A REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

March 10, 2015

The Lake County Board of County Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, March 10, 2015 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:  Jimmy Conner, Chairman; Sean Parks, Vice Chairman; Timothy I. Sullivan; Leslie Campione; and Welton G. Cadwell.  Others present were:  David Heath, County Manager; Sanford A. “Sandy” Minkoff, County Attorney; Wendy Taylor, Executive Office Manager; Neil Kelly, Clerk of Court; Barbara F. Lehman, Chief Deputy Clerk, County Finance; and Victoria Bartley, Deputy Clerk.

INVOCATION and pledge

Mr. Rich Fountain, Senior Pastor of The First Baptist Church of Tavares, gave the Invocation and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Agenda update

Mr. David Heath, County Manager, relayed that Tab 7 needed to be pulled for discussion.  

minutes approval

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Sullivan, and carried by a vote of 4-0, the Board approved the Minutes for the following BCC Meetings:  February 6, 2015 (Special Meeting) and February 10, 2015 (Regular Meeting) as presented.

awards

Mr. Robert Anderson, Human Resources Director, presented the following awards, commenting briefly on the employee’s service to the County.

BOARD/COMMITTEE CERTIFICATES

Affordable Housing Advisory Committee

Ms. Rene O’Day, for service from 2013-2014 (not present)

 

Board of Building Examiners

Leonard Di Silvestro, for service from 2008-2015 (not present)

William D. Hauser, for service from 2013-2015 (not present)

 

Elder Affairs Coordinating Council

Deanna Chapman, for service from 2006-2015 (not present)

 

Planning & Zoning Board

Kasey C. Kesselring, for service from 2011-2015

 

Mt. Plymouth-Sorrento Community Redevelopment Advisory Committee

Frances Geddes, for service from 2013-2015 (not present)

 

Tourist Development Council

Councilman Ray Goodgame, for service from 2005-2014

 

EMPLOYEE AWARDS

 

FIVE YEARS

Carlos Herrera – Firefighter/Paramedic (not present)

Public Safety/Fire Rescue Division

 

TEN YEARS

Shelly Coates – Database and App Coordinator

Information Technology/Programming & Application Support Division

 

Jeffrey Lord – Firefighter/EMT (not present)

Public Safety/Fire Rescue Division

 

Thomas Mitchell – Firefighter/Paramedic (not present)

Public Safety/Fire Rescue Division

 

FIFTEEN YEARS

William Cork – Firefighter/EMT (not present)

Public Safety/Fire Rescue Division

 

Noah Hollis – Firefighter/EMT (not present)

Public Safety/Fire Rescue Division

 

Truman McCall – Equipment Operator III

Public Works/Road Operations Division/Maintenance Area III (Umatilla)

 

Michael Quick – Firefighter/Paramedic (not present)

Public Safety/Fire Rescue Division

 

Jeff Sandy – Chief Plans Examiner (not present)

Economic Growth/Building Services Division

 

THIRTY-FIVE YEARS

Teresa Dunham – Program Supervisor

Community Services/Housing Services Division

 

Mr. Bill Veach, Deputy County Manager, presented the presented the following quarterly employee awards, commenting briefly on the employee’s service to the County.

 

EMPLOYEE OF THE QUARTER – 1st Quarter FY2015

Jeffrey Hurst – Fire Lieutenant/EMT

Public Safety

 

SUPERVISOR OF THE QUARTER – 1st Quarter FY2015

Brook Miller – Parks & Trails Program Manager

Public Resources

 

T.E.A.M. OF THE QUARTER – 1st Quarter FY2015

Solid Waste Phone Bank Team

 

citizen question and comment period             

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

clerk of court’s consent agenda

On a motion by Commr. Sullivan, seconded by Commr. Parks, and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the Clerk of Courts’ Consent Agenda, Items 1 and 2, 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.

 

Ordinance from Town of Lady Lake

Request to acknowledge receipt of Ordinance from the Town of Lady Lake for the voluntary contraction (deannexation) of approximately 3.18 acres of real property generally located south of Lake Griffin and east of Dulgar Road, described in attached Exhibit A.

