CCPC Minutes 11/20/2006 AUIR
November 20, 2006
TRANSCRIPT OF THE JOINT MEETING OF THE
COLLIER COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION
AND THE PRODUCTIVITY COMMITTEE
Naples, Florida, November 20, 2006
LET IT BE REMEMBERED, that the Collier County
Planning Commission and the Collier County Productivity Committee
in and for the County of Collier, having conducted business herein,
met on this date at 8:30 a.m. in WORKSHOP Building "F"
of the Government Complex, East Naples, Florida, with the following
members present:
CHAIRMAN: Mark P. Strain
Lindy Adelstein
Donna Reed Caron
Robert Murray
Brad Schiffer
Russell Tuff
Robert Vigliotti
PRODUCTIVITY COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Janet Vasey
Robert Dictor
Sydney E. Blum
ALSO PRESENT:
Joseph Schmitt, CDES Administrator
Marjorie Student-Stirling, Assistant County Attorney
Don Scott, Transportation Planning
Randy Cohen, Comprehensive Planning Director
Mike Bosi, Comprehensive Planning
Page 1
AUlR 2006
SPECIAL AGENDA
COLLIER COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION AND PRODUCTIVITY COMMITTEE WILL MEET AT 8:30 A.M.,
NOVEMBER 20, 2006, IN THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MEETING ROOM, ADMINISTRATION
BUILDING, COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER, 3301 TAMIAMI TRAIL EAST, NAPLES, FLORIDA:
NOTE: INDIVIDUAL SPEAKERS WILL BE LIMITED TO 5 MINUTES ON ANY
ITEM. INDIVIDUALS SELECTED TO SPEAK ON BEHALF OF AN
ORGANIZATION OR GROUP ARE ENCOURAGED AND MA Y BE ALLOTTED 10
MINUTES TO SPEAK ON AN ITEM IF SO RECOGNIZED BY THE CHAIRMAN.
PERSONS WISHING TO HAVE WRITTEN OR GRAPHIC MATERIALS INCLUDED
IN THE CCPC AGENDA PACKETS MUST SUBMIT SAID MATERIAL A MINIMUM
OF 10 DAYS PRIOR TO THE RESPECTIVE PUBLIC HEARING. IN ANY CASE,
WRITTEN MATERIALS INTENDED TO BE CONSIDERED BY THE CCPC SHALL
BE SUBMITTED TO THE APPROPRIATE COUNTY STAFF A MINIMUM OF
SEVEN DAYS PRIOR TO THE PUBLIC HEARING. ALL MATERIAL USED IN
PRESENTATIONS BEFORE THE CCPC WILL BECOME A PERMANENT PART OF
THE RECORD AND WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR PRESENTATION TO THE BOARD
OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS IF APPLICABLE.
ANY PERSON WHO DECIDES TO APPEAL A DECISION OF THE CCPC WILL
NEED A RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS PERTAINING THERETO, AND
THEREFORE MAY NEED TO ENSURE THAT A VERBATIM RECORD OF THE
PROCEEDINGS IS MADE, WHICH RECORD INCLUDES THE TESTIMONY AND
EVIDENCE UPON WHICH THE APPEAL IS TO BE BASED.
1. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
2. AUIR "SPECIAL MEETING" FOR REVIEW OF THE ANNUAL UPDATE AND INVENTORY REPORT ON
PUBLIC FACILITIES, CATEGORY A AND CATEGORY B.
A. AUIR OVERVIEW - MIKE BOSI
B. COLLIER COUNTY POPULATION METHODOLOGY - DA VID WEEKS
C. IMP ACT FEES RELATED TO THE AUIR - AMY PATTERSON
D. COUNTY ROADS - NORM FEDER AND DON SCOTT
E. DRAINAGE CANALS AND STRUCTURES - GENE CALVERT
F. POTABLE WATER SYSTEM - JIM DELONEY/PHIL GRAMATGES
G. SEWER TREATMENT & COLLECTOR SYSTEMS -
JIM DELONEY/GEORGE YILMAZ
H. SOLID WASTE - JIM DELONEY /ROY ANDERSON
I. P ARKS AND FACILITIES - MARLA RAMSEY
J. COUNTY JAIL - CHIEF GREG SMITH
K. LAW ENFORCEMENT - CHIEF GREG SMITH
L. LIBRARY - MARILYN MATTHES AND MARLA RAMSEY
M. EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES - JEFF PAGE
N. GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS - LEN PRICE AND RON HOVELL
3. ADJOURN
November 2006 AUlR/CCPC Agenda/RC/mk
1
November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Good morning, everyone. It's 8:30 and
we will need to start our meeting.
This will be a joint meeting between the Collier County Planning
Commission and the Collier County Productivity Committee to
discuss the AUIR 2006.
There is a lot of ground rules that need to be set, but let's all rise
for the Pledge of Allegiance to begin the meeting.
(The Pledge of Allegiance was recited in unison.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think it might be nice for a
clarification for both the court reporter and people watching as to
who's here and what committees they're on, and with that, I'd like to
start with right-hand side of the table.
If each person will mention their name and what committee
they're with with Collier County, we can move across and to the table
that way.
MR. BLUM: Sid Blum, Productivity Committee.
MR. DICTOR: Bob Dictor, Productivity Committee.
MS. VASEY: Janet Vasey, Productivity Committee.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Donna Caron, Planning
Commission.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mark Strain, Planning Commission.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Lindy Adelstein, Planning
Commission.
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Bob Vigliotti, Planning
Commission.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Russell Tuff, Planning Commission.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Brad Schiffer, Planning
Commission.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Bob Murray, Planning
Commission.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This meeting will have transcribed
minutes, and we need to be careful about how fast we speak, which
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November 20, 2006
I'm usually a very slow speaker, so she should have time.
Every hour and a half or so, we'll be taking a IS-minute break to
accommodate the court reporter and Katie, who's over there carefully
trying to move cameras around to make sure she spots us correctly,
and we'll probably try to break for lunch around quarter to twelve.
I think that this meeting will most likely last all day, but we may
get into about five or six this afternoon.
Another item I'd like to ask the Planning Commissioners,
especially since they seem to be the most notorious for not doing this,
please turn off your cell phones, anybody that has them on.
And last, but not least, I think that -- Mr. Schiffer is there
anything else? .
Do you want to bring up your issue now --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- or do you want to wait until we get
into a discussion?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Just quickly reviewing the
books, the last couple of years, we had mentioned that we would like
to keep track of affordable housing units, essentially maybe start a
Category C.
So, once again this year, there's no mention of how many
affordable housing units the inventory on the --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. What I'd like is I don't know
how staff is intending to present this today, and we will be going in
order in which the book is laid out.
The Productivity Committee will have different individuals
moving forward to switch out and we progress through the order, and
at those moments we'll take a short break to accommodate that.
So, in your presentation, Mr. Schiffer's request was something
that was made as well last year. I certainly would like you to explain
that as you go through and order your presentation.
And I guess, Mr. Bosi, with that it's yours.
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November 20, 2006
MR. BOSI: Thank you, Commissioner Strain.
My name Mike Bosi. I'm the Community Planning Manager for
the Comprehensive Planning Department.
I'm going to provide a real quick brief overview of what the
A UIR, where it sits within the regulatory fabric above the Land
Development Code in Florida Statutes.
And then we're going to have a presentation upon population
from David Weeks, and we'll hit another brief presentation concerning
impact fees in relationship to both the Category A and Category B
facilities.
And then we're going to get right into the order that we spoke
about. And I will get into, and I've spoken with the County Attorney's
office on how and to produce in terms of voting with the mixed body,
and they've provided an opinion within this -- within the presentation,
we'll hit upon that.
First of all, Section 6.02 of the Land Development Code requires
that the county provide that Public Facilities and Services meet or
exceed the standards established in the CIE required by Florida
Statute, Section one point -- 163.317 and are available when needed
for development.
Basically, this sums up that the infrastructure and services will be
available when the demand is placed by either the local development
order.
In the AUIR, it's the blueprint for concurrency and is the
preparatory document for the annual update to the capital
improvement element of the GNP for the Category A facilities.
With the Category B facilities no longer being included in the
CIE, the A UIR is an annual checkbook to make sure that the level of
service standards that we -- that we have imposed for the Category B
facilities are being met and maintained.
They have a relationship. The -- the impact fee studies related to
the Category B facilities have -- will identify a level of service in the
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November 20, 2006
annual AUIR, ensures that we -- that we will never fall below that--
that floor that the impact fees establish for the -- for the level of
services for the respective Category B facilities.
And like last year, this year's AUIR has a heightened degree of
importance related to Senate Bill 360 in the fact that CIEs now all
have to be financially feasible.
In an instance where you have a category where there -- either a
Category A or a Category B when there's a revenue shortfall, the local
government body must either identify an alternative or an additional
source of revenue where there has to be a reduction in the level of
.
servIce.
Just for everyone's benefit -- and I know this is the first year that
the Productivity Committee has heard the -- has heard the AUIR, not
the first time, of course, for the Planning Commission -- the Category
A facilities are roads, solid waste, drainage canals and structures,
parks and recreation, potable water and a sewer -- sewer collection
and treatment.
The Category B facilities; jails, law enforcement, libraries,
emergency services, government buildings, and the two dependent fire
districts which are Ochopee and the Isles of Capri.
And those are the first time that we've had those two -- those two
dependent fire districts included within the AUIR purposes.
And then in terms of what the board is looking from the Planning
Commission and the Productivity Committee, they're looking for
separate recommendations regarding the Category A facilities and the
Category B facilities.
Based upon the discussion with the County Attorney's office, it
was recommended that the Planning Commission, which is meeting
with the quorum, can provide the recommendations for each -- for the
Category A and the Category B separately as a separate motion from
the Planning Commission.
The Productivity Committee can voice where -- where they
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November 20, 2006
would like to -- to make a motion or not a motion, but a
recommendation to the -- to the Board of County Commissioners, but
you'll have to -- you'll have to table that recommendation until you
meet your next scheduled -- your next scheduled meeting where you
have a full quorum in each of the individual subcommittees at that
point in time would discuss what their recommendations are to the
Board of County Commissioners.
MS. VASEY: Mike, when we talked about it, what our plan, was
the people that are on the subcommittee would vote here today.
MR. BOSI: Okay.
MS. VASEY: And have a subcommittee vote recommendation
so you'll know what we're thinking and what position we're taking.
MR. BOSI: Right.
MS. VASEY: We will obviously have to take it back to the full
committee at our next meeting, but at least everyone will know what --
what our position is on it and the one that we will be promoting with
our committee.
MR. BOSI: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mike, there might be another twist that
the County Attorney's office may need to understand.
While there are each two categories, A and B, there are six
subcategories in A alone, and I forgot how many in B. I think there's
seven.
We may find there's differing recommendations on each
subcategory as well. And I was hoping that there's no objection to us
taking the position on each one --
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Absolute--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- as we move through them.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Absolutely not. That's the way I
envisioned you would proceed.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So, it's not the entire category.
It's the individual pieces.
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November 20,2006
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: That's right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: For the benefit of the court reporter, too,
since this is a -- new people and new names and new -- and the tags
are not as clear as they are when we're sitting on the podium, we all
just need to be recognized by -- and I'll call each person by name.
That way the court reporter gets it accurately.
And another important thing is try not to talk over one another so
that when Mike's finished speaking or another individual is finished
speaking, the next person will start.
Thanks, Mike.
MR. BOSI: Thank you.
Under 6.0202 of the Land Development Code, which provides
the guidance related to the A UIR process, the BCC has options in
terms of responses for the needs identified in the AUIR.
And they include the following. In establishment of areas of
significant influence surrounding deficient road segments, which are
not in a TCMA, which is a Traffic Congestion Management Area or a
TCEA, which is a Traffic Congestion Exception Area.
A second response could be a -- a public facility project would be
an addition to the financially feasible scheduled capital of
improvement elements.
A road project must be in the first or the second year of the next
adopted schedule of capital improvements in order to be factored as
available capacity in the real time transportation concurrency
management system.
Also they could -- another option would be a deferral of
development order issuance for developments not vested by statute in
areas affected by deficient Category A facilities.
The -- a varying degree of varying responses underneath that --
that subcategory, and that would be a modification level of service
standard via the growth management planned amendment, which we
spoke to, we could lower the level of service accordingly to -- to maket
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November 20, 2006
-- to make that component whole.
Whether you could -- they could provide direction to staff,
include the necessary A projects in the future CIA -- or CIE
amendment adopted by the board or -- or future approval of newer or
increased revenue sources for needed public facility projects by the
BCC, the state legislature or the county voters, or developer
constructed improvement guarantees by an enforceable developer of
agreement, which is not a very -- which is not an uncommon fact.
Basically, it's a developer's contribution agreement.
The A UIR identifies capital needs for both new facilities to serve
projected population growth as well as replacement of public facilities
that would no longer be adequate within the five-year AUIR period.
The one thing I will say about that is any impact fees that are
collected for -- for the various categories, that -- that money cannot be
spent for replacement facilities.
The impact fees could only be allocated to -- to pay for new
growth or growth -- growth demanded by new -- by new housing use
and new growth.
The AUIR presents two series of scheduled capital improvements
within this year's. One's a series utilizing weighted population with a
four-month peak season, and the second is utilizing weighted
population with a six-month peak season.
That was the direction we were -- we were provided by the Board
of County Commissioners last year in -- in the population discussion
which David Weeks will provide here in a second.
He'll hit upon both the differences with -- within the two.
In the Florida Administrative Code related to the CIE of the
Capital Improvements Element within the Growth Management Plan
and the population requirements is an assessment of local
government's ability to finance the capital improvements based upon
anticipated population and revenue.
And that's basically what this -- this AUIR is. We're
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November 20,2006
demonstrating to the state that we have taken the adequate measures to
make sure that the required infrastructure and services will be
available and on line when the -- the demands of development hit at
that time.
9J5.005(2)(e) of the Florida Administrative Code, it says, a
comprehensive plan shall be based on resident and seasonal
population estimates.
And in the Land Development Code 6.0202, it provides some
guidance on the population methodology, and it says, the AUIR shall
be based upon the most recent University of Florida Bureau of
Economic and Business Research, which is a BEBER.
It's an acronym that you'll -- I'm sure every one is familiar with
or you'll become extremely familiar with.
Or the BEBER influence, water and sewer master plan,
population projection -- projections, updated public facility
inventories, updated unit costs and revenue projections and analysis
for the most recent county traffic data.
And that's really where the -- the population methodology has
provided a little guidance in how we approach the A UIR by the -- the
-- the Land Development Code.
And with that, we're at the point of the presentation where we're
going to really discuss population, and with that I'll turn it -- I'll turn
the microphone over to David Weeks, a manager within the
Comprehensive Planning Department.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Michael, before you leave, the way the
AUIR is presented, it's broken down in segments, besides the
Categories A and B, you have an introductory segment, David has the
population segment.
Do you want questions on your introductory statements at this
time or do you want to wait until David finishes?
MR. BOSI: Why won't -- why don't we take the -- the questions
related to the introductory segment, and then we can transition to -- to
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November 20, 2006
David and then he can address whatever questions that may come
from that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And I want to make sure that all the
members of this committee get ample time to ask each question, and
what we've done in the past is we've moved through the documents
page by page by simply any questions on Page I, if there are none,
move to Page 2, et cetera.
And not all the pages may have questions involving them, but at
least that gets everybody's ability or opportunity to ask.
So, with that the Executive Summary starts on Page I of the
document. I'm not sure there's any questions on that, but if there are,
please let me know.
If not, we'll move to Page 2.
Commission Caron?
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Your areas of significant
influence, does that define someone?
MR. COHEN: It would more appropriate -- Randy Cohen for the
record.
It would more appropriate for Don Scott with transportation to
address that issue.
MR. SCOTT: Don Scott, Transportation and Planning.
Yes. That's on -- it's in the Growth Management Plan. I believe
it's also in the LDC for -- it's 335 right now, but we've submitted the
work comments to make it -- was it 233?
So, that was -- that's what's the significant area is.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any questions on Page 3?
Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah. A proportionate share,
where would that show up in this? Would that be Item D or is that a
new Item E?
MR. BOSI: The proportionate -- I'm sorry, Randy.
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November 20,2006
MR. COHEN: Randy Cohen again for the record.
In the past proportionate fair share has not been included in the
A UIR. I think it would be appropriate to add it as a sub -- as an Item
E, and -- because that item went into effect October 1st -- excuse me --
December 1st of this year. Apologies.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So, another manner of
development order issuance or deferring the issuance would be the
proportionate share ordinance that eventually gets adopt.
Is that what we're saying?
MR. COHEN: Yes, sir.
And please note that although the ordinance was passed, it won't
be effective until ten days past the adoption of that last ordinance and
upon receipt by the Department of Estates, but it will be effective prior
to December I.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
Any other questions on Page 3?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Mark, let me just --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead, Mr.--
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: David, what about a -- what
about, Mike, a Category C for keeping track of affordable housing
units?
MR. SCHMITT: Margie.
MS. STUDENT -STIRLING: I think that we can monitor it, but
affordable housing is not a public facility and the AUIR deals with
public facilities.
And I think there's probably a way to monitor it. I'm just not sure
that as long as the AUIR deals with infrastructure that that's the place
to do it.
That's all.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, as a follow up to that statement, if
it had -- if the affordable housing is developed and built through either
impact fees, a -- one of the ordinances that we're talking about, which
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November 20, 2006
is linkage fees and amended -- I forgot the other one, but it's
inclusionary zoning, then wouldn't they become public facilities in the
sense they're created with public money and, therefore --
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: They're not -- they're not
controlled by the government. If you'd like, I can read you the
definition of infrastructure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No. Margie, I don't--
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: -- ofLJ5, but--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's not where we're going. I
understand what the definition is.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I'm saying -- it's not that we -- I
just want to make sure we put it in the right place and there's no issue
as to hear confusion as to what's a public facility. It's not run or
maintained by the government. That's --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. If we go forward with impact
fees or other linkage fees that are collected by the government, will it
then become a public facility in essence?
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: I -- it think it's something we have
to look at, quite frankly. But I just wanted to -- again, not trying to be
a nay sayer, but we just want to make sure we have it in the proper
place, that's all.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And, Mark, my only point is we
make goals for it in the GMP, how we -- and this is an inventory of
essentially that. How -- we should be able to see at least -- and, again,
that's why I said Category C, which has no binding other than just for
information.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think that we'll get into the AUIR
through the public facilities process. It might actually happen in some
manner once public fees are -- I mean, the public fees are expended
for it now, but not through public agencies.
Maybe that's the manner in which to develop in the future.
Something to think about.
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November 20, 2006
Questions on Page 3 and the others?
Page 4. On your Land Use Planning, Michael, your third bullet,
Number 3, transportation, where it says, must be evaluated in the
EAR, doesn't the EAR occur every seven years or is there a frequency
of occurrence on the EAR?
MR. BOSI: It -- no. It's every seven years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I was just trying to understand
the impact of it. If it's every seven years, it would have been part.
Number 5, must meet new requirements by July 1st, 2006.
Have we done that or are we relying on the EAR plan update
that's in the works right now to finish that out?
And you're looking at Randy.
MR. BOSI: Yeah.
MR. COHEN: The EAR amendments that are in place right now
will -- will meet that requirement.
We previously provided a CIE to the -- to be transmitted to the
CIE to the Department of Community Affairs.
Obviously, in doing so, I think we met that requirement.
Obviously we met with a lot of objections with respect to that and
your body will -- will continue to hear that and make a
recommendation to the board, and the board will make a final
determination on that in January, so we need to change that to
probably January 24th or 25th of 2007.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are there any other questions on Page
4?
Page 5?
And then, finally, Page 6?
With that we wrapped up the Executive Summary.
Thank you, Michael.
MR. BOSI: Thank you.
MR. WEEKS: Good morning. I'm David Weeks, Planning
Manager in the Comprehensive Planning Department.
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November 20, 2006
I've spoken previously to the Productivity Committee, and I
believe it was about a month ago, and also to the Planning
Commission regarding population projections.
F or that reason, I'll attempt to be very brief and simply wait to
see if you have any questions.
The University of Florida Bureau of Economic and Business
Research, BEBR, produces annual population estimates and
projections for -- projections for all counties in the State of Florida and
estimates for all counties and cities.
They produce three different ranges; low, medium and high. And
their intent is to try to capture what they believe to be a reasonable
range of what population growth -- how it could fall from the low all
to way to the high, although generally their position is that they
believe the medium range is the most accurate.
Historically, Collier County for projections has used the BEBR
high range growth projection, going all the way back to 1989 when
our Growth Management Plan was first adopted.
However, since then, we have experienced some declines in
growth rate and also some -- in turn, some acceleration growth rates.
And for that reason on two different occasions since 1989, we
have amended our Comprehensive Plan to adjust the growth rates that
.
we were uSIng.
However, one thing that has been constant is that we've always
maintained the high range growth rate for the first five years, and even
though the actual growth rate may be slower than that, the county's
approach has been safe and sorry.
Let's be very cautious. We don't want to get caught, so to speak,
with our pants down when it comes to something as important as
preparing for public facilities for the community.
The present methodology calls for using the high range
projections for the first five years and for all subsequent years using
95 percent of the BEBR high range growth rate.
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November 20, 2006
As the Planning Commission is aware from just a few days ago
in our discussion, the county is contemplating changing the
methodology.
But I'd like to put that -- bring it to your attention and then put it
aside, because any changes that may occur to population methodology
would not be adopted until January of '07 and would not likely go into
effect until April of '07, well after the final action is taken by the board
on this AUIR for 2006, the point being, any population change and
methodology would not be applicable to the 2006 AUIR.
So, regardless of whether we think the numbers are -- are not
accurate or not is the presently adopted effective methodology and it is
what we are bound by. And the AUIR before you is based on the
existing in effect methodology.
Our first step in preparing projections is to use the high range
projection from BEBR, as I said, for the first five years and then
simply adjust it to 95 percent for all subsequent years.
BEBR projections are provided in April, the census year, but, of
course, the county budget year is as of October I, so the first step after
adjusting the BEBR methodology of projections is then to convert the
April to October.
October I is exactly six months between two April one years, so
you simply take the difference and that one year figured, divided in
half and add it to the previous year.
So, for the 2006, October I population projection, we simply take
April of2005, April of2006, determine the difference, divide by two
and add to April of '05. That gives you October of '06.
We also prepare peak season population which, by the way, is an
average daily figure. As you can, I'm sure, appreciate any given day
during the peak season, population figures will change. Hotel and
motel occupancy various daily as does occupancy of the seasonal
dwelling units within our community.
The peak season methodology calls for a 33 percent increase for
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November 20, 2006
the coastal area, which is all portions of the county except the
Immokalee Planning Community, a 33 percent increase over the
October I permanent population figure.
For the Immokalee community, we just add a flat rate, 15,000
persons, to that October I figure, and that's based upon past research,
suggesting that that would be the increase due to the farm labor in the
Immokalee community; laborers, truck brokers, et cetera, others
related to the agriculture industry.
And then the third projection we prepare is the weighted average
population figure, which is two-thirds of the October I permanent
population and one-third of the peak season population.
The end result is that the weighted average is approximately an
II percent increase over the October I permanent population figure.
Commissioners, I think I'll stop there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, thank you, David.
I -- there are some questions, so let's start with your Page I and
ask the members of the committee if they have any questions on Page
1.
Miss Caron?
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: In order to utilize the
BEBR high number, you say that that's the number used in the first
year, and then we go to BEBR high at 95 percent ofBEBR high after
that.
What was year one?
MR. WEEKS: Year one would be 2006. The most recent
estimate is always a year behind, so our latest estimate is 2005.
So, if 2006 is the -- is the first year of projections. Even though
we're well past April I of '06, we don't yet have an estimate for that
year. So, 2006 is the first of the five years.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: But essentially then, we'll
always be operating off of BEBR high.
MR. WEEKS: That's correct.
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November 20, 2006
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: David, when BEBR collects the data or
assembles the data to determine our population, what are -- what data
are they using?
MR. WEEKS: They use birth rate and death rate and migration
statistics. That's done for the entire state.
They actually have a total of four different methodologies that
they employ. But that's -- that's one is at the state level.
For the counties, they -- under one scenario, they look at the
percent of growth that a county has experienced and apply that percent
constant to the state population.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Where do they get the percent of growth
that the county has experienced? Who gives them that number?
MR. WEEKS: They derive it on their own. I can tell you that
Collier -- each of their local governments provide dwelling units
certificate of occupancy data to the University of Florida.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, the percent of growth is derived
from dwelling unit counts.
MR. WEEKS: At least in part.
Commissioner, I don't know exactly what their methodology is.
We've not yet spoken with BEBR staff. We have read their
population bulletin, but they don't go to the level of detail that you're
inquiring about.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The reason that's important, David, is
I've very carefully studied the analysis that you used to get the
seasonal population.
My concern is that some of those add ons that you used to
determine seasonal are already included in the base, that now we don't
know if BEBR has included them or not because that information has
not been obtained, and I hope that you're looking for them.
MR. WEEKS: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.o
Page 1 7
November 20, 2006
MR. WEEKS: Mr. Strain, as you're aware, the Planning
Commission gave directive to staff just last Friday and we will be
following up on that, so that at your next AUIR meeting, we should
have that answer.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
The other thing you had mentioned was that the current
methodology is the one that we have to go by, that any new
methodology would have to be adopted before we can apply it, yet I
look at this AUIR and I look where the population statistics used in
this year's AUIR has caused a retroactive effect on the prior
population calculations for each element of this, meaning the
departments have gone back and where the populations statistics that
we used this year seems to be applied or came from a different source
or a new method.
They retroactively applied it backwards, so they brought a
deficiency forward that started several years ago.
And I'm wondering if that methodology then changed last year
because it seems to me you're saying it hasn't changed.
It hasn't changed? I mean, I --
MR. WEEKS: It has not changed.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So, the population statistics
we're using today for '05-06 would only change the population that we
show in today's A UIR. Last year's A UIR was accepted at the base
population that it had, and that population statistics should have
remained the same?
MR. WEEKS: Let me make sure I'm clear.
Population estimates or projections are revised annually, so there
will-- the methodology has not changed, but the actual figures will
change for the preceding year.
For example, again, year 2005 -- because we're dealing with
October I population for this year, October -- October I of 2005 is a
projection because it is a blend of the 2005 estimate and a 2006
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November 20, 2006
projection, which means that next year, and we're going through this
process, you will see a different figure for 2005, because only then
will we be dealing with two estimates.
Ifwe look to last year's AUIR, comparing it to this year's 2004
figure will be different this year than it was last year for the same
reason. 2004 was a blend of an estimate and a projection, if that
answers your question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It does. Thank you.
And one other issue on methodology. You had said that -- you
have acknowledged you're doing further research and you're being
challenged by DCA on things that have occurred and we can expect
possibly a change.
Yet at the same time you're expecting us to evaluate this and
make a recommendation knowing that the numbers most likely are not
the numbers that are accurate?
And I'm -- based on last Thursday's meeting, is it the intention of
staff to review conceptually this entire document in this round of
hearings and then come back with revised population numbers before
we actually vote in a -- recommend a -- something with the BCC on
this issue?
MR. WEEKS: Not to my knowledge.
Randy?
MR. COHEN: Commissioner, that is not our intent. We know
that the CIE that's being considered by the Board of County
Commissioners as part of the EAR will be in January final adoption in
-- in April.
Then there's an appeal period that takes place, and if it goes
hearing potentially, the population methodology may not be in effect
for quite some time if that transpired.
But we would contemplate as part of your next AUIR cycle,
which will begin the new population numbers in April that you will
see if the board adopts the new methodology, and there are no
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November 20,2006
challenges to it, your next AUIR will reflect that methodology as
adopted by the board and you'll be acting accordingly on that.
I know it's problematic that we have the year based amendments
going through a process with a different methodology contemplated at
the same time as the A UIR, but at the same time we're bound by law
and the County Attorney can -- can weigh in by this by -- by a
methodology that's pretty much legal and in effect, and it puts us in a
very awkward position in the review process, but it's one that we have
to deal with in this transition year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I agree with you. It's an awkward
situation, because you're looking at a recommendation, that when it
leaves here, it's going to have an absolute tremendous impact on this
entire community, because it's going to set the budget that then
establishes the new ad valorem tax rate and equally so will probably
change impact fees.
And we're doing all that based on numbers that have been
admittedly not fully researched or when they're -- there could be been
further research that might change those, most likely will change
those.
That's disturbing on how to move forward, David. I guess we
will, but then the results will have to weighed against that because that
is a big, big factor for, I know, myself and most likely for everybody
here.
And with that, is there other questions on Page I?
Mr. Murray, Mr. Schiffer and then Mr. Caron -- or Miss Caron.
Mr. Adelstein. I'm sorry.
Go ahead, Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: David, I'm just going over what
you said the BEBR is comprised of birth and death rates and
migration.
The migration you're talking about is what in specifics?
MR. WEEKS: It's not identified in the bullets and I cannot say.
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November 20, 2006
I would certainly assume that it's a combination of migration
from other states, which we know is significant, but I would also
assume that it includes immigration as in from other countries.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. But when we speak of
migration, we're talking about essentially labor or we talking -- is that
in any way associated with snowbirds?
MR. WEEKS: No, sir. It would be actual residency here in
Collier County.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: All right. And how do we --
then you add under the county has a formulation that it adds the
seasonal population or modifies it.
How -- how do we realize and deal with the many units that are
filled sometimes in the winter? How do we adjust for that or do we?
MR. WEEKS: The peak season population projection takes into
account the vacancy rate --
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay.
MR. WEEKS: -- from the 2000 -- the most recent census. It also
takes into account the percent of those vacant units that are within the
subcategory of help for occasional recreation or seasonal use.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: So, if I understand you correctly,
you're really referring to hotels-motels, but not necessarily the
condominiums?
MR. WEEKS: No, sir. Hotel-motels is actually a separate part
of the calculation. I am referring to those -- those vacant dwelling
units that are seasonally occupied; that is, actually condominium,
single family home, et cetera.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: And we can learn that from what
source?
MR. WEEKS: The 2000 census.
The 2000 census identifies the occupancies and vacancy rates of
dwelling units, and it also identifies subcategories of those vacant
units; those that are held for seasonal use, those are perhaps are on the
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November 20, 2006
market for sale or for rental or that are vacant at the time.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Do we have a plus or minus that
we apply to that?
MR. WEEKS: No, sir . We use the flat percentage from -- from
the census.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And it's actually following up
on that.
The statistics you show is that there's 28 or, let's say, 29 percent
from the 2000 census is vacant units.
And is this -- this is on Page 4 by the way.
And is 82 percent of those for occasional use? I mean, if that's
what you're saying, that 82 percent of the 29 percent are occasionally
used, which is what, like weekends, a week now and then and not full
season, right?
MR. WEEKS: Correct on both accounts.
Well, the length of the season is actually about six months long.
The occupancy of those seasonal units though, the projection does not
identify how long they're staying here in that held for seasonal use,
simply that they are here.
It's -- again, it's an average figure, so that the seasonal population
would include the person that stays here for four months or six months
or one night in that dwelling unit.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But not the person that stays for
one week in his own unit.
MR. WEEKS: Yes. That would include that as well, yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay.
MR. WEEKS: These are all vacant dwelling units --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Right.
MR. WEEKS: -- that are occupied for some portion of time.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And I had a conversation
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November 20, 2006
Thursday with Dr. Smith at the -- of the university, and he kind of--
and he's in charge of pop.
He kind of gave me the impression that they really use dwelling
unit data. They spend a lot of time trying to figure out how many
dwelling units there are and then their high-low is they don't know
how many people are in those units.
So, the fact that we take high -- I mean, I can think of, at least in
the district I live in, most of those units have a couple of people in
them, and them they're huge.
How did we come up with the high occupancy to be ours and
essentially we're putting two people in each bedroom and stuff like
that?
MR. WEEKS: Again, you're referring to those vacant units?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: No. I'm referring to all our
units now.
MR. WEEKS: For permanent population, we used the
occupancy rates that come from the 2000 census, well below the
county level down to -- to the smallest geography that we deal with,
which is the traffic analysis on T AZ.
So, for each individual T AZ, we have a persons for total dwelling
unit figure, which takes into account total number of dwelling units in
that T AZ, and the total permanent population within that T AZ, and
simply divide one into the other.
That's different than the persons per household, because the
persons per household ratio was only counting the occupied dwelling
units divided into the total population.
We simply skipped -- skipped that step and, in effect,
incorporated into that persons per total dwelling unit ratio, and then
we would add up those T AZs to the given geography planning
community fire district, whatever the case may be.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But the question is, so you --
and we're going countywide so -- and I don't mean to look over my
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November 20, 2006
shoulder.
If we're going countywide, so essentially what you're saying is in
countywide, all the housing units we have, we have the occupancy
about as high as the university thinks you can get them, and that's in
number we use, the high rate?
MR. WEEKS: Yes. Yes, because we take -- we take those ratios
that I was mentioning at the T AZ level, and then we -- we convert that
to the BEBR population.
We -- we first calculate what we call an in-house population,
staff generated, the number of dwelling units that were issued a CO,
by type within each T AZ, and then the persons per total dwelling unit
ratio for that T AZ by that type of dwelling unit, single family or
multifamily.
And that will give us -- when we add that all together, that will
give us a population figure which is not going to be the same as
BEBR.
We then convert that to that BEBR high range figure growth rate
by a simple percentage methodology.
If -- if, for example, North Naples equals ten percent of the
in-house population, and we apply that ten percent to the BEBR high
range figure, giving us the North Naples high range population.
I hope that answers you.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah. Kind of lost, but I wasn't
having fun with math there.
The -- and then you're really comfortable that the population
grows a third. The census says, really gross, 28 percent.
Again, with -- with conversations with Dr. Smith, he was kind of
saying that they take that 2000 number and reduce it from their figures
to get what they think is the population.
So, what is the reason we're using thirty -- a third for that.
MR. WEEKS: Two things. One, it's important to distinguish
between permanent population, which is all that BEBR did. They
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November 20,2006
give us no seasonal data. They only give us permanent population
estimates projections. Collier County staff derives the -- the peak
season population figures.
And there's two different methodologies that we employ and
that's explained on Page 2 of the population methodology document.
The one that you're referring to is where we look at the vacant
dwelling units that are used for the occasional use, held for occasional
use, the number of vacant housing units, the persons per household
ratio.
And, again, a household is an occupied dwelling unit. And also
the hotel-motel occupancy data.
All of that combined derives a 39 percent -- actually 39 percent
seasonal population figure because, again, it's not just the
occupancy-vacancy rate that the census produces, which was that
almost 29 percent.
So, there's other factors that are -- that are considered and that
yields about a 39 percent seasonal increase.
But above that, there's a different methodology where we look at
taxable sales, traffic data, a gas sales and, historically, but no longer,
electric hookup data. That came up with a different percentage of
.
Increase.
We combined those two and took the average. That's where the
33 percent comes from, the average of those two means of projecting
what the seasonal population increase is.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I mean, my understanding of
what the BEBR does is they do calculate what the county would have
and they deduct from that the 28 percent.
MR. WEEKS: That would make sense for being permanent
population, which is what they provide.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And that's so, I guess, they get
it.
Taxable sales could mean just that the rich people come back in
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November 20,2006
the season, you know.
MR. WEEKS: It's -- it's select data. This -- although it doesn't
explain it further. It's select -- select items that we would look at.
F or example, we would eliminate the white goods because,
generally speaking, a seasonal visitor is not going to buy a refrigerator
or a stove; however, they would be providing -- purchasing a variety
of groceries, for example, and grocery products and personal
convenience items, et cetera, et cetera.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I mean, we're not -- we can't
change it anyway.
I mean, the concern I have is, hasn't the DCA, Department of
Community Affairs, said that they don't like our methodology, they
haven't accepted it so --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's the debate David is having right
now --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- but he's trying to resolve so the EAR
can be completed, I believe.
MR. WEEKS: If I may.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: The same numbers.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right.
MR. WEEKS: If I may, the -- the objection that DCA has, the
Department of Community Affairs, is with our permanent population
methodology, and their recommendation is that we utilize the BEBR
medium range, and then allow us to continue to use a peak season
methodology, because they -- they finally have recognized that, yes,
Collier County, you do experience an increase in population during
the peak season.
And they are not dictating to us or directing or suggesting how
we determine that peak season increase. They're leaving it up to us to
make that determination.
Something we intend to do is in addition to changing the
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November 20, 2006
methodology to the medium range, what we're going to propose to the
-- to the board, but also to evaluate the peak season methodology,
because there are some questions on our mind.
Is the -- is the 33 percent still accurate? Maybe it should be
higher or maybe it should be lower. But we definitely want to revisit
that.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Miss Vasey?
MS. VASEY: It was my understanding that when you do the
peak season, instead of just taking like 33 percent, you would be
trying to get the entire peak season included on top of it.
You know, like right now it's II percent you said.
MR. WEEKS: Uh-huh.
