MINUTES OF MEETING
PORT OF THE
COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT
The regular meeting of the Board of
Supervisors of the Port of the Islands Community Improvement District was held
on
Present
and constituting a quorum were:
Richard
Gatti Chairman
Dale
Lambert Vice Chairman
Ted
Bissell Assistant
Secretary
Norine Dillon Assistant
Secretary
Richard
Ziko Assistant
Secretary
Also
present were:
Bob
Dick
Dan
Cox Attorney
Ron
Benson Engineer
Christopher
Shucart POI
Hotel and
Gary
Beck Resident
Jim
Ciano Resident
George
Kramer Resident
Numerous
Residents
FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS Roll
Call
Mr. Dick called the meeting to order
and called the roll.
SECOND ORDER OF BUSINESS Approval of the
Minutes of the October 28, 2005 Meeting
Mr. Gatti
stated each Board member received a copy of the minutes of the
Mr. Lambert stated I am missing
Pages 4 and 5 as well as Pages 10 through 27.
Ms. Dillon stated I am not missing
any pages.
Mr. Lambert stated on Page 3 towards
the bottom there are some statements which are being credited to Mr. Mack. However, I believe they are Mr. Benson’s
statements.
Mr. Benson stated I was the one who
said I would provide Mr. Cox with the legal descriptions.
Ms. Dillon stated this is also true
on the bottom of Page 5.
Mr. Benson stated that is correct.
Ms. Dillon stated on Page 7 in the
bottom paragraph, it is not Mr. Ziko and myself, but Mr. Burgesson and
myself.
On MOTION by Ms. Dillon
seconded by Mr. Bissell with all in favor the minutes of the
THIRD ORDER OF BUSINESS Open
Items
Mr. Lambert stated the first item is
the Equipment Inventory. Mr. Dick was
going to speak to Mr. Stephens with regards to adding those smaller items to
the inventory.
Mr. Dick stated I have been working
with Mr. Stephens. Are you referring to
items less than $250?
Mr. Lambert responded I believe it
was $250 and above.
Mr. Dick stated it is not complete,
but it is being worked on.
Mr. Lambert stated the second item
is Reuse Water for Irrigation. Mr.
Benson mentioned at the last meeting one item was missing.
Mr. Benson stated we have been
working with the electrician, and I am in the process of getting his quote for
installation of the electrical components.
Mr. Bissell asked have we met the
requirements of the DEP?
Mr. Benson responded Mr. Stephens
monitors water quality for reuse standards and on some days we meet the
requirement, but other days we do not meet it.
However, I have not specifically spoken to him about this over the last
few weeks.
Mr. Bissell asked is that a problem?
Mr. Benson responded we must meet
the water quality criteria for DEP before we can send water to the
customers. If we are not meeting the
water quality on a given day, we do not send water. However, we are working on a project at the
plant, and equipment will be delivered in February. We have also been doing the engineering. When this happens, there should not be any
reason not to meet the criteria.
Ms. Dillon asked will it be February
or March before this is done?
Mr. Benson responded some
improvements which are being made at the wastewater plant are specifically to
improve water quality, and when the missing item arrives the new equipment will
provide a much higher water quality.
Therefore, we should no longer have a problem.
Mr. Lambert stated the third item is
the fire station. Since Mr. Cox is not
here, does anyone have an update?
Ms. Dillon responded I met with Mr.
Mack and we are still awaiting the appraisals.
However, he reports
Mr. Lambert stated the fourth item
is the entrance monuments. Do you have
an update?
Mr. Dick responded I am in contact
with Likens Sign Tech, and they are in the permitting process as we speak. The design is complete and was approved by
the Board. The permitting may take
longer than normal due to the amount of damage which occurred as a result of
the hurricane. However, we expect them
to be done in a relatively short period of time.
Ms. Dillon asked do you have a
projected date?
Mr. Dick responded I do not have a
projected date.
Mr. Lambert stated the fifth item is
the Portable Generator for Sewage Lift Stations. As of the last meeting, there was one
generator for the well field and one for the lift station was on its way. Has it arrived?
Mr. Dick responded it has not
arrived.
Mr. Lambert asked what is the status
of the wiring of the generator for the well field?
Mr. Dick responded the installation
is ongoing. Our first step in the
process is to build the foundation, which has started, but it is not complete.
Mr. Bissell asked did we have to
plug a line in the sewage lift station on
Mr. Dick responded I am not aware of
a plugged sewer line, but I am aware of a water leak.
Mr. Bissell stated someone came in
with a truck and sewage was coming up all over the road.
Mr. Dick stated I apologize, but I
was not aware of it.
Ms. Dillon stated a sewer alarm went
off last week.
Mr. Gatti
stated we should continue with this subject and raise ancillary issues later in
the meeting.
Mr. Lambert stated the sixth item is
DEP Letter of Compliance Inspection Report.
Mr. Benson met with them in September.
We have until December on this.
What is the status?
Mr. Benson responded we had to
assemble an emergency preparedness plan.
The manager’s office was going to look at plans they had for other
systems which they operate locally, and modify one of them for this
community. Mr. Gatti
gave me a letter dated November 14th from DEP reminding us about the
emergency plan which is due by the end of this year.
Mr. Gatti
asked what happens if it is not finished by December 31st?
Mr. Benson responded they can
potentially fine you, but the odds are they will just send you a letter.
Mr. Dick stated it will be complete
within the timeframe.
Ms. Dillon stated this has been
going on all year.