 

COUNTY MANAGER’S CONSENT AGENDA

On a motion by Commr. Sullivan, seconded by Commr. Parks and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the County Manager’s Consent Agenda, Tabs 3 through 13, pulling Tab 7 as follows:

Community Services

Request for approval to purchase supplemental software from RouteMatch Software, Inc. under County contract 08-0612 for Lake County Public Transportation system. The fiscal impact is $129,985, and is fully grant-funded

 

County Attorney

Request for approval of Lease Agreement between Lake County and Grande Commercial Property, LLC, for the Sheriff’s lease space located at 108 LaGrande Boulevard in Lady Lake. The fiscal impact is $12,930.66 for FY14/15.

 

Facilities Development and Management

Request for approval to award contract 15-0208 for re-roofing of the Expo Building at the County Fairgrounds to Pat Lynch Construction (Orlando). The fiscal impact is $28,925 (Expenditure).

 

Fiscal and Administrative Services

            Request for approval for the purchase of four (4) Lifepak cardiac monitor/defibrillators and accessories for Lake EMS from Physio-Control Inc. (Chicago, IL), with authorization for Procurement Services to execute all supporting documentation, and approval of standardization of Physio-Control product line until such time any alternate action is considered and approved. The initial fiscal impact for the four (4) Lifepak cardiac monitor/defibrillators is $99,182.20 (Expenditure).

 

Public Safety

Request for approval and execution of Interlocal Agreement between Lake County, Florida, and the School Board of Lake County for County-wide Communications System. The fiscal impact is $144.00 (Revenue) annually.

 

Public Works

Request for approval of installation of covered shelters and improvements at the closed Phase I Landfill at the County's Solid Waste Facility to fly radio controlled scale model aircraft, per the original 1998 agreement with LARKS (Lake Aircraft Radio Kontrol Squadron). There is no fiscal impact, as the shelters and improvements will be made by LARK.

 

Request for approval of contract 15-0615 to Raynor Shine Services, LLC (Ocoee, FL) for the processing, grinding, and as-requested transporting of yard trash, land clearing debris, and dimensional lumber on an as-required basis, and authorization for the Procurement Office to execute all supporting documentation. The fiscal impact is estimated to be $215,000 (Expenditure).

 

Request for approval to award contract for 15-0412 to Cemex (Davenport / Leesburg / Clermont, FL) and Dixie Lime and Stone Company (Ocala, FL) and authorize the Procurement Office to execute all supporting documentation. The initial estimate of fiscal impact is $30,000 (Expenditure).

 

Request for approval to assign two separate County contracts currently awarded to Leidos Engineering, one for debris management / monitoring and one for environmental engineering, to Tetra Tech Inc. and the Louis Berger Group respectively, due to corporate acquisition proceedings; and to authorize the procurement office to complete all implementing documentation. There is no fiscal impact.

 

Fiscal and Administrative Services

award for ambulance REFURBISHING

Commr. Sullivan opined that the issue of the ambulance refurbishing contract should be referred back to the full EMS Board for action, as there may be some operational concerns for the EMS district.

Commr. Campione commented that she had some concerns because of the way the RFP was written and felt that it wasn’t broad enough to go out with a further reach to be as competitive as she would like to see contracts of this magnitude be.  She mentioned that this is an issue that she would like to talk to the EMS board about, since the five commissioners were a part of a larger EMS board, where the EMS board ultimately makes decisions, but the BCC would have been awarding this contract.  She explained that this contract was limited to a small geographic area, but seeing how refurbishing ambulances is very common for people who provide warranty service, it should be more competitive, and she found in her research that other locations did not limit the geographic area to miles, but went by the region to find any providers that could offer the service and compared the cost with the quality of work with any company that is responsive.  She opined that the Board needs to have this discussion because they are doing the procurement side on what is an EMS board issue.

Commr. Cadwell pointed out that there have been past instances where an issue has arisen that needed to be relegated back to the EMS Board, so that is not the major concern here.  He clarified that the bids were sealed and that the question was how they had written the request for bids.

Commr. Campione agreed and mentioned that only Polk, Sumter, Lake, Seminole, and Marion Counties could bid, which resulted in only two companies bidding on a contract that could turn into a large expenditure over time, since it is possible to continue on with this contract from five ambulances to eventually fifteen or twenty.

Commr. Sullivan clarified that he was in favor of sending the issue back to the full EMS Board, in the interest of saving time.

