04-10-2012 Regular Meeting City of Clermont
MINUTES
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Apnl 10, 2012
The Clermont City Council met m a regular meeting on Tuesday, Apnl 10, 2012 m the Council Chambers
at City Hall Mayor Turville called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm with the following Council Members
present: Council Members Mullins, Goodgame, Hogan and VanWagner. Other City officials present
were City Manager Saunders, City Attorney Mantzans and City Clerk Ackroyd
INVOCATION
Council Member Van Wagner gave the invocation followed by the Pledge of Allegiance
MINUTES
March 27, 2012 Council Meeting
Council Member Goodgame moved to approve the minutes of March 27, 2012 as
submitted; seconded by Council Member Hogan. The motion passed with all members
present voting aye.
PROCLAMATIONS
Mayor Turville read the proclamation aloud declanng the week of April 15 — 21, 2012 as National
Volunteer Week.
Mayor Turville requested we forward the proclamation to each volunteer who serves the City of
Clermont.
Council Member Goodgame commented the Histoncal Society will have a volunteer luncheon held on
Thursday.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
Cuqui Whitehead, 837 5 Street, expressed appreciation for this community
Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Dnve, thanked Council for the recognition as a volunteer who previously
served as Chair of the Code Enforcement Board.
REPORTS
City Manager Saunders noted a time change to the scheduled Council workshop for Apnl 11 from
6 00pm to 7:30pm.
City Attorney Mantzans reported on the amended complaint against Bee's Auto and the City of Clermont.
The defense counsel hired by the city's insurance carver filed a motion to dismiss. It is in Federal Court
and will be receiving an order setting the timeframe to go through discovery and proceed with tnal of the
case. Mr. Mantzaris will continue to provide the Council with a report on the case.
City Attorney Mantzans also reported on the property located at 1029 Lake Avenue. It is an abandoned
house with an ongoing code enforcement matter. Liens have accrued on the property in excess of
$100,000. Lake County has proposed to sell the property at a tax auction on Apnl 17 for the amount of
the unpaid taxes. The Council previously discussed bidding on the online tax sale
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City of Clermont
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REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
April 10, 2012
The Tax Collector Certification is required as part of the sale. It sets forth the back taxes amount and the
other costs associated by law. The minimum bid the county can accept is the amount of the outstanding
taxes plus the expenses. The total amount of the minimum bid is $7,020.28. Mr. Mantzans explained the
process and asked for direction from the Council. Based on the title report, the only hens are Code
Enforcement liens from the City of Clermont.
Council Member Goodgame moved to proceed to submit a bid in the amount to redeem;
seconded by Council Member Hogan.
• Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Dnve, questioned if there is a redemption penod. City Attorney
Mantzans clanfied this is a tax deed sale, not a tax certificate sale therefore a redemption penod will not
apply
Council Member Goodgame called for the question.
The motion passed with all members present voting aye.
Council Member Hogan — No Report
Council Member Goodgame commented on the condition of Lake Dot and Center Lake and suggested to
have the water treated. City Manager Saunders noted it is an annual cycle that has lasted longer because
of the drought; it is an algae bloom. Mayor Turville requested staff turn off the fountain to prevent
damage to the pump. The Council was in agreement to turn it off. City Manager Saunders noted staff
would take care of it.
Council Member Goodgame expressed concern with the mtersection located at Hooks Street and Grand
Highway. He requested the city send a letter to the Flonda Department of Transportation (FDOT) asking
for a traffic light. City Manager Saunders stated he also contacted FDOT and met with Lake County
Manager Gray and County Commissioner Parks. FDOT did have representatives at the site today to
observe the traffic Staff will send a letter.
Council Member Goodgame commented on the need for a traffic light at Hancock Road and the entrance
to Diamond Players Club. This was approved by Lake County months ago and then voted not to proceed
until a traffic study was conducted. There was a meetmg held on March 19 at Cooper Library where
alternates to this traffic fight were discussed Mr Goodgame expressed concern with public safety
Council Member Goodgame moved to have Mr. Saunders submit a letter to Lake County
Public Works Department pointing out the necessity for public safety for a traffic signal;
seconded by Council Member Hogan.
Mayor Turville opened the public heanng.
Ginger Martin, 2440 Prairie Dunes, opposed the traffic light
Judy Proli, 1020 Everest Street, expressed concern with safety and feels the traffic light is necessary.
Cuqui Whitehead, 837 5 Street, supported the request for a traffic light
Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Dnve, supported the traffic light.
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City of Clermont
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REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Apnl 10, 2012
Council Member Mullins commented on attending the meeting at Cooper Memonal Library. Lake
County presented a traffic plan from North Hancock Road from Highway 50 up to old Highway 50 to the
new high school. There were plans shown for each intersection This intersection had the lowest number
of accidents of all the intersections on Hancock Road County staff presented a good plan and supported
the county plan to make it a safer intersection with a no left turn out of Diamond Players Club.
