City Commission Workshop Meeting

APPROVED: 7/18/2013 City Hall City of Eustis, Florida 10 North Grove Street Post Office Drawer 68 Eustis, FL 32727-0068 Meeting Minutes - Final* City Commission Workshop Wednesday, June 26, 2013 4:30PM City Hall CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Muenzmay - 4:30 p.m. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF QUORUM AND PROPER NOTICE Present: 5 - Linda Bob; Albert Eckian; Michael Holland; Karen LeHeup-Smith; and Kress Muenzmay I. Workshop Item 13134 Keating Settlement Agreement Discussion Paul Berg, City Manager, explained the workshop was scheduled at the direction of the Commission. Derek Schroth, City Attorney, stated the purpose of the workshop is to discuss the settlement proposal submitted by John Keating which was rejected by the Commission in November on a 4 to 1 vote. Mr. Keating subsequently contacted Mr. Schroth to ask if the Commission was willing to further discuss a settlement with the Commission voting 3 to 2 to resume settlement discussions. He stated that no final decision would be made at the meeting. He added that the settlement agreement itself calls for two public hearings the same as any other land development ordinance. He stated that any decision at the meeting would be to provide direction on whether to proceed with the agreement, any suggested modifications, or if the Commission believes the matter cannot be settled to place on a future agenda the direction for him to proceed with the lawsuit. He noted the presence of Patrick DeLong with PRM, the City's insurance provider, as well as an attorney for the insurance company. He stated that Mr. DeLong had informed him that PRM would ask the Commission to give a definitive answer regarding proceeding with the lawsuit. He expressed his concern about the possibility of jeopardizing the coverage by the insurance company if they continue to provide inconsistent direction to the insurance counsel. Mayor Muenzmay commented on the amount of information recently provided to the Commission. He stated his intent to ask each Commissioner their position. He proceeded to ask the Commission how they want to proceed noting he would still allow public comment if desired. Commissioner Eckian expressed the desire to proceed with a full discussion at the workshop then make a decision. Commissioner LeHeup-Smith stated her desire to not pursue a settlement. Vice Mayor Bob stated her belief that a settlement is not possible and will require an outside entity to reach a decision. Commissioner Holland commented on the letter received from Attorney Langley and stated his desire to not proceed with a settlement but to allow a judge to make a decision. Mayor Muenzmay expressed agreement with not being able to reach a settlement. He offered to allow comments by Mr. Keating and a representative from Fishback Dominick or the group represented by them and asked them to limit their comments to five minutes. John Keating, 250 E. Colonial Dr. Suite 300, Orlando FL, noted his absence at the November 1st meeting and stated he could have agreed to some of the comments by the Clear Lake residents at that meeting. He agreed the Commission could not overcome the residents' opposition. City of Eustis, Florida Page 1 Printed on 71512013 City Commission Workshop Meeting Minutes - Final June 26, 2013 Dan Langley, representing Fishback Dominick law firm- 147 Lee Road, Winter Park FL, thanked the Commission for reading his letter, considering the comments, listening to the residents that would be adversely affected by the proposed development, discontinuing the settlement discussions and proceeding with the litigation. ll. Commission Discussion Mayor Muenzmay confirmed with Mr. Schroth that the direction regarding the litigation would need to be placed on a future agenda for consideration with Mr. Berg stating the next available meeting would be in July. lli. Public Input Mayor Muenzmay opened public comment at 4:45p.m. and asked the speakers to keep their comments to one minute. Alfred Zweidler commented on information he had recently provided to the Commission and the City Attorney and asked for a clarification of the number of units allowed under Suburban Residential (SR) zoning. Mr. Schroth first noted for the record that Mr. Keating had left the meeting at 4:47p.m. He explained that the SR zoning no longer exists but was part of the regulations in place at the time of Mr. Keating's submittal. He stated that Mr. Keating's position was that it allowed up to 5 units per acre at his discretion with the City's position being that it was at the City's discretion. Mr. Zweidler stated that the Commission in 2006 had the right to limit the development to one unit per acre with Mayor Muenzmay explaining that the City is moving forward with the lawsuit. Mr. Zweidler asked if it would be possible for him to join with the City in the lawsuit. Mr. Schroth responded he has discussed with Mr. Langley whether or not citizens would intervene with the existing lawsuit. Mr. Langley indicated that he had not discussed that with his client nor had he disclosed the identity of his clients yet. He stated that Mr. Zweidler would have to discuss that with his own lawyer and it would be at the discretion of the judge. Mr. Zweidler commented on a proposal he submitted to the City regarding development of Mr. Keating's property. There being no further public comment, Mayor Muenzmay closed the public comment at 4:50p.m. IV. Commission Direction CONSENSUS: It was the direction of the Commission to have the Motion to Dismiss placed on the next available Commission agenda. Mayor Muenzmay commented that the City would be holding meetings in the future regarding possible revisions to the Land Development Regulations and the public could provide comment at that time. V. Adjournment-4:52p.m. City Clerk 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 meeting can be obtained from the office of the City Clerk for a fee. City of Eustis, Florida Page2 Printed on 71512013