HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Council 022703CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS
CITY COUNCIL
PUBLIC HEARING
February 27, 2003
The February 27, 2003 Public Hearing of the City Council of the City of Palm Beach
Gardens, Florida, was called to order at 7:00 P.M. in the Council Chambers of the Municipal
Complex, located at 10500 North Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
ROLL CALL: The City Clerk called the roll and the following elected officials were found
to be in attendance: Mayor Jablin, Councilmember Clark, Councilmember Russo, and
Councilmember Delgado. Vice Mayor Sabatello was absent due to illness.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
Resolution 32, 2003 — Storm Water Restoration. A Resolution of the City Council of the City
of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, electing to use the uniform method of collecting non -ad
valorem assessments levied within the incorporated area of the City for storm water
restoration; stating a need for such levy; providing for the mailing of this resolution;
providing for the repeal of resolution 154, 1999; providing for conflicts; providing for
severability; and providing for an effective date.
and
Resolution 33, 2003 — Storm water Maintenance and Operation. A Resolution of the City
Council of the City of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, electing to use the unifonn method of
collecting non -ad valorem assessments levied within the incorporated area of the City for
storm water maintenance and operation; stating a need for such levy; providing for the
mailing of this resolution; providing for the repeal of resolution 154, 1999; providing for
conflicts; providing for severability; and providing for an effective date.
Mayor Jablin explained that these resolutions, one for restoration and the other for
maintenance of the canals, did not commit the City to actually collect any assessments or
define any assessment rates. The Mayor explained that these resolutions were being
considered to satisfy the legal requirements to reserve the City's right to consider placing a
non -ad valorem assessment on the Palm Beach County tax rolls for next year. Mayor Jablin
recognized members of the Blue Ribbon Panel who were present. Cheryl Stewart of the City
Manager's office provided a presentation, explaining that on January 16, 2003, the City
Council had adopted the report of the Blue Ribbon Panel for restoration and maintenance of
the canals, and had directed staff to verify its findings. The report recommended creation of
two special assessment districts to collect non -ad valorem assessments - -one to restore the
City's central stormwater system, and the other to provide a source of funds for its perpetual
maintenance. Staff had also been directed to verify the legal and financial issues in the report
and to move forward with procedural administrative requirements mandated by State law.
Ms. Stewart reported no rates had been set and no new information was being presented
tonight; and that the purpose of this public hearing was to make arrangements with the Palm
Beach County Property Appraiser and Palm Beach County Tax Collector as mandated by
State law in the event that the City Council decided to move forward with collecting
assessments for restoration and maintenance of the canals, starting in fiscal year 2003 -2004.
Ms. Stewart explained that adoption of the two proposed resolutions would reserve space on
the Palm Beach County Tax Collector's tax statement should the City Council decide after
future public hearings and public meetings to go forward with assessments starting in fiscal
year 2003 -2004. The deadline for adoption of these resolutions was March 1, 2003 in order
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS PUBLIC HEARING, 2/27/03 2
to place assessments on the tax statement for fiscal year 2003 -2004. Ms. Stewart explained
that once all the financial and legal information had been collected, public meetings would be
held, and if the City Council decided to go forward, a notice of future public hearings would
be sent by first -class mail to every property owner within the City before any assessments
were placed on the tax roll for collection. Ms. Stewart described the time line for the process
which had been established, and advised that copies were available at this meeting for the
residents. The process had already begun to collect information and establish the legalities,
and would continue with meetings during April and May to advise residents. June 5 would
be the target date to present the assessment report to City Council and for consideration to
adopt the assessment ordinance and initial rate resolution. June 27 would be the date for
mailing the first -class notices to property owners and publication of the notice of the public
hearing for final rate resolution, and September 15 was the due date for sending the certified
assessment roll to the tax collector. Councilmember Russo questioned why a presentation
was not being made tonight to the residents who had come to this meeting of the basic theory
of what was intended to be accomplished. Mayor Jablin announced that the City Council
would make themselves available after the meeting to provide that information, but this
public hearing was only to meet the legal procedural requirements for the City to establish
intent for the City to place assessments on the Palm Beach County Tax Collector's bill.
Mayor Jablin announced there would be two public hearings which would be publicized and
at which residents could present all their questions, and that all of the information was not yet
available. Councilmember Russo commented that he thought what the residents wanted to
hear was how the City planned to fix the drainage problem, and that although all the
information was not known the City Council did know what the Blue Ribbon Committee had
presented, which the residents did not know, but if it would be presented following the
meeting that would be fine but it did need to be done.
Mayor Jablin declared the public hearing open, held on the intent of Resolution 32, 2003 and
Resolution 33, 2003. Bruce Smith, 3210 Meridian Way South, indicated he opposed the
proposed method of taxing only the residents in the core of the City and not the other
residents. Mayor Jablin commented that was a misconception; that there were two levels
proposed —one to repair the City's drainage system to correct what had happened over the
past 30 -40 years, for which the estimate for repairs was $10 million. The Blue Ribbon Panel
had decided the fairest way to fund that $10 million was for the entire City to pay for the
restoration, by assessing all property owners the same amount, spending $1 million annually
for ten years. The Resolution that had been passed when the City Council accepted the
recommendation of the Blue Ribbon Panel was to collect no more than $15.00 per unit each
year from each property owner, but at this point it was unknown exactly how many property
owners there were so an exact figure could not be given at this point. Mayor Jablin
explained that after restoration had been completed, the maintenance phase would begin, and
those people benefiting from the restored drainage system would pay for the maintenance on
a yearly basis on their tax bill each year. Mayor Jablin commented that the core of the City
had not paid anything for stormwater maintenance over the years but residents living in
newer developments and developments west of Military Trail all paid assessments annually
to Northern Palm Beach County Improvement District. Mayor Jablin commented that the
intent was to establish a fair and equitable system. Carol Estrada, 309 Riverside Drive,
expressed her opinion that the residents of the core of the City would probably have no
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS REGULAR MEETING, 2/27/03 3
problem with the assessments if it could be proved to them exactly where the water was
coming from and how it was drained off. Ms. Estrada stated she would have no problem if it
could be proved to her that water from the western and northern areas was not coming
through the C -17 canal, and she would like to see where all the water came from and the
catchment areas, because a few years ago work was done on Oak Street to allow more bleed
off to the western areas, which she believed was still in place. Ms. Estrada expressed her
opinion that the City Council's decision to hire the engineering firm of Terry Lewis for
$35,000 to provide information on this issue was a conflict of interest according to what had
been previously decided by the City Council, because he had served on the Blue Ribbon
Panel. Iris Lambert, 396 Lighthouse Drive, commented regarding the Mayor's comment that
the core of the City had not paid anything for stormwater drainage and expressed her opinion
that the older, core section had paid taxes for the past 40 years and those residents felt the
City had been built on their backs, and asked what had been done with that tax money. The
City Manager indicated that figures since 1997 were available and could be provided after
this meeting. Mayor Jablin indicated that all of this could be discussed at the next public
hearing. Robert Sullivan, 3909 Buttercup Circle North, expressed concern that if
information was provided after this meeting was closed, comments of the residents would
not be on the public record. Councilmember Clark explained that this meeting had been
convened for a specific purpose and not to get the merits of the proposal, since it was
recognized that in order for that to be voted on later everyone would have to be fully
educated and their input received, and tonight staff had come prepared to discuss only the
resolutions on tonight's agenda. Councilmember Clark indicated that in retrospect it might
have been better to provide a full presentation, but that did not relate to what was under
consideration tonight, and the City Council was proposing to stay after tonight's meeting to
educate everyone present on whatever they wanted to learn so they could come back to the
next meeting to comment with full knowledge and there would be additional public hearings
before a vote. Councilmember Clark recalled this same process had taken place during the
stormwater fees issue, and in the end the Council had considered alternatives.
