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07-08-1991 - Special -..<1 L CITY COUNCIL OF EDGEWATER SPECIAL MEETING MONDAY, JULY 8, 1991 MINUTES Mayor Wessler called the meeting to order at 7: 00 P. M. in the Community Center for a Resolution amending the Special Assessment Resolution 91-R-9, discussion of Board duties and objectives with the Industrial Development Board and the Merit Board, and for appointing members to the Industrial Development Board and the Merit Board. ROLL CALL: Mayor Tanya Wessler Councilman Kirk Jones Councilperson Louise Martin Councilperson NoraJane Gillespie Councilman Michael Hays Interim City Attorney Nikki Clayton Acting City Manager Fred Munoz City Clerk Susan Wadsworth Police Chief Lawrence Schumaker Present Present Present Present Present Excused Present Excused Present Mayor Wessler stated the first item on, the agenda was the Resolution on the Special Assessment Resolution 91-R-9, fixing the date, time and place of the Final Public Hearing and authorizing publication and mailing of notice of the final assessment. Councilperson Gillespie stated she had asked questions of the bonding people. She stated the City's Charter had always been a conflict with her and she has always had problems with it. She stated under Home Rule 166 it says if the Charter predates it you can change it by Ordinance and if it follows Home Rule, as ours does, then it has to go to referendum. She stated bonding sections of our Charter were removed by Ordinance by the previous Council and she has a great question as to the legality of where the Council stands right now until this is clarified. Mayor Wess ler asked Mr. Gillespie's questions. Livermore to answer Councilperson Mr. Dan Livermore. a lawyer from Livermore, Klein, and Lott the City's Bond Council, stated he needs more facts. He stated he did provide The City with general advice some time ago which was that under Home Rule generally Charters which have been adopted by Ordinance and Referendum vote of the people after the Home Rule Act has been in effect, cannot be amended by Ordinance without another vote contrary to what was adopted in the Referendum vote. He added in looking at the City's Charter he didn't see any 1979 City Charter that was adopted by Ordinance and Referendum. He stated if the City had one it was a whole new set of facts that no one provided him with to review. He stated what was sent to him was a whole series of Charter sections which were changed, he did not see a whole City Charter that was adopted by an election of the people. Mr. Livermore stated if that was done he would have to look at that before he could answer the question. Mayor Wessler stated it sounds to her like Mr. Livermore is saying that a full City Charter was adopted. Mr. Livermore stated no, that was what Councilperson Gillespie was telling him and he had seen no such document so he has no opinion as to what it says because he has never seen it. Councilperson Gillespie stated that was what confused her was the original Charter was done in 1951 that had the boundaries and the name change. She added according to the City's own Code Book we only have Section 1 and it says adopted May 21, 1979 to go into effect July 31, 1979 if approved by the Secretary of State. She stated she wants to know if they are leqal. 1 City Council Special Meeting 7/08/91 ,.#~\ I Mayor Wessler asked Mr. Livermore if they could get a copy of the Charter, so he look at it and the Council move something else up on the agenda. Mr. Livermore stated he could not promise that he would resolve that by looking at what is going to be handed to him. He stated Councilperson Gillespie is saying there is a whole City Charter out there that he hasn't seen and just because it is in a codified book it doesn't necesscarily mean that is the case. He stated the official record of the City will reflect whether there is an Ordinance to adopt that book and whether there was a City wide vote approving that book as an entire revision of the whole City Charter. Mayor Wessler stated it might clarify things if Council did have him go look at the official records. She stated she had asked Interim City Attorney Nikki Clayton and her legal opinion was that it was all right to use Chapter 166. Mr. Livermore stated that was a whole different question, even if they had a vote and even if the City had a whole City Charter adopted in 1979, unless it has in it some sections which absolutely take away general law with respect to Special Assessments it still wouldn't have any effect on the Special Assessments Procedure. Councilperson Gillespie stated it does, it puts us over the bonding limit by removing 102 and 103 which was your recommendation by Ordinance and not by referendum. She added this would factor in on it because that caps us out at 2% of the value. Mr. Livermore asked if those sections were voted on in 1979. Councilperson Gillespie stated they were put into part of the Charter in 1979. Mr. Livermore stated they have always been part of the Charter since they were adopted, the legal question he had is were those sections part of a formal vote in 1979. Councilperson Gillespie stated she did not know. Mr. Livermore stated that he can't answer a question on documents that he was not provided. Councilperson Gillespie stated she only had Section 1 in her Code Book of the Charter, that was why she was going to Mr. Livermore for advice as the City's legal bond advisor since the Interim City At torney is not here. Mr. Livermore stated Councilperson Gillespie's book is not necessarily an official document, the records