A REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

february 28, 2012

The Lake County Board of County Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, February 28, 2012 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:  Leslie Campione, Chairman; Jennifer Hill, Vice Chairman; Sean Parks; Jimmy Conner; and Welton G. Cadwell.  Others present were:  Darren Gray, County Manager; Sanford A. “Sandy” Minkoff, County Attorney; Wendy Taylor, Executive Office Manager, County Manager’s Office; Neil Kelly, Clerk of Court; Barbara F. Lehman, Chief Deputy Clerk, County Finance; and Shannon Treen, Deputy Clerk.

moment of silence and pledge

Commr. Campione called for a Moment of Silence and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Agenda update

Mr. Darren Gray, County Manager, requested to move Tab 26 before the other presentations so that it would be first.  He stated that there was an addendum on the agenda regarding the school impact fees and that it was placed under Other Business so the discussion could be held after the appointments.  He also mentioned that Tab 31 was placed under the County Manager’s Departmental Business and it should be placed under the County Manager’s Consent Agenda.

volunteer recognition

The Board recognized the following volunteers with 150 hours or more of service during 2011:

Devin Collins, 132 Hours, (most hours for high school student volunteer)  (not present)

Conservation & Compliance/Teen Court

 

Lynne Tyler, 150 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Linda Perrine, 156 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Cooper Memorial Library

 

Myla Thompson, 156 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Alton Koren, 159 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Rena Frank, 163 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Cooper Memorial Library

 

Natalie Manley, 163 Hours

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Jarold Michael, 164 Hours

Public Resources/Cagan Crossings Community Library

 

David Hasunuma, 164 Hours

Public Resources/Cooper Memorial Library

 

Wendy Edwards, 168 Hours  (not present)

Public Works/Administration

 

Elizabeth Schwarten, 175 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

James Briggs, 186 Hours

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Carl Mullins, 188 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Cagan Crossings Community Library

 

Carla Heimer, 189 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Nancy Puckett, 205 Hours

Public Resources/Cagan Crossings Community Library

 

Kristen Holden, 206 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Cagan Crossings Community Library

 

Milan Barabas, 211 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Cooper Memorial Library

 

Stacy Allen, 211 Hours  (not present)

Public Works/Water Quality Laboratory

 

JoAnn Rhoda, 219 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

           

Jeanne Hotaling, 223 Hours

County Manger & Employee Services

 

Carolyn Long, 223 Hours

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Weller Small, 224 Hours  (not present)

Facilities Development & Management

 

Peggy Ekberg, 228 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Barney Rae, 231 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Agricultural Education Services

 

Jeannette Bird, 251 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Astor Library

 

Florence Konvalinka, 260 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Marti Wilkins, 269 Hours

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Patricia Miller, 288 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Veronica Rojas, 305 Hours  (not present)

Conservation & Compliance/Probation

 

Dave Rudolph, 310 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Michelle Brady, 333 Hours 

Public Resources/Cooper Memorial Library

 

Gordon Chapin, 346 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

 

Brenda LeBel, 369 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Cagan Crossings Community Library

 

Spencer Kostus, 371 Hours

Public Safety/Emergency Management

 

Charles Keller, 374 Hours

Public Resources/Library Administration

 

Sally Fisher, 221 Hours for Literacy Program and 159 Hours for Library  (not present)

(Total of 380 Hours)

Public Resources/Astor Library

 

George Wingate, 430 Hours  (not present)

Conservation & Compliance/Probation

 

Donald Roy, 498 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Agricultural Education Services

 

Gene Brewer, 519 Hours

Growth Management/Building Services

           

Howard Youngmeyer, 702 Hours  (not present)

Public Resources/Literacy Program

citizen question and commend period

Mr. Scott Taylor, a resident of Sorrento, addressed the Board regarding his concern about the debt associated with the land acquisition program.  He suggested that the Board consider adjusting the mill rate to cover the debt so general fund money would not have to be used and he hoped that the program would end up paying for itself.

MINUTE APPROVAL

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Conner and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the Minutes of December 20, 2011 (Regular Meeting) as presented.

CLERK OF COURTS’ CONSENT AGENDA

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

List of Warrants

Request to acknowledge receipt of the 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.

St. Johns River Water Management District’s 2012 Meeting Schedule

Request to acknowledge receipt of the St. Johns River Water Management District’s Governing Board 2012 meeting schedule, as required by Florida Statute 189.417, to be held at 4049 Reid Street (Hwy 100 West), Palatka.

North Lake County Hospital District’s Audit and Financial Report

Request to acknowledge receipt of a copy of the North Lake County Hospital District’s September 30, 2011 audit and Annual Financial Report.

Ordinances from the Town of Lady Lake

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

Ordinance No. 2011-28 providing for changes to the Planned Commercial CP Zoning Classification and amending terms in the memorandum of agreement (MOA) for certain property located on CR 466 approximately 1,000 feet east of the Sumter County line.

 

Ordinance No. 2011-29 amending Chapter 10.5 regarding police officers’ retirement trust fund.

 

Ordinance No. 2011-30 pertaining to comprehensive planning, amending the Town’s Ordinance No. 81-8-(83), providing for a small scale future land use map amendment.

 

Ordinance No. 2011-31 redesignating zoning classification for certain property located on the northeast corner of Hwy 441 and Hartsock Sawmill Road from manufactured home high density (MH-0) to Heavy Commercial (HC).

 

Ordinance No. 2011-32 establishing an economic development advisory committee.

 

Clerk of Courts Semiannual Investment Report

Request to acknowledge receipt of the Clerk of Courts Semiannual Investment Report for December 31, 2011.

Notification of Publication of Annexation

Request to acknowledge receipt of the notification of publication of annexation for applicant, Boykin Brother FL, LLC, pursuant to Section 171.044, Florida Statute, including a copy of the ad and map which will be published in the Daily Commercial on February 20 and 27, 2012.

Notice Before the Florida Public Service Commission

Request to acknowledge receipt of the notice before the Florida Public Service Commission – In re: Joint Petition for approval to amend territorial agreement in Lake and Orange Counties by Progress Energy Florida, Inc. and the City of Mount Dora; Docket No. 110263-EU, Order No. PSC-12-0046-CO-EU, Issued: January 31, 2012.

Notice Before the Florida Public Service Commission

Request to acknowledge receipt of the notice before the Florida Public Service Commission – Notice of Hearing to all parties of record and all other interested persons, issued January 25, 2012, for the following:

Docket No. 100437-EI – Examination of the outage and replacement fuel/power costs associated with the CR3 steam generator replacement project, by Progress Energy Florida, Inc.

Docket No. 100461-EI – Petition for approval of nuclear decommissioning cost study, by Progress Energy Florida, Inc.

Docket No. 120001-EI – Fuel and purchased power cost recovery clause with generating performance incentive factor.

Docket No. 120007-EI – Environmental cost recovery clause.

Docket No. 120009-EI – Nuclear cost recovery clause.

Docket No. 120022-EI – Petition for limited proceeding to approve stipulation and settlement agreement by Progress Energy Florida, Inc.

Notice is hereby given that the Florida Public Service Commission will hold a hearing regarding Docket No. 120022-EI at the following time and place:

Monday, February 20, 2012, at 1:00 p.m. or immediately following the conclusion of the hearing in Docket No. 110309-EI, whichever is later; Room 148, Betty Easley Conference Center, 4075 Esplanade Way, Tallahassee, Florida.