MS. VASEY: I thought it would be medium plus something
close to what the entire peak season is, so that would be a much larger
number than we're dealing with now.
MR. WEEKS: Correct.
The recommended methodology from DCA is to use that BEBR
medium permanent and then the entire peak season increase, which
you're correct. It would be roughly 33 percent.
So, permanent at the medium range plus the entire peak season,
as opposed to the present methodology, which is using high range
permanent, but only using a portion of the peak season, which results
in about an II percent increase over the permanent population.
And that's one of the -- there's two chief issues that DCA has
with our methodology.
Number one, they believe high range is too high; number two,
they do not accept the weighted average methodology.
We had a lot of dialogue with them and we thought we were
making headway, but ultimately they've stood fast and said, we don't
believe it is sound planning -- based on sound planning principles,
professionally accepted methodology, and so they rejected our
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November 20, 2006
weighted average.
As some of you may know, we've been using weighted average
at least 1989 when this Gross Management Plan was adopted, but I
think the key here is, is I don't think DCA was aware that we were
using weighted average, because we did not explicitly identify it
within our GMP.
And I think that's what's caused this. From one perspective is all
of a sudden reaction by DCA.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: David, on the U.S. census, is the
numbers provided in the U.S. census for all of Collier County?
MR. WEEKS: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: How do they factor out Marco Island
and the City of Naples?
MR. WEEKS: I'm sorry.
Yes, they do all of Collier County. They also do for the cities,
each of the three municipalities. They also do other sub areas that we
typically do not utilize though.
They -- they provide ratios at the track level, the block group and
block level, and also at the T AZ level.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, the 2000 -- the fact sheet for Collier
County at the 2000 census, when that's pulled up, and it says, Collier
County, it provides a number.
That number does not include Marco and the City of Naples?
MR. WEEKS: That fact sheet would be countywide. It would
include the cities.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well, the -- that fact sheet is the
one you're pulling your percentages of vacancies off of. And that fact
sheet -- those vacancies, that's --
MR. WEEKS: Uh-huh.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- that is part of that fact sheet.
MR. WEEKS: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ten percent of the dwelling units
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November 20, 2006
utilized in that fact sheet are for Marco Island and 12 percent are for
the City of Naples in the 2000 census. That's 22 percent.
How has BEBR, which then feeds you, treated that 22 percent
reduction in the unincorporated area of Collier County for the
statistics that you're using as the basis for the AUIR for Collier
County's unincorporated level of service?
I'm not talking about the levels of service for the City of Naples,
the City of Marco Island.
MR. WEEKS: For -- two answers.
For permanent population, we do prepare separate project -- we
do have a countywide figure, but then we also prepare separate
projections for each of the cities and then for the unincorporated area.
We actually solicit from the cities their own projections and we
use them. And, so, when we get that BEBR high range projection, we
first adjusted the 95 percent after the first five years.
Then we subtract from that the three cities projections to derive
the incorporated area of population.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And how do you adjust the vacancy
calculation?
MR. WEEKS: For peak season we do not separate the cities,
because the peak season population is prepared at the countywide
level.
So, we do include those cities in our -- in our projections.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, when you include those cities in
your projections for the services rendered by the county for its
unincorporated area, the assumption will have to be that cities
themselves are providing the services for their citizens; Marco Island
and the City of Naples.
Yet you're counting their rates in the full -- your full calculation,
so we are, in essence, then including in our service calculations
because we're using your big number, parts of which have already
been addressed in the incorporated areas of Collier County.
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November 20, 2006
MR. WEEKS: That's true.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's not good.
MR. WEEKS: That's true.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's where I was going.
MR. WEEKS: I think that would be another thing for us to look
at when we review the peak season population methodology, is
whether or not we should exclude those areas, most particularly for
water and sewer that would seem reasonable not to count those,
because that's very specific to a defined area.
And if you're in that defined area, you are using city service
versus county service.
Other things, there may be some argument that just because
you're a city resident doesn't mean you don't use unincorporated
county library facilities, for example, or similarly if you under certain
circumstances might use the county's EMS facilities, et cetera.
But, if anything, probably should be some percent of -- not a
hundred percent. That's a very good point.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I have an few of those -- others of those
points maybe at some time we should talk about, David, that's hard to
articulate sometimes and maybe you could help me out.
MR. WEEKS: Be pleased to hear any suggestions.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
Any other questions on population before we try to understand
what has happened in this A UIR?
Okay. Thank you.
David?
MR. WEEKS: Mr. Strain, one last comment.
You had asked earlier about any changes and I talked about how
the previous year would always be changing because it incorporates a
projection.
One other change, comparing this year to last year and other
previous year AUIR population data, the water and sewer projections
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November 20, 2006
previously did have a different methodology.
They still use the high range for the first five years, but after that,
they use the different methodology.
So, if you looked at a figure last year, you -- you -- 2002, for
example, that was not affected by the fact that we're dealing with the
projections, and you compared that 2000 to this year, you should see a
difference because the methodology has changed.
No longer are water and sewer projections different in their
methodology than the other public facilities. Now they're all treated
the same.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And that was where I was going, my
prior question.
Because as an example, what has happened in the public utilities
section, in order to get to a fixed acknowledgment, for example,
capacity, certain amounts couldn't change.
Yet when you change the population, it would force them to
change and, historically, we've already locked those other issues in.
So, what happened is all of a sudden the per capita disposal rates
adjusted, which we were told last year were fixed.
I think that's going to be an interesting scenario to understand as
we get into today's meeting, too.
So, David, thank you.
MS. VASEY: Oh, I have --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, Miss Vasey. I'm sorry.
MS. VASEY: Yeah.
On Page 4, you talked about the historical data showing peak
season the last six months, but in -- and in the past you've done
requirements, facility requirements, based on four months of peak
season.
And this year for the first time you're also including six months.
But then in your next sentence you say, the issue is not the length
of the season, rather just how much of a population increase occurs
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November 20, 2006
during that peak season.
So, I would read that to be that looking at the six month
requirements is not -- is important as the four months?
MR. WEEKS: The mistake -- I'll call it a mistake that was made
during this discussion that was held with the board last year on the
AUIR, at which time they directed staff to consider four month versus
six month peak season.
The mistake that was made is that staff failed to tell the board it
is six months. We already treated it as six months.
The 33 percent figure does not refer to the time of the season, the
four months. It refers to the amount of increase in the population.
Again, the 33 percent refers to the increase in population, not the
duration of the season. That was a misunderstanding.
MR. COHEN: And can I weight in for a second?
The net effect of that is, is the way the methodology is previously
calculated under the four-month scenario, is that the seasonal
population comes out to be approximately II percent because of that
.33 factor.
If you use the .5 factor, which is used in that six-month ratio,
what it does, it adjusts the seasonal population up to about a 16 and a
half percent increase, which is half of the 33 percent that we -- we do.
And that's basically what it does.
And, again, as David pointed out, it was a -- it was a mistake in
understanding what -- what direction was going from -- from the BCC.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Miss Vasey?
MS. VASEY: I just wanted to be sure then how we're going to
treat the review.
Will we be looking seriously at the six months peak or we will
just deal with the foremost?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I knew the information that David told
us today from our meeting last week, and so I basically ignored the
six-month review. It seemed like it would be not an effective use of
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November 20, 2006
my time, so --
MS. VASEY: That's what I did, too, but I wanted to see how we
were going to treat it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: David kind of told us last week it
shouldn't have been done the way it --
MS. VASEY: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- came out. And there was an omission
of information that caused it to happen, so it didn't make a lot of sense
to review it on my part.
MS. VASEY: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: David, thank you.
MR. WEEKS: Certainly.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Appreciate it.
MR. BOSI: And to give a brief -- give a brief presentation
related to impact fees and its relationship today, AUIR, Amy
Patterson.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
MS. PATTERSON: Good morning. For the record, I'm Amy
Patterson. I'm the Impact Fee Manager for Collier County.
And I'm just going to go over a couple of things briefly. These
are things that I've talked to both the Productivity Committee and the
Planning Commission about last year.
When we were involved with the AUIR, we actually were
updating ten of our 12 impact fees about this time last year and went
through a major update cycle, and so we spent a lot of time talking
about levels of service and population.
And, so, now with respect to that, our current impact fees are
based upon the weighted population methodology. However, if that's
modified, that, of course, will trigger a requirement for us to go back
and review each of the individual impact fee studies to make sure they
were using population numbers that are appropriate to what's adopted
by the board.
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November 20, 2006
If you'd like, I can go into just a couple of points. Most of these
were covered in the memo that was in your packet, but these have to
do with the financing of -- of public facilities and how the impact fees
play into that, so I'll just -- I'll go briefly into them if that's okay?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Sure. Go right ahead.
MS. PATTERSON: As you know, the impact fees are formally
reviewed and updated at least every three years. And, as I said, last
year we went through a major update cycle where we updated, I
believe, all but one of our impact fees within, basically, a one-year
period.
Also, each impact fee is indexed based on a set methodology in
the mid years between the formal studies and the indexing. This is
designed to keep the impact fees more consistent with the rates of
growth and the costs so that we don't have these huge spikes in the
impact fees like we saw in the past where we waited several years and
then went through a formal up date and you'd see a 50 percent
increase in the fees.
Prior to the 2007 indexing cycle, which will start this spring, the
Board of County Commissioners directed us to go out and review our
indexing methodology and develop some methodologies that would
take into account more localized construction numbers.
We are already using localized numbers for our land costs, but
we have been using a national data set to index on the construction
side, and we found that there was grossly lacking compared to what
we were seeing here in Collier County.
However, even that considered, we're seeing costs that are
escalating even beyond the point that even the indexing could cover,
and so the two choices that you have in order to meet your demands is
to go to more frequent updates, which is what we saw last year, where
a couple of our facilities had been updated prior -- you know, earlier
than three years, but we had to go back and revisit them again,
because the costs were just beyond what we could even absorb into an
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November 20, 2006
indexing, or there maybe a need for additional revenue sources as a
supplement, at least to get us past that point and maybe where the
costs would level out.
And these are just a couple more points on what impact fees are
used for, which we know is they're to fund capital improvements
necessitated by growth.
As Mike pointed out earlier, they cannot be used to fund
deficiencies or any kind of operation and maintenance.
The level of service that's established by our impact fee study, as
Mike also said, it basically sets the line that we've achieved.
It doesn't say that you can't adopt a standard that's higher if that's
the -- the decision of the Board of County Commissioners, that they
think that the level of service needs to be higher, they just need to find
a way to fund the difference between our -- our existing level of
service that the impact fees can pay for and what they hope to achieve.
And that may be in the form of general fund or some other
funding mechanism.
But it doesn't say that they can adopted a higher level service.
The only thing it does say is that you can have a level of service lower
than what you've achieved with your impact fees because then you've
pushed an unfair burden on to growth. They've paid more than their
fair share.
And with that, this is the transportation portion, so --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, you don't want to present that? I'm
sure Don Scott would appreciate it.
MR. SCOTT: Go ahead.
MS. PATTERSON: No, no thank you.
If you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer or if -- I don't
know if they'll be more appropriate as we get into the other public
facilities.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are there any questions on the impact
fees issues? And there's only -- there are only one or two pages.
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November 20, 2006
Miss Vasey.
MS. VASEY: Just one thing.
At the beginning, you mentioned that if -- if we do accept a new
methodology for the population, we'll have to go back and revisit all
of the impact fees?
MS. PATTERSON: Each one that uses weighted population,
which is ten of the 12, and the other two use a combination of the
weighted population, so each one of them will have to be reviewed.
Now, how different the numbers are or whatever will be
determined by -- by what's accepted by the board or what the state
decides has to be done.
But if there's a difference, a large difference, in the population, it
will have a direct effect on the impact fee, and you have to be very
certain that you're not overcharging.
If you're undercharging, I guess, that's better in a lot of ways,
because at least then you haven't pushed more costs onto somebody
unfairly.
Whereas, if you're -- if you're overcharging for some reason or if
your population number changes the calculation, then you have to be
very careful with that.
So, yes. Once they determine the methodology they will be
using for the population, we'll go back in, have our consultant review
each of the studies, and to the degree that --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If you could slow down a little bit, her
fingers are pumping --
MS. PATTERSON: I'm sorry.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- go lightning fast.
MS. PATTERSON: I'm sorry.
We'll go back and look at that methodology and compare it to
each one of the impact fee studies to determine what measures need to
be taken to make those adjustments.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you, Amy.
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November 20,2006
MR. BOSI: One other thing, and I should have had the
transportation cited, you know, pointed out within the AIR book
before -- at the very last of the introductory section there is a summary
page that provides a fiscal snapshot of where the deficiencies in terms
of revenue is for -- for, but the four month and the sixth month based
upon the discussion, I think, we'll just -- I'll just point out within the
four month, based upon -- based upon the proposed capital
improvement projects related to the Category A and Category B
facilities, there is a deficit of $42 million or over $42 million, and that
is -- those are strictly contained within the Category B facilities, but
the recommendations that will come from each of the -- the
Productivity and the Planning Commission will have to be either a
lowering of level of service for the Category B facilities or the
identification of additional or alternative revenues to make up that
shortfall.
And with that --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mike, just for an instance though, I went
-- in going through Category A and B, the population statistics are
driven -- are the index for almost -- for out of, say, 13, I think, at least
ten of our categories, roads is not population driven, roads is level of
service and, I believe, count driven.
So, once we get past county roads and, I think, drainage
structures and canals, we're into elements that are all population driven
that will be affected by this new outcome of the population statistics.
Is that a fair statement?
MR. BOSI: That's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
We're going to be very effective here today.
Norm, you're the only person that has accurate numbers maybe.
MR. FEEDER: I hope so, sir.
Mr. Chairman and members of both the Planning Commission
and the Productivity Committee, I'm going to be extremely brief, as a
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November 20,2006
way of introduction, and then Don Scott is going to go through and get
to what you want to do, which is go by page by page, respond to your
questions.
But I did want to tell you this is a rather challenging AUIR cycle
for us. Specifically, we're asked by the board to make sure that we
had projects actually under contract before we utilized that capacity
within our concurrency management system.
They've told us to continue our production processing, go
through the planning studies, the design, the right-of-way, but on
construction, that we essentially show that in reserve until we actually
have a contract.
Because of that, already there's been changes on the AUIR that
Don has developed for you in the sense that regarding that County
Road 951 from Immokalee down to Golden Gate Boulevard, which
was shown to be later.
Also just recently, as you're well aware, if you've read the paper
on all the glowing comments, we recently let Santa Barbara from
Golden Gate down to Davis as well as the Radio Road section, which
is two other segments identified in what Don's been reviewing with
you.
I also want to point out under that opportunity is the rising
escalating costs, rapidly escalating transportation projects, and we've
got some material, and I won't belabor the point, but just leave it with
you, but I'll call your attention to is really the last three pages.
What you have here on the front, the first item is December 2005,
and as I'll note in a minute, probably 2006 unfortunately isn't even in
draft form yet, but it will be out soon.
This is the state's look at the issues statewide and by district of
costs.
And on the third to last page, you've got a summary of District I,
which is the 12-county area that represents Collier as one of those 12
counties is essentially from Collier on up to Manatee County across to
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November 20, 2006
Polk and then down.
So, it's basically the southwest part of the State.
And as you look there, you can see what's happening on costs
according to the state's figures. They show three to four, the
percentage changes like earth work, almost 24 percent increase, and
then from four to five, another 24 percent increase, asphalt, I won't
belabor all the numbers just to show you the nature of increase.
If you go to the second to the last page you've got some area
specific numbers. And this is looking at projects that we've let in
2003, four, five, and two of the most recent projects that we've let to
give you an order of magnitude of what's happening with costs.
We don't have the exact same categories. Much of them are the
same though, if you look at embankment, that's pretty much earth
work that was on the prior page.
And if you look at it, our experience from three to four wasn't
that vastly different from the state's. From four to five, a little bit
greater than the state's increase.
That represents some of the fact that when you look at it, we have
to import it. We don't have many directions for it to come from or as
. .
many mInes In our area.
And then as you look at it in six, you can see the rather
significant increase that we're experiencing from five to six.
You look at asphalt, that's down here under the last item here.
Asphalt, S3 thickness and also we're going to the new mix.
But going through there, you see what's happening in the costs,
not that far different from four and five. The state didn't have any real
increase per se and not a lot from three to four and four to five,
experiencing some significant increases here locally, not too far from
their figures but nonetheless this gives you a feel.
You've got a graphic here that's shown that shows some of these
major components of projects. As you up the nature of our work, they
make sense in what we're experiencing.
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November 20, 2006
Concrete is up quite a bit. Over in the right-hand side, we utilize
most predominantly, although we've shown you the figures for others,
24-inch pipe as of now poured, a lot of work.
And can you see the rapidly escalating costs there.
Another is concrete is sidewalks. The concrete work has gone up
quite a bit on our projects, curb and gutter. Then you see the asphalt,
a rather large increase during the ball unit we utilize.
And then lastly embankment or the earth work items.
I bring this to your attention only to show you that if you look at
costs there, we've had very, very significant increases as we've been in
the process of development of this AUIR.
Some of the updaters are already in the figures, some of it we're
refining.
So, chairman, I'd like to have taken your first statement and stood
there, but I'm telling you there's some movement in this and generally
what I'll call your attention to is on Page 6 of the AUIR, and you see a
figure of 182,394,000 under DCA's advanced reimbursement.
And what I will tell you is that is a figure to balance our program
with most of these cost increases are new estimates in -- in -- taken
into account.
And Don is going to go through some details on items that we
looked at on that. I'm also going to tell you the board was apprised of
the fact that this was a balancing item, that we had some areas that we
thought the funds could well come from.
I said, Don, I'll cover that in more detail for you. But the board
also gave us a very strong direction that they didn't want us to pull
back on projects.
They wanted us to look at the impact fee. They talked about
reserve funds and other issues as may be necessary to balance the
program, but you do need to look at that 182 and understand that that
is not a traditional gas tax impact fees as they've been in the passion.
That is an expansion of funding needed to balance the program
Page 40
November 20, 2006
based on increased revenue sources -- or estimates, excuse me.
The last thing I'll point out to you is that on the table on Page 10,
it was pointed out to us by Miss Vasey that if you look at the table on
Page 10 and you look at the debt service, when everybody gets there,
it shows no debt service until fiscal year' 11. It shows fourteen million
three thirty-nine, if you see that there, and therefore a total of that.
And that's why you don't see expenses and -- and revenues
balancing out.
In reality, if you look at it on Page 9 and you look across the
column here under the debt service, it shows you all the way across
where you have a reducing but nonetheless fourteen six, fourteen --
fourteen five eighty, and you go across and that 72 million, if you take
that into account, the two items balance.
That was an error in preparation of this table, so I apologize for
that error, but I wanted to bring it to your attention.
And just so you know why that is coming across like that, we
went through a process, and I know this is not where we want to be is
anything out of change page, but nonetheless we went through a
process of already bonding out.
I believe it was 2002 and 2005, if I'm correct, Sharon? Was it
2000?
MS. NEWMAN: 2003 and five.
MR. FEEDER: Three and five. 2003 and five we did two draws
on just under two hundred million of bonding, and we bonded our gas
tax and now this is the debt service paying that off through the years.
That's why it's pretty standard.
And with that, I'll turn it over to Don and let him go through page
by page. Again, we very much appreciate your review, your
comments and the like, and I think Mr. Murray?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yeah. Just one question. Our
gas tax still hasn't been indexed?
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November 20, 2006
MR. FEEDER: Gas tax has not been indexed. Gas tax is staying
pretty level. And you can see it on that sheet of revenue assumption
but its buying power is going down.
The state, as you know, has been indexing their gas tax for a long
time but they have not see fit to allow counties to do so.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Have you talked to --
MR. FEEDER: It has been legislative item for us, for Florida
Association of Counties every year that I can think of, and it's one
that's never made it anywhere. It's got the T word to it, even though
it's locally imposed. It's not been seen.
It is not a huge generator of revenue, but it would at least keep
the buying power where it should be, which is unfortunately even as
opposed to decreasing.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Like Senator Dirkson used to
say, a billion here, a billion there. I mean --
MR. FEEDER: Yeah. We'll work on the million part and not try
to go to billions, but, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you, Norm.
MR. FEEDER: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Appreciate it.
Well, Don, it leaves the -- the battle parts.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. I'll try to be more positive today.
There's a couple of things I want to touch on. I guess we can
either go page by page or -- let me touch on a few things because I
know some questions have come up.
If you look at the work program, you see most of the items
beyond the first three years. That's by purpose. By board direction,
we aren't bringing a project within the currency window unless we
have a contract.
And based on Norman's presentation, where it kind of hits on the
reason why, you know, exploding costs.
I think that, you know, at the beginning when the board raised
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November 20, 2006
this issue, I wasn't sure it was the best way to go, but now nine months
later, I think it's -- it's a good move because it -- you know, if you look
at even Davis Boulevard, it was assumed at one point, and then FDOT
would -- the exploding costs took that out.
It would be -- it's good not to assume that for concurrency
purposes until we get to it. And that's why you'll see most of the
projects within 20/ten.
The other thing is there's money in there that's called advance
construction. That's -- that's part of that whole issue. We have money
in -- in some of the current years to address those projects if they
come forward and that's why advance construction is in there.
I want to also touch on -- I know we had a discussion last year
about a.m. analysis. We went through all the segments, do a
comparison of a.m. versus p.m., peak hours across all the segments,
and Pine Ridge actually was the only one that had a higher a.m. of
volume.
Now, having said that, the hard part -- when I was standing up
here last year, I should have been thinking faster and more further
forward -- is that all of our trip bank is based on p.m. peak analysis.
So, to go back and essentially make that trip bank for three to
four years worth of projects is a lot of work. Now, we will work
towards that. It's just not something we could do right away, at least
from the good part is not a big difference in -- in most of the corridors.
Now, I will point out, too, that if you took Pine Ridge a.m.
analysis based on the shopping and stuff in there, I think it will
probably end up being overall lower volume.
Now, from the good part, is when Golden Gate Parkway opens
up. I assume that will make a big difference in the Pine Ridge
corridor, too.
From that, I guess, let's go page by page. I'm starting on Page 8.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, Don, ours starts on Page 6. Do
you have that page there?
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November 20,2006
You know --
MR. SCOTT: I do now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: --last week had the same problem,
wrong -- wrong page, wrong book.
Are you -- is your Page 6 the summary page?
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MR. SCOTT: Essentially just what revenue you have and
N orman did call out -- let me go to the DCA's advance
reimbursements.
We went through the whole program, added in all the new costs
estimates. We were short by about a hundred eighty million or so.
I've gone through and I've identified some possible locations of
funding. Obviously, some of it's from DCAs.
I will caution though that if I'm -- you know, if you take it -- for
instance, there's a coalition on 41 south that would like to prepay.
Well, ultimately, I would think that money is used for 41. So, it's
hard to say, am I getting advance money?
Davis Boulevard. I think the impact fees, if you look at it that
way, I've counted some money in there. That would be getting it
faster than it would come in otherwise but, again, it would be
earmarked towards Davis Boulevard.
I've also looked at grants. I mean, this last year we had $27
million in grants. If you go out in the future and you look at the
bottom, you only have like a million or two.
We only put in the -- you know, the sure grants that we're going
to have.
I have a rumor that I'm getting $6 million for Oil Well Road. We
will get more money per year for grants. And I've tried to identify
some of those.
In addition to that, if you look at the impact fees, they decline
over the five years. In the last three years, we took in about fifty --
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November 20,2006
and I'm doing it from memory -- about 54, 52 million, and I think this
last year 48 million. It was down a little bit even though we increased
it.
We can assume over time I would think that we're going to gain a
little more. That's about 50 million of that.
And hand this out. This is just my stab at it. Not -- it hasn't been
reviewed by anybody, but I tried to put together some -- I've tried to
put together some locations that I think that from a developer
contribution agreements, that we could get the money now.
Do we want to do them? I'm not so sure. One of things that has
been raised in the last couple of weeks is, is updating our impact fees
.
agaIn.
If we're so far off from where we were, maybe we need another
update.
Now, we just -- the board just adopted our impact fee increase in
June, and again that's going to be a painful process because of the
increase in costs.
But, again, if you look at it from growth pain from growth, our
costs have gone up substantially.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I have a question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Don, just for me and I think for
everybody here, the existing revenue sources under Growth
Management 2005, that law, the state was to give us a billion and a
half or something, throughout the state, some portion of which would
come to us.
Where would I find that in your revenue sources?
MR. SCOTT: It would be -- what we have gotten so far from
that is under the grant side of it.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: That's what I thought.
MR. SCOTT: And we have two that are identified in there, one
that was Immokalee and 1-75 that was just a shot -- a little bit under $5
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November 20, 2006
million.
We are getting one on County Road 951 from Golden Gate
Boulevard up to the one that just started up to Immokalee, which again
is just under $5 million.
And what I hear is that we will be getting six million for Oil Well
Road. That's not shown in here and that's shown in my other list that I
just handed out.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: So, the reimbursement portion of
it would be considerable as against grants, if we were to take a ratio, I
assume?
You're indicating the grants are rather small, I would think. Is
that what you're saying?
MR. SCOTT: Well, it can be and it might not be. I mean this
last year, it's $27 million. Now, one of them was a loan for $12
million. That means I have to pay it back, but it just depends how
things go.
Do I think I'm going to get a lot more Growth Management
money through that? No. We'll get -- we'll get five or six each year in
we're lucky.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We'll stick on Page 1 until we
finish the questions on this page. This is the summary page.
Any other questions?
Yes, sir. Mr. Blum?
MR. BLUM: What -- what leads you to believe that since the
impact fee revenue has gone down that you expect it to pick up based
on current conditions that we're all well aware of?
MR. SCOTT: Well, that's a point. I mean, one of the -- even in
my statement we raised it though it went down a little bit this last year.
Do I think over the next few -- I mean, that's -- a lot of it is from
projections that -- and that's why it's conservative in there.
I do know that we have some COA money. We -- when we
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November 20, 2006
started this three years ago, the concurrency system, a lot of people
paid the 50 percent up front.
Three years later now, they have to pay the other 50 percent or
they lose their vesting. And I believe this year will be pretty solid
from that standpoint because that's when we started that.
There's some big developments out there that have to make some
decisions whether they're going to have to pay that or not.
Can I say five years from now? I don't know.
MR. BLUM: My fear is to count on impact fees continually
going up based on the current climate, so let's revisit impact fees and
theoretically raise them some more to keep the revenue stream where
you want it to be, yet the costs are going to still continue to go up, and
I'm wondering about the ambitious projects that we all know we need.
We've been -- you've been mandated to seek to fruition, that it's
realistic with these impact fees.
MR. SCOTT: No -- no different than our concerns.
You know, I think you're seeing some effect on the market from
the impact fee increase, more so what I hear from the commercial side.
MR. BLUM: Yeah.
MR. SCOTT: On certain side of commercial, it said no, I'm not
going to come here for that, because they're already saying that that's
their highest cost when they develop a parcel somewhere.
Do I think raising it to match that is the best way to go? Not
specifically.
You know, one of the things that's not clear when you look at
this, there's a lot of needs out there that aren't specific -- can't be
covered by impact fees.
For instance, bridges. A lot of bridges were built in the fifties
and sixties, have a 50 to 75 year lifespan.
If I go out and replace a two-lane bridge with a two-lane bridge, I
can't use impact fees for that. And that lends itself to a different
source.
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November 20, 2006
MR. BLUM: Thank you.
MR. FEEDER: Mr. Chairman?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Feeder.
MR. FEEDER: If I could just add to that for just a second.
Additionally, as you look at it, if our impact fees do go down
because growth slows down, some of our demand proj ections will go
down.
Now, we have some of that accounted for, a given market, but
over time we're looking at it and -- and I don't think there will be that
in appreciable a -- a decrease in development continuing here in
Collier County.
MR. SCOTT: Just so you know, Amy just handed this to me.
Fiscal year '05, we took in $58 million in road impact fees, and '06, it
was down to five one and a half.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But you said that you increased impact
fees in '06. Is that correct?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. In June. Effective June.
Now, this is -- this is a fiscal year, so it's June to this -- end of
September.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, increasing impact fees still with the
decline and a projected decline as we move forward, you then are, in
essence, projecting less dwelling units, less commercial square footage
that would generate those impact fees to be constructed.
Is that a fair statement?
Well, let's put it this way. Could you tell me your source of
impact fee?
MR. SCOTT: It's all of what you're talking about; housing,
commercial and everything else.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If a projection shows less impact fees
coming in, does that mean your housing and square footage and the
rest of it is decreasing?
MR. SCOTT: It would seem like it's slowing down, but I make
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November 20, 2006
that qualification because with the 50 percent up front, it's -- it's not an
even, you know, even pavement scheme.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MR. FEEDER: And, Mr. Chairman, the COA up front is 50
percent. What we had was when we increased the impact fees just
shortly before the other section of fees, folks went in earlier, so we've
got some that of COA.
So, the prior year was probably inflated a little bit, so the
difference between the two years isn't -- isn't quite as the numbers
would portray.
MR. SCOTT: Well, let me answer it a little different way, too.
Yes. Does it seem like the -- the building and everything is
slowing down, but my traffic counts don't show it yet.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right. The traffic counts are really
independent of the buildings and roads.
MR. SCOTT: But that's really where my concurrency side
comes from.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
Don, we're going to take a 15-minute break. This seems like a
good break point. We'll be back here at 10: 15 to resume. Thank you.
(A recess was had.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Please take the seats. We need to
resume the meeting.
Everybody, do you want to quiet down, please.
Mrs. Vasey has some information that she had received in
response to questions that were asked prior to today's meeting and
she'll pass those out for our reference and use as we moved forward.
Ms. Vasey, do you want to tell us how these came about and just
let us know so that when we're reading them we can understand the
context in which they are derived?
MS. VASEY: Okay. When I got the books -- in the Productivity
Committee, we generally do a lot of our work asking questions
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November 20, 2006
directly of staff via e-mail. And, so, we check them. We're allowed to
do that this time, too.
So, I asked quite a few questions and got very good answers in
response.
And Norm had made copies of this -- of the transportation ones,
and since I have the copies here, I wondered if you wanted them, you
could have them. Just questions.
What we use it for is to kind of sift out some of the information
that -- that we don't want to get into then in a big meeting.
If you can answer some of the little questions for us ahead of
time, then it helps to identify the bigger issues for the full discussion.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And I notice to the back you have a
series of questions that don't seem to have answers to them from
drainage and utilities and parks and rec.
MS. VASEY: Oh, I did get -- I did get answers to those, but I
guess transportation just did their own questions.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Thank you.
I don't know how we will digest this during the course of the
meeting, but maybe -- I don't know if we'll get through any of these in
final form anyway, so as we get to the end, we certainly have these
now to read and move back to.
MR. SCOTT: And as always, we're available to come back to --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right--
MR. SCOTT: -- if that's what you're looking for.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We also left off on the first page, which
is Page 6.
MR. SCOTT: Six.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It was the summary form of the AUIR
for transportation. We had started from questions on that page.
Are there any questions from other members of this panel at this
time?
Miss Vasey.
Page 50
November 20, 2006
MS. VASEY: Yes. In the 2005 AUIR, you were able to do 217
lane miles, and then in this one you're only able to do about 150 lane
miles, which is a 30 percent drop.
But then looking at the paper yesterday and hearing your
discussion today, it's not really likely that you're even going to be able
to do that many lane miles.
I was wondering if you could give us some kind of a possible
projection of where, what number of lane miles you'd be able to do,
and also if anything critical would be dropping out that would really
cause a lot of concern.
MR. FEEDER: Jan, if I could, let me fill that one.
As we noted, first of all, we generally balanced with that 182
million. Don's given you some idea of what we think some of the
revenue possibly come from.
But in discussion with the board, the last board meeting, at the
end of that meeting, they made it clear that they wanted us, first of all,
to look back at impact fees. I know we had some discussion about
what that may produce.
But, additionally, they noted other revenues streams and their
commitment to wanting to make sure that we move forward and
deliver the program as a structure, so we're still going in that vein.
So, we hope to be able to deliver again that same number of
miles. Now, obviously, the unit costs is up and, therefore, the overall
costs would be up.
So, in other words, we're not at this point looking at pulling
anything out of the program because of the increases in cost estimates
at this time.
MS. VASEY: Well, it does seem like your unit cost that you're
showing right here of six million three is actually going to be much
higher in reality, and the six million three is based on the 150-mile
lane, lane miles.
So, it seems like you would have to be having something less
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November 20, 2006
than that, wouldn't you?
MR. FEEDER: Well, we're assuming again that we're going to
get additional revenue stream in order of magnitude of approximately
that 182 million overall, the different actions that we're undertaking.
And to your point, what I didn't cover in the first handout that I
gave you, the very last page, that shows you what's happening per
mile for costs of construction on transportation, the very last page, that
shows you actually the first item should have been in 2003. It's shown
2002, but we're about four million per mile up to six.
Obviously, the overpass you can't look at in that manner. Then
coming down, you're about six averaging up until this year when
you've gone up to doubling of that costs.
So, our costs have doubled from that, basically moved up to
about six million a mile for transportation construction up to over 12
now or 13 or 14 in the last writings.
So, your point's well taken. Our costs have gone up. Ifwe don't
have any additional revenue stream, obviously we can't deliver on all
those miles.
MR. SCOTT: And if you look at Page 9, I mean, you're saying--
I think you're saying the same thing. We do have a lot within the next
four years or so, but you get out through ten, there's not much out
there.
And we start like one new design on Wilson and that's -- that's
about it for this -- what's in the ten-year program right now.
MS. VASEY: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Still on Page I?
Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: No.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, I thought you put your hand up.
Sorry .
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Get it out of the way.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This is like those, an auction, you put
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November 20,2006
your hand up, you're stick --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- so--
Don, I have one question on the existing revenue sources. Last
year you had a revenue source called Toll Revenue Trust Fund. It had
over $5 million available.
What happened to that?
MR. SCOTT: That was for County Road 951 extension. And
because of the expressway authority and dealing with 1-75, both us
and Lee County are not moving forward with 951 until an answer is
done on 1-75 because, obviously, if we do toll of, say, four lanes in the
middle of 1-75, it has a big influence on what goes on 951.
If something doesn't happen on 1- 7 5, then nine -- then we will
pursue 951.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That was listed as a revenue
source. Is that revenue source -- was that money moved into another
category or is it just not going to happen?
MR. SCOTT: It would have been money we would have had to
go after to get, and at this point we're not going to go after that at this
point in time.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. The next page is a graph on
seven, so we'll do seven and eight. Questions on Pages 7 and 8?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah. Just to make sure I
understand something, Mark.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So, the way we come up with a
level of services, we do traffic counts all around the county, I guess,
117 places, we throwaway March and February's data, and then we
take the highest -- throwaway the top 100 pieces of data, and then
that's our level of service?
MR. SCOTT: No. What you do is you count -- the 117 locations
is actually what I get data from traffic operations. I have more
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November 20, 2006
locations than that, but essentially take traffic counts all round, every
link that we have in the AUIR segments.
And from there, we take that data and use what you call
permanent count station factors to factor down to the 250 at the
highest hour, essentially, getting the stack -- if you had a permanent
count station in every segment, you would stack them and say this is
the 250th highest count, but since you don't have that for every
location, we are getting more, but we don't have them for every
location yet.
You factor that down to get what would be the 250th highest
hour of the year, and that is the -- when you get that peak hour, the
p.m. peak hour for that, you compare that to the capacity.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Let me make it true or false.
The -- you take all the traffic counts, correct? You take your traffic
counts and you reduce -- and you throwaway February and March
data, correct?
MR. SCOTT: Well, not -- no, because what you're taking is --
you're taking all the counts that you have and you're factoring those
counts down.
Now, is it February and March for every location? That's -- that
was put out there because that's essentially what happens is most of it
happens in February and March.
But it could be the middle of the summer for some location could
be the highest point. It's -- it's essentially getting rid of every hour
that's less than 250th -- or greater volume than 250th, but it doesn't
matter what time of the year it happens.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It then -- under consideration,
the second bullet, is that a true statement?
MR. SCOTT: It's--
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I'll try that.
MR. SCOTT: It is, if you looked at it from -- when we looked at
all the permanent count location, I know we had a lot of discussion
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November 20,2006
about this when we brought forward the hundred versus the 250th.
For most count locations and most peak season, it's true. You're
taking -- it's -- it's if you get rid of the February and March, it ended
up being the hundredth highest hour of the year.
But no matter the way you look at it, it's 250th -- there's -- in a lot
of locations, there are 249 hours out of the year that are going to be
worse than that, that -- that -- that hour that's shown there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay, Brad? Does that--
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Almost.
So, essentially, you have -- there's like 500 hours you have had to
add on and you're down on the 250th hour to set the level of service.
MR. BLUM: 249.
MR. SCOTT: Well, there's how many hours in a year? That's--
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. So, there would be --
okay.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. Whatever, 3,000 hours are out of the year,
so there's -- there's, you know, 2,700 that are worse -- I mean, that are
better and 249 or whatever that are -- that are worse.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: All right. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Questions--
MR. SCOTT: It's to get at an average peak season number.
