HomeMy Public PortalAbout11-17-97 Public Hearing (Sanitary Sewer Construction Program).tifMINUTES
VILLAGE COUNCIL "PUBLIC HEARING"
ON THE PROPOSED SANITARY SEWER CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM
VILLAGE OF KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 1997
COUNCIL CHAMBER
85 WEST MCINTYRE STREET, SECOND FLOOR
The meeting was called to order by the Mayor at 6 10 p m Present were Councilmembers Martha
Broucek, Gregory Han, Hugh O'Reilly, Michele Padovan, Betty Sime, Vice Mayor Mortimer Fried
and Mayor John Festa Also present were Village Manager C Samuel Kissinger, Deputy Village
Clerk Vivien Maun and Village Attorney David Wolpin
Mayor Festa addressed the Council and the public stating that the purpose of the public hearing was
to give the residents and owners of Key Biscayne that are in non-sewered areas, the opportunity to
ask questions to experts in the field, from Dade County, State, HRS and Miami Sewer Departments
The Village Manager made an overview regarding the Council's goal in the Sanitary Sewer issue
since the time of incorporation The Manager explained a loan was recently secured for the cost of
the project installation and planning of the engineering over a 20 year period at a rate of 2 56% This
rate will benefit those who choose to benefit from the installation of the sanitary sewer line in front
of their respective homes The Village Engmeer will address the feasibility study which was a part
of the loan requirement, the rules and regulations which govern the repair and installation of septic
tank systems and brief presentations from the expert representatives At this point, the Manager
introduced the Village Engineers Carlos Pemn and Andrew Pierce for their presentation
Carlos A Penin, P E , Village Engineer, CAP Engineering Consultants, explained that once we
submitted the application, one of the requirements was that we submit a collection system study
Also, the Engineer presented an overview of the existing system and then showed the proposed
system which will include the areas that are going to be covered in the proposed sanitary sewer
system A senes of charts were presented to illustrate the presentation
The Mayor opened the public hearing The following residents addressed the Council
George Earl, 445 Hampton Lane regarding the duration of the project, Sam Davidian, 720
Myrtlewood Lane regarding future conflicts with costs and water main breaks, Luis Robles,
22 Harbor Point regarding the possibility for inclusion in the special taxing district and in
the referendum of a private road, Jim Haney, 472 Glenndge Road regarding the real costs,
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favored referendum and wanted information in the number of sewer overflow cases and
problems with installation, Miguel Echarte, 325 Gulf Road regarding sequence and
scheduling of the program, Clyde Aderhold, 797 Woodcrest, asked about the sewer and the
referendum
Councilmember Han made addressed the Council and the public encouraging the later to let their
elected officials know about their opinions on whether a referendum is necessary or not
The Manager indicated that there is a time deadline of November 1, 1998 to the state loan Final
plans and specifications must be completed by this date The Manager indicated that applying for
the loan is not always an easy task The first time that the Village applied for the loan, it was denied,
and when applied for the second time we were approved The benefit of the loan being in place at
the secured rate of 2 56% is a benefit that may not happen again
The Engineer indicated that the cost discussed at this time is a rough estimate of the program due
to the fact that the system has not yet being designed
Mr William M Brant, Deputy Director for Wastewater Miami -Dade Water & Sewer Department,
briefly addressed the Council regarding repair measures adopted by his department in the event of
overflows due to any type of pump station failures
The following residents addressed the Council Luis Robles, 22 Harbor Point, regarding the
possibility of the loan for the private sector of the Island, drainage and electricity at Harbor
Point, Haydee Archibald, 881 Ocean Drive, regarding condominiums share not to pay for
sewer of residences, Jim Haney, 472 Glenndge Road, regarding program costs
At this time, the Manager indicated that there were three representatives from the Agency of
Environmental Protection Mayor Festa introduced the representative for the State Department of
Health, Mr Samir Elmir
Mr Samir Elmir, the Environmental Administrator for the State of Florida and Department of Health
(it is no longer called HRS), addressed the Council regarding the mandatory and statutory
requirements to administer the septic tank program in Dade County Mr Elmir's department, the
Department of Health, is responsible for the administration and implementation of the Florida laws
regarding septic tanks The elements of their health program are compliance, permitting and
enforcement Mr Elmir urged Village officials to inform his office of septic tank system conditions,
due to the fact that their office does not have a maintenance program The Health Department's only
way to find out about septic tank systems is once they have failed There is no real repair data
available, nevertheless, the Department of Health keeps data on the number of system failures
throughout Dade County
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Mayor Festa, in an attempt to get general points of information and help Councilmembers and the
public to further understand the topic, asked the following questions from Mr Elmir Can you
define a system failure? Can repairs be done to dram fields? What repairs are done to septic tanks?
Do most repairs are the result of a change of the dram field?
