A regular MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
April 21, 2020
The Lake County Board of County Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, April 21, 2020 at 9:00 a.m., via teleconference, which is allowed per Executive Order of the Governor of Florida due to COVID-19, a novel strain of the coronavirus. Commissioners present at the meeting were: Leslie Campione, Chairman; Wendy Breeden, Vice Chairman; Timothy I. Sullivan; Sean Parks; and Josh Blake. Others present were: Jeff Cole, County Manager; Melanie Marsh, County Attorney; Niki Booth, Executive Office Manager, County Manager’s Office; Gary J. Cooney, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller; Kristy Mullane, Chief Financial Officer; and Josh Pearson, Deputy Clerk.
moment of silence and pledge
Commr. Campione called for a moment of silence, and Commissioner Parks led the Pledge of Allegiance.
agenda update
Mr. Jeff Cole, County Manager, said that this meeting was being streamed live on the County’s website like all of the other Board meetings. He added that the meeting was also being made available through Zoom Webinar for members of the public who wished to provide comments during the Citizen Question and Comment Period, along with the public hearing period later in the agenda. He stated that anyone watching the livestream who wished to participate in the meeting could follow the directions being broadcast through the livestream. He elaborated that during the Citizen Question and Comment Period, anyone who joined the Zoom Webinar using their phone could press *9 to virtually raise their hands; additionally, anyone participating online could click the raise hand button to let the County know that they wished to speak. He said that when it was time for public comment, Mr. Erikk Ross, Director for the Information Technology (IT) Department, would be prepared to read the person’s name and phone number, and then unmute the appropriate line and the speaker would be asked to provide comments. He explained that everyone would have three minutes to speak and that after three minutes, an alarm would sound letting them know that their time was up. He remarked that in the previous week, the County notified the public that comments could be emailed through 5:00 p.m. on the previous day, and those comments were shared with the Board prior to this meeting. He mentioned that individuals could visit www.lakecountyfl.gov/commissionmeeting to provide written comments during this meeting, and that any written comments submitted during the meeting would be shared with each Board member following the meeting. He then reported that since the agenda was first published, the ordinance attached to Tab 4 on the rezoning agenda was revised and was included in the Board’s revised packet on Friday, April 17, 2020. He added that staff wanted to remove Tab 3 from the agenda because the Board previously voted on that proclamation, and staff also requested to remove Tab 26; furthermore, Tab 26 would be rescheduled to the next Board of County Commissioners (BCC) meeting due to an error by the newspaper that ran the advertisement.
covid-19 update
Mr. Tommy Carpenter, Director for the Office of Emergency Management, provided an update on the COVID-19 situation. He explained that the Lake County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) remained at a level one full activation but that unlike a hurricane, the EOC had minimal staffing on site; furthermore, he mentioned that they had staff work from alternate locations to maintain social distancing. He said that the Florida Department of Health (DOH) in Lake County had a local COVID-19 hotline available for Lake County residents at 352-742-4830, which was available seven days a week from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m with no wait time. He added that the Lake County Citizens Information Line was available to provide local information to callers at 352-253-9999, and was also available seven days per week from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. He thanked Carter’s Ace Hardware and mentioned that they had donated 50 protective masks in the previous week to be used for Lake County healthcare providers and first responders; furthermore, their gift would provide needed personal protective equipment (PPE) to those on the frontlines fighting the COVID-19 virus. He said that this morning’s update from the DOH website indicated that there were 211 COVID-19 cases in Lake County with seven deaths to date. He commented that as of yesterday’s update, Lake County had tested a total of 3,894 people, with 211 people being confirmed positive and 3,670 people having negative results. He said that the percentage of positive results to date was 5.4 percent. He explained that the Lake County Office of Emergency Management continued to work with the Florida Division of Emergency Management (DEM) to obtain PPE for first responders and healthcare providers; however, the County saw that commercially available PPE was more available and they were encouraging ordering that equipment. He said that the Office of Emergency Management was actively working with the DOH to support efforts of long term care facilities, nursing homes, doctor’s offices, assisted living facilities, and hospitals to obtain the needed PPE that they required. He remarked that Lake County had a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved non-congregate shelter plan which supported homeless residents who were awaiting COVID-19 test results or had tested positive. He added that Lake Support and Emergency Recovery (LASER), Lake County’s long term recovery organization, had begun working with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) and local churches to take the lead in the production of cloth masks, which provided reverse isolation and protection for those wearing the masks, and for public safety professionals and healthcare providers to give to patients they cared for. He added that LASER had also worked with Food for Florida and bringing food to local food pantries in Lake County, and as of today, over 18 food pantries would receive over 48,000 meals. He commented that yesterday, working at the direction of Chairman Campione, the Office of Emergency Management was coordinating with a private healthcare provider to increase testing opportunities in Lake County, and they were currently working to set up three drive through locations throughout the county with the goal of having them operational this week. He concluded that Lake County residents could be tested at a cost of $20 and there would continue to be free testing provided by the DOH and at the state’s regional test site at the Orange County Convention Center.
Commr. Breeden asked if any of the hospitals or other labs were still conducting tests. She also inquired if people still needed to call their doctor first.
Mr. Carpenter confirmed this and said that when he talked to the DOH at the end of the previous week, the DOH had only tested about 10 percent of the 3,894 tested individuals; furthermore, the remainder of that number had been tested privately through hospitals or private healthcare providers. He also said that if they had a private healthcare physician, then they could call them as they normally would if they were not feeling well.
Commr. Breeden asked if they needed to call their doctor first to be tested at the three drive through locations.
Commr. Campione said that they would not need a doctor’s order to go to one of the drive through sites. She elaborated that this was an opportunity for people who wanted to be tested whether they had symptoms or not. She said that they could also contact their doctor’s office, which could test them regardless if they had symptoms. She stated that this was to provide a convenient way for people to access that testing and provide one more option with the goal being to collect as much data as the County could so that they could begin taking measures to ease the restrictions in place. She commented that if residents could not afford to be tested, then they could contact the DOH. She elaborated that the DOH had criteria for where they could provide free testing according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.
Commr. Parks inquired about antibody testing and if it would be more readily available to the Lake County community.
Mr. Carpenter said that this was the goal but relayed his understanding that it was not widely available yet; however, he thought that serology testing was available to see if someone had COVID-19.
Commr. Campione said that she was part of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ call on the previous day and it appeared that he was working hard to create opportunities for targeted serology testing for certain locations; furthermore, the cost of testing could be covered by the State. She thought that the county could anticipate seeing this in the future, though the provider that the County was partnering with would provide the serology testing at the cost that they had to pay to process it through the lab. She added that the test would inform an individual of whether they had been exposed to the virus, and she noted that it was unable to tell someone if they developed an immunity because that information had not been deemed conclusive.
Mr. Cole stated that Mr. Brandon Matulka, Executive Director for the Agency for Economic Prosperity, could provide an update on the business side.
Commr. Campione thought that Mr. Matulka could discuss the questionnaire that the County would be providing, which had been worked on from representatives from the Cities and the business community. She stated that this could help the County elicit information from its businesses and to help them begin the transition to easing restrictions in the near future, along with learning of the businesses’ challenges and ways that the County may be able to help them navigate this process.
Mr. Matulka said that his agency had been working alongside the Office of Emergency Management and the Office of Communications throughout the COVID-19 response with the goal of being a high quality source of information for people and businesses in Lake County. He said that they worked with the Office of Communications to create and continue to update a business resource and reemployment webpage on the Office of Elevate Lake website, along with a tourism resource blog page for both travelers and tourism partners on the Office of Visit Lake website. He commented that throughout the last month, his agency had been updating that information daily as programs became available, though he noted that they were now in a slow period of new information regarding resources due to federal and state funding being exhausted from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. He remarked that they were continuing to monitor federal and state actions moving forward and he thought that progress was being made to put more funding into the Paycheck Protection Program and other programs. He said that each week, the Offices of Elevate Lake and Visit Lake had been sending out updated resource information via email to their City and chamber of commerce partners, and they had also sent out specific information to businesses regarding items such as social distancing requirements, a funeral home advisory, and manufacturing industry resources. He added that they sent information to all of the businesses that filled out a state damage assessment survey, along with reemployment resources. He commented that their staff had been tasked with calling multiple segments of business throughout Lake County and collecting contact information from organizations for a variety of different information purposes that his agency could utilize now and as they moved forward. He mentioned that they had been conducting regular calls with their partners such as CareerSource Central Florida, Akers Media, their education partners, and others. He said that with CareerSource Central Florida, his agency continued to discuss their assistance in Lake County with reemployment resources, and this would continue to be a priority as they moved toward reopening. He related that in the past week, his agency started hosting economic development partner calls where they invited all of their economic development counterparts from each municipality to discuss strategies moving forward, as well as potential collaborative projects, and they would continue to host these to ensure that they were working together to share information and best practices. He said that for the tourism side with the Office of Visit Lake, they continued to work on processing all of their funding commitments they had with their tourism partners to try and get that funding back into those organizations as quickly as possible. He elaborated that many events and organizations had and could continue to have issues throughout the pandemic as it related to tourism and travel. He mentioned that they had been working with Visit Florida and other partners to find the best projections and trends which could assist them as they formulated strategies moving forward. He stated that on a broad scale, their entire staff at the agency was doing everything they could to be involved in meetings and reach out throughout the county; furthermore, they would continue to do this to assist in providing quality information to as many people as possible. He remarked that for next steps, their focus was shifting to also include what recovery could look like and how the agency could assist with preparing for a phased reopening. He added they had been working with Chairman Campione and many County and municipal partners, and the first step launched this morning with a survey to gather feedback from businesses covering several pertinent topics. He explained that it included some focused questions to generate ideas, processes and procedures that the businesses had already implemented or were planning on implementing to keep their customers and employees safe, in addition to being able to efficiently operate their business. He said that the agency’s intent was to receive input directly from businesses and organizations on these items, and they could utilize those responses to inform the Board when it was time to discuss potential strategies or policy. He believed that the responses to this survey, specifically the section regarding ideas and procedures, would hopefully show the sentiments of the business community in terms of the confidence they had to safely reopen. He reiterated that all of this information would be made available to the Board and that the data could be shared with municipal chambers of commerce and other partners with the hope that it could aid in providing a baseline of information for decision making. He then said that they needed to continue to work with CareerSource Central Florida and all of their education partners on workforce challenges for items such as retraining and internships. He remarked that they would continue to keep their partners informed as much as possible, particularly for new information about stimulus funding and programs, and continue to work with Mr. Carpenter and the Board toward recovery, reopening, determining how this would look for Lake County, and balancing the need to reopen businesses while keeping employee and customer safety on the forefront of their thoughts.
Commr. Parks complimented Chairman Campione on her efforts in this area, and he thanked Mr. Matulka for what he was doing. He offered assistance to Mr. Matulka to help include individuals in South Lake in meetings or public outreach. He thought that the BCC would know more about the next phases of opening by their next meeting.
