A special MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

February 26, 2024

The Lake County Board of County Commissioners met in a special budget strategies workshop on Monday, February 26, 2024 at 9:00 a.m., in the County Commission Chambers, Lake County Administration Building, Tavares, Florida. Commissioners present at the meeting were: Kirby Smith, Chairman; Douglas B. Shields, Vice Chairman; Sean Parks; Leslie Campione; and Josh Blake. Others present were: Jennifer Barker, County Manager; Melanie Marsh, County Attorney; Niki Booth, Executive Office Manager, County Manager’s Office; Kristy Mullane, Chief Financial Officer; and Josh Pearson, Deputy Clerk.

INVOCATION and pledge

Commr. Smith welcomed everyone to the meeting.

Pastor Michael Watkins, from Friendship CME Church in the City of Tavares, gave the Invocation and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

budget history and overview

Ms. Jennifer Barker, County Manager, stated that during this strategies workshop they planned to discuss concerns of the staff and the Commissioners as it helped them set the strategy and priorities going into the new budget process for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025. She indicated that they would discuss the goals used in creating the budgets throughout the departments, review the budget history and overview, provide information on the immediate focus areas, provide an update on the prior year projects and priorities, and discuss Commissioner projects and priorities. She indicated that they used a variety of goals to help guide budget development and the strategic planning process, such as preparing for emergency responses, enhancing core function service delivery, enhancing customer service, enhancing quality of life, identifying efficiencies, and fostering economic development and tourism. She listed their efficiencies for FY 2023 and FY 2024 as follows: added six staff members in various roles in the Office of Planning and Zoning to appropriately size the office for the growth that Lake County had been experiencing in recent years; added a Process Improvement Project Manager in the Office of Planning and Zoning who specialized in efficiencies for processing development applications across various offices in the County; the Lake County Water Authority (LCWA) employees fully transitioned into Board of County Commissioners (BCC) policies and organizational structure; an additional $6.9 million towards road resurfacing was allocated; and General Fund reserves had been increased, noting that they were currently at about 17 percent of General Fund operations.

Ms. Allison Teslia, Director for the Office of Management and Budget, displayed several budget slides showing the General Fund, the General Fund major revenues, and the General Fund expenditures over the past 15 years. She noted that over the last several years the reserves have been over the budget amount for the operating budget and that in FY 2020 and FY 2021 there had been an influx in Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding. She pointed out that the County received various sources of revenue and that the expenditures included the County departments/offices at 27 percent, the Constitutional Offices at 61 percent, and other offices such as judicial support and debt service at 12 percent. She stated that their strategies for the General Fund included the following: maintaining the status quo millage of 5.0364 mills; maintaining a Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) minimum recommended reserve of 16 percent of operating expenses; maintaining or improving the service levels; addressing minimum wage adjustments; and accounting for the expiration of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding at the end of the current year, which would affect the Lake County Health Department and LifeStream Behavioral Center.

fiscal year 2025 focus areas

Mr. Jim Kovacs, Director for the Office of Human Resources and Risk Management, recalled that voters in the State of Florida approved Amendment 2 in 2020 resulting in a $15.00 minimum wage initiative which would raise the minimum wage incrementally by $1.00 each year until reaching a peak of $15.00 per hour in September 2026. He mentioned that in 2021, the County took a proactive approach by advancing the minimum wage from the required $10.00 per hour to $12.00 per hour, and adjusted the wages of other existing staff to prevent any wage compression, noting that they had continued to stay ahead of the State schedule and were proposing to increase the minimum wage to $15.00 per hour for FY 2025. He commented that even with the County’s proactive approach, they continued to compete to recruit new personnel and retain existing employees in a highly competitive labor market. He related that while the post coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) employment environment focused heavily on work/life balance and remote work options, they had seen the focus shift to compensation; therefore, they were proposing a $1.00 per hour or a four percent wage increase, whichever was greater, for all non-bargaining personnel. He then reported that in the prior year the health fund processed 65 large claims, which meant that each claim was over $50,000, noting that the trend line for claims was well in excess of inflation; additionally, he said that the number of large claims was lower this current year at only four, and that the trend line was well below the rate of inflation. He relayed that the total expenses as compared to the total employee and employer contributions to the fund for FY 2024 were higher, meaning that they were spending more than what was being brought in. He indicated that in order to accommodate this, their actuary recommended a 20 percent increase to the employee and employer contributions, noting that their projection for FY 2025 looked better. He stated that the claims had increased by 10.8 percent for FY 2023, by 3.3 percent for FY 2024, and were projected to increase by 7.5 percent for FY 2025, which was the national rate of healthcare inflation. He displayed a chart showing the current and projected cost to the employees for the health maintenance organization (HMO) and preferred provider organization (PPO) plans and pointed out that the HMO single plan was the most popular and would be the least impacted by the increase. He noted that the employer rates had been pretty steady since 2016; however, they would increase to $13,104 which he said was well below the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) rates and was most likely the lowest of any contiguous counties surrounding Lake County. He mentioned that even with this increase, the employee cost for PPO family was still significantly lower as compared to the City of Orlando and Orange County. He related that the annual premium for the risk fund, which included property, liability, and workers’ compensation was projected to significantly increase for FY 2025 due to property and liability claims and the market.

Commr. Parks commented that he was not surprised that the premium for the risk fund was increasing as he had heard that all of the providers statewide were having to increase their premiums. He noted that the providers had held off for a number of years; however, they could not hold off any longer. He stated that the cities would be facing similar increases as well.

Mr. Kovacs mentioned that the County insured 400 buildings and many storage tanks, and that having to insure for cyber was also very expensive.

Commr. Parks stated that they had not been tracking the legislative item regarding sovereign immunity; however, he said that if it increased, then the premium could increase even more. He suggested having each department point out in their budgets how much of a percentage increase this would be so everyone could understand that insurance was increasing in general throughout the State.

Commr. Smith opined that these premiums were significantly lower than what was available in the private sector.

Mr. Kovacs opined that they had held their costs pretty well but that it had now caught up to them. He mentioned that he hoped things would back off a bit after the next fiscal year.

Commr. Shields questioned if they planned to keep increasing the minimum wage in order to stay competitive even after it reached $15.00 per hour.

Mr. Kovacs answered that wages were a volatile item and that they had to look at them year to year to see where the trend was heading, noting that in the past people were more concerned about whether or not they could work remotely than how much the job paid, and that currently they were more concerned with how much the job paid; additionally, he said that the County also looked at how many applications were coming in. He opined that they had been ahead for a while and thought they were positioning themselves well.

Commr. Shields indicated that the medical industry typically treated patients who already had health issues instead of providing preventative measures to help people become healthier, and he encouraged the County to continue providing preventative measures to employees so that they could get everyone as healthy as possible.

Mr. Kovacs stated that they wanted employees to establish care at the Health and Wellness Center rather than having to go for an acute issue, and noted that he was proud of the providers there because they firmly believed in and promoted healthy lifestyles. He opined that they had a good track on getting people healthy prior to having issues and that they would continue with that.

Mr. Tommy Carpenter, Assistant County Manager, recalled that the Offices of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and Fire Rescue were reorganized under the Office of Fire Rescue in February 2023. He described their core functions, noting that EMS was a three pronged system with County and municipal fire-based advanced life support (ALS) non-transport, ALS ambulance service, and countywide EMS medical direction and quality assurance services. He related that they also provided the following: EMS/fire dispatching for all EMS and fire services countywide; fire suppression services in unincorporated Lake County and six municipalities, which included the Cities of Fruitland Park and Mascotte, along with the Towns of Astatula, Lady Lake, Howey-in-the-Hills and Montverde; and provided special operations for hazardous materials and technical rescues. He stated that their funding sources included the following: the Ambulance municipal services taxing unit (MSTU) which funded countywide EMS/ambulance operations with a current millage rate of 0.4629 mills; the Fire MSTU which funded all Fire Rescue operations with a current millage rate of 0.5138 mills; and a fire assessment which funded basic life support and fire suppression services with a current residential rate of $225. He displayed a chart showing the adopted FY 2024 operating budgets of the seven surrounding counties as compared to Lake County, and noted that Lake County was the second lowest with Sumter County being the lowest. He mentioned that they were working with a consultant on a multi-phase strategic plan to address funding deficiencies and provide a gap analysis of needed resources with a plan to meet current and growing demands, and that they were developing a four year fiscal plan to increase staffing. He indicated that they wanted to have the right amount of suppression apparatus staffed appropriately to continue their progress in the reduction in life and property loss from fire as that would decrease the Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating, resulting in lower insurance premiums. He expressed that their considerations included the following: increased demand for service due to the growing population of residents and visitors; workforce shortage of qualified personnel; and resource supply shortages, noting that after ordering an ambulance it would take 24 months to receive it, and after ordering a fire engine it would take 40 to 48 months to receive it.

Commr. Campione questioned when they would be able to start having sessions on the recommendations and data that had been collected for the study.

Mr. Carpenter answered that they had several meetings already on phase one for the funding, and that they were waiting for a response on some additional questions they had. He remarked that they would probably be able to present something to the County Manager by the end of the current week or the beginning of the following week.

Commr. Campione opined that the County’s fire department had grown from a volunteer fire department to a full fire department that was now on the same level as the Cities’ fire departments. She stated that they had pieced together their funding sources and that it was her impression that this study would allow them to look at what had been done in the past and how they could proceed with having a fire department in the unincorporated areas that met the standards one would expect for any other fire department regardless of where it was operating.

Mr. Carpenter stated that the study looked at surrounding counties and how they were funded, except for Orange County which was funded completely through an MSTU, and noted that the funding was a blend between an assessment and an MSTU or some type of ad valorem funding. He related that moving forward they wanted to ensure that they had the infrastructure for the fire service side with the ability to grow so they could provide the medical side as well.

Commr. Campione opined that many of the County’s fire stations were old and were being held together as best they could, and that there was not enough room to even house ambulances. She questioned whether this study would also look at those types of needs.

Mr. Carpenter answered that it would, noting that phase one of the study was for the funding and that phase two was for the gap analysis which would take longer since they would look at what had been done historically, where they were currently, where the growth trends would be, and where they would need to focus resources. He commented that it would be very in-depth with the goal of bringing a plan to the Board to show what the needs were.

Commr. Campione stated that the EMS service was a countywide service and that they needed to be able to reach the growing population in the unincorporated areas; additionally, she said that there were some great opportunities there as they looked at what was needed on the fire and EMS sides to be able to serve the growing population and strategically put their resources where they needed to be so they could maximize what was in the field. She mentioned that some people had opined that eventually there would no longer be an unincorporated area because the cities would continue to grow; however, she opined that this would never happen because there were so many people who lived in the unincorporated areas with no desire to be annexed into the cities. She opined that even though the unincorporated areas were lower density and had a different level of intensity, the needs were still the same. She related that even though there were distinctive communities around the county that were not incorporated, they still relied on the unincorporated services. She expressed that she was hopeful that this study would help them work through these issues since they knew that growth would continue and that they needed to try to get ahead of it as much as they could for providing public safety.

Commr. Smith commented that he would like for them to include an additional consideration of enhancing training for both the Fire and EMS, opining that they needed to get their training levels back up to where they used to be.

Commr. Parks asked if the workforce shortages would be addressed in the study, noting that things were rapidly changing and it was becoming more challenging to recruit people who wanted to work in public safety.

Mr. Carpenter answered that part of the plan would address attracting people who wanted to work there, providing adequate training and mentorship so they could provide these services in a healthy way, and retaining them. He noted that this issue was happening all over and not just with Lake County.

Commr. Campione mentioned that there were many employees in the Office of Fire Rescue who would be retiring in the upcoming year or two who had been with the County for a very long time; therefore, she said that getting people into the program and having the right culture where they wanted to stay and make this a long term career seemed to be key. She then commended the office for everything they had been doing, and stated that a friend’s family recently needed to call 911 and had reached out to her afterwards to express how great the service was that they received from the employees, along with how professional they were. She remarked that it made her realize how important this aspect of County government was and how it touched everyone’s lives.

Mr. Fred Schneider, Assistant County Manager, stated that road resurfacing was a core function of County government, and that the total funding for FY 2024 was about $6.8 million. He mentioned that $2.8 million of that was encumbered under the contract with CW Roberts Contracting, Inc. and was rolled over from FY 2023, noting that this contract was completed at the end of 2023. He indicated that $1.7 million was in the special reserve and would be used for resurfacing during the current year, and that $1.6 million was carried forward in the Infrastructure Sales Tax. He remarked that $722,065 was allocated towards the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Fund and that they expected those projects to start within the next few weeks. He mentioned that phase one of their resurfacing program was almost halfway done and that about $2.5 million would be left to start phase two, which was for Citrus Tower Boulevard. He displayed a chart showing road pavement ratings, and said that they had been able to reduce the number of roads rated as a four, which were very poor, and that they would be paving about 12 miles of roads in the current year out of the 1,250 miles of paved surface in Lake County. He indicated that their short term strategies included evaluating their workload and capacity and addressing the significant increases in costs from previous years. He related that their long term strategies included projecting the need for annual resurfacing funding and evaluating available funding, such as in the General Fund, gas tax, and Infrastructure Sales Tax.

