HomeMy Public PortalAbout1996-04-16 Regular MeetingCOUNCIL MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING - APRIL 16, 1996
The regular meeting of the Bal Harbour Village Council was
held on Tuesday, April 16, 1996, in the Council Chamber at Bal
Harbour Village Hall. The meeting was called to order at 9:32 a.m.
by Mayor Spiegel. The roll was called and those present were:
Mayor Estelle Spiegel
Assistant Mayor Matthew B. BlankI
Councilman Andrew R. Hirschl
Councilman Sol M. Taplin
Also present: Alfred J. Treppeda, Village Manager
Jeanette Horton, Village Clerk
Richard J. Weiss, Village Attorney
Absent: Councilman James E. Boggess
As a quorum was determined to be present, the meeting
commenced.
2. Approval of Minutes: A motion was offered by Councilman
Hirschl and seconded by Councilman Taplin to approve the minutes of
the March 19, 1996, regular meeting. There being no additions or
changes, the motion carried unanimously (3-0), with Councilman
Boggess and Assistant Mayor Blank absent, and the minutes were
approved as submitted.
3. Presentations - Officer of the Month: None
4. Public Hearings: None
5. Ordinance First Reading: None
6 . Ordinance Second Reading/Public Hearing:
The ordinance was read, by title, by the Village Clerk, amending
Chapter 20 "Utilities" of the Bal Harbour Village Code. Mayor
Spiegel then proceeded to open the public hearing. There being no
comments, Mayor Spiegel closed the public hearing.
A motion was offered by Councilman Taplin and seconded by
Councilman Hirschl to enact this ordinance. The motion carried
with the vote as follows: Mayor Spiegel aye; Assistant Mayor Blank
aye; Councilman Hirschl aye; Councilman Taplin aye, Councilman
Boggess absent; thus becoming
ORDINANCE NO. 409
AN ORDINANCE OF BAL HARBOUR VILLAGE, FLORIDA,
AMENDING CHAPTER 20 "UTILITIES" OF THE BAL
1 Assistant Mayor Blank arrived during the second reading of
Ordinance No. 409.
180
HARBOUR VILLAGE CODE BY AMENDING SECTION 20-30
"PAYMENT OF BILLS - MANNER OF PAYMENT" TO
PROVIDE FOR IMPOSITION OF CHARGE FOR LATE
PAYMENT. IMPOSITION OF SPECIAL ASSESSMENT LIEN
FOR UNPAID WATER AND SEWER CHARGES, PROVIDING
FOR COLLECTION OF SUCH LIENS AND CHARGES;
PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY, INCLUSION IN THE
CODE, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
7. Resolutions:
The resolution was read, by title, by the Village Clerk, extending
the Franchise agreement for Goldcoast Cablevision.
Mr. Treppeda explained he is currently in negotiations to renew the
franchise agreement with Goldcoast Cablevision. He further
explained he is working with one of Mr. Weiss' attorneys on this
matter. but he does not feel there is adequate time before the
expiration date. He continued to explain there must be a public
hearing before the franchise is renewed. Therefore, he is
requesting Council approval of this resolution extending the
current franchise for one month.
Assistant Mayor Blank stated that he read that cable television
prices will be raised very shortly. In his opinion, if the Village
grants an extension of the Agreement should consider putting a cap
on the fees.
Councilman Hirschl asked if there is a competitive bidding for the
franchise or is this a monopoly. Mr. Weiss replied under the new
federal legislation it is not a monopoly, but a non exclusive
franchise.
A motion was offered by Councilman Hirschl and seconded by
Assistant Mayor Blank to adopt this resolution. The motion carried
with the vote as follows: Mayor Spiegel aye; Assistant Mayor Blank
aye; Councilman Hirschl aye; Councilman Taplin aye; Councilman
Boggess absent; thus becoming
RESOLUTION NO. 527
A RESOLUTION OF BAL HARBOUR VILLAGE, FLORIDA,
EXTENDING THE FRANCHISE AGREEMENT FOR
GOLDCOAST CABLEVISION; PROVIDING FOR AN
EFFECTIVE DATE.
