HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Council 081894CITY COUNCIL
REGULAR MEETING
CITY OF PALM BEACH GARDENS
August 18, 1994
The Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Palm Beach Gardens,
Florida, was called to order by Mayor Clark at 7:30 P.M. in the Assembly Room
of the Municipal Complex, 10500 North Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens,
Florida, and opened with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
ROLL CALL The Acting Deputy City Clerk called the roll and present were Mayor Clark, Vice
Mayor Monroe, Councilwoman Furtado, and Councilman Jablin. Councilman
Russo was absent from the meeting as he was out of town.
ANNOUNCEMENTS Mayor Clark stated the announcements were as posted on the City's Bulletin Boards.
ITEMS BY MAYOR AND
CITY COUNCIL
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO
Councilwoman Furtado reported she had attended a meeting of the MPO at which
a master bike plan for Palm Beach County had been discussed, and that project
iniormation from each municipality had been requested so that the County could
coordinate between the various projects. Councilwoman Furtado requested that
residents interested in attending MPO meetings and becoming part of the process
call the County and ask to be placed on the new Citizens Involvement Committee.
Councilwoman Furtado explained that Mr. Kirshner, a member of the Lake
Catherine ballfield lighting committee, had suffered a major stroke, and that their
scheduled meeting had been postponed in order to allow time for an alternate to be
appointed.
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING. 8/18/94
COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC:
SAM CARSILLO Mr. Carsillo suggested that Bob Patty be appointed with a salary increase to make
garbage pickup decisions; requested that the City Manager call Seacoast Utility to
make sure enough oil was in reserve to keep water pressure up in the event of a
hurricane; and reported that he had given a list of his concerns to the Assistant City
Manager for consideration.
PAUL FISHER Mr. Fisher commented that the Garden Lakes residents supported Waste
Management to handle the City's garbage collection.
DAVE PANAIA Mr. Panaia reported his organi -lion was in the process of bidding for the United
States Touch Football tournament, and that the one —week softball tournament held
PRESENTATIONS
CODY & ASSOCIATES
SALARYSURVEY
last year in Jupiter had generated ten million dollars. Mr. Panaia reported the
Sports Complex had been delayed only because the MacArthur Foundation had not
responded with a price for the land.
Mr. Mick Pellegrino, Senior Partner of Cody & Associates, Inc., reported the salary
survey had included North Palm Beach, Juno Beach, Jupiter, and Palm Beach
Gardens. The study revealed that only approximately 20 City employees would be
affected if the recommended salary ranges and schedules were adopted, and
recommended adjustment of salary ranges to give employees more opportunity for
growth.
CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
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HOLLY DRIVE Assistant Police Chief Dennis O'Rourke and City Engineer Lin Lindahl summarized
the progress of the Holly Drive Committee and their plans for the opening of the
school year by stating that they had concluded the traffic pattern utilized for the past
several years was not the most desirable. At the beginning of the school year the
school children would be educated as to the new traffic pattern in which the north
side of Holly Drive would be opened and would include additional striping and
signage. Additional patrols would be utilized during the changes which would be
phased in over the school year, and within the next two weeks the committee
expected to bring short and long —term recommendations to the City Council for
consideration. Councilwoman Furtado read into the record a letter from the
Community Awareness Network of PGA National which praised the Holly Drive
task force for their efforts.
AWARDING OF BIDS
TRASH BID After presenting a summary of the criteria used by staff to evaluate bid proposals,
City Manager Herakovich stated that staff recommended that Waste Management
be awarded the solid waste, recycling, and vegetative collection contract for the
next five years at the per unit cost submitted in its proposal. Councilwoman
Furtado voiced her concern of some aspects of the criteria used in choosing bidders
and on the subjective nature of the bid scoring process. Councilman Jablin stated
his concern was which bidder would best serve the community during a disaster,
and observed that Waste Management had demonstrated that capability during
Hurricane Andrew. Mayor Clark stated that four options were available to the City
CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
Council: (1) to reject all bids and go to a rebid; (2) reject all bids and direct staff to
negotiate with one of the bidders; (3) to accept lowest bid; or (4) to accept staffs
recommendation and proceed. Vice Mayor Monroe detailed reasons why her
decision was based on awarding the bid to Waste Management. Councilman Jablin
made a motion to approve the staff recommendation and to direct the City Manager
to enter into a contact with Waste Management to provide solid waste, recycling,
and vegetative collection. Bids for this project had been duly advertised and had
been opened and read on 7/21/94. The motion was seconded by Vice Mayor
Monroe and passed by a vote of 3 -1, with Councilwoman Furtado casting the nay I
vote for reasons stated above.
CONSENT AGENDA: Vice Mayor Monroe made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda. Councilman
Jablin seconded the Motion The motion to approve the Consent Agenda carried
4 -0. The following items were approved on the Consent Agenda:
1. Approval of Minutes of 8/4/94 City Council Regular Meeting.
2. Proclaiming September as "Literacy Awareness Month ".
3. Resolution 108, 1994 - Approval of State Wide Mutual Aid Agreement for
Catastrophic Disaster Response and Recovery.
4. Resolution 109, 1994 - Approval of Replat of Monterey Pointe PUD, PGA
A
National Resort Community.
5. Resolution 110, 1994 - Approval of Plat of "Bent Tree PUD ", Phase 1.
CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94 PAGE 5
6. Resolution 111, 1994 - Approval of Plat of "The Sanctuary PUD ", Plat No.
1.
7. Resolution 112,1994 - Approval of Plat of "The Sanctuary PUD ", Plat No.
2.
