Fort Walton Beach Council agenda — 09-21-2010 Special-City Attorney Selection — reading text

Walton County Board of County Commissioners from January 2007 through January 2010. During this time, the Town of Cedar Grove retained Burke Blue to provide legal counsel as the city dissolved. This was a historic moment for our firm since Cedar Grove was the first Florida city to dissolve. Representation of these local governments included the handling all legal issues pertaining to local government law, including but not limited to Florida Public Records Law, land use law, including comprehensive planning & zoning, community development and community redevelopment agencies, general litigation, administrative hearings, and appeals. W.C. Henry was Chief Assistant Manatee County Attorney until 2003 when he joined Burke Blue' s Local Government Law Division. He was directly involved in myriad issues concerning Manatee County' s two public beaches and the County' s Marine Rescue Division, Parks and Recreation, boating, tax, risk management, and environmental matters. He is well  versed in all aspects of local government law and the Florida Sunshine and public meetings laws. W. C. is no stranger to the Panhandle, having served two tours at Tyndall Air Force Base, the last being as Chief of the Air Force Utility Litigation Team. He handled much of the day -to -day Bay County and Walton County legal work, including reviewing contracts and Request for Proposals for building projects. He currently provides legal advice and litigation services to the Northwest Florida Regional Planning Council, the Bay County Transportation Planning Organization, and the Panama City Housing Authority. He and his wife reside in Panama City Beach. Since 1998, Mike Burke has been a member of Burke Blue' s Local Government Law Division. He has represented a number of local governments including, but not necessarily limited to, the Bay County Board of County Commissioners ( including the various administrative boards such as the Planning Commission, Code Enforcement Board, etc.), Lake Powell Residential GolfCommunity Development District (Wild Heron community and Sharks Tooth Golf Club), Walton County Tourist Development Council, the Walton County Board of County Commissioners ( including the Planning Commission), the Panama City Housing Authority, the Panama City Community Redevelopment District, the Town of Cedar Grove and recently as special counsel to the City of Panama City Beach. Mike concentrates his practice in the areas of local government law, land use, administrative boards and civil litigation. Dustin N. Dailey joined Burke Blue in January of 2007, and also became member of the Burke Blue Local Government Law Division. Dustin was responsible for providing legal counsel and legal opinions to the Walton County Code Enforcement staff and assisting with the prosecution of code enforcement violations. Also, Dustin provided assistance with the general litigation files, including Bert Harris claims; drafting county leases, contracts and agreements; and drafting county ordinances and resolutions. Under direction from the Walton County Board of County Commissioners, Dustin was also primarily responsible for the collection of testimony, evidence and legal support to establish the public' s customary use of the white sandy areas of Walton County' s beaches. Denise H. " Dede" Rowan has also been a member of Burke Blue' s Local Government Law Division. Dede' s primary expertise is in the employment law field, where she has presented seminars on topics including proper handling of employment law claims by employers, a drug -free work place, and guidelines for employers to properly follow workers compensation procedure. During Burke Blue' s representation of the Bay County Board of County Commissioners, Dede assisted with the Bay County Code Enforcement, Construction Industry Advisory Council, Bay County Planning Commission and served as counsel to the Bay County Value Adjustment Board. Dede also played a vital role in the representation of the Town of Cedar Grove. Michael J. Henry joined Burke Blue in 2009. Michael lives in Destin with his wife, Elizabeth. Michael will assist the Local Government Law Division by providing local knowledge and legal support to the City.  A.3. Work Load. There are no known scheduling conflicts at this time. A.4. Proximity of Local Office. Our firm will serve the City ofFort Walton Beach from two of our three offices. Our Sandestin office was first established in 1992 and moved to its current location in 1999. This office is approximately 18 miles from City Hall. Our Panama City Beach office was first established in 2002 and moved to its current location just this year. This office is approximately 48 miles from City Hall. During our recent representation of Walton County, the distance between our office and the administrative offices was not an issue. A.5. Identify Potential Conflicts of Interest. There are no known conflicts of interest. A.6. Fees and Charges: With regard to billing, our intent is to provide the City with a level of certainty of costs for budgeting purposes; therefore, Burke Blue proposes a monthly retainer of $9, 000 which will include the firm' s attendance at all City meetings and for providing routine legal representation to the City Commission and the various departments each month. For matters which are not routine, for example litigation, administrative hearings, the representation of the City for non -routine contract negotiations, or special projects Burke Blue will bill the City according to the Fee Schedule attached hereto. Prior to engaging in any non -routine work or special projects, Burke Blue will address the issue with the City Manager or City Commission, whichever is appropriate. If the City desires a different form of billing, then Burke Blue is open to consideration of a mutually acceptable fee agreement. BURKE BLUE 2010 FEE SCHEDULE ATTORNEY RATE PER HOUR William C. Henry 200 Michael S. Burke 200 Dustin N. Dailey 175 Denise H. Rowan 175 Michael J. Henry 150 PARALEGAL Paralegal fees are billed at $ 75 per hour. TRAVEL Extraordinary travel is billed at one -half the hourly rate published above for each attorney. Extraordinary travel is defined as travel related to the representation ofthe City which occurs outside of Okaloosa County, but does not include the normal travel from our offices to Fort Walton. COSTS Administrative costs, for example, long distance telephone, copies, and faxes are billed at 8% of the monthly bill. Other costs, for example, computer assisted legal research which is outside the firm' s Westlaw Plan, are billed at the actual cost to the firm. SECTION III MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS Must graduate from an accredited 4 -year college /university and accredited law school. All lawyers with Burke Blue have graduated from accredited colleges and law schools. Must be in good standing with the Florida Bar. All lawyers with Burke Blue are in good standing with the Florida Bar. Experience. The members of Burke Blue' s Local Government Law Division are familiar with the broad range of legal issues pertaining to municipal government law, and collectively bring extensive experience in local government law. SECTION IV SCOPE OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES Burke Blue' s sixteen attorneys are prepared and have the capability to handle all general counsel /legal matters that may be assigned to it by the City. Burke Blue attorneys are admitted in and have authority to practice in all courts in the State of Florida, as well as United States District Courts, Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of the United States. Provide at least three ( 3) related references, including company name, contact person and phone numbers. Keith Howard Mike Thomas, Bay County Commissioner 185 Grand Boulevard, Suite 100 17544 Front Beach Road Sandestin, FL 32550 Panama City Beach, FL 32413 Tel. 850 -837 -1886 Tel. 850 -234 -1942 Larry Jones, Walton County Commissioner 1483 County Highway 1087 DeFuniak Springs, FL 32433 Tel. 850 -892 -8474 Ronnie Bell, former Walton County Administrator (ret.) 8474 County Highway 183 Ponce de Leon, FL 32455 Tel. 850- 836 -4307 Lynn M. Hoshihara, Walton County Attorney (Interim) 161 Sloss Ave. DeFuniak Springs, FL 32433 Tel. 850 -892 -8110  RFQ FOR CITY ATTORNEY SERVICES PROPOSAL FOR PROVIDING PROFESSIONAL LEGAL SERVICES AS CITY ATTORNEY CITY OF FORT WALTON BEACH, FLORIDA Respectfully submitted, 4k)TX F. COLOWICH, EXQ, Florida Bar No.: 0977675 Law Offices of John F. Colowich 225 Main Street, Suite 7C Destin, FL 32541 850) 650 -7545 850) 650 -7590 - facsimile email: jfclaw@embargmail.com  In connection with the Request for Qualifications, the following proposal is hereby submitted for consideration by the Law Offices of John F. Colowich: Identification of Principal and Secondary Representatives. Principal/primary representative to serve as City Attorney: John F. Colowich, Esq. It is not anticipated that secondary representative would be necessary except in the case of a medical emergency. However, ifsecondary representation becomes necessary, counsel will retain other counsel, at his own expense, to attend council or other meetings in his absence. Such retained counsel would be fully advised and prepared to address any issues that may arise from the .Agenda for the particular meeting. There are no known scheduling conflicts which would in any way impair or impede providing regularly scheduled services to the City of Fort Walton Beach. 2. Qualifications_ Principal/primary representative: John F. Colowich, Esq. Education: Georgetown University, Washington DC (B.A. cum laude 1974) George Washington University, Washington DC (M.A. in Forensic Science, 1976) Loyola University, School of Law, New Orleans, LA (J. D. 1979) Bar Admissions: Florida and Louisiana Bars. Legal Experience: 31 years of practice. Admitted to Louisiana Bar in 1979, admitted to Florida Bar in 1993, admitted to United States District Courts ( N.D., FL; E.D., M..D. and W.D. Louisiana, E.D. of Texas), United States Court ofAppeals for the Fifth Circuit, United States Supreme Court.  Municipal Law Experience: Previous representation of City of Mary Esther in capacity as City Attorney for about 3 years, including attendance at workshop meetings, legislative meetings, code enforcement meetings, review and negotiate contracts on behalf of City, provide opinions as to any local ordinance conflicting with state law, obtain Attorney General opinions when requested and appropriate, provide opinions as to the legality of proposed actions taken by the City Council, monitor and assist outside counsel in litigation matters