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08-22-1977 - Regular Q u CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER REGULAR MEETING HELD August 22, 1977 Mayor Armstrong called the regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Edgewater, Florida to order Monday, August 22, 1977 at 7:30 P.M. ROLL CALL: Mayor Dana T. Armstrong Councilwoman Ryta F. Webber Councilman Carl Shell Councilman Walter B. Sikes Councilman Calvin R. Dietz City Attorney Judson Woods City Clerk Sue Blackwell Police Chief Earl Baugh Present Excused Present Present Present Present Present Present INVOCATION SALUTE TO FLAG APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Councilman Sikes made a motion to adopt the minutes of the meeting held August 8, 1977, being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. BILLS AND ACCOUNTS: Mayor Armstrong read the total of the bills in the General Fund account. Councilman Dietz made a motion to pay these bills, being seconded by Council- man Shell. Councilman Sikes asked about the bill from Lonnie Harvey in regard to the property destruction. The City Clerk stated that this happened so long ago she does not remember exactly what happened. There was some type of wire across the street and our Street men cut it. It has been discussed before, because this happened several months ago. Councilman Dietz stated that this wire was stretched across the street and our lawnmower came along and cut it. We are not responsible for this, it was on City property, not private property. Mayor Armstrong stated that this is the first time that he has heard about this. There was discussion about the Scotty1s bill, and it was decided that this should be charged to the Capital Improvement fund. Upon roll call vote on the motion to pay the bills, said motion CARRIED, 4-0. Mayor Armstrong stated that he would like a motion from the Council to with- hold the bill from Mr. Harvey. o u Councilman Dietz made a motion that the Council pullout the Lonnie Harvey bill and hold it for further investigation, being seconded by Councilman Sikes. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. Mayor Armstrong read the total of the bills in the Water and Wastewater account. Councilman Dietz made a motion that we pay these bills, being seconded by Councilman Sikes. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. COMMUNICATIONS: The City Clerk read a letter from May, Zima in regard to the F.H.A. audit contract requirement. There is an agreement attached for the City to sign. Councilman Sikes made a motion that we authorize the Mayor to enter into the agreement with May, Zima & Company, and the City Clerk, as requested by F.H.A. being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. The City Clerk read a letter from the Department of Finance in regard to the certified millage and taxable value, asking that the City notify them of the figures needed to properly assess and collect taxes for the City of Edgewater. Mayor Armstrong stated that what they want is a Resolution adopting the millage before September 15th. Councilman Dietz stated that we have to wait until we get our budget done. There was discussion at this time about when the Council is going to hold the Public Hearing on the budget. Mayor Armstrong suggested that we have this the same night as the other Public Hearing that we set for September 12th. Councilman Sikes asked if we do not exceed the County's millage; he stated that he is asking the Mayor if we would be adopting the millage as set by the County or if we would be adopting the millage that the City has set for its taxes? Are we going back to the millage as set by the County, which is a higher rate that what the City is charging? Mayor Armstrong stated that this is a lower rate. Councilman Sikes asked if we can go up to the County's millage that they have certified without advertising or are we locked in at the millage that we have? Mayor Armstrong stated that we are locked in. Councilman Dietz stated that our millage is 5.80, and we can not go over 10% of that this year. Mayor Armstrong stated that we can vote ourselves a special millage, but in order to exceed that which is certified to you, then you have to have a Public Hearing and so forth. Councilman Dietz stated that we have to make a decision, it is going to be an awful close budget. Councilman Sikes made a motion that we table the letter from the Finance Office dated August 19th pertaining to the certification of millage until September 12th. and the attorney should have the Resolution prepared at that time, being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. -2- o o AUDIENCE MISCELLANEOUS: Mr. Opal asked what the cost to use the gas heaters is that the City has. He added that he heard a comment that they disappeared and no one knows where they are. Mayor Armstrong stated that the City has an inventory and every piece of equipment owned by the City has a number on it and has been kept track of. Mr. Opal stated that the other thing he has, is he would like to know who has authority to go into City Hall and get a key? Mayor Armstrong stated that the internal affairs of .the City is the respon- sibility of the City Council, however it is kind of nill to hold somebody responsible for something that they don't have any jurisdiction over. Mr. Opal asked how do individuals get keys to go in there by themselves? Councilman Dietz asked who he is speaking of? Mr. Opal stated Mr. Christy. Mr. Christy explained to Mr. Opal why he was in the City Hall with a key the specific time that he is referring to. He explained that he was sent to City Hall by the Council to run off some copies for them. Mayor Armstrong stated that if the Council feels they can send a trustworthy person to the City Hall to make copies for them there is nothing wrong with it. There was more discussion about this. Councilman Sikes stated that he has asked Mrs. Blackwell about the front