PUBLIC ARIN . :
ORDINANCE 13, 1994 Mayor Clark declared the public hearing open, which was duly advertised 6/22,194,
recessed from the regular meetings of 7/7/94 and 814/94, and held on the intent of JI
Ordinance 13, 1994, Repealing Certain Sections of the Land Use Code and
Adopting Land Development Regulations and Map, for consideration of Second
Reading and Adoption. Motion was made by Councilwoman Furtado to recess the
public hearing to later in the meeting, after consideration of Resolutions 106 and i
107. Motion was seconded by Councilman Jablin and passed by a vote of 4 -0.
RESOLUTION 106, 1994
Mayor Clark declared the Public Hearing open, which was duly advertised 8/3/94,
and held on the intent of Resolution 106, 1994 - Amending Resolution 43, 1978,
PGA National DRI, by making certain findings of fact and conclusions of law;
amending Paragraphs 8 and 9 thereof; adding a new condition (build - out date).
There being no comments from the public, Mayor Clark declared the Public
Hearing closed. Motion was made by Vice Mayor :Monroe to approve Resolution
106, 1994. The motion was seconded by Councilwoman Furtado and unanimously
passed.
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94 PAGE 6
RESOLUTION 107, 1994
Mayor Clark declared the Public Hearing open, which was duly advertised 8/3/94,
and held on the intent of Resolution 107, 1994 - Amending Resolution 43, 1978,
PGA National DRI, by making certain findings of fact and conclusions of law;
amending subparagraph Y' of Condition 7. Planning and Zoning Director Walton
explained the conclusion concerning the Jog Road portion of Resolution 107, 1994
had been to leave the road as it presently existed. A letter had been received from
the Department of Transportation which had resulted in a meeting between staff and
Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council's director and attorney where discussion
encompassed the past, present, and future of Jog Road in light of the proposed
amendment. At another meeting between staff, the Ft. Lauderdale Director of the
Department of Transportation, Milton Stern as representative of PGA National
residents, and Frank Palen as representative for the builder, there was discussion
of the fact that the draft version of Resolution 107, 1994, had contained the
provision that 5010 of traffic over the adopted level of service on both Military Trail
and Beeline Highway would trigger the County's ability to claim right of way rights
to Jog Road. The Department of Transportation indicated that this was too
restrictive and requested consideration of language that left the option totally up to
the County Commissioners to establish whether these roads were 5% over the
adopted level of service or not. Staff had agreed to this condition but considered
it a major compromise, and the written version submitted to the DepaLument of
Transportation was returned with changes that had not been discussed at the
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING. 8/18/94
PAGE 7
meeting. Contact made to the Department of Community Affairs had indicated
their agency believed the compromise was fair and if the City would be willing to
move forward with the compromise agreement there would be no appeal.
FRANK PAT N Mr. Palen, agent for PGA National Limited Venture, Ltd., urged the City Council
to adopt Resolution 107, 1994, as recommended by staff.
MILTON STERN Mr. Stern stated his decision to accept the compromise had been very difficult since
he believed that the compromise had been based on deception; and urged the City
Council to approve Resolution 107, 1994, with the stipulation that their approval
would end the Jog Road issue.
LEWIS WEEKS Mr. Weeks, who spoke representing the Marlwood area of PGA National, suggested
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that the City Council consider that greater traffic flow on Ryder Cup Boulevard
could lessen the possibility of State Road 7 going through the northern part of the
county right away.
SALLY BLACK Ms. Black, representing Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council, stated the
Council had not reviewed the proposed compromise and would meet the next day
to do so, after which their comments would be presented to the City. Ms. Black
urged the City Council to object to the County's proposal since it did not meet the
condition of a fair and reasonable compromise to make sure the regional roadways
would not be unduly burdened before their time. Councilman Jablin clarified to Ms.
Black that Ryder Cup Boulevard was a public roadway, not a private road.
CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
PA(:F R
LYNN ZIPPAY Ms. Zippay spoke representing the Florida Department of Community Affairs and
stated that if Resolution 107, 1994 were adopted as presented that the DCA would
have no concerns.
There being no further comments from the public, Mayor Clark declared the Public
Hearing closed. Discussion by Council members included Vice Mayor Monroe's
position that she could not vote for this resolution since she had not had the
opportunity to read the latest amendments, and Councilman Jablin's concern that if
this matter were recessed to the next City Council meeting that another ploy would
be found to delay it further. Motion was made by Councilman Jablin to approve
Resolution 107, 1994, including the compromise language. Planning and Zoning
Director Walton clarified that item number 3 would be completely eliminated and
replaced by item number 3 in the compromise document. Motion was seconded by
Councilwoman Furtado. Vice Mayor Monroe made an substitute motion that the
Public Hearing for Resolution 107, 1994 be continued until September 1, 1994,
which she withdrew upon advice that a substitute motion was unacceptable under
Roberts Rules of Order after a motion and a second had been made but not voted
upon. Vice Mayor Monroe then stated that for reasons previously stated she would
not vote positively or negatively but would abstain from voting which she did not
like but also did not like the alternatives. The motion passed by a vote of 3 -0 with
one abstention by Vice Mayor Monroe.
