First Televised City Council Meeting and Referendum Petition Requirement Reduced
NOTE: Meeting video is now being provided by the City. Click HERE.
After the pledge Mayor Premuroso called for a moment of silence for all the victims of the recent weather related tragedies.
Allen Owens gave the 2013 Annual Audit Report with the outside auditor reporting their findings. Unfunded liabilities and new methods of reporting were discussed.
Among the speakers from the public was Mike Murgio (PBC Schoolboard District 1) who spoke at length. He recommended a NO vote on the FL Education Budget and asked that people contact their legislators. He said that the average cost spent per year on a student is $9200. Most other states average $1200 with the most expensive states spending up to $2300 per student/year. Also making public comment were:
- Ruth Peeples
- Mark Marciano
- Mel Grossman
- Douglas Grant
- Joan Ellias
All Aboard Florida was mentioned by most council members. Negative feedback. Is freight really driving it all?
Joe Russo thanked Steve Tarr for his actions which finally resulted in the first live City Council broadcast and hoped he was watching them on TV. The meeting from last night can be watched here.
The Consent Agenda (no additions, deletions, mods) passed 5-0, as did Regular Agenda Items Ordinance 6, 2014 2nd reading (petition requirement reduction), Ordinance 7, 2014 1st reading (Northlake Boulevard Overlay and Redevelopment) and Ordinance 9, 2014 1st reading Police Retirement Trust Fund).
Under Items for Council Discussion: David Levy said that the County offered to lower taxes by $4.00 if they were allowed to burn trash from other counties. All members seemed to be in agreement that it is better if the County DID NOT do so and they want to present unified front to County. Levy also discussed the Minto West project which, while not in the City, has major Northlake implications (development/infrastructure etc.) All were in agreement in opposing this as well.
Marcie Tinsley asked for direction stating: “Education is a key component of Economic development.” She wants to start a student shadow/work program. working with businesses to add an incentive to help train students. She had Mike Murgio on hand to help explain the project. The consensus of board was for Tinsley to run with it but leave staff out. She should work with the Chamber of Commerce, Kelly Smallridge, Mr. Murgio, etc. to come up with a County wide plan or footprint.
Other notable discussions were about playing fields and the need for field rest periods, including perhaps getting the County to chip in for our non resident Gardens facilities or exclude them which is not what Gardens would want to do.
Max Lohman, City Attorney, has been on board for 5 years. City Manager Ferris’ contract is up in June – so it is time for an evaluation.
The June council meeting has a busy agenda; it was suggested that council think about and discuss at the July meeting how to address the Charter Review and what type of panel they will have. The City Manager also brought up C-18 and PGA road construction by the State. He said that there will be a public workshop scheduled tentatively for Wednesday May 14th 5:30 to 7:30 in the Council Chambers. Check the City website for updates.
Next City Council Meeting on May 1st at 7pm
The next City Council Meeting will be this Thursday, May 1st at 7pm at City Hall.
On the agenda: second reading of Ordinance 6, 2014, which reduces the number of petitions required to place a citizen-initiated referendum on the ballot; first reading of Ordinance 7 (amending certain sections of the Northlake Boulevard Overlay Zone); and first reading of Ordinance 9. 2014 (Amending the City of Palm Beach Gardens Police Officers’ Retirement Plan).
Also on the agenda is a presentation of the 2013 Annual Audit Report.
The short form of the agenda can be found here, and the full agenda can be found here.
We get the government we deserve – and it’s up to us to watch what they do. Hope you can make it.
40th Terrace & Sunset To Get Water and Roads; Petitioners get Relief
NOTE: Video of this meeting has been provided by Steve Tarr. Click HERE.
Most of ‘the action’ in the fairly long City Council Meeting on April 3rd took place at the beginning and end of the meeting. Since most in the audience left by the end – we’ll start there.
Sunset Drive and 40th Terrace: Anyone following city issues for a long time knows that this area of the city, annexed in 2002, has had complicated issues with water, roads and sewers. Both the City and the County have to be involved with the resolution. Significant progress was made Thursday via Resolution 26, 2014 – with the Council deciding to go with option 3 – providing ‘city’ water (via Seacoast utility) and taking ownership of the roads with the affected residents to pay via the Neighborhood Improvement Assessment Program (NIAP). Option 3 will take 4-6 months before it can be started and in the interim both the County and the City will look for funding to provide additional relief for the property owners who must pay the assessment. The plan will not include a sewer hookup.
