A REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

JUNE 5, 2007

The Lake County Board of County Commissioners met in regular session, on Tuesday, June 5, 2007, at 9:00 a.m., in the Board of County Commissioners’ Meeting Room, Lake County Administration Building, Tavares, Florida.  Commissioners present at the meeting were: Welton G. Cadwell, Chairman; Jennifer Hill, Vice Chairman; Linda Stewart; Elaine Renick, and Debbie Stivender.  Also present were Sanford A. Minkoff, County Attorney; Cindy Hall, County Manager; Wendy Taylor, Executive Office Manager, County Manager’s Office; Barbara Lehman, Chief Deputy Clerk, County Finance; and Connie West, Deputy Clerk.

INVOCATION AND PLEDGE

Reverend Paul Guthrie of the North Point Fellowship, Umatilla, Florida, gave the invocation and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

AGENDA UPDATE

PUBLIC HEARING

POSTPONEMENT OF IMPACT FEE ORDINANCES

Commr. Hill stated that she would like to move that Tabs 32 and 33 regarding the impact fees, which were scheduled for public hearing today, be postponed.  She stated that she had many requests from citizens, homeowners associations, and the Home Builders Association to postpone since this was such a large increase, and there were questions about the study report.

Commr. Cadwell stated that the letter from the Home Builders Association requested 60 days, and asked Commr. Hill if that was what she was recommending.

Commr. Hill replied that she believed this would be adequate so that they could study the report and the Board could address some of their issues.

Commr. Stivender stated that Ms. Jean Kaminski had called her about this and assured her that if it was postponed, it would not change the date when the impact fees would be instituted.

Mr. Sandy Minkoff, County Attorney interjected that he did not believe that was correct, because the statute requires that there be 90 days from the date that they adopt the ordinance until the imposition of new fees, so moving it out 60 days would probably be a minimum 45 day delay in the actual impact fees being assessed.

Commr. Cadwell stated that there were two things:  (1) the school impact fees should be ready by then, and from a business perspective, it would be better to talk about them all at once. (2) The special session will be over by that time, and they should know much more about how they are going to do business.  He mentioned that he would like to have something in writing within 45 days from the Home Builders to give them time to analyze their position.  He stated that at this time he would open the public hearing on Tabs 32 and 33, but keep the discussions to the postponement only, and if the postponement failed, they would hold the public hearing later in the meeting when it was planned.

Mr. Jim Bible, President of the Home Builders Association of Lake County, addressed the Board stating that they were requesting a deferral of the hearing today.  He stated that his suggestion would be to set it for the first Board meeting in August.  He stated that they were requesting the deferral of both of the items that were before the Board, the Chapter 22 amendment regarding the transportation impact fee and the impact fee ordinance amending general provisions.  He stated that they just received the final report from Tindale-Oliver on May 21; that there were changes from the initial report in terms of the fee schedules that they had discovered, and that they have consultants that are well along in their analysis of the impact fees.  He stated that it was not their intention to delay getting something adopted, but he felt that the business community had stopped moving forward with many projects because they were unsure of the amount they would have to pay for impact fees.  He stated that they were prepared to send a letter in the next couple of days, identifying the significant issues, and would like to set up a meeting with County staff next week to go over issues that they have identified in the assumptions and methodology of the report, and that they were prepared to offer alternative methodologies that they believe would help get them to a place where everyone could be comfortable.  He gave an example of a 300,000 square foot warehouse building in the Ford Industrial Park that had been developed which had to pay an impact fee of $460,000.00, which would be $2.4 million dollars today, and that these numbers were significant in determining whether an industry would locate to Lake County versus somewhere else.  He stated that even the medical field, which is an important part of this community, would increase from $6,700 per 1,000 square feet going up to $36,000 per 1,000 square feet, and that even a small medical facility of 500 square feet was looking at $150,000 for just one fee not including the other fees they will have to pay.  He said that the government buildings that have been proposed to be built in Tavares are going from $8,000 per 1,000 square feet to over $50,000 per 1,000 square feet.  He stated that he was not sure that this was budgeted at this point in time, considering where we were headed with property taxes and other issues.  He added that  they were asking for an opportunity to have their experts look at the report, meet with County staff and consultants, possibly having a work session in 45 days to see if they could agree on some assumptions and analysis that would generate a fee that they all could support as being fair.  He stated that at that time it would be up to the Board to decide on how to vote, but if they were trying to attract business, this was just not going to happen.  He stated that they would request that the Board defer this hearing to the first hearing in August, and the fees could be implemented sometime around the beginning of November.

Commr. Cadwell asked that Mr. Bible make Ms. Cindy Hall, County Manager, his contact and to have everything go through her.

Commr. Stivender stated that she agreed that all of the impact fees should come back at the same time, because the school impact fees and the transportation impact fees all work together.  She related that she spoke with a representative from Darden who informed her that if the impact fees pass, they will not be coming here and that she received letters from many people, including blue collar workers, who told her how this was going to affect them.  She also commented that this affects more than just the Home Builders.  She stated that she came into the meeting this morning wanting to deny this proposal.

Commr. Cadwell opened the public hearing and asked if there was anyone that would like to speak against the postponement.

Mr. Bill Calhoun of Lady Lake, Florida addressed the Board and stated that he was on the School Steering Committee in the Town of Lady Lake. He said that they were trying to put a new school in Lady Lake in the near future because the classroom size is two or three times the size it should be.  He believes that the school impact fees should not be an issue, and that even if the amount was excessive, education of our children and grandchildren was of utmost importance.

Dr. Edward Schlein addressed the Board stating that he believed that it should not be postponed but that it should just be voted down today.  He said that he had been a physician in Lake County since 1979, and that by adding this impact fee they were imposing another stumbling block for doctors coming into the area where they are needed.

On a motion by Commr. Hill, seconded by Commr. Stivender and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the postponement for 60 days of Tabs 32 and 33, with the stipulation that if the School Impact Fees are completed, they will be brought back at the same time, and that the Board receive written correspondence from the Home Builders Association within 45 days.

MINUTES

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously, by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the Minutes of May 1, 2007 (Regular Meeting) and May 14, 2007 (Special Meeting), as presented.

CLERK OF COURTS’ CONSENT AGENDA

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously, by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the Clerk of Courts’ Consent Agenda Tab 2, Items 1 thru 12, as follows:

List of Warrants

            Request to acknowledge receipt of list of warrants paid prior to this meeting, pursuant to Chapter 136.06 (1) of the Florida Statutes, which shall be incorporated into the Minutes as attached Exhibit A and filed in the Board Support Division of the Clerk's Office.

            Monthly Distribution of Revenue Traffic/Criminal Cases

            Request to acknowledge receipt of Monthly Distribution of Revenue Traffic/Criminal Cases, for the month ending April 30, 2007, in the amount of $186,448.11. Same period last year: $173,459.18.

            Increase in Water and Wastewater Rates-Aqua Utilities Florida, Inc.

Request to acknowledge receipt of an application for increase in water and wastewater rates in Alachua, Brevard, Highlands, Lake, Lee Marion, Orange, Palm Beach, Pasco, Polk, Putnam, Seminole, Sumter, Volusia, and Washington Counties by Aqua Utilities Florida, Inc. filed with the Florida Public Service Commission in Docket No. 060368-WS.

            Ordinances from the Town of Lady Lake

Request to acknowledge receipt of the following Ordinances from the Town of Lady Lake:

Annexations:

            Ordinance No. 2006-30, Ordinance No. 2006-33, Ordinance No. 2006-36, Ordinance No. 2006-39, Ordinance No. 2006-42, Ordinance No. 2006-45, Ordinance No. 2006-48, Ordinance No. 2006-51, Ordinance No.2006-54, and Ordinance No. 2006-57.

