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CALL
TO ORDER
President,
Mayor Glenda Glover, called the meeting to order at
12:01 p.m.
at Two Trees Restaurant in
Fort Walton Beach
.
PRESENT
Mayor
Norm Frucci – Cinco Bayou
Mayor
Glenda Glover –
Fort Walton Beach
(President)
Councilwoman
Fay Miller – Laurel Hill (
Vic
e President)
Mayor
John Thomas – Mary Esther
Councilman
Al Swihart – Niceville
Commissioner
Elaine Tucker
–
Okaloosa
County
Town
Manager Tom Burns – Shalimar
Commissioner
Heyward Strong –
Valparaiso
ALSO
PRESENT
Mack
Gay – Institute of Senior Professionals
Tina
Smith, Deputy Town Clerk – Shalimar
NOT
PRESENT
Mayor
Craig Barker – Destin
Councilwoman
Brenda Bush – Crestview
MINUTES
Mayor
Thomas moved to accept the minutes from the
May
3, 2004
meeting as written. Councilwoman
Miller seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
TREASURER’S
REPORT
Mayor
Glover reported a balance of $2,690.27 after lunches were paid
for last month. Commissioner
Strong moved to accept the Treasurer’s Report.
Mayor Thomas seconded the motion and it passed
unanimously.
UNFINISHED
BUSINESS
Clean
Water Project update
– Mayor Barker was not present at the meeting but Mayor Glover
reminded everyone that Mayor Barker mentioned at the May meeting
that he would like to have another meeting some time soon.
Voter’s
Guide update
– Commissioner Strong related that he did not have his draft
completed yet but that he would have it at the next Executive
Board Meeting for everyone to look at.
Express
Track Data, LLC (Social Security Numbers) Resolution – Mayor Glover informed everyone that the
City of Fort Walton Beach passed a resolution to be forwarded to
the Florida League of Cities asking that the Florida Legislature
review or change the laws to disallow Commercial entities to
access Social Security Numbers held by local agencies.
Mayor Glover also reported that a copy of this resolution
is in the packet. There
was some discussion and Commissioner Tucker was asked what she
had learned. She
stated that it is her understanding that anyone can have their
Social Security Number removed from the list by showing another
form of picture I.D. but this would only remove the numbers from
the county’s records, not from lists that had already been
received.
NEW
BUSINESS
Florida
Greenway Resolution - Mayor
Glover stated that
Fort Walton Beach
’s
Council unanimously passed a resolution supporting the
conservation of the Northwest Florida Greenway.
Schedule
July’s meeting - (
July 5, 2004
should be a holiday for most
because July 4 is on a Sunday) – Mayor Glover pointed out that
the next meeting would need to be either rescheduled or
canceled. After some
discussion, it was decided that anything pressing could be
discussed at the Quarterly dinner meeting.
Crestview will host the dinner and Clerk
Tina Smith
will find out the date of that
dinner meeting and e-mail the information to everyone.
Mayor Glover also mentioned that she felt the local
legislators should be invited to these dinners.
She will contact Mayor Whitehurst regarding this matter.
Mayor
Glover added that there was a request mentioned to her at the
Summer Dinner that the League should invite Sheriff Charlie
Morris to the dinner and recognize him in some way.
He recently sent a deputy to the airport to pick up
Attorney General Charlie Christ.
Everyone agreed that, instead of honoring Sheriff Morris
at a dinner meeting, it would more appropriate for Mayor Glover
to send him some sort of “Thank You” card from the League.
ANNOUNCEMENTS/REPORTS
FROM CITIES
Mayor
Glover asked that everyone please limit their City Reports to a
few brief bullets about their cities.
Basically restrict it to what would normally be reported
in the meetings. If
anyone is interested in getting more information about your
city, they can e-mail you and request it.
At
this point, Doug Barr from the Northwest Florida Water
Management District gave his presentation.
Cinco
Bayou – Nothing to
report
Crestview
– Councilmember Bush was not in attendance.
Destin
– Important and
Significant Topics of The past 30 days (
June 4, 2004
)
GFOA Distinguished Budget Presentation Award
The GFOA Distinguished Budget Presentation Award has been
presented to the City of
Destin
for the
FY2004 Budget in recognition of having attained the highest
standards in governmental budgeting.. City Staff began efforts
to pursue the Government
Finance
Officer’s
Association or GFOA, Distinguished Budget Presentation Award
last year. The
GFOA is an association of over 14,000 government finance
professionals throughout
North America
. The award
signifies an agency’s commitment to the highest standards of
budget practices and recognizes the efforts made by the City
Council and staff to achieve the goal of exemplary budget
practices and presentation.
