Special City Council

121 SW Port St. Lucie City of Port St.Lucie Blvd. Port St. Lucie, Florida 34984 Special City Council Meeting Minutes Gregory J. Oravec, Mayor Stephanie Morgan, Councilwoman, District I John Carvelli, Councilman, District II Shannon Martin, Vice Mayor, District III Jolien Caraballo, Councilwoman, District IV Monday, September 9, 2019 6:30 PM Council Chambers, City Hall 1. Meeting Called to Order A Special Meeting of the CITY COUNCIL of the City of Port St. Lucie was called to order by Mayor Oravec on September 9, 2019, at 6:30 p.m., at Port St. Lucie City Hall, 121 SW Port St. Lucie Boulevard, Port St. Lucie, Florida. 2. Roll Call Council Members Present: Mayor Gregory J. Oravec Vice Mayor Shannon Martin Councilwoman Jolien Caraballo Councilman John Carvelli Councilwoman Stephanie Morgan 3. Pledge of Allegiance The City Clerk gave the Invocation, and Mayor Oravec led the assembly in the Pledge of Allegiance. 4. Public to be Heard No one signed up to speak under this item. 5. First Reading of Ordinances, Public Hearings 5.a Ordinance 19-59, Public Hearing, An Ordinance adopting the ad 2019-838 valorem millage rate for the fiscal year October 1, 2019, to September 30, 2020; Providing an effective date. The City Clerk read Ordinance 19-59 aloud by title only. Mayor Oravec opened the Public Hearing and asked if there was a presentation. Jeff Snyder, CFO, gave a presentation and stated that the net increase for FTE’s was 34.63. He stated that the total budget was up by $396 Page 1 of 4 Special City Council Meeting Minutes September 9, 2019 million, as they increased capital and the Millage Rate was decreased by 0.2260. Mr. Snyder stated that the objectives achieved were ensuring that each municipal service was properly staffed to function in an efficient and proactive manner, focused on City Council’s long-term Strategic Plan, reduced operating millage rate and debt service millage, included half-cent sales tax projects, and addressed the top twenty-four City Council priorities during the budget process. Mr. Snyder stated that the Capital Improvement Program was presented and preliminarily approved May 20, 2019. He stated that the City Manager’s Proposed Budget was distributed June 27, 2019, and that the City Council completed two full days of a Budget Workshop discussing the proposed budget in detail, City Council adjusted the staff proposed budget, which was preliminarily approved on July 26, 2019. Mr. Snyder stated that the City Council’s directed changes have been incorporated, which reduced the millage rate by an additional 0.0260 of a mill, accommodated a reduction in Ad Valorem Tax Revenue, and covered the additional staffing. Mr. Snyder explained the desired outcomes which were to formally adopt the Millage Rate Ordinance, formally adopt the Operating Budget Ordinance for fiscal year 2019-20, and formally adopt the Capital Improvement Program Resolution for fiscal year 2019-20. Mr. Snyder briefly went over the General Fund, the Building Fund, the Utility Systems Fund, the Stormwater Utility Fund, and the Capital Project Funds. Mr. Snyder presented the Major Capital Projects and the Long-Term Debt Trends. Mr. Snyder presented the required TRIM Public Announcement and stated that the name of the Taxing Authority was the City of Port St. Lucie, the rolled-back rate is 4.7126 mills., the percentage of increase over the rolled-back rate is 7.26%, the operating millage to be levied is 5.0547 mills., and the voted debt service millage is 1.0193. Mr. Snyder stated that staff recommended to adopt the Millage Rate Ordinance operating at 5.0547 which is a 0.0260 reduction over current year rate of 5.0807 and a Debt Service Millage of 1.0193, which was less than the current year by .2000; Adopt the Budget Ordinance for FY 2019-20 - appropriating $449,665,260; and Adopt the Capital Improvement Program Resolution for FY 2019-20. Mayor Oravec opened the public hearing. There being no comments, he closed the Public Hearing, and explained the items listed on the Page 2 of 4 Special City Council Meeting Minutes September 9, 2019 TRIM Notice. Mayor Oravec stated that only 2 of the line items were under the control of the City of Port St. Lucie. He explained that it was the 4th year in a row that the Council was proposing to lower the Millage Rate and reduce the City taxes paid by the median homeowners with a Homestead Exemption in the City of Port St. Lucie. Mayor Oravec re-opened the public hearing. Mary Ayers questioned past debts being listed on the TRIM notice and inquired as to if the Golf Course Budget was self-sufficient, to which Mayor Oravec responded that the Golf Course was close to being self-sufficient. Mayor Oravec stated that the Budget was on the City’s website, which included information regarding the Golf Course. Mayor Oravec explained that the City did not have the ability to change the Homestead Exemption, as it was created by the Florida Legislature. Councilman Carvelli stated that there was a 3% cap on the value of home increases, and he explained that some residents were assessed at a higher price. Chris White inquired as to where past debts were listed on the tax bill, to which Mayor Oravec responded that past debts were part of the overall Budget. He explained that the Millage Rate paid for the General Operating of the City. Mayor Oravec stated that Debt Service was set for the City, as there were no new debt services hitting this year. Mark Gotz stated that he was happy the City was going in the right direction regarding Millage and hoped that the City would spend the tax dollars wisely. Steve Carrol suggested adding a surcharge to the golf course, to allow it to become self-sufficient. He also suggested using City vehicles for additional years to save money. Rudolph Howard inquired as to if there was a central point to receive the names of the non-City elected officials, who were responsible for raising the taxes. Councilwoman Caraballo moved to approve Ordinance 19-59. Vice Mayor Martin seconded the motion. The City Clerk restated the motion as follows: for approval of Ordinance 19-59. The motion passed unanimously by roll call vote. 5.b Ordinance 19-60, Public Hearing, An Ordinance adopting the Budget 2019-842 Page 3 of 4 Special City Council Meeting Minutes September 9, 2019 and making an appropriation for the fiscal year October 1, 2019, to September 30, 2020; Providing an effective date. The City Clerk read Ordinance 19-60 aloud by title only. Mayor Oravec opened the public hearing. There being no comments, he closed the Public Hearing. Vice Mayor Martin moved to approve Ordinance 19-60. Councilwoman Caraballo seconded the motion. The City Clerk restated the motion as follows: for approval of Ordinance 19-60. The motion passed unanimously by roll call vote. 6. Resolutions, Public Hearing 6.a Resolution 19-R76, Public Hearing, A Resolution adopting the Capital 2019-843 Improvement Program for the City of Port St. Lucie, Florida; Providing an effective date. The City Clerk read Resolution 19-R76 aloud by title only. Mayor Oravec opened the Public Hearing and asked if there was a presentation. The City Manager stated that there was no presentation, but that Mr. Snyder previously identified that the City would accept a parcel from GL Homes and amend the CIP, which would be completed between the first and second reading. Vice Mayor Martin requested a Budget Amendment to the CIP, to include the shade structures for Woodland Trails Park. Vice Mayor Martin moved to approve Resolution 19-R76 with the amendment of Riverland Park in the amount of $2,354,000. Councilwoman Morgan seconded the motion. The City Clerk restated the motion as follows: for approval of Resolution 19-R76 with the amendment of Riverland Park in the amount of $2,354,000. The motion passed unanimously by roll call vote. 7. Adjourn ______________________ _______________________ Karen A. Phillips, City Clerk Calleigh N. Myers, Deputy City Clerk Page 4 of 4