Council Meeting

City Council Minutes, July 25, 2024 Mayor West called the meeting to order at 6:30PM, July 25, 2024. Those in attendance were Nick Sears, Monty Parks, Spec Hosti, Kathryn Williams (via Zoom), Tony Ploughe and Bill Garbett. Also attending were Michelle Owens, Interim City Manager; Bubba Hughes, City Attorney, Tracy O’Connell, City Attorney; and Lisa Schaaf, Zoning. Jan LeViner was on vacation. Opening Ceremonies Call to Order Invocation: Rev. Sue Jackson, Trinity Methodist Church Pledge of Allegiance Monty Parks made a motion to adjourn to Executive Session to discuss real estate. Nick Sears seconded. Vote was unanimous to approve, 6-0. Monty Parks made a motion to return to regular session. Tony Ploughe seconded. Vote was unanimous to approve, 6-0. Mayor West called the meeting to order. Mayor West read a tribute to past council member and beloved resident Mallory Pearce. Mayor West stated that Mallory was many things: friend, husband, father, grandfather, esteemed council member, an environmentalist, professor and author. He served three (3) terms as a City Council member and was instrumental in writing the tree ordinance and defining zoning to ensure quality of life for the residents. He will also be remembered for his role as Abraham Lincoln and reading the Emancipation Proclamation at every Juneteenth Celebration. He will be greatly missed. Kathryn Williams also expressed her appreciation to Mr. Pearce as she served with him on the City Council. Mayor West introduced Patricia Sinel who joined the Staff as the new Community Development Coordinator. Ms. Sinel is a native of Colorado and a former Marine Engineer for the US Navy. She has extensive experience in planning and community development, serving in positions across the country. Ms. Sinel also holds many certifications, which include Flood Plan Manager and has twenty years plus experience in GIS Mapping Systems and we look forward to working with her. Ms. Sinel stated she is excited to be here and appreciative of the welcome she has received. Recognitions and Proclamations Jaime Spear approached to recognize Reece Cooke, Parking Services, as the Employee of the Quarter. Mayor West thanked Mr. Cooke. Consideration of Items for Consent Agenda  Minutes, City Council Meeting, July 11, 2024  Windcave Agreement for Payment Processing  Fourth Amendment to Water Tower Attachment Option and Lease Agreement Reports from Boards and Committees. Please limit your reports to 10 minutes. Holly Grell-Lawe approached Mayor and Council to give an HPC Update. Ms. Grell-Lawe stated she is representing the Historic Preservation Commission and then gave a Year in Review presentation to include Initiative and Projects. She stated the Georgia Department of Community Affairs recognized Tybee Island as one of eight municipalities in Georgia that has been awarded Federal Historic Preservation Grant Funds. She continued to give highlights of the Art Center, Community Historical Signage and Tybee Island Elevation Design Guidelines for Historic Buildings. Mr. Garbett thanked Ms. Grell-Lawe for everything she has done. Mayor West thanked Ms. Grell- Lawe for her presentation and all the work she does for the Commission. Alan Robertson approached Mayor and Council to give a presentation on the South-beach Sandbar Public Safety. Mr. Robertson gave a presentation showing the longshore current that flows north to south and how it releases energy. He also showed Google Earth slides depicting the shoreline at low and high tides. Mr. Hosti stated people are not aware of the swiftness of the tides and could drown while on the sandbar trying to get back to shore. Mr. Robertson recommended signage to the entrances of the south-end which would be 19th Street, Chatham and Inlet positioned so beachgoers would have to walk by the signs which might say “danger or restricted access”. Ms. Owens stated the City has refurbished the signage and ordered new signage to alert beachgoers to the tides. Mr. Hosti recommended a staff member be located near or on the sandbar to ensure beachgoers are aware of the danger. Sgt. Hattrick approached Mayor and Council. Sgt. Hattrick stated there is temporary signage on the beach warning everyone of the danger of the currents. He stated we have a good relationship with DNR and he will work with them moving forward. Mr. Ploughe asked Sgt. Hattrick to discuss staffing for the south-end sandbar. Sgt. Hattrick stated as to his staff, they work seven (7) days a week year- round. Staff also are at the sandbar daily. Ms. Owens stated the sandbar is a priority for the lifeguards also. Different options were discussed such as alerting beach goers to the incoming tides. Mr. Parks recommended shutting down that portion of the beach for safety reasons. Mayor West thanked Mr. Robertson. Citizens to be Heard: Please limit comments to 4 minutes. Susan Estroff approached Mayor and Council to speak to Sound Barrier Mat for Gas Golf Carts. Ms. Estroff spoke to the increase of noise pollution on the Island due to gas golf carts. She offered research that she has done to include a sound barrier mat that is placed inside the engine compartment. Another option being a muffler silence goer and lastly addressing the golf cart traffic on Jones Avenue. Mayor West thanked Ms. Estroff. Charlen Smith approached Mayor and Council. Ms. Smith discussed safety precautions for the sandbar. She presented five (5) ways to keep beachgoers safe and to alert them of the tides. Mayor West thanked Ms. Smith. Sandy Stoeffler approached Mayor and Council. Ms. Stoeffler stated she would like to bring education and awareness around water safety around the Island and she is scheduled to make a presentation at an upcoming workshop. Mayor West thanked Ms. Stoeffler for her work and comments. Monty Parks made a motion to approve the consent agenda to include the amended minutes. Tony Ploughe seconded. Vote was unanimous to approve, 6-0. Consideration of Bids, Contracts, Agreements and Expenditures Agreement as to Terms of Appointment for City Manager, City of Tybee Island. Mayor West expressed his appreciation to Ms. Owens and no matter the outcome of the vote, he will work with whomever Council votes to appoint as the new City Manager. He would also like to acknowledge that Ms. Owens has done a really great job and wanted to thank her for the job she has done. He then gave a brief employment history of Ms. Owens while at the City of Tybee Island to include all her achievements. Mayor West again thanked Ms. Owens for her dedication to the City and her exemplary work on behalf of the City for the past year and a half working day and night fulfilling multiple roles. He commended her for the professionalism and attitude. Bill Garbett made a motion to approve the contract with Mr. Bell. Monty Parks seconded. Discussion: Mr. Hosti stated he was disappointed in the decision City Council has made as he thinks Ms. Owens has done a great job and he does not understand how she was passed up with the amount of experience she has. She has been a great ambassador to the City, the citizens and staff. Voting in favor were Nick Sears, Monty Parks, Kathryn Willliams, Tony Ploughe and Bill Garbett. Voting against was Spec Hosti. Motion to approve, 5-1. Discussion: Ms. Owens thanked Mayor and Council for putting their trust in her and thanked staff and citizens. She stated that she will work to ease the transition of the new City Manager. Council, Officials and City Attorney Considerations and Comments Bubba Hughes gave an update on the MSC roof and solar panels. Mr. Hughes stated the Marine Science Center would like to put panels on the building which the City owns. There has been discussion about the procurement process and as he understands, they are fully behind complying with the City’s procurement policy and with a Request for Proposal. Mayor and Council now need to decide if they would like to move forward. Mr. Hughes recommended starting over to include prequalifying potential contractors. Mr. Hosti shared his concerns with the warranty of the roof if these panels are installed. It was the will of Council to bring the Site Plan back b Monty Parks made a motion to adjourn. Spec Hosti seconded. Vote was unanimous to approve, 6-0. Meeting was adjourned at 7:30 PM. _________________________ Janet LeViner, MMC Clerk of Council