Next City Council Mtg on May 2nd at 7pm

Congratulations to Mayor Mark Marciano and Vice Mayor Rachelle Litt

After the meeting was called to order and the results of the election were approved, Vice Mayor Woods asserted himself to talk first and nominated Mark Marciano for Mayor and Rachelle Litt for Vice Mayor, and both were unanimously selected.  Congratulations to them both!

Comments from the Public included a speech by Weiss School student and former Mayor for the Day (in March) James Delano summarizing the highlights of his experience. He was followed by former Mayor Joe Russo thanked the Council and staff for their outstanding work over the last three years and both outgoing and congratulating the in-coming Mayor and Vice Mayor.

City Manager Ferris had David Reyes, in his capacity as Director of Emergency Management decribe the actions taken the previous Tuesday immediately after the 4pm ‘weather event’ which severely impacted PGA National, the PGA/Military Trail intersection, and areas in Burns Road and Siena Oaks. By 4:30 all public services staff was onboard, and all issues were addressed, including checking areas not directly impacted by 7pm.

The Consent Agenda passed 5:0. Two items were pulled for further explanation. Vice Mayor Litt requested that a description be given of the grant application for construction/enhancement of twelve pedestrian crossings – several in the area of Hood Rd.  Council Member Lane requested a detailed presentation on the Fuel Card Purchase Award. Both also passed 5:0.

Ordinance 2,3 2019 and related Resolution 12, 2019 concerning small scale comprehensive plan amendment and rezoning for 2 parcels located on Alt A1A .5 mi south of Hood Rd for Convenience store and gas station, and car-wash/detailing facility passed 5:0 on Second Reading.

New business included first reading of Ordinance 4, 2019 which rezoned the Seacoast Utility Property. Plans were described for an entire redo of the municipal offices on the property. Meg Shannon of The Isles subdivision praised the collaborative working relationship of Seacoast with The Isles community. Also on the agenda was the Collective Bargaining Agreement with the Professional Firefightters and Paramedics of PBC, ratified by Local 2928 IAFF, Inc for fiscal years through 2020-2021. Both items also passed unanimously.

All appointments to External Boards and Committees remained the same except for the few that required participation by the City’s Mayor.

Next City Council Meeting on Thursday April 4 at 7pm

There are no Announcement/Presentations or City Manager Report listed.

• Purchase award for Fuel Card Services.  Currently fuel has been delivered to the Public works/Fleet Facility, which is for sale. The City needs an alternate source or arrangement to access fuel during the one-year period it will take to construct the new fueling station at the Public Services Operations Center.   After extensive market research, the City plans to implement a fuel card system that will allow the purchase of fuel at any service station in the country.  Piggyback/Access Contract – $1 million for 1 year – no option to renew
• Purchase award for Rootzone Mix for Gardens Park baseball compex – Bid Waiver – $132K
• Purchase award for Replacing the 20-year-old clay roof tiles on the Police Station with metal sheet roofing. Piggyback/Access Contract – $415K
• Purchase award for  Furniture for Public Services Operations Center – Piggyback/Access Contract – $180K

Public Hearings and Resolutions:

• Ordinance 2,3 2019 and related Resolution 12, 2019 – 2nd reading and adoption – small scale comprehensive plan amendment and rezoning for 2 parcels located on Alt A1A .5 mi south of Hood Rd for Convenience store and gas station, and car-wash/detailing facility
• Ordinance 4, 2019 – 1st reading – Seacoast Utility Authority – Planned Unit Development Rezoning, Site Plan, and Major Conditional Use – “The subject site has been operating as a water treatment plant since 1975 and has been modified several times before and after annexation in 1988. The existing administrative buildings were built in the early 1980s and are no longer meeting the needs of the Seacoast Utility Authority (SUA). As such, SUA is seeking to replace and demolish the existing buildings in the administrative complex, construct additional storage buildings, and enhance the overall functionality of the administrative operations. 
• Resolution 23, 2019 – Approving and ratifying a Collective Bargaining Agreement between the City and the Professional Firefighters and Paramedics of Palm Beach County, Local 2928, IAFF, Inc., for Fiscal Years 2018-2019, 2019-2020, and 2020-2021.   There are significant salary increases.  See details here.  