Notice Before the Florida Public Service Commission

Request to acknowledge receipt of the notice before the Florida Public Service Commission – In re: Application for certificates to provide water and wastewater service in Lake County by MFL Utility Systems, L.L.C.; Docket No. 110023-WS, Order No. PSC-12-0032-CO-WS, Issued: January 20, 2012.

Notice Before the Florida Public Service Commission

Request to acknowledge receipt of the notice before the Florida Public Service Commission – In re: Application for certificates to provide water and wastewater service in Lake County by MFL Utility Systems, L.L.C.; Docket No. 110023-WS, Order No. PSC-11-0586A-PAA-WS, Issued: January 19, 2012.  The Order is hereby amended to reflect the correct order number, PSC-11-0586-PAA-WS, on the header for Schedule Nos. 1-3.

Notice Before the Florida Public Service Commission

Request to acknowledge receipt of the notice before the Florida Public Service Commission – In re: Application for certificates to provide water and wastewater service in Lake County by COL Utility Systems, L.L.C.; Docket No. 110021-WS, Order No. PSC-12-0027-CO-WS, Issued: January 17, 2012.

Non-Sufficient Funds Check Fee

Request approval to waive non-sufficient funds check fee of $125.00 for Mr. Lee Rhode who paid the County $7,551.70 to pay off a Florida Housing Opportunity Program (FHOP) loan that had been granted to him.  Due to a bank error, the check was dishonored.  Mr. Rhode replaced the dishonored check and paid half of the $250 non-sufficient funds charge that is required.  The payment of the additional $125.00 presents a hardship to Mr. Rhode and he has requested the remaining balance be waived.  This charge is pursuant to Section 125.0105, Florida Statutes, which gives the Board the ability to charge up to 5% of the face amount of a dishonored check as a service charge.  Lake County Procedure LC 33 limits the charge to a maximum of $250.

COUNTY MANAGER’S CONSENT AGENDA

On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the County Manager’s Consent Agenda, Tabs 3 through 22 and Tab 31, as follows:

Community Services

Request for approval to seek and apply for grants, in-kind donations and/or incentives up to and including $10,000.00 to support programming and events and to allow the County Manager to sign documents associated with those requirements. Fiscal impact is dependent upon receipt of grants and donations.

Request for approval and signature on the Section 3 Resolution No. 2012-13 and Plan for the Lake County Housing Division, The Limited English Proficiency (LEP) Implementation Plan for the Lake County Housing Division, and the 2010-2015 Environmental Assessment for County-Wide Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) and Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) Grants. There is no fiscal impact.

County Manager

Request to approve and execute continuing contracts for landscape architecture to Cribb Philbeck Weaver Group, Green Consulting Group, Inc., HHI Design and Native Florida Consulting, Inc., in conjunction with the County’s needs. Fiscal Impact cannot be determined at this time.

Request to (1) declare the items on the attached list(s) 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 or designee to sign vehicle titles.

Request for authorization to fill one (1) vacant Parts & Supply Technician position within the Fleet Management Division. Fiscal impact is $33,976.

Economic Development and Tourism

Request for approval and signature on the Agreement with University of Central Florida for Small Business Development Center services and the Lake County Board of County Commissioners. Fiscal Impact is $115,000.

Facilities Development and Management

Request to approve a GMP of $82,421.00 and a contingency of $8,797.00 for the project entitled “Lake County Clermont Firestation #112 – Attic Mold Abatement and HVAC Improvements”, and authorize County staff to complete all associated implementing documents. The fiscal impact is $ 91,218.00.

Request to approve a GMP of $82,421.00 and a contingency of $8,797.00 for the project entitled “Lake County Astor Firestation #10 - Attic Mold Abatement and HVAC Improvements”, and authorize County staff to complete all associated implementing documents. Requesting the Board also approve the attached Budget Change Form. The fiscal impact is $ 91,218.00.

Public Resources

Request to approve award of contract 12-0401, On-Call Plumbing Repair and Maintenance for Lake County Parks to Ross Plumbing. The fiscal impact is $45,000.

Request to approve award of contract 12-0406, On-Call Electric Repair and Maintenance for Lake County Parks, to four (4) in-county vendors. The fiscal impact is $55,000.

Request for authorization to fill one (1) vacant Extension Agent I (4-H) position within the Public Resources Department, Agricultural Education Services Division. The fiscal impact is $46,774.

Public Safety

Request to accept a grant award from the United States Fire Administration Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program and the revenue Resolution No. 2012-14 for the purchase of lifesaving, rapid intervention equipment for firefighter use in rescue efforts. The 20% matching local funds will be transferred and established in the FY2011-12 Fire Rescue budget. Fiscal impact is $86,000 (County portion: $17,200; Grant funding: $68,800).

Request for approval of (1) FY11 State Homeland Security Grant Program (SHSGP) Funding Agreement in the amount of $20,000; and (2) Resolution No. 2012-15. This Agreement provides revenue to the Emergency Management Division. No local match is required.

Public Works

Request for approval and signature of Resolution No. 2012-16 to Advertise Public Hearing to vacate a portion of a Perpetual Grading Easement along the South side of Hammock Ridge Road in the Clermont area. No fiscal impact. Commission District 2.

Request for approval of the Interlocal Agreement between Lake County and The Lake-Sumter Metropolitan Planning Organization for Management of the Lake County 2012 Annual Traffic Count Program. There is no fiscal impact.

Request for authorization to accept the final plat for Bella Collina Replat No. 1 and all areas dedicated to the public as shown on the Bella Collina Replat No. 1 plat. Bella Collina Replat No. 1 consists of 1 lot and is located in Section 13, Township 22 South, Range 26 East. Commission District 2. There is no fiscal impact.

Request for approval to execute an Interlocal Agreement Between Lake County and the Town of Montverde for Streetscape on CR 455. Fiscal Impact is estimated at $24,020.00 and will be expended from Renewal Sales Tax Capital projects–Public Works-Infrastructure/Construction. Commission District #2.

Request for approval of Third Addendum to Interlocal agreement with the Town of Howey-in-the-Hills for the Lakeshore Blvd. and E. Revels Road Project. Fiscal impact: $2,610.00.

Request for authorization to fill four (4) positions within Public Works/Road Operations Division: one Equipment Operator III position, and three (3) Equipment Operator I positions. The total fiscal impact for these four (4) positions is $148,645.

Request to approve and award contract 11-0220 to Built-Rite Construction of Central Florida in the amount of $1,121,040 with a contingency value of $37,109 for installation of a new potable water system in support of various County residents living in the Umatilla area. The fiscal impact is $1,158,149, which is 100% CDBG grant funded.

Request for approval of Amendment No. 1 for additional design work for the N. Hancock Road realignment project. Fiscal impact: $80,052.03.

COUNTY ATTORNEY’S CONSENT AGENDA

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Parks and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the County Attorney’s Consent Agenda, Tab 23, as follows:

Request for approval of Resolution No. 2012-17 regarding issuance of bonds by the Florida Development Finance Corporation to finance the Montverde Academy, Inc. Project.

presentations

lake county wildflower survey

Ms. Wendy Breeden, Public Resources Director, stated that Ms. Kim Zarillo, President of Scientific Environmental Applications, would be presenting the findings of the recently completed Lake County Wildflower Survey.  She noted that Ms. Zarillo and Ms. Anne Cox, President of Ecolo-G, Inc., conducted the survey and then gave a brief description of their experience.

