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Description |
Palatka City Commission 5-24-07 Regular meeting; Price-Martin Community Center; 5:30 p.m. |
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Date |
5/24/2007 |
Location |
Palatka City Commission Regular Meeting – Price Martin Community Center |
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Time |
Speaker |
Note |
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Call to Order |
Mayor Flagg at 5:30 p.m. |
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PRESENT |
Mayor Karl N. Flagg; Commissioners Mary Lawson Brown, Allegra Kitchens, James Norwood, Jr. and George Sanders |
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ALSO PRESENT |
City Manager Allen R. Bush, City Clerk Betsy Jordan Driggers, Assistant City Clerk Karen Venables; Police Chief Gary Getchell, Fire Chief Mike Lambert, Public Works Director Woody Boynton, General Services Director Ken Venables, Parks & Cemeteries Supt. Jeff Norton, Planner's Assistant Debbie Banks |
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INVOCATION |
Vice Mayor Mary Lawson Brown |
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PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE |
As a Group |
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APPROVAL OF MINUTES |
5-10-07 - Commissioner Brown moved to adopt the minutes as read. Commissioner Sanders seconded the motion, which passed unopposed. |
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PUBLIC RECOGNITION |
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Presentation of Check - Pilot Club member Betsy Driggers presented a check for $1,500.00 to Mayor Flagg as the Palatka Pilot Club's final installment on the Hank Bryan Park Handicapped Accessible Picnic Pavilion, and thanked Jeff Norton, Parks Supt., for his work with the Pilot Club over the past two years to bring this project to fruition. She also thanked Synergy Construction for erecting the pavilion at a reduced rate and donating some of the materials, and noted construction on the slab will begin next week. |
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Student of the Month |
May 2007 - Commissioner Sanders joined Mayor Flagg in presenting certificates for Academic Excellence, Leadership, Citizenship and Attendance to the following students at their respective schools: Sofia Rangel Cole Wiesner Daesean Stephenson Lil’China Davis Bodie Belcher Paige Patterson Kadee Fields Paula Dingmon Kelley Smith Elementary
School Deonte Brown Mellon Elementary School Jamie Laibl Moseley Elementary Jonathan Garcia Palatka High School (May Honoree) Robert Svetlik Palatka High School
(April Honoree) David Dennin Peniel Baptist Academy |
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PUBLIC COMMENTS |
There were none. |
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CONSENT AGENDA |
a. Authorize one-year extension of debris removal contract with A & H Excavation effective July, 1, 2007 @ $12.75 per cubic yard – Public Works Director b. Authorize two-year extension of Leachate/Sludge Disposal Agreement with Putnam County BOCC until May 31, 2009, with a limit of four loads of leachate brought to the transfer station per day, and all other terms and conditions to remain the same – City Manager c. Agree to pay Palatka Abstract Co. for cost of Title Search for purchase of building at 1209/1211 Reid Street – City Manager d. Authorize execution of Fla. Dept. of Corrections Contract #WS397 Renewal for Streets Dept. Inmate Work Squad #1 in the amount of $55,777.00, 8-24-07 through 8-23-08. e. Authorize the General Services Director to submit a Historical Resources Grants-In-Aid application to the Florida Bureau of Historic Preservation for $300,000 per request of the Larimer Arts Center (50% match) f. Adopt Revised 2007 City Commission Meeting Schedule (includes adoption of 2007 Summer Meeting Schedule) – City Clerk |
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Motion |
Commissioner Sanders moved to pass all items on Consent Agenda as presented. Commissioner Norwood seconded the motion, which passed unopposed. |
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APPOINTMENTS |
Gas Authority Board - remainder of a 3-year term to expire January, 2009, vacated by Fred Pilgrim |
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Motion |
Commissioner Norwood moved to appoint Marc Spalding to the Palatka Gas Authority for the remainder of a three-year term to expire January, 2009. Commissioner Sanders seconded the motion, which passed unopposed. |
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Palatka Historic Preservation Board – Mayor Flagg noted Robert Goodwin is the sole applicant for this position. Mr. Goodwin was not present for interview. |
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Motion |
Commissioner Brown moved to waive the 2nd meeting requirement and appoint Robert Goodwin, RA, to the Palatka Historic Preservation Board for a three-year term to expire June, 2010, as Member with Architectural Experience. Commissioner Sanders seconded the motion, which passed unopposed. Commissioner Brown requested Mr. Goodwin be asked to attend the next meeting in order to meet him. |
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ORDINANCE |
AMENDING APPENDIX A, FEE SCHEDULE, OF THE PALATKA MUNICIPAL CODE – 2nd Reading for adoption - The Assistant Clerk read an ordinance entitled AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF PALATKA, FLORIDA, AMENDING APPENDIX A (FEE SCHEDULE) OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE OF THE CITY OF PALATKA AS IT PERTAINS TO FEES AND OTHER CHARGES RELATING TO: ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING, MECHANICAL, POOL, AND ROOFING INSPECTIONS AND PERMITS; FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEMS; MOVING OR DEMOLITION OF BUILDINGS OR STRUCTURES; ACCESSORY STRUCTURES; PLAN REVIEWS; MANUFACTURED HOMES AND BUILDINGS; ARCHIVED PLANS REPRODUCTION; RE-INSPECTIONS; RETURNED CHECKS; CONTRACTOR CERTIFICATES; SIGN PERMITS; OCCUPATIONAL LICENSE REGISTRATION; WATER CONNECTIONS (INCLUDING LINE EXTENSIONS, POLLUTION CONTROL, ONE-TIME EXPANSIONS AND DISCONNECTIONS); SEWER CONNECTIONS (INCLUDING LINE EXTENSIONS, WATER POLLUTION CONTROL, PLANT REPLACEMENTS, AND LATERAL SEWER RENEWALS); ZONING ACTIONS; AND SITE CLEARING AND TREE REMOVAL OR RELOCATION; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. |
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Motion |
Commissioner Norwood moved to pass the ordinance on 2nd reading for adoption. Commissioner Brown seconded the motion. |
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Roll Call Vote |
