HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Charter Review 010906CHARTER REVIEW COMMITTEE
MINUTES
January 9, 2006
The Charter Review Committee met on January 9. 2006. The meeting was called to order
at 7:03 P.M. in the Council Chambers of the Municipal Complex, located at 10500 North
Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.
I. ROLL CALL
Members Present: Paul Auerbach, Gary Fields, Terry Brady, Tim Frohling, Don
Kiselewski, Len Rubin, David Clark and Thomas Baird arrived at 7:14 PM
Members Absent: Warren Freeman
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The Committee approved the minutes from the November 30, 2005 meeting.
III. CHARTER DISCUSSION
Don Kiselewski stated that he would like to have more information about the concerns of
the residents that were brought up at the Town Hall meeting and would like a copy of the
minutes from that meeting. There was also discussion about a memo that was given to
the Committee in their binders at the first meeting. The memo describes the issues of
elected Mayor and districting as some of the reasons this Committee has been called
together.
Paul Auerbach asked to discuss making the charter easier to read and more user friendly
to the public. The Committee felt that this was not the purpose of the meetings because
there are so many topics to discuss and it is going to be very hard to cover every topic.
There was concern that putting too many proposals before the public. The Committee felt
they should be as specific as possible with any changes to the Charter and not to
overburden the public with too many small changes
Len Rubin discussed the methodology that will be used to review the charter. There was
discussion about going through each article and deciding what articles to talk about at
future meetings. The Committee agreed that they had no concerns or comments with:
Articles I- Transition Schedule
Section 1 -1. — Ordinances Preserved
Section 1 -2. — Rights of Offices and Employees
Section 1 -2. — Pending Matters
Articles II — Boundaries
Section 2 -1. - Boundaries
The Committee went on to discuss Article III — Form of Government - Section 3 -1 Form
of Government. There were questions about the meaning of an elected Mayor form of
Government and a strong Mayor form of Government. The Committee decided to start
the meeting discussing the possibility of having an elected Mayor or a strong Mayor form
of Government and whether or not to implement districting in the City. There was also
discussion about the meaning of an elected mayor form of Government. Len Rubin and
Thomas Baird explained the difference between elected Mayor and strong Mayor forms
of Government. Tom Baird explained that for the most part a Strong Mayor form of
Government means the Mayor acts as the City Manager and the City Manager acts as an
administer. There was discussion about other municipalities in the county and what kind
of Governments they have. Mr. Baird stated that there are no set rules for the form of
Government. Some Cities have a strong Mayor and some have a City Manager. It is up
to the individual City to decide.
Mr. Baird stated that he feels the City Manager form of government works best for a City
of this size. He does not agree that this City should have a strong Mayor Government.
There was discussion on whether the Mayor should be elected instead of appointed by the
City Council. The Committee agreed that they did not see a purpose in having an elected
Mayor. The Committee discussed the perception that the public has regarding the Mayor.
A lot of residents do not realize that the Mayor has one vote just like the rest of the City
Council and is not able to make any changes without a majority vote.
Tom Baird made a motion not to entertain a strong Mayor from of Government for the
City of Palm Beach Gardens. The motion was seconded by Don Kiselewski and passed
7 -1.
Len Rubin:
Yes
Don Kiselewski:
Yes
Tim Frohling:
No
Gary Fields
Yes
David Clark
Yes
Terry Brady
Yes
Tom Barid
Yes
Paul Auerbach
No
The Committee went on to discuss the possibility of splitting the City into different
voting districts. There was discussion about what the possible boundaries would be, and
the pros and cons of splitting the City. The Committee agreed they would not want single
member districts and suggested having at least 2 council members from each district.
After much conversation the committee decided they would like to abandon the idea of
having voting districts. Don Kiselewski made a motion to abandon the issue of
districting and Tom Baird made a second. The vote passed 7 -1.
Len Rubin:
Yes
Don Kiselewski:
Yes
Tim Frohling:
No
Gary Fields
Yes
David Clark
No
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a
Terry Brady
Yes
Tom Barid
Yes
Paul Auerbach
Yes
Gary Fields made a motion to due away with the idea of having an elected Mayor. Paul
Auerbach seconded the motion and the vote passed 7 -1.
Len Rubin:
Yes
Don Kiselewski:
Yes
Tim Frohling:
No
Gary Fields
Yes
David Clark
No
Terry Brady
Yes
Tom Barid
Yes
Paul Auerbach
Yes
There was discussion regarding the fact that many items in the charter that should be
taken out and put into Ordinances or building codes.
IV. COMMENTS BY PUBLIC
Tom Sosey of 149 Bent Tree stated he would like the committee to consider allowing the
residents to have more input in City business. He feels the City Council does not give
enough weight to the comments the residents make. He would like the City Council to
give replies or responses to the comments made by the public at a Council meeting. He
said he and many residents feel they are being ignored.
Linda Hughey of Reed Drive explained that she was under the assumption that this
committee has three main issues to contend with. She does not think it is fair to the
residents because the Committee has already made their decision on these topics without
the public's input. There was discussion among the Committee regarding public input at
the meetings and the role residents should play in the decision making process.
The Committee discussed advertising the meetings and listing items that will be
discussed at the next meeting in the advertisement so the public can come to the meetings
and express their opinions. They also asked that the agenda and minutes be placed on the
City website.
X. NEXT MEETING
The Committee will continue to move through the charter section by section. They are
going to pick two or three articles to discuss each month. In February they are going to
discuss:
Articles IV- City Council
Section 4 -1: Election; terms, general elections; filing fees; notice; runoff election
Section 4 -2: Oath of Office
Section 4 -3: Organization meeting; election of Mayor and Vice -Mayor
Section 4 -4: Vacancy
Articles V — General Powers
Section 5 -1: Authority under state law
Section 5 -2: Specific powers
VI. ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 8:29 P.M.
Approval:
Leonard Rubin, Chair Person
Attest:
Tim Frohliog, Vice air Person
Paul Auerba , Committee Member
Thomas Baird, mitte ber
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Terry Brady, Committee ember
David Clark, Committee Member
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Don Kiwfewski, Committee Member
Public Information, and Recording Coordinator