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CITY COUNCIL. REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
PAGE 9
ORDINANCE 13, 1994 Mayor Clark declared the Public Hearing open, which was duly advertised 6/22/94,
recessed from the regular meetings of 7/7/94, 8/4/94, and rescheduled on the current
agenda, and held on the intent of Ordinance 13, 1994, Repealing Certain Sections
of the Land Use Code and Adopting iand Development Regulations and Map, for
consideration of Second Reading and Adoption. Planning and Zoning Director
Walton stated additional comments had been received and incorporated. City
Planner Bristol Ellington explained that some of the changes that had been made
since the last version were that flow charts had been changed to make them
consistent with the text; that strikeouts and underlines had been removed; that in
Section 159.006 a provision had been added to require conditional use approval
within 6 months from the effective date of these regulations for any land which
would require a conditional use under this code and which did not have a previous
conditional use approval; and that there were other wording changes that were not
pointed out since they did not change the intent of the code. Mr. Ellington
suggested that on page 79 under the Planned Unit Development process and on page
83 under Planned Community Development that a sentence be added: "In no case
shall the net density exceed 15 dwelling units per acre" to be followed by addition
of a second sentence: "Net density shall be calculated as the total number of
dwelling units divided by the total acres of the site plan."
Sib VE TENDRICH Mr. Tendrich explained to the Council that apartment units would not be built in the
City with the present density of 12 units to an acre since it would not be financially
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING. 8/18/94
feasible. Mr. Walton explained three additional units were granted for a PUD. Mr.
Tendrich urged the Council to think more about this requirement and not restrict the
creativity of developers.
SARAH LOCKHART Ms. Lockhart suggested that the ability to file a waiver of density requirements be
written into the code.
LARRY SMITH Mr. Smith stated he represented the owners of NorthCorp and JCB Enterprises and
requested that the use categories allowed in industrial zoning include medical
offices. Discussion ensued regarding whether medical uses would take up too much
proposed industrial space and how the code could be limited to be sure only single
practitioners and not clinics would be allowed. Mr. Smith also requested colleges
be included in the M -1 zoning category, which was agreed to by the Council.
JOHN TIFFANY Mr. Tiffany, a member of the management company for NorthCorp, urged the City
Council to include medical offices in the use categories for NorthCorp, and
explained he had turned down twenty requests for office space from various
medical specialties.
SARAH LOCKHART Ms. Lockhart stated the PGA :National project had been substantially delayed
because of the Jog Road issue and requested consideration by the Council to discuss
whether the project could move forward without having to wait to address the
waiver provision in the Land Development Regulations. Ms. Lockhart was assured
that the Council would take this into consideration.
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
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GEORGE RICHETELLI Mr. Richetelli, 414 4th Lane, suggested length and weight restrictions be included
under permitted parking, on page 157, (d), which only listed height requirements.
City Planner Ellington explained that currently the code restricted vehicles to
11,000 pounds in RS 1, 2, 3, and 4 districts. The proposed code under E (i) stated
that a panel, pickup, van, or similar type of truck could not exceed 3/4 ton rate and
boats and recreational vehicles were allowed subject to (A) through (H). (A)
through (H) discussed that the vehicle was to be parked in the rear or side yards and
must be screened with a six —foot wall, hedge, or fence, and could not exceed the
bight of the principal structure. Discussion included possible exception for small
boats up to 18 feet in length; the problem of too —large motor homes parked in
driveways; t3nmaghtly broken —down boats, trailers, etc. parked in driveways or front
yards; possibly giving homeowners the right to request a variance from the
requirement for good cause shown; and the problem of small lots with no garages
and no access to the rear yard. Vice Mayor Monroe observed that Mr. Richetelli f
was the first person other than the development community who had given any
input into parking rules, and stated the public needed to let the City Council know
their feelings before the code was revisited for revisions in approximately six
months. It was the consensus of the City Council to change (C) to state that "within
one year from the date of adoption of this ordinance, no such boat or vehicle may
be parked in such a manner that any portion of the vehicle extends into the front
yard ", and to begin (D) on page 157 to state that "within one year from the date of
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING. 8/18/94
adoption of this ordinance the following shall apply ", in order to give people time
to comply with the code and to voice their opinions.
LINDA HUEY Ms. Huey commented that if a doctor moved out of an office which could then be
used as an office by other types of professionals such as lawyers, schools, etc., she
did not understand why a doctor would not be permitted to go into a professional
office. She stated that as a medical person she had spoken with many doctors who
would not be able to afford space in a building such as Mediplex and would like to
locate in a building such as NorthCorp.
Motion was made by Councilman Jablin to adopt Ordinance 13, 1994 as amended
on second reading. Motion was seconded by Councilwoman Furtado and passed
by a 4 -0 vote.
RESOLUTION 84, 1994 Motion was made by Vice Mayor Monroe to approve Resolution 84, 1994,
Supporting a proposed North County Fishing Pier in North Palm Beach County.
Motion was seconded by Councilwoman Furtado. After Councilman Jablin voiced
his concern that because of present controversy, the City Council should not
endorse the placement of the pier in Iuno, consensus of the City Council was to
remove the fourth "Whereas ". Councilman Jablin stated that parks rather than piers
should be made a priority. Vice Mayor Monroe withdrew the previous motion and
moved approval of Resolution 84, 1994 with the removal of the fourth "whereas"
deleted. Motion was seconded by Councilwoman Furtado and passed 3 -0 with one
abstention by Councilman Jablin.
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
RESOLUTION 105, 1994
Motion was made by Councilwoman Furtado to approve Resolution 105, 1994,
adopting a fee schedule for the review of applications and the administration of
certain land development regulations.. Motion was seconded by Councilman
Jablin, and passed unanimously.