A roll-call vote was taken, with the following results: Commissioners Brown, Kitchens, Norwood, Sanders and Mayor Flagg, yes; Nays, none. The ordinance was declared adopted. |
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HARDSHIP UTILITY CONNECTIONS |
Request to Authorize staff to administratively process Agreements to Annex - Don Holmes, City Attorney, said the City's past procedure has been to process agreements for annexation with people who need water due to hardships, and upon execution of the agreement, the utilities were provided to the applicant. At this time, the City has several applicants for annexation who need water immediately, and there is a need to process these agreements administratively so that the City has an agreement in its hands prior to running those lines. This is the same thing they've been doing, it is just based upon an amended agreement to allow property owners to take advantage of city utilities. It states their property will be annexed at such time it is legally permissible to annex. |
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Commissioner Brown said she is not comfortable with this arrangement. They need to encourage people to come into the City before they run utilities to them. She likes to know who is coming in, and if the annexation is good for the City. |
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Commissioner Kitchens concurred, and said the agreement likely needs to be updated, but the Commission should have an opportunity to approve each request on a case-by-case basis. Mr. Holmes said in that case, people with failed wells would need to wait until the Commission can hear the request. |
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Commissioner Sanders said he concurs with the Mr. Holmes, as with a failed well, time is of the essence. He also understands Commissioners Browns' and Kitchens' concerns, but weighs in on the side of the attorney. |
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Commissioner Norwood said he'd like to see the process expedited, and asked what happens if a Commissioner has a problem with a certain annexation. Mayor Flagg said if the guidelines are precise and clear, staff would not even bring them to the table. If it is not contiguous, or if there are no lines available, it probably won't be considered. This Commission needs to have confidence in the staff of these multiple departments that are involved, specifically Building & Zoning and Public Works. |
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Woody Boynton, Public Works Director, said currently if a lot is contiguous, they will make those water connections as long as the applicant has paid their annexation fees. This only modifies the process to allow them to bring contiguous lots on-line now. Non-contiguous lots will still come before the Commission. If those lines need to be extended, they can state that in the Agreement. Worse case scenario, the property owner will just pay higher "outside" rates. The City has a right and need to provide water utilities to anyone who requests them, and SJRWMD would probably support that contention. They are looking at urban service boundaries now. This is only for contiguous properties, not non-contiguous properties. |
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Mr. Bush said in the past the City has avoided providing water to just anyone; they do it on an emergency basis, but through an Annexation Agreement. Mr. Holmes said this was brought to his attention because the policy was not as clear or set as it needs to be. The resolution that governs this is from 1973, and has not been revamped since then. He is concerned that people come in and ask for water, and the City has been providing water before the Agreement is in place. If a hardship is in place, it seems to make sense to let the Mayor execute an agreement to let the process get started. He is fine with their not allowing lines run until the annexation process is complete. If that is the case, they need to be certain everyone is aware of that, no matter how major the hardship is. If there is a particular emergency or urgency, they will just have to deal with that. He didn't like the fact that staff is having to judge just how dire the emergency is to determine whether the applicant needs to wait until the Commission hears the request. However they decide, staff will have a clear directive, and there will be consistency. |
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Mayor Flagg said in some cases, the water lines run right in front of these peoples' homes. Commissioner Norwood said they are only dealing with properties on a contiguous basis, but the caption reads contiguous and non-contiguous properties. Mayor Flagg said if the property is contiguous, the owner has no alternative but to annex in order to receive utilities. That has been their practice all along. If a property is non-contiguous, the City can force the annexation once they become contiguous with this legal document in place; then the property owner can’t back out. Commissioner Norwood said if that is the case, there is no need to make this change. |
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Mr. Holmes said at this time the city can't annex property due to the Comp Plan situation. Commissioner Brown said there should be some point and time when people have to come into the City to get utilities so the City will get those taxes, which is better than them paying 50% more for utilities. They decided the only way they could get people to annex is to force them to annex if they need utilities. At this time, they only allow water connection to properties outside the City Limits. People use the rest of the City's amenities, but if they want this amenity, they need to annex. There are benefits to annexation, such as fire & police protection and lower homeowner insurance rates. |
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Commissioner Kitchens said she is not comfortable with this for many reasons. If there is a contiguous subdivision whose water system has failed, they could have 100 homes coming into the City without coming before the Commission. They need to continue to review each case as they come up. They are under no obligation to extend city utilities to people with failed wells, even though they sympathize with their plight. The Commission doesn't need to give away any more of its power. Mayor Flagg and Mr. Holmes said there is no way even one property can come into the City without going through the Planning Board and City Commission first. They are not talking about allowing annexation; they are talking about the extension of water. Mr. Homes said he will withdraw the recommendation he's made with the clarification that staff understands clearly and unequivocally that an annexation agreement cannot be considered, and utilities cannot be connected, until it comes before this Commission, with no exceptions. Mayor Flagg said they aren’t ready for a withdrawal just yet. |