Commr. Campione said that in the next two weeks, many events would be occurring with regard to assisting the county’s businesses and residents as they transitioned to opening phases of the economy. She stated that much of this hinged on Governor DeSantis and his efforts, and she mentioned that he began his task force on the previous day, giving them five days to come back with their proposal for all of the different sectors of the state’s economy. She commented that the County was watching this closely to see what specificity they would provide to local governments and to what extent they would defer to each County to implement their own restrictions or whether Lake County could follow what the task force presented. She remarked that there were opportunities for any of the Commissioners who wanted to engage directly with business owners in the county where they could receive information from them such as best practices from businesses that had been operating during this time. She thought that some of the key areas that could be the most challenging to navigate due to being closed when Governor DeSantis’ order took effect would be salons, barber shops, some daycares, and funeral homes. She noted that these businesses had particular challenges relating to social distancing, and she thought that there were opportunities for each of the Commissioners to work with Mr. Matulka and receive information from businesses to be brought back. She added that when the County had a draft plan in place, they would then be looking to Governor DeSantis and his plan to decide if the county required more than what he provided, or if he was looking to local governments to tailor their plans to their specific communities.
Commr. Parks relayed his understanding that the County had to wait for what Governor DeSantis said because the task force was unsure of what would happen, and that the County could have some input on what they wanted to do.
Commr. Campione confirmed this and said that if the County did not conduct preparations as they waited for the task force’s findings, then they may be in a situation where the task force provided guidelines but deferred to local governments if they wanted to do more. She indicated that this was why the County was trying to anticipate where those gaps may be and where they may want to have particular requirements or best practices that could be used for their own businesses. She opined that the best way to do this was to receive the businesses’ input to know what was achievable from their standpoint.
Commr. Parks agreed with this and thought that the key could be for businesses in each district to provide input. He felt that the foremost issue was when businesses would open, and that now was the time to provide this input.
Commr. Campione suggested that the County would have to be creative in how they conducted this outreach. She noted that businesses could be encouraged to respond to the questionnaire and that meetings could also be helpful. She felt that Lake County was doing well when considering the number of tests in surrounding counties, along with their rates of infection, hospitalization and fatalities; furthermore, Lake County only had about five percent of positive cases. She commented that South Lake was an extension of the Metro Orlando, Orange County, and Osceola County areas, yet it appeared that Lake County residents did a good job at the start of this situation. She added that only three nursing homes in Lake County had positive test results, and she noted that Governor DeSantis was also focusing on this to test everyone that was coming in and out of those facilities due to them representing a large number across the state. She indicated an interest in continuing to protect people in nursing homes and those visiting them.
Commr. Parks felt that this was a great effort by Chairman Campione, Mr. Matulka, and staff, and that this would be an important couple of weeks.
Commr. Sullivan said that the key to this was to ensure that the County was conducting parallel planning with what the State was planning. He noted that the Commissioners were members of organizations that they could reach out to, have personal contact with businesses, and receive input. He applauded the efforts of the Commissioners to do this and said that he had been receiving calls from businesses. He thought that this was a time where the County needed to show leadership to get the economy back going as soon as possible within reason. He said that the hospitals had been great in their response to this situation, and he felt that everyone could pull together and move toward a common goal.
Mr. Cole encouraged businesses who wanted to complete the survey to visit the web page www.elevatelake.com/survey.
Commr. Campione said that the Board could reach out to their contacts and that social media could be used to promote this. She noted that the survey asked businesses about whether they had applied for any relief provided by the state and federal governments, and she relayed her understanding that some businesses were receiving aid but others had applied and had not gotten through the process before the funding was expended, and were waiting to see if additional funds would be provided. She clarified that these were not county programs but rather were state and federal programs, and that the County was trying to help businesses navigate those programs. She opined that community banks in the county had done a great job at working with businesses to help them move through this process. She said that they put considerable time, effort, and their own assets in play to be able to provide these loans. She thought that the survey could tell the County more about the experiences that businesses had, and the County could pass this information along to their state representatives and federal contacts.
Mr. Cole added that the County was on a short time frame and that the survey would only be available until 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 23, 2020.
Commr. Campione stated that there was a short window to complete the survey because the County was using this information to help formulate local policies as they conducted parallel planning. She also mentioned that there had been significant mosquito issues in Lake County and across the state. She said that the lakes had particular issues but that they had been spraying in morning and evening shifts and were trying to work through the entire county.
Commr. Breeden echoed everyone’s thanks to Mr. Matulka, Mr. Carpenter, and their staff, along with recognizing the leadership of Chairman Campione and Mr. Cole. She indicated an interest in discussing blue sky versus gray sky funding for LASER during the workshop later in the meeting.
Commr. Campione said that she and Mr. Cole had discussed this and had been working with LASER to develop a format so that they were tracking hours, time, costs, and the types of items the County needed to know to formulate a realistic and equitable way to compensate them for their great efforts.
Minutes approval
On a motion by Commr. Breeden, seconded by Commr. Blake, and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the minutes for the BCC meetings of February 20, 2020 (Special Meeting) and February 25, 2020 (Regular Meeting) as presented.
citizen question and comment period
Commr. Campione reminded citizens that anyone who joined the meeting using their phone could press *9 to virtually raise their hand, and anyone participating online could click the raise hand button to let the County know that they wished to speak. She noted that everyone would have three minutes to speak and that after three minutes, an alarm would sound letting them know that their time was up.
A concerned citizen, who was a massage therapist in Lake County, was worried that many massage establishments could be opening in the first week of May 2020. He relayed his understanding that while Lake County had a small amount of COVID-19 cases compared to other counties, people came from those counties to visit these businesses in Lake County. He felt that it was challenging to practice social distancing in this profession and that this could be unsafe.
Commr. Campione asked if the County could receive the citizen’s contact information so that they could have a direct conversation to explore possibilities for ways to accommodate massage therapists.
Mr. Ross indicated that this could be done.
CLERK OF the Circuit COURT and comptroller’s CONSENT AGENDA
Commr. Campione asked if Mr. Gary Cooney, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, wanted to update the Board on his current procedures.
Mr. Cooney said that the Clerk’s Office was still open for business but urged everyone to do business with them remotely if possible; however, if an individual needed to conduct business in person, the Lake County Courthouse remained open during its normal hours. He added that employees were behind glass for the safety of both parties involved, and that they remained open for business for domestic violence, recording, traffic ticket payments, etc. He stated that the only item they had suspended was the issuance of passports, though they were currently issuing and recording other items. He remarked that court sessions were limited and that hearings were being postponed; furthermore, they were not summoning jurors. He mentioned that this would not reoccur until sometime in June 2020 and that anyone who received a summons did not need to report in May 2020.
Commr. Campione thanked Mr. Cooney for his update.
On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Breeden and carried unanimously by a 5-0 vote, the Board approved the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller’s Consent Agenda, Items 1 through 5, 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.
Southwest Florida Water Management District Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Request to acknowledge receipt of the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2019, and the District's Fiscal Year 2019 Annual Financial Report (AFR), which was filed electronically with the Department of Financial Services, Bureau of Local Government on March 18, 2020.
City of Leesburg FY19 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
Request to acknowledge receipt of the City of Leesburg’s FY19 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.
City of Groveland Community Redevelopment Agency's Annual Report for FY 18/19
Request to acknowledge receipt of the City of Groveland's Community Redevelopment Agency's Annual Report for FY 18/19.
City of Eustis Ordinances 19-35, 19-36, and 19-37
Request to acknowledge receipt of Annexation Ordinance 19-35, corresponding Comprehensive Plan Amendment Ordinance 19-36, and corresponding design district amendment Ordinance 19-37 from the City of Eustis.
COUNTY MANAGER’S CONSENT AGENDA
On a motion by Commr. Breeden, seconded by Commr. Blake and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the Consent Agenda, Tabs 4 through 21, pulling Tab 3, as follows:
PROCLAMATIONS
Request approval of Proclamation 2020-58 designating May 2020 as Building Safety Month in Lake County.
Request approval of Proclamation 2020-59 designating May 16 - 22, 2020, as National Safe Boating Week in Lake County.
Request approval of Proclamation 2020-60 designating April 2020 as Water Conservation Month in Lake County.
COUNTY ATTORNEY
Request approval:
1. Of a Real Estate Purchase and Sales Agreement with Hooks Street Investments, LLC, for the Lake County Tax Collector's South Lake Regional Service Center located at 1505 Hooks Street in Clermont.
2. To terminate the existing Lease Agreement.
3. For the Chairman to execute any necessary closing documents.
The estimated fiscal impact is $3,500,000.00 (expenditure). Commission District 2.
Request approval regarding the following County-owned properties:
1. Donate Alternate Key 1762758 to the Town of Howey-In-The-Hills.
2. Donate Alternate Key 1631360 to the City of Eustis.
3. Donate Alternate Keys 1586411 and 1586429 to the Christian Worship Center of Central Florida, Inc.
4. Donate Alternate Keys 1254825 and 1341931 to Habitat for Humanity.
5. Accept an Offer to Purchase Alternate Key 1339316.
6. Authorization for the Chairman to execute necessary donation Resolutions 2020-61 (Town of Howey-In-The-Hills), 2020-62 (City of Eustis), 2020-63 (Christian Worship Center of Central Florida, Inc.) and 2020-64 (Habitat for Humanity), and any closing documents. The fiscal impact is $300.00 (revenue). Commission District 1, 3, 4, and 5.
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
Management and Budget
Request approval of Contract 20-0515 with Tindale-Oliver and Associates, Inc. (Tampa, FL) to conduct impact fee studies as necessary. The estimated fiscal impact is $83,564.00 (expenditure).
HUMAN RESOURCES AND RISK MANAGEMENT
Request approval of an agreement with JDI Data Corporation (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) for use of web-based software to track vendors' certificates of insurance compliance, and authorization for the Office of Procurement Services to execute all supporting documentation. The estimated annual fiscal impact is $11,940.00 (expenditure).
public safety and development services
Emergency Medical Services
Request approval to advertise a public hearing for the renewal of the Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity for the Office of Emergency Medical Services. There is no fiscal impact.
PUBLIC SERVICES AND INFRASTRUCTURE
Fleet Management
Request approval of Contract 20-0701 with Port Consolidated (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) for the purchase of fuel products, and authorization for the Office of Procurement Services to execute all supporting documentation. The fiscal impact is not to exceed $428,731.00 (expenditure).
Housing and Human Services
Request approval of a First Amendment to the Shepherd’s Village Community, Inc. State Housing Initiatives Partnership Funding Agreement. There is no fiscal impact.
Request approval of the First Amendment to 2018-2021 Local Housing Assistance Plan, with accompanying Resolution 2020-65 and Certification, for rental assistance due to hardships caused by COVID-19, and authorization for the County Manager to execute any documents required by the Florida Housing Finance Corporation. There is no fiscal impact.
Request approval of the Third Amendment to 2015-2018 Local Housing Assistance Plan, with accompanying Resolution 2020-66 and Certification, for rental assistance due to hardships caused by COVID-19, and authorization for the County Manager to execute any documents required by the Florida Housing Finance Corporation. There is no fiscal impact.
Public Works
Request approval of Unanticipated Revenue Resolution 2020-67 to receive funds from the Florida Department of Health for the Lake County Mosquito Management Program to be used for community clean-up events in coordination with Keep Lake Beautiful. The fiscal impact is $15,000.00 (revenue/expenditure - 100% grant funded).
Request approval of Resolution 2020-68 to advertise a public hearing to vacate a portion of platted right of way in the plat of Country Club Terrace, located east of East Crooked Lake Drive and south of Country Club Drive in the Eustis area. The fiscal impact is $2,295.00 (revenue - vacation application fee). Commission District 4.
