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2014.10.28_TC_Minutes_Workshop TOWN OF HIGHLAND BEACH MINUTES OF TOWN COMMISSION MEETING WORKSHOP MEETING Tuesday, October 28, 2014 1 PM Mayor Bernard Featherman called the Workshop Meeting to order in the Library's Goldstein Community Room at 1:30 PM. CALL TO ORDER: Roll Call: Members present: Mayor Bernard Featherman; Vice Mayor Ron Brown; Commissioner Louis P. Stem; and Commissioner Carl Feldman. Member Absent: Commissioner Dennis Sheridan. Also present: Town Attorney Glen Torcivia; Town Manager Kathleen Weiser; Town Clerk Beverly Brown; Finance Director Cale Curtis; Public Works Director Edward Soper; Police Chief Craig Hartmann; Police Training Manager Eric Aronowitz; Library Director Maria Suarez; Assistant to the Manager Zoie Burgess; and members of the public. Pledge of Allegiance: The Pledge of Allegiance was given, followed by a minute of silence. Civility Pledge: The Civility Pledge was recited by the Town Clerk. 1. ADDITIONS, DELETIONS OR ACCEPTANCE OF AGENDA: Mayor Featherman asked for any additions or deletions. Receiving no additions or deletions, the agenda was accepted as presented. 2. PUBLIC COMMENTS AND REOUESTS: Dr. Bill Weitz, 1135 Boca Cove Lane — We have asked for a final calculation accounting for the cost of the Town Hall renovation. To date we have not received it and hope to have it soon, since we are entitled to this as taxpayers. There was a complaint made by a vendor to the Inspector General's (IG) Office regarding the Request For Proposal (RFP) for the Waste Management Collection project. The concern was that the Town used the same attorney who had prior problems in Delray, with similar charges to prepare the RFP. Reading from a paragraph in the letter, there was a recommendation from their attorney that there be a postponement for the deadline in submitting the proposals for further review of the requirements in order to prevent any protest after the award. We all know that the City of Delray Beach ran into many difficulties with having to cancel their contract and having to rebid it. I believe we should take the advice of their attorney and postpone this to see what the Town Commission Workshop Minutes October 28, 2014 Page 2 of 8 Inspector General's findings are, if they are going to investigate this. Also, I am concerned about the Purchasing and Procurement policy document, which I have read. It transfers most of the function and control to our Finance Dept. We are a government agency and follow government rules. Most government agencies have specialized people for procurement and contracting, and I don't believe we have that and should. All clauses in that proposal are nullified by a qualifier. You need to look at this carefully. The sale of provisions is mostly left to the Town Manager and in effect robs the Commission of their fiduciary responsibility and control. My advice is that we not proceed with this document and review it very carefully. Ellen Smith, Representative for Waste Management — We are one of the bidders on the RFP that has been issued for Solid Waste and Recycling Collection and serve the town now. I am responding to the comments I have just heard. The City of Delray Beach is one of our clients. The difference between Delray Beach and Highland Beach is that Delray did not go out for bid. The contract was just extended and that was the issue with the IG. Elyse Riesa, 1133 Boca Cove Lane — I find it inappropriate for Ellen Smith to speak at this time regarding our bids and proposals. I read the RFP, and my biggest concern is that it has overreached in what we are asking for in this community; especially the semi- automatic and automatic type haulers which are not being used by anyone today. That should not have been put in the bid. The bid should be fair, so we will not have any more backlashes. 3. PRESENTATIONS: There were no presentations. 4. BOARDS AND COMMITTEES: A) Board Correspondence: • None B) Board Action Report: • No Report C) Board Vacancies: • None D) Monthly Board Meetings: • Planning Board- Regular Meeting — November 12th - 9:30 AM cancelled • Board of Adjustment & Appeals - Site Visit - November 17th - 9:30 AM • Board of Adjustment & Appeals — Hearing - November 19th - 9:30 AM • Beaches & Shores Advisory Board - No Scheduled Meeting • Financial Advisory Board — No Scheduled Meeting • Code Enforcement Board - No Scheduled Meeting Town Commission Workshop Minutes October 28, 2014 Page 3 of 8 5. PROPOSED ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS: A) ORDINANCE NO. 14 -005 O AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF HIGHLAND BEACH, FLORIDA AMENDING CHAPTER 