CCPC Minutes 03/09/2006 EAR
March 9, 2006
TRANSCRIPT OF THE MEETING OF THE
COLLIER COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION
Naples, Florida, March 9, 2006
LET IT BE REMEMBERED, that the Collier County Planning
Commission, in and for the County of Collier, having conducted
business herein, met on this date at 8:30 a.m. in SPECIAL SESSION
in Building "F" of the Government Complex, East Naples, Florida,
with the following members present:
CHAIRMAN:
Mark P. Strain
Bob Murray
Brad Schiffer
Lindy Adelstein
Tor Kolflat
Donna Reed Caron
Russell Tuff
Paul Midney
ALSO PRESENT:
Joseph Schmitt, CDES Administrator
Marjorie Student-Stirling, Assistant County Attorney
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If you all rise for Pledge of Allegiance.
(Whereupon, the Pledge of Allegiance was united in unison.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. Welcome everybody back
to the third day of the review of the EAR amendments. This is for
the transmittal hearing. This is our continued meeting from
yesterday. So with that, if the secretary could do a roll call.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Mr. Kolflat.
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: Here.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Here.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Mr. Midney is absent. Caron is
here.
Mr. Strain.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Here.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Here.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Here.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Mr. Vigliotti is not here. And Mr.
Tuff.
COMMMISSIONER TUFF: Here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. As we had to start all of our
other meetings in the past, I don't mean to be a broken record, but I
want to remind the panel that we have a court reporter who can
only type as her fingers will let her carry, and that means we
have to keep our discussions one at a time and at a pace that she
can accurately record things. Also, please, to keep consistent,
is to be recognized before you speak. And with that, let's go
forward. We'll start -- we're going to go back to the beginning
of the book and start with the capital improvement element.
MR. COHEN: Mr. Chairman, is it your preference again like
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with the CCA meeting with the future land use element just to go
through it page by page?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think that would be the simplest.
Save time and we know what our questions are. We can just go right
to them. With that in mind, go ahead, Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I have a question on the staff
comment before we start off.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go right ahead.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: In your comments on the
capital improvement CIE, you mentioned that just explain the remove
the pay as you go and replaced it with pay as you grow. What does
that really mean, that statement?
MR. COHEN: The change in the statement was made because
of Senate Bill 360 contains that particular language exactly
verbatim, and we wanted to make sure there wasn't a 360
connotation associated with our capital improvements element
because it's in there. And that's why the change was made.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But prior to that you're saying
we had pay as you go, essentially is impact fees as you go and then
you're changing it to as you grow.
MR. COHEN: What page are you on?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I'm on page two, the staff
report.
Not in the CIE. I'm up front in the staff report.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Inside the CIE it's on page
seven.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: One of the tabs is staff report,
page two of the staff report.
MR. COHEN: I'm looking for the specifics in the CIE itself.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It's under 124.
MR. COHEN: Okay. We just struck the word pay as you go
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financing, and it wasn't replaced with anything in one point --
in 2.4, and the rationale there is we didn't want to be confused
with the mechanism for proportionate share that got integrated
into Chapter 163 as a part of Senate Bill 360 because of the
County Commission's perspective on proportionate share. That's
where they directed us from a policy perspective to draft
language. Then it was prepared and forwarded to the legislative
delegation. Now we have bill language that was drafted by a
representative of Goodland, Senator Saunders that tries to
address County Commissioners' concerns. So that's why the pay as
you go financing was struck in that particular provision.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: All right. Thank you.
MR. COHEN: You're welcome.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: With that can we start on page one of
the CIE?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: By the way, we're going to what time
today, 12:30?
MR. COHEN: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I just want to make sure.
Before the day is over, say after our first break, maybe we can
discuss the timing of our events for next week.
Okay. Page one, does anybody have any questions? Mr.
Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: We spoke at the AUIR about an
item such as helicopter, which is not in the EMS budget. And I just
wondered whether or not that is a classification. When you look
at public facilities, towards the bottom there where it speaks
shall include land structures, et cetera. Et cetera. Then it
talks about other capital cost such as motor vehicles and
motorized equipment, it's considered in the county's annual
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budget. So I'm just wondering, where would that hang out? Where
would we concern ourselves if we had to have a --
MR. COHEN: It would be part of the AUIR in the EMS section
of the AUIR. Or if it was the sheriffs helicopter, that
particular area, but it would not find its way into the CIE
anymore because of the direction to take out the category E
facilities.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: But there would be nothing set
aside of funds for that. It would just be a notation, a memo, right?
MR. COHEN: It would take place as part of the AUIR. And
then if was going to be budgeted, it would take place in the
budgeting process for that fiscal year.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: In the AUIR? There is no
budget for the AUIR.
MR. COHEN: Well, the AUIR would lead to a budgetary item
as part of the next fiscal year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron?
COMMISSIONER CARON: Yeah. On that same paragraph, I
think the two sentences seem to be in conflict. The first sentence
says that initial furnishings and equipment are considered public
facilities and are okay. And then the second sentence says that
office equipment and furnishings are not to be considered. So
does that just mean replacement equipment isn't considered?
MR. COHEN: I think that the initial furnishings in some
particular instances, impact fees can cover initial furnishings,
but like you just indicated with replacements, it cannot. I
believe that's what the intent of the language is.
COMMISSIONER CARON: So that's what that language is
meant to say?
MR. COHEN: Yes, ma'am.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
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COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: When you look into the EAR,
the review we had, we didn't discuss getting rid of category B. Why
is that happening all of a sudden?
MR. COHEN: That was a policy directive of the Board of
County Commissioners as part of the AUIR. And as part of that
direction, the vote was to incorporate those changes into the
capital improvements element. And the reason that they're
included as part of the CIE is the direction from DCA was to
include the CIE as part of the EAR. So, in essence what you're
doing, you're reviewing the EAR based amendments and the CIE at
the same time based on the AUIR.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So we won't be reviewing
these anymore? You're taking them -- the CIE --
MR. COHEN: This is your CIE review as part of the update
from the AUIR.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But in the future, next year's
AUIR will not have category B in it then?
MR. COHEN: Next year's CIE will not have category B. The
AUIR still will have category B facilities and you will review
them accordingly.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think, why were they taken out?
What was the philosophy behind taking them out?
MR. COHEN: The reason they were taken out is the
requirement before category A facilities is based on concurrency
related items. And as a result, the only things that are
required to be in a CIE are the things that are listed in Chapter
163.3180 dealing with capital -- with concurrency items. Those
would be, you know, your water, your sewer, your transportation
and the various other items that are in category A. Schools will
be added in 2008. Then in the past we had the category B
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facilities in there because of our impact fee ordinances. And
the consultant's rationale was, well, you need to have them in
the CIE or another equivalent to have a rationale nexus for those
particular impact fees, and he opined this year that it's okay as
long as it's in the officially adopted AUIR you can leave them in
there and they don't need to be in a category B facilities. If
you put the category B facilities in the CIE with financial
commitments there, it kind of hamstrings the Board of County
Commissioners with respect to policy decisions if budgetary items
come on up as part of the normal review process. That's the
rationale.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And then --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: When you go through the
AUIR next time, you're going to go through all the growth
management plan elements?
MR. COHEN: When we go through the AUIR, it will have the
normal category A and category B facilities just like they did
this past year.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: One other thing that doesn't
come up is housing element, for example, is never reviewed. Will
that be reviewed?
MR. COHEN: Housing is not part of the AUIR.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER okay.
MR. COHEN: It's not a capital facility.
MR. SCHMITT: For the record, Joe Schmitt, Development and
Environmental Services Division, Administrator. Category B
facilities. We had a legal opinion basically that clearly
defined a legal premise for at least the legal foundation for not
including category B in the CIE. As Randy said, if it's in the
CIE, there's a financial committment. It's not saying the county
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is not going to make a financial commitment, but category B
facilities by definition are deemed -- well, they're not from a
standpoint of concurrency. They're not a mandatory requirement
for concurrency. But, they're going to be in the AUIR. It is
part of -- certainly is part of the A UIR and is part of the
budget cycle based on how the Board defines what needs to be
funded. But as taken in the CIE -- the only reason we left it in
CIE for years was because of the idea that it had to be in there
related to the need and the rationale nexus -- do a rationale
nexus for collecting impact fees. That we now have an opinion
that is not necessarily the case. We can still collect impact
fees on category B facilities without having it specified in the
CIE.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Thank you.
MR. SCHMITT: That was a lot of double talk and hopefully --
MR. COHEN: Sounded like my double talk.
MR. SCHMITT: -- it made some sense. But the bottom line is
it's not needed in the CIE to go up to DCA.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Thank you. Got it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any questions on page two? Randy, at
the bottom of page two, item C, it talks about three percent of the
adopted level of service standard volume of an impacted roadway.
In order to determine the impact it says, in the first sentence,
a county wide population greater than three percent of the
population projections for parks, solid waste, water, sewer, et
cetera. What population statistics are you using, since we have
so many?
MR. COHEN: Looking at, you know, for parks -- this is one
of the things going back to the AUIR. Because now for parks, you
know, solid waste, we're using weighted population, but for water
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and sewer we're using a different standard.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right. How are you going to deal with
that three percent when it comes down to figuring it out. What
statistic will the public need to know to use?
MR. COHEN: We probably should clarify it based on the
changes in the AUIR. We have to make a note to do that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other questions on page
two? Page three? Page four? Anything on page four?
COMMISSIONER CARON: Yeah. On page four. The list of
roadways is not the same as page five of the transportation
element.
(Whereupon, Paul Midney has entered the room.)
COMMISSIONER CARON: The list of roadways is not the
same as page five of the transportation element, and I was just
wondering why.
MR. COHEN: Don Scott is coming up to address that
particular issue.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: He might as well park himself there for
quite a while.
MR. SCOTT: Don Scott, transportation planning. Me too. I
don't know why it's the same. Why it's not the same.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Okay.
MR. SCOTT: I was --
COMMISSIONER CARON: Which one is right?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: One at a time, guys.
MR. SCOTT: I put together a list of what I assumed, based
on the time frames that we have projects done. I'd rather not
have a list in there. Because one of the problems is the policy
is to, when a roadway gets widened to six lanes, go to a level
service C standard. The problem is, you do, you know, a GMP
change, it takes quite a while to get to that process. At the
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moment, this would be the list that I would have in there. One
of the things that I talked to Randy about for the next cycle was
updating it again. And we can either -- what I'd like to say is
that roadways that are six lanes be level of service E standard.
All others be level of service D standard and cover it that way.
But --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Just out of curiosity, why is it when a
road is six lanes it automatically goes to E. Why are we going
to the lowest standard instead of an acceptable standard?
MR. SCOTT: The policy by the board was essentially
realizing that you can't -- you know, you're not going to widen
it to eight lanes and that you can't to anything else to that
roadway but go to E. But then yet, obviously it raises the issue
that you guys raised before whether, is that a standard you want.
You know, the other side of this is looking at the long-range
transportation plan. You got a lot of needs. We can only afford
cost fees. We can't afford to get to level of service E on every
roadway in the county as you go out to 2030.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Now, if you put a level E, that means
development can proceed until it fails at level E? And until it
fails at level E, development will not look or have to provide to
you alternatives around that road system. Basically, as long as
it's acceptable and it's working at the level of service it's
adopted, the alternatives that they would have to provide aren't
necessarily sought as eagerly as if it was a level of service C
or D, because then at that level, they'd realize, uh-uh, to get
on this road system and not see it go below C to D, we better
find some alternatives. And all of a sudden what you'd be having
is a lot of people looking for a lot of alternatives and funding
alternatives so no road segment is as badly -- at such a low
level of service as we seem to be wanting or accepting all of
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them to be right at the get go.
MR. SCOTT: I don't disagree.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well--
MR. SCOTT: We've discussed this a lot. I don't believe --
say I want to do level of service E standard. DCA is not going
to accept that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: They're not going to accept--
MR. SCOTT: No because -- if I can't get to a level --
you're not going to be able to get to a level of service C on
every roadway. Should we have an unselected corridor, D, E, you
know . We've -- over the last couple of years, we've pretty much
beaten this to death. This is where we're at right now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yeah, but what I was suggesting, Don,
is if we started with a preferred higher level and people seek and
come back with ideas and you get peoples' brains working to find
alternatives. Now I don't mean your departments, I mean, some
creative ideas that the development industry could only do with
the lands that they own. And they come back in with suggestions
so that if we have to go to level E, let's force it to go there
not just roll over and give it up right from the get go. Maybe
you could find more alternatives if we were pushing the envelope
a little harder in that front end. That's kind of what I'm
trying to say.
MR. SCOTT: Well, you know, it's a discussion we have had
before, 100th hour versus 250th hour versus, you know. It's
somewhat the same thing. It's setting a level that -- is it's
attainable, feasible, cost feasible?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well--
MR. SCOTT: But as a Board, obviously you can make
recommendations towards where you want to go.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Yes.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir. I'm sorry. Let the record
show Mr. Midney is here.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: I'm sorry. Let the record show, I
left home two hours ago.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, you're driving on a Level E
service road, so be happy.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Exactly. That's my point. I just
had to drop a patient off at the Cleveland Clinic so I didn't really
go out of the way. But the roads are extremely slow, and I think
we're shooting for too low. I think that if we don't expect --
if we don't have any higher expectations, we won't do anymore.
But I also realize that this is a Board of Commissioners
decision, it's not your decision. It's finding the best that you
can.
MR. SCOTT: In the end it's financial. Can you afford to do
a level service C on every road.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Exactly. Yeah.
MR. SCOTT: You know, understand I read letters that say, it
took me this long to get from here to here. And the first thing
I'll do is I'll measure it out and I'll go, well, it is whatever
speed it is. And it might be level of service E. Now, is that
what anybody expects out there? No, it's not.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: I mean, there's such a huge
deterioration and drive time since I have been out there. And it
really gets bad when you start getting near Naples. And I don't
have the answer, but I think if we don't try to set our standards
a little bit higher, we're never going to get any improvement.
It's only going to continue to deteriorate.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Don, you had said the DCA wouldn't
let us change this to a different level of service.
MR. SCOTT: I won't pretend to guess what they're going to
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do. But I'm -- what usually will happen is, well, okay, I'm
going to set a level of service down on a certain thing, and
they'll say, okay, over what time period do you think some of
these things are going to fail, and that development would get
stopped or can't go forward. And I would project, like I did
before, ten years' worth of what I think is going to be able to
go -- you know, what road is going to fail, what road is not
going to and they'll probably be even more roads on that. And
that raises flags with them. That's why, obviously, that's why
we got the TCMA's and TCEA in some areas.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yeah, but wouldn't we be in a better
position to simply say no to new rezones if the level of service
of say a C or a D was not going to be sustained if that
particular development came on line. Rezoning is an entitlement
that's not an obligation of us to approve. So, wouldn't that
give us a better opportunity to say no until they came up with
solutions to make the road system better?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah, but in some areas -- when you're talking
about, and obviously, the conversation to the east. I don't care
what I set it at out there, all that development is still going
to go keep going. The only thing I will stop out there is
commercial development.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Why is -- all of the unzoned
development out there is going --
MR. SCOTT: No. I mean the platted estates. Golden Gate
Estates.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I agree with you, but I would like to
see us figure out a way to not make it any worse than it already is,
because we have no ability now, or it's harder now to say no when
we set such a low level of standard on so many roads. And
especially if it's policy that everything is E right from the get
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go.
MR. SCOTT: Well, E when it gets to six lanes or you can't
widen it was really what that was.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But your comment about DCA -- let
me go back to my original question. If you look on the next page,
State and Federal roads are able to state higher levels of
service. Those roads have all failed. We know I75 failed. So,
why are they allowed to do that? Why are we allowed to allow
more traffic on a failed level of service on their road but we
can't do the same thing for ourselves?
MR. SCOTT: Well, I think you made the argument right there.
I75 failed so that has a level C or D standard? Nothing is
stopped by that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, exactly my point. Why isn't it?
Why is it that we know everybody in this county needs to go on
I75 to get out of this county to go anywhere. And if there's a
hurricane evacuation to go anywhere, and you know what 1633180
paren 6 says. Why then do we keep allowing it all to happen?
MR. SCOTT: Just as we went through before. I mean --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I know you can't answer this. Sorry.
MR. SCOTT: I have though in the sense that when we put
forward what we put forward before for concurrency, we wanted to
do a shorter time frame. We wanted to do some other things. I
had to show what roadways I thought in that amount of time based
on funding and everything else we could get to and what roadways
would fail. And the first iteration of that was, you know, we
got a report saying you can't do this. And there was
negotiations and back and forth and we got to where we're at now.
Now, is everybody totally happy with where we're at? No. But in
the end, they don't want us to stop development. You know, to
totally stop development they want it to be timed. I mean, we
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are in the same issue. We want to kind of time improvements to
it, but you are touching on some of the issues. Can you build
everything to make, you know, to even have acceptable level of
services in the future and construction levels. We've done easy
projects to date. And I say that, they haven't been that easy
but we've widened existing roads and things like that. If you
want to get more capacity in the urban area, there's no easy way
to do that. And as you've probably seen in the newspaper and TV
and whatever, the stuff out in the Estates is not easy right now
and there's new corridors.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You know what though, stuff out in the
Estates happening is because the Estates is not a gated
community . You wouldn't dare take a road through the middle of a
gated community.