Councilmember Broucek further asked the following questions from Mr Elmir Who is the final
authority implementing compliance issues? Who implements the permits? Mr Elmir indicated that
the Dade County Health Department has the full authority regarding permits
There was extensive discussion from Council regarding the changes in dram field requirements
Councilmember Sune asked Mr Elmir to elaborate regarding the issue of why the State prefers
sewer over septic tanks and also asked about high tides and septic tanks Mr Elmir also addressed
issues regarding elevation requirements
Councilmember Han asked Mr Elmir to comment on the possible contamination of ground water
due to septic tank failures and if there are any special conditions on Key Biscayne that may allow
the continuous use of septic tanks or to modify some of the department's regulations
The following residents addressed the Council Jim Aldndge, 596 Fernwood Road regarding
data collected from exposure to raw sewer contamination and health threatening issues, Jim
Haney, 472 Glenndge Road, regarding state mandated requirements because of the Master
Plan and sewer overflow, Ward Rathbone, 275 W Mashta Drive regarding elevation of drain
fields and original Mackle fills, Wendy Johannsen, 212 W Mashta Drive, regarding archaic
systems which are polluting the Village and illegal repainng of dram fields, and the initial
Key Biscayne sewer section from 1950's, Nancy Harrison, 240 W Mashta Drive, regarding
old septic tanks vs new septic tank failures, Sam Davttian, 720 Myrtlewood Lane, regarding
implementation of a septic plan maintenance program and effectiveness
Mr Elmir stressed to the public the importance to inform the corresponding authorities of anyone
serving the installation, repair or replacement of a septic tank or dram field without the proper
permits or at odd hours Anyone aware of a septic tank repair should report it immediately to the
Health Department Contractors conducting business without the proper permits can get their
licenses revoked Mr Elmir indicated that their telephone number after 5 00 P M is (305) 324-1190
and from Monday through Friday during regular office hours is (305) 623-3500
Councilmember Padovan addressed the Council regarding the replacement and upgrade of the pump
station at Grapetree due to backups and overflows two years ago
Vice Mayor Fried asked Mr Elmir about requirements from master plans and if the Health
Department has jurisdiction in master plan approvals
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The following residents addressed the Council Dawn Gibbons, 301 West Beechwood Dnve
regarding backups in sewer systems due to hurricanes and/or heavy rainfalls, Haydee
Archibald, 881 Ocean Drive regarding overflow solutions through sewer systems are not
always effective because sewered areas also expenence problems and program
implementation, Jim Haney, 472 Glenndge Road regarding the financing of the system
Councilmember Han asked the Health Department representative if his office had any special
mechanisms to assess Key Biscayne's special situation by drafting a different set of regulations
versus State wide requirements Mr Samir explained that special requests would have to be
addressed at the State level
Councilmember Broucek asked about the Department of Health's relationship to the Department of
Community Affairs and the demands for new municipalities to comply to sewer systems
Mayor Festa asked Mr Elmir to elaborate on what would cause septic tank dram field systems to fail
even if elevation is two additional feet from where it is currently placed
Mr Elmir stated that septic tank dram fields failures are generally the result of poor construction
inspections, clogs, heavy use of systems and/or excessive rainfall
Mayor Festa thanked Mr Samir Elmir for representing the Department of Health and answering all
the questions and concerns
At this time, Mr Jim Plexico from the Department of Environmental Protection addressed the
Council Mr Plexico bnefly explained that his agency was responsible for providing the loan Mr
Plexico's department was given a health certificate signed by a health official documenting the
health hazard on Key Biscayne The authorized health certificate gave Key Biscayne the high
priority for a low interest rate loan The Department of Environmental Protection has been
processing the application and Mr Plexico stressed that he believed that Key Biscayne had secured
one of the lowest interest rates available on loans ever given by their entity The loan requires that
plans and specifications be due by November 1, 1998 He further indicated that his office is working
closely with the Village Engineers to get through the process and make this money available
Mayor Festa asked Mr Plexico what would happen with the loan in the event that we would have
to go to a referendum and get a split vote on sections of the Island, can the Village still use these
funds Mr Plexico explained that a split scenario would deviate from the original island wide
system presented, necessary to secure the loan Yet, subject to public input, Mr Plexico further
stated that while being at the planning stage there may be variations presented
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The Mayor asked the following question to Mr Plexico To what extent does the Village have the
opportunity to enhance the loan not at the 2 56% but at the current rate of 3 22%9 Mr Plexico
responded that it is possible for this scenario to occur
The following residents addressed the Council Jim Haney, 472 Glenndge Road asked if the
plan could be phased, and about the deadline date, Haydee Archibald, 881 Ocean Drive
regarding clarification for the term whole Island
At this time, Mr William Brant, Deputy Director of Wastewater for Miami -Dade Water & Sewer
Department was introduced Mr Brant represents the Water and Sewer Utility for Dade County and
his office is responsible for the operation of the regional water and sewage treatment plants for
virtually all of Dade County Mr Brant explained that the waste water from the Village goes to the
Virginia Key Sewage Treatment Plant and his department handles the frequency of the sewage,
disposal, operations and maintenance of the transmission system to get it there, as well as, the