Councilmember Russo clarified that after this meeting ended then what was said would not
be on the public record, but that comments being made now would be on the record, and that
two more public hearings would be held with facts on dollars, etc., and a decision could not
be made until the numbers were known. Mr. Sullivan commented the residents were being
advised that any opinions of the residents concerning the overall problem would not be on
the record until next time. Mayor Jablin invited everyone to say what they wanted to during
this meeting. Deborah Harding, 271 Riverside Drive, requested she not be interrupted during
her comments, commented she was proud to live in her neighborhood, that she understood
restoration was needed and everyone should pay a fair share, and asked how a unit paying up
to $15.00 was determined— whether it was by square footage, and indicated that she did not
agree with having to pay an assessment in perpetuity, asked who on the Blue Ribbon Panel
represented the core neighborhood of Plat 1, commented she had believed the drainage had
been fixed years ago and that it worked perfectly well, but her neighborhood had lost their
palm trees and ended up with dead oak trees, and at that time the Mayor, Mayor Russo, had
indicated flooding had occurred because the canal gate was not opened. Ms. Harding
commented she did not think it was right that the core was being punished for new growth in
the City. Ms. Harding requested that she be called for any future committees. Lauren
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS PUBLIC HEARING, 2/27/03 4
Furtado, 4318 Crestdale Street, indicated she was not against the improvements and knew it
would cost money and was not concerned with what had to be done, but was concerned with
what residents had been told would be done when she was serving on the City Council; and
asked how to explain why the money allocated for a 5 -year drainage plan in the 1995 -1996
budget had not been used for drainage. Ms. Furtado read from the 1995 -1996 budget, in
which $257,000 was appropriated for MacArthur Boulevard, and she remembered that
$185,000 had been used for Holly Drive drainage. Lake Catherine improvements of
$250,000 were also appropriated. Ms. Furtado quoted the 1996 -1997 mission statement
which stated that the proposed budget provided funding for drainage, swale, and canal
maintenance to minimize the impact another 100 -year storm would have on the City. Ms.
Furtado reported three studies had been done on this issue which cost $50,000, $50,000, and
$51,750 respectively. Ms. Furtado quoted from the 1997 -1998 budget: drainage $100,000,
canal maintenance $50,000, from the 1998 -1999 budget: canal maintenance $200,000,
drainage improvements $150,000, and another stormwater study $50,000. Ms. Furtado
pointed out the budget books stated gas tax was for roads and drainage, and announced the
amounts of gas tax collected for 1995 through 2000. Ms. Furtado questioned what had
happened to the monies appropriated, which she estimated at almost $2 million, excluding
the gas tax fund. Ms. Furtado clarified the definitions of the words "appropriated" and
"dedicated ", and requested that in future budgets the word "dedicated" be used for items this
serious. Ms. Furtado requested the doors to City Hall open automatically for people in
wheelchairs or walkers. Ms. Furtado also pointed out that in City Line, it had stated Mr.
Downey was Council liaison for the Parks and Recreation Board, and he was not an elected
official. Mayor Jablin stated the intent was to dedicate this money to the restoration and
maintenance to the canals in the core of the City in perpetuity so that it could never be spent
for anything else, which he believed the Blue Ribbon Panel had achieved. Tom Souse, 129
Bent Tree, indicated he had obtained the Blue Ribbon report, which was excellent, but
disagreed with the timing and felt the Council was placing the cart before the horse, that
education of the public should have been done before the funding mechanism was
considered, and asked that the Resolutions not be approved tonight until the public had been
educated. Mr. Souse stated he felt other residents also held this view, and the City Council
should make taxpayers first, not taxes first. Mayor Jablin clarified all that was being done
was reserving space on the tax roll, and the time line showed when educating the taxpayers
would take place. Vicki Brihn, 3220 Meridian Way South, reported none of the residents in
Meridian Park, a 168 -unit condominium complex, had known about this meeting since many
did not get a newspaper or have the internet. Ms. Brihn agreed canal work was needed but
opposed two resolutions, and expressed her opinion that there should be one tax for
everybody in the City because the hospital, library, office buildings, gas stations, and
Gardens Mall were all in the core area and if the roads were flooded no one from the western
portion of the City could get to these facilities. With one fair and equitable tax for
restoration and maintenance as needed, only one resolution would be needed. Ms. Brihn
pointed out that according to the time line, the assessments would be on the tax bill this
November, and she would like the assessments to be a part of ad- valorem taxes. Ms. Brihn
commented the Council had indicated canal maintenance was being done; however, she had
been in contact with Dave Reyes for the past five months, asking that a piece of equipment
be brought in just to dump enough dirt to keep the tree behind her condo unit building from
falling into the canal. Mr. Reyes had agreed the situation was critical and the tree was being
