MINUTES
OF MEETING
NORTH
SPRINGS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT
The
regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors of the North Springs Improvement
District was held on
Present and constituting a quorum were:
Salvatore J. Mendolia President
Steve Mendelson Secretary
Also present were:
John Petty Manager
Dennis Lyles Attorney
Jane Early Engineer
John McKune CIC
Several Residents
FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS Roll Call
Mr.
Mendolia called the meeting to order and Mr. Petty called the roll.
SECOND
ORDER OF BUSINESS Approval
of the Minutes of the November 9, 2006 Meeting
Mr.
Petty stated each Board member received a copy of the minutes of the
There
not being any,
On MOTION by Mr. Mendelson seconded by Mr. Mendolia with all
in favor the minutes of the
EIGHTH
ORDER OF BUSINESS Supervisor’s
Requests and Audience Comments
Mr. Morris stated I am going to read something
on behalf of a few homeowners in
Second,
we need the tennis pro’s to pay for court usage for each lesson, with all fees
paid at the front desk. There needs to
be some record of money paid. Previously,
the client would pay the full amount to the pro, who would then remit 10% back
to the club. Why would the facility
allow this? This last year NSID
generously allowed them to use the courts for 10% of each lesson fee. I doubt that this 10% came back to the
clubhouse since the pros kept their own records. They work at least five to seven hours on the
courts. The pros charge $60 an hour for
one person and $65 for two on one court.
Sometimes they work six days a week.
Check your records. You may find
that they did not all pay their percentage back to the club, that is, to NSID
and the taxpayers.”
The
commons manager should check with the City of Coral Springs Tennis Center, the
Each
pro was lead to believe that Mr. Skip Jackson was the Director of Tennis at The
Commons. He even had a sign up at the
pro shop but, it has recently been removed by the new club manager. So for the last six years the pros have
signed a contract with the Skip Jackson Tennis and they paid a percentage back
to him. That needs to end with them
signing a contract with The Commons. We
need to work on running The Commons with accountability to the taxpayers.”
Ms.
Morris stated the tennis committee made a decision for us taxpayers. I do not understand how a tennis committee
can make decisions for taxpayers. Has
there been a committee formed or am I incorrect?
Mr.
Petty responded this is different than what you may be use to. If it were our staff working there, we would
have to adopt rules about payments and where money goes. There are various degrees of options
available. Ours is where we have a
contract for them to manage it. The cost
of operation has to be borne and the satisfaction level has to be held up by
them through the HOA. This includes
every side issue, which comes up at any recreation facility. All those fees do not come back to the
District. They have to be held by the
management company to offset their cost of operation. If their costs go up and the residents do not
like it, we cannot hire another management company. We do not get involved in running this
business because we would create bureaucracy.
This way they are accountable to the HOA and each resident. The money never comes back to NSID.
They
do not offset our budget. We look at
their fee each year and they have to give us the fee during our budget review
and we consider, as a public entity, whether the residents will support such a
fee. Any income offsetting the fee will
come during their internal budget, which you will see at the HOA level.
Ms.
Morris stated it is not your business whether they collect the money or not.
Mr.
Petty stated it is not the District’s business, but the residents’ satisfaction
is. If you see the fee is going up
because you believe they have poor money handling practices, you need to bring
it to our attention. When we consider
the contract, we will take it into consideration.
Mr.
Mendolia stated we need to have someone watch the store. This has been going on since I am living
here. Everybody is making money all over
the place and nothing comes to NSID. We
have a mortgage to pay and I do not know why we are not using this money to pay
some of the mortgage. Someone in this
operation should run it as a business. I
have been hearing about this for seven years.
Ms.
Morris stated there have been people who were told not to play tennis anymore
because they are no longer welcome on the team for speaking up.
Mr.
Mendolia stated that is wrong.
Mr.
Petty stated our options are clear under our current agreement. We will go to WCI Communities, Inc. and talk
to them informally. If we cannot find a
way to solve it there, the next thing is to come back to the Board with a
recommendation to cancel the contract and look for another contractor.
Mr.
Mendolia asked a contractor for what?
Mr.
Petty responded for The Commons. I will
contact WCI Communities, Inc. and talk to them about this accountability issue. We will see if they can come up with a
suitable means of disclosure for the residents.
Mr.
Mendolia stated everyone has to be happy and everyone needs to know who is
getting money and who is paying. The
tennis pros have too much power.
THIRD ORDER OF BUSINESS Consideration of
Change Orders
A. Change
Order No. 3 with National Home Building and Remodeling Corporation for Heron
Bay Commons Clubhouse Repairs for a Net Increase of $49,765
Mr. Petty stated this is for the tile around the pool
area. We discussed this in the
past. I will defer to Mr. McKune for
details.
Mr.
McKune stated I will defer to Ms. Early because she is familiar with the
contract.
Ms.