28, "XERISCAPE - LANDSCAPE REQUIREMENTS, INSTALLATION AND MAINTENANCE," OF THE TOWN CODE OF ORDINANCES BY AMENDING SECTION 28 -10, "MAINTENANCE STANDARDS FOR CULTIVATED LANDSCAPE AREAS ", TO CLARIFY THAT THE ADJACENT PROPERTY OWNER SHALL MAINTAIN ANY LANDSCAPING IN THE PUBLIC RIGHT -OF -WAY; PROVIDING FOR CODIFICATION, CONFLICTS, SEVERABILITY AND FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. Town Clerk Brown read Ordinance No. 14 -008 O into the record. Town Attorney Torcivia explained the revisions in the Ordinance. Individuals are responsible for landscaping on their property, but they are not responsible if it is damaged through no fault of their own. Commissioner Feldman questioned the replacement of trees in the right -of -way. He feels it still makes the homeowner responsible and that was not his intent. Town Attorney Torcivia stated that the revision in the ordinance softens the burden of the homeowner by stating that they would not be responsible if it is damaged through no fault of their own. Commissioner Feldman did not want the homeowner to be responsible for the replacement of any palm trees in any case. Town Attorney Torcivia will revise the ordinance to read the homeowner will be responsible for replacing plants and landscaping, except for palm trees that were provided by the State or the Town. They will not be responsible for these no matter whose fault it is. The revised ordinance will be presented for a first reading at the November 4 meeting. B) ORDINANCE NO. 14 -009 O AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF HIGHLAND BEACH, FLORIDA CREATING CHAPTER 33, "ACQUISITION OF GOODS AND SERVICES AND DISPOSAL OF TOWN PROPERTY ", TO PROVIDE FOR REQUIREMENTS AND REGULATIONS AS IT RELATES TO THE PURCHASING OF GOODS AND SERVICES; PROVIDING FOR CODIFICATION, CONFLICTS, SEVERABILITY AND FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. Town Clerk Brown read Ordinance No. 14 -009 O into the record. Town Manager Weiser stated that there is nothing in this Ordinance that we currently don't practice. It is just spelled out more and not using words such as exception. This is pretty much standard language for governmental purchasing, but if you would like another set of eyes we can have the Financial Advisory Board take a look at this. Commissioner Feldman had some questions regarding this ordinance. One was the change in language regarding three quotes. The original stated they will obtain three quotes, and the new stated they will strive to obtain three quotes. He was not comfortable with the word strive. Town Manager Weiser explained that you cannot force people to bid, and you cannot make a rule that Town Commission Workshop Minutes October 28, 2014 Page 4 of 8 would do that. He referred to 33.01(a) in the ordinance asking about the blank space before "as provided for in this Chapter ". Finance Director Curtis stated that the space could be filled in with the date of the adoption of the ordinance. Comm. Feldman questioned the words "except for impractical" used for certain purchasing amounts and asked if it could be removed. Fin. Dir. Curtis explained that the purpose is in the event we cannot get three quotes for whatever reason. Comm. Feldman asked if Fin. Dir. Curtis would be willing to take courses in procurement since the new policy makes him both Finance Director and Purchasing Manager. Fin. Dir. Curtis agreed to this. Comm. Feldman wanted this ordinance to be brought forward at another meeting and have a PowerPoint presentation by Fin. Dir. Curtis for further explanation and discussion. Commissioner Stern agreed with Comm. Feldman. The ordinance should be looked at by the Financial Advisory Board and give the Commission more time to discuss this. Vice Mayor Brown agreed to move it to another meeting and that it should be explained in further detail regarding the changes made. Mayor Featherman agreed with the Commissioners and Vice Mayor. B) Adoption of Purchasing Policy and Procedures in conjunction with Ordinance. Consensus was to have the Financial Advisory Board review the Purchasing Policy and Procedures, which will be tabled until the January 2015 Workshop Meeting. 