Request approval of Resolution 2020-69 to advertise a public hearing to vacate an unimproved public right of way, located north of Laney Road and west of North Buckhill Road in the Howey-in-the-Hills area. The fiscal impact is $2,295.00 (revenue-vacation application fee). Commission District 1.
Request approval of Resolution 2020-70 authorizing the installation of "stop" signs and "all way" plaques on Lake Joanna Drive at Park Lane, and on Sunrise Lane at Garden Road, in the Eustis area. The fiscal impact is $300.00 (expenditure - sign materials). Commission District 4.
Request approval to release a letter of credit for maintenance of $160,681.99 that was provided for the maintenance of improvements in Greater Lakes Phase 3, located near Clermont. There is no fiscal impact. Commission District 1.
Request approval to:
1. Release a performance bond of $1,704,966.41 posted for completion of infrastructure improvements for the Greater Lakes Phase 4 final plat, located near Clermont.
2. Execute a Developer's Agreement for Maintenance of Improvements with Lennar Homes LLC (Orlando, FL).
3. Accept a letter of credit of $288,146.09 for maintenance of improvements.
4. Execute Resolution 2020-71 accepting Tahoe Circle "Part" (County Road No. 0357H), Champlain Street "Part" (County Road No. 0357K), Blackshear Court (County Road No. 0359E), Fernridge Street (County Road No. 0359F), and Glassy Loch Loop (County Road No. 0359G) into the County Road Maintenance System.
5. Execute a Developer's Agreement for Construction and Maintenance of Sidewalk Improvements with Lennar Homes LLC.
6. Accept a letter of credit of $120,890.77 for performance of sidewalk construction.
7. Accept a letter of credit of $10,990.07 for maintenance of sidewalk improvements.
There is no fiscal impact. Commission District 1.
public hearings: REZONING
rezoning consent agenda
Mr. Tim McClendon, Director for the Office of Planning and Zoning, displayed the advertisements for that day’s rezoning cases on the overhead monitor in accordance with the Florida Statutes. He said that there were two cases on the consent agenda and two cases on the regular agenda, and that staff requested that the Board accept the Planning and Zoning Board recommendation to approve the consent agenda.
The Chairman opened the public hearing.
There being no one who wished to address the Board regarding any cases on the Rezoning Consent Agenda, the Chairman closed the public hearing.
On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Breeden and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved the Rezoning Consent Agenda, Tabs 1 through 2, as follows:
Tab 1. Ordinance No. 2020-15
Rezoning Case # CUP-19-14-1
Gulfstream Towers FL-187 SR 33, CR 561 CUP
Conditional use permit (CUP) to allow a 199-foot monopole communications tower on Agriculture (A) zoned property.
Tab 2. Ordinance No. 2020-16
Rezoning Case # RZ-19-30-4
Sutherlin Property Rezoning
Rezone approximately 11 +/- acres from Rural Residential (R-1) to Agriculture (A) to facilitate use of the parcel as an apiary.
rezoning regular agenda
Tab 3. Ordinance No. 2020-17
Rezoning Case # RZ-19-31-2
Beebe Property Rezoning
Rezone approximately 7.75 +/- acres from Agriculture (A) to Planned Unit
Development (PUD) for an age-restricted multi-family housing development, to include waiver requests to the PUD acreage requirement.
Tab 4. Ordinance No. 2020-18
Rezoning Case # RZ-19-20-3
Molokai Co-Op MHP Rezoning
Amend Ordinance #28-79 (Public Hearing #113-79-1) with the creation of a new ordinance to rezone 3.6 +/- acres from Mixed Home Residential (RM) to Planned Unit Development (PUD).
beebe property rezoning
Mr. McClendon presented Tab 3, Rezoning Case # RZ-19-31-2, Beebe Property Rezoning. He explained that the property was located north of Hunt Trace Boulevard, south of Jacks Lake, in the City of Clermont area within Commission District 2. He said that the tract size was approximately seven acres and the request was to rezone the subject property from Agriculture (A) to Planned Unit Development (PUD) to allow for an age-restricted multi-family housing development. He added that also embedded in the request was a waiver to the PUD acreage requirement. He displayed the subject property’s current zoning of Agriculture and its future land use (FLU) designation of Urban Medium, which allowed up to seven dwelling units per acre. He pointed out that the subject property was completely surrounded by the City of Clermont limits. He then relayed these staff analysis findings: the application included a waiver for the proposed PUD, to Land Development Regulations (LDR) Section 4.03.03, which stated that a PUD must contain a minimum of 10 acres; the proposed development program included a 49 unit age-restricted, affordable multi-family project; the proposed 49 dwelling units was consistent with the Urban Medium FLU category; the proposed development was phase two of the Clermont Ridge Senior Villas, and phase one was located directly adjacent to the subject property within the City of Clermont limits; the project was also within the joint planning area (JPA) with the City of Clermont, and the City had no objections to this request during initial staff reviews; staff recommended approval of the request with the conditions listed in the PUD ordinance in the BCC’s rezoning packets; and the Planning and Zoning Board recommended denial based on the PUD acreage waiver request. He displayed the concept plan of the property and noted that it was directly west of phase one for the Clermont Ridge Senior Villas; furthermore, the proposed phase two mirrored that development to the east. He read the requested action to either uphold the Planning and Zoning Board recommendation of denial, or find the application consistent with the Comprehensive Plan (Comp Plan) and LDRs and approve the rezoning request with the conditions listed in the staff report.
Commr. Parks asked to confirm that the City of Clermont had not heard this case, but had agreed to provide sewer and water.
Mr. McClendon said this was correct.
Mr. Steve Smith, representing the developer, said that this site was chosen because the Florida Housing Finance Corporation (Florida Housing) provided funding to develop housing communities within one mile of a hospital, medical office, bus lines and shopping. He commented that this site met this requirement, that the site was for sale, and that it was at a price that fit with the Florida Housing financing model. He remarked that the site was also located adjacent to a senior housing community that was currently being developed. He addressed the question of why they were proposing housing for seniors and said that they had received many calls from people seeking housing because many retiree homeowners could no longer maintain their home, and there were no reasonably priced rental units available. He explained that the affordable housing they created in the City of Clermont 1.5 years ago had some seniors living there but already had a waiting list of over 900 people. He mentioned that many seniors only had social security to live on, though Florida Housing provided funding to develop this senior housing if they adopted Lake County housing renter rates and only accepted those with 60 percent of the average median income and who did not make more than $30,000 per year. He indicated an interest in building the types of homes that fit in the neighborhood and noted that similar to the homes on the east side, all homes would appear as a single story home on the front; furthermore, the back side of a few of the buildings would appear only as a two story home, and no homes would be taller than a two story building. He said that they wanted to protect the neighbors on the west side, who had single story homes, and that they wanted to build a wall to make sure that they were protected. He related that the City of Clermont agreed to provide water and sewer and to place the backflow meters as far back as possible. He asked the Board to accept staff’s recommendation to approve the request so that they could help meet the growing need for affordable housing for seniors in Lake County.
The Chairman opened the public hearing.
Mr. Tom Ryan, a retired senior citizen, noted the waiting list of 900 people looking for affordable senior housing and asked if there were any other projects in Lake County to address this issue.
Commr. Parks did not think that there were many projects.
Commr. Campione agreed and said that some projects had been completed for seniors in north Lake County, but this was an ongoing issue when considering the demand for affordable senior housing.
Mr. Ryan then asked why this case was denied and if it was similar to the adjacent site.
Mr. McClendon explained that the Lake County Planning and Zoning Board’s recommendation for denial was based mainly on the applicant’s request for a waiver in the PUD due to the minimum acreage requirement in the LDRs. He added that this site was technically smaller than what the code allowed. He also confirmed that it was similar to the adjacent site but noted that the other property went through the City of Clermont. He clarified that the Planning and Zoning Board did not pertain to the City of Clermont and that it was an unincorporated board.
Commr. Breeden thought that the City of Clermont currently had a moratorium on multi-family housing and that this was why the City was not being included at this time.
Commr. Parks relayed his understanding that it was likely directed that the applicant needed to go through the County first due to the moratorium or other issues. He mentioned that affordable housing was a significant issue in Lake County, particularly in South Lake.
Mr. Ryan felt that if funding was available from the State, then this would be time to take advantage of it to build housing for seniors.
There being no one else who wished to address the Board regarding this matter, the Chairman closed the public hearing.
Commr. Breeden thought that this was a good project and was compatible with the surrounding area. She hoped that it could be annexed into the City of Clermont but she did not want to wait for that process.
Commr. Parks encouraged Mr. Ryan to listen to the Board’s upcoming goals workshop and said that the topic of affordable housing could be discussed.
Commr. Campione said that this phase was similar to the phase that was approved by the City of Clermont, and she remarked that the City had a moratorium in place to address their design criteria. She opined that since phase one was in place, it was known what the project would look like from a design standpoint. She thought that it would be reasonable for the Board to approve this with the understanding that in the future, the City would have design criteria for reviewing multi-family projects. She noted that there was a considerable need for affordable housing for seniors and individuals of all ages in the county.
On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Breeden and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved Tab 3, Rezoning Case # RZ-19-31-2, Beebe Property Rezoning.
molokai co-op mhp rezoning
Mr. McClendon presented Tab 4, Rezoning Case # RZ-19-20-3, Molokai Co-Op MHP Rezoning. He said that the property was located at 33222 Paradise Lane in the City of Leesburg area, within Commission District 3, with a tract size of approximately 3.6 acres. He remarked that the request was to rezone the subject property from Mixed Home Residential (RM) to PUD to facilitate the storage of up to 60 boats, trailers, recreational vehicles (RVs) and other ancillary uses. He noted that there was also an LDR waiver for the PUD minimum acreage requirement. He displayed the subject property and pointed out that the current FLU of Urban Medium allowed up to seven dwelling units per acre. He relayed the following staff analysis findings: the property was part of the existing Molokai mobile home park and that this case was a result of code enforcement action; the subject property was being used to store trailers, boats and RVs, and there was a mobile home on the site with several dumpsters, all of which were not currently allowed in the RM zoning designation; in response to a settlement agreement through the special master process, the applicant submitted the current rezoning request; this request was a modified application to the original rezoning application which was previously scheduled to be heard by the BCC in December 2019; the applicant requested a continuance to try to rectify issues with an objecting adjacent neighbor, and the Board should have received all comments, emails and pictures from the objecting neighbor; the original rezoning district being requested was for Mobile Home Rental Park (RMRP), which could not be conditioned; to limit any potential adverse impacts to the objecting neighbor, the applicant provided several conditions that could be enforced through the PUD process; and there was a waiver request to the minimum acreage requirement in the LDRs. He said that the conditions offered by the applicant included the following: limiting storage to up to 60 boats, RVs and trailers; the existing mobile home could be utilized for storage only; allowing up to 12 screened dumpsters; the applicant would have to pave Paradise Lane to a minimum width of 15 feet, and 20 feet where available; and the applicant would be required to install and maintain signs on Paradise Lane prohibiting parking on or blocking the access road within Paradise Lane. He noted that staff received many emails in support of this request, along with a petition provided by the applicant, that were submitted into the public record. He concluded that the Planning and Zoning Board recommended approval of this request with the conditions as provided by the applicant, and the requested action was to find the application consistent with the Comp Plan and LDRs and accept the Planning and Zoning Board’s recommendation to approve the request.