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Commissioner Norwood said when he's told there is no way they can help an individual that has a hardship based upon their comp plan situation, then he understands there is a need to address this issue. Commissioner Sanders asked if they could set a time limit on annexation. Mayor Flagg said that is not practical for non-contiguous properties. Mr. Holmes concurred. Mayor Flagg said the issue is the City's. This will not affect anyone whose well fails after today. Commissioner Brown said she knows people with families and children need potable water, but the property may not be in the direction the City wants to go. Mayor Flagg said the Commission then needs to immediately set about setting an urban service boundary. The requests that come in the future will come as they may. Mr. Holmes said they have people that want to annex today, and need water today, and are willing to annex and pay those taxes, but the problem is that the City can't annex them at this time. The only difference is that the City will begin the process of getting water to them now instead of later. |
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Motion |
Commissioner Norwood moved to approve the request to authorize staff to administratively process Agreements to Annex for annexation applicants and non-contiguous property owners. Commissioner Sanders seconded the motion. |
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Roll Call Vote |
A roll-call vote was taken, with the following results: Commissioners Brown and Kitchens, No; Commissioners Norwood, Sanders and Mayor Flagg, Yes. The motion passed 3 in favor, 2 against. |
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ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS |
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Mr. Bush said he put a copy of the revised Riverfront Development RFDQ in each commissioner's box, which he believes meets all the Commission's specifications per prior discussions, to include no marina and a request for preservation of the 100 block buildings. He'd like to put it out on the street immediately. He asked each commissioner to read the document and let him know if it meets with his or her approval or not. If there is consensus, he will issue it. |
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COMMISSIONER COMMENTS |
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Commissioner Kitchens said the Blue Crab Festival has taken up the cause of "A Million Thanks" for U.S. military service men and women. She asked everyone to stop by the booth, fill out a thank-you card showing support for the troops, and the Blue Crab Festival organizers will see they get added to the mail campaign. She noted there are certain guidelines, which will be provided at the booth. She commended Blue Crab for their generosity. |
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Commissioner Brown thanked Jeff Norton for all the extra work he's been doing with the parks. They look great and the children will enjoy them this summer. |
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Said she traveled to Orlando last week to attend a FLC Executive Board meeting, and a League of Mayors Executive Board meeting. It was brought to their attention that Governor Crist has been saying public safety departments/employees won't suffer from the proposed tax reform the legislature will consider next month, and that cities and counties will only have to give up a park or two. The City of Palatka gave those things up years ago because of its weak tax base, and will lose even more services if this comes down as planned. The plan changes every day. She brought some correspondence back from the League asking officials to let their citizens know exactly what services are in jeopardy, and they should do that. She gave each member a copy of those guidelines, and asked if the Commission could call a short meeting in order to put the word out on WJGV, or visit the Station to tape individual statements for airing. Commissioner Kitchens said she has contacted representatives several times in reference to this and is very worried about what will happen to public safety. Commissioner Norwood said the League has sent them some talking points on this, which they can take advantage of. Commissioner Sanders said he has followed this issue closely. |
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Commissioner Sanders said he was contacted by an individual at Georgia Pacific to say they are having a flag ceremony tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m. |
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Commissioner Norwood said the citizens need to get involved in tax reform and let the Commission and their state representatives know how these cutbacks will affect the level of services they now receive. There may be drastic cuts in current services. He'd like to see citizens get involved in the process. |
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Mayor Flagg said if elected officials and legislators are sensitive to the needs of municipalities, they would be holding more Town Hall meetings on the subject. Public input gives them the opportunity to be more efficient than they are now; there is always room for improvement. They need to streamline processes, create partnerships and re-evaluate interlocal agreements so the public will get the best value out of their government. One size does not fit all; what works in Dade County won't work in Putnam County. Each municipality and/or county is unique. They're asking state leadership to be sensitive to the diverse nature of budgets and individual characteristics of all counties, whether rural, metro or urban. Commissioner Sanders noted many larger cities are also going to be hit hard. |
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PUBLIC COMMENTS, Revisited |
Mayor Flagg noted some members of the public were not aware of the revised start time of this meeting, and asked if there were further public comments. There were none. |
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Mayor Flagg announced the Needs Assessment Workshop will begin at 7:00 p.m. |
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Adjourn |
At 6:45 p.m. upon a motion by Commissioner Brown. |
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