6. NEW BUSINESS: A) Commission to Authorize the purchase of a 2014 Ford Edge for the Public Works Dept; Declare the Existing 2003 Ford F -150 Pickup Truck Surplus; and Authorize Trade -in of said Vehicle Towards the new Vehicle. Town Manager Weiser indicated that the Fiscal Year 2015 Public Works Budget has an allocation of $26,500 to purchase a new vehicle. We are able to purchase this under budget at a cost of $25,847.81. Consensus was to place this item on the Consent Agenda for November 4 B) Commission to Declare 2011 Gator as Surplus and Authorize Trade -in for a Replacement Vehicle. Town Manager Weiser stated that the new vehicle was budgeted in the new budget. The estimated trade -in value of this vehicle is $2,750. Consensus was to place this item on the Consent Agenda for November 4h. Town Commission Workshop Minutes October 28, 2014 Page 5 of 8 C) Commission to authorize the purchase of two (2) Ford Explorers for the Police Department and declare the 2007 and 2008 Ford Crown Victoria Surplus and authorize the disposal of said vehicles for trade -in towards the purchase of the new vehicles. Town Manager Weiser — There was $52,500 budgeted for the two new police vehicles. We have been able to procure the purchase of the two new Ford Explorers with the trade -in of the two existing vehicles, and it comes in under budget at $49,827. Consensus was to place this item on the Consent Agenda for November 0. 7. MISCELLANEOUS — ITEMS LEFT OVER: A) Minutes: September 23, 2014 - Final Budget Public Hearing September 30, 2014 - Workshop Meeting October 7, 2014 - Regular Meeting No errors or corrections received. Consensus was to place this item on the November 4th Consent Agenda. 8. REPORTS — TOWN COMMISSION: A) Commissioner Carl Feldman — The Town Attorney has changed the name of his law practice and the Commission should have been informed of this change. Town Attorney Torcivia stated that the announcements were being mailed this week. He is still owner of the firm and they just added three names to the firm. Comm. Feldman questioned Town Attorney Torcivia on the letter sent to the town by one of his attorneys regarding the RFP for Solid Waste. Town Attorney Torcivia stated that this gave the Commission the option to be more conservative. The complaint by the vendor who sent the letter to the Inspector General's office was that the level of service set by this Commission is too restrictive. It is your call if you want to lower the level of service in this town and then you would probably get more bidders. Comm. Feldman wanted the attorney to indicate that it was perfectly legal what was put in the RFP, and that it was okay to go ahead with it. Town Attorney Torcivia stated that it was perfectly legal. There is always a level of risk. The more restrictive you make an RFP, the more risk there is. Comm. Feldman was concerned about the Inspector General. B) Commissioner Louis Stern — I have two things to respond to that have been made over the last few weeks. One was the issue of boatlifts and the concern of one of our residents, Silvio Blaskovicz, who was worried about a few boat slips that could possibly have some change if the Commission would be willing. The Town recently passed an Ordinance regarding the boatlifts and Mr. Blascovicz argued that the Town should have more restrictions regarding boatlifts. I am bringing this up at this time to determine if the Commission wishes to have staff take another look at the regulations regarding boadifts. Some of the issues brought up concerned the setbacks for multi- family districts. We are at five feet now and this is a concern for Mr. Blascoviz. I am asking that Town Commission Workshop Minutes October 28, 2014 Page 6 of 8 staff take a look at this and possibly change it to ten feet. We have also heard from George Kelvin regarding the vehicles parking on AIA. The Building Official sent a memorandum to the Town Manager concerning the parking and utilization of the Florida Department of State (FDOT) right -of- way along AIA. It reads as follows: "The contractors building on AIA must obtain and submit a temporary FDOT permit with their construction documents before the Building Dept. issues a permit for the construction. The FDOT inspects these sites to be sure the requirements of the permit have been met. These permits have to be renewed every six months. At the end of the construction a final approval from the FDOT is required before I can issue a Certificate of Occupancy (CO). These vehicles are on FDOT property and have the right to be there and licensed to do so." On December 1S we will have an Open House Celebration and Light up the Holidays. C) Vice Mayor Ron Brown — Regarding the boatlift issue and the setbacks for multi - family districts, I looked into this matter and found that it is up to the condominium association as to how many boatlifts they can put in there. They also address who gets what and how you get a boatlift within the condominium. I don't feel we should tamper with setbacks in a multi- family complex. Regarding the waste collection, we are the Town and the one that defines what type of service we want. I don't