Mr. Jimmy Crawford, an attorney representing the applicant, described four images of the property from the County’s geographic information systems (GIS) website. He said that the first aerial image was from 2006 and showed a mobile home on the property with about 20 to 30 vehicles or trailers stored there. He said that he had other pictures from 2009, 2014 and 2017 to show that at least since 2006, the property had been used substantially in the same manner as it was being used on the current day. He said that they had more or less vehicles in some years, though this use had been in effect for at least 14 years. He commented that he also had a photograph showing that the property was also used to access the neighbor’s home to the north, and that the property was surrounded by marsh for significant distances to the east and west, along with the mobile home park to the south. He remarked that the neighbor had a 20 foot access easement around the eastern edge of the property to get to their home, and he said that he had an image of the southern portion of the access easement which was lined by pine trees on both sides. He added that he had a picture of Paradise Lane and that the property was accessed by a 20 foot wide private easement that was currently only paved eight or nine feet wide in most areas. He relayed his understanding that the LaFonds, who lived in the neighboring property, and the mobile home park had a previous conflict with some individuals blocking that easement. He related that the park had taken action to address this and that there were currently signs stating that there was no blocking, stopping or obstruction allowed within the easement. He elaborated that they had two of these signs which would be kept, as well as make a condition of the PUD that they would remain; additionally, another condition of the PUD was for Paradise Lane to be widened to at least 15 feet and to 20 feet where it was practical. He felt that it was not possible to widen the road to 20 feet over its entire length because of the following reasons: there had been improvements constructed by individuals abutting the easement and that removing them could be a challenging process; there were utilities underground within the easement; the easement was only 20 feet wide, so paving it to 20 feet would not leave any room for stormwater control; and the road went over a canal at the end, which could require permitting from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and possibly the Army Corps of Engineers to attempt to widen the road into those canals. He commented that he had a picture of the dumpsters on the property, which had been a contention with the neighbor, though the park had tried to insulate them from any impact from this use. He explained that they were small dumpsters on wheels that were towed around the park to pick up trash, and were then brought to a central location on the property where a trash truck came twice per week to empty them. He stated that they were proposing to screen them completely from the LaFonds’ view, and he expressed an intent to specify in the ordinance that “up to twelve mobile trash dumpsters may be stored on the property; provided such dumpsters shall be screened on three sides so as to only be visible from the west.” He said that this is what they had promised the LaFonds and the County, and that when the LaFonds entered the property through Paradise Lane and turned onto their easement to drive to their home, they would not be able to see the dumpsters. He commented that the aerial picture of the property in the staff report showed that it was dry land, was completely cleared, and that the majority of the property was used as an informal driving range for the residents of the park. He mentioned that he had a concept drawing which pointed out the areas where vehicles were stored, and stated that they were only using a small portion of the property as storage in an area located as far from the LaFonds and as close to the park as possible. He related that the current zoning of RM allowed single family homes, and the FLU allowed up to seven units per acre; furthermore, if they were unable to use the property for its current use, the park could sell it to a developer and have homes be built there. He opined that this would not be positive for the LaFonds or the park, and he asked to continue to be able to use the property with the additional conditions added to protect the LaFonds. He commented that the ordinance provided for a 20 foot setback and no construction, though there could not be any construction within 50 feet of the wetlands or the canal. He said that they were asking to be able to park trailers within 20 feet of the wetlands or the canal.
The Chairman opened the public hearing.
Mr. Mark LaFond, a neighbor of the subject property, asked that Lake County deny the rezoning, as it was currently zoned as a buffer between the development and wetlands. He opined that the violations that had been taking place could be addressed without rezoning the property. He said that he originally offered conditions to the co-op but they were not included. He relayed his understanding that the adjacent Cook Lake was a nationally registered wetland and should be taken into consideration when deciding whether to allow the land to be rezoned. He said that he started calling the County when the land was being used in this manner and that the Lake County Office of Code Enforcement found that they were in violation at that time about 13 years prior, though he was unsure of the case’s resolution. He explained that his home was built in 1992 prior to the mobile home park being formed as a co-op in 1995, and that he purchased the home 1.5 years before the co-op purchased the subject property. He expressed concerns about living next to a junkyard, and he questioned how the rezoning could affect his property values. He expressed support for the land being developed, and he felt that the co-op used the lot for RV storage at his expense. He indicated a desire for the property to be kept as green space and for it not to be used as commercial storage or solid waste collection. He also thought that the lot had caused crime and that the items were not behind any fencing. He thought that this could be addressed by the co-op using another storage facility in Lake County, and he opined that the dumpsters were unsightly and had not been screened. He claimed that some of the dumpsters did not have lids and that trash blew out of them and into the wetland. He questioned why they did not utilize curbside pickup due to them already paying for it in their tax bill.
There being no one else who wished to address the Board regarding this matter, the Chairman closed the public hearing.
Mr. Crawford indicated an understanding that in an email, Mr. LaFond was concerned that once the traffic built up, it could be a continual problem on Paradise Lane. He clarified that the applicant was asking for the same use that had been occurring for 13 years, and he opined that there would not be any more traffic; additionally, he felt that the widening of Paradise Lane and the prohibition of any obstruction of the road would help with these issues. He also stated that Mr. LaFond had asked that the applicant be required to place the trailers, storage and RVs on concrete, though he opined that having more impervious surface would not be better for the wetlands. He stated that the items were stored on firm ground and that there were not erosion issues. He referenced Mr. LaFond’s concerns about wildlife on the property, and he felt that the wildlife there was evidence that the use was acceptable; furthermore, they were not asking to expand to intensify the use. He stated that he had met and spoken with Ms. Christi LaFond and her attorney, and thought that the applicant had given many concessions. He recalled that they originally applied for RMRP zoning but that the LaFonds and their attorney pointed out that this was not a conditioned zoning; therefore, the applicant pulled this and reapplied for a PUD zoning that they could include conditions in. He explained that they limited it to no expansion, that they agreed to widen Paradise Lane, that they agreed to a condition that stated that only vehicles with current license tags in operable condition shall be allowed to be parked, and that they agreed to a condition that the park shall not gate or obstruct Cook Avenue without the approval of the owners of the LaFonds’ property, which was due to a previous separate dispute regarding a crime issue. He clarified that all of the dumpsters now had lids except for one which they used only for yard trash, though they were amicable to a requirement for all dumpsters on the property having lids. He said that they could not have curbside trash pickup in the park because of the substandard roads and that this type of pickup from the County hauler was not possible. He then offered a condition for an area that was not well screened on the north side of the subject property near where the LaFonds’ easement went onto their property, and he said that additional tree plantings could be done there to screen the LaFonds’ view, though he was unsure if the LaFonds wanted this. He recalled the code enforcement action from 2008 and 2009 and that the park had applied for a rezoning, though it was stopped in the County process by staff who noted that this was an issue at several mobile home parks and wanted to address it through a countywide LDR change. He elaborated that the code enforcement and rezoning ceased until the previous year when the LaFonds had voiced concerns again. He then commented that on the southwest portion of the property, there was a small row for small trailer parking. He said that moving this back 20 feet would cause them to lose this area and it would then have to be relocated elsewhere on the property closer to the LaFonds in a more visible area. He requested that the 20 foot requirement be waived for this area only and that there be a prohibition for having no powered vehicles there. He then requested approval of the requested as amended by Mr. McClendon in the revised ordinance.
Commr. Breeden noted that this request was in her commission district, Commission District 3. She asked if the Board received the amended ordinance on Friday, April 17, 2020, and Mr. McClendon confirmed this. Commissioner Breeden then said that she had spoken to Mr. Crawford and the LaFonds, along with having received emails from residents of the park. She commented that she understood the LaFonds’ concerns but felt that if the Board did not move forward with this request and address items that could be future issues, then the LaFonds or future owners of their property may not have as much recourse. She expressed support for having the vehicles be setback at least 20 feet from the wetlands, though she was amicable with having the small trailers be up against the water line as long as they did not have oil, grease or similar material. She thought that the vehicles all needed to be operable and have current tags, and she agreed that the dumpsters needed to be screened on three sides, preferably with a fence, and that they should all have lids. She also supported the new wording for signs prohibiting blockage of Paradise Lane, ensuring that two signs were up, and ensuring that Cook Avenue was not blocked unless the homeowners and the LaFonds came into agreement on a different solution.
Commr. Campione asked that for the trailer only area, did the County have an acceptable depiction of these conditions from an enforcement standpoint.
Mr. McClendon replied that they would need a clean copy from the applicant to visualize where it was at.
Mr. Cole suggested that if Mr. McClendon had this image, it could be sent to Mr. Ross to be displayed.
Commr. Campione supported this and felt that the Board needed to see how it was laid out.
Commr. Breeden expressed interest in hearing if the LaFonds wanted additional screening on the side that Mr. Crawford mentioned. She also indicated that she had emailed a better view of the property to Mr. McClendon and Mr. Ross.
Mr. Ross displayed an image of the property.
Commr. Campione asked if this was the image that Commissioner Breeden had referenced, and Commissioner Breeden denied this and said that the other image had a different layout.
Ms. Melanie Marsh, County Attorney, said that she sent Mr. Ross a revised site plan that Mr. Crawford had emailed to the Board and to herself, and Mr. Ross would load an image directly from the applicant.
Commr. Breeden said that the displayed site plan was close to the one that she had; however, when viewing where the dumpsters were located, it showed that they were turned 180 degrees. She asked if the applicant intended to keep the dumpster storage as is or if the dumpsters would be pivoted 180 degrees with screening around them on three sides.
Mr. Crawford explained that the image sent to Ms. Marsh was an interim image before they turned the dumpsters to be perpendicular, and that it was sent to show the small trailer parking area in the southwest corner of the property. He said that the correct image of the dumpsters was the image that Commissioner Breeden had and that the applicant could send it to the County for the needed uses. He commented that they envisioned a white vinyl fence to screen the dumpsters but that they would be open to a different idea.
Commr. Breeden thought that this screening would be acceptable, and she asked if the Board could hear from the LaFonds regarding if they wanted additional landscaping on the side that Mr. Crawford offered.
Mr. LaFond indicated that he would prefer additional screenings and if all of the items were behind screening per the County ordinance pertaining to storage of multiple vehicles. He thought that there would be a benefit to security by doing this; however, he relayed his understanding that the park was not going to do this.
Commr. Campione inquired as to what extent was screening being added and if there was an offer to place trees.
Commr. Breeden thought that the discussed screening would be around the dumpsters and that the LaFonds desired that additional screening, though she was unsure of where this would be.
Mr. Crawford clarified that the screening would be near a practice area on the image of the property. He elaborated that from where the LaFonds’ driveway crossed off the property, the screening would be 100 or 150 feet to the west due to this being where their view came into the property. He said that there was some vegetation there but that it was not a sufficient screening. He commented that they could plant material of choice and design a complete visual screening of that area. He noted the 50 foot mark on the image and proposed that from where the LaFonds’ driveway exited there, that they would go 150 feet to the west and plant a visual screen. He believed that it would be plenty of distance to be beyond the LaFonds’ yard and their view, and they could leave the ability for staff to approve this at the site plan level and say that vegetative screening shall be required on the north side to buffer the land owner to the north per staff site plan review.
Commr. Breeden felt that if the arrows on the image indicated 50 feet, then this may not be very far.