This is the highest
award given in governmental budgeting. The award ensures
that the City has satisfied nationally recognized guidelines for
budget preparation and presentation which assess how well the
document created serves the City residents as a:
Policy document
A financial plan
An operations guide
And a communications device
D-Day Memorial at the Destin
Library
Destin
Library
held a very
touching D-Day memorial program on June 2nd, with 40 people in
attendance, including 5 local Veterans who landed in
Normandy
60 years ago.
The program started with our own
Bob Horner
on the
bagpipes and followed by veterans, including former Fort Walton
Beach Mayor Bob Gates, who eloquently narrated their experiences
at D-Day. All who
were present were moved by this program of reliving history.
The
Economic Impact of Destin Tourism on
Okaloosa
County
A
study authorized by City Council in the 2003/04 budget cycle,
has been completed by The University of West Florida’s
Haas
Center
for Business
Research and Economic Development.
Among the key findings of the study are that Destin’s
overnight visitors represent 39% of the total economic impact of
tourists in
Okaloosa
County
, generate
approximately $188 million in total local sales, and cost the
City of
Destin
approximately
$2.5 million annually.
Launch of New TV Show, Destin Focus
Grab your popcorn, secure the remote and watch the City of
Destin
’s first ever TV show, Destin Focus, on channel 6. Each
show will feature an elected official and a staff member
discussing topics the City is focusing on that have a
significant impact on Destin residents and their quality of
life. The first episode showcased Mayor
Craig Barker
and City Manager,
Greg Kisela
and is being
repeated until June 24th.
The next broadcast will be Thursday, June 10th
at
6:00pm
.
June’s show will feature Councilor
Sam Seevers
and Chief
Tuffy Dixon of the Destin Fire Control District discussing the
new beach flag warning system, new flag poles, and the new beach
patrols along the Destin beaches.
This beach safety show will first air on Thursday, June
24th at
6pm
.
Adoption of the Corridor Management Plan
Except for the use of the discontinuous array of back
roads in the interior of the City, the only east/west access
local residents have is the congested US Highway 98. The
City Council has attempted to achieve a consensus on an
alternative means of interior access for its residents for many
years. An overarching goal has been for such access to be
compatible with the neighborhoods it traverses - a corridor that
serves the needs of pedestrians, bicyclists, the neighborhoods,
as well as local vehicle trips. The City Council achieved
this long-standing goal this month with the adoption of the
entire 5 mile length of corridor that extends across the entire
east/west breadth of the City. Segments of this corridor
are expected to be developed within the next 2 to 3 years in a
manner that will enhance the adjacent neighborhoods while
providing long-needed safer, more efficient, local access.
The Public Workshop and Hearing for the Establishment of
an Erosion Control Line (ECL) for the
Destin
Beach
Restoration Project
A hearing for the establishment of the ECL between
Henderson
Beach
State Park
and the
Okaloosa/Walton County line was conducted Tuesday, June 1, at
Destin
City Hall
.
Certified notifications of the workshop were mailed to
488 upland riparian property owners within the project site on
Thursday, April 29. Included
with the notification of the June 1st workshop and hearing was a
complete legal description of the ECL and information on how to
view the ECL aerials on the City’s website or how to obtain a
copy from City Hall. Approximately
75 people attended the meeting, including upland property
owners, Council members, city staff, representatives of the DEP,
and interested citizens.
Project Engineer Rajesh Srinivas of Taylor
Engineering
conducted the
workshop portion and explained the project scope, the Erosion
Control Line (ECL), the State statutes supporting it, and
answered questions. At
7 p.m.
the public
hearing was called to order by DEP’s General Counsel Mark
Miller. Announcing
that he would keep the hearing open until everyone that desired
had spoken, he heard comments from property owners both for and
against the establishment of the ECL.
The comment period lasted approximately an hour.
Mr. Miller will receive written public comments concerning
the legal establishment of the ECL for thirty days, at which
time he will make his recommendation to the Board of Trustees of
the Governor’s Office for a final ruling.
