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04-02-79SpMtg APRIL 2, 1979 A Special Meeting of the City Council of the City of Delray Beach, Florida was held in the Council Chambers at 7:.05 P.M., Monday, April 2, 1979, with Mayor Leon M. Weekes presiding and City Manager J. Eldon Mariott, City Attorney Roger Saberson and Council members Robert D. Chapin, Charlotte G. Durante, John E. Gomery, Jr. and James H. Scheifley, present. 1. The opening prayer was delivered by Reverend James English, St. Paul Episcopal Church. 2. The Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America was given. 3.a. Mr. Chapin stated that two years comes and goes very ~uickly and he would like to say a few parting remarks. He has been pleased to serve with this Council and leadership requires establish- ing goals and priorities. The major problem facing Delray Beach is coping with the tremed~ndous growth; this Council has effectively expanded the water and sewer capacities but there still is the major problem of traffic congestion; the new Council must address this problem. This Council and the Administration must work effectively with the County, the MPO and the DOT to upgrade the City's streets, roads and bridges. Additional parking is needed in the downtown area east of the waterway. He hopes the Chamber of Commerce and the new Council can speed up the completion of the Linton Boulevard bridge and that the BPOA and this Council will convince the U.S. Coast Guard to permit the Atlantic Avenue bridge and the Eighth Street bridge to open at regular half-hour intervals. The next major issue confront- ing this community will be the issue of the pockets within its midst. He hopes the City will do whatever it can to convince the County to establish a municipal taxing district to eliminate the problem of dual taxation and will encourage voluntary annexation and support corrective legislation in this area. He hopes that the new Council will adopt the City's Comprehensive Plan. Another major issue con- fronting this Council is the refurbishing and operation of the Delray Beach Municipal Golf Course. He requested that Council continue its support for Mrs. Durante's neighborhood revitalization program; this is vital to the general health and well being of the community. He hopes the .new Council will provide additional recreational facilities for the youth, specifically implementation of phase 2 of Miller Park and that Council will continue to support beautification in the City and insist on effective code enforcement of the City ordinances. He extended his appreciation and thanks to Mayor Weekes for the excel- lent leadership he has provided Council and he feels that Mrs. Durante, Mr. Gomery and Mr. Scheifley have been excellent Council members and he appreciates the courtesy and cooperation that they have given him in the two years he has been on Council. He expressed his appreciation to City Manager Mariott, City Attornery Saberson, Lou Martin and Dan Kotulla for the cooperation that they have given him in the last two years and thanked Frank Carey, Phyllis Plume, Ken Ellingsworth, Betty Matthews and Tore Wallin for their support. It's been very gratifying to receive the cooperation of so many fine citizens. There are about 68 people who serve this community on $ or 9 major Boards and he urges Council to continue to seek well-quali- fied citizens to serve on these Boards. The combined efforts of the people on these Boards make Delray a better place in which to live. Jack Saunders left a great legacy to this community and this Council and that is 'to agree or disagree but do so agreeably' and that's a tradition he hopes will be carried on. 3.b. 'Mr. Gomery expressed his appreciation to Council for in- viting him to join Council and he has appreciated the honor of sitting and deliberating with Council the last few months. He sub- scribes to what Mr. Chapin said and feels certain that the new Council will continue to move this City forward and continue the character and quality of life as it now exists. 3.c. Mrs. Durante stated that she has really enjoyed working with the Council this past year. She feels that Council is losing quite an asset by losing Mr. Chapin. It's been a pleasure working with both Mr. Chapin and Mr. Gomery. Mr. Gomery has only been on Council a short time but he just picked up and carried the ball right away as if he'd been on Council a long time. She will consider it an honor, in special appreciation of Mr. Chapin, to work on those ob- jectives that he pointed out and to accomplish those things for him because he has meant so much to this Council. He has meant a lot to her because he has given her a lot of his expertise, knowledge and wisdom that he has learned from the year that he has over her serving on Council. 3.d. Mr. Scheifley stated that if for some unforeseen reason two vacancies should appear on this Council during the next year, using the standards of sincerity, integrity and intelligence in doing what is best for the City, his first choice without any question for those two appointments would be Robert Chapin and John Gomery. 3.e. Mayor Weekes stated that it has been a joy for him to serve as Mayor with the Council that they have here in Delray. He feels very fortunate and hopes that the citizens of this City recog- nize the quality of the people who are leaving this Council and the people who have offered themselves to serve on Council. It really makes the job of government so much easier when you have people who are willing to give of themselves above and beyond what is normally expected of a Council member. Particularly, he will miss Mr. Chapin because of his analytical, legalistic approach to matters which has kept Council from going astray. Tonight Mr. Chapin set forth certain goals that he thought Council should work toward during the coming year; this has been his practice ever since he first came on Council; to set forth, periodically, things that he felt should be a concern to Council and things that needed to be worked toward. He hopes that Mr. Chapin will continue to maintain an interest in the City and the City government even though he is leaving the Council and feel free to make suggestions. This is the second time that Mr. Gomery has filled in for Council; he doesn't know of a citizen in the City who is more dedicated to the City than Mr. Gomery. Mayor Weekes presented Resolution No. 28-79: A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, COMMENDING RETIRING COUNCIL MEMBER ROBERT D. CHAPIN. (Copy of Resolution No. 28-79 is on file in the official Resolution Book) Mayor Weekes read the entire resolution. Mr. Scheifley moved for the passage of Resolution No. 28-79, seconded by Mrs. Durante. Upon roll call Council voted as follows: (Mr. Chapin abstained) Mrs. Durante - Yes; Mr. Gomery - Yes; Mr. Scheifley - Yes; Mayor Weekes - Yes. Said motion passed with a 4 to 0 vote. Mayor Weekes presented Resolution No. 29-79: A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, COMMENDING RETIRING COUNCIL MEMBER JOHN E. GOMERY, JR. (Copy of Resolution No. 29-79 is on file in the official Resolution Book) Mayor Weekes read the entire resolution. Mrs. Durante moved for the passage of Resolution No. 29-79, seconded by Mr. Scheifley. Upon roll call Council voted as follows: Mr. Chapin - Yes; Mrs. Durante - Yes; (Mr. Gomery abstained) Mr. Sheifley - Yes; Mayor Weekes - Yes. Said motion passed with a 4 to 0 vote. Mayor Weekes presented a copy of the resolutions to Mr. Chapin and Mr. Gomery and a plaque commending them for their service to the City as Council members. - 2 - 4/2/79 Mayor Weekes noted that Mr. Gomery was selected by the Beach Property Owners Association as the outstanding citizen in Delray for the preceding year, an honor well-deserved. Mr. Chapin and Mr. Gomery were given a standing ovation. 4. County Commissioner Frank Foster stated that he is here representing the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). The least the MPO could do for a fellow member who has served very well is to give him a certificate of appreciation. He presented Mr. Chapin with the certificate. 5. Mayor Weekes declared the meeting adjourned at 7:25 P.M. ANNUAL ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING OF COUNCIL 1. Councilman-elect Malcolm T. Bird and Councilman-elect Willard V. Young subscribed to the Oath of Office administered by Elizabeth Arnau, City Clerk. 2. Mr. James H. Scheifley was unanimously elected to the position of Vice-Mayor for one year on motion by Mr. Bird, seconded by Mr. Young. 3.a. Mr. Bird stated that when he decided to run for this office he was told two things, that there were going to be a lot of problems and a lot of rewards. So far he doesn't understand what is so difficult about it; he's only had two things brought to him; people would like a decrease in taxes and an increase in service. He thanked all the people who helped to get him elected. 3.b. Mr. Young stated that he is very pleased to be on Council after two attempts. He thanked all the people in Delray Beach who voted for him and he is glad to be able to serve with the people who have been on this Council. His only regret would be that they could not enlarge the Council and include the two that just left. He ex- pressed his appreciation to the City Management and the heads of the various City departments for the cooperation they gave him while he was with the Financial Advisory Board. He looks forward to a very successful year with the Council. He would like to add one thing and that is the financial aspect of the economy; he thinks they can lick it. 3.c. Mrs. Durante stated that she looks forward to another year of the effective, cooperative spirit here on Council. 3.d. Mr. Scheifley informed Council and the audience that there was a golf pro-am today at the Indian Spring Country Club and he played with Tom Fonseca. There were 42 pros who played and Mr. Fonseca came in third with an even par of 72. For a man new to the area competing with 42 experienced pros, achieving the results he did, was not only a credit to his ability but also a credit to the City of Delray Beach. Mr. Scheifley welcomed Mr. Bird and Mr. Young to Council. They have lost two good men who left Council but he is positive that they have attained very competent people. Last week Mr. Anthony, a City Commissioner in West Palm Beach, left office and he was asked what he thought was the most important ingredient in a City commission; he said the most important ingredient for a success- ful City commission is for the members to have respect for each other. This was certainly true of our last Council and he is sure that it will be true and is true of our new Council. 3.e. Mayor Weekes stated that they have replaced quality with quality. He knows both of these gentlemen quite well and they are both dedicated to the City and are hard workers. He thinks they will continue in the tradition that has been set on this Council over the years. 4. Mrs. Durante moved that Council schedule the Council meetings on the second and fourth Monday nights at 7:00 P.M., with the exception of the month of December with regular meetings to be held December 3 and December 10, 1979, seconded by Mr. Bird. Said motion passed unanimously. - 3 - 4/2/79 5.a. The City Manager reported that there are 22 members of the Beautification Committee when the Committee has its full compli- ment. The Beautification Committee has forwarded a list of 20 names and they are recommending that those 20 persons be reappointed to the Committee and the Committee will come back to Council at a later date with recommendations for two additional appointments. Mr. Scheifley moved that the list of candidates for the City Beautification Committee as presented by Ron Oprzadek in his memo of March 27, 1979 be appointed, seconded by Mrs. Durante. Said motion passed unanimously. 5.b. The City Manager reported that the City's two physicians are Dr. R.C. Vollrath and Dr. Clark M. Colvard, Jr. Both of these gentlemen have agreed to serve for the ensuing year if reappointed by Council. Mayor Weekes stated that he thinks they are very fortun- ate to have men of that caliber offer their services to the City. Mr. Young moved that the reappointment of those two men be made, seconded by Mrs. Durante. Said motion passed unanimously. Mayor Weekes declared the meeting adjourned at 7:38 P.M. y Clerk ATTEST: MAYOR The undersigned is the City Clerk of the City of Delray Beach and that the information provided herein is the minutes of the meeting of said City Council of April 2, 1979 which minutes were formally approved and adopted by the City Council on ~2~z~- ~./~7~ · Clerk o NOTE TO READER: If tho m±nutos that 7ou have received are not com- pleted as indicated above, then this means that these are not the official minutes of City Council. They will become the official minutes only after they have boon rev'lowed and approved which may involve some amendments, add±t±ons, or deletions to the m±nutos as set forth above. - 4 - 4/2/79