MR. SCOTT: It might. If you -- Livingston, you think
Livingston stopping at Radio means that nobody ever brings that
up about bringing it south through all the development? No. It
comes up every day. As it gets -- but I don't believe that if
you go out project out to the future, that some of those hard
choices aren't going to have to be made. They are going to be
made. So it's not going to be any different than the Estates in
that respect.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I certainly don't agree with your policy
of labeling everything E to start with. I don't see where that
policy is addressed in that. And these documents though I think
you're limiting the E to the ones listed. Am I correct in that
statement?
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That policy you stated about -- is a self
department policy?
MR. SCOTT: It was board directed.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So for the discussion that we're
on page four, basically what Ms. Caron brought up is a need to
correct the table that's on page four?
Randy, is Don's proposed correction something you can take
care of if this Board is recommending it?
MR. COHEN: Yes. We'll take Don's directions and report
them and we'll import them into the CIE and also make sure
they're consistent with the transportation element as well.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Is that fine with everybody else on the
panel.
(All affirm.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other questions on page
four?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I do, Mark.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Randy, this is pure
renumbering. If you look back at 1.4 on the previous page, where
you start off, public facilities, I think that should be an A. In other
words, normally you go from numbers first subheading would be a
letter.
I know you're getting rid of the category A concept. But, for
example, instead of 1.1 under 1.5, I think it should be A, and
level of service D should be a B. Or, anyway, renumbering. I
think it's going to get confusing when you actually see it in
numbers.
In other words, go back and look on page three where you had
1.4. The subcategories of that start out with letters.
MR. COHEN: Correct.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: On this section 1.5 you're
continuing numbers first, and I think if you -- I mean, I know
there's a lot of scratch outs, it's hard to see, but I think
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that's not going to be what you want.
MR. COHEN : We'll take a look at it and make it consistent
with the previous page.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Questions on page five? Don, the top
of page five, you acknowledge in the GMP, or in the AR for the
GMP, that I75 in its worse case is C. But you also acknowledge, as
everybody else has, that it's F in reality. How can that happen
when we know that every development in this community is going to
be hitting I75, yet it's failed by at least from C to F, but we
still approve. How does that approval process work? How do we
keep approving things to go on a road system that so badly
failed?
MR. SCOTT: Our concurrency system doesn't include I75 as a
big picture. You've mentioned, yesterday I think it was, about
the no de minimus on a failing hurricane link.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right.
MR. SCOTT: When this was raised with our outside legal
before, they essentially said it's not something that could be
enforced.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So we have a GMP that tells us what
it's supposed to be, but in reality and acknowledged on public record,
it's not. But it means nothing, even though a state statute said
it should be addressed. I wonder how our legal system puts all
that together.
MR. SCOTT: I guess on the positive side, it's programmed to
be six laned starting next year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Each direction?
MR. SCOTT: Three lanes each direction.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: On I75?
MR. SCOTT: On I75.
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March 9,2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That won't help at all. By next year the
three lanes will be full, and we'll be right where we're at
today.
MR. SCOTT: And next month I am scheduling, I hope, the first
toll authority meeting for the ten lanes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: My God. Okay. I don't know what we
can change on five to do anything if it's routinely ignored, is
basically what you're saying.
MR. SCOTT: Well, FDOT would say we don't approve
development. These are our standards, meanwhile try to -- try to
apply it all across the county and have DCA come back.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Don't we have an obligation if
there's such an important thing that failed to try to compensate some
other way.
MR. SCOTT: With a parallel route?
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: No. By making the standard
stricter on the roads that aren't failing.
MR. SCOTT: I mean, you're getting to the point of saying
that a moritorium essentially. Because even if I -- if we apply
the de minimus on the Interstate, or let's go to level of service
C on Livingston, which is a parallel route, I think you'll end up
at the same place.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I mean, we can sit here and beat
a dead horse, but I'm not sure our voices are going to do any good
since everything seems to be against common sense. And I know
you're not, Don, but I know that's what you're stuck to enforce.
MR. SCOTT: Well, you know, the Board at the -- obviously,
we're talking about the CIE. The board decided to move all of
the roadways out of the concurrency window until we have an
approved contract on projects. So that will at least hold up
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March 9,2006
approval of developments until at least we have an approved
contract instead of within the first two years. So, in some
respects, yeah, you are being heard. Is there other policy
changes you could make? There's only so much the Board can do
too.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Can I ask you one thing? We have a
series of PUDS and rezones coming before us at our level. And
every time they've come before us in the past, with the exception of
the one on Davis -- and that one only came back after a challenge
-- your department has always recommended approval for
everything. Does that mean based on your statement in the policy
by moving all these out, that the new PUDs and rezones coming
forward will be recommended inconsistent or not approved by your
department?
MR. SCOTT: Well, hear what I said here. Out two or three
years is not out of the five years. If it's consistency would be
five years. It depends where it's at. Will there be more
inconsistent projects, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But I thought you said the policy was
that if you don't have a contract in and the funding in place, then
the rezones aren't going to be approved. Is that --
MR. SCOTT: No. I'm talking about site plans for that
purpose of two years. Consistent concurrency. Consistency
looked out five years. So if the project is still within the
five years, like a fifth year, for instance, then that might be
consistent. Now, concurrency wise, what's been happening is, if
it's within two years, that's considered capacity of the road.
Obviously, one of the discussions that we had during the AUIR is,
are you really starting the project, you know, next year versus
maybe it slipped a couple of months and then you get more months
on time and you're approving, let's say, site plans whatever to
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March 9, 2006
go forward when it might not have been within the two-year time
frame.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, even if something is consistent, it
may not be concurrent --
MR. SCOTT: Exactly.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- therefore, your reading would be it's
consistent with the GMP, but when they come in for their SDP,
they wouldn't be provided with the concurrency to --
MR. SCOTT: Perfect example, at the last board meeting was
Rock Edge on 951. It was consistent, but it would not be
concurrent right now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That helps -- that understanding
helps.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Unless he gets to the speaker, I don't
think we can have it on record. .
MR. SCOTT: Joe is touching on it. I mean, the bill, the
senate bill talks about proportionate share. Some of the issues
with the legislature is trying to do essentially is what can take
away even some of what we're talking about here. Essentially,
make a proportionate share. Doesn't matter -- and as long as the
construction is within the five years, which I know we've had a
debate as to whether that's even to be stuck to five years.
because if you're showing a process that shows PDE design right
away, but maybe construction is in the sixth year, they might end
up pushing that even further, that envelope further. But,
essentially allowing things to go, even though it might be four
or five years away -- and that still didn't mean the project is
delivered because if you have a two to three year time frame for
construction, you know, it could be seven, eight years out.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: GMP section of transportation, policies
5.1 and 5.2, a lot of times they're generally cited in regards to
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March 9, 2006
traffic. Isn't those one of those deal with concurrency and the
timing of it? And if they do, wouldn't that make it inconsistent
to approve it if it's not -- if it's a concurrency driven issue?
MR. SCOTT: I had it in front of me.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's okay.
MR. SCOTT: 5.1 and 5.2 are more for consistency, I thought.
But maybe I'm, you know --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm checking it myself. I don't mean to
belabor the point. I just couldn't understand how the top of
page five fit with the reality of what we're dealing with. I
think you thoroughly explained that. Although, it doesn't make
common sense that the State turns the cheek in one direction and
we turn it in the other and nobody looks at the reality of the
whole picture, but I understand.
MR. SCOTT: All along they'll say, we don't approve
development, you do. But then try to stop it. It's the other
side.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right. Any other questions on page
five? Page six? Any questions on page six?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: At the top -- let's see. I have a
note to myself, explain? Two years of constructed line cell capacity
at average disposal rate for the previous. And it went from five to
three years. Is that based on efficiencies or other changes?
MR. COHEN: If you recall from the AUIR, the
presentation that was made by Mr. Deloney's department, they had
looked previously at five years of line subcapacity. And they looked
at their recycling efforts that took place, and they found that by
looking at the previous three years, it gave them a more accurate
depiction.
Page 21
March 9, 2006
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: So this is an AUIR piece?
MR. COHEN: It's the exact language from the AUIR.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. Then I have another
question on seven.
The $270 capital investment per capita -- that's the impact fee,
I believe -- was that approved?
MR. COHEN: That was approved as is part of the AUIR, yes,
.
SIr.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. Then I have down under
objective two, I guess it is, financial feasibility. Future development -
- in the middle of that paragraph -- future development, was there a
proportionate cast of facility improvements necessitated by growth?
Have we yet determined what a proportionate cost will be
on any of these things, or is that still in question as to how that would
be arrived at?
MR. COHEN: That proportionate cost pertaining to proposed
and new development, bears that rationale connection with our
impact fee ordinance. And right now we're in the process of updating
the parks and recreation impact fee.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Well, we don't -- I guess my
question is central to the issue of proportionate cost of whether or not
that's been determined yet, whether that's been qualified. Because
now all of this is associated with 360, correct? Bill 360, or Growth
Management Act of2005.
MR. COHEN: Well, the proportionate cost provision right
there has been in there all along and had no interrelationship
with 360. It was there and put in there to tie in for basically
new growth, paying for new growth. And that was the rationale
for that particular statement.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I hadn't realized that we used
proportionate cost previously.
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March 9, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Only the underlined words are--
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: No. I appreciate that, but that
jumped out at me and that's why I highlighted it. Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page six? If
not--
MR. KRASOWSKI: Can I ask a question?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Did you register? Okay.
MR. KRASOWSKI: I just want to ask a question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Bob, from now on if you could just let
Randy know, but we'll let it go his time. Go ahead.
MR. KRASOWSKI: Well, I signed up with Randy to discuss
the solid -- excuse me. I signed up with Randy to discuss the solid
waste issue and I heard it mentioned, so I'm curious to know --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: First can you--
MR. KRASOWSKI: My name is Bob Krasowski. I'm curious
to know now that you're discussing some aspects of the solid waste
AUIR if somehow by doing this prior to discussing that you're
locking into any policy decision.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No. Just that the AUIR discuss the
three year line cell capacity from the past in order to judge the
future instead of five years. That's the only thing.
MR. KRASOWSKI: All right. You know, I'm not as familiar
with this process as you are, but I guess I still remain signed
up for --
MR. COHEN: You need to fill out another slip for today.
MR. KRASOWSKI: Okay. But you do have my one from
yesterday?
MR. COHEN: Yes. And I turned that one in to the court
reporter, correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: By the way, you are as familiar as we
are because this is our first time. It happens once every seven
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March 9, 2006
years, so new for us too.
MR. KRASOWSKI: I'm not as talented.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page seven. Any questions on page
seven? Randy, on the bottom of page seven, policy 2.7, the county
shall continue to collect impact fees for parks and recreation. It
crosses out EMS and library. Obviously, because they're not
category A or category B. Does that prevent us from collecting
impact fees?
MR. COHEN: No, sir. The rationale -- and when you see any
category B facility crossed off in any of these provisions is
because they're no longer part of the CIE, but they're still part
of the AUIR and will be collected.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I just want to make sure by that policy
we weren't limiting ourselves not to collect impacts fees.
MR. COHEN: We're fine, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page eight. Any questions? Just for the
informational policy, 3.2 certainly strongly brings the AUIR into
the EAR for discussion. Which also means it's in our GMP, in
which also is the strong reason why I believe that CCPC will
always and should always need to be reviewing the AUIR from here
and in the future, so --
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: May I second that, Mr.
Chairman?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir. Page nine any questions? In
policy 4.3, this isn't a question about a change. It's about an
application because of some of the issues that are further in
this document. In the middle of the policy it says proj ects for
which appropriations have been made and the annual budget will
not be removed once they have been relied upon for the issuance
of a final site development plan, final plat or building permit.
My question there is, as we learn in the traffic issues involving
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March 9, 2006
the A UIR, there are a lot of accepted road systems that I believe
were budgeted, the money was not spent and carried over. Does
that play into this sentence at all?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. I think this is an inconsistency that has
been pointed out as part of what we're doing.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Do we need to correct it?
MR. SCOTT: I know I'm meeting Friday or something like that
regarding inconsistencies and I don't know the end result of that
yet, but with our county attorney's office.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The inconsistencies in this EAR?
MR. SCOTT: Well, based on what we're trying to do with the
CIE and push the projects out within the first three years and then
back to what's in the growth management plan.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, this panel as the LPA is in a
position to have to approve this to move it forward to the BCC.
If you're meeting to change language, how would we know -- how
could we possibly review it for approval?
MR. SCOTT: It's obviously, it's happening right now. I
mean, the AUIR was when that was, that decision was made to push
the proj ects out, and then now we're finding the repercussions of
them.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Student, any language that's
changed after we meet on this CIE would have to come back to us for
re-approval based on a clause 250 --
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Yes, I think it would come back.
And you have a meeting -- it's not with me, it's with someone else in
our office, is it not?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. And actually someone else from the
outside set it up, so --
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Okay. So what I think could
happen because we're still going through this process, we could bring
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March 9, 2006
that back to you because we're not done. The meeting is Friday, is it
not?
MR. SCOTT: I think it's a week from Friday I think it's the
17th.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Okay. Well, our meetings with
the Board are not until towards the end of April. So I believe that we
have plenty of latitude to bring that back to you and you could make
your approval of this element at the time you do it contingent on
that being brought back.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I guess we'll have to keep a note of
that, Randy, that this one won't get resolved today then. We'll just
continue it until this new language gets in.
MR. COHEN: For the record, just so maybe Don has some
indications of what your concerns are, maybe you can provide that
to him as he moves forward going into that meeting.
MR. SCOTT: I know what my concerns are too.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We'll keep going through it.
Page nine, anything else on page nine? Page ten.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. This is perhaps a tidbit,
but it starts out at the top to insure, but if you look at page eight,
policy 3.3, they struck the word insure. I know there's a difference
insure versus ensure, but I'm just wondering, are we trying to
eliminate the word insure?
MR. COHEN: I think it's in two different contexts, Mr.
Murray. If you look at the context and the top of page ten,
that's to insure the public facilities are in place concurrent
with development. And I think if you look at our currency
management system, that's the intent of wanting to insure that
those capital facilities are there. As a point of emphasis it
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March 9, 2006
was left in.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. I have no problem with
it then. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page ten?
COMMISSIONER CARON: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Actually, it's for the County
Attorney's Office, so I'll wait for Margie to get done.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Student.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I'm sorry, I was having a sidebar
with Mr. Scott.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't know if you heard, Ms. Caron
had a question.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I'm sorry.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Margie, on page ten down at the
bottom 4 B.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Okay.
COMMISSIONER CARON: The necessary facilities and
services are under construction or the contract for such facilities and
services has been let. Let is arcane legal term. If you look it
up in the legal dictionary it tells you it's an arcane term. Is
there a better word that we could be using?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: That's a very common term in
purchasing.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I've always heard that. I can look
into it, but I've always heard that term especially in dealing with
government type contracts. I've always heard the contract has
been let, but I'll be happy to look and see if there's another
term that we could use.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page ten? Page
11.
Page 27
March 9, 2006
Mr. Scott, I would assume that C and D are going to be part
of your discussions with the County Attorney's Office in regard
to the timing of those events?
MR SCOTT: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That will save me asking questions
about them. Thank you. Page 12, there's a note on page 12, see
capital projects under separate PDF page 14 through 27. I'mjust
curious what PDF is that? Why is that note in the CIE?
MR. SCHMITT: The document that's made up --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Better tell us who you are.
MR. SCHMITT: For the record, Corby Schmitt, Senior Planner.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
MR. SCHMITT: The printed document has been from two
different files. And the following pages, those tables, the five
year scheduled capital improvements and the summary that follows
is simply separate and that's a reference knowing to insert for
those who make up the document.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Because the tables that follow in the
book that I have start at page 16 actually. That's what confused me.
I didn't know if there was another set of PDF's.
MR. COHEN: For practical purposes, it should be removed
because it's an internal note. We'll have it removed.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any questions on page 13? In
the middle of the first number one, development order review, there's
some changed language. After the changed language -- first of
all, let me read this sentence. As part of the review for all
development owners, other than final site development plans final
plat and building permits, for those having negative impacts on
public facilities, our first questionnaire is, how is public facilities
defined? Because it's not capitalized and it's not bolded. I'm not sure
if there's a definition for it. Then it goes on, the county will
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March 9,2006
determine whether or not sufficient capacity of public facilities. And
I'm just wondering if that opens all public facilities up to capacity
or just ones in the former category A or former B or where we're at.
MR. COHEN: Mr. Chairman, if you look on page one under
policy 1.1 where category A used to be, you'll see the definition
of what public facilities are.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Then should we follow through
-- don't you normally capitalize a definition or something so you
know you're referring to the definition? I wouldn't know that
the definition you referred to here is that public facility. I'm
just wondering is there a way to tie it back?
MR. COHEN: Maybe we can reference page one as set forth on
page one.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That would -- because your language
that you added is certainly going to be more intense than what was
there so I think --
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Just a minute, it may be better
instead of referring to page one, because pages change, we could
refer it back to the policy number.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other questions on page 13?
Page 14. Again, in the body of 6A towards the bottom, first
public facilities -- and I know you do a lot of times.