Mr. Crawford explained that he was proposing 150 feet.
Commr. Campione thought that the 50 feet was showing the width and that Mr. Crawford was discussing the length.
Mr. Crawford said that he could be amicable to going farther, but he opined that the LaFonds’ view did not go much further than halfway through the subject property.
Commr. Parks suggested because this was along Cook Lake, that the buffer material be Florida native so that there would not be nuisance exotic species that could affect the lake; in addition, he felt that the wildlife would appreciate the native shrubs, which could create a thick privacy hedge.
Commr. Breeden thought that they were considering taller trees.
Commr. Parks said that taller trees such as a Florida Cedar or other species could be used and be thick.
Commr. Campione summarized that staff could work with the applicant for a variety of shrubs and trees that were native with no exotic species, and create an opaque buffer with some height. She felt that 150 to 200 feet would be on the safe side from a linear standpoint in that particular area, and could help buffer and provide cover. She noted that the offer for fencing around the dumpsters would also be included, along with Commissioner Breeden’s comments about there only being trailers with no oil or grease in that area, all vehicles would have to be operable, and lids would have to be on the dumpsters.
Commr. Breeden added that parking other than the small trailer parking would need to be 20 feet from the wetlands or canal.
On a motion by Commr. Breeden, seconded by Commr. Blake and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved Tab 4, Rezoning Case # RZ-19-20-3, Molokai Co-Op MHP Rezoning with the following conditions: an additional 200 foot long buffer; staff would work with the applicant during site plan approval to assure that there was an opaque visual buffer with a variety of shrubs and trees that were native with no exotic species; there would be fencing around the dumpsters; there would only be trailers with no oil or grease in the small trailer parking area; all vehicles must be operable; lids would have to be on the dumpsters; and parking other than the small trailer parking would need to be 20 feet from the wetlands or canal.
recess and reassembly
The Chairman called a recess at 11:08 a.m. for 22 minutes.
public hearing - ordinance 2020-13 financial responsibilities
Ms. Marsh placed the proposed ordinance on the floor for reading by title only as follows:
AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF LAKE COUNTY, FLORIDA; AMENDING SECTION 6.06.05, LAKE COUNTY CODE, APPENDIX E, LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS, ENTITLED FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY; CLARIFYING THAT FINANCIAL ASSURANCES ARE REQUIRED FOR RECLAMATION ACTIVITIES ONLY; 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 regarding this matter, the Chairman closed the public hearing.
Ms. Marsh explained that this was amending the bond requirements for mining activities and that it was a cleanup provision. She elaborated that the code currently required that a bond be provided for not only reclamation, but operation, and that was never intended; furthermore, the County did not need them to bond their entire operation and only needed them to bond reclamation activities. She said that the ordinance would be cleaning up this provision and would also add a standard for the bonds, which was the County’s standard bond requirement under Section 255.05, Florida Statutes. She noted that the ordinance was not making any true substantive changes to the mining ordinance.
On a motion by Commr. Sullivan, seconded by Commr. Breeden and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved to adopt and execute Ordinance 2020-13 amending Section 6.06.05, Lake County Code, Appendix E, Land Development Regulations, entitled Financial Responsibility, to clarify that financial assurances are required for reclamation activities only.
public hearing – ordinance 2020-14 backyard chickens
Ms. Marsh placed the proposed ordinance on the floor for reading by title only as follows:
AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF LAKE COUNTY, FLORIDA; AMENDING SECTION 10.01.06, LAKE COUNTY CODE, APPENDIX E, LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS, ENTITLED BACKYARD CHICKENS; REMOVING THE AGRICULTURE (A), AGRICULTURE RESIDENTIAL (AR), RANCHETTE DISTRICT (RA), AND RURAL RESIDENTIAL (R-1) ZONING DISTRICTS FROM THE BACKYARD CHICKEN RESTRICTIONS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE CODE; PROVIDING FOR FILING WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
Ms. Marsh summarized that this was also a cleanup provision. She said that when the County allowed chickens in true residential backyards in subdivision-type neighborhoods, those four agricultural districts were added in; however, those districts were already permitted to have chickens. She added that this would remove them from being further restricted to follow the requirements that would be needed in a residential setting.
The Chairman opened the public hearing.
There being no one who wished to address the Board regarding this matter, the Chairman closed the public hearing.
On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Blake and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved to adopt and execute Ordinance 2020-14 amending Section 10.01.06, Lake County Code, Appendix E, Land Development Regulations, entitled Backyard Chickens, to clarify Agriculture (A), Agriculture Residential (AR), Ranchette District (RA), and Rural Residential (R-1) zoning districts are not required to meet backyard chicken requirements.
first public hearing – simulated gambling ordinance
Ms. Marsh said that this would be an LDR change to prohibit simulated gambling facilities, or internet gambling facilities. She commented that before she read the title, her understanding was that Commissioner Parks wanted to address this item and potentially postpone it; therefore, if the Board wanted to entertain this idea, then she would not have to read the title.
Commr. Parks proposed tabling this item for up to 90 days to permit more discussions with the LCSO regarding the regulation of this activity. He encouraged the Board to discuss this issue with the Lake County Sheriff, and he relayed his understanding that the Sheriff believed that this was an issue and that the Sheriff appreciated that it was being deliberated by the Board. He mentioned that Polk County recently enacted a moratorium to prohibit any more of this type of use there, and that a potential concern was that the number would grow. He said that this was also prohibited in other nearby counties, and he thought that the tabling this item would give staff more time to work with the LCSO; furthermore, this could also include two residents involved with this topic to discuss potential regulations and making the ordinance clear that it could prohibit any new simulated gambling establishments but would not affect existing businesses.
Commr. Breeden asked that as part of a 90 day delay, could the Board move forward on a moratorium on any additional facilities while they reviewed it.
Commr. Campione thought that particular resident could provide some valuable insight regarding how to do this in a way that would not prohibit the activity altogether but make sure to address issues for law enforcement, residents and neighborhoods.
Ms. Marsh clarified that if the Board wanted to impose a moratorium, it must be brought back in ordinance form and they would not be able to impose it today.
Commr. Blake suggested tabling this item for 90 days and related that the Board could discuss it at a future meeting.
Commr. Sullivan agreed with this and thought that 90 days was enough time to address the issues. He mentioned that while he was comfortable not having any new establishments of this type, he was concerned about prohibiting it altogether.
Commr. Breeden said that she was impartial on having a moratorium on new facilities, and she was amicable with delaying the item for 90 days.
Commr. Parks felt that the item should be able to be addressed in 90 days, and he clarified that his intent was not to prohibit any existing businesses. He supported delaying the item for up to 90 days with the understanding that Commissioners could work with staff individually, and have discussions with the Sheriff and the two residents.
On a motion by Commr. Parks, seconded by Commr. Sullivan and carried unanimously by a vote of 5-0, the Board approved to postpone the following item for up to 90 days: request approval of a proposed ordinance to amend Lake County Code, Appendix E, Land Development Regulations, to amend Chapter III, Section 3.15.00, Prohibited Uses, to prohibit simulated gambling facilities within unincorporated Lake County, and approval to hold a second public hearing on May 5, 2020, at 9 a.m., rather than at 5:05 p.m.
workshop – strategies and goals for fiscal year 2021 budget
Mr. Cole remarked that he would be presenting the strategies workshop presentation along with Ms. Jennifer Barker, Executive Director for Administrative Services, and shared that this workshop took place annually with the discussion and Board direction assisting staff with the preparation for the following years’ budget, which would be for fiscal year (FY) 2021 beginning October 1, 2020. He indicated that the purpose of the presentation was to cover the FY 2021 budget outlook, identify strategies and goals in preparing the budget, and discuss other projects and initiatives.
Ms. Barker displayed a graph of the budget history and overview of the General Fund for years 2008 through 2020, noting that it showed the adopted budgets for both County departments and Constitutional Offices. She recalled that the County department budgets were the ones that the BCC had the most control over. She relayed that beginning in 2008, there was a significant decrease in property values which impacted the General Fund revenue; additionally, County budgets were decreased in the General Fund and the fund balance was utilized to meet operational needs in order to avoid adding an additional burden to taxpayers during the recession. She reported that the fund balance in FY 2008 was $74.5 million dollars, and was $7.7 million in FY 2019, which was a decrease of almost 90 percent; furthermore, the fund balance had increased over the last several fiscal years due to FEMA reimbursements from Hurricane Irma. She showed a Lake County population growth chart since 2009, and stated that there had been an increase in the population of about 62,000 or 21 percent between 2009 and 2019, noting that each of the years were estimates provided by the Bureau of Economic and Business Research with the exception of 2010 which was based on the census count as reported by the United States Census Bureau. She added that the 2020 Census count was currently being performed and was discussed during the previous BCC meeting. She commented that during the budget preparation process, specific goals were used to guide the decision-making and included the following: continue to identify and implement operational efficiencies; maintain the status quo millage and assessment rates; fund County operations and Constitutional Offices; retain and recruit a skilled and competitive workforce; rebuild the reserves; and identify funding for other prioritized projects and initiatives. She noted that for budgetary purposes, they were not including staff raises. She elaborated that these goals were now dependent on the economic impact of COVID-19 since some unanticipated costs related to this pandemic, which had not yet been accommodated within the budget, would require funding sources to be considered for these costs. She next displayed a graph depicting the level of the General Fund reserves for the last 13 years, noting that the blue line on the graph showed the reserve level as a percentage of the operating budget. She reiterated that the reserve policy provided for a goal of seven to twelve percent of the General Fund operating budget. She recalled that in FY 2018, the reserve level started to increase through organizational changes and implemented efficiencies; however, Hurricane Irma hit and the reserves were utilized for the recovery effort following the hurricane. She reported that the County started receiving FEMA reimbursements in FY 2019, which was reflected in the significant increase in the reserve balance. She stated that following the mid-year budget amendment which would be brought to the Board on May 5, 2020, the General Fund reserves would total $15.6 million, with $14.1 million of this amount being operational reserves and $1.5 million being Board priority reserves which were set aside at the beginning of the current fiscal year. She reminded the Board that the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) recommended a reserve level of 16 percent of operating expenses, and that in order to reach that goal, staff recommended a $1 million increase to reserves per year which would equate to an approximate one percent increase in the reserve level as a percentage of operating expenses.