Items for Council Action/Discussion:  Appointments to External Boards and Committees

Check the agenda to see if any additional items have been added before the meeting here.

2019 Municipal Election Results

The March 12 municipal election in Palm Beach Gardens was a clear win for incumbent Vice Mayor Carl Woods over challenger Howard Rosenkranz. Woods won every precinct except 1246 (Shady Lakes, Bent Tree, Garden Lakes and the Gardens of Woodbury), and 1296 which includes Marina Gardens and Brookdale around the intersection of PGA and Prosperity Farms Road.

Ballenisles (1252) and Frenchmans (1194) should be congratulated for over 20% turnout, but turnout overall was a very light 9.5%, with the winner getting votes from only 6% of the eligible voters. It was not the lowest on record though – that honor goes to the Jablin/Easton race in March 2011 where only 7.6% (2775) turned out, but it was the second lowest since 2002 on a percentage basis. (See: PBG Elections for a summary of the elections from 2002-2019). Interest was low – neither candidate campaigned much past a few mailers, and there were no forums.

At least this race was a contest – in the Group 2 race, Mayor Marino had no challenger and won re-election by default.

Group 4

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Group 4
Strong Woods	Weak Woods	Very Close	Weak Rosenkrantz	Strong Rosenkrantz
Click the precinct on the map for vote totals.

Precinct	Registered	Votes Cast	Turnout %	Woods	Rosenkrantz	Woods Margin
1186	1509	103	6.8	60	43	58.3
1188	932	54	5.8	38	16	70.4
1189	100	11	11.0	7	4	63.6
1190	4036	265	6.6	186	79	70.2
1192	1498	108	7.2	89	19	82.4
1194	2137	479	22.4	349	130	72.9
1228	460	46	10.0	37	9	80.4
1238	1772	173	9.8	106	67	61.3
1240	2561	229	8.9	174	55	76.0
1242	2616	322	12.3	246	76	76.4
1244	1611	139	8.6	106	33	76.3
1246	2472	242	9.8	99	143	40.9
1247	241	32	13.3	27	5	84.4
1248	1564	173	11.1	112	61	64.7
1250	66	8	12.1	6	2	75.0
1252	2351	475	20.2	248	227	52.2
1254	470	31	6.6	20	11	64.5
1260	1302	135	10.4	92	43	68.1
1266	486	3	0.6	3	0	100.0
1268	319	9	2.8	6	3	66.7
1272	1975	156	7.9	112	44	71.8
1274	1631	128	7.8	89	39	69.5
1280	400	36	9.0	24	12	66.7
1284	2383	143	6.0	96	47	67.1
1288	35	2	5.7	0	2	0.0
1290	2188	181	8.3	140	41	77.3
1292	79	7	8.9	7	0	100.0
1296	774	27	3.5	11	16	40.7
1324	1318	63	4.8	52	11	82.5
1326	558	59	10.6	43	16	72.9
1340	15	3	20.0	3	0	100.0
1352	2262	154	6.8	111	43	72.1
1360	900	92	10.2	59	33	64.1
1372	178	5	2.8	3	2	60.0
6062	844	114	13.5	82	32	71.9
6064	123	5	4.1	3	2	60.0
Total	44190	4212	9.5	2846	1366	67.6

Elections, NCNC Annual Meeting and March City Council Mtg

Elections:

Vice Mayor Carl Woods was re-elected to the Council Group 4 in a relatively low turnout election. Congratulations to Mr. Woods, and thanks to his opponent, Howard Rosencranz for running. We of PBG Watch believe that every incumbent should have an opponent, and understand how much effort it takes to campaign – not just for the candidates but for their families. We will have a details precinct analysis when the Supervisor of Elections publishes the precinct results. See the Palm Beach Post coverage here.