And, Margie, how do we normally know that when they're
referring to public facilities, they're referring to that public
facility as defined in the beginning of this document? Because
this document is riddled with references to public facilities.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I think that historically we've
known that the public facilities that are caught by the AUIR have
historically been the category A and category B public facilities. I
think now because of the change, we may need to, you know,
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March 9, 2006
wherever we reference it, we may need to clarify public facilities that
we're talking about or add something that says for purposes of this
element whenever the term public facilities is used, it means
these public facilities and make it for purposes of the entire
element.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think that would be helpful. Before
when we had category A or category B it was very easy to
reference category A public facilities as this one did. Now it
just put a little level of confusions into it.
This has got to come back to us anyway, so maybe staff can
get it cleaned up in that regard before it comes back to us.
Randy, is that -- was that a change you can implement?
MR. COHEN: Yeah. I think the appropriate place would be in
policy 1.1 to use that reference that it would be the definition.
And 1.1 is applicable throughout the rest of the CIE.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, we're going to have to re-review
this when Mr. Scott gets done with his meeting anyway, so maybe
we can see all that language at one time. Page 15.
MR. COHEN: Can I point something out on page 14 because
there's language that was added?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Certainly.
MR. COHEN: If you look under 6A, you'll see language added
notwithstanding any other provisions in the capital improvement
element. And then there's the stuff that follows. But the final
paragraph that basically says the AUIR will go into effect
immediately upon approval by the Collier County Board of County
commissioners. In the past that's how it was interpreted. And
in this last AUIR cycle, the County Attorney's Office opined
differently, and that particular sentence was added in by our
staff with the intent to address how things had previously been
interpreted. So I just wanted to point that out because it's
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March 9, 2006
something that hasn't been there, but was added there for that
express purpose.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: and I would like to comment on
that. Our office jointly opined Mr. -- myself and Mr. Klatzkow that if
there are moratoria, you don't have automatic moratoria. There's case
law that tells us you have to go through a process to do a
moritorium. But in discussing this provision further with Mr.
Cohen, we understand that this has -- what this has the effect of
doing is, if it takes something out of the five years then when
you do the consistency analysis for, and 5.1 and 5.2 of the
transportation, it would not meet consistency. And also if it was
moved beyond the two-year window, it would automatically be
stopped by real time concurrency. So -- and I also belive
there's some provisions in our land code that are going to need
to be cleaned up after this because -- and I don't have the
language right in front of me -- but it talks about an ASI or
interim development control. So with that understanding, I don't
have a problem with this language now because it will be
automatically caught by our system without, you know, doing the
moritorium.
MR. COHEN: And the reason the language was inserted is if
you have, like, a constrained road facility and you know right at
the time of the A UIR, and you're not going to adopt the CIE until
eight or nine months later, you're adding additional capacity to
that additional trips on those roadways during that nine-month
period while you wait for an amendment to the comprehensive plan.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Or maybe it can work in reverse, is that
the fact that it's in AUIR for improvement within a two-year
cycle, then you can move ahead quicker and faster than if you had
to wait eight or nine months to get it adopted. Well, it could
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March 9, 2006
work either way. The fact that the both of you brought it up, and we
didn't is there a conflict between your departments?
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I don't think so.
MR. COHEN: Not at all.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I think us having had the
discussion with Mr. Cohen, but you can't do an automatic
moritorium. But the way the system is set up on the consistency
review, it's already set that way in the comp plan. So, with
consistency and concurrency. So we have no problem with that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Scott? Is he still here? Oh, he's
hiding beyond that big fellow.
Don, in your -- in the A UIR, you had a series of ten
existing deficient roadways that made it into the AUIR. If the
AUIR did not go through its normal adoption process and become
effective until it normally does versus what's happening here,
how would the development approvals along those ten existing
deficient segments have been reacted to should they come in for
some more capacity means?
MR. SCOTT: And Randy has touched it in the past when the
boards, or if it was separate, said, okay, the AUIR is adopted.
I go back and change all the numbers in the concurrency database
and that's what we went with starting from that day.
Now, based on the fact that it was -- and I guess at that
point it didn't matter that you are ahead, you know, because you
were giving something that you -- this is the way it's come out.
You were given something that wasn't there before. The opposite
is that I was going to go in there and pull all those proj ects --
you know, essentially capacity out and say, okay, it's not six
lanes, it's four lanes until that time point so you have less
capacity on it. The decision was that you can't implement that
right away because you're taking away something without, I guess,
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March 9, 2006
enough notice and other issues like that adopted through the CIE.
So it wasn't the way we did it in the past. So, one of the
things -- and I was talking to Randy about this yesterday -- I
don't even have the new traffic counts in the concurrency system
now. Because, we've been told to wait until the CIE process
before we put in the new capacities. Unfortunately, one of the
things I was just thinking about while I was sitting there is, we
were going to address the AUIR again in June I guess. I'll still
be on the one before at the rate we're going.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well--
MR. SCOTT: Based on finding out what happens with DCA.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This particular sentence, does it do
more or less for capacity on our road systems at an earlier or later
time frame?
MR. SCOTT: It would give you, I guess if you had a project
in there. Say we're back at former times and you say, next year
we're starting a project and whatever. It would give you more
capacity earlier on.
N ow the way that CIE is though, it would be that I could do
it right now where I'm not able to do it right now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm sorry. Can you explain that?
MR. SCOTT: Where we push the projects out of the
concurrency window. I can't apply that yet. I'm not applying
that right now in the concurrency data5base because it has to go
through the adoption -- the CIE has to be adopted.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So this particular sentence--
MR. SCOTT: Is helping me for what is reality right now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But once this is adopted, it says that
way so the future is going to be more exposed, but the present isn't,
only because this first time it has to go through adoption.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. You know, if we get to the end of the
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March 9,2006
year and the CIE is not adopted by DCA, do we change it back
again in January? I don't know.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So this helps you right now but it hurts
us a year from now basically?
MR. SCOTT: That's what we do a year from now. If the CIE is
adopted by DCA and they're okay with what we're doing, we might
leave it the way it is and it helps.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other questions about this
nice confusing issue?
MR. SCOTT: Hey, imagine how it is for us.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I think if you change -- we'll get
another shot at this because you're going to come back with this
whole thing anyway, so maybe between now and then we'll
understand it a little better. Page 15, are there any questions on page
15?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Just one.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And, Randy, it's just a matter
of timing. What is the -- when is the third evaluation going to
occur and are these evaluations supposed to occur every five
years?
MR. COHEN: It used to be five years and then it got changed
to seven. We had one in 1997. The last one was finalized in
2004. Normally in that schedule we would be 2011 doing another
EAR, but my understanding is that DCA is going to come out with a
modified scheduled I think again based on, you know, after Senate
Bill 360 goes into place. I'm assuming we're going to be 2011,
but it could be a year one way or another probably.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But should we put a time or
just let it float?
MR. COHEN: I think we should let it float for now until we
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March 9, 2006
know the exact timing of when our next EAR is going to be
required.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on 15? Ifnot
we've got a series of tables. Before we go into the specifics on the
tables, I have a general question for the county attorney. And I
had thought the County Attorney's Office had recommended not to
get into specifics -- specificity in the GMP. Are you aware of
this exhibit eight table and the specificity, not only of the
various individual projects, but their dates, the monetary values
for each one and how they span over a four or five year time
frame.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Well, in the capital improvement
schedule, that's what that is. That's a part of the comp plan. When
talking about specifics, I was talking about some of the languages in
the plan that were required to have a capital improvement schedule as
part of the capital improvement element.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Because it's part of the plan, what
happens if, for example, number one is Collier County Boulevard,
Davis, South US 41. It's scheduled for fiscal year some work
done in 2005 to 2006 of -- was it $2,741,000? I'm assuming
there's three zeros at the end. Or is that two billion anymore?
MR. SCOTT: Two million for right of way.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. If this comes in at 3.2 million,
do we have to change -- do we have to change the GMP?
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I'm going to have to defer to the
financial -- the folks that work on the capital improvement schedule.
It's required in the comp plan, and I don't know what our practice has
been if that happens.
MR. SCOTT: Well--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I know this is an impractical result, but
if we're looking at this as literally as we've been told to look
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""
,
'March 9, 2006
at it before, ifit's in the GMP, it's locked in unless YOU' change the
GMP . We have multiple 'pages of very definitive information, by the
way, that does not correspond to the :~ UIR which is going to be my
next question. But if these values don't hold, how do you c;harige
them? Ifwe can't change the GMP except for the GMP amendment,
IS .tl1~re an exc~ption' for Exhibit A?
.',. i MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Well, there are some -- and I don't
know this plays into it, but in the past there was an opportunity to do
annual updates to the capital improvements schedule without going
through, you know, a full blown amendment process. And I think
that's --
MR. COHEN: As long as you're not removing the project as a
provision -- and maybe Ms. Student can you correct me if I am
wrong -- you can actually do it by ordinance.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Right. And we have done that in
the past.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So if Don goes over -- say instead of
$2.741 he's $2.742, can he spend that $1,000 prior to getting the
amendment through some kind of ordinance or process, or our hands
are tied? I mean, this seems pretty impractical, this kind of detail in a
conceptual document.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Well, we are required to have a
capital improvement schedule to send to DCA as part of this plan.
And, you know, if it comes in over, I don't know that our hands are
necessarily tied. I would quite frankly have to look into that
and report back to you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This whole element has to come back
to us. Would you do that? My question is possibly maybe we don't
need to put the values in. If you just got to put a general schedule
In.
MR. COHEN: We do have to put the values in because we have
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March 9, 2006
to demonstrate that it's financially feasible.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: To demonstrate financial
feasibility.
MR. COHEN: All I can tell you from history wise is we've
always had a capital improvement element.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: We have.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And I can tell you history wise since
1989 we've always had a provision that says you've got to -- you're
required to do a PUD in a barrier island, but we found out
yesterday that ain't true. So, maybe there are changes to this
that we don't know about.
MR. SCOTT: I know. And I always applied the AUIR when I
went back to the office too.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Don, on these tables, they don't -- have
you reviewed the input on these tables in detail?
MR. SCOTT: Well, what happened was, after the AUIR the
work program was updated based on the direction of the Board to
push proj ects out two years, and that was done by our budget EL T
office. And then it went back and they take -- comprehensive
planning took that data and put that into this table. So the
AUIR that you had previously is not the same based on what
happened with pushing out the projects two years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. But the projects that are listed
on this table, don't, from my review, correspond to the projects
that you listed on page nine of the AUIR for 2005. My question
is, could you check that before you come back to us with a
rewrite and make sure they are consistent and that the values you
have in the AUIR correspond to the time frames on here?
Mr. Kolflat?
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: On these notes there's a column
that says notes. What are those notes and what do they refer to?
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March 9, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Could you tell us what page you're on,
sir?
MR. SCOTT: It's the third column over. Those are the years
for -- in the right-hand column you put the money by year, but
essentially when it says '06 that's right of way. It's our
designations, like R is for right of way, CI is for construction
and construction inspection. I don't know what else is in there.
Design is D and those are the years that we're doing design right
of way or construction.
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Randy, because we're going to have
more time in this, I will probably go back in and compare each
department's entry under this table for the next meeting. It
would be wise if you guys did that and came back with any
corrections so we haven't got to redo it at the meeting next
time. In particular, if you turn to page six of the table, it
starts there. And I notice now that Ms. Student said that we
should have values in here, why doesn't the utility department
put their values?
MR. COHEN: The utilities department will explain that as
part of their presentation dealing with public utilities.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I would rather have a legal explanation.
Ms. Student, if the values are required, do you know? And
is there an exception for utilities?
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: As far as I know, there is not.
MR. COHEN: I can answer the question in brief. Is there an
exception? No, sir. Is it required to be financially feasible?
Yes, sir. The reason that the numbers are not there is the public
utilities department is updating its water and sewer master plan and
they don't have the final numbers. And they wanted to put in
accurate numbers. That plan is scheduled to go before the Board of
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March 9, 2006
County Commissioners for adoption, I believe, in the first meeting in
June. So they felt that to transmit something that was inaccurate to
DCA, okay, with numbers, and then come back with numbers that
were totally different, might raise the red flag. So at transmittal, they
felt uncomfortable putting the numbers in there. But when you saw
the document for adoption purposes, you would have their final
numbers as adopted by the Board of County Commissioners as part
of that final water and sewer master plan. So that's why they're not
there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I certainly would like a legal
opinion as to whether or not that is -- first of all, we're going
to have to approve this. If we're approving a blank check, I
don't see how we can do that. And I don't see why the utilities
department can't play ball with the rest of the departments in
this county and provide the information everybody else has.
MR. COHEN: And the concern is duly noted because DCA will
be reviewing the document for financial feasibility and how are
they going to be able to review it for financial feasibility if
there's no number present.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think it would be pretty silly of us to
send something to them that we know is incomplete, so, I don't
know what the legal department has to do to make this happen, but
it should be --
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: Well, I don't think it's just the
Legal Department. I think it is the Comprehensive Planning
Department in concert with the legal department, you know,
discussing this with the utilities folks.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Yeah. Not only are we going to
be asked to vote on this sometime but so is the BCC before they have
any numbers as well. Margie said they get it in April and they're
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March 9, 2006
not going to see the master plan until June.
MR. COHEN: That's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
MR MURRAY : Yeah. I have a question on page five of the
tables there. Right at the top. First one is Keewaydin Boat
Shuttle. What are the impacts if that doesn't go forward? What
are the implications here because I don't remember this project
being in the AUIR, although it very well could have been.
MR. COHEN: The implications with respect to any item that's
listed in the five year scheduled capital improvements in any
area, if we remove it, we have to provide DCA with the
substantive rationale as to why it's been removed. Okay? For
example, you couldn't get permits, okay, for whatever it would
be. And you're never going to get them. That's justification to
have it removed. If the rationale was just financial, you say
you didn't have the money at a specific time, that isn't a
substantive reason that they would say, well, you can take it on
out. So if there's some substantive reason for taking it on out
and something happens like in a road proj ect, you know, Don
can't acquire his right of way in the specific time period. Then
we can push something on out. Or ifhe has a permitting issue.
Those are the things that can be removed as long as we can
provide the substantive rationale.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Do we know whether a motion
was made and passed to include the Keewaydin Boat Shuttle in
capital?
MR. COHEN: That was provided from Parks and Recreation.
As part of their presentation dealing with their element, maybe we
can address that question there as well.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Would you open that question
because I don't
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March 9, 2006
have a recollection of it having -- I know it was requested, but
I'm not sure that I remember it being --
MR. COHEN: Mr. Schmitt dealt with Parks and Recs with that
particular element, and he'll raise that issue with them.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are there any other questions in the
CIE before we move onto transportation?
COMMISSIONER KOLFLA T: Yeah, one question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Kolflat.
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: Yeah. On page five under the
project. Vandy Inn beach access and Vandy parking garage. Are we
to presume that means Vanderbilt?
MR. COHEN: Yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER KOLFLA T: Why don't we just say
Vanderbilt rather than Vandy?
MR. COHEN: We'll make the change.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. And if there's no other questions
in the CIE, then let's move to the transportation element. Court
reporter, we'll take a break at 10:30.
Unless Mr. Scott -- unless you have another better approach,
we'll just move forward like we have?
COMMISSIONER CARON: That's fine.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. First of all, the meetings that
you're going to have with the County Attorney's Office, are they
going to be changing anything that's in this element?
MR. SCOTT: Not sure at this point. I would believe, yes,
but --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So this element's final review by us
will be after you have your meeting on the 17th?
MR. SCOTT: That's fair. We'll be back anyways, so --
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March 9, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Is there any questions on page
one of the transportation element? Hearing none, we'll move to page
two. Any questions on page two of the transportation element?
Okay. Then page three?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I have.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Could you help me, please. In
the series that you have, the bulleted series it's the -- let's see. The
third one down. The use of the word protection, what do we mean by
protection there? I'm assuming it might be like acquiring
property way in advance. Is that what that means?
MR. SCOTT: Well, in some respects too it's land development
code items. Anything that we could do to -- or as we review site
development plans, things like that, that we know we're going to
widen in the future, try to have setbacks, issues like that,
protection of, not at least buying buildings, besides buying
land. Trying to protect the fact that you're not allowing, or at
least putting on record that this is going to widen and not all
cases you know exactly what it is, but you try to get, you know,
through corridors. Even the long range plan, you're raising
issues that, okay, these roads are going to be widened in the
future and there's a possibility that this will be a four-lane
roadway, please set back your house as much as possible, or
buildings, whatever.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Is that internal only, or is that
public notice?
MR. SCOTT: We do it in both cases.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: We do public and -- okay.
Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Commissioner Adelstein.
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March 9, 2006
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Maintaining a county-Wide
major roadways in an acceptable level. What are we calling that
acceptable level?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think that's the first bullet.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I'm sorry.
MR. SCOTT: D and E.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: D and E?
MR. SCOTT: Level of service D and E.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Should we use the word adopted level
instead of acceptable? D and E is not acceptable for some
people.
MR. SCOTT: Funny thing is, I'm not sure it's exactly just
standard oriented. It might be resurfacing and other issues like
that. When you think of policies, but -- objectives.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I also have another one.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, before we leave that one, does that
mean the word acceptable is what you're suggesting leaving?
Because again, I think that's a subjective determination. I
don't know of any commissioner that said the accepted level of
service shall be. I think it's the adopted level of service that
they address; isn't it?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: When Mr. Cohen gets back, we need to
make sure he's aware of this change.