Future Land Use Map Amendments:

            Ordinance No. 2006-31, Ordinance No. 2006-34, Ordinance No. 2006-37, Ordinance No.2006-40, Ordinance No. 2006-43, Ordinance No. 2006-46, Ordinance No. 2006-49, Ordinance No. 2006-52, Ordinance No. 2006-55, Ordinance No. 2006-58 and Ordinance No. 2007-09.

Zoning Classifications:

            Ordinance No. 2006-32, Ordinance No. 2006-35, Ordinance No. 2006-44, Ordinance No. 2006-47, Ordinance No. 2006-50, Ordinance No. 2006-53, Ordinance No. 2006-56 and Ordinance No. 2007-08.

            Increase in Water and Wastewater Rates-Utilities, Inc. of Pennbrooke

            Request to acknowledge receipt of Notice before the Public Service Commission

            In Re: Application for increase in water and wastewater rates in Lake County by Utilities, Inc. of Pennbrooke.

            Docket No. 060261-WS

            Order No. PSC-07-0386-PCO-WS

            Notice of Public Hearing from the City of Eustis

Notice of Public Hearing from the City of Eustis for the first reading of Ordinance No. 07-06 and Ordinance No. 07-07 on May 17, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. and the second reading on June 7, 2007 at 7:00 p.m., or as may be continued at their discretion, in the City Commission Room, City Hall, 10 North Grove Street, Eustis, Florida for:

            Voluntary annexation of an approximate 135.77 acre parcel located on the north side of CR 44, east of CR 44A.

            Annexation Ordinances from the City of Fruitland Park

            Request to acknowledge receipt of Ordinance 2007-008 from the City of Fruitland Park, including within the City approximately 159 acres located east of Rolling Acres Road, south of Lake Ella Road, and west of Taylor Mill Road and rezoning the property from County “A” (Agriculture) and “R-3” (Medium Residential District) to “PUD” (Planned Unit Development).

            Ordinance 207-014, including within the City approximately 19.5 acres located east of Shadow Hill Drive at 03216 Eagles Nest Road and rezoning the property from County “A” (Agriculture) to “PUD” (Planned Unit Development).

            Proposed budget for the Greater Lakes Sawgrass Bay Community for FY 2007/08

            Request to acknowledge receipt of proposed budget for the 2007/2008 Fiscal Year for the Greater Lakes Sawgrass Bay Community Development District. A public hearing to consider the adoption of this item has been scheduled for August 1, 2007, at the Marion Baysinger Memorial Library, 756, W. Broad Street, Groveland, Florida 34736.

            Financial Audit of Lake-Sumter Community College

            Request to acknowledge receipt of the financial audit of Lake-Sumter Community College for the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 2006.

            Unclaimed Property for Lake County

Request for approval to file a claim for unclaimed property on behalf of Lake County.  We have received notification from the Department of Financial Services that they are holding $16,940.19 in unclaimed money that belongs to Lake County. These funds are from 71 accounts that include vendor overpayments, refunds, credit balances, uncashed checks and other sources. We have reviewed the listing and determined based on the information given the amounts that should be returned to the Board and Constitutional Officers. The Department of Financial Services has requested that we sign and return the claim form accompanied by a written request for payment.

            The funds would be distributed as follows:

            Board of County Commissioners           $ 3,638.98

            Clerk                                                       5,062.15

            Tax Collector                                          4,421.68

            Sheriff                                                     3,777.38

            Property Appraiser                               ____40.00

                                                                      $ 16,940.19

            Pine Island Community District Proposed Budget

            Request to acknowledge receipt of the Pine Island Community District proposed budget for fiscal year 2008.

            Country Club of Mount Dora Community Development District Proposed Budget

            Request to acknowledge receipt of Proposed Operating Budget for Fiscal Year 2008 Country Club of Mount Dora Community Development District

            In accordance with Chapter 190.008 (2)(b) of the Florida Statutes, the District is required to submit to the local governing authorities having jurisdiction over the area included in the District, for purposes of disclosure and information only, the proposed annual budget for the ensuing fiscal year at least sixty (60) days prior to the public hearing.

            The District’s public hearing is scheduled as follows:

            Date Thursday, August 9, 2007

            Time 8:30 a.m.

            Place: Country Club of Mount Dora Community Center

            1400 Country Club Boulevard

            Mount Dora, Florida

            REPORTS – COUNTY ATTORNEY

            LEASE AGREEMENT WITH JOSE AND BEATRIX ISAACS

At this time Commr. Cadwell stated that he would like to move ahead to Tab 35 under the County Attorney’s Agenda so that the Sheriff could return to work

            Mr. Sandy Minkoff, County Attorney stated that this was a lease agreement between Lake County and the Isaacs for property in the Lady Lake area.  He stated that currently the Sheriff’s Office was located in the Villages in a joint space with the Clerk, but the Sheriff has located another building in Lady Lake which is larger and requested that this lease be brought before the Board.  He stated that the Clerk would like to stay in the Villages space and has requested to extend the lease when that lease renews.

            Commr. Renick asked Mr. Minkoff if they would be able to afford this if the State legislature greatly reduced the property taxes.

            Mr. Minkoff stated that the lease provided that should the Sheriff have to relocate to a County owned building, the lease could be cancelled; and that it also provided that if the appropriate funds could not be budgeted the lease could be cancelled.

            On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill, and carried unanimously, by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved Tab 35, approval of the Lease Agreement between Lake County and Jose L. Isaacs and Beatrix Isaacs for the Sheriff’s Department office space.

            COUNTY MANAGER’S CONSENT AGENDA

Commr. Stivender stated that she wanted to pull Tab 19 so that Mr. Jim Stivender, Jr., Public Works Director could show the public what the Sugarloaf Mountain roundabout looks like.

Mr. Jim Stivender, Jr., showed a slide of a map of the proposed roundabout for the Sugarloaf Mountain development, indicating that this development was required to be a signalized intersection, and when the roundabout had been proposed as an alternative for this roadway they felt it was acceptable as part of the master plan to incorporate into the current highway design.

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously, by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the County Manager’s Consent Agenda, Tab 19 and approved the agreement between Lake County and SLCD, LLC for the construction and maintenance of a roundabout at Sugarloaf Mountain entrance on CR 455, and accept a Performance and Payment Bond in the amount of $358,616.29:

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously, by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the County Manager’s Consent Agenda, Tabs 3 through 18 and Tab 20, as follows:

Budget

Approve Budget Change Requests and Unanticipated Revenue Resolutions:

Request to approve Budget transfer - Animal Control Sterilization Trust Fund, Department of Public Safety, Animal Services Division. Transfer $5,500 from Reserve for Operations to Operating Supplies. Additional funds are needed in Operating Supplies. The original budget for operating supplies was an estimate prior to the clinic opening. More operating supplies are needed with the clinic now in operation. After this transfer, the balance in the Reserve for Operations account will be $60,488.

Request to approve Budget transfer - General Fund, Judicial Support. Transfer $35,070 from Machinery and Equipment to Personal Services. The Public Defender is requesting to add an additional Automated System Specialist for the operation of the Public Defender Technology needs.  The funds for the remainder of the year are prorated. This position has been included in the Fiscal Year 2008 budget request. Funds are available from restricted Article V technology funds carried over from Fiscal Year 2006, which are placed in Circuit Judges Technology section until needed by other judicial functions. $818,404 was carried forward from Fiscal Year 2006.

Request to approve Resolution No. 2007-89, amending the General Fund in order to receive unanticipated revenue for Fiscal Year 2006/2007 in the amount of $1,489 to be deposited into Insurance Proceeds and provide appropriations for the disbursement to Office Supplies ($290) and Machinery and Equipment ($1,199). Insurance proceeds were received as a result of an insurance claim on a stolen Animal Services laptop computer.