NCNC Annual Meeting:

We attended the annual meeting of the North County Neighborhood Coalition. The event was attended by about 200 people including members, elected and newly elected officials, sponsors and other invited guests. NCNC President Sal Faso kicked off the meeting with some key facts about the NCNC and its impact. Member communities have a significantly higher rate of voter participation than is found generally in Palm Beach County, which is a testament to the information that is provided to the voters via their monthly meetings and outreach. The keynote speaker was Teresa Urquhart, CEO of Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, who gave an overview of hospital. Following was a panel on the Opioid Crisis consisting of County Commissioner Melissa McKinlay, State Attorney David Aronberg and Dr. Kenneth Scheppke, who serves as State EMS Medical Director for the FL Department of Health. All three on the panel have had an intense involvement in finding solutions to the opioid crisis.

Check out the NCNC website and goals.

March City Council Meeting:

The Council had a very light agenda. The Consent Agenda and all Ordinances and Resolutions passed 5:0.  Sixth-grader James Delano, of the Weiss School was Mayor for the Day and he opened and closed the meeting.

Of note:

• Council Member Lane pulled the purchase award for Paving of Public Service Operations Center and Adjoining Areas so that the Council and the public could be informed about the large expenditure of over $800K and why it was done as a piggyback/access contract
• Resolution 6, 2019 – was for the development of a 10,000 sq foot state of the art indoor training facility at Gardens Park. This will be a public private partnership with Cressey Sports Properties, LLC, it will have no financial impact to the city, it will house an office for PBGYAA, and the City will own the facility after 31 years.
• City Attorney Max Lohman gave an update on the three most prominent cases:
  • Dinerstein #1 – challenge to the March question on 3 year sit-out – he stated that the City prevailed in the 4th DCA, a motion for rehearing and a motion for rehearing en banc was filed and summarily denied.  He’s waiting for the mandate to  issue on the case after which he will file a motion for costs, to try and recover some of the costs entailed.
  • Dinerstein #2 – challenge to question 2 from the August Election (charter replacement) – Judge Keyser ruled in City’s favor on motion for summary judgement.  Lohman is waiting to see if they appeal.
  • Summary judgement on Sears case on August 28th – judge granted alternative relief which was to find the Sears motion for attorneys fees to be legally insufficient, and directed Sears to refile a motion by April 1.

 

Group 4 Municipal Elections – Tuesday March 12th – VOTE!

Next City Council Mtg on Thursday March 7 at 7pm

• First reading Ordinances 2 and 3, 2019 small scale comprehensive plan amendment and rezoning request for parcels at the southeast corner of Florida Boulevard and Alt A1A.  The Applicant is proposing to maintain the gas station as developed with modifications to reduce existing non-conformities, demolish the vacant dry-cleaning storefront, and redevelop the southern parcel with a hand car wash facility.  The associated Resolution will be voted upon at 2nd reading and approval.
• Resolution 6, 2019 – A Public Private Partnership Agreement with Cressey Sports Properties, LLC, for the Development of an Indoor Training Facility at Gardens Park. 
  • On August 4, 2018, the City received an unsolicited P3 proposal from Cressey Sports Performance of Jupiter, Florida. The firm proposed the construction and operation of an indoor training facility at Gardens Park, and that this development be considered an integral part of the planned development of the location. The City reviewed the proposal and determined, based on the preliminary analysis, that there was merit to the proposed project…..The City has determined that it is in the best interests of the residents and community to enter into a public-private partnership agreement with Cressey Sports for the development of an Indoor Training Facility at Gardens Park. The City will not have any financial obligations for the design and construction of the Facility, and upon completion of the building, Cressey Sports is required to make regular ground lease and permit fee payments to the City during the term of the Agreement. The Facility shall become the property of the City after 31 years, at which time the initial term of the Agreement will expire

There are no Announcement/Presentations or City Manager Report listed.