MR. SCOTT: I got it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. As long as one of the planners
has it then. Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: On the seventh bullet down it
says, providing for safe and convenient access between adjoining
properties and insuring safe and convenient traffic circulation within
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March 9, 2006
and between future developments. I know that you encourage in
PUDS for the interconnectivity, but can you really effectively insure
that this can be achieved?
MR. SCOTT: No. I mean, we lose more than we gain.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I thought that.
MR. SCOTT: We've talked about--
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: This language is locking you
into a failure situation by stating that it is a provision.
MR. SCOTT: We've talked about doing land development code
where we're requiring, but obviously you know there's issues of
certain places you're not going to get interconnection either.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Change the word insuring to
encourage?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yeah, I think -- That's what I'm
driving at.
MR. SCOTT: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Does that work for everybody? Hearing
no nays. Okay.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Margie?
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I want to point out that, again, this
is descriptive of what the element contains. So, as long as we say
encouraging, we want to carry that through wherever the other
parts of the element are.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MR. SCOTT: Some of them actually say encouraging too.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page three? If
not, we'll move on to page four. Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Policy 1.1, second line. No
less than five years. It should be not less than five years.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yeah. I have that marked.
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March 9, 2006
MR. SCOTT: It's probably a typo.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page four?
Page five. Anybody have any questions on page five? Well, this
goes back to --
MR. SCOTT: Same thing as the CIU.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You're going to redo that table
accurately. Page six. Okay.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: 3.1.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead, Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: In policy 3.1 just for
qualification for me. It says, the county has implemented and
maintains an advance right of way preservation and acquisition
program. We would have called that paper streets in the northern
climbs. Is that what you're referring to here, where you're requiring it
in advance? Is that what that means?
MR. SCOTT: It's not always just that. It's also in the
purposes of knowing something is going to be widened in the
future, and an opportunity to buy and things like that too. We
can't -- for instance, we can't go out and use eminent domain to
purchase if we don't have a design done. But we can do a
purchase at a corner, for instance, if a seller is willing, you
know and we're a willing buyer.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. So, that's essentially
what I thought it might be. Thank you. That qualifies it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anybody else on page six? Mr. Scott
on policy 3.3, you have a new word added, six. I just was wondering
in reading that, if you're going to require sufficient right of
way for six lanes of traffic, you need to define what types of
roads you're going to get that for. I mean, do you know
arterial, collector, rural?
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March 9, 2006
MR. SCOTT: Arterial and collector.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think it would be clearer if you added
that to the policy. Do you see a problem with that?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. I mean, no.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Somebody is making note of
that. Does anybody have a problem with that? Panel?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: No.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page seven.
MR. SCOTT: We have actually some changes on page seven
we'd like to make.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You might get ahead of us then. We've
got some too. Go ahead.
MR. SCOTT: Well, we've gone through the certification
process, and understand some staff that reviewed and wrote this
previously doesn't do this anymore. And through our
certifications process with the MPO, some of the things that are
said in here and not consistent with FHW A standards for doing
what we can do. Besides the fact that we have now a 20, 30
pathway plan. And the attorney can address those issues.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MS. SCOTT: For the record, Trinity Cadel Scott. I'm the
pathways project manager for the county.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Trinity.
MS. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are you his better half.
MS. SCOTT: I am his better half.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: His other half.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Very good.
MS. SCOTT: No, I'm the better half.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I know.
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March 9, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Your hair has been cut since the last
time we've seen you.
MS. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, it's good to see you aboard.
Thank you.
MS. SCOTT: Thank you. As Don mentioned, the MPO just
went through their certification process and federal highway. In the
past, we've kind of --the county has coordinated their pathway
program along with the pathway advisory committee which reports
to a totally different board than the Board of County
Commissioners and Federal highway for dollars that are used for
their planning purposes. Really would like to see a line between
that. So we proposed a few changes. And policy 4.1, the only
change in that is that the MPO shall periodically update the
pathways plan. That's actually an MPO document, not a county
document.
Did you want me to continue on with our proposed changes,
or?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I'm thinking, we're going to have
to have this entire element come back because Don is going to be
meeting with the law department next week.
MS. SCOTT: Right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And there's going to be a rewrite. It
might be better if you tell us what policies you're changing, not
get into the changes and just bring it back in written format so
we have time to think about it after Don's meeting.
MS. SCOTT: Sure. It would be policy 4.1, 4.2 we would be
proposing totally removing.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Good. That was good. I had that one
highlighted too.
MS. SCOTT: Policy 4.3 amending just the year. Policy 4.4,
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March 9,2006
we would be amending just language. And I believe that was it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well then--
MS. SCOTT: So, did you have any other suggestions while
we're going back to rewrite?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I did but I'll defer to the panel first.
Does anybody have any issues they want to bring up?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Well just --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray. Just on page seven right
now.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Oh, no. I'll go to the next thing.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I just have a question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: On policy 4.7, the way it was
written before, it was safe movement of motorized vehicles. Now
we're making it a safe movement of non-motorized vehicles. Does
that mean we've abandoned the motorized? Should it be --
MS. SCOTT: No. But I believe this policy references all of
your bicycle/pedestrian elements.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So it was a mistake in the past?
MS. SCOTT: I would believe that that was probably a mistake
in the past.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. If you're going to strike policy
4.2, so I'll defer my questions on that.
On policy 4.3, the last three words were struck, as funds
permit. Why was that struck? I mean, we can't build things
without the funds, so I'm not sure why you'd want that out of
there. It actually provides protection.
MS. SCOTT: I don't have a problem with it being included.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I think it helps. That way it's a
caveat or a criteria that we could use.
Policy 4.4. The last sentence talks about the order in
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March 9, 2006
which such projects are to be constructed. The criteria for that
order as how it's established, is that going to be implemented
through the LDC? Is that what the idea is?
MS. SCOTT: Well, actually my proposed rewrite of this
language actually takes that out.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well then we don't need to discuss it.
MS. SCOTT: Right. It's prioritized in our comprehensive
pathway plan.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That's all I had on seven.
Anybody have questions on page eight?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: This is just grammatical, I
believe. The very first one. The county shall incorporate bike lanes
and roadways, resurfacing proj ects as -- and I deleted is -- physically
possible, as physically possible, and that will not result in a
safety or operational, or you could leave and will not, as is
physically possible, and modify the balance of that sentence as
you please.
MS. SCOTT: So we're going to put it -- just strike it as?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yeah, I think --
MS. SCOTT: We'll leave the as, strike is?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yes.
MS. SCOTT: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This is just a grammatical change?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: That's all regarding that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: And on the second one, the one
below that, 4.9 now, I think I crossed out which is physically. In
other words, Florida Department of Transportation to the extent
physically and safety possible. Which is I think is unnecessary there.
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March 9,2006
MS. SCOTT: No problem.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page eight?
Okay.
MS. SCOTT: That was easy.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you, Trinity. Nice to see you
agaIn.
MS. SCOTT: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page nine.
MS. SCOTT: He's trying to pawn this off on me now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: 5.4. Concurrency exception.
What is it?
MR. SCOTT: TCEA was where essentially you have an
exception to concurrency in that area as long as you meet criteria,
you can go forward, as we said, no matter what. It was criteria based
on, you know, mixed use development. Other improvements like
operational bicycle/pedestrian improvements, transit
improvements, things like that.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I have a question in my mind
though, how does that affect concurrency itself? And it just
doesn't seem to add up to me. It should be concurrency, period.
Now we're saying there's a way to do it and I can't understand
how it's being done.
MR. SCOTT: Essentially in that area specifically just on
41, if a project meets that criteria, they can go forward no
matter what the trips are on 41.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: There's nothing I can say
about that.
MR. SCOTT: And that goes back to -- that goes back to when
we originally submitted and identifying that there were certain
areas of the county that were going to fail and them saying,
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March 9,2006
well, you have to do something else. You know, essentially being
allowing somebody to go forward if they do certain things.
That's where the TCEA and TCMA came out of.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: So the road will actually get
worse again, get further worse?
MR. SCOTT: Well, in reality, some improvements down there
are going to help but, long term, do I have, you know, a parallel
road improvement for 41 that is the silver bullet for it, no, I
don't. I know we've talked about eight laning in the past, but
that, obviously the right of way was never set up for that and
that would be very impactive too.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Is there any thought to perhaps
rethinking the list of things that you can do to make it right?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. I've actually, with DCA -- well, with DCA
they actually have contacted us and they're looking at all the
TCAs across the state. And looking at, is it being effective in,
you know, in what we're doing. And I believe there might be
changes that come out of that. I had initial consultation with
them. I haven't had follow up since, but that's something we'll
be looking at.
MR. COHEN: Let me add on to what Don is saying with
respect to TCEAs. In Senate Bill 360, there's actually a requirement
that we put into this particular element TCEA guidelines. The
reason you don't see them is DCA is still working on the TCEA
guidelines. So, I wanted to put that on the record that those
are going to come forward, probably not as a part of the
transmittal, but prior to your adoption because they anticipate
them being done in July or August. And as Don indicated, that's
the concern that the guidelines are not being effectively
utilized to actually properly administer TCEA in the manner in
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March 9, 2006
which it was involved.
MR. SCOTT: And obviously the hard part is that, whatever
you want to say. Say you did car pool parking or whatever. I
mean, you can go and see if someone put that in there, but how is
a certain business or whatever meeting those requirements. Very
hard to go back and check all those. And that's part of the
things we're discussing with them.
COMMISSIONER CARON: You'll have input with DCA on
this issue?
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Wouldn't one of the penalties
under a TCEA is the loss of one unit for density, is it not also? Or
TCEA. I'm talking about when we look for rezoning and they're
looking to benefit an area they lose, that's the penalty. I know
there are no -- none of the details.
MR. SCOTT: Well, and there's mixed use. It's do a proper
mixed use project instead of something -- I know that we've
discussed in the past to because the original intent was to do it
during site plan and it's not realistic to do that. Those are
the things you're trying to apply at that point.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I do have some other questions.
And this may -- I don't know, it struck me under one and two. It
speaks to by more than five percent. Number two says, by less
than five percent. But five percent -- I don't know, I don't
want to be silly here, but it struck me five percent is not
touched, so I can have less than five and more than five.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah, I know because it's DCA language.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Well, I shouldn't have touched
that.
MR. SCOTT: Down on 41 -- let's put it this way, we don't
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March 9,2006
have enough FIHS facilities to impact, beside the Interstate is
the closest one for this and five percent would be a lot for any
development based on infill essentially is what you're talking
about.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I don't mean to be picky. It just
jumped out
at me and it seems a little odd, but okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Doesn't need to be corrected.
MR. SCOTT: I think they're referring to less than five
percent -- more than five percent of the capacity.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Because it's simple in the first one, you
just say by five percent or more of the capacity.
MR. SCOTT: We can probably say more than five. I mean, we
can strike and see what they say, right?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, say five percent or more and if
they come back --
MR. SCOTT: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page nine?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I have a question, Mark.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Actually it starts a little on
eight. It's policy 5.3. Would we be wise to strike out
everything except the sentence that starts with all previously
approved and goes up on page nine? In other words, why are we
telling that story? Is there any benefit to that?
MR. SCOTT: At the time we were telling it, there was, but
is there any benefit now, probably not.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And the concern is, I wouldn't
want somebody to go back and say I was before 2003 and then
muddled around wasting everybody's time.
MR. SCOTT: I mean, obviously, we look at that as it comes
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March 9, 2006
In, so --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I'd cross out anything and then
just say all previously approved projects.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Everybody fine with that? Mr.
Kolflat?
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: Could I return to page six to
objective four, please, at the bottom?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page six. Yes, sir. Objective four.
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: The term pedestrians there,
how do you classify someone in a wheelchair or a youngster on a
motor scooter and so forth. Would that qualify as a pedestrian?
MR. SCOTT: For wheelchairs, yes, you would.
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: Even though they might be
motorized?
MR. SCOTT: Yes, yes. Motorized, obviously some motorized
things are slow speed, others are high speed. And that's an
issue with pathways or, you know, wider pathways. It's for the
most part it's wheelchairs and walkers. We're not talking about,
you know.
COMMISSIONER KOLFLAT: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Back on page nine. Why did you strike
-- did policy 5.4 in its old language, did you meet the criteria
there? Did that get accomplished?
MR. SCOTT: Yes, we did.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's the first time something has been
struck because it's gotten accomplished that we've had in three
days of hearings. Okay.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: A little applause.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Congratulations, Don.
MR. SCOTT: I have to update it again because of a.m.
analysis, but we met it.
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March 9, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page ten. Are there any questions?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: On D it says, including
affordable housing.
Work force housing. Are we -- does the term affordable embrace
work force now or -- I thought that was still --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: In our last discussion Mr. Cohen
indicated that they will amend all the references to affordable to
include the new definitions that were adopted in the last development
code site plan; is that correct?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. So you may want to --
you don't want to bold this now, but that's one of them that you may
want to include, correct?
MR. COHEN: Yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anybody else on page ten? Don on the
top, items F and G the words were added to be expected to. Now I'm
assuming this might be some of the language that's changing, but
as you said, if people come forward with a proposal and they're
going to include all these elements that are expected to improve
the transportation, there's no way in monitoring to see if their
elements in effect did that.
MR. SCOTT: Obviously, there's something we can do to
monitor. You know, personally, I like the TCMA better than the
TCEA because I have more control over it. Particularly if they
say, all right, I'll give you money to do intersection
improvements, things like that. Yeah, that's a problem and
that's one of the things we're going to be discussing with DCA.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Is that language going to be
given to us before adoption at some point so we can fix this, if
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possible?
MR. SCOTT: For changes you mean when we deal -- oh, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Page 11, any questions?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Under policy 5.7, I have a note
here explain how and by whom. Let's see. Shall maintain -- okay.
Down in here the portion of the sentence -- let's see where it says --
development shall not be permitted where such condition occurs
unless modification of the development is made sufficient to
maintain the level of circumstances with TCMA. Development shall
not been permitted. That would be you?
MR. SCOTT: Uh-huh.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: And how would you know that?
How would that part of it be known to you. Were you aware of
that?
MR. SCOTT: When we analyzed during a site plan, essentially
if they ask for say 300 units and we only have so many trips
left, it might be 100 units, that's what you're talking about
where you reduce the scope of that.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: And that's why you like the
TCMA a little bit better?
MR. SCOTT: Well, it's one of the things when we were
setting this up with our outside attorneys, was that with the
TCMA we could do proportionate shares or other things towards
intersections, and that's not something we could do with the TCEA
yet. And it was -- obviously, it's easier to control some of the
things we're doing when we know we're doing it versus having
someone else do it.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. Thank you.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page II? If
not, we'll take a 15-minute break until 10:45.
(Whereupon, a brief recess was taken.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We'll resume our meeting. If
everybody could take their seats. Let the record show that Mr.
Murray had to leave. Our first point of discussion that was not
a continuation of the EAR at the moment, but a schedule. Randy,
has a couple of available dates when this room will be open, but
we need some consensus from this panel as to the time frames. So,
Randy, if you could tell us what those are.
MR. COHEN: The two dates that this chamber is available is
March 30th, all day, and April the 4th from 8:30 to 5:00.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: March 30th?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's a Thursday. How's that?
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Thursday is okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thursday's okay? Mr. Murray seemed
to feel anything after the 16th, so we'll work with him.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: What's the other date?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The other day, Randy, is what, April
4th?
MR. COHEN: From 8:30 to 5:00.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: What day is that? That's a Tuesday.
Come up with the rest of us and we'll have a quorum. The 4th is
tentative, meaning, I think we can finish this up -- if we're
going to go next Thursday after our regular meeting and we go on
the 30th of March, we should be able to finish it up. Just in
case we can't and there's any overflow, the 4th will be held in
reserve.
MR. COHEN: Yeah, keep the room.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Keep the room.
MR. COHEN: Just in case.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We're going to put both days down just
in case. Okay. Both dates then, Randy, we'll have a quorum. We'll
have a quorum on both dates and we'll just move forward once we
have to.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And, Mark, next Thursday
when we have our regular meeting, we will not go into these issues?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We will.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Oh, okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Next Thursday after our regular
meeting we'll move right into the continuation of today's discussion.
Between -- well, let's talk about that.
Ms. Student, do we have to have a time certain for going
into these discussions next Thursday?
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: Okay. Let me just think a minute.
I think as long as it's duly noted that the meeting begins when the
meeting begins at 8:30 in the morning and this will be taken up
immediately after the completion of the other items, if you want
to set a time certain. I think we've had some issues with that
before with that because they're finished up early and then you
have a big amount of space. So, if you announce that the regular
meeting is at 8:30 and this will be taken up immediately after
you complete the regular agenda, that puts people on notice that
they need to be here at, you know, at 8:30.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Then I think I asked Sharon to add it to
the agenda, and she should have gotten together with you, Randy.
I'm assuming she has for next Thursday's agenda. It should
already be on there.
MR. COHEN: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. At the end of to day's meeting,
I'll ask for a motion to continue and we'll continue, like Margie just
said, until next Thursday.