door of City Hall being open at night, and if one of the boards are meeting in City Hall, they have to leave the door open. He said that he has asked about the use of the copy machine, and he suggested that in all departments we should eliminate the use of the machine as much as we can, and also look into getting the use of a cheaper machine. There was more discussion about this. Mayor Armstrong called order to the meeting, and stated that we should move on. RESOLUTIONS: None At this time Mr. Fredericks asked if he could speak under Audience Miscellaneous. He spoke about the hole on Hardin Place again, and the garbage that has been piled up on Hardin Place which has not been picked up. Councilman Sikes made a motion that we advise the City Clerk to write to Mr. Hall and tell him that this is becoming a public nuisance and... Councilman Dietz stated that it would probably be better if the Chief went down there and told him about this. Councilman Sikes continued with his motion, that the proper garbage cans be placed there and that the fence be erected, being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. -3- o Q ORDINANCES: ORD. NO. 98~ AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 880 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, FLORIDA TO ADD AN ADDITIONAL CLASSIFICATION TO THE PERMITTED USES IN THE B-3 HIGHWAY SERVICE BUSINESS DISTRICT ZONE IN THE CITY OF EDGEWATER, FLORIDA, REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT HEREWITH AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. ) Attorney Woods read the first reading of this Ordinance in full. Councilman Sikes made a motion to adopt the Ordinance, being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. OLD BUSINESS: Mayor Armstrong announced that if everything is in order we will have a final closing with the Fm.H.A. loan on August 24th at 9:30 A.M. Councilman Dietz asked if we are going to discuss the application for the new loan? Mayor Armstrong stated no. Councilman Dietz asked the City Clerk what the letter said? The City Clerk stated that she did not get a letter on it, Mr. Eldridge and Mr. McGough stated that it could be discussed then and if you wanted to pro- ceed with it, they could complete most of the paperwork then. Councilman Dietz suggested to the Council that we recess tonight until that time so we can meet at that time and complete that. Mayor Armstrong asked the attorney about the Brown property report. Attorney Woods stated that there were two questions raised, one as to the interest rate that the City can pay. He researched this out and could find nothing that would put a cap on what we can pay, of course the City does not want to pay an exorbidant rate. The other question was as to whether we can buy the property and use it as rental property. In doing this the City would be getting into a proprietary private function, which is not illegal. Many Cities have housing authorities. You will have your liability question, you would have to make sure that the premises is properly insured. This is the only problem he sees with this. Whether the City purchases this property is a Council decision. Tape 2A Councilman Dietz stated that we have gone through about six budget workshops and we don't even have the down payment. The only way he knows that we could do this is to borrow 100% of the money and pay it off. It would be a long- term investment for the City of Edgewater. Mayor Armstrong suggested that we table this for a week and think about it. He stated that he hates to lose this, because we will pay more in the future. There was more discussion about borrowing the money in order to do this. Councilman Shell made a motion that we table this for a week, being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. The next item is discussion about the road at Lift Station #4. Councilman Sikes was given the floor. He explained that at one of our previous meetings the Council decided to hold back on the condemnation proceedings with the idea of trying to work out this situation. He said that he called Mr. Sechler who owns the portion of land called Parcel #4 and asked him since his land is landlocked if he would be willing to Quit Claim that part to the City. -4- o Q Councilman Sikes stated that Mr. Sechler has said that he would be willing to do this, and Mayor Armstrong has stated that he will Quit Claim all of Lot 17 and the west half of 16. He showed on the map where this land is exactly, and where the road is going to be. He said before he goes any farther and talks to Mr. Sechler, he needs the Council to advise him if that is what they want him to do. The Council looked over the map and discussed the properties, the canal and the existing easements. Councilman Dietz asked Mayor Armstrong if he would have any objections to taking Lot 24, and bringing it up to where it comes out even with Parcel #4? Mayor Armstrong stated that he would object to that because he would be losing a building lot entirely, and he would have to cut down that tree, because the tree is the boundary. Councilman Sikes asked the attorney what position we will be putting ourselves in, as far as this not being a satisfactory road situation. Attorney Woods stated that you are getting into a matter of necessity, we have negotiated with the mayor and Mr. Sechler. He asked how far the road would deviate? Councilman Sikes stated that if we go the two lanes west of the station it will only be about 18 feet. We could restrict the traffic there to a point. He added that if we go into a condemnation proceeding against the Mayor, which would be Parcel #2, and we would only need part of that land on Lot 16. This would only give us access to the Lift Station; we wouldn't even have a through road there. Based on what the Mayor has stated that he will Quit Claim to the City, which will give us a substandard road - which will be the most expensive to the City. Attorney Woods stated