Mr. Lambert asked Mr. Ziko, do you have anything to report on the seventh item,
which is Everglades Restoration?
Mr. Ziko
responded everything has slowed down due to the hurricane. However, they are looking to get back on
track by February.
Mr. Lambert stated the eighth item
is POI mosquito control. Mr. Goscicki
was going to get speak to the homeowner, Ms. Pat McNalley.
Mr. Dick stated I spoke to Ms. McNalley personally.
She has been researching alternate mosquito control methods. There are some products for sale which can be
put into standing waterways and stop the larvae from mutating into
mosquitoes. I have been trying to research
other alternate methods such as spray companies, but I have not been successful. However, I located some private companies who
are willing to do the mosquito spraying similar to what we do currently, but I was
unsuccessful in getting
Mr. Lambert asked do you know what
those private companies will charge us to do this?
Mr. Dick responded I received a
proposal from a company out of
Mr. Lambert asked are we currently
getting any mosquito spraying done?
Mr. Dick responded we have not
sprayed in the last few weeks. The
person who in charge of this has been busy with plant operations and has not
had the time to spray. Unfortunately, he
is the licensed operator or spray technician.
However, Severn Trent is in the process of getting other people
certified in order for us to have more flexibility.
Mr. Lambert stated the ninth item is
a Proposal for Operation of Water and Wastewater Facilities. Mr. Cox is handling this and I do not know if
anyone else has further information. The
last update we had was that we should have the RFQs
back in December.
Ms. Dillon stated they were going to
send the letter out in the December meeting.
I will have to ask Mr. Cox.
Let the record reflect Mr. Cox has
joined the meeting.
Mr. Lambert asked what is status of the
RFQ we were going to send out for the proposal of operation and management of
water and wastewater facilities?
Mr. Cox responded we are on target.
Ms. Dillon stated we should go back
to the fire station issue to see if Mr. Cox has any further information.
Mr. Cox stated the appraiser called yesterday
and told me they were finishing their report and expect
to mail it out today. Therefore, I
should have it sometime next week. The
title reports for both properties are clean.
Both properties are similar in the respect that they require conditional
use approval from the County for the construction of the fire station. You may assess which property you are most
interested in when we receive the appraisals.
Mr. Lambert stated we should have
something for the next meeting. Can you
email it to us before the meeting?
Mr. Cox responded yes.
Mr. Lambert stated the tenth item is
research capacity of facilities with the possibility of adding additional ERCs, which is on the table right now. Should we put this in the hold category,
rather than keeping it active?
Ms. Dillon responded yes.
Mr. Lambert stated the eleventh item
is the discrepancy between gallons of water pumped and gallons billed. Mr. Benson and Mr. Stephens are working on
this. Have we made any more progress?
Mr. Benson responded we are going to
gradually change out the older water meters, which is one aspect of what is
being done. We are also going to
periodically look at areas where there is potential for unbilled water use, and
there is one area near the North Hotel which Mr. Stephens and I discussed this
week on the telephone. I will discuss
this later during our presentation.
Mr. Lambert stated the twelfth item
is the grant from SFWMD. Have you heard
anything?
Mr. Benson responded I have not
heard anything.
Mr. Lambert stated the thirteenth
item is the installation of missing reflectors for fire hydrant location in the
streets. Mr. Dick was trying to find
someone who does this.
Mr. Dick stated I found someone who had
them in stock but they are self-adhesive, which I thought would be more
efficient. Although I did not count the
hydrants, I ordered 40 and they should be in Monday or Tuesday.
Mr. Lambert stated they probably all
have to be replaced eventually.
Mr. Dick stated I will keep
inventory at the plant since I located a supplier.
Mr. Lambert stated the fourteenth
item is to paint the fire hydrants. What
is the status?
Mr. Gatti
responded we will have to go out with a generator and clean them. Painting is easy, but getting them ready is a
problem.
Mr. Lambert asked what is the status
of truck decals?
Mr. Dick responded I have nothing to
report. They should be in the
Mr. Lambert asked with regards to
the portable defibrillator, did you speak to Mr. Burgeson?
Ms. Dillon responded he has been
ignoring my phone calls, but I will continue to try to get in touch with him.
Mr. Lambert stated you may need to
get a copy of the page in the minutes where he made the statement.
The last item is the review of funds
taken in from back payments. Mr. Cox
sent a letter to the auditing company, and the Board was supposed to receive
emailed copies.
Mr. Cox stated I thought I sent it.
Mr. Lambert stated I have not
received it.
Mr. Cox stated I will email it
again.
Mr. Lambert stated that is all the
open items I have on the list, unless anyone has anything to add.
Mr. Bissell asked what is the status
of the signs on Stella Maris?
Mr. Lambert responded you should
speak to the HOA and tell them it was their liability.
Mr. Bissell stated since I have
limited communications with them, I spoke to their attorney who told me she
would talk to the Board’s President and get back to me, but they have not. I did some research on my own and discussed
it with Mr. Benson. He sent paperwork to
Mr. Cox. Have you been able to look at
it?
Mr. Cox responded we have not
accepted responsibility for this to my knowledge. We should find out what reasonable people do
in this situation? If you undertake this,
you must ensure it is done reasonably.
However, if you do not have responsibility, no one can force you to be responsible
for it.
Mr. Bissell stated the way I
understand it is the access easement was given to the HOA. Therefore, the maintenance of the street is
not our responsibility.
