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03-25-2008 Regular MeetingCity of Clermont MINUTES REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 25, 2008 The Clermont City Council met in a regular meeting on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 in the Council Chambers at City Hall. Mayor Hal Turville called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm with the following Council Members present: Council Members Mullins, Goodgame, Hogan and Berlinsky. Other City officials present were: City Manager Saunders, City Attorney Mantzaris, City Clerk Ackroyd and Assistant City Manager Gray. INVOCATION Council Member Goodgame gave the invocation followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. MINUTES Council meeting minutes of February 26, 2008 and March ll, 2008. Council Member Goodgame moved the minutes of February 26 be apRroved as written• seconded by Council Member Mullins. The motion passed with all members present voting"aye". Council Member Goodgame moved the minutes of March 11 be approved as written• seconded b~ Council Member Mullins. The motion passed with all members present voting "aye". PUBLIC COMMENTS Cuqui Whitehead, 837 5`h Street, invited citizens to the Day of Prayer on May ls` at 7:30am. Tickets are for sale on behalf of Kiwanis of South Lake. Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Drive, commented on visibility issues while driving west on Highway 50. He noted it is impossible to see the traffic signal flashing yellow in front of Fire Station No. 1 with the sun directly in the driver's eyes. There is the potential for a serious problem. Bill Banzhaf noted there was a collision at that location last week. Council Member Goodgame suggested the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) review to determine if they have any recommendations. Mayor Turville asked City Manager Saunders to contact FDOT. Charlene Forth, 939 W. Desoto Street, requested Council place a "Caution Pedestrian" sign along the downtown areas specifically in front of Hill Top and to the left of the building. Ms. Forth also commented on the amplified music at the On the Corner restaurant. Furthermore, she noted one of the police car alarms was alerting in the night and was told by Dispatchers the officer was on vacation and they did not have a key. Ms. Forth suggested the Police Department have an extra set of keys available. Mayor Turville requested staff check it out and commented they would look into signage. City Manager Saunders noted those are private alleyways and would need cooperation of the owners. Wally Herda, 1109 Highland Avenue, questioned the helicopter landing at the school located next to his home on February 25. City Manager Saunders stated the pilot has the authority to say where the helicopter will land. The department handling the call makes the suggestion of where the helicopter should land however the pilot has the final say. The City of Clermont has pre approved sites and this is a preferred site for that part of the city. City of Clermont MINUTES REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 25, 2008 Mr. Herda stated he was told by the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) the Council could approve or disapprove a particular site. He questioned having a helicopter site so close to a grade school. City Manager Saunders noted Bishop Field is also a pre approved site and there are homes within the same distance. All ball fields are pre approved sites as well as the treatment plant open area. The reason they like the site in question is because it is fenced in to control access in and out. Council Member Mullins commented the schools are contacted in advance for the schools to empty the field plus the school likes having that location as a landing site. Furthermore, Mr. Herda recommended increasing the parking ticket fee and requested to be on the next agenda. Council Member Goodgame suggested placing on the next workshop agenda to discuss fines. PROCLAMATION Mayor Turville read the proclamation aloud declaring April as Water Conservation Month. Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Drive, requested permission to interject proclamation at the Kings Ridge Homeowners Association meeting to discuss bringing in a water bottling company into this area. The Council was in agreement. REPORTS City Manager Saunders reminded Council of the Visioning Session scheduled for 6:OOpm on April 3ra Also, Gail Ash resigned from the Planning and Zoning Commission effective immediately. The next Council workshop was scheduled for Apri19 at 7:OOpm. City Attorney Mantzaris - No Report Council Member Hogan reported the Water Alliance will have three (3) public meetings to discuss algae blooms in lakes at 7:OOpm on April 3, May 1 and June 5 at Jenkins Auditorium. Furthermore, the Alliance voted to dissolve 3 months ago. He recommended City Manager Saunders draft a letter in opposition to approval of a water bottling plant in South