Mr. Heath commented that the Procurement staff had clarified that the bids would be required to be held until the 19th of this month, but that the bid holders had indicated that they would hold them for a reasonable period of time.  He opined that a special meeting with the full EMS Board may be necessary.

Mr. Jerry Smith, Executive Director Lake EMS, explained that the bid had been restricted to a total of eight counties and clarified that the restriction was not for the work of the actual refurbishing of the ambulances, which could be done at location, but that the specific jurisdictional issue had to come with the warranty work.  He reported that the reason for the warranty work was because an ambulance’s warranty differs from a regular vehicle’s warranty; the frame or truck part of the ambulance is made to the manufacturer’s specification like a regular vehicle, but the box part is hand-crafted to Lake EMS’ specifications.  He relayed that when the ambulance is refurnished, it gets completely new wiring, a new AC system, and the door frames may be re-wielded, all of which come out of the warranty.  He commented that  having the warranty work to be done in close proximity allows staff to negotiate with work being done, and the reason the RFP had been worded that way was so there would be a representative of the company doing the refurbishing within that geographical area.  He related that they had only eleven spare ambulances with roughly half having some kind of mechanical work done and the other half reserved as spares, however they try not to have a unit that is programed to have preventive maintenance done on the list as a spare, so in theory they may be without spares at times.   He reported that they had only had two units refurbished in the last two years, and there has not been any particular issue with the warranty work, so they had not utilized that organization to have anything done other than the warranty work.  He clarified that they felt it would be operationally problematic to not have someone in close geographical proximity to Lake County to do the warranty work because of the limited number of resources they have for spares.

Commr. Sullivan commented that perhaps the issue was that they are refurbishing units when they do not have enough in reserve to do so and that they perhaps need to go a different route for the two or three that need to be refurbished immediately, as opposed to tying up their resources.

Commr. Cadwell noted that the Board should clarify whether the issue was that a vendor did not submit a bid because of how it was written before they went to the full EMS Board.

Mr. Smith clarified that the reason they had gone through the BCC for this RFP was because there was money allocated out of the penny sales tax for the acquisition of ambulances, but those funds cannot be transferred to Lake EMS and must be expended by the BCC.

Mr. Heath explained that they have other users of their procurement process, for instance buying cars for the Sherriff’s office with the penny sales tax.  He reported that his direction to staff was to defer to the agency that is developing the specs, so when special instructions like the geographic preference for this contract are given, they are honored and they become part of what is advertised.

Commr. Conner pointed out that if they re-bid this contract when they already have bids that were submitted, then anyone who came in after the fact would know what they are bidding against.  He clarified that a company does not have to have its own shop in the specified eight county area, they only need to have a relationship with a local shop.

Mr. Smith related that the other company that had been considered would have done the initial work in North Carolina, but had a site that was in the geographical boundaries where the warranty work would be done.

Commr. Campione specified that she agreed with Commr. Conner’s point, but did not think that was how the language in the RFP was written, as it says that “they shall maintain a facility within these certain boundaries, and this facility shall be staffed by a competent company representative who can be contacted during normal working hours and who is authorized to discuss matters pertaining to the contract.”  She commented that the language is very limiting as it is now.  

Commr. Conner clarified that there had been only two bids on the contract, though it had been sent out to sixty-eight people.  He confirmed that the intent of the verbiage in the RFP meant that the company needed to have a location there themselves or only a relationship with an approved company in that location.

Mr. Smith remarked that they could not be sure that throwing out the current bids would save the commission any money, but that they try to be cost effective while also getting quality work so that it does not impact them operationally.  He confirmed that the approved company of the bid is also who was approved to purchase new ambulances from and that Lake Sumter EMS and Lake EMS have been utilizing this organization since 2003.  He commented that the ambulances are hand-crafted, so having a strong relationship with the person that is doing the warranty work is extremely important to them.

Commr. Cadwell mentioned that throwing out an already sealed bid might become a black mark on their record.

Commr. Campione replied that the black mark would be that the contract is not as inclusive as it could be and that the language is problematic and inconsistent with how its intended purposes have been described.  She clarified that her issue is the implication that there must be a physical place that the company owns and maintains as opposed to a particular provider that the company has selected in the area.

Commr. Conner opined that there might be a better way to write the RFP, but also that warranty work is very important, and they already have a good relationship with the company they are doing business with.