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS REGULAR MEETING, 2/27/03
undermined, but nothing had been done and the situation had now deteriorated to the point
that approximately five feet of the yard was gone and the canal could not even be restored
without a survey. Mayor Jablin indicated that surveys were being done on all the canals that
were being restored. Ms. Brihn commented she did not believe in a core area, because
everyone used the roads all over the City. Ms. Brihn commented that the $15 plus the $63
mentioned in the newspaper for annual maintenance, plus if the parks bond issue passed,
would mean residents with even small units or small houses would be paying over $100 more
annually in taxes, which was scary for elderly and those economically disadvantaged. Mayor
Jablin commented the Blue Ribbon Panel had taken fair and equitable into consideration at
every meeting and explained that this method had been chosen to be fair and equitable, and
that a good portion of the city residents already paid separately for their drainage and those
payments were not tax deductible. Linda Hughey, Reed Drive, reported she came to all the
meetings, and asked since Northern controlled so much of the water if had anyone done a
feasibility study on Northern taking over the canals in the core sections so that everyone
would pay only one bill, and the City would not have to be responsible. Ms. Hughey
commented last week the Council voted to take $100,000 from the reserves to pay for legal
fees, consultant, and engineering fees, and expressed her opinion there had already been so
many engineering studies she did not think more should be spent for engineering, and agreed
there was a conflict of interest. Ms. Hughey commented that people who were paying fees to
Northern knew when they bought their property that those fees would be required. Ms.
Hughey commented that the restoration was being spread out and the hang -up was with the
maintenance, and there were several new developments with 100+ homes in each, and
spreading the maintenance over the whole city would mean a much lower amount for
everyone, plus the hospital, City Hall, etc., were in the core and if the roads were flooded no
one could get to them. Ms. Hughey noted that separating the core would never unify the
City. Ms. Hughey commented the Blue Ribbon Panel did a good job but representation on
that panel had not been fair and equitable because there was not a representative from every
neighborhood in the City. Mayor Jablin commented Sanford Pearl of 9968 Dahlia Avenue
had been on the panel, and Mayor Jablin indicated he had chosen as many from every section
of the City that he could. Ms. Hughey commented a parks bond issue was coming up and in
her neighborhood there was no park, but she believed it was best for the whole body to vote
for those bonds; and she believed it was not best to separate people to pay for the
maintenance. Mayor Jablin reported $850,000 had been spent for canal restoration last year,
and invited everyone to see a presentation of what had been done following this meeting.
Mayor Jablin stated he did not understand the mistrust of the City Council, which was why
he had called for the Blue Ribbon Panel to address this issue. Marjorie Manganione 547 Ivy
Avenue, asked what would be done physically to correct the problems, to which Mayor
Jablin responded a lot of money had been spent on studies and those studies would not be
duplicated, and there was a list of priorities. Now being restored was the Thompson River
between Holly and Lighthouse Drive. Areas would continue to be prioritized and taken care
of each year, and as more taxpayers came on the tax rolls the amount would drop since there
would be more taxpayers to help pay for the restoration. Mary Jo Roddy, 460 Autumn Trail,
reported she lived on Sunset Drive for 30+ years and still owned a lot there, and had given 15
feet of her property for a canal behind her property; and explained how the drainage came
from Horseshoe Acres through the canals into the river and then into the ocean, and there
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS PUBLIC HEARING, 2/27/03 6
was definitely drainage from the west. Ms. Roddy commented since the road had been fixed
and the canal put in, there were no more problems with drainage with the county cleaning out
the canal twice a year. Ms. Roddy was assured that the City would continue to clean it out
twice a year if that was what was necessary for drainage. Marilyn Lou Jacob, 16 Bermuda
Lake Drive, a member of the Blue Ribbon Panel, explained she lived in Ballenisles and paid
approximately $1,200 for debt service and maintenance for the entire infrastructure of
Ballenisles, which was not tax deductible. Ms. Jacob commented many of the comments had
been disrespectful to the City Council, noted that she would be paying $15 for her house and
$15 for each 5,000 square feet of common area and golf course area in Ballenisles, which
would total to approximately $100 a year for residents in Ballenisles, PGA National, Mirasol,
etc., —not just $15. Ms. Jacob expressed her opinion that the community should come
together to resolve the problem and to find the most equitable way to solve the problem and
not look to the past but go forward. Mayor Jablin commented Ms. Jacob served on the Blue
Ribbon Panel and was right that people in the western communities would pay a lot more for
the restoration than people in the core area. Robert Sullivan, 3909 Buttercup Circle,
commented he appreciated the people living in the western gated communities, but asked if
Ballenisles' water drained through the canals to Lake Catherine, which was confirmed. Mr.
