City Commission Meeting Summary - July 9, 2008
The City Commission met in regular session and took the following action:
Mayor Marks recognized this as the last Commission meeting that would be attended by Ms. Dinah Hart, his Senior Aide for the past five years, and the Commission wished her well on her upcoming retirement from 31 years of employment with the City organization.
Item 1 - Accepted the presentation of the FY2007-2008 Mid-Year Progress Report from the Economic Development Council (EDC) of Tallahassee/Leon County, and thanked members of the EDC for their efforts
Ms. Beth Kirkland, EDC Executive Director, and Mr. Tripp Transou, EDC Chairman and President of Tri-Eagle Sales, presented the EDC Report
Ms. Kirkland introduced the following EDC staff:
- Mr. Travis Yelverton, Director - Existing Industry Development
- Ms. Juli Puckett, Director - Communications & Marketing
- Ms. Karen Hintz, Manager - Incentives and Board Relations
- Ms. Kara Palmer, Research and Project Administrator
The following business members appeared before the Commission and commended the work of the EDC:
- Mr. Stewart Proctor, President of Proctor & Long Commercial Real Estate
- Mr. Chuck Cliburn, President of ACS
- Mr. Doug Dunlap, President of Syn-Tech Systems, Inc. Fuelmasters
- Mr. Drew Mitchell, President of Peter Mitchell Associates in Tallahassee and T-Formation in Midway
- Mr. Allen Byington, President of ElectroNet and Big Bend Regional Healthcare Information Organization
Item 1.1 - Received a staff briefing on a map/tour of the Gaines Street Corridor and a parcel-by-parcel assessment/tracking document identifying additional needs and opportunities to enhance development opportunities, which could be used as an assessment and marketing tool, and would be placed on the City's website at http://www.talgov.com (brought forward by the Assistant to the City Manager)
Also, received a staff briefing on the status of work on the Gaines Street Corridor infrastructure, including the coordination of utilities relocations with departments and businesses, a time schedule, streamlining the permitting and development review processes, pre-permitting some of the properties, doing small area stormwater management plans to identify needed stormwater improvements, communication and marketing of City properties available for redevelopment, and encouraging existing businesses in the area to expand/redevelop and apply for façade improvement grants from the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) -- with a more detailed presentation to be brought forward at the Commission's Target Issue Workshop scheduled for September 17, 2008
Items 2-11 and 13-17 - Voted 4-0 (Commissioner Mustian absent) to approve the staff's recommendations presented in Consent Agenda Items 2-11 and 13-17, taking the following action:
Item 2 - Approved the appointment of George (Tom) Harrison to serve on the Sinking Fund Commission, to a term expiring June 2011 (as recommended by Mayor Marks)
Item 3 - Approved the appointment of Nancy Miller to serve on the Tallahassee-Leon County Planning Commission/Local Planning Agency, to a term expiring June 2011 (as recommended by Mayor Marks)
Item 4 - Approved the reappointments of Grace Dansby and Jenny Nash to serve on the Downtown Improvement Authority (DIA), to terms expiring June 2011 (as recommended by Mayor Marks)
Item 5 - Accepted the Watershed Management Policy Board 2007 Annual Report as submitted and approved Commissioner Lightsey as the City's representative to a term expiring November 30, 2009 (Option 1 as recommended by the Assistant to the City Manager)
Item 6 - Approved the purchase of 9,000 feet of underground distribution power cable from Okonite Company, pursuant to joint OUC/Lakeland/Tallahassee Underground Wire and Cable Contract #0562-OQ, in an amount not to exceed $115,000 (Option 1 as recommended by Electric Utility)
Item 7 - Approved Contract Amendment #2, in an amount not to exceed $56,000, to Task Order #1022804 with Mead & Hunt (M&H), for additional work required by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on the detail design engineering for fuse plug modifications for the Emergency Spillway Project at the Corn Hydro Electric Generating facility, for a revised total M&H Task Order amount of $384,000 (Option 1 as recommended by Electric Utility)
Item 8 - Ratified the City Manager's emergency authorization for the purchase of a used replacement circulating water pump motor for the Hopkins Unit 2 Electric Generating Plant from The Pump and Motors Works (PMW), in the amount of $57,600 plus freight and trade for 12 motors that had been identified in discussions with PMW (providing a discount savings of $180,000 for motors that were no longer in service due to the repowering of Hopkins Unit 2) (Option 1 as recommended by Electric Utility)
Item 9 - Approved the award of a construction contract for the Fire Department Training Classroom Project to Pro-Steel Buildings, Inc., low bidder meeting specifications, in the amount of $443,990 (Option 1 as recommended by the Fire Department)
Item 10 - Authorized Information Systems Services (ISS) to purchase 12 servers, installation services and maintenance for the Public Safety Systems Integration Project (PSSI) from Unisys, in the amount of $176,221; and purchase one (1) server, hardware to upgrade the existing Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) server and migration services from Motorola, in the amount of $277,260 (Option 1 as recommended by the Chief Information Systems Officer [CISO])
Item 11 - Ratified the staff's approval of the award of emergency Warehouse purchases for various maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) inventory stock, totaling $392,724.51, from Consolidated Pipe & Supply Company, in the amount of $63,055.66; from GRESCO Utility Supply, in the amount of $90,219.86; from HD Supply Utilities, in the amount of $144,424.99; and from American Meter Company, in the amount of $95,024; and authorized staff to award all future competitively sought purchases of low level MRO stock items as necessary, in an effort to avoid unnecessary delays in providing City departments with the materials necessary to carry out their daily activities (Option 1 as recommended by Procurement)
Item 12 - PULLED FROM CONSENT the recommended adoption of Resolution No. 08-R-34, relating to amending the Enterprise Zone boundaries (brought forward by Planning) - SEE BELOW
Item 13 - Approved the Capital Circle Office Complex Fund transfer, in the amount of $1,668,819.55, from Capital Circle S.E. PD&E Study Project No. 99364 to Blueprint 2000 (BP2000) (Option 1 as recommended by Public Works)
Item 14 - Accepted a check, in the amount of $160,000, from K2-Urban Corps LLC, pursuant to a Letter of Agreement between the City and the developer of Evening Rose Phase 2, Town Center Park A, and authorized staff to proceed with the design and construction of traffic signals at the intersection of Capital Circle Northeast and Exeter Road (Option 1 as recommended by Public Works/Traffic Engineering)
Item 15 - Approved the Indian Head Spirits Subdivision Plat, containing 0.62 acres subdivided into two lots, bounded on the north and south by Indian Head Acres, Block M, on the west by Chowkeebin Nene, and on the east by Dacron Drive, planned for development as residential (zoned as Residential Preservation 1) by Veronica Sehrt and Lester Brinson, the owners (as recommended by Public Works/Engineering)
Item 16 - Approved an increase of $76,029 to Community Transportation Services Contract #1726 with Sessaly Rose Transit, low bidder meeting specifications, for a total contract amount of $100,029 for the one-year period May 21, 2008 through May 20, 2009 (Option 1 as recommended by StarMetro)
Item 17 - Approved the purchase of a Closed Circuit TV Inspection System used for inspecting the City's sanitary sewer mains from Aries Industries, Inc., sole source provider, in the amount of $94,290 (Option 1 as recommended by Underground Utilities/Wastewater Operations)
Item 12 - Voted 5-0 to adopt Resolution No. 08-R-34, authorizing boundary changes to the Enterprise Zone as recommended by the Tallahassee/Leon County Enterprise Zone Development Agency (EZDA) as amended by holding the effective date of the application for 90 days (Option 1 as recommended by Planning as amended)
The following persons appeared before the Commission relative to this item:
- Ms. Beth Kirkland, Ms. Karen Hintz, and Mr. Tripp Transau, of the EDC
- Mr. John Whetsel, Chairman of EZDA
- Mr. Steve Leoni, representing Student Housing Solutions
Items 18-19 - By consensus, introduced Ordinances Nos. 08-O-53 and 08-O-54, as follows:
Item 18 was the introduction of Ordinance No. 08-O-53, which would abandon a portion of the Mission Road right-of-way, approximately 145 feet east of Yonview Drive to approximately 185 feet west of Ocala Road (agent: Wilson Miller), set for public hearing on August 20, 2008 (Option 1 as recommended by Planning).
Item 19 was the introduction of Ordinance No. 08-O-54, which would abandon a portion of the right-of-way for Otis Street, approximately 350 feet east of Chapel Drive to the west corner of Otis Street and Conradi Street (applicant: FSU Conradi; agent: Holland & Knight LLP), set for public hearing on August 20, 2008 (Option 1 as recommended by Planning).
Item 20 - Voted 5-0 to adopt the proposed Growth and Economic Stimulus Package, and authorize the Director of Growth Management to hold all Land use and Environmental Services (LUES) fees in abeyance until building permit applications are received for a maximum of ten (10) individual development projects Citywide identified by the Economic Development Council (EDC) and up to an additional five (5) projects on Gaines Street (Option 1 as recommended by Growth Management) (Note: This included the adoption of Resolution No. 08-R-33, establishing a new Growth Management Fee Schedule.)
The Commission commended Growth Management Director Bob Herman and the staff who had worked on this innovative proposal; requested that the Commission be informed on the 10 parcels that were identified; and suggested that this might lead to a policy of pre-permitting.
Item 21 - Voted 5-0 to authorize an agreement between the City and the Tallahassee Senior Citizens Foundation to provide state grant funding for improvements to the Tallahassee Senior Center - providing that the City will administer the improvements and repairs to the Tallahassee Senior Center as identified in a state grant agreement between the Foundation and the Florida Department of Elder Affairs, and the Foundation will use the Grant proceeds to reimburse the City for the cost of those repairs and improvements; and to approve an appropriation of $249,661 in the Capital Projects Fund for the costs and grant revenue provided through the agreement (Option 1 as recommended by Economic and Community Development)
Item 22 - Voted 5-0 to authorize the City Manager to execute an agreement with the Tallahassee Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) in which the Agency will provide an amount not to exceed $796,000 for the demolition of the Johns and Clemons Buildings, and to include a requirement that the City reimburse the Agency in the event the Performing Arts Center is not constructed on the subject property (Option 1 as recommended by Economic and Community Development)
Item 23 - Voted 5-0 to approve and authorize staff to execute contracts for the abatement and demolition of buildings purchased from the State of Florida (IFB #0089-08-TJ-BC) to the following low bidders meeting specifications (Option 1 as recommended by the Assistant to the City Manager/Property Management):
- Cross Construction, Inc., in the amount of $242,559, for the demolition of the Johns Building, located at 725 South Bronough Street
- Cross Environmental Services, Inc., in the amount of $62,320.07, plus a contingency up to an additional $30,000 for estimated below grade abatement costs, for the demolition of the Clemons Building, located at 704 South Duval Street
- Crowder Excavating and Land Clearing, Inc., in the amount of $65,935, for the demolition of a building located at 319 West Madison Street
Item 24 - Voted 5-0 to adopt a FY2009 tentative millage rate of 3.2115 for the City, 1.0 mill for the Downtown Improvement Authority (DIA), and confirmed public hearings on the millage rates scheduled for September 10 and 24, 2008 (Option 1 as recommended by Management & Administration)
Item 25 - Voted 5-0 to adopt Resolution No. 08-R-32, authorizing the City Manager to execute a 30-year Natural Gas Supply Agreement with Lehman Brothers, Inc. and its bond-issuing gas supply agent, Mainstreet - providing for approximately 15% of the current natural gas requirements for the Electric and Gas Utilities through prepaid transactions, for a savings of $3.3 million annually or approximately $98 million over the life of the contract (Option 1 as recommended by Energy Services)
Item 26 - Held a public hearing on the allocation of a FY2008 Justice Assistance Grant (JAG), in the amount of $126,238, including $64,338 from the U. S. Department of Justice to be administered by the Tallahassee Police Department (TPD), and $61,900 from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) to be administered by Leon County; and voted 4-0 (Commissioner Mustian absent) to authorize TPD to accept and expend the U. S. Department of Justice JAG funds and approximately $1,000 in interest earnings (Option 1 as recommended by TPD)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 27 - Held the second and final public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-O-19, introduced on May 14, 2008 (the first public hearing was held on May 28, 2008); voted 4-0 (Commissioner Mustian absent) to adopt the ordinance, amending the Land Development Code to implement the Providence Neighborhood Overlay (PNO) on properties zoned Central Urban within the Providence Neighborhood, and to limit allowed uses within the PNO (Option 1 as recommended by Planning)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 28 - Held the second and final public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-Z-20, introduced on May 14, 2008 (the first public hearing was held on May 28, 2008); voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, amending the Official Zoning Map changing the zoning classification from the CU Central Urban zoning district to the CU-18 Central Urban 18 and CU-45 Central Urban 45 zoning districts (Option 1 as recommended by Planning)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 29 - Held the second and final public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-O-30, introduced on May 28, 2008 (the first public hearing was held on June 25, 2008); voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, amending the Land Development Code to disengage the University Transition zoning district from the Development Standards Matrix and modifying standards applicable to the Activity Center zoning district, based on the findings of fact and conclusions of law set forth in the agenda item and the recommendation of the Planning Commission (Option 1 as recommended by Planning)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 30 - Held the first of two public hearings on Central Urban Southeast and Southwest Rezoning Ordinance No. 08-Z-31, introduced on May 28, 2008, which would apply site-specific Central Urban zoning districts to all properties located in the southern portion of the City currently zoned Central Urban (PRZ #080006); by consensus, continued and rescheduled the public hearing for August 20, 2008, and scheduled the second and final public hearing for October 22, 2008 (Option 1 as recommended by Planning)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 31 - Held a public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-Z-35, introduced on May 28, 2008, and voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, amending the Hermitage Planned Unit Development (PUD) Concept Plan from a 120-unit condominium to an up to 125-room hotel and up to 25,000 square foot retail center based on the findings and condition of the Development Review Committee (DRC) and the Planning Commission (Option 1 as recommended by Planning)
There were no speakers on this item.
Mr. Wade Pitt, 805 N. Gadsden Street, representing Hermitage Ventures LLC, indicated his availability to answer questions in support of this item.
Item 32 - Held a public hearing on Pecan Plantation Apartments Phase II Rezoning Ordinance No. 08-Z-36, introduced on May 28, 2008, and voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, rezoning .95 acres located on the south side of Pecan Road approximately 700 feet east from the intersection of Mission Road and Pecan Road from R-3 to MR-1 (Medium Density Residential) (PRZ #080011) (applicant/owner: Veith Construction, Inc.; agent: Parker Consulting Services, Inc.) (Option 1 as recommended by Planning)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 33 - Held a public hearing on College Park Residences Rezoning Ordinance No. 08-Z-39, introduced on May 28, 2008, and voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, rezoning five (5) parcels totaling 2.2 acres located near the intersection of West Park Avenue, West College Avenue and Macomb Street from UPUD (Urban PUD) to the DI (Downtown Institutional/Cultural/University Transition Areas zoning district (PRZ 080012) (Option 1 as recommended by Planning)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 34 - Held a public hearing on Stadium West Student Housing UPUD Rezoning Ordinance No. 08-Z-41AA, introduced on May 28, 2008, and voted 4-0 (Commissioner Katz absent) to adopt the ordinance as amended, rezoning 7.53 acres located at the northeast corner of the intersection of Belle Vue Way and South Lipona Road from UT (University Transition) to the UPUD (Urban PUD) zoning district (PRZ #080013), based on the findings and conditions of the DRC and the Planning Commission (applicant: WP South Acquisitions, LLC; agent: Poole Engineering and Surveying, Inc.) (Option 1 as amended as recommended by Planning)
- Mr. Barry Poole, of Poole Engineering and Surveying, Inc., 2145 Delta Boulevard, appeared before the Commission in support of this item.
- Ms. Nancy Linnan, 215 S. Monroe Street #500, representing Wood Partners, indicated her availability to answer questions in support of this item.
Item 35 - Held a public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-O-44AA, introduced on June 18, 2008, and voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, amending the Land Development Code revising requirements for Environmental Management Permits and General Permits (Option 1 as recommended by Public Works/Streets & Drainage)
There were no speakers on this item.
Item 36 - Held a public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-O-49, introduced on June 18, 2008, which would increase maximum fees for vehicle towing, and after initially voting 0-5 on a motion to adopt the ordinance (effectively denying the ordinance) and subsequently voting 4-1 (Commissioner Gillum opposed) to reconsider that action, the Commission voted 4-1 (Commissioner Gillum opposed) to adopt Ordinance No. 08-O-49AA - amended to include only the proposed maximum fee increases for rotation towing, excluding from the ordinance the proposed maximum fee increases for trespass towing (brought forward by the City Attorney)
Directed staff to do an analysis of problematic business practices of towing companies in the community, especially for roam towing, provide information on whether prior fee increases had impacted the number of tows, and provide an economic analysis justifying fee increases
The following persons appeared before the Commission relative to this item:
- Mr. Patrick Emilien and Mr. Cliff Alexander, representing Florida State University Student Government (opponents)
- Mr. Jim Patton, of Ability Towing, 2613 Springhill Road, representing 27 towing companies in Leon County (proponent)
Item 37 - Held a public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-O-50AA, introduced on June 18, 2008, and voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, increasing taxicab maximum rates (Option 1 as recommended by the City Attorney)
Directed staff to investigate a minimum charge or surcharge for Airport taxi service as part of another agenda item on Airport services regulatory issues
The following persons appeared before the Commission relative to this item:
- Ms. Barbara Wade, 2912 Gerald Drive (proponent)
- Mr. Franz Hofbauer, 1923 Sabra Drive, representing City Taxi Inc. (proponent)
Item 38 - Held a public hearing on Ordinance No. 08-O-52, introduced on June 25, 2008, and voted 5-0 to adopt the ordinance, amending the City Code regarding loading zones, special construction zone permits, and parking meter time limits (Option 1 as recommended by the City Attorney)
There were no speakers on this item.
City Commission Information and Sharing of Ideas
Commissioner Mustian announced his intent to pursue utilizing some Tree Bank funds for plantings along Tennessee Street.
CTC:RMD:ecg:07-10-08;rev.08-12-08