On a motion by Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Sullivan, and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved a motion to refer this item back to the full EMS Board for the logistics on how they handle work on refurbished units.

Mr. Heath clarified that if the EMS Board agrees that the contract is fine as it is, it will go back on the agenda for approval, and if the EMS Board decides to throw the current bids out and re-advertise under the new guidelines, he has permission to do so without any further meetings.

public hearing

issuance of an Industrial Development Revenue Note

Mr. Sandy Minkoff, County Attorney, reported that there was a request from Family Christian Center of Clermont, Inc. for the issuance of an Industrial Development Revenue Note to refinance an existing bank loan debt.

The Chairman opened the public hearing.

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

Commr. Campione clarified that this was an educational facility for grades pre-Kindergarten through twelfth. 

Mr. Heath confirmed that should this entity default on these bonds, it will not affect Lake County’s bond rating.

Mr. Joe Stanton, Broad and Cassel, reported that the loan would be placed directly with the bank, and the bank is taking a mortgage on the underlying property, so if there is a default they will seek to recover it through the property itself.  He clarified that they were refinancing it all in order to have interest savings on the borrowing.

On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Sullivan, and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved Resolution 2015-22 authorizing issuance of an Industrial Development Revenue Note for Family Christian Center of Clermont, Inc., not to exceed $5,500,000.

Economic Growth and Community Services Department

proposed annexation of Plaza Collina DRI into Clermont

Ms. Amye King, Community Liaison Manager, gave the Board an update on the proposed annexation of the Plaza Collina DRI into the City of Clermont.  She explained that the Plaza Collina DRI encompasses 142 acres, was approved through three ordinances on January 24, 2006 which allowed for mixed use development containing 1.2 million square feet of retail space and 200 condo units, and that an encumbrance to annex was filed with Clermont on February 14, 2006.  She displayed several of the conceptual plan designs on the monitor.  She commented that throughout the development order and the planned unit development, there were requirements, such as road improvements at the intersections of CR 438, CR 50, and JW Jones Road, that the developer shall pay for a roundabout option to the Town of Oakland at the time of obtaining a certificate of occupancy for 425,000 square feet of leased space or a payment of $200,000 to the Town of Oakland, and bicycle and pedestrian facilities that were to be covered throughout the DRI.  She mentioned that further requirements included that the developer will contribute to an operations fund for extension of transit service into the Lake County fund for a one-time payment of $200,000, provide a four bus super-stop and other transit conditions, provide proportionate share for a grade-separated crossing on Lake Avenue, and that the developer shall employ a part time employee transportation coordinator when employment reaches five hundred full time employees.  

Mr. Chris Schmitt, Manager of Planning and Community Design for the Department of Economic Growth, gave an overview of the current activity in Lake County.  He explained that there had been a Notice of Proposed Change (NOPC) where the applicant initially met with staff in 2014 to clarify an auto dealership as an allowable use, which staff agreed with.  He reported that staff recommended a NOPC as the applicant sought to remove or revise DRI requirements and that applying for the NOPC also allowed the applicant an opportunity to clarify the uses, which was submitted to the Regional Planning Council (RPC) on October 3, 2014.  He explained that they had wanted to remove or revise the following requirements: the requirement of the road improvements at the intersections of CR 438, CR 50, and JW Jones Road; the payment of $200,000 to the Town of Oakland to be removed; the requirement of bicycle and pedestrian facilities, which is amended to remove the covered parking requirement and to require these facilities to be installed on an individual site plan basis instead of DRI-wide to be revised; the requirement of the LYNX bus transit stop along SR 50 and proposed amendment to delay the developer contribution for transit improvements at CO until the occupancy of 425,000 square feet of commercial space was revised; the requirement of the on-site bus ‘super-stop’ and other transit conditions to be revised; the requirement of the  construction of an east-west roadway from Lake Boulevard, which is being amended to propose phased construction of the roadway to be revised; and the requirement of a proportionate share for a grade-separated crossing on Lake Avenue to be removed.  He reported that the applicant had requested to withdraw the NOPC from RPC on February 24, 2015.  He remarked that the Mass Grading Permit included the Master Site Plan, mass grading, and Master Storm Water Management System; and roadway and utility development construction was approved on April 5, 2012 and submitted for revisions to construction phasing, grading, and conceptual plan on March 2, 2015.  He relayed that the Construction Plans are currently being reviewed and were submitted to Lake County on February 4, 2015 for an approximately 36,000 square feet auto dealership.  He explained that the review cannot be approved by County staff prior to the completion of the NOPC to ensure DRI/DO conditions are met.