of the City Council as to what Ordinances were passed and what attachments there are to those Ordinances is really the official record. Councilperson Gillespie stated what she is afraid of is that Council is going to bond on Friday and talking about the loan today, if 102 and 103 should still be in there then they are over the limit. Mr. Livermore stated not necessarily because that limit may be construed to apply only to general obligation bonds. Mayor Wessler stated perhaps they could move this down on the agenda and Mr. Munoz could go with Mr. Livermore to City Hall and dig up whatever documentation they can and come back with it. Mr. Livermore stated he wanted to see the Ordinance Book for 1979. Mr. Munoz stated he didn't know where everything was in the City Clerk's office but they could try. Councilman Hays asked Mr. Livermore if there wasn't correspondence between Mr. Livermore and Mr. Alvarez dated about a year ago addressing just this topic. Mr. Livermore stated yes, he was not sure of the exact date but they discussed the subject of those two old Charter sections. He added it was his advice in the letter that they could be amended and repealed based on the state of the City Charter that was provided to him which did not reflect any City wide vote after 1972 adopting a whole new Charter incorporating those sections in it. Councilman Hays stated Mr. Livermore did write the Ordinance but what did he reference in writing this Ordinance. Mr. Livermore stated copies of Ordinances of the City and Special Acts of the Legislature that were sent to him to review as being those official actions that related to the City Charter of the City of Edgewater. 2 City Counci 1 Special Meeting 7/08/91 r'-"', Mr. Livermore added with respect to the Special Acts of the Legislature he looked those up himself and looked at those in the State published laws with respect to Ordinances since charters can now be amended by Ordinance and Referendum. He stated there is no general statewide source that all lawyers readily have access to like they do general Statutes. He said they always ask the City to provide them with whatever actions have been taken with respect to their Charter by Ordinance after 1972. He stated he has a whole stack of those with which he was provided in his file and there were none which state what this premise is and there were none which affect the ability of the City to repeal those sections. Mr. Livermore stated that probably those two sections really relate to general obligation voted bonds payable from ad valorum taxes. He stated that when you tell him there was a whole new Charter adopted in 1979 then all bets are off because he has never read that Charter. He stated he has no idea what is in it at this point and its true as a matter of law if you had a whole new Charter adopted in 1979 by a vote of the people following an Ordinance adopting it subject to that vote by Council that is the governing document and not what he read. Mr. Livermore stated he has no idea what is in it. Councilperon Gillespie stated she thought the book contained the whole Charter but it does not. She added they are getting ready to put a whole new Charter on the ballot so this is not uncommon. Mr. Livermore stated it was common to have a whole Charter on the ballot. Mayor Wessler asked if any of the Council members had any objections to Mr. Munoz going to City Hall with Mr. Livermore and seeing what they could find. Councilperson Gillespie stated she would appreciate it because it puts Council in a precarious situation for the bonds on Friday. Mr. Livermore stated he assumed Councilperson Gillespie didn't know anything about it until today. Councilperson Gillespie replied she was sorry but she didn't know. Mr. Livermore stated he was not unprepared, he would have looked into it if he had known about it earlier than three minutes before. Mayor Wessler stated the next item on the agenda was the discussion of Board duties and objectives with the Industrial Development Board and the Merit Board. Mayor Wessler stated they would start with the Industrial Development Board. Joe Martin. Chairman, Industrial Development Board, gave a presentation. He played a video tape with subject matter concerning the Economic Development in Volusia County, Mayor Wessler wanted input from the Boards as to what the Boards' duties are and if there are any questions the Boards have for Council. She stated the idea behind this was to help Council better equip them with people. Councilperson Gillespie thanked Mr. Martin for his presentation and his time and effort on the meeting Council had previously with his group. Mr. Martin pointed out there were four other members of the Industrial Development Board present: mr. Hanson, Ms. Swiney, Mr. Gleason, and Mrs. Rymsza. He stated one member was absent. Mayor Wessler asked if Council wanted to go ahead and appoint members to this Board now or wait until further down on the agenda. Councilman Hays asked if Council was going to use the procedure they discussed. Mayor Wessler stated it was Council's pleasure. Councilperson Gillespie stated it means that Mr. Jones would appoint the first one, Mrs. Martin would appoint the second one, and then she would be last. Councilperson Gillespie stated it was fine with her. Councilman Jones stated in the past the Boards used to select three members and send them to Council for their approval. He added they did a background check and looked for people who would best serve that particular Board. He stated he does not understand why the way of selection has changed, he had no problem