Citizen Initiated Referendum: Currently it takes petitions signed by 15% of registered Palm Beach Gardens voters in the last general election in order to place a citizen-initiated referendum on the ballot. Florida Statutes only require 10%. Last month, the group circulating petitions to place term limits on the ballot ( “Palm Beach Gardens Needs Term Limits” ) filed a lawsuit challenging the 15% requirement and the Council requested that the ordinance be revised to change the number required to 10%. The Council passed the first reading of the Ordinance unanimously.
Charter Review: Council member Russo asked that there be discussion on having a Charter Review committee – there was much debate on how such a committee should be named, how it should be moderated and when proposed changes should be on the ballot. While discussion will continue, the Council generally liked the idea of having an ‘impartial’ professional moderator, qualified (and ‘apolitical’) committee members and aiming for November, 2016. Trust was an issue and there was general agreement that the changes were not being proposed by the Council. Several on the Council did seem preoccupied with the concept of Term Limits as it came up several times during the discussion of charter changes. Council member Tinsley said that she supports term limits but ‘reasonable’ term limits and what is out there isn’t reasonable. Council member Jablin echoed her sentiments as did others. Watch for further actions on this topic!
Videotaping of Council Meetings: While this topic has come up several times in the past, several months ago resident Steve Tarr requested that City Council Meetings be televised. City Manager Ferris was directed to come back with options and costs but no decisions were made. In the meanwhile, Mr. Tarr has been taping the meetings and posting them on youtube, and we have posted them on PBGWatch. The Council discussed the topic once again and asked Mr. Ferris to implement Video on Demand – a day after posting of the Council Meetings. That would be a first step and the city would be able to see how many people actually view the video prior to taking the more extensive and more expensive step of live video.
Back to the beginning of the Council Meeting….
- The National Anthem was performed by Palm Beach Gardens Pizazz (please excuse if misspelled) – a member of which is Samara Tinsley.
- Council members Tinsley and Jablin were officially declared the winners of their respective elections. Mrs. Tinsley spoke of the experiences she had in meeting people has she campaigned – clearly getting the issues that concern them and the lack of trust that also exists. She was very appreciative of her re-election. Mr. Jablin also thanked those who supported him. Russo, seconded by Jablin moved that Bert Premuroso be appointed Mayor; Levy seconded by Russo moved that Eric Jablin be appointed Vice-Mayor – so the council makeup remains unchanged.
- The City’s CAFR received an award for the 19th consecutive year.
- PGA Blvd and Beeline Highway – the Council received a presentation by FDOT on improvements planned on PGA Blvd. between SR 710 to the C18 Canal. As the city manager explained later in the meeting, the city requested improvements due to severe flooding in the area – so FDOT fast-tracked the plans for raising the roads. Option A would close the road for 6 months and divert affected traffic via Northlake and Military Trail. Option B would involve single lane and controlled traffic and would take 18-24 months or longer. The Council as well as residents who spoke out were all adamantly against Option A primarily due to safety (Fire/Rescue and traffic on Northlake). The presenters said that they would do what the City and the residents want and that they would be conducting a town hall/work-shop within the April/May timeframe – so look for notices of the workshop!
- All Aboard Florida update – this too raised the ire of the Council. Palm Beach County Commissioner Valeche was in attendance and generally spoke in favor of the project. But the Council was very concerned about the significant impact not just of the passenger service, but in possible doubling of freight train traffic from 11 currently to 28 trains. While passenger trains are expected to clear an intersection in less than 2 minutes, freight trains are generally 2 miles long and stop traffic for a considerable amount of time. Mr. Jablin most concisely described this as selling one thing (passenger rail) while the key goal was double tracking to allow for the increased freight rail. Frustration level was high during the discussion and impacts to the safety of residents was a constant theme as was the need for Quiet Zones. Watch Mr Tarr’s video of this segment – this will impact us all – so keep informed!
- General Survey of Citizens: City Manager Ferris described a survey that was conducted in 2006 seeking input from residents, the results of which were used in a lot of decisions made afterwards. Mr. Ferris plans to send out a similar survey in the next 60 days s0 be on the lookout for it and make sure you participate!
All other resolutions resolutions and the Consent Agenda passed unanimously.
Also – learn about Avenir proposals in the workshop scheduled by the developer on Monday, April 7th. The council has mentioned more than once that they are opposed to the current proposals.
Thanks again to Steve Tarr for recording the meetings.
