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11-17-78SpMtg November 17, 1978 A Special Meeting of the City Council of the City of Delray Beach, Florida, was held in the Council Chambers at 4:05 P.M., Friday, November 17, 1978, with Mayor Leon M. Weekes, presiding, City Manager J. Eldon Mariott, Assistant City Attorney Clifford Shandy, and Council Members Robert D. Chapin, Charlotte G. Durante, and James H. Scheifley present. Council Member Aaron I. Sanson, IV was absent. Mayor Weekes called the meeting to order and announced that same had been called for the purpose of discussing the position of Pro-Manager for the Delray Beach Country Club. City Manager Mariott stated that the reason this is going to Council is because of the Guarantee Agreement that is proposed in addition to basic salary. It is thought that during the first year the person will be spending proportionately a lot more of his time assisting in getting the course and all the facilities in shape, rather than making money in private sidelines and private businesses, than would be true in latem years. He referred to the Pro Shop and the promotion of it, the teaching fees, etc. After the first year, every- one will have had more exoerlence, see the condition of the facility, and be in 'a better position to know what kind of arrangement should. be made for the next year, and the following years. It is anticipated that the Delray Beach Country Club would be the llth department in the City. This person would be the Department Head for the entire operation. He would be a Golf Pro, have charge of all the City employees, the course, the structures, the facilities and the tournaments. He would monitor the lease agreement that the City plans to have for'the operation of the restaurant and bar. The total compensation of the individual would be.comprised of four things: 1. His basic salary, which has been set at $15,000 a year. 2. The Pro Shop concession. 3. The Teaching fees. 4. The Bag Room fees. It is proposed that the City provide free Pro Shop space to the party, including utilities, free use of the Golf Course and range balls, driving range, and that the City would have a Cashier, who would be a City employee Under the Department Head supervision in the Pro Shop. The party, as a regular City employee, would be entitled to the full benefit package that the other City employees'have. The Greens Superintendent or Foreman, plus the laborers under that individual would be responsible directly to this person who would be the Depart- ment Head. Mr. Bill Young stated he was of the opinion that the title should be Director of Golf and Manager, which would be more effective than Pro-Manager, but after discussion with the City Manager and Finance Director Tom Weber, he has no objection. Also, whether the Teaching Fees included the fees on the Practice Range, and since it does not, it was his opinion that it should have been included in Classification 2, Pro Shop Concession; he has changed his thoughts on that. Mr. Young also discussed the matter of Pro-Am Tournaments. There are about 18 around the State, and most of the clubs permit their Pros to attend the Tournaments, which are generally a one or two-day event, and it was Mr. Young's thought that some stipulation should be made whether or not this is to be taken into consideration. City Manager Mariott agreed with Mr. Young, and advised that the matter had been discussed with all the people interviewed; it was his thought that it should be handled routinely, just as any other Department Head attends conferences. Hr. Chapin noted that at the meeting.of August 15th, the consensus was that it would be run by a separate Department. It was his thought that management skills for overseeing the independent con- tractor or lessee of th~ bar and restaurant, the Head Groundskeeper and his crew are skills different from those of a Teaching Professional, and wondered whether it would be better to have the Department Head assume those responsibilities, and under him the Greenskeeper and a Teaching Professional. A Teachin~ Professional can command $10 - $12 dollars a'half hour a lesson, and can spend 5 or 6 hours at teaching, and will not have time to spend on the managerial responsibilities. Therefore, it was his thought to split the functions, and then the managerial one would possibly become part time. Mr. Chap~n referred to the Parks and Recreation Department, where there is a Department Head, and under him a Tennis Pro, and other people with different responsibilities. He did not know about golf, but in tennis a teaching professional is usually not a managerial type. The PGA has gone to great lengths to teach the Pros to be more businesslike in their approach -- they have schools, and Tennis Pros now go to schools. City Manager Mariott agreed, but stated that after much thought it seemed this would be the best way to try. Some years ago Golf Pros were not very business-minded, but in recent years many of the Golf Pros have gotten more into the business end of the opera- tion. Unless we were able to hire a Golf Pro who also had an over-all background including the business, then more should be done toward what Mr. Chapin had said. But if they can hire someone who has both skills such as the golf expertise, plus good business expertise, then-they could pay one salary instead of two; have the Golf Pro, and someone over him as General Manager of the Country Club, this would cost the City a lot more money. If there were two or three 18-hole courses, then there would be more reason to have an over-all General Manager, and a Golf Pro who would confine his duties just to'teaching. Mr. Scheifley stated he had never heard of this arrangement, but he was sure that the City Manager has talked to some people who~ could do this on a combination job, and he is willing to go along with it. He suggested that he could hire an Assistant Pro, at no.expense to the~City. ~ Mr. Scheifley questioned whether the organizational set-up will be given to May, Zima & Co. to'set up controls for th~s. There will have to be an accounting of everything, such as the golf lessons. City Manager Mariott agreed, and stated that he had recommended that Council approve a contract with May, Zima & Co. to 'set up an accounting and auditing procedure for the country club operation. Mr. Chapin stated it will be necessary to have access to the Pro~ teaching schedule, and he will have to make monthly reports of it. There will have to be some controls, because you have to know his outside