ORDINANCES
ORDINANCE 17, 1994 Vice Mayor Monroe made a motion to place Ordinance 17, 1994, amending
Ordinance 16A,1993, same being the Budget Ordinance for Fiscal Year beginning
October 1, 1993, and ending September 30, 1994, inclusive, on first reading by title
only. Motion was seconded by Councilwoman Furtado and passed unanimously.
The Acting Deputy City Clerk read Ordinance 17, 1994, by title only, on first
reading.
ORDINANCE 13, 1994 Mayor Clark observed that second reading of Ordinance 13, 1994 did not take
place, whereupon Vice Mayor Monroe made a motion to reconsider Ordinance 13,
1994. Motion was seconded by Councilman Jablin, and passed unanimously. Vice
Mayor Monroe moved that Ordinance 13, 1994 be placed on second reading and
adopted as amended through the course of the evening. Motion was seconded by
Councilman Jablin. Motion passed unanimously. Assistant City Attorney Golis
read Ordinance 13, 1994, by title only, on second and final reading.
ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION
ALSBLS PARAMEDIC
SERVICES Fire Chief Arrants explained the status of the proposed EMS program which would
provide ALS/BLS transport by City Fire DcpaLt,uent paramedics, and stated that the
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
PAGE 1.4
City Council's approval was needed to apply for a Certificate of Need. Captain
Chris R. Brown, EMS Supervisor, explained that the program would benefit
residents with continuity of treatment and reduced costs, while contributing an
estimated $300,000 annually in income to the City. City Council members
expressed their unanimous support.
DR. ZAPPA Dr. Zappa, a local resident involved with emergency medical services both locally
and at the state level, praised the City's efforts in establishing the EMS program.
It was the consensus of the City Council to move forward and to apply for the
Certificate of Need.
CITY MANAGER City Manager Herakovich announced August 27 and 28 would be tire amnesty days
and the Public Works yard would be open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. to accept tires.
City Manager Herakovich reminded the Council that they had heard the final report
of the Building Committee which addressed space needs for the Police Station, City
Hall, and added park facilities; and stated funding options that had been discussed
at the last City Council meeting seemed to indicate a possible referendum. The
City Manager requested time for further studies to be made before bringing this
matter back for consideration by the City Council.
ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to discuss, motion was made by Vice Mayor
Monroe, seconded by Councilwoman Furtado, and unanimously approved to
adjourn the meeting at 11:26 P.M. r
6
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CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING, 8/18/94
/rJtlfi�
MAYOR DAVID CLARK
lgtE MAYOR LINDA MONROE
(AgSENT1
COUN OSEPH RUSSO
COUgOiWrNERIC ABLIN
i
COUNCILWOMAN LAUREN FURTADO
ATTEST:
CINDY HARVEY, ACTING DE91TY CITY CLERK
PAGE 15
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 1
(EXCERPT FROM TAPE 1 OF 3 TAPES, BEGINNING AT POSITION 0775)
AWARDING OF BIDS
AWARDING OF TRASH BID:
MAYOR CLARK One comment before we start. 1 - -I think we have
representatives from various bidders here this evening and a
couple of people have filed requests to speak before the bid
award. Our practice is not to have the bidders speak before
the award but to have you available to answer questions from
Council if they come up, so understanding that, proceed,
CITY MANAGER Yes. Uh, playing the role of Oscar the Grouch tonight, and
COUNCILMAN JABLIN Are you going to come out of the garbage can, is that it?
MAYOR CLARK We could hear it up here anyway.
CITY MANAGER I continue with this. That is what happens when you have little
children. Uh, it's been implied that staff has not taken the
business of this whole trash contract seriously and I think that
Council has made it clear that we try to have fun with our job,
but we do take it seriously, and, and, I am here to say that staff
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 2
has done extensive research not only in preparing the bid
documents as to best meet the needs of our residents but also
in evaluating the proposals. Uh, some time back at the request
of one of our final bidders, uh, Florida Sanitation, the required
performance bond was lowered from the previous requirement
that the City had asked 4 or 5 years ago. Uh, in an effort to
make it easier for the little guy to - -to apply, for non - national
firms to qualify. Subsequently, a bidders conference was held
to answer questions of proposers, um, at which time terms and
conditions were clarified for any interested parties that were
there. Uh, City Attorney and the Assistant City Attorney have
reviewed the document, the RFP, discussed them fully, uh,
invitation to propose, so they are prepared to answer any
questions on that. Uh, additionally uh, we reviewed basically
the three lowest proposals of which that included Florida
Sanitation, Eagle, and Waste Management, and found that
Florida Sanitation did not meet the specific, the specifications
of the related, uh, as related to the performance bond even
though it was lowered. Eagle's proposal was considered
incomplete because they did not include an audited financial
statement as required in the RFP. And that sort of left us, that,
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 3
that brought us then to Waste Management as the lowest
complete proposal. Um, additionally, a rating system was
developed by staff in accordance with Section 6.5 of the
document. Uh, this rating also resulted in Waste Management
receiving the highest possible points. Thus, garbage is an
emotional issue and it is a personal issue, and the residents of
the City of Palm Beach Gardens have come to expect a high
level of service. Um, I truly believe that a, any of the proposers
may be able to meet this level of service in the future, uh,
however, right now Waste Management has the complete
proposal which can meet the level of service today. Staff
recommends the City waive any informalities and technicalities
as stated in Section 6.5, um, and enters into a contract with
Waste Management for solid waste, recycling, and vegetative
collection for the period of October 1, 1994 to September 30,
1999. Three Department Heads are here to answer any
questions you may have, the City Attorney as well.