Mr. Cole then presented a list of other projects and initiatives which he relayed was comprised from Board members and organizational priorities that had been identified over the past year. He remarked that each of them would require some type of funding since they were either unfunded or underfunded, noting that this list was developed prior to COVID-19 which would most likely impact revenue and decisions moving forward. He mentioned that he would present each of these initiatives with the hope that the Board would provide direction regarding which ones they might want to include in the FY 2021 budget development. He said that the first initiative was for the Lake County Property Appraiser’s Office (PAO) computer assisted mass appraisal system, noting that this office had first notified the County in 2018 that the hardware and software related to that system would need to be replaced in FY 2021. He shared that the total cost for this was estimated at $1.5 million, and that the BCC had approved setting aside $947,488 when the FY 2020 budget was amended in January 2020, which left $552,512 still needing to be funded in the FY 2021 budget with ad valorem revenue. He relayed that the Lake County Supervisor of Elections currently leased a facility in the City of Tavares located on State Road (SR) 441 which began in 2018 and was almost 19,000 square feet. He explained that the Supervisor of Elections had requested a 4,200 square foot addition to the back of the building to be utilized for equipment storage, with the estimated construction costs for this addition about $420,000 per the building’s owner, noting that the County had not solicited nor procured anything to identify the exact cost. He elaborated that if the Board desired to proceed with that addition, it was a possibility that it could be funded from a reduction of the supervisor’s budget for FY 2021. He recalled that $1 million had been added to the supervisor’s budget for FY 2020 to accommodate the presidential preference primary for this year, and staff was thinking that his budget could be reduced by a similar amount in FY 2021; furthermore, he noted that he had discussed this with the supervisor, who had indicated support for it. He then presented these potential three options for this request: maintain status quo and continue on with the lease as it currently existed; issue a request for proposal (RFP) in the summer of 2020 for the addition to the current leased facility in order to identify potential costs; or allocate sales tax funding to build or buy a new 40,000 square foot facility which would be estimated to cost around $10 million. He shared that the Lake Norris Conservation Area was another initiative which the Board had previously discussed. He explained that it was about 3,660 acres, was north of the City of Eustis, was owned by the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD), had a variety of activities available to the public, and was purchased to protect the hardwood swamp on the western shore of Lake Norris and the shoreline of Blackwater Creek, which was a major tributary to the Wekiva River. He indicated that there was a mitigation bank agreement which allowed for the removal and sale of stockpiled sand from that property, that a County haul permit would be required for sand removal, and that the mitigation banker applied in February 2020 for a haul permit which was currently being reviewed, noting that the SJRWMD worked with the banker and submitted an affidavit but were not involved in the request. He added that the agreement that the SJRWMD had with the mitigation banker expired in 2023; additionally, there were cooperative agreements, leases, and easements on the property which would need to be considered. He commented that if the BCC wanted to take ownership of this property, then the SJRWMD executive director had expressed interest in transferring the property to the County, noting that it would require approval by the SJRWMD Board. He shared that the SJRWMD currently spent about $31,000 per year on land management; however, County staff estimated that approximately $150,000 to $300,000 per year was needed for land management activities and repairs identified. He added that mitigation bank credits were available for sale on the property, that a portion of this revenue would go to the property owner and would transfer to the County, and that this was independent of the mitigation bank agreement mentioned earlier. He mentioned that the Cannon property was asked to be included by Commissioner Parks, and he recalled that it was 43.5 acres in the City of Leesburg which was in private ownership. He commented that there was an application for federal government funding which was not approved, and that the County identified conditions of ownership a couple of years prior. He related that in February 2020, the property owner came forward again to propose a donation to the County, that there would be no funding required for that purchase, and that the property owner was considering a creative solution which involved the trading of properties among other entities and ultimately donating it to the County. He added that the County’s responsibility would be for managing the property under this scenario, which would cost about $95,000 in FY 2021 and approximately $30,000 per year thereafter; additionally, there would be conditions that the staff would recommend to be applied to any agreement for the donation of the property. He added that Commissioner Parks might have additional information from the Lake County Water Authority (LCWA) who could be interested in handling the maintenance.
Commr. Parks relayed that there had been positive discussions with the LCWA and the land owner, that he thought that County staff would be meeting with the SJRWMD and the LCWA, and that other Commissioners could become involved if they desired; furthermore, he believed that it was possible to not have any costs for the County but to simply have to facilitate an agreement. He remarked that there should be more details within a couple of weeks.
Commr. Campione suggested waiting until the process continued in order to find out if there might be other factors which could help decide if this was a good idea, and Commissioner Parks agreed.
Mr. Cole continued his presentation with the topic of homelessness. He recalled that the Board had allocated $200,000 in January 2020 to homelessness, with $80,000 to go towards a new staff position and $120,000 to go towards the Housing First initiative. He stated that the recruitment portion of the hiring was completed in March 2020, then there was a temporary pause on conducting interviews and hiring since County hiring was suspended in March 2020 pending the outcome of the COVID-19 and the related staffing implications to existing staff. He indicated that the reason that this item was being addressed was because the Board had expressed interest in potentially allocating additional funding beyond the $120,000.
Commr. Campione commented that this issue might need to have a separate workshop for discussions on additional information. She felt there were other components of this which would be helpful to examine as the Board considered the overall picture and how the County could have the greatest impact for the least amount of funding to provide the best value out of the type of program the County might put into place. She relayed that there were some meetings with representatives from the Cities, law enforcement, and The Salvation Army which also included Sarasota County staff who explained some of the things they were doing to address nuisance-type situations and their impact to downtown districts. She reiterated that additional information and discussions would assist with understanding the bigger picture; additionally, she felt that the current COVID-19 pandemic situation had brought to light the importance of having a staff person dedicated to this in order to have more success.
Commr. Parks thanked the Chairman for her comments and added that he felt affordable housing also tied into this. He thought that there needed to be an affordable housing master plan which could identify possible sites throughout the county where tiny homes or affordable housing projects could be built that would be geared towards people in the service industries such as police, fire, teaching, medical, etc.; furthermore, it could include partnerships with municipalities and private business partners. He believed that staff would need assistance and that there would be some costs to putting this together along with the homelessness endeavors.
Commr. Campione agreed, and specified that there were different groups working on these issues, such as the group in South Lake and the Lake 100 group committee, noting that part of the Lake 100’s vision was to formulate a plan that they could present to the County and which could possibly be a start to something more comprehensive. She encouraged allowing these groups to continue what they were doing, as they were examples of good public-private partnerships in which the County received the benefits of the business and community leaders’ endeavors.
Commr. Parks said that he looked forward to hearing what the Lake 100 group was working on. He emphasized the importance of making sure that groups were identifying potential areas for housing along with which individuals might be targeted for this. He thought that if the County was considering waiving permit and impact fees, as well as implementing cost effective design standards for these projects, then some type of policy to encourage this should be in place to make the details clear of who would receive these benefits.
Commr. Campione opined that when looking at affordable housing, clustered housing, or infill housing on smaller lots, it was usually within a city limit since water and sewer would be needed; therefore, she thought that these discussions needed to include the Cities since the water and sewer fees were a large part of the equation in making a home affordable.
Commr. Parks agreed and added that County transportation impact fees could also possibly be waived. He emphasized the value in organizing all these elements.
Commr. Campione opined that a master plan would be good, and she hoped that the Cities could be included so that they could work together with the County. She said possibly the County could lead on the topic and that some might opt into the ideas and concepts that the County might develop. She added that possibly having a template for a cottage home design would help with understanding what was meant when talking about this type of home.
Commr. Breeden asked for clarification that the Commissioners were not suggesting that the $120,000 for the Housing First initiative be redirected.
Commr. Campione responded that she was not suggesting that. She felt that the Housing First initiative was a key component and the most impactful way to address this since it utilized the expertise of the Mid-Florida Homeless Coalition and its case workers who could connect with individuals and move them directly into housing alternatives. She added that another part of this was what the representatives from Sarasota County were doing which she thought was worthy of a larger discussion. She explained that they had hotbeds where they utilized a location as a shelter, though it was not a shelter such that someone could check in and stay for an indefinite period. She elaborated that it was a place such that if there was a nuisance situation, someone could go there and receive counseling instead of going to jail. She then relayed that within the rural areas of Lake County, there was trespassing happening on private property. She opined that the County could help by letting absentee owners know when trespassing was occurring on their property, as well as encouraging owners to clear wooded areas or fences in their property to help reduce this type of activity. She reiterated that she still wanted to move forward with the Housing First initiative as she felt it was the most direct way to move people out of homelessness.
Commr. Parks inquired if an exclusive workshop on this topic could include the Housing First initiative along with affordable housing.
Commr. Campione suggested possibly bifurcating it because while the two did relate, the groups focused on affordable housing were more focused on workforce housing; however, in order to have a Housing First initiative for homelessness, there had to be alternatives such as rental properties where people could live while receiving help to normalize back into society. She thought keeping them separate would work better even though they overlapped. She suggested that as part of the affordable housing discussions, there could be one segment that might address rental housing that could serve both workforce purposes but also other situations which involve moving people out of homelessness into housing.
Mr. Cole continued with his presentation regarding the initiative for natural gas for the Christopher C. Ford Commerce Park. He stated that businesses on site currently used on-site natural gas or propane tanks for their equipment and manufacturing processes, and that extending the natural gas line near Lakeridge Winery to the Christopher C. Ford Commerce Park would provide a dedicated source of natural gas. He explained that current businesses would realize considerable cost savings and increased efficiencies, and that it would increase the competiveness and attractiveness of vacant sites in the park for future developments, noting that there was about 200 acres of developable area currently within the Christopher C. Ford Commerce Park. He recalled that the County had applied for a Florida Job Growth grant in October 2019 to fund the $1.3 million gas line but had not received word if this was granted, although they were not expecting to receive the grant award. He then discussed public safety equipment, noting that this was one of the Board’s legislative priorities for 2020. He described that self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBA) were out of National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) compliance, were used for all fire suppression activities, and the Office of Fire Rescue had suspended all live training activities until the SCBA units met compliance. He reported that $1.9 million would be needed to replace all of the equipment with NFPA compliant SCBAs, noting that this would increase airtime by 50 percent, provide earlier low air alarms, and utilize wireless technology to communicate the exact location to the incident commander. He relayed that the County had applied for federal assistance in the past through the assistance to firefighters grant (AFG) which had been included in the County’s legislative priorities since 2020, noting that no federal funding had been received for this and it was not included in the state budget from the 2020 session; additionally, the County currently had an outstanding application in Washington, D.C. for another AFG and were waiting to find out if they would receive it. He said the next project was the multi-use fairgrounds facility, which was the new location that had been discussed. He shared that they would want this facility to have office space for both the Lake County Fairgrounds and Event Center and the Lake County Fair Association, to be climate controlled for events which would increase rental revenue, to be able to be used as a special needs hurricane-proof shelter and a cold weather shelter during winter months, and to have classroom space for Lake Technical College and the American Red Cross. He specified that the County had allocated $500,000 in the FY 2021 sales tax project list to start design and site preparation, noting that there would be a revenue source for the new fairgrounds site at some point relating to the sale of the existing fairgrounds site but that there was not currently any other funding. He added that a funding amount was not given because it could be a varied amount depending on what the Board wanted to include and how they wanted to proceed, such as in phases or all at once; however, he indicated that just the facility itself could cost potentially $15 to $20 million depending on what was included in it. He mentioned that hydrilla treatment was another initiative and explained the following: that this was a Board legislative priority in 2020; that the Harris Chain of Lakes had experienced an accelerated growth rate since 2017, which led to increased fish deaths, degraded navigation, and had a ripple effect on fishing tournaments which relied on navigable, healthy waterbodies; and that Lake County had asked for $7.5 million in legislative priorities to address this, noting that this was not included in the state budget and that currently the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) funded the chemicals but the County was reimbursed for labor and equipment. He relayed that in FY 2019, the FWC spent $4.1 million in Lake County which allowed for the treatment of about 8,000 acres of hydrilla. He elaborated that in the current FY 2020 they anticipated receiving only $1.5 million, which would result in a treatment of about 3,000 acres, since the FWC had identified through surveillance and mapping that less hydrilla than anticipated would be in Lake County and therefore fewer acres would be treated. He also indicated that in late May 2020, the County would have a planned meeting to learn what the FWC was proposing to fund in FY 2021, noting that FY 2021 would start on July 1, 2020 for the FWC. He concluded by showing a slide regarding the last project which was for LifeStream Behavioral Center’s South Lake Services Complex and depicted operational funding amounts per year for LifeStream from FY 2012 through FY 2020, noting that funding amounts increased between FY 2019 and FY 2020; additionally, he stated that there was an unfunded request from LifeStream for $500,000 to go towards the construction of their South Lake Services Complex. He relayed his understanding that this complex was scheduled to be concluded in May 2020; therefore, this funding request would be used for building furnishing and other needs related to opening that facility.
