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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 09-04-2001 Regular I CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING 4 CITY HALL ANNEX 1 11 Polk Avenue, Cape Canaveral, Florida TUESDAY September 4, 2001 7:00 PM MINUTES CALL TO ORDER: ROLL CALL: Council Members Present: Burt Bruns Mayor Pro Tem Buzz Petsos Mayor Rocky Randels Larry Weber Richard Treverton Others Present: IE Bennett Boucher, City Manager Mark McQuagge, Assistant City Attorney Susan Stills, City Clerk Andrea Bowers, City Treasurer Ed Gardulski, Public Works Director Morris Reid, C.B.O., Building Official Nancy Hanson, Recreation Director 1 Mayor Randels recognized Ms. Linda Frank, of Waste Management, Inc. Ms. Frank commented on the holiday pick -up advertisement that she forwarded to Ms. Kim McIntire for distribution to the Council. Mr. Treverton thanked Ms. Frank for the recycling information flyers. Ms. Frank responded to Mr. Treverton that the single- stream system is not used in the County at this time. Ms. Frank replied to Mayor Randels that there is no magnet to separate I the tin from aluminum cans in the north -end recycling center. Mayor Randels asked if 35 percent is the recycling mandate for the state of Florida. Ms. Frank replied that she would I provide recycling figures. CONSENT AGENDA: 1 Mayor Randels asked if any Council member, staff or interested party desired to 1 1 remove and item from the Consent Agenda for discussion. 1 [ Mr. Treverton requested to remove Item No 2 for discussion. City of Cape Canaveral, Florida City Council Regular Meeting September 4, 2001 Page 2 1 1 i ,l Mayor Randels requested to remove Item No 4 for discussion. A 1 A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Petsos and seconded by Mr. Bruns to approve Consent Agenda Items No. 1 and 3. The motion carried 5-0 with voting as follows: Mr. Bruns, For; Mayor Pro Tem Petsos, For; Mayor Randels, For; Mr. Treverton, For and Mr. j Weber, For. J 1 1. City Council Regular Meeting Minutes of August 21, 2001. 3. Florida Recreation Development Assistance Program Grant Agreement for the j Manatee Park Picnic/ Restroom Facility, Kiosk and Trail. 1 2. Installation of a Vortechnics Stormwater Box by Atlantic Development in the amount of $24,587.00. A motion was made by Mr. Treverton and seconded by Mr. Weber to approve the Installation of a Vortechnics Stormwater Box by Atlantic Development in the Amount of $24,587.00. Mr. 1 Treverton expressed concern with the proposed bid that was comparatively lower than other bids. Mr. Treverton requested clarification on the project. Mr. Gardulski explained that this is a 1 ci pilot study at the wastewater treatment facility to generate reclaimed water from storm water. The plan is to capture stormwater runoff from the plant parking lot, run it through the equipment, deposit it into a lift station, and pump it through the plant. Mr. Gardulski said that he needed to work out the details on permits and project controls in order not to stress the plant with stormwater. He replied to Mr. Treverton that the box cost is approximately $22,000. He said that the grant for the project is a 50 -50 matching grant with the St. John's River Water 1 Management District and he has less than six months to complete this task. He related that the project is an Enterprise fund and not a General Fund expense. Mr. Gardulski commented that adding this extra treatment would enable him to use the current retention ponds for an 1 altemative use in the future. The motion carried 5-0 with voting as follows: Mr. Bruns, For; Mayor Pro Tem Petsos, For; Mayor Randels, For; Mr. Treverton, For and Mr. Weber, For. 4. Purchase of Building and Code Enforcement Department Software from 1 Information Management Services, Inc. in the amount of $10,240.00. 1 A motion was made by Mayor Randels and seconded by Mr. Treverton to Approve the i Purchase of Building and Code Enforcement Department Software from Information Management Services, Inc. in the amount of $10,240.00. Mr. Reid explained that this is a windows -based program that can assemble data and provide the necessary reports from building permit information. Mr. Reid commented that the program is also compatible with the Finance Department's software. He said that the program is a value added cost in that once keyed in, the data becomes a continuous record on that building permit address. Mayor 1 El Randels recognized that Mr. Thomas Bubb, Building Inspector, was qualified as a Plans Examiner. Mr. Reid replied that he would still send some larger plans for review to the Southern Building Code Construction International. The motion carried 5-0 with voting as 1 1 City of Cape Canaveral, Florida City Council Regular Meeting j September 4, 2001 Page 3 i I follows: Mr. Bruns, For; Mayor Pro Tem Petsos, For; Mayor Randels, For; Mr. Treverton, For and Mr. Weber, For 11 DISCUSSION: 1 5. Employee Health Insurance Program. Mr. Boucher explained that staff met with an underwriter and evaluated comparative costs on PPO plans. The underwriter suggested switching to the Bronze plan in order to save the City $28,000. Mr. Boucher reported that excessive losses were incurred in the previous year He related that only similar PPO plans were evaluated and no HMO's. Mayor Pro Tem Petsos asked if City employees paid any portion of the health insurance cost. Mr. Boucher replied that the City covers the entire cost of an employee's health care coverage and the employee pays for any additional dependent coverage. Mr. Weber commented that an HMO plan allows use of any providers in its network. Mr. Treverton queried about the option of opting into different coverage methods. Mr. Boucher replied that staff would inquire if the League offers a i cafeteria -style plan. 1 Mr. Bruns expressed the need for employee awareness on the cost of health care at the City's I expense. Mr. Boucher asked if Council would like to pursue an HMO. Council agreed by i majority to review the health insurance costs by the number of plan options available. Mayor Pro Tem Petsos said that currently the City spends $3,555 per employee per year and that should be the basis of comparison. Mayor Randels explained for Mr. Weber that the loss ratio in the previous year exceeded the amount of premiums paid. Ms. Bowers explained that the analysis done was based on the data provided inclusive of gender and age. Mr. Reid commented that the proposed cost of living allowance would not cover an additional cost of 1 heath insurance. Mr. Boucher said that he would inquire of employees regarding how much they would be willing to contribute for the Gold, Silver or Bronze plan as well as have staff continue research on the cost of HMO plans. I REPORTS: 1 1. City Manager • Mr. Boucher, Ms. Bowers and Mark Sittig, Florida Municipal Pension Trust Fund met to talk over Pension Fund amendments and a merger with Citistreet Financial. Mr. Boucher outlined that the changes in the fund would reduce the vesting schedule from 10 to 5 years and gives employees the opportunity to self- invest funds with the help of Certified Financial 1 Planners. He related that until the League consolidates accounts, they would invest assets in a bond or money market fund to protect the principal. Mr. Boucher said that he would provide Council a copy of the pension plan document for review. Council members declined 1 Mr. Boucher's request to participate in the City pension plan. 1 j 1 j a 1 I I City of Cape Canaveral, Florida City Council Regular Meeting September 4, 2001 I Page 4 1 I 1 2. Staff • Public Works Status Report I Mr. Gardulski affirmed that the Washington Avenue sidewalk project would begin soon. l 1 City Clerk • Mrs. Stills announced that candidate qualifying began at noon September 4th and runs through September 18 at noon. Mr. Hans Saurenmann, 349 Coral Drive, has qualified to i run. i City Attomey • Attorney McQuagge reported that he is still awaiting a response from Attomey Sack as well as a response on Cocoa Beach's choices of a mediator. i AUDIENCE: I • No comment. 1 1 3. City Council Mr. Weber • Mr. Weber questioned the work done on the Washington Avenue Park project. Mr. Gardulski 7 replied that the City paid the contractor for the labor to remove the existing mulch, not to j remove the concrete that was installed. • Mr. Weber also questioned the status of naming the Washington Avenue Park after Mr. Bennix. Mr. Boucher replied that the naming would be done after the landscape upgrade. • Mr. Weber reported on a beach clean -up project, Saturday, September 15 to include people from Disney and the Titusville High School ROTC. Mayor Pro Tem Petsos suggested that the participants attend the Pancake Breakfast at Cape View Elementary School schedule on same moming. Mayor Pro Tem Petsos would provide Mr. Weber information on the Breakfast. Mr. Treverton 1 • Mr. Treverton questioned the status of the appraisal on the building for the Building Department. Mr. Reid replied that he had two quotes from commercial appraisers at a cost of $1,700 and $2,200. Mr. Boucher related that he would like to meet with library representatives and discuss the potential of using the meeting room prior to pursuing the appraisal. Mr. Bruns • Mr. Bruns questioned about the potential reuse line extension across State Road 528 from the City of Cocoa water department Mr. Boucher replied that he met with City of Cocoa and Brevard County utilities, Chuck Billias of Cocoa Beach and Mr. Gardulski to discuss the reuse line possibility. He said that discussion would follow with the Brevard County Commission and if the County pursues the project, the County would need to set parameters as well as seek funding sources. Mayor Randels expressed the City of Cocoa is ready to proceed with the project and funding is not an issue. 1 [ I j 1 i City of Cape Canaveral, Florida City Council Regular Meeting September 4, 2001 Page 5 Mayor Pro Tem Petsos • Mayor Pro Tem Petsos restated his previous question about the Wendy's restaurant trimming the landscaping plants. He questioned if the City codes were in conflict with the Florida Department of Transportation requirements. Mr. Boucher responded that staff would seek an answer. • Mayor Pro Tem Petsos questioned about a complaint from Atlantic Gardens that referred to numerous drug operations. Mr. Treverton requested to see full reports from the Better Place Complaint Tracker through his laptop. Mr. Boucher replied that password permission is required to obtain the report function however individual requests can be tracked through the Internet. • Mayor Pro Tem Petsos requested the possibility of the City Charter and Budget on the Internet. Mr. Boucher replied that staff would pursue this possibility. • Mayor Pro Tem Petsos questioned how the City planned to patch the roadway in Harbor Heights. Mr. Boucher replied that Council had asked Mr. Gardulski to resurface the 200 Block of Harbor Drive. Mr. Gardulski was looking into using a contractor from the Cocoa Beach paving project to reduce costs. Mayor Pro Tem Petsos expressed to consider resurfacing instead of patching. • Mayor Pro Tem Petsos distributed employment projection information on Brevard County from the Annual Conference. Mayor Randels • Mayor Randels asked if anyone would like to serve on the Brevard Tomorrow committee. Mr. E Weber responded that he serves on the committee as Executive Director of Keep Brevard Beautiful and would supply information to the Council. • Mayor Randels reported that the Economic Development Council has a new business information book. • Mayor Randels announced that Brevard County has one of the lowest unemployment rates in Florida and the United States. He expressed his concem that much of the County's revenue is derived from tax sharing. Mayor Randels summarized that the City is receiving a lesser percentage of tax revenue over time due to decreasing population in comparison to other cities in Brevard. Ms. Bowers responded that although the tobacco tax was removed, revenue was subsidized by the state sale tax. • Mayor Randels announced that the Radisson would host the International Space Station utilization from October 15 through the 18th. • Mayor Randels asked for Council's thoughts on seeking grant funding from Florida Power and Light to plant trees using its "Right Tree at the Right Time" program. This grant was for $10,000 to plant four trees. Council agreed by majority to pursue only sizeable grants in that small grant funding might exceed staff labor. • Mr. Boucher reported that the pepper tree ordinance from Longboat Key was excerpted from its larger ordinance and Council would need to decide on specific language regarding planting non-native plants and enforcement for undesirable plants. Mayor Randels related that Council's consensus is to forego any further research on the pepper tree ordinance. • Mayor Pro Tem Petsos questioned street signs in that Mr. Boucher sent a memo stating that the City could not spend public funds to repair or maintain private roads. Mayor Pro Tem Petsos asked about marking a road for safety vehicles. Mr. Boucher replied that the marking constitutes maintenance. He said that staff needs a policy from the City to avoid ethics violations. Mr. Boucher related the Attorney General's Opinion requires stating the public City of Cape Canaveral, Florida City Council Regular Meeting September 4, 2001 Page 6 u ose such as, a citywide program on private roads that intersect a public right-of-way. I P rP P 9 P P Council asked staff to prepare a policy. • Mayor Randels questioned about the status of the public works building. Mr. Boucher commented that although there was a rendition of the building, he did not have a building needs assessment report at this time. • Mr. Nicholas questioned how much was set aside of Mr. Bennix' donation for beautification projects. Mayor Randels replied that Mr. Bennix' intent was to spend the donation to beautify t the City and Mayor approximated that one -third would be utilized. Mr. Treverton reminded that staff was tasked at some point to consider the financial planning toward each beautification project. There beisliness the meeting adjoumed at 8:54 P.M. ,� fir! C 0 (? J ►`! - - - f Rocky Randels, YOR , 'i r ___ .'W , ,��� [ i 1 I I 1 i i i i I [ 5 i 1 V f b i { a i