Commr. Shields relayed his understanding that they could not use impact fees to fund road resurfacing; however, he questioned whether they could use impact fees if they were putting in a turn lane or a roundabout.

Mr. Schneider answered that if it was part of the total impact fee project then they could, noting that they sometimes used impact fees for traffic signals if it was a capacity issue instead of a safety issue. He related that they used impact fees for any traffic signals being installed in Wellness Way since they were new roads with new impacts. He remarked that they could not use impact fees for road maintenance, such as repairing road shoulders, trimming trees, or putting up new signs as those came mostly out of gas tax.

Commr. Campione asked if they could use impact fees to widen shoulders to provide for safer walking and cycling.

Mr. Schneider replied that they typically built new roads with bike lanes, wide shoulders, a trail, or a sidewalk; therefore, that was standard with a road impact fee project. He recalled that they used to widen roads with impact fees and opined that was something they should start to look at again in order to help keep up with the volume of traffic on the rural two-lane roads.

Commr. Shields commented that getting people out of their cars and on their bikes could help with capacity.

Mr. Schneider agreed, stating that this was a good option on a number of those roads, especially since they did not have many other options. He noted that when developers came in, the County required them to make certain improvements through developers agreements, resulting in roads being widened and improved or adding new roads with impact fees or impact fee credits.

Commr. Parks opined that there was an issue with funding the gap, which was a sizable amount of funding. He remarked that there were many projects that they were waiting on funding for from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) because they could not use the gas tax or impact fees. He opined that these projects, which were safety projects or even clay road paving projects, were all throughout the county and were starting to accumulate.

Mr. Schneider stated that the five year road program showed the funding that the County received from FDOT and through grants for roads, trails, and sidewalks, noting that they received a significant amount and that the Board contributed the required 50 percent match on some of those through sales tax which he recalled was about $2.5 million in the prior year. He mentioned that they would be receiving a $1 million grant from FDOT for the Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) Grant Program which would help with countywide safety improvements on county roads and that there would be a $200,000 County match. He elaborated that they would be conducting a study with the 14 municipalities to identify which areas they needed to focus on and that once the study was completed, it would come back to the Board for approval. He indicated that once approved, they would then be able to apply for design funding and construction funding. He noted that they were currently in the selection process and that they hoped to be able to start applying for funding in the following year.

Commr. Parks opined that as they got closer to the summer, it would be helpful to know if there were any projects they wanted to do but were not sure how they would be funded. He commented that each Commissioner probably knew of certain roads that were critical in their districts.

Mr. Schneider indicated that there were many complete streets that they wanted to look at and that their first step would be to lay it out like a preliminary engineering or design project to see how much right of way was available and what they could do with it.

Commr. Campione opined that the sooner they could get the SS4A study done the better, because then they could hopefully receive those federal dollars to get some things done. She opined that complaints started when a road was rated at a five or six, and that by the time a road was rated at a four, it was in really bad shape. She asked how many miles were they anticipating to resurface.

Mr. Schneider answered that they were anticipating 12 miles; however, it depended on the funding amount. He indicated that a local two lane subdivision road cost between $150,000 and $250,000 per mile, that a two lane collector road cost between $350,000 and $500,000 per mile, and that a four lane collector road cost about $1.25 million per mile.

Commr. Campione mentioned that many of the concerns were about neighborhood roads with potholes, and opined that they needed to keep this high on their priority list so that they could continue to get funding.

Mr. Schneider stated that they had a full list of the roads rated at a four and five.

Commr. Parks asked if they had projected how many roads would start to drop to a four and five rating.

Mr. Schneider answered that it was about five percent per year, which was about 20 miles.

Commr. Smith suggested looking into using the new technology for road resurfacing so they could enhance their road resurfacing program.

Mr. Schneider stated that they would like to start doing that, noting that they planned to do this with the MSBU projects as developers came in. He related that within the first few years they would do some kind of rejuvenator to keep the roads from getting brittle so that they would last longer; however, that overlay was a standard way of rejuvenating a road and it only lasted for so long.

Mr. Bobby Bonilla, Executive Director of Parks and Water Resources, explained that the LCWA employees had transitioned into the BCC structure on October 1, 2023, and that their office also consisted of Parks and Trails, Aquatic Plant Management, the Water Quality Lab, and Mosquito Management for a total of 59 full-time employees (FTEs) and 12 part-time employees (PTEs). He stated that these offices were all located at Hickory Point Park except for the Water Quality Lab. He indicated that their efficiencies and initiatives included the following: promoted communication, cooperation and coordination; identified needs and opportunities to connect with the Cities; evaluated and cross trained staff in multiple disciplines; appointed an LCWA staff member as part of the Development Review Team; approved 90 term and supply contracts; shared equipment, resources and key personnel at remote locations; supplemented staff, land management, and maintenance and repair operations through outsourcing; provided water education and outreach; and launched the first LCWA water education calendar. He mentioned that the LCWA had provided assistance over the years to local governments in treating stormwater runoff through the Water Resources Improvement Grant Program, and that they recently enhanced the program to require that all applicants must submit a project that was shovel ready to ensure that the project would be completed. He also reported that the LCWA had provided over $2.7 million towards various projects and that many were still open. He listed their new and upcoming projects and specified that a $1 million grant was awarded to the County for the Distributed Wastewater Treatment System project, that the Hickory Point boat ramp would be reconstructed, that the Aquatic Management and Water Quality Lab building would be constructed at Hickory Point Park, and that they were anticipating that the Lake Yale alum application project would soon be approved. He stated that although there were many projects on the list, they believed that they had a capable team, adding that he looked forward to continuing to serve the BCC. He also thanked the LCWA Board of Trustees for continuing to work with them.

Commr. Parks commented that he had received feedback over the years from some of the Cities about how it was difficult to receive the Water Resources Improvement Grant because they had to put a lot of funding into it and it did not seem worth trying to receive the grant. He asked if staff planned to streamline the process with the Cities a bit more.