Mr. Cox stated what we have done by
resolution of the Board in the past was that if we were to take care of the
pavement and I do not see why we would pave one part without paving the entire
area when it is time to pave, but just because we took responsibility for the
pavement did not mean we took ownership or responsibility for anything else
there. There are many roads here which the
CDD does not own, and we agreed we were going to pave them because of the
economies of scale.
Mr. Gatti
stated we had to accept responsibility for the street when it was initially
paved. We were not satisfied with the
job and we made them re-pave it.
Mr. Benson stated there are two
different legal descriptions on the plat.
One is for the street ending at the cul-de-sac, and says ‘Port of the
Islands CID’ for maintenance, which I understand should be accepted. However, the one Mr. Bissell is referring to
is located at the ‘t’ end of the plat and says
homeowners are responsible. I am not
sure if the CID has ever taken on anything in that area.
Mr. Cox stated when I looked back at
past meeting minutes where this was discussed, we
initially referred to the main area.
However, we agreed to take care of the entire road including that end
with regards to pavement, but agreeing to pave it does not make us responsible
for everything else.
Mr. Gatti
stated if we pave the street, we would not want to leave those two ends
unpaved.
Mr. Ziko
stated I do not believe paving is the issue.
The issue is that reflectors should be put in to prevent people from
driving into the canal.
Ms. Dillon stated we discussed the
fact it was a liability issue which needed to be handled by the Stella Maris
HOA, which is where it still is.
Mr. Bissell stated when Stella Maris
was built there were three reflector signs at the end of the cul-de-sac, which
is stated in the plat.
Mr. Benson stated the County
required the warning signs at the end of the cul-de-sac.
Mr. Bissell stated there are
currently no signs.
Mr. Lambert asked since the HOA
should be handling this, why are we concerned about this issue at this meeting?
Mr. Bissell responded I do not know. I spoke to County officials who told me if
someone goes in the canal or anything else happens there and the area is not
marked, they will sue the HOA, the CID as well as the people who removed the
signs.
Mr. Gatti
asked as a practical matter, what are we referring to here?
Ms. Dillon responded the homeowners
told us they do not want those signs put back up.
Mr. Cox stated if this requirement
is shown on the subdivision plans approved by the County, it becomes a code
enforcement issue as well. You must
comply with the signage requirements imposed on the subdivision by the County.
Mr. Ziko
asked are the signs supposed to be at the end of the cul-de-sac or at the end
of the tees?
Mr. Benson responded they should be
shown as stated in the plat. However, I
do not believe the CID has an easement at the end of the tees.
Mr. Cox stated you do not have the
right to go on that side.
Mr. Gatti
stated if something happens which results in a lawsuit,
we will be responsible.
Mr. Bissell stated if we put the
three signs which are on the plans back, the problem will be solved.
Mr. Cox stated once you take the
affirmative action of putting them there, you are responsible for ensuring they
stay there.
Ms. Dillon stated we were told by
those homeowners not to put them up.
Mr. Cox stated I respect homeowners,
but if it is a requirement of the County’s approval and they are not there, the
subdivision is not in compliance with the County approval which creates a code
enforcement issue. As a result, we will
be able to cite the homeowner in order to convince them that the signs have to
go back up.
Ms. Dillon asked would they cite the
HOA?
Mr. Cox responded they may cite the
entire subdivision.
Mr. Bissell stated just to ensure
you understand the situation, there were three signs on each side. The signs on one side were removed, which
were the ones on the plat at the end of the cul-de-sac.
Mr. Cox asked they did not require
them on the other side?
Mr. Bissell responded no because
this is private property.
Mr. Cox stated if this is private
property and they are not on the plat I do not believe we can put them there.
Mr. Bissell stated that is
correct. Should we have these signs put
back?
Mr. Cox responded you can do this if
you want to, but I do not believe you are responsible to do so. Therefore, if you decide to put them there,
you accept responsibility for them.
Mr. Lambert asked what did the HOA say?
Mr. Bissell responded they have not
responded to us.
Ms. Dillon asked should this issue
go on the open items list?
Mr. Lambert responded we need to
talk to the HOA president.
FOURTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Discussion of Public
Hearing to Adopt a Resolution Setting Rules for Utility Capacity Rates
Mr. Benson stated the issue we
discussed at the last meeting was not on rates.
I believe it was on establishing a method for equivalent ERCs.
Ms. Dillon stated it was for
commercial development.
Mr. Gatti
asked what is the status?
Mr. Benson responded the title is
different on the document than on the agenda.
Mr. Cox stated this is not a rate
issue, but a methodology to determine how many ERCs
at proposed development is equivalent.
Mr. Benson stated the title in tab 4
is correct.
Ms. Dillon stated we discussed this
issue to a great extent at the last meeting, and agreed we were going to adopt
this rule. This is the legal requirement
to do so.
Mr. Cox stated this is the public
hearing where you will hear testimony from anyone who wants to comment on this
issue, and we will actually adopt the rule at the next meeting. We will have a draft based on public comments
as well as the direction you give staff today, and we will finalize the rule.
Mr. Gatti
asked do we have to open this as a public hearing?
Mr. Cox responded yes.
Mr. Gatti
stated the public hearing is open.
Anyone who wants to comment on it is free to do so. Mr. Cox will give an overview.