Mr. Schmitt expanded on the current activity for the City of Clermont and displayed on the monitor the dates for the Clermont annexation including; scheduled meetings for the City of Clermont City Council on March 10 and 24 for annexation and tentatively scheduled meetings for the City of Clermont Planning & Zoning Board on April 7, 2015 (FLU/CUP).  He remarked that County staff has reviewed the City of Clermont PUD, and the DRI development requirements, other than design, have been incorporated into the proposed Clermont PUD.  He explained that the Clermont rezoning is a mixed-use commercial center including a shopping center not to exceed 1,200,000 square feet of floor area and may include 200 residential dwelling units that may consist of townhomes or apartments.  He relayed that this allows for C-2 Commercial zoning, retail, personal services, professional offices, and restaurants and that one automotive dealership may be permitted on site, with any additional automotive dealership requiring an amendment to the CUP.  He summarized that the Plaza Collina was approved as a regional mixed use project and that the request for an auto dealership is not a defined use in the DRI/PUD, and that although it is staff’s opinion that an auto dealership is an allowable use, it does not meet the DRI/DO requirements.  He related that the applicant applied for the NOPC to remove and revise DRI requirements, that staff requested to clarify the uses, and that the NOPC was withdrawn by the applicant.  He reported that Clermont is the utility provider, has encumbered to annex, and is also a DULA; and the DRI may be rescinded per statute if annexed.  He concluded that the proposed Clermont CUP allows one auto dealership and incorporates County DRI requirements.

Mr. Schmitt clarified that the road improvements at the intersections and the roundabout payment were removed as requirements to the DRI, that the bicycle and pedestrian facilities requirement had been revised to be put in on a site by site basis, that the LYNX bus transit stop and improvements requirement was revised as it reached the threshold of 425,000 square feet, that the construction to the east-west roadway be phased, and that the requirement of the proportionate share for a grade-separated crossing on Lake Avenue was removed. 

Commr. Parks reported that the conceptual plans were discussed heavily and in detail throughout the public hearings, and that there is reference to some of the architectural drawings in the DO itself.

Ms. Barbara Hollerand, Development Services Director for the City of Clermont, reported that this issue was on their agenda with an introduction with the annexation ordinance and the postponed Comprehensive Plan amendment scheduled for that night, and that the Planning and Zoning Commission had tabled the Comp Plan amendment and the CUP for the PUD for their April meeting instead.  She related that they are still in discussion with representatives of the applicant and that there are some points in the CUP for the PUD that they need to work through, particularly with regard to the uses, and that they have incorporated several of the County comments.

Commr. Campione inquired if the CUP, PUD, or LDRs had architectural design criteria that would result in something similar in concept to the architectural renderings they had been shown.

Ms. Hollerand replied that they had some, but nothing that would tie it back to the original architectural design from 2006 specifically, though there is some negotiation that will still be moving forward in Clermont that perhaps might have some opportunities for that.

Commr. Campione clarified that they did have design criteria that prescribes signage, massing, and other things that would apply to commercial development, but would have to be addressed in the negotiations as it was still “on the table”.  She commented that this was going to be a Clermont issue because of the ISBA and that the BCC did not have the jurisdiction to do anything aside from offering input.  She opined that she would suggest that Clermont impose the types of design criteria that would create something aesthetically pleasing that the community would be happy with and feel is complimentary to their area.

Commr. Cadwell pointed out that at the beginning of the process, the design standards that are not being included in the PUD were actually advocated by the City of Clermont.

Ms. Hollerand commented that it is not that they do not want those standards to be included, but that they currently do not know how close they are in their discussion to getting that.

Commr. Parks mentioned that many people were concerned about the Highway 50 Corridor and what it is going to look like as it is the gateway into the county.  He also remarked that while the language may technically support such a thing, he respectfully disagreed with staff that an auto dealership falls within allowable use when taking into account the numerous plans that have been put forward. 

Commr. Conner commented that Commr. Parks could write a letter as an individual commissioner expressing his objection to the auto dealership being classified as an allowable use.

