MINUTES OF MEETING

PINE TREE WATER CONTROL DISTRICT

 

            The regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors of the Pine Tree Water Control District was held on Thursday, April 10, 2007 at 6:00 p.m. at Parkland City Hall, 6600 North University Drive, Parkland, Florida.

 

            Present and constituting a quorum were:

 

            David Rosenof                                            President

            Margaret Bertolami                                     Vice President

            Paul Brewer                                               Secretary

            Donna Benckenstein                                   Assistant Secretary

            Mark Weissman                                         Supervisor

 

            Also present were:

 

            Ed Goscicki                                                Interim Manager – Severn Trent Services

            D.J. Doody                                                Attorney

            Warren Craven                                           Engineer

            Randy Frederick                                         Field Superintendent

            John McKune                                             District Staff

            Pam Rower                                                Severn Trent Services

            John Petty

            Several Residents

 

Due to a failure of the recording equipment, the tape could not be transcribed and the following is a summary of the actions taken at the April 10, 2007 meeting as dictated by the manager of the District.

                                                                                   

FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS                         Roll Call

            Mr. Goscicki called the meeting to order and called the roll.

 

SECOND ORDER OF BUSINESS                    Status of Manager Position

            This item will be discussed later in the agenda.

 

THIRD ORDER OF BUSINESS                       Audience Comments

            Mr. George Rocca raised permit issues for filling part of the Pine Tree canal, which needs to be followed-up with the City of Parkland Engineer to determine if appropriate permits were obtained.  This is a matter of temporary construction to allow for access to new construction sites.  The Board directed District Counsel to prepare a letter to the property owner/contractor advising them of this violation of the District’s easement and requiring them to take the appropriate actions to correct the situation.

 

FOURTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                    Approval of the Minutes of the March 1, 2007 Meeting

            Mr. Rosenof stated each Board member received a copy of the minutes of the March 1, 2007 meeting and requested any corrections, additions or deletions.

            There not being any,

 

On MOTION by Ms. Benckenstein seconded by Mr. Weissman with all in favor the minutes of the March 1, 2007 meeting were approved.

 

FIFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                         Discussion of Tree Repair at Winner’s Circle/Country Acres

            Mr. Caloosy reported in Winner’s Circle all plant material was installed and the project was complete.  However, one tree was missing and was assumed to have been stolen.  The contractor will be required to replace the tree.

            In Country Acres all trees and vegetation along Godfrey Road were removed and most of the canal has been cleaned.  Since there was such a large amount of material remaining after the tree removal, it was decided a berm will be left in place along Godfrey Road.  The contractor has started sodding the north side of the berm and planting Areca Palms at the east end.  It was decided two pass through openings will be made into the berm to provide for storm drainage flow from Godfrey Road into the canal.  It was also decided the south side of the berm/canal bank will be hydro-seeded at an additional cost of $3,640.  A change order in this amount will be prepared for Stiles Landscaping Company to do the work. 

            The contractor will warrant the material for both Winner’s Circle and Country Acres for one year and provide watering up to 90 days after installation.

            The record will reflect Mr. Weissman left the meeting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SIXTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                        Report from Severn Trent Services on Stiles Landscape Company Matter and Consideration of Change Order No. 1 & Final with Stiles Landscape Company for Hurricane Debris Removal for a Net Increase of $68,500

            Mr. McKune reviewed the cost breakdown for the change order with the Board.  The change order provided for a $68,500 payment and the addition of labor, materials and equipment to complete the work along Godfrey Road.  It also included the following:

            •        Removal and disposal of remaining Australian Pines.

            •        Removal of vegetation and other debris.

            •        Spreading remaining berm material evenly across the canal bank.

•        Installation of Area Palms along the length of the canal bank affected by the Australian Pine removal with construction of headlight berms as shown in the design plan.

•        Furnishing labor, material and equipment for three tier landscape installation at Winner’s Circle apartment complex as shown in the design plan.

            There is an additional cost estimate for this work, as estimated by the engineer at $110,000.  NRCS independently estimated the value of this work at $103,000.  The negotiated settlement with Stiles Landscaping Company was for the District to pay $70,000, with Stiles picking up the balance of any cost.  Of the $70,000, we anticipated the District will receive 75% funding from NRCS. 

            This results in a net increased cost to the District of $17,125.  There was significant discussion by the Board members regarding this additional exposure.  The Chairman felt the Board would have no additional exposure as a result of this change order and if they did not receive funding from the county to cover this additional expenditure, the negotiated settlement with Stiles Landscaping Company will be for them to cover this cost.  It was explained this cost was not being covered by Stiles Landscaping Company and this was a risk the District was going to have to take in order to proceed with this change order. 

            There was significant discussion as to how this change order might be restructured to increase the grant amount to further cover this potential liability.  The engineer, District Counsel and District Manager discussed the situation and felt there was no way to increase the grant reimbursement without taking on additional liabilities since grant reimbursements were based on amounts paid by the District for services and not the value of the work itself. 

 

On MOTION by Mr. Brewer seconded by Ms. Bertolami with all in favor Change Order No 1 to Stiles Landscape Company for Hurricane Debris Removal in the amount of $68,500 was approved.

 

SEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                  Manager’s Report – Discussion of 2008 Fiscal Year Budget

            Mr. Goscicki reported the Board was beginning the budget process and staff will provide a draft budget to the Board at the next meeting. 

 

EIGHTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                     Attorney’s Report

            There not being any, the next item followed.

 

NINTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                       Engineer’s Report – Status Report on Culvert Inspections

            Mr. Craven reported the District contracted with Industrial Divers Corporation to inspect all the culverts in Pine Tree.  Upon review of their report, Mr. Craven recommended the following culverts be cleaned:

            •        Culvert 7

•        Culvert 8 (Tree branches obstruct the south outfall.  Either personnel should remove the obstruction or a contractor should be hired)

            •        Culvert 11

            •        Culvert 12

            •        Culvert 13

            •        Culvert 15

            •        Culvert 20

            •        Culvert 21

            •        Culvert 22

            Culvert 18 was damaged by the contractor for the Sawgrass Expressway widening.  Mr. Craven advised the contractor of the District’s position.  This matter will remain open until final inspection of the Sawgrass Expressway construction.

 

SECOND ORDER OF BUSINESS                    Status of Manager Position

            The Chairman raised an issue with regards to Severn Trent Services continuing to serve as District Manager and the level of service the District received for the past seven years.  Specific concerns related to turnover of the assigned District Manager and the feeling the District was not getting the proportionate level of service for a District of this level and complexity. 

            There was significant discussion from the Board members regarding the continuation of Severn Trent Services and whether or not the Board should seek proposals from other Management Companies.  Mr. John Petty offered his services to the District as District Manager. 

            Mr. Goscicki from Severn Trent Services provided an overview of the services Severn Trent Services currently provides and the fact he will be serving as interim District Manager while Severn Trent Services pursued the filling of this position on a permanent basis.  Mr. Goscicki further outlined his particular background and experience in dealing with issues within the Parkland/Coral Springs area and his history in working in both the public and private sector.

            After a lengthy discussion, the Board did not take any action with regards to moving forward on soliciting proposals for a new District Manager. 

 

TENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                       Supervisor’s Requests

            There not being any, the next item followed.

 

ELEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS               Approval of Financials and Invoices

            The financials and invoices were provided to the Board.

 

TWELFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS                 Adjournment

            There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                                     

Paul Brewer                                                                 David Rosenof

Secretary                                                                      President