Mr. Bonilla stated that they wanted accountability at all levels and that staff was readily available to walk any of the municipalities through the entire process. He mentioned that many of these projects had been taking more than two years to complete, and that they believed that this was unacceptable since they had many other water priorities and needs. He related that the minute those funds were encumbered, it was very difficult to address any other projects that may come up as a high priority, noting that they wanted to be able to address the projects that came up during the hurricane season since grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) were not readily available. He stated that there was much work that needed to be done within the county’s water bodies that only required an in-house operation to address them. He remarked that they wanted the same level of commitment from the municipalities since they were equal partners in this, and that staff wanted to help them execute their projects; furthermore, he said that the Cities had been well served for many years with the grant program and that staff was only asking them to bring shovel ready projects.

Commr. Smith expressed appreciation to Mr. Bonilla for his leadership with the LCWA, along with the Office of Parks and Trails and the Office of Water Resources, noting that his leadership had been phenomenal in the way he had enhanced that department on both sides.

Ms. Mary Ellen Stern, Executive Director of Economic Growth, stated that they were focused on the big picture process improvements for development services that would take a project from the beginning to the end. She discussed their efficiencies and initiatives, and mentioned that they were planning to add a queuing system to provide relief for scheduling appointments, and a permit discovery platform to help with the high volume of calls and emails so that residents could find out information about their project and permits. She noted that these affected the Offices of Planning and Zoning and Building Services, along with the Public Works Department. She related that they were also exploring the use of artificial intelligence (AI) for plan review and that this was limited to the Office of Planning and Zoning. She indicated that they had been able to increase staffing in the Office of Planning and Zoning which led to an appropriately sized staff to support the volume of development, as well as allow for long-range planning work; additionally, she said that they had been focusing on continual improvement of training programs and providing career paths that developed a long-term workforce. She mentioned that they were planning to update the permitting platform to enhance and create efficiencies across the board in development services, noting that a kickoff meeting was held in December 2023 and that they were currently in the request for proposal (RFP) process with an estimated “go live” set for the third quarter of FY 2024. She also stated that they were focusing on streamlining the customer service process and planned to begin rewriting the Comprehensive Plan (Comp Plan) in FY 2025.

Commr. Shields asked what the process was for rewriting the Comp Plan.

Ms. Stern answered that it would take about two to three years from the time they started, noting that they would start with going out for an RFP for a consultant to guide them through the rewrite and then there would be a series of public meetings to capture the input of the public along the way. She related that the Comp Plan and Land Development Regulations (LDR) sometimes conflicted with each other and this would help with those issues.

Commr. Parks opined that the customer service aspect was important and that he understood the challenges they faced because this department was very busy and needed more staff members, noting that other cities around the State were having the same issues because so many people were moving to the State of Florida. He stated that he was in full support of what they were trying to do, whether it was additional costs or additional staff members. He remarked that he was glad to see that they were going to address the Comp Plan.

Commr. Campione questioned if appointments could currently be made.

Ms. Stern confirmed that they could; however, someone would either have to call the office or send in a form to schedule an appointment, whereas this new system would allow people to go online and make appointments in advance.

Commr. Campione commented that she heard concerns about the wait times and that it would be beneficial to do anything they could to make it more predictable so that people could plan their days and know what they would be able to get done.

Ms. Barker stated that the queuing system and the permit discovery platform could be implemented within the next few months to provide almost an immediate help.

Commr. Campione asked if they would be able to throw out the old Comp Plan and start a new one, or if they would have to build upon what they already had.

Ms. Stern answered that it was a very long document and that their goal was to not throw it out.

Commr. Parks opined that it could cost over $1 million to start over.

Commr. Campione mentioned that they had learned a lot through the process and that she hoped it would not be as contentious as in the past since they would be starting with a baseline of where they were with densities and land uses. She opined that it should be more user friendly and understandable for everyone, and that she was hopeful that this would be positive.

Ms. Melanie Marsh, County Attorney, commented that the Comp Plan needed to be a visionary document instead of a regulatory document, noting that the current Comp Plan was much more of a regulatory document, and that it conflicted in many places and with the LDR because they never rewrote the LDR. She stated that she was in favor of having the Board discuss with the consultant that this needed to be a 2030 year vision and not a regulatory document, and also to rewrite the LDR.

Commr. Campione indicated that she understood why the Comp Plan was written the way it was; however, she opined that they had issues because there were so many conflicting provisions. She related that if everyone did their job, then they could use the LDR as the regulatory side of it.

Commr. Smith mentioned that many people did not realize that the Board had held many meetings with stakeholders throughout the community.

Commr. Parks opined that while the Comp Plan needed to be simplified, it also needed to be their vision and have compliance with the LDR.

Commr. Campione remarked that the Comp Plan was the blueprint, but that the LDR implemented everything.

Ms. Barker explained that there had been multiple presentations by Trust for Public Lands regarding the parks and trails referendum that was approved by voters in 2004 for a millage rate not to exceed 0.3 mills which could be used for parks, trails, conservation lands, and water quality protection. She elaborated that this would be sunsetting in 2026 and that they were looking to include this on the 2024 ballot to question voters about whether they wanted to renew this referendum. She said that they did not have the exact wording yet as they were waiting for Trust for Public Lands to finish their poll of Lake County voters. She related that they were anticipating Trust for Public Lands to present their results and make recommendations on the ballot language in April 2024, and that the Board would then decide whether they wanted to include this on the 2024 ballot.

Commr. Smith asked when they needed to have the ballot language solidified by.

Ms. Marsh answered that the Supervisor of Elections needed it by August 1, 2024 in order to get it to the printer; however, she was giving them until May 2024 so they would have plenty of time to make changes to the language if needed.

prior year projects and priorities

Ms. Barker stated that for the solid waste and recycling composition study, staff was finalizing the scope of the work, and that the anticipated study start date was spring 2024. She added that for the fairgrounds relocation, which had been a priority for Commissioner Smith in the previous year, the County received $2 million in legislative funding in the prior year which was being used for the design, and that they were currently in RFP review for design. She mentioned that for transitional/bridge housing, which was a priority for Commissioner Campione in the previous year, the County had moved forward with looking at providing transitional housing on the old animal shelter property, and that they were currently working on the rezoning and future land use (FLU) ordinances. She elaborated that the survey, civil engineering design and topographic of the property for highest use was currently in process, and that solicitations were expected to be out in spring 2024; additionally, they expected the project to be complete in spring 2025. She estimated that they could have about 10 smaller homes on that property, and said that they were looking at going out to bid for manufactured-type homes, noting that they were using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to cover the cost for this project.