Commr. Cadwell opined that the Board could take a stance, requesting that Clermont consider the design standard in the PUD that could be included in Commr. Parks’ letter.

Mr. Jim Hitt, Economic Development Director, reported that since the DRI was originally approved, Clermont did approve the architectural design guidelines as a reference, and they have always encouraged diversification within development.  He pointed out that this is a 160 acre development, and if they limited one side to the other side for a particular design, they would limit the type of developments they would have.  He commented that there were many requirements in regards to height regulations, wall projections, and roof projections, and anything that is exposed to the public must have a type of façade. He relayed that he was confident that they can accomplish what they need to do in terms of architectural design in order to be a gateway for Clermont and Lake County, but it would be self-limiting to be restricted to a specific design criteria in regards to what they are looking for in Clermont.

Commr. Cadwell clarified that the proposed annexation was on the west side, and Clermont could therefore annex only part of it, without committing to the entire 140 acres.

recess and reconvened

The Chairman announced that there would be a fifteen minute recess at 10: 20 A.M.

puBLIC works

Public Transportation Update and Budget Presentation

Ms. Dottie Keedy, Director of Community Services, gave a presentation to provide the BCC with an overview of Public Transportation operations and the proposed FY 2016 Budget.  She displayed on the monitor the division’s organizational chart, which detailed that the Public Transportation Division was a part of the Community Services Department, and the operations consist of 5.95 full-time County employees and the transportation contractor Ride Right.  She mentioned that to better reflect the transition of their services from predominantly paratransit to an increase in fixed route trips, effective October 1, 2015  Public Transportation will be known as the Transit Division.  She related that the Lake County Community Services Department’s mission is to serve as the link between government and the community and to work with numerous partners to improve the quality of life while delivering the highest level of service and that the Lake County Public Transportation Division’s mission is to provide high quality public transportation services to paratransit and transit-dependent riders.  She explained that the levels of service of the Public Transportation System for the fixed route include four existing routes in north Lake County, with one hour Headways for routes 1 through 3 and two hour headways for route 4.  She relayed that the annual ridership was 312,591 trips and 153,540 Paratransit trips in 2013 with a 92 percent on time performance rate.  She reported that some of the organization’s accomplishments included having received the Rural Community Transportation Coordinator (CTC) of the Year in 2014 from the Florida Commission for the Transportation Disadvantaged, that their highest day of ridership was September 2, 2014 where they recorded 1,575 trips, that they had received a sub allocation of 5307 funding through a partnership with LYNX for $348,000, and that they provided service for the Leesburg Partnership’s annual Bikefest which increased bus ridership by 48 percent in 2014.  She mentioned that in order to increase the operations’ efficiencies, they are utilizing GPS on buses, have electronic reporting for paratransit through use of on-bus tablets, have installed cameras on buses for security and passenger safety, and are in the process of phasing in transit software used for scheduling and data collection.  She displayed on the monitor a series of graphs that highlighted a few of their organization’s benchmarks and the paratransit trips per capita, paratransit expense per capita, fixed route trips per capita, and fixed route expense per capita. 

Ms. Keedy explained that Lake County is required to prepare a Transit Development Plan every five years and update that plan each year in between, and the Transit Development Plan this year projects the need for fixed route service in South Lake County.  She reported that the Route 50 LakeXpress Service will provide a connection from Mascotte city hall to the existing LYNX service at the Winter Garden Regional Shopping Center, with any future expansion of services possible through a financial partnership with cities, and there would be two buses providing one hour headways, running from 5:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M., Monday through Friday.  She remarked that as was the case in North Lake County when they initiated fixed route service, they believe that some of the South Lake paratransit riders will be able to use the fixed route system, which will result in savings to the General Fund.  She reported that the Service will utilize three new fixed route Gillig buses, one for daily service in each direction along State Road 50 and one spare bus, at an estimated annual operating cost of $510,000.  She relayed that federal funding will provide dollars to fund the cost of starting service as well as provide 100% of the annual operating costs and that under existing federal rules, funds will be available for 100% of operating costs for at least 10 more years.  She displayed on the monitor a map of the proposed route, with the urbanized areas that the route would pass through shaded in.  She commented that the next steps include meeting with the cities to determine bus stop and shelter locations, beginning design and permitting for stops, and installing signs, and the service could begin in the fourth quarter of 2015 if all proceeds as planned.  She mentioned that the proposed budget also contains one new position of the Operations Supervisor Position, which would utilize existing funding for position costs, offset some of the increased additional workload caused by the additional route and Medicaid reform, and assist in moving paratransit riders to the fixed route.  She displayed on the monitor several graphs with information on the proposed budget, explaining that including the estimated fund balance, the total revenues would be $10,007,303.  She reported that the FY 2016 proposed budget consists of $496,266 in  personal services, $7,124,010 in operating expenses, $2,087,027 in capital outlay, and  $300,000 in reserves, with total expenditures at $10,007,303.  She related that this reflects an increase in grant funding, but no increase in the general fund subsidy; it also includes the Operations Supervisor position and increases the levels of service with the addition of Route 50 and excludes possible changes to health and property insurance rates, workers’ compensation rates, COLA, FRS rates, fleet and facility, and maintenance costs.  She displayed on the monitor the breakdown of expenditures, with the largest line items being paratransit trips, fixed route trips, and capital. 

Mr. Ken Harley explained that first year ridership is projected to be about 36,000 passengers, which is the equivalent to the ridership of Route 1 when they initially started, but this route would grow much faster than any previous routes.  He mentioned that the previous projected first day ridership on the existing routes had been about 81 passengers on the first day, but that number is now eclipsed to about 318,000 trips per year.

Commr. Parks mentioned that the federal 5307 funding would cover 100 percent of annual operational costs for only 10 years, and he voiced his concern about how to cover those costs after they had run out.

Ms. Keedy explained that there had been some recent changes in the federal rules, which are that if an urbanized area has reached 200,000 in population and has 100 or more busses in their fleet, they can no longer use 100 percent of that funding for operations.  She reported that they currently had 15 buses, and it would be many years before they met those requirements, so they feel that they have a good time frame in which to use the federal fund.

Commr. Parks clarified that so long as those requirements do not apply, then they would be able to use the 5307 money for operating costs and would continue their partnership with the cities in paying for all bus stops. 

Ms. Keedy explained that they received funding for stops and shelters and have an initial program to install those, but any additional stops or shelters would need the city requesting them to participate in the cost.  She clarified that there is a minimum number of stops and shelters built into this plan that the County is taking care of.

Commr. Campione opined that certain cities have a design standard for their bus stops and shelters to give them a consistent look, and that might be something to look into if any additional stops are wanted.

Ms. Keedy reported that they have not been able to move forward with the commercial sponsor of bus shelters because most of the County has criteria that prohibit advertising on the street.

Mr. T. J. Fish, Director of the Lake-Sumter Metropolitan Planning Organization, relayed that the elected officials in the cities at the governing board meeting of the MPO seemed to see the benefit of benches that could be paid for at no cost to the County or cities through advertising or the sponsoring of shelters, but city staff has been hesitant to say if they are comfortable with the method due to the advertising and zoning ordinances that are in place.  He mentioned that the proposed plan left room for local organizations to help build additional shelters as a community project.

Commr. Campione opined that the cities may not be receptive to the idea of just benches, as they do not offer much protection, but perhaps they could look into ones that have at least some coverings.

Mr. Heath clarified that the amount of the general fund that they are proposing to go into Public Transportation next year is the same amount as this year, with the difference of this additional Route 50 and the additional staffers as a possibility of receiving more grant money.  The problem is that they use the general fund on paratransit only, not for fixed routes, and while they are reimbursed for paratransit, they have to provide a match for it, so if they start reducing the general fund amount they have to reduce the level of service. 

Commr. Cadwell commented that paratransit was 24 percent of the budget and so that is where any savings could be achieved, and one way to do so without reducing the service itself would be to have more routes that are more convenient that those people could move over to.

Mr. Heath commented that he appreciated the work Ride Right did and mentioned that when he first began as County Manager, it was very common to get phone calls from unsatisfied customers who were not getting picked up on time, but those phone calls have become rare since Ride Right has become their provider.

Commr. Campione confirmed that the estimated revenue 2016 transfer from the general fund number is the same as for 2015 and 2014.

other business

appointment to the Sales Surtax Oversight Advisory Committee

On a motion from Commr. Sullivan, seconded by Commr. Parks, and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the appointment of Michael W. Rankin to the Sales Surtax Oversight Advisory Committee as a Public-at-Large Member as designated by the Lake County League of Cities to complete an unexpired four-year term ending November 19, 2018.

appointment to the Lake EmS Board of Directors

On a motion from Commr. Cadwell, seconded by Commr. Sullivan, and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the reappointment of Councilmember Keith Mullins and Mayor Chris Bell to the Lake Emergency Medical Services Board of Directors as Members representing the cities within Lake County to serve two-year terms ending February 1, 2017.

REPORTS – COMMISSIONER sullivan – DISTRICT 1

upcoming workshop

Commr. Sullivan stated that he was looking forward to the workshop on March 31st and promised to update the Board on the progress of the penny sales tax issue.

REPORTS – COMMISSIONER PARKS – DISTRICT 2

south lake trail CEREMONY

Commr. Parks reported that he had attended a ribbon cutting ceremony at South Lake Trail and commended staff for organizing such a successful event.

clermont boathouse opening

Commr. Parks mentioned that he, Commr. Sullivan, and Commr. Cadwell had attended the Clermont Boathouse Opening

REPORTS – COMMISSIONER campione – DISTRICT 4

deed restriction violations

Commr. Campione relayed that she had heard from a constituent concerning deed restriction violations that had occurred in their neighborhood and opined that staff could look into the possibility of having applicants check a box that indicates if they have deed restrictions when being issued a permit.

sunrail meeting

Commr. Campione reported that she had attended a meeting in Apopka about the potential for the Sunrail and the possibility of creating a demo route.

trash program

Commr. Campione opined that there should perhaps be a way to facilitate citizens that want to help do litter pick up and not lose the room in their own trash can. She thanked staff for their hard work when the Trash Program was being introduced.

hawthorn tv

Commr. Campione related that she had appeared on a Hawthorn television program to discuss water quality issues and the Keep Lake County Beautiful program.

REPORTS – COMMISSIONER cadwell – DISTRICT 5

Lscc signing

Commr. Cadwell reported that he had attended the signing of the health science initiative at Lake Sumter Community College.

trail and rowing center

Commr. Cadwell mentioned that the Trail and Rowing Center was appreciative of Commr. Parks’ efforts with them and thanked Commrs. Conner and Campione for attending the Umatilla Chamber Installation and Banquet.

special olympics

Commr. Cadwell relayed that he had attended the Special Olympics at Tavares High School with Commr. Conner, which had been wonderful.

HICKORY point volleyball center

Commr. Cadwell related that volleyball season had started and that they would be having many events at the Hickory Point Volleyball Center.

tiava loan

Commr. Cadwell commented that Congressman Dan Webster will attend an upcoming meeting to make the official announcement that the Expressway had received a federal Tiava loan that will save the County money in interest and allow the projects in Wekiva to progress faster.

REPORTS – COMMISSIONER CONNER – DISTRICT 3

county attorney’s RETIREMENT

Commr. Conner relayed that Mr. Minkoff had submitted his notice of retirement and asked Mr. Heath to add an agenda item for the Commission to discuss how they wished to proceed at the next meeting.

veteran widow document

Commr. Conner remarked that he had met with Mr. Don Van Beck, a veteran who is interested in providing information to veterans’ widows, and asked staff to start development on a similar document for Lake County.

closed session

The Board met in a closed session at 11:30 a.m.

Ms. Melanie Marsh, Deputy County Attorney, explained that the closed session is authorized by Florida Statute 286.011 and that the purpose of the session was to discuss settlement negotiations or strategies regarding litigation expenses for a case currently filed against the County.  She relayed that a court reporter was present, who once they begin will record the entire session, and all discussions in these proceedings including the names of all persons present at any time once they end.  She stated that none of this session can be off the record and that at the time the litigation is concluded, the court reporters notes will be transcribed and made public.  She explained that the entity is required to announce who will be there at the beginning of the session and that they had run the required advertisement.  She indicated that persons present at the meeting would be the County Commissioners, herself, and Greg Stuart, their outside counsel.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business to be brought to the attention of the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 11:58 a.m.

 

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jimmy conner, chairman

 

 

ATTEST:

 

 

 

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NEIL KELLY, CLERK