with the old way. 3 City Counci 1 Special Meet ing 7/08/91 Mayor Wessler stated she had spoken with Mr. Martin about people that have applied for the Board and his opinion. Mr. Jones stated he had not had the chance to talk to Mr, Martin. Mayor Wessler asked if they could go through and appoint, take a voice vote on all of it, and then make a motion on the Resolution, There was no objection. Councilman Jones recommended Joe Martin. Councilperson Martin recommend Guy Hanson, Councilperson Gillespie recommended Phillip Fong. Councilman Hays recommended Agnes Rymsza. Mayor Wessler read the Resolution RESOLUTION 91-R-35, A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, FLORIDA, APPOINTING FOUR MEMBERS TO THE INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT BOARD OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, FLORIDA; PROVIDING FOR TERMS OF OFFICE, PROVIDING FOR RIGHTS, PRIVILEGES AND RESPONSIBILITIES; REPEALING ALL RESOLUTIONS IN CONFLICT HEREWITH AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER THAT JOE MARTIN, GUY HANSON, PHILLIP FONG, AND AGNES RYMSZA ARE HEREBY APPOINTED TO THE INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT BOARD OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, THAT THE TERMS OF OFFICE SHALL BE FOR THREE YEARS TO END JULY 1, 1994. Councilperson Gillespie moved to accept Resolution 91-R-35. Councilman Jones seconded. Motion CARRIED 5-0, Mayor Wessler asked Mr. Livermore if he was ready to give his opinion, Mr. Livermore stated in looking at what Councilperson Gillespie was looking at he understands her question. He stated the title page read: Code of Ordinances of the City of Edgewater, the Charter and General Ordinance of the City adopted May 21, 1979. He added that Ordinance is reproduced on page Roman Numeral IX that Ordinance says: An Ordinance adopting and enacting a new Code of Ordinances for the City providing for repeal of other Ordinances and providing for an effective date, and what that does is adopt a Code of Ordinances. He added while you look at the title page alone you think that both the Charter and the Ordinance were adopted in 1979. He stated the present Charter was adopted by Chapter 27532 Special Acts of 1951 and there have been portions of the Charter that have been amended since then, and there is a Charter update of supplements which reflect the legislative history of the whole City Charter. He stated this does not reflect any new City Charter adopted in 1979; the Charter of 1951 is still the City Charter. Councilperson Gillespie asked if Council was on firm ground. Mr. Livermore stated yes he thinks Council is. Councilperson Gillespie stated that was what Council needed to know. Mr. Livermore stated what was in the Charter itself was what was amended out was Sections 102 and 103. He added in the Editor's note on page 38 recites that those two sections were repealed by the 1990 Ordinance that he drafted for the City. He said it stated such repealed sections derived from the present Charter adopted by Chapter 27532 Special Acts of 1951. Mr. Livermore stated he and Mr. Munoz read all of the Ordinances of the City for 1979 by quick title in the City Clerk' s office and found none which adopted a Charter or submitted any to vote of the people. Mr. Livermore stated the answer is there was no Charter in 1979 and the law is still as he thought it was. Councilperson Gillespie stated she was sorry but when she read it the way it was, she really needed the clarification. Mr. Livermore stated they put it in one book and the date is really misleading. Councilperson Gillespie stated now Council won' t have to worry about it coming up along the way. Mr. Livermore stated neither would he, 4 City Counci 1 Special Meeting 7/08/91 -, ......,.l. Mayor Wessler read the Resolution A RESOLUTION AMENDING THE RESOLUTION 91-R-9 RELATING TO SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS WITHIN THE FLORIDA SHORES IMPROVEMENT AREA SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS DISTRICT BY AMENDING APPENDIX B THERETO RELATING TO THE METHOD OF PROPORTIONMENT OF ASSESSMENTS TO PROVIDE FOR EQUIVALENT LOTS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR A SINGLE INITIAL APPORTIONMENT TO IRREGULAR PARCELS PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. Councilman Jones moved to adopt 91-R- 9. Councilperson Martin seconded. Councilperson Gillespie stated she would like to discuss Section B-6, she needed clarification. She asked that Mr. Ferland go over it with her. Councilperson Gillespie stated the way it reads it would mean that if people did not prepay their assessment prior to Council's signing of the SRF loans they would start paying interest on it. She stated it was her understanding they could pay cash up until the day they were required to connect. Mr. Ron Ferland. Dyer, Riddle, Mills and Precourt, stated anybody can pay their assessment at any time prior to the time they are going to connect and they are also able to pay during the course of the assessment period such as for a transfer of title where the title insurance company may want to clear the lien or the assessment they can pay the outstanding balance that is currently on the assessment. Mr. Ferland state Section B-6 is saying that after all the costs of .the project have been defrayed if they are under budget or project costs are below the amount you anticipated needing the annual payments will be lowered. Councilperson Gillespie stated what she wanted to be sure was that they will not be penalizing anyone the day they sign the SFR loans, the way this reads is five