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02-07-1977 - Regular/02-08-1977 Special Q o CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER REGULAR MEETING HELD February 7, 1977 Acting Mayor Ryta F. Webber called the regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Edgewater to order Monday, February 7, 1977, at 7:30 P.M. ROLL CALL: Mayor Dana T. Armstrong Councilwoman Ryta F. Webber Councilman Henry C. Riggs Councilman Walter B. Sikes Councilman Calvin R. Dietz City Attorney William Gillespie City Clerk Sue Blackwell Police Chief Earl Baugh Absent Present Absent Absent Absent Absent Present Absent re.GG IIe.d Due to the lack of a quorum, this meeting was r~cessed until Tuesday night. CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER ..9PEClItL --REGESSED-MEETING HELD February 8, 1977 ~(JeGiq / Vice Mayor Calvin R. Dietz called the ~ed-meeting of the City Council of the City of Edgewater to order Tuesday, February 8, 1977 at 7:30 P.M. ROLL CALL: Mayor Dana T. Armstrong Councilwoman Ryta F. Webber Councilman Henry C. Riggs Councilman Walter B. Sikes Vice Mayor Calvin R. Dietz City Attorney William Gillespie City Clerk Sue Blackwell Police Chief Earl Baugh INVOCATION: SALUTE TO FLAG: APPROVAL OF MINUTES: None BILLS AND ACCOUNTS: Absent Present Present Excused Present Excused Present Present Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he has not had time to go over the bills, and he asked the City Clerk to read the list of bills. The City Clerk read the list of bills. ~ o o Councilman Riggs asked several questions about the bills in the Street Depart- ment. The City Clerk read from the invoices what these bills were for. Councilwoman Webber made a motion to pay the bills, being seconded by Council- man Riggs. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED 3-0. COMMUNICATIONS: The City Clerk read the Building Official's report for the month of January. She also read a bill which the Building Official submitted in the amount of $1,467.88 for fees collected for completed work. Councilwoman Webber made a motion to pay the bill, being seconded by Councilman Riggs. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 3-0. The City Clerk read a notice from Mr. Christy for a Civil Preparedness meeting dated February 23, 1977 at 7:30 P.M. in their room at the Community Center. The City Clerk read a letter from Mr. Millard, Chairman of the Board of Adjustments in regard to Mrs. Murphy a member of the board, asking that she be relieved of her duties as a member of the board. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that since there is another letter relating to the same matter, he asked the City Clerk to read the other letter before any action was taken. The City Clerk read a letter from Mrs. Helen Lovell in regard to the variance she asked for, and in regard to Mrs. Murphy's comments that were made at the Public Hearing that was held. Also in regard to the picture of her building that Mrs. Murphy put in the paper, asking that such harrassment as this be stopped. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he feels ~at this is important enough that we have a full Council present before a decision is made. He added that he would like to excerise his right as Vice Mayor to suspend Mrs. Murphy from all activities with the Board of Adjustments and any other boards and instruct the City Clerk to draw up a Resolution for her removal from the Board of Adjust- ments and bring it up to the Council next week and at that time it will be dis- cussed in full and the Council can vote for or against. Councilwoman Webber made a motion that this Resolution be drawn up, being seconded by Councilman Riggs. Mrs. Murphy was given the floor and she said in all fairness to the City she suggested that the Council play and listen to the minutes of that meeting. She said that some of the facts mentioned in the letters are not correct. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he hopes that all of the Council members will take this very seriously and that they will all listen to all of the minutes and read all of the minutes and study this carefully and make the decision next week. He explained that we are not making any decision tonight, the suspension is the proper way to handle this. Mrs. Murphy questioned if the proper procedure is to act on a recommendation of a Chairman, or does it have to come from the whole board? Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he has the right as a Council member to suspend any employee or any appointee of the City pending until the next meeting of the City Council for a full hearing. He added that he thinks this is a fair way of handling this. -2- o o. Mrs. Murphy stated that she does not agree. She added that the fact remains that this tars her but it does not feather her because she is not chicken. It could cause complications for the City. She stands with clean hands and everything that she has done was for the benefit of the City, and she had nothing to gain. She said that she agreed that if Mr. Millard intimated that he had contacted our attorrley and in the attorney's opinion there was no conflict of interest. She accepted this and she did not challenge Mrs. Nichols conflict of interest, even though she was working for the person who was reguesting for the variance. As far as her writinq a column, she has always tried to plug Edgewater, because it is her City: Vice Mayor Dietz again repeated the procedure that we are.going to follow. Mr. John Gross was given the floor, and he stated that he understands that Mr. Millard is asking for the removal of Mrs. Murphy because she voted against the request. He added that Mr. Millard is the Chairman of this board and he sat there and let a member of the board vote on a project where that member works for the person she was voting for. He should have taken action imme- diately in that regard. He also added that Mrs. Murphy gave the Council the facts a week ago and it is his opinion that Mrs. Murphy is right. Vice Mayor Dietz assured Mr. Gross that an investigation has been made by him in regard to the charges that Mrs. Murphy has made which were untrue and to no avail other than the fact that she did not agree with something that was written into the Ordinance which is the law of the City, and we can not have people changing the law. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that no one has said that Mrs. Murphy has done any- thing that is a hindrance to the City. It is how she went about making the statements that is the question. Upon roll call vote on the Resolution being drawn, said motion CARRIED, 3-0. The City Clerk read a letter from Carmen Montesano in regard to a trench which was dug by the Water Department crew, and the mess that was left in front of his property. Councilman Riggs stated that a ditch was dug on City property, however the job is not completed. It needs to be smoothed and the work will be done. Tape 1B Vice Mayor Dietz asked the City Clerk to write a letter to Mr. Montesano notifying him that Mr. Riggs is taking care of this problem. The City Clerk read two VCOG meeting notices. One being tomorrow at 3:30 P.M. in Daytona Beach. She stated that she does not know if Mayor Armstrong intends to attend this meeting or not. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that Mr. Armstrong has never appointed anyone to stand in for him and it will take a vote of the Council for someone to go and attend this meeting for the City of Edgewater. He added that he is familiar with what will be going on and he feels that it is imperative that we attend this meeting. There was discussion about this, and Councilwoman Webber and Vice Mayor Dietz both stated that they could attend. Councilman Riggs made a motion that both of them attend, being seconded by Councilwoman Webber. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he would like the motion worded so that in case the Mayor does intend to go they don't all have to go. Councilman Riggs made a motion that in the event the Mayor is going to attend, that he and Councilman Dietz go, being seconded by Councilwoman Webber. Vice Mayor Dietz asked the City Clerk to contact the Mayor and find out in the morning whether he is going to attend. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 3-0. -3- Q o The City Clerk read the other notice of the Intergovernmental Advisory Committee meeting. She stated that she feels that the Planning Board will be interested in this meeting. This was tabled for the time being so that the Chief could take the letter over to the Planning Board, which is meeting in City Hall to see if anyone of them can attend. The City Clerk read a letter from Mr. John Scarantino requesting a street light at the corner of 22nd and Sabal Palm Drive. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that we do not have any money in the budget for street lights but we do have a file for future study and he thinks that the Council should face the fact that something should be done about this. It was agreed that this request is to be put in the file with the others. AUDIENCE MISCELLANEOUS: Councilwoman Webber stated that two of the new cars are in. She stated that she would like the opinion of the Council as to whether we have to have both lights on the top of the cars or can we just use one light? Chief Baugh asked if he could get the opinion of the men who are driving the cars. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that this is not going to be too expensive and since Mrs. Webber is the coordinator he thinks that she and the Chief can work this out and her decision should be the guiding factor. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that before we go to further audience miscellaneous - it will pertain to questions, and if there is anything that is going to be controversial he suggests that it be written and sent to the Council for the agenda next week so that the Council will have time to study it and check out the facts. Mrs. Murphy asked for copies of the letters that were read this evening. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that she may have copies of the letters. A man spoke to the Council about his property on Edgewater Drive. He said that he discovered that the zoning apparently has been changed on his property. He said that he sold some of this property with the understanding that it was zoned commercial, then the people discovered that this is not commercial anymore. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that the only way this can be answered is for him to write a letter stating clearly what he wants to know, then they will get an answer for him, and if there is any controversy he will have to apply for a hearing with the proper board. Mr. Fuller stated that he does not feel that he should have to pay for a variance because this was not brought to his attention, and he was in the hospital at the time the change was made. Mr. Edward Thompson spoke to the Council, stating that he owns the property adjacent to the property this man just spoke of, and he prefer that this land remain residential. RESOLUTIONS: RES. NO. 701 A RESOLUTION APPOINTING CERTAIN PERSONS TO THE PLANNING BOARD FOR THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, FLORIDA, REPEALING ALL RESOLUTIONS IN CONFLICT HEREWITH AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE THEREFOR. 4 r o o The City Clerk read this Resolution in full, which appoints Mr. William Grollemund and Mrs. Arthur G. Schilling to the Planning Board. Councilwoman Webber made a motion to adopt this Resolution, being seconded by Councilman Riggs. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 3-0. ORDINANCES: None OLD BUSINESS: Vice Mayor Dietz stated that last week we had an item come up about the Chamber of Commerce. He referred to a letter that was written to Mr. Charles Hall, attorney for New Smyrna Beach, and he stated that he does not see how this pertains to Edgewater, other than the fact that it could be petty, however if someone wants to challenge what the Council has voted for it is their prerogative. Tape 2A Mr. Walter Gross was given the floor. He stated that the letter is the opinion of the Attorney General and it does not apply just to New Smyrna Beach, it applies to any City in the State of Florida. He added that he questioned the fact that the Chamber of Commerce is taking room in the City illegally and he still questions this and to go further he did get the opinion of the Attorney General. He said that to be fair, last week he asked the Council to get the opinion of our attorney. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he is sure that if someone wanted to take this to task they could find where the City of Edgewater is in violation of the opinion of the Attorney General of the State of Florida, however we all have a tendancy once in our lifetime to bend the rules a little bit. He added that he thinks that the Chamber of Commerce is an asset to the City of Edgewater and that they are doing a wonderful job. For the little bit of space that we give them it is cheap for what their duties are, legally it is not right, but why would any citizen want to fight an organization who donates their time and efforts to the City of Edgewater free of charge? Mr. Gross stated that it is against the law, and we should make it right. He made several comments on the meeting he attended. Mr. Hap Cameron was given the floor. He explained some of the Chamber's activities to the Council. He added that the opinion of the Attorney General is very hard to interpret. He said that the Council and the Chamber members could sit down and negotiate a rent if they wish, and then they could nego- tiate a contract price for the work that the Chamber does that otherwise would have to be done in City Hall. Mrs. Murphy spoke to the Council, stating that she did not present any letter to the Council about the Chamber of Commerce. She said that the only criticism she had of the Chamber was the space that they were taking. She also stated that if it is against the law however, the City should be careful. Mr. Opal had a question about the letter that we are talking about. Vice Mayor Dietz explained again that this letter was sent to New Smyrna Beach, and has no effect on Edgewater whatsoever, and until such a letter comes in to the City of Edgewater, we are not effected unless someone wants to bring a suit against the City, which is the prerogative of any citizen. Mr. Gross spoke again that he has nothing against Mr. Cameron personally, he presented himself well, however his interest is in the City of Edgewater and he heard from many people about the room that the Chamber was given over the other people. When this letter was given to him, he felt the only place to present it was to the Council. -5- o o There was more discussion about the other organizations who use the City properties and buildings without paying. Vice Mayor Dietz explained that if we have to charge the Chamber we will have to start charging the Shuffle- board members, the Friends of the Library, the Garden Club and all of the other organizations. Councilman Riggs stated that if one has to pay for it they all have to pay. Vice Mayor Dietz suggested that we table this until our attorney comes in and get his opinion Mr. Cameron was given the floor again, and he stated that he feels that this must be a personal thing, because for many years the City has furnished the Chamber with twice as much space as they are now and it never charged them. Councilman Riggs made a motion to table this until our next meeting, being seconded by Councilwoman Webber. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 3-0. Councilman Riggs stated that we ordered one truck with a dump bed and one without. He explained that this is not going,to stand up. He suggested that we do not remove the bed from the Chevrolet truck, that we go for a new bed if we are going to have a new truck. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he agrees with this, and he has discussed this with Mr. Martine, and he agrees. Councilwoman Webber asked about this, she said that she understood that we did order a bed. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that we discussed at the time that we needed two, but the Mayor said that we didn't,we could use the old one, but since that time Mr. Martine has taken a second look at it, and he agrees that we need a new one. Councilman Riggs explained all of the repairs that have been made to the cab that we have, and he feels that it will save money in the long run if we get a new one. He explained that Perfection beds are going to be $100 cheaper than what we paid for the other one. Councilman Riggs made a motion that we purchase this body from Perfection at the price of $1722.00, being seconded by Councilwoman Webber. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 3-0. Councilwoman Webber stated that since Mr. Riggs has been on the Council he has been very diligent and if he says this is necessary, than she feels that it is. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he agrees that he is doing a good job. Councilman Riggs stated that our City yard looks like a junk yard. He said that we have several pieces of equipment that are deteriorating and he can not see keeping them. He thinks we should put them up for auction and try to get some money to purchase something we can use. He said that he would like to get appraisals to see what we can expect to get. He went on to describe the condition of some of these items, explaining why we should try to auction them off. He stated that he would like permission from the Council to have a dealer come in and get some estimates. Vice Mayor Dietz suggested that he get with the City Clerk and have a list typed up with the appraisals and have a copy for each of the Council members for our next meeting. -6- o u NEW BUSINESS: Vi ce ~layor Di etz stated that the item under New Busi ness is a moti on to pay the expenses of Mr. Gillespie on the lawsuit. The City Clerk explained that there are going to be over $100 worth of subpoenas served. At present the case has been continued because Attorney Matthews is ill. Councilman Riggs made a motion that we pay Mr. Gillespie's expenses, being seconded by Councilwoman Webber. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 3-0. MISCELLANEOUS: The subject came back up about the Intergovernmental Advisory Committee meeting. The City Clerk explained that Mr. Denton has agreed to go as a representative for the City, Mr. McCallister is going from the County. We will have to pay Mr. Denton.s expenses. Councilwoman Webber made a motion that Mr. Denton will represent the City at the VCOG meeting and the City will pay his expenses, being seconded by Councilman Riggs. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 3-0. Vice Mayor Dietz had the City Clerk read an Ordinance of the County Council as the storm water management and conservation Ordinance. Councilman Riggs went over a drawing of a drainage proposal. He explained the procedure that he is following. Vice Mayor Dietz explained that digging ditches is not the proper way to drain the,City, we are going to have to go to curb and cuttering. He also explained that we do not want the County to control us, we want to have complete control of our own City. He said that he has made a copy of this and sent it to the Planning Board for their recommendation to the Council as to the type of Ordinance we want to draw up to meet these standards. In the mean time we have to make arrangements for this drainage. There was discussion about the 208 Plan. Councilwoman Webber stated that she and Mrs. Blackwell attended a meeting in Orlando last week, and she believes that there was something said at the Council meeting the week before that she would go to represent the City. She said that she wanted to know if she is going to get paid for it? The City Clerk explained that on the other meetings that we have been paying extra on there has always been a motion a second and roll call on them. Vice Mayor Dietz stated that he knows that the Council did instruct her to go and he thinks she should be paid. ADJOURNMENT: Councilman Riggs made a motion to adjourn being seconded by Councilwoman Webber Said motion CARRIED. MINUTES TAKEN BY: Sue Bl ackwell Debbie Sigler City Cl erk Approved this day of February 1977. ~~7 Mayor I,j)~c-- /" c24'4___~~ ~ CM ~ r .ffi/ Co n . woman --J r ~ ?r, __ , 01 }./v ATTEST: r ~- clw o ~ - -, o GENERAL FUND: City of Edgewater Gen. Fund Southern Bell Revenue Sharing Advisory Service First National Bank R.L. Polk & Company Florida Power & Light Dennis Warren American Hardware New Smyrna Commercial Printing Diversified Electronics New Smyrna Builders Supply Dave's Carpets Municipal Supplies City Auto Supply Southern Paint & Wallpaper Matty's Transmission Service Scotty's New Smyrna Beach Pratt's Radiator Smyrna Auto Parts Edgewater Motors Atlantic Office Supply . WATER AND WASTEWATER: Florida Power & Light Southern Bell 1 American Hardware City of Edgewater Gen. Fund Daniel W. Cory Electrical Construction Diversified Electronics Allied Chlorine Conrad Yelvington Wickes Corporation New Smyrna Commercial Printing B & H Sales, Inc. E1ectra-Tronics, Inc. Frank Hall Plumbing Co. Troup Gas & Appliance Art Fence Company New Smyrna Builders Supply City Auto Supply (,) BILLS AND ACCOUNTS February 8, 1977 Petty Cash City Hall, Fi re City Clerk Safe deposit rent City Di rectory City Hall, Fire, B1pk.,Shuf1brd,Rec. P.O. Street, P.O., Fire, Landfill P.O. P.O. Street City C1 erk Dog tags P.D.,Street, Garbage City Hall P.O. P.O. P.O. P.O. P.O., Garbage Fire City Counci 1 16.90 316.01 45.00 14.25 81.00 691.02 48.60 39.65 20.80 158.25 5.04 76.00 39.92 135.56 174.67 90.20 40.32 15.00 6.00 133.61 66.16 1 59.27 2,373.23 Water and Wastewater Wastewater Water and Wastewater Equipment Rental Water & Wastewater Water Wastewater Water Water Wastewater Wastewater Water and Wastewater Water Water Water Wastewater Wastewater Wastewater Water 421 .51 51 .71 83.67 1 05 . 00 160.00 450.00 57.20 405.00 34.70 62.22 67.50 47.38 914.00 35.85 15.20 85.00 3.78 6.27 3,005.99