Commr. Campione relayed that she saw a product which could possibly allow them to have more units, and that she could meet with Ms. Barker about this. She opined that the idea was for one to be comfortable, but for it not to be a place where someone would stay indefinitely. She thought that the County had to find the balance of the right amount of space.

Mr. Bonilla recalled that 21 years prior, the County had a vision of creating a parks and trails master plan, and that they currently identified all the locations for the regional complex, including the Golden Triangle Regional Park, which was the only one with a private/public partnership. He said that staff had been able to create a concept plan, and that improvements had begun at the Golden Triangle Regional Park with some of the existing infrastructure which they were able to renovate and enhance to provide services to county residents. He added that they had a legislative priority request for assistance with the trailhead, noting that the Golden Triangle Regional Park was located where the Rivers to Hills Trail and the Wekiva Trail came together. He said that completed improvements included parking lots, playground areas, pickleball courts and two basketball courts, noting that these items were existing infrastructure that the County renovated and that they had served multiple purposes in addition to what they were originally intended for. He commented that the City had already funded the operations side, and that County contributions were for the capital side; additionally, they were closing the loop when it came to the parks and trails master plan.

Mr. Schneider explained that for septic to sewer conversions, there had been eight installations completed, 13 field investigations conducted, 12 installations scheduled, and 67 eligible applicants. He relayed that there were 130 grants available and that of the $2 million, $75,000 had been expended; furthermore, staff had made outreach to the community, and this project was moving forward. He then remarked that for Astor roads and flooding, the Board had a workshop on December 20, 2023 with a number of residents and business leaders in the Astor area; additionally, they had a study from the Army Corps of Engineers with solutions that were presented at the workshop. He added that another project requested by a citizen was resurfacing Riverview Drive, and that the County would be addressing this short piece of road in summer 2024. He remarked that for the Wellness Way plan, the Board approved the MSTU as an ordinance in 2023, and that the County currently had Benesch working on this. He added that they expected a draft rate study in around another month before they received a final draft which would come to the Board for discussion regarding an MSTU for the Wellness Way area. He explained that there was enhanced landscaping, street lighting, traffic signals, etc. which were above and beyond what the County normally install around the rest of the County, and that the MSTU would help to fund the maintenance of these items; however, the resurfacing of those roads was not part of the MSTU. He concluded that they expected the rate study to be completed in mid-April 2024 so that it could be provided to the County Manager and be discussed with the Board regarding the MSTU millage rate.

Mr. Glen Guzman, Director for the Office of Code Enforcement, said that staff identified over 15 properties which fit into the category of condemnation and code enforcement for uninhabitable structures, and that they were working on identifying the best means to acquire it, or having the legal process assist them with being able to take over those properties and clean them up. He added that they also initiated intensive code enforcement action (ICE) and identified areas of extreme blight to proactively make contact with those residents and begin the cleanup process. He relayed that they also collaborated with the Lake County Sheriff's Office (LCSO) to clean up some properties, and that someone voluntarily decided to allow staff to come onto their property; furthermore, the agreement would be presented to that resident in the current week. He said that in Sorrento with ICE, staff identified 135 properties in a neighborhood, 64 of which had violations; additionally, they were able to take noncompliant homes from around a 50 percent compliance to 80 percent compliance in 30 days. He indicated that his office was looking at continuing this process on a monthly basis around the county.

Commr. Campione expressed appreciation for this, and she thought that it was a great template to continue to use. She said that if the County could receive permission in extreme cases to do what a resident was never going to do and was affecting their surrounding neighbors, then this was a great approach.

Mr. Guzman relayed that staff expected to have this done within the next 60 days once the resident signed the agreement.

Commr. Campione opined that when there were properties in bad shape and that when there was crime and squatting occurring, then something like this could possibly start to turn some of those neighborhoods around. She remarked that it also impacted law enforcement, that it saved everyone money, and that it helped neighbors.

Ms. Stern said that for high wage job creation, Lake Economic Area Development (LEAD) attended the September 26, 2023 BCC meeting to provide an update, noting that LEAD and the Office of Elevate Lake continued to work together with other partners to focus on business creation, retention, expansion and attraction. She stated that staff changed the process for electronic game rooms (EGRs), and that the responsibility had been migrated from the Office of Planning and Zoning to the Office of Code Enforcement; additionally, the compliance and monitoring specialist was now responsible for EGRs. She mentioned that staff was working on an amendment and that they anticipated having a workshop in relation to this item in spring 2024. She then said that for the joint planning area (JPA) visioning framework, the County had entered into an agreement with the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council (ECFRPC). She stated that the ECFRPC and staff had been meeting with almost all of the municipalities, noting that there were agreements in review by County staff and municipal staff with the City of Groveland and the Town of Montverde, and that the ECFRPC had committed to continuing work with the Cities of Clermont, Minneola and Tavares, along with the Town of Howey-in-the-Hills, under what was considered phase one of their current agreement. She said that another part of the agreement was the conservation strategy, and that this was in partnership with the ECFRPC and Stetson University, noting that there were several stakeholder meetings held where expert stakeholders provided opinions in reference to environmental impacts along the entire county; furthermore, Stetson University ran the inputs through a Marxan model and had prepared a draft conservation strategy. She added that the ECFRPC also received some funding from FDEP for this conservation strategy, and that as part of that requirement, they had to have two additional workshops which had occurred in November 2023. She added that they would be coming to a Board meeting to present the conservation strategy in March or April 2024. She stated that transfer of development rights (TDRs) was not funded under the first phase of the agreement, and that there were conversations with municipalities with reference to TDRs. She mentioned that the Board approved what staff considered to be phase one of the TDR program where the ECFRPC was working with Stetson University in order to explore a TDR program, noting that they would bring back these findings; furthermore; that this would begin in March or April 2024 and was anticipated to be finished within six months. She recalled that the County had entered into a two year agreement with Strong Towns and that phases one through four of that agreement had been completed, noting that this included preparation, kickoff, capacity building and action. She mentioned that Strong Towns came to Lake County for three workshops and frequent meetings with action team members every two to three weeks, with leadership meetings occurring four times in 2023. She elaborated that they were currently in phase five, which was the second year and was considered ongoing support. She added that there was an invitation for leadership, the action team, and the broader community to stay engaged with Strong Towns and continue to apply those principles, remarking that Strong Towns would have roundtables with the action team members.

