08-01-1984 Workshop Meeting
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CITY OF CLERMONT
MINUTES
WORKSHOP MEETING
August 1, 1984
A Workshop Meeting of the City Council of the City of Clermont was
held Wednesday, August 1, 1984 in the City Hall Conference Room.
The Meeting was called to order by Mayor Beals at 7:00 p.m. with
the following council Members is attendance: Mayor Pro Tem Pool,
Council Members Cole, Turville and Henry. Other City Officials
present were: City Manager Forbes and Finance Director Saunders.
STORM DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS
Council Members began the meeting by reviewing item #4 of the budget
issues, the City's storm drainage improvements. It was explained
that there was $15,000 in the budget for these improvements. The
City Manager stated that they would select a project from the City's
Capital Improvement Plan during the next fiscal year and obtain
Council approval before work would begin. He stated that there were
two possible areas for work to begin, and one was to move the line
that runs under one of Williams Steel's buildings.
It was explained that under Capital Outlay - Streets and Sidewalks in
the Public Works Department Budget, $55,000 was budgeted. $15,000 of
that was for storm drainage improvements and $40,000 would be for a
road sealing program. Mr. Forbes explained that $35,000 had been
added to revenues in the budget due to the new two cents gas tax, but
that initially it would not be budgeted until the City found out how
much the Lake Winona Bridge improvements would cost. The money could
then be transferred to either that or any other needed street project.
PUBLIC WORKS FACILITIES
Item # 5 concerning a preliminary study to relocate the Public Works
Facility was discussed. The City Manager stated that he had some
conversations with Speedy Wolfe on this matter, and that he would be
interested in purchasing the City's present Public Works Facility
located at Eleventh Street on Lake Minneola or swaping properties
with the City. He stated that he believed that the City should
investigate this matter further because the City had been discussing
moving the Public Works Department for several years. The Council
Members stated that they had no objections to the City Manager
talking with Mr. Wolfe, looking into this matter and keeping them
informed of the progress. No decisions could be made on this matter
without final Council approval.
FILM FOR FISHING TOURNAMENT
Mr. Wimpy Burdette came to the Meeting at this time. Mayor Beals
explained that he had invited Mr. Burdette to explain the film he
would like to make to promote fishing in the Clermont chain of lakes.
Mr. Burdette explained that to make a film of this type would cost
approximately $30,000, and the film would be free to the City except
for the cost of the film and a script writer. He explained that the
film would probably be made with or without the City's participation,
but he believed that the City should contribute so it could have
cassettes of the film to promote the City and fishing in the chain of
lakes. The immediate use of the film would be to air it nationally
on television to promote the upcoming Ford Motor Company Fishing
Tournament.
After much discussion, it was the consensus of the Council that it
would be best for Mr. Burdette to approach the Chamber of Commerce
on this matter, since they did not believe the City could support
such a venture at this time. Mr. Burdette stated that he would
contact the Chamber of Commerce in the near future, and left the
meeting at this time.
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RADIO EQUIPMENT AND MICROFICHE
The City Manager explained that the salaries part of the budget had
been reduced by about $10,000 due to a reduction in health insurance
costs. Health insurance costs only will increase about 5%, whereas,
initially, the City expected a 20% increase.
Mr. Forbes recommended that the City do the following:
I. Add $2,500 to the professional services budget for
microfiching building records.
2. Add $2,000 to the professional services budget for
studies on utility benefit fees or water rates.
3. Add $4,200 to the budget for police salaries. This
would insure that a new police officer could be added
for a full year.
In response to Mr. Turville's question, the City Manager stated
that the police overtime would remain unchanged.
4. One new portable radio at a price of $800 be added to
the revenue sharing budget for the new officer.
5. Add $1,900for two radios, one for the street crew vehicle
and the other for the parks department vehicle.
There was much discussion regarding the microfiching of the building
department's records. The City Manager explained that he wished to
insure that the plans were filmed and kept in the proper building files.
Presently, the plans are kept in boxes by year with no real filing system.
He also explained that as the City grows, it would be better to microfiche
all building department records.
It was the consensus of the Council to approve all of the items listed
above. The City Manager was asked to insure that he prioritize the
microfiching of building plans. They stated that they could understand
keeping commercial plans, but were unsure of the need for residential
plans.
