Immokalee CRA Minutes 01/15/2020
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MINUTES
Meeting of the Immokalee Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Committee on January 15, 2020.
CareerSource Southwest Florida
750 South 5th Street
Immokalee, FL 34142
239-658-3000
A. Call to Order.
The meeting was called to order by Dr. Frank Nappo, CRA Chair at 9:06 A.M.
B. Pledge of Allegiance and Moment of Silence
Dr. Frank Nappo led the Pledge of Allegiance and moment of silence.
C. Roll Call and Announcement of a Quorum.
Christie Betancourt opened roll call. A quorum was announced for the CRA board.
CRA Advisory Committee Members Present:
Estil Null, Frank Nappo, Patricia “Anne” Goodnight, Andrea Halman, Francisco “Frank” Leon, Edward
“Ski” Olesky, Yvar Pierre, and Mark Lemke.
CRA Advisory Committee Members Absent/Excused:
Michael “Mike” Facundo.
Others Present:
Danny Gonzalez, Yakira Chu, Andrew Bennett, Sarah Catala, Silvia Puente, Georgeann McNatt Gosch,
Jessica Crane, Victoria Peters, Theresa Schober, Michael Taylor, Ahmed El, Lisa Loren, Chris Ambach,
Justin Lobb, and David Longfield Smith.
Staff: Debrah Forester, Christie Betancourt, Julian Morgan, and Monica Acosta.
D. Introductions.
All public present introduced themselves. All board members introduced themselves to the members of
the public.
E. Approval of Agenda.
Staff presented agenda to the board for approval. Staff announced changes to the agenda. Item G. 4.
Chamber of Commerce was added. Item I. 3. i. should be Carver instead of Carson. Item K. the next
CRA meeting is on February 19, not February 15.
Action: Ms. Anne Goodnight made a motion to approve the agenda with changes. Mr. Ski Olesky
seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote. 8-0.
F. Approval of Consent Agenda.
1. Minutes
i. Joint CRA & MSTU Advisory Board Meeting for December 18, 2019 (Enclosure 1)
2. Operations Manager Report (Enclosure 2)
3. Project Manager Report (Enclosure 3)
4. Budget Reports (Enclosure 4)
5. Community Meetings (Enclosure 5)
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Packet Pg. 605 Attachment: Immokalee CRA Meeting Minutes - January 15, 2020 (11849 : Immokalee CRA Advisory Board - February 19, 2020)
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Staff presented the board with the December 18, 2019 Joint CRA & MSTU Meeting Minutes, CRA
Operations Manager Report, CRA Project Manager Report, Budgets, and Upcoming Meetings.
Action: Ms. Andrea Halman made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda. Mr. Ski Olesky
seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote. 8-0.
G. Announcements.
1. Communications Folder
Staff reviewed the communications folder with the board and members of the public. The folder
contained the public notice for this meeting, the 2020 Calendar for the CRA and MSTU meetings,
Governor DeSantis open vacancy’s, IUNC Housing Committee meeting and upcoming
community event flyers. Ms. Anne Goodnight made a request that the June meeting be a joint
meeting with MSTU on June 24, 2020 as three of the board members have another meeting to
attend on the scheduled June 17, 2020. Mr. Ski Olesky also announced that the Parks and
Recreation meeting will be on February 19, 2020 at the community park at 2:00 p.m.
2. Public Comment speaker slips
CRA staff reiterated the public 3-minute speaker slip policy. The board will give more time if
they feel it necessary.
3. CRA Budget & Work Plan Workshop – February 13, 2020 @ 10:00 A.M.
Staff announced that the Budget and Workplan Workshop has been scheduled for February 13,
2020, members of the boards and public are encouraged to attend.
4. Immokalee Chamber of Commerce
Mr. Danny Gonzalez addressed the board with support towards the Immokalee Airport expansion.
He feels that the expansion is positive for the community and welcomes the possibility of more
businesses. He also asked for an update on the proposed 7 Eleven project. At this time staff did
not have an update but will keep everyone up to date as information becomes available. As a
business owner, he expressed his concerns over the food trucks that have popped up recently. His
concern is that the food trucks are not following procedure or getting the permitting done before
opening up for business.
H. CRA New Business.
1. Immokalee Regional Airport – Justin Lobb, Collier County Airports Manager
Mr. Justin Lobb presented the board with updates at the Immokalee Regional Airport projects.
The current 2020 cycle has an estimated ten million in projects, three of which are under design .
The rehabilitation of the North/South runway is one, the Taxiway extension, through FAA
additional funding, is another. The last one is the security camera’s for access control which will
be used for the terminal and airfield. These will serve to enhance safety for planes.
A concern with the runway and taxi extension is the issue with the raceway, they are currently
trying to work with the Immokalee Regional Raceway owners to come to an agreement over the
issue. The property belongs to the Airport, but FAA gave them permission to lease the area for
the raceway with a caveat that the property could be reverted to an actual runway. The project is
set to start at the end of the year.