recess and reassembly

The Chairman called a recess at 10:40 a.m. for five minutes.

commissioner projects and priorities

Ms. Stern stated that staff had seen many planned unit developments (PUDs) come to the Board over the years, and she listed the following purposes for PUDs: provides a variety of housing types and land uses while promoting common, public open spaces with clustered residential land uses; offers conditions to make development more compatible; and ensures development occurs according to limitations of use, design, density and phasing. She also listed the following features of PUDs: streets support low traffic flow and connection to larger arterial roadways; provides a mix of housing types and focuses on items such as placemaking, walkability, and connectivity for people, sidewalks, trails, jobs, vehicles, etc.; encourages open space, conservation and public areas; and requires a public hearing process and facilitates public input. She relayed that PUDs offered an opportunity for the County to be able to negotiate with the developer, and for the developer to be able to negotiate with the County on that planned project. She then commented that for form-based code, the County currently had more of a traditional zoning, noting that form-based code was a different style. She elaborated that the definition of form-based code was LDR that fosters predictable built results and a high-quality public realm by using physical form rather than separation of uses. She remarked that form-based codes addressed the relationship between building facades and the public realm, the form and mass of buildings in relation to one another, and the scale of streets and blocks. She added that it provided higher quality placemaking, and that examples of form-based code included Baldwin Park, Celebration and Wellness Way.

Ms. Barker clarified that this was a request from Commissioner Shields.

Commr. Shields recalled that the Board had already discussed the Comp Plan and how some items did not match, and he indicated that he would receive calls from individuals indicating that they wanted to place houses on property zoned Urban Residential (R-6); however, the property would not be zoned R-6 and he opined that they would be lucky to have four units per acre with wells, septic and setbacks, noting that the Comp Plan was on top of this and was for less density. He relayed that these individuals would contact an attorney and ask what they had to follow in Lake County, and that the attorney could say that they could try to get an exception to the Comp Plan or a PUD process for more density. He opined that the developer was trying to determine which risks to take and that if they did the PUD process, it came to the Board and they were dealing with a live negotiation between the residents and the landowner; furthermore, if the Board did not approve the highest usage in the PUD, then they could possibly be threatened with lawsuits. He opined that if it were up to him, he would eliminate zoning and the LDR and start over with a form-based code, opining that the County could do this as they were doing the Comp Plan since they knew everything would agree. He relayed his understanding that the state of the art item was called rural to urban transect, and that FDOT and the Lake-Sumter Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) were already using it. He opined that the County could potentially hire an expert as they were doing the Comp Plan, and that the confusion and risk could be addressed.

Commr. Parks indicated that he had been interested in form-based and performance-based code, or a hybrid version of this, and he relayed that they could possibly tie a hybrid version to the new Comp Plan; additionally, a Comp Plan change would not come in front of the Board because they would have assurance that whatever was built fit the vision, and staff would be empowered to ensure that codes were being followed.

Commr. Shields added that residents were also confused because they could move into a new neighborhood, check the Comp Plan, and expect there to be one house next to them, but then all of a sudden there were three. He opined that it was too difficult for people to navigate, that there was too much risk for everyone, and that Lake County could do a better job.

Commr. Smith said that he would have to receive more information before commenting on this.

Commr. Campione expressed concerns for confusion when trying to understand a form-based code.

Commr. Parks opined that it depended on how it was written, and said that Euclidean zoning, which was what the County had currently and why they continued to have issues, was always about what one could not do.

Commr. Campione relayed her understanding that what Commissioner Shields was describing was the result of old zoning, a new Comp Plan, and new LDR, noting that they had multiple layers. She said that the reason why one could say things like they could have had six units per acre was possibly because they had this in their old zoning, and then the Comp Plan tried to reduce this. She opined that this was where the confusion came in, and she was unsure if form-based code was a total solution, noting that it could potentially be a good way to proceed; however, she opined that they could still have issues with the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act. She added that the County still had to determine how to do this in a way that there was not a violation.

Commr. Shields opined that there could be TDRs.

Commr. Campione stated that TDRs had to go somewhere and that someone could have density that they did not think that was going to occur next to them; additionally, someone had to buy those TDRs to realize the value of what they lost.

Commr. Shields opined that some of the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act items were overplayed, and he recalled that there were previously orange groves and that the State had said that zoning had to be put in, noting that R-6 zoning was placed there. He indicated that R-6 could not be done, and that the Comp Plan on top of this was generally four units per acre. He indicated his understanding that the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act had already occurred and that any claim against this act from going from six to four units per acre would have been done when the 2030 Comp Plan was published.

Commr. Campione thought that it was when the County did something new and took away something that one had currently.

Commr. Shields opined that one did not really have R-6 unless they annexed into a city or built private water and sewer.

Commr. Campione relayed that the County could work through some real life examples to review a change like this and see if it would accomplish what they were trying to do.

Commr. Parks added that there were other Counties and places around the State of Florida that had done this, and that Lake County could compare them and see how it was being done.

Commr. Shields questioned why a form-based code, where the County would basically write out what they wanted, would be more confusing to residents and developers than the current process.

Commr. Campione thought that it depended on what the language said, opining that some form-based codes were challenging to understand. She opined that the County was trying to achieve something nicer with PUDs and zoning, and that it was about the aesthetics, how it felt, and how it functioned. She agreed that a straight zoning ordinance was not necessarily going to do this, and that she in was in favor of coming up with something that worked better and created a better end product. She opined that the County had to be realistic when going into this, and that Wellness Way was different because they were starting with a clean slate; therefore, she expressed concerns for this when going from places that already had long term zoning, development patterns, infill, and other items that they had to take into account. She also said that the City of Eustis had a form-based code and opined that it was challenging.

Commr. Shields relayed that the City of Groveland had a form-based code and that everyone seemed to be happy with it; additionally, he opined that the developers had adapted and were happy that it removed the risk. He remarked that the last item that the County needed was for all of the codes to match for the rural protection areas (RPAs) and the Cities. He questioned that if the County just took the PUD process, then how could they get attorneys to not think that the maximum allowable density was their right. He opined that the thinking was that they were trying to negotiate with a PUD, but that if the County did not provide the maximum density, then the County could get sued; therefore, he opined that this was a broken process.

Commr. Campione opined that they had to look at the facts of every situation and that it had always been clear with Comp Plan designations that it was an “up to” but not a guarantee, noting that one was supposed to be looking at the surrounding patterns and consistency. She stated that she would also not want to eliminate the discretionary side of things, noting that if it was not going to produce the placemaking, quality and consistency with the surrounding area that they were trying to achieve, then they would have passed off their responsibilities.