Ms. Barker then presented a chart showing the General Fund outlook which included the four major funding sources for the General Fund including the ad valorem tax, communications service tax, state shared revenue and state sales tax. She reported that the ad valorem tax revenue was assuming a millage rate of 5.0734 which was status quo, and that the County was projecting a modest increase in property values of five percent; furthermore, they would know more details on June 1, 2020 when the PAO provided the best estimate of property values with the values being certified on July 1, 2020. She said the five percent increase resulted in about $5.6 million in additional revenue in the ad valorem tax. She remarked that in regards to the communications service tax, they had seen a decrease year-over-year, and that several years prior, the State had lowered the rate at which the revenue calculation was estimated, which she explained would mean that next year they projected an 18 percent decrease of about $324,000. She indicated that the state shared revenue was projected to increase about three percent which was typical year-over-year and equated to almost $225,000, and that the state sales tax was projected to increase by a half of a percent which was dependent on the COVID-19 economic impact; therefore, they were keeping a modest increase at this point. She reported that all of this would give a total revenue increase for FY 2021 of approximately $5.6 million, minus the five percent statutory reduction which cannot be budgeted, which would leave a net increase for FY 2021 of about $5.4 million in the General Fund. She then discussed some considerations relating to COVID-19 which included the gas tax revenue, state sales tax revenue, and infrastructure sales tax revenue. She said they were estimating that there might be a 20 percent decrease in the FY 2020 gas tax revenue; therefore, the Public Works Department was delaying some of the non-essential expenditures such as tree trimming, striping of county roads, the purchase of a flatbed truck, and vacant positions would be evaluated for necessity. She said that for the state sales tax revenue, which she reiterated was a General Fund revenue source, they anticipated receiving an additional $1.7 million added to the General Fund during the mid-year budget amendment which would be coming to the Board on May 5, 2020. She remarked that some of that revenue would be proposed to offset any decline in the state sales tax revenue due to COVID-19, and would also address some of the related costs associated with this disease which had not been anticipated in the current year budget. She indicated that the entire $1.7 million of Hurricane Irma proceeds could be placed into the reserves of the General Fund in order to cover any decline in revenue or increased costs for COVID-19. She noted that for the infrastructure sales tax revenue, or the penny sales tax, there was a project list approved in August 2019 for the current fiscal year but some of those projects had not yet begun; therefore, they would be reviewed to consider which projects could possibly be delayed until the August 2020 infrastructure workshop and public hearing. She said that at that point, there would be a better understanding of the revenue impacts to the penny sales tax revenue, and the Board would have the opportunity to review the list and reprioritize or eliminate projects as appropriate. She reiterated that the COVID-19 costs were not currently contemplated in the current FY 2020 budget, and staff was anticipating using the additional Hurricane Irma revenue received in the current year to offset those costs.
Mr. Cole then referenced the General Fund outlook chart again, and stated that staff’s assumption at this point was that if ad valorem was left status quo, then the chart indicated the revenues, as mentioned prior, for a status quo General Fund budget. He reiterated that raises for employees had not been included in the development of the FY 2021 budget although normally they would be considered. He emphasized that it was not because they felt employees did not warrant raises and increases, but simply that they were trying to be sensitive to the impacts of COVID-19. He mentioned that based on employee performance, the County believed that there was room to make improvements that had needed to be addressed for a number of years, which they had started to address in the previous two years. He said that while raises had not been built into the proposed budget, he asked that if there was an opportunity in the coming months to address employee performance, then they would welcome that and bring it before the Board. He then asked for discussion among the Board regarding whether the staff’s assumptions relating to assessment rates remaining status quo, the millage rate staying status quo which would generate an estimated $5.6 million in additional revenue, and General Fund reserves, were something staff should continue with or modify.
Commr. Breeden thought that it would be good if the Board did not consider any increases in the assessment rates at this time. She supported being sensitive to businesses and individuals who were having difficulties, and opined that the millage rate was something that the Board would also have to consider with sensitivity. She did not think that the Board could decide until they heard from the Lake County Tax Collector, and she agreed that they needed to build the General Fund reserves.
Commr. Campione relayed her understanding of how challenging it was for businesses in Lake County, including those that were deemed to be non-essential services and service providers, in addition to those in the tourism industry. She felt that the Board had to keep moving ahead, being prepared to make these decisions, and giving Mr. Cole direction, though she did not want the public to think that there had been a lack of recognition from the Board that everyone had been having a challenging time. She felt that the Board was trying to be sensitive, in understanding that they had to keep things moving and ensure that traffic lights in progress were finished, that items could be repaired, and that other issues were addressed. She thought that Mr. Cole was moving in the right direction by having the Board consider these items.
Commr. Parks expressed sympathy for businesses that were having issues, and he thought that there could be pressure as the Board moved forward with discussing their budget over the summer. He opined that it would be important to be levelheaded and not to overreact. He commented that for the budget history and overview slide of the presentation, the fund balance had decreased until the previous year and that the County departments were still not funded at the same level prior to 2008. He mentioned that for the population overview slide, there was significant population growth in the county of over 100,000 more people than they had at that time. He said that this was an indicator of the County and the BCC emphasizing efficiency, and he pointed out that the reserves in 2011 were high but that the County did not have the same level of reserves at the current time. He commented that this was what helped fund operations and furloughs through the Great Recession, and he felt that the approximate $5.4 million increase in revenues on the General Fund outlook chart was a good number until the Board knew more on June 1, 2020. He thought that there could be pressure for the Board to reduce the millage rate or other items, and he opined that the most important thing the Board could do today would be to not budget by millage rate. He also felt that the Board needed to use the zero based philosophy moving forward. He opined that there could also be pressure to reduce taxes during an election year; however, he mentioned the items that the Board had committed to, and opined that they would also need to honor their staff. He reiterated his concern for going in with a desired millage rate reduction without ensuring that the Board considered the long term effects of this. He mentioned items that the Board wanted to continue moving forward with such as affordable housing, trails, libraries, the animal shelter, and the Constitutional Officers’ requests; furthermore, the reserves were currently nine percent when he believed that they should be 20 percent of the operating budget, though 16 percent was the Board’s target. He remarked that there could be another hurricane and that he would be concerned that the County could possibly leave themselves vulnerable in the long term to having to borrow funding from the federal government and be reliant upon the State to assist with operations unless they made cuts to what they had decided to do over the past few years. He supported the status quo moving forward and expressed interest in seeing how the situation panned out over the summer. He said that the Board could be sensitive in helping businesses and thought that there could be ways to do this.
Commr. Breeden recalled that the Board recently voted to sunset the business tax receipts (BTRs) in a phased approach, and she thought that it could be a good show of faith if they revisited this item to sunset it as quickly as possible. She also expressed support for seeing if there were some fees that the Board could reduce or set aside for a certain period of time to assist in this process.
Commr. Blake agreed with Commissioner Breeden for eliminating the BTRs more quickly. He felt that the financial projections were intimidating for everyone, but he thought that this year was appropriate to start discussions for rolling back the millage. He hoped that the projections were incorrect, though he noted that the Board had to prepare for this not to occur. He opined that the Board should do everything they could to insulate some local industries from the fallout of this, and one way they could do this would be to temporarily suspend the collection of impact fees; additionally, this could also pertain to the discussion about affordable housing and the homelessness crisis. He noted that many jurisdictions had done this during the Great Recession but felt that the Board should not wait too long to do this.
Commr. Sullivan supported taking a broad approach to what the Board had discussed. He thought that the Board needed to know the numbers for a rollback rate because they had no control over the assessments; rather, it was a status quo and those assessments were already made. He said that the Board could receive these numbers in June 2020, and he expressed a concern that the state revenue sharing from the sales tax was likely where the County would take the largest loss because they had not collected what normally came in at this time. He added that once the Board knew these numbers, they would have to prioritize what was most important to them. He mentioned the approximate $1.3 million to fund the natural gas to the Christopher C. Ford Commerce Park, and opined that this item should be prioritized over some of the other projects; furthermore, he also believed that the Board had to continue to diversify its economy. He also believed that with COVID-19 and available federal funding, this might be an area that the County could capitalize on during this process to complete some items that the Board knew needed to be done to move Lake County forward, provide jobs, etc. He noted that the County had been efficient but that this may be as efficient as they could be. He thought that staff had a good project list but that the Board also had to remain flexible to see what the revenues would be. He opined that the status quo budget was correct, relayed his understanding that capital projects were always most affected by revenues, and supported prioritizing them based on the projects that could have the most significant impact on the economy across the board. He expressed appreciation for staff gathering this information, and he thought that the Board may have to conduct many workshops as they moved through the COVID-19 situation to discuss these items. He noted that the budget process was always a challenging time as the Board prioritized projects and initiatives, and he thought that the staff had done a good job. He expressed a concern that the economy and the County’s business partners would likely need more help this year than ever before.
Mr. Cole explained that when the County discussed the proposed status quo budget, they were not considering continuing on with the same approach and the same level of service. He said that it would be maintaining a budget that did not increase but would require that while there were additional demands on the County, they would have to determine how to accommodate them within the revenues that maintained that status quo budget. He elaborated that they were continually evaluating the opportunity for efficiencies, and the County had identified efficiencies in each of the past several fiscal years and had implemented them for significant savings for the budget. He commented that there were additional demands on next year’s budget, but the County was looking to accommodate them through reductions in other areas so that there would not be a net increase in the General Fund side of the budget. He also explained that a preliminary report on the fire rescue assessments was recommending an increase, though this would be evaluated and brought back to the Board for discussion. He then displayed a list of other projects and initiatives.
Commr. Campione noted that there was a possibility that another stimulus package could come from Washington, D.C. She thought that it was likely for there to be an infrastructure related bill, and she felt that the County should position itself so that they could apply for those types of funds for projects in Lake County to help with the local economy and that they could offset some losses for completed capital projects. She thought that the County should be mindful of this when discussing items such as project development and environment (PD&E) studies, understanding that typically with these types of stimulus programs for infrastructure, a PD&E study must be in place to receive funding to proceed with a project. She felt that the Lake County Public Works Department and the County Manager could examine what type of projects the County could submit applications for, and she applauded the Board for their statements. She felt that these were positive items to consider and also that this could be a time to consider a rollback, noting that the County would be examining other decreases in revenue streams that could put them in a position where it may be challenging to fund their first responders. She noted that the County could not do this and that they would have to be careful with how they balanced all of this; additionally, this could be the time to consider a shift with how they operated. She shared that she would be having future meetings with the Constitutional Officers to discuss ways that they may be able to do things differently and more efficiently as a result of what they learned over the past several weeks. She thought that the Board should consider impact fees and what had the most direct impact on individuals from the standpoint of the economy, their businesses and their viability. She supported doing this carefully for impact fees due to some of the capital projects that the County may need matching funding for with regards to transportation impact fees.
Commr. Parks suggested that if the Board was going to enact a rollback, they needed to consider this long term and how it could affect the Constitutional Officers. He opined that if the decision was made to roll back the millage, then it would not be increased again due to political divisiveness and they would have to assume long term that this is what the millage rate would be. He thought that the Board would have to make challenging decisions on what would be funded, and he discouraged looking at the rollback as only one year. He noted that there was new growth but that the County was still trying to catch up from the rapid growth they were experiencing. He suggested that the Board consider if they kept the millage rate the same or lowered it slightly, then would they be able to give rebates back to non-homesteaded properties that would mostly be businesses. He said that the Board could provide more direct impact in the first year or two by doing this instead of having the millage be a political issue each year.
Commr. Campione expressed interest in considering the possibility of a rebate if the millage was kept intact. She thought that this could be an interesting approach and take into consideration that the County did not know how long this situation would go on for or how quickly they could rebound.
Mr. Cole listed the following takeaways: staff needed to identify the impacts and what the funding would look like from a rollback; they would consider how a waiving of impact fees could work and the mechanism for that; and they would consider potential rebates for non-homesteaded properties next year. He added that for the displayed list of projects, staff would budget the first item on the list, which was the Lake County Property Appraiser’s property appraisal system, for $552,512 in next year’s budget to finish the funding needed for it. He elaborated that staff would not budget the rest of the items unless the Board wanted to include them as part of the budget process.
Commr. Campione was amicable to this and thought that the Lake Norris Conservation Area should also be explored more to determine if the County would have an obligation to allow the sand on the property to be hauled. She said that for the fairgrounds facility, it may be a facility or project that could qualify based on the type of stimulus plan enacted by the federal government because it could be used as a hurricane shelter and possibly qualify for FEMA funding.
Commr. Breeden said that she had also considered the fairgrounds facility as a possibility for federal grants, along with the natural gas for the Christopher C. Ford Commerce Park. She also thought that there was additional community development block grant (CDBG) funding coming.
Commr. Campione confirmed this and said that this could be another area related to the affordable housing discussion.
Commr. Breeden then mentioned the Astor County Library, which was not on the list, as a possibility, though she also supported affordable housing.
Commr. Campione felt that they should keep the Astor County Library in mind because that area was susceptible to flooding and to see if they could make that building or another building safe to be in. She added that from a CDBG standpoint, it was in an area that could qualify. She then opined that it was worth evaluating DOH funding as they looked at what some other counties were able to do. She thought it was based on demographics and whether a county was urbanized or rural for access to additional funding, and she wanted to see to what extent the DOH in Lake County was funded when compared to other counties in a similar situation. She noted that the County was seeing the role that they played in this type of situation and where some of the deficiencies were for their ability to offer some services that they were unable to due to not being set up the same way as in some other counties. She thought that the country was learning lessons that could be used going forward that could help everyone be more prepared and able to adapt to these situations. She felt that the DOH in Lake County would continue to play a significant role in that regard for this pandemic or a future situation.
Commr. Breeden noted that the Board did not discuss public safety equipment and felt that they needed to find some way to fund at least part of it to get back to being in compliance, possibly with sales tax funding.
Commr. Campione commented that this may be included in a packet for state and local governments, and Lake County may have opportunities to apply for funding for equipment.
Commr. Parks hoped that this year, the County could rely upon Mr. Carpenter to develop lessons learned about what the County’s plan for local pandemic preparedness would be, and also what to do with regards to wide scale cyber-attacks. He thought that Mr. Carpenter could potentially suggest that the County would need a stockpile and a training cost to do this as they trained with staff and other municipalities.
Mr. Cole displayed a budget timeline and noted the following dates: a budget kickoff with staff occurred in February 2020; the strategies workshop on the current day; and staff would come back in May and June 2020 with budget workshops. He clarified that this would not be done as in previous years because they usually started earlier than they were now as a result of having virtual meetings, and staff would come to the Board in meetings in May and June 2020 ahead of the Board’s July 2020 adoption of the maximum millage rate, and give them overviews of sections of the County budget and allow the Board the opportunity to weigh in and give direction. He added that the tentative budget adoption would be in the second July 2020 BCC meeting, and there would be discussion in August 2020 regarding infrastructure sales tax projects; furthermore, a public hearing would occur on August 25, 2020 and would be an opportunity to react to the list going into the next fiscal year based on the reduction in sales tax revenues from this event. He commented that the public hearings on the budget would be on September 15 and 29, 2020, along with the solid waste and fire assessments on September 15, 2020. He felt that staff received good direction today and knew how to proceed, and they would keep working down this path. He also said that staff could prepare items that the Board had mentioned for further discussion in May and June 2020.
Commr. Breeden commented that just because the Board did not address specific issues such as the Lake County Supervisor of Elections project today, this did not mean that they were dismissing them; rather, they wanted to wait until they had a better view of their budget realities.
Commr. Campione felt that this was a fair statement, and she thanked staff for the presentation.
reports
county attorney
Virtual meeting order
Ms. Marsh reported that the order Governor DeSantis issued that allowed the Board to hold their meetings virtually would expire on May 8, 2020; therefore, the Board’s May 5, 2020 meeting would be their last virtual meeting unless Governor DeSantis issued an extension or another order.
county manager
thanking county staff
Mr. Cole thanked staff for their hard work and dedication in challenging times. He said that they kept the County government fully operational and proactive in relation to COVID-19, along with providing their other services. He noted that staff had been flexible in a situation that continued to evolve, that they maintained professionalism, and that he was proud of everything they continued to accomplish.
commissioners reports
commissioner sullivan – district 1
PRAISING Lake support and emergency recovery
Commr. Sullivan praised what LASER was doing in the community. He mentioned that he had volunteered at the Leesburg Food Bank, and he remarked that the items that had already increased their output were great. He relayed that the community was responding in a positive way to this pandemic, and he said that he would appreciate their continued support as the County worked through their budgets and the long term effects of COVID-19.
commissioner parks – district 2
groveland general store and local products
Commr. Parks thought that it was important to purchase American-made products and to buy local products. He referenced the discussion about growing locally and supporting local agriculture, and he praised the Groveland General Store where the City of Groveland was assisting with promotion to help local agriculture sell their products, in addition to selling other items online to Lake County residents. He noted that it was still a choice to buy locally, and he thought that this could be a good model to follow with other parts of the County where there could be co-ops to sell local products such as agriculture. He applauded Lake Catherine Blueberries and the City of Groveland for this.
support for lake support and emergency recovery
Commr. Parks expressed support and compliments for LASER. He indicated that he supported the gray sky budget that they were submitting and thought that it would be funding well spent. He supported what LASER was doing and mentioned that it was now only Lake County centered. He opined that the County should assist LASER with press releases and communicating their message. He relayed his understanding that LASER needed the County since the County was their primary funding source in addition to donations. He felt that the County received a great value for this and that the Board should make a decision to fund them. He opined that if LASER had additional needs such as purchasing food that was being used through churches, then the County would need to assist them with short term requests for this as well.
thanking chairman campione and staff
Commr. Parks thanked Chairman Campione for getting the message out regarding COVID-19, and he thanked staff. He felt that residents in his area were generally being responsible, and said that he appreciated this. He also noted that many individuals wanted to resume working, and he hoped that this could be done as soon as when it was safe.
commissioner breeden – vice chairman and district 3
support for lake support and emergency recovery
Commr. Breeden thanked Commissioner Parks for mentioning his support for LASER, and she felt that the food they were able to bring in this week was great. She also expressed support for LASER’s gray sky funding.
supporting u-pick farms
Commr. Breeden opined that the county needed to do everything it could for the agricultural community, including going out for U-Picks. She said that it was the season for this, and she encouraged everyone to U-Pick, noting that social distancing could be practiced while doing this.
thanking the county
Commr. Breeden thanked the County for being so responsive, and she said that everyone looked forward to transitioning back to being as normal as they could in the weeks and months ahead.
COMMISSIONER BLAKE – DISTRICT 5
thanking chairman campione and staff
Commr. Blake thanked Chairman Campione for her measured approach and for being proactive. He said he appreciated all of her work and the time she spent on these issues. He also thanked staff, Mr. Cole, Ms. Marsh, Mr. Carpenter, Mr. Ross, and the IT department. He added that he appreciated everyone’s comments and that everyone he had come into contact with was taking the situation seriously.
thoughts on lake support and emergency recovery
Commr. Blake echoed the Board’s thoughts on LASER, noting that the County had been working with LASER on some issues with food bank supplies in Astor; furthermore, they just had about 600 boxes of food delivered. He thanked Mr. Michael Tart, Chairman for LASER, for being responsive and helping with this.
supporting local farms
Commr. Blake mentioned the importance of remembering to support local farms and help keep them in business. He noted that due to COVID-19, a blueberry farm was scheduling appointments to ensure that it was a safe activity.
appreciating governor desantis’ approach to covid-19
Commr. Blake stated that he appreciated Governor DeSantis and his measured approach to the COVID-19 situation, and opined that he was doing a great job.
commissioner campione – CHAIRMAN AND district 4
comments on covid-19
Commr. Campione agreed with Commissioner Blake’s comments about Governor DeSantis and stated that she listened to the Governor’s conference on the previous day about the COVID-19 task force and the reopening of the State of Florida economy. She felt that the Governor had a great handle on the statistics and that he was aware of what was happening in each county in the state. She also thought that they had been on top of the issue regarding assisted living facilities from the start. She said that she tried to emphasize to Lake County residents that the County was making decisions based on facts and that they were using data and looking at everything daily to see where the hospitals were at, what their capacity was, and what equipment they had. She felt that the hospitals had done an exceptional job and that everyone should be proud of the three major hospitals in the county. She also said that the doctors had done a great job getting information out to their patients, and that it was good to see everyone contributing and working together. She thought that everyone kept seeing glimmers of positive results from the situation, and she hoped that everyone could keep taking lessons from this and benefit in the long term. She related that over the next week, it would be important to see what was happening with the Governor’s task force, along with providing input to the County. She added that the County would be looking for survey answers as they came in and would be working on their own plans in the county. She commented that they wanted their businesses and economy to be open and to help everyone survive this financial hardship.
covid-19 testing
Commr. Campione remarked that everyone recognized how important COVID-19 testing was and how it helped create a level of confidence and could give people peace of mind; however, someone could contract the virus after receiving the test and it was important to be diligent in this regard. She related that a testing partnership agreement would be brought back to the Board for ratification at their next meeting; however, they went ahead and rolled it out because from a time standpoint, they needed to offer this to be able to help indigent and uninsured residents who would otherwise be going to the DOH in Lake County for testing, though this would have to be done in the City of Orlando if individuals did not meet the specific criteria for testing in Lake County. She commented that the County could meet the needs of residents who wanted to pay to be tested and those who wanted a convenient way to get an antibody test, along with facilitating the DOH receiving tests that they may not otherwise receive in some instances. She felt that the testing locations would be positive for residents and the economy, and that this would help the county as they tried to move forward.
Mr. Cooney commented that he had been part of many statewide teleconferences since this situation began, and he opined that this had been the most effective meeting he had been on. He said that this was a credit to Commissioner Campione and Mr. Ross, and thanked Commissioner Campione for the tenor of this meeting.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to be brought to the attention of the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 1:19 p.m.
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leslie campione, chairman
ATTEST:
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GARY J COONEY, CLERK