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Packet Pg. 606 Attachment: Immokalee CRA Meeting Minutes - January 15, 2020 (11849 : Immokalee CRA Advisory Board - February 19, 2020)
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One of the more exciting things coming is the flight school. There has already been interest with
International students from Ireland and the United Kingdom, training here is cheaper than in the
UK. This will be an actual school, providing housing and meal plan.
The other exciting thing is the three parcels of commercial property that three parties have
proposed to use. Each one looks very promising. One is a flight school, one is to be used as a
possible hangar, and the third one cannot be disclosed at this time but will be very beneficial to
the community. There is about ten acres between the three parcels.
I. CRA Old Business
1. Immokalee Area Master Plan update
Staff provided the board with the update that the 45-day grace period is almost near, a final version
of the Immokalee Area Master Plan should be available next month.
2. Immokalee Stormwater Master Plan update
Staff informed board that there is not a current update on the Immokalee Stormwater Master Plan
but Mr. Robert Wiley, Project Manager, will be here to discuss stormwater projects next month.
3. CDBG Grant update
i. Carver & South 5th Street
Staff informed board that this project is currently at 90% plans, awaiting the engineer to
address a few items and the project should be at 100% plans within the next month. Bid
documents are going out.
ii. FY2020-2021 Grant Application Cycle (Enclosure 6)
Staff informed board that they will be applying for another grant. This would be to
continue the sidewalk in the Eustis area, a map of the proposed section is in the Project
Manager’s report located in Enclosure 3. The window to apply is very short, deadline is
February 10, 2020.
Action: Ms. Anne Goodnight made a motion to allow staff to apply for CDBG grant. Mr. Francisco
Leon seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote. 8-0.
Staff also announced the departure of Julian Morgan, Project Manager, his last day will be
January 24, 2020.
4. Tiger Grant – Immokalee Complete Street updates
Staff announced that RFP is being finalized to hire someone for design.
5. Code Enforcement update (Enclosure 7)
Mr. Chris Ambach informed the board that the final count for last month’s cleanup was 17 tons.
The next cleanup will be held in March. The focus of his group last year was the issues with
dilapidated trailers, from October 2018 through January 2020, there have been 38 that they have
addressed. The newer issues have been the excessive Food Trucks, especially on New Market
Road, this is a priority for code enforcement, a senior staff member has been tasked with policing
the New Market Road area, there will also be a hearing next month on the 23rd to address this issue.
One last issue that code has been working on is the homeless camps, there is a big one on South
1st, they took it to hearing and an order has been issued to pull out all the plants and vegetation in
that area so that the homeless can’t continue to make camps there.
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6. FDOT updates
Ms. Victoria Peters addressed the board with grant information for funds with the Small
Community Outreach Program Grant (SCOP). She announced that the SR82 & SR29 from Gator
Slough to 29 roundabout is under construction. The final segment from Hendry county line to
Gator Slough is currently under design.
7. Office of Business & Economic Development (OBED)
No update
8. Immokalee Culinary Accelerator
Mr. Ahmed El announced to the board that the Accelerator currently has 25 members, one of which
has opened a smoothie bar in Immokalee at a local gym called Built Beast Gym, the member is
Tomahawk Nutrition. One member has come up with human grade pet food, another member has
opened up a food cart at Ave Maria whose food is Columbian Cuisine, and the member will also
be working with Robert’s Ranch and the Cattle Drive on March 14, 2020.
9. Other Agencies:
Robert’s Ranch:
Ms. Theresa Schober announced that she had the save the date invites for this year’s Cattle Drive
to be held on March 14, 2020 and she also has vendor packets for anyone that is interested. She
was also excited to share that the Ranch was featured in a five-page article Florida Sun Magazine
that is given on the Lufthansa Airline from Germany.
Chamber of Commerce:
Mr. Danny Gonzalez announced that former alumni Johnny Smith will be the Immokalee High
School Indians head football coach next season.
Blue Zones:
Mr. David Longfield-Smith announced that Blue Zones is here to help promote food, culture, and
community and he would like to be able to help this community as much as he can.
Ms. Jessica Crane, also with Blue Zones, announced her departure from Blue Zones.
Immokalee Library:
Ms. Silvia Puente provided updates on upcoming events at the Immokalee Library.
Collier County Sherriff’s Department:
Sherriff Mike Taylor announced that the traffic enforcement department currently only has one
police officer patrolling the schools and construction zones in Immokalee but will have three
officers starting next month. They will be giving citations to those that are using cell phones in
the school zones and construction and those who are not stopping for school busses.
J. Citizens Comments.
No Citizens Comments
K. Next Meeting Date. CRA will next meet on February 19, 2020 at 9:00 A.M. at CareerSource SWFL
located at 750 South 5th Street, Immokalee, FL
L. Adjournment. Meeting Adjourned @ 10:47 A.M.
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Packet Pg. 608 Attachment: Immokalee CRA Meeting Minutes - January 15, 2020 (11849 : Immokalee CRA Advisory Board - February 19, 2020)
24.B.3Packet Pg. 609Attachment: Immokalee CRA Meeting Minutes - January 15, 2020 (11849 : Immokalee CRA Advisory Board - February 19, 2020)