Commr. Shields opined that this meant that the County would have made an error when writing the code.

Commr. Campione did not think that codes worked this way and that they could just rely on it.

Commr. Parks opined that Wellness Way was the medium between what was being discussed because there were these codes. He added that the benefit to the landowner there was that they did not have to go through a Comp Plan process anymore, but they still had review and one final site plan review from the County to ensure that it was consistent with the performance/form-based code for Wellness Way.

Commr. Campione said that if the goal was the end product being a placemaking-type code, then she thought that the Board would have to be comfortable that the language would get them to that result; additionally, she thought that this was the exercise that they would have to go through to ensure that it worked the way the Board wanted. She also thought that there was a discretionary role that the Board had to play, and opined that if everything was turned over to a code and the Board had no ability to step in when the code did not work the way they thought it should, then this could be dangerous.

Commr. Smith relayed his understanding that form-based code had slowed down Wellness Way due to the reclaimed water situation there, and he opined that there had to be some discretion.

Commr. Campione said that for the City of Groveland, when annexing property into a city they were usually going from lower densities in the county to higher densities in the city, opining that it was easier when Cities annexed properties and had a form-based code.

Commr. Blake expressed appreciation for wanting to remove uncertainty, and stated that he would be amicable with having a presentation on this item so that the Board could review best practices across the state. He commented that this was where he was coming from when he had previously discussed pocket neighborhoods, relaying that it would be something able to be utilized across zoning categories where one was not taking a risk. He opined that no matter what the rules were, it would not do away with the “not in my backyard” (NIMBY) issue; however, he thought that there was enough substance that the Board could have a workshop and review the different options and what was occurring across the state and country.

Commr. Campione said that the Board could also go back to an individual who had spoken to them in the City of Leesburg. She recalled that they had created a layer that was like a private/public partnership group which would review development proposals to address issues, and then bring it forward based on what they thought worked, noting that it took all the concerns into consideration.

Commr. Shields opined that this was a great idea and that it worked for economic development.

Commr. Parks said that he had seen this work in other places, and he relayed his understanding that if there was a cost, then the developers were willing to pay for it because it was predictable and faster. He also opined that the water in Wellness Way would have been an issue regardless because of the sheer demand on South Lake, opining that all of the Cities were having an issue.

Ms. Barker remarked that staff would plan on putting together a more extensive presentation on form-based code and PUDs; additionally, they could look into the presenter from Strong Towns. She then said that there were other priorities that she wanted to discuss, and that the first was economic cost-benefit analysis for new development.

Commr. Parks thought that this information was helpful when making a policy decision and that it was something that staff could do. He asked if there was an economist on staff or on contract.

Ms. Barker replied that the County used its partnership with the Orlando Economic Partnership (OEP) for items such as this.

Commr. Parks mentioned that he wanted to know the long term cost of services versus new tax revenue for large land use and zoning decisions. He mentioned that the County started addressing some of this for subdivisions with municipal service benefit units (MSBUs) being set up, and that he would like to see some evaluation of this information for at least the larger decisions. He also relayed his understanding that this was being done in other places around the state.

Commr. Shields thought that this was a great idea and that this could go a long way for more transparency regarding the revenue that the County would receive, and also the cost on the backend 20 years in the future.

Commr. Parks added that it could help with a decision that the Board made or encouraged which would create much revenue for the County. He then stated he had expressed interest in the marketing of the Wolf Branch Innovation District (WBID) and Wellness Way, relaying his understanding that these were the only two large plans in the county. He expressed support for continuing to market them on a national level.

Commr. Shields added that LEAD was creating their list of shovel ready sites and sites close to being shovel ready, and that new businesses were looking for how fast they could get their company up and running. He thought that LEAD would be bringing a plan to the Board to determine how to fund this and what areas they wanted to spend funding on. He mentioned that once this was in place, then they could work on the marketing even more, noting that if the target market was someone who wanted to come to the State of Florida and needed a shovel ready site, then Lake County may not have it.

Commr. Parks thought that the development in both of these areas was being driven by homebuilders and that a large aspect of both plans was to create jobs, noting that they were job centers; however, the people currently developing were homebuilders, opining that this would come first. He opined that this could help with this perception that these lands were not available and that they were only going to be developed for homes, and he relayed that some of the people building homes in Wellness Way were also looking for opportunities for commercial development, opining that this may promote that.

Commr. Campione mentioned that the WBID was slightly different than Wellness Way and that homebuilding was one aspect for the key developer. She thought that this would be key as the County addressed some of the details with the City of Mount Dora, and she hoped that the City would decide to serve there with utilities, noting that if not, then Richland Communities could find someone else. She opined that they would not have an issue when it came to the town center and retail uses, and she thought that the job creation was where LEAD and the Office of Elevate Lake could assist with finding end users. She also clarified that the WBID was not targeted for distribution and was more targeted for companies that wanted to have a home base in the City of Mount Dora and Lake County.

Commr. Parks stated that he believed in the importance of communications and that he wanted to support the Office of Communications staff. He thought that the County needed to do more reporting, or tell people what happened at the BCC meetings on a quarterly basis. He said that the County was starting to do this currently, and he thought that it was important to communicate items such as the fire plan. He mentioned that he had this as a priority for a couple years, and he opined that it was important that staff continued to do more of this.

Commr. Campione expressed appreciation for this, and she opined that the Board should likely explore this more with Office of Communications staff and discuss strategies. She commented that there were different ways to do this in a place like Lake County where they had many senior communities, and she indicated that they could use these communities to provide information; additionally, she opined that the County could not always count on social media. She opined that it was important for younger individuals in the county who used social media to receive information, but that they needed a multipronged approach to reach people. She indicated that it could include written postcards, or a postcard that referred people to a website where they could read more about something that the County was working on.

Commr. Smith expressed support for trying to enhance communications, and said that he had a meeting with Mid Florida Newsleader, which ran the Golden Triangle Newsleader and the Clermont Newsleader, noting that they would start providing information once per month about what was going on in the county. He opined that it had to be a multifaceted medium for both the senior population and the younger population.

Commr. Shields mentioned that he liked the repository idea because he often received questions about when Sawgrass Bay Boulevard would be connected into Orange County; furthermore, if this information was somewhere, then the Board or staff could provide an individual with a link.