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MR. COHEN: Right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We left off on -- we've finished
up on page 11, I believe, and we were on page 12 of the
transportation element. Any questions on page 12? Okay. Moving
ahead. Page 13. Mr. Scott, policy 7.6. The county shall use
community impact assessment techniques. I had never heard of
impact assessment techniques. Do you have -- are they available
or do you know what those are?
MR. SCOTT: It's funny, Randy walked out of the room and he
called me about adding it in, and I had a little discussion with
him but not a long discussion with him. I mean, we do, like, for
project development environmental studies. We do impact analysis
of cultural and resource and other things like that. I assume
that that fit into that. We also do that through quarter
planning. But I don't know specifically why he was added in, but
I know we do that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Then I would assume that
whatever techniques you have, there will be an implementation
policy in the LDC that would probably list them out. Is this -- do the
policies that are in the transportation element get implemented
by the land development code?
MR. SCOTT: I tell you when you talk about some of the
things we do through our PD&E study, or quarter study -- I'm not
sure it's actually identified in LDC, but there are other
documents like PDE manual and things like that that talk about
what we have to follow to do that through Federal requirements.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, my concern then is how would
the public, and somebody reading this, know what your impact
assessment techniques are? I mean, that's why Randy asked you
what they were so you can list them.
MR. SCOTT: And maybe by reference we can do that to other
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documents if that's what is required as part of that too.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Would you clean that up when you
bring this back to us after the 17th, which will probably be the 30th?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Let's go to page 14. Are there any
issues on 14? Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: What is a neighborhood
traffic management program?
MR. SCOTT: It's our traffic calming program. It got that
name through a committee that was assigned to do the document.
The language that's in here was changed by actually my previous
traffic calming coordinator.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any others? Don, policy 9.2, third line
that's been added. Talks about -- second line actually -- starts
as, develop strategies and measures designed to discourage
traffic from using local streets to travel between two arterial
or collector roadways.
MR. SCOTT: Sounds conflicting, doesn't it?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, that's where I'm going. I know if
Mr. Murray was here, he certainly would point that out. The
interconnections that we normally try to strive for are being
discouraged by this particular policy.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah, it's a balance between trying to -- if
someone has a local street, I mean, it's really a local street,
you don't want to use it as a cut through versus allowing traffic
go between two areas. That's why I tried to make the point that
was my previous traffic coordinator that put it in there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, again, maybe this ought to be
looked at to be -- well, you're going to have to come back so it's just
a suggestion. I know we don't have to reinvent the wheel at
today's meeting because you have to come back. But would you
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take a look at a way to make that coordinate better with your
interconnection requirements? And while you're at it, I would
hope that in the praising of what you've got here, you're not
encouraging gated communities as a solution, because we already
have that situation with Fox Fire and I wouldn't want other
people to see that this policy lends to more Fox Fires closing
off public roads to access.
MR. SCOTT: And that's unfortunately the balance we play
during traffic calming too because you make it more inhibited for
people to go through then, yeah, you have a roadway that you cut
off to somebody that's trying to cut between two areas.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You're talking about having a more
intensive police present and a greater allocation of patrol time
devoted to enforcing the speed limit in particular neighborhoods.
That's nice you're saying that, but do you have a
committment from the SO to do that especially when their budgets
are cut up every year?
MR. SCOTT: You know, we've had discussions with the
Sheriffs Office as part of our traffic calming program. And we
have used them, or, you know, suggested, police force in certain
areas based on that, but is that something that you have a lot of
control based on budget, no, you don't, besides hiring them
ourselves off duty.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If this is a viable element that you can
approach, I see nothing wrong with it, but if it's just some
words to pacify people to make it look like we're trying to do
something but really can't because it's not properly addressed
between departments.
MR. SCOTT: Well, enforcement is always an issue because we
can -- I can go put in speed bumps somewhere and the speed might
go down three miles an hour. And if someone is still going 60 in
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a 35, it gets back to enforcement in those areas. And we do have
those issues where we have speed bumps and someone is still doing
60 miles an hour on it, so --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, when you're reviewing it, if
there's a way to make it a little bit better, you might want to look at
it. Page 15. Anybody have any questions on page 15.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah. Don, in the
neighborhood traffic management program, is there anything to study
where these locations are?
MR. SCOTT: What usually is raised is, we do it by -- it's
more of a, you know, customer driven where someone says I have a
problem in this area then we have a process that we go through to
identify do you meet criteria or not meet criteria. That's what
they usually go by.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But if you look at the top of
page 15, you're establishing criteria for interconnections. You
should be able to spot where these things would occur without
waiting for the neighbors to complain, right?
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So, you know, should we be
developing some sort of a standard to prevent these kind of
designs to be caused? I mean, you're looking for designs on how
you connect it wisely, but do we have something to prevent it
from --
MR. SCOTT: More of our issue is in where over time
congestion is built on a certain -- say, take an intersection and
we haven't improved that intersection, and then you make a lot
more trips go on the local system to avoid the intersection. And
the point is we should probably just fix the intersection. And
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that's what through -- I know through at least the manual it
talks about that a lot. Some of the intersection improvements
are not as easy to fix.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: In other words, you don't look
for these short circuits ahead of time?
MR. SCOTT: We try to, but obviously funding and other
issues come up, and timing of projects, you know. My example
right here is Davis and Airport. A lot of people to avoid that
intersection cut through the back side of Palm and Harrison, or
through ST and areas back over there. We need to fix the
intersection with proper turn lanes and things like that.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I mean, the community
character study, the kind of complaints is we didn't have enough of
these shortcuts, so we're also in conflict with the smart growth plan?
MR. SCOTT: That's the balance side of it. I mean, I don't
believe anybody -- you know, some areas somebody doesn't want to
have outside people cutting through, but it's not really the, you
know, here and there. It's the constant traffic trying to get
around. That's the balance side of it. You know, they do
conflict. Because in reality if I can get more collector
roadways connecting up, it's better for the major system, but --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But it may not be because I
live in an area where there's a closed passage which we could take, a
neighborhood road to get through to our place staying in the
neighborhood, and now everybody in that neighborhood is out on
the main intersections, bad intersections, bad roadways. So you
essentially force a neighborhood to go through, you know,
arterial roads.
MR. SCOTT: I know. Even people living in it. Exactly.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So, what I'm looking for is, do
you have any standards of what not to do? I mean, 9.3 establishes
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standards of what to do. And 9.5 -- well, I think enough said.
Move on.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page 15? I
have one on 9.8, Don. Last sentence, primary funding for such plans
shall come from local funding initiatives such as MSTU sand
MSBU s, that is the area that is to benefit from the traffic
calming.
I would want to make sure that if there's any grants
available on other things that are outside that funding source,
they could still be utilized. So would the word shall changing to
may work okay?
MR. SCOTT: Yes. And they're not always consistent with
MSTUs anyway. The MSTU is written a certain way, it doesn't
necessarily mean you can do it that way.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. 9.8 shall go to May. There's no
objection? Page 16? Mr. Adelstein?
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: 10.1. When are you going to
do it? You have to develop a program to examine and maintain. Are
they going to start it now or is it something that's going to happen
in the future or maybe years away or what?
MR. SCOTT: Well, I mean, the long-range plan identifies
major roads. And then we also have the east of 951 that's
ongoing right now, which is what I'm doing from a standpoint of
different levels. Like if you had this much money, what can you
do.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I'm saying the county shall
develop a program to examine. Are they going to develope it? Is it
something that you're going to sit down and start working on now,
or is it going to take years before we get into that actually
doing it?
MR. SCOTT: If I am referencing that, it's over the next
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probably year-and-a-half. If the other side of this, I don't
know if this is referring to -- I mean, we have maintenance for
like road paving when it gets to a certain level. That's done
too. Obviously, there are issues out there of the limerock roads
to be paved, which has been --
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: But you're developing a
program to examine. I'm just wondering, if it's going to be an actual
program to develop --
MR. SCOTT: I don't know what it specifically refers to.
I'm looking at it as the big picture of the roadway system
because at the end of it, it says mobility needs, the rural to
urban travel. So, I'm assuming it's the long range plan. Sounds
like the model to me, but -- it's been around for a while.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Well, that's what I was
looking for.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Policy 10.3, Don.
MR. SCOTT: We would like to strike that based on previous
MPO action in 2005.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's where I was going. Thank you.
Page 17. Any questions on page 17? Top of the page, this talks
about the transfer of the Sea of Everglades Airport, I believe, to the
city instead of the county. The county currently retains that
airport? If the county is selling or disposing of land, why is
it an issue of the transportation element of the CIE, or of the
GMP? Why isn't it simply done like the county disposes all land?
I'm worried --
MR. SCOTT: Why does it elevate itself to a policy?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, but I'm worried it's going to bind
the Commission, because any sale might want to be linked to a
reverter clause so that if it's not used for an airport, at least
the county may have some access, public access for boat ramps or
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whatever else because right now, Everglades City is virtually
shut out of public boat ramps and they're condominimizing them
down here so it's kind of hard to get a boat in the water. I
would hate to see us give this air park away without absolutely
no restrictions, any reverter clauses or anything, or any future
possibilities of a public use for county residents. It would be
like shutting off the beaches in Naples. So this is pretty
strong in a sense it ties the hands of the board to be able to do
anything else, but this if it's in the GMP.
MR. SCOTT: And I cannot recall the reasons why it was added
-- obviously it was something that came out of the MPO.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Maybe the MPO wants to dump it, but
the manner in which they dump it ought to be --
MR. SCOTT: Well, I'm not sure they did, you know.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I don't think this policy ought to
be in the GMP. I think it's more of a county policy involving
their ownership of lands and how they dispense those. I don't
think --
COMMMISSIONER TUFF: Well, it's over in that area because,
you know, the county was saying we're going to drop it and make
it into something like what you're suggesting, but -- so they
wanted to keep it as an air park and that's why they took it
over.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And that's why a reverter clause
becomes handy. If it doesn't pan out as an airport, which, in reality,
it may never, then eventually, if they want to do something else
with it, the county would have a say so and what's done and
access to it. And that's the concern I have. There is no -- we
complain about access in Marco Island and Pelican Bay and other
parts of the county and here we are given the only access the
county has away in another locality. And once we give it away,
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we can't get back in the water down there.
COMMMISSIONER TUFF: Should Everglades City make
those decisions or the county?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The county owns the property.
MR. SCOTT: It seems like it's an airplane-related issue as
to why it was added through the MPO which deals with all modes of
travel. Concern through the Airport Authority or something about
where this was added at that point.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Student?
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: I think maybe by way of
background, the transportation element is supposed to concern itself
with airports as well as roads and so forth. And also it's supposed
to address the airports in the county. And without knowing more,
it would seem that this probably is too wordy, but it's to
indicate that, you know, the airport or air park is going to be
somehow not under the county's jurisdiction. And that's what I
would think. I wouldn't want to make it too specific because you
don't want to, as you say, kind of hem in the county on its
negotiations for how this is to be accomplished and whatever
instrument transfers it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But I don't see in this paragraph where
there's any indication the county would have any leeway once it's
transferred. For example, if, like -- if we have an opportunity
to transfer -- if the City of Everglades wants this, then maybe
we ought to have some county, some property donated so the county
can create a county park down there and the residents of the
county can utilize within that city because there isn't one right
now.
COMMMISSIONER TUFF: Except the city gave it to the
county to use as an air park and now they're not going to, so the city
wants it back.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Fine, but what's wrong with a reverter
clause to limit it to that use?
COMMMISSIONER TUFF: Then it should revert back to -- the
City of Everglades had it to begin with. They said, you can have
it if you're going to make an air park. The air park - the county is
threatening that so they say, well, give it back then. I just don't think
it's our -- it's the city's stuff originally.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, when it comes to beach access or
gulf access, I think every opportunity we have to make sure we
don't lose more of it, we ought to scrutinize. And by having
this in here, I'm concerned that this level of scrutiny --
MR. SCOTT: Since we are coming back, let me check into
Everglades Airport Master Plan which is referred to in here and
when this might have been added. Could have been the previous
airport director too.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That's fine with everybody,
bring it back. Any other questions on page 17? Hearing none. On
page 18? If there's none on page 18, Don, I think we've gotten
through your pages and we'll just wait for you to come back to us
on the 30th of March.
MR. SCOTT: Okay. Thank you.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Just is the transportation
question general? Don, when I watch on the news like you're
working on getting the Vanderbilt extension and there's a homeowner
complaining that, you know, I've lived in this neighborhood 20,
25 years and he didn't know the road was coming. What are we
doing with the planned roads -- I know we have a plan for 25
years out, but obviously, it didn't help this neighbor and that
road wasn't even included on it, I guess.
MR. SCOTT: No, it was actually. It was actually not only
just the long-range plan that we just adopted, but the previous
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long-range plan. And how -- this issue has come up in other
parts of the county . We do a lot of public meetings. We
advertise everything else and nobody seems to care until you're
actually widening in front. I had issues on Santa Barbara before
where, hey, we never knew Santa Barbara was going to be six
lanes. And can pull up old articles out of the Naples Daily News
where, you know, it was in the headline that this was going to be
done. How do you get to everybody? It's a problem. There's a
public petition actually at the BCC meeting about this Tuesday
about Vanderbilt Beach and they talk about more public
involvement. You know, the one -- one aspect of everything we've
developed, even through design. We do 30, 60, 90 percent design
meetings, have the signs on the side of the street.
Unfortunately, I don't know how you get to everybody. Was it in
the plan 20 years ago when the person moved there? Probably not.
Twenty years ago I don't think anybody believed a lot of that was
going to develop out, but --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And I guess my question is,
what planning should we be doing now so that, you know, maybe in
the year 2030, 2050 the people know -- I mean, do we have a plan? I
mean, we see build-outs, we see horrible population, do we have a
road system that handles that population?
MR. SCOTT: We have what is an adopted 20,30 year
long-range transportation plan. And I know we've discussed at
some point having presentations to the Board. I know at the
orientation meeting you were talking about cancelling Planning
Commission. That's probably the time we should do, okay, let's do
an LR TP presentation and some of the other things so you know
some of the documents we're talking about. Beyond that, for east
of 951, I've gone to modeling the build out, which I put a, you
know, a year at it 2050. Essentially looking at, okay, if you
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have that population, $1,066,000 and you model everything, where
would I need roadways to meet that demand. That's the process
that we're going through right now. And I believe you'll
probably want to get involved with the east of 951 study as that
moves forward too.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But I want to make sure that
the Planning Commission is doing what they're supposed to be doing
in that process. I mean, I think --
MR. SCOTT: I think you've raised as a body that from a
planning, that's probably the things that you want to start
getting into. In the past you haven't.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Thank you, Don.
MR. SCOTT: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We'll move on to the sanitary sewer
sub-element, next one up. Let's see how fast we can get through
ten pages. I don't know what preference you have in going
forward, but --
MR. VAN LENGEN: If I may, Mr. Chairman, I do have a
couple comments --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN : You need to identify yourself for the
record.
MR. VAN LENGEN: I'm sorry. This is Chris Van Lengen,
Comprehensive Planning Department.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
MR. VAN LENGEN: A couple comments that apply to the next
five sub elements. And this may make the process just a tab more
efficient. The two comments are less than weighted, will be some
of your easier decisions. But one of them is that within these
next five elements there is a single goal so that during the EAR
process, a decision was made to not number a single goal and
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therefore each objective would have a single digit. Each policy
would have two digits. It's simplified since there's only one
goal. On the other hand, the downside is that since all other
elements of the plan have three digits in their policy numbers,
there's a bit of an inconsistency there. The EAR report called
for eliminating numbering a single goal. That's what we've done.
But if you have a different idea about that, we would certainly
love to entertain it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN : You're basically talking about the
format and the way the different paragraphs are labeled.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm not at all concerned about it myself.
I like the substance of the paragraphs is where my obj ectives
are. And I'm not sure, maybe others in the panel right now would
have a concern over the issue. If they do, please express
yourselves. Otherwise, what's your second issue?
MR. VAN LENGEN: The other relatively small issue is will
and shall. I think most of these elements use the word shall
instead of will, or in place of will. And in the next five
elements you'll see them interspersed. We've had differences of
opinions over a historical period of time. My impression at this
point in time is that the county prefers shall in all instances.
We're happy to change all those references if that's your
direction.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I would think it would be Ms. Student,
you previously opined on these issues.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Thank you. If it's mandatory then
you would use shall, and if it's not mandatory, may could be utilized,
and then will sometimes carries an ambiguity with it. But, under our
land code historically shall was defined as mandatory. So if it's
not, I'd say mayor will. But I think may is more clear that
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it's discretionary and not mandatory.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Thank you. Then the other overall
comments about the five goals in general is that most of the changes
were words missing in order to hopefully achieve greater clarity in
the statements. They include updates to reference documents and
updated programs as well. And with that, if you want to go
through page by page starting with sanitary sewer.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think that would be the best. Let's
start with page one. Does anybody have questions on the
introduction on page one? Well, I do. And I notice you
consistently use this terminology in the third line down. I see
the new term environmentally sound. And I notice it's used in
the beginning of some of your other policies as well. And
dropped out in some of them. What is environmentally sound? I
mean, how is that -- do we have a definition of that? Is that
going to be implemented or spelled out somewhere? Because I
don't believe this gets into the LDC. So, how would someone know
what environmentally sound is?