8. Noise Ordinance - Lewis Harris:
Mr. Harris explained he is the spokesperson for some of the
residents of the Balmoral in regards to the noise coming from the
Sheraton Bal Harbour pool area. He further explained he met with
the Village Manager and Mr. Valdes on this issue. Mr. Valdes
agreed to stop the playing of the steel drums. However, the music
is still very loud. He then proceeded to read from the Bal Harbour
Village Code Section 11-26 and Section 11-29 (1). He requested the
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Council consider amending the code. Mr. Weiss explained that would
not be necessary because Section 11-29 (1) covers this issue.
It was the consensus of the Council that the Village Manager and
Village Attorney meet with Mr. Harris and Mr. Valdes to find
solutions that would resolve the problem, and report back at the
next meeting.
9. The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis - Suzie Sayfie:
Ms. Sayfie on behalf of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis,
thanked the Council for their help in making Tropical Fantasy such
a success. She further explained in many newspapers this event was
called the happening of the decade. She then proceeded to request
that any funds remaining from this event be donated to The Miami
Project.
Mr. Treppeda explained $130,000.00 was budgeted for this event, and
after all obligations have been met, there will be $1,484.21 left.
Assistant Mayor Blank stated he is disappointed that there is not
more left. In his opinion, $1,484.21 is too little to contribute.
Councilman Hirschl stated he personally will donate $500 to The
Miami Project from the Hirschl family. He suggested if the rest
of the Council will make a donation, this would cover the Council's
exposure to the event.
A motion was offered by Assistant Mayor Blank and seconded by
Councilman Taplin that any member of the Council who wishes to make
a contribution to the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis give it to
Mr. Treppeda to add to the remaining amount of $1,484.21 from the
event. The motion carried with the vote as follows: Mayor Spiegel
aye; Assistant Mayor Blank aye; Councilman Hirschl aye; Councilman
Taplin aye; Councilman Boggess absent.
10. Time of May 21st Regular Council Meeting:
Mrs. Horton explained the second reading and public hearing on the
ordinance amending Chapter 21 "Zoning" will be an item on the May
21st agenda. In accordance with Florida State Statute this public
hearing must be held after 5:00 p.m. She further explained if the
Council so desires they can schedule the time of the May 21st
meeting for 4:00 p.m. and recess for the public hearing at 5:05
p.m.
Councilman Hirschl asked if this ordinance will be ready for review
at the May meeting. Mr. Treppeda explained the Architectural
Review Board held a discussion at their last meeting, and Mr.
Silvers will appear at the May meeting and explain their reasons
for not wanting to change the 25 foot rear setback.
A motion was offered by Assistant Mayor Blank and seconded by
Councilman Hirschl to change the time of the May 21st regular
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meeting to 4:00 p.m. The motion carried with the vote as follows:
Mayor Spiegel aye; Assistant Mayor Blank aye; Councilman Hirschl
aye; councilman Taplin aye; Councilman Boggess absent.
11. Reports and Recommendations:
A. Mayor and Council:
Resort Tax :
Assistant Mayor Blank asked Councilman Hirschl about the production
cost for the Emissary stationary. He then proceeded to give the
breakdown on the letterheads, second sheets, and envelopes. He
further stated he feels that these charges should be looked into,
and not accept the costs as presented by Greenstone Roberts.
Councilman Hirschl explained the issue of the Emissary stationary
went to a Sub -Committee to expedite. The Sub -Committee members
were Mr. Singh, Mr. Noboa, and Mr. Fine. He further explained that
three quotes are always received by Greenstone Roberts. He then
asked Mr. Noboa to address this issue for the Council.
Mr. Noboa explained the Sub -Committee addressed the graphic not the
quantity. He further explained the production cost was for
creating the design for the letterhead.
Mr. Treppeda stated this item was already approved by the Council
at last months meeting.
Assistant Mayor Blank stated he believes any expenditures made by
the Resort Tax Committee should be presented to Council.
Councilman Hirschl stated for the past six years nothing was
presented to the Council for approval that the Resort Tax
Committee approved. He further stated the Council only approved
the budget. In the last few months any expenditure not related to
tourism was presented to the Council for approval. He then asked
the Village Manager who directed this issue to take place. Mr.
Treppeda replied this is a Code requirement, and various Council
members have discussed this with him. Councilman Taplin stated he
thinks that Assistant Mayor Blank found the error, and it should be
corrected. Assistant Mayor Blank suggested this issue be discussed
further at the next Council meeting. He also suggested that the
Council should review the performance of Greenstone Roberts before
the end of December, which is when their contract expires.
Discussion of Beach - Councilman Taplin:
Councilman Taplin stated the Village is faced with a very serious
problem, which is the Village is losing their beach. He further
explained in the thirty years he has been on the Council he has
never received as many calls and letters about the condition of the
beach. If something is not done there will be no beach, and Bal
Harbour would not be Bal Harbour without a beach. He then
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proceeded to explain what had happened 30 years ago on
renourishment of the beach. He continued to explain about the
enactment of the 2% Resort Tax to restore the beach, which was
approved by Tallahassee to use the funds for the beach.
Councilman Taplin proposed since the Village has an income of 1.5
million dollars per year, that at least one third of this should be
allocated to the Beach Renourishment fund. He continued to explain
that he and Mr. Treppeda met with Mr. Von Oesen, who was the
engineer when the beach was renourished 30 years ago, and he is
willing to help on the renourishment of the Village's beach.
Mayor Spiegel asked Mr. Treppeda the status of the $10,000.00 that
was approved for a study. Mr. Treppeda explained Congressman E.
Clay Shaw wrote a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers urging them
to let the Village contribute $10,000.00 for a study. To date, no
answer has been received from the Army Corps of Engineers.
Councilman Hirsch! stated certainly what Councilman Taplin says is
the next major challenge for the Village. Since the Village will
be relying on Resort Tax to guarantee to a bank the ability of
repaying a loan. He explained, at present the Village has a 3% tax
on lodging, but the State law allows a 4% tax. A referendum is
required by the voters of the Village to approve the increase to
4%. Therefore, he would like to see the Village increase the tax.
Mr. Weiss stated he would have to look into this matter, but his
office has already done work on this issue. However, he does not
have the information with him at this time.
It was the consensus of the Council that Mr. Weiss review
increasing the tax to 4%, and have the information in time so the
Village would have the ability to place this issue on the County
ballot.
Mr. Weiss asked the Council if they wished to take steps to move
forward with an engineering study that would define the following:
what must be done, the cost of the project, and then explore
methods of financing.
Mr. Treppeda explained he does have a proposal from Mr. Von Oesen
at a cost of $21,000.00. He then proceeded to read Mr. Von Oesen's
proposal, which is as follows:
First phase would result in a report to the
Village setting out the exact requirements for
the Village to proceed with an investigation
and search for suitable fill material off-
shore and the attitude of the Corps and State
concerning proceeding with the project and the
probable cost of phase two.
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184
Second phase would be the actual investigation
and search for fill materials in the ocean off
Bal Harbour and the estimated cost to contract
with a dredging company to accomplish the
renourishment fill.
Third phase would be preparing permit
applications, submittal to governmental
agencies, and meeting with them as necessary.
Fourth phase would be to design the project
and prepare drawings, specifications, and bid
documents.
Fifth phase would be accomplishing the
renourishment and could be done by the Corps
of Engineers or by the Village, whichever
appears wise at that time.
Mr. Treppeda explained Mr. Von Oesen would be working with Coastal
Planning and Engineering in Boca Raton. Mr. Weiss asked if Mr. Von
Oesen's company still in business. Mr. Treppeda replied the
company is still in business. Mr. Treppeda suggested if the
Council so desires he could have Mr. Von Oesen speak to the Council
either at next month's meeting or at a workshop.
Mr. Weiss explained the normal procedure, when dealing with a
project of this type, would be to issue a Request for Proposals.
He then proceeded to explain the Council should authorize the
Village Manager to place an advertisement, and have a selection
committee to rank the firms to do the engineering study. At the
same time, the Council should get a financial advisor to help them
with the financing of the project.