Request to approve Resolution No. 2007-90, amending the County Transportation Trust Fund in order to receive unanticipated revenue for Fiscal Year 2006/2007 in the amount of $21,423 to be deposited into Insurance Proceeds and provide appropriations for the disbursement to Machinery and Equipment. Insurance proceeds were received as a result of a collision payment on a dump truck.

Request to approve and execute the Emergency Local Government Relief Reimbursement Agreement related to debris removal from the Groundhog Day tornadoes.

Community Services

Request for approval for the Community Health Worker Program to accept a grant award in the amount of $10,000.00 from the Hispanic Obesity Prevention & Education, (HOPE) Program mini-grant initiative.  This is contingent on review of the contract by the County Attorney.  Funds must be spent or encumbered by June 30, 2007 program implementation may last through December 31, 2007. 90% of these funds will be received by check upon contract signing. Ten percent (10%) match of funds to support the project is required and can be in the form of in-kind through staff, infrastructure, community partners and resources or cash. It is also recommended that the attached Resolution No. 2007-84, accepting the unanticipated revenue be approved.

Growth Management

Request for approval and execution of a Release of Fine, Property Owner: Jerry Wayne & Robyn Ann Martin, Code Case# 2006020251 – Commission District 2

Procurement

Request for the Board to (1) declare the items on the attached lists surplus to County needs, (2) authorize the removal of all of the items on the attached lists from the County’s official fixed asset inventory system records, and (3) authorize the Procurement Services Director to sign vehicle titles.

Request for approval for authorization to standardize aluminum truck beds for the Department of Public Safety’s wild land firefighting vehicle fleet.

Request for approval for staff to submit an application to the Florida Commission for the Transportation Disadvantaged, for the Rural Capital Assistance Support Grant Program, and approval of supporting Resolution No. 2007-72.

Request for approval for various emergency purchases having a value in excess of $25,000.00.

Request to approve the recommendation of the Audit Committee and authorize the office of Procurement Services to negotiate a contract with Moore Stephens Lovelace, P.A., the highest ranked qualified firm.

Public Safety

Request by the Lake County Department of Safety Fire Rescue Division for approval to update the 1994 Mutual Aid Agreement between Lake County Department of Public Safety Fire Rescue Division and the Town of Montverde. - Commission District 3.

Public Works

Request for approval to file the Declaration of Restrictive Covenants for Lake Idamere Park with the Clerk of the Court as required by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Land and Water Conservation Fund (LCWF) Project number 12-00499 (DEP contract Number LW499) – Commission District 3.

Request for authorization to release a maintenance bond in the amount of $9,607.40 posted for Plymouth Hollow. Plymouth Hollow consists of 26 lots and is located in Section 31, Township 19 South, Range 28 East - Commission District 4.

Request for approval of $30,000.00 to purchase Five Tenths (0.5) wetland mitigation credits from the Lake Louisa Mitigation Bank, SJRWMD Permit No. 4-069-0313, to satisfy the compensatory mitigation requirements from SJRWMD for the Picciola Bridge Improvements - Commission District 1.

Request for approval of Resolution No. 2007-85, authorizing the posting of "No Parking on Right of Way" signs on CR 466A/Picciola Rd (5710) at the ridge #114044 in the Fruitland Park area – Commission District 1.

Request for approval and signature on Resolution No. 2007-86, authorizing the posting of "Stop" signs with 4 way plaques on David Walker Dr (4756) at the intersection of Mount Homer Rd (4956) in the Eustis area - Commission District 4.

Request for approval of Resolution 2007-91, authorizing the posting of “No Parking on Right of Way signs on Register Rd. (6008) on the north and south side for a distance of approximately 1500 from US 27/441 in the Fruitland Park area. – Commission District 1.

Request authorization to release a letter of credit for performance for construction of improvements in the total amount of $318,950.96 that was posted for The Oaks at Summer Glen. The Oaks at Summer Glen consists of 56 lots and is located in Section 7, Township 19 South, Range 27 East - Commission District 4.

Request to accept a performance and payment bond in the amount of $1,146,136.23 as surety for a Developer's Agreement between Lake County and Groveland Shoppes, LLC and Groveland Associates LLC and The City of Groveland regarding State Road 50 & CR 565-A - Commission District 2.

COUNTY ATTORNEY’S CONSENT AGENDA

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously, by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the County Attorney’s Consent Agenda Tabs 21 through 23 as follows:

Request for approval to advertise an Ordinance No. 2007-27, amending Section 9-16, clarifying that funds collected under this section may be used for court related functions as required by law.

Request for approval of Resolution No. 2007-83, declaring County owned property as surplus for the purpose of disposal and donation to Habitat for Humanity as an affordable housing site.

Request for approval of settlement, Lake County v. Timothy S. Edmondson, et. al. – Commission District 4.

            AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

            EMPLOYEE AWARDS

            The Chairman presented the following Employee Awards, at which time Ms. Kasie McAdams, Employee Services Manager, gave brief remarks about each individual and their service to the County:

            Presentation of Award to Employees with Five Years of Service

            Betty Davis, Library Page

            Community Services/Library Services/Astor Library

            Elbert Welch, Equipment Operator II (not present)

            Public Works/Road Operations/Maintenance Area III

            Dona Faber, Field Forensic Investigator

            Medical Examiner

            Kathleen Pagan, Tourism Specialist

            Tourism & Business Relations

Sharon Hogan, Stormwater Technician

            Public Works/Engineering/Stormwater

Presentation of Award to Employee with Ten Years of Service

Brenda Quattlebaum, Special Projects Coordinator

            Community Services/Citizen Support Services

            Presentation of Award to Employee with Twenty Years of Service

            Steven Lee, Assistant Area Maintenance Supervisor

            Public Works/Road Operations/Maintenance Area III

            BOARD/COMMITTEE CERTIFICATE PRESENTATIONS

            Children’s Services Council

            Kyleen Fisher for service from 2001-2007

            Debbie Thomas for service from 2003-2007

            Cultural Affairs Council

            Nancy Clutts for service from 2002-2007 (not present)

            Dorothy Kuhlman for service from 2005-2007 (not present)

            Kimberly Lemonakis for service from 2005-2007 (not present)

            Gary McKechnie for service from 2005-2007 (not present)

            Robert Marks for service from 2005-2007

            Sonya Montgomery for service from 2005-2007 (not present)

            Gloria Pasteur for service from 2003-2007

            Chip Schane for service from 2005-2007 (not present)

            Elder Council

            Carol Jensen for service from 2005-2007

            Historical Museum Advisory Committee

            Louise Carter for service from 2001-2007

            Sanna Henderson for service from 2000-2007 (not present)

            Matthew Ragan for service from 2004-2007 (not present)

            Human Services Grant Advisory Committee

            Carol Jensen for service from 2005-2007 (not present)

            Ellen Miller for service from 2005-2007

            PRESENTATIONS

PLAZA COLLINA DEVELOPMENT

Mr. Wayne Bennett, Director of Planning, Growth Management, began by informing the Board where they were at the present time with regard to approvals, and stated that the developer had submitted two mass grading plans, one for the east side and one for the west side; roadway infrastructures for Plaza Collina Blvd. and Frontage Rd.; and a master plan submittal, which included construction plans.  He stated that they were trying to work out as many of the site design and architectural design details of the master site plan as possible.  He said that they were also working on master landscape concepts, that they had met with the developer on many occasions, and that they would have to go through a detailed site plan construction plan package for a number of areas (referred to as PODS), within the site which they have asked to be defined.

He then stated that he would go over some of the areas that they had been working on with the applicant; the first being the north side which abuts CR 50, and the South Lake Trail, which was recently opened for use.  He stated that there were a number of entities that had been involved in this review process, including the City of Oakland and the City of Clermont.  He mentioned that the trail would be reconstructed in one part on either side of the Plaza Collina Blvd. intersection with CR 50, and that they were trying to preserve the landscaping already there.  He stated that they were going to bring an external loop off of the existing trail through the site and through the Frontage Road, and that they were recommending that Lake Avenue be closed for a portion of its length to connect the trail to Lake Avenue and CR 50, making the trail more pedestrian friendly.  He stated that there would be a number of bike lanes as well as sidewalks along Plaza Collina Blvd. from SR 50 to CR 50, and that they were intended to be as bike and pedestrian friendly as possible.

Mr. Bennett stated that the total amount of commercial office space permitted under the DRI was 1.2 million square feet, that the first phase was a little less than 950,000 square feet, and that there were also 200 dwelling units that would be in the second phase of development.  He said that there was a lot of parking associated with the commercial space, and that within the site plan there were four or five different linear pedestrian corridors that link the Frontage Road with the primary building masses, and commercial space along the rear.  He stated that one of the pedestrian corridors on the west side would accommodate up to four buses at one time, and would allow people to get off the buses with access to the pedestrian facilities that run along the buildings.  He stated that on either side of the site would be retail type of buildings which would have an element of a lifestyle center, to provide retail opportunities, restaurants and other types of facilities to make it a very pedestrian friendly area.

Mr. Bennett stated that this area was the Gateway to Lake County, and the Lake-Orange County line was just east of the project. He believed it was important in terms of its appearance, function, and traffic, and that the major improvements to SR 50 of expanding to a six lane facility would begin soon.  He showed several slide renderings provided by the applicant of potential architectural renderings of the front face facades with signage.

PUBLIC HEARING - VACATION PETITION NO. 1100

Mr. James Stivender, Jr., Director, Department of Public Works, briefly spoke about Vacation Petition No. 1100, which he stated was a drainage easement that they were seeking to eliminate from the Public Domain.

Ms. Cecilia Bonifay, from the law firm of Akerman Senterfitt, spoke on behalf of Plaza Collina, and stated that she would like to enter a transcript of the meeting held on May 22, 2007 regarding the right of way vacation.  She stated that the owner dedicated the piece of land over to the County for the South Lake Trail and did not ask for any quid pro quo at that time.  She stated that the County was getting land that had been dedicated to it previously and the instruments for future dedications made by this owner for the benefit of the public, and that these rights of way were not necessary, in fact, they were creating a cloud on the title at this point were are in the way of the design and development that had been worked on together with the County to make everyone comfortable.  She said that they had recommendations from both staff departments for approval of the road vacation.  She stated that they had spent a number of months and a great deal of time and energy negotiating with the FDOT on the commencement for the widening of SR 50, which was pushed back in the work program and delayed even further.  She stated that Mr. DeWitt had received the bid and that they were spending eight million dollars to move forward with the widening of SR 50, which fits within the DOT’S overall design standards.

Ms. Bonifay stated that as discussed at the last meeting, they had asked for staff to bring forward a site plan for informational purposes only, and would not be subject to a public hearing, and did not believe that those issues have any relevance in terms of the legal criteria by which a road right of way would be judged.  She requested that the Board move forward with the right of way vacation and would be willing to answer any questions.

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

Ms. Diana Combs, a resident of Lake County and a registered voter, said that there was a drainage pond to the east, that there were seven entrances and exits already on SR 50 from Collina Plaza.  She was concerned about traffic, specifically tractor trailer traffic on old Highway 50, and the fact that there were two other entrances proposed on Lake Avenue and old Highway 50.

Mr. Jim Stivender pointed to the map and interjected that the main entrance for the big box store was off SR 50, and that old Highway 50 would not be a viable route.

Mr. Ray Goodgame, of Clermont, addressed the Board and stated that the realignment of the bicycle paths had not gone before the Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee, and thought this should have happened.

Mr. Fred Cramer from Ferndale, stated that he believes that the community thinks that this project has moved along a little too quickly.

Commr. Stivender stated that this road vacation was not hindering anyone from entering their property.

Ms. Ceclia Bonifay stated that she wanted to correct a few statements that were made earlier.  She stated that they were prohibited from having any truck traffic on CR 50, which was one of the things that the Board insisted upon, and was in the PUD.  She continued that the red line was not a drainage easement, but was a paper road and was completely surrounded by the applicants own property, and they were asking for a vote today on the road vacation.  She pointed out that there was a separate legal process in the code that dealt with road vacations, and as county staff had testified, they have met that test and had two staff recommendations for approval.  She stated that once this issue was resolved they could then address any further issues related to the site plan. She noted that they have been going through this process for three years, which she did not feel was a short amount of time, and the developer and applicants had been very cooperative in working through these issues, and will continue to do so.

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried by a vote of 4-1, Vacation Petition No. 1100 was approved with the stipulation that all parties meet to review site plans.

Commr. Renick voted “no.”

RECESS AND REASSEMBLY

At 10:55 a.m., the Chairman announced that the Board would take a fifteen minute recess.

PRESENTATION

VOLUNTEERLAKE

Ms. Helena Osborne Ponsi, Director, Volunteer Lake, spoke about the various things that Volunteer Lake does in Lake County, and stated that since she began with Volunteer Lake in August of 2006 they had been selected by Points of Light Foundation as one of 10 programs in the nation for standards of excellence.

She listed the core principles as promoting volunteerism, connecting people with the opportunity to serve, building the capacities of local volunteer programs, and participating in strategic initiatives that mobilize volunteers from all sectors.  She stated that they had given out 16 bronze, 2 silvers and 7 gold Presidential Volunteer Service Awards to individuals under the age of 25.  She stated that they connect libraries with people and potential volunteers as well as the literacy programs within Lake County.

Ms. Ponsi stated that VolunteerLake serves as a liaison to the EOC (Emergency Operation Center) team, and is responsible for the overall management and coordination of volunteers and donated goods and for the collection and distribution of donated materials and supplies.  She noted that during a disaster, they set up and manage a disaster reception center to coordinate volunteers.  She also mentioned that they would be holding their 15th annual volunteer recognition reception in January.

PRESENTATION

WEKIVA PARKWAY PD&E

Mr. Mark Callahan, FDOT (Florida Department of Transportation), provided an update on the Wekiva Parkway Project Development and Environmental Study.  He stated that he would give a brief background; review the purpose and need of the project; give a description of the project; review the viable alternatives; focus on initial recommendations in Lake, Orange and Seminole Counties; and review the next steps in the schedule.

He stated that the Western Beltway Completion Program identified by the Orlando Orange County Expressway Authority included the Maitland Boulevard extension, which was an eleven mile route that went to the east past SR 429, tying into Highway 441 near the Zellwood Station area.  He mentioned that this project is presently under construction and moving forward, and the portion of SR 429 will be open in 2009.

He stated that the Wekiva Parkway and the SR 46 bypass were the portions that completed the beltway system in the Orlando area and provide some additional relief to SR 46.  He explained that the study was being co-managed by the FDOT, who were responsible for overseeing the Lake and Seminole portions of the study, and the Orlando Orange County Expressway Authority was overseeing the Orange County portions of the study.  He relayed that they were following the national environment policy act standards, which reserves their right to seek federal funding for all portions of the project for a later date.

He described the project description of the Wekiva Parkway as providing a 20 mile link heading from US Hwy 441 near Zellwood Station, heading east toward the SR 46 corridor, crossing the Wekiva River and then tying into I-4, and also a bypass for SR 46 through the Sorrento-Mt. Plymouth area from US 441 to the east, which is a little less than 5 miles, and the CR 46-A realignment which will tie into SR 46, which is about a two to three mile project.  He stated that the objective was to meet the mandate objectives of the Wekiva Parkway and Protection Act which was passed in 2004, and to achieve some regional travel connectivity by meeting some increased travel demands from population growth in the area through implementation of the remaining portions of the western beltway, by providing a safe and high capacity east-west travel facility in these portions of Lake and Seminole Counties.  He felt that they would be attempting to reduce traffic on portions of SR 46 as well as US Hwy 441, and would address some high crash and fatality issues, as well as reducing the vehicle wildlife conflicts that occur and enhance the wildlife habitat connectivity to the Wekiva area.