Commr. Campione mentioned that one of Commissioner Shields’ priorities was to update the County Strategic Plan, and she mentioned that if it addressed some of the key items and priorities, then people would at least know that those items were on the County’s radar. She also expressed interest in determining a way to continue to refine this so that it was easier to find and share with people.

Ms. Barker remarked that the County had funding for the County Strategic Plan and was starting that process, relaying her understanding that it was last updated around 2015. She added that for a repository for updates, the Office of Communications was currently working on district updates which would be updated by staff each week, noting that there would be a link on each of the District Commissioner web pages; furthermore, this was the link that the Commissioners could provide to people, and it would include the popular items. She hoped that in the next couple of months, staff would be able to let the Board review this and provide feedback.

Commr. Parks expressed interest in a dashboard with basic metrics of Lake County compared to other Counties, or a budget breakdown. He mentioned that he had seen the dashboard concept in other places, and that it might help with some of the questions they received.

Commr. Campione opined that some of the other entities did this and that it was not a fair comparison, commenting that this was sometimes done with taxation, MSTUs, etc. where the full picture was not being provided.

Commr. Parks said that the district updates could possibly cover this.

Commr. Campione recalled when CSX would not sell their railroad line to Lake County, and stated that she wanted to revisit the idea of possibly using a lawyer in Washington D.C. who did railroad work to be a contact for the County to reach out directly to CSX to see if they could come up with an agreement for the part of the right of way from Sorrento to State Road (SR) 46 which did not have any tracks on it. She added that the County could see if CSX would consider leasing it to the County to use for trail purposes, and for the part that went from SR 46 where the tracks began and came into the City of Mount Dora, she indicated interest in revisiting if the County could potentially sublease from Florida Central Railroad. She said that Florida Central Railroad was only storing cars and was not moving them around, and she questioned if the County could use the railroad right of way, even if it was just a walking trail. She stated that one approach could possibly be to see if the County could buy out the Florida Central Railroad lease so that the County could lease it to use as a trail. She also commented that Florida Central Railroad could potentially continue to store their cars there, and that the County could have a trail as well because it was not being used as an active line.

Commr. Smith asked if this had been brought up at the Board’s meeting with Mr. Maurice Kurland, the County’s federal lobbyist. He thought that it was a good idea and that it was worth exploring.

Ms. Barker relayed her understanding that the County had brought this up with Mr. Kurland and had asked him for recommendations for attorneys in that area, noting that the County received some recommendations.

Commr. Campione recalled that Mr. John Drury, Tavares City Administrator, was working on trying to address a connection between the Cities of Mount Dora and Tavares, and she said that she wanted to keep this on the priority list and to add an alternative route from Sorrento into the City of Mount Dora which the County had been discussing with staff and the City of Mount Dora. She mentioned that if the railroad right of way issue was addressed, then they could have a loop into the City of Mount Dora and back out to Sorrento. She also expressed support for continuing to make bear proof trashcans a priority, opining that they were highly successful; furthermore, she indicated support for outreach to get people on board. She then mentioned that there were some areas in Astor where there were old paved roads which were deteriorating and presented a danger to public safety vehicles. She commented that the County had a policy where they did not maintain or improve unmaintained roads, though she wanted to see if they could explore the possibility of having some funding set aside for some improvements where there was the potential of harming public safety vehicles trying to navigate these roads. She thought that there was an interest here from a public standpoint for the County to justify making some improvements to those unmaintained roads.

Commr. Blake recalled that when the Board previously had a solid waste workshop, they had spoken briefly about pyrolysis, which was an emerging technology that allowed one to convert waste to fuel. He thought that this could possibly be something in the future, and he indicated interest in the County reducing the amount of waste they were sending to the landfill while powering their fleet at the same time with diesel created from the waste. He relayed that major companies were starting to use this technology, and he indicated interest in potentially moving forward on a pilot in the future with a small scale pyrolysis operation that would power part of the County’s fleet. He then said that he still thought that the pocket neighborhood item would be useful to address the housing crisis and to be automatically allowable across zoning categories, noting that the Board could craft the details. He also opined that it was important for the County to allow people to opt out of solid waste pickup if they were not receiving the service that they thought they needed, opining that they could handle it themselves. He opined that it was important with the Office of Planning and Zoning for the County to assess financial penalties on themselves when they were not getting items done by a certain period of time, noting that there was financing and other items involved in that industry. He said that he previously had to get involved and help make sure that these things did not expire, and he opined that there had to be certainty; therefore, he opined that the County assessing a financial penalty on themselves was appropriate if someone was not getting things addressed in a timely manner. He clarified that this was not to punish County staff, and opined that until the Comp Plan and LDR were sorted out, the County needed to ensure that things were happening in a timely manner. He then opined that many issues that Lake County and county residents were facing were federal, recalling that the Lake County Sheriff had indicated that he was having to take additional steps because the Federal Government was not enforcing an item like a national border. He noted that the County had a federal lobbyist on retainer, and he thought that it was important for the County to relay to their lobbyists in Washington, D.C. to pursue some items that were causing issues for residents. He also expressed concerns for inflation and interest on the national debt, and he commented that the Board could possibly create a list of issues at the federal level, which were policy related, that could express what he considered to be the thought process of Lake County residents as a whole for these issues.

Commr. Smith said that he wanted to continue with the Board’s previous priorities, and he remarked that there were continuously welded tracks from the City of Eustis to the City of Orlando; additionally, the only way that one could travel to the City of Orlando at the current time was a car or seaplane. He mentioned that he and staff could look into the possibility of a commuter rail between the City of Eustis, or the City of Tavares, and the City of Orlando which would run on a daily basis.

Commr. Campione recalled that this had been a significant discussion years prior, and that much of it had to do with how many stops it would make and if it would be an efficient way for people to travel. She added that the second issue was how much density was in the Cities of Eustis and Tavares, along with if they would have enough people to make the numbers work.

Commr. Parks said that the County could review some of the most recent studies on the cost, recalling that it had been ruled out because these items were very expensive; however, it had been looked at.

Commr. Shields asked if it had been considered for the City of Clermont.

Commr. Parks denied this, indicating that they would have to install a new line.

Commr. Blake recalled that when he was in the Florida Legislature and they were looking at the numbers for Tri-Rail, even with the South Florida density and ridership, for every $12 ticket sold there was an $87 subsidy.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business to be brought to the attention of the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 11:38 a.m.

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kirby smith, chairman

ATTEST:

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GARY J COONEY, CLERK