MR. VAN LENGEN: I think it's descriptive and it comes
directly actually from the goal itself, which talks about
providing sewer facilities in a cost effective and
environmentally sound way. If you look at the goal that is
actually in the title of the goal, and it has been, I don't know
if there's a definition for it.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: I would think sustainable would
be more specific.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Environmentally sustainable?
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Sound to me doesn't really
convey any meanIng.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, David, how would you know
what that means if you were looking at this as someone who had to
meet the criteria?
MR. WEEKS: Well, first comment would be that the fact that
-- oh, for the record, David Weeks, Comprehensive Planning
Department.
First comment is that it's, first place it's just an
introduction, which has no regulatory effect. Secondly, being
within a goal, it's a broad provision, and so it's not something
that we -- that I would say comes down to an enforcement issue.
Because the goal, which is broadly stating what you're hoping to
do. Usually it's when you get down to the level of the policies
that we see the regulatory impact where it says we shall do a
certain thing, or shall accomplish a certain thing. Having said
that, I think staff will have no obj ection if you want to use the
term environmentally sustainable, or just sustainable as opposed
to environmentally sound. I would agree that that's a rather
loose term.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, my only concern is we've seen
different challenges to our codes and system based on
interpretation. Some people may feel that just using recycled
cups in the restroom is environmentally sound. Somebody else may
feel the way you dispense the water into percolation ponds is not
environmentally sound. And it could get you into some trouble.
And that's all I was trying to do. The ambiguous language in
some of these are concerning. And if you guys feel it's
comfortable, you don't think it's going to be a problem, you're
the professionals in this. But I was just raising a flag at this
level to let you know.
MR. WEEKS: Put it into context, of course, times change,
but this has been in the plan since its adoption in '89, and so
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far has not been an issue.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Questions on page two?
Hearing none, questions on page three. Ms. Caron?
COMMISSIONER CARON: Policy 1.6, what is budgetary
emphasis?
MR. VAN LENGEN: Well, I think it means the county better
spend some real money on the problem. They're really is a way to
state that it should be at some level of priority type of project
and the budgeting process, but it's certainly not quantified in
terms of where in the budget or what priority it should have.
COMMISSIONER CARON: My question would be why did
we take out priority if that's really what you want is for it to be a
priority and use the word emphasis? I just didn't get it.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Well, in my view budgetary emphasis
would be a bit stronger in the sense that a lot of times we have
priorities that go unfunded, and this would at least tie into the
budgetary process.
COMMISSIONER CARON: So budgetary -- I'm sorry.
Budgetary emphasis is a stronger phrase than budgetary priority?
MR. VAN LENGEN: Well, yes. I see what you're saying.
What is budgetary priority.
COMMISSIONER CARON: It was priority. I mean, I
understand what you mean by unfunded priorities, but I'm not sure
budgetary emphasis actually makes it any stronger. And you can tell
me if I am wrong.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Well, the only concern I would have is
the word priority suggests in comparison to something else, and I'm
not sure what else it would be compared to. So, budgetary
emphasis just simply says let's find some way to fund it.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Go ahead.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The top of the page, policy 1.4, the new
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language, the last line refers to looking for utilities to provide a letter
of adequate capacity at the time of building permit. I seem to recall
that -- I thought we see those letters occasionally during PUD process
for rezone, other times during SDP. Is this consistent with the way
we operate today? That we wait until the building permit to look for
capacity? Our COAs, don't they deal with capacity? Aren't they --
what stage do we hit those at for all proj ects?
MR. VAN LENGEN: I'm flagged here by personnel from
Public Utilities and they'd like to make a statement on that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Student?
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: I note that this is for private
sanitary sewer facilities. And I think that somebody could correct me
if I am wrong, but I believe our COAs deal with the public, adequate
public facilities. And this would be the private provider.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So at the time a PUD comes in and
we're looking at improving huge amounts of density for a project in
an area that isn't serviced by the county, we would have to approve
it, and they wouldn't have to approve they have capacity, or
they're going to put a sewer system in that's going to have
capacity until they actually went in and applied for a building
permit for their housing?
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: That's what this appears to say. I
would have to defer to utilities, either the utilities staff or --
MR. GRAMATGES: May I attempt to answer that, please?
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Certainly.
MR. GRAMATGES: My name is Phil Gramatges, Principal
Project Manager, Public Utilities Engineering. We do hydraulic
analysis at the time the PUD is proposed. Part of our review we do
hydraulic analysis to determine whether or not we have enough
utility capacity to handle the new development, or you know, the
new construction that is coming aboard. And that's how typically
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we do it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. By the way, now I've got a
name to the face, Phil. Thank you for all your help --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- and the documents you've sent me
that led me to hopefully understand this better, and I appreciate your
time and effort on that behalf. But this is for -- they're
talking here about private systems not the county systems.
MR. GRAMATGES: We're talking private systems, but of
course, as far as public systems is concerned, we do the same analysis
naturally.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right. But I think the question focuses
on if someone has a private system, when do they have to submit
to the building department that their private system is going to
have capacity to utilize whatever is going to be placed --
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, as far as their capacity is concerned,
yeah, that would be at the time that the permit is reviewed. But
we analyze whether or not we have capacity to provide services to
them at the time of the PUD.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well that kind of helps.
David, should there be some consistency if it's used -- if
the county does it at the zoning stage, would it be better to
require a none element such as this to be revealed at the zoning
stage, or is there a reason that's put off to the building permit
stage?
MR. WEEKS? I don't know the reason why its deferred.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Student.
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: I can shed some light from a
historical perspective. First off, I don't know that we have that many
private providers left, but I do know that in the past whether
it's old PUDs before the county had its system more centralized.
The private provider wouldn't come on board -- they would provide
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services to that PUD. So they wouldn't be there yet when the PUD
was approved, but there would be language in the PUD document
that this said they would provide a package treatment plant, or
they would provide some kind of water supply facility as part --
as a condition of getting the PUD approval. And then -- I don't
remember specifically what all that language said, but supposedly
it would be on line to serve the impacts of the development when
the impacts occurred. And now with the centralization of the
county facilities, you just don't see that so much anymore. I
don't know that there aren't any out there. But I think that's
probably why because it's not there when the PUD was approved.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think you're getting to the right
answer. I think -- as a example, I know when Ave Maria, when
they came through with their DRI, they told us basically they're
going to provide their own system. That system may not be up and
running, but when they come in for building permits, I think
they'll have to prove that it is. That's how this is -- now this
makes sense. This dovetails to that.
MR. WEEKS: Just to go over Margie's comment briefly that
over the years, certainly since plan adoption '89, the county has
expanded its water and, waste water in particular, capacity
significantly in those package treatment plants I think without
exception, the package plants have disappeared. It's now just a
handful of private utilities, the one that serves Golden Gate
City area and Orange Tree Utility as being the two principal
private utilities in particular. And as you probably are aware,
the county will be taking over Orange Tree in just a matter of
years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. The next question on that
page would be 1.5. In about the center of the page and the second,
you reference not readily accessible. When you're talking about
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when someone has to connect to an existing central system, where
would a definition be of what's not readily accessible? For
example, how many miles away does a line have to be before it's
determined to not be readily accessible?
MR. VAN LENGEN: Phil, do you know that?
MR. GRAMATGES: I don't belive there's a hard and fast rule
to determine how many miles away they have to be. Typically,
readily accessible means there's a line in the street in front of
the development or in front of the particular house that is being
buil t.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So if someone lives in a home that is
quite a ways away but there's a new sewer plant going in, as long
as that line is not in the street, they're not obligated to have
to pipe all the way to that plant?
MR. GRAMATGES: No.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And this language couldn't be
construed to mean that? That's all I'm concerned about. Sometimes
we get different people interpreting things.
MR. GRAMATGES: Sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I just want to make sure that an absurd
interpretation couldn't come out of such language.
MR. GRAMATGES: We can look at the language and we can-
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Would you mind?
MR. GRAMATGES: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The next two lines down it also says
other central sewer service becomes available. Well, if you tie that
with not readily accessible, someone could argue that as soon as
the plant is built out on Orange Tree, it's available to
everybody in Golden Gate Estates. And I can tell you, it is not.
MR. GRAMATGES: Well as soon as a line is placed in the
street in front of the homeowner's house, then they have the
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obligation to --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I agree with you at that point, yes, sir.
I just -- I know that's what your standard procedure has been.
If that's referenced in a policy, then maybe we can just simply
put, not readily accessible pursuant to policy so and so. Or
pursuant to whatever document you have. That way it cleans it up
so everybody knows exactly what those two ambiguous terms mean.
MR. GRAMATGES: We certainly can do that.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Mark, on that point.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Wouldn't that be something is
better put in the LDC anyway? I mean, this is definitely what we
want to have happen. The LDC would have the requirements of how
that happens.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't think any of this is in the LDC.
How much of the sewer and water stuff is in the LDC, Margie?
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: I don't think any of it really is.
Not all of this is in the LDC. There's other ways to implement this,
not only through the LDC but other ordinances of the county and the
issuance of other programs of the county and the issuance of
development orders.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I just wanted to see it referred to so
that there's no absurd interpretation by someone else.
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: The utilities ordinance may -- you
may want to check on that, but the utilities ordinance might flush
some of this out because there is such an animal.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Down on 1.6, third line, connection of
existing package sewage treatment plant in areas of high
concentration of septic tanks. What is a high concentration of
septic tanks? One per block, 20 per block, or an acre? Do we --
MR. VAN LENGEN: Phil, you might as well stay up here and
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answer these questions with me.
MR. GRAMATGES: I will try to do that. Honestly, I don't
have an answer to that. High concentration I would assume that
everyone in the street that has a home or place of dwelling would
have a septic tank. That is, in my own mind, what a high
concentration would be, otherwise, I really can't answer that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Would it matter then how many homes
per acre are on that street? For example, you could have ten homes
on the street or you could have two or you could have 50,
depending on the size.
MR. GRAMATGES: If it's logical, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Would you work on that language
when you come back --
MR. GRAMATGES: Absolutely.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- with these changes, those two will be
addressed. Thank you. Page 4. Anybody have any questions on page
4?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I do.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I think it's a good idea to take
the loadage out. But is there any difference between 64 E and the
gallons per day we have here. Does this alter the requirements?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Where are you talking about? What
part of the page?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Four kind of bleeds onto five.
I guess I'm over on five, if that is --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I still don't understand what you're
trying to ask, Brad.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: What exactly -- they're
crossing out all of the gallons per day requirements. And essentially
what they're doing. It starts at the bottom of four. They're saying
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why print these when you should go to 64E anyway. I think we
should get them out of the code. I don't think this is where you
should look.
MR. GRAMATGES: The old reference in 64E, so there's no
need to put them in here.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Right. But my question is
what's in here is the same as 64 E?
MR. GRAMA TGES: I don't know if it was or not. I can't tell
you if 64E has the right numbers. I can't tell you this time
whether what we crossed out was the same numbers we had in 64E or
not.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. Because the only reason
this would make sense here or not is if those before us thought that
they would rather set a standard than the State set the standard.
That's all. Maybe, if you are coming back -- well, we can check.
I'll check.
MR. GRAMATGES: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page five. Why don't we go to five, six
and seven. They're all kind of similar.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: My only concern is did in the
past, Collier County set higher standards than the State. They
obviously couldn't set less. And that's the only question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Phil.
MR. GRAMATGES: I cannot answer that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But can you come back with an
answer?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And this wasn't something that
was noted in the EAR. This is something that happened.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You may want to bring the mike closer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: This wasn't something that was
noted in the year.
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MR. LIT SINGER: Good morning, Mr. Chairman,
Commissioners. For the record, Stan Litsinger, Public Utilities
Division. 64 E, which was formally known as 10-6 of the Florida
Administrative Code contains all the standards of service that apply
to private systems, whether they be a septic tank type system, or a
private package plant system, as opposed to the certificated systems
like Orange Tree and the Golden Gate City system.
And what we had done back in 1989 is, for some reason we had
decided to not only refer to 10-6 to list all the standards that
were contained in the Florida Administrative Code in which, in
some cases have changed. And in addition, that particular code
has been moved to another department of the state and has been
renumbered and updated. So, the adoption of any particular
standards in the comprehensive plan might lead to a need to
potentially amend the plan to change each individual standard,
when in the event of real application, we do not apply an annual
or daily monitoring of the application, or the use of the
facilities and the services of these private providers. They
report to the state.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Stan, do you remember, my
only concern on this at all, and it's really not a major concern is,
did we include these standards because it's odd that they would
be in the GMP to begin with.
MR. LITSINGER: Yes, I agree it was odd.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Did we include these because
we wanted to set a higher standard in the State? I mean, I use
these in my work and --
MR. LITSINGER: These are verbatim from the Florida
Administrative Code.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: This is an extremely wise thing
to do. I just want to make sure that we weren't upset with the
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state's numbers and we took advantage of that.
MR. LITSINGER: We just reiterated what is now 64E.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page seven? I
have one, objective three. The new end group says we'll also insure
that such practices are followed by private utilities regulated
by the county. Page eight, policy 3.1, the new language says
that the county will insure that private waste water utilities
regulated by the county follow similar practices. I just want to
make sure that there's not a discrepancy between are and similar.
The one case they're going to follow such practices and the other
case they're going to follow similar practices.
MR. GRAMATGES: One is more specific than the other. We
can change that language to make it sound the same.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think you need to. Either way you go,
it still should be consistent so no one argues it isn't. So,
when you take a look at it, and you're going to be coming back
anyway, we'll look at it then.
Page eight, any questions on page eight? Under objective
four. If you take the policies one, two, three and four, you've
made some tweaking to the language in those policies. But if you
turn to page eight of the water element, you'll find those
policies are repeated in policies one, two, three and six of that
element, but the language is not tweaked, nor is it the same.
But it's generally the same concept. I'm wondering if your
intent was to be consistent and somehow it just didn't get done
that way.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Kris Van Lengen, Comprehensive
Planning. Yes, our intent was to be consistent and we will make those
changes to make them read consistently.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So when you bring it back that
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objective in the sewer will be met to the objective in the water
in regards to those policies. Any other questions on page eight?
If not, page nine.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I have a nine.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead, Bard.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Policy 1.6, new number.
You're referencing reclaimed water system. Is that the same as
treated waste water, or is that gray water that we could start capturing
from buildings?
MR. GRAMATGES: This is what we are going to be calling in
the future irrigation quality water. Yes it is recycled waste
water.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But I mean, it is the same as
recycled? In other words, this would have to go to the treatment
plant and come back at you?
MR. GRAMATGES: That's right. It's what comes out of the
treatment plant.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It's not gray water which is
essentially -- in buildings, we sometimes especially in remote
areas, have a gray water system which is taking showers, stuff
that doesn't require treatment and using that for irrigation. So
you think they might have meant that when they wrote this.
MR. GRAMATGES: I don't believe so.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So we reclaim the water, then
we should use -- so the intent of this thing then is to try to find
other communities where we can connect to their treated waste
water, or it is ways of trying to get gray water out of
developments and stuff?
MR. GRAMA TGES: No. What this is trying to refer to is that
we are trying to supplement our irrigation quality water system
by taking not only reclaimed water but also water that we store
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in SAR aqua -- aqua storage systems below ground. And any water
that we can reclaim from surface runoff and storm and so on. It
doesn't mean that we're going to go into communities and try to
get theirs. It doesn't preclude us from doing that, by the way.
But I don't believe that's the intention of this, unless you'll
disagree.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Yes. Kris Van Lengen, Comprehensive
Planning. The intention is to expand the availability of water
to other communities by using the sources that Mr. Gramatges has
just mentioned.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So is reclaimed water treated,
or is it like you were describing it could be storm water runoff.
MR. GRAMATGES: Reclaimed water is -- reclaimed water
specifically is water that comes out of our waste treatment plant, yes.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So should we call it like we do
everywhere else, treated waste water? I'll tell you what, let me
back away. Don't do that. I think it might have a wider horizon
than just that. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: As a follow up sort of to his question,
we have policies that, like policy two of objective four, talks
about distribution of some of this treated waste water affluent.
Is there a way you can, through a policy, prioritize, and maybe
it's not even legal, but I thought I'd throw it on the table.
The government facilities, government lands, to receive the
affluent first and then private sector second.
MR. GRAMATGES: Our department is currently working on a
policy phase for an irrigation quality program within Collier
County. And this is one of the things that we are considering in
this irrigation quality policy . We expect that this will come
before the Board for their approval late this year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, if you're thinking in that
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direction, and you're thinking of bringing it in late this year,
you might benefit yourself by including a policy that makes it
easier for you to do that in this GMP amendment.
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes, sir. Absolutely.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Just a suggestion, when you come back
in, you might want to throw something in like that. Any question on
page ten?
Hearing none, we can move on to the potable water
sub-element. And we will be coming back with corrections to the
sewer sub-element either by the 16th or the 30th, whatever day
they -- I would imagine, David, we're probably looking at the
16th to continue with the first reading of everything, and then
on the 30th, any clean-up issues, will probably be better at that
time so--
,
MR. WEEKS: That would be acceptable. I know specifically
we mentioned yesterday about hearing the future land use element
on the 16th, but staff has no objection.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Why don't we try to get through this
completely first, and if we get through it all, then we'll go
back in and start -- we have a lingering -- I'm writing them down
as we go. There's not a lot, but there's a lot of lingering
little issues, including cleaning up the sewer.