Mr. Cox stated from the inception of
the District we had a method for allocating capacity at the plant based on
whether a project was a single-family residence, a multi-family residence, RV
spots, restaurant seats, bar seats and marina slips. That was the original development mix
contemplated for the project, and was the only uses we developed this methodology
for. In the future, different uses may
be proposed for some
of the
properties here, and we need to develop a methodology to determine how much
capacity is necessary for those proposed uses we need to have in the plant
before we can sign the DEP letter authorizing construction of their
distribution system for the water and collection system for the sewer.
Mr. Benson stated it also relates to
Mr. Cox stated they require a
concurrency letter which the District issues saying we have sufficient capacity
to serve them. Since these uses are all
we have right now, any other use will either have to come to this Board for
consideration based on evidence presented in a hearing of how many ERCs would be allocated to the property or you can adopt by
rule a methodology Mr. Benson can use to determine what the necessary capacity
to support a proposed project. You have
basically a choice of having to make the decision each time and hold a hearing
or you develop a rule which staff can identify to any potentiality which comes
in to find the answer.
Ms. Dillon stated perhaps we wanted
to ensure we just adopted a methodology which can be applied across the board
for everyone, although I guess we can reserve the right to change something in
the future, but since this will be adopted by rule you will have to go through
the rule adoption procedures again in order to amend it.
Mr. Ziko
stated we were looking at Chapter 64 as I understand. Does this apply to
Mr. Cox responded this is an adopted
state DEP rule which outlines the methodology they use.
Mr. Ziko
asked do we follow this fairly closely?
Mr. Cox responded we have not had to
apply anything other than the standard formula which is consistent with
standard engineering principles.
Mr. Benson stated the current rules
for multi-family, hotels and RVs is consistent with Chapter 64E6.
Mr. Ziko
asked I realize Chapter 64 has their own document, but
does POI have one?
Mr. Cox responded since we do not
currently have a methodology, we are offering you the opportunity to adopt one.
Mr. Ziko
stated I believe we should adopt the State methodology to ensure this is fair
for everyone concerned.
Ms. Dillon stated that is what we
agreed on last month.
Mr. Gatti
asked is that a problem?
Mr. Cox responded it is not a
problem at all.
Mr. Gatti
stated all we have to do is adopt this resolution.
Mr. Cox stated this will be done at
the next meeting.
Mr. Gatti
asked since you understand what is included, does anyone have comments?
Mr. Benson responded in order to put
this in Table 1 of Chapter 64E-6 we must determine what Port of the
Mr. Cox stated we never quantified
this.
Mr. Benson stated we never asked residents
how many bedrooms they have, but we must define one ERC, and I recommend that if
we go with this general approach, we want to define it as one ERC is equal to 300
gallons per day using this table. The
table will identify how many gallons per day you must have in order to equate
it to one ERC.
Mr. Lambert stated the only thing
which is going to be affected are new types of
development which have not been identified previously, and anything which
existed before is going to remain the same.
Mr. Cox stated we will add that one
ERC is single-family and assume it to be 300 gallons per day, and multi-family
is .8 of an ERC. We will then incorporate
the table reference which means if this is ever amended by the State, we will
need to amend our rule as well.
Mr. Ziko
asked is the 300 gallons per day combined irrigation usage and domestic use or
is it septic water only?
Mr. Benson responded this is where
it becomes more involved because 64E-6 is a rule the Health Department adopted
for septic tanks. However, various
government agencies also use the same table for other reasons. If we look at how much potable water someone
uses, it is probably not 300 gallons per day, per unit because they also use
irrigation water in considerably larger amounts because it is readily
available. We must be careful not to
make this table equal to 300. The actual
number may be 250 or 275, and the numbers are different for water and
sewer. This is just a way to see how
things relate to one another. If we call
300 gallons per day one and something else in this table comes out to 100, it
is 1/3rd, and that is really what we want to do.
Mr. Lambert stated we must be
careful as to how this resolution is labeled.
Mr. Benson stated we do not want to
measure everyone’s usage because it is not practical, yet we are saying a
typical single-family home uses more than a typical multi-family home.
Mr. Ziko
stated in relation to this, I understand the condos and villas have an ERC of
.8.
Mr. Benson stated this is only for
utilities. Port of the
Mr. Gatti
stated if there is no further discussion we will close the public hearing.
Mr. Shucart
stated this seems to be an important issue and I believe you should postpone
the decision until the next meeting, in order to give us time to educate
ourselves, since this will affect us a great deal.
Mr. Ziko
stated we were not going to vote on the motion until the next meeting. We are just opening up the meeting for
discussion.
Mr. Shucart
stated we cannot open this up for discussion if we are not prepared for it, and
if you are going to move to adopt it at the next meeting, it will almost be too
late to discuss.
Ms. Dillon asked do you want to look
at the current rule?
Mr. Shucart
responded I want to educate myself more since we are affected by it from both a
commercial and residential standpoint.
If we are going to adopt a rule, it is going to affect us down the in
the future. I want to see what is in
place now versus what you want to adopt.
Mr. Ziko
stated this rule applies to property which is not developed, and not to
anything already built.
Mr. Shucart
stated we have commercial and residential land which is undeveloped.
Mr. Gatti
stated we will table this to the next meeting if everyone agrees.
Mr. Cox stated you should make a
motion to continue the public hearing to the next meeting.
On MOTION by Mr. Lambert
seconded by Ms. Dillon with all in favor the Public Hearing to adopt a
resolution setting rules for Utility Capacity Rates was continued to
FIFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Consideration of
Engagement Letter with Dufresne & Associates,
CPA, PA to Perform the Audit for Fiscal Years 2005, 2006 and 2007
Mr. Lambert stated it has been a
long time since we directed staff to negotiate with this company and if I
recall correctly, there were some additional thoughts they came back with. I am curious why it has taken so long to come
to the point of this letter. Was this
not put together in a timely manner or has it been put together and they are
just responding to us?
