Loading...
07-10-12 City Commission Workshop MinutesWORKSHOP MEETING JULY 10, 2012 A Workshop Meeting of the City Commission of the City of Delray Beach, Florida, was called to order by Mayor Nelson S. McDuffie in the First Floor Conference Room at City Hall at 6:00 p.m., on Tuesday, July 10, 2012. Roll call showed. Present - Commissioner Thomas F. Carney, Jr. Commissioner Alson Jacquet Commissioner Adam Frankel Commissioner Angeleta E. Gray Mayor Nelson S. McDuffie Absent - None Also present were - David T. Harden, City Manager Brian Shutt, City Attorney Chevelle D. Nubin, City Clerk Mayor McDuffie called the workshop meeting to order and announced that it had been called for the purpose of considering the following Items. WORKSHOP MEETING AGENDA 1. Discussion of a Smoke Free Workplace Mr. Bruce Koeser, Human Resources Director, discussed the cost regarding health expenses for tobacco users. Most employers are now putting the responsibility back on employees. Mr. Koeser stated some national companies have put smoking bans in place. There are some agencies that do not hire smokers and some local governments that have put policies into place. He stated our outside counsel has stated it is legal to institute policies regarding smoking for civil service employees, Department Heads and new hires. For unions, this would have to be negotiated. This cannot affect current employees only future hires. Mr. Koeser discussed what progress the city has made to date: smoking cessation classes and higher premiums. Mr. Jacquet asked if there is a way of calculating how much we spend or how much we could save with a policy. In addition, he asked if there is any company that has implemented this in a segmented way- different rules for in office and out of office. He mentioned the cessation classes. We unposed a 20% premium for smokers as of last year. The city pays for the classes. Mrs. Gray feels this is a form of discrimination and she is not support of this. Mr. Frankel stated this is an interesting issue and he enjoyed the memorandum. He stated it had a lot of good information. lair. Frankel asked how much time people are taking during the work day to smoke and how does it affect productivity. Mayor McDuffie asked about Fire - Rescue and echoed Mr. Frankel's comments. He stated he is okay with the new hire proposal. Mr. Jacquet proposes that it only affects new hires and complimented Mr. Koeser on the memorandum. It was the consensus of the Commission to move forward with the proposal. Mrs. Gray stated she was not in support based on the discussion. 2. Economic Develo ment Budget Presentation Mayor McDuffie read a letter into the record from Governor Rick Scott commending Delray Beach on creating jobs and culture, etc. Mr. Vin Nolan, Economic Development Director, stated his time is split between the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) and the City. He provided an update on the City and CRA Economic Development programs and progress as of June 2012. He highlighted the accomplishments for FY 2011 -2012. He proposed additional economic development initiatives for FY 2012 -2013. Nit. Nolan discussed current staffing and proposed CRA and City staffing. In addition, he spoke regarding the City's Economic Development Program Management, additional tools and support mechanisms. Mr. Nolan reviewed the FY 2012 -2013 City and CRA Economic Development Budget. Mr. Frankel thanked Mr. Nolan and asked if he could give examples of businesses brought to the city as a result of his efforts. Nits. Gray thanked Mr. Nolan and stated she is excited we are moving forward with Economic Development. She mentioned national consultants and the ability to look at sites online. She commented regarding brochures and referenced the city's webpage. She stated a micro -loan program would be an excellent program to implement. Mrs. Gray mentioned providing incentives to businesses that remain in the city. Mt. Carney stated he was on the CRA Board when Mr. Nolan first came. He thinks the incentives are great and the micro -loan program as well. He congratulated Mr. Nolan on the work he does at the CRA. Mr. Jacquet stated he spoke quite a bit with Mr. Nolan regarding his vision and the work he is doing. He told Mr. Nolan to keep up the good work. Mayor McDuffie stated we need to support businesses when they need our help. He stated he supports the proposals. 3. Commulu :V Improvement FY 2013 Departmental Budget Presentation Mrs. Lula Butler, Community Improvement Director, presented this item. She introduced her staff members that were present. She discussed the Community Improvement Organizational Chart, major functions, staffing summary, expense overview, budget account highlights, revenue overview and the annual total revenue comparison. Mr. Frankel stated it never ceases to amaze him. The Community Improvement Department does a top notch, great job. He congratulated the Department Mrs. Gray how the Code Enforcement positions that are frozen affect us. Mrs. Butler stated one position was unfrozen. Mrs. Gray asked if we can have the CRA more involved regarding demolitions. Nit. Carney stated this was a very good presentation and he is fascinated by the increased revenues; he asked about the projects. Mr. Jacquet thanked Mrs. Butler for the presentation. 2 July 10, 2012 . Mayor McDuffie thanked Mrs. Butler for the presentation. 4. Planning and Zoning FY 2013 Departmental Budget Presentation Mr. Paul Dorling presented this item. He provided an overview of the Planning and Zoning Department Organizational Chart, departmental activities, staffing summary, expense overview, budget account highlights, current trends and workload. Mr. Jacquet asked how we are progressing on the development plans for Osceola and South Federal Highway. Mr. Dorling stated the plans may have to be tweaked a little due to public input. However, they are imminent. In addition, Mt. Harden stated the reason it is taking a longer time is due to the number of staff and staff's workload. Mr. Jacquet asked if we have a policy regarding frozen positions and what the procedures are for deciding what positions to eliminate. Mr. Carney stated he is interested in the part of the presentation that talks about development applications and building permit reviews trending upward. He asked what kinds of projects are trending upwards. Mr. Dorling explained Mrs. Gray asked about the permit review and turnaround time. Mr. Dorling stated the level of service has not changed regarding the core functions. Mr. Frankel stated he would like to see a graph regarding permits. Mr. Dorling stated it has slightly gone up but has been mostly flat. Mayor McDuffie thanked Mr. Dorling for the presentation. 5. Revenue, Debt Service and Transfers FY 2013 Budget Presentations Mr. David Boyd presented this item. He showed graphs of trends in General Fund Revenues and transfers in FY 2004 through Proposed FY 2013, assessed valuation growth or decline (City, CRA and Downtown Development Authority (DDA) Trending), FY 2013 Revenue Budget - permits have increased over the last two (2) years. Mr. Harden commented regarding Communications Services Tax. He stated State law changes caused our taxes to drop $150,000, Mr. Boyd also discussed revenue changes by category: budgeted, Debt Service FY 2013, Debt Service by category, budgeted and additional information. He discussed transfers as well. Mrs. Gray asked about the Financial Review Board. In addition, she inquired about Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) dollars. Mayor McDuffie adjourned the Workshop Meeting at 8:05 p.m. City Clerk July 10, 2012 ATTEST: The undersigned is the City Clerk of the City of Delray Beach, Florida, and the information provided herein is the Minutes of the Workshop Meeting of the City Commission held on Tuesday, July 10, 2012, which Minutes were formally approved and adopted by the City Commission on August 7, 2012. City Clerk NOTE TO READER: if the Minutes you have received are not completed as indicated above, this means they are not the official Minutes of the City Commission. They will become the official Minutes only after review and approval, which may involve amendments, additions or deletions to the Minutes as set forth above. 4 July 10, 2012