Sullivan asked if the associations of those communities were going to contribute to the City
for use of those runways. Mayor Jablin confirmed that those systems that partially drained
through the canals would pay their fair and equitable portion of the maintenance as well as
the restoration, and that also included commercial buildings. Mr. Sullivan asked if Jupiter
and West Palm Beach would pay since their water drained through Lake Catherine out to the
ocean, to which the City Engineer responded assessments could only be made legally within
the City. Julia Byrd, Daffodil Circle, asked if the Blue Ribbon Panel had been given the
opportunity to consider the operating budget and 5 -year projection and the line item for canal
maintenance and drainage, to see how those funds could be used for this. Ms. Byrd
commented she believed the people here felt just as the Council felt when they tried to get
the attention of the turnpike officials and no one would listen. Ms. Byrd agreed it seemed the
cart was before the horse. Carol Estrada, Riverside Drive, commented Mayor Jablin had
made a comment he felt there was mistrust, and noted he could not answer some questions
but was deferring providing some information until after this meeting, and asked how he
could vote on these resolutions since she felt he was not completely educated. Ms. Estrada
recommended delaying approval of these resolutions so that each member of the Council
could become more educated, which she believed would help establish trust. Mayor Jablin
commented he had consulted the City Engineer only once during this meeting.
Councilmember Russo commented the Blue Ribbon Panel had been appointed to bring the
City together and after a lot of hard work it seemed only to be dividing it further; that the
resolutions must be passed tonight in order to reserve the space in case the decision was
made later to make the assessments; that his suggestion to place this on a referendum had
received criticism because that would have caused six months delay and the problem needed
to be fixed, and the Mayor had tried to solve the problem and bring the City together.
Councilmember Russo commented that communication with the residents needed to begin
next month, and he felt the money could be borrowed and it would be cheaper to borrow now
at low rates and fix everything than to pay cost of living increases. Councilmember Russo
indicated he was sorry that the Mayor's intent to unify the City did not seem to have worked
but he did not think he should be criticized for it, and spoke about further educating the
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS REGULAR MEETING, 2/27/03 7
residents when the numbers were known. Carol Estrada summarized Councilmember
Russo's comments, that if the Council passed the resolutions tonight they would do
everything possible to educate the residents before it went forth, holding neighborhood
meetings and public forums, which Councilmember Russo confirmed, but clarified that he
believed the Council should go out to talk to the residents rather than the staff. Ms. Estrada
commented three schools in the City were now Title I which meant lunches were not
supplied, and that would affect people's budgets. Mayor Jablin responded a lot of those
children were bussed in, explained that he would be going out to educate people, that public
meetings would be held, and the Council would continue to listen to the residents as they had
regarding the stormwater assessment issue, and asked for the trust of the residents. Linda
Monroe, 619 Hudson Bay Drive, applauded the Council for reserving the space in case it was
needed in the future, and expressed her opinion that Terry Lewis had a tremendous reputation
for integrity was highly qualified. Mayor Jablin declared the public hearing closed.
Councilmember Clark made a motion to approve Resolution 32, 2003. Councilmember
Delgado seconded the motion, which carried by unanimous 4 -0 vote. Councilmember Clark
made a motion to approve Resolution 33, 2003. Councilmember Delgado seconded the
motion, which carried by unanimous 4 -0 vote.
Mayor Jablin thanked everyone for their patience and indicated that his promise had been to
bring the City together and apologized if he had further divided it, and pledged that in the
future the City Council would continue to educate the residents and answer their questions
and hoped to go forward on this or any other proposal together.
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS PUBLIC HEARING, 2/27/03 8
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:50
p.m.
APPROVAL:
ATTEST:
PATRI_C4A SNIDER
CITY-CLERK. %'