City Council

City of Marco Island Florida 51 Bald Eagle Drive Marco Island, Florida cityofmarcoisland.com Meeting Minutes - Final Monday, June 21, 2021 1:00 PM Capital Budget Workshop Community Meeting Room City Council Chair: Jared Grifoni Vice-Chair: Greg Folley City Council: Claire Babrowski, Rich Blonna, Erik Brechnitz, Becky Irwin, Joe Rola City Manager: Mike McNees City Attorney: Alan L. Gabriel City Clerk: Laura Litzan City Council Meeting Minutes - Final June 21, 2021 1. Call to Order Chair Grifoni called the meeting to order at 1:00 P.M. 2. Roll Call Present: 7- Councilor Blonna, Councilor Irwin, Councilor Brechnitz, Vice-Chair Folley, Councilor Rola, Councilor Babrowski and Chair Grifoni Also Present Michael McNees, City Manager Casey Lucius, Assistant to the City Manager Laura Litzan, City Clerk Alan L. Gabriel, City Attorney Tracy Frazzano, Police Chief Chris Byrne, Fire Chief Guillermo Polanco, Finance Director Daniel J. Smith, Community Affairs Director Tim Pinter, Public Works Director Jose Duran, Information Technology Director Miguel Carballo, Fleet & Facilities Manager Zach Simpson, Budget Manager Martin Luna, Video/Broadcast Technician Jim Kornas, Recording Specialist Citizens and Visitors 3. Business - Capital Budget Workshop a. ID 21-1609 City of Marco Island Budget Priorities - Capital City Manager McNees opened the Workshop and asked City Finance Director Polanco to review the status of the 'Pay As You Go' funding balances for the City's capital projects under the General Fund as well as for projects in support of the Marco Island Water & Sewer Utility Department. The following City Staff leaders, in turn, presented the Council their desired and currently unbudgeted capital initiatives for the 2022 fiscal year, and they responded to questions and requests for clarification from members of the Council in the course of their respective presentations. City Manager McNees also added support and explanation as required. Public Works - Public Works Director Timothy Pinter Four new capital expense items were requested: 1) A Tymco Model 600 street sweeper truck to facilitate continued MS4 compliance; 2) The prepping and refinishing of 564 concrete streetlight poles along Collier Boulevard; 3) Tide leveling / canal flushing project under San Marco Rd. and; 4) Year 1 repair / replacement of sidewalks, if adopted by City Council under Item 3b of this Agenda Information Technology - IT Director Jose Duran Two new capital expense items were requested: 1) Purchase and installation of a Tightrope VIO2-600 Cablecast System, and; 2) Purchase and installation of a Broadcast Pix BPS-MX8 unit Fire Rescue - Fire Chief Chris Byrnes No new capital expense items were requested apart from previously-funded planned equipment City of Marco Island Florida Page 1 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final June 21, 2021 replacements Fleet & Facilities Management - Fleet & Facilities Manager Miguel Carballo Three new capital expense items were requested: 1) City matching of the wind and flood resiliency FEMA grant to upgrade the City Hall building; 2) Initiation of 'Pay As You Go' annual funding for City Hall capital equipment, and; 3) Initiation of 'Pay As You Go' annual funding for City Hall Annex capital equipment Parks & Recreation Department - Director of Community Services Daniel J. Smith Though no new Departmental capital expenses were requested, miscellaneous capital improvement projects requested by the Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee for City park improvements in the amount of $55,507 were presented for Council consideration. Police & Code Enforcement Departments - Police Chief Tracy Frazzano Three new capital expense items were requested: 1) A portable vehicle speed monitoring trailer; 2) A portable virtual training system, and; 3) A new canal-patrolling boat for the Code Enforcement Department Building Services - Director of Community Affairs Daniel J. Smith An increase of $4,700/year in the department's 'Pay As You Go' fund to cover: 1) Future vehicle replacements in fiscal year 2025, and; 2) The purchase of a large-format digitizer for scanning, storing and printing building plans Water & Sewer Department - General Manager Jeff Poteet Five new capital expense items were requested: 1) Design services for a new, standby generator warehouse; 2) A new, replacement forklift truck; 3) Biological pre-treatment filters; 4) Upsizing of the piping from raw water wellfield wells 17 to 19, and; 5) Isles of Capri / Marco Shores master lift