MAYOR CLARK Lauren.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Um, I have a question, first of staff and then depending on their
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 4
answer, for our City Attorney. Naturally. On page 2 where the
totals are given, total paid by the City, total bill by the hauler,
were the tipping fees that were included by two of the bidders
that I am aware of, were they subtracted from these totals or
were these totals including the tipping fees?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Those are the numbers including - -these are the numbers that
they presented in their bid.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO So in the case of two of the haulers or the bidders they..
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON If they included it, yes.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO So this would include the tipping fees?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Right.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO O.K., then my question goes to the attorney. Does the City
Council have the authority to recognize and accommodate in
this process the misinterpretation of those bidders?
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 5
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY Yes. And the reason why is because the bid form itself takes
into consideration that there is going to be a specific reference
to the general and technical specifications. There is a specific
section under the general and technical specifications, I am
referring to 17.3 that is very clear, in my opinion, in terms of
what the intentions are, and I'll read it into the record. The first
sentence, that is. Residential and commercial solid waste
disposal costs shall be separated from residential and
commercial collection service costs. And the definition of
disposal costs is in 4.15, and that shall mean tipping fees. So
essentially what 17.3 is saying, the first sentence, is: disposal
costs, that is tipping fees, shall be separated from collection
service costs. That was specifically referenced in the bid
package, it's incorporated and referenced in the bid form, and
everyone was on notice.
MAYOR CLARK Item. I think what you just said was that the, uh, that the RFP
was clear that you..
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY The RFP was clear.
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 6
MAYOR CLARK
..combined the two. I think,
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO That wasn't my question.
MAYOR CLARK
Yeah, Lauren's question was different.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO . My - -My question was do we have the- -the authority to
recognize and accommodate (inaudible) the misinterpretation
of the bidders.
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY Oh, I'm forgiven.
MAYOR CLARK
O.K.
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY Well, under 6.5 you could waive if you choose- -the Council can
waive that - -but in my opinion, legally I think that..
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO But we have - -we have the option to do that?
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY That's correct.
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 7
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO That's all I wanted to know. That was my - -that was the first
question. Uh, my other questions in a way, fall on a personal
and nothing, I mean not what anyone would think. I happen to
work for a company that is small and getting started, so that's
where I'm coming from, alright, as far as trash goes. Uh, on
page 3 under other considerations, what concerned me was if
the City wanted to do business, they - -they reference a C
corporation as being better than an S corporation. My feeling
was if the City felt that that was so important, why did not the
bid specify that only a C corporation could bid on the contract?
1 -4 use this as an example, just as an example. If the City
should say that it would take five million dollars to give us a
level of service that we need, and allow for any emergencies
that were unforeseen, for the- -for the - -for the hauler, O.K.? And
that's what the amount that the City comes up with - -I'm just
picking that amount out of the air. And X Corporation has five
million dollars, no they have six million dollars, and Y has the
same thing, and Z has ten million. To me the difference
between five and ten is irrelevant because the City has
ascertained that this is what you need to do the job. So 1 -4 go
back to that C and S corporation and it, only because it was
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 8
made such a big deal of in the evaluation, my concern is if that
was so important why was not that - -why was that not in the - -in
the bid specs? That's all I wanted. The performance..
MAYOR CLARK We need to talk about that one.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Yeah.
MAYOR CLARK O.K., why - -why don't we do that and clear this up.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON You want - -you want an answer right now?
MAYOR CLARK Sure.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON The, uh..
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO If possible.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON All right. Definitely. Uh, there was not a requirement that
anyone be a C or an S corporation, however, as we, uh, the
invitation proposed, states there is various selection criteria.
Under those selection criteria is uh, financial capability and the
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 9
difference between an S and a C corporation does have a
bearing on financial capability because typically, as (inaudible),
C corporations would have more retained earnings and more
financial wherewithal. S corporations, uh, typically, because it
is not taxed directly - -it is taxed on their individual return;
typically they need to draw some of the retained earnings out
to pay for their tax liability, uh, so they don't end up with as
much retained earnings -- assets in the corporation itself. And
that was the point that was being made. It wasn't that they
could not be- -there are probably some S corporations that, uh,
are rather substantial. The two S corporations that we saw
were not.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO I understand that, but the example I gave is - -is if you have the
financial capability anything above that, to me, is irrelevant if
what we've ascertained exists. That's my - -if it was that
important I don't understand. I couldn't understand if it was
really important then why wasn't it included in the - -in the bid
specifications?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Because, the fact that they're an S corporation in and of itself
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 10
doesn't preclude some things, but while we did look at financial
capability of these two particular S corporations, and they quite
frankly lost points because they did not have the same financial
capability as the other C corporations.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO O.K., then. And along on that - -on that line, four firms, Waste
Management, BFI, County Sanitation, Eagle Sanitation, qualified
at Solid Waste Authority to provide 50% of the unincorporated,
uh, Palm Beach County's waste collection services. They
qualified financially and otherwise, and yet - -and yet we are
turning around and saying it's just the opposite of what you
just said.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON No. But what they did was they qualified based on financially.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO That's what we were talking about, was financial.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Right. But they also qualified two haulers that quickly went out.
One of which sold their business before they even had begun
the contract. The second one, uh, had many problems in one
of the districts and was encouraged to sell out, which they did
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 11
six months into the contract. The fact that Solid Waste
Authority said they were capable did not lead to, uh, I will - -I'II
say good results, or expected results in at least two of the ten
districts out in the County, and the other thing is that Solid
Waste Authority, uh, let their bids basically April first, so that all
firms had six months to get everything together.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Isn't that what the performance bond is all about? Isn't that a
protection for the City?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Performance Bond is that they'll, once the contract begins, they
will be able to perform. Once the contract begins.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO So what - -what are you implying there, that between now and
when the contract starts..
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Yeah, they are ready to perform prior to October first.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO And the criteria that you gave in some of the cases was, that
the - -I am just going to use an example --I am just going to use
X, Y, Z just for the sake of keeping personalities out of this; that
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 12
one corporation has a hundred trucks ready to go, I mean they
are there on site, let's put it that way. And the, uh, other
companies may have some that are ordered or are waiting to
see whether they get the contract.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Right. And one of the- -one of the criteria that was laid out in
the RFP was possession of necessary equipment and facilities.
Possession. Not that they'll get it within X amount of period of
time.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Even if - -even if those trucks are sitting - -even if those trucks are
sitting there just waiting to be delivered. I mean they are sitting
there waiting to be delivered.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON It's also - -it's also facilities.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO O.K. That's - -1'm glad you brought up facilities. I had --I had a
question on facilities, too. The criteria used to evaluate the
facilities was not adequately outlined in the bid. In the
research that I've done there was a lot of companies that do
not fuel on site because of liability. Do not do wash -downs on
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 13
site because of liability. It's not because they can't afford it or
they don't want to do it, that's their choice, O.K.? Uh, fleet
maintenance. Just because - -as long as..
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON (inaudible)
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Pardon me?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON The companies represented they were going to- -going to keep
MAYOR CLARK
doing that activity on site.
All the bidders did? In this case?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Yes.
COUNCILMAN JABLIN The three companies, we're talking?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Yes.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Well, when we get through then, if - -if any of the companies are
here and they want to dispute any of this --I don't, I don't know,
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 14
am - -I am just asking these questions. Uh, well, because I
know that many of the companies don't want to do it on site.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Well, that's fine.
( ?) They have to do it somewhere- -where are they going to do it?
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO No. I'm just - -I'm just saying, that was - -that was stated. Some
of them use, I --I talked to some of the ones that weren't even
in contention because they were way down on the list. I just
wanted to ask them, you know, what their feelings were.
Because, there again, I don't do trash.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON No, it doesn't, I mean, there's -- there's nothing that states that
they have to. Uh, of the three sites that we toured, all
represented that they were going to be doing those kinds of
activities on the sites that we were shown.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO The three- -when you're referring to the three- -the three that
you..
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 15
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON The three that (inaudible)..
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO I've got - -I've got someone waving a hand, though, in the back.
Just let me finish here and then I guess that they'll -- they'll go
to that. Uh, another concern that I had was under the point
system, O.K.? If you will, get the, where the points - -point
system. I'm just going to - -I'm just going to give you an
example. I realize that this was a - -I realize that this was a
composite from three, three staff members - -it wasn't just one
person and so forth. I'm just going to use this first one as an
example. Under rates and distribution of costs. O.K. 40
points is a perfect score. If it's rates and distribution of costs,
why didn't the lowest bidder receive a point? I mean, even if
it's three individuals voting on it, if, do you, do you follow what
I'm saying?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Because, uh, as far as rates and distribution of costs, they were
not the lowest when it came to the residential side which
impacts the City's budget. With rates and distribution of costs,
some gave more points to that bidder than..
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994
PAGE 16
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO But in looking at - -in looking at the breakdown between the - -the
single family home and commercial there was still quite a bit of
difference even on the commercial end because the tipping
fees were included on two of the bidders.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON And we tried - -and we tried to accommodate them in that
respect, to give them a break (inaudible).
SAM CARISELLO Point of Order, Mr. Chairman. Will you kindly tell that brother
to speak up a little louder we couldn't (inaudible)
MAYOR CLARK We'll get him closer to the microphone.
SAM CARISELLO (inaudible).. him back here.
MAYOR CLARK All right. Thank you, Sam.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Did you hear that last question?
MAYOR CLARK Do you want it repeated, Sam?
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 17
SAM CARISELLO
You people, you're O.K. up there.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Did you get Kent's last answer?
SAM CARISELLO (inaudible)..giving me the answers down here.
MAYOR CLARK I think you're all set now, Kent.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON The rates and distribution of costs. We had one hauler that
was the lowest on the residential side that is paid for by the
City directly. And that is why that hauler got some points in
that category. Uh, by the - -one of the raters -- higher than the
overall rates and distribution costs.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO O.K., under experience, skill and ability, uh, for example,
Browning Ferris out of a possible 20 points scored 18. This is
an international company; it's a Fortune 500 company. As I'm --
as I'm looking down the list and the points, and I'm not
screening this any way for anyone in particular - -my concern
was the breakdown of the points. When you've got a Fortune
500 company, you've got an international company. I'm not
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994
PAGE 18
talking about the bid amounts. I'm not talking about what they
bid on it. I'm talking about the points that, as for example
they've got under experience, skill and ability, financial
capability, possession of necessary equipment and facilities,
ability to provide emergency services, and so forth. Now,
under ability to provide emergency services, they've got --
they've got the right number, I'm just picking them out. Uh,
even County Sanitation, which is an international company,
(inaudible) an international company. I'm just using that as an
example. I question the point system because given a
company being international, being a Fortune 500, some of
these things . I would think would be a given. And I'm not
arguing one way or the other but I would assume that they
would be, a given. And yet, they - -they didn't. And yet, Waste
Management got a 20. 1 have a hard time, do you know what
I'm saying?