MR. WEEKS: That's fine with staff.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Let's start with the water sub-element
and we'll go right to the first page. Is there any questions from
commission on the first page? Under objective one, your new
language after the word development -- you're talking about the
development utilization of new potable water supply sources.
Could you include -- should you include in there land
acquisition? The development, land acquisition and utilization--
the reason I'm asking that is because you're getting well sites
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all over the county. I'm not sure what your precedent is for
getting those without a policy that might suggest you should be
getting those. And that might help you get to that goal.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Kris Van Lengen, comprehensive
planning. I see nothing at this point that would preclude us from
wanting to add that in. I don't know whether the word development
would normally include the concept of land acquisition, but to be
more specific might be helpful.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Sometimes development is more the
nuts and bolts that happen after you've got the land secured and
zoned.
So, you may want to throw that in to clean it up. Any objections
from the panel?
Issues on page two? Hearing none, we'll move to page three.
Anybody have questions on page three? Page four? Page five?
We're blowing through this one.
The question on page five, your level of service standards
for water, or potable water, 185. You kind of use straight across
the board. But yet your sewer varied on different parts of the
county. Sewer seems to me to be an offshoot of water. How was
that relationship worked out?
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, within Collier County water is
integrated. We have ways to connect water within the county, and
therefore it works as one system. For the sewer system, they're
not. They're not interconnected in any way. Well, they are
somehow, but they're not interconnected to the point that we can
equalize the level of service across the different sections.
Mainly due to the fact that sewer plants need to be relatively
close to the place where the sewage is produced, while water can
spread a lot further.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Is your sewer -- the way you calculate
the GDCD for sewer, it based at all on the level of service standard,
or for the volume of water that is used. Seems to me there would
be some relationship there.
MR. GRAMATGES: Oh, yes there is indeed a relationship
there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. If there's a relationship and if
all districts are required to have the higher GBCD for water 185,
then wouldn't you have a standard base for sewer that would
correlate, and it would all happen to be the same for water?
MR. GRAMATGES: It depends on the land use. Because in
areas where there's a high level of irrigation, the correlation between
the water use and the sewage is very different than in areas
where you have high rises and there is not a lot of irrigation
per unit of dwelling.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Then wouldn't they have less need for
higher amount of GCBC of water?
MR. GRAMATGES: Possibly, yes. That would seem to make
sense. But in our experience, depending on the mixture of
residential versus commercial versus industrial, and the density
of the different areas, the amount of water that ends up going
into the sewer system varies, and varies quite a bit, as you can
see from the level of service standard.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And I agree. I think your conclusions
are right, but I'm just wondering -- here's kind of where I'm going.
If you set a capacity that is higher than what is maybe utilized
in each particular district. I notice in the sewer you're very
careful to look at each district separately and try to figure out
a ratio for that. And what that does is, that means the plants
that are needed are based on that capacity that's going to be
generated, and so you either need more or less plants. And the
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same thing is going to be for potable water. If you have 185
GBCD across the board for everybody, whether that's what they
really use or not, you're going to need capacity of plants based
on that highest amount. Would you not?
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So if we really wanted to
understand how many plants we need, wouldn't we want a more
accurate reflection of the actual water used like you did for
sewer as the actual sewer generated?
MR. GRAMATGES: The problem is, once again, when you try
to get into that number, the way in which we calculate the level of
service is based on history. The numbers we look at for water,
are county wide. They're not by the different regions. For us to
try to do that would be fraught with a lot of uncertainties
mainly because, as I said before, that system is a grid and the
plants act as one unit together. So, it would be very difficult
for us, and it would require a lot of guesswork beyond what
natural guesswork is when you look at historical data.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I'm not in a position to debate
that any further. You know much more about it than I do. I'm
uncomfortable with the number being that high across the board
for every part of the county when the sewer doesn't correspond
equally. So if we could do it for sewer. I understand your
plant, but your sewer plants are interconnected as well.
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes, but they're not interconnected to the
same level that the water plants are. We have true
interconnection for the water plant. In the case of sewer
system, the intersection is there only for emergency purposes.
And generally we do not send sewage in between regions.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I'll certainly do some more
reading up on it before I bring it up again. We're going to be coming
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back anyway.
Ms. Caron, did you have a --
COMMISSIONER CARON: Well, yeah. And, again, I have no
knowledge here. So, let me ask a stupid question. The level of
service here, why is it different for Immokalee, the independent
districts or government than it is for everybody else?
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, once again the needs -- the water
that goes into a government complex is used for different things than
it is used for a private or a dwelling. The dwelling, for
example, has a lot of irrigation and it has a lot of people
taking showers. That's not the case in the government center.
Most of the water that is used here, some of it is used for
irrigation, some of it is used for lavatories, and other areas
such as that. The level of usage of water is very very
different.
COMMISSIONER CARON: And I can understand how that
would definitely affect government. But how then does that translate
to areas like Orange Tree or Immokalee?
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, the density as well has a lot to do
with it.
COMMISSIONER CARON: So it really does come down to
density?
MR. GRAMATGES: Sure. Ifwe look at areas like Immokalee,
the average lots tend to be higher than they are in other regions
of the county. And therefore, the irrigation needs are higher.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Pages six and seven are mostly cross
outs and part of eight. Any questions on pages six, seven or eight?
Hearing none.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Well, other than the same as
before, these standards are equal to the State standards so, therefore,
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it's redundant data.
MR. GRAMATGES: Same things apply.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anything on page nine? Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Yeah, policy four. The county
shall promote the use of zero scape techniques. Shouldn't this be a
requirement and not a request? I mean, if we're talking about
future planning here.
MR. VAN LENGEN: I think for purpose of -- excuse me, Kris
Van Lengen, comprehensive planning. For purposes of have the
GMP, I think promote is probably an appropriate tag for the LDC.
Those types of decisions can be made in a more specific way.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Thanks.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page ten and page 11. You're faster
than anybody, Phil.
MR. GRAMATGES: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You got through the potable water and
sewer. So, next one is drainage. Gene is here. Gene.
MR. CALVERT: For the record, Eugene Calvert, Stormwater
Management Transportation Division.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If you don't mind, we'll probably just
ask our questions starting from the first page.
MR. CALVERT: Absolutely. Go right ahead.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. First page of the drainage
sub-element, does anybody have any questions? Gene, under the
third paragraph last sentence. Talking about doing stormwater
management to develop a combination of techniques that provide
adequate pollution removal, flood protection in the most
economical matter. Were you ever thinking of adding the words
environmentally sound?
MR. CALVERT: I have no objections at all with that.
Certainly it's one of our --
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I made a note that this is one of those
that did not include it and yet the others did. I couldn't
figure it out. It's been explained to me but I was just curious.
So, forget I said it.
Page two. Any questions on page two? On policy 1.1, about
the middle. And proposed developments received beneficial
consideration and proposed water management proj ects. What is
beneficial consideration?
MR. CALVERT: I'm going to have to refer to CDS members
from the comprehensive planning when they're talking about
proposed developments received beneficial considerations. I am not
entirely clear myself of what they refer to.
Kris, do you have --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I can see someone demanding a lot of
what they consider beneficial considerations. I'll tell you what,
fellows, try to figure out a way to address it, or maybe that
explains or clarifies it. I'll just tab it for a comeback.
Policy 1.2, you're talking about adequate water management
facility capacity is available. Does that mean we have a level
of service determined for that new added language? And if so,
how is sufficient capacity determined?
MR. CALVERT: I think the wording should probably be the
adequate storm water management facilities capacity available
rather than just water management. But that ties it back into
some of the previous ones where we continue to monitor it and
manage the availability. It also ties in with of the following
policies looking at reviews and approvals of new development to
make sure that those new developments don't impact, adversely
impact the capacity of those systems.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I made a note that on page four,
for example, you actually denoted a level of service. So I'm
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wondering, would your policy 1.2 be more affective if you were
simply to say shall be adequate to meet the level of service to
enter -- adopted in the hearing sub-element or whatever. Then
you're tying it to something we can recognize?
MR. CALVERT: Very well could be because the level of
service, of course, is a method to evaluate the proposed
development. So then again, it goes back to the planning
element.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So would you take a look at that when
you come back in for policy 1.1? Take a look at 1.2 if it needs to
be cleaned up? Any questions on page three?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Is that you, Brad?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It was. Going down to 1.5,
new 1.5, shouldn't we just cross out all that stuff except for the line
referencing the CCME. I mean, first of all they're done.
They're completed. The other one is going to be done in a month,
which will be way after this thing -- or before this thing is
adopted.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Which one are you talking about?
MR. CALVERT: One thing I want the Commission to
understand, when the original policy 1.5, and we've listed the Gordon
River Extension, Immokalee, those were really stormwater drainage
master plans. We're now getting into the Belmede and we're
dealing with the watershed management plan. It's just -- it's
really an expanded scope. And certainly the storm water drainage
master plans are one element of the watershed management plans.
Don't misunderstand that the Gordon River Extension, while it was
completed, was completed as a storm drainage plant and not as a
watershed management plant.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But the point is, it wouldn't be
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wise just to cross out everything except the line that starts
with watershed management plans and -- that's all.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But I think as we learned when we
discussed this watershed management plan in the CCME, they have
moved forward with Belmede and they're close to completing it,
which is what this is saying.
MR. CALVERT: Right. And maybe that's, you know, the
reference tying back there because the Belmede is going to be
completed within a matter of, you know, a couple months, I would
suspect. It's getting close.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: The point is why have
historical data in the growth management plan. I mean, if you're
crossing out the others, this one will be done prior to you, to adopting
to the end of the year.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Kris Van Lengen, comprehensive
planning. I think I would agree with you. The point of the changes
here were really to reference the CCME and those standards and the
prioritization and everything else. So why have a couple of
things here and not everything. I think the point is to
reference the CCME and leave it at that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So that means you'd strike the first line
that was added plus the base and references and then just leave
the additional watershed management plan line?
MR. VAN LENGEN: That's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Anybody have a problem with
that?
COMMISSIONER CARON: As long as we're sure that the
study is going to be done within the next couple of months.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, if they can do it, they can do it.
Page four, any questions on page four? How about page five
-- page six. Oh, I'm sorry, one question on page five.
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Commissioner Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: In policy -- I guess its policy two.
The county's water management master plan shall include
recommendations for changing levels of service together with
analysis of capital requirements. Would we ever downgrade a
level of service?
MR. CALVERT: I'm not saying it's totally without reason,
but you wouldn't -- couldn't downgrade. I can't think of an
instance where you would want to, but it is a possibility, I
suppose. I can't imagine when you'd want to.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Midney?
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Why are some rated as C and
some rated as D?
MR. CALVERT: Again, I'm going to have to refer to the
planning commission because it is a development issue of whether
you issued development permits per new development or not. The
purpose of why it's at level of D and C, I really need to refer
that to planning commission for the CDS.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Kris Van Lengen, comprehensive
planning. I don't know how to answer that question. These standards
have been in there, and when this document was disseminated, no
changes were made by any departments. The reason for each
particular level of service D or C, I don't know why they were
selected the way they were selected to begin with so I can't answer
that question. I would endeavor to find out for you.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: I'm wondering if it's because of
actual performance or potential performance. I just don't
understand.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I think--
MR. VAN LENGEN: With your permission, Robert Wiley is
here and he might be able to explain that.
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MR. WILEY: Level of service standards were developed as
part of the study to the master plan back in 1988, 1989. And
essentially you think of it as a three-dimensional level of
service standard. It addressed different criterias how well you
complied with them. We went with a weak link concept that within
a drainage basin there were a series of structures and canals.
They all link together. Which one is the most restrictive,
that's where you got that level of service designation. But it's
addressed to water quality, the type of storm event that was
suggested for that particular area, whether it was urban area,
whether it was way out in the middle of nowhere. It addressed
ground water recovery areas and things of that nature. And then
it also addressed within the system itself how well it met the
intention, such as a cross section. A level of service A would
give a much better storm protection in an urban area than level
of service D. A D means inside the house, where A is strictly
within the confines of the system. And so those were -- I call
it a three-dimensional matrix, but you worked a point system out
for how well you achieve certain goals as you went through that
matrix and came out the back side of it. That was years ago we
developed that.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: So there are concrete standards
for A, B, C, D, and E?
MR. WILEY: Yes, sir, there are.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: And how often are they checked
to see how well the system is performing?
MR. WILEY : Now that I could not answer. But, I mean, it's
something that was developed years ago as to how well it was
responding at that time.
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COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Because if this is something that
we're supposed to be holding ourselves to, it would be good to know
how often we're actually measuring it.
MR. WILEY: Well, I guess the best way, level of service D,
you couldn't get any worse than that. That was The worst
category. We only went up to a D. So at that point, level of
service D for most of the areas we look at means somewhere in the
system there's a constriction that causes water to come out of
the bank and in somebody's house. So C means it's out of the
bank, up in the yard but it's not in the house. B, it's in the
yard, but covering a road maybe, and A is strictly within the
system.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: So there's no unacceptable level
of service?
MR. WILEY: Level of service D itself by definition is
defined as unacceptable, but we accepted the unacceptable. And
let me explain why. That's probably what you need to know what
was happening back in 1988. We were faced with developing the
original drainage sub element and adopting the original growth
management plan. We had a deadline but which to do that. Up to
that point no one had any clue as to what level of service was.
It had never been evaluated for stormwater systems. We had to
come up with a way to define a level of service. Now we're not
happy with the result. We don't like an unacceptable level of
service. But you had to adopt something. And so, either that or
we put moritorium across the county. And that has never been
changed since the original adoption. Those criteria carried
forward. But by definition, we had excellent, good, not so good,
and unacceptable, but we accepted those definitions. So we like
to say we never got DCA to understand our explanation but we
finally did.
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COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: If there's no sanction for having
an unacceptable level of service, then why have the categorization
at all?
MR. WILEY: The purpose was we had to identify one. Then if
you would read back out of that study through the years, our goal
was over a series of years to produce a number of detailed basin
studies that would identify what capital improvements need to be
made and to undertake the funding necessary and the instructions
to bring them up to the level of service for which you desire.
When you looked at the original element the way it was set up, or
the sub-element, you looked at a situation of an adopted level of
service, and then you had recommended level of service. Now, we
never did adopt any recommendation because we haven't ever gone
through a complete basin yet to eliminate all of the weak links.
But that's part of the capital program that needs to be carried
forward basin by basin, and then you can modify the level of
service standards in each appropriate basin.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: So we can't make a plan to
improve the D's up to C's until we do more study?
MR. WILEY: Well, when you look at what is set before you
here with your watershed management plan, with you drainage basin
plans, that's what they are to do is to give the plan for what it
takes to bring that up to your level of service that you want it
to be. Do you always want to be level of service A? No, you do
not. But do you want to go for a B or C? Probably, so, because
that's the region at which you get some minor outer bank, but
it's not disastrous. It's not devastating in people's houses. It
doesn't shut down the major roadway system. So that's the goal
of these plans.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: David, did you have a comment?
MR. WEEKS: I was just going to stress the point that Robert
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just made there, and that is, if you look at policy 2.1, we
specifically added the language that says, after we do these
watershed management plans, if they so warrant, then we will
adjust the level of service standards.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: And hopefully try to improve
them.
MR. WILEY: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page five? Ms.
Caron?
COMMISSIONER CARON: Well, maybe we should actually
say that. That the attempt will be to improve. I mean, I believe
that that's implied, but --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And if warranted improve.
MR WEEKS: Well, based on what Robert had said, it sounds
like we would not think of reducing a level of service standard
as appropriate, but that's always a possibility. And if we
indicate that it could only be improved, then we're stating by
policy that the policy-makers, the Board of County Commissioners,
are precluded from lowering a lower level of service standard.
Again, I don't -- it doesn't sound like from what Robert's or
Gene's comments, either one, that would be something the county
would intend to do, but there may be some valued reason for
wanting to do so. Plus, particularly, if you think of some of
the rural areas where we may be far enough out east in the Big
Cypress area that may not be any development potential. And if
we should have a level of service, that C in that area, we might
want to say, well, no, take it to D. Let's don't spend the
capital facilities expenses to improve an area with minimal
development.
MR. WILEY: Just to give an example just real quickly so you
have an understanding of how this level of service works.
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Depending on where you were in the county. If you go and look on
page five where you already are, and you're in the Cocohatchee
River System, so you have a Cocohatchee River Basin. Now that's
the main canal which rolls along the north side of Immokalee
Road, and this is identified as D. Now, that's what it was back
in 1989. Now since then the Big Cypress basin has come in with a
lot of improvements. And along that main canal tremendous
improvements. But we're talking about the entire basin. So with
all the sub-branches and everything else. If somewhere within
one of those branches there is a constriction, it would still
remain at D until such time the whole thing is improved.
Now, on that same page, go out to the very bottom of Barron
River System. You have Ocala Okaloacoochee Slough Basin. That's
a D. Right next to it is the Barron River Canal North Basin with
a level of service C. In those areas we have a lot of wetlands.
Just the reverse is the way the level of service standard was set
up. You don't want to overdrain. So if you have a level of
service C on the Barron River Canal North System, you may get
super efficient and drain everything out, but you overdrain the
wetland, you have effectively decreased it to a D the. So you
just have to know the background behind each of these basins onto
what criteria was set up for them when we establish the level of
service. Like David said, the intention was really never to make
it worse. The intention is to bring it better towards the
criteria that was set up for each individual basin's level of
service definition.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: So having Okaloacoochee at D is
good because that means the wetlands are maintained?
MR. WILEY: No, that does not necesarilly mean that because
Okaloacoochee Slough Basin with a D very likely means that
somewhere there is overdrainage in that one. It is getting too
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much water and not holding enough water within itself. These are
the things you sort of -- you haven't had the background of it,
but without it, you wouldn't understand how the level of service
definition works. That's sort of why I'm still here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah. Isn't the problem that
we don't really have good data, and we have this watershed program
coming, so won't we in the future be able to be a lot wiser
making these kinds of decisions?
MR. WEEKS: That certainly is one of the chief purposes for
doing the watershed management plan.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So discussing it now is a waste
of time, I think?
MR. WEEKS: I think so. We need to wait until-- back to
what Commissioner Midney said, we need to wait until we get the
studies done until we get more data. These management plans
would be looking at drainage, but they're also looking at
environmental issues and water quality and -- we've discussed
these a lot during the CCME and they're big and important tasks.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any questions on page six? Hearing
none, page seven? Page eight? And last, page nine? Gene, like Phil
you provided me with a lot of information and I do want to thank
you for that. It was helpful. It did minimize the amount of
questions I had to hardly any. I appreciate that.
MR. CALVERT: One comment, if I may, Mr. Chairman, just
for one clarification, maybe correction. On the first page, page
number one, under the introduction, the fourth line down talks
about the county stormwater management section. Part of the road
maintenance department. That's not accurate. I think it would
probably be better to say just the county's transportation
division maintains drainage systems. The reason I say that is
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because the way the division is organized, the stormwater
management department, which I'm the director, is in charge of
capital improvement stormwater violations and capital
improvements. My department does not have the responsibility for
maintenance of the waterways, for cleaning the ditches. That
falls back to road and bridge. So to cover everybody, I would
suggest maybe refer to just the transportation division.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I assume staff will make that
change.
Mr. Wiley.
MR. WILEY: Yes. If I may, I was talking to Chris here. If
you also go to page number eight under policy one -- well, policy
6.3. Strike out the one there, I guess. We're talking about
the various discharge rates for allowable discharge. There are
two more discharge rates that are not included here. The reason
I mention is because earlier on you are mentioning ordinance
2001-27 is where the data was obtained. Within 0127, we also
have and identified discharge rate for the Harvey Basin of 0.055
CFS per acre. And the Wiggins Pass Road Basin is 0.13 CFS per
acre. So those two specific discharge rates adopted by ordinance
should be included here so that you at this point include them
all. And then jut to follow up also on page one where Gene was
speaking about changing, you might want to give consideration
also -- says the county storm water management section maintains
draining systems associated with county and state roadways.
That's not really quite a correct statement either. They
maintain the entire secondary canal system. They go beyond
roadway drainage. There is a secondary canal system out there,
so that probably should be tweaked just slightly to include all
facilities over which they're responsible for design and
maintenance.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. Does CDF staff have any
any problems making those changes?
MR. WEEKS: No problems.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anybody in the Commission have any
problem?
(N 0 response.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Thank you.
We're going to stop at 12:30 today exactly. So when we get
into conversation with any of the other elements and they get
into longer time than we have left, whereever we're at, we're
just going to have to cut off and finish Thursday with the
continuation of the meeting. So with that in mind, we'll go into
the solid waste. I know there was a public speaker. He sat here
all morning. I'm not sure so if we'll get through the entire
discussion of solid waste in the next 20 minutes. So what I'd
like to do is, as we typically have done, we'll get into
discussion and if we have to, it will be our first item up when
we get this discussion back in play next Thursday. So with that,
who is here representing solid waste? Anybody? Mr. Adelstein,
okay.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Mark, I have a general solid
waste question before we get into it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go for it.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: In the table of contents in the
element for solid waste, it lists 13 pages, yet the website, my
books, even the books that we've been supplied, doesn't have that
many pages, so --
MR. GRAMATGES: This is Phil Gramatges, principal project
manager, public utilities engineering. I do not know why that is
so. I'm sorry. I need to refer back to CDS.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Phil, could you spell your last name for
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the court reporter?
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes, it's G, as in George, R-A-M-A-T-G-
E-S.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I bet you wouldn't have guessed that
without that question.
MR. GRAMATGES: So the answer is indeed no. Sorry.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So let's move into our regular
questions.
On page one, does anybody have a question? Page two?
MR. KRASOWSKI: Excuse me, Mr. Chairman. How should
we proceed here? Shall I engage page by page or save my comments
to the end?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Bob, there's only five pages in this
whole thing. Let us get through our questions and then we'll ask you
for yours. Okay? That will work out better. Thank you.
MR. KRASOWSKI: Sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I thought there was -- this is a larger
element but it's rather small.
Page two. Page three. I have a question on page three,
Phil. Your policy 2.4, you list -- it's all new. And then you
list the future solid waste operations that are potentially --
I've heard, or I think I've seen in the papers somewhere that
there are ongoing discussions about alternative landfill sites,
but, yet I don't see that as one of the items that could possibly
be based on policy 2.4.
MR. GRAMATGES: Mr. Chairman, I'm not aware of any such
discussions.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, somebody at the county
contacted a representative, one of the landowners out in the eastern
part of the county, and it was in the newspaper. Specifically asked
them about there's a potential for a landfill site out there. I know
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that because there's an attorney involved in it. But, be that as
it may, wouldn't we want to list a number of alternative landfill
sites just in case there are such sites that do come about?
MR GRAMA TGES: I'm not aware of any sites that may be
available right now. So I don't know what we would put in there,
SIr.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. But if a site were to come
available in the future and it wasn't listed here, you couldn't
utilize it if you wanted to. So in the pretense that one may --
if there ever is a piece of acreage out there that you don't know
about and it happens to come up that it could be a potential
landfill site, it's not here, I don't think you'll have the
alternative to explore it. So, all I'm suggesting is it's a
benefit to your department that if opportunity arises, you just
may want to add that.
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, sure. I certainly will.
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: I don't think that limits whether
it's in here or not that it necessarily limits the county. And I guess
one concern I would have is by putting it in here -- we've had
situations before where property owners have raised a thing
called condemnation blight. In other words, by virtue the county
is putting something on a map as a possible future site for
something that it has somehow impacted their property value. Not
to say that that would happen. I'm just throwing it out as a
historical example.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well, I hope that applies to road
systems that go through homes in Golden Gate Estates because we
have a lot of blight going on that maybe the county contributed
to. Any other --
MR. WEEKS: Pardon me.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir.
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MR. WEEKS: I was going to suggest that maybe Phil could
check with his division administrator. I think the Commission is
aware, potential future landfill has been discussed in past years
and it's understandably a very controversial issue because there
is many complaints -- or historically has been many complaints.
Most particularly about the Naples landfill. Talk of a new
landfill has gone over like a lead balloon. You might recall a
few years back there was discussion in particular about one
somewhere generally in the Immokalee area. I think south and
west. The landowners there were adamant. They didn't want it.
At any rate, it's a hot button issue. And I would not want us to
add to the policy that would even create the window of
opportunity if it's going to cause a big stir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Margie already indicated that it
wouldn't be a good thing to do so I wasn't going to pursue anything
further, David. So maybe we don't need to have anybody go back
and explore it any further. Thank you.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Mr. Chairman, also on 2.4 -- Kris Van
Lengen again. I just noticed something I didn't notice before.
And when I read the introductory sentence that says the county
shall acquire and! or retain required land inventory and then
select one or more of the following options by fiscal year 2010,
I see an ambiguity that I did not see before. And I would like
that opportunity to clear that up, because I don't know whether
it means obtain the land or make this decision.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think you should clean it up. So
when you bring it back to us on the 30th, that would be helpful.
Any other questions on page three? Page four? Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: It would be under policy 3.1, and
it's C, maintain and enhance the curbside separator of material into
recyclable categories. We don't separate at the curbside any
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longer, as far as I know. Everybody has the big yellow top bins
and everything goes in one.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You're supposed to.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: That's not true in the
association areas like -- anywhere you have a large PUD, they do
make you separate.
MR. VAN LENGEN: In other words, the commercial accounts
they still separate.
MR. GRAMATGES: That is correct, yes, commercial and large
accounts do still do that.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: On the top of page four, policy 2.8.
The last word talks about small businesses to participate to some
extent. That just seems like an ambiguous reference. I know
it's not new language, but I don't know what some extent is.
MR. GRAMATGES: I am not objecting to eliminating the "to
some extent". Leave it at business to participate, period.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I think that would be at least
better. Is there any questions on page five?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I still got four. I'm sorry.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead, Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: On policy 3.1, we're
eliminating the multi-family recycling. That wasn't one of the
comments in the EAR. It says, maintain and enhance the current
county-wide multifamily residential recycling program. There must
be a reason. Well, it's not coming from direction from the EAR.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: In A it refers to residential. Wouldn't
that -- is that where they may have picked it up.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: That's what I thought. Because
they crossed off single family.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I mean, that's what I thought. Maybe
I'm wrong.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But I don't think you want
curbside high-rise pickups.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Correct.
MR. GRAMATGES: I Don't know that I fully understand the
question.
MR. VAN LENGEN: I think that under category A we crossed
out single family so that would apply to all residents.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: You like multifamily to be
current countywide residential curbside recycling. The curbside is
the problem.
MR. VAN LENGEN: Oh, curbside is the problem.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It takes me off of A to you may
not mean that.
MR. GRAMATGES: Okay. So we eliminate curbside.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Well, what if you just left it the
way it was? Is there a countywide multifamily recycling program?
MR. GRAMATGES: No, unless it refers to a large apartment
building, which, of course, do not have curbside pickup.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: The question, number one, if
it's saying maintain, so I'm assuming one exists.
MR. GRAMATGES: Maintain and enhance. Oh, yeah, sure.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Then I think -- I wouldn't like
to take the word curbside out because that could maybe sway another
direction. Anyway, I just see no reason to eliminate B.
MR. GRAMATGES: The way I understand it is I was trying to
refer to the changes that were made with the recycling program
where we added those large bins with the yellow tops. That
certainly has been an enhancement, which by the way has been
working quite well for us in the last few weeks or months since
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we instituted it.
What this is trying to address is, we are not going to stop
there. Weare going to continue to develop and continue to
enhance curbside recycling. Because we see that that is a very
beneficial process for us.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And you'll be providing the
curbside recycling for single family and four-plex residential units?
MR. GRAMATGES: We are doing that now, as far as I know.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: I would like to see something in
there that says we would like to extend multifamily residential
recycling programs to all areas of the county because it doesn't exist
in Immokalee now.
MR. GRAMATGES: Certainly, we could take that back for
consideration, certainly. I would need to consult with our
administrator to make sure that could be done.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: The explanation I got was that
the subcontractor was not equipped to do it. I don't really know why
we shouldn't set as a goal to have universal recycling because a
large percentage of Immokalee lives in multifamily units where
there's no recycling whatsoever.
MR. GRAMATGES: Once again, I cannot answer that question
right now. I'll be certainly more than happy to take that back
and provide an answer when we meet again.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Would this body be willing to
suggest that we make a suggestion that such a thing be instituted, or
as a goal?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Paul, the thing I want to do is
bring B back to life. If I do that, I do exactly what you're
saYIng.
MR. VAN LENGEN: And I think staff has no difficulty in
putting B back in and that would resolve both issues.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So B is going to go back in?
MR. VANLENGEN: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And A if you want to limit
because I think you did something in A that thought you cured B.
But I think in A, if you want to limit more curbside services, you
could go back and may uncross some of that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Paul and Brad?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: When you guys want to speak, please
acknowledge first.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I'm sorry, I thought I was still
on mIne.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Then, Paul was interrupting. So one of
you guys just kind of work it out amongst you and let someone down
this end know you want to talk. Thank you.
Did you have anymore to say on this, Brad?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: No.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Paul?
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: No.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Page five. I have one. Why did
you cross out A?
MR. GRAMATGES: I can't answer that. I don't.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, that whole policy started with
continued investigation of cost-saving methods for landfills. I
would think you'd want to keep.
MR. GRAMA TGES : Well, true, but the difference is landfill
mining means going back into the landfill and trying to dig stuff
out of there. That is very disruptive, not to mention expensive.
The best way to provide for appropriate recycling is by recycling
at the curb. Making sure that all that could possibly end up in
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the landfill that could be recycled is identified beforehand
before it goes into the landfill.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Landfill mining was begun in this
county years ago by -- I think the gentleman's name was Bob Fahey.
He won a national award for it, and we were claimed all over the
country for the program. And I thought the obj ective was that,
not so much for recycling, but to get more landfill space by
recycling the material that wasn't decomposed putting it back in
and using the decomposed material both to recover the landfill or
get rid of it in some other manner as fill. So I saw that as a
positive. I'm still wondering why it's been struck.
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, when it comes to trying to recover
landfill space by taking out material that has already
decomposed, we are indeed doing that. And we propose to continue
to do that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Then wouldn't we want to leave this
in?
MR. GRAMATGES: I have no objection to doing that, no.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The entire policy 3.2 is a generic
reference to looking for more cost-saving methods for landfills.
That seems to be a concept in the GMP we would want to keep. I
don't know why we want to strike the whole policy. Why wouldn't
you just leave it in? If it's not hurting anything and it
provides the opportunity to utilize new methods that come along,
we ought to be doing that kind of thing.
MR. GRAMATGES: Sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anybody disagree?
COMMISSIONER CARON: Doesn't it say that right here at the
end in the new language?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, as long as that includes landfill
mining, which is where -- I liked it as it was.
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COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Actually, in the EAR we do
exactly as you said, Mark, we're saying how we have a reputation for
being good at landfill mining There was no required change from
the EAR based meeting. I see nothing wrong with -- your answer
kind of gave a negative opinion in the landfill mining so I
wouldn't want this to be able to cause somebody to not allow
something to landfill mine.
MR. GRAMATGES: I'm okay with leaving that statement
there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I like the old language rather
than the new. I think it opens -- just makes it a little clearer that
we're being proactive.
MR. VAN LENGEN: I think we have to work on the old
language just a little bit because of B of the old language,
investigating methane gas recovery needs to be updated.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right.
MR. VAN LENGEN: But we can do that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We're doing it. Okay. You'll get back
to us on that?
MR. VAN LENGEN: Right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Bob, I don't think it would be good for
you to start your discussion and end it today without us having
to follow up on it until Thursday. If you don't mind, we'll
start with you Thursday morning -- Thursday next week, whenever
we're starting this issue and you'll have up to ten minutes to
discuss the issue, and then we can talk about any points you may
have made, if we so desire.
MR. KRASOWSKI: Thank you. That's very considerate. I
appreciate it. And as I just mentioned, I will be sending a
preview of my comments to everybody through email.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That would be -- anything we can
digest ahead of time will be more effective for your discussion. I
know your stuff is detailed, so we appreciate it.
MR. KRASOWSKI: And will the director of solid waste be
here so we can get straight answers from the people responsible?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I would expect that to happen. Can I
be told that it will?
MR. GRAMA TGES: Phil Gramatges, public utilities. I will
certainly bring that message back and I will encourage that to
happen. I can't tell my director what to do, so I can only say
that I will bring that message back.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So ifhe doesn't want to send
you here to respond to any questions that we may still have --
MR. GRAMATGES: Oh, I'll be here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- then tell him we can't approve this
then, so that might have an impact.
MR. GRAMATGES: I understand.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. Okay. With that, just so
we're set up right so this board knows where we're going to be
going. Next Thursday we will finish up the solid waste, after
that we will go into the ground water, which is MGW AR, the
housing element, recreation element and then keep following
through with the ICE and the other elements we haven't touched
yet. I'm telling this to staff so you have the right personnel
here to start out first thing whenever we get to it. We're going
to have our regular session in the morning. Whenever we finish,
if it's close to lunch, we'll break for lunch first. If not,
we'll go right into this, break for lunch, and come back into
this. So, that's how it's going to proceed.
Now the instructions on the outlying issues. We have
sections from the CIE transportation sewer, CCME, and FLU.
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Instead of listening to those next Thursday, we really will--
first time we could address those will be the 30th. So that will
give everybody and staff more time to prepare themselves.
If you have rewrites of any of this, please get them to the
panel before the 30th so we have time to review them. With that
I think --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Mark.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: We should schedule all
Thursday afternoon, I mean, just in case it takes that long.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yeah, I think it's going to take all
Thursday afternoon to get through it. Then with that, we need a
motion to continue this meeting --
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: So made.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- starting at some time after 8:30 in the
morning on Thursday of next week.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: So moved.
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Second.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You're second?
COMMISSIONER MIDNEY: Second.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: All those in favor?
COMMISSIONER STRAIN: Aye.
COMMISSONER ADELSTEIN: Aye.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Aye.
COMMISSIONER MINDY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Aye.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Aye.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you all. Meeting is adjourned.
(Whereupon, meeting was adjourned at 12:30 p.m.)
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*****
There being no further business for the good of the County,
the meeting was adjourned by order of the Chair at 12:30 p.m.
COLLIER COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION
MARK STRAIN, Chairman
TRANSCRIPT PREPARED ON BEHALF OF GREGORY COURT
REPORTING SERVICES, INC., BY DANIELLE M. AHREN.D
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