days after that they have to pay up front or they couldn't get it without the interest. She stated that is not what Mr. Ferland intended but that is what it reads like and she wanted to make sure that people can pay cash up front with not interest up until the day they connect. Mr. Stan Livengood. stated essentially what they have here is a problem in that interest commences when the loan is draw down, and it does not start when someone decides to prepay. He stated the concept here is yes, a cash prepayment can be made at any time of the principal amount unpaid of the Special Assessment but the concept is also that the accrued interest at the 5 1/2% rate up to the day the cash payment is made must also be made with the cash payment. Councilperson Gillespie stated this was not what Council intended for the public. Councilperson Gillespie asked if it was interest free or not for the taxpayer up until the day they connect. Mr. Livengood stated the total assessment included an allowance for interest during construction. Counoilperson Gillespie stated which we are going to charge off to the public to start with. Mr. Livengood stated that is inoluded in the total borrowing cost of the State Revolving Fund. Councilperson Gillespie stated it is being oharged off to the public to start with is that not right. She stated if the assessment is $1,425 if she pays if five days after the loan is signed she knows she is going to pay it interest free because that is what the wording says right now. Mr. Livengood stated that $1,425 includes an allowance for capitilized interest. Councilperson Gillespie stated technically it has already been figured into the assessment to start with Mr. Livengood stated yes. Councilperson Gillespie asked if she waited until next year to pay is she going to pay $1,425 or $1,245 plus 5.5% interest. Mr. Livengood stated prior to the completion of the projeot and the finalization you would pay only $1,425 which would be subjeot to the final assessment which cannot be greater than $1,425 it could be less than $1,425. Counoilperson Gillespie stated that goes back to everyone. She added she has a problem with that wording also. She asked if it comes in under what is on the assessment rolls that are being mailed out, it looks like we don't give it back to the people we use it for another worth while project for the same people who are going to benefit. Mr. Livengood stated only if the amount to be refunded is less than the cost to refund it. Counoilperson Gillespie asked who decides. Mr. Livengood stated that would be a policy decision of the Council. 5 City Counci 1 Special Meeting 7/08/91 f""I......l "~;< Mr, Livermore stated the language already does what you both want it to do, He added the example talks about interest charged for deferred payment of the Special Assessment and the Assessment is not going to be due until after the completion of Phase I and Phase II sections so there wouldn't be any interest on the Special Assessments until after the date that it is due, Councilperson Gillespie stated she wanted to make it very clear in the records and on the tapes because when it comes to the Federal Code she doesn't plan to be worried about it 5 years down the road. Councilperson Gillespie stated to Mr. Ferland she felt effluent return should be removed from this and that it should be City wide. She stated she has a copy of the settlement of the lawsuit wi th her and it says the Ci ty, it does not say Florida Shores. She stated she knows they keep telling her that's the prorated charge of what the effluent is going to cost us but there are many sewer homes in Florida Shores. Mr. Ferland stated there are approximately 114 parcels, Councilperson Gillespie asked how those people are going to pay for their effluent return. Mr. Ferland stated in their user fees. Councilperson Gillespie stated she is going to pay for it in her monthly charge, why should she be assessed specially for it. She asked why any resident of Florida Shores should be treated any differently than any other citizen of Edgewater. She added they are not a subdivision they are a part of the City and she doesn't feel the effluent should be charged to them on a Special Assessment. Councilperson Gillespie stated if it is a user fee it should be City wide. Mr. Ferland stated that was an issue that should be handled in the workshop meetings prior to the August 6th hearing. He added that some of what Councilperson Gillespie was saying has a valid premise but when you see the full picture maybe there can be some middle ground. He stated the reclaimed water system that is in Florida Shores was planned long before the administrative hearing and long before the legislation regarding the Indian River and it was planned as an environmental benefit to the City to try and get out of the Indian River of their own volition. He stated it was planned to be put into Florida Shores to take advantage of cost savings and economy of scale associated with already digging the roads and putting in 1 more pipe. He stated the reclaimed water system is an effluent disposal system and as such the cost associated with effluent disposal has been prorated between user fees and assessments on the same basis as the Wastewater plant costs have been apportioned and it is approximately 50/50. Mr. Ferland stated you will be paying user fees as a resident of Florida Shores as well as paying the assessment is a concern of equality but to address that in the past what they have done is show that the assessment of the Wastewater Treatment Plant being at $504 is much less than the impact fee of $1,425 to address that inequity and to try and put some of the benefit of the lower cost to the assessment area. He added he agrees that the issue does need to be discussed fully in the workshop meetings and he hopes that these meetings can be scheduled prior to the August 6th Board of Equalization hearing or the Final Assessment hearing under the City's Home Rule Ordinance associated with Special Assessments. Councilperson Gillespie stated Mr. Ferland had been most kind to discuss this with her at great length but she still feels voting on this tonight the way it reads with the effluent return assessed to the homeowners of Florida Shores is incorrect, unfair and completely out of bounds for the settlement. She added she had spoken to Mr, Berryhill about this and he felt normally effluent return is part of your sewer, part of your wastewater system but it is a user commodity the same as water or sewage service, therefore she doesn't feel Council can vote on this without amending it to remove effluent return and working out something that is equitable to the residents of Florida Shores. 6 City Council Special Meeting 7/08/91 .-" Mayor Wessler asked if anyone had more questions for Mr. Ferland as there was a motion on the floor. Councilman Hays stated during the workshops they they will have over the next month, these are some of the issues Council will be addressing. He stated he has some concerns over the effluent return being assessed. He added this Resolution is Council's intent to proceed with the project, and the issues will be resolved in the hearings and there is nothing that cannot be amended or changed. Mayor Wessler stated she believed Mr. Livermore agreed with Councilman Hays that nothing in there cannot be amended. Councilperson Gillespie stated they could change anything. Mayor Wessler stated there was a motion on the floor and roll call was taken. Motion CARRIED 4-1 Councilperson Gillespie voted NO. Mayor Wessler stated the next thing Council needed to do was set up workshops and there will be public participation in the workshops. A member of the public asked if there could be public participation in this meeting. Mayor Wessler stated that was entirely up to Council. Councilperson Gillespie stated yes, any time the Public's money is effected under F.S.170 they are allowed to speak. Mayor Wess ler stated the gent leman was referring to this evening. Councilperson Gillespie stated Council had just effected his money. Mayor Wessler stated she did not believe Mr. Vasquez was a property owner in Edgewater, but he was welcome to speak if Council said he could. Mr. Ben Vasquez. stated he represents Bessie Trombetta, 2807 Needle Palm Drive she is his mother in law. He stated this municpality does not have the legal authority to create a Special District and assess those people under the guise of local improvements as specifically benefitting property under the guise of Home Rule. He added municipalities have no right or powers to levy Special Assessments and before Special Assessments can become valid they must be made pursuant to the method proscribed by the State Legislators. He cited State Statute Chapter 170. Section 170.04 only permits the City to estimate the cost of a proposed improvement before an adoption of the assessment resolution. He stated this is the only time an estimate is permitted and upon completion of the improvements the City then shall credit to each of the assessment the difference in the assessments as originally made and the proportionate part of the actual cost of improvement paid by special assessments. He stated in no event shall the final assessment exceed the amount of benefitted originally assessed. Mr. Vasquez stated Section 170.07 states in part upon completion of said assessment roll it does not state upon the estimate of assessments. He stated a time and place shall be fixed for persons to be heard as to the priority, advisability and cost thereof and as to the manner of paYment thereof and the amount to be assessed. He stated the State' s purpose in this section is intended that citizens will have the knowledge they need to ensure that their assessments are dealt with by the municipality on the basis of justice and right. He asked how can this be determined by the property owner with an estimated bill. Mr. Vasquez stated once this assessment is approved by a City at a hearing the people assessed will stand confirmed and remain binding first liens upon their property. He cited SS 170.06 saying it clearly requires the assessment roll to be completed showing lots/lands to be assessed, the amount of benefits and the assessments against each prior to any hearing or equalization hearing held by this City, therefore this estimated assessment is clearly against the intent and purpose of State Statutes and another attempt to mislead the public. He added this Council was grossly premature in submitting of bids and opening bids or the awarding of contracts pertaining to this Capital Improvement Program with no actual monies, grants or bonds in hand and no authority as yet to lawfully expand any proceeds for this contemplated purpose. Mayor Wessler asked if there were any other citizen's comments, being none she would like to set up the workshops. 7 City Council Special Meeting 7/08/91 ~ ,,,....,.,,1 Councilperson Gillespie asked if she could ask a question since Council had all their specialists there. She stated she had been looking at the EPA approved plan for the Wastewater Facility for over a year, why haven't we gone to bid for the facility. Mr. Ferland stated you haven't executed a loan agreement, you haven't been able to execute a loan agreement because the Special Assessments have to be perfected before they will accept a loan agreement. Councilperson Gillespie stated they can always reject all bids. Mr. Ferland stated you can't award. Councilperson Gillespie stated the original plan was to bond both facilities and she wondered why they have every bid on the water plant but they have never gone to bond on the sewer plant. Mr. Ferland stated they have not gone to bid because they are still in the process of DER technical review, and water plant and the water program bids were received approximately one month prior to if you close on your bonds on July 30th they open the bids on July 3rd. He stated they are well within the time frame for awarding the contract, and within the time frame that your are going to issue the bonds. Councilperson Gillespie asked if there is a legal time frame that is bound into this. Mr. Ferland stated the bids are open for 90 days in the bid quorum. Councilperson Gillespie stated that was the question she needed answered. Mr. Ferland stated in the Wastewater Plant before you go to bid you want to make sure DER gives you the authorization to incur funds. He stated they can't get a loan agreement signed until the Special Assessments are perfected and the State is very touchy about the whole thing. Mr. Ferland stated what they are intending to do is to put the program out for bid, the Wastewater Plant and the Collection System, by late August or early September so they will be in a position to award the contracts in October. He stated that would be in advance of the SRF obligations from the state just like you are saying you will have the bids in and know how much it is going to cost and we probably won't have the final executed loan agreement before then but at least we'll be in a position that once we do we are ready to start movement right away in October. Mr. Ferland stated that is the current schedule at this point. Councilperson Gillespie asked if there is something in the law that actually gives a binding period. Mr. Ferland stated when you go out for bid part of the contract the bidder is signing in the bid documents has a period of time of when that bid is good for. He added that for EPA bonds it is kept open for 120 days in case there is any bid protest. He stated the amount of time put in is strictly up to the owner depending on how long you want to keep those prices good. He stated in the case of the Water Program they are kept open for 90 days the intent being we know what the project costs are and we know what the bond size has to be based upon those project costs. Mr. Ferland stated if Council issues the bonds on July 30th he intends to come to them with recommendation of award of contract at the first August meeting after the issuance of the bonds, at that point they will be able to dig dirt and proceed with the projects. Councilperson Gillespie asked Mr. Ferland why are we borrowing $15,000,000 when we only need $13,000,000. She asked if Mr. Ferland can reduce the bond issue to $13,000,000 and save the public $2,000,000 plus interest for 30 years. Mr. Ferland stated there are some other costs that are outside the water system in that bond size one being is the Engineering costs associated with the Florida Shores distribution system this is part of the bond size but it is not part of the project costs. Councilperson Gillespie stated she would like those costs in writing from Mr. Livengood. Mr. Livengood stated he had some updates for Council concerning the water and sewer revenue bond issue. Mayor Wessler stated Council is going to set Workshop Meetings and then they were going to discuss that subject. She stated she was going on vacation from the 16th to the 22nd and being it is not a Special Meeting she would like Council to arrange those meetings around those dates. Mr. Ferland stated the notice should be published in the local newspaper on July 11 and 18 and they are stuffing the notices in the envelopes now. He stated they would be mailed the 10th and the 11th. 8 City Council Special Meeting 7/08/91 . . Counoilperson Gillespie stated even it Mayor Wessler is on vaoation she wouldn' t have to sit through the workshops. Mayor Wessler stated she wi~hes to. Counoilperson Gillespie stated she had no problems working around the Mayor's vacation. Mayor Wessler stated she had disoussed with Mr. Ferland the dates of 15th, 29th, and the day before the equalization hearing the 5th unless you wanted to move one of those to a Saturday. Councilperson Gillespie stated she did not think that was fair to the public. Mayor Wessler asked what she thought was fair. Councilperson Gillespie the night before the equalization was asking a lot. Mayor Wessler stated they could have it on the Saturday before on August 3rd. Councilperson Gillespie stated that would be more fair as it would give different people a chanoe to come. Workshop meetings were scheduled to be: July 15 at 7:30 P.M. , July 29th at 6:00 p.m. and August 3 at 2:00 p.m. Councilperson Gillespie stated Councilman Jones and she had coauthored a motion a while back that Council was going to publish this in every paper plus the letter. She stated she reminded Mr. Munoz that she did not wish to be reminded about this six months down the road by the taxpayers that they did not publish it. Mr. Ferland stated the size of the ad would be at least half a page and possible a full page. Councilperson Gillespie stated it was required to be a quarter of a page by law. Mr. Ferland requested that Councilmembers and citizens through the City Manager let him know other issues that were thought to be relevant to be handled in the workshops. He stated this would help him, he would like to focus in on the important issues and resolve them as quickly as possible. Councilperson Gillespie stated in the text of the old minutes in Exhibit A Mr. Ferland has Guava as being sewered, partially Guava is unsewered. She stated it needed to be corrected. Mr. Livengood stated that we are on schedule with the revenue bond issue. He added they will issue only the amount of bonds necessary to carry out and accomplish it. He stated the Board has authorized no more than $15,000,000 the principal amount of bonds. He stated to bear in mind that some of the costs if the issue are dependent upon the final interest rates which have not been established. He stated they expect that the final issue size would be less than $14,000,000. Mr. Livengood stated they had their first real finance group meeting April 29th at which time they established a schedule which called for closing on or about July 30th and we are on schedule for that. He added either tonight or more likely tomorrow night the preliminary official statement for the bond issue will be mailed to investors and it is possible that with the favorable market right now and he is confident that the final annual debt service will be well within the levels that are anticipated in the rates that were adopted and the Engineers projections of annual debt service and required revenues. Mr. Livengood stated he expected no negative surprises along those lines. Mr. Livengood stated that it may be possible the underwriters may be able to price and get the bonds sold this week in which event there would need to be a Special Council Meeting sometime mid-day this coming Friday for the purpose of approving a bond purchase agreement and approving the final bond resolution with some minor modifications to reflect the bond insurmountably requirements. He stated he had neglected to mention the City did receive two bond insurance commitments one from NBIA and the second from FGIC. He stated the NBIA premium quote was 42 1/2 basis points which was excellent in his judgement, and the FGIC bid was 55 basis points and that is one of the things in the bond resolution that would be one of the formal actions which the Council would be taking. He stated they would be formally approving and accepting the NBIA bond insurance commitment. 9 City Counci 1 Special Meeting 7/08/91 "'-1 I' -,....".1 ".,~~ Mr. Livengood stated as a fall back a second Special Meeting should be set for next Thursday if they can't get into the market next week and get a bond purchase agreement before Council this Friday. He stated the Thursday meeting could be an evening meeting the purpose being that on Friday they must meet midday because the underwriters must have the opportunity to tell the purchaser who is going to get the bonds and it is burdensome for an underwriter to carry unallocated bonds over the weekend. '" Mayor Wessler stated Council needed a meeting for Friday, July 12th at 2:00 P.M. Councilman Hays stated this caught him at short notice. Mr. Livengood stated there is only a one in four chance that this meeting will actually take place. He stated it is really pushing it to try to be prepared for Friday. He stated realistically they would be looking at Thursday the 18th. Mayor Wessler stated that Mr. Livengood wanted them to call a meeting for Friday, July 12th and if he could get them the information he would, if he couldn't they would call a Special Meeting for the 18th. Mr. Livengood asked if they had to have four Councilmembers present. Councilperson Gillespie stated 2/3 needed to be present. Mayor Wessler asked if anyone had any questions for Mr. Ferland, Mr. Livermore, or Mr. Livengood, there were none. Mayor Wessler stated the next item on the agenda was the objective and duties for the Merit Board. Councilperson Gillespie stated she complemented the Merit Board on how much she enjoyed her meeting with them and she hoped that those who had not been able to attend one of their meetings would see fit to do so as soon as possible. Shirley Roberts. 423 N. Riverside Drive, stated she has been a member of the Merit Board for 3 months and she has lots of questions. She stated apparently the Merit Board was originated before the City Manager form of government and that has raised some questions with the Merit Board. She stated the Board really needs their help and since Cece Stevens had been on the Board longer she would let her speak. Councilperson Gillespie stated the Board has been waiting for the City to get an in house attorney to resolve some of the questions. Cece Stevens. member of the Merit Board, stated she feels things have been going along fairly well and there are problems, but nothing she can't forsee being resolved. She stated she feels the Merit Board is a good Board for the City and she has enjoyed working on the Board. Mayor Wessler asked if anyone had any questions for Ms. Roberts or Ms. Stevens. Councilperson Gillespie stated as soon as we have secured an in house attorney and if it is Ms. Storey, could she make one of her unofficial visits to the Merit Board. Mayor Wessler stated since she would not be in the City's employ at this time she did not know if Ms. Storey could render any legal opinions. Councilperson Gillespie stated it would be just to get acquainted. Mayor Wessler stated as far as the questions that Ms. Roberts had that they might best wait until the City Attorney comes so that she could answer them and as Council does not even have an Interim Attorney here tonight it would be unwise of them to answer questions. Ms. Roberts stated one of the questions was one from the meeting that Mr. Munoz attended. She stated at one time the Merit Board made a decision and it was not agreed on by the City Manager at that time. She asked if that does happen should the Merit Board meet with Council and let them make the decision. Mayor Wessler stated she would imagine if it came to loggerheads it would come to Council. 10 City Council Special Meeting 7/08/91 '."Oil'~" "-,.j, Councilman Hays stated it would depend on what the issue addressed. He stated it mayor may not be an issue that would come under Council's umbrella. He added if it was an item that was specific to management of employees that would come under the City Manager form of government and sometimes that is a fine line. Mayor Wessler stated if it was job reclassification they were talking about it would fall under Council. Ms. Roberts stated they should take it case by case. Mayor Wessler agreed. Councilman Jones stated whenever the Merit Board has a problem per se and the City Manager doesn't agree, there is always the avenue of going to the Council because you serve the Council and the people. He stated it would be a case by case basis and the Merit Board serves the employees and once the City Attorney comes and clarifies the Board's duties they would not be on shaky ground. Councilman Hays stated he wanted to know if they have a problem with attendance of a member of the Board those things need to also be brought to Council's attention. He stated Council tries to keep up with these things through the minutes but it is hard to keep track of everybody. Councilperson Gillespie stated there are Ordinances pending one of which concerns absenteeism that allows the City Manager to remove anyone from a Board after they have reached a percentage of absenteeism to take the load off of the Board members who do attend. She stated it bothers her when a member calls the Chairman of a Board and asking to be excused. She feels the Board should vote whether the member should be excused for that evening if they have a reasonable excuse. Councilman Jones stated he recommends any time that DBCC offers a course in City Government Council should try to encourage Board members to attend. At this time three members of the Merit Board were selected. Mayor Wessler selected Shirley Roberts. Councilman Jones selected Cece Stevens. Councilperson Martin selected Erma Cook. Mayor Wessler read Resolution 91-R-37. RESOLUTION NO. 91-R-37 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, FLORIDA APPOINTING THREE MEMBERS TO THE MERIT BOARD OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, PROVIDING FOR TERMS OF OFFICE; PROVIDING FOR RIGHTS, PRIVILEGES AND RESPONSIBILITIES; REPEALING ALL RESOLUTIONS IN CONFLICT HEREWIth AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER THAT SHIRLEY ROBERTS, CECE STEVENS, AND ERMA M. COOK ARE HEREBY APPOINTED TO THE MERIT BOARD OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER. THEIR TERMS OF OFFICE SHALL BE THREE YEARS TO END ON JULY 1, 1994. Councilperson Gillespie moved Councilperson Martin seconded. to accept Resolution Motion CARRIED 5-0. 91-R-37. Mayor Wessler stated the only other item was Ms. Storey's background check is in and if Council has no objection for Mr. Munoz to go ahead and notify her of that. There was none. Mayor Wessler stated Mr. Munoz could go ahead and notify Ms. Storey tomorrow. Mr. Munoz stated Ms. Storey could give notice to her employer. Mayor Wessler stated that was correct. Mr. Munoz stated he had some information in reference to the ad valorum. He said the present millage was at a rate of 4.6 and the roll back rate is 4.43215 and if we initially tell them 4.6 we can roll it back to the roll back rate at the first or second meeting. Councilperson Gillespie asked if this meets the Trim Law requirements. Mr. Munoz stated this was correct and 4.6 would be a tax increase. Councilperson Gillespie asked if Mr. Munoz would give the public and Council a short explanation of the Trim Law at the next meeting. 11 City Counci 1 Special Meeting 7/08/91 ""..._.1"'1' ......,..., Mr. Munoz stated he needed to not1ry the County or the1r meeting date and those cannot be confirmed until he finds out when the County and the School Board are having their meetings so there will not be a conflict. Mr. Munoz stated he would notify them that our tentative millage rate would be the same at it is, 4.6 and then if you want to roll it back to the roll back rate at the first meeting Council can do it then. Councilman Jones asked how long we have been pursuing the Special Assessment interest on the tax rolls. Mr. Munoz stated it had been going on for some time and he had sent it to the property appraiser and he brought him a personal copy too. Councilman Jones suggested we call them on the non ad valorum assessment and they will charge to do it for us. Councilperson Gillespie stated they gave her the figure of 1-4% on the phone. Councilman Hays stated at that point they'll decide whether they are going to use them. Mayor Wessler stated that would be a point in the workshops too that they would address. ADJOURN Councilperson Martin moved to adjourn. Councilperson Gillespie seconded. Meeting adjourned at 8:28 P.M. Minutes submitted by: Lisa R. Warren ~ ONE~ COUNCILPERSON - ZONE~ ~Kr CILPERSON - ZONE HREE ??t?1,}T~ COUNCILMAN - ZONE FO)' ATTEST: -c4;""c{EJ ~ Ap2roved this ~ day of ~~........ ,199..1.- ~~()~~ MAYOR- 12 City Council Special Meeting 7/08/91