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON I know what you're saying, but (inaudible)
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO (inaudible)..one way or another. Don't get - -don't get me
wrong. I'm just questioning the point system because we'll be
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 19
going out to bid on a lot of things in the future and I just want
to make sure that we're doing this the right way, that's all.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON Some of them obviously got, uh, took into consideration lack
of experience that they have in this particular county.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Lack of experience in this county. Some of these people deal
in cities that are four, five, six, seven, eight times the size that
we are under more adverse conditions.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON I'm well aware of Browning Ferris.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO I'm not just talking Browning - -I'm just talking about national-
international.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON The- -the fact is, I mean you can go through - -go through each
individual and see how they..
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO O.K.
FINANCE DIRECTOR OLSON ..selected. Some had different methods, assigning points
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 20
where they ranked them one through seven and gave the top
one seven or gave the top one the top score and seven rated
lower, for instance, and that's why you see the differences in
the averages.
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Well, the reason I'm bring all these up is the night that I went
the opposite way of staff and, and went to go out for bid, I said
for one reason, a level playing field. The reason I'm bringing
all these up, is I don't believe this is a level playing field. That's
my concern. I don't believe it's a level playing field. And really
what put me over the edge was the point system. I could see
some of the other questions and so forth as going one way or
the other, but when I saw the way the points broke down, you
don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure this doesn't add up.
And that really, really bothered me. It really bothered me.
Because what we're looking for, we're worried about our
budget, we're worried about the, not only the level of service,
but the best cost at the lowest price to the citizens, and I don't
think this is it. I - -I'm sorry, I don't.
MAYOR CLARK Linda?
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994
VICE MAYOR MONROE I pass it to you.
MAYOR CLARK Eric?
PAGE 21
COUNCILMAN JABLIN By passing it does that mean you have no - -no comments on
the, on any of this?
VICE MAYOR MONROE Well, I'm waiting to hear (inaudible)
COUNCILMAN JABLIN O.K. Well, uh, originally I didn't want to go out to bid. One of
the reasons I didn't want to go out to bid was because I was
concerned about the liability that the City might face in a
lawsuit. And now I'm glad we did go out to bid, because
obviously we got a good price, from everybody. I understand
your, uh, your concerns, Lauren, uh, but I have concerns as
well, and most of them center around disasters if they might
occur and obviously they do occur in Florida at a greater rate
than they do in other places, and my big concern is if we have
a disaster in this area, which is a great possibility, will the
individuals who are bidding and are the three final bidders in
this - -in this consideration who will be able to best serve the
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 22
community under those circumstances? And I think that its far
and away the consideration of most choice, frankly, because
the citizens of Palm Beach Gardens don't care, uh, the day
after a disaster whether a fleet of trucks got wiped out by the
disaster, but they care about the cleanup that's going to occur
that day. And I think that Waste Management has
demonstrated in the - -in the hurricane that occurred two years
ago, by the way that's two years ago this week, I understand,
that they were able to mobilize and clean up a devastated area
in Homestead. And if that happened here, I think that we'd
want that same capability. And so I'm going to tell you right
now that 1 - -I'm all for accepting the staff's recommendation.
think the staff has done a wonderful job in - -in evaluating this.
I think they've been fair. I think they have looked at all the
possibilities, financial experience, and every aspect of this, and
I appreciate their hard work. I know a lot of it went into - -into
this decision, and I'm going to support that staff
recommendation.
MAYOR CLARK All right. Uh, I guess, this is - -this is, as Bobbie's pointed out,
a very hot issue and a very emotional one. I think, the way I
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994
PAGE 23
see it, is we have a contract that expires at the end of
September. That isn't a lot of time, and we need to make a
decision now as to what we are going to do. We have
basically four options. One of them is to reject all bids, and go
to a re -bid. And the question I've got there is where are we
going to get the time to do this in an organized way and will
we get better results. We can reject all bids and direct staff to
negotiate with one of the bidders. The question then is who
and will we continue to get the best price. We can, I think,
accept the lowest bid if you're comfortable doing that - -I
personally am not because I have some concerns about
whether we'll have difficulties in the transition period and
whether or not we're going to have a lot of complaints from
the- -from the residents. And I think the fourth option we have
is to accept the staff's recommendation, and proceed. Your
comments on the - -on the subjective nature of the bid scoring
process are, I think, well taken, but this is how it's done, uh,
and almost any bid you're involved in when you set up the bid
scoring process, the method of scoring is hotly disputed. And
the more money that is involved, the hotter the disputes are.
Uh, and also, it is not unusual in a bidding process to have one
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994
PAGE 24
or more bidders make mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes
result in them taking contracts for less than they can afford to
do it, sometimes mistakes disqualify them, but they're really all
part of the process and I don't think we should view what
happened here as unusual. One of the possible results that we
were looking at when we originally decided to go out for bid
was that the existing provider would win on the re -bid, and
that's certainly the recommendation we are getting from staff.
I think that the RFP that was put together was very good. It
was very thorough, and the staff has worked hard and I'm sure
through the evaluation process you may disagree with some of
the results they have come to and certainly you are entitled to
do that, but this is what we hired them to do - -to go out and to
do this and to give us their best advice, and that's honest
evaluation. And I think that's what they've done. Uh, I think
that all the bids we're looking at represent significant savings
over our existing contract and so we are looking at whether we
take in each case a good bid, a better bid, but none of these
bids are bad. Where - -where I'm coming down is with Eric. I'm
inclined to accept the staffs recommendation and make the
award to - -to Waste Management so that we can get on. I don't
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 25
want to fix something that isn't broken. I do want to get the
best price we can and I think what we've got is that - -the best
combination of price and terms. Anything further? Linda?