Mayor Turville suggested lowenng the speed limit and to include it in the letter to the county
Walter Martin, 2440 Prairie Dunes, opposed a traffic light and suggested enforcing the speed limit.
Ed Proli, 1020 Everest Street, supported the request for a traffic light.
Ruth Adams, 10624 Cedar Forest Circle, noted there are other 55 plus communities with similar traffic
issues.
Mayor Turville closed the public heanng
Council Member Goodgame preferred to have staff submit a letter with a proposed traffic light then ask
for the speed limit to be lowered if no action is taken on the request for a traffic fight
Council Member Mullins agreed with the plan presented by Lake County staff and noted there is a light
proposed at Oakley Seaver and Northridge
Mayor Turville suggested sending a letter that discusses if in fact they choose not to have a light perhaps
consider lowenng the speed limit and include language asking for a timetable associated with their
proposed plan.
Council Member Goodgame agreed with Mayor Turville to include reducing the speed
limit as part of the letter.
Council Member Van Wagner supported the request for a traffic light
The motion passed 4 to 1 with Council Member Mullins opposing.
Council Member Mullins reported on attending the 90 birthday dinner for the City of Groveland and
presented a proclamation on behalf of Mayor Turville.
Council Member Van Wagner — No Report
Mayor Turville — No Report
CONSENT AGENDA
Mayor Turville advised the next item on the Agenda for consideration was the Consent Agenda and
requested anyone wishing to have any item pulled for discussion to please come forward at this time.
Item No. 1— Approval Request Request approval of changes to the
Employees Cafetena Plan document and
Summary Plan description.
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City of Clermont
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REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Apnl 10, 2012
Item No. 2 — Approval Request Request to piggyback the City of Ocoee
contract with OTTO Environmental Systems,
LLC for the purchase of wheeled refuse
(garbage) containers.
Council Member Goodgame moved to approve the consent agenda as submitted;
seconded by Council Member Mullins. The motion passed with all members present
voting aye
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Item No. 3 Variance Request Christopher Bolling
Pnncipal Planner Henschel presented the vanance request at the location of 2994 Inca Avenue in the
Verde Ridge subdivision. The applicant proposed to install a 6 foot tall fence located m the street -side
front setback between the city nght -of -way and the secondary front of the applicant's house. The fence
will connect to the neighbors 6 foot tall fence which is also located in the street -side front setback. Per
city code, fences are allowed within this area as long as they do not exceed 4 feet in height.
On March 24, 2010, the city code was amended to detail where fences could be placed and the height they
shall not exceed. Pnor to the current code, fences were permitted to be 6 feet m height adjacent to the
nght -of -way as long as they did not obstruct any right -of -way views for pedestnans or vehicular traffic.
Several fences were permitted within this neighborhood to be ,6 feet m height adjacent to the nght -of -way,
none of which have caused a visual or public safety problem. The Land Development Code requires a
positive finding on eight items in order to grant a vanance and staff believes there is one of the eight that
do not meet these findings. Therefore, staff recommended denial of the request for a 6 foot tall fence.
Applicant, Chris Bolling, 2994 Inca Avenue was present. He noted there would be two additional panels
to the request.
Mayor Turville opened the public heanng.
Cuqui Whitehead, 837 5 Street, recommended approval.
Mayor Turville closed the public heanng
City Attorney Mantzans stated if the applicant wants to change the vanance request, it will require the
item to be brought back to Council at a future meeting.
The applicant preferred to proceed with the onginal drawing on the application.
Council Member Van Wagner moved to accept the vanance exactly as the application
reads: seconded by Council Member Mullins. The motion passed with all members
present voting aye.
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City of Clermont
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REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Apnl 10, 2012
NEW BUSINESS
Item No. 4 Variances Request Irish Trails Farm and Pet Supply Store
Principal Planner Henschel presented the vanances request for a reduction in parking and outdoor storage
located at 102 South Highway 27 The applicant has encountered a problem with stonng hay. It is stored
in Department of Transportation compliant trailers located on site and considered outdoor storage. The
trailers are also occupying parking stalls that were calculated as part of the overall parking count for the
retail store
When the 12,312 square foot retail store was onginally constructed, 62 parking spaces were required by
city code. There were 64 parking stalls provided leavmg a surplus of two stalls. The applicant would like
to keep two hay trailers on site for outdoor storage. Both trailers would be parked adjacent to 5 parking
stalls at the southeast corner of the property. These parking stalls would not be usable by patrons, leaving
a deficit of 3 parking stalls for the overall site. Only one of the three dnve isles would be blocked due to
the trailer parking. Fire and emergency vehicles could still access the site without any hindrances.
The Land Development Code requires a positive finding on eight items in order to grant a vanance. Staff
believes there are five of the eight that do not meet the findings and recommended denial.
Enrique Rangel, applicant and owner, was present. He explained the business would not be in existence
without the variances requested. He requested Council approval as it has been in existence for 10 years
Mayor Turville opened the public heanng.
Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Dnve, opposed the variance request.
Cuqui Whitehead, 837 5 Street, supported the vanance request.
Judith Sweaney, 656 Harbor Villa Street, questioned if approving the vanance would establish
precedence for the property or type of business that could be located next door.
Allison Auld, 10620 Cedar Forest Circle, supported the request.
Mayor Turville closed the public heanng
Mayor Turville questioned granting a vanance with a stipulation to return at a later date.
City Attorney Mantzans stated the Council can set a time frame or require reevaluation at the time it is a
burden on a neighbonng property owner.
City Manager Saunders stated the location also conflicts with the cross access to the south and could
create a problem in the future. He suggested addressing the ability to relocate it or do sometlung in the
future when there may be a development to the south.
Mayor Turville stated he does not have an issue with the trailer until it becomes a burden on an adjoining
property owner.
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City of Clermont
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REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Apnl 10, 2012
City Manager Saunders stated the vanance request is to allow two trailers in those 5 parking stalls. It is
specific to allow two trailers in a specific location.
Principal Planner Henschel stated the trailer does need to stay 30 feet from the building due to
combustible container.
Council Member Mullins moved to grant the vanance until such time as the property to
the south is being developed and needs to make changes, seconded by Council Member
Goodgame. The motion passed with all members present voting aye.
Item No. 5 Heather Bacon Hartwood Reserve Subdivision
City Attorney Mantzaris reported this item is before the Council at the request of the citizens of Hartwood
Reserve. The issue is regardmg the final lift of asphalt on the streets of this subdivision. The streets
were designed and intended to be private streets. They are not city streets and the city has no
responsibility for the maintenance or upkeep of the streets as they are pnvate. The final lift of asphalt was
not completed because the onginal developer filed bankruptcy in 2007. This matter was brought before
city staff in 2009 to address the issue with regard to the final lift of asphalt. There was a performance
_ bond in place in 2006 It was in favor of the city and provided through a bonding company that if the final
lift of asphalt was not in place there would be a sum of money available in the terms of the bond for the
city to access to complete the lift of asphalt Under the city code, the City of Clermont does not have the
authonty to seek a performance bond for a private street.
Heather Bacon referred to the wastewater service agreement approved m 2004 between the City of
Clermont and Levitt and Sons. She noted the document states the roads will be built to the city standards
and the standards include the final lift of asphalt thus the reason for the performance bond. She requested
the City Council to direct the City Manager to place a claim against the bonds and noted the bonds do not
expire.
City Attorney Mantzans responded that in this case, the insurance was to require the final improvement of
the road. The road exists on pnvate property, it is not a public road. The city does not have an msurable
interest because the law prohibits the city from expending public funds to improve pnvate roads. There is
no obligation for the city to do the work on pnvate roads. There is no need to have insurance because it is
not obligated to provide it.
Mayor Turville asked about the protocol to file an application to help the homeowners association.
City Attorney Mantzans stated staff could explore if there is a way to assign the nghts to pursue the bond
The information received from the attorney representing the insurance company has said it is too late to
make a claim Furthermore, there is no legal obligation for the city to repair pnvate roads at any time.
Mayor Turville requested staff to pursue.
Heather Bacon contacted the bonding company and was told subdivision bonds do not expire
City Engineer Richardson stated she received an electronic mail noting the bonds were no longer valid.
City Manager Saunders noted staff can move forward in obtaining additional information on the bond and
would pursue it through the City Attorney's office.
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City of Clermont
MINUTES
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Apnl 10, 2012
Council Member Van Wagner requested Ms. Bacon provide a copy of the bond to staff.
Item No. 6 Bid Award
City Manager Saunders reported the city received ten bids for the Clermont Community Center project.
One bidder was determined nonresponsive due to the omission of required documents as part of the bid.
The actual bid was a base bid and site work for the facility. Then, there were four alternates with the
option to add to the base bid. Mr. Saunders reviewed the alternates. The Chamber does not want Council
to accept alternate 4; it will be paid for by the Chamber of Commerce. He suggested approving the base
bid plus the streetscape bid from the lowest bidder, Mark Construction. The base bid is $2,399,000 and
the streetscape bid is $714,500 The onginal budget for the base bid is $2.2 million. There are additional
funds in the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) budget that can be used to cover the additional
$199,000 expense of the base bid. $1.5 million was onginally budgeted for the streetscape and associated
charges for Progress Energy. In summary, City Manager Saunders recommended the City Council award
the bid to the lowest responsive bidder, Mark Construction, to include the base bid and alternate 3 for
streetscape for a total bid award of $3,113,500
Council Member Goodgame inquired if there are any clauses m the bid documents that would allow
Council to do what would be in the best interest of the city.
City Manager Saunders clanfied the city may waive minor technicalities if it is in the best interest of the
city however non responsive bids do not fall into that category. The bid specifications were specific on
required documents to be included within the bid.
City Attorney Mantzans noted the bid included mandatory responses to certain items that were not
responded to.
City Manager Saunders further noted the documents omitted were addendums to the base bid; not the
alternate bids.
Rick Marshand, Marbek Construction, stated he submitted the lowest bid however failed to insert the
required signature pages for addendums one and two. He questioned whether the city could deem this to
be an incidental omission of the contract documents
City Manager Saunders noted there were nine responsive bidders
Mayor Turville questioned whether the city could be sued if the Council determined Marbek Construction
as being in the best interest of the city. City Attorney Mantzaris replied the lowest responsive bidder
would have a claim to pursue against the city.
Rick Roberts, 12633 Lake Ridge Circle, commented the city reserves the nght to reject any and all
responses and to waive any and all irregulanties.
Council Member Goodgame disagreed with the possibility of rejecting nine bids
Mayor Turville explained the process is in place to protect the public interest. There are nine other
respondents and the lowest responsive bidder is the one recommended by staff.
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City of Clermont
MINUTES
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
April 10, 2012
Cuqui Whitehead, 837 5 Street, commented there are standards to protect the citizens. She encouraged
Council to keep the bid process in place and to move forward with staff's recommendation.
Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Drive, questioned how to prevent this incident from recurring
City Attorney Mantzaris explained the city did not create this situation. The city advertised the bid in
accordance with the proposal with clear specifications and requirements. All applicants acknowledged
they needed to respond to it and all bidders submitted the bid except one.
[ Duke Roger, Vogel Brothers, submitted a bid for the project. The proposal forms were clear in the bid
forms regarding the required attachments. There were 25 bidders invited to bid the project and were pre-
qualified. The decision made by Council will send a clear message to the other bidders if the city deviates
from the requirements on this instance as it relates to future projects.
Rick Marshand, Marbek Construction, understood there were omissions on his part and will comply with
the Council's decision of what is in the best interest of the city
Council Member Mullins preferred to maintain the integrity of the bid system.
Council Member Mullins moved to award the contract to Mark Construction; seconded
by Council Member Goodgame.
Under discussion, Council Member Goodgame agreed to maintain the integrity of the city with the other
bidders.
For clarification, the motion is for the base bid plus alternate 3.
The motion passed with all members present voting aye.
Item No. 7 Joint Planning Area (JPA) Review
Planning and Zoning Director Hitt reported on the request for a rezoning of 4.77 acres from R -6 to CFD
for the installation of a 137 foot cell tower. The site is located in the southwest portion of the JPA, west of
Lake Louisa. This site falls within the City of Clermont and the Lake County Joint Planning Area (JPA)
agreement overlay area. The proposal meets the City's Land Development Code and the JPA
requirements, except that the JPA require all new communication towers to be camouflaged and the
E applicant's zoning plan only shows the monopole to be painted white. The options for being camouflaged
are not clear in any of the codes therefore interpretation and clarification for what constitutes camouflage
and "blending into the existing surroundings" is needed. Staff recommended if the City Council approves
the rezoning from R -6 to CFD for the 137 foot height communications tower that the tower be limited to
the single monopole and the camouflage design be clarified.
Applicant Leslie Lindgren was present and stated he plans to sell the land.
Mayor Turville explained the process where the City Council reviews a JPA application and makes a
recommendation to Lake County. The applicant should contact Lake County if he would like to withdraw
the application.
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City of Clermont
MINUTES
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Apnl 10, 2012
City Attorney Mantzans clarified it is necessary to forward a recommendation until there is confirmation
this application has been withdrawn from Lake County.
Mayor Turville opened the public heanng.
The following expressed concern with the request
Allison Auld, 10620 Cedar Forest Circle; Ruth Adams, 10624 Cedar Forest Circle; Jim Purvis, 4206
Hammersmith Dnve; and Wally Herda, 1109 Hampton Avenue.
Mayor Turville closed the public heanng
Council Member Goodgame moved to deny the application; seconded by Council
Member Van Wagner.
Under discussion, Mayor Turville stated the intent of the motion is the Council does not support the
application.
City Manager Saunders clanfied this application is for this site only
The motion passed 4 to 1 with Council Member Mullins opposing
ADJOURN: With no further comments, this meeting was adjourned at 9:38pm.
APPROVED:
� i
e ' arold S. Turville, Mayor
f
ATTEST:
/
ior
Tracy oyd, City Cler �1
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