It was the consensus of the Council that the Village Manager and
Village Attorney prepare the Request for Proposals, and the Village
Attorney should pursue the issue of increasing the Resort Tax.
Mayor Spiegel stated if necessary have a workshop prior to the next
meeting so they would be more up to date on this issue. Assistant
Mayor Blank stated, in his opinion, a workshop should be held on
this issue.
B. Village Attorney: None
C. Village Manager:
Storm Drain Project Update:
Mr. Treppeda explained the bids for the storm drain project came in
higher than what was estimation by the Village's engineering firm.
The original estimated was $2.2 million and the low bids totaled
$3,124,860.00. This amount includes the drainage wells and the
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bids for the transfer station and piping. He continued to explain
he has discussed the Village's options with the engineers, and have
determined that the best course of action is as follows:
Redesign some aspects of the project
Rebid the transfer station and piping
separately
He pointed out there will be no additional design costs to the
Village for this redesign.
Bill Landis, Craig A. Smith & Associates, displayed maps of the
original conceptual plans and the plans that went out to bid. He
then proceeded to explain the plans that went out to bid. Mr.
Landis stated, in his opinion, the bids are too high. In
redesigning the project, and dividing piping and pump station into
two bids, this should get the project back in line with the budget.
A motion was offered by Councilman Hirschl and seconded by
Assistant Mayor Blank to reject all bids and rebid the project.
The motion carried with the vote as follows: Mayor Spiegel aye;
Assistant Mayor Blank aye; Councilman Hirschl aye; Councilman
Taplin aye; councilman Boggess absent.
Mr. Brown, 268 Bal Bay Drive, asked what condition would the
streets be in after this project is completed. Mr. Landis replied
there will areas where the paving will be restored, but not totally
repaved.
Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991:
Mr. Treppeda explained this Act requires that employers who assign
persons to operate commercial vehicles conduct pre -employment,
reasonable suspicion, random, and post accident testing of drivers
for the use of alcohol and controlled substances.
He continued to explain the Village employees who drive garbage
trucks, which weigh 26,001 or more pounds, are subject to the
regulations of this Federal law. The Village has six employees who
fall under this law, and they all work in the Public Works
department
At this time, he requested the Council authorize the Village
Manager to enter into an agreement with Global MRO to provide
alcohol and controlled substance testing in compliance with Federal
and State law. He further explained this agreement has been
reviewed and approved by the Village Attorney's office.
Councilman Hirschl asked why this Act has not been implemented
2 Councilman Taplin left the room during this discussion.
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186
before now, since it was effective January 1991. Mr. Treppeda
replied the Act became effective January 1996 for municipalities.
A motion was offered by Assistant Mayor Blank and seconded by Mayor
Spiegel to authorize the Village Manager to enter into an agreement
with Global MRO. The motion carried with the vote as follows:
Mayor Spiegel aye; Assistant Mayor Blank aye; Councilman Hirschl
aye; Councilman Taplin absent; Councilman Boggess absent.
Quarterly Financial Report:
Mr. Treppeda explained the Village is half way through the budget
year, and most of the General Fund department expenditures are at,
or below, the 50% level. While there are certain items over the
budget, he feels that the excess will be picked up by the remaining
line items that are and will be under budget.
Mr. Treppeda then proceeded to explain Resort Tax collections are
up compared to this time last year. He explained the Village's
accounting office has advised him the collection will be over what
was budgeted for this year.
Discussion of New Banners for 50th Anniversary:
Mr. Treppeda explained he has done research on ordering new banners
to be displayed on the Village's street light poles for the
Village's 50th Anniversary. He displayed a sample banner he
borrowed from Surfside. He then proceeded to explain he has some
computer generated designs that show how the banners he would like
to order will look.
Discussion followed as to color and the type of letters. It was
the consensus of the Council the letter should be block letters and
the color should be a shade of blue.
Recommendations of Resort Tax Committee:
Mr. Treppeda explained the different recommendation made by the
Resort Tax Committee at their April 9, 1996 meeting, which are as
follows:
Publicity photography for the Tropical Fantasy
Event $950.00
Advertisements placed in the Miami Herald for
the Tropical Fantasy Event $3,095.25
Production and printing costs of 1,500 special
event invitation cards and envelopes for use
by the Emissary $460.00
Mr. Treppeda explained the photography and the Miami Herald
advertisement for the Tropical Fantasy Event will be paid out of
1
Councilman Taplin returned during this discussion.
Regular Council Meeting April 16. 1996 8
the $130,000.00 which was budgeted for this event.
A motion was offered by Councilman Taplin and seconded by
Councilman Hirschl to approve these expenditures. The motion
carried with the vote as follows: Mayor Spiegel aye; Assistant
Mayor Blank aye; Councilman Hirschl aye; Councilman Taplin aye;
Councilman Boggess absent.
50th Anniversary Picnic at Sea View Hotel:
Mr. Treppeda reviewed the expenditures for this event, which were
as follows:
Two banners and roll tickets for ice cream
$10.94
Name Tags $16.70
Three tents and 50 chairs $1,139.70
Balloons and additional name tags $43.47
Rental of two ice coolers, one volleyball
net/ball, and one horseshoe game $73.26
Moonwalk for children $250.00
Clown for children $125.00
Mel Olman Music $500.00
Magician $350.00
Food, Beverage, and labor provided by Sea View
Hotel $4,000.00
He then proceeded to explain the total expenses were $6,509.07, and
cash received from admission fees was $2,955.00. Therefore, the
total subsidy due from the Village is $3,554.07. At this time, he
requested approval of the subsidy of $3,554.07 for this event.
A motion was offered by Councilman Hirschl and seconded by
Assistant Mayor Blank to approve the expenditure of $3,554.07 out
of Resort Tax Funds. The motion carried with the vote as follows:
Mayor Spiegel aye; Assistant Mayor Blank aye; Councilman Hirschl
aye; Councilman Taplin aye; Councilman Boggess absent.
It was the consensus of the Council to have an annual picnic, and
the village Manager should include this event in next year's
budget.
12. Other Business:
Councilman Taplin read from the minutes of March 19th, page 6,
Regular Council Meeting April 16, 1996 9
which is as follows:
Mr. Treppeda asked Mr. Wolpin to explain the
duties of the Council issues dealing with
resort tax. Mr. Wolpin explained the Resort
Tax Committee is charged with the duty of
making recommendations on all items of
expenditures dealing with tourism promotion.
The one area that they have authority to take
action is the placement of advertisements in
the various media, in accordance with the
budget of the Village. He further explained
as to all other items, the final decision is
with the Council after receiving input by the
Resort Tax Committee.
Councilman Taplin explained this is what was brought up early in
the meeting by Assistant Mayor Blank. Mr. Weiss explained the
issue was why that was not brought up before.
Councilman Hirschl commended Mr. Treppeda for going to the
Village's Code and interpreting it properly.
Charles Brown, 268 Bal Bay Drive, explained he has received
complaints about the activities under Haulover Bridge, and
requested the Council look into keeping the gate locked. Mr.
Treppeda stated he will see that the gate is locked
Mr. Brown then proceeded to explain he has received complaints from
the residents of 80 Park Drive about the noise coming from trucks
making deliveries at the Bal Harbour Shops. Mr. Whitman suggested
the residents contact the Shops or the police department when this
happens.
Sybille Holder, 24 Bal Bay Drive, asked when the beach chairs by
the Sheraton Hotel will be removed, since the Sheraton renovation
is now complete. Mr. Treppeda stated he will review this and speak
to the Manager.
13. Adiourn: There being no further business to come before
the Council, a motion was offered by Councilman Hirschl and
seconded by Councilman Taplin to adjourn. The motion carried
unanimously (4-0), with Councilman Boggess absent, and the meeting
adjourned at 11:30 a.m.
Mayor Estelle Spieg1
Attest:
eanette Horton,CMC/AAE
Village Clerk
Regular Council Meeting April 16, 1996
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