VICE MAYOR MONROE Are you not taking comments?
MAYOR CLARK From?
VICE MAYOR MONROE I thought you were taking comments, I thought you were...
MAYOR CLARK Oh I don't have any comments from the public on the - -on this.
VICE MAYOR MONROE No?
MAYOR CLARK No. If they have specific questions of any of the bidders we
can do that, and certainly if you have any additional comments
you'd like to make..
VICE MAYOR MONROE Well, I will, but I thought you had cards from people who said
they wanted to speak on this. Am I wrong?
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 26
MAYOR CLARK No. No. The only people who wanted to speak were the ones
who, uh, other than the bidders.
VICE MAYOR MONROE O.K., then I didn't mean to delay my comments. I didn't mean
to be dramatic, (inaudible)
MAYOR CLARK I'm sorry. I didn't understand.
VICE MAYOR MONROE Yeah. O.K. Uh, this is a tough decision. I think the public
would find it rather amusing how serious garbage is to the
public and to the City Council, too.
MAYOR CLARK It's not amusing when you get a call at 6:30 in the morning.
VICE MAYOR MONROE No, it's not amusing at all, and I've gotten a couple, but not
very many, that's for sure. And I find myself - -I've shifted back
and forth, and I have to tell you that in making my decision that
this is not one that I just all of a sudden said this is it and this
is real easy. Even as I walked in here tonight I would wait to
hear anything anyone had to say that might influence me one
way or the other. Uh, there's two sides of me. There's a side
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 27
of me that says I don't like to see big, I use the word
monopoly -- that's not quite the word, I don't like to be tending
toward monopolies and I like to see letting the little guy have
an opportunity. And these are not exactly little guys, and, you
know, these are not mom and pop operations, I don't mean to
imply, and, I recognize the concerns Eric said about disasters
of any sort and wanting the resources. And, as I sit here and
reflect on all of this, it comes down just a shade stronger on
the side of Waste Management in my mind; staff's
recommendation. Uh, I was here five years ago when we
recommended putting the contract out for bid. At that time, at
least to my knowledge, County Sanitation had the bid and they
did not do anything that made me uncomfortable either in their
service or in the way they went out and we left the door open
for them or anyone else to come back in, so, you know, and
my intention is just every five years give it a try again and see
what happens and my comfort level has been good during the
last five years, it was good during the previous five years, and
at this time I'm not, I don't want to risk a change for the
amount of savings. I don't think it is significant enough to
make that change at this time, uh, so I'm, and I know that staff
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 28
has spent an awful lot of time on this and I respect all of the
input. It's not just one person. If it were just one person you
would say, oh, do they really understand it and see it as well
as the next person? I think it's been collective and, uh, I'll go
in that direction. And, I have to, I'll throw in a little humor and
say, uh, at times like this I'm glad I sent the set of glasses back
that were sent to me at Christmastime, I did throw out the dead
lobster a year or two before that. As I've said that I did not
receive any gifts and I think the message has gotten to the
right people that is my policy, but at least I can feel very clear,
when I ran into very gray I knew that it wasn't something like
that that tipped the scale. Bobbie said at the beginning we
take our job seriously, but we can have a little bit of fun.
MAYOR CLARK O.K. Uh, any other discussion before we see what the motion
is? Uh, one question, Paul. Uh, assuming we have a motion
as it seems to - -to approve staff's recommendation, is there
anything in addition we need to do in terms of including in the
motion waiver of any irregularities or anything else in
connection with the bid process and we just want to be sure
we do this right.
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 29
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY I want, uh, thank you, Mayor. I want to clarify that when I was
talking about 6.5 and I referenced the fact the City had the right
under the contract to waive technicalities; in my opinion from
a legal opinion the issue was raised in terms of the tipping,
whether it was included or not. In my opinion, legally under
the contract that is not a technicality. But of course, that's a
policy decision that the Council would have to make.
MAYOR CLARK O.K.
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY I just wanted to clarify that so if in fact there is an intention to
make any waivers you are right, that should be included in..
MAYOR CLARK Well, I'm not sure there is. My question is simply that if there
is a motion to approve staff's recommendation is there
anything else we need to do to set the record straight in terms
of any of the claims of confusion, irregularities or anything else,
or is simply a straight motion sufficient?
ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY A straight motion would be fine there.
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 30
MAYOR CLARK All right. Do I have a motion?
COUNCILMAN JABLIN In that case, I'd like to make a motion, Mr. Chairman, to accept
the recommendation from staff and direct the City Manager to
enter into a contract with Waste Management.
MAYOR CLARK Second?
VICE MAYOR MONROE I second.
MAYOR CLARK We've had a move and a second. Any further discussion? All
in favor?
VICE MAYOR MONROE,
COUNCILMAN JABLIN, AND
MAYOR CLARK Aye
MAYOR CLARK All opposed?
COUNCILWOMAN FURTADO Aye
MAYOR CLARK Motion passes 3 to 1.
EXCERPT FROM CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 18, 1994 PAGE 31
VICE MAYOR MONROE This is a momentous night. I'm not the one "no ".
MAYOR CLARK All right. Thank you all. I appreciate your patience, particularly
all the members of the public who were sitting here and
listening to us talk trash. It's - -It is important.