City Commission Regular Meeting

APPROVED:1/21/2016 City Hall City of Eustis, Florida 10 North Grove Street Post Office Drawer 68 Eustis, FL 32727-0068 Meeting Minutes - Final* City Commission Tuesday, January 5, 2016 7:30PM City Hall INVOCATION: Pastor Renee Hill, Win.l.Ministry PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Commissioner Bob CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Holland ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF QUORUM AND PROPER NOTICE Present: 5 - Commissioner Linda Bob; Commissioner Bill Brett; Commissioner Carla Gnann-Thompson; Vice-Mayor Karen LeHeup-Smith; and Mayor Michael Holland I. AGENDA UPDATE II. MAYOR'S MESSAGE FOR 2015 Mayor Holland provided his message for 2015 as follows: ':4s we start a new year, I think it is important for us as citizens, staff and Commission to take a look back at 2015 and celebrate our successes. Eustis continues to experience growth, even though it's small, with an increase in our population from 17,249 in 2005 to an estimated 19,433 as of Apri11, 2015. As we started the new year, we had many gaps to fill in our senior management team. I feel that we have been very successful in the hiring of our new management team. By bringing on a new city manager, finance director, director of development services, fire chief and police chief, I think these hires will take us well into our future. While we were looking for our new senior management staff, our city staff continued to work hard with the Commission. We won an Earl B. Phelps Award with the Florida Water Environmental Association. Our police department took third place in the Florida Law Enforcement Challenge and third place in the Florida Click It or Ticket It Challenge. Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Finance Officer Association for the 26th consecutive year was won by our departments. We completed Phase I of Ferran Park improvements including replacement of sidewalks, upgrading the bathrooms, installing new irrigation, new landscape and the new playground. We resurfaced the Eustis Aquatic Center pool. Public Works constructed 2. 7 miles of new sidewalks within the City and replaced 1. 13 miles of deteriorating sidewalks. We completed the beautification of Bay Street with the median strips. We also extended our sidewalks along Orange Avenue near Eustis Elementary. The City completed a kayak launch in Ferran Park behind the Lake Eustis Museum of Art, known as LEMA, and has also added to the Lake County Blue way System. Our Fire Department has completed an ISO rating of 2, just shy of the 1 that is so coveted by most fire departments and cities within the State of Florida. We have approved an interlocal agreement with Lake County to address the sidewalk repairs along Kurt Street and resurfacing of Kurt Street. We 've partnered with the Lake Eustis Area Chamber of Commerce to host the 113th Annual George fest Celebration, continuing the tradition of the longest running festival of its kind in the State of Florida. In March 2015, the City of Eustis was named the 2014 Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation in honor of its commitment to effective urban forest management. In its 23rd year, Eustis has earned the national recognition. In addition, for the 18th year, Eustis received the Tree City USA Growth Award for demonstrating progress in its community forestry program. During the past fiscal year, staff has reduced anticipated expenditures by approximately $343,000. We awarded $48,000 in community service grants to 131ocal organizations for events and City of Eustis, Florida Page 1 Printed on 1fl/2016 City Commission Meeting Minutes - Final January 5, 2016 community services. The City Commission has directed staff to review the City's pay plan to improve compensation to remain competitive with our local market. Market pay and merit pay adjustments were made - 3% for exempt and 4% for non-exempt employees. We were also able to give each employee a $100 Christmas bonus. Our police department responded to over 35,000 calls for service this year. Our Fire Department responded to over 4,000 calls for service. One of the organizations and departments we look at a lot of times when it comes to budget season is our public library. When I saw some of the numbers for our public library, I just wanted to share with you a little bit about what's going on there. Our population here in Eustis is, like I said, 19,432. The total number of registered resident users of our library is 11,637, so well over half of our residents use our library, or are registered to use it. The total number of registered non-resident users of our library is 1, 874. These are people who live in the County or in other cities who choose to pay to use our Eustis library because of what it has to offer. The total registered users is 13,511 . Our library responded to 14, 743 reference inquiries this past year. It had 69,000 public internet computer sessions. 