The Tavares, FL City Council met on April 3, 2019, and discussed the following:
Tab 2: Proclamation on Water Conservation Month - The St. John's River Water Management District requested the Council issue this proclamation. Since it covered water, I gave public input about the related Fish & Wildlife Commission meeting to discuss priorities for Hydrilla treatment in the Lake Harris Chain of Lakes and that the City Council wasn't there and should have a tiger team to more aggressively act to ensure Lake Dora's water quality is not degraded. See my video of that FWC Hydrilla meeting HERE!
Attorney Robert Williams statement: Several citizens turned in public input cards to comment about an upcoming developer proposal to build a multi-story apartment complex on the shores of Lake Saunders next to residential homes. The attorney explained that they could not do so because it was a "quasi-judicial" proceeding and the City Council could not hear public comments until the matter formally appeared before them. That did not go well. The matter will be discussed at the upcoming Planning & Zoning meeting on April 18th at 3 pm, and residents were encouraged to give comment at that meeting first. Citizens interested in learning more about resident opposition should contact Corrinne Garrett at [email protected] .
First Readings (Tavares does NOT allow public input on First Readings so none were allowed.)
Tab 5: The City Clerk read the "First Reading" of a pending Ordinance 2019-06 on an Amendment to Landscaping and Buffering regulations. (Transparency Note: I go to several city councils and Tavares is the ONLY one that will NOT allow public input on First Readings. This reduces transparency because citizens cannot make public comments until the second hearing (Second Reading) when the actual decision is made. There is no time to clarify facts, etc. In such cases, citizens should submit written comments/opposition/support for such issues to the City Clerk AND elected officials just after the first reading so they are incorporated into the packet published for the Council's second reading and available online. Citizens should also talk to city staff before pending meetings to clarify issues or questions. )
Second Readings (where citizen public comments are accepted)
Tab 6: Update on the Performing Arts Center - A 200-page update report by the engineering firm Haskell was included in the agenda packet.
Haskell managers gave a presentation on the update, and the City Council decided to move forward with the next stage. Councilman Kirby Smith was the only one to ask how fiscally justified the center would be, or would it be a loss. There was no real info on how to "break even" on the project, only ideas on how to fund it. (Note: The City already has the Pavilion center which is still not at a break even, thus it is subsidized by other tax sources.) Read the pdf report and watch our video at the link above to see the presentation. Several comments were made by citizens about the design and other issues.
Tab 7: Staff gave an update on plans for issuing a Request for Proposal for marketing and promotion services, and the City Council approved further action.
Tab 9: The Council goals for the City Administrator, John Drury, had been discussed earlier (see packet) and the Council added a few more and approved them. In my review, I question why nothing was specific about measurable metrics or specific times. Everything was vague, thus how can you ever measure actual compliance? I mean, how do you measure completion of "Focus on esthetics throughout the City", or "Maintain and improve infrastructure for future".? There were no budget caps or cost estimates or cost control limits set for any of the Council requests except Kirby Smith asking him to "Keep millage rate at the same rate". That means to me there will be no rollback rate when property valuations go up and they will spend the gains on more projects. Tavares is one of the highest taxed cities, at 7+ mills vs Lady Lake which is 3 mills. Is it worth it to property owners? (Disclosure: I live just outside Tavares in unincorporated Lake County, so Tavares tax hikes don't bother me or I would be louder about the trends.)
Tab 10: Tavares Historical Society Report: Betty Burleigh described more history lessons about Tavares.
XIII. "Audience to be Heard" included several comments such as:
-
The library is being used as a holding center for students out of school, thus it is noisy and needs to be resolved. (I agree... lots of disruption with student programs and noise.)
The sky was blue, no hurricanes and the meeting was concluded.
The short link to this video is: https://youtu.be/fgdOin5iN_w
Video by Vance Jochim, Lake County, FL fiscal watchdog blogger at FiscalRangers.com .
Email questions or requests to be added to our blog's email list to [email protected] .
Vance Jochim
April 13, 2019
Tavares, FL
Vance Jochim
[email protected]
YouTube Channel "FiscalRangersFlorida"