collection system and pump system that would be constructed if the Village chooses to go ahead
with the project Mr Brant also indicated that the current cost for a single family home to connect
is of $1,841 The connection fee is set by the County Commission and is effective from October 1,
1997 to September 30th, 1998 and histoncally increases every year Mr Brant further explained
that the connecting fee also corresponds for using a share of the capacity of the system and that the
sewage plants are very expensive to maintain and build
Mayor Festa asked Mr Brant to comment on the following questions Does sewer serve better the
Island in terms of getting nd of the watery How was the experience from Dade County Water &
Sewer in the recovery process after Hurricane Andrew and to please give an explanation of the
different itemized charges which appear on the water bill
Mr Brant commented that DERM has a very sophisticated regulatory computenzed system which
overlooks Miami Dade Water and Sewer and monitors closely every pump station
There was extensive discussion from Council regarding this issue
The following residents addressed the Council Jim Haney, 472 Glenndge Road regarding
count documentation from sewer problems for comparison purposes, Sam Davitian, 720
Myrtlewood Lane regarding concerns about increase in water charges and capacity problems
at Virginia Key Sewage Plant and replacement of pipes, Molly Bannger, 371 Beechwood
Drive regarding the financing to homeowners who can not afford the system
The Manager indicated that there will be, if Council goes ahead with this program, a senes of Public
Hearings that will address specifically the areas of assessment and how Council is going to assess
this program (for example a corner house vs a non -corner house and location of sewage line)
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Jim Haney, 472 Glenndge Road addressed the Council regarding paving contracts funds
Mr Brant explained that these funds are capitalized and come out of the departmental
budget
Mr Vince Arrebola, P E , Chief, Water & Sewer Division with DERM gave an overview of the
application process and how they have worked closely with the administration to obtain the vanance
regarding the connection requirements Mr Arrebola explained that his department also has
delegation from the Department of Environmental Protection for the administration of the domestic
sewage program, therefore, if Council decides to go ahead with this program, his office would be
responsible for processing the plans and permits on behalf of the State Also, as a regulatory agency,
their entity is called to investigate sewer overflows and septic tank problems DERM investigates
and works closely with other agencies, such as the Health Department and the Utility, in correcting
system problems
Councilmember Han asked if County regulations had anything to do with the design criteria for
septic tanks Mr Arrebola explained that county regulations under the Water and Sewer Department
with DERM address issues such as land use and lot size
John Lindgren, Plumbing Inspector for the Village of Key Biscayne addressed the Council Mr
Lindgren briefly explained about septic tank contractors and permits
John Little, Building Planning and Zoning Director, briefly addressed the Council regarding the
possibility of including the inspection of dram fields as part of the inspection process
There was extensive discussion from Council regarding the plumbing inspection processes
Mr Sam Davitian, 720 Myrtlewood Lane addressed the Council regarding higher standards
of performance for inspection as a matter of health
Director of Finance and Administrative Services, Jack Neustadt addressed the Council giving an
overview of the financing part of the program The Finance Director explained the Capital
Financing Plan and the three options available to individual homeowners (copy attached)
There was extensive discussion from Council regarding this issue
The following residents addressed the Council Peter Harrison, 240 W Mashta Drive
regarding his support for the sewer system, Molly Bannger, 371 Beechwood Drive regarding
taking the decision to the voters
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The Financial Advisor for the Village of Key Biscayne, Percy Aguila, Jr from Rauscher, Pierce
Refsnes, Inc , was introduced and addressed the Council regarding the importance of the interest rate
locked from this loan
The Attorney explained the difference between a special taxing district and a special assessment
program
Mr Jeffrey DeCarlo, Bond Counsel to the Village with Adorno and Zeder, P A , indicated that in
order to do a taxing district, the Village would have to go through Dade County The County
procedure requires a referendum
There was extensive discussion from regarding this issue
Nancy Harrison, 240 W Mashta Drive addressed the Council regarding the importance of
the program and the real necessity some residents have
Mayor Festa closed the Public Hearing and thanked all the representatives for their information and
time
Councilmember Broucek encouraged residents to come forward with their opinions, to get informed,
and to get involved Councilmember Broucek reiterated that only through public input is that elected
officials can come to correct decision making and that this sewer program is for them
Councilmember Padovan made a motion to adjourn the meeting The motion was seconded by
Councilmember Sime and approved by a 7-0 voice vote The vote was as follows Councilmembers
O'Reilly, Han, Sime, Broucek, Padovan, Vice Mayor Fried and Mayor Festa voting Yes
The meeting was adjourned at 9 45 p m
Respectfully submitted
Vivien Maur Deputy Village Clerk
Approved this 9111 day of December, 1997
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IFA PERSON DECIDES TO APPEAL ANY DECISION MADE BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL
WITH RESPECT TO ANY MATTER CONSIDERED AT A MEETING OR HEARING, THAT
PERSON WILL NEED A RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS AND, FOR SUCH PURPOSE,
MAY NEED TO ENSURE THAT A VERBATIM RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS IS
MADE, WHICH RECORD INCLUDES THE TESTIMONYAND EVIDENCE UPON WHICH
THE APPEAL IS TO BE BASED
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