200 programs that were not computer related, these are reading programs for children and other organizations, were held this year. Our library registered 88 new voters and proctored 47 college exams. The total number of visitors to our library was 97,442 and then virtual visitors to the library through our computer system was 54, BOO. It shows the need for services here in our City. I am very proud of where we've come with our police and fire departments and with our library system. This Commission is only as good as its staff. I want to thank our staff for all you have done throughout the year. I vow to you, and this Commission vows to you, to continue working hard to make Eustis the best place it can be to raise your families, to conduct business. All/ can say at this time is let's move ahead and continue the good work we have done in 2015. Happy new year everyone!" III. APPOINTMENT OF CITY CLERK AS TEMPORARY CHAIRMAN IV. ELECTION OF MAYOR 15307 Election of 2016 Mayor and Vice Mayor Mary Montez, City Clerk, explained for the audience the procedure to be used for election of the Mayor and then by the new Mayor for election of the Vice Mayor. She then opened the floor to nominations for Mayor. Commissioner Bob nominated Michael Holland for Mayor. There being no further nominations, Ms. Montez asked for a motion to close the nominations. Commissioner LeHeup-Smith moved to close the nominations, seconded by Commissioner Brett. On a voice vote, the motion passed unanimously. On a roll call vote, the nomination of Michael Holland for Mayor passed unanimously. Ms. Montez then turned the meeting over to Mayor Holland. V. ELECTION OF VICE MAYOR Mayor Holland opened the floor to nominations for Vice Mayor. Commissioner Bob nominated Karen LeHeup-Smith for Vice Mayor. There being no further nominations for Vice Mayor, Mayor Holland asked for a motion to close the nominations. Commissioner Brett moved to close the nominations, seconded by Commissioner LeHeup-Smith. On a voice vote, the motion passed unanimously. On a roll call vote, the motion for Karen LeHeup-Smith as Vice Mayor passed unanimously. City of Eustis, Florida Page2 Printed on 1n12016 City Commission Meeting Minutes - Final January 5, 2016 VI. SEATING OF MAYOR AND VICE-MAYOR VII. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 16002 December 17, 2015- Regular City Comm ission Meeting A motion was made by Commissioner Brett, seconded by Commissioner Bob, to Approve the Minutes. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5 -Commissioner Bob; Commissioner Brett; Commissioner Gnann-Thompson; Vice-Mayor LeHeup-Smith ; and Mayor Holland VIII. AUDIENCE TO BE HEARD Renee Hill, Win. 1.Ministries, thanked the Commission and staff for their service to the community. Vance Jochim addressed the Commission regarding the previously approved purchase and sale of property at 17 E. Magnolia Avenue and urged them to reverse the decision. He distributed a handout with his comments to the Commission. IX. CONSENT AGENDA 15297 Approva l of 2016 Comm ission Meeting Schedule 15305 Appointment to Eustis Housing Authority- James Trent and Hugh Brockington II 15295 Resolution No. 16-02: Approval of Purchase in Excess of $50 ,000 for Police Veh icles 15299 Resolution No. 16-03: Approval of Change Order for Pace Concrete, Inc. in the amount of $19,240 15296 Resolution No. 16-04: Approval of Contract Award for Library Carpet Replacement 15300 Resolution No. 16-05: Amended lnterlocal Agreement with Lake County for Traffic Signal Maintenance 15301 Resolution No. 16-06: Revised Florida Department of Transportation (FOOT) Traffic Signal Maintenance and Compensation Agreement 15303 Resolution No. 16-09: Approval of John B. Smith and Evelyn Smith Parking Lot Lease Agreement A motion was made by Commissioner Brett, seconded by Commissioner Bob, to Approve the Consent Agenda. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5- Commissioner Bob; Commissioner Brett; Commissioner Gnann-Thompsen; Vice-Mayor LeHeup-Smith ; and Mayor Holland X. ORDINANCES, PUBLIC HEARINGS & QUASI-JUDICIAL HEARINGS 15298 Resolution No. 16-01 : Appointment of City Commissioners and/or Staff Members to Various Committees and Boards of Directors Derek Schroth, City Attorney, announced Resolution No. 16-01: A Resolution by the City Commission of the City of Eustis, L ake County, Florida, to appoint liaisons, directors/members City of Eustis, Florida Page3 Printed on 1fl/2016 City Commission Meeting Minutes - Final January 5, 2016 and alternate directors/members to various committees and boards of directors to ensure that the City's interests, as expressed through the City Commission, are represented on these various committees and boards of directors. The Commission discussed keeping all of the current appointments. It was noted that someone needed to be appointed to the Audit Committee and it was agreed the Mayor should serve on that committee. Commissioner Gnann-Thompson volunteered to serve on the Upper Oklawaha Basin Working Group and as alternate to the Lake Community Action Agency. · Mr. Schroth opened the public hearing at 7:54 p:m: There being no public comment, the hearing was closed at 7:54p.m. A motion was made by Vice-Mayor LeHeup-Smith, seconded by Commissioner Bob, to Approve Resolution No. 16-01 with the same appointments as for 2015 and with Commissioner Gnann-Thompson serving on the Upper Oklawaha Basin Working Group and as Alternate to the Lake Community Action Agency. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5- Commissioner Bob; Commissioner Brett; Commissioner Gnann-Thompson ; Vice-Mayor LeHeup-Smith ; and Mayor Holland 16001 Resolution No. 16-07: Approval of Modification to PBA Collective Bargaining Agreement Mr. Schroth announced Resolution No. 16-07: A Resolution by the City Commission of the City of Eustis, Lake County, Florida; approving a modification of Article 9- Rules and Regulations, Article 11 - Grooming, Article 12 - Internal Investigations and Disciplinary Procedures, Article 15 - Personnel Records, Article 16 - Grievance and Arbitration Procedure, Article 18 - Off-Duty Employment, Article 21 - Department Assigned Vehicles, Article 23- Wages, Article 24 - Holidays, Annual Leave (Vacation), and Sick Leave, Article 25- Overtime, and Article 26- Entire Agreement and Duration of the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the City of Eustis and the Police Benevolent Association (PBA) for the period October 1, 2015 through September 30, 2018, as set forth in Exhibit ':A " and authorizing the City Manager to sign said agreement. Bill Howe, Human Resources Director, presented Resolution No. 16-07 approving the PBA Collective Bargaining Agreement. He stated that the existing one year contract expired September 30, 2015. He commented on the negotiations which resulted in the agreement presented. He noted one typographical error under Article 23, Section 23.3 which inadvertently included Crime Scene Investigators. He highlighted some of the more significant changes as follows: 1) Article 23 - Provides for a 4% wage increase effective October 1, 2015, for those bargaining unit members who received a satisfactory evaluation; 2) the agreement is for a three year period to expire September 30, 201 8; 3) the agreement provides for a 2% increase in FY2016-17 and another 2% increase in FY2017-18; 4) a provision referred to as a "me too clause" that if the City approves a greater increase for general employees the PBA members would be entitled to that increase; 5) Article 18 provides for special detail pay that is provided by an outside vendor. Police officers would be paid $30 per hour. They currently receive $25 per hour. 6) Article 24 - Bargaining unit members who work 2, 184 hours annually will continue to receive 80 hours of PTO holiday time; however, under the agreement, they may designate up to 80 hours to be straight time pay instead of leave pay; and 7) For the purposes of calculating overtime, the work period for bargaining unit members will become 14-day periods instead of 28-day periods; however, the only time overtime. that will be authorized will be in excess of 86 hours for that two-week period. He stated staff's recommendation of approval and explained that any changes to the agreement would require further negotiations and could result in an impasse. Mr. Schroth opened the public hearing at 8:01 p.m. There being no public comment, the hearing was closed at 8:01 p.m. City of Eustis, Florida Page4 Printed on 1fl/2016 City Commission Meeting Minutes - Final January 5, 2016 A motion was made by Commissioner Bob, seconded by Commissioner Brett, to Approve Resolution No. 16-07. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5- Commissioner Bob; Commissioner Brett; Commissioner Gnann-Thompson; Vice-Mayor LeHeup-Smith; and Mayor Holland 15304 Resolution No. 16-08: Tax Exempt Lease Purchase Financing for Fire Pumper Truck Mr. Schroth announced Resolution No. 16-08: A Resolution of the City Commission of the City of Eustis, Lake County, Florida; awarding Bid No. 001-16 to U.S. Bancorp Government Leasing and Finance, Inc. (U.S. Bank) for tax exempt lease financing in the amount of $437,548 to acquire a Pierce Impel Fire Pumper Truck. Colleen Scott, Finance Director, explained the proposed financing with U.S. Bank for the fire pumper truck through a tax exempt lease noting that staff went out for RFP's for the loan. She explained the terms of the loan as follows: 1) It must a qualified tax-exempt lease, which will give the City a very low rate; 2) No loan fees will be paid by the City; 3) No additional costs/closing fees will be paid by the City; 4) The term is a five year loan with annual principal and interest payments; 5) The interest rate is a fixed rate; and 6) The truck will be the collateral for the loan. She explained the amount of the loan after trade-in and discounts would be $437,548. She reviewed the responses from the RFP and stated that the annual payments would be $92,856.43. The Commission confirmed that the new truck would match the City's existing vehicles with Chief Swanson explaining the existing equipment would be transferred over to the new truck. The Commission also questioned the benefit of the type of financing with Ms. Scott explaining it results in a lower interest rate. Mr. Schroth opened the public hearing at 8:05p.m. There being no public comment, the hearing was closed at 8:05p.m. A motion was made by Commissioner Brett, seconded by Vice-Mayor LeHeup-Smith, to Approve Resolution No. 16-08. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5- Commissioner Bob; Commissioner Brett; Commissioner Gnann-Thompson; Vice-Mayor LeHeup-Smith; and Mayor Holland XI. OTHER BUSINESS 16000 City Charter Review Ron Neibert, City Manager, explained that, pursuant to direction from the Commission, staff had summarized previous discussions regarding possible revisions to the charter in anticipation of scheduling a workshop to discuss the revisions. CONSENSUS: It was a consensus of the Commission to schedule a workshop for 5:30p.m. prior to the first meeting in February. XII. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Commissioner Bob cited an employment assistance program being held in Leesburg and asked to invite the sponsors to come and provide a presentation to the Commission regarding their services and possibly to obtain information as well from Goodwill Industries. Vice Mayor LeHeup-Smith commented on the opening of The Open Door drop-in homeless center. She noted that Goodwill and other service programs will be providing information through them. She stated that the count for the homeless will be held on January 26th. City of Eustis, Florida PageS Printed on 1fl/2016 City Commission Meeting Minutes - Final January 5, 2016 XIII. COMMENTS City Commission Commissioner LeHeup-Smith reported on the upcoming artist opening at the Lake Eustis Museum of Art and the Let's Rock Dance to be held on January 23rd at the Olympia in Mount Dora. Commissioner Brett commented on his recent surgery and recovery. City Manager Mr. Neibert noted a previous request by the Commission for staff to look into the Miss Eustis Pageant and reported on meetings staff has had with the interested parents and others. He explained that responsibility for the pageant has been assumed by Stephanie Henderson following the resignation of Linda Watts. He stated he did not feel the City needs to assume responsibility for the pageant. Commissioner Bob asked about the Tiny Miss Eustis category and Mr. Neibert explained the category was not going to be eliminated but the lower end of the age range was being increased to age six if the participant will turn seven within 30 days of being crowned. City Attorney - None Mayor Mayor Holland thanked the Commission for their trust and staff for their work on behalf of the community and expressed hope for the new year. XIV. ADJOURNMENT-8:15p.m. \ MARY C. MONTEZ MICHAEL L. HOLLAND City Clerk Mayor/Commissioner *These minutes reflect the actions taken and portions of the discussion during the meeting. To review the entire discussion concerning any agenda item, go to www.eustis.org and click on the video for the meeting in question. A DVD of the entire meeting or CD of the entire audio recording or verbatim transcript of the meeting can be obtained from the office of the City Clerk for a fee. City of Eustis, Florida Page 6 Printed on 1fl/2016