Ms. Zarillo explained that the purpose of the project was to document the wildflower routes that would exemplify native species and habitats of Lake County for the viewing pleasure of recreational users and to identify existing and potential wildflower sites.  She pointed out that the sites were categorized into four different groups: develop, enhance, do not develop, and view only.  She then defined each category and specified that develop was considered to be a potential wildflower area, enhance was considered to be an area with existing wildflowers but needed improvements, do not develop was considered to be an area that had problems with invasive plant species or may be an area with a very narrow shoulder, and view only was considered to be an area that already had a good establishment of wildflowers and only needed to be maintained.  She noted that they conducted surveys during the spring, summer, and fall on the 1,500 miles of roads in Lake County and discovered about 193 sites.  She added that out of the 193 sites, they chose 37 to highlight that exemplified the different categories.  She mentioned that there were more view only sites than the other categories and that they found 146 different plant species and various Florida protected and endemic plants on the sites.  She then showed pictures of some of the chosen sites at various locations in the County and discussed the steps involved in developing and managing the wildflower sites.  She stated that they gathered a lot of information from the survey and pointed out that the survey gave a snapshot of great locations that could be used now for view only sites.

Ms. Breeden concluded the presentation noting that the wildflower survey was one of several initiatives Lake County had taken on to promote the importance of wildflowers to the County’s ecotourism and related that the County would hold its first Birding and Wildflower Festival in September 2012.  She recalled that the Board adopted a wildflower resolution in June 2010 and that the County had received several grants from the Florida Wildflower Foundation to aid with training, planting and maintenance of wildflowers.  She noted that the County had established several wildflower test sites and that the Florida Department of Transportation had also established four seeding sites along the State highways.  She related that the County had been preparing for Florida’s 2013 quincentennial celebration, but the County now had an opportunity to build on those efforts by recruiting the Florida Wildflower Foundation to Lake County.  She added that the Foundation was seeking a permanent location to plan and develop a statewide wildflower center modeled after the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas and that the Foundation recently issued a request for information to interested counties in North Central Florida.  She stated that due to the competitive nature of the project, staff wanted assurance that the Board was interested in attracting the Florida Wildflower Foundation to Lake County and wanted approval to submit a proposal to the Foundation by March 31, with the stipulation that the Board would have final approval if the Foundation selected a property owned by Lake County.

Commr. Parks mentioned that having the Wildflower Foundation in Lake County would be an incredible opportunity and he felt it could be of the grandeur of the Ladybird Center, which would draw people to Lake County from all over the Country.  He opined that they should approve the request but to also ask the Chairman to write a letter of support to the Foundation.

Commr. Cadwell expressed that the wildflower venture tied right into the ecotourism that the County was trying to promote and also mentioned that the request was brought to the Parks and Recreation Committee and they whole-heartedly supported it.

Mr. Gray related that it would be great to have the Wildflower Foundation headquarters in Lake County adding that the Foundation needed a few offices so staff was looking at various County facilities to try to accommodate that need.  He noted that once they put together the entire package for the Foundation, they would bring it back to the Board for final approval.

Commr. Campione commented that it was a great venture and she was willing to write a letter to the Foundation.

The Board expressed support in moving forward with the request for information.

community redevelopment areas

Ms. Dottie Keedy, Community Services Director, addressed the Board stating that the purpose of the presentation was to provide information to the Board regarding the utilization of Community Redevelopment Areas (CRA) for community revitalization and to request Board direction regarding the proposed Mount Plymouth-Sorrento CRA.  She then introduced Ms. Carol Westmoreland, Executive Director of the Florida Redevelopment Association (FRA), and noted that she would be presenting an overview of CRA’s and information about the FRA.

Ms. Westmoreland explained that a CRA was a financing, an economic development, and a revitalization tool that was also known as a community redevelopment agency because the agency was the Board that governed the CRA.  She pointed out that there were 208 CRA’s in Florida and about 15 of them were created by counties.  She stated that a CRA was a formally designated and targeted area that was funded mainly by tax increments and noted that the tax was not new; the monies were collected whether or not there was a CRA in place.  She related that the focus was to divert monies into a trust fund that was designated for use in that area and if there was not an increase in the property values in that area, then there was no money in the trust fund.  She noted that the purpose of a CRA was to revitalize the area to improve the aesthetics and to foster private investment.  She also specified that a CRA was a predictable process for partners and private sector investment and it was a dedicated source of revenue because there was a plan by which the revenues were expended to achieve the goals in a more focused way.  She mentioned that a CRA was best used when layered with other programs such as enterprise zones, brownsfield sites, economic developments tools, grants and incentives, and it resulted in long-term planning that identified projects, activities and infrastructure needs for the specific area.  She noted that CRA dollars could only be spent on projects included in the plan, such as streetscapes, landscaping, signage, street lights, parks and trails.  She then discussed the process of a CRA and noted that under Chapter 163, Part III of the Florida Statutes, establishment of a CRA was a minimal guidance process through local government home rule and through interlocal agreements with other agencies and entities.  She stated that a redevelopment plan must be publicly adopted and a board must be appointed to control the process and make all of the decisions and that the board could appoint CRA advisory boards and could amend the plan as needed.  She explained that the board would first authorize a resolution to state that a Finding of Necessity was needed and then an ordinance creating the CRA agency would be adopted.  She added that a redevelopment plan would be adopted by resolution or ordinance and an ordinance creating the tax increment trust fund would be then adopted.  She then discussed the FRA and noted that the FRA had been around since 1974 and had become more focused on economic development over the years.  She related that the FRA had an active advocacy program and was a good redevelopment resource.

Mr. Mark Mondell, President of the FRA and the Executive Director of Municipal Services for the City of Ocala, continued the presentation discussing the City of Ocala’s approach to economic development.  He noted that the City of Ocala worked together with Marion County to create a public-private partnership called the Ocala-Marion County Economic Development Corporation.  He explained that his department managed the economic development plan for the City and that their primary incentive tool was called the economic investment program, which analyzed projects based upon the return on investment.  He mentioned that they were responsible for non-aviation development, as well as managing the enterprise zone, the community redevelopment area and downtown redevelopment.  He pointed out that their goal was economic sustainability and then discussed the strategies they used to approach it.  He stated that they looked at business diversification, infrastructure investment, education and training, and they try to keep their competitive tax rate structure.  He added that although they followed the State’s targeted industries list, they incorporated some additional ones that were unique to Ocala.  He noted that they had strategic locations that included the community redevelopment area, brownsfield areas, and enterprise zones and related that they had an economic development plan which identified short-term, intermediate, and long-term projects.  He then stated that their economic sustainability was achieved through partnerships as they worked closely with property owners, business owners, companies interested in the community and the public sector offices.  He showed a map depicting Ocala’s CRA and noted that they were in the process of creating three new CRA’s.  He then discussed the proposed projects for Ocala and stated that they were currently working towards building a parking garage and redevelopment of their downtown.

Commr. Cadwell asked what the size of Ocala’s CRA was.

Mr. Mondell replied that it was about 689 acres and added that the CRA’s they planned on creating were much larger than that.

Commr. Cadwell asked if the proposed CRA’s were considered to be urban.

Mr. Mondell responded that most of them were urban and some were suburban, but none of them were rural.

Commr. Parks asked whether there was ample time given to have public input on a CRA plan.

Mr. Mondell answered “yes,” and added that there were plenty of opportunities for public input especially since the adoption of the resolutions and ordinances had to be at public meetings.  He then mentioned that they set up some citizen advisory committees to help develop the plan.

Commr. Conner asked whether the financing plan was determined before or after the adoption of a CRA.

