Fort Walton Beach Council minutes — 09-11-07 regular minutes — reading text

year term until September 10, 2011 and it carried unanimously with Holmes, Miller, Reeves, Garvie, Pullen, Hartwell, and Minich in favor. APPOINTMENT TO BEAUTIFICATION COMMITTEEITREE BOARD Consideration of appointment to the Beautification Com it e T/ ree Board. The Mayor opened the floor for nomination to appoint a member for the unexpired term until August 21, 2010. Mr. Minich nominated Michael Jimmerson. The Mayor called for the vote on the nomination to appoint Michael Jimmerson, 4 Ferry Road NE, to the Beautification CommitteelTree Board for the unexpired term until August 21, 2010 and it carried unanimously with Holmes, Miller, Reeves, Garvie, Pullen, Hartwell, and Minich in favor. APPOINTMENT TO HISTORIC SITES AND STRUCTURES ADVISORY BOARD Consideration of appointment to the Historic Sites and Structures Advisory Board. The Mayor opened the floor for nomination to appoint a member for a four-year term until September 10, 2011. Mr. Holmes nominated James Thoreen. The Mayor called for the vote on the nomination to appoint James Thoreen, 33 Anastasia Drive, to the Historic Sites and Structures Advisory Board for a four-year term until September 10, 2011 and it carried unanimously with Holmes, Miller, Reeves, Garvie, Pullen, Hartwell, and Minich in favor. APPOINTMENTS TO YOUTH COMMITTEE Consideration of appointment( s) to the Youth Committee. It was noted there are ten applications for the eleven member committee. The City Attorney confirmed, since this is the first appointment of the entire committee, that the slate of applicants can be nominated and appointed as a group.  Regular Council 9- 11- 07 140 APPOINTMENTS TO YOUTH COMMITTEE The City Clerk read the slate of names of the applicants and their graduation dates: Issac Cooper, 334 Oakland Circle, graduation June 6, 2008 ( Fort Walton Beach High School); Caitlin Corrigan, 116 Berger Place NE, graduation June 2009 ( Choctawhatchee High School); Erica Henderson, 575 L' Ombre Circle, graduation June 2010 ( Choctawhatchee High School); ~ Trey Henderson, 575 L' Ombre Circle, graduation June 2009 ( Choctawhatchee High School); Briley Jeter, 417 Cobia Avenue, graduation June 2009 ( Fort Walton Beach High School); Courtney Parker, 258 Ventura Circle NW, graduation June 6, 2008 ( Fort Walton Beach High School); Coral Pogue, 711 Power Drive, graduation June 2010 ( Choctawhatchee High School); Korie Schaeffler, 659 Fairway Avenue, graduation June 6, 2008 ( Rocky Bayou Christian School); Miller Mcinnis, 820 Country Club Avenue, graduation June 2009 ( Choctawhatchee High School) ; Lauren Richardson, 17 Magnolia Avenue, graduation June 2010 ( Choctawhatchee High School) Mr. Minich moved to appoint the slate of applicants to serve on the Youth Committee until their graduation from high school. Dr. Pullen seconded motion and it carried unanimously with Holmes, Miller, Reeves, Garvie, Pullen, Hartwell, and Minich in favor. MAYOR/COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS Mr. Miller read the " Seven Steps to Stagnation: 1) We have never done it that way before; 2) We are not ready for that; 3) We are doing all right without trying that; 4) We tried it once before; 5) We don' t have the money; 6) It's not our job; and 7) Something like that won' t work around here". He commented the population has been at 20, 000 since 1980 and to him that is stagnation. He said the City will need to do something different and think outside the box and decide whether or not it is going to be a gated community or be a progressive city to provide the best services they can for the citizens. He thought the City is going in the right direction and expressed his pride in what the City has done. Mr. Garvie mentioned the Sustainable Emerald Coast Community Workshop he attended August 30th and recommended anyone interested in the outlook for the area for the next 20- 30 years to attend the next workshop when it is held. Dr. Pullen mentioned that Head Start is holding a golf tournament on October 14th and he is going to sponsor a team; anyone interested in playing on the team can contact the City Clerk. Dr. Pullen wished to know the length of time a person has to wait to make a new application to serve on a Board or Committee once they have served two terms. The City Attorney replied there is no requirement. ~ Dr. Pullen generated discussion on the IT email addresses given to Council members and expressed concern about the privacy of his personal email correspondence. The question was posed whether the contents of email is public information. Dave Jensen, IT Director, explained the City emails are archived in case there is a records request they can be researched. He mentioned it has been set up for Dr. Pullen' s email to be automatically directed to his personal email account and the incoming email is archived but any responses going through his personal account will not be archived. Dr. Pullen commented he would send any responses to the City Clerk to become public record and it will be archived. Regular Council 9- 11- 07 141 MAYOR/COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS cont. The City Attorney explained the problem with Council receiving email directly to their personal account without it going through the City system and being retained is that the private computer is subject to the public records law as well. The IT Director commented there was, and still is, an email account to City Council that went to the City Clerk who would in turn either forward the email or print it out and place in their boxes. He said the account still exists but is not posted on the web site any longer; it was removed and replaced with the individual email accounts. The City Attorney advised if the public email is out there it subjects everything on their private computer to the public records law as well; so responses back and forth are not private, they cannot be considered private, and anything done in connection with the business as a Councilman is public record. The Mayor questioned whether remote access to the account makes that computer subject to the public records law. The IT Director commented the email is reviewed remotely and it is not downloaded that The City Manager clarified it is remotely accessing the City' s to computer. would be the City' account. The City Attorney mentioned if it account and any response through s is forwarded to a personal email account and they respond from a personal email account, it is not She noted, in everything done as a Councilperson is subject to public records. private. general, It was suggested each Council member contact the IT Director to work out their email for city business. Dr. Pullen discussed the Vision Plan of the City and commented Council has a responsibility to use the Vision Plan of the citizens and not go forward with their own agenda. Dr. Pullen referenced Res. 07- 17 which Council approved on August 22nd concerning the CDBG Entitlement for Fiscal Year 07. He said he requested a list of CAC members because he never heard of that committee and he was informed it was an informal committee and no minutes are records that kept. He asked who established the Committee and the City Clerk could not find any the committee was ever officially appointed by the Council and the Charter is very clear that all committees have to be appointed by Council; this committee never existed officially. He said on June 13. during consideration of that resolution there was reference to a committee meeting 2007. He said the problem is that the CAC was never established so is it a legal committee, was anything done by action of this committee legal and it appears that the meeting that was supposed to have taken place on June 13th was not properly noticed. He said his problem is that he cannot to Council may verify that anyone attended that meeting and it appears that what was presented have been bogus or made up because he did not believe that committee ever met yet Council acted upon the recommendations of that committee to make a decision. He asked the legal ramifications of Council actions based on a fabricated or bogus meeting and was it legal. He commented what was interesting is that they did not have to have the meeting to request the funds and questioned why a meeting was referenced that was not even held. He questioned the credibility of what was presented to Council and if it was illegal. The City Attorney said she has not spoken with the City Manager or the CDS Director, but in her review of the materials regarding the CDBG, the committee was established as a staff level it advisory committee; it was not a committee that was required legally for the grant requirements, was a committee set up to advise staff about how to spend the CDBG funds. She said because of that formation of the committee they are not a committee authorized by the City Council and are not under the same requirements of keeping meetings and public notice. She said whether or not that they, as a Council, accepted the suggestions of that citizen advisory committee is valid because had a they of it, but any further implications is up to the Council. presentation  Regular Council 9- 11- 07 142 MAYOR/COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS cont. Dr. Pullen stated he had no objections to receiving $ 128, 000 but just wanted to make sure they requested the entitlement in the proper manner and it was legal in what they did, so he raised the question. The City Attorney said she saw no problem, from her review, no legal problem with the request and the way that the recommendations were formulated and set out to the Council. She said as a policy consideration whether or not that citizen advisory committee should have been more formal is up to the Council; but there has never been any question about it in her time with fueC~~ ~ Mr. Hartwell commented on the hard work of all the volunteers who planted over 2700 plants at the Sound Park and invited everyone to the ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday, September 28th at 10: 00 am. Mr. Minich mentioned the pancake breakfast held at the Legion Hall to raise funds to help a couple who send supplies to the troops in Afghanistan or Iraq. Dr. Pullen mentioned an open house at the Head Start Center where they will honor Tom Rice' s mother-in- law. The