Ms. Dillon responded Mr. Bissell
sent a letter to Mr. Goscicki with regards to this item because we agreed on a
bid in January of $4,750 per fund. This
engagement letter comes shows $7,500.
Mr. Lambert stated I recall Mr.
Goscicki told us when they entered into the negotiation process there were some
other issues which were overlooked.
Therefore, the value was adjusted up from the $4,750 which we directed
staff to negotiate.
Mr. Gatti
stated the proposal which was submitted mentioned there could potentially be
extra costs, and no one knew exactly what they would be.
Ms. Dillon stated the fee schedule
they sent us has a basic service fee of $5,500 with added costs for miscellaneous
items. If this is the additional
expenses we were discussing, it still does not explain why the costs increased to
$750 per fund. Did you receive any
information from Mr. Goscicki about this?
Mr. Dick responded Mr. Goscicki is
in communication with this company and he does not have all the
information. He suggested I pass on his
comments. He recommends using this
company because of their experience of doing the previous audits, and he will
come to the Board at the next meeting with the reasons for the price increases.
Mr. Ziko
stated they have not done an audit yet.
Mr. Lambert stated since they are getting
ready to start it, why is this coming up now when we directed all of this to be
taken care of quite some time ago?
Mr. Bissell stated we directed
Severn Trent staff to take care of this at the January 28th Board
meeting.
Mr. Dick responded I cannot answer
why it was not taken care of.
Mr. Gatti
stated Mr. Goscicki needs to clarify this.
Therefore, I suggest we hold this over until we get those comments.
Mr. Lambert asked will this delay
the start of the audit process?
Mr. Dick responded they are not
going to start until they have an agreement.
Mr. Bissell stated they should have
had the agreement last spring.
Mr. Gatti
asked can we discuss this at the next meeting?
Mr. Ziko
responded we should.
Mr. Lambert stated it obviously fell
through the cracks before and did not get handled.
SIXTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Staff
Reports
A.
Attorney
There
being no report the next item followed.
B.
Engineer
i.
Schedule for
Presentation by Marchand Properties
Ms.
Dillon stated at the last meeting you were going to contact the people about
doing a presentation to the Board about the RV land. However, I heard through the grapevine the
deal is no longer valid.
Mr. Benson stated the manager’s
office was going to coordinate the presentation, and I believe you are correct.
It is no longer valid.
Mr. Ziko
asked do we have a date it is postponed to?
Mr. Benson responded it is
cancelled.
I have a couple of items to
discuss. The first one is the letter Mr.
Gatti gave me from the DEP dated November 14th,
which I mentioned earlier. The item we
already discussed in the letter is the water treatment plant as it relates to
the disinfection rule. There are two DEP
categories which relate to this rule, waters which are under the direct
influence and waters which are not under the direct influence of the surface
water. If ground water has some
potential to get into the water supply, you have to do more things to disinfect
the water to avoid possible contamination.
This issue came up at least once, if not twice in the last 10 years and
we demonstrated to the DEP we were not under the influence of surface
water. We used ground water. The rules have been amended over the years,
and once the water comes into the water plant, there is potential exposure, and
I will use the words right out of here, “for contamination from birds, insects,
windborne debris, rainfall and drainage”, which puts you under the influence once
again. Part of the process at the water
plant can possibly have rainfall, insects or birds. We will have to show that you need a higher
level of disinfection because of this. Although
we have not gone through the exercise for you, we can do this quickly. Our deadline is December 31st. In order to comply you have a water storage
tank, the water which is produced goes into the tank before it comes here. Chlorine is added to the water at a high
enough level and the combination of the time it is in the tank and level of
chlorine in the water will enable you to meet the rule. I will get you the report which we can send
to the DEP on your behalf.
Mr. Lambert asked will we have to
add chlorine?
Mr. Benson responded I do not
anticipate you having to do anything.
Mr. Stephens will probably have to fill out a form each month to send in
as a result of the new rule once it goes into effect.
Mr. Gatti
asked are going to deal with Severn Trent with regards to the first aspect of
the letter asking for that plan, are you guys going to deal with that at Severn
Trent?
Mr. Benson responded that is
correct. We are going to handle the disinfection.
Mr. Gatti
asked do you have anything else to discuss?
Mr. Benson responded the water line
project is proceeding. We were removing
the old asbestos cement pipe from where Orchid Cove ends to the north, taking
the line up to the water plant and replacing it with PVC pipe. We thought one section of pipe was replaced
slightly under 500’ by the wastewater plant when it was built, but it was not
shown on the plans. However, since they
installed the pipe up to the point on both sides, we now know the pipe is
asbestos cement and needs to be replaced.
Mr. Gatti
asked do you have a unit price?
Mr. Benson responded yes. We need to add the fee to the contract,
increasing it to $20,000 to $25,000. I
am going to ask you to authorize us to take care of this in a change order
document with the contractor using the unit price in the contract. This is all allowed,
I just need your authorization to do this and increase it to $25,000.
Mr. Gatti
asked is the size 8”?
Mr. Benson responded I believe it is
8”.
Mr. Gatti
asked what is the unit price?
Mr. Benson responded it is
approximately $40.