SEABOARD SYSTEM RAILROAD
The Council discussed the purchase of the abandoned Seaboard System
Railroad right-of-way from East Avenue to Twelfth Street. It was the
consensus of the Council that when the property became available,
the City would purchase it with money in the City's Parks and Recreation
account and reserves. No money would be budgeted until the City could
find out exactly how much it would be required to pay for the property.
LAKE WINONA BRIDGE
It was explained that the additional two cents gas tax monies would add
about $35,000 in revenue for the City. The City Manager stated that
due to problems at the City Engineer's office, we would be hiring another
engineer to perform the Lake Winona Bridge work with Council approval.
He stated that he would be approaching Richard Newman on this matter and
no money would be budgeted for the project at this time, but would be
available through the extra two cents gas tax.
It was the consensus of the Council to wait and see how much the improve-
ments for the bridge will cost and budget the funds from the extra two
cents gas tax at that time.
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UNITED TELEPHONE SYSTEM FRANCHISE
The Council discussed the new franchise ordinance with United Telephone.
Mr. Forbes explained that he had sent the telephone company the proposed
ordinance. A copy of the cover letter would be in the Council Packets
on Friday. He also explained that he had been contacted by the telephone
company, and they would like the City to have either a 1% or 2% franchise
fee instead of the 1.5% asked for by the City.
The City Manager stated that the proposed franchise ordinance would be
placed on the Council agenda for introduction during the August 28th
Council Meeting.
POLICE OFFICER
As previously discussed, the Council agreed that one new full-time
Police Officer would be added to City's Police Department. This
officer would be used as a swingman, and approximately six months
out of the year would be on duty during other officers' vacations,
with the remainder of the time being spent on traffic control and
other duties as needed.
BUILDING DEPARTMENT COMPETENCY CARDS
The City Manager explained that the City's new Building Official
would be meeting with builders next Tuesday to go over building
inspection practices. He also explained that one item that would
be discussed is competency cards. He stated that it is no longer
necessary for the City to issue them, but instead would rely on
proof that contractors are State Certified or Registered Builders
or holda County Occupational License.
It was further explained that years ago the City gave the Block Test
for competency cards for builders, but gave up the practice nine or
ten years ago. Presently the City accepts County or other City's
competency cards. In other words, someone with a County Competency
Card could purchase one in Clermont without taking a test. Revenues
from competency cards have been taken out of the proposed budget.
He also explained that the City would like to adopt a Building Ordi-
nance as compatible with the County's Ordinance as possible, and
adopt the same fee schedule as the County's.
RESERVE POLICE VEHICLE
It was the consensus of the Council that the vehicle presently being
driven by Mr. Smythe would be transferred to the Police Department
as a reserve vehicle. A new vehicle will then be purchased for
Mr. Smythe.
PAINTING 500,000 GALLON WATER TANK
There was much discussion on the City's 500,000 gallon water tank and
the fact that it still has not been properly repainted by our contractors,
Universal Tank. The City Manager presented an overview of the entire pro-
ject and explained that the one year warranty inspection had revealed
that much of the interior paint below the water line was cracked and peel-
ing. He stated that more than a year after the warranty inspection the
contractors returned to Clermont in March of 1984 to inspect the tank and
stated that they would do a commercial blast on the tank (remove the
flaking paint) and repaint the interior.
Mr. Stephen Pinney, the City's Consultant on tank repainting, had stated
that this method would not work. The only thing to do was blast the tank
down to bare metal and then repaint the entire interior of the tank. It
was explained that Universal Tank is not willing to perform this work.
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Basically, the City has two options in this matter: (1) Agree with
Universal Tank and allow them to do the commercial blast and repainting,
with another one year performance bond on the project. Mr. Forbes
stated that he recommended against accepting this alternative because
the City's consultant had recommended that this method would not work,
and in one year the tank would be in bad shape again. Two years have
already gone by, and the matter is still not resolved; and in another
year we would be back where we started, or (2) Try to negotiate a cash
settlement on this matter. Mr. Forbes explained that he had spoken with
officials from the Surety Loss Department of the Chubb Group of Insurance
Companies. The possibility of a cash settlement was discussed with Mr.
Joseph Milana, Assistant Vice President of the Surety Loss Department.
The Council Members reviewed a proposed letter (dated July 31, 1984) the
City Manager wished to send to the insurance company asking for a cash
settlement, and requested that the City Manager change the last paragraph
to state that the minimum cash settlement the City would accept would be
$27,500. City Manager Forbes stated that he would do so and send the
letter to Mr. Milana. Council Member Pool stressed the need to resolve
the problem within the next few months.
UTILITY RATES
As discussed in previous workshops, Council Members agreed that this
year the water, sewer and sanitation rates would not be increased.
They also discussed the fact that the sewer rates must be increased
in November of 1986 and that they would adopt a new proposed rate
ordinance once it is approved by the EPA.
UTILITY BENEFIT FEES
The City Manager requested permission to find a consultant that would
be willing to investigate the adequacy of the City's Utility Benefit
Fees. It was the consensus of the Council that they had no objections
to this request, and they asked that he report back to them on this
matter.
LEAGUE OF CITIES PENSION PLAN
Mr. Forbes stated that as previously discussed, the League of Cities
had been consulted regarding changing the City's Pension Plan from
a defined benefit plan to a defined payment plan. He stated that
within the next few months he would be getting back with the Council
concerning this matter.
FIRE DEPARTMENT
The City Manager presented the Council the "Learn Not To Burn" fire
safety program for children, and urged that the Fire Department be
allowed to purchase the books for the elementary schools. The Council
asked how many of the books would be needed. He stated that he believed
that one age group should be chosen and it was not the intent to buy for
every class. For example, the third grade could be chosen and the teachers
taught to present the program with the assistance of the Clermont Fire
Department. It was the consensus of the Council that this program was
very beneficial. The Mayor stated that he would be speaking with the
new elementary principal tomorrow and asked to take the program with
him.
WORK RELEASE EMPLOYEES IN THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT
There was much discussion regarding the use of work release
employees from LCI in the Public Works Department. Three were
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CITY OF CLERMONT
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August 1, 1984
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used for the Parks Crews and two in trash collection. The
City Manager stated that over the past several years problems
had cropped up over the utilization of these personnel. While
at this time, he was not recommending making any changes, he
stated that he believed within the next few years the City may
be required to reduce its reliance on work release employees.
It was the consensus of the Council for the City Manager to
carefully monitor this matter and report back to Council if any
major problems arise. This matter also will be discussed during
the next budget year.
AD VALOREM TAX RATE
The Council agreed, as discussed at the previous Council Meeting,
that the City would adopt the rollback rate which would bring in
the same amount of revenues as the previous year, excluding new
construction. The City's new rollback rate would be 2.626, whereas,
the old rollback rate was 2.595.
GARBAGE COLLECTION
There was much discussion regarding the City's garbage collection
service, and the City Manager requested that around the mid fiscal
year (March), that the City investigate the possibility of front
yard vs. rear yard collection service or a private collection service.
It was the consensus of the Council that there would be no problems
with investigating the various options in March.
BORROW PIT
It was explained that for ten years the City had a contract with
the Oswalt Family on a borrow pit property located just south of
Broome Street and west of Twelfth Street in Clermont. For ten
years the pit has been used as a percolation pond for the waste
treatment plant. The contract expired this year and states that
the City must restore the borrow pit to its original condition.
Dikes were added by the City ten years ago. The City Manager
reviewed several proposals for reducing the dikes at the pit
with widely varying prices. The City Manager recommended that
the low price of $3,800 from Hewitt Contractors be discussed
during the next Council Meeting and work performed immediately
with funds from Utility Department Contingencies.
It was the consensus of the Council to bring this matter before
Council at the next meeting, but only after an ad is placed in
the newspaper to see if anyone else is interested in performing
the required work. It was also discussed that a member of the
Oswalt Family should oversee the work with the Utility Department
to see that it is done properly.
GROVE REHABILITATION
There was much discussion regarding the citrus trees which serve
as a buffer strip at the City's sprayfield site. Mr. Forbes
asked what the Council wanted to do with this buffer strip, and
whether citrus should be replanted or some other type of buffer
strip made.
The pros and cons of replanting citrus were discussed in great
detail. Ginny Henry mentioned the possibility of planting and
harvesting trees as a potential use for this location. The
number of trees and amount acreage were discussed in great detail.
It was the consensus of the Council that the City receive proposals
for removing the dead citrus trees and installing a new grove.
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The City Manager asked what type of trees should be planted and
the Council stated that the City Staff should make various
recommendations for Council approval.
Account 535-4670 Repair and Maintenance of Systems was increased
by $7,000 or from $17,600 to $24,600. The City Manager explained
that $12,000 of this money would be for replanting part of the
grove and sprayfield maintenance. With only $12,000 for grove
maintenance it may take several years for the City to totally
replant the buffer strip. The remainder of funds in this account
would be $6,000 for sewer line cleaning, $600 for sand and drying
beds, $3,000 for manhole repairs, and $3,000 for sludge removal.