He showed on the overhead map that there were four parcels in Lake and Orange County for acquisition that teamed with existing holdings of public lands would make a fairly important conservation corridor in the State of Florida, and the nation from an environmental standpoint.  He commented that they were in the process of reviewing the viable alternatives to come up with a preferred alternative, were seeking input on that and then would make the final reports and recommendations at a public hearing, which was currently planned for September of 2007.  He relayed that the assessment of costs and impacts were ongoing as they make refinements to the viable alternatives.  He noted they had prepared some draft documents which were being reviewed and would finalize those as they nail down the preferred alternative.   He said that there were two alternatives in Orange County, the first objective being the location of the local interchange since the Wekiva Parkway Act stated that there could only be one local interchange in Orange County.  He explained that they had looked at the Ponkan Road area and Kelly Park Road, which was coordinated with both Orange County local governments including Apopka and the County.  He stated that both had expressed a preference for Kelly Park Road for the interchange, and they were recommending moving forward with the Kelly Park option.

He stated that they would need an additional right of way on SR 46 of 130 feet and that there was somewhere between 66 and 80 feet today.  He mentioned that they looked at whether they should widen to the north of the existing roadway on Highway 441 or to the South, and determined that widening to the north made the most sense as it was the least costly and least impactive in several respects since the south side had more development.  He then showed a map of what the roadway would look like to include curb openings, median openings using the DOT’S access class for the area, and six lanes with provided sidewalks and possibly a trail.  He mentioned that they would be widening to the east of 441 to Round Lake Road.

He reported that the next item in this portion of the project was the interchange with SR 46 and US 441.  He commented that today there was an existing interchange with 441 going over SR 46, but that it doesn’t quite meet today’s standards and there were some sight distance issues on several of the ramps.  Also, the existing bridge over SR 46 was not wide enough since they have determined that there would be an extreme amount of traffic coming south on 441 heading east through the Wekiva Parkway accessing Orange and portions of Seminole County.  He explained that they were recommending a fly-over for the southbound-eastbound movement and a two lane direct return movement as well.  He opined that with the Wekiva Parkway they were expecting some significant relief on US 441 to the south.  He said that what they were proposing was to rebuild the existing interchanges where 441 goes over SR 46, providing the fly over.  He mentioned that they had some right of way impacts on the west side and the Pond Road neighborhoods and that one house would be affected and needed for portions of the right of way, and that there were clearly some noise impacts associated with this one as well as all of the alternatives.  He pointed out that there were some concerns by the City of Mount Dora related to cut through traffic and that the second alternative, which they recommended, would save about $20 million dollars by not rebuilding that interchange.

He reported that the east part of the project in Lake County was in the Neighborhood Lakes area, which had just recently been purchased in a partnership between Orange and Lake Counties, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Department of Transportation and the Expressway Authority.  He stated that there were three initial alternatives, and since the eastern most plan impacted the existing Rock Springs Run facility, they were proposing that they go with the western most alignment, which was shown in red on the slide.  He relayed that they were looking at a 300 foot right of way width in general with a facility of initially four lanes expanding to six lanes.

He pointed out a slide of a map with different alignments, stating that the green was the northern most, the red was in the middle and the blue alignment had some high levels of impacts and they were recommending that it be eliminated.  He stated that the DEP preferred the green alignment, but that it was $ 16 million dollars more than the red alignment.  He explained that they would be working with the DEP and Lake County for their input, but they were recommending the red alignment at this point to move forward.

He commented that it was widely known that they would be cutting off SR 46 east of this interchange so that the only way to get to Seminole County would be on the Wekiva Parkway.  He pointed out that they would be bridging the areas where Rock Springs Run is today, just west of the hump in SR 46, and also to the east of the hump where the first bear underpass is located, and providing an additional bridge at the River with all concepts.

He explained how they would access the few remaining parcels and the parks located east of the Mt. Plymouth interchange.  He stated that the first one was referred to as the split diamond with a half interchange providing access to and from the west into Lake and Orange counties, keeping existing SR 46 open between the other half of the interchange further to the east.  The other option would be to continue with the interchange to the west, he said, providing access to Mt. Plymouth, which would have two full interchanges, one to the hump area of SR 46, cutting off portions of 46 to the east of the interchange, and another close to the river for the Wekiva Falls and other homes in the Seminole Forest.

He stated that the SR 46A realignment was another important issue for the project.  He stated that when they presented the five alternatives in July and August, they presented an alignment that ran along existing SR 46. He mentioned that there were concerns made by homeowners in the Heathrow Country Estates, because the roadway would be very close to several of those homes, and that they had suggested several alternatives which he said he would like to review.  He explained that one of the alternatives was to just leave SR 46A intact, bridge over the Seminole Woods area and tie into an interchange to the Wekiva Parkway to the east.  However, they determined that there was a lot of cost in the bridging and that this alternative would be problematic and not be consistent with the guiding principles that had been laid out.  He reported that in addition, there was a suggestion to take an alignment just east of the private property into the Seminole State Forest and connect it to the SR 46 interchange further to the east, but this alignment would not be consistent with the intent of the Wekiva Parkway Act in terms of minimum impact to existing conservation areas.  He stated that in addition there was a Karst signature on the lands which indicated either previous sinkhole activity or the possibility of a sinkhole, which would involve spending more money to engineer and do geotechnical testing around those, so this alignment was not recommended.  He said that the two options left were to run 800 feet to the east of the property line or moving 50 feet off the line to allow for some more buffering and landscaping or other types of treatments to reduce the impact to the Heathrow Country Estates area.  He reported that after meeting with the Department of Transportation experts, they determined that the alignment that is 800 feet away would sever the existing parcels in half and would involve more cost for the right of way. He stated that the alternative they were recommending was the 50 foot buffer between the property line and the actual roadway.  He continued that in Seminole County they were recommending that the alignment cross the river stay on SR 46 to some point west of Orange Boulevard, tying into the 417.  He stated that in terms of public involvement, they have had two public meetings in each county with discussions on the initial alternatives and viable alternatives, and that they had more public hearings scheduled for September of 2007.

He felt that the next step was to finalize their recommendations in order to complete the engineering and environmental documents before the public hearings this fall, and they hope to get Federal Highway Administration approval by the end of this year.  However, he noted that there is very limited funding for right of way acquisition, but they were going to pursue every option for funding, including public, private partnerships, or tolls on some portions.

Commr. Cadwell stated that the items that they would voice an opinion on today were the SR 46A issue that ran through the forest and the SR 46 interchange.

Commr. Stewart commented that the Wekiva River Basin Commission was formed by the legislature for overseeing the welfare of the Wekiva River Basin, and its members were appointed by the Governor of the State, and included various local governmental people.

On a motion by Commr. Stewart, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved to support the decision of the DOT and Expressway Authority to remove SR 46 next to the elevated segments of the Wekiva Parkway and to utilize the full interchange option rather than the split diamond option.

Commr. Cadwell stated that they would next address the SR 46A issue. He commented that he was told that as long as they stayed on the boundary of the State Forest that they would be all right.

Mr. Callahan stated that he had been in several meetings with the DEP and the Department of Agriculture and that they were against any alignment that would go into the state forest, even if it was just along the side of it.

Commr. Cadwell stated that he had spoken with Mr. Taylor and some homeowners from Heathrow Country Estates, and believed that he had a sense of what their concerns were.  He mentioned that 50 feet was not far enough away, and that he did not feel it was fair for them to split Mr. Taylor’s property down the middle, but it might work if they were to move east and purchase the property from him.  He then asked Mr. Callahan how wide the road right of way was going to be;

            Mr. Callahan replied that it was a 200 foot right of way or a rural typical section with ditched swales and either two or four lanes.