Mr. Gatti
stated that is acceptable.
Mr. Benson stated it is slightly
higher priced since it is a small job in a remote location.
Ms. Dillon asked did you see the asbestos?
Mr. Benson responded one of my
employees did. I sent someone down.
Ms. Dillon stated I know they have
been digging over there.
Mr. Benson stated we may have
exposed it in a couple of places. We had
to install some new fire hydrants for the wastewater plant approximately 13
years ago, and we thought we were just going to replace a whole section of pipe, instead we put enough to connect two fire
hydrants. The other issue which came up
during construction of the project was an 8” line near the hotel which Mr.
Stephens was not aware of, and it is in an area where we are going to verify
how meters for the North Hotel. The
North Hotel gets fed from both the front and the back of the hotels, and there
are multiple meters. Therefore, there is
a line up there which we are going to investigate while we are doing this
project, and we may use some additional funds to have this contractor reconnect
their meters to the new line to ensure we do not have lost water. Approximately 10 years ago, we had some issues
about unaccounted-for water, which we thought was going to the hotel, and in
particular the pool. Since this is dug
up and exposed we would like to take care of that also and may find some
missing water. There was an allowance in
the contracts for additional money to do a few minor things. I will try to take care of it within that
budget.
Mr. Gatti
asked do you need authority from the Board to authorize a change order?
Mr. Benson responded you must vote
to allow me to increase it $25,000.
On MOTION by Ms. Dillon
seconded by Mr. Ziko with all in favor a change order
in the amount of $25,000 to install additional pipe to the water plant was
approved.
Mr.
Lambert asked as we are discovering all this stuff, are we getting a set of
marked up drawings so we know what we have in the future?
Mr. Benson responded we
provide record drawings which show all our work.
Mr. Lambert stated 15
years from now, the same sort of thing will be happening, and we should
maintain a current set of drawings.
Mr. Gatti
stated at the end of the project he gives us a set of asbuilts,
which means he changes the original plans to show what actually happened in the
field and, which is your obligation.
Mr. Benson stated Mr.
Stephens keeps a copy of those at the plant as required by the State and most
of those documents I also have a copy in my office in case we need to discuss
it over the phone.
Mr. Gatti
stated I noticed our first bill was approximately $16,000, and they asked for
$32,000 and you cut it back to $16,000. What
was that about?
Mr. Benson responded the
engineer working on the project did not believe the quantities were correct as
of the date of the bill, and reduced the quantities to what they were as of the
date of the invoice, so their next invoice will be larger.
Mr. Gatti
asked does this include everything done so far?
Mr. Benson responded
yes. They have done the jack and boards
underneath the driveways, and they are going to come back and connect it.
Mr. Lambert stated we
discussed sending out a letter to people who are getting transferred over to
reuse water at the last meeting. Is
someone taking care of this?
Mr. Benson responded I
have it on my list to provide the manager’s office a map showing which homes
are going to be affected and they are going to send the letter.
Mr. Gatti
stated this is critical because many people have used their reuse water for
different things other than irrigation.
Some residents told me their sinks are hooked up to the reuse water.
Mr. Benson stated that
water has never been safe for drinking.
Mr. Lambert stated this is
why I believe it is important we ensure they are aware of this.
Mr. Benson stated we need
to do more of this within the next year throughout the community in order to
make everyone aware of the differences between the water, and is one reason why
we are painting the fire hydrants. We
are painting them a color which is not safe.
Mr. Gatti
asked are they being painted purple?
Mr. Benson responded yes.
Mr. Gatti
stated we need this letter soon.
Ms. Dillon stated we are
now looking at January or February.
Mr. Benson stated the
lines will be hooked back up, but those residents have always used that
water. Therefore, I will get the letter
sent immediately.
Mr. Gatti
stated some people will be required to have some significant work done.
C.
Manager –
Meeting Schedule for Fiscal Year 2006
Mr.
Dick stated the electrical repairs from the damage done by Hurricane Wilma were
completed.
Mr. Gatti
asked what did this include?
Mr. Dick responded it included a couple
of electrical starters, some wiring to your high service pumps, the floats to
turn them on and off, and some fluorescent lighting which occurred when
everything was blowing around inside the building.
Ms. Dillon stated we authorized that
last month.
Mr. Dick stated those repairs were
made. The new doors and windows were
ordered with Board approval. We had to
give a deposit to the company, which they received and they started
construction.
Mr. Ziko
asked how does the pole on our service drop look?
Mr. Dick responded it looks the
same.
Mr. Gatti
asked where is Mr. Stephens?
Mr. Dick responded he is operating
the plant.
Mr. Benson stated as part of this
project at the wastewater plant with Parkson we have
an electrical engineer evaluating your overall electrical service needs at the
water and wastewater plant because there are some additional loads and we will
be giving you a report on this shortly.
Mr. Ziko
asked what are the chances of burying the line which comes off the transformer
on the east side of the properties to where we pick up the drop?
Mr. Benson responded we may make
some changes there to handle this and any other projects in the future, and I
will give you a report on this shortly.
Ms. Dillon asked what is the status
of the project with the company in
Mr. Benson responded this is Parkson and it is going well. They provided us the first set of drawings
and we made comments, which they provided responses to. Our engineers are working on design of the
parts which interface with what they are doing, both
on the process systems, as well as electrical and structural, and all those
items are under design. Parkson was impacted by the hurricane, and they were down
for at least two weeks, but they said it will not impact the schedule.
D.