Lake County. Council Member Hogan moved to have staff draft a letter in opposition of approval of water bottling_plant in south Lake County seconded by Council Member Goodgame The motion passed with all members present voting"atie" Council Member Goodgame - No Report Council Member Berlinsky commented on the water issue and recommended requiring bahia grass or drought resistant grass. Council Member Mullins reported the next League of Cities meeting will be held on April 16. There will be two (2) south Lake County residents honored at the Community Service Awards Banquet -Amanda Walsh and Ann Dupee. Mayor Turville reported on attending a motorcycle event called Vets for Dogs. It is an active organization that trains dogs for disabled veterans. City of Clermont MINUTES REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 25, 2008 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 -Purchase Approval Request authorization to purchase a communication recording system for the Police Department Item No. 2 -Reschedule Council Meeting Request to reschedule the November 11`h (Veterans Day) Council Meeting Council Member Goodgame requested pulling item 1 for discussion. City Manager Saunders noted this will replace the recording equipment and will be consistent with the other agencies. We have an opportunity to piggy back from another bid that is compatible with our system. Lake County 911 will refund 50 percent of the cost. The City of Clermont expense will be $6,500. Council Member Goodgame further noted this will also allow us to coordinate with others within the County. Council Member Goodgame moved for approval of item 1 of the consent a eg nda• seconded by Council Member Mullins. The motion passed with all members present voting_"aye". Council Member Goodgame moved acceptance of item 2 of the consent a eg nda. seconded by Council Member Mullins. The motion passed with all members present voting "aye". NEW BUSINESS Resolution 1562 Mayor Turville read Resolution 1562 aloud by title only. A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Clermont, Lake County, Florida, granting a Conditional Use Permit to allow for aVeterinary/Kennel facility in the C-2 General Commercial District. Mayor Turville called for a break at 8:03pm; the meeting reconvened at 8:OSpm. Curt Henschel, Planner, reported on the request for a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) to allow a veterinarian/kennel business in C-2 zoning district. The parcel currently has an 8,000 square feet building that is used by a mixture of professional office and medical uses. The applicant proposed to provide vaccinations, surgery, dental care, senior care, and taking care of any ill domestic dogs, cats, and small animals. Overnight care is proposed for surgical patients and ill patients. In order for the applicant to establish clientele, boarding of animals is proposed to promote the veterinarian business. Staff recommended approval. John Fox, applicant, was present and was in agreement with staff's recommendations. City of Clermont MINUTES REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 25, 2008 Mayor Turville opened the public hearing. There were no comments. Mayor Turville closed the public hearing. Mayor Turville voiced concern with kenneling. Mr. Fox stated there will be a fenced area where the animals can be walked. Council Member Goodgame commented on sanitary conditions. Mr. Fox noted veterinarian practices preach to not walk dogs where they go to bathroom. Council Member Goodgame questioned the surrounding businesses. Mr. Fox stated they have received letters from other businesses in support. Council Member Goodgame moved for approval of Resolution 1562 with the caveat that if the nearby tenants in the building; complain about noise or smell the facility must take immediate steps to reduce noise or smell to an acceptable level otherwise revoke the CUP. Council Member Mullins stated section 2 of the CUP summarizes that motion. City Manager Saunders stated part of what was said is on page two (2) of the Resolution. He suggested adding odor to that section and the ability to rescind the CUP. Mavor Turville recommended language to state if noise or health issues become a concern, we can have the applicant come back to address those The motion was seconded by Council Member Berlinsky The motion passed with all members present voting "aye". Transmittal Hearing -Large Scale Comprehensive Plan Amendment Barbara Hollerand, Planner, reported on the administrative amendment to the comprehensive plan. She advised the audience of the comprehensive plan citizen request form that is available for anyone interested in enlisting to receive the information. This is for proposed text changes to the Future Land Use Element. The proposed amendment adds policies to the Goals, Objectives and Policies of the comprehensive plan pertaining to preservation of historic resources. These new policies reflect the City's vision for preservation of historical resources and are intended to strengthen the City's Florida Forever grant application for Phase II of the Inland Groves property acquisition. Staff recommended approval and the Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend transmittal. Mayor Turville opened the public hearing. There were no comments. Mayor Turville closed the public meeting. Council Member Mullins moved acceptance of the transmittal• seconded by Council Member Berlinsky. The motion passed with all members present voting "aye„ City of Clermont MINUTES REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 25, 2008 Employee Pay Classification Schedule Administrative Services Director Van Zile reported that all of the City's employees are covered by a job classification pay grade schedule. A survey was conducted of other cities that have positions similar to ours to be competitive in the job market. There are 34 positions compared to 8 other cities. Clermont's pay grade minimum was determined to be 12.5% below average therefore staff is recommending revised pay grade scales. Another schedule shows the comparison of current and proposed pay grade schedules for all positions. He explained how he arrived at the proposed pay grade schedule. With very few exceptions, all positions are proposed to be increased. It does include union covered employees. The only unionized positions not covered are a police officer. The union would have to approve it. If approved by Council, the new pay scale would become effective March 31. The next step was to determine how to implement the pay grade schedule. Staff came up with 6 options which were reviewed with Council at a previous workshop. Staff recommended option 6 be approved due to budget constraints. It would cost the City $165,000 which includes the firefighters. Mayor Turville noted the objective is to increase the entry level wage to at least average in a similar working environment. Every employee received a 2.50 percent merit increase on October 1 plus a merit increase of 0 to 4 percent depending on performance evaluation. He spoke in favor of option 6. Ed Proli, 1029 Everest Street, requested raises be given to the Fire Department staff and commented they have not received a raise during the last 3 years during contract negotiations. Mayor Turville stated the some employees within their pay grade are currently earning above the minimum pay grade. We have studies demonstrating our entry level on 34 classifications was subpar related to comparable cities within our region. We are trying to improve the entry level situation and option 6 deals exclusively with those individuals. The Council has been given 5 other options. City Manager Saunders clarified the Firefighters have continued to receive raises during negotiations including a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) each October and a merit increase. Jim Purvis, 4206 Hammersmith Drive, stated the salaries are insufficient and the City has the funds. He commented on serving on the Fire Department interview board and noted there were no interviews in January due to the lack of qualified applicants. City Manager Saunders stated the intent of the proposal is to adjust the scales for the entry level to be competitive. Council Member Goodgame requested the salaries be above the other cities and not equal to. Council Member Mullins commented that since the Firefighters are still negotiating union contracts, there is a chance they will receive another raise. Mr. Van Zile stated this would be an advance to the Firefighters before the union negotiations are finished. Council Member Mullins moved acceptance of Option 6 and have City Manager Saunders re-address why we have openings in the Police and Fire Departments• seconded by Council Member Berlinsk~ 5 City of Clermont MINUTES REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 25, 2008 Council Member Berlinsky recommended an amendment to the motion to have the City Manager return to Council in 3 months with an analysis to make them more competitive to fill the vacancies in a short period of time. Cuqui Whitehead recommended the Council approve option 6. Council Member Mullins voiced concern about not being able to fill positions. Council Member Goodgame suggested raising the pay rates to a level to attract better people. Mr. Van Zile asked for clarification of the motion to adopt the proposed pay grade schedule and option 6 to implement it. The Council agreed that was the intent and the amendment. The motion passed 4 to 1 with Council Member Goodgame opposing_ City Manager Saunders reported the City of Clermont received a donation in the amount of $100,000. It was willed for park improvements from Lillian Bridges. She was born in Haines City and graduated from Clermont High School in 1939. Council Member Hogan requested staff inform the media about this. ADJOURN: With no further comments, this meeting was adjourned at 9:22pm. APPROVED: ...--.,.- .C arold S. Turville, Mayor 6 ATTEST: