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HomeMy WebLinkAboutcocc_council_mtg_minutes_20200709_specialCAPE CANAVERAL SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING VIRTUAL MEETING via GoToWebinar TH URSDAY July 9, 2020 4:00 P.M. MINUTES CALL TO ORDER: The Chair called the Meeting to Order at 4:00 PM and read a statement regarding decorum and virtual participation. Mayor Pro Tem Brown led the Pledge of Allegiance. ROLL CALL: Council Members Present: Mayor Pro Tem Mayor Council Member Council Member Council Member Mike Brown Bob Hoog Mickie Kellum Wes Morrison Angela Raymond Others Present: City Manager City Attorney City Clerk Administrative/Financial Services Director Capital Projects Director Community Development Director Cultural + Community Affairs Director/Organizer HR/Risk Management Dir. & EOT Incident Commander Leisure Services Director Public Works Services Director Canaveral Fire Rescue Chief Brevard County Sheriff's Office Lieutenant PUBLIC PARTICIPATION None. AGENDA ITEMS Todd Morley Anthony Garganese Mia Goforth John DeLeo Jeff Ratliff David Dickey Molly Thomas Melinda Huser Gustavo Vergara James Moore Dave Sargeant Joanna Seigel 1. Resolution 2020-17; encouraging the citizens, businesses and visitors of the City of Cape Canaveral, Horida to exercise personal responsibility in slowing the spread of COVID-19; more specifically: urging persons to wear a face covering in places open to the public throughout the City of Cape Canaveral in order to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 Virus, subject to certain exceptions; urging persons to practice safe social distancing and other safety measures recommended by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 Virus; encouraging persons to stay safer at home when possible to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 Virus; providing for the repeal of prior inconsistent resolutions; applicability; severability and an effective date: City Attorney Garganese read the title into the record. Discussion ensued City of Cape Canaveral, Florida City Council Special Meeting — CMT July 9, 2020 Page 2 of 3 and included other municipalities that have passed similar legislation, no penalties in the Resolution, whether citizens are aware of the Meeting, concerns regarding lawsuits, issues with the language being vague, support for proclamation and advertising, concerns regarding schools and first responders, the need for a mask mandate, the City of Cocoa Beach's Emergency Order was put into place without penalties and left up to businesses to enforce, the record deaths set in Brevard County, language not strong enough in the Resolution, concerns for vulnerable residents, feedback received in support of masks, there will be people who will not wear a mask with a mandate, first responders take care of themselves and difficult to enforce a mandate. City Attorney Garganese explained the intent of the draft Resolution does not impose mandates or penalties, is non -binding and non -mandatory and would require restructuring to impose a mandate, described current lawsuits in Florida related to mask legislation with various approaches and measures that have been imposing face covering and a lawsuit would be dismissed because this draft Tacks an imposition to anyone. City Attorney Garganese further advised proclamations are ceremonial and the Council should be speaking in the form of a resolution. Discussion continued regarding the question of HIPAA violations and enforcement, unnecessary mask mandate due to low percentage rate of infection in the area, good policy to encourage but not mandate, give the businesses masks, where the City will be in two months related to infections and the need to not be afraid to do Council'sjob, the unlikeliness of a lawsuit with no mandate in the Resolution, the need for stronger language, signs at businesses, the need to take responsibility for not infecting each other, illegality of a mandate, fear of breaking the law, the City of St. Augustine mask mandate resolution, leading questions and the need for impartiality from the City Attorney since there is no case law. City Attorney Garganese confirmed there is no legal precedence and some of the mandates are ambiguous which is the reason for inclusion of exceptions. Discussion continued on whether to vote on the Resolution as is or revise it. City Attorney Garganese advised Council to either accept, deny or postpone the Resolution. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Brown, seconded by Council Member Raymond, that Resolution No. 2020-17 be denied as written. Discussion ensued and included bringing the Item back as a revised resolution. City Attorney Garganese advised a main motion is on the floor which Council may procedurally table, vote on the motion and then place another on the floor. Mayor Hoog opened public comment. Meeting Organizer Thomas confirmed no hands were raised to speak. Motion passed 3-2, with Council Members Kellum and Morrison voting against. City Attorney Garganese requested direction for Staff from Council on how to proceed. Discussion ensued and included drafting stronger language, the idea of citizen and business ambassadors to help encourage the initiative and deciding between mandating and encouraging masks. A motion was made by Council Member Morrison, seconded by Council Member Kellum to postpone the Item and bring it back to the next City Council Meeting. Mayor Hoog asked City Manager Morley if there would be enough time to prepare the Item for the next City Council Meeting. Discussion ensued regarding time restrictions and special meeting procedures. City Manager Morley indicated the need for Council to provide direction for a revised resolution by contacting him with their thoughts and ideas before this Item was considered next. Motion passed 5-0. 2. Discussion regarding the closing of City Hall and the Nancy Hanson Recreational Complex (NHRC) due to increases in COVID-19 infections in the State of Florida, Brevard County and in the City of Cape Canaveral and in furtherance of public health, safety, welfare and well-being of the City of Cape Canaveral: City Manager Morley explained the Item. Discussion ensued and included how the State was reopened too quickly, safety is a priority and pros and cons for the action. City of Cape Canaveral, Florida City Council Special Meeting — CMT July 9, 2020 Page 3 of 3 HR/Risk Management Director and Incident Commander Huser shared statistics and current data related to the COVID-19 Pandemic and City workforce will continue to provide day-to-day services during this phase. City Attorney Garganese indicated the action is within the City Manager's Office authority and the City Council may choose to leave the Council Chambers and Council offices open simultaneously. City Manager Morley explained an additional part of this Item involves a return to virtual public meetings until City Hall opens again. Discussion ensued and included City. Council and City Manager authority over City Hall and Council Chambers, local data regarding hospitalizations in Cape Canaveral, the source of the data, the fact that NASA and the Department of. Defense are all working remotely, City Hall core services will be open and citizens can still play tennis on a daily basis. City Manager Morley explained the technical issues surrounding hybrid meetings and the need for a new platform to properly conduct meetings in the future. Discussion continued regarding email as public participation, the action is a preventative against infections and no employees are on furlough. Administrative/Financial Services Director DeLeo shared COVID-19 financial information regarding IT Support and the Brevard County Interlocal Agreement related to the CARES Act funds. Council Members Kellum, Morrison and Raymond agreed City Hall should not be closed, however supported City Manager Morley's decision to do so. Council reached consensus to continue conducting CMT virtual public meetings until a solution is found for conducting hybrid in -person and virtual public meetings as soon as possible. Meeting Organizer Thomas confirmed no hands raised for public comment. ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business, the Meeting adjourned at 7:02 PM. Bob Hoog, Mayor Mia Goforth, City Clerk From: Sent: To: Cc: Subject: Omar Capellan <omar.capellan@gmail.com> Wednesday, July 8, 2020 4:25 PM Mia Goforth Todd Morley Wearing Mask within the city limits Meeting Waran-This email originated outside the City of Cape Canaveral mail system. Please review the sender's address. Report any suspicious mail by using the Phishalert button in Outlook. If that is not possible forward the suspicious mail to phishalert@cityofcapecanaveral.org Hi Mia I'd like to submit the following request to be heard at tomorrow's meeting regarding the potential mandatory wearing of face masks within the city limits. As a runner and biker (bicycle), I perform these activities 4-5 per week, within our city limits, on the streets (mainly on Central and Ridgewood) Arguably, for a runner and/or biker to be breathing constantly his/her own CO2 for the duration of their workout may not be in the best interest of the athlete or the city for that matter. If the athlete is to suffer a breathing emergency due to CO2 poisoning, I feel this can be avoided. As I said, this is arguable, but please take into account the temperatures that during the summer time in daylight hours our city climbs to and the athlete is subjected to; to that, add re -breathing our own CO2 for an extended period at an accelerated pace as the athlete breathes faster and bigger amounts of air during the workout. As a long time citizen of my City of Cape Canaveral, I am asking the city to add an exception to this ruling, where athletes working out within the city limits, not having to wear a face mask; while the athlete is clearly engaged in some type of physical activity. Thank you for taking my petition into account and know that I will comply with whatever ruling the city adopts, but I hope the council takes my petition seriously and gives weight to it. Best Regards Omar A. Capellan, concerned citizen Florida has a very broad public records law. As a result, any written communication created or received by the City of Cape Canaveral officials and employees will be made available to the public and/or media upon request, unless otherwise exempt. Under Florida Law, email addresses are public records. If you do not want your email address released in response to a public -records request, do not send electronic email to this entity. Instead, contact our office by phone or in writing i From: Crockett.Betsey@Stone Middle <Crockett.Betsey@ Brevardschools.org > Sent: Thursday, July 9, 2020 10:25 AM To: Info Subject: mask ordinance Waran-This email originated outside the City of Cape Canaveral mail system. Please review the sender's address. Report any suspicious mail by using the Phishalert button in Outlook. If that is not possible forward the suspicious mail to phishalert@cityofcapecanaveral.org Good morning, I'm pleased that my city council is considering a mask ordinance. Sometimes, true leadership is standing up for what is right and what benefits your citizens even when it's not the popular thing to do. There is a very vocal minority that does understand science and math, which is baffling considering that this community once put a man on the moon. Masks, as have been demonstrated in other nations, effectively slow the transmission of this novel virus at a success rate of nearly 90%. I don't need to point out, that when transmission is abated, it is possible for businesses, schools, and government facilities to reopen safely. In other words, masks make economic sense. It's a scrap of fabric. And it's the least anyone can do to protect a lovely little community of 10,000 people —many of them elderly and vulnerable —my mother among them. As I've said, sometimes leadership is about the tough decisions —not just the photo ops. And sometimes, your feelings might get hurt because someone said something mean about you on Facebook. But, ultimately, by passing this resolution, you'll be able to rest in the knowledge that you have done the right thing and the thing that you were elected to do —and that is to protect the welfare of all of your citizens. Thank you, Elizabeth Crockett 230 Columbia Dr. Cape Canaveral, FL 32920 Due to Florida's broad public records law, most written communications to or from government employees regarding public education are public records. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure. Florida has a very broad public records law. As a result, any written communication created or received by the City of Cape Canaveral officials and employees will be made available to the public and/or media upon request, unless otherwise exempt. Under Florida Law, email addresses are public records. If you do not want your email address released in response to a public -records request, do not send electronic email to this entity. Instead, contact our office by phone or in writing i From: Sent: To: Subject: THERESE ZYHOWSKI <zyhowskit@comcast.net> Thursday, July 9, 2020 1:42 PM City Clerk; Mia Goforth Fwd: Please pass resolution 2020-17 Waran-This email originated outside the City of Cape Canaveral mail system. Please review the sender's address. Report any suspicious mail by using the Phishalert button in Outlook. If that is not possible forward the suspicious mail to phishalert@cityofcapecanaveral.org I forgot to include on this message to the Mayor and City Council Original Message From: THERESE ZYHOWSKI <zyhowskit@comcast.net> To: "Brown, Mike" <m.brown@cityofcapecanaveral.org>, "Hoog, Mayor Hoog" <b.hoog@cityofcapecanaveral.org>, "Kellum, M"<m.kellum@cityofcapecanaveral.org>, "Morrison, Wes"<w.morrison@cityofcapecanaveral.org>, "Raymond, Angela" <a.rymond@cityofcapecanaveral.org> Date: 07/08/2020 10:10 PM Subject: Please pass resolution 2020-17 To the Honorable Mayor Hoog and Members of the City of Cape Canaveral City Council: As residents of Cape Canaveral at 425 Buchanan Avenue, we want you to pass this resolution that " encourages the citizens, businesses and visitors of Cape Canaveral to exercise personal responsibility in slowing the spread of COVID-19, more specifically: urging persons to wear a face covering in places open to the public throughout the City of Cape Canaveral in order to minimize the spread of COVID-!9 virus urging persons to practice safe social distancing and other safety measures recommended by the CDC to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 virus; providing for the repeal of prior inconsistent resolutions; " Therese and Greg Zyhowski 425 Buchanan Ave Unit 506 Cape Canaveral, Florida 32920 412-398-1862 412-398-3501 Florida has a very broad public records law. As a result, any written communication created or received by the City of Cape Canaveral officials and employees will be made available to the public and/or media upon request, unless otherwise exempt. Under Florida Law, email addresses are public records. If you do not want your email i address released in response to a public -records request, do not send electronic email to this entity. Instead, contact our office by phone or in writing 2 From: Sent: To: Subject: DIANE K CALLIER <cleo1227@cfl.rr.com> Thursday, July 9, 2020 2:59 PM City Clerk discussion at 4:00 City Council meeting Waran-This email originated outside the City of Cape Canaveral mail system. Please review the sender's address. Report any suspicious mail by using the Phishalert button in Outlook. If that is not possible forward the suspicious mail to phishalert@cityofcapecanaveral.org Regarding the Special meeting called for 4:00 today to "encourage" people to wear masks in Cape Canaveral. At this point in time it is hard to imagine a more pointless effort. We all know that wearing masks helps to halt the spread of Covid-19. It is not a matter of personal choice as it does not just protect the mask wearer but the primary benefit is to protect others. Considering the skyrocketing rates of infection and the recent action by Cocoa Beach to require masks inside public places the only sensible action at this time is for the Cape Canaveral City Council to also require masks to be worn properly in all public interior spaces. Studies have shown that most consumers prefer to shop in stores that require masks. If Cape Canaveral does not do so we are only driving potential consumers to places which do, such as those conveniently located in Cocoa Beach, thus hurting our own tax base. Taking action to "encourage" the wearing of masks at this point in time is less than meaningless, it is insulting to our intelligence. Diane K. Callier Florida has a very broad public records law. As a result, any written communication created or received by the City of Cape Canaveral officials and employees will be made available to the public and/or media upon request, unless otherwise exempt. Under Florida Law, email addresses are public records. If you do not want your email address released in response to a public -records request, do not send electronic email to this entity. Instead, contact our office by phone or in writing i