Field
Manager
Mr. Dick stated the reason Mr. Stephens is working is that his second
part-time operator has a personal emergency out of state, and he will be gone
for the next month. Therefore, Severn
Trent is supplying operating staff on the weekends to allow Mr. Stephens some
time off.
Ms. Dillon stated I noted this week
the meter reader was a Severn Trent employee.
Mr. Dick stated we are helping Mr.
Stephens with staffing on a temporary basis.
Ms. Dillon asked do we have the
temporary person anymore?
Mr. Dick responded no.
SEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Supervisors’ Requests
and Audience Comments
Ms. Dillon stated we spoke to Mr.
Goscicki about this before and this is just something to pass on to him. We requested several times in the financial
arena to get a better accounting of money budgeted, spent and committed, in
order to have a clearer picture of where we are because the financial
statements do not detail this and it seems we are authorizing spending without
really knowing how much money there is in the pot.
Mr. Gatti
asked when do we do our annual budget?
Mr. Dick responded we start the
process in June.
Mr. Gatti
stated this is when we should take a look, but we need to know now. This information is contained in the budget,
which we have not prepared.
Mr. Ziko
stated we passed the budget two months ago, but still did not know how much
money was in the pot.
Mr. Gatti
stated much has changed in that time.
Ms. Dillon stated that is why we
need a more up-to-date understanding of where we are financially.
I think we need to bring up the
issue on the taxes. I talked to several
of you and sent a message to Mr. Goscicki that some residents were asking why
their Port of the
Mr. Lambert stated I have a problem
with Ms. Ellis. What is her position at
Severn Trent?
Mr. Dick responded Ms. Ellis is one
of the most competent assessment roll preparers we have. She has been with Severn Trent for many years
and I have complete confidence in her.
Mr. Lambert stated it strikes me as
strange that someone would make these changes without referring to the Board or
Mr. Goscicki.
Mr. Dick stated perhaps she should
attend a meeting and address this issue for the Board.
Mr. Gatti
stated since this is a critical issue which many people are interested in. We should ask her to come in and address the
Board.
Mr. Lambert stated what she states
here is not what I understood happened.
Mr. Gatti
stated we should have her come in and explain it.
Mr. Ziko
stated perhaps we can get her here for the next meeting, the quicker the
better.
Mr. Dick stated we will ask her to
attend the next Board meeting unless she has a conflict, and I will let you
know.
Mr. Ziko
stated someone else from Severn Trent can come to the meeting and explain it.
Mr.
Beck stated since this is a special assessment and the Board has to make the
changes, how does
Mr. Cox responded no one has the
right to do anything arbitrarily, and no one has done so. Ms. Ellis explained the methodology she
applied. The Board adopts a per unit
assessment, which is plugged into the formula, and Ms. Ellis places them on the
assessment roll.
Mr.
Beck asked did you advise the Board?
Mr. Cox responded I have not advised
anyone. She explained the methodology.
Mr.
Beck asked how can you change the assessment?
Mr. Cox responded I did not change
the assessment. She explained the
methodology she uses. If you use a
methodology you are not arbitrary.
Mr.
Beck stated you are making a change which the Board has not approved.
Mr. Cox stated no change is being
made. They are applying the methodology,
and plugging in the number the Board adopted.
No one changed anything this Board did.
Mr. Gatti
stated your point is well taken and before we finalize this we are going to ask
Ms. Ellis to make a presentation, and please feel free to attend. When we better understand this, we can more
clearly answer your question.
Mr. Ziko
stated I went through the
Mr. Gatti
responded we need someone here to explain this to us, so that we are not
blind-siding anyone, and ensure Ms. Ellis understands our concerns.
Mr. Bissell stated for the 12 months
ended October 13th should be one month in the budget. I looked back through the old minutes and it
is done by the month, October being the first month. On November 19, 2004 the Board did not pass
the motion but it was discussed by Mr. Gatti, myself
and others that all copies of incoming and outgoing correspondence to the DEP
should be given to the Board members, which I believe has not been done.
Mr. Gatti
stated we have been faithful with this issue.
Mr. Lambert stated when Mr. Gatti was ill, there were several of those which he gave to
me and I sent them on to Mr. Benson.
Mr. Benson stated when I send
correspondence to the DEP such as permit applications,
my policy is to send it to the manager, which I assume he distributes. I normally do not send correspondence
directly to the Chairman.
Mr. Bissell stated although we
forward the correspondence to the District Manager to copy the appropriate
people, this has not been done.
Ms. Dillon stated we should apply
some common sense to this. If it is just
an application for a permit, I am not sure the Board needs to get a copy.
Mr. Lambert stated I was happy to
pass some of this correspondence Mr. Gatti gave to me
to someone else. I relied on staff many
times to handle these issues because unless you fully understand what they are discussing,
you are going to be lost. I also do not
believe it is necessary for us to read every one of these.
Mr. Bissell stated maybe you do not,
but I do. What is the status of the
situation with the fire ants?
Mr. Gatti
responded we should finish your previous comment. When you receive this correspondence, you
pass it on to Severn Trent and they pass it on to the Board. We should determine whether or not it is necessary
for Mr. Benson to distribute it immediately or within a few days, or if we want
them it distributed at each meeting.
Ms. Dillon stated it depends on the
importance.
Mr. Lambert stated it depends on the
correspondence. There was a situation in
which we had to spend a great deal of money in order to get up to speed, which
was important.
Mr. Ziko
stated I believe Severn Trent should handle this process. If Mr. Benson sends correspondence to Severn
Trent, they should determine whether or not we should see it.
Mr. Gatti
stated I agree with you, but it is different than the directions we gave staff
in the past.
Mr. Bissell asked what is the status
of the fire ants?
Mr. Benson responded I spoke to Mr.
Stephens with regards to fire ant control at the plant site and asked him if it
was necessary to be done monthly. He
informed me it is done semi-annually.
However, he does feel fire ant control is necessary.
Ms. Dillon stated you are only
referring to the plant. There are many
fire ant hills around Port of the
Mr. Dick stated since we are working
on the RFQ for landscaping, perhaps we can add fire ant treatment to the
landscaping contract, and I believe they may be able to treat them with
something not requiring a licensed pesticide application.
Mr. Gatti
stated this can only be done on CID property, since we have no business on
private property.
Ms. Dillon stated I am not suggesting
anything for private property, but I have seen many fire ant hills on our
property.
Mr. Ziko
stated it seems we have a recurring American Express bill of approximately
$1,000 per month, which does not contain a detailed background. The check register has improved, but this
American Express bill is directly related to Mr. Stephens at the plant, and we
need a more detailed background of where he is spending $1,000 per month over
and above what we allot for the operation of the treatment plant.
Mr. Bissell stated I requested
information to be sent to me on some bills one month ago before the last Board
meeting, which I never received. Has Mr.
Goscicki told the people who are working on the finances not to answer question
from the Board?
Mr. Gatti
responded that is not a fair question.
Mr. Dick stated I cannot answer the
question.
Mr. Bissell asked can you follow up
on my request?
Mr. Dick responded I will follow up
on it.
Ms. Dillon stated the Board received
a copy of a letter Mr. Goscicki got from the attorney for Bayview
Villas requesting additional ERCs. I am not sure the Board wants to necessarily
discuss it today, but it is something we do not want to slip through the
cracks. It deals with an offer from
Orchid Cove to purchase additional ERCs.
Mr. Cox stated this was on the open
items list, and you decided to put it on indefinite hold as to whether or not
the CID should get involved.
Ms. Dillon stated that was a
different approach as to whether or not we wanted to table Mr. Benson’s
report. This is a specific offer from
them to purchase ERCs.
Mr. Cox stated the ERCs would have to created first.
Mr. Gatti
asked should we have Mr. Benson’s report before we can consider this request?
Mr. Cox responded absolutely.
Ms. Dillon stated someone needs to
get back to Salvatore & Wood.
Mr. Ziko
stated after reading this letter, I do not believe we need to take any action
on this.
Mr. Cox stated I believe they were
making you aware they were also, and if we asked him to come to the meeting
with a check, he would have attended.
Mr. Ziko
stated we should not address this issue, as it may cause problems.
Mr. Gatti
stated there are many people interested in purchasing additional ERCs, but we should not consider addressing this until we
receive a report which outlines what we have.
Ms. Dillon stated this is just a
letter awaiting a reply. Someone should
tell him we tabled this issue of additional ERCs.
Mr. Gatti
asked should we send him a copy of the minutes which refers to this?
Ms. Dillon responded you should just
call him.
Mr. Lambert stated last month we
discussed adding a statement to the bill stating “any time there is a loss of
pressure you may want to consider boiling water”. I want to ensure you follow up with this and
make it happen.
Mr. Dick stated I will follow up.
Ms. Dillon stated we also at one
time suggested a message about no watering on Fridays, which still occurs from
time to time.
Mr. Gatti
stated with regards to Mr. Lambert’s point, were we notified about this a
couple of times?
Mr. Lambert responded the sheriff
went around and spread the word to residents during the hurricane. If he did not, many people would not be aware
of it. As far as I know there was
nothing which indicated when people should stop boiling the water.
Mr. Gatti
stated we should develop some methodology to ensure the word gets out. I do not believe putting it on television is
enough.
Mr. Lambert stated I agree with you,
but I believe if we note it on the bill which everyone receives, it becomes the
individual’s responsibility whether or not they choose to boil water when
pressure is lost.
Mr. Ziko stated
I would like Mr. Dick to get in touch with Big Cypress and ask them to take a
look at the sprinklers on
Mr.
Weiss stated the property tax issue is important, and based on the attendance
at these meetings, perhaps you should send a letter to all residents once you
resolve these issues to help us understand how the assessment is calculated.
Mr. Gatti
stated that is a good point.
Mr.
Beck asked with regards to landscaping, can you describe the right-of-way
ownership through the CID from the center of the road to the hedge and to the
buildings?
Mr. Gatti
responded the only way you can determine this is to see where the monuments are
for the right-of-way. However, it cannot
be described verbally at this point.
Mr. Benson stated I will leave a
large map at the hotel for anyone who wants to look at it.
Mr. Gatti
stated you have to look at a map.
Mr.
Beck stated perhaps a landscaping map which covers the lakes, and shows a
right-of-way 10’ from the hedges and everything on the other side which belongs
to the CID. However, we do not want to
landscape your trees nor do we want you to landscape our trees.
Mr. Ziko
stated you should speak to Tom from Big Cypress since he has the landscaping
contract and knows every portion over here.
Big
Ms. Dillon stated he has a contract
with the CID.
Mr.
Beck stated in relation to this replacement landscaping, I am trying to
determine where the dividing line is.
Mr. Benson stated it depends on at
what point in time which parcel was dedicated by which person to the CID.