Early stated the original contract was for replacement of the 10% to 15% of
broken tiles the architect found. They
cannot locate those tiles. We had the
architect come out to see if we can come up with a pattern. The contractor came up with five different
options. One option is to put a pool
deck on top, but the problem is it will become a tripping hazard. They recommend taking the tile out. They will have to jack hammer the tile and
fix the concrete underneath. We
recommend putting in a new 18 inch non skid tile.
Mr.
Mendolia asked has anyone considered pavers?
Ms.
Early responded pavers are more expensive.
To do pavers you have to take the coping off the pool and redo it. You cannot put it on top of the tile.
Mr.
Petty stated I think Mr. Mendolia is talking about removing the tiles, but he
is saying your options should be open thereafter and 18 inch tiles may not be
the newest solution in the world. I
agree. We have large tiles in our foyer
and we went through the issues of hollow points and cracks. Trying to maintain a perfect level of
flatness underneath large tiles in difficult in a highly traversed area. We should look at the possibility of various
size tiles, including industrial tiles.
Mr.
Mendolia stated I put ¾ inch marble in the last house I did. They are two by two.
Ms.
Early stated you cannot use marble because it is slippery.
Mr.
Petty stated you may have more choices in installation. I know you want to try to do this without
removing the coping if possible, but we might be able to open up the
choices. Let us discuss the timing.
Ms.
Early stated they are not going to do it until after the holidays. You will have to close down the deck for two
to three weeks because you have to jack hammer the tiles.
Mr.
Mendolia asked do we have time to look?
Ms.
Early responded yes. We looked at a
pavers/brick option. Mr. McKune and I
felt it was too expensive.
Mr.
Petty stated what is being proposed today has a price of approximately $50,000.
Ms.
Early stated it is $45,000 and there is $5,000 for the chimney repair. The big expense is due to the jack
hammer. They are going to fix the
concrete, put in a new thin set layer and then the new tile on top.
Mr.
Petty stated let us defer this until the next meeting. Do we want to modify Change Order No. 3 to be
just for the chimney repairs?
Ms.
Early responded it is fixed. We had to
do it.
Mr.
Petty stated we will get the proper paperwork for the next meeting.
FOURTH
ORDER OF BUSINESS Consideration
of Work Authorizations and Funding Agreements
A. Work
Authorization No. 170 for
Ms. Early stated this is for a
Mr.
Mendolia asked do you see any problems?
Mr.
Lyles responded it is consistent with the presentation they made in recent
months. This is similar to how we have
done things in the past. I see no
problem with it.
On MOTION by Mr. Mendelson seconded by Mr. Mendolia with all
in favor Work Authorization No. 170 for
B. Work
Authorization No. 171 for
Ms. Early stated the bond issue was prepared
previously. I have to update and do a
supplemental engineer’s report. There is
also a funding agreement for this with Tousa Homes to fund our cost prior to
the bond being sold.
Mr.
Lyles stated these are costs charged against bond proceeds. The residents of the District do not pay
these fees. They come out of the
proceeds of the bonds, which are going to be issued. The future residents will be paying it, but
the current residents will not pay this.
On MOTION by Mr. Mendelson seconded by Mr. Mendolia with all
in favor Work Authorization No. 171 for Parkland Village Bond Issue and Funding
Agreement No. 465 were approved.
FIFTH
ORDER OF BUSINESS Consideration
of Permit – Subaqueous Crossing at Sawgrass Expressway
Ms.
Early stated they want to put a fiber optic cable underneath the Sawgrass
Expressway. It is near NSID’s Pump
Station No. 1. They want to drill under
our right-of-way, under our canal. Our
engineers reviewed it and provided a cross section of what the canal has to
look like. They will clean the canal for
us and put the fiber optic cable underneath.
This specifies the cover we want on the cable. It is the typical right-of-way permit. We have special conditions attached.
Mr.
Petty stated if you consider approving this, I suggest you do so subject to
certification by the engineer upon completion.
On MOTION by Mr. Mendolia seconded by Mr. Mendelson with all
in favor the permit for subaqueous crossing at the Sawgrass Expressway was
approved.
SEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Staff Reports
A. Manager’s
Report
Mr. Petty stated we want to show you what we hope to bring
to you every month. This is due to hard
work Ms. Early has been doing for the last several years. She has worked with our staff to make us
understand and help us get to this point.
This is a summary report for the Heron Bay North Assessment Area. This is for the most current bond issue. It breaks out how much the engineer expected
to do for lakes and culverts, roadways, landscape buffers and sidewalks as well
as where the money has been going to date.
It shows what remaining amounts are to be funded to complete the
projects. There is a graph, which tells
you where the money is being spent. The
bond issue is underneath the graph. We
are not funding the entire project. We
are funding approximately $7.7 Million of the construction. This tells you what we have expended to date
and what is remaining. The last item
goes back to the engineer’s estimate for the entire project, which is $13.4
Million. NSID’s share is approximately
$7.7 Million. We will be adding to it as
we earn interest income. The interest
income is added towards the building or the acquisition of infrastructure. This also shows what WCI’s share is. It should go down as we earn interest.
i. Approval
of Requisitions and Invoices
There being no questions or comments,
On MOTION by Mr. Mendelson seconded by Mr. Mendolia with all
in favor the requisitions and Invoices were approved.