Mr. Mondell explained that a Finding of Necessity would first be created to establish the CRA boundary and then the plan would be created to determine what projects the money would be spent on.

Commr. Conner asked why Ocala’s CRA was in an urban area as opposed to a rural area.

Mr. Mondell stated that they could only work within their jurisdictional boundaries.

Commr. Cadwell commented that he would like to see the CRA’s that other counties have adopted to see what the nature of those were because there was a time when counties wanted to eliminate CRA’s altogether.

Commr. Conner stressed that he would like to have the priorities of the community finalized first in order to avoid any kind of disagreements in the future on what the money should be spent on.

Commr. Campione mentioned that they already completed the survey process with the community and had narrowed down the focus tremendously.  She also noted that they needed to allow some flexibility with the plan to address any issues that may arise.

Commr. Cadwell remarked that the plan could be changed any time as long as there was a public hearing for it.

Mr. Minkoff related that the plan had to be adopted before the tax increment was imposed.

Ms. Keedy continued the presentation to discuss the Mount Plymouth-Sorrento proposed CRA.  She recalled that the Economic Action Plan that was adopted last year included a goal to evaluate potential for new CRA’s as a mechanism for facilitating redevelopment in Lake County.  She noted that last summer it was suggested that a CRA be used for revitalization of the Mount Plymouth-Sorrento community and after holding a community meeting, a project website was created which had a link to an online survey requesting input on the concept of a CRA for that community.  She added that the Board had requested additional information on CRA’s in December 2011 and that was the reason for the presentation today.  She explained that the community has many unique municipal style characteristics, such as an elementary school, a library, public parks and an established commercial corridor along SR 46 and noted that it was located approximately one mile from an access road to the interchange of the proposed Wekiva Parkway.  She related that there was a planned employment center nearby containing approximately 700 acres for future development and pointed out that based on feedback from the community, staff adjusted the proposed boundary of the CRA, which was now about 1,100 acres.  She stated that there were a number of indicators for demonstrating the statutory definition of blight, which was one of the criteria for establishing the need for a CRA, and noted that staff reviewed the demographics of the community and conducted visual surveys and found that there was evidence of deterioration of structures and sites and inadequate infrastructure.  She stated that there were many areas containing debris, trash and illegal dumping, as well as many inoperable vehicles scattered throughout the community.  She pointed out that there were many roads in the community that had poor shoulder conditions, no curbs, sidewalks or lighting, and many commercial sites had inadequate parking areas and she then showed pictures illustrating the poor conditions.  She explained that the revenues for a CRA was generated through increases in property values over time and those revenues were placed in a tax increment finance (TIF) trust fund and they could only be spent on projects outlined in the redevelopment plan for the district.  She reported that they were projecting the TIF revenues to be between $180,000 and $540,000 over a 20 year period; however, those amounts did not account for any new development or increase in values.

Commr. Campione concluded the presentation to discuss the implementation safeguards.  She pointed out that the success of a CRA depended on how the process was set up and whether it was followed correctly and if safeguards were put in place and best management practices were followed, then they could guard against the pitfalls that other CRA’s had fallen into.  She suggested that the BCC serve as the Community Redevelopment Agency, but they should form advisory boards to get the vision of the community directly from the community.  She stated that amendments to the plan would have to be approved at a public hearing, redevelopment plan projects would be funded on a pay-as-you-go basis so that there would not be any debt incurred, and they could designate in the plan that TIF funds could only be used for infrastructure associated with redevelopment and revitalization instead of new development.  She then explained that many years ago the County decided that Mount Plymouth and Sorrento would be looked at as a whole for planning purposes, so that was why the CRA was so large.  She related that there was a lot of vacant land in the CRA, but they needed to include those areas because that would be the base of funding the revitalization along the corridor and in the existing residential areas.

Commr. Cadwell expressed his concerns about the projected revenues stating that it did not seem that there would be enough money to make any kind of an impact.

Commr. Campione reiterated that that was the reason for including the vacant properties because those properties would eventually be developed and the funds would increase.

Commr. Conner stated that there was a possibility of significant increases to property values with the construction of the parkway and expressed that due to the County’s financial situation, it may not be a good idea to direct those funds into the CRA instead of putting them back into the County’s general fund.

Commr. Campione remarked that the CRA could be terminated at that point if the Board wanted those funds to go back into the general fund.

Commr. Conner opined that he would not want to do that to the community and he would rather anticipate problems and address them in advance.

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

Mr. Scott Taylor, a resident of Mount Plymouth, stated that he was pleased with the change in the map and although he thought that CRA’s served a good purpose, he was concerned about the fact that there would not be any funds available until 2017 and he was unsure that an increase in property values would actually give a positive result.  He opined that it might be better to have the County fund some of the projects for that area rather than creating a CRA.

Mr. Kinney Harley, a resident of Mount Plymouth, expressed that Mount Plymouth and Sorrento were very rural areas and they should stay that way.  He added that those areas would be considered as blighted areas and it would be difficult to sell their properties.  He noted that the finding of facts showed that the number of crime reports, delinquencies and code enforcement violations decreased each year and it seemed as if they were looking at the negative rather than the positive.

Mr. Vance Jochim, a resident of Tavares who writes a blog called FiscalRangers.com, explained that when he first heard about the proposed CRA, he started investigating the types of abuses that could happen with CRA’s and pointed out that they were very flexible systems where the agency could arbitrarily decide to change the plan five years down the road.  He stated that there had been one instance of abuse in Florida and other instances in different states and stressed that oversight of a CRA was very important because the Florida government did not have authority to initiate audits, so the oversight was reliance upon the local agency.

Mr. Jon Pospisil, a resident of Goldenrod, stated that he originally thought the CRA was a good idea for that location, but after viewing the presentation and seeing the amount of dollars involved, he was unsure whether it was worth it.  He suggested that the Board make it as big and as comprehensive as possible if they did decide to proceed with it.  He also commented on the wildflower study and commended the Board for commissioning that.  He asked the Board to consider concentrating the wildflower sites and build around the existing scenic byways instead of spreading them around the County.

Mr. Tim Daly, a resident of Lake County, commented on the wildflower study noting that as the Wekiva Parkway came to the area, there would be nothing more beautiful than integrating that road and the pastoral scenes of the flowers.  He mentioned that as land became developed in the region, developers were required to have open spaces and opined that it would be great to require the developers to integrate wildlife and wildflowers in those spaces.  He then discussed the CRA and stated that the Board and the Mount Plymouth-Sorrento community had supported having a CRA in the past.  He added that a CRA was a great way for the community to come together and resolve differences and suggested that the Board move forward with it.

Ms. Christine Thompson from Building Blocks Child Development in Sorrento pointed out that SR 46 was a gateway to Lake County and with the Wekiva Parkway coming in, that area really needed to be the focus to represent Lake County well.  She stated that by bringing in businesses, jobs would be created and would lead to additional revenue for the County.  She noted that the property values would eventually increase, but investing in the community now would help boost the values even faster.  She opined that the CRA plan needed to be very specific so that there would not be any issues and a timeframe should be set so the plan could be reevaluated.  She also mentioned that a citizen’s advisory committee would be a great idea so that the citizens could be involved.

Mr. Dave Croson, a resident and business owner in the Mount Plymouth-Sorrento area, thanked the Commission for considering having a CRA in that area and for taking the opportunity to look to the future and realize that change would be coming with the Wekiva Parkway, so it was a great time to make some positive changes to the community.  He expressed that he wanted an improvement for the community and an opportunity for everyone to win.

Mr. Clark Morris, a resident of Mount Plymouth, stated that he moved to Lake County nine years ago mainly for the beauty of it and commented that the wildflower sites were a great idea because that was exactly the kind of thing that would bring people to the County to boost the economy.  He pointed out that the property values have decreased since the golf course in Mount Plymouth closed and he suggested putting it back into the CRA so that it could be revitalized and so the community could have a say in what happens to it in the future.  He noted that he would also like to focus on the foreclosed and abandoned homes, as well as putting in a community center and parks and trails in that area.  He opined that it was the responsibility of the local community and the local government to help turn the economy around and creating a CRA would help address the community needs.

Mr. Michael Loomis, a property owner in Sorrento, commented on the wildflower sites and pointed out that there could be traffic problems associated with those sites because in other states, people stop in the middle of the road to take pictures of the foliage.  He then advised the Board to be careful with CRA’s because in Connecticut, where he currently lives, redevelopment never ended and things constantly had to get replaced and noted that a CRA may never go away.

Mr. Richard Thompson, co-owner of Building Blocks Child Development in Sorrento, stated that that area was chosen for a CRA most likely because the beltway was coming in.  He expressed that it was a perfect opportunity to have the wildflower sanctuary there and build up the roadways to make SR 46 the corridor instead of Highway 441.

Mr. Steve Jennelle, a resident of Eustis, noted that now was the best time to create the CRA because with the beltway coming in, that area would be the gateway to Lake County.  He added that with responsible adults involved in the process, a CRA could be a great opportunity for the entire County.

Mr. Bill Smalley, a resident of Sorrento, commented that they were about to see some dramatic changes in the East Lake County area with the Wekiva Parkway so it was important to have the input of the community as a unified body.  He encouraged the Board to support the CRA as a starting point in moving towards the future.

Ms. Susan Brooks, a resident of Mount Plymouth, pointed out that one of the concerns about the CRA was the fact that nothing would even happen until 2017, but the Wekiva Parkway would be completed in 2017.  She noted that they needed to send out a positive message with the CRA that the community wanted the investment, but they did not want overdevelopment.  She mentioned that with the CRA, they could apply for other funding mechanisms such as block grants.  She related that without an attractive commercial district in Sorrento, the businesses would not survive and would eventually move out to the interchange.  She suggested that the CRA money be used to develop trails and bird watching areas, and as previously mentioned, planting wildflowers.  She thanked the Board for their consideration in earnestly looking at their community to help them survive in very volatile times.

Ms. Helen McCormick, a resident of Mount Plymouth, stated that the residents in the Mount Plymouth and Sorrento area did not agree on anything and the CRA would not unite that community as it was expected to.  She noted that the pictures showing the blighted areas were contrived because there was only a small area in downtown Sorrento that looked like that adding that if the County wanted to start a CRA, they should limit it to that small area.  She related that the turnover rate for the businesses in that area was incredibly low compared to Mount Dora and many of the businesses did not have debt.  She pointed out that the residents of those areas choose whether those businesses fail or succeed by their support and they did not want the County to make any decisions for their community.  She expressed that she would like to improve the entrance to Lake County, but she did not want another taxing authority.

There being no one else who wished to address the Board, the Chairman closed the public hearing.

Commr. Campione clarified that a CRA was not a taxing authority.  She then stated that that community has had visioning sessions for many years but nothing had ever happened.  She urged the Board to take the first step and actually put a vehicle in place so that some of those visioning efforts could move forward.  She related that the next step would be to have a public meeting to discuss the Finding of Necessity, but in the meantime she would like to have an evening community meeting at Sorrento Elementary School with staff to answer questions and provide information.

Commr. Cadwell stated that he would support taking that next step.

Commr. Parks noted that he was in support of the next step as well adding that the CRA was a tool that was mentioned in the economic action plan as something that would promote economic development.  He related that the plan was the key to the process and as grueling as it could be, they should not give up on having a CRA for that area.

Commr. Conner expressed that although he did have some reservations, he was not against moving forward.  He added that hopefully some of his concerns would be alleviated by taking the next step.

The Board reached a consensus to move to the next step of holding a public hearing to discuss the Finding of Necessity, but prior to that meeting, Commr. Campione and staff would hold an evening community meeting at Sorrento Elementary School to answer questions and provide information.

RECESS AND REASSEMBLY

The Chairman announced that there would be a ten-minute recess at 11:16 a.m.

presentations (cont’d)

emergency communications and operations center

Mr. Gray explained that staff would be giving a presentation on the Emergency Communications and Operations Center (ECOC) to explain the function of the building, give a historical perspective of the project, review the guaranteed maximum price (GMP) for the project, look at some alternatives and discuss the funding of the project.

Mr. Jerry Smith, Emergency Management Division Manager, stated that the main function of the building would be for the 24-hour 911 and communications center.  He added that the building would be open 24 hours, seven days a week with approximately 22 employees per 12-hour shift and roughly 40 to 50 employees each day.  He noted that Lake EMS communications center would co-locate with the Sheriff’s Office communications center.  He pointed out that Lake EMS also dispatches for the 13 fire services in Lake County and the Sheriff also dispatches for six of the municipalities with law enforcement agencies.  He noted that they planned to provide enough space for the remaining municipalities if those municipalities wanted to have the Sheriff provide their communications services.  He related that the next function of the building would be the emergency operations center and many of those rooms would be multi-use.  He stated that another function would be a secured data center to have servers for IT and for the Clerk to back-up MUNIS information.  He noted that the last function was for traffic management capabilities and that would be available should the Board decide to get involved with intelligent traffic management.  He then briefly discussed the project history and stated that in 2010 the Board determined that there was a need to have a building large enough for Lake EMS, the Sheriff’s Office communications and space for a data center.  He pointed out the benefits of co-locating all of the functions and mentioned that the primary reason was to consolidate dispatch and streamline the call taking process.  He noted that the County would also be able to utilize grant funding for hardening the structure for the communications portion and there would be a reduction in equipment which also reduces the maintenance and support costs.  He specified that the operational cost was estimated at $90,000 to $100,000 each year; however, he indicated that there would be a cost savings of approximately $158,000 each year by combining all those functions into one building.  He mentioned that they looked at nearby county facilities and found that most counties have the communications center in the same hardened facility as the emergency operations center because it was seen as best practice for continuity of government during a disaster.  He pointed out that because the square footage of the proposed facility was reduced, Lake County would have the smallest facility as compared to the other counties.  He then discussed the current facilities for the Sheriff’s Office communications, Lake EMS and the Emergency Operations Center and noted that when a call was placed to 911 and it was regarding a medical or fire emergency, the call has to be transferred to EMS.  He mentioned that the Sheriff’s Office communications center is too small for their needs and it is unable to provide space for communications services for the municipalities.  He related that Lake EMS is located in an old shopping center and because it is a leased building, the Board cannot use hardening funds on it.  He added that the Lake EMS building is the number one critical vulnerability for the County because it is the only place where the ambulance service and the 13 fire services are dispatched from.  He stated that the Emergency Operations Center is located in the County Administration Building and the functions are scattered across the building causing inefficiencies and disruptions to the normal operations for providing services to the citizens.  He also noted that the County Administration Building does not meet the FEMA critical facilities structural standards for an emergency operations center.  He then explained the major requirements for the grants and noted that there must be a 15 year commitment for the building to be utilized for emergency management purposes, there must be day-to-day space for emergency management staff and a minimum square footage for the emergency operations center, it must have a wind load of 160 mph, and there must be redundant utilities and increased Homeland Security protection measures for the vital functions.