that the condemnation suit is going to be more expensive. Councilman Sikes asked the Mayor what we would have to do on Mr. Sechler's property when we put a road through there as far as drainage is concerned? Mayor Armstrong stated that you will have to put a pipe running north and south. Councilman Sikes asked Mayor Armstrong if this meets his approval? Mayor Armstrong stated that if the City can get the property from Mr. Sechler in exchange for ingress and egress to his property by a public right-of-way and to split at the Pumping Station with a drive around each side as platted there, he will agree to it. Councilman Dietz stated that we can not put the road to the east, it is going to be a double road to the west. Councilman Sikes stated that if we go to the east of it we are going to run into more problems; there should be enough room for an 18 foot road west of the Lift Station. It is going to be a limited street. Mayor Armstrong stated that there are a lot of limited streets in Edgewater. Councilman Sikes asked Mayor Armstrong again if he would go along with this. Mayor Armstrong stated that if the City will put a street through there that is dedicated street with ingress and egress connecting Canal Drive to Oak Ridge, as far as the plat plan is concerned, he will comply with it. Councilman Sikes questioned elliminating the east lane... Mayor Armstrong stated that he does not care if both lanes are on one side, as long as you have the flow of traffic that everybody can use. -5- o o Councilman Dietz made a motion that we authorize Councilman Sikes to contact Mr. Sechler and see what kind of deal he will make with the City on this piece of land, being seconded by Councilman Shell. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. Councilman Sikes told theClerk what to put in the letter to Mr. Sechler. Mayor Armstrong stated that he would suggest that we send a Quit Claim deed with this letter and if he is in agreement he can sign it and send it back. NEW BUSINESS: Mayor Armstrong stated that we have a Locksmith application from a Mr. Charles Sheffield. Councilman Sikes made a motion that we refer this to our attorney to report back at our next meeting, being seconded by Councilman Shell. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. Councilman Dietz stated that tomorrow morning the Water and Sewer Plant hours will be changed from 8:00 to 4:30 to coincide with City Hall. Councilman Shell stated that he thinks all the hours should be the same. Mayor Armstrong agreed,stating that we had discussion before about the Street men having to put oil in the trucks with flash lights before day light. He asked what the thoughts are of the Street Department also starting at 8:00? Councilman Sikes stated that he thinks it is a good idea, there may be some time when they are laying hot pavement or something that they might want to get out earlier, but they can make arrangements for that. Mayor Armstrong stated that he entertains a motion from the Council that beginning Friday that we adopt 8:00 to 4:30 working hours. Councilman Shell made a motion that the Street Department and the Public Works adopt 8:00 to 4:30 working hours, being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Upon roll call vote said motion CARRIED, 4-0. Councilman Shell stated that he went out to Lake Street, and Mr. Palmer stated that if we put the tile there he will put the dirt in and take care of it. Councilman Dietz made a motion that we authorize Mr. Shell to go ahead and initiate the program of putting the drain tile in to the lake... Mayor Armstrong stated that we can't do that because that belongs to the County. There was discussion that this is the smart way to handle the problem. Councilman Dietz repeated his motion. Mayor Armstrong drew a sketch of this situation, explaining that if we put the culvert in and covered it over and it fills up and floods the people's property, we are going to get sued. Councilman Sikes stated that he would think that if we talk with Mr. Palmer and agree to put the drain tile there that he could secure a letter from the Mosquitoe Control that it would be agreeable with them for us to do that. Mayor Armstrong stated that he does not want the City to be responsible for flooding someone's property. Councilman Dietz stated that if we don1t do something quick we are going to lose all of the blacktop in that area. This is one way to protect what we have. -6- o o Councilman Sikes asked Attorney Woods about the responsibility and liability in regard to this. Attorney Woods stated that he does not see any liability, you are getting into a Governmental function to protect the health and welfare of the citizens of the City. Councilman Dietz repeated his motion that we authorize Mr. Shell to go ahead and relieve the situation on Lake Avenue, and put in the tile, providing that Mr. Palmer fills in with the dirt, being seconded by Councilman Sikes. Mr. Fredericks stated that the Council has stated at previous meetings that if a drainage situation occurs, it is the responsibility of the builder. If you do this for one of them, you will have to do it for the rest of the City. Councilman Dietz stated that we are not talking about a driveway, we are talking about something that the City and the Mosquitoe Control created. The man has a right to fill that ditch, however if he does it will block up all of the water in the surrounding area there where it won1t drain off. We are trying to maintain a drainage system in the whole area. Upon roll call vote on the motion, said motion CARRIED, 3-1. Mayor Armstrong voting NO. RECESS: Councilman Sikes made a motion that we recess until Wednesday morning at 9:30 A.M., being seconded by Councilman Dietz. Said motion CARRIED. 12~~~~~ VC'S- M,yor / (jjn z:;; 7-. 9fh.~ Co 1 woman t) MINUTES TAKEN BY: Sue Bl ackwell Debbie Sigler ATTEST: City C1 erk Councilman Approved this day of August, 1977. L(2~~~~ MaY9r -7 - ~ ~ p~ ~