Mr.
Petty stated staff has met with Tousa Homes on their schedule and they are
looking to move fast. We will be meeting
with WCI Communities, Inc. to talk about their schedule.
Mr.
Mendolia asked are they going to reduce?
Ms.
Early responded they are picking up the pace again.
ii. Consideration of Appointment of New
Supervisor
Mr. Petty stated staff has been approached by someone who
would like to be considered for the vacant seat on the Board of
Supervisors. He is currently the City
Manager for
Mr.
Mendelson asked do you think there will be conflict of interest?
Mr.
Petty responded no sir. I do not believe
so. He lives within the District.
Mr.
Mendolia stated you should try not to mix the city with other operations such
as NSID. You will have the same chaos as
you do in the city. I deal with the city
everyday and it is a different world. NSID
is running like a charm.
Mr.
Mendelson stated I think there is a conflict of interest.
Mr.
Petty stated the conflict on job performance is real. He is getting paid for his job at City
Hall. If there is something he can do
over here, you will always wonder if he is making his decision based on job
performance criteria for
B. Attorney’s
Report
Mr.
Lyles stated our first two public hearings on our special act amendment is to
be held this coming
There
was feedback regarding the idea of having a referendum among all the voters in
the District before they take action. We
told them we are trying to avoid the expense and the hassle. We want to create a change in the way we
compensate the Board members. We do not
expect a substantive give or take on Monday.
We will have a more substantive discussion in January when we have the
second and final public hearing. We have
Representative Porth as our sponsor for this legislation. It is moving as planned. I will report to you at the next meeting.
C. Engineer’s
Report
Ms. Early stated we took bids on Friday for the new tennis
courts. I received four bids, but only
two were responsive bidders.
Mr.
Mendolia asked why?
Ms.
Early responded two bidders did not provide the court we specified. The engineer’s estimate for the work is $1
Million. The lowest responsive bid was
by
Mr.
Petty asked is there any further review we need to do for legal sufficiency?
Ms.
Early responded Accurate Tennis Courts did the last expansion. It was a four month project and they
completed it in 16 months. I contacted
Welling Construction three times during the bidding process to see if they
understood the plans and to see if they had any questions. They said no.
They indicated they never did a tennis court. They felt they could do it, but when they
submitted their bid they are not providing the hydro grid tennis court system
we currently have on all the other courts.
Mr.
Mendelson asked what is the timeframe?
Ms.
Early responded they can do it in four months, but I am waiting on the
permit. I have an update on The
Commons. The inside is done as of
tomorrow. They have to finish painting
one wall on the exterior. It depends on
the weather. The roof is waiting for the
tiles to be delivered and it will be done.
The last issue is what we want to do with the deck.
Mr.
Petty stated for this issue we recommend award of contract to the lowest
responsive bidder, which is National Home Building Corporation, subject to
funding and legal sufficiency.
On MOTION by Mr. Mendolia seconded by Mr. Mendelson with all
in favor the contract for the four additional tennis courts in Heron Bay
Commons was awarded to National Home Building Corporation in the amount of
$744,444 subject to funding and legal sufficiency.
Mr.
Petty stated my assistant has been out for two weeks. We did an advertisement for aquatic
chemicals. It came in, but did not get
into your agenda package. We can table
it for the next meeting. If you have the
time, we appreciate it if you can consider it tonight.
Mr.
Lyles stated everything was done in accordance with the law. The absence of Mr. Petty’s assistant meant
some of the paperwork did not get into the package. It is up to the Board if you want to take it
up tonight, you can do so.
Mr.
Mendolia stated hold it until the next meeting.
SIXTH
ORDER OF BUSINESS Consideration
of Capital Improvement Coordinator Bid
Mr. Petty stated this is the position Mr. McKune submitted
for.
Mr.
Mendolia stated I thought we approved this.
Mr.
Petty stated we did in concept. We put
it out to bid. We only received one bid
from Mr. McKune. We are asking the Board
to consider award for Capital Improvement Coordinator to McKune and Associates as
the lowest responsive bidder and most qualified. This position gets paid by saving money to
the District. There are a few odds and
ends we need an engineer for. We use to
have Mr. Moore. We will use Mr. McKune
in this capacity. I believe we have approximately
$40,000 in the budget for such things.
He will find ways for us to save money.
On MOTION by Mr. Mendelson seconded by Mr. Mendolia with all
in favor the Capital Improvement Coordinator bid was awarded to McKune and
Associates.
NINTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Adjournment
There being no further business,
On MOTION by Mr. Mendolia seconded by Mr. Mendelson with all
in favor the meeting was adjourned.
Steve Mendelson Salvatore J. Mendolia
Secretary
Chairman