Mr. Kristian Swenson, Facilities Development and Management Director, continued the presentation stating that the building was designed to house dispatch and administrative offices for the Sheriff’s Office and Lake EMS, the Emergency Operations Center, dormitory space that converts into classrooms during non-emergency times, emergency management breakout rooms that convert to conference rooms and training spaces, information technology rooms for secure servers, and space for transportation management.  He noted that the original project budget was approximately $11 million and after Board direction, it was reduced to $9 million.  He pointed out that staff considered multiple building reductions and space eliminations as an effort to reduce the budget and specified that they reduced the building interior finishes, the amount of windows, eliminated some furniture and audio visual equipment, and modified the HVAC, electrical and lighting.  He indicated that they also eliminated an audio visual control room, locker rooms, the joint information center, and only kept one decompression room and converted the breakout rooms so they could be used as conference rooms.  He mentioned that the bidding period started in December 2011 and of the 1,313 companies that were solicited to bid for the project, 387 were based out of Lake County.  He noted that they received a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) at around $8.6 million, which was approximately a $400,000 savings from the original estimate and stated that $502,365 had been spent to date on the project for design, permitting, independent estimating and the design review of electrical and mechanical systems.

Mr. Steve Koontz, Budget Director, explained the funding sources for the project and noted that the 911 Fund portion was $619,466, the Ambulance MSTU portion was $292,011, the Infrastructure Sales Tax portion was $3,635,121, and the grant funding portion was $4,058,873.  He also mentioned that he would be making a few mid-year adjustments for necessary budget transfers.

Mr. Swenson concluded the presentation stating that there were provisions in the contract for the construction manager to solicit local subcontractors in order to receive as much local participation as possible and noted that 40.9 percent of the GMP subcontractor costs were fees to local subcontractors.  He then discussed the alternatives for the proposed building and noted that they worked with the County’s independent estimator and came up with three alternatives.  He mentioned that Alternative 1 was to construct a 14,400 square foot building on the proposed site of the ECOC building for a joint EMS and Sheriff’s Office communications center.  He added that the building would not include space for the emergency operations center or emergency management offices and that the estimated project cost was about $5.9 million.  He related that Alternative 2 was to construct an 8,400 square foot building to house the Sheriff’s Office communications center only, but it would not be large enough to be used as a joint-use facility with EMS.  He noted that the building would not include the emergency operations center or emergency management offices and that the estimated project cost was about $3.6 million.  He stated that Alternative 3 was to reconfigure the 1st floor of the Sheriff’s Administration Building to see whether it could accommodate the Sheriff’s dispatch operations; however, it would not be large enough to be used as a joint-use facility with EMS.  He mentioned that the building would not include space for emergency management, an emergency operations center or EMS and that the estimated project cost was about $2.5 million, which was contingent upon an acceptable structural analysis of the building.  He also noted that the project of reconfiguring the Historic Courthouse for Sheriff’s Office staff and SWAT vehicles would have to be readdressed.  He then pointed out that since Alternatives 2 and 3 did not have an EMS component to them, the ambulance MSTU could not be utilized to fund those.

Commr. Parks inquired about the E-Verify requirements.

Mr. Swenson explained that the contract predated the E-Verify requirements, but after discussions with PPI, they planned to amend the contracts to comply with those requirements.

Commr. Campione asked if PPI could approach all of the Lake County bidders and give them the opportunity to match the low bid.

Mr. Glenn Mullins, Vice President of PPI Construction Management, replied that they could go back and ask the contractors to supply them with their best and final numbers to see if they could match the low bid.

Commr. Hill stated that her only concern with that was making sure the local contractors could provide quality work.

Mr. Mullins pointed out that all of the bids they received were from qualified contractors, so he was confident that any of them could do the job.

Commr. Conner asked if there would be any negative ramifications in going back to solicit the local contractors, such as decreasing the competition on future projects because the County only wanted to choose local contractors.

Mr. Mullins replied that there was a possibility of decreasing competition if contractors from other counties got the impression that they could not work in Lake County because they were not local.

Commr. Conner expressed that they should establish a policy for future projects because he felt that by not honoring the competitive process, they were jeopardizing the integrity of that process.  He added that he wanted the Lake County vendors to get as much work as possible, but they were given the opportunity to compete and it seemed as though the County was trying to determine the outcome.  He then asked if there would be any legal ramifications by doing that.

Mr. Minkoff stated that there were not any because it was a contract between PPI and the subcontractors.  He noted that the only issue for the County could be that once Orange County realized that Lake County was imposing a preference, then they could do the same.

Commr. Cadwell mentioned that he has always supported the project and would continue to do so, and although he felt it was not good business policy to have PPI go back to the local contractors, he would support that as well.

Commr. Conner noted that they may be doing more harm than good, because it could be difficult for Lake County companies to get jobs in Orange County.  He also asked if this would cause a delay in completing the project or possibly cause some unintended consequences.

Mr. Mullins answered “no,” and added that the contracts for the major contractors to start the project were not in the category in question, so they could move forward with those.

Commr. Conner stated that they needed to specify to PPI what the County’s definition of a local business was because there were some companies where most of the employees resided in Lake County, but the actual business was located outside of Lake County.

Mr. Minkoff defined that a local business is an entity that had its primary location or a significant location in Lake County.

Commr. Campione asked if there could be an issue of a bid challenge.

Mr. Mullins explained that it could come back as a bid challenge so he would have to be careful in how he executed the task since ethics were involved and because he wanted to continue to do business with those contractors in the future.  He stated that he had not made commitments to any of the contractors so he reserved the right to waive informalities in the bidding process and do what was in the best interest of the project.

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

Mr. Jim Judge, Executive Director of Lake EMS, stated that he was in support of the proposed Emergency Communications and Operations Center and pointed out that when EMS relocated to their current location in Mount Dora 10 years ago, it was supposed to only be temporary.  He explained that at that time, they were only providing communications services to Lake County Fire Rescue and EMS, but their responsibilities have grown over the years and they now provide communications services to all of the fire departments in Lake County as well.  He expressed that they have outgrown their current location and they look forward to the opportunity to co-locate with the Sheriff’s Office in the new facility.

Mr. Fred Costello, a resident of Clermont, mentioned that on the original proposal there was a line item for $104,000 for security and asked if that amount had been reduced. 

Mr. Swenson clarified that the amount was rolled into the GMP, but it was reduced to about $80,000.

Mr. Costello recommended that the Board review the security very carefully to see what might be compromised with that reduction.  He then asked when the building would run out of capacity given the growth of the County.

Commr. Campione replied that the timeframe was 15 years.

Mr. B.E. Pace II, a resident of Eustis, asked for clarification on whether the administrative staff for the Sheriff’s Office, Fire Rescue and EMS would be located in the new building.

Commr. Campione answered that the new building would be for dispatch and the administrative staff associated with emergency operations and emergency management.

Mr. Pace also asked whether they planned to locate all of the staff in that building in the future.

Commr. Campione replied that that was not being requested of the Board.  She added that they planned to address the Sheriff’s needs by making renovations to the Historical Courthouse.

Ms. Linda Wentworth, a resident of Montverde, asked if the cities paid a fee to the County to cover the cost of having the Sheriff’s Office provide dispatch services for those cities.

Commr. Campione explained that the cities use 911 tax funds and their own general fund money to fund their dispatch centers, so when the cities contract with the Sheriff’s Office to provide dispatch services, the County combines all of the 911 funds and uses those funds to operate one center.  She added that it saves money for the cities who want to participate in that option.

Mr. Jon Pospisil, a resident of Goldenrod, expressed that he appreciated the way the Board has worked to lower the cost of the project and he hoped that they move forward with it.

Mr. Vance Jochim, a resident of Tavares who writes a blog called FiscalRangers.com, stated that he has followed the ECOC project since it first started and although he was originally against it, he felt that the County was too far into the project and that it would hurt their reputation by reversing their position now.  He mentioned that he has yet to hear discussion about whether the cities will be contributing enough funds in order for the County to recapture the costs of providing dispatch services for them.

Commr. Cadwell commented that city residents participate in sales tax.

There being no one else who wished to address the Board, the Chairman closed the public hearing.

Commr. Campione stated that public safety was the most essential service that the County provides to the residents and it was very clear that it was best practice to have the emergency operations and the communications center together in the same building and also because it eliminates duplication.  She noted that with the condition of having Lake County contractors working on the project, she was ready to support moving ahead.

Commr. Hill expressed that she was in support of the project and thanked staff and the construction manager for such a great presentation and for making the project efficient and cost effective so that they could maintain the same level of service for the citizens.

Commr. Parks related that he supported the project and pointed out that they would have operational savings by consolidating those functions.

Commr. Conner explained that although he originally did not support the project, he now supported it because he felt there was a critical need for it.  He added that it was a better value for the taxpayers to combine the emergency operations and communications center into one hardened facility and by doing that, they would start a trend of eliminating the duplication of services.  He stated that because the project cost had been cut, the County could pay for it without having any debt and pointed out they were sending a strong message that they wanted to do business locally.

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved a GMP of $6,603,995 to PPI Construction Management for the construction of the Emergency Communications and Operations Center project, the amended project budget, and authorized the Chairman to sign the associated construction and grant implementing documents.  The Board also requested that PPI Construction Management approach all of the Lake County bidders to give them the opportunity to match the low bids and to make sure that the contracts were amended to comply with the E-Verify requirements.

RECESS AND REASSEMBLY

The Chairman announced that there would be a ten-minute recess at 1:14 p.m.

public hearings

ordinance regarding pain management clinics

Mr. Minkoff placed the proposed ordinance on the floor for its first and final reading by title only, as follows:

AN ORDINANCE OF LAKE COUNTY, FLORIDA RELATING TO PAIN MANAGEMENT CLINICS; AMENDING SECTION 14-101, LAKE COUNTY CODE; EXTENDING A MORATORIUM ON THE ISSUANCE OF BUSINESS TAX RECEIPTS FOR NEW PAIN MANAGEMENT CLINICS FOR A PERIOD OF SIX (6) MONTHS; AMENDING SECTION 14-104, LAKE COUNTY CODE, REGARDING STAFF REPORTS; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE CODE; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

 

Mr. Minkoff stated that staff had been working on a presentation for the Board regarding pain management clinics and should be bringing that back within a few months.

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

There being no one who wished to address the Board, the Chairman closed the public hearing.

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved Ordinance No. 2012-12 extending the moratorium on the issuance of new business tax receipts for Pain Management Clinics, amending Article VII, Chapter 14, Lake County Code.

ordinance regarding the lake county zoning board

Mr. Minkoff placed the proposed ordinance on the floor for its first and final reading by title only, as follows:

AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF LAKE COUNTY, FLORIDA; AMENDING THE FOLLOWING SECTIONS OF THE LAKE COUNTY CODE, APPENDIX E, LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS TO CHANGE ALL REFERENCES FROM THE LAKE COUNTY ZONING BOARD TO THE LAKE COUNTY PLANNING & ZONING BOARD: SECTIONS 6.06.03, 7.00.04, 7.00.08, 13.04.00, 14.00.04, 14.00.05, 14.00.09, 14.03.02, 14.03.03, 14.05.02, 14.05.03, 14.05.05, 14.18.03; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE CODE; PROVIDING FOR FILING WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

 

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

There being no one who wished to address the Board, the Chairman closed the public hearing.

On a motion by Commr. Hill, seconded by Commr. Parks and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved Ordinance No. 2012-13 changing the name of the Lake County Zoning Board to the Lake County Planning & Zoning Board.

vacation petition no. 1173 – clermont

Mr. Jim Stivender, Public Works Director, stated that the request was to vacate tracts and right of way from the plat in Monte Vista Park Farms.  He added that rights of ways have already been vacated to the west, but the lots needed to be vacated to ensure there was road access, so staff was recommending approval of the request.

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

There being no one who wished to address the Board, the Chairman closed the public hearing.

On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Conner and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved Vacation Petition No. 1173 to vacate tracts and right of way from the plat of Monte Vista Park Farms in PB 2, PG 27, City of Clermont area and approval and execution of Resolution No. 2012-18.

vacation petition no. 1171 – eustis

Commr. Conner declared a conflict of interest because First Green Bank, which was a client of his, had concerns about the vacation petition.

Mr. Stivender explained that the request was to vacate a frontage road right of way and easement in front of the Advantage Chrysler Dodge Jeep dealership which would allow for public access.  He noted that the area south of the frontage road was considered Mount Dora city limits and the area to the north was considered Eustis city limits.  He added that the County was initiating the proposal on behalf of Eustis and that they just found out yesterday that the adjacent owner, First Green Bank, was concerned about the access to their site.  He pointed out that the petitioner and a representative for First Green Bank was present to discuss the case and that he would like to have an agreement between both parties before proceeding with vacating the right of way.

Commr. Campione asked if the frontage road was wide enough for two-way traffic.

Mr. Stivender replied “yes.”

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

Mr. Scott Gerken, Lawyer representing First Green Bank, explained that when the Advantage Chrysler dealership was built 20 years ago, they were given 50 feet of right of way for the purpose of having a frontage road along Highway 441, but more recently they started using it for expansion of their dealership.  He stated that when First Green Bank was being developed, they were required to complete the frontage road from the dealership to East Crooked Lake Drive.  He pointed out that the only way to get to First Green Bank from 441 was through the entry way at the dealership and that area has caused many safety problems because the dealership was using it to park vehicles, but residents were travelling on it and using it as a road without there being any traffic control devices on it.  He related that right of way was a valuable commodity and it should only be given up for public benefit, and he felt that the dealership’s reason for vacating that right of way was purely a private benefit.  He stressed that since they had a variety of concerns with the vacation petition, they wanted to postpone any action on it for 30 days so they could discuss the matter further with the applicant and the City of Eustis to try to come to an agreement.

Mr. Scott Sumner, representing Advantage Chrysler Dodge Jeep dealership, stated that the dealership had to give up the 50 foot easement when they developed their site in the mid 1990’s and now the City of Eustis owns that right of way.  He noted that the dealership built the frontage road and the driveway connection to 441 with their own expenses and they have never been compensated for it.  He added that they have been trying to acquire the right of way for several months because they were in the process of remodeling their dealership and they wanted to clean up the frontage road and landscape it.  He pointed out that they have parked cars on that area in the past, but for many years they were the only business out there.  He expressed that they cannot do anything with that frontage road until they have ownership of it and until the site plan is approved, so they would like to work with First Green Bank through the site plan process with the City of Eustis.

Commr. Campione asked if he had discussed with the City of Eustis about working on a site plan that the County could also review in conjunction with the vacation.

Mr. Sumner replied “yes,” adding that he was not sure what the end result would be other than the fact that the frontage road needed to be landscaped and cleaned up.  He related that they were not intending to park cars out there, but there may be some opportunities in the landscape process to display some of their featured cars.

Commr. Campione asked if the site plan would address the safety concerns related to parking display cars near the frontage road.

Mr. Sumner responded that they were not going to park any vehicles in that area until the site plan was approved, but the City of Eustis had already told them that they would need to install stop signs.  He mentioned that a meeting was set up with the City that afternoon to discuss the site plan.

Commr. Campione asked if the City of Eustis would then be liable for the easement.

Mr. Minkoff explained that the County attempted to transfer the right of way to Eustis, but they did not want to take it because they wanted the County to approve the vacation first.  He added that Eustis wanted the vacation to occur at the County level as opposed to the City level.

Mr. Stivender recommended that they postpone the vacation until the next Board meeting so that the two parties involved could resolve their issues.

Mr. Gerken mentioned that the language of the easement stated that it was not effective until the City of Eustis received a right of way deed from the County for that property and he noted that because the County did not do that, it made the easement useless.  He related that if the vacation took place, the dealership may not be allowed to park cars in that area, but they were not obligated to address any of the traffic or safety concerns.  He stated that two weeks should be enough time to work something out.

Mr. B.E. Pace II, a resident of Eustis, stated that he lived within 250 feet of the dealership and mentioned that when the dealership was being built, they were specifically instructed to not park any vehicles on either side of the frontage road, but there were vehicles being parked on both sides.  He added that there was also sod in place at that time, but over the past 10 years, the sod was replaced with limestone and rocks.  He also expressed his concerns about vacating the frontage road because that road made it easy for people to access those businesses without having to use 441.

Commr. Campione clarified that the frontage road would remain and that it was a matter of whether it would belong to the County or the City of Eustis.

There being no one else who wished to address the Board, the Chairman closed the public hearing.

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried by a 4-0 vote, the Board moved to postpone voting on Vacation Petition No. 1171 to vacate right of way and easement (19-19-27) in the Eustis Area until the March 13, 2012 BCC meeting.

Commr. Conner abstained from voting.

rezonings

rezoning consent agenda

Mr. Brian Sheahan, Planning and Community Design Manager, noted that the only item on the agenda was on consent and explained that the property had an existing kennel and the owner was requesting to split it into two properties and remove the conditional use from one portion.

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

There being no one who wished to address the Board, the Chairman closed the public hearing.

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the Rezoning Consent Agenda as follows:

Tab 1.  Ordinance No. 2012-14

CUP #12/2/1-5

Margaret McElroy

Toby Young Contracting, LLC

McElroy Kennel

Request to amend Ordinance #1995-31 granting a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) in the Agriculture (A) Zoning District for a kennel to remove 10 acres of a 23 acre parcel.

 

other business

appointment to Lake-Sumter Metropolitan Planning Organization Citizens' Advisory Committee

Commr. Cadwell pointed out that Ms. Jamie Hanja did not live in District 5, but she did already participate in those meetings, and as long as the district commissioner did not have a problem with appointing her, he would like to move approval of her appointment.

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the appointment of Ms. Jamie Hanja to the Lake-Sumter Metropolitan Planning Organization Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC), as the District 5 representative to serve a two-year term ending December 31, 2013.

appointment to auditor selection committee

On a motion by Commr. Conner, seconded by Commr. Hill and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the appointment of Mr. Steve Koontz as the Board's representative on the Auditor Selection Committee.

appointments to the library advisory board

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Conner and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the reappointments of Ms. Cynthia Burch as the member representative and Mr. Michael J. Sweeney as the alternate member representative of Fruitland Park; Mr. William Stokes as the member representative and Mr. James Page as the alternate member representative of Lady Lake; and Ms. Paula Bean as the member representative of Howey-in-the-Hills, to serve four-year terms ending February 28, 2016.

discussion regarding suspension of school impact fees

Commr. Campione stated that the School Board voted to support a 12 month suspension of school impact fees, but they would also like a recommendation from the Capital Facilities Advisory Committee (CFAC), specifically a mechanism that would trigger putting the impact fees back into place at some level, such as when growth started to happen.  She noted that they would like to put a six month timeframe on receiving that recommendation and they would like to have a School Board voting member on the CFAC.  She also mentioned that when the impact fee consultant makes a presentation to the CFAC, the Board could attend that meeting and they could then look at putting together a comprehensive solution that would address everyone’s concerns.

Mr. Minkoff pointed out that they prepared an ordinance amendment to change the School Board representative on the CFAC from the Superintendent’s appointment to a School Board voting member and to also provide for an alternate member.  He noted that the Board would need to add the items to the agenda in order to advertise the ordinances and he also mentioned that the School Board had requested to allow an alternate member on the Planning and Zoning Board and he would like to advertise that ordinance at the same time.

Commr. Campione related that the School Board was also requesting that School Board member Debbie Stivender sit as a non-voting member at the next Planning and Zoning Board meeting since School Board member Jim Miller could not attend and also asked to include that in the motion.

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Conner and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board added to the agenda the request for the County Attorney’s Office to prepare and advertise ordinances regarding suspending school impact fees for 12 months, changing the membership of the CFAC from a School Board appointee to an elected School Board member and to allow for an alternate, and to allow an alternate School Board member on the Planning and Zoning Board, as well as the request from the School Board for School Board member Debbie Stivender to sit as a non-voting member at the next Planning and Zoning Board meeting in place of School Board member Jim Miller.

On a motion by Commr. Conner, seconded by Commr. Parks and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved to advertise the above ordinances and the above request for School Board member Debbie Stivender to sit as a non-voting member at the next Planning and Zoning Board meeting.

reports – county manager

medicaid expense

Mr. Gray reported that the Florida Association of Counties sent out an alert stating that the Senate had passed a measure for a cost shift with Medicaid, which would result in an additional $4.2 million expense for the County if it passed.  He noted that it was going to the House soon and he encouraged them to contact the legislators in opposition of that.

reports – commissioner parks – district 2

request for resolution for the city of groveland

Commr. Parks requested putting together a resolution in honor of the City of Groveland’s 90th birthday.

Mr. Gray mentioned that they could add that to a future agenda.

REPORTS – COMMISsIONER campione – CHAIRMAN & DISTRICT 4

workforce central florida’s audit committee

Commr. Campione stated that Workforce Central Florida had asked for the Board to appoint a member to the Audit Committee and that Ms. Barbara Lehman had agreed to serve on that committee.

On a motion by Commr. Conner, seconded by Commr. Parks and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board added the appointment to the agenda.

On a motion by Commr. Conner, seconded by Commr. Parks and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the appointment of Ms. Barbara Lehman to serve on the Workforce Central Florida’s Audit Committee.

forum at the cutrale plant

Commr. Campione mentioned that she went to a forum recently at the Cutrale plant in Leesburg in which the School Board, Lake Tech, Lake-Sumter Community College, and the Economic Development Department were invited and the CEO of Cutrale and other manufacturers discussed their problems with filling their workforce needs.  She noted that Cutrale was projecting that they would need to hire 250 employees for the expansion of their plant over the next three years and while there already were current job openings, they were having a difficult time filling them.  She added that Cutrale was in the process of working with Lake Tech to tailor programs to fit their needs.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business to be brought to the attention of the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 2:23 p.m.

 

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leslie campione, chairman

 

 

ATTEST:

 

 

 

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NEIL KELLY, CLERK