            Commr. Stivender asked whether the access on and off would be limited and whether Mr. Taylor could use his property for development.

            Mr. Callahan replied that it would be a controlled access type of facility and not allow as many curb cuts as normal.

            Mr. Jim Stivender interjected that the road would belong to the county after it was built, and they could make those types of decisions then.

            Commr. Cadwell stated that he would prefer going back to Mr. Taylor to discuss the possibility of adding more of a buffer than the 50 feet that was proposed, with the understanding that a purchase would have to be done.

            Commr. Stewart stated that she had been out to Heathrow Country Estates and that there were some beautiful trees that needed to be preserved, and the 50 foot buffer did not do that, and that the 800 feet would be an invasion into Mr. Taylor’s property.  She said that Mr. Taylor’s wife raises horses and that she understood how valuable pasture space is.  She stated that she was hopeful that a compromise could be made here.

            Commr. Hill interjected that she would like some clarification about the flyover in the State Forest, and asked if 46 A was still going to connect to 46.

            Mr. Callahan replied that the road (46A) would be a cul-de-sac at some point, possibly where the forest entrance is located, with the pavement being removed.  He stated that if they cul-de-sac the road just east of the Heathrow Country Estate’s entrance, they knew there would be traffic implications, but did not have any numbers.  He commented that SR 46A was now a cut through from Volusia County from SR 44 to connect to SR 46 and getting to Seminole County and this area of Lake County.  He opined that the traffic would be diverted to CR 437 and would connect to SR 46 to pick up the interchange in the Neighborhood Lakes area.

            Commr. Hill and Commr Stewart agreed that there would be a lot of traffic on CR 437 if that happened and there might be a bottleneck in Sorrento.

            Mr. Callahan said that they would let them know when he got the numbers and the traffic implications, and that County staff could help with those and render their opinions.

            Mr. Jim Stivender interjected that there were approximately 7,000 cars a day on 46A now, and that there were 23,000 going into Seminole County, which was significant.

            Mr. Callahan said there might be issues with the property not having access and the county not being able to purchase the land under eminent domain since it was not needed for transportation, and he would refer to George Lovett who was an expert on these matters.  He said that the DOT has a standard typical section of 200 feet in width, which can be justified and that they could justify the need for additional lands for some ponds for stormwater treatment, and in some cases where there are special mitigation needs. He opined that they might need a berm for noise, but they may not be able to acquire an additional 150 to 200 feet through eminent domain if the property owner did not allow them to purchase it, but that purchasing the severed property in any case would cost more.  He stated that they could look at some alternatives, but they wanted to move forward.  He said that they were recommending the 50 feet, but might be able to do an additional 50 feet, but that 150 to 200 feet will be a little tougher to do.

            Allison Dray, a resident of Heathrow Country Estates, addressed the Board stating that she had attended many meetings with Mr. Callahan, but had not heard until today that there would be a higher cost for the route that would go furthest west.  She stated that the Wekiva Act which was signed by Governor Jeb Bush in March of 2004 included a map that was agreed upon by all environmental agencies that shows exactly where this route was intended to be, and it did meander through the state land to connect to the interchange.  She continued that the road (46A) is already going through this area now, and she did not understand why they want to re-route it and why they would not be proposing a brand new road be placed somewhere near there.  She stated that there was a website for the Wekiva Act, showing the map and where the proposed road should be, showing that the traffic would be diverted west to 437 and t-boned at a traffic light in Sorrento, and then another light before they would get on the interchange, which will cause traffic to back up even further.  She believes that the road could skirt partially on the state land or the furthest western part of the landowners’ property.  She said that at the meeting she attended last Friday, she did not hear much rebuttal against the road being in the State land, that the road was shown on a map in the Wekiva Act going right through the state land, and she does not know how or when that was ever changed.

Mr. Scott Taylor addressed the Board stating that he was the landowner that was being referred to and owned the property that was involved in this roadway issue.  He stated that he did not have lots that were zoned PUD but that some of his lots were zoned C-2.  He stated that a large chunk of his property would be taken when this roadway comes through, and he had no intent to build gas stations or anything of that sort.  He said that he believed that any lines or roads that were shown on a map of the Wekiva Act was a conceptual line placed by the Expressway Authority, which was not agreed to by anyone.  He closed by saying that he loved the Wekiva Basin and had done everything he possibly could to keep it the way it is.  He was not intending to be a commercial developer in the area, but had hired a consultant so that when the time comes he will have something to bring to the negotiating table to present in regard to the value of his land.

The Board decided not to vote on the 46A alternative route until they had written comments from the State.

COUNTY MANAGER’S DEPARTMENTAL BUSINESS

COMMUNITY SERVICES

BYRNE MEMORIAL JUSTICE ASSISTANCE GRANT

Mr. Fletcher Smith, Community Services Director, addressed the Board requesting approval for the County to act as the coordinator for the municipalities that will be applying for funding through the Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant and to designate Brenda Quattlebaum as convener of the advisory committee that determines which programs are funded through the program.

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously, by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved a request from Community Services for approval for the Board of County Commissioners to serve as the coordinator for local governments in Lake County in the Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant application process, signature on the “Certification of Participation” document, and designation of Brenda Quattlebaum to identify and convene on behalf of the BCC any required advisory board members and meetings and the preparation of the application and/or other required documents or grant processes.

GROWTH MANAGEMENT

PURCHASE AND SALES AGREEMENT ON HART PROPERTY

Mr. David Hanson, Public Lands Manager, addressed the Board stating that the Hart property is on Hart Ranch Road and is 94 acres in size.  He stated that even though they have been negotiating with due diligence, they unfortunately have a title issue that can not be resolved, so he requested that the Board not approve the contract and recommend that they not continue to pursue the property.

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, to go with staff recommendation, seconded by Commr. Hill, and carried unanimously, by a 5-0 vote, the Board denied the approval of the Purchase and Sales Agreement between Lake County and Robert A. Hart.

PUBLIC WORKS

SULLIVAN RANCH CERTIFICATES OF OCCUPANCY

Mr. Jim Stivender, Jr., Public Works Director addressed the Board, and stated that they were requesting to move forward with six CO’S (Certificates of Occupancy) for the Sullivan Ranch development.  He added that the development was 693 acres, and they have a bond of fourteen million dollars to do the improvements, such as some plantings and grassing that they were delaying because of the drought.  He explained that these were the last CO’S they could get prior to that occurring, and they would like to move forward with this.

On a motion by Commr. Stewart, seconded by Commr. Stivender and carried unanimously, by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the request for authorization to release six certificates of occupancy for Sullivan Ranch prior to the completion of required subdivision improvements.  Sullivan Ranch consists of 693 lots and is located in Section 34, Township 29 South, Range 27 East – Commission District 4.

Mr. Sandy Minkoff, County Attorney, interjected that he believed that it was important to note that it was likely they would see this back again, because this is a very large development and the landscaping may not be approved in a timely manner.

ANNOUNCEMENT FROM PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR

Mr. Jim Stivender Jr. announced that the Florida Association of County Roads had awarded Lake County’s Public Works Department a Team Award for 2007 for their special assessment in east Lake County.

PUBLIC HEARINGS

ORDINANCE AMENDING LAKE COUNTY CODE

Mr. Sandy Minkoff, County Attorney, stated that they were seeking approval of an ordinance to amend several sections of the Lake County Code to change the name Occupational License Tax to Local Business Tax and the document received from a license to a receipt.  He placed the proposed Ordinance on the floor for its final reading, by title only, as follows:

AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF LAKE COUNTY, FLORIDA, AMENDING SECTIONS OF THE LAKE COUNTY CODE TO CHANGE THE NAME OCCUPATIONAL LICENSE TAX TO LOCAL BUSINESS TAX, AND TO CHANGE THE NAME OF THE DOCUMENT RECEIVED FROM A LICENSE TO A RECEIPT,AMENDING SECTION 3-24, ENTITLED FINDING OF FACT; AMENDING SECTION 3-31, ENTITLED GRANT OR DENIALOF LICENSE; AMENDING SECTION 3-33, ENTITLED ANNUAL FEE; AMENDING SECTION 3-43, ENTITLED COMMERCIAL PHYSICAL CONTACT PARLORS; AMENDING SECTION 3-44, ENTITLED ESCORT SERVICES; AMENDING SECTION 3-45, ENTITLED RECORDS AND INSPECTION OF RECORDS; AMENDING SECTION 3-47, ENTITLED PROHIBITED ACTS; AMENDING SECTION 6-95, ENTITLED CLASSIFICATION, EXAMINATION, ETC.; AMENDING SECTION 6-96, ENTITLED APPLICATION FOR LOCAL LICENSE AND REGISTRATION; AND AMENDING SECTION-82, ENTITLED APPLICATION FEES, AND GENERAL ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS; AMENDING SECTIONS OF THE LAKE COUNTY CODE; APPENDIX E, LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS TO CHANGE THE NAME OCCUPATIONAL LICENSE TAX TO LOCAL BUSINESS TAX, AND TO CHANGE THE NAME OF THE DOCUMENT RECEIVED FROM A LICENSE TO A RECEIPT; AMENDING CHAPTER ii, ENTITLED DEFINITIONS; AMENDING SECTION 3.11.04, ENTITLED TERMINATION OF NONCONFORMING USES AND DEVELOPMENT; AMENDING SECTION 3.12.02, ENTITLED COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAWS; AMENDING SECTION 6.13.04, ENTITLED TERMINATION OF NONCONFORMING USES AND DEVELOPMENT AMENDING SECTION 10.01.06, ENTITLED REQUIREMENTS; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE CODE; PROVIDING SEVERABILITY; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

On a motion by Commr. Hill, seconded by Commr. Stivender and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved Ordinance No. 2007-27, amending the Lake County Code and changing the name Occupational License Tax to Local Business Tax and the document received from a license to a receipt.

   REPORTS – COUNTY ATTORNEY

INVENTORY OF COUNTY PROPERTY SUITABLE FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Mr. Minkoff stated that approximately two years ago, the legislature passed a law requiring all of the counties to go through all of their property to determine if there was any property that would be feasible to be used for affordable housing.  He added that the requirement was that a Resolution be adopted to identify those properties by July 1, 2007 and every three years after that.  He stated that Lake County had completed an inventory of all their properties, and the properties that were not needed were transferred to affordable housing groups, and that the County has agreements with Habitat for Humanity and Affordable Homes in Partnership.  He stated that Resolution before the Board indicates that there are no properties available to be used for affordable housing, and that he had attached a list of several pages that shows the property and who it was assigned to.

Ms. Kelly Pisciotta, Development Public Relations Director with Habitat for Humanity, addressed the Board thanking them for the property and the opportunity to help another family get into a home, and stated that their goal was to get 12 homes built per year for the next couple of years, and hopefully be able to increase that.  She said that they were going to have a Blitz Day on June 23, 2007 at the Alexander home in Mount Dora, but that they still needed help and volunteers for construction.  She reported that they had already dedicated three homes this year, and will be dedicating the fourth in about two weeks.  She commented that they were working on a home in Yalaha, one in Lady Lake for a tornado victim family, the one in Mount Dora, and one in Sorrento, which is an all women built home.

On a motion by Commr. Stivender, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved Resolution No. 2007-88, including an inventory of County owned property appropriate for use as Affordable Housing.

REPORTS – COMMISSIONER STEWART – DISTRICT – 4

COMMENDATON FOR BUILDING DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEE

Commr. Stewart stated that she wanted to commend a County employee, Ms. Jessica Clark of the Building Department.  She reported that a customer took time out to write her a letter about her outstanding service and courtesy.

CITIZEN QUESTION AND COMMENT PERIOD

Mr. Roy Hunter, East Lake Chamber of Commerce, addressed the Board and stated that he was trying to raise money for the music class at Spring Creek School in Paisley for new keyboards.  He said that they had not yet reached their goal.  He noted that any donations should be made out to Spring Creek School and they could call the school at 669-3275 or they could call him at 669-8520.  He stated that he had gotten two donations from retired school teachers from Pennsylvania.

RECESS AND REASSEMBLY

At 1:05 p.m., the Chairman announced that the Board would recess until the Work Session to discuss the Comp Plan at 1:30 p.m. in Chambers.

WORKSESSION

            Ms. Carol Stricklin, Growth Management Director, opened the workshop by stating that this was the third of a series of three workshops on all of the elements of the Comprehensive Plan that have been transmitted to the Board of County Commissioners, and the Future Land Use element and Future Land Use Map are still under consideration by the Local Planning Agency.  She said that they did not have a formal presentation today, and have reserved it for public comment on those elements.

Commr. Cadwell stated that the elements that had been transmitted to them included capital improvements, transportation, housing, conservation, public facilities and services, and intergovernmental coordination of public schools, which would be the items that they would accept comment on today.

Mr. Bill Ray, AICP Senior Planner, Bowyer-Singleton and Associates, stated that he had attended the LPA meetings and that there were several concerns regarding the document that was in front of them; the first was the financial analysis of the economic feasibility of the plan. He commented that the cumulative impact of the plan would have some long ranging and unforeseen impacts.  He stated that he was deeply concerned that this plan and the fiscal implementation of the plan would prove to be not feasible.  He stated that another issue he had with the plan was that they had not yet done a cumulative analysis of what this impact would be as it applies to land use.  He said that they did not know exactly how many acres they have to develop because of conflicting and overlapping restrictions.  He continued that there were policies embedded within the plan that direct them, as planners, to cluster development away from specific areas and specific resources.  He stated that they were to cluster development away from high recharge areas, wetlands, 100 year flood plain, and sensitive native habitats, which reduces the footprint dramatically as to where they are to put commercial, industrial, and residential areas, and that they did not know how much of that area is available to develop.  He said that the plan clearly gives a slant towards the perception that low density or limited density development is the best and foremost way to protect the resources and environmental integrity of the county, when in fact modern planning trends, smart growth, sustainable development, even EPA guidelines not protecting water sheds and recharge areas are contrary to that.  He stated that the industry was directing them that density in and of itself was not the issue, but could be the primary tool to allow them to achieve these areas of recharge protection, environmental open space, and other natural resource protection, but in the plan there was specific guidance stating that the county shall promote low density development in these areas, not differentiating between net and gross.  He stated that they were to a point where they could review; and he recommended that they conduct an outside economic feasibility study to look for internal inconsistencies within the plan for national standards and guidelines, and then compare that with the future land use map.  He stated that most of the comments would be partially out of context because the future land use map was not available. He said that this was the first chance they have had to approach the Board to request that they be given the time to further analyze in detail the completeness of the entire plan and then come back with specific written comment and professional overview from professionals that do this

Ms. Gloria Austin, owner of the Austin Horse Park, stated that she wanted a meeting to inform the Board about what they were currently doing at the horse park, and what their plans and intentions were, because they would need to work closely with them.

Ms. Miranda Fitzgerald with Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor and Reed, P.A., 215 N. Eola Drive, Orlando, addressed the Board stating that she wanted to make several overview comments directed to the housing element, the conservation element, and the conflicting nature of the policies that were currently drafted.  She felt that they needed to be reviewed more in context as a whole so that the public would know exactly what is being asked.  She stated that the comp plan was really a blend and that they were trying to balance competing interests and policies over a broad spectrum.  She said that there had been statements made that the county was going to accommodate acreage to satisfy the housing demands that are anticipated through the year 2025, but that when the conservation element is read, there is no way to quantify the amount of acreage that will remain for any type of development until there was a map that they could look at that could be understood.  She stated that almost in every instance, whether it was dealing with wetlands, spring sheds, Karst features, etcetera, the county is taking upon itself to impose more strict standards than what are already adopted through the state and federal agencies.  She stated that while this was a policy decision that the Board may make, she felt that it should be made in a context so that the impact is known both financially and on an acreage basis.  She stated that there should be data and analysis to support that, and that if they were going to take those additional environmental reviews and come up with additional buffering as an example, it would have to be supportable.  She stated that there was a long way to go yet, and that there was not a map to look at showing what areas are being targeted for rural, transitional, urban, and commercial, to review with the other policies, knowing how much available land is actually there and whether they would be able to satisfy the population that will be in this county in the year 2025 in a financially feasible way.

Mr. Steve Adams of LPG Environmental, and of the Sorrento area, said that what he had done over the past year or so was to look at the drafts of the various elements that came through.  He said that he had reviewed these on behalf of some business people, friends, and associates in a manner similar to a professional practitioner that deals with this day in and day out.  He stated that he had some questions and concerns and had marked about 250 that he had questions about.  The first question he said that he had was the population, projections, and methodologies for their determination.  He stated that he noticed throughout the document that there were many internal inconsistencies, which all should be flushed out in terms of what they are, and he had a real concern about the financial feasibility of some of the things that were being proposed.  He stated that in policy 4.5.2 and 4.5.3, which was the wetlands protection program, he believed this was already under someone’s jurisdiction, State, DEP, Water Management, or the Corp of Engineers.  He asked if they were now going to appoint a county jurisdictional program and a county permitting program and a county regulatory program, but did not see it in the capital improvement element in terms of funding.  He stated that under the public facilities for recharge sub element policy 1.1.2 was the Florida Act for Volubility assessment map which tells where all the springs are and the Karst features, but there was no map, which seems to be an important piece of trying to define what we want to protect.  He also said that he did not see in the capital improvement element how they were going to fund this.  He said that under the public facilities element under the potable water sub element, policy 1.2.3, there was a mandatory connection ordinance.  He believes that existing development will be impacted and that in five years if you have less than an acre and have a septic tank, you would be on mandatory sewer connection, but if you live in Squirrel Point which has ¾ acre lots with septic tanks, what happens if they try to assess the homeowners and they don’t have the money to hook up, or they do not want to put the lines in, or the house gets blown away in a hurricane or tornado, will a permit be allowed to rebuild?  He stated that he had a problem with the sanitary sewer sub element policy 1.1.3 which again deals with the sewer, and the stormwater sub element policy 2.1.2 regarding the five year stormwater improvements with a list of projects which were not identified in the capital improvement element as far as costs, funding sources and that sort of thing.  He said that he was concerned as to who was going to pay for these things and how was it going to be paid for.

Mr. Robert Curry addressed the Board stating that he was the only member of the public who stood to comment on the Ordinance that established the Local Planning Agency (LPA).  He said that he attended many meetings, and that he believed that it was important to recognize the scale of the task that these people have taken on, that it was a learning process and was hopefully coming close to an end.

John Pospisil, stated that he was a native Floridian and was dismayed at the environmentally unfriendly and downright ugly development that was going on in Lake County these days.  He said that he was a landowner of two pieces of property that he purchased over twenty years ago with the intention of developing.  He stated that he had hoped to develop a much higher quality development than what he had seen going up.  He stated that he was concerned about the continuing of subsidizing people moving here by paying for infrastructure out of the general funds rather than real estate impact fees.  He said that the attempts to use land use management money as a growth management tool will come back to bite people like himself who are land owners.  He mentioned that he was attempting to develop a 66 acre parcel with 35 to 40 units as an equestrian community, but the only zoning category the County could give him was for 165 units on the property, and that would make it mandatory for sewer line connections that were are not close at hand.  He stated that he could not afford to do the low density development because of the costs involved with the sewer connection, and that he would be forced to put in 165 units in order to pay for the sewer.

Commr. Hill stated that she had a question about some lots that had been platted years ago, mostly in the older mobile home parks in the area that had 65’ lots, and that since building was not allowed on a lot that size; could they consider having affordable housing units on these?

Ms. Carol Stricklin, AICP, stated that some of these questions would be answered with the Future Land Use element.  She said that one of the charges that the Board gave them in the first workshop was that they were to bring back specific strategies not only for affordable housing, but for workforce housing, and that those issues would be addressed in the comp plan.

Ms. Stricklin stated that there were two global issues that staff felt were the outcome of the two workshops that they had with the Board; the first is the issue of affordable housing and workforce housing, and that they would have a workshop that goes into that topic in more detail.  The second is the topic of financial feasibility which will be broken into two parts.  The first is the feasibility in the statutory sense what chapter 163 says we have to do when we adopt the comprehensive plan; which requires that there is a capital improvement settlement that programs the necessary facilities and services to meet the adopted level of service.  She said that there was a range of questions that staff had received from the Board, the County Manager and the public about the cost of implementation of other aspects of the plan where there were specific programs, studies, regulations that have a cost associated with them.  She stated that they would bring back an analysis of the plan from both of those aspects.  The concerns from the public she said were regarding internal inconsistencies between elements, and the need to analyze the consistency of the Future Land Use Map when completed, against other elements such as housing and conservation.  She stated that the concern of various policies in the conservation element on land supply, and the availability of land to meet the housing demands, and the concerns about mandatory connection policies as well as other concerns would be addressed.

            She stated that they have not scheduled any further work sessions and were looking for the Board’s direction if they would like for them to schedule any work sessions for discussions on the outstanding issues that were mentioned today.

She stated that she wanted to speak about the concerns she had regarding where the county was in terms of its compliance with growth management laws, and that as a director of growth management she felt that it was her responsibility to relay her concern about the position the County was in due to the noncompliance of chapter 163.  She stated that they were still in the process of adopting amendments.  She stated that there were deadlines that were coming up under the 2005 Growth Management Act that they were falling behind on, including requirements for annual adoption of capital improvement settlement policies for water supply planning.  She relayed that they continue to fall behind and are unable to implement the mandates that the legislature gave them in 2005 because they have been unable to amend the comprehensive plan.  She stated that there was a potential impact of transportation funding or discretionary funds, and that when the DOT and MPO adopt their work programs for transportation improvements, there was a statutory requirement that they be consistent with the local government’s comprehensive plan.  She stated and there was an analysis that is done that goes to the Florida Transportation Commission, with a recommendation as to whether DOT’S program is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.  She said that the issue has come up in the context of funding for widening of certain facilities or TRIP funding, and that she has explained to the DOT that they were in the process of updating the plan.  She stated that development was slow right now, but that they were continuing to manage growth with the tools given to them by the 2005 Growth Management Act, which gives them the ability to put better concurrency controls in place, through the Capital Improvement Settlement, through new adoptive levels of service, and adoption of better land development regulations.  She stated that they were anxious to have good LDR’S in place so that they could respond better to those challenges.

            Commr. Cadwell asked Ms. Stricklin what meetings the LPA had planned this month.

            Ms. Stricklin reported that the LPA had four meetings scheduled in June; one was yesterday, (June 4, 2007), one on the 15th, the 21st and the 28th.

            Commr. Cadwell stated that they really needed the Future Land Use Map (FLUM) map, and encouraged her to get it hammered out.

            Ms. Stricklin stated that she was going to double her efforts in getting that moving along and was hoping to get it out some time in July.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business to be brought to the attention of the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 2:45 p.m.

 

 

 

                                                                        ____________________________________

                                                                        WELTON G. CADWELL, CHAIRMAN

ATTEST:

 

 

 

__________________________

JAMES C. WATKINS, CLERK