Council Video – 04/03/14
Part 1
Index:
0:00 Pledge;
0:29 National Anthem Singers;
2:53 Election Results;
3:43 Oath of Office;
11:01 Appointment of Mayor and Vice Mayor;
13:54 Financial Report Award;
17:29 DOT Beeline/PGA Repair;
37:56 All Aboard Florida Update;
[youtube Pk7U4dVjW5M]
Part 2
Index:
0:00 Items of Resident Interest;
6:29 City Manager Report;
14:14 Comments From The Public;
30:01 Consent Agenda;
33:07 Resolution 21 Briger;
55:15 Resolution 22 Franklin Academy;
59:05 Resolution 23 Downtown at the Gardens;
[youtube 3UMTReEDA-c]
Part 3
Index:
0:00 Resolution 26, 40th Terrace;
45:09 Ordinance 6, Elections Amendment;
48:13 Charter Review Committee;
1:10:45 Council Appointment to Internal and External Boards;
1:13:51 Video Discussion;
Adjournment
[youtube F-VGoQ5kuuc]
City Council Meeting Thursday April 3rd
The next City Council Meeting will be this Thursday, April 3rd at 7pm at City Hall.
Election results and appointment of the Mayor and Vice-Mayor along with Board Appointments will be first on the agenda. Presentations will include an All Aboard Florida update, DOT PGA Blvd and Beeline Highway, and Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) award.
Two issues of long term importance to residents that arose from last month’s meetingwill be on the agenda:
- Ordinance 6, 2014 – will reduce the number of petitions required to introduce a citizen-initiated ballot question to 10% from 15% of registered voters voting in the last general election. This is not technically a Charter change, but a modification to the enabling ordinance about elections. It only requires that the Council pass it and will not be on the November ballot. The topic arose as a result of a lawsuit served on the city by the group Palm Beach Gardens Needs Term Limits. This item is on the Regular Agenda
- Charter Review Committee – under Items for Council Discussion and Action, there is a chart of the history of prior committees and actions taken/not-taken as a result of their deliberations. Those of you who have served or participated in prior charter reviews may know how members were selected.
Residents of Sunset Drive and 40th Terrace will be especially interested in Resolution 26, 2014: City Council consideration of certain infrastructure improvements for properties along Sunset Drive, 401h Terrace North and Brenna Lane pursuant to the City Neighborhood Improvement Assessment Program (NIAP) and adoption of an associated special assessment.
Tony Doris of the Palm Beach Post has written an overview of the upcoming meeting here with comments by council member Russo.
The short form of the agenda can be found here and the full agenda/long form here.
We get the government we deserve – and it’s up to us to watch what they do. Hope to see you there.
2014 Council Election Results – An Analysis
The 2014 municipal elections in Palm Beach Gardens generated a lot of interest – a full 19% of registered voters participated, compared to a more typical 10%.
Congratulations to the winners – incumbents Eric Jablin and Marcie Tinsley.
Group 3
In group 3, 22 year incumbent Eric Jablin was outspent by challenger Michael Peragine, who ran more TV and radio ads. Both candidates did a prodigious direct mail campaign with flyers piling up in mailboxes as the election approached. In the end though, it came down to turning out the vote, and Jablin prevailed, winning by 151 votes (1.9%), with 51.1% of the vote.
Peragine dominated the precincts from NW to SE along I95 by large margins, particularly in the area of the proposed stadium and in his home precinct of Mirabella. Jablin Captured the larger precincts that have traditionally gone for the incumbent – BallenIsles, PGA National, and Frenchman’s (Reserve and Creek). BallenIsles alone delivered 784 votes for Jablin (22% of his total) and saw their turnout increase to 43%, compared to 32% last year.
Turnout was up in most precincts, as the challengers sought out new voters. Precinct 1246 for example, which includes Bent Tree, Old Palm and Shady Lakes turned out 22%, up from 6% last year, and delivered 418 votes for Peragine, 87% of their total. If the relative voter turnout among precincts had been similar to last year, Jablin would have won by a larger margin, 54% to 46%.
Not coincidentally, the two precincts with the biggest increase in voter participation were the home precincts of challengers Robin Deaton (Bent Tree and surroundings – up 267%) and Michael Peragine (Mirabella – up 190%).
Group 3 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Strong Jablin | Weak Jablin | Very Close | Weak Peragine | Strong Peragine |
Click the precinct on the map for vote totals. |
Group 5
In group 5, three year incumbent Marcie Tinsley turned back a challenge from stadium opponent and Bent Tree resident Robin Deaton. Much less money was spent on this race compared to group 3, and in addition to a smaller direct mail campaign, the challenger depended on a network of volunteers to reach and turn out voters. At the end of the day, Tinsley prevailed by 617 votes (9.2%), 54.6% to 45.4%.