EMPLOYEE SALARIES
There was discussion regarding employee salaries and the City's
pay plan. The City Manager stated that, if there were no Council
objections, he would be giving Department Heads increases based
upon their performance and attainment of goals set each year. He
stated that 4% would be given to each employee for a cost of living
increase and a total of 2% of all salaries would be budgeted for
merit increases. He then read the list of Department Heads and the
estimated amount they would be making with a 6% increase.
Mr. Forbes explained, however, that the exact salaries would be set
by him based on each employees performance. The City Council had no
problems with or objections to this matter.
The Council also agreed to budget a 6% increase for the City Manager
beginning October 1, 1984.
Mayor Beals and Council Member Cole left the meeting at 10:00 p.m.
with other business. The City Manager asked the other Council Members
to stay because he had further business about the waste treatment plant
to discuss.
WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT EXPANSION
The City Manager discussed the wastewater treatment plant expansion
with those Council Members present. He explained that this was an
extremely complex project and that it was especially complicated
because both FmHA and EPA funds were being used. He stated that the
City had submitted its User Charges and Sewer Use Ordinance for DER
approval, and their preliminary comments were that there should be
no problems with either of these items.
FmHa recently approved the City's loan portion of this project, but
they would not allow the City to proceed with any construction until
the bonds were validated for the entire project. This presents a
problem because EPA regulations require the City to begin construction
within nine months after receiving approval. Construction was to
begin on Lift Station #6 in December.
The other problem which has arisen is that the project is divided
into three segments. One for the construction of Lift Station #6,
the second work at the sprayfield, and the third work on the
treatment plant itself. FmHA policy does not allow the project
to be divided into three segments. Their policy is to let all
contracts at the same time to insure there is no cost overrun.
Mr. Forbes stated that this problem could be overcome by letting
bids for Lift Station #6 in December which is a small portion of
the total project. Contracts for the sprayfield and the treatment
plant would be let at the same time. FmHA will agree to this, but
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it will require a schedule change with EPA. In order to continue
with the construction schedule, the City must obtain I' contours
and a survey of the Sunderman property the City wishes to purchase.
However, the City cannot purchase this property or even discuss a
price until we receive notification from the EPA stating the price
we can offer for the land.
The City Manager also stated that the FmHA would not accept some of
the Engineering Contracts submitted to the EPA. They would require
the City to use a joint EPA-FmHA Contract which the FmHA had already
negotiated. The City Manager stated that we would be required to
change contracts, and that he was investigating what the City had
approved and what FmHA standards were.
In conclusion, he explained that the wastewater treatment plant
expansion project was extremely complicated, but he would keep
the Council informed. He also stated that the City will need to
request funds to pay Engineering fees from the City's Capital
Improvement Fund.
The City's request to upgrade the present waste treatment plant
from 600,000 to 700,000 gpd also was discussed. Mr. Forbes stated
that all work had been submitted to the State DER on this matter
and the City was able to calculate the plant could take 700,000 gpd.
The DER was now asking if the City's sprayfield could handle the
700,000 gpd. Our Engineer has stated that it could and the proper
data will be submitted to the DER, and we hope to resolve this
situation in the very near future.
SPRAYFIELD
It was discussed that one-third of the sprayfield's hay crop
is poor. The hay contractor, Chuck Kuharske, had agreed that at
the next cutting he would start paying $100 as part of his lease
agreement. However, he has requested that the City pay for the
next fertilizing of the crop since one-third of it was not up to
his standards. The City Manager stated that he would discuss
this with the Council at the next meeting, and that we should
agree to Mr. Kuharske's request. Council Member Pool requested
that Mr. Forbes obtain a cost estimate for fertilizing.
SLUDGE
The City Manager also explained that the City may have to have its
sludge rerated from a Class I to a Class II due to a high copper
content. Class I means that the City is not required to get a
permit for disposal. The Utility Director is testing various
manholes in the City to see where the copper is coming from. It
could be coming from homes with copper pipe or from some commercial
firm. The matter is being investigated, and the City Manager
will report back to the Council.
There being no further business,
the ~g adjourned at 11:00
_~ 13. (3..~" tL
Charles B. Beals, Mayor
p.m.
Attest: