chief) In response to Chairman Mackail, Fire Chief Weinand advised the Committee that NAMAC fully supported proposed Fire - Rescue service to Jupiter. Mr. Mackail stated that through the NAMAC organization response time, level of service, equipment, etc., could be demonstrated, which were the major areas of concern from residents during establishment of Tequesta's fire department. In response to Co- Chairman Capretta, Hal Hutchinson explained that Palm Beach County Fire Rescue had made a proposal to the County Commission to provide Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulance service transport. Mr. Hutchinson stated that North County Ambulance Service would not go out of business since they would still handle Basic Life Support (BLS) service. Village Manager Bradford provided the information that the County designated 75% of ambulance transport cases as ALS, which pay a higher rate than BLS transports, and that North County Ambulance had stated they would not be able to survive on only 25 %, but if actual circumstances dictated whether a transport were ALS or BLS, they might be able to stay in business. Fire Chief Weinand reported an average of one transport per day from Tequesta, the majority of which were true ALS. Village Manager Bradford reminded the Committee that the Village Council had been told Tequesta would save $2,000 per month by handling their own ALS services starting on April 1, 1995, when the County began ALS; however that date had been changed to January 1, 1995, and Chief Weinand reported he had learned at the recent Chief's Conference that the issue would not be decided until December 20, 1994, which would not leave time to work out a plan before January 1, 1995. Since a Certificate of Necessity (CON license necessary for ALS transport) must be filed by October 1, 1994, Chief Weinand recommended Tequesta go ahead with this process in order to Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 4 ----------------------- be ready for whatever happens. Discussion ensued regarding obtaining an ambulance, with the conclusion that North County Ambulance would have unused ambulances which could be borrowed or purchased until the Village could order /accept delivery of a new one; and possibly their facilities could be purchased to be used as a fire - rescue station. Direction from the Committee to City Manager Bradford was to prepare to take over North County's facility, inquire about their building purchase and see what kind of a deal they would offer; to borrow two of their ambulances; to send Mr. Brice a letter giving him notice to move out of Station 11, telling him that Tequesta will take over the fire station, and asking him the date of release; and to make a proposal to Jupiter, and send a copy of the proposal to the Jupiter newspaper and the Post. City Manager Bradford stated if Mr. Brice did not move the Village could charge exorbitant rent, and the station could be used for storage. Direction to City Manager Bradford was restated, with instruction to obtain in writing that Tequesta could have the North County Ambulance building, and that the Village could borrow two ambulances for six months. V. REVIEW OF TEQUESTA POLICE DEPARTMENT "PARK, WALK & TALK POLICY" AND DISCUSSION OF ACTIONS TO ENHANCE THE SAME. (Carl R. Roderick, Chief of Police) Police Chief Roderick stated this program was started in 1991 with officers talking to owners and operators in the business community and explaining crime prevention procedures for retail theft and burglary. Since that time officers have made casual stops to talk with local residents when the opportunity allows. Since October, 1993 182 PWT contacts and 340 citizen contacts have been logged in the computer. Officers have been reluctant to tie up air time to log contacts. Co- Chairman Capretta asked Fire Chief Weinand to conduct a marketing test program by covering one block, knocking on doors and handing out a list of safety tips and asking if residents would like their smoke detectors checked. He also suggested contacting homeowners associations to let them know which week the Fire Department would be in their area and to let them inform their residents. In response to Co- Chairman Capretta, Police Chief Roderick responded the Police Department has been going to homeowners association meetings and giving talks on home safety, etc., and that the Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 5 ----------------------- department has been offering to videotape residences and their contents for insurance purposes. Chairman Mackail suggested contacting several insurance companies who might endorse this program. He also stated he would like to see officers get out of their cars and walk and talk to people to provide a sense of community, and would like to see officers at bus stops get out of their cars to talk to the kids, and would like the police to be visible. Chief Roderick explained that more citizen contact could be done when the reserve program goes into effect; however it is difficult now since 70% of the time there is only two -man coverage and if a man is 1/2 block from his car when there is an emergency, the response time suffers. Co- Chairman Capretta observed that when a policeman is walking there is a better sense of security in the community, but that police feel safer locked in their cars. Chief Roderick responded that he rides around in his car after lunch, and rarely sees anyone on the street that he could stop and talk to. Chairman Mackail suggested stopping at school bus stops, and presenting bicycle safety programs prior to school starting. Chief Roderick stated tours, coloring books, etc. are offered, and periodically the police department offers a bicycle registration program. Co- Chairman Capretta related that Tequesta Country Club and Turtle Creek residents were changing from all older residents to a lot of younger people with children. Chairman Mackail mentioned that Lantana has adopted a program called CARE (Cops Adopting Elderly Residents) and that he would like to see something similar in Tequesta. Chief Roderick reported an attempt to register residents for emergency contact was not very successful; Mr. Capretta commented that the older residents seemed to handle this informally with neighbors, but did not want to register with the police department. Chairman Mackail stated in Lantana the police got out of their cars, knocked on doors, and spoke to the residents to be sure they were all right. Co- Chairman Capretta reported the lawsuit was still being pursued to close Country Club Road. Village Manager Bradford stated he believed the only way to close that road was through the Safe Neighborhood Crime Act. Village Manager Bradford reported that through Lantana's CARE program, their police department learned who was physically or financially unable to do any improvements to their property and passed that information along to the code Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 6 ----------------------- enforcement officer who would then handle the situation in an entirely different manner by calling upon Explorer Boy Scouts to paint a house, cut grass while someone was healing from surgery, etc. Chief Weinand reported an Explorer Post had been established in Fire Rescue and now has seven members. Suggestions were made that the same thing might be done in the Police Department for Boy Scouts who were more interested in law enforcement. Co- Chairman Capretta voiced concern that Constitution Park when completed would need some type of volunteer organization to run the park so that it will be utilized. Chairman Mackail suggested the YMCA would be an excellent organization to contact for this project. Chairman Mackail directed Police Chief Roderick to look into an Explorer Program to comingle with a CARE program, which would enhance the reserve program about to be undertaken. VI. REVIEW OF RESERVE OFFICER PROGRAM UTILIZATION OF PERSONNEL. (Carl R. Roderick, Chief of Police) Chief Roderick reported six reserve officers had been hired through the same hiring process used to hire regular officers. Since one had replaced a regular officer who had been terminated, another reserve officer was in the process of being hired. In response to Co- Chairman Capretta, both Chief Roderick and Village Manager Bradford responded there was no problem as long as the intent was to augment police services, not to supersede the assignments of regular police officers. Mr. Capretta listed possible duties reserve officers might handle as radar traffic, Explorer program, parade duty, and private security. Chief Roderick stated for private security detail if no regular officer responded then a reserve officer could be used, and the cost to hire a reserve officer would be no different than hiring a regular officer. VII. REVIEW OF COST ESTIMATES AND FEASIBILITY OF STATIONARY RADAR FOR TRAFFIC CONTROL ON COUNTRY CLUB DRIVE. (Carl R. Roderick, Chief of Police) Co- Chairman Capretta stated stationary radar would not provide any feedback data and that data was needed in order to know when to put a policeman on the street. Chairman Mackail suggested strategically placing stop signs along Country Club Drive so that traffic would not be able to build enough speed to go over the speed limit. Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 7 ----------------- - - - - -- After discussion, it was the consensus of the Committee that stationary radar would not be desirable since it would only affect people who had radar detectors. VIII. CONSIDERATION OF AMENDMENTS TO TEQUESTA THRU -TRUCK ORDINANCE (Carl R. Roderick, Chief of Police) Chief Roderick reported the wording in the Thru -Truck Ordinance could be construed to mean that a vehicle making a delivery anywhere within the Village would not be subject to the ordinance and therefore could use Tequesta Drive and Country Club Drive for delivery to Turtle Creek or even into Martin County, since it stated on page 690 of the ordinance book, section (3) " ..delivering goods or services to destination points within the Village of Tequesta..." [and] shall not be subject to the provisions of subsection (b)(2) above. Chief Roderick reported two arrests made of drivers for the same company had to be dropped because of this wording. The consensus of the Committee was to change the wording by replacing "the Village of Tequesta" with "within the restricted roadways" as recommended by Village Attorney Randolph. IX. REVIEW OF FEASIBILITY OF SMART TRAILER SPEED INDICATOR ON COUNTRY CLUB DRIVE (Carl R. Roderick, Chief of Police) Chief Roderick reported the Smart Trailer radar speed indicator is a trailable device that uses a battery- operated solar powered recharging system which could register speed as well as provide a printout of vehicle count, speed chart, information as to the most active hours and target times for the most speeding violations. After discussion, it was the consensus of the Committee that the $15,000 price tag was too high for a device that might invite target practice, etc. Chief Roderick reported Lieutenant Allison had investigated traffic counter cards, slightly larger than a credit card, that could be placed in the roadway to collect traffic data. Two would be needed to count traffic going in both directions. The cost for one entire unit would be $750 for the card, computer interface adapter and software. Data collected would be number of vehicles, whether the vehicle was a car or truck, and speed of vehicles during a certain period of time. Co- Chairman Capretta recommended constant use to establish a database. Village Manager Bradford commented it would save a lot of money by providing raw data Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 8 ----------------- - - - - -- that a traffic engineer would not have to collect; he would only have to write his report from the existing data. Motion was made by Chairman Mackail to authorize the purchase of two Nu- Metrics NC -30X Countcards. Motion was seconded and agreed to by Co- Chairman Capretta. X. REVIEW OF THREE -TIER APPROACH TO MARTIN COUNTY REQUEST FOR MUTUAL AID. (Carl R. Roderick, Chief of Police) Village Manager Bradford stated that a population wave was headed toward this area which would cause crime to rise over the passage of time, and said that Tequesta needed to plan for the future to increase and enhance the level of police service (1) by annexation or (2) incrementally expanding the force or (3) contracting out services. Village Manager Bradford explained that Martin County recently requested a written proposal to provide service to Turtle Creek, which cannot have the high level of fire and police services that are available in a city; however, in their case, mutual aid in the south end of the county would be abused since Tequesta is so close that they would be called in every instance. Another need was Tequesta Park where Tequesta police officers were unable to respond to emergency calls since it was located in Martin County, and the Martin County Sheriff's Department did not want to deputize Tequesta officers to be able to answer calls in Tequesta Park, but wanted a full mutual aid program. Police Chief Roderick explained his officers would be called constantly, while Martin County officers would not be called as much to help with calls in Tequesta. Chairman Mackail observed that due to the fact that Tequesta pays all the fees for Tequesta Park, was going to improve the park, and that JTAA will be using the park, that an agreement should be made with Martin County to allow Tequesta to respond to emergency calls. Village Manager Bradford explained the three -tier approach: 1. In areas such as Turtle Creek, Tequesta would be the first response agency. Those areas would pay the same as Tequesta residents. 2. Special Assistance - Martin County would call and we would respond on a pay -per -call basis. Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 9 ----------------------- 3. Mutual Aid - Emergency calls where Martin County has a problem responding, they call and we provide backup - or vice versa. Chief Roderick voiced concern that the imbalance of calls would reduce the level of service in Tequesta. Chairman Mackail suggested a tier level where a predetermined amount of calls would be counted as mutual aid and any over that number would be considered special assistance and be paid per call. Chief Roderick responded to Village Manager Bradford that four extra people would be needed for 24 -hour coverage in the Turtle Creek development. Chief Roderick felt that Martin County would use any proposal from Tequesta as a basis to state they have already raised their level of service to cover the number of calls or hire one deputy to cover the area at a cost lower than proposed by Tequesta. The consensus of the Committee was direction to Chief Roderick to prepare one proposal covering 24 hours per day and another to cover two shifts per day, and to calculate whether Martin County's tax base would cover 4 extra people for 24 -hour coverage at Turtle Creek. IX. ANY OTHER MATTERS Chief Roderick reported contact from a real estate consultant who was working for a new cellular telephone company that was looking for a tower site on this side of the river to build a freestanding 160 -220 foot high tower and a storm -proof blockhouse with air conditioning and an emergency generator. They had located two possible sites, one in Jupiter and one on Bridge Road. They had offered to let Tequesta place their communications equipment on the tower and to lease the property at $8,000 a year for the first five years renewable for 20 additional years with a 20% increase in price every 5 years. Chief Roderick stated the current zoning would be a problem and that Tequesta would need to own the tower and lease it back to the cellular telephone company. Chairman Mackail voiced concern over the need for better communication during a disaster such as a hurricane. Fire Chief Weinand commented on two problems, (1) that the tower will be on one side of the river or the other and will be visible to Tequesta either way, and (2) if in Tequesta this would definitely enhance Tequesta's radio communications. He also stated the tower might be used in place of the tower Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 10 ----------------- - - - - -- proposed by NAMAC. Village Manager Bradford explained any type of communications could be placed on this tower and police, fire, public works and water communications could all be on the tower as opposed to the roof of the Village Hall building, which is suspected to attract lightning strikes. Discussion included new communication technology which would use different frequencies such as 800 megahertz and Tequesta's present VHF system which is reliable and would not need to be changed; Tequesta residents would have to look at the tower in either proposed location and if it were erected in Jupiter the Village would have no control over it; items to be explored would be whether to relinquish water department land for this purpose, and that an engineer would have to determine whether the Tequesta Water Department would need this land for its operations. It was the consensus of the Committee to reply no to this proposal, to inform Jupiter that Tequesta does not want them to erect the tower and to discuss with the Village Attorney how to stop Jupiter from erecting the tower so close to Tequesta's boundary. XII. COMMUNICATIONS FROM CITIZENS Hal Hutchinson reported he had collected data from the police department relating to traffic enforcement on Country Club Drive. He reported 51% of all enforcement time had been spent on Country Club Drive, leaving 49% to cover all other streets in the Village. For that 51 %, only 29 citations were given, however 114 were given for the rest of the town. Mr. Hutchinson stated stops and warnings followed the same pattern and the Country Club Drive operation should be reduced. Public Safety Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 1994 Page 11 ----------------------- VI. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Committee, the meeting was adjourned at 10:53 A.M. Respectfully submitted, Betty Laur Recording Secretary ATTEST: J ann mangani4llo Village Clerk DATE APPROVED: �0, i53s/