In her home area of Bent Tree and the neighborhoods around the stadium, Deaton turned out 22% of her precinct and won 87% of them. She was also strong in precinct 1190 (The Isles, Paloma and San Michelle). In other areas she was probably hampered by lack of name recognition. Tinsley captured 79% of her home precinct of Evergreene (15% turnout) and was strong in the incumbent friendly areas of BallenIsles, PGA and Frenchman’s.
Group 5 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Strong Tinsley | Weak Tinsley | Very Close | Weak Deaton | Strong Deaton> |
Click the precinct on the map for vote totals. |
Tabular Results
Precinct | Reg | Cast | TO% | Jablin | Peragine | M3% | Deaton | Tinsley | M5% |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1186 | 1460 | 423 | 29 | 91 | 329 | 22 | 210 | 161 | 43 |
1188 | 784 | 93 | 12 | 28 | 64 | 30 | 53 | 36 | 40 |
1190 | 2448 | 322 | 13 | 98 | 217 | 31 | 203 | 107 | 35 |
1192 | 1403 | 206 | 15 | 76 | 116 | 40 | 42 | 162 | 79 |
1194 | 1907 | 624 | 33 | 450 | 169 | 73 | 153 | 443 | 74 |
1238 | 1571 | 426 | 27 | 210 | 215 | 49 | 177 | 212 | 54 |
1240 | 2413 | 555 | 23 | 345 | 206 | 63 | 197 | 310 | 61 |
1242 | 2392 | 699 | 29 | 470 | 223 | 68 | 212 | 386 | 65 |
1244 | 1454 | 355 | 24 | 207 | 142 | 59 | 140 | 187 | 57 |
1246 | 2209 | 494 | 22 | 67 | 418 | 14 | 424 | 62 | 13 |
1248 | 1415 | 295 | 21 | 91 | 201 | 31 | 162 | 127 | 44 |
1250 | 65 | 15 | 23 | 12 | 3 | 80 | 1 | 14 | 93 |
1252 | 2279 | 989 | 43 | 784 | 194 | 80 | 265 | 602 | 69 |
1254 | 435 | 65 | 15 | 39 | 26 | 60 | 23 | 41 | 64 |
1260 | 1262 | 194 | 15 | 57 | 132 | 30 | 97 | 95 | 49 |
1264 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
1266 | 450 | 9 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 56 | 4 | 5 | 56 |
1268 | 269 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 27 | 7 | 4 | 36 |
1270 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
1272 | 1843 | 233 | 13 | 83 | 148 | 36 | 113 | 115 | 50 |
1274 | 1564 | 198 | 13 | 82 | 115 | 42 | 94 | 102 | 52 |
1280 | 422 | 54 | 13 | 21 | 33 | 39 | 30 | 19 | 39 |
1284 | 2091 | 165 | 8 | 103 | 62 | 62 | 54 | 100 | 65 |
1288 | 40 | 11 | 28 | 5 | 6 | 45 | 6 | 5 | 45 |
1290 | 2076 | 211 | 10 | 82 | 129 | 39 | 103 | 104 | 50 |
1292 | 58 | 8 | 14 | 6 | 2 | 75 | 3 | 5 | 62 |
1296 | 626 | 27 | 4 | 13 | 13 | 50 | 13 | 12 | 48 |
1306 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
1310 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
1324 | 1237 | 85 | 7 | 26 | 58 | 31 | 45 | 38 | 46 |
1326 | 584 | 58 | 10 | 21 | 37 | 36 | 27 | 29 | 52 |
1340 | 10 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 100 | 0 | 1 | 100 |
1352 | 2031 | 223 | 11 | 94 | 128 | 42 | 106 | 105 | 50 |
1360 | 845 | 113 | 13 | 46 | 66 | 41 | 58 | 49 | 46 |
1372 | 138 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 40 | 2 | 3 | 60 |
TOTAL | 37807 | 7167 | 19.0% | 3618 | 3467 | 51.1% | 3024 | 3641 | 54.6% |
Incumbents hold seats with narrow victories
Possible changes to petition requirements for citizen initiated ballot questions
The City Council had a relatively brief meeting on Thursday night.
Police Contract
The item with most financial impact to the city was the ratification of the 3-year contract with the Police Benevolent Association (PBA), who represent the Gardens Police. The contract provides for a 2.5% rise in base pay over two years, and requires the union to make a contribution to the pension plan. The contract is expected to cost the city about $1M for its 121 Police employees. The Council, each in turn, congratulated both HR and the union for reaching the agreement, and thanked the police force for being patient during the hard fought negotiations. It was felt that the contract would address expected retirements, allow for promotions from within as well as new hiring and continue to focus on addressing pension funding issues. Kudos were given to the department for keeping Palm Beach Gardens the safe place it is.
Term Limits Petitions
A topic with potential long-term impact to city government was discussion related to a lawsuit served against the City earlier in the day by a group seeking Term Limits for the Council. (See the PB Post article.) The city currently requires that citizen initiated referenda on the ballot require petitions from 15% of the registered voters, (approximately 5800 signatures). State statutes only require 10% or 3900. City Manager Ferris and City Attorney Max Lohman both suggested that an ordinance be introduced in April’s meeting to reduce the requirement to the state’s 10% which would resolve the lawsuit as well as make it easier for citizens to engage with their government. (Given that less than 10% typically vote in a municipal election, and a candidate only needs 1% to get on the ballot, this sounds reasonable.) Mr. Lohman pointed out that it is an enabling ordinance that has the requirement and not the Charter (which only states “The qualified voters of the city shall have the power to institute initiative and referendum procedures as provided by general law of the State of Florida.”). Thus, it will not require a ballot initiative to make the change. Members of the council opined that the initiators of the lawsuit could have come to the council to make the request for such a change instead of resorting to a lawsuit.
The topic expanded to include discussion of a much needed Charter Review – with all the council agreeing that the subject needs to be brought up again.
40th Terrace Project
Another item that has been the subject of discussion over many months was the issue of services to the neighborhood of 40th Terrace and Sunset Drive. Sufficient responses had been returned to the city to allow for the next step – having an informational meeting / open house for the residents of the area in order to explain what can be done for water and sewer improvements and to answer any questions they may have. The open house will be on March 24th from 6pm-7:30pm. Affected residents will be notified and a posting will also be made on the city website.
Honda Classic
The success of the Honda Classic was described by Councilman Joe Russo. City Manager Ron Ferris also pointed out that the close marketing partnership with the Honda Classic website led to many more hits for the City’s website from all over the world and that the marketing partnership will continue in the future.
Public Comment
Residents speaking during Public Comment were:
- Ruth Peeples requesting more information on the confidentiality agreement with the stadium proposal as the document disclosed under a public records request wasn’t signed by anyone on the council or the city manager. The City Attorney explained some of the relationship between the Business Development Board and requirements of State Statute 288.075. Note: Similar questions had been raised by Vito DeFrancesco and former mayor Mike Martino – so the transparency/handling of the stadium proposal remains a citizen concern.
- Michael Peragine (candidate for City Council Group 3 and on the board of Palm Beach Gardens Needs Term Limits) took issue with the council comments on the lawsuit, stating that many emails had been sent to both the administration and council requesting such a change with no response. He also spoke in favor of a Charter Review and was strongly in favor of the PBA Contract.
- Sheldon Rich thanked the Council for all they do and praised the city. He was upset by the negative politicking during this election cycle and negative press for the City as a result, and suggested that those who are unhappy should consider moving out.
All Ordinances and resolutions on the agenda were passed unanimously.
So save the date – April 3rd for the next City Council meeting and remember to vote on Tuesday March 11!
Thanks to resident Steve Tarr – who once again recorded the meeting in its entirety and posted it on Youtube – view it here.
Council Video – 03/06/14
Index: 0:00 Pledge; 1:32 Items of Resident Interest; 17:17 City Manager Report; 23:39 Comments From The Public; 36:46 Consent Agenda; 41:37 Public Hearings (re: Land near Northlake/I95); 48:25 Resolutions (Collective Bargaining); 57:41 Items For Council (40th Terrace)/Adjournment.
[youtube JIfycsvd3ns]
What is the Gardens Election About?
Palm Beach Gardens is a nice place to live. A collection of mostly upscale, private communities, surrounding a business core along PGA Boulevard that features the Gardens Mall, Downtown at the Gardens, and Legacy Place among others, it is green, attractive, safe and prosperous. Taxes are not too high, planning and zoning rules ensure that new development adheres to standards of attractiveness, and the economy is improving. City government has been fiscally responsible for the most part, and no officials have gone to jail recently.
Yet this year, two of the three council members up for election in March have drawn an opponent, a group is circulating a petition to enforce term limits on the incumbents, and large numbers of red-shirted protestors invaded the usually staid Council Meetings. Is there trouble in paradise?
It is easy to conclude that the proposal to place a large baseball stadium in close proximity to schools and quiet residential neighborhoods is the cause of the angst, or more specifically the way the proposal was managed. Backroom discussions between the team owners, county officials and the city were ongoing for over a year before the public became aware of it. A minor story in a Houston paper that quoted Astros Owner Jim Crane that the Palm Beach Gardens stadium was 95% complete and only needed a final vote by the City Council took many by surprise. What followed was a series of obfuscations and denials from city officials that went on long enough to generate a large and vocal opposition.
To many, the handling of the stadium proposal by City Manager Ron Ferris, and the reluctance of any of the sitting council members to disclose if they support it or not, showed arrogance and a distinct lack of transparency. Although restrictions do exist on divulging the content of confidential discussions related to economic development projects, once Jim Crane let the cat out of the bag the Council should have been more forthcoming.
So let’s stipulate that the stadium is a black eye for the current Council. But is this serious enough to threaten the seats of the two incumbents, Marcie Tinsley and Eric Jablin?
Incumbents rarely lose, unless they are tainted by major scandal, or voters perceive the government has gone off the rails in some way. In Palm Beach Gardens, there is no scandal that we know of, and most residents who are not actively involved with the city have little about which to complain. At least on the surface, the stadium is now a non-issue, as the Council has voted to terminate the project.
On the “typical” issues of taxes and the budget, economic development, the environment and growth, the candidates are really not very far apart.
So what is this election really about?
At PBG Watch, we strongly believe that no elected officials should get a free ride. It is good for our system of government when there are challengers, and since no official or group of officials is perfect, there are always shortcomings to criticize. After several years of observing Council meetings, we have seen a certain smugness from the dais. The mishandling of the stadium project suggested a lack of preparedness for hard questions, and the refusal to fully disclose the true status of the project is a symptom.
Over the past weeks, the candidates met the voters and each other in various meet & greets, forums (including ours on February 25), gave interviews to the media, sent many pieces of mail, and otherwise got out their message. They used many different issues to differentiate themselves from each other and to educate the public on what is important.
In our view, the Council’s biggest area for improvement is in transparency and respect for due process. Listed below are several actions taken by the current Council that could have been handled better. This election, in our view, is really about these things, and whether the voters will decide that a change is needed. Hopefully, we will have a more open and responsive council going forward, whoever wins.
The following are some past council actions that we hope will be considered by the voters as the make their choice on March 11:
- While details of the stadium proposal were being suppressed, the Council moved ahead on Ordinance 16 and 19 – which eliminate the “uplands setaside” provisions for land owned by a government. While staff denies that it was introduced specifically for the stadium project, they do admit that not having it would make the stadium harder.
- The Waste Management contract was renewed for 5 years without going out for bids. This was done a year ahead of schedule, added to the Council agenda a month before it had been advertised, not included in the printed agenda at the meeting, and voted on near 11:00pm when most of the meeting attendees had left. Inspector General Sheryl Steckler admitted the action did not violate the letter of the law, but it should not have been done this way. When Delray Beach did this, new Councilmen were elected who then moved to void the contract after the fact.
- When the Inspector General Ordinance that extended jurisdiction over the city was passed by 72% of the voters in 2010, the Council and staff moved quickly to add definitions of “waste, fraud and abuse” to the city code with the effect of obstructing the jurisdiction of the IG over city business. Similar definitions had been proposed and rejected by the county ordinance drafting committee.
- When West Palm Beach brought suit against the county, objecting to the ordinance requirement to pay for the Office of Inspector General, our Council voted 5-0 (again late at night) to join the lawsuit and withhold payment for the OIG. The net effect is to limit the investigative power of the OIG by constraining staffing.
- When the City Attorney determined that the City Charter was in conflict with state statutes, the Council directed him to create a ballot question for the 2012 election. Rather than introduce individual changes to the charter, the entire document was scrapped and re-written from scratch, without convening a charter review committee or drawing from the work of the previous committee report, and public comments were entertained only after the fact. The first iteration contained an “incumbent protection” provision that eliminated runoff elections for city council when a race contained 3 or more candidates and no majority is attained. That provision was dropped only after significant public opposition. The ballot amendment was defeated by the voters and the existing charter still stands.
Have the challengers, Robin Deaton and Michael Peragine made their case for change on these issues? Have the incumbents, Marcie Tinsley and Eric Jablin offered explanations that are acceptable to the voters? We will find out on March 11.