station debris removal screening In addition to the initiatives brought forward by City Staff, Councilor Blonna brought forward an initiative proposing that the City establish and fund an Open Space Preservation Fund in the amount of $250,000/year for five years to: 1) purchase and preserve vital protected species habitat, and archeological / historical tracts on the Island; 2) create a mechanism for qualifying the City to receive matching funds from like-minded individuals and organizations, and; 3) create landscape buffers to reduce building intensity and density. Councilor Blonna also raised a discussion regarding expanded Marco Island citizen access to the green space around Tommie Barfield Elementary School given the City's landscape maintenance agreement with the Collier County School District. Councilor Irwin proposed commissioning and funding a professional design consultant in fiscal year 2022 to develop a comprehensive flora, fauna and habitat preservation plan that embraces the tenets of an organic food forest and botanical garden within the confines of Calusa Park. Chair Grifoni reminded the Council that, once the overall scale of the Capital and Operating Budget requests for 2022 are fully identified, the Council will need to prioritize and, potentially, eliminate certain proposed initiatives to fit within the Council's desired millage rate target for the upcoming year. Chair Grifoni also advised the Council of a discussion prior to this Workshop that he and City Manager McNees conducted with concerned homeowners and their counsel regarding neighborhood noise mitigation once the Veterans' Community Park project is completed. City of Marco Island Florida Page 2 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final June 21, 2021 b. ID 21-1586 Report on the Construction, Repair and Maintenance Options for Citywide Sidewalks Public Works Director Timothy Pinter presented the results of the City's assessment of the projected capital and ongoing manpower requirements associated with assuming responsibility for the maintenance of all residential sidewalks on Marco Island. After considerable Council discussion, and in light of the likely tax burden that this program could place upon the citizens of Marco Island, City Council Chair Grifoni proposed that this initiative be brought forward in a referendum for vote by the citizens of Marco Island. 4. Public Comment Mr. Brad Cornell (109th Ave. North, Naples), Southwest Florida Policy Associate, Audubon of the Western Everglades (AWE), urged the Council to not wait for Conservation Collier to identify and secure property parcels on Marco Island for habitat protection. Rather, he recommended that the Council support and fund the open space preservation fund proposed by Councilor Blonna. Ms.Linette Taylor (Milan Ct.), an AWE volunteer, observed that there is so much to love and protect on Marco Island. Though she recognizes that growth cannot be stopped, she believes that the implementation of an open space preservation fund can ensure that protected species always have a home on Marco Island. Ms. Jean Hall (Live Oak Dr., Naples), an AWE volunteer, commented that, though she is not a resident of Marco Island, she has spent nine years as an AWE Owl Watch Volunteer and eight years as a Shorebird Volunteer in an effort to support and preserve the unique character of the Island. She urged the Council to take action in ensuring that natural habitat land can be preserved for the future. Ms. Lori Beall (Pinehurst Cir., Naples), Program Director, AWE, noted that the organization's two most important programs are focused on owls and gopher tortoises. Between 65 - 80 volunteers actively engage with AWE in protecting these species. She urged the Council to support Councilor Blonna's proposed open space preservation fund. Ms. Brittany Piersma (Garibaldi Ct., Naples), Field Biologist, AWE, noted her long-time engagement in AWE's programs on Marco Island and she similarly requested that the Marco Island City Council endorse and support the open space preservation proposal. 5. Adjournment There being no further Workshop business for the Council, Chair Grifoni adjourned the Workshop at 3:47 P.M. ___________________________ Jared Grifoni, Council Chair ATTEST: ____________________________________ Laura Litzan, City Clerk PREPARED BY: ___________________________ Jim Kornas, Recording Specialist City of Marco Island Florida Page 3 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final June 21, 2021 City of Marco Island Florida Page 4