income, so there is some justification for setting his salary. City Manager Mariott stated that he did not like this arrange- ment; we are guaranteeing this Person $25,000 per year, which is a little more than any Department Head makes. He had a tabulation made of Department Head salaries. There are some things of that nature that are not quite equitable, as far as the entire oPeration is concerned. However, we are faced with the realities of the situation, where we need to get a first-class operation, and the only way is to have first- rate people. And first-rate people in golf are accustomed to this sort of an arrangement, they are not accustomed to compensation procedures that governments normally have. He stated that he was trying to present the matter as fairly as he could. He would prefer to have it this way, than to have a second rate operation. Mrs. Durante stated that she is willing to give the matter a try, since this is just for the first year. While there are some things that she would possibly want changed in the second year, she would not want to foul up the opportunity to get a good Pro to get the course in first rate operating condition now. Mayor Weekes stated that he does not know about the operation of a golf course, but that to get a Pro that is competent, it will be - 2 - 11/17/78 necessary to give him compensation that is commensurate with what he can make somewhere else. ?he Finance Director and the City Manager have spent many hours working on this matter and he is willing to accept it. Upon question by Mr. Scheifley, the City Manager stated that he hoped this month to have the person hired. Mr. Chapin advised that a representative from May, Zima & Co. had contacted him. They were not aware when they made their proposal that Council was going to lease out the bar and restaurant. That will reduce, in their opinion, the estimated fee of $5,500 to $7,500 considerably, and they also admitted that the 4th category - Secretarial time for $12 - $15 an hour was a misnomer; it is actually what is called Para Legal Assistance. The City Manager stated there will not be a contract, he will be paid bi-weekly, the same as the other City employees. Mr. Chapin stated it was his understanding that the salary is to be paid at the rate of $25,000, but other compensation that he makes would be deducted from that, and at the end of the year it would balance out. Mr. Scheifley stated that he looked at it as an incentive plan; he gets $15,000, and he earns the other $10,000. The City Manager agreed, except that in the first year the $25,000 is guaranteed. The reason it is guaranteed is that he does not feel that they could get a first-rate person to come in to work for $15,000 a year.. Finance'Director Weber noted that if the Golf Pro Manager comes to work December 1st, the Golf Course isn't taken over until February 1, the Pro Shop won't be cleaned up and stocked with merchan- dise before May 1,~ and then ~f the Golf Course is closed for the summer to do the work, he won't have time to give lessons because he will be busy getting the course in shape. Mr. Scheifley stated that the problems are much greater than anticipated in getting the course in shape. One of the Greens Superintendents of one of the local fine courses looked at it, and it is his opinion that every fairway and rough will have to be plowed up. Mr. Chapin asked if the position is subject to Civil Service and the City Manager stated that it was. However, he would leave it to the City Attorney to express an opinion on the matter. Assistant City '1 Attorney Shandy stated that would have to be checked into very carefully. City Manager Mariott stated that he thought the man should be under Civil Service, but that there is a safety valve in that he does not have Civil Service until he is employed for a year. Mr. Bill Young stated that the Council is really hiring three people in that he is qualified to teach golf, qualified to be a Manager of golf, a man with some knowledge of agronomy, and have Managerial ability. This is very similar to the way Quail Ridge runs their operation. He stated that he was not concerned with what the City was paying, but that the City is expecting him to hire Assistant Pros. It will take too much of his salary, and if they get a man qualified to do the things that the City must expect him to do, we would not dare to take anything away from the $25,000. The City Manager stated that it was not intended to do that, but that the Teaching Pro or Assistant Pro's compensation come from teaching fees. He will be the employer of anyone he hires, that must meet the approval of the City Manager and the compensation he pays the individual, because this could cut extremely heavy into what he makes. Mr. Chapin questioned whether the person hired to be an Assistant would be a City employee, and was informed that he would not be. The City Attorney was requested to check into whether or not the person hired would be required to be under. Civil Service. - 3 - 11/17/78 Mr. Bill Young questioned whether this person would have the responsibility of the Dining Room, and the City Manager stated only to monitor it and that it is done in accordance with the lease agreement. Mayor Weekes questioned who pays for the inventory that goes into the Pro Shop, and the City Manager informed him that the Pro Manager does. Mr. Scheifley moved that the financial agreement for the Pro Manager of the Golf Club, as outlined in the City Manager's memo of November 13, 1978, to the City Council be approved, subject to advice from the City Attorney on his research considering the question of whether this position should be Civil Service, seconded _ by Mrs. Durante. Upon roll call Council voted as follows: Mr. Chapin - Yes; Mrs. Durante - Yes; Mr. Scheifley - Yes; Mayor Weekes - Yes. Said motion passed with a 4 to 0 vote. Mayor Weekes declared the meeting adjourned at 4:55 P.M. City Clerk MAYOR ...... ~. The undersigned is the City Clerk of the City of Delray Beach and the information provided herein is the minutes of the meeting of said City Council of November 17, 1978, which minutes were formally approved and adopted by the City Council on ~City Clerk NOTE TO READER: If the minutes that you have received are not completed as indicated above, then this means that these are not the official minutes of City Council. They will become the official m~nutes only after they have been reviewed and approved which may involve some amendments, additions, or deletions to the minutes as set forth above. - 4- n! 7/78