Fort Walton Beach Council agenda — 03-27-2007 regular agenda — reading text

OF A TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE . . The M<:Iyor advised that at the of COllncilman Holmes to look into the establishment of a suggestioI') citizen ad- hoc committee that would address all downtown traffic issues, several points were brought forward for Council discussion, along with a draft resolution. Tom Murray,. p,ublic Works Director, discussed the topics to consider in the forma! ion of such a committee, inCluding the purpQse, whether it will be ad- hoc or standing; objectives; and the georaphicCl<:rea to pe covered. Also the composition, inCluding' the desired cross section of the' community that wollld best serve the committee; what existing community organizations shoulq be represented; and what committee size will be sufficient. f. Mr; Murray alsopre~~nte~. o/:~; i~ CU$ SiOn p~rposes a draft resolution which described the pUrpose andcoriipositio/ l ofth~ prdpo$~ corj1mittE3e~ . . . d J;.: ,". ..... " .;:..:.<'\ ';:....>.:/ .:..-~<:-.:.:~:. ~",':'''''': '.;:'''';..>.;\."::." .... COllnCiI questio.h~ CitHe' hUfnb~/ ofF6rt 'Walton Beach residents currently oh the TPO' s Citjzeh' s Advi~oiy Committee, pearl Covey; 270 Brooks' StteefSE ahdi1]'ember of the Citizens' Advisory Committee, advised there are three ihdividuals, ,including himself; on the committee, and the total p number of individuals on the committee are approximately 20 persons. Doug Reed, 842 Santa Rosa Court, felt the idea of a citizen ad- hoc is a good idea as it will provide citizens an opportunity to have input as well as obtain information on what the City is planning to' do i i with infrastructure in relation to streets and roads. . - ' J Dr. Pullen noted the nU'11Qe[ of ad- hoc cQmmittees the City presently has, and suggested that if the wntoWn area, the CRA Board of Commissioners appoint a Committee of One issue is traffic in the d() to research the issue then bring it back to the CRA Board for discussion, then, ifneeded" form an ad- hoc committee. 204 Council Workshop 3- 13- 07 FORMATION OF A TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE Mr. Holmes stated his thoughts that this is an issue that may be city-wide further down the road, and he is not sure that the CRA needs additional tasks at this time. He stated he is also looking for a different make- up for the committee. Discussion ensued whether the committee would be tasked to study traffic primarily in the CRA area or on a city-wide basis, and whether other issues, such as parking, landscapi,ng, etc., should be considered. The City Attorney distinguished between an ad- hoc and a standing committee, stating a specific duty and time frame is needed for an ad- hoc committee that states when it begins and the time the committee has to make its findings. She further explained that if the CRA is made speCific to the committee, the goals of' the committee would include the jurisdictional issues since some recommendations may be made that cannot be implemented because of FOOT roadways that are not under ,City jurisdiction, and they do not want a committee making recommendations that cannot be carried out by Council. Also discussed by the City Attomey were the Committees of One that were formed on two other boards as research committees, and if a Committee of One were formed for traffic study purposes, the issue of public input may not be met because one person would be gathering the information. She also discussed the issues of having an odd- number board to prevent lack of quorums, and that if the committee is a standing committee with ongoing recommendations, they need to be specified as to how they will be brought forward to Council. The City Manager advised it was her understanding the Committee was to be a mechanism to gain citizen input and noted that the downtown merchants voiced their strong opposition regarding the suggested one- way pairs and left turns downtown. Discussion included that public input can be gained from having Council workshops which could or could not involve' the CRA, the Chamber of Commerce, and downtown merchants. ' Mr. Holmes offered that for many years there has never been a positive direction or plan taken regarding traffic, that plans taken to the FOOT were never followed through and he fears that if a plan is not taken, the traffic problem will continue for many years to come. Mr. Holmes cited the success of the Museum Ad- Hoc Committee and the positive results the committee had in a short time in being tasked with only one goal. Bob Rettie, 317 Sudduth Circle, suggested the topic be an agenda item for the neighborhood meetings and that public input can be gained through those meetings. The Mayor questioned what action Council wanted to take. The City Manager reiterated the issues pointed out by the City Attorney, including whether the committee be standing or ad- hoc, and what exactly the goal of the committee should be. The City Attorney suggested Mr. Holmes have some ideas where he would like to start so that a resolution can be formed ,around his suggestions. Mr. Holmes stated his feeling the committee should be focused on traffic in the downtown area, though not be focused solely on the CRA. Consensus of Council was for Mr. Holmes and the City Manager to get together and discuss his proposed ideas and that a resolution be formed and brought forward to Council. Freddie Jones, First City Bank, stated his thoughts that traffic is critical to downtown in that merchants want to be able to showcase their shops and businesses. He also stated this feeling that the City is pedestrian friendly and easily accessible.  Council Workshop 3- 13- 07 205 PROPERTY TAX ISSUES- FLOC LEGISLATIVE UPDATE The Mayor wanted to inform the Council of discussion by the Florida legislature to roll back the millage rate and a constitutional amendment to replace homestead exemptions with a sales tax, both of which would have a devastating impact on Florida cities by reducing services to pay for the cuts in revenue. He explained the combined Millage Roll- Back and Homestead/ Sales Tax would result in a 3. 7 million decrease ahd would impact on the City' s finances and ability to continue current services, forcing the City to implement considerable labor cuts or eliminate services/ programs, including public safety. The City Manager advised that the Florida League of Cities advocated in a resolution endorsed by Council to allow municipalities home rule authority; to let cities continue to have a vote on the tax rate. She advised that property tax is the primary source of funding for the City' s police officers and and the City has maintained or reduced its millage rate while enhanCing quality of life for firefighters, its citizens. . The City Manager stressed that serious decisions will have to be made by the City on these issues, and that the Senate is not supportive of the sales tax increase, and that onlya part of the proposal will be considered, but it will be at least 60 days when the legislature is completed until the decision is known. ADJOURNMENT Being no further business, the meeting adJourned at 6: 25 p. m. APPROVED: Y" MAYOR: j ATTEST: CITY CLERK t: '>. Ive  207 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING OF THE CITY OF FORT WALTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 13, 2007 INTRODUCTION A regular meeting of the City Council of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, was held on Tuesday, March 13, '2007, at 7: 00 p. m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, with the following members present:' Mayor Mike Anderson j Councilmen: Mike Holmes, William Patterson, Bob Campbell, Jim Tucker ( arrived at 8: 25 pm). Dr. Wayne Pullen, and Mike Minich Absent: Jim Hartwell Also Present: Joyce Shanahan, City Manager; Helen Spencer, City Clerk ( arrived at 8: 30 pm); Lisa Absher, Finance Director; Toni Craig, City Attorney; Department Directors and Media. CALL TO ORDER The Mayor called the mE? eting to order and welcomed everyone. He requested anyone who wished to ci'ddress Councilto approach' the podium' after being recognized, then state his or her name and addressfbr the record_. INVocATION Pastor Jeff Rouff, Living Hope Church, gave the invocation. PLEDGE Youth from Living Hope Church led in the Pledge of Allegiance. PROCLAMATION - ALGER BlELLO The Mayor presented a proClamation to Alger Biello upon his retirement from the Golf Course. REPRESENTATIVE RAY SANSOM PROCLAMATION..,. The Mayor pr~sented a proclamation to Representative Ray Sansom commending him on his accomplishments in the Florida House of Representatives. SPECIAL GUEST - REPRESENTATIVE RAY SANSOM Representative Ray Sam;om mentioned the issues being ussed dis(; by the legislators - for propertyJax relief and proPE?rty tax reform with a change in the law for a millage roll- back on nbn- horT18stead 'property a[ld , a, cOllstitutional amendment to replace the homestead exemption with 'as,?; I~ s tax. H$'gave9ssurCince that the legislature is committed 100% to working with the citVarid_countygoy~rh'tn.e6ts on the issues., ' ' CONSENT AGENDA, . " Mr. Minich ' mp~ ed, to' approve, the foHowingconsent agenda items. Mr. Patterson seconded motiohand it carried unanimously with Holmes, Patterson,