feel we should entertain having a lesser service than we have now by lowering our standards. Our standards are listed in the RFP, and it is a matter of public record. E) Mayor Bernard Featherman — I would like the Town Attorney to read a letter written that would clear the Town with the IG. Town Attorney Torcivia read a letter dated October 7th to the Town Commission into the record. Basically the letter stated that the Inspector General's Office did not recommend that the project be stopped or not completed. At the meeting, the Town Manager, Town Attorney, the IG and the Town all agreed that moving forward with the completion of the project would be the least risk for the Town. The Commission agreed and decided to complete the project. The IG realized that this was a human error and made recommendations on a going forward basis. Mayor Featherman - With regard to the RFP's, I don't believe we should lower our standards for the level of service we require in this town. 9. REPORTS — TOWN ATTORNEY GLEN TORCIVIA: I gave my reports previously at this meeting. One was the letter that the Mayor asked me to read regarding the IG and the other was in response to Comm. Feldman regarding the RFP. I believe that our RFP meets all the requirements of the law and thoroughly researched. Basically the complaint was made by a company that could not meet the requirement(s) of the Town because of our required high level of service. 10. REPORTS — TOWN MANAGER KATHLEEN DAILEY WEISER: The Town's Surplus Fund increased by approximately 3.5 million last month due to the sale of the Boca Properties. Based on the advice of the Financial Advisory Board, I have approved the Finance Director to put that money into a one -year Certificate of Deposit. We received a favorable quote of 55 basis points and there is a one -time withdrawal clause from the C.D. should you decide to spend that money within the year. Town Commission Workshop Minutes October 28, 2014 Page 7 of 8 I wish our Town Clerk Beverly Brown well and a speedy recovery. Valerie Oakes will be the Acting Town Clerk during that time. Our annual Halloween contest is this Friday. I would like you to join us for a Halloween contest and some treats. 11. PUBLIC COMMENTS AND REQUESTS RELATED TO ITEMS DISCUSSED AT MEETING ONLY Bill Weitz, 1135 Boca Cove Lane — Regarding our policies and procedures, a comment was made in the IG's report that our policies were inconsistent and vague, and they directed our town to review our policies to establish clearer, more specific and responsible policies. I am not in favor of the way the procedures manual was written and am against using terms such as impractical, probable, and strive. These words are not in most contracts, and I am asking the Commission to look at this as a legal issue. Elyse Riesa, Boca Cove Lane — Regarding the waste management bid, I was not referring to the three person part of that bid as being something that we shouldn't have. I think it is very important. I was referring to the semi - automatic haulers and the automatic haulers. You should not put something in the bid that we don't need. Rhoda Zelniker, 3912 S. Ocean Blvd — I believe in getting three bids. I believe it is part of the Manager's job to know a lot of people where you can get these bids, and if you don't know, it is your responsibility to go out there and find it. The new policy is not clear to us and should be simple enough for anybody to understand. I have been told by some of the residents that they have sent in letters to the Commissioners regarding the IG report asking for some answers. They never received any response and I feel it is your obligation to answer these people. We want to be part of the community. It is getting very busy here in South Florida and there are many bicyclists on the weekends. I think we could use an officer on a bike to control the traffic. Carl Gammen, 1123 Highland Beach Drive — The waste management company here in Highland Beach is doing a great job. Commissioner Feldman asked Finance Director to put something in the procurement policy regarding credit card purchasing. Vice Mayor Brown stated that he has seen a police officer patrolling on a bicycle. 12. ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business to come before the Commission, Mayor Featherman adjourned the Workshop Meeting at 2:58 PM upon a MOTION by Commissioner Stern and seconded by Town Commission Workshop Minutes October 28, 2014 Page 8 of 8 Vice Mayor Brown. APPROVED: Bern; Featherman Mayor Lam, Ron Brown, Vic ayor Dennis J. Sheridan, Co issioner Ste ss ner Carl Feldman, Commissioner ATTEST: rown, �� Gt �� t� �� - Town Clerk Z �?, 1 14 -