• Resolution 5, 2019 –  Lease of Golf Turf Equipment for the Sandhill Crane Golf Club from Hector Turf, Inc., and financed through TCF Equipment Finance, a division of TCF National Bank –  lease of several items of golf turf equipment from Hector Turf for a total financed amount of $177,846.21, and authorizes the City Manager to act on behalf of the City of Palm Beach Gardens in order to negotiate, enter into, execute, and deliver one or more lease agreements with TCF Equipment Finance.
• Purchase award for Paving of Public Services Operations Center and Adjoining Areas, Piggyback/Access contract valued at $827,334.
• Purchase award for Roof Repairs at Fire-Rescue Station 3 –  Piggyback/Access contract valued at $125,100.

Check the agenda to see if any additional items have been added before the meeting here.

Both City Hall and Tennis Center 1-Cent Sales Tax Projects Revised

Construction bids for the City Hall Renovations (Resolution 7, 2019) and Tennis Center Renovations (Resolution 8, 2019), both funded by the 1% sales tax, exceeded the budget for the projects. So the City downsized the ambitious plans somewhat to fit both projects within their original budgets and worked with the lowest bidders to adjust plans and materials. These resolutions provided for the City Manager to negotiate and execute with the selected bidders for both projects. The City Hall Renovations will impact both traffic patterns and entry/exit points to the Municipal Complex.

Ordinance 1, 2019 – 2nd Reading and Adoption Budget Amendment – Finance Administrator Allen Owens informed the council that the sale of the Public Works Property did not go through, so the amendment was changed to delete $1.38 million from the budget stabilization reserve fund accordingly, now at $2.4 million.

Both Council Members Lane and Litt each pulled two items from the from the Consent Agenda for further discussion and presentations, but those items and Consent were all passed 5:0. One of Mrs. Litt’s items was a Proclamation by the Mayor on behalf of 211 Awareness Week, which was read aloud. More information on the 211 Helpline can be found on their website.

All Ordinances and Resolutions passed 5:0.

During Items for Council Action/Discussion, Council Member Marciano brought up the topic of Workforce/Essential Services Housing and how more work is needed on the subject. (In January’s meeting, Council Member Lane had said that a workshop will be held on the subject some time in the near future. ) Mayor Marino raised the subject of speed of the traffic on the western portions of Northlake Boulevard.

City Attorney Max Lohman gave a brief status on both lawsuits by resident Sid Dinerstein. When asked how much the two cases have cost the City so far, his response was in excess of $70K.

• 4th District Court of Appeals ruled on behalf of the City on Question 3 (3-yr sit out before running again) from the March, 2018 election – but is being asked for reconsideration
• 2/11 – Hearing for Summary Judgement on Question 2 (the Charter repeal/replace) from August, 2018 election, with the City taking the position that the case is without merit; at the hearing both sides were given additional time to provide the judge with additional information.

Other Upcoming Events:

• February 24 – March 3 – The Honda Classic
• February 28 – Beeline Highway FDOT Public Hearing at Burns Road Community Center (see http://www2.dot.state.fl.us/publicsyndication/PublicMeetings.aspx/publicmeetings)
• March 12 – City Elections – Group 4 (Candidates:  Carl Woods and Howard Rosenkranz).  See the City Elections site for more details.

 

 

 

Next City Council Mtg on Feb 7 at 7pm

• Resolution 7, 2019 authorizing the City Manager to negotiate the agreement with Kast Construction to make the modifications to City Hall and the Police Station.  The total amount of $7,573.485.00 is within the amount budgeted and approved for this project.  
• Resolution 8, 2019 authorizing the City Manager to negotiate with Ahrens Companies for the building of the new Tennis Center Clubhouse.  The total project cost is Four Million Three Hundred Fifty-Nine Thousand Nine Hundred Fifty-Eight Dollars ($4,359,958) and the amount is within the amount budgeted and approved for this project. 

There are no Announcement/Presentations or City Manager Report listed.