Airport information meeting at City Hall for Tuesday, June
8
Destin has a very active Airport nestled among several
long established residential neighborhoods. Residents have
become increasingly aware of and concerned about airport
growth and perceived increase in airport-related noise and aircraft
emissions. The City Council directed staff to enhance the
lines of communication and coordination between the residents,
airport officials, and the City to accomplish the following:
to develop a common understanding of
neighborhood concerns and airport limitation,
to recommend supplemental development standards that will
improve compatibility between new and existing airport
development and operations and neighboring neighborhoods, and
to create a permanent mechanism for continuing
communication and coordination of issues of mutual concern to
residents, the airport, and the City
As a part of this problem resolution process, several things are being
done:
-
The
airport has initiated a Part 150 Noise Study to be
completed in 12 to 18 months
-
The
City has conducted a series of information-sharing
meetings between the airport officials, resident
representatives, and City staff
-
A
community information workshop is scheduled for Tuesday,
June 8 at
7 PM
in
Destin
City
Hall
to
bring the residents up to date on the plans and
progress of the noise study, as well as the pending update
of the Airport Master Plan, both sponsored by
Okaloosa
County
City of
Destin
employees help preserve the
Primrose
The commercial fishing seine net boat Primrose was built
of Juniper wood in 1924 near the current site of the East Pass
Marina. Over several
decades, the Primrose provided a good livelihood for its crew of
six. After its
seagoing days were over, it became a longtime fixture at
Destin’s Community Center.
It also became the center piece of Destin’s
Fishing
Museum
and a
tangible reminder of Destin’s fishing history.
Despite being out of the water and under shelter, time,
termites, and near terminal wood rot took their toll the 34 foot
wooden boat. The
Primrose was collapsing around its keel.
Long time Destin resident Capt. Reddin “Salty” Brunson
was one of the crew of the Primrose as a young man back in the
1920’s. He once
saved the boat from certain sinking by clenching rags around a
broken and severely leaking rudder barrel while the other crew
managed to pump out the water and navigate to shore.
Now to the present, Brunson knew quick action was needed
if he was to save the Primrose again and he needed help.
He approached City Manager,
Greg Kisela
with a plan,
a program and a plea. The
90 year old Brunson would provide the materials and the know how
to rebuild the Primrose, but he needed man power.
Kisela responded by offering the services of Public Works
and Recreation Department employees.
The City Manager says, “It was both an honor and
privilege to pay our respect to the folks who came before us by
preserving this important part of the City's heritage."
Under Brunson’s guidance, the project, a major rebuild
of the Primrose took about two months to near completion.
Public Works Technician,
Noell Bell
, already a
skilled carpenter said, “It was a real learning experience.”
Now thanks to the efforts of Capt. Brunson, City of
Destin
Employees
, and a host
of volunteers, the Primrose will be preserved for future
generations to experience.
City Clerk
We’ve
received our scanning equipment and our whole department
received training on scanning and Indexing records, which will
be a large focus for our departmental goals in the upcoming
years. There would be a lot of front end work but in the
long run, it should make all of our jobs easier and records
retrieval system much smoother.
Dana and Steven Linzy are working on a replacement for it.
So we are “on hold” at the moment
Community Dev
elopment
·
Progressed with Harbor CRA Mediation with
Okaloosa
County
·
Initiated a work program to streamline the development review process
Deputy
City
Manager
·
Finalizing the E-Gov contract for a July implementation.
·
Updated the Police Feasibility Study.
·
Begun the
Grace
Lutheran
Church
parcel and
YMCA site annexations.
Destin
Library
Besides
our ongoing computer classes, book discussion groups, and
children’s programs:
·
We completed our outdoor Spring Brown Bag Luncheon Series, which is
designed to acquaint people in the community with a variety of
topics, from Tai Chi and Yoga to Researching your family tree.
·
We sent representatives to
Panama City
to attend a
Hospitality Worker Literacy training work
shop
. Destin
Library
plans to
implement this program by next Spring. It will be run by
volunteer tutors who will educate our area’s increasing number
of foreign workers in the hospitality industry.
·
We issued 170 new library cards to foreign nationals seeking internet
access for emailing their friends and family in their home
countries. This year’s student workers are coming
predominantly from
Russia
.
ENGINEERING
·
Community Center Roof Repairs
The
Council approved the proposal from Bel-Mac Roofing, Inc to
repair the roof and exterior leaks at the Community Center.
The total cost of the project is $72,000.00 and is on
schedule to begin by the end of May.
The project is expected to be completed in approximately
30 days or by
July 1, 2004
.
·
Stormwater Master Plan
Jones
Edmunds & Associates, Inc. has delivered 10 copies of the
final Stormwater Master Plan for the City of
Destin
. The plans
are waiting for the section dividers to be inserted before
distribution. Council
will be presented the plan at a Workshop, planned for
5:00 pm
prior to the
regular meeting on
June 7, 2004
.
·
Scenic Highway 98 Phase I
Scenic
Highway 98 Improvements project Phase I, from
Matthew Blvd
to Pompano
St. Work includes
parking, pedestrian/bicycle, landscaping and stormwater
management improvements.The final walk-through inspection of the
Scenic Highway 98 Improvements Phase I project was scheduled for
Friday June 4,
2004
at
10:00 am
.
·
Student Volunteer Intern
Engineering
is pleased to
have Robin Pierson working as a volunteer summer intern
assisting
Engineering
and GIS with
Wetlands Delineation. She
is volunteering 8 hours/week to complete the course Practicum in
Environmental Studies at the
University
of
West Florida
.
The course requires a minimum of 60 volunteer hours.
·
Several projects in the planning and design stage include
o
Beach Dr. Roadside Parking Improvements at Mattie Kelly Park.
o
Scenic 98 Roadside Improvements Phase II.
o
Emerald Coast
Parkway
Sidewalk
Project.
o
Traffic Signal at the Intersection of
Main St.
&
98 Palms Blvd.
o
Round-a-bout at Mountain Dr. & Benning Dr.
o
Turn Lane from
U.S. Hwy.
98 E. onto
Airport Rd.
o
Turn Lane Extension from
U.S. Hwy.
98 E. onto
Main St
.
Grants and Projects
·
Harbor pump funding and HMGP grant extension
·
Closeouts and final reimbursements for Hazard Mitigation Grant
Projects: Airport
Road
Drainage (reimbursement from
Okaloosa
County
for local
share); Heritage Run Drainage (State and Federal shares)
·
Capital Improvement Projects budget for 2005
·
Stormwater grant applications
·
Grant application to Trust for Public Lands -- reimbursement for beach
property
·
Renovation plans for old library
·
Renovation plans for
Grace
Lutheran
Church
building
Human Resource
·
Senior Managers Retreat
We have been working on two half-day retreats for Senior
Managers. Team
building among the Senior Management Staff as well as
implementation planning for items that were discussed during the
2004 Visioning Retreat (Mayor, Council and Staff attended) fill
out the agenda for the Managers retreat (agendas follow).
June
25th
Phase
I Senior Manager Retreat (4) hour training session
Training
Modules:
Myers-Briggs
Team
Building
Conflict
Resolution
Beliefs,
Values, & Expectations
July
9th
Phase
II Senior Manager Retreat (4) hour training session
Training
Modules:
Prioritizing/Implementation
Strategic
Planning (Depts. & Org.)
Action
Plans (Depts. & Org.)
Staff
is working with the
Whitman
Center
for Public
Service,
Institute
of
Government
at the
University
of
West Florida
.
The Whitman Center Staff will be facilitating the each
retreat.
Human Resource (continued)
Action
plans for items that were discussed during the 2004 Visioning
retreat have been prepared by staff to be used during the
retreat. The
following action plans have been developed:
Topic
Dept. OPR
Funding
for Staffing
Recreation
City
Facilities
Recreation
Branch
Library
Library
Financial
Challenges
Finance
Transportation
Community Dev
elopment
Community
Redevelopment Agency
Community Dev
elopment
Beach
& Water Issues (Safety
& Access)
City Manager
Water
Quality
Engineering
Affordable
Housing
Community Dev
elopment
Maintaining
Viable Neighborhoods
Community Dev
elopment
Other
Issues
City Manager
·
Customer Service
We strongly believe there is a direct correlation between the
effectiveness of our internal operations and the product we
provide to the public. Consequently,
as an adjunct to our Customer Service initiative which focused
primarily on external customers, we began to look at the
effectiveness at which we serve each other internally.
Suggestions for improving our internal customer service
were solicited from all employees.
A number of the suggestions offered by employees are
being incorporated into City processes.
Recreation
·
Joe's Bayou repairs modified until the season of so the facility can
be used
Public Information Manager
·
Designed Arbor Day Posters
·
Prepared “piggyback” contract for Citywide Identification Program.
First phase will
included beach access signage on Crystal Beach
·
Updated new beach flag slides at Destin Cinema and Rave Motion
Pictures at Destin
Commons agreed to display the beach flags on signs before
each movie.
·
Coordinated with beachfront property owners to encourage a grassroots
writing campaign to the newspapers to discuss the benefits of
beach renourishment
Public Works
·
Boat Ramp repair
·
Primrose boat restoration
·
Sidewalk installations/repair at
Kelly Street
, Holiday
Isle, and
Main Street
·
Paving of
Old
Cemetery
road,
Buck
Destin
Park
driveway and
Public Works Facility
·
Memorial Day event preparation at
Old
Cemetery
·
Repair of Gulf Shore Drive Sinkhole (associated with storm water
outfall)
·
Installation of lights at
June
White
Decker
Park
·
Comprehensive renovation of Clement Taylor Park
·
Annual Spring Clean Up
Eglin
Air Force Base –
No one from Eglin attended the meeting.
Fort Walton Beach
–
·
Landing
Improvements -Irrigation and power requirements completed
throughout project site. The
concrete pathway on the east side of the Landing has been
installed. The site has been prepared for the Bowlegs festival
including general mowing and trimming maintenance to the new
lawn areas.
·
Virus Protection
– Staff monitored the
effects of viruses on the City Network.
Over 645 infected e-mails were blocked from entering the
City’s network this week along with 2,690 SPAM E-Mails.
Since
March 2, 2004
we have blocked over 9,940 infected e-mails and 10,510
SPAM E-Mails.
·
Beaver
Bridge
was dedicated with large number of neighbors in attendance.
So was the beaver!
·
Bowlegs Parade at
8pm
tonight – Monday, June 7 –
everyone welcome.
·
Kids’ Day –
Thursday, June 10 – 10am until
1pm
at our beautiful
Landing
Park
on
Brooks Street
.
·
Council’s
workshop is on Wednesday, June 9 at
5pm
to discuss CRA and CIP Projects.
Hurlburt
Field – No one
from Hurlburt attended the meeting.
Laurel
Hill – Nothing to
report
Mary
Esther –
·
At
our last workshop, the Council approved a proclamation
recognizing National Small Cities & Towns Day on June 11.
·
Tonight
the Council will vote on Social Security number resolution on
privacy of customer information, have the first reading on a
door-to-door solicitation ordinance, hear the first reading of
an ordinance on rezoning for the Andalusia Place project, decide
if the 5-year CIP is acceptable as presented, consider the VMS
contract for highway maintenance and the Boating Improvement
Agreement.
·
A site visit by DCA for the CDBG grant for renovations to the sewer treatment
facilities was conducted last month, but we are three below the
“funded” list.
·
We received two bids for auditor for the City:
Carr, Riggs & Ingram and O’Sullivan Creel.
Both firms are presenting to the Council tonight, and
selection will be made at the Legislative meeting that follows.
·
Two public hearings have been scheduled for June 14th,
one for the Council to hear about rezoning land on Mary Esther
Blvd. (next to Rex Electronics) for a car wash, and another for
a major development (Plantation Oaks).
One is in the works for prior to the June 28th
workshop for a variance for the water setback requirement.
·
Tyndall
Credit Union is open.
·
Mary Esther was
incorporated 20 years ago on
June 5th , 1984
.
It was established in 1946.
Niceville
– Nothing to report
Okaloosa
County
– Nothing to report
Shalimar
–
-
Hired another full time policeman -- town now has four full-time
policemen
- Cherokee Park now 99% complete -- installed final exercise
equipment station -- now working on front parking lot area.
-
Board begins FY2005 budget review cycle tomorrow night -- plan
to reduce millage rate
-
We expect planning modifications for the hotel
-
The Waffle House remodeling is underway
Valparaiso
– Nothing to report
NEXT
MEETING
The
Quarterly Dinner Meeting will be held in July and hosted by the
City of
Crestview
.
The next Executive Board Lunch Meeting will be held on
Monday, August 2, 2004
.
ADJOURN
Being there was no further business, the meeting adjourned at 1:10
p.m. |