• Besides the above mentioned Resolutions, the remainder of the Ordinances are for 2nd Reading and Adoption of items previously passed 5:0 on First Reading:
  • Ordinance 1, 2019 – Budget Amendment
  • Ordinance 28/29, 2018 and related Resolution 80, 2018 – Arcadia Gardens age-restricted 55+ independent living facility on RCA Boulevard

Check the agenda to see if any additional items have been added before the meeting here.

We get the government we deserve – and it’s up to us to watch what they do.  Hope you can make it. If you can’t make the meeting try and watch live-streaming or on-demand.

Avenir and $64 Million in City Projects the ‘Big Ticket’ items at the 1/10/19 Council Mtg

The first meeting of 2019 included several presentations, a progress report on Avenir, an update on City Projects, and the usual first budget amendment of the year.

City Projects

David Reyes, CS Administrator/Dir. of Emerg. Mgmt, gave a comprehensive update on City Improvement Projects including those funded by the 1 cent sales tax. The over $64 million in projects are project managed by the team of Mr. Reyes, Angela Brown, Deputy Community Services Administrator, and Jennifer Nelli, Operations Manager, while simultaneously performing their current responsibilties. City Manager Ferris pointed out that other municipalities frequently hire additional staff to oversee such projects, but the Gardens instead is using current staff. Involved in every one of these activities is Todd Engle, City Engineer – who Mr. Ferris described as ‘the Everready (Energizer) Bunny” and the ‘Tasmanian Devil’ for Mr. Engle’s ability to be everywhere at once. A list of the activities can be found at Current City Projects  with a section for One Cent Sales Tax items. Among the items coming before the Council in February are the City Hall Remodeling and Expansion (estimated completion Spring 2020), Police Station Renovations (estimated completion Summer 2019) and the Tennis Center Clubhouse (estimated completion Summer 2019).

Avenir

Ken Tuma, Managing Principal, Urban Design Kilday Studios, reviewed the Conceptual Master Plan of the Avenir Site, before presenting the waivers sought in Site Plan #1 – which will consiste of 4 gated subdivisions. While a golf course has been mentioned before, Mr. Tuma went into slightly more detail on an extremely high-end ‘core golf course’, with 228 homes – similar to ‘Old Palm’. He also showed the placement of two Crystal Lagoons, one which will be incorporated into a subdivision, but the other which will be located in the Town Center, with a beach club, restaurants, a hotel and other items around it. Fifty-one percent of the property is dedicated to ecological restoration and open space, and over 2000 acres are restricted, under the auspices of the South Florida Water Management District. The preserve area, with nature trails, as well as all non-gated areas (subdivisions) will be open to and acessible to the public. View Mr Tuma’s presentation here.

Other items:

• Allan Owens, Finance Director described Ordinance 1, 2019, detailing the $39 million brought forward from 2018 projects
• City Manager Report – Among the topics discussed, Joe Corrao, Director of Public Services, described the transition from Pubic Auction of used city items, to selling such items online, via the GovDeals.com auction website. It operates similarly to Ebay and items can be purchased by anyone. Check it out!
• Presentations included:
  • RECOGNITION OF THE PALM BEACH GARDENS GATORS: 2018 POP WARNER FOOTBALL JUNIOR VARSITY DIVISION SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS.
  •  WEISS SCHOOL UPDATE ON THE LAUNCH OF THE CUBE SATELLITE.
  •  HONDA CLASSIC COMMUNITY IMPACT PRESENTATION.
  •  VETERANS ADMINISTRATION PRESENTATION.
  •  USTA UNITED STATES TENNIS ASSOCIATION AWARD TO THE CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS TENNIS CENTER AS THE MEMBER ORGANIZATION OF THE YEAR AWARD.
  •  UPDATE ON CIP AND ONE CENT SALES TAX PROJECTS
• During Items of Public Interest and Board Committee Reports, Council Member Lane suggested that there be a Workshop in the near future on what he called Essential Services Housing strategy – which we assume means “Workforce Housing”.

All Resolutions and Ordinances passed 5:0.  There was no City Attorney Report.

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