Now, do you get that in all locations? Some -- some are probably a
little worse, some are a little better.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: But why wouldn't you just state
the 250th hour? Why would you say omit February and March and
take the hundredth hour?
MR. SCOTT: I think that's because we were trying to describe it
better. I don't know. It's probably better to do it the way I just did it
than describing it that the way, but it was something when we brought
that forward before, we were trying to make it easy to understand.
I guess we didn't get there.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It didn't work on me.
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November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Questions on Page 8?
Don, on the bottom under your observations, first of all, you're
comparing these to a 2004 date. Do you really mean 2005?
MR. SCOTT: No, because what happens is I'm always -- I've got
2005 counts and they're compared to 2004 counts, because we're in
2006.
It's -- well, what we talked about, it's the last -- it's whatever the
last four quarters I have, so it's really like the last two of 2005, the first
two of2006.
But for the bolt data that I get on all the stations, it's a
comparison between '05 and '04.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Last year you had a -- the same
language was all -- was it compared to 2004 as well. I have it in front
of me in last year's AUIR. That's why it would seem logical that this
year it 2005.
MR. SCOTT: Then I made a mistake last year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, the last year should have said 2003.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well, then how do you explain
the year before that that said 2003? So, I guess we've got -- it's like,
David, we have to go back decades now in our population statistics
and you and your count statistics, huh?
MR. SCOTT: Well, this -- this one sheet, I take from the bulk
counts, but the actual counts are the last two -- the ones I used within
the AUIR itself are the last two quarter, whatever I had available when
I'm doing it, which was the last two quarters of last year and the first
two quarters of this year.
But I don't have a good way of comparing those by quarter, is
that they don't put them all together like that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Last year you -- in the first three bullets,
the 32 stations, the 24 stations and the 26 stations, those total 82. Last
year it totaled 144 stations.s
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November 20, 2006
Does that mean you're showing less stations with an increase in
traffic?
MR. SCOTT: Yes. With greater increases anyway.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, it's showing an increase of five to
ten -- over five percent basically.
MR. SCOTT: Right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And the one below, you have 22, nine
and four stations totaling 35. Last year you had 57. You also have
less stations showing a decrease.
MR. SCOTT: Well, the other side is I had less stations the year
before. When I went back and I looked at some of the data for at least
the comparisons they had here, there were a lot of -- because of the
hurricane, they pulled out a lot of them.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: How do you explain the -- the decrease
and the increase.
MR. SCOTT: You know, it's funny. If I look at the AUIR
numbers and forget these numbers because these are the bulk ones and
sometimes these are locations I don't even have in -- in the segments
on.
It seemed like it hadn't gone up as much in some of the locations.
Now, I think we were coming out of -- 2002 was a slow year.
2003 we had -- we had -- we had a downturn there. We had an upturn.
I think, in some respects, that last year was a little bit down over the
year before even though percentage wise it doesn't shows it.
Now, one of the things you look at, and I've got a lot of questions
about this, too, there are people making longer trips, which gives you
more counts in each location, but that's -- you know, is it essentially
more cars at the location?
I think there's more -- longer trips is one thing that I'm pointing to
when I look at the data versus shorter trips.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Interesting.
MR. SCOTT: Now, I am getting hopefully next year -- I've got
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November 20,2006
like three or four months of good permanent count station data, and
you can look at daily things, what's happening in daily.
Unfortunately for this, I don't have a year's worth of data. Next
year when I'm standing here, I'll have a lot better data when I'm
looking at a year's worth of data.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, we've got more data on Page 9 to
discuss, so let's move on to that.
MR. SCOTT: Now, last year we did a five-year work program
because of what -- I guess there was some discussion last year, but
also of what Department of Community Affairs was trying to look at,
was it more what are you going to do over the next ten years?
If you see -- I don't show money beyond 11. There's some --
some thought that if -- first of all, if you -- if you look at some of our
future years, you know at the costs going 100 percent, 80 percent
increases per year, it's hard to project what it's going to be seven years
from now.
Beyond that, if you look at it from a proportionate share
standpoint, those are very -- those are questionable out there, and I
don't really at this point want to take proportionate share on something
that's very questionable.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are there questions on Page 9?
Don, on the -- one I -- I have a question on is the Wilson
Boulevard -- it's your 60040, Golden Gate Boulevard to Wilson east of
Everglades.
In '09, you've got a tremendous increase in expenditures, more so
than you had in '05, in the '05 report predicting for '09.
Have you accelerated that particular roadway?
MR. SCOTT: It's at -- it's approaching 30 percent design at this
point based on the cost estimates that we're getting in other parts of the
county and our design engineers looking at that, that cost has gone up
a lot, let alone the fact that the number of parcels is phenomenal.
It's like 400 parcels on that segment all the way out. And that's
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November 20, 2006
going to be healthy right-of-way cost.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. No other questions on Page 9,
we'll move to Page 10. This was the table that has already had one
adjustment made to it based on a handout in the first part of the
meeting.
And that was for cumulative debt service reference the $14
million number that was added across the line.
Any other questions on Page IO?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: The DCAs in advance
reimbursements, that looks like a plugged number. Are we counting
on the DCAs heavily in this case?
MR. SCOTT: I was trying to make it balanced.
Do I really want to? It's -- you know, some of them are very
questionable whether we want to enter into them, and then the other
side of it is, is it new money?
In some respects, it would be new money. In some -- if you take
them, a lot of them are going to be above and beyond impact fees, so
the money above and beyond impact fees would be new money for
other areas, but we would be also probably committing some roadway
improvement that might not be identified in here.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. I understand.
MR. SCOTT: It's also the thought that, you know, that there
might be a proportionate share out there maybe. But you know, it's
whatever questionable money that's out there grant wise, things like
that.
MR. BLUM: Pie in the school.
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Don, your -- your addition of this
cumulative debt service, last year you had that number plugged into
the existing debt service and you had it forecasted for every following
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November 20,2006
year as existing debt service.
Why did you choose to put it in cumulative debt service this year
and why was it in existing debt service forecasted for not only this
year but future years and last year's AUIR?
MR. FEEDER: The way it was going to be modified, like that
14, it needs to be shown as existing as it was last year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, so the table that we got today has
got to be --
MR. FEEDER: The table is just putting the 14 in, but it didn't
modify the title, which should be existing because, as I noted, that is
from prior bonding of the gas tax and it's an existing debt service
being paid off.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, we'll have another revision to that
table.
MR. FEEDER: That and a clean up of the full section, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Further down, DC -- under grant
reimbursements, under '07, you have twenty-seven million five
fourteen eight hundred.
Last year's prediction for '07 was about two and a half million.
How did we go from a prediction for '07 of two and a half million
to, I guess, what is more factual, twenty-seven million five fourteen?
MR. SCOTT: You have -- if you look at '07, and it's small, what
I handed out before, the sheet that has the five different years.
Essentially, last year we did not know whether we were getting
some of those grants. That totals ten million in there.
Though the loan hasn't gone to the board yet, I'm still dealing
with Tallahassee on that. There's a $12 million loan on there.
It's also shown as an expense on top from a loan, so it's hard to
say whether that's -- you know, it's not really new money.
But then there's a whole bunch of other things in there. There's
pedestrian bridges, traffic management box, pathways box, other
things like that.
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November 20, 2006
That's why I did say that some of these grants, even last year, we
didn't -- we didn't know for the four million. We kind of knew we
were going to get it, but it wasn't a guarantee until we -- we've
accepted a big fake check before. We don't want to do that again.
We're not counting on it until we have it in our pocket, so --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, Don, that makes me wonder about
next year. In '05, you had 14,000,288 with -- and the projections after
'05, in the '05 AUIR were for less money in the future, 2 million or
less.
Now, this year the 2 million went to 27 million, but your
projections have again dropped down to one and a half million for '08
and three million plus for '09.
Why wouldn't we want to utilize historically what's been the
average? And I'm not sure -- I could go back to '04 and '03 AUIRs,
which I have here.
MR. SCOTT: I'm sure that they would be lower, too.
That's why in -- in -- in those lines, that's why I've added this
other one that says DCA advance reimbursements. It's supposed to
say grants, too.
The ones I think we're going to get, but not positive we're going
to get, because I know I have a gap of funding to make up and I agree
is it probably more conservative than it should be? Yes. Just as I think
the impact fees four years from now, I think, will probably be a little
better than 35 million.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: My concern is if we don't show a more
true figure there, we would be asking for an escalation in taxes or
impact fees that may not be factually warranted.
And that's -- and especially if we have historical evidence that
that line item has been consistently higher than what's shown here in
the future.
MR. SCOTT: And I think in some respects that can be some
direction that we take forward to the board, too. I mean, we've had
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November 20, 2006
discussions between, you know, where should we have impact fees set
at or where we have certain things set at?
You could do it as based on what's the history is, but then there's
some concern that is that money actually going to come in and are you
going to program something on something that might not happen?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Miss Caron.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Did you say that grants
should included in that figure?
MR. SCOTT: In the -- yeah, in the -- in the DCA's advance
reimbursements, what I handed out, I did put in some other grant
money that -- some of them that I'm more positive I'm going to get,
but then some other thoughts --
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Well, because there's a--
MR. SCOTT: -- of what I'm going to get.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: -- separate line item here on
Attachment D for grants and reimbursements, so --
MR. SCOTT: I know, but these --
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: -- on one of these. You may
have already accounted for it here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This is the question.
MR. SCOTT: He's saying if you look out, that you have a
million, million and a half. Those are ones that we know we're going
to get paid back on.
The ones I have on this separate sheet are ones that are more
questionable. But you're right. The history is higher. And it should
keep higher, too, if I'm doing my job.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Which means it would be more
accurately reflected if we use the historical averages instead of
something we could be conservative on.
The next question I have is under miscellaneous. How do you
have a negative miscellaneous?
MR. SCOTT: That's four million. Do you know what that is?
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November 20,2006
Five percent negative --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, you're going to have to repeat it on
record.
MR. SCOTT: Five percent negative revenue.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You're going to have to use the speaker
because there has got to be on record and please identify yourself.
MS. NEWMAN: Sharon Newman, Transportation Services.
By Florida Statute we're required to budget every year five
percent negative revenue in the event that all the revenue doesn't come
.
In.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, you know, you didn't do that last
year. Does that mean you're in violation of Florida Statute?
MS. NEWMAN: No. It's in our budget last year. It just didn't
show up in the document last year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The document, which was the AUIR,
which was approved by the board, didn't have this item in it, yet it
existed.
MS. NEWMAN: Yes. And I don't have that in front of me to
look at it to say whether it did or didn't.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. How many other numbers are on
here that exist that aren't on that sheet that we don't know about?
MS. NEWMAN: Shouldn't be any.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MR. SCOTT: You know, one thing I should add to the bigger
conversation about how you project the cost, you know, grants and
other things like that, the board has given direction, too, to put a
higher contingency in.
If you go to the bottom, it identifies what year each one -- like
ten percent in '07, in '08, 15 percent in '09 and 20 percent in '10. And
I think it was 25 percent in the last year.
We do have a greater contingency in there for the -- what's
happening for cost increases. It's another area where, you know, will
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November 20, 2006
we really get those increases in, you know, another area where there
might be some additional funding.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Carry forward. This year you're
predicting a substantial carry forward. You had a substantial carry
forward last year.
You're predicting no carry forwards for the following years?
MR. SCOTT: We only do that in each given year that we're in. I
mean, obviously, we have construction projects that the money's all
encumbered, but they're not all paid out yet. And there's a lot of them
out there right now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Is it -- is that a factor of what's been
contracted but not paid out --
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- or is it a factor of what you can't
spend --
MR. SCOTT: Yes. And also --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You can't spend as much money as
you're getting.
MR. SCOTT: No. It's -- it's what's out there under construction
right now and right-of-way, I should add, because right-of-way is
takes about four years to payout over of time, particularly when you
go through the courts.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
Any other questions on Page IO?
MR. BLUM: Not -- not specifically --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Blum.
MR. BLUM: -- on Page 10, but you're talking -- you mentioned
that physical (sic) year II, that you have very little out there
scheduled except the Wilson Boulevard widening. Projected.
MR. SCOTT: That's actually -- and II was Oil Well, but beyond
that, if you look at the phases, I didn't put any money in it, but say the
second five years, 12 through 16, there's not much out there.
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November 20, 2006
MR. BLUM: Do you -- do you have any knowledge or -- or a
crystal ball? We hear so much about 1-75 and the widening of 1-75
toll lanes, no toll lanes.
When and if that happens, and I would think it will happen
probably in that period, how would we be impacted for costs?
MR. SCOTT: Well, we don't show the state funding on this
document. We would if we're -- I mean, obviously, if I'm taking
money and I give it to them, which in some respects we have for like
State Road 82, we show those, but for 1-75, FDOT is -- is essentially
programmed in their work program to six lane it starting next year,
probably around April, but the toll authority is still dealing with the
issue of whether we should use that money with toll revenue to do
more than just the two lanes that's programmed at this point.
MR. BLUM: So, we don't have projected costs to deal with that?
MR. SCOTT: We do. It's -- they have 479 million available to
do the six laning, but they have three different options at this point,
because of cost increases, things that they will throw out if the cost
doesn't come in at that -- you know, if the bid comes in, it's higher
than that.
And they've basically said that they will do some project -- unless
the expressway authority, if something comes positive out of that, that,
okay, we can do this and we'll toll that and put the money together,
they had widen some portion, now, as far as the money goes.
MR. BLUM: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We'll move on to the -- there's
four pages of charts. They start at Page II and go through Page 14.
Are there any questions specific to those chart pages?
And, Don, if I'm not mistaken, aren't they somewhat summarized
on Attachment F on Page I5?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah, I would -- if we want to jump forward to
that, because I know you don't like changes, but on Tuesday I put in
there -- I have things like Santa Barbara in there.
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November 20, 2006
Santa Barbara has now -- the bid has been accepted, so that
changes that sheet.
It also changes Radio Road, and then also in Collier -- at the time
that I did this, Collier wasn't under construction. After driving up
there yesterday, it is under construction.
And then I also will hand out the TCMA report, since the TCMA
report was lower based on before Santa Barbara was assumed in there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, you got new chart, huh?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. Let me just go down the list.
Now, it did split it up a little different than last year because one
of the questions is, is some of these existing deficiencies based on just
the traffic counts that are out there or existing deficiencies based on
vested trips plus whatever traffic count increase is out there.
So, you'll see that I did it in three different segments -- sections
here, one with existing deficiencies based on traffic counts, the second
based on existing deficiencies based on vested trips, and then the third
being projected deficiencies which obviously are more questionable.
One of the things I've done for projected deficiencies this year,
too, is to look at the last couple of years, not just the traffic count
increase or decrease, but also what's going on with the trip bank
because there might be some areas of the county that are a little more,
say, developments adding the trip bank faster than even the traffic
counts are doing.
I did those projections, but I've also compared it back to --
because I've had to project out now or comments back to DCA out ten
years.
I've also looked back at our ten-year model to see if some of
these things -- because you take all these in -- for instance, like
Golden Gate Parkway, the interchange opens up, has an affect on Pine
Ridge.
I tried to look at some things where they have parallel
improvements.
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November 20, 2006
Now, specifically, as I go through the list, number one, where we
are at -- we're approaching 60 percent design. That will be ready to go
in calendar year 2008 construction wise.
Obviously, that's within our two-year window now, but we have
that pushed out beyond the two years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Don, as you go down the list, do you
want us to ask you --
MR. SCOTT: Sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- questions as to--
MR. SCOTT: If you want.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- at each one or do you want us to hold
off till the end?
MR. SCOTT: No. You can -- you can go as you go.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. And I guess it would be the first
ones. Any questions on the first item that don's mentioned? I wrote it
Second Amendment Number One.
What's the difference between production readiness and
construction readiness? Since you went to the --
MR. SCOTT: It's the same thing.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- effort to change the two?
MR. SCOTT: It's the same thing.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, you just wanted to call it something
different.
MR. SCOTT: And I did that in two different spots all over the
place, didn't I?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yeah, you did. That's why I thought
you meant something different in reviewing it.
MR. SCOTT: No. The funny thing is I think I put production in
originally, and I go, well, not everybody might know what production
readiness -- I should change it to construction. Anyway.
The second one, Golden Gate Boulevard, again, that will be
construction ready in 2008. That's approaching 30 percent design
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November 20,2006
right now.
As you did point out, the costs are a lot higher in the work
program based on what we're seeing in some of the different areas.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And you did have that in '09,
anticipating failure then. In your last year's AUIR --
MR. SCOTT: I know. And it's grown a lot more and I will point
to one other that -- I guess if you start from the bigger picture, two
roads that I know I didn't show last year, Golden Gate Boulevard and
Radio Road, Radio is more for projection than anything else.
And when I looked at not -- there actually has somewhat of a lot
of trips left, but expecting when you look at the model with the new
interchange at Golden Gate Parkway and 1-75, that's going to change
that traffic on Radio Road.
The boulevard though, from Collier to Wilson, that's a four-lane
section. It's not something -- when I started looking at the trend of
that, that ends up being a problem projected again in a few years, and
that's a surprise to me at this point.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You've brought it forward from a
projected deficiency three years down the road to an existing
deficiency.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. And I remember --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And it's a radical jump.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. And I remember last year when we were
talking about this, it had grown like 20 percent. Again it grew a lot.
Now, some -- I think Immokalee Road will have some effect on
this. There's a lot of people that try to avoid the construction or -- or
it's probably better now than it was even when the first section of
Immokalee was under construction.
But we're avoiding it by coming down Everglades and coming
into Immokalee. I mean, the boulevard instead of Immokalee.
I think that will change that, but unfortunately when you look at
trend and some other things, you can't -- it's hard to take that into
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November 20,2006
account.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
MR. SCOTT: The funny thing is when I bring that up,
everybody goes, oh, no, it's really grown like that out here. Those are
phenomenal increases though in some of the those areas.
The third one, Davis Boulevard, obviously we're trying to enter
into an agreement with the state where we essentially get advanced
impact fees and then program that project.
I think actually the latest thing is we'll end up doing that project
as part of 951, if we can time it right, and then get paid back by FDOT
starting in 2012 at about five million a year.
We still have some question marks on design. We're trying to get
through -- hopefully, we'll address that, but obviously that's not an
approved agreement, so it shows up on this list as an existing
deficiency that -- not quite addressed yet.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: When do you think construction would
start on -- at the earliest possible time?
MR. SCOTT: If we could put it with 951, it would start
sometime next year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: When would the construction most
likely be finished?
MR. SCOTT: That would -- probably about a two to a two and a
half year project.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I hope you've taken that into
consideration for the December 7th Planning Commission meeting in
which there's a project coming forward that's on that intersection.
MR. SCOTT: Okay. I'm not -- well, I don't know which project
that is, but I haven't looked at my agenda yet.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, you need to look at it before the
meeting. There's six project or seven,and I know one of them is right
there.
MR. SCOTT: Okay. So warned.h
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November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
MR. SCOTT: Number four -- now, tell me you won't ask me a
question, right?
Number four, I had that originally on there as construction
contract being finalized because it was at the time and it was going to
start in two months. It's essentially under construction.
They were -- when I drove up there yesterday, they were taking
out the high power -- they were moving back the poles.
Number five -- so, I took that off the list that I handed out to you.
Number five, Collier Boulevard, Golden Gate Parkway to Pine
Ridge. That is within the design to the north portion, but there is no
phases, no right-of-way, no construction programmed at this point.
We're trying to address what needs to be done in that area,
particularly from the stormwater issues, and how -- how much of a --
how much -- essentially, how much money it's going to cost to do that
project.
But at this point, we don't have anything identified for funding.
It is within the TCMA area.
Number 6, Collier Boulevard-Davis to north of 1-75. The same
thing as the one above it. It is included in the design.
Essentially, the middle portion, the design from Golden Gate
Boulevard down to Pine Ridge is taking the design all the way down
to the -- the bridge over the canal just north of 1-75 to fill in that gap.
So, of that -- at least I'll address with the design not necessarily
for right-of-way and construction.
The next three segments; Collier Boulevard, Rattlesnake to
Davis, U.S. 41, Rattlesnake to Rattlesnake and U.S. 41 to Manatee
Road.
The -- the third one in Number 9 there, Collier Boulevard, that's
essentially open to traffic right now, but I haven't taken it off the list
yet because we haven't -- this is a private developer doing that.
Until we finally and FDOT finally accepts that roadway the way
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it is, I'm not opening it for concurrency based on the way the DCA
was written, too.
The other two segments are in design, essentially almost
complete design now. That will be ready to go forward next year.
Number ten, 41, Collier to Green Way, project development
environment studies underway right now. The first public meeting is
in two weeks. From the FDOT's standpoint, they're holding that
meeting.
We have -- they have designed, programmed in an outer year.
That is one that, you know, when you submit -- I submit it back to
DCA, I have some deficiencies that carry out over time and that's one
of them.
Now, that is more from a vested trip standpoint at this moment
but, of course, over time that would be from reality and we have
people stopped down there right now.
And there's why there's a coalition, too, that would like to bring
widening on 41 forward.
The positive part is they've tried to put a big commitment
towards it; the negative part is from presentation, FDOT before, it's
about $155 million project to a $200 million project all the way out.
Now, we don't need the whole thing right away, but it's very
costly.
Number 12 -- Number II and 12 are off the list now with being
under contract with the Santa Barbara project. Both of those will be
addressed.
And then Number 13, County Barn Road, that's essentially ready
to go next year. Whether County Barn gets widened or if Santa
Barbara extension gets built, one of those two would affect the traffic
in that area would be a solution to that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Wasn't that supposed to be
done last year? What stopped it?
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November 20, 2006
MR. SCOTT: There's been -- there's a lot of work based on
LASIP improvements in there. The cost is now -- I think the cost is up
to 38 million.
It's a lot more costly project than it was before because of a lot of
LASIP improvements on that job.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Tuff.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Just on that same segment of the --
from Green Boulevard down to Santa Barbara, I don't show that up --
don't see that anywhere. It was supposed to have been done before the
other two and --
MR. SCOTT: On Santa Barbara from Green down to Golden
Gate Parkway?
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Yeah.
MR. SCOTT: That at one time was included in with the southern
portion of that. Based on what happened with some of the residents in
the area and the board discussion, that was pushed out in
determination of what happens with 1-75 and the Golden Gate
Parkway interchange when that opens up.
But, yes, at the moment we don't have any funding to address
that segment.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Feeder?
MR. FEEDER: If I could, those two issues, first of all, on
County Barn, Don correctly pointed out we're pulling LASIP, the area
of stormwater features into County Barn.
Additionally, going through the courts now on orders of taking,
it's been a little bit slower and the last one is scheduled now for
January, I believe, for the last of the order of taking.
To the issue you asked on Santa Barbara, we originally had the
project from Pine Ridge all the way down to Davis as well as the
section of Radio.
There was about two years of discussion on changing maybe the
design and the issues related to that. We brought in other consultants
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as we were requested.
The short of all that is we ended up in basically the same design
from the additional consultants, but in that time we went from 38
million to go all the way to Pine Ridge to, as you know, 62 million
just from Golden Gate down to Davis along with the Radio provision,
so costs is what pushed us out.
Now, having said that, we are still moving on the right-of-way.
We still have that program up to Green and we do need to fall through
on improvements, both for the roadway itself, pavement, and the
amenities, the sidewalks and the like.
We're aware of that, but we don't have that program at this time.
MR. SCOTT: And I might not have answered your question
directly either. Yes, it was on last year's list, but Livingston did have
some effect on Santa Barbara, lowered the traffic in that area, and
that's why I don't show it as projection at this point, as a deficiency at
this point.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Do you with a clear conscience
believe that or do you --
MR. SCOTT: No. I've taken stabs at these things. Like Golden
Gate Parkway, for instance, I had 60 trips on it last year. I said, for
sure that was going to run out of those trips.
Well, if the count goes down a little bit, you want to add the trip
bank on, it still hasn't gone over capacity yet. So, it's all projections.
Can it happen? Can there be a big development that come in and
affect that? Yes. I -- you know --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MR. SCOTT: And that's why -- I mean, to answer -- I mean,
that's specifically why we have a concurrency system now instead of I
stand in front of you one year and go, oh, next year, wow, it went 400.
I'm sorry. I didn't tell you during the year we had a problem.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are there any other questions on Page
15?
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November 20,2006
And, Don, I have one. Immokalee Road disappeared. Why?
MR. SCOTT: Because previously that was -- it wasn't under
construction. That's under construction now from 75 over to 951.
Will that be a problem again with the trip bank? Possibly. It has
a huge trip bank on it. If you're talking about the 1-75 to 951 one.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That one, and I also was wondering,
how do you factor in the lack of the ability to move forward with that
cloverleaf at Target?
Because that's -- that was -- unfortunately we thoughtfully
reviewed that in a manner that we thought it was going forward. I
know you had nothing to do with seeing it not go forward.
But that's going to have a huge impact on Immokalee Road, so
isn't Immokalee still going to be deficient even when -- because that's
not completed?
MR. SCOTT: And, you know, we drive that -- one of the reasons
why I don't show them on a list when they're going to have
construction, because I don't -- you know, some of the things we do
after I -- as it's under construction as I look at some of the analyses,
how it works with certain things that were done on the roadway.
But that's a tough one. I mean, the assumption is that FDOT is
starting April of 2007.
Does that mean the loop starts in April 2007? No.
If you've seen any presentation by the Secretary of DOT, he has
on there how far they're in design of 1-75, and that one in itself is zero
percent at this point.
So, it's probably at least two and a half to three years out before
we see that.
You know, from the concurrency standpoint, I still look at that,
say, what's going forward?
As in anything else beyond it? I don't -- I mean, I'm -- we're six
laning it. We're doing that improvement. I don't have any -- you
know, I'm trying to look at what -- the model side of it, I look at it
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November 20, 2006
with Vanderbilt, which shows some benefit to it, but meanwhile there
is a lot of development that hits that corridor.
And as long as the trip bank's still in there and I still-- and we
have developments that come forward to say, this is it, this is it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I know Nick is probably back at the
office thanking God he's not here today, but I do have a follow up.
That segment of I -- of Immokalee Road between Ochs and
living -- Livingston, right now it's real difficult. I know it's backed up
terribly every day.
How do you see that getting on an acceptable level of service
even with Immokalee Road six lanes between 951 and I-75?
Because if you don't, and here's where I'm going, we still have a
deficient segment. It may not be shown in this book, but I'm worried
about how that's going to appear to the rights of people to move
forward with heavy more developments in that area, and we know that
what's being done right now is not going to cure the problem.
MR. SCOTT: And, see, that's where, you know, I look at things
from a model side, too.
Logan Boulevard, for instance, is under construction south of
Immokalee, but also north of it hopefully in the next half year or so
will start going forward, too.
Some of those things will help, but -- and the -- and the loop, too.
Vanderbilt Beach Road, when it's done, it's hard to say, maybe
they'll have more positive effect on it. The model sure show that it
does, but yet beyond that, I have Livingston East- West on the north
side.
I should call it a better -- the new name, Veterans Memorial
Boulevard, but I don't have anything -- I mean, I'm trying -- I'm
dealing with pieces right now, not the whole, so I can't show that as an
improvement right now.
Is that a longer term problem area? Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, the fact that it's not on this
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November 20,2006
Attachment F, I'm worried that the development industry is going to
see that lack of it being here as an indication it has acceptable
concurrency.
And they're going to come in and submit applications to you,
which then you're going to look back at AUIR, it doesn't show it's
deficient. It's in the AUIR -- it's not in AUIR for any needed
improvements, therefore, more development can move forward.
Would it be better to show that segment, knowing it's not even
going to be acceptable once the improvements are made between Ochs
and Livingston as deficient and put it on this list rather than leave it
off entirely?
MR. SCOTT: See, my problem is based on the way I look at it,
but should I? I mean, if everything keeps going the way it is, it
probably should be on here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Again, I'm going back to what we're
obligated to have to deal with from a perspective of approval.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And if it's not on here, then they're
going to say, well, then there's nothing wrong. We all know that
something is wrong.
Could you consider putting it back on here in -- in some format
so that it --
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- we have a leg to stand on?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Should we do that with Radio and
Santa Barbara, too, and Green to --
MR. SCOTT: No. That -- that dropped enough where I think
traffic wise, you're probably okay for a couple of years in there.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: When that interstate opens up, they'll
all --
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November 20,2006
MR. SCOTT: No. And I think that's actually doesn't -- hasn't -- I
think it's going to be worse south than it is north when the interstate
opens up at Golden Gate Parkway.
That just someone looking at it from a professional opinion and
looking at the model. And I could be wrong, but --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But I think that one though is a little
more objective in the sense that more can be calculated to succeed
there than fail and this one, I think we've got more calculation to fail
than succeed.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. It's definitely closer from a trip what's left
when you look at that way.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, there's a recommendation from
those of us here, is anybody objecting to seeing that added back on to
the list?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Not at all.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Not at all.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Move on to Page 16, which is
strictly a deficiency road map, and then in the new handout we have
for Page 17, which is the TCMA reporting.
Don, on the deficiency road map that we provided, last year in
the TCEA boundary, you showed a deficient segment of U.S. 41 to be
deficient in 2007.
This year it's gone.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. When I looked that the traffic counts are
down and I don't know why. There's just not that many ways to get to
south county.
But when I looked back at the projections and carried that out, it's
-- it's a problem in the future but not -- not as soon as we thought.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Interesting.
MR. SCOTT: It's still TCEA though, because we know that's a
future problem. I can't widen any -- you know, any beyond that, so--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Are there any questions on Page
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November 20, 2006
I7?
Miss Vasey?
MS. VASEY: I have some general questions. Would you like for
me to wait for those until --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I got one question on 17, then
we'll do the -- we'll try hitting general questions.
You're indicating the red is deficient on the red notes that you
have on the TCMA in east central.
When things come before us, what does that mean in regards to
recommendations for approval?
MR. SCOTT: Well, unfortunately, and this is the -- this is the
part from the rule side of it.
We've submitted to DCA that these projects are out -- you know,
the CIE shows the project pushed out until three years.
But under the -- our current rules, that has not been adopted yet
by them.
So, some of the things, when you're looking at something, for
instance, and I don't know which one to pick, but, obviously, if it's
within the two-year time frame, based on the old rules, I still have to
follow that old rule even though that's the direction we're trying to go
to is have all those pushed down to the first three years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So, the deficiency shown on this page
because they're in the TCMA, you can't really deny.
MR. SCOTT: Well, unless the TCMA obviously fails overall.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I know --
MR. SCOTT: Based on this analysis here, it would show it
would fail within -- what I handed out, it is above 85 percent.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You know, the handout isn't colored.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah, I know. I noticed that when I got here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It makes harder to understand how they
all fit together.
MR. SCOTT: If you look at it, if you oversee that it's close to
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one, that's pretty much -- you know, if it's closer or over, it's obviously
a problem area.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: It could have been a lighter
shade.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yeah.
MR. SCOTT: Now, this is one of the problems with when we
bring something forward. And I know one of the discussions we've
had with the board is, if you have a specific question about why we're
saying certain things, please ask, and I'll try to be more -- embellish
more in what's happening because we have things with DCA right
now that we've submitted nine months ago and it could be another half
a year to a year before those things are adopted, like the 223 versus the
335, and some of the things with deficiency in all respects like 951
south based on their -- you know, the adopted CIE. That's within the
two years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: On the particular components of this
failed sections of the TCMA, even de minimous impacts can't be
stopped?
MR. SCOTT: Not if -- if it's de minimous impact, then you get
into a hundred ten percent.
Say the whole --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right.
MR. SCOTT: -- the whole TCMA fails and is that de minimous
impact still less than a hundred ten percent, then the answer is
probably, no, I can't stop it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MR. SCHMITT: Now, the other side of it is if you're de
minimous, you're probably going link by link and you're not claiming
the TCMA.
You can claim either one. You can say, if I can go link by link,
maybe it's Pine Ridge up by Logan, they can go link by link, then they
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just do link by link analysis.
If they -- for some reason they're hitting a link that's over
capacity, that's when they get the trips to TCMA.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Miss Caron?
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Yeah.
Do you want to just go over why the change here?
And it looks to me like the changes were primarily on --
MR. SCOTT: It was --
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: -- 71 and 77?
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. It was Santa Barbara and Radio. Now that
those are programmed for construction as part of the accepted bid by
the board on Tuesday -- last Tuesday.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Oh, okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Miss Vasey, you -- oh, I'm sorry.
Mr. Schiffer, is it specific to this page or is it --
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It's just a question on the north
western TCMA.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, let's -- we're going to be into
general items then.
Miss Vasey, you were next in line.
MS. VASEY: Oh, okay. I was wondering, can you give us a
break out of the number of lane miles per year that is programmed?
MR. SCOTT: I don't -- I don't -- I know for one of the recent
projections I did, and I can't recall it off the top of my head, I had what
was under construction, lane mile wise, and then what was in the next
five years.
But I don't have it a year by year.
MS. VASEY: Maybe you could just provide that later.
MR. SCOTT: Now, one of the -- do you want a year by year by
when we think we're going to do the project or year by year what's--
what's in the, you know, outside the three years?
MS. VASEY: That's a good question. I was actually trying to
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marry it up with your tables, so even though that's not actually when it
would occur I'd like to see it that way.
MR. SCOTT: Okay. At least if I did it by project, then you can
look at it, whatever way you want to do.
MS. VASEY: Okay. That would be great.
MR. FEEDER: Jan -- Jan, we added about a hundred and three
point six lane miles previously . We have another 200 lane miles that
are under the 17 projects that right now ten of those are under
construction, another seven coming up in the next year or two.
So, that gives you a frame of reference under lane miles. But we
can get you specific figures.
MS . VASEY: And I -- I just have a few minutes to look over
what you handed out to us.
The transportation where the money is coming from on the DCA
reimbursement break out, and it seems that most of the -- the big
money in years '08, '09, and '10 is scheduled to be determined.
MR. SCOTT: Yes.
MS . VASEY: And it seems like those might not even marry up
with projects that are on our list in those years. These might be
projects outside of those lists.
MR. SCOTT: Yeah. And there would be -- you know, reality is
there would be tough decisions whether you accept it.
Let's take 41, for instance. The coalition does want to pay above
and beyond impact fees. I actually heard the other day maybe they
want to build it.
If it builds it, then there's no money, you know, that would be
accepting. They would pay beyond and beyond impact fee, but at the
moment we stand right now, it's not ready to go. I mean, it's project a
project development environment study.
Even if we sped up, you know, paid FDOT to -- to advance the
design, it's still a couple of years away from when it would be ready to
go.
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Now, that could make money available for something else and
then go and do that after.
But, yeah, is it new money? I took a stab of where some things
were.
I think some of what's been hit on, yes, we do have more grants
than we get per year. I think the impact fees when you go five years
out is probably a little bit low in comparison of what we've seen in the
-- if you're going to do the same thing, say, what are we taking in for
the -- you know, the last three or four years.
But do we make up all of the gap? It's -- it's going to be tough to
do that in some of these things and accept these based on some of the
considerations that are out there.
Now, our -- our problem was, you know, I could come in here
and take a lot of stuff and throw it out of the work program, but I don't
think that -- I mean, this is -- this is why we have this meeting here,
this is why we go to the board.
I'm not sure that that -- that's not really a decision staff should
made. It's a decision the board should make.
MS. VASEY: Okay. Because it does seem like, especially with
the unit costs going up, and -- and the problematic, you know, issue
with money, it's -- it's not -- it can't really happen.
MR. SCOTT: And I know when I was a few weeks ago, and I
was talking with the Planning Commission about the what costs were
last year versus this year, and what projects doubled in that time.
I can't fathom standing here next year and saying this same
project has doubled from the year before.
I mean, it's just -- it's just -- you know, you're right. Then lot
more affects.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah.
Don, from this study, can we assume that the northwest TCMA
has no deficiencies in it?
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November 20, 2006
MR. SCOTT: At the moment, it's okay.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: All right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions of any nature on
the transportation element?
Okay. Mr. Bosi, do -- or whoever is in charge of public speakers,
do we have any public speakers.
MR. BOSI: No public speakers on this item.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The Reids are sitting there for his health
all day, huh?
MR. SCOTT: Maybe he's waiting for the board.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Ifwe're -- I think through the--
the context of the discussion, there were two items that I made notes
of that we had talked about seeing amended before it went to the
board.
One was the grant reimbursement historical analysis having to do
with Attachment D, showing some better analysis than the numbers
that were there.
And the other was adding 846 around the 1-75 corridor onto
Attachment F.
Are there any other suggestions that this committee came up
with?
I don't think there's anyone. Any changes other than the general
nature in which we spoke on the issues and the table that were
supplied?
With that, from a perspective of handling this, none of your
valuations or items provided to us here today will react any differently
based on any new population statistics that David Weeks comes up
with, will they?
MR. SCOTT: No. And I kind of responded to Janet's questions
on that.
We -- because of what we have to do with the long range
transportation plans that's a consensus item between us and Lee
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November 20,2006
County and approval by FDOT and FHW A, we're actually with a
medium beeper number in the future based on the model.
If you're talking about what's happening now in the -- in the near
term where you're talking about trends and everything else, well, it
takes everything into account. It takes PCs and trips and all that kind
of stuff.
So, the population per se had some effect of where we're
projecting for the future. But we're at a lower level to begin with.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are you expecting then any new
population numbers to produce different numbers than what we've
reviewed here today?
MR. SCOTT: No, because even if we did, say -- say you said
today that you wanted to go to a million population, I'd have to redo
the whole long range transportation model, have that adopted through
the MPO. It would be a long, drawn out process.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Is there -- I guess we're going to
do this separately, but is there any consensus of the group on how to
move forward?
I mean, I don't see why we couldn't for a recommendation of
approval of this one subject to the changes and stipulations we talked
about at this meeting, and then get past the transportation, since this
one isn't going to have any more than likely changes as a result of the
population demographics coming forward.
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: I'll make that motion.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Do we want to hear any
comments from the Productivity Committee before we go forward?
Are you in consensus with most of our thoughts on this?
MS . VASEY: I -- I guess this being our first A UIR, I'm not real
sure at what point we express, you know, concerns.
You just -- you go with the changes that you want to make and
then -- and recommend approval or do you add my concerns or
anything like that?
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November 20,2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Everything. I think what we -- there's
any number of ways we could approach it.
But if there's some lack of paperwork or information that we
haven't -- and you've got a benefit of some answers to questions that
we could not digest here today, if there's some -- the areas that are not
adequately responded to and further input from staff is going to bring
back different calculations, then we can defer a decision until we meet
.
agaIn.
MS. VASEY: No. I felt like their answers are responsive and --
and I don't have concerns along those lines.
I just have concerns along the lines that it's very squishy -- I
mean, you know, to put in in technical terms and are we comfortable
with -- with that? Is that --
MR. SCOTT: Trust me. We have the same concerns.
MS. VASEY: Like I say, I have not been through an AUIR to
know exactly what you communicate to the commissioners.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Last year we went through and we
stipulated numerous areas where we saw effective changes that could
save money, so that ad valorem taxes would not be negatively
increased.
And we weren't -- actually, we had a whole page item, brought
our last year's notes with us. We had about $90.5 million and change
as recommended to the AUIR that would have been hopefully savings.
In this year's AUIR, as far as the transportation items go, it looks
like they took those into consideration probably based on experience
from last year.
And that means if we don't have any new recommendations, we
either accept it as it's written, with a recommendation of approval for
the transportation segment of Category A, or we can come back and
wait for staff to respond to those answers with -- with completed
sheets.
I can't imagine in our time in dealing with staff that they would
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November 20,2006
differ in their completed sheets in the instructions we provided with
them.
Where they haven't objected, they've always provided the
changes. .
If they have objected, they would tell us at the meeting and then
they would provide our recommendation, showing that we objected to
this particular point beyond theirs.
So, I'm not sure if we've got anymore to anticipate from
transportation if we defer the -- our recommendation on this. That's
kind of where I'm going.
I didn't know if all the rest of you felt that way or not.
Roads is one that is independent of population, basically, so we
can get it off the table and move on to the others if you find that roads
and drainage, I believe, are the only two that are mostly independent
of population. The rest of them seem pretty population dependent.
This is a joint meeting, so we really need to -- I don't want us to
go forward with a consensus to find out you guys didn't have enough
information. There's no problem in saying.
We're going to meet again anyway . We'll just deal with this in a
week when come back and digest today's meeting or read the stuff and
material you provided.
But we need that input from you as to how you all feel on it.
MS. VASEY: I'm supposed to move this closer.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes.
MS. VASEY: Basically, I think I don't have any -- any problem
with what's been provided. I think transportation has done as good a
job as they can given the uncertainties of the situation, and so I think
we could probably go ahead and vote on it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MR. DICTOR: Second.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Blum, too?
Okay. So, the Productivity Committee's subcommittee?
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November 20,2006
MR. BLUM: Yeah. Mr. Dictor and I have had the privilege of
dealing with Miss Newman and Norm and gone over the last year on a
number of issues. We're very comfortable with it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Comments from the Planning
Commission?
If there are any, Mr. Vigliotti, you were going to make a motion?
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Motion to --
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Second the motion.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, wait a minute.
Motion to, Mr. Vigliotti --
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Can you finish it?
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: The motion is recommended
for approval.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Subject to the changes and the
comments --
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Exactly.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- made in today's meeting?
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Exactly, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Adelstein seconded it.
Is there any discussion among anyone?
Okay. With that, we're call for a vote. All those in favor, signify
by saying aye.
COMMISSIONER REED CARON: Aye.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Aye.
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Aye.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Aye.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Aye.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Aye.
All those opposed?
Motion carries from the Planning Commission seven to zero.
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November 20,2006
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: And note that they have--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The Productivity Committee
Subcommittee also --
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Concurred.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- concurred with our motion.
Now, with that, we'll move into the drainage element, which is
the next element in line after transportation.
All right. You guys are drainage. That's what I was going to --
okay . We're going to have to take a five-minute break while she's --
two seconds?
(A recess was had.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We're back on line.
Jean, it's good to see you again.
MR. CALVERT: Members of the Productivity Committee and
members of the Planning Commission.
F or the record my name is Eugene Calvert, the Director of
Stormwater Management Department in the Transportation Services
Division.
What I'd like to do just real briefly run -- run through the -- the
basis for our report. And then we come back and hit the two or three
pages, I guess we're looking at four pages total, of the AUIR.
There was a few things that were slightly different from this
year's compared to last year's.
The primary thing that I think you'll see in the differences in
there is this year's under the AUIR, we included just a secondary
system, rather than the primary systems and secondary system.
The primary drainage system is maintained by Big Cypress
Basin, and so we really don't have a whole lot of input into the capital
improvements into the primary system.
And, therefore, really all we're really dealing with is a secondary
system and the tertiary system, and that's where -- the reason we've
included just the secondary system in this AUIR program.
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We've also -- if you'll go through the numbers and inventory
numbers, we did a very extensive inventory review of what we have in
our secondary system.
And today we do have 187 miles of canals in our secondary
system along with 15 control structures.
There is some discrepancies from previous years. I can't explain
why that discrepancy existed, whether it a follow through from
previous years. I just don't have a good explanation on that.
I do -- I can tell you with very good certainty that our current
inventory for a secondary system is 187 miles with 15 control
structures.
As we look into the future years, and particularly this year as
well as next year, I tried to outline how many new facilities we were
going to be adding to the facility -- to our system.
One of the big components that has never been really addressed
adequately in previous AUIRs is -- is our reconstruction of our
existing facilities.
And as a result, I did include into this year's AUIR a line item for
reconstruction of both our canals as well as our control structures.
And, so, that's another change you'll notice in this year AUIRs as
compared to last year's AUIR as a component in their poor
reconstruction of our system.
I think the -- the reconstruction component in our system will
also account for any capitalization that you may have on a system.
Certainly through the years, your -- your structures need to be
replaced or your canals need be upgraded.
And, so, rather than capitalize the cost, what we've tried to do is
decided, okay, the capitalization costs is really our reconstruction
costs to keep our inventory up to snuff.
Some of the other changes -- other changes -- I don't believe
there is too many additional changes that we looked at from this year's
AUIR to -- last year's.
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November 20,2006
Those are the three significant ones.
I'd be glad to answer any questions you may have. We have a
total of 35 projects, identified projects, in -- in our -- five-year
program. Twenty-nine of these projects are current and ongoing.
One of the things that we looked at is, as we look into the -- the
future in the five-year program is we're going to be looking at some
watershed management plans.
These are plans that the county has decided they needed to do by
the year 2010. Within those watershed management plans, we hope to
identify some deficiencies and identify projects need to be completed.
And, so, as you look at our five-year program, we have towards
the latter part of the five-year program rather than projects numbers is
to be determined and without specifically identifying individual
projects, which will be coming up through the watershed management
plans.
Be glad to answer any questions you go through.
I know -- and I appreciate Janet's -- Miss Vasey's questions and
comments that she had, and I know she's got some ones that she'd love
to give to me and I look forward to it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Let's start with Page 19, the very first
page.
Mr. Murray, then Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Mr. Calvert, I was wondering
how you were doing with regard to, say, the areas of Queens Park and
also the area over there by Travisio Bay in terms of the canal
acquisitions?
Are you behind, are you on schedule, are you ahead?
MR. CALVERT: Okay. You know, this is all part of the Lely
area storm water improvement --
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Correct.
MR. CALVERT: -- program, the LASIP project.
Queens Park is part of Phase I-A, which we will be putting out to
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November 20, 2006
bid within the next -- if fact, it's actually on the streets right now
soliciting bids.
This is a -- the Lely main canal that runs up behind Queens Park.
We have obtained those easements through that area quite a number
of years ago.
In fact, before the development of Queens Park was even
established, we knew we needed to expand that canal system.
So, a lot of those easements were obtained and we have them in
hand. That's one of the reasons we're moving forward. It also
provides one of the main trunk for drainage through that area.
The other areas in Travisio Bay and Sabal Bay are two other
trunk lines, if you will, for some of our canal systems. We're working
hand with Travisio Bay as well as Collier Enterprises on Sabal Bay to
move those forward.
I believe those two we have agreements with the developers and
there's a certain amount of devoid for contributions in the Travisio and
the Sabal, and we will be hopefully moving forward and getting those
projects starting construction this year as well.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: You -- have you secured the
ownership so that you can build the canal on that area, in Travisio
Bay.
MR. CALVERT: Not on Travisio Bay. That was parted of our
more recent condemnation resolution that was before the Board of
County Commissioners here a few weeks ago.
A good portion of the Travisio Bay is on -- on Travisio Bay's
property and they will -- have actually constructed a good portion of
those canals through those areas.
It will allow them to proceed. It doesn't allow the full benefit of
the improvements through there.
And, so, as we acquire the necessary easements through the
Travisio Bay area, we will then put out contracts to expand the canal
that Travisio is already constructing.
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November 20,2006
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I'm aware of that. I'm concerned
with whether or not we're going to allow them to go forward on this,
that's a all.
MR. CALVERT: Yes. We are allowing Travisio to at least
move forward on what we have control of and they do have -- on the
outfall of Travisio Bay, we've got a major or pond area, which is
spreader dike, which is our component for a water quality.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Right.
MR. CALVERT: They are moving forward with expanding that,
and we do have ownership of that property and they are expanding on
that now.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: So, you intend to have all of
these started, the acquisitions started by sometimes in --
MR. CALVERT: Right.
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: -- the residue of this year?
MR. CALVERT: Right. For the rest of the acquisitions that we
do not have along Travisio Bay, of course, we proceeded with the
condemnation resolution.
We anticipate because of the -- the dockets it takes to go through
the legal systems, we probably won't have those in hand until the
middle part of next calendar year before we can proceed on those.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yes.
Gene, you -- the future development you put at a 25-year,
three-day storm.
What is the current service level?
MR. CALVERT: The current -- it depends on where we're
talking about. The service levels and the design storms in the urban
areas, we look at 25-year three-day event.
In the estates area, the Golden Gate Estates, we're looking at a
three-day, ten-year event and then when you get into the stewardship
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November 20,2006
areas, we're looking at a -- again, a 25-year storm event.
A lot of those levels of service were defined in our Growth
Management Plan through what the canal systems could actually
handle, what could we accommodate, as well as looking at water
quality and rechargeable aquifers.
And, so, as we look at the level of service in those areas, they are,
particularly as you get out in the Golden Gate Estates, many of those
are the level of service ofD, being you have a level service of A
through D, A being very good, D being not very good, you know, very
unacceptable.
However, because of the cost component through the Growth
Management Plan and our efforts, it doesn't -- it's not cost economical
to bring that up to a level of Service A.
A lot of the improvements that we're looking at from our
watershed management plans and our -- our drainage management
plans look at improving those level of services from D to C.
That's where we prior, how we prioritize our projects.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So, the reconstruction projects
here essentially bringing D to C.
MR. SCOTT: Essentially, yes.
MR. CALVERT: That's correct. That would be a good way to
look at it because, certainly, our priorities is -- is flooding of homes.
Under a level of Service D, if you have good water quality and
good groundwater recharge, you can get flooding for your homes.
So, we want to eliminate the flooding of the homes, but still have
good water quality component as well as recharge, then you should be
probably looking at a -- a level of Service of C rather than D.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And then the cost of
reconstruction, do you have a denominator for that or secondary in the
MR. CALVERT: Really, the cost of construction versus new
construction is -- is really comparable. They're about -- they're the
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November 20, 2006
same thing, because you really are starting from scratch in a lot of
cases or at least the dirt work component.
In a lot of our areas, particularly as you talk about the LASIP
area, we talk about the -- the ditch behind Queens Park, that's an
existing ditch that is about ten feet wide by about two fee -- three feet
deep that's on our inventory.
The new ditch to handle then the stormwater is going to be a top
with around 40 feet wide. So, you know, we really -- it is really a new
ditch, but it is -- our existing ditches are our inventory.
So, our -- the costs that we have in through there for
reconstruction, there's really not a whole lot of difference between
reconstruction and new construction.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. Thanks.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other questions from Page
I9?
Gene, I've got a few. Your five-year projection for new facilities
is four canal miles over the current inventory.
MR. CALVERT: Uh-huh.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If this year's current inventory for
secondary canal miles, this 39 miles over last year's AUIR, how did --
did we create that many more miles of canal on one last year?
MR. CAL VERT: You mean as far as what are -- are you looking
at what we're looking at doing this year? I can tell you that --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No. No, sir. I'm looking at what you --
or last year you told us -- not you. I know you got --
MR. CAL VERT: I came in late in the season, so I --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I know the predicament you were in last
year.
Last year's AUIR said there was 148 secondary canal miles.
MR. CALVERT: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This year, you're saying there's 187.
MR. CALVERT: Right.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's 39 more.
MR. CALVERT: And that does goes back to our inventory.
I don't have a good answer for you, why -- what the difference is
between 148 and 187. I like to tell you though, is that we have 187 on
our inventory today.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That's about $2 million a canal
mile? That's a huge increase in inventory, that if we had last year we
wouldn't have -- need to give any ad valorem taxes out because we
would have been way ahead of the game.
I think that's an important concern as to how last year is
inequitable to this year. So, I certainly want to make that point with
you.
In structures, last year you had 24 structures. Nine of them had
disappeared. We're down to 15 this year.
Do we know where those nine went?
MR. CALVERT: I don't have an answer for you on there. I do
know that when we -- when we look at the -- when I did look at the
big cypresses and the -- the primary systems, the inventory for those
systems stayed the same.
So, you look at what we reported in two oh five AUIR for the
primary system is in fact the same inventory that they maintain today.
The difference, as you pointed out, well pointed out, is our
secondary system.
Whether there was some -- the shift, you know, I can't answer
you, or -- or a classification.
Now, when we look at control structures, that might have been
the error, too, is when we look at control structures, we're looking at
flood control structures and water quality control structures.
The structures aren't necessarily ponds or -- or just drop inlets.
You know, these are flood control and water quality control structures.
I do not know how the inventory was obtained in prior years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, Gene, we're talking $80 million,
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November 20,2006
which is more money than your entire budget was last year for five
years.
I think it would be incumbent upon us to know for the taxpayers
and for explanation of these historical records why we all of a sudden
lost -- or gained 40 miles of canals that were an issue last year that had
to be sought for revenue funds to create that were already there.
And last year we were deficient without those. This year -- and
now they're found, and we are probably way above being not deficient
if you were really going to consider those as being real last year.
I'm very uncomfortable with this, just to let you know. And I
know -- I know this isn't your fault, but I think that with your review,
we could get a better explanation if that is an issue that is concerning.
Your secondary canal miles cost. You increased 5.8 percent over
'05, but yet your secondary structures cost the same.
Now, I've put in canals and structures and roads. I do that
routinely. I know what the cost of my structures have gone up.
They're all concrete and steel. Yet, you show no increase over last
year.
Does that mean last year's was higher than it should have been, or
does that mean this year you don't have an increase?
I'd like you to look at that and come back --
MR. CALVERT: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: -- with an answer for us on that as well.
MR. CALVERT: I can tell you as far as our costs, that we
looked at the costs for this year, the 2006 AUIR. We looked at the
cost that is estimated for new construction and reconstruction and then
backtrack that into, so using that -- those dollars for reconstruction and
construction, then put it back into the inventory what the value of
those structures are.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But you don't know what the cost of a
new structure is?
MR. CALVERT: No. I can tell you right today that a new
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November 20,2006
structure averages $530,000 per structure.
And I can also tell you today that a canal system, a canal mile,
cost $1.866 million per mile. Those are today's costs.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Do you know why the -- exactly that
same number $530,250 right to the penny was used last year as
secondary structure cost?
I mean, can you find that answer out, because it is sure odd that
in a year's time with the concrete prices that is explained to us by
Norm's other division, his -- he's using the concrete as a big issue for
improvements.
And if you're right, that means he's wrong. And if you're right,
our road costs would be potentially less than what they are.
MR. CALVERT: One -- one of the things that we have seen the
advantage over the last few months is that our construction dollars for
constructing these canals and these structures has been at or less than
our engineer's estimate.
We have not seen the escalating costs for construction on the
stormwater projects as we have on the roads.
Now, granted, we're not dealing with the -- the massives amount
of concrete, or the massives amount of asphalt. Maybe ours is more
labor intensive because we're talking about excavation rather than --
than building things up.
I do know, like I said, our last several projects that have been bid,
and they are smaller. They're not these -- these $62 million projects.
We're talking about 400, $500,000 projects. Have been coming in at
very good price at or below our engineer's estimate.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, somebody from your department
needs to go work for Norm's roadside.
Even though you've had a five percent -- 5.8 percent increase in
your secondary canal miles, your ad valorem tax request increase is 20
percent over '05. Now, your secondary structure stayed the same.
Obviously, the only issue that could be coming into play is you
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November 20,2006
want to create more facilities, yet you've got now 40 new miles you
didn't have last year.
So, I certainly think that maybe you ought to look and see if you
really need that ad valorem increase based on this new found
inventory that wasn't in last year's that you thought you needed last
year that now you have.
I would expect you're going to have to come back to us with --
with answers on some of these questions.
MR. CALVERT: Well, I can certainly come back to you on the
-- the questions on the inventory.
I can also tell you that as we look at our new projects down the
road the next five years, any amount in twenty years, you know, that's
what we're looking at those -- those two lines of new facilities as well
as reconstruction facilities.
What do we need to do to -- to add new facilities to increase or
water quality issues as well as our flood control issues for both new
construction as well as reconstruction. Those numbers won't change.
I can come back to you and talk about the inventory and maybe
what happened there. We can dig into that.
But I can also -- like I say, there's -- there's numbers for what is --
what we're looking to do in the next five years. That hasn't changed.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well, Gene, I need to move on
then to your ad valorem on the bottom, the 45 million.
What's the southwest utility? You're going to be getting some
money or something for that? What does that line mean? I don't --
MR. CALVERT: Now, this is the stormwater utility. This is not
really a utility per se, but it's the funding policy that the boards has
approved, the .15 mills.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I thought it was -- I was looking for a
utility. It's not a utility then.
MR. CALVERT: Well, it's the funding policy. You know, it's
the funding policy that the board has adopted.
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So, that 45 million is what's projected from ad valorem out of
that .15 mills through the next five years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And your MSTUs, what area are those
for?
MR. CALVERT: We have a number of projects on our books
that are -- would be considered a local source or MSTU source,
revenue cost sharing.
We've also got tertiary systems.
If you're looking at specific projects that we may have on our list
today that might be considered a local source funding, if you flip to
Page 21, and you see where the 35 projects are listed on the left-hand
side of the -- of the project.
I've got a number of these and I'll just go through them real quick
that would be considered either the local cost share or at least have
components of that project be local cost share.
Project Number 3 is a 14th Street outfall. Number 5 is Willow
West Swale, Number 7, Ibis Way Lake N, Number 8, Gordon River
Water Quality Park, Number 13, Egret-Mockingbird Lake Outfall,
Number 14, the LASIP project, Number 15, Avalon School Drainage,
Number 16, Wiggins Bay Basin, Old U.S. 41, Number 17, the Bay
Shore and Thomasson Outfall, Number 21, North Road and Gail
Boulevard, number 22, Poinciana Village Drainage, and Number 28,
the Gateway Triangle.
Those all have the least cost share components within them.
They may not be all totally, because maybe we've got a good share of
-- maybe it's a tertiary systems, but they all have a cost share
component into them.
When we talk about cost share component, one of the things that
we look at, that we are looking at, is not only the revenue coming in,
the MST revenues that might come in from an MSTU or an MSBU or
a homeowners association, but we also look at the soft costs and soft
matches such as right-of-way contributions or other local sources,
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November 20,2006
developer contributions, things on this nature.
On some of these projects, we -- we certainly have received some
fairly substantial contributions. On other ones, we may be looking at
a one-third solution. In other words, we may not get that one-third --
full one-third contribution from a local source.
So, our options then is to either not do the project or to possibly
only do an one-third solution project, and only put the county's
one-third up along with any grants we may have, and don't do the full
project, but do the two-thirds solution.
Those -- all of our project come back to the board, of course, for
approval, and each one of these projects are going to be brought back
to the board just as far as that funding mechanism for their -- for the
board's approval to either abide by the funding policy or to provide
additional funding.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Gene, I have a lot of questions on your
individual projects, but we're going to get to a break time here in a
minute to have one.
MR. CALVERT: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm going to have -- instead of being
able to finish with you before lunch, I've got to ask that you come
back after lunch.
MR. CALVERT: Absolutely. Absolutely.
If there's specific things that you may want me to bring back, you
know, as far as spreadsheets and those things, I'd appreciate it, and
that way I could go back to the office and bring them back if there was
specific items.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Miss Vasey.
MS. VASEY: That's exactly what I have. I'd like some more
information on the MSTUs. If you could break out the funding that
you had in '05 and '06 and then for the AUIR years for MSTU, M--
all the -- all the Ms, the developer contribution, the homeowners ones,
the soft contributions, everything.
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November 20, 2006
I don't -- nothing with grants though, just the ones where they're
actually, you know, giving their share.
MR. CALVERT: Sure.
MS. VASEY: If you could give that--
MR. CALVERT: I can, absolutely.
MS . VASEY: -- would really appreciate it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: And, Gene, can you bring back
some data that support that the week construction costs the same as a
new construction?
MR. CAL VERT: You bet. As far as the -- the cost per -- or unit
cost per miles and reconstruction and construction of our structures?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yes.
MR. CALVERT: Yeah. Sure can.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you, Gene.
And with this, we'll take a one-hour break, and 12:45 we'll be
back here to start back up again.
(A luncheon recess was had.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Welcome back everyone. We
took a little bit longer lunch than we thought. Mr. Calbert has now
joined us and we'll continue with the meeting. I have to remind
everyone that in order to accommodate the court reporter, it would be
very good if we acknowledged -- everyone didn't talk over each other
and you have to -- need to be acknowledged before you speak, that
way everything can get properly recorded as it should. With that,
Gene, I think we left off on page 19 and 20. So if there's any questions
on those two pages to finish up before we -- this is a very short
section, 21 and 22 after that. Mr. Schiffer?
MR. SCHIFFER: Why is it we take the interest and give it back
to the general fund? What's the logic of that?
MR. CALVERT: That was just the questions shown where the
interest is going to, back to the general fund. Based on the meeting
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we had last year, the AUIR, there's actually some discussion of
moving those interest funds into this account, but for whatever reason,
we did go ahead and show accounting where that interest goes. The
reasoning I believe was that since this is a tax ad valorem account, that
legally the interest gaining on those ad valorem accounts are supposed
to go back to the general fund. I made the mistake. But this just does
indicate what those interest funds -- that they did go back to general
funds
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That was one of the recommendations
this committee had recommended last year to the Board of County
Commissioners. Obviously, was not one that was --
MR. CALVERT: That's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on 19 and 20?
MR. CALVERT: Mr. Chairman, just for the record, I see we
have a new court reporter. My name is Eugene Calvert, director of
storm water management.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. Next page, page 21 and 22.
They're actually -- they're one table. Listing of the capital
improvement program. Are there any questions on that table? Ms.
Vasey?
MS. VASEY: Did you get any of the answers? My questions
really relate to this table.
MR. CALVERT: Okay. As I may, Mr. Chairman? The
question before we broke for lunch -- there was a couple of questions.
One was regarding the cost estimates for the structures as well as the
canals and trying to verify the 530,250 was an accurate number.
Looking back at the past A UIRs, that particular number was used back
in 2003 when some of the cost estimates were derived. I went back
through real quick to check on some of these structures that we're
going to be constructing in the next five years, and those costs,
actually if you bring them back to 2006 dollars, it equates something
somewhat less than $400,000. Near as I can tell, it's my quick check
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November 20, 2006
of the records, when the AUIR was developed in 2004, they brought
those costs forward to future cost that were going to be spent. We still
feel that $520,000 is a -- the $530,000, excuse me, is a good number
for secondary structures. Particularly if you look at some of our
outreach some of the years going into those things. There's a lot of
issues. Other items associated with the 530 being right of way and
utilities, et cetera. But we still feel the $530 is a good number for
looking at our five year program. Another question that came up
regarding the -- would you like me to answer the MSTU questions?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes.
MR. CAL VERT: The questions before the other meeting was
talking about how much money has been brought in from MSTU on
some of our capital programs particularly the last few years. As I
mentioned earlier, a lot of our MSTUs -- what we consider our local
source funding, also might include some of the other costs in addition
to MSTU. Specifically the last two years there has been no money
from an MSTU or an MSBU coming into the program. But we have
had local cost shares coming in from developers' contributions and
things of this nature. But to answer your question directly, no money
in the last two years has been coming back in the capital program from
MSTU. Now if we look at what we'll be looking at for the next five
years, we're looking at MSTUs and other identified revenue to the
tune of around 25,000 -- actually 27,000 for the next five years that
both identified as either local source or MSTUs. We do have a
number of MSTUs or local homeowner's groups that are active that, as
we're looking at some of our current projects that will be participating
in the local source. And we have about seven of those projects. If you
look at that project list on page -- is it 21 again? Yeah, page 21.
Some of those current projects that have -- that MSTU's or
homeowner associations are already organized, or being organized to
provide that local source, include number five, Willow West; number
six, Haldeman Creek dredging; number seven, Ibis Way, Lake Inn.
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November 20,2006
That's actually primarily the Lake Inn connection rather than Ibis
Way. Number 13, Egret Mocking Bird Lake off of Pine Ridge area.
Number 14, Lely storm water project. Number 22 the Poinciana
Village Drainage. Number 28, Gateway Triangle. Haldeman Creek
dredging, there will be no MSTU funds coming into the project for
construction in accordance with the funding policy. The .15 one-third
mill set aside. That is a title receiving area and so the county is
looking to the MSTU to maintain it and operate it in the future.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Mr. Blum.
MR. BLUM: I'm a little confused. How many ongoing MSTU
projects have you got on the books in the last five years? How many
are on the books right now? This is it, 35?
MR. CALVERT: We have 35 projects that are on the five-year
program. Of those 35 projects, we have around 27 of them are active
for this year, FYI, '07.
MR. BLUM: All right. Let's go back three or four years. The
MSTUs that have been established and are functioning, and no funds
have been generated?
MR. CALVERT: Not for the capital improvements. Now we
have a number of MSTUs that have been established for maintenance
and operations, but for the capital improvement program, none. Like I
said, we do have some local source funding coming in. A lot of that is
developed contributions, right-of-way contributions. Figures into their
one-third benefit share cost, but actual revenues, zero.
MR. BLUM: You show for one of the accounts receivable -- I
mean, I don't know how -- I mean, I know a lot of these things in
homeowner's groups they have various ways to pay for them when
they sell their house, whatever. Do you have money on the books
that's due at a time in the future, a receivable-type situation?
MR. CALVERT: No.
COMMISSIONER BLUM: I would think there should be.
MR. CALVERT: Several of those projects that I mentioned -- I
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mentioned seven or eight of them recently, we have several of those
that are, quite frankly, on hold until we can get the MS TU s or the
homeowner's group to come up with an agreement to where they're
paid. For instance, the Willow West Quail, they're in the process of
organizing their homeowner's group so they can come up with their
one-third share for those capital improvements. The Haldeman Creek
dredging, that MSTU is being formed right now. It's already been
before the board. Poinciana Village drainage, that's a homeowner's
group. We've been meeting with them. They are going to be cost
sharing on the improvements. We've come up with a way to approach
it.
Gateway Triangle, that -- the CRA stepped in to provide the local
source share community redevelopment organization for their share.
So we do have some commitments. We don't have any on the books,
per se, as far as accounts receivable. We do have some commitments
from these current projects.
MR. BLUM: I'm very surprised. I need to do a little homework
then.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We're still on page 19 and 20.
Are there any follow-up questions on those two pages? Let's move on
then.
MS. VASEY: Uh--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: If you don't get these MST's -- MSTUs, all of the
other different kinds of homeowner contributions, what is your policy
if they don't meet the one-third? Do you proceed or do you stop? MR.
CAL VERT: Well, our policy is to bring it to the Board, certainly the
Board of County Commissioners, the funding authority. And we have
a program that may succeed through the boards and their
consideration, we'll bring it before then. In some of these cases, I
anticipate bringing the issues to the board and let the board make the
decision. Ifwe want to proceed with the current policy, or make
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exceptions to that policy.
MS. VASEY: It seems that in the next year you got 23 million
dollars worth of projects that are subject to the -- at least part of them
__ are subject to the one-third contributions. And that's quite a bit of
money. And you're not going to be coming up with the shares, it
seems like the program is broken.
MR. CALVERT: On some of the programs we actually have a
committment. Gateway Triangle, if you look at the 27 projects, its 29
million dollar budget, out of those 29 projects, or 27 projects I guess it
is, four of them are major projects. Those four projects totaled around
22 million dollars, just four. And those four are the LASIP project
around ten million, the Gateway Triangle, the Gordon River Water
Quality Park, and let's see -- Gateway Triangle Water Quality Park,
Haldeman Creek dredging. Out of those projects, the LASIP, we do
have the local share set aside from the donated right of ways. So we
have that one-third cost share as part of this project for this current
year. Gateway, as I mentioned, they already stepped forward and
provided CRAs provided in one-third cost sharing. The Haldeman
Creek, as I mentioned earlier, it's actually a title receiving area. And
so we're moving forward on that. MS TU is going to take over
maintenance. Our Gordon River Water Quality Park is not so much a
flood issue as it is a water quality issue. And that's being funded from
the county as well as a number of federal and state grants. So we don't
have a water -- a cost share with the local group on the water quality
park. Other than some of our agreements like the city and et cetera.
As I mentioned too, as we go through some of these projects, we're
prepared to only do one-third or two-third solution. So, for instance,
Willow West. That's a good example. We really looked at Willow
West and designed a system that will really address their flood issues,
but it does involve them stepping forward. We're prepared to go
forward with those improvements along our county right of way,
which are tertiary systems, and not do -- and do our one-third benefit
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November 20, 2006
to them, but leave their two-thirds out of it if they do not wish to
proceed with this. So we're prepared to take these issues before the
board with the funding scenario letting the board realize, we may not
be building a full project. We will be building a two-third structure.
MS VASEY: Would you still be able to provide that information
on what you collected in revenue for '05 and '06 broken out by those
categories that we discussed, and then for the whole five year period?
MR. CALVERT: Absolutely. As I said, we won't see any
MSTU revenue. I'll break out all the different revenues we received
from the different sources.
MS. VASEY: Thank you, Gene.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Move on to page 21. Attachment
A. Gene, if you move down that particular table, item number 14, the
Lely area storm water improvement.
MR. CALVERT: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You have 50 million dollars over a
period of time. Are those all secondary improvements?
MR. CALVERT: No, they're not. Most of them are. I would
say probably 95 percent of them are. A lot of them are tertiary
improvements though. Actually probably, I would correct myself. It's
not 95 percent secondary. It's a bigger split than that. We have a lot
of tertiary improvements that are against our roads.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are that column -- if you look at the FY
'06 to '07 column, does that not total the total on the bottom
29,223,608.19?
MR. CALVERT: That's correct. That's what we have budgeted
for FY '07.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But you have them budgeted as
secondary systems.
MR. CALVERT: Right.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. You just testified it's not
secondary .
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November 20, 2006
MR. CALVERT: Pardon me, Mr. Chariman. All these projects
listed through here are not all secondary. They have components --
they could be tertiary systems or they could be a combination of
secondary and tertiary.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: On your summary form -- I always
separate out what you're working on as far as secondary and the cost
for secondary versus the cost for tertiary as you made a statement as
far as the cost for those systems on a per mile or per structure basis.
There isn't any way of doing that.
MR. CALVERT: We can break those out.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But I have been thinking either you
need to explain your numbers, and that would be necessary to do that.
At the same time, why did the Lely storm water area double in price?
Last year it was 25 million or 26 this year it's 50.
MR. CALVERT: It's actually more than 50. If you look at the
extended project through there from planned future projects on page
22, you'll see that the Lely project extends two more years. And what
we were showing last year on the AUIR was simply a five year report.
We didn't have this extended ten year report. That Lely project is
actually closer to a 62 million dollar project currently. Also what we
did for this A UI process, was brought forward the cost, estimated cost
for our construction, to bring it into FY 1011 budget into the out years
of FY 12 so that when we're looking at those dollars in the out years of
FY 12, for instance. Those dollars are FY 12 dollars not FY 06
dollars. And that's one of the reasons why we're looking at decreased
cost. The previous AUIR had just 2005 cost and that was it. As I said,
it did extend out beyond six years, but our AUIR didn't show that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I've got your 2005 AUIR in front of me.
And I'm trying to follow what you just said, because let me walk
through this. In '06 you're going to spend about two million dollars, in
'07 about three quarter million, and in '08 it's going to be seven
million, '09, eight million, and '10, nine million for a total of 26
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November 20, 2006
million for the first five-year segment. Five year segment now reads
for this year instead of two million, you're going to spend eight
million. For next year you're going to spend eleven and a half million,
almost 12 million, and almost eleven million and just under eight
million. Those are significant increases in the same general time
frame that you displayed in '05. Do you know why you would have
gone from two million in '07 to almost eight million in '07?
MR. CALVERT: I don't have the attachment for AUIR 2005.
Like I say, as we look at those projects, we're looking at the estimated
cost for the up years. We're also looking at the project as a whole.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Gene, I think it's important that we
understand how your numbers for the same period of time. I know
you've added some on to the second page. You went for another five
years in the future. But for the comparative years that were provided
in the '05 AUIR versus this year's you're almost double. And I think
we need to understand why. So at some point when you come back,
an explanation might be in order.
MR. CALVERT: I certainly can do that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If you move down and look at number
23, 24. And 24 you have the same situation there. After you had
spent the money that was supposed to be spent last year, you have
significant increases yet this year. I don't know how those occurred,
but that would be equal -- that would be like the Lely storm water.
And then the Australian Pine removal.
MR. CALVERT: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I know last year you had two-and-a-half
million under work item 515012. This year you have a new work
item, 515011 with a different number totalling 2.7 practically. Are
those separate work jobs, or are they supposed to be the same job and
just the number changed?
MR. CALVERT: No, the 5012 -- what's it say after that? I don't
have that.
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November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The number was 51512 and it said
Australian Pine removal. You had a 2.5 million spending a half
million a year to do that.
MR. CALVERT: In FY 07?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Half million a year starting in '06 for
five years. What I'm saying is you've got a different number on this
one. It's 515011. In '07 you're going, instead of a half million, you're
spending 1188 -- 1,188,000, but your total is about 2.7 million. Again,
I just need to understand if you've got two jobs going on, one that isn't
shown and one that is.
MR. CALVERT: Oh, thank you, Sharon. Yes, the 5112 is
actually a different fund. It's a fund 301. Fund projects 5011 is a 325
fund. The 301 fund was a fund that was set up several years ago that
has not had any additional funding go into the project so we're trying
to finish -- finalize some of those project. The 325 is our ad valorem
future project.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Is that first fund still have a
two-and-a-half million dollars in it to be spent on Australian Pines?
MR. CALVERT: No, it does not.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Where did that money go?
MR. CALVERT: I'm not sure what your table is showing. I'd
have to get into it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: My tables show where it went.
MR. CAL VERT: I couldn't answer that without getting into it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, at the next meeting, can you--
MR. CALVERT: Absolutely.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Get that answered?
MR. CALVERT: Absolutely.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Last year, items 30 and 31. You had
totals of looks like 1.1 million. It was the Belmede Plan. Yes, the
Belmede Plan and the urban, Immokalee Urban master plan. You had
1.1 million for each. This year you've got 5.4 million and 3.2. Can
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you -- do you know what the explanation is?
MR. CALVERT: Yes. I understand now that you have the
attachment A from the 2005 AUIR.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right.
MR. CALVERT: As we look into the years, even through the
FY 07 on up through there, we try to estimate what kind of
improvements are going to be required for some of these projects.
The Belmede storm water improvement category through there,
they're just now completing a Belmede drainage dike. Big Cypress
Basin is completing that study. It's given us some better indication of
what type of projects we may be looking at in the out years. Same way
with the Immokalee Urban improvements. That storm water
management project was just completed last year as well. So,
therefore, we can now identify some of those projects and put them
into our AUIR. That is one of the reasons why, as you look down
some of the other projects, the Gordon River extension improvements,
the 323334, those projects, as I mentioned earlier are -- we don't have
specific projects identified because those projects will be identified in
the watershed management plans that are going to be completed in
2010.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: On your sheet were you just given a
copy of the attachment from 2005?
MR. CALVERT: I was, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Can you tell me -- look at line 19. I
haven't found number 19, which is your Livingston east/west Imperial
Golf Estates item on here. Did that get completed?
MR. CALVERT: No, it didn't. That particular project as we got
through in the study -- you'll notice that on FY 06 for the AUIR 2005
report, it indicated there was a study going into the design. The study
indicated that we really didn't need to do the improvements in those
areas. The preliminary findings from the study said that that probably
should not be a project for capital improvements. So that's one of the
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November 20,2006
reasons -- that's the reason why we did not include the Livingston
project on any future project.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's another three-and-a-halfmillion
dollars we didn't need it. But yet last year we kind of banked on it by
endorsing the A UIR and making sure all the budgets balanced and
everything worked, including that project. And now you're telling us
it wasn't needed.
MR. CALVERT: It was not needed. As we updated our AUIR
on an annual basis, we look at what the needs are and make those
adjustments as they go through. And we look at the current year
budget to see what we can do and what potential revenues there are.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Before your time with the county, a
year before you came on board, there was an agreement worked out
with the City of Naples where the city was going to provide a million
dollars a year for five years to contribute to some improvement for
storm water because we were taking on some issues that eventually
affected them. Recommendation from this committmee last year was
to try to re-initiate that, let's say, cooperative agreement. It appears
that you don't know any income coming in from the City of Naples.
And a lot of the improvements aren't benefitting the City of Naples. Is
there a reason why they're not working with us on this?
MR. CAL VERT: Well, yeah. We do not show any revenue
coming in from the City of Naples. They are benefitting from maybe
a cleaner Naples Bay. But it's also our responsibility from some of
these improvement projects because the storm water is coming off of
unincorporated lands. And we do have a cooperative agreement. A
cooperative, not agreement, but informal agreement where we're
working together on several different projects.
MR. FEEDER: Mr. Chairman, a couple of quick things. First of
all, to your question I met with the city manager and with staff. We've
had a number of discussions. The water quality park being one of the
cases in point looking for contributions from the city. The city points
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out, not necessarily to my agreement, but nonetheless that they pay
into this point 15 mill a share that they consider being their efforts to
help fund overall storm water within the county and they have their
own storm water program as well. So, so far to date we have not seen
any funding coming from the city, nor are they shown that direction at
this point in time. They note that they logged into the point 15 mill
that is funding the storm water program.
The other thing to some of the questions and issues I've heard, I
would like to tell you that we have some major changes that's obvious
to the group we need to make and come back to you. I think you also
need to see on this table what has gone through some level of design
where we have identified a specific project that we're costing out, and
which ones are concepts of need in an area that's still being brought to
further detail and analysis, because you've got both of those in here
and you had them last year as well. And I think comparing those is
getting very, very difficult for this group and I apologize for that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, thank you, Norm. I appreciate it.
I was wondering in your return to us, is there a way that 148 or 187
canal miles and 15 or 24 structures, they must be on some kind of
listing as far as their location goes?
MR. FEEDER: Yes. We have a good inventory now. In the
hope that the inventory is good now and that we're accurate, that we're
not going to test why it's different from the other, I will try to get you
an answer. We could have added canal miles as we've taken on new
development approved where we said we'll take on the storm water
from this system, but I don't know that's the case. I'm just trying to
project what it could be. How I remove structures, since I haven't
taken any out in number, I don't know if some of them were originally
MS TU maintenance structures that now we're not funding as we've
done inventory specific. It's conjecture on my part and I don't want to
go beyond just telling you it's conjectural. We'll try to get you an
answer and be back to you.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And that if you can get that to us as
early as possible, those answers will be available to be reviewed on
the aerial photos that the tax assessor's office, which has a
measurement device. So I'd certainly like to see if the miles add up.
MR. FEEDER: I think clearly what I'm hearing is we'll be done
by at least June so it needs to be done by us.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If you check ahead of time, it might be
.
WIse.
MR. FEEDER: I understand.
THE COURT REPORTER: Can I have your name for the
record, please?
MR. FEEDER: I'm sorry. Norman Feeder, transportation
administrator.
MR. CAL VERT: Mr. Chairman, I appreciate that. And in fact,
that is one of the reasons we brought this inventory up to date. It is
based on our GIF. That's where we end up with 187 miles and 15
structures.
The structure discrepancy, I would suspect may also be leading
to what is considered a control structure. Certainly we're looking at a
catch basin. While that is a structure, it's certainly not a $530,000 cost
item. So when we look at structure, we're looking at flood control
structures, major gates, weirs and those type of things. That is
probably why the discrepancy is so much from what we have today
based on our GIF and what was listed in previous AUIRs.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Thank you. Is there any other
questions on the drainage? Mr. Schiffer?
MR. SCHIFFER: Gene, did you get a chance to look at the
reconstruction versus new facility costs?
MR. CAL VERT: Yes. Actually, I went back through there and
did a quick analysis. I looked at the numbers that we used to derive
these costs, and it does vary considerably. A canal mile, you know,
you have a lot of different items on here. This is a particular estimate
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we have most recently. Sitting at 2 point -- 1.9 million dollars per
mile. That's the one that is estimated to go out for construction, or for
bid here this month. And that is -- that's again Lely project that I've
mentioned earlier about taking a small ditch and making it into a big
ditch. There are other components that are involved with this thing
that mayor may not show up in different structures, or in different
projects. So I feel though that the 1.8 million dollars as shown in our
AUIR is still a very good number for both construction, new
construction as well as reconstruction of our canal systems. Because it
does include all the factors you might have in a canal right of way.
Utility relocation, excavation, access roads, and things of this nature.
MR. SCHIFFER: Considering that, Gene, do you think the
inventory, the available inventory number, you should deduct that
from it?
MR. CAL VERT: Available inventory -- as I mentioned early on,
when we came up, looked at the numbers, we determined what it was
going to cost us to build all these new structures if we were going to
start from scratch. And that's where we backtrack from our capital
cost. Because, as we said, we don't have a capitalization in our
program. Our reconstruction is really our capitalization factor. Our
depreciation capitalization factor. So, the cost to construct these
canals, the inventory cost and the value cost reflects on today's cost.
Today's dollars to build those things.
MR. SCHIFFER: I'm kind of confused. So what you're saying is
take one of these miles that you're going to reconstruct --
MR. CALVERT: Yes.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: In inventory it's worth a million
eight. It's going to cost you a million eight to bring it up to standards.
I mean, isn't the thing worthless on inventory?
MR. CALVERT: No, it still certainly has a value in our
inventory . You know, a lot of our ditches and canals certainly have
some type of drainage capacity at this point. What they don't have
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capacity at is to meet the level of service. So if we move into our
improvements to increase the level of service, and then we reduce the
flooding potential, and it is going to cost us a million dollars a canal
mile to reduce that. It still certainly has some value. It's in our
inventory now.
MR. SCHIFFER: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: But there's got to be a difference
between constructing new facilities and reconstructing old facilities.
It's got to cost less to reconstruct the old facilities since you don't have
cost, for example, of right of way. You've already got it. So, and that
we hear all the time from Mr. Feeder is the most expensive thing that
you have to buy. So how can the cost be the same?
MR. CALVERT: As you look at -- I'm not a very good
bookkeeper or cost accountant, but as you look at your value of our
systems, certainly just like a car, you buy a car for $30,000 and five
years from now it's not worth $30,000. It has some type of -- some
amount of depreciation. How much is that depreciation on a canal
that's been built for the last 20 years? It's very difficult to estimate.
But what we've done is say, okay, we're going to have to replace these
or upgrade these canals and it's going to cost X number of dollars to
upgrade these existing canals. That must, therefore, be our amount of
depreciation we had on our system. Or, you know, quite frankly this,
you know -- and previously if you look at the previous AUIRs, what
we tried to do is bring this AUIR into the secondary system. If you
look at the previous AUIRs, they're even talking about costing the
primary systems that we don't have any control over.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray, did you have something
you wanted to say?
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I thought Mr. Schiffer.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Either one of you guys. Whoever wants
to go next. Mr. Murray, I thought you had your hand up first.
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November 20, 2006
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Well, okay. Is there such a thing
as a useful life to a canal as we might have on an improvement, a
physical structure?
MR. CALVERT: There is a useful life for some of our
structures, and also for the adequacy. We do have to maintain and
clean them out, dredge them and things like this occasionally. Our
structures do have to be replaced. Concrete does deteriorate. And then
as we address the level of service, then we are having to update, or
that canal lived out its life service so we have to replace it.
MR. MURRAY: I think I understand. It's level of service
driven. If maintenance were performed on a fairly frequent basis, the
canal would serve much of its purpose. But if they haven't been
serviced, then the useful life is over sooner. Is that a fair statement?
MR. CAL VERT: Yeah, but even if we do maintain it, we're only
maintaining it to a level of service that is unacceptable. That's the
whole purpose of us trying to upgrade our system is to increase level
of service.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. But I do agree with
Commissioner Caron that there has to be a differentiation in cost
associated with renewal versus brand new. And so I think we
probably would look to you to bring that out if you could.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Why don't you just break down a lane
mile under both conditions and show us the cost. Because you don't --
you know, you've got two costs that are going to be different. You've
got an excavation cost that's not going to occur on an existing canal
that you have on a new canal, or at least to the extent. Maybe taking
something out, but then you also have fill generated from a new canal
that wouldn't be generated necessarily from a used canal or existing
canal. At the same time that fill is going to be worth some money.
You can sell it to Norm for 33 bucks a yard. I don't know how you
handle that kind of material, but there is a significant difference
between new and let's say refurbishing. And I think that a better
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November 20, 2006
explanation maybe by the numbers would be a smart way to go.
MR. CALVERT: Because please note though too as we're
looking at new facilities versus old facilities, pick a -- as you look at
canals, over the next five years, we plan on only adding four miles of
canal system, yet 29 structures. Yet we are going to rehabilitate and
reconstruct 49 miles. LASIP is a good example. We've got a 62
million dollar project where we've got existing system in place. It's
not adequate. That's the reason we're having this lassup project.
That's the reason there's flooding in the area. And that's the reason
we're building new canals. But they are really replacement of existing
canals.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So you're making the assumption on the
form new miles that you're going to find the 39 miles that got lost
between this year and last year? Plus you might consider the fact that
if you're refurbishing -- your reconstruction is more costly than the
new in some -- because of the quantity, maybe your cost is really for
the reconstruction, and your new is less because you're going to have
-- you're going to retain some of the benefits through the fill, the
transfer of the fill for two other departments are for sale in items like
that. Hope you aren't just giving that fill away.
MR. CALVERT: No, we're not. We are utilizing it on other
areas of the county.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And that should be a revenue source of
your department then?
MR. CALVERT: Not necessarily. Explain that then. Since
we're doing this back and forth with all the departments.
MR. CAL VERT: This is a -- I might have to refer to our legal
counsel. But we've been advised that in some cases if we excavate out
of our canal, the material excavated is not the county's because it's in
an easement not by fee title. So therefore, we can not sell the material
because we'd be selling material that doesn't belong to us, but we can
utilize the material on other projects.e
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November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So if Norm's transportation
department benefits from 33 bucks a yard in generated fill from your
canal, you can't sell it to him, but you can give it to him which means,
his budget should be generally less. So it's a revenues source, whether
you want to show it on the books as a sale or not. That's all I'm trying
to get at.
MR. CALVERT: If that can be worked out, that would be great.
Because of our scheduling, we cannot always work that out. In our
case with our Lely project, Lely, the one we're getting ready to build
right now, we don't have any places to stockpile this material so we
are going to utilize it on -- for the EOC center. So the county is
receiving a benefit from it, but not roads.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. It's interesting that you can
receive the benefit from it, but you can't legally sell it. I'm just
wondering if someone decides they want their fill back, are they going
to remove DOC to get it back?
MR. MURRAY: It would seem that if the fill is owned in fee,
that it belongs to the --
MS. STUDENT: I don't know. I have not been involved in that
discussion and I don't know who from our office was, but I can hazard
a guess. There might be something in the easement document that will
allow the county to use the soil on another site but not sell it. I don't
know. Do you know who in our office gave that opinion?
MR. CALVERT: I don't recall. I don't recall exactly. I can find
that out.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other comment? Mr.
Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: So you're going to come back with a better
number, or outline of what a reconstruction cost is? And the reason
I'm harping on it is that's a big number. It dwarfs ad valorem. It
dwarfs, you know -- I mean, it's a huge number and I can't belive that
to come through a canal costs more the second time.
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November 20,2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, hopefully we're going to see how
that happens. Any other questions on the drainage issue?
MR. MURRAY : Yeah, I do have --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
MR MURRAY: It occurred to me on the Sable Bay portion,
Collier had agreed that it would continue to perform and continue that
construction. None of these costs are associated with that, are they?
That is to say direct cost?
MR. CALVERT: Actually they are, sir. Some of the LASIP
project, as we look through the out years FY 07, some of those costs
associated with the LASIP project include construction of the portion
of the Sable Bay . Now there have been -- they're providing some
developer contribution, but the cost to build that segment is far in
excess of what the development contribution may be.
MR. MURRAY: I don't presume to know the details, but I would
tell you it seems to be common knowledge that the developer had
agreed to perform the work there. I guess it's -- I'll leave it to your
knowledge, technical knowledge. I think it's good that we clear that
matter up. So, would you know a proportion or a ratio that we're
talking about? Just a guess, are we talking 50/50, 30/70?
MR. CALVERT: I can check into that. I know our agreement,
the county has an agreement to the developer which says we will pay
for the cost for construction. And what portion of that cost, I will get
back with you on that. They did offer to provide some type -- some of
the right of way, the necessary right of way to widen that canal.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Is there any other questions on
the drainage at this time? Okay. Mr. Calvert, thank you. Is there any
members of the public registered to speak, Mr. Bosi?
MR. BOSI: No public registered.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Look forward to seeing you next
time.
MR. CALVERT: Okay. Thank you very much.
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November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: With that we're going to have a change
of participants in this particular meeting. I think we'll take a couple
minutes pause here while the productivity committment switches its
members.
MR. BLUM: From my perspective, I'd like to thank you all. It's
been enlightening and informative and I'm looking forward to
repeating it sometime.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: It's been nice.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It's been fun playing with you
guys.
MR. BLUM: We'll go in the sandbox together again sometime.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Thanks.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you.
(Whereupon, a brief recess was taken.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We'll resume with three new
members. The three new members identify who they are and the
committee that they're with?
MR. BOAZ: My name is Brad Boaz. I'm working on the
subcommittee for the water and sewer.
MR. BARLOW: And my name is John Barlow, and I'm working
on the same committee as Brad.
MR. VAN FLEET: James Van Fleet, the same committee.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. And Ms. Vasey, you were
here before so we all know you. With that, we'll move forward with
the presentation with the utility department. Would you proceed?
MR. GRAMATGES: Good afternoon. I'm Phil Gramatges,
principal project manager with public utilities engineering, and I'm
here to answer your questions about potable water, sewers and solid
waste.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, that's real short and to the point
presentation. Are you potable water -- are you in the solid waste --
waste water and solid waste as well? All three elements?
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November 20, 2006
MR. GRAMATGES: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. With that we'll start on page 24
of the AUIR manual. That's county potable water system.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think it might be helpful, Phil, if you
could tell us how the population statistics weigh into your
calculations.
MR. GRAMA TGES : Well, the population statistics are critical
to our calculations because our base on a level of service standards
that is key to a per capita used per day. So both, in waste water and
water, as well as solid waste, the population numbers are extremely
important. We use them as a basis for our calculation.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If those numbers were to change, then
they would have impact on your calculations one way or the other?
MR. GRAMATGES: Most certainly they would, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You know they are changing?
MR. GRAMATGES: I heard they are, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. On that basis, I wanted to make
sure the record was clear, we're going to have to be coming back with
every element from this point forward in this document because of
that simple fact?
MR. GRAMATGES: I understand.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any questions? Mr. Van Fleet?
MR. V AN FLEET: I have a question with reference to the
population figures. And I'm just wondering, if there are certain areas
of the county that are scheduled for development that will be outside
your service area, for example, Ave Maria.
MR. GRAMATGES: Ave Maria is outside of our service area,
yes, sir. They have their own utilities.
MR. VAN FLEET: Are there any other areas that would be
outside that will be developed? You know, Big Cypress as an
example?
MR. GRAMA TGES: I can't really address all areas, but
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November 20, 2006
obviously there is a lot of growth outside of our service areas at this
point in time. The AUIR, as well as master plan, does not contemplate
any expansion of the water and sewer service areas for the next 20
years. That would be up to the board to decide.
MR. COHEN: If I may. For the record, Randy Cohen. Maybe I
can help with Mr. Van Fleet's question because it may be going to
population. Our department specifically generates population
numbers just for the water sewer district itself not outside the service
area. So any of these particular developments that would occur
outside of the existing water and sewer district are not taken into
account in the tables that you have before you. If the water sewer
district was to expand, obviously we would adjust the population
figures to include those areas.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Phil, when you issue approval to a
developer say or somebody else that the capacity for their unit exists
in your system, are you issuing that approval based on the, say, the
ERU's within the unit, or are you basing it upon the population? How
are you-- isn't it the unit that generates the need from your
department? The dwelling unit I'm referring to, or the commercial
unit.
MR. GRAMATGES: When a PUD comes for approval, it's
reviewed by our department. We calculate the ERCs and based on
that we determine how much water they need and then we do a
hydraulic analysis to determine whether or not the infrastructure in
that area is capable of providing the volume that they need and then
we approve or disapprove depending on whether or not there's
availability of services to them.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: When you calculate the ERCs on that
particular dwelling unit, what factors into that calculation? It's the
fixture count?
MR. GRAMATGES: Fixture count is part of it and it depends
whether it is a commercial or residential unit.
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November 20,2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Let's talk for simplicity reasons a
residential, you know, a one-dwelling unit say in Golden Gate -- no,
not in Golden Gate Estates. Golden Gate someplace where you
service. It has three bathrooms. You have a calculation based on a
number of bathrooms and a number of fixtures?
MR. GRAMATGES: In that case we use a single family
residential unit is one ERC.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. At any time does the population
weigh into that particular element of your calculation?
MR. GRAMA TGES: No. That's a macro level of analysis.
When we look at a 20-year master plan, we need to look at the macro
level. We really don't have much of an idea as to how much of the
population expansion is going to be single family, how much is going
to be multi-family. We don't even know what the land use factor will
be, even in the areas where we service right now. See we base that on
a level of service standard that is geared to a per person consumption.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Per person then equates back
down into an ERC within a particular unit. How many people live in
a dwelling unit?
MR. GRAMATGES: Yeah. There is a calculation. The ERCs is
based on a certain number of people per ERC.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Thank you. Any questions,
we're on page 24. Anybody -- Mr. Boaz.
MR. BOAZ: I have a question. Has there been a comparison
done? You have a required treatment capacity here as to the actual
high level service demands on the system. The actual water produced.
MR. GRAMATGES: The way these numbers are calculated,
they're based on a peak population. We need to provide service at the
time that population is at its peak. So, therefore all the calculations
that you see on this table, are based on a peak population calculation.
MR. BOAZ: I'm questioning how does that compare on the
actual water usage within the county? Do we know what the actual
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November 20,2006
water production has been?
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, certainly, we do, yes.
MR. BOAZ: Do we know what the highest level has been like
for last year?
MR. GRAMATGES: We do know what the highest level has
been. In fact, we know in the last couple of months we have exceeded
the previous year demand by about 20 percent.
MR. BOAZ: How does that number compare to the peak levels
that are shown here, the required level?
MR. GRAMATGES: I don't know that I understand the
question. I'm sorry . We make this table calculations based on the
level of service standard that's approved by the board. It was
approved on June 6th of 2006. And based on that, on the estimate at
peak population, we multiply one number times the other and we
determine what the demands will be. As to--
MR. BOAZ: My question is, how does that level of service
compare to what's actually happening in our county?
MR. GRAMA TGES: The level of service that we use is based
on our historical numbers, and the numbers have in deed been coming
down. We have commissioned a study to determine the validity of
those level of service standards. The results of the study are not yet
available.
MR. SCHMIDT: Phil, let me help you. What he's asking is,
your daily charts. You have production rates. Do those production
rates that you're producing right now match the data that's on the
table? Isn't that what you're asking?
MR. BOAZ: Yes. Thank you.
MR. SCHMIDT: Basically you monitor daily.
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes.
MR. SCHMIDT: Mr. Daloney gets a report telling him how
much water is being used and pumped out of the plant per day. The
question is, how close are those daily consumption rates in
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November 20, 2006
comparison to the charts and the information that's being presented?
MR. GRAMATGES: We monitor those daily and we certainly
monitor those against these numbers here. And they match fairly
close. In fact, the tables do represent what we know to be the actual
demand --
MR. BOAZ: So the actual demand is very close to your required
demand that is shown in those charts.
MR. GRAMATGES: Based on those demands.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Moving on we'll move on to
page 25 and then sub-notes to 25 are on page 26. Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: I'm sorry. It's stewing in my head. Phil, I'm
trying to appreciate -- the chart that we have here indicates a level of
service standard, and we know that it's intentionally set at a higher
rate. And what I think I just heard was that recently you have come in
almost on target with these numbers. I would have thought that your
earlier statement of having a 20 percent increase would have still
allowed for some fudge on some number before you reach these
numbers. Did I mishear you?
MR. GRAMATGES: The consumption that we have
experienced is due in most cases to the increase in population that we
are experiencing. So the fact that we have a level of service standard,
doesn't necessarily correlate directly to a total figure unless you take
into account the population increases. However, as I said before, we
monitor the consumption per capita on a continuous basis. And we
know that it has gone from high of about 200 and it has come down.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. I'm thoroughly confused.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Vasey.
MS . VASEY: Before we go on, could you address a question on
page 24 ? You've got some retained deficient reliable system, or some
deficient reliable system capacity in column 9A that shows up in 2009
and 2010. Would you just address that a little bit and whether that's a
problem or not.e
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November 20,2006
MR. GRAMATGES: Whenever we try to estimate the demand,
we try to estimate as well as reliability factor. We know that things do
happen and we have breakdowns from time to time. We need to make
sure that even when that occurs, that we would have sufficient
capacity to be able to service our customers. This table 9A is a
calculation based on reliability. In other words, we have a certain
nominal capacity at the plant. And that nominal capacity is reduced in
the case of a plant by calculating what will be the production rate with
the largest unit of out service. These numbers in deed would represent
the problem if we had a major breakdown that we couldn't anticipate.
But if you look at table nine, the numbers are positive, which means
that we have sufficient constructive capacity, that if it works at 100
percent, we'll be able to supply all of the water that we need in excess
that is shown on that column.
MS. VASEY: So you're just accepting a little more risk that
something might go wrong, but you hope it won't?
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes. When we did these tables, the AUIR
for last year, the population numbers of course were different. And
these numbers were considerably lower. I mean, the negative
numbers were. One of them was positive. In fact, 2009 was positive
and 2010 showed a minor deficiency of point five and change.
Subsequent to that, at the time we did the master plan, and based
on recommendations from the -- from the planning commission, we
reviewed our numbers. And we reviewed our numbers in the master
plan. We then changed those numbers in the master plan, and we
changed the numbers in the AUIR. We obtained approval from the
board when the master plan was approved to modify the AUIR to
meet those numbers. We received the new population numbers on
September 27th of this year, we recalculated these numbers, then we
find out that on 2009 and 2010 the deficit was greater. At that time
when we first did it, it was an acceptable risk. At this time it still is an
acceptable risk, it's a somewhat higher risk. But there's nothing much
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November 20, 2006
we can do about it right now. However, as I said before, if you look at
table nine, the capacity for production is there, and unless we have a
major breakdown, we shouldn't be concerned.
MS. VASEY: Okay. Thank you.
MR. GRAMATGES: You're welcome.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Mr. Tuff.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: It may have been explained, but I
missed. Anyway, now a lot of the growth is happening in the Estates
and they're all on their own system. How does that affect those
numbers? And you may have explained it.
MR. GRAMA TGES: The estates are not part of the service area
for sewer and water.
MR. TUFF: Are they part of the population growth number?
MR. GRAMATGES: Not in this population number. These
population numbers are geared exclusively to our service district.
MR. TUFF: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: Isn't that kind of the same question. It appears
that -- let's go to 2011. You'll only be providing water for half of the
population of the county?
MR. GRAMATGES: That's about right, yes.
MR. SCHIFFER: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Phil, if you have a home that is CO'd,
got it's COA, everything is done, it's tied into you guys and you
service him, it's in your service area, that homeowner goes away for a
couple of months, do you benefit from his being gone by having --
need less capacity on your system? Your system is built for 100
percent use at all times; isn't it?
MR. GRAMATGES: Our system is not built that way, no. Our
system is built to meet peak demand. So if you're in the summer when
30 percent of the population goes away, we don't need the produce as
much so we gear down to production in our plants. However, when
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the season comes back up, our plants are running pretty much 100
percent.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That's what I was getting at.
Your plant is based for the occupancy, whether it's there or not.
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes, certainly.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. So if someone leaves their home
for a few months, even though there is a vacancy, your plant is still
geared to cover that home as soon as it's occupied?
MR. GRAMATGES: That's right. We need to provide service
regardless of how many people are using their homes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. In the case of a hotel that's on
your system, are you geared to occupy for the occupancy rate of that
hotel if it was full at a particular time?
MR. GRAMATGES: Sure, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That doesn't go away. Youjust
don't take the pumps and shut them down? You don't move away and
MR. GRAMATGES: Unfortunately we can't. All we can do is
gear down production. If the demand slows down enough, we may be
able to shut down a unit, but most cases we --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The infrastructure is there?
MR. GRAMATGES: The infrastructure needs to be there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Thank you. Now we'll move on
to page 25. Page 26. If I go too fast, just jump in. Page 27. Yes, sir,
Mr. Boaz.
MR. BOAZ: I have a question in general on page 27. It looks
like at the current levels, we're running at the low end of this range
and very close to the required system capacity. And then starting in
about 2011 with their expansions, the actual planned constructed
capacity is going to the high end of this range. If it's been acceptable
to run at the low end of the range, what is the change -- why are we
going to a higher level of capacity in the future?
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November 20, 2006
MR. GRAMATGES: When we build plants, we have to build
plants in a fairly large capacity. I mean, to build smaller plants every
year, it's not cost effective. So we need to build capacity in relatively
large chunks. And that's the reason you see the line going up and
down?
MR. BOAZ: But in the future, I'm looking at 2013, we're adding
additional things, 2012, 2013 and future years, even though we're not
coming back down to that system capacity . We're adding things in the
future before we ever get that close to the bottom line.
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, because we need to stay ahead of the
curve. It takes eight years for us to build a plant.
MR. BOAZ: So we're being more conservative in the future than
what we currently are?
MR. GRAMATGES: No. We need to be conservative no matter
what time we are. The line as you can see between 2005 and 2011
shows that indeed we have capacity below the required capacity.
MR. BOAZ: What's been the impact? What's the projected
impact of that?
MR. GRAMATGES: The issue comes down to reliability. We
do have a major unit out of service. We are going to have to curtail
service. So we need to stay away from that situation. And the purpose
is for us to stay within those two lines and keep the capacity there.
And we cannot do it smoothly unfortunately. Whenever we do an
expansion, the expansion has to be relatively large. They come as a
scale. When we build a plant, it needs to be relatively large.
MR. BOAZ: Are all of the systems interconnected?
MR. GRAMA TGES: In water they are, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Move on to page 28. Page 29 and 30,
31, 32 and 33 are all one of the tables. So actually the tables continue
all the way to page 36 of the ten year period. Have any questions
from the table? Phil, I've got to ask you one thing. You are not --
maybe you are. You're funded a little differently than the other
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November 20, 2006
developments, aren't you?
MR. GRAMATGES: We're enterprise funded, yes.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So any increases in your cost or
your facilities, generally are reflected to increase in the fees that you
charge for your services and then --
MR. GRAMA TGES: They are reflected in our charges as far as
impact fees and as far as user fees is concerned, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: What interaction do you have with the
ad valorem taxes?
MR. GRAMA TGES: None whatsoever.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That helps. Thank you. Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: One thing that I would kind of like to see that
would make it more consistent with the other facilities is the summary
page that would show what your costs are, what your sources of
revenue are. I know you get it from impact fees, user fees, probably
some grants. And I do realize that you're different, but it would be
helpful if we're going to look at this as a financially feasible
document, you don't really give us all the information needed to
evaluate that. I'm not particularly concerned. I do believe you have
the money to, you know, to meet your program. But in the future
would it be possible to do a summary sheet like everyone else does?
MR. GRAMATGES: Most certainly.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Vasey, when you said in the future,
so we're clear, did you mean when it comes back for the final reading
of this? Because this can't be finished today based on the population
statistics that are missing.
MS. VASEY: If that's possible. I would appreciate that. I was
actually thinking of next year, but --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It wasn't clear what you meant, that's
why I wanted to make sure there's no misunderstanding of what you
expect so that whatever is expected, it's what the reaction you get, so
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November 20, 2006
MR. GRAMATGES: I believe we can do that, yes.
MS. VASEY: I'd also like to compliment you on your bonding
document from Moody's. Would you like to just take a minute and
tell everybody about that, because I've never seen such glowing
reports on the financial ability of a county, and your bonding level,
your bonding grading went up. And just as a matter of interest, unless
you all already know that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No, we haven't heard.
MR. GRAMA TGES : Well, I'll be happy -- I'm certainly not an
expert on this area, but I'm happy to address your question. We are
funded in several ways, as we said. Impact fees is one of them.
Impact fees pay for all new facilities. Impact fees does not pay for
100 percent of all new facilities so we need to have alternative
funding. And besides, the stream of cash coming in from impact fees
is not there when we need to pay for the facilities. So we need to issue
bonds in order to be able to finance those expansions. And obviously
bond ratings are therefore very important because they determine the
interest that we pay in that commercial paper. We were recently
visited by Moody's and one other rating company, which name
escapes me right now. And Moody especially was very satisfied with
the master plan that we presented to them. They were very satisfied
with the shape of our facilities. They visited them all. And with the
presentations that we gave them and they increased our rating from Al
to AA3. So that was a significant increase in rating.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's a great rating.
MR. GRAMATGES: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other questions on potable
water before we move to sewer treatment and collection systems?
First on that is page 38. Phil, do you have a lengthy presentation on
this one?
MR. GRAMA TGES: I'm afraid not. I am ready to answer your
questions.
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November 20,2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well, we'll start with page 38.
Mr. Tuff.
MR. TUFF: This isn't on page 38 but I was looking at where
your flows come and I pulled some information that showed that your
waste water treatment is higher in July than it is in February. And I
guess so I'm wondering if you have the same fluctuation that you
would for your water use.
MR. GRAMA TGES: I have to confess I'm a little bit surprised
to hear that. I don't know what you calculated because typically the
water drives sewers. So when water demand is high, sewer demand is
high. Now, during the summer there is a lot less irrigation because
there's a lot of rain. There's more irrigation in the wintertime. So, that
takes -- takes a lot away from the sewer system. It's possible that what
you're observing is infiltration and water coming in from storms into
the system.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Maybe you can take a look at that issue
when you come back.
MR. GRAMA TGES: I'll be happy to do that, sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Questions on page 38, any
others?
MR. BOAZ: I would just ask--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Boaz.
MR. BOAZ: If you could explain the difference in the level of
service standards between the different areas as to why that is.
MR. GRAMATGES: Level of service standards are of course
based on history. And we do know the land use patterns for the north
are different from the south. We do know that the level of service
standards in the north is 145 while in the south is 100. I must explain
as well that while potable water is interconnected, sewers is not. It
cannot be fully interconnected mainly because you cannot transport
sewage very long distances. So we do have different service standards
for different areas.
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November 20, 2006
MR. BOAZ: Do we anticipate any change in that if there's
redevelopment? Is that related to redevelopment, or is it just the type
of housing or --
MR. GRAMA TGES : Well, it certainly will be -- as I said before,
land use -- land use will have an effect on level of service standards,
so it's conceivable that that will indeed happen, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Move on to page 39 chart. Page
40. Phil, you dropped the capacity -- or your treatment capacity is
calculated at 120, and last year it was 145. What caused the decline,
do we know?
MR. GRAMATGES: You talking about page 42?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No, page 40.
MR. GRAMA TGES : Well, this is a proposed facility. The 145
is for the north plant. This is the northeast plant. That's the reason
why the chart begins on fiscal year 2011. This plant has not been built
yet. We have no history for it. We do know that the average for the
county is 120. And not knowing any better, and knowing that the land
use pattern in that area is similar to what we -- it's not similar to the
north or the south, but somewhere in between we decided to use 120.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Last year you did use 145 in the
WRF, but if there's -- if it was just a proposed plant last year, I guess
it's still a proposed plant this year then?
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes, that's correct. And it may change
again between now and 2011 to be sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Or between now and when the
population statistics come out.
MR. GRAMATAGES: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions on page 40 or 41?
Move on to 42 and 43. Go ahead, Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: Aren't you showing we're going to be starting
to get in trouble around 2011, and shouldn't something be happening
prior to that? I'm looking at the chart on 43.
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November 20,2006
MR. GRAMATGES: That relates to the chart on 42.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: We should be bringing
something on line around 2010.
MR. GRAMATGES: We are indeed bringing something on line
around 2014 and further on along 2011. Because northeast plants will
come on line on 2011.
MS. VASEY: Maybe I can --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead, Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: On this chart the top line, the pink box line relates
strictly to peak population on the left-hand side. And the capacity is
the little -- are the other two lines. And so their need stays below their
capacity the whole time.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: The peak population is even a
different scale so you can't really worry about that. But, it looks like
the available capacity in 220 are going to be right on top of each other
in required capacity. So, I mean, most of the stuff we do is much
more conservative than -- I mean, we're filling it up to the brim at this
point.
MR. GRAMATGES: We need to keep in mind that the south
county plant is going to be pretty much at top capacity beginning in
2012. So we cannot expand it any further. That volume will be taken
by the southeast plant.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So these plants will be
connected and --
MR. GRAMATGES: There is a -- yeah, what we intend to do is
we intend to take some service that now goes to the south plant and
divert it to the southeast plant.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. Which has plenty of
capacity. Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: As far as capacity, do you have any
calculation for the holding capacity in the pipes?
MR. GRAMATGES: No, we don't. We have a general idea, but
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November 20, 2006
since we cannot use the pipes as holding capacity, we'd rather not
dwell on that number, no.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Just out of curiosity, do you know what
it is?
MR. GRAMATGES: Honestly, I don't know. If I knew, I would
tell you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Thank you.
MR. SCHIFFER: Don't stop it from flowing.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You know, while it flows it's in the
pipe. It eventually gets to the facility. And hopefully by the time it
gets there, there's room for it because others move through. So there
is a value in that capacity that I know we haven't taken into
consideration, but it's a great measure of risk, as I've heard the word
used, to make sure that there is some extra capacity in the system
somewhere.
MR. SCHIFFER: Contingency.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Move on to page -- did we leave off on
42 and 43? We're going to get to 44 and 45. Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: This is where you said the other plant is going
to connect to -- how many plants are connected together? Earlier you
mentioned there is no interconnection.
MR. GRAMATGES: There is no interconnection between the
south and north plant. There will not be any interconnection between
any of the other plants, only to limited capacity. What we intend to do
is take some services that are now going into the south plants and
divert them to the southeast plants. Needless to say, they will be the
services that would be closest to that plants.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. So you're going to take
stuff off line on the south plant, not inner connect them?
MR. GRAMATGES: That's correct, yes.
MR. SCHIFFER: Then why wouldn't required capacity go down
when you take them off line? Does it go down two years later? That
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may be the issue.
MR. GRAMA TGES : Yeah. It sort of levels off. It levels off as it
reaches capacity. We haven't extended beyond 2012. But the blue
and the red lines that you see on top and bottom will flatten out from
then on. Because the -- unfortunately the colors in my copy are not
very good, but the peak population number is flat as well. Needless to
say the relationship between the peak population numbers and the
required and available capacity is unfortunately it looks they're related
or not because, as you can see, they're two different scales.
MR. SCHIFFER: I understand that. Okay. So these two plants
will not be linked together. But what you're saying is as the southeast
plant comes on line, some of the customers, we'll call them of the
south county plant, will be transferred over to them.
MR. GRAMATGES: That's correct.
MR. SCHIFFER: And then thus if we could look further, which
this does, we would see the required capacity start to drop on the south
county plant?
MR. GRAMATGES: We don't expect that will happen, no,
because we'll have the same number of people connected to that plant,
so the capacity will stay flat. The required capacity will stay flat.
Once -- that plant is almost built. It's built out now. Once we reach
the capacity of that facility, we have no room for expansion there. So
that plant will run at full capacity from now on into the foreseeable
future. So those lines will be flat.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: When I asked you that question
earlier you said that it wouldn't be this tight because you're going to
have -- some of the customers are going to go on to the other plant.
MR. GRAMA TGES: There is a very -- if you look at the table,
you'll see a very minor drop in population, south county water
reclamation facility. Now it's not shown on the table. It cuts out at
2012. But from 2012 on it will stay flat and it will -- there will be a
small reduction on the peak population. But it certainly would not be
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November 20, 2006
very noticeable in the chart.
MR. SCHIFFER: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Boaz.
MR. BOAZ: Yeah. Let me just ask, what you just said, this
plant is based on estimated, based on 100 gallons per day?
MR. GRAMA TGES: The south plant, yes.
MR. BOAZ: Others being 120 or 145?
MR. GRAMATGES: Correct.
MR. BOAZ: If that number would go up, then we would have a
problem with that sooner and need to move some of that production to
another --
MR. GRAMATGES: Most certainly. However, we don't
anticipate that should increase because that area is almost built out.
So we expect the mix of use in that area would stay the same.
MR. BOAZ: So that would only be a problem if that usage
changed?
MR. GRAMATGES: Correct.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Any other questions on 44, 45?
If not, we're onto page 46. After that we have pages -- tables up to
page 52. Break out the yearly projects. Any questions on any of these
tables, projects?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Hearing none, I think we're finished
with the waste water treatment section.
MR. SCHIFFER: Let me just ask one tiny question. What is the
area that the south plant covers? How would you describe that?
MR. GRAMATGES: Well the south plant covers pretty much
from Golden Gate Estates down. Not including Golden Gate Estates
by the way because they're out of our region, but to the south of
Golden Gate Estates down. I don't -- unfortunately I don't have a chart
that shows the exact location of that service area.
MR BOAZ: South of Golden Gate Parkway?
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November 20, 2006
MR. GRAMATGES: I would say yes.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Maybe could you add a little
chart showing the district the next time we see you?
MR GRAMATGES: Oh, sure.
MR. SCHIFFER: Thanks.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Let's move on to the county solid
waste. I bet there's no presentation on solid waste either.
MR. GRAMATGES: No, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Go right into questions. That
would be on page 54 everyone. Starts out with the chart, or actually a
table. Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: I can start if you'd like. These -- this table is
totally different than last year's table, and I understand why some of it
is different, but how can line capacity be so different from one year to
the next? In the prior years too. What I thought was actual is now, has
been changed like going back to 2002. Could you talk a -- it kind of
shook my confidence a little.
MR. GRAMATGES: I can understand. This area is very
confusing. And part of the problem is that it is a moving target. We
evaluate the available capacity every year. We do it based on aerial
photographs, which is industry standard. Unfortunately, those aerial
photographs do calculate the available area in different ways. And
there is a very real difference from year to year, yes indeed. I'm afraid
-- I've given you all of my expertise in this area.
MS. VASEY: But the difference is in 2004, you used to have 4.1
million tons of lined sewage capacity available and now this year you
have 880,000.
MR. GRAMATGES: We need to remember as well, the
population number for 2004 changed as well. Because those are
estimates. The only firm numbers that we have, and I'm sorry if I am
showing expertise that I don't have because this really is CDES, is in
2000 as I understand and I've been told. And the numbers beyond
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November 20, 2006
2000 are calculated numbers. We did notice changes in population for
2004 between last year and this year. You probably noticed that as
well. So, once again, this is very much a moving target. I'm afraid I
can't answer beyond that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It might help us if you walk through--
and I tried to do this for the first one, the year 2000. You walk
through how those different columns and the table were calculated.
Well, I know that the column one is the fiscal year, column two, the
population estimate this year came from the revised estimates the
county provided you?
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I guess table three becomes a
significant multiplier that can confuse the issue.
MR. GRAMATGES: Sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Because in 2005 we made a strong -- we
had a strong discussion about the disposal rate. I remember Mr.
Whitus was here and he told us that the fact that we have such good
recycling and those bins are just really successful, our disposal rate
was going down and down and down, which this graph reflects that.
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But last year was 2005 and he came in
at that time with a point 75, but was going to be point 82 and then it
was going to be continuous point 82 for the rest of the future, and
obviously that can change. But prior to that, how could you change
the tons per capita disposal rate because it's already done? The tons
per capita would have been created and over and done with.
MR. GRAMATGES: As I explained before, the number of
capitas does change. That number changes a little bit.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So you backed into the number then?
MR. GRAMATGES: Uh-uh.
MR. BOAZ: The population actually changed. How does the
population in the past change?
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November 20,2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, that's part of the whole discussion
we've had since Thursday on population. It's been a real challenge.
MR. GRAMATGES: I don't claim to be an expert on the
population issue. I can only tell you what I've been told. What I've
been told is, the only firm number we have for population is 2000.
And everything from there is calculated and estimated, so, therefore,
2004 could change. In fact, it could change again next year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. But if you can change the
disposal rate, and you can change the population, and wouldn't the
annual tons then disposed seem like it should change because that's the
one figure that didn't change? That figure stayed consistent.
MR. GRAMATGES: Well, because that certainly is the one we
can calculate. We know how many tons were disposed every year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's exactly where I'm going. That
means that you backed into the number to reflect the reaction to the
new population statistics instead of what really was a disposal rate.
That's not the issue. The disposal rate was whatever the population
would have to be to multiply it to make it come up to the annual tons
disposed, which is the opposite. That doesn't seem the way we're
supposed to be doing things.
MR. GRAMA TGES: I can only suggest that I can take that back
and bring it back again with a better explanation.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I mean, I don't know if you have
another explanation, I certainly --
MR. GRAMATGES: No, I don't. I think you hit the nail on the
head. We know exactly what the annual tons disposed are because
that we measured. And the other numbers do change so, therefore the
population estimates is they change, change tons per capita.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So now if you work your scenario in
reverse, you have proven that the population statistics that have not
come out are false. The ones we were using would have been more
accurate because you now know of a fixed number. You have an
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November 20,2006
annual tons disposed. You know what that is. Now it's just a matter
of the rate of disposal. That shouldn't fluctuate with the population.
That should be fixed, or that should be known to whatever the
population is. If you don't have that, and you have to create that, you
in essence then are creating the population, which is the wrong way to
go.
MR. GRAMATGES: I'm afraid I don't--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It's as confusing to you as your stuff is
to me, but I think I understand what I needed to out of the discussion.
Mr. Schmidt.
MR. SCHMIDT: Yes. Why would not the tons per capita
disposal rate change? I think it would change because they're backing
into it. You've got the annual tons disposed. You've got the
population, or at least what you believe is the population. That's how
you can go back in history and try to come up with a tons per capita so
that you can begin to use that number to evaluate future needs. I
mean, they're not out there every day measuring tons per capita.
They're measuring --
MR. MURRAY: Gross tons.
MR. SCHMIDT -- gross tons that come into the facility.
MR. GRAMATGES: But you see, up to 2005, Mr. Schmidt's
logic certainly makes sense because we back into that number. Bu we
need to use that number as an average in order to calculate the tons
disposed from then on. Yeah, I realize this is a contrite way to do it,
but we cannot figure a better way of doing this.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm not saying your department had to
do this -- did this unintentionally. I know why you had to do it
because we got new numbers that you had to digest, but you were
stuck with some fixed numbers that were already established.
MR. GRAMATGES: Sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But in the reverse scenario, it seems to
work logically then. Maybe our population statistics aren't as accurate
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November 20,2006
as we think they are and that may be where I'm going.
MR. BOAZ: That's based on an estimate.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yeah.
MR. GRAMATGES: That's not my area of expertise so I can't
comment on that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. With that then let's move on.
We're on page 54. Any other questions on page 54.
MR. SCHIFFER: I have 54.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: You have historical data up to
2005?
MR. GRAMATAGES: Yes.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I mean, it really is looking good
that we're actually dropping quite a bit what we're disposing, correct?
MR. GRAMATAGES: That's true, yes.
MR. SCHIFFER: Okay. And the other thing that -- and we'll
talk about I guess in the next couple of pages is that the volume of the
dump, you know that really well, right? I mean, you said you go by
aerial photographs.
MR. GRAMATGES: Yes.
MR. SCHIFFER: I mean, wouldn't it be smart to survey if you're
getting that big of a change? But you kind of know the volume of
that.
MR. GRAMATGES: It is surveyed through aerial
photographers. I mean, it's the best way that industry has found to
survey the available capacity.
MR. SCHIFFER: I apprise the four corners of it and make some
GPS kids chase it down, but --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: One of the things that seems sort of odd is that the
population that you use relates back to the six months numbers. You
know, we were given four month and six months. Why would you use
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November 20, 2006
the six month numbers because you would get totally different
information if you use the four month peak numbers?
MR. GRAMATGES: Because based on our analysis of previous
figures, we determined that six months would be a more accurate
estimate than four.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And that's the number that David is
going to be coming back -- basically told us today is not the number
we should have been using because population is based on a peak
amount not on a time duration.
MR. GRAMATGES: I do think you're going to see quite a bit of
changes here once the population changes. You're going to be talking
about the same subjects again, I'm sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We are, that's why I think all this is
going to come back and it's going to be totally different. We'll be
going back to ground zero again. Any other questions on 54 and 55?
Page 56. Go ahead, Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: Obviously we have to do this in a 20 year
cycle I guess. Is this telling us we need a new dump within 20 years?
Or new landfill? I'm sorry.
MR. GRAMA TGES: We prefer the term landfill. Yes, it is
telling you that.
MR. SCHIFFER: How long does it take to find and get approved
and engineer and --
MR. GRAMATGES: Approximately ten years.
MR. SCHIFFER: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page 57. Page 58, 59. And 60 and 61
are continuing table. Are there any general questions on the solid
waste elements of this document? Mr. Bosi, do we have any public
speakers?
MR. BOSI: No public speakers.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well I guess we can cut the staff
loose on this one until they have to come back to us anyway. Is that in
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November 20, 2006
agreement with everybody here? Okay. Phil, as usual thank you. Oh,
Mr. Bosi.
MR. BOSI: I think we need a clarification. Mr. Weeks did not
indicate, or I don't think mean to indicate that we are going to have
new population numbers for you to digest related to this document.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, he did. He said that Thursday. He
told us -- we challenged him on whether or not today's meeting would
be productive, and he said well, we should continue with it but he's
going to before the end of the year, when he gets the new population
numbers worked out with DCA come back with new tables that we
would have to then have another meeting on to finish this out. I mean,
did I --
COMMISSIONER CARON: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: How about the rest of you, did anybody
hear that any differently?
MR. MURRAY: Well, I thought I remembered him saying this
became a question of the 2003 numbers being legally defensible, and
any issues that were in two years of population changes that we
wouldn't be able to use those numbers. That was my recollection.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't know which--
MR. MURRAY: You don't know what I said?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Okay. Let me try to say it in
English. As I understood it is, that while he did make a statement he
would come back with some numbers that we might be able to look at,
I didn't get the impression that they were the numbers we were going
to be able to use based on our last Thursday meeting when they
indicated -- he indicated we would not be able to use new numbers
because they weren't approved yet. They still have to go to the BCC
and get the numbers approved.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Which he's going to do December 12th.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Right. Now, are the new
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numbers going to be those? I don't know.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schmidt.
MR. SCHMIDT: Yes. Let me clarify . Yes, we are going to the
board on December 12th to ask the board to adopt a new
methodology. That methodology then will be part of the EAR based
amendment going forward and the CIE, but, the methodology, or we
will still not have DCA approval until after the appeal period in
probably April or May of the EAR based amendments. As we said
before, this is an issue of timing. We're using the currently adopted
methodology and the currently accepted standard that it was approved
by the Board of County Commissioners for this AUIR. We will not
be using new numbers on a new AUIR until the following year. Like
we said, we were going to the board to change the methodology, and
that will be the methodology we will attempt to use when we come
back with the CIE in April. Is that correct, Mr. Cohen?
MR. COHEN: Let me clarify that because of the language that
came from DCA. Language from DCA is a recommendation that
Collier County used median VBR numbers, plus an annual -- plus a
seasonal adjustment factor. That seasonal adjustment factor currently
is adopted in our comprehensive plans. It's at 33 percent. That number
hasn't been changed as well. I recall Mr. Weeks indicating to you that
we needed to go back and revisit that number while looking at gas tax
revenues, sales tax, also taking a look at traffic projections from daily
counters, which is not available yet, but which will be available during
next fiscal year. At that point in time we'll be able to come up with a
seasonal adjustment factor. At the same time we indicated that we
would be getting with VBR with respect to their methodology as set
forth in their bulletin that they put out on an annual basis. And also
look at the various factors that they use in their model relative to
Collier County. They use different models for different counties
based on their peaks and their seasonal population. We're bound by
our comprehensive plan right now and the methodology that's set forth
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November 20, 2006
in policy 4.8, to use the methodology which is the high VBR numbers
for the first five years and 95 percent for the next five years. That's
what you have in this particular AUIR. The policy change and the
direction we're asking from the board to go forward with on December
12th is a change in methodology from that 90 -- from that high VBR
number, and 95 percent using the exact language that was proffered by
DCA, which is a change to the median VBR numbers, plus the
seasonally adjusted factor, which we renewed -- which will be
reviewed by Collier County on an annual basis. There's no
recommended seasonal adjustment factor, but I can tell you is that the
data that we have in the current comprehensive plan supports the
seasonal adjustment factor of 33 percent. And that's what we have to
do the data analysis on that we don't have the support right now to
change at this point in time. Mr. Weeks will be working on that in the
upcoming year to fix that, but it's a very lengthy process.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. What I heard earlier today was
that the population statistics that we've been using did not include the
extractions of Marco Island, Naples for vacancy rates. There will be a
change in the population numbers. They do not know what VBR
based it's numbers on, whether they did include in the census of the
full county area or other particular points. We asked for clarification
on all that because it's going to affect these charts. That isn't a change
in methodology. That's defining the methodology we currently use to
make sure it reflects what they're supposed to reflect. Not vacancy
rates taken twice. Not units on for hotel rooms at 100 percent
occupancy that are calculated into the system, as we've had testimony
here today. That's not a change in methodology. That's fixing the
methodology that we currently have. On that basis I see no reason
why any of the basis of these AUIRs for population shouldn't be
changed and shouldn't be done to reflect accurately the numbers that
we're supposed to be using. It's not a matter of the methodology. It's
a matter of the way the methodology is calculated.
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November 20, 2006
MR. COHEN: Well, the adopted methodology in the comp plan
is high VBR for the first five years, 95 percent thereafter, and the
seasonal population is factored in at 33 percent of the permanent
population. That is the adopted methodology.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Randy, you can go on and repeat to me
what you've repeated continuously today and Thursday. I just told
you what I see it as, and that's how I'm proceeding myself. There are
11 people, 12 people here. Each one of us can decide how to proceed.
As far as I'm concerned, the acknowledgement that these population
numbers are not accurate, would not lead me to recommend to the
Board of County Commissioners to invoke a document such as this
that's going to challenge the ad valorem tax base to such a standard,
we're all going to see taxes that aren't maybe necessarily needed until
we get to the right numbers.
MR. COHEN: And I've got to respond back, that it's incumbent
upon us as staff to use the adopted methodology set forth by the board
until such time that they change that methodology and we're bound by
that policy directive. It's not our place as a staff to make a policy
decision where that population methodology would change. Grant it
coming out of the review by DCA we fully understand that that
population methodology is subject to change and we anticipate that's
going to happen as part of CIE, which is a portion of the EAR based
amendments. But at this point in time, until that officially happens by
board direction, we're bound by that prior poor policy direction.
MR. MURRAY: If I may --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray and then Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: We started this discussion by my
statement. And I had forgotten what you had done earlier today, and I
agree with you. Randy, I think the issue that is being raised has
nothing to do with what is legally required in terms of methodology,
but instead as associated with components that were discovered at
question. Whether the components were appropriate. Whether
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something was double counted and so forth. Mr. Weeks did indicate
that he saw that that might be an issue and he promised that he would
come back with numbers that would reflect a correction if that was
necessary. In that context, I agree with our chair, and the rest of the
folks that are nodding their head, I had lost sight of that. What I was
stipulating was what I heard last Thursday and what I had recollected.
But I agree with the chair. We should be waiting for Mr. Weeks to
come back with that. If you're saying to us they didn't have time or
something else, that's another issue entirely. We're not looking to
change methodology until the BCC changes that. What the chair has
pointed out is something different entirely, I think.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: Randy, the population projections that we just
went through for this element, where are those? Are those exactly
your -- and it was for the landfill. So I guess that would assume the
whole county population, correct?
MR. COHEN: That is correct.
MR. SCHIFFER: Are these the high VBR for the first five years
and 95 percent high after that?
MR. COHEN: Yes, sir.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. Now when people are
referring to peak season four and six, is that a methodology that's
approved?
MR. COHEN: What should transpire is the methodology that
was approved was with a point 33 factor when we came to
determining seasonal population. And that's what the four month
chart will show you. Those are the charts you should be looking at.
The six months show a point 50 adjustment and that would be
basically factoring a sixteen-and-a-half percent peak population factor,
and that's contrary to what transpired in the past. That's what Mr.
Weeks was referring to as being in error.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron and then Ms. Vasey.
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November 20,2006
COMMISSIONER CARON: Actually, I was just going to agree
with Mr. Murray. What we're talking about is not a change in
methodology. Weare talking about correcting the currently approved
methodology where we have found -- Mr. Strain has found, some
errors in. And those errors were confirmed by Mr . Weeks when he
was here earlier.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: I would like to say that the solid waste is not
based on the four months, it's based on the six months. So that one is
out of, you know, out of the parameters that we're agreeing to use
here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Good point. Any other comments from
the numbers of this -- these two committees? Is it the general
consensus to move on to the next element and not take a position on
water solid waste and waste water treatment at this time?
MR. TUFF: If there's such a strong--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead.
COMMISSIONER TUFF: -- disagreement on where we are and
what the solution is, I don't think it's doing us any good to move
forward until we say here, here's what the deal is. We have us going
in one direction and staff going another direction, and doesn't look like
we're going to meet in the middle then are we wasting our time? We
need to get clarification from the board before we move forward.
Becasue last week they also said the number they're planning on are
going to be higher than these. That would totally go against what your
theory was. We have staff and you going completely different
directions.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I think that's our
responsibility .
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I'm sorry. I'm tired of hearing
this situation of who's who. We are the ones that were told to put this
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into effect now with some extra help. I don't think it's their
responsibility, I think it's ours.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Wait a minute. Let me clarify
something. What Janet said is right. I asked the question, is this the
VBR high and in 95 that was the wrong answer I got. Isn't that right?
Randy, you are doing -- you said we can use the four, we can't use the
six, but Janet is right, the six is the population numbers in here, not the
four and not the VBR high.
COMMISSIONER CARON: Just not solid waste.
MR. SCHIFFER: Yeah, that was the one I was pointing at.
What we should maybe do, Mark, is about two months ago have a
discussion on what's the population of the county all by itself and then
we can --
MR. TUFF: If we're not going to get those numbers, and that's
what I'm hearing--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's Mr. Tuff, by the way.
MR. TUFF: Oh, sorry. Ifwe're not going to get those numbers,
unless we can provide them ourselves, then we aren't going to have
anything to vote on later. That issue has to be cleared first.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Russ, I think it's going to really be up to
each one of the members on the panel. I don't feel comfortable voting
on something I know is not right. I will not do so. Unless I vote, it
will be negative. Each one of us here has to make up our minds that
productivity is -- the committee is going to have to make up their's.
And then that's how -- I still think conceptually we ought to move
through the document and provide as much input as we can, and then
if there's not another opportunity, I think the record will show that we
can move it forward in any manner whatsoever if we don't. Let the
BCC realize there might be something patently wrong there. I can
assure you, they're probably aware of it by now just by the simple
meeting we've had so far today at the beginning of this morning's
meeting. So any ideas, any suggestions on the productivity
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committee? Ms. Vasey.
MS . VASEY: I don't want to talk unless you recognize me.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, it just helps the stenographer.
MS. VASEY: I know. It seems to me it might be helpful if we
could find out from David Weeks if he is currently working on those
numbers and how soon he might have an idea of what might change.
If it's a minimal change, we might be able to go forward. If it's a major
change, in the issues brought up this morning, then there's no point in
going on. Well, we've tried to get that out of staff on Thursday. And
my understanding was that sometime in December we would be
reconvened with new numbers. I guess maybe not everybody was
under that same mind-set from that meeting. I certainly had thought
that.
Mr. Schmidt, you got any suggestions as to when David might
have any revisions or relook at the population numbers?
MR. SCHMIDT: It was my understanding again, what you said
if we were just going to tweak the numbers associated with the
seasonal population, the other population numbers are strictly from the
VBR information we get. I just do not understand, or I do not believe
the number change is going to be that significant to dramatically affect
what is in your report here today. If it changes by five or ten percent I
just, even at those numbers -- as we displayed to you last week, the
numbers between the methodology that's being recommended and our
current methodology, the numbers being recommended, that is
medium VBR, and then the full -- the total of the entire estimate
associated with the seasonal population, those numbers exceed these
numbers. And I believe would even further skew I guess what we're
trying to present here as far as demands.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And, Joe, the problem was not with the
base VBR, whether it be low, medium or high. It wasn't as much as a
problem as determining what was in the base so that when the add-ons
occurred for the seasonal -- the add-ons in this community have been
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vacancy rates, hotel occupancy, gas taxes and there was one other.
MR. MURRAY: Migration.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: What happens is if the vacancy -- if the
vacant homes are already taken into consideration and the PPH
generated by those in the base VBR rate, you add them again to
generate seasonal population, you're not dealing with a fair analysis
for a multiplier for future facilities because you're looking at it twice.
You've included it in the base population and you're including it in the
add-on seasonal population. The same goes for hotel occupancy. If
you get X amount of hotels and they're already built into the system
when they get a COA, at 100 percent occupancy, but that's what your
department does, you've already got the facility as a service hotel, how
is it fair to then say, well, when those are filled up during the season,
we've got to have more facilities? That's not right. The facilities are
already there because those hotels were COld by your department. If
that's wrong, then we have to let somebody know. But until those kind
of questions are answered, I don't know how we have an accurate
population based seasonally. Now you may want to say during the
season we have more people here, but the impacts of the system are
through the dwelling units and through the commercial, either square
footage or hotel occupancy rates or things like that. Those are what
drive the system, not necessarily the population, because the
population, every single person that comes to this county, with the
exception of the homeless in Immokalee -- I think Mindy said they
have a lot of homeless, or whatever. Until you get to homeless
people, and that's a very small percentage, everybody else is in a CO'd
building. A building that's got a COA that's tied into a system of some
type. That's all what we're trying to find out is sort that out so we
know we have an accurate number to go forward with.
MR. SCHMIDT: And I don't argue that point. That's exactly, I
think what Mr. Boaz was trying to ask when he asked Phil on the
current usage versus the population because -- and this is the
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discussion of are we using the right ruler to measure the demand or the
needs. Everything has gone back to population, but in reality we
know what the demand is for water sewer. We see it every day. It's
monitored. But then we convert that back to population in order to
create a method projected into the future. And somehow I believe
we're putting too much emphasis on the population when in fact the
methodology we've been using for the last eight years has proven to be
fairly accurate. I'm not -- I'm somewhat puzzled in regards to your
concerns. Do you believe we're overestimating or underestimating or
you just don't know?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't know. And I think what you're
using is the wrong multiplier. I think what you ought to be using are
dwelling unit accounts that your department issues permits where you
can predict based on history how many new building permits you'll
have each year. That's a real impact on the system. As Phil had
testified, there's an ERC associated with it which generates the body in
the unit. That is the real impact in the system is when that unit is
constructed. Just like you know what the population increase is by
new hotel rooms every year. You can come up with that. You can
say, in the upcoming years we're going to have a 10 percent increase
in population because that's how many new hotel rooms we're putting
on line. That's the kind of data correlation that I think generates real
true facilities in capital expenditures. Not a population statistic that
goes up and down like a roller coaster that we've seen here in different
-- and even go back into it for years prior. That is not right. That's
just not the way to do it. At least that's my opinion. I think I've said
enough on the issue, and I'll just go for whatever this panel wants to
do. Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: And, Mark, when I talked to Dr.
Smith last week, the impression I got is that he would figure out our
population and back it off by what the 2000 census is, which is the
28.8. So he is backing down the population based on vacant andr
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seasonal uses.
MR. COHEN: Can I clarify something for the record? The VBR
population projection, if you look at the permanent population
calculation, they look at two things when they look at your 100
percent of your units. They have two factors in looking at what they
call in terms of determining what's permanent and what's seasonal.
The first factor is your number of vacant units. And they look at that.
And that's your initial factor that they look at in determining what is
the established permanent population. The second factor they look at
is electrical hookups. We know in this county, electrical hookups
doesn't really weight in as much because people leave on their electric
year-round. One of the things we need to do as staff, and what we're
looking into, is trying to find out from VBR how they're factoring in
the vacant units. Because when we look at the census right now we're
looking at that 28.4 percent factor. Whether or not they're doing an
adjustment based on electrical hookups, that's something that factors
into whether or not potentially they're overestimating our permanent
population. That's a concern that we do have. If they are, then
obviously the season will adjust when you look at the medium VBR
numbers would be off too. It's something thanks going to take
sometime to do in looking at their modeling. And as part of the
methodology that goes forward and is being proposed by DCA, we
would adjust that seasonal population if they're overestimating the
permanent or try to work with them in trying to get them to back off
on the permanent. And that's a long term type of prognosis because
getting VBR to modify their numbers is obviously a very different
thing in challenging them. So those are the things that are encumbant
upon us as the staff to take a look at. We've done the initial work with
respect to looking at the past population. Both things that were
provided by the Borough of Economic and Business Research because
they are charged with the official responsibility as providing us as a
county, every local jurisdiction in the state with official population
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projections. So we have to rely upon them. We provide them with our
CO data for the subsequent years for them to utilize and actually put
into the system. What you'll see happen is when we talk about
population estimates and we see these numbers and you say, well
you're going back and you're retrofitting, what ends up happening is
they make projections based on past trim analysis. Let's use this year
as an example. Our CO data from the prior year was a lot higher. This
year we know that it's going to be a lot lower. They projected our
population for 2006 to be, I think, a 13,000 increase over last year.
Well, we've gotten our estimates for next year based on CO data and
now they're just projecting 9,000, roughly 9,000. So these numbers
sometimes do back in. That's why you see Mr. Gramatges' numbers
with solid waste, sometimes you'll see that back off. You can see an
increase likewise if the number was to increase, you know, beyond
that 13,000. So, it's not a static number. When we do this AUIR, it's a
snapshot in time. We realize we're not going to be exact, but if you
look at the trim analysis that occurred over the past ten years using the
population methodology that's in place right now, pretty much I think
in 2005, based off the projections in 2000, Mr. Weeks' projections
were off by 200 people. I think that's pretty close and right on target
when you look at a ten year projection period.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We have to come back and reconvene to
finish up drainage, and we have to come back for solid waste. Any
final vote on the water and sewer, I don't know why we couldn't do it
at that time. It will give us time to think about it, and who knows,
David may come back with some recommendations on populations.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: Agreed.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If that's a way both committees would
like to proceed, I think that would be -- get us past this stalemate. Is
that okay with the productivity committee?
MR. VAN FLEET: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Everybody okay with that? Good. With
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that we'll finish up with -- we're done with solid waste water and
sewer and I wish to thank those members of the productivity
committee that were here for that issue, and we'll take a break until
3 :00 and hopefully have some coffee.
(Whereupon, a brief recess was taken.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: This will be a continuation of our AUIR
review. We've been working on county parks and recreation facilities
to round out the category A improvements. And if we have time, we'll
move into category B. We have one new member joining us today,
Mr. Bennett.
MR. BENNETT: How are you?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Good, sir.
MR. BENNETT: Glad to be here.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. Mr. Bennett is with the
productivity committee. Before we go on too far we ought to establish
a time for closing today's meeting and continuing until the 19th, is
when our next scheduled meeting date is. We run until 5:30 or six.
5 :30 sound good to everybody?
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: No.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No?
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Five sounds like a great time,
but that's up to you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, do you have a preference?
MR. VAN FLEET: No, not really.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anybody concerned about, besides Mr.
Adelstein, about 5:30?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Let's move to 5:30 and we'll go as long
and as hard as we can. With that, we will have our parks and recs
department. Hi.
MS. TOWNSEND: Good afternoon, members of the
Commission Committee. Amanda Townsend, operations analyst for
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the, operations analyst for the public services division. The 2006
AUIR for parks and recreation facilities addresses level of service
standards in three categories: Facilities value per capita, community
park acreage per capita and regional -- I'm sorry. Community park
acreage and regional park acreage. Would you prefer that I address all
three or to take them individually?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'd like to take them individually so we
can walk through the document page by page and then we'll get to
each piece if that works for you.
MS. TOWNSEND: That would be fine. Quickly to address
some changes in facilities value between the 2005 and 2006 AUIR. In
updating the inventory, we made some changes in order to get some
more value from what's already available to the public out there.
Those are outlined on pages 88 and 89 in your booklet. We added
some new categories of facilities and changed the method by which
we inventory indoor facilities in order to get more value out of what is
out there for the public. In addition we added new facilities that have
come on line for the public this year for a result and net gain of 22
million dollars in facilities valued between last year and this year's
AUIR.
Another change that you'll see between last year and this year's
AUIR is that we started planning into a ten-year window. In previous
years, the AUIR showed facilities planning out only five years. We
are doing more long-range planning. That's probably a good thing, but
it does have one unusual effect on the AUIR which I'd like to explain.
If you look at your chart on page 66 you'll see what appears to be
spending far more than necessary to meet the level of service standard.
This is somewhat of a misrepresentation. The chart reveals the money
that parks and recreation department expects to spend on capital
improvement projects. However, when these projects are then
translated into the inventory that makes up that base line value, the
amount that is spent is significantly reduced. I'll give you a real world
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example of that. The North Collier Regional Park construction
contract was 53 million dollars. The inventory that you see when
calculated in the chart in the back of your packet for parks and
recreation is 30 million dollars. So that disconnect between what is
spent and what is able to be inventories explains that separation you
see on the chart on page 66, and I just sort of wanted you to be aware
of that. It's a phenomenon that I looked back and is demonstrated
historically as well. That's always been the case. I think it's just
shown in sharper relief here because you see that planning into the
ten-year window as opposed to the five-year window.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Is that the end of your presentation?
MS. TOWNSEND: Sure I'll take questions.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Recreation. As far as recreation
facilities go, can you tell us how they differ from park facilities,
because you have community parks, regional parks, and recreation
facilities. Can you describe how they coordinate together?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, I can. The facilities that you see
inventoried here are either in a community park, a regional park, or
even a neighborhood park. If there's a playground in a neighborhood
park or a tennis court or a basketball court. We do inventory those.
Each facility gets a value. When you're looking at the community in
regional park acreage, you're looking at acreage alone with facilities
stripped off because those are accommodated for here in the section
we're talking about now.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So all the vertical improvements of any
type are basically in these numbers?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We'll go back to our
methodology of starting with the first page and seeking questions on
page 64. I notice you have a surplus instead of a deficit. Nice thing to
have. I believe that's directly derived from the increased impact fees
so that's a fair statement?
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MS. TOWNSEND: Yes. The surplus that you see is -- I'm sorry.
I'm not understanding. Do you mean a surplus is cash or surplus in
facilities?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Surplus. It says five year surplus or
deficit? In the fourth line down from the top under facilities value.
You have excess facilities, or you could have?
MS TOWNSEND: Here again that's a function of that
phenomenon that I explained when you look at the amount we expect
to expend you will see that surplus. When those facilities come on
line to the public and they're put into inventory that number will
probably come much closer to a zero out.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm concerned about its interaction with
impact fees. I don't know -- I didn't realize impact fees could be
utilized, build up a five-year surplus. Margie, do you have any
comments on that?
MS. STUDENT: No, but I can check and report back. My
general understanding that the impact fees are supposed to be spent for
growth. They're in an individual fund related to certain geographic
areas of the county and are kept there until they're needed for the
expenditure to take care of the facility that is driven by growth.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I had some understanding similar to
that. A little more involved in regarding time frames. If you could
check into it to make sure that by showing a surplus such as we have
here in the AUIR that doesn't provide a problem for the impact rates
that we recently increased.
As far as facilities on this page, and I know I asked this question
last year, I'll probably get the same answer this year, inside many
developments in this county, there are private recreation facilities on
private parklands. Those are used by the people within those
communities excluding the public. A lot of times the people in those
communities have the needs they have right there in their community,
and how are we taking that into consideration in the A UIR?
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MS. TOWNSEND: We have begun an inventory. A privately
available recreation facility . You'll see our estimates up there on the
visualizer. We conducted a voluntary survey of contacts at PUDs with
residential component. We got about a 40 percent return on that. We
were able to verify that our numbers, our estimates that you see here,
and they're in extrapolation based on a 40 percent return. We could
verify that our numbers were close because when we counted up the
number of golf courses that we received positive feedback on our
survey, that was also 40 percent of what we know to be the golf
courses in the county. So these numbers are estimates, but they're an
extrapolation based on those survey results that show you what might
be out there available privately as far as recreation facilities go. And
they're revealing to us -- they didn't show us too many things that were
surprising. The basketball court might be surprising to us, however,
we -- I thought intuitively probably that there are lots of residents out
there who have swimming pools and tennis courts available to them
not provided by county parks and recreation, and that's exactly what
we found.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: How do those -- the presence of those,
factor into your calculations for level of service for the needs you're
asking for here? You got every table prepared. You must have
known I was going to ask this.
MS. TOWNSEND: I do. Facilities value of course is the level
of service standard that's adopted within the GMP. But for our
planning services in the parks and recreation department, it doesn't
give us a full snapshot of what we need to be providing to the public.
Therefore the chart you see there has in the left-hand column the score
guideline. That's the statewide comprehensive outdoor recreation
planning guide. That is conducted by the division of Recreation and
Parks up in Tallahassee. We take those guidelines and adjust them in
accordance with data we have based on the particular circumstances
within Collier County. For example, you'll see that we have
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significantly reduced the Collier guideline, or increased the number
there by reducing the level of service, and the Collier guideline for
swimming pools, for example. The state guideline would be one for
50,000 and we've increased that to one per, I believe it's 100,000. I
can't read it from here. And that is in response to that -- to that
knowledge that I showed you just a moment ago. There are 245
approximately swimming pools out there to people available, available
privately, therefore we know we don't need to provide as many
publicly.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Those charts that you have, can you
make those available to us either by email or mail or copy?
MS. TOWNSEND: I most certainly can.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Thank you. So I don't forget to ask
anything, can you produce any other charts in response to questions I
haven't asked.
MS. TOWNSEND: That phenomenon that I showed you about
the reduction in value for cost versus the value that we inventory, I did
look at that historically and I can demonstrate that to you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I was going to ask you.
MS. TOWNSEND: It just so happens -- this is just a sample, and
I haven't run this number out across every type of facility that we
provide, but it just so happens that we let a contract for tennis courts in
1989 and we also let a contract for tennis courts in 2006. So I wanted
to look at the percent increase in both cost and inventoried value and
what our level of service standard was over time, and you'll see that
we've run fairly consistent. You'll also see that we have consistently
undervalued our facilities by about 45 percent.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead, Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: Why wouldn't your inventory value be the
cost? Everybody else has done that up until now.
MS. TOWNSEND: I'm afraid I don't have a good answer for
that. We started with some baseline value back in 1989, and we've
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been increasing them based on a national construction cost index. But
obviously we started with an undervalued base line and I don't have an
answer for that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Under your recreation facilities I
noticed you're not asking for any ad valorem taxes; is that correct?
MS. TOWNSEND: That is correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: And if you look at the summary, it appears
that you have eight million dollars in excess, which is probably why.
If your expenditures are 63, revenues less, encumbered revenues
comes to 71, essentially eight mill difference; is that right? In terms
of running the government, what does that mean?
MS. TOWNSEND: I believe that those numbers should balance
out. Is that not -- no. Okay . Yes, I'm sorry. I see where you are.
Yes, there is a slight surplus in cash.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think it goes back to the reason the
cash is there. It probably is because of the impact fee bump that
they've got that it was quite substantial and that is probably why we
don't see them asking for ad valorem taxes. But at the same time I'm
sure Margie's answer to that prior question will be important in
understanding how that can happen. Any other questions on page 64?
Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: Yes. Would you discuss the encumbered
revenues and why that's handled in that manner, because otherwise
you're looking at 63 million versus your 85 million.
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes. Those encumbered revenues are
simply a carry onto this summary sheet of the proposed cost
expenditure for community parkland acquisition and regional parkland
acquisition. I wanted to start with baseline revenues that were the
figures I received from the budget office and these -- but of course,
those revenues are spread across three different level of service
categories so it's represented this way which probably is more
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confusing than it needed to be.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: So, in other words, this is your
carry forward?
MS. TOWNSEND: No, I'm sorry, not carry forward. Cash
allocated to the other two level of service standards that we have to
meet.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Why would you have the
community park in this summary sheet then since this is -- why would
you have regional park when this is the recreation facility chart?
MS. TOWNSEND: We had a total amount of cash that we had
to work with, and that cash needs to be spread across three level of
service standards for the various projects we're proposing meet to each
standard. So this is just simply taking that cash out of the facilities
value pool so that it's available to meet those other level of service
standards.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anybody else have any questions on
page 64? If not let's turn to page 65. Sixty-five is a table, parks
facilities value. Any questions on that table? You reference the
population countywide. Does that include the City of Naples and
Marco Island?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Do you include in your inventory the
parks supplied by the City of Naples and Marco Island?
MS. TOWNSEND: No, we do not.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You don't include them in their -- you
don't include their inventory, but we include their impact. Do you
include the fact that a lot of our residents use their parks?
MS. TOWNSEND: No, we do not. As far as facilities value
goes, we're using a countywide population number, and we're
inventorying what the parks and recreation department has available,
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either through -- sometimes through interlocal agreement or usually
through a facility that they own and operate. When we come to
community parkland, however, we do not count the incorporated areas
in the population figures because community parks, of course, are
funded by unincorporated impact fees and intended for the use by
residents of the unincorporated area. That doesn't mean, of course,
that county residents don't use city facilities, and city residents don't
use county facilities.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: See if county and city people are
moving back and forth between their parks, isn't there some value to
the community as a whole that we get that ability? If it is, why would
we want to include that in our calculation of facilities. It would show
that we have a lot more facilities than what you have which means we
may need to produce a lot less than what you have. I understand that
part of it. I'm just wondering --
MS. TOWNSEND: Here again, as similar to those facilities that
I showed you that are available privately, we can look at those and in
just what types of facilities we're building, but if historically the per
capita level of service standard has been based on a certain way of
measuring things to change that, would cause us to need to re-evaluate
the per capita facility standard as well.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So if it's been wrong in the past or right,
we're going to go forward whether wrong or right the way the past
was, more or less? I know.
Are there any other any questions on page 65? Page 66 is the
chart that we previously were brought to. Then on page 67 through 69
we move into the six month analysis that I think a lot of us hadn't
spent a lot of time on. It may not be that relevant to the issue. That
kind of gets us through the recreational facilities. Are there any other
general comments about recreational facilities? Yes, sir, Mr. Vigliotti.
MR. VIGLIOTTI: Can I go back to page 66?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We can go anywhere you'd like.
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COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: At one point I see Golden Gate
Estates schools project.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: FY12 to 13.
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Between 11 and 12, 12 and 13.
School project. How would you be involved in a schools project?
Wouldn't that fall under schools?
MS. TOWNSEND: No, generally these are cooperative projects.
Those are two separate, one being Golden Gate Estates Community
Park and, you'll see a comma there, and a school project. Those are
two separate projects. But very often when the school district brings a
school on line, the parks and recreation department will form an
interlocal agreement with them under which we will bring some of
their athletic facilities up to league play standards with a cash
contribution. And thereafter those facilities are maintained by the
parks and recreation and available to the public for league play.
Teams play after school hours.
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: Just a general one. I'm wondering if the level of
service standard of $270 per capita is not really a very good one
because now you're getting more money in. We revised the impact
fees a few months ago. We added parks -- I mean, we added beach
and boat access on there. It seems like perhaps some of these things
that are dollar related are not really a good way to measure your level
of service standards. Is that perhaps some of what the problem is
between the expenditures of the revenues?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes. Yes, to answer your question in a
word. Generally we find that disconnect, as I said, between what we
spend and what we can inventory. And we find that facilities value
isn't as good a tool in helping us to measure whether we're providing
what the public needs or not as that chart I showed you before taking
things on a facility-by-facility basis counting up, you know, looking at
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state standards and counting up what we've got available. We do have
-- in fact, when we look at the numbers on a facility by facility case,
we do show some willful deficiencies depending on what the facility
.
IS.
MS. VASEY: Is there any way we can fix that, any
recommendation that we can make as a better measure so that we can
avoid, you know, misunderstandings or misconceptions?
MS. TOWNSEND: We have been researching how other
counties and municipalities write their GMP and how they write their
level of service standards in there. It's sort of in the exploratory stages
at this point. So far Collier County is the only county that I have
found that uses a facility for -- dollar for value per capita as a level of
service standard. And we may be coming forward in the future with
some recommendations on revising that, and perhaps going with the
facility-by- facility basis.
MS. VASEY: I was wondering maybe square footage or -- I'm
not sure that's particularly relevant, but you know, in the other -- in the
community and the regional we use acres per capita which makes a lot
more sense because it's not tied to a dollar that gets outdated very
quickly. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. The recreational facilities, are
there any other last questions on that?
MR. SCHIFFER: Mark.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir, Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: One thing this doesn't show is
where facilities are located and what neighborhoods they're in and
what the populations are. So, I mean, theoretically they could all be in
one corner of the county and this chart would be the same, correct?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think there's some tables in the back of
the general area that break all that down. Tells you where each park
is, and what it contains and all the pieces to it.
MS. TOWNSEND: Page 86 shows you locations of parks and
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November 20, 2006
then, yes, the inventory on pages 93 and 94 does break facilities down
by the old planning districts.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Okay. Thank you.
MR. BENNETT: Do you have any statistic --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Bennett.
MR. BENNETT -- usage of parks?
MS. TOWNSEND: I don't have any with me here today. We do
have many.
MR. BENNETT: You do have them?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes.
MR. BENNETT: There's the big new park on Livingston, where
the swimming pool is and all that. I was there and nothing was
happening with it. There was nobody there. I wondered why.
MS. TOWNSEND: Because that's a new facility. We have
struggled with determining what the operating hours should be. And
we made the determination to stay open more, find out what the use
would be, and revise as we go into the next fiscal year.
MR. BENNETT: Spending millions of dollars sitting idle there.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I mean, looking at these charts,
that's not exactly the answer to the question. The question is, is the
county broken into any kind of a region where you can see if the
populations, since we're doing it one based on populations, that the
parks are balanced.
MS. TOWNSEND: I don't have those statistics in accordance
with population. I do however, and I don't have any with me. I
apologize. I do have maps that show the circle of the influence, if you
will. A five-mile radius around a community park. And we use those
to help us locate new facilities. We don't -- I don't have them by
population density. I could do them that way if you were interested in
seeing them.
MR. SCHIFFER: Since we rank it by population, we kind of
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November 20, 2006
want to know if they're balanced. Move on.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. With that, if it's okay with
everyone, we can move on to community parkland, category A. Do
you have any opening comments to make on that?
MS. TOWNSEND: Changes between the '05 and '06 AUIR are
listed on page 90. You'll see that we have a net gain there of
9.64-acres, none of which involved purchases. Mostly just sort of
cleaning up the inventory in one way or another. We've tried to stick
with the board direction here and keep our acquisition right in line
with need. On page 73 you'll see one spike there in acreage, which is
the result of the change in the acreage designation. The property on
Vanderbilt -- the future Vanderbilt Beach Road extension in Golden
Gate Estates will be reclassified from a regional park to a community
park. That is in part in anticipation of some lost acreage as the road
comes through that area. Other than that, we've tried to keep our work
program right in line with need. We expect to gain 23.2 million
dollars in and value with a cash expenditure of only 12 million dollars
in the five-year window.
MR. MURRAY: I have a question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: I don't think I see it here. But in Conservation
Collier lands will be passive parks. It is my understanding that park
rangers will be responsible perhaps in part, perhaps in total, for
closing or securing the park in the evening. Is that true?
MS. TOWNSEND: No. We are taking those on a case-by-case
basis and we write an interdepartmental agreement for each one. We
have put one of those into effect and added it to our inventory this
year, and that is Cocohachee Creek Park which is contiguous to
Veteran's Community Park.
MR. MURRAY: An interlocal agreement that would indicate
who's responsible for what. Is there also a transfer of funds or credits
and debits?
Page 169
.A'" r.." .,..,..,"
November 20, 2006
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes. Conservation Collier is reimbursing
the parks and recreation department very minimally for that work that
we're doing. Just, you know, simple mowing the easement and
picking up garbage and that sort of thing on that particular case.
MR. MURRAY: So Conservation Collier has a maintenance
budget that's associated with that and may in time grow to facilitate
that?
MS. TOWNSEND: That is correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: The loss due to innerdepartment transfer,
you're writing that down as an expense, but you're not getting
anything in return for that?
MS. TOWNSEND: Let me figure out exactly which -- the loss
you see there is 47 acres on the Randal Curve. And the 20 acres that I
talked about is going to Vanderbilt Beach Extension. We're
anticipating that that's going to be a swap. But when that acreage
comes back to us it's going to be regional parkland.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So why is it considered an
expense?
MS. TOWNSEND: It's loss of value. It's land that we will be
taking out of our inventory.
MR. SCHIFFER: And you're getting nothing back, but You say
it will show up as a revenue?
MS. TOWNSEND: I believe it's 63 acres at Orange Tree that
we're receiving back. You'll see that 67 -acre loss between Randal and
Vanderbilt Beach Extension. And when we get to regional park
acreage, you're going to see a 63-acre gain. And I'm sure that we can
work out with transportation vision those other five acres as we move
forward.
MR. SCHIFFER: Looking ahead I don't see it, but you'll show
me.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions? I take it that your
Page 1 70
November 20, 2006
available inventory last year 453, you're adding nine acres. But you're
really interchanging a lot more acreage to end up with nine. Is that a
fair statement?
MS. TOWNSEND: Between last year and this year, all changes
are in the chart on page 90 . We are adding -- there was some
inconsistencies in the inventory on the way we -- the designation we
gave collocated school facilities, so we moved those all to community
park acreage. You'll see that's a six acre gain. And then the
Cocohachee Creek cooperative agreement with Conservation Collier
is another 3.64 acres. The others you see are anticipated.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Let me try to understand. On page 70,
your double asterisk, you're looking at a planned inventory change of
116 acres. That's additional, correct? Is says additional.
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: On the next page under -- I don't know
what you call that thing. It's two of them though. You're looking at
plus 60 acres on the first line and plus three acres on the second line
for a total 63, plus the 116 you're looking at 179 positive. You lost 67
acres on the first page under the triple asterisk, on the second page you
lost 120. I mean, you lost 187 so you had a negative about nine or
eight. Does that factor into the number that you're using for your
available inventory?
MS. TOWNSEND: I'm sorry. We're talking about two different
things, I think. There's available inventory and that's all
accommodated for in that first 462.7 acres.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Correct.
MS. TOWNSEND: What I just pointed to you about schools and
Conservation Collier, that all happened between '05 and '06.
Everything else that you have just described is all enumerated there is
a net gain of 116 acres. And if you want to see those broken out on a
year-by-year basis, you can turn to page 91.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That helps. Thank you. Are there any
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November 20, 2006
other questions on page 70? My typical, just for the record, private
developments, their parklands are not included in this inventory?
MS. TOWNSEND: That is correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are they included in any inventory in
the county?
MS. TOWNSEND: No.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And you factor these in the same by that
chart you previously showed us basically by the facilities built upon
those lands?
MS. TOWNSEND: Now that I know based on the new
inventory that some of these preserve areas are providing trails and
we'll probably reduce what we consider our local guideline for trail
facilities.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You are requiring in the new GMP
amendment -- EAR amendments that developments provide parks? At
least the language in the EAR that we reviewed a week or two ago.
MS TOWNSEND: Yes, a new LDC cycle is opening and we'll
be working on that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So you are going to provide developers
-- you're going to require developers to provide that. Are they going
to be getting any credit for that in any way like impact fees or
something like that since they are providing for it?
MS. TOWNSEND: It hasn't been discussed at this time.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Margie, there's another one for you to
research. If EAR is requiring the developers to provide the parklands,
then I think we need to see under the recent legislation whether or not
that's going to be a mandatory credit against them against park impact
fees because that may then have an impact.
Page 71 is footnotes to page 70, so we'll move on to page 72.
Anybody have questions on page 72? Your first footnote there about
the population.
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes.
Page 1 72
November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The population has been a real fun
number lately. Is this the population statistic most recently provided
by David Weeks everybody else has been using or are you looking at
a different one? Everybody words it a little differently so I'm not sure.
MS. TOWNSEND: Community park acreage gets to be its own
little thing out there because this is a number that is based on the
unincorporated area only.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's probably what threw me because
it says population countywide. It's really not county wide.
MS. TOWNSEND: Right. You're right, yes you're correct, that
is an error. County wide with an asterisk.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Are there any other questions on
the table on page 72?
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir, Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: All these are 200,000 cost?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, that's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That cost is an average, if I'm not
mistaken, based on -- you have some more expensive land and some
less expensive land and that kind of rounds it all out.
MS. TOWNSEND: That's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: So, would this mean, since parks
and recs are using a county unincorporated area, weighted the way
we're supposed to be weighting things, and using the four-month peak
season, which we're supposed to be using, Mr . Weeks then doesn't
really have anything to figure out. He can just look at the population
figures used by parks and recs. It's taken out what you're concerned
about. At least initially, which is the cities that we don't want
included. So there's really not a whole lot of work to be done. It's
already been done for Mr. Weeks. At least the initial part of it, right?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't know. I'm trying to understand
Page 1 73
November 20, 2006
what you're-- I'm not sure the 351,844, I'm not sure the source of that.
I think what you're saying is because of what was told to us, it doesn't
include the cities. If it does --
COMMISSIONER CARON: That's what she just said.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Huh?
COMMISSIONER CARON: That's what she just said.
MS. TOWNSEND: It does not include the city.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I don't know how that fits into
the others. I have to look and see what the other numbers were.
Okay. Go ahead, Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: I'm confused. Didn't she testify earlier it did
include the city?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That was for the recreational facilities.
Lands don't, facilities do.
MS. TOWNSEND: Only community parkland does not.
Community parkland acreage is the only standard that we use that is
unincorporated. It does not include the city.
MR. SCHIFFER: And regional park will go back to them
including the cities?
MS. TOWNSEND: That is correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any further questions on page
72? Move to the chart on page 73. That would end -- no, we have the
four month peak season analysis is over with. Pages 74 and 75,76
and 77 all address the six month peak season. Any questions
remaining on community parks?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Hearing none, I guess we'll move on to
regional parklands. Did you have any opening statements you want to
make on that?
MS. TOWNSEND: Sure.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, you said you're going to hold off.
I'm just giving you the opportunity.
Page 174
November 20, 2006
MS. TOWNSEND: Just to outline briefly, changes '05 to '06
you'll see a net gain of 43.2 acres. These are outlined on page 90.
They reflect the purchase of the zoo and surrounding lands. Purchase
of Margood Resort and some land near Bavia Park. You'll see some
losses there that are really corrections to just sort of clean up the
inventory. Once again, when you turn to your chart on page 81, you're
going to see that great big spike in our inventory for regional parkland
acreage. Most of that is a result of the anticipation of the 640 acres
that's a committment from South Florida Water Management District.
Overall in the five year window, we anticipate an additional 777 acres
at a value of$155,000,000. Cash expenditure is proposed to be 1.2
million dollars. Both of those projects that we're anticipating spending
cash on, are part of the beach and boat access initiative.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Again, you're not proposing to use any
ad valorem taxes?
MS. TOWNSEND: That's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are there any questions then on page
78? Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: Yes. You got -- on this page, five year surplus is
372.8 acres 74 million dollars. Could you discuss what that means to
us in terms of a surplus?
MS. TOWNSEND: In terms of a surplus?
MS. VASEY: It's called a five year surplus and it is that, isn't it?
MS. TOWNSEND: Indeed it is. Indeed it is. We will have
satisfied our level of service standard for regional park acreages. And
again, a lot of this is due to the 640 acres we anticipate in a
committment from South Florida Water Management District. But we
will have satisfied our regional parkland acreage with the proposed
projects better than into 2016.
MS. VASEY: So we're not planning anything else, any other
expenditures until that time?
MS. TOWNSEND: Not other than the two -- the cash
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November 20,2006
expenditures that we're anticipating are those two beach and boat
activities.
MS. VASEY: Does that really meet our needs? I mean, it's a big
chunk and it's worth a lot of money, but is it going to meet the need?
MS. TOWNSEND: No. In a word no. We have in the last
couple of years gotten several really wonderful opportunities to
acquire passive parklands. The land surrounding the zoo which will
be Gordon River Greenway Park. The 640 acres that we anticipate
from Swift Mud. However, when you have a passive park, that
necessarily means that you're not building a lot of facilities on it. And
you can run into trouble when you're in your level of service standard
for facilities value if you're not putting facilities that add value on that
land. So it's something that we need to watch carefully and closely.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: Back in -- where did the land from the
regional park -- shouldn't that be a landing somewhere in this? Do
you remember the land that you spent -- the $13,400,000 that was an
expenditure for loss of value due to innerdepartment transfer. You
said would show up here somewhere.
MS. TOWNSEND: The easiest place to find it is going to be in
the chart of page 92. Again, that's an expansion of all those asterisks
and daggers and double daggers from the summary sheet. You're
going to see there that interdepartmental transfer in '07, 60 acres,
Gordon River Quality Park coming from transportation as well as in
'07, '08, 62 acres from Orange Tree.
MR. SCHIFFER: I'm looking for Golden Gate Estates park in
Randal that was taken out of the Randal Curve, 47 acres in Golden
Gate Estates.
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, yes. Those 67 are the trade where you
see in '07, '08 we're adding land at Orange Tree. We're trading Randal
Curve and the other 20 and Vanderbilt for 62 at Orange Tree. There's
a five acre discrepancy there which I'm sure we'll be able to work out
Page 176
November 20, 2006
in the future.
MR. SCHIFFER: And then it shows up as -- where does it show
up in the number? It's under that oppose additional value through
innerdepartment transfer, that 24 million number in there?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, yes.
MR. SCHIFFER: How do you know that?
MS. TOWNSEND: Because I prepared this document.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: I mean, I don't see any clues in
here. Anyway, it's now considered a--
MS. TOWNSEND: Tell me the page number of that summary
sheet again, please.
MR. SCHIFFER: Well, it's page 70 is where it disappears. It
leaves --
MS. TOWNSEND: I got lost in my pages.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: It leaves as an expense.
MS. TOWNSEND: It's a double double dagger, if you will, is
the footnote. The second to last footnote there you'll see your 62 acres
or 12.4 million.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: So it's in there somewhere.
How would I know that?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That wasn't quite on the record, but--
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Well, she showed me where it
could be. It's not highlighted.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It could be. Did that resolve your
question?
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Vasey's earlier point was well
taken. What is parks and recs? I mean, an A TV track out in the
middle of nowhere sure isn't a lot of help to the citizens of the county.
How are we going to address that? It's like you don't have any use --
like you lost really that land because it's taking up actual land that the
citizens could have used and kind of removed it for the system to
Page 1 77
~~,.,~........,~~"., ---"~_..."-..._-,.,,.,..,.~....^
November 20, 2006
regain it. How have you thought about recouping that?
MS. TOWNSEND: Well, OHV enthusiasts would argue that,
you know, there are citizens that are going to use it. Not only that, but
we've got some conceptual plans for that site that will make it
somewhat more than just a barren wasteland that A TV s will use.
There's a proposal to have an amphitheater. Have places for rock
climbing as well, vehicular rock climbing. Have places for moto-cross
track, et cetera. You start to add into your inventory for that reason an
amphitheater, some pavilions, et cetera, et cetera. All though it is
something that we need to be concerned about. And we do need,
especially based on that facility-by-facility inventory that you saw
earlier, where woefully deficient, in particularly football and soccer
fields and in softball fields. Where we have available lands,
particularly community parkland, we need to aggressively develop
those with those kinds of facilities that are not available out there
privately.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well, see how the future pans
out. Thank you. Any other questions on page 78 or 79? We have a
table on page 80. A chart on page 81. Are there any questions on that
four month peak season section of the regional parkland? Following
that is the six month peak season which we have not dwelled on much
at today's meeting, for good reason. That takes us to page 86 and page
87. Page 87 is a chart with a ten year facilities development
expenditures. Are there any questions on that chart? I'm curious as to
what the Keewaydin boat access since the boat access that was the
Keewaydin park that recently tried to come through just didn't
succeed. What is it that parks are doing with Keewaydin boat access?
MS TOWNSEND: It's a conceptual partnership with Rookery
Bay to access lands that they have in the north end of Keewaydin
that's part of their land management plan to increase access to that
area. They have a large upland area with trails through it and it's a
conceptual partnership.
Page 178
November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: They're trying to increase access to
Keewaydin?
MS. TOWNSEND: That's the idea.
MR. MURRAY: I got a question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir, Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: On; page 86 the facilities -- I'm looking at that
yellow dot down there. Is that Ochopee? What is that? A little
community -- I'm sorry. That's a neighborhood park.
MS. TOWNSEND: In Copeland.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: That's Copeland. Is that one of
the community parks that's really available to the community I would
guess?
MS. TOWNSEND: It's a neighborhood park, yes.
MR. MURRAY: I said community, I meant neighborhood.
You're right. That's almost an anomaly, I suspect. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are those neighborhood parks, now that
Mr. Murray pointed them out, incorporated into either community
parks or the regional park statistic?
MS. TOWNSEND: No, sir. Their facilities are incorporated into
facilities value, but their acreage is not inventoried in the growth
management plan at all.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are they parks that are owned by the
public?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: But the inventory does not count?
MS. TOWNSEND: There's no level of service standard for
them.
MR. MURRAY: Is there equipment there?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, there's a playground there and that is
inventory .
MR. COHEN: Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: On this chart, if you add up all the years seven
Page 1 79
'h...,__'____.~_<<""h"'"'~,.._. ,.~,,_ h '-""''''>O~'~"m~_.__,_____.,,_~"._~
November 20, 2006
through 11, you got 60 million point four -- 60.4 million dollars of
development expenditure. Now if I go back to page 64, your
expenditures are 63 million, however, 19 million of that is for debt
service and 44 million; is for actual AUIR park projects. I'm having
trouble relating those two numbers.
MS. TOWNSEND: The number that you see brought forward on
page 64 comes from the chart on page 65. And you'll see the first five
year growth period has a facilities planned in AUIR of 44 million
dollars. The reason for that is the chart on 87 shows when we plan to
expend the money or when the money needs to be available to us.
And what I've done on the chart on page 65 is delayed that a year
because those facilities won't be available to the public, and we won't
be able to put them into inventory until approximately the following
year. It gives us time for construction.
MS. VASEY: So if I add 44 plus 16, I got 60.
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, ma'am.
MS. VASEY: Thank you very much.
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That takes us to the table on
pages 88 and 89. Your removal ofa swimming pool. It's in the water
park. You took one swimming pool out for two million dollars and it
became a water park swimming pool for ten million. That was
creative. Is that what you did?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes, that is. We made several changes to
the inventory based on trying to give ourselves some credit for the
cash that we're expending. That's one of them. The other one is the
change that you see from counting recreation centers and fitness
centers as one, two, three to counting them by their square foot. The
reason that that became -- it varied to us this year is that we spent a
million dollars and added 3,000 square foot to the community center
at East Naples Community Park and when we prepared the inventory,
we got no credit for it. So we made that change to start to inventory
Page 180
._+'_e ..,--,..."....__"""'c,,,,,..-.,__ ,_.. ,.'" ~__~_"''"___._~~"..._.__
November 20, 2006
by square footage to try to recoup in the facilities' value some of the
money we're spending.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Now, if you had to pay taxes on these
facilities, you would be in a world of trouble. Build them for two and
they're worth ten, so -- are there any other questions on this chart?
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Adelstein.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Yeah. You're talking bocce
courts. You've got one bocce court for $29,900?
MS. TOWNSEND: We inventory bocce courts and shuffle board
courts -- actually, we used to only inventory shuffle board courts.
And yes, their value is 29,900.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: We just built one at $7,000
for two courts together and had done it with the same type of surface
and all. I just don't know where this $29,000 is coming from or why.
MS. TOWNSEND: We can take a look at that. Again, these
facility values, as I talked about earlier, they were established at one
time and they've been moved forward based on a construction cost
index.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: I wish you would look at
them.
MS. TOWNSEND: And we should review them.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: It's way out of line.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Further down the chart you have two
non-motorized vessel launches. Just out of curiosity, where are those?
MS. TOWNSEND: One at Clam Pass and one at Sugden
Regional Park.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It says the one at Clam Pass has been
there for a long time.
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes. It's a new category added to the
inventory .
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You have a value on it of$75,000. You
Page 181
-'~"'_ ... .....,;_,..."'__~"....._..".,,.,"_.m,_.~....___....."'_._-..,_,"_
November 20, 2006
know what it is? It's an opening for the mangroves for the sand bays
that's natural and a chain-link fence that's limited to four foot width.
How is that worth 75 grand?
MS. TOWNSEND: The one at Sugden is a floating dock with a
Hoyer lift and I'm sure it's valued at several hundred thousand, so I'm
sort of trying to just take an average.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, could you take half of that and put
it up at Clam Pass where it's needed?
MS. TOWNSEND: That's a fine idea.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Great.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Is there any other questions on 88 and
89?
MR. MURRAY: I have a question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Go ahead, Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: Have we yet expanded the boating facility at
Wiggins Pass? Has that come to pass?
MS. TOWNSEND: No.
MR. MURRAY: Not yet. Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Bennett.
MR. BENNETT: Those two tennis courts, where are they
located?
MS. TOWNSEND: At Eagle Lakes Community Park. They
should be open to the public within a month or two so we included
them for this year.
COMMISSIONER MURRAY: I saw people playing.
MS. TOWNSEND: Eagle Lakes Community Parks is south on
US 41 almost to 951.
MR. BENNETT: What surface, do you know?
MS. TOWNSEND: They're hard courts.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page 90. Any questions on page 90?
How did you add the acreage from Conservation Collier to the park
system? Is that pursuant to the referendum that parks is really going
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November 20, 2006
to be gaining from conservation collier, or aren't they supposed to
keep that?
MS. TOWNSEND: In that particular instance we have an inter
departmental agreement to care for those acres. So for that reason
we've added them into our inventory . We won't be adding all the
conservation lands into, but if the parks department has an active role
in making those available to the public, then we would intend to
inventory them.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And Margie, is that -- I hate to keep
throwing things at you, but do you know if that's consistent with the
referendum and how the monies are supposed to be handled in the --
MS. STUDENT: I haven't been involved with that I have to add
that to my list, but I do see Mr. Schmidt has his hand up.
MR. SCHMIDT: The conservation Collier, the requirement in
accordance with the ordinance is to require, or to allow for public
access through passive parks. And some of those areas that will be
constructed with passive parks, meaning a pathway, a place to park, a
pathway to walk and enjoy, I guess the ambiance and the nature, but
that would be deemed a passive park. It's not -- there's not basketball
courts or those type of things, but it still will allow for public access.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't have any problem with that. I
just want to make sure it's consistent with the referendum that the park
acreage could be basically transferred and showed on inventory and
parks and rec versus the inventory on conservation collier. You can't
double dip and show it twice.
MR. SCHMIDT: I'm not sure as to how much they can count. I
mean, I would probably have to defer to Marla or -- there she is. She
may be able to --
MS. RAMSEY: We're being very careful with the Conservation
Collier because, as you just heard, earlier when we were talking about
the 640 acres and some passive lands that come into us that we may
have some problems down the road about facilities themselves. So
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November 20, 2006
even if Conservation Collier facilities are available to the public, we
may only count the acreage that is accessible. Let's say they buy an
80 acre parcel and they have a pathway that runs through ten acres of
that, we might include the ten acres into our inventory. Again, it's
going to be by case by case, but not blanket. And we'll have to see
how that works out. We don't want to absorb too much in the
inventory either so that then we have a deficit in our facilities and no
land to build them on.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY : Yeah. Commenting on that. The Planning
Commission just recently recommended approval of such 99 acres, I
think it was. And I know the community, the neighbors have an
expectation that parks and recs representative there, their rangers, will
come and put a gate up each night, or whatever it is that finally will
manifest. There are five parking spaces there. It would be a lot to
take into your inventory and create, I think a -- not a good situation in
terms of where you want to plan your parks. In other words, they
would be forcing themselves to deal with more than they had
expected. Perhaps the budget would be -- I think they should be
treated in the same as neighborhood parks perhaps. That's where I'm
going with that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Ms. Caron.
COMMISSIONER CARON: But the only lands that you would
add into parks would be land that you're going to end up managing,
correct?
MS. RAMSEY: That's correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, so to follow up on Mr. Murray's
question, would you then be adding in that Lely storm water
management area that they would become a passive park?
MS. RAMSEY: Well, that's actually a transportation not a
Conservation Collier one. And we have been working with
transportation about this particular element, in the fact that they're
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November 20, 2006
going to put in a pathway that's going to be on the ground, mulched,
it's going to be wet. A lot of the time during the year, especially
during the summer and late spring. And so we're talking to them
about maybe an automatic gate, and open and close at certain times.
With some real minimum support from us as far as garbage and
whatnot. And we would probably not put that in our inventory
because it's really not available to the public on a year-round basis.
MR. MURRAY: I would think so. It's dedicated as a water
reclamation with a passive recreation opportunity, but not a significant
one. The benefit that parks would realize by encumbering itself with
all the standard acreage for minimum use.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, based on the numbers we saw
from transportation this morning, it would be cheaper if it went to
parks somehow. Any other questions on page 90? I have one. Your
regional parkland changes. You have add Connor Park, five acres.
Change park designation from neighborhood to regional. You got a
five acre regional park?
MS. TOWNSEND: Because it's beach access. It's a parking lot
for beach access. And now because we'll have what I call Vanderbilt
access number eight, or the Blue Bill access coming on line, it will be
much more useful as a beach access than it previously was.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: And Bayview Park, you've added one
acre. There's some houses on the street I know you've been buying it
for this Keewaydin shuttle. Is that one of those homes?
MS. TOWNSEND: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The lease for those homes being rented
out to anybody incorporated as a revenue restraint?
MS. TOWNSEND: No. The county is using them for housing
for interns and that sort of thing. The county is making use of those
properties internally.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I guess part of their salary then?
MS. TOWNSEND: Marla says yes.
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November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Page 91 and 92. Any questions on 91
and 92? You have a Toll Brothers. I assume it's Toll Brothers project.
It's on Rattlesnake and 30 acre contribution. Is that the contribution
coming from the DR! PUD we haven't even seen yet.
MS. TOWNSEND: It's wishful thinking at this point, but yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Why don't you put 60 there just for
wishful thinking. Any other questions on 91 or 92 or 93 or 94? That
rounds out all of the elements of parks and rec. Any final comments.
Mr. Vigliotti.
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: I would like to commend you
on your presentation. You have a very good handle on all the assets
you control.
MS. TOWNSEND: Thank you very much.
COMMISSIONER VIGLIOTTI: And I think you got it under
control.
MR. BENNETT: You have a good memory too taking all that
up.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. There's nothing left on parks we
can --
MR. SCHIFFER: Questions on parks.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir.
MR. SCHIFFER: In the initial summary, beginning of the thing
they have the six month season where they're looking for additional
revenue, we're going northern or --
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: That is the --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Adelstein, if you're going to speak,
use the mike. If you have a question -- let Mr. Schiffer get his answer
first and then we'll get to your answer. I think the way David said this
morning was that the six month analysis was one that shouldn't have
been done. He should have connected it because those are by peak
population not by duration of time. And so we've basically not
addressed the six month based on that kind of discussion. I don't
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November 20, 2006
know what you want to open that up. Mr. Adelstein, do you have a
question?
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Yes, I do.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: What's the difference in a
parks situation whether it's six weeks or six months or four months?
The park is a park and they're going to be used the same way. The
area aren't too far apart. Why would you cap one with six months and
one with four months?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The discussion on the four and six
months didn't have anything to do with the park itself. It had to do
with the population, the population analysis that would produce more
parkland. It was either a four month peak population figure or a six
month people population figure. What David came back and said was,
you wouldn't necessarily need the six month because the peak
population is the peak population, whether it takes four months or six
months.
COMMISSIONER ADELSTEIN: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Any other questions? Ifnot, Ms. Vasey.
MS. VASEY: Just a comment. In reviewing this it's very
difficult to make sense of a lot of these things because, as I mentioned
on the 270 per capita numbers, and the big disconnect on the regional
parks and things like that, I would hope that we could come up with
something that would work better and that would more clearly identify
your very valid need, but it doesn't look like that. It looks like it's, you
know, big chunks of excess and sometimes not exactly usable and it
seems like there should be a better way to review this to be sure that
we're getting what we want, which is really the issue of service. The
level of service that we want the community to have is very hard to
determine in these standards.
MS. RAMSEY: We agree that the per capita number has been
very difficult for us in the fact that even as, you know, things cost
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November 20, 2006
more, our value isn't -- isn't the same. So we would rather have
something that is a little more scientific rather than artistic, you know,
in the way that this one is going. So we're going to look at that
through statewide just to see what kind of standards are out there and
see if there's something out there that's currently being done better that
we could, you know, utilize. And we would love to have both you
and the Board of County Commissioners to give us some direction to
go ahead and seek that. And I know it's a long difficult process in the
fact that our growth management plan has these levels and the EAR is
being done currently so timing is a issue on it and how we go about
making that can change. But we would like to go and move away
from the cost per capita. We do not feel that it's a very good indicator
of what we need in our community.
MS. VASEY: That's not very meaningful to reviewing it. It
creates some strange perceptions when you look at the numbers. So I
was just commenting.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: When we do take a vote on this
particular element, we ought to put something in a recommendation
that would contain language that we explore other methods of
measurements.
MS. VASEY: Okay. I'll work on that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That would be a good thing to
do. That's what we should be doing with each one of these. It's hard
to do a lot of that today until we see the impact of any changes in the
numbers and how they're going to work out because that may drive a
much stronger desire to look at things. It's hard to tell that you're not
doing right when you don't have any ad valorem impact. I think that's
a good thing. I guess we'll move into category B facilities as, I guess
-- maybe that depends. Is there a representative of the sheriffs
department here today to talk about jails? Ifnot, there's not a lot of
questions. Here they come. Chief Smith. Good afternoon, sir.
CHIEF SMITH: Good afternoon, Mr. Strain. Are we ready to
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November 20, 2006
proceed?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, we are.
CHIEF SMITH: For the record, I am Chief Greg Smith, Chief of
Administration for the Collier County Sheriffs Office. With me today
are budget manager, Jean Myers, and finance director, Carol Golytely.
Under category B facilities, the Sheriff is involved or provides input
and data regarding two of the category B submissions. One for the
county j ail and the second for law enforcement. And I think in the
previous discussions you've had today, you've already addressed the
four month and six month peak. Have you?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, we did.
CHIEF SMITH: So we have an understanding --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We're mostly focusing on the four
month peak right now.
CHIEF SMITH: Great. And with regard to the four month peak,
you'll see there have been a couple of adjustments made to the
numbers as indicated last year. One is the adding in of additional beds
to the Immokalee facility, and a proposed 64 bed addition at the
Immokalee site. That would give rise to a five-year deficit out -- and I
don't recall the exact year. Five years out, 2010, 2011. Are there any
questions at this time that I can answer for you relative to jail beds in
Collier County?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I bet there will be. We'll start with page
97, Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: Okay. I was looking at 99 for the moment, but
I think it pertains. In that table population countywide we do here, I
think, carry countywide because your jurisdiction is within the city as
well as in the other, right?
CHIEF SMITH: Correct. We provide jail facilities for both
incorporated and unincorporated.
MR. MURRAY: That takes care of that part of it. Thank you.
That's what I wanted to know.
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November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
MR. SCHIFFER: Yes. The triple asterisk, which is referring to
the required inventory as a statement or a disclaimer actually.
Required inventory does not attempt to predict future possible
increases in land building equipment costs. I mean, the scary thing
about that is what good is that number?
CHIEF SMITH: That is not data that the sheriff supplies. That
was data that was submitted by the planning department.
MR. SCHIFFER: That's the number what it would cost if you
build everything for the next five years today?
CHIEF SMITH: Correct.
MR. SCHIFFER: And isn't the function of this to predict the cost
of the next five years? Guess not.
MR. COHEN: For the record, Randy Cohen, comprehensive
planning department director. One of the issues that's at hand is the
jail master plan has not been completed yet. We do not have financial
figures associated with that particular facility. As a result the numbers
you saw that were multiplied by those particular beds was the existing
unit cost. So rather than speculate based on that number, we
anticipate having, I think -- I believe the jail study is going to be done
within the next year. And when that transpires, we'll provide you with
an up-to-date figure rather than trying to be speculative and just guess
as of that number.
CHIEF SMITH: Also in addition to that, the 64 bed proposed
addition that's referenced under the 3.2 bed per thousand line. You
can go down three lines and see proposed ARU fiscal year '06, '07
with a 64 bed. That's representative of a 64 bed addition that would be
constructed at the Immokalee -- the present Immokalee jail site, and
land cost would not be applicable in that regard.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Still on page 97. You have a revenues
needed to maintain existing level of service standard. It's a paren three
million. That means negative three million. Does that mean you need
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November 20, 2006
three million less than what you're getting?
CHIEF SMITH: I can only refer to the footnote at the bottom of
the page.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I read that too. I couldn't figure out
what it still meant. It says it's the difference between the definite and
present level of service and the difference between the revenues
unencumbered. Less the difference between the revenues
unencumbered. It ends up with three million one point five. So what
I'm asking is, do you need three million more out of ad valorem taxes,
or do you have three million too much based on the revenues you're
going to be receiving with your impact fees? Does anybody know?
MR. BOSI: Mike Bosi, comprehensive planning again. Correct.
The footnote on the bottom says if they had the -- with the planned 64
unit bed facility, with their expenditures and their revenues, there
would be a carry over of $769,000. That would be applied to the
current 60 bed deficit. That number in paren is 3895 is what's needed
to provide the beds to equate the level of service requirement.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So you take the parens off of it?
MR. BOSI: Yeah. No. I mean, to represent a deficit, we
normally use the parens.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I realize that. But like last year the prior
documents, when you need revenues you state the amount you need,
not as a negative, but as the amount needed. Last year's AUIR says
revenues needed to maintain existing level of service not just show the
number, 2.543 million. This one shows a number, but it's in
parenthesis. Parenthesis generally mean negative. I'm trying to get to
the bottom of it.
MR. BOSI: There's 3,125,000.87 that is needed to maintain the
level of service. I apologize for the parenthesis.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The available inventory went up from
last year by 78 beds. Where did you get those from?
CHIEF SMITH: We added those into the existing 64 bed
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November 20, 2006
dormitory in the Immokalee jail.
MR. BOSI: Page 106 is a summary sheet of the changes to the
number of available beds that was provided.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, when we get to that page, there's
some interesting things, because last year in the AUIR we questioned
why the concrete beds weren't added and we were told they're illegal.
Now they're back in this year. So, I'd like to know why you're
counting concrete beds this year, but you couldn't last year.
MR. BOSI: I think it does indicate that the concrete beds are not
counted towards the state rating capacity and they're excluded from
the count this year.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: You didn't even have them on there last
year so I was just curious why you would even put them on this year.
Do you still use them?
CHIEF SMITH: I'm sorry?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Do you still use those concrete beds?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We use them only in booking and
temporary holding. No one is housed in those cells for more than six
hours under state statute. That's why we don't submit them to be
counted in the bed count, so to speak.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's what you said last year, that's
why I was surprised to see them back up again, but I understand now.
Page 98, any questions? Page 99. Chief, last year '05, '06 you
had indicated 512 beds in that time frame. 516 beds in that time
frame. I'm sorry. What happened to those?
CHIEF SMITH: I don't understand the question.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: In that table on page 99, last year on
that same table in the year -- '05 to '06 you showed 516 beds planned
in the AUIR.
CHIEF SMITH: Okay. Got you. And why aren't they there now
is the question?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes, sir.
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November 20, 2006
CHIEF SMITH: I can only surmise that they're not planned in
any current project. I think what they did was back them out until the
j ail study was done so they could address the actual need.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Because the way the presentation was
last year, they were needed to keep up with things. This year they
aren't needed which is kind of nice.
CHIEF SMITH: I think too what we tried to accomplish by
adding in those beds to the Immokalee side and then there was also
some tents that had been erected. And they're not just tents. I mean,
these are like super tents. These are what the U.S. military grade tents
that we're going to get some utilization out of for up to ten years or so.
We were able to add those in and then it kind of negated the
emergency of the need to rapidly pursue an expansion. Kind of got us
out of the crisis management mode and let us go to the table and do
some thorough planning with regard to the updating of the jail master
plan so that we can accurately project needs and possibly come back
next year with a much more viable alternative.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Are there any other questions on page
99? We have a graph on page 100. That brings us to the end of the
jail section for the four month peak season. Yes, Ms. Vasey.
MS . VASEY: In actuality, what would it cost you to add that
expansion out on Immokalee? The 65,000 is your average inventory
cost per bed, but what would it really cost?
CHIEF SMITH: Well, we were discussing that earlier, and you
don't really have any site prep or land cost that would be associated
with that expansion. So I think you back those out from that number.
And the plumbing and electrical has all been stubbed out as well. You
don't have to duplicate control rooms because it was built out
anticipating an addition, and the administrative support staff needed is
already in place as well. So I think you would come way off the 649
number. I can't tell you what it would actually be, but I would think it
would be much reduced from that.
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November 20, 2006
MS. VASEY: So it's conceivable that if you waited until the fifth
year of the AUIR, you would have enough impact fee monies actually
to pay for your requirement for this expansion?
CHIEF SMITH: Well, that's probably a question best asked Ms.
Patterson because I don't really know where we would stand in
relation to those fees collected.
MS. VASEY: Okay. The fees are in here according to her
calculations in the five year AUIR. I was just trying to see if you
actually would need any appropriated fund money if you waited until
the fifth year, or whether you would, you know, prefer actual cost be
able to fund it with your impact fee.
CHIEF SMITH: Correct. And while I would think that is likely,
I would just rather not make an assumption based on something I
really don't understand to that degree.
MS . VASEY: One last question. Why are you waiting until the
fifth year of the AUIR ? You appear to be decisive before then. Is
there any reason why you scheduled it again?
MR. SCHMITT: We don't schedule capital projects for the
sheriff. We just certify need and submit them to -- the request to the
county commission and it's sent up to facility staff as well as the
planning department to schedule those.
MS. VASEY: Maybe after you do your thing, we can find out
from the people who scheduled it why it was done that way. Thank
you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We can follow up on that now. Does
anybody have an answer? Mr. Cohen.
MR. COHEN: I can weigh in on that.
MR. BOSI: I can weigh in too. I mean, the one thing when
we've had discussions with facilities as towards the timing of the new
facilities, they have indicated that they would anticipate facilities
coming on line at the time that the deficit starts to expose itself. But
they are really banking and waiting upon the numbers that are going to
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November 20, 2006
be generated by the jail master plan study, which Mr. Cohen had
indicated is due for completion in the next couple months. And based
upon that, the strategic outlay for the timing would be a little bit more
defined. And that's in this AUIR they haven't quite identified it. They
pushed it out towards the end of that five year planning period.
CHIEF SMITH: I'll attempt to build on that response. What the
jail master plan is going to try to do for you us is gauge how much
more effectively and efficiently the court system is going to run with
the increase in judges and initiative that the public safety coordinating
council has instituted to push cases more rapidly through the court
system. I think we've had any number of discussions over the years
that the number of jail beds needed is a direct relationship to how fast
or how slowly people go through the court system. Because jails are
only local temporary holdings. Once they're found guilty, then they're
either off to the state system or they're let go. So I think that what we
would do by getting that report, hopefully some of those initiatives
have taken hold. And I can tell you now that preliminary data kind of
supports that we're moving in the right direction in that regard. It's not
going to solve all of the problems, but I think that, you know,
hopefully we'll be in a position where we can come back and even
request a reduction in the LOS for jail beds if some of those initiatives
that have been explored are instituted and held fast for two or three
years out.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Isn't our job though to not
approve things that are deficient? This is obviously a chart showing
deficiency. Should they go back and present something that shows -- I
mean, what they're saying is the jail study is going to save the day, but
as the Planning Commission, is this something we should endorse?
Obviously maybe it will be fixed in a couple years, but it takes -- I'm
sure it takes two, three years to design and build ajail. So if you're
going to pull yourself out, you can barely do it from today, based on
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this chart. So is this chart showing a deficiency, or is this chart just a
place holder till the jail study comes?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Bosi's master plan I think is going
to factor into that. Do we have any better information how the master
plan is going to address the deficiency?
MR. BOSI: Other than when and where and the cost of timing of
the facilities, I think Chief Smith had indicated that it directly has a
direct correlation to the deficiency if there are findings in the
preliminary data or it seems to support this, that the processing of the
inmate population has been accelerated by some of the recent moves
within the judicial system. That the expected number of beds required
or the tenure of the state within the facilities would be shortened and
therefore it could decrease the deficiency. But the point is taken, there
is still a deficiency in whether there are improvements, or whether
there are improvements enough to tackle that deficiency, it's still
unknown. We still have to wait for that study. What this document is
saying, and it's saying to the Board of County Commissioners, there is
a revenue deficit. If we want to maintain this level of service, we're
going to have to find additional funds or we're going to have to lower
the level of service.
MR. BENNETT: What's the holding time now --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's Mr. Bennett.
MR. BENNETT: In the jail? A year still?
CHIEF SMITH: Well, that's the maximum length of time that
someone in the county jail can be sentenced to. But what we're
finding and, of course, Mr. Bennett, you've been present when these
discussions have been held to, that the average person stays in jail
about six hours. But once you go past the first appearance hearing,
then the average length of stay time is about 28 days. Through some
of these initiatives, we've seen that drop back to somewhere between
20 to 21 days. That's almost one-third the reduction.
MR. BENNETT: Good.
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November 20, 2006
CHIEF SMITH: We're very hopeful that those initiatives in the
discussions we've had that led to getting more judges assigned to
Collier County are going to have a direct bearing on that.
MR. BENNETT: Got to send them somewhere else.
CHIEF SMITH: Correct. Nonetheless it does indicate that all
factors relative today, you know, and just what we know, then we're
going to run into a deficit in about three years.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Schiffer.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: Yeah. There's nothing in the
stuff that I read that really alludes to that study. So is the intent of that
study to drop the beds per thousand population? I mean, obviously
the intent is, because of the timing, isn't to build another jail. So what
you're hoping for either we reduce the beds per population, or we
reduce the population, I guess. But how do you expect to get rid of
this deficiency?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Just so you know, Brad, I understand
your question myself. I didn't dwell on the answer because I want to
see what the true population numbers are before I spend too much
time. That's where I was going.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER: The population reducing would
solve it also, but. Okay.
CHIEF SMITH: For instance, last year we changed from a 2.4 to
a 3.2 LOS. Based on what our experience was regarding the
population that we were housing at the jail, ifby the initiatives we're
able to successfully reduce that and the reduction then becomes a new
experience and that we can, you know, count on that being traditional,
then we can come before you and suggest that we go from a 3.2 LOS
back down somewhat between 2.4 and 3.2. That's action in and of
itself would raise the deficit.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We have to take a short break to allow
the court reporters to switch out. It's 4:30. So we'll take a ten minute
break. Before we do, Michael, for the rest of the productivity
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November 20, 2006
committee, I think we should just wrap up the county parks, county
jail and law enforcement today and we'll continue with the remaining
item on the 29th as we have previously planned. So that will at least
prepare you for your other member. We'll take a ten minute break.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We left off on page 106 and 107.
Before we go there, I want to make sure Miss Vasey and Mr. Schiffer
got their questions answered as far as they could be today.
MS . VASEY: The ones that I had a chance to ask, yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
MS. VASEY: But I have more.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: There'll be plenty of time for them all.
Brad.
MR. SCHIFFER: And mine is -- I mean, I wouldn't approve this
chart, but we're expecting a chart that doesn't show that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Just so you know, last year we did
approve a chart worse than that.
MR. SCHIFFER: Oh.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So if you want to look about standards
being set, you can look at last year's and--
MR. SCHIFFER: Well, maybe I did.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: There it is. It's flat lined even worse, so
MR. SCHIFFER: Maybe I voted against it last time.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. We'll move through the pages if
that works for everyone still. And we're on page 106. That's the
summary page we previously talked about. Page 107. And, Chief,
this one's really interesting because this is about your costs. You are
the only department other than Gene's structures that did not have a
cost from last year increase. Your -- the table you gave us last year,
item per item, factor for factor is the same table that we have this year,
and I'm just wondering if you really intended it to be that way or if
someone just pasted another table in here to give us something to fill
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the pages with today.
CHIEF SMITH: Just give me a second to consult with staff.
Okay. Where are -- where are you getting that from, Mr. Stain?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Last year you produced a AUIR
document. I have it right here. It's the same table that you have on
page 107. You took off the last column but, basically, left everything
else. I'm wondering has your -- have your costs truly not changed
from last year?
CHIEF SMITH: Oh, the cost per inmate per day?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes. You added three columns to the
end of this year's table.
CHIEF SMITH: Correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: The rest of the table's the same.
CHIEF SMITH: Correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm just trying to get to -- your previous
cost per inmate was 7.88, the same number in 88. Did you mean to
have a different number here this year? I guess that's the bottom line.
CHIEF SMITH: No, that's -- that's the cost as it broke down that
I submitted.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
CHIEF SMITH: And what we do to get that is you take the -- the
inmates currently residing in the jail.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Right.
CHIEF SMITH: Or inmates in inventory, I suppose, and you --
you divide the operational cost of the jail by that number. So as your
inmate population goes up your cost is going to go down.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So you're in pretty good shape then.
MR. VIGLIOTTI: Sort of a volume business.
CHIEF SMITH: Well, it -- you know, it's no different than --
than, say -- this is a terrible analogy, but it's kind of like hotels. It
doesn't cost any more to keep the lights on, so as you add residents
then, you know, you increase the profit margin. So, yes, as inmates
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keep coming in your -- your costs are going to decrease because it
doesn't cost any more for the deputy that you have watching them.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, it's an interesting philosophy.
Miss Vasey, did you have some questions you wanted to finish
up? Because that's the last page of the section so ...
MS. VASEY: Yes, I have a question on that page.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Certainly.
MS. VASEY: On the second-to-Iast column -- or third-to-Iast
column, you only go down part way through FY '06. Do you have the
rest of those numbers so that we can figure out what an average is?
CHIEF SMITH: Yeah, we can get those for you. We didn't have
them at the time of publication.
MS. VASEY: Okay.
CHIEF SMITH: We run about -- about two months behind.
MS. VASEY: Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: Yeah, in light of -- the concern was for the
previous questions about reducing costs. In light of the possibility that
the new judges being here and we're shortening the time that the
people are here, do you think it would be prudent to look and take that
into consideration, or do you just want to go with the numbers that
you have?
CHIEF SMITH: Well, I think we have to go with the numbers
that we have just because that's our experience --
MR. MURRAY: Okay.
CHIEF SMITH: -- and -- and just hope for the best when--
when we get the study identified and when it's published by the public
safety coordinating council. I can tell you now that the judges have
indicated a very high degree of receptibility to those suggestions and
to those strategies that would decrease jail population.
But -- but, again, I need to issue a caveat here as well that, you
know, jail populations are also affected by enforcement trends, so if
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the community standards changed in any regard then that would have
a direct bearing as well on the jail population.
F or instance, if we experience -- and I'll use some past history.
When Collier County became very active in domestic violence, the
issue of domestic violence, a state law was passed, and it made it
mandatory that when an officer arrived at the scene of domestic
violence that someone went to jail. That had a direct relationship on
the jail population.
When -- when we voted -- and properly so -- to support the 85
percent initiative or mandate -- the inmate would serve 85 percent of
their jail sentence -- where before they could get out in as little as 68,
that had a direct relationship on the jail population, so -- and those are
things that aren't normally discussed and factored into this report as
well.
So, say, for instance, if -- if we decided as a country that we were
going to harden our stance on illegal immigration, then I would
suspect that that have -- would have a direct relationship on our jail
population as well.
MR. MURRAY: You could save a lot, yeah, get a lot of folks in
there. Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Are there any questions left for
the jail segment of the AUIR for today's meeting?
Mr. Adelstein.
MR. ADELSTEIN: It doesn't make much sense to me. Actual
construction cost in 2006 dollars --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No, this is the jail section. This is law
enforcement.
MR. ADELSTEIN: Yeah, I know, but we're talking about -- it's
a construction point. Nevermind. Go ahead. I'll pick it up when it
comes around.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: He's -- we're -- Mr. Adelstein jumped a
little bit ahead on page 109.
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CHIEF SMITH: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We're still on jails. Are there any other
issues on jails for anyone? If not, we can move into law enforcement.
Chief, did you have any opening comments you wanted to make?
CHIEF SMITH: Not really. The bulk of this was supplied by
the planning department, and what they -- what they used primarily
was the report done by Tindale & Oliver in relation to the impact fee
ordinance previously passed.
Other than that, there have been some -- some projects that have
been placed online by facilities and are moving forward with those.
But I can attempt to question -- or answer any questions that you
might have.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any questions from the
committee? It will be on page 109. Mr. Adelstein, there you go.
MR. ADELSTEIN : Yeah, I just don't understand the statement:
"Actual construction cost in 2006 doll -- 2006 dollars which resulted
in a surplus of 8.2 officers." It doesn't make any sense to me either.
MR. MURRAY: I think I remember that from last year when
they --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: Yes, if I may. I think I remember it from last
year. What they -- well, I don't want to speak for the chief, but it
seems to me I remember that they had a formula that breaks
everything down into an officer cost consisting of all of the capital
equipment and all of the support that it relates to, and so I think that's
what this is intended to show.
MR. ADELSTEIN: Which results in a surplus of 8.2 officers.
MR. MURRAY: Yeah.
MR. ADELSTEIN: Okay.
MR. MURRA Y: The chief should answer that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Smith -- Chief Smith, do you want
to take a stab at that if you understand the question?
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CHIEF SMITH: I -- I would defer to the planning department.
MR. BOSI: That simply says at the end that -- at the end of the
five-year capital improvement program that the resulting surplus is
going to be an 8.2 per -- 8.2 unit or -- unit or officer surplus. That --
that simply -- the footnote's saying that the actual construction costs
are utilizing two -- 2006 actual cont -- construction cost numbers to
derive the cost of the proposed capital improvement project, that the
result of all the officers that are -- that will be added based upon that
mon -- that -- that number, that -- that dollar figure will result in a
surplus of 8.2 officers.
MR. ADELSTEIN: Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: We're still on page 109.
Miss Vasey.
MS. VASEY: I couldn't find an expenditure for debt service on
the EOC. Is that -- is that something wrapped up in something else? I
find the -- the bond proceeds for fleet management in the EOC, and I
find the -- under expenditures the anticipated loan payments for fleet,
special ops, and Orange Tree, but I don't see anything on the EOC.
When you have the bond proceeds, it seems like you should have the
CHIEF SMITH: Again, that -- that information's supplied by the
county. We don't have any input in that regard.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Bosi, who did that one for the
county?
MR. BOSI: That was myself and Miss Beth Yang. We went
through the coordination between the facilities, the sheriffs
department, and the office of management and budget.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: They basically supplied the -- some raw
data, and you guys incorporated it into this document?
MR. BOSI: Into the -- to format it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Because Miss Vasey's point is
absolutely correct. There's -- there certainly is a disconnect between
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the way the revenues are listed and the expenditures are.
MR. BOSI: And that's a question, unfort -- I -- I will have to
come back to because we will have to coordinate through the office of
management and budget. They -- they're the ones who provide the
financial snapshot for each individual department, so the specifics of
why that's not showing up I couldn't -- I couldn't address, but I will
address it the next time you get together.
MR. COHEN: For the record, Randy Cohen. Also, we -- we
need to coordinate that item, also, with government buildings as well,
too, in dealing with that particular public facility. So we'll -- we'll tie
all those -- all those parts together.
MS. VASEY: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Is there anything else? While
we're on that page in the revenues -- and I know you're going to
address these, but while you're looking at it you might want to -- you
have a -- the second-to-the-Iast line above total revenues, the
anticipated loan for the sheriffs ops building and Orange Tree
substation, 20 million. In the same section, the revenue section further
up, you have sheriff funding of the special operations building, 11
million, then in impact fees anticipated for loan payments, fleet and
Orange Tree substation, 2 million.
Is it 20 million on top of those loans from the sheriffs department
-- or the funding from the sheriffs department, or is the 20 million
supposed to supplement that in regards -- like, pay it back, or how's
that to work? You have a total of 33 million just about going to those
two items, specials ops building and Orange Tree substation. Is that
the budget intent?
MR. COHEN: Commissioner Strain, those numbers were
provided by office of management and budget, and we'll have to check
with them to find out the exact financial rationale behind those
particular numbers, and we'll get back with you on that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
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MR. COHEN: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: One more. The third item down, impact
fees anticipated for the AUIR. You have other listings of impact fees.
Is this one that you're going to get back to us with an answer on?
Because I -- I don't under -- I don't know why that's separated out.
What does it mean?
MR. COHEN: Yes, sir.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: It's also the surplus.
MS. VASEY: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I notice -- well, let's just strike the
line and strike the surplus, and we're back to zero. That's where I was
going next. I--
MR. ADELSTEIN: Good thought.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Well, if 109 -- we're -- we're
kind of lost on answers on 109 and I'm assuming 110 because that's a
footnote, and we're looking at the -- page 111. We have a law
enforcement chart there.
Does anybody have any comments about the chart? I notice the
sheriffs administration is suggesting that the delay of the 27 million
showing up occur. Is that what -- staffs not supporting that footnote
double asterisk? Or is that a delay -- or I should sayan advance?
What is it that you're trying to get by that double-asterisk footnote?
MR. BOSI: The preliminary data that was provided to us for the
sheriffs department had -- had the administration building completed
in the 2010, two thousand -- the end of the -- the fifth year of this first
five-year planning period. There wasn't a deficit at that period of
time, so through coordinations with the sheriffs department, facilities,
and the planning staffwe made the decision to push it out to the first
year of the second five-year period.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. That is in agreement with the
sheriffs department as to the need, timing?
CHIEF SMITH: I think we acquiesced, truth be known.
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CHAIRMAN STRAIN: That's why I asked the question. Okay.
Acquiesced under pressure.
Miss Vasey.
MS. VASEY: It seems like you're getting an awful lot of new
buildings with the EOC, your share of that, with the special ops, the
Orange Tree substation. Do you really need a new admin building?
Because it seems like when people move into some of these new
buildings that ought to create space for you where -- where they used
to work. Why are you needing a new building?
CHIEF SMITH: In discussions with the county manager, he
thought that he would like to see a new admin center built here
because of -- the location of our current space on Horseshoe Drive is
advantageous for the county to possibly move in once that's vacated
because it's close to their developmental services building.
MS . VASEY: So this would just be moving the property --
moving people that are in a currently owned building or a leased
building?
CHIEF SMITH: No, currently owned. The county owns the
building.
MS. VASEY: Well, won't you get some revenue from that if you
-- not you, but, I mean, transaction-wise if you leave a building that
you're in and now that you're in a -- you're -- you're in a new building,
it seems like there ought to be some credit somewhere, wouldn't there?
CHIEF SMITH: I would assume so.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Yes.
MS. VASEY: Somebody else is going to move into the old
building of the county, I would assume, so where is the tradeoff?
MR. BOSI: Well, I believe that would probably be an additional
revenue stream, but until, I think, that there's more solid plans for
when and when --
MS. VASEY: Oh.
MR. BOSI: -- the timing and the costs associated with that
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transaction -- at that point in time, when that would become known, it
would show up in future A UIRs as an additional revenue stream that
would go to offset the cost of the construction of the new facility that
-- that would be planned that would -- for the first of the second-year
period.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay.
CHIEF SMITH: Let me take a little bit of a --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Wouldn't you want to show that--
wouldn't you want to show that up in the AUIR planning for the
second five-year period of the -- under the government buildings?
MR. BOSI: I guess if you knew -- if you had an anticipation of
what that revenue was and if there was a identifiable figure, I think
you probably would do that, but because it's in the -- in the second of
the five-year -- second of the five-year planning period that in --
without the exact figures of what that -- that revenue would be, we
have pushed that -- pushed that off and haven't identified it.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, you keep referring to it as
revenue, and Miss -- Miss Vasey's point is well taken because you're
going to create a $27 million impact by vacating another building and
moving into this complex. The square footage of the other building
should be accountable in the -- in the like future somewhere. When
it's vacated some agency is going to pick up the square footage of that
vacant land over there, and that's going to go on their books instead of
the sheriffs books. I think that's what you were trying to get at, wasn't
't?
I .
MS . VASEY: Right. It makes a -- it makes a very odd
perception. Maybe just a footnote there that says that there will be
some revenue, something applied in some way describing the situation
because when you look at it -- the question I got out of it was you're
getting all these extra space; why do you need more? Well, he doesn't
need more. He's -- he just needs different, so it seems like that should
be made clear somewhere.
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CHIEF SMITH: Well, we -- we do need more. The square
footage -- yeah, I know. I could have took (sic) the easy way out and
just remained silent. No, but -- but, no, we do need more square
footage, and -- and the size of the projects are going to yield additional
square footage for the sheriff.
But it's an important point to make because if you do include the
new admin building in this AUIR then your point's well taken that
there -- there should be some identified surplus if -- if it is the intent
that we vacate that building. So far those have been some of the
discussions.
MR. COHEN: Commissioner Strain, I think Miss Patterson
could weigh in on the facility type and how the allocation would occur
if the sheriff s department was to vacate that building.
MS. PATTERSON: Hi. Amy -- Amy Patterson, for the record.
I'm -- I'm over here. The way that this works on any of these types of
facilities when there is a transfer from one public facility to another is
it's addressed in -- on the inventory for the particular public facility.
So if it starts out as a law enforcement building and then becomes
something else, a general government building, it will be removed
from the law enforcement inventory and moved onto whichever public
facility it's going to become, and it would end up on their inventory,
and so that would be -- but that would be determined at the time once
they vacated and they decide who's going to go into that building
because it's currently owned. It's not -- it's not a leased building or
anything like that. It is a current -- it is a current asset. It would just
have to be determined where the appropriate inventory is for it to -- to
go to.
MR. COHEN: And I know one other point that is under
consideration by the sheriffs department also -- and, Chief, you can
correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you have some operations in
that particular facility that you may not want to relocate from there
that's still in the discussion phase if I'm correct.
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CHIEF SMITH: Correct. Correct. We're -- we're a long way
from a solid plan. There's just been very preliminary discussions. The
admin building has been on -- in the works for probably three years
now. It's identified in the campus-wide master plan, so that -- that is
solid. One day they will build that, but we are -- we're still in
development of how -- what our need will be and if we will vacate
that whole building or half of it or just exactly what.
So we are going to be giving up some space if -- if that does
come on line. In regards to Orange Tree, you know, with the growth
out there, we -- we desperately need a substation. Right now we are
occupying a -- a double-wide trailer that the sheriff purchased out of --
out of his budget and that the school system was very gracious enough
to let us stick on the corner of one of their properties because the
population growth in that community could not wait for the county to
bring a building on line. We -- we just had to move quicker than that.
And -- and then as some of the budget talks developed a couple
of years ago we decided that, you know, that -- that's not a bad
situation temporarily, so when we had discussions about going ahead
and building a permanent Orange Tree substation we were able to
delay that a couple of years in order to get the special operations
facility underway, so that's kind of the -- the -- the agreement that was
reached, that we would -- we would delay -- we would maintain where
we were at in the -- in the trailer at the Orange Tree community so that
we could get the special operations center built, which the sheriff has
been funding through his turnback each year, and then we would also
look to go into the EOC as a partial tenant of that building, the com
center and East Naples substation. Again, it's all growth directed.
MS. VASEY: Okay. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Chief, where do you include the officers
in Marco Island and the City of Naples in your calculation for
available inventory?
CHIEF SMITH: I'm not really sure how many we have on
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Marco at the current moment. How many do we have?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: No, I mean, how many -- Marco Island
has their own police force. So does City of Naples.
CHIEF SMITH: Correct.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Where are their officers? Not the
sheriffs deputies there. I mean the city officers there of each city.
CHIEF SMITH: I don't think they're reflected in this number.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Then on your table on page 111
you reflect a population countywide. If the population in the cities are
covered by their own city police forces, wouldn't that population
countywide be reduced to the population unincorporated? Well,
maybe you're not the right person to answer that because I know you
-- you supplied -- you supplied the data but not the --
CHIEF SMITH: It's an intriguing question, I'll give you that.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, we've been asking that kind of
question all day. Back to the population again.
Mr. Bosi or somebody want to venture a--
MR. BOSI: The only thing I can say is it would make -- it would
seem like the utilization of the countywide population without
discounting or -- or factoring out the population of the municipalities
that provide their own policing services would -- would be an error on
our part, and I think that the -- the utilization of the unincorporated
countywide population might be the best approach. I'm not sure if -- if
that is a satisfactory answer, but that's only --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh, no, you're -- you're just where I
thought you should be.
Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: Yes, Mr. Chairman. I -- we -- the East Naples
civic recently had the sheriffs office come in and show us a
presentation on a new sectoring operation, and one of the questions
that was asked was do you folks go over to Marco Island or to the city,
and the answer was, yes, they do. They still get calls, and they still go
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to those locations. Now, the impact, the dollars we're talking about,
may -- may not be as significant.
But just to make it clear -- and it -- it was stated that -- that, in
fact, they do go to aid and they do go in response to calls, direct calls.
So how meaningful that is I couldn't say, but at least it needs to be
said.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, that's fine. I wouldn't doubt they
go to anywhere they're called, but, I mean, if their basis for their
existence is countywide then we need to include officers countywide;
that's all I'm getting at.
CHIEF SMITH: Commissioner Strain, if -- if I could, it is an
intriguing question and one that we're -- we're asked all the time, and
while we do not routinely patrol those streets there are elements within
the sheriffs office that -- that do have a routine function inside the
incorporated areas such as warrant service, such as -- such as civil
process service, and -- and then there are any number of times when
we're called on for mutual aid.
And -- and I would -- would be in agreement with the previous
statement, that, you know, that's not that often, but we do supply
technical assistance on complex investigations. We supply school
resource officers that work in -- in the incorporated areas from time to
time. Crime prevention also goes into the incorporated areas from
time to time. So -- so there are some services that we do provide on a
countywide basis, not just to the unincorporated area.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, I think this goes to somewhat
maybe Mrs. -- Miss Vasey's statement earlier about the 270 per capita
for parks using -- across the board. You're using 146,541 capita cost
per police officer when I think, based on what I've just heard, the
police officers that go to the incorporated areas go there rarely versus
their -- or not as frequently as the police officers that are generated
through the unincorporated areas, so may be there needs to be some
kind of factored adjustment there.
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It certainly seems unfair to allocate that kind of cost for the
population that it serves at such a lighter level of service, so I think
that's something somebody ought to look at before we get this back
together again. So anyway --
MR. BOSI: Meaning would -- would -- I mean, maybe I'd
suggest that that may be a recommendation that you would -- you
would forward on to the Board of County Commissioners as how --
how we approach the -- the A UIR purpose for law enforcement.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Well, you certainly can forward
recommendations. We know how those fly.
MR. BOSI: Yep.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Anybody else have any questions or
comments on law enforcement? Basically, we're on the table on 111
and the graph on page 112.
Yes, Miss Vasey.
MS. VASEY: On page 112 you show when your new facilities
are coming in. Well, I couldn't find the special operations building.
CHIEF SMITH: It's -- it's right there, fiscal year 07/08.
MS. VASEY: Sheriffs operations, Orange Tree, and emergency
.
serVIces.
CHIEF SMITH: Sheriffs airport operations, Orange Tree
substation, and emergency services center. The airport operations and
special operations is the same building.
MS. VASEY: Oh, okay.
CHIEF SMITH: I'm sorry.
MS. VASEY: I'm sorry. I didn't know that.
CHIEF SMITH: No. No. That's not your fault; that's mine.
MS. VASEY: Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Any other questions on the law
enforcement for pages -- through pages 112? The six-month issue is
discussed from page 113 to 116. Then we have a map on page 117,
which we can have any questions. And 118 and 119 is the capital
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November 20, 2006
expansion projects listing and the leasing facilities. Are there any
questions that remain of the law enforcement element?
MR. MURRAY: Interesting.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Mr. Murray.
MR. MURRAY: On that map it indicates a Marco sheriffs
substation.
CHIEF SMITH: We do maintain a building on Marco.
MR. BENNETT: Yeah, there's always been one.
MR. MURRAY: So you have a presence there, in fact?
CHIEF SMITH: We do.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Are there any other questions or
comments or statements concerning -- Mr. Tuff?
MR. TUFF: This last year the sheriffs building on Horseshoe
was taken out -- said it was going to be taken out over here, and I
would assume it was put over there, but I don't have my -- it was on
last year's instead of -- I have just a handwritten note that said this is
going to come out and go into county government buildings.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Oh. It looks like they're delaying that
removal by a few years.
MR. TUFF: Yeah. Okay.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I think we're looking at 2011 now.
Okay. No other questions? Chief, thank you very much.
CHIEF SMITH: All right. Thank you.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I would assume then that the consensus
of this board is to wait and come back with this at the final meeting
and see where we can go at that time.
MR. ADELSTEIN: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. I think that wraps up all we can
expect to accomplish today without getting into areas that would
require more people to attend for the remaining 20 minutes, so at this
point I assume then -- well, this meeting will be continued until the
29th at 8:30 in the morning in this chamber room.
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November 20, 2006
MR. ADELSTEIN: Are you serving breakfast?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: What? No. The issues that we'll be
discussing then will be the library, EMS, governmental building, and
dependent fire control districts, and anything else that opens up
between now and then.
And, Mr. Bosi, because the productivity committee has split this
up into subcommittees, if there are other issues coming back for that
date, I certainly would like to give them the opportunity to know
ahead of time so they know to be prepared to be there, okay?
MR. BOSI: I would coordinate -- coordinate with Mike
Sheffield.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Margie, I guess the meeting will be
adjourned and continued until-- it will be continued until the 29th at
8:30 in the morning.
MR. SCHMITT: Just for the record, Mr. Chairman, you do have
the 30th this room scheduled as well and --
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't--
MR. SCHMITT: It depends on how you want to carry this over
and if you just want to deal with the remainder of these issues and
wait for the 30th to go through the entire document again based on--
on -- what you are asking for us to do is look at the population
projections, or do you want to try and accomplish that on the 29th as
well?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I don't see a meeting on the 30th if
we've got the whole day on the 29th. But is your staff going to have
something to respond to in regards to the population?
MR. SCHMITT: I -- I don't anticipate much of a change in the
population other than evaluating the methodology . We've been
through this. I -- I don't know how many more times I can express the
issue here is we're going to look at the seasonal population. We'll
come back and validate, basically, what we're doing with the seasonal
population. We'll come back and talk about how the BEBR estimates
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the population using the medium and high. We'll validate if they do,
in fact, take out the number of dwelling units that they believe are not
occupied during a period of time.
Other than that, I'm not sure what else you're looking for. Have
you -- are you actually looking for a complete redo of this entire
document based on what you believe we should be doing as
re-evaluating the population?
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Joe, we asked specific questions today.
We were given specific answers that basically admitted they didn't --
you didn't have answers to the population issue. One was involving
the vacancy, whether -- how it is in the census, the basis for the BEBR
and the -- how the vacancy numbers were or were not extracted from
our population numbers.
In reviewing some of these items that we also went through
today, the last one, for example, we're using a full county population
statistic when we maybe should only be using the incorporated
statistic. I think we showed that--
MR. SCHMITT: But, again, that is a recommendation of this
panel. We've been using that for the last eight years on the AUIR.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: So even if it's admitted that there--
some of these issues have not been looked into or they are maybe in
error you're not going to change them. You're just telling us it is what
it is, and we've got to live with it.
MR. SCHMITT: Well, no, I'm not--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: If that's -- if that's the statement from
staff, then I just want to get it clear because --
MR. SCHMITT: I'm not -- I'm not saying you have to live with
it. You certainly have the -- the authority to -- to make a
recommendation. I'm not sure -- what are you looking for as far as
population numbers? That's--
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: I'm trying to get to the -- the real
number, and if you -- if you're satisfied that these are the real numbers
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and you're not going to change them based on comments and
discussion, then I guess we'll live with it, but I'm just surprised that
staff didn't want that assistance and look to do a complete and accurate
portfolio for this county to move forward, one -- instead of one where
you're just going to dig your heels in because that's that.
MR. COHEN: Commissioner, for the record, Randy Cohen.
Myself, Mr. Bosi, and Mr. Weeks will be meeting tomorrow morning.
The topic of that discussion will be, obviously, your request for us to
do a more in-depth analysis of the B -- of the BEBR numbers. We
will come back to you with a full analysis of what the Bureau of
Economic and Business Research does with respect to the vacant
housing units.
We'll also take a look at the other housing issue that you --
population issues that you raised today. And I would anticipate that
we will probably provide an e-mail to the productivity committee and
the CCPC detailing what we will be providing to you prior to that
meeting on the 29th.
MR. SCHMITT: And I'll add that that analysis will do a
sensitivity analysis to evaluate the current population projection we're
using now, look at if there are any changes, and evaluate through a
sensitivity analysis how much of an impact that will have on these
various areas that we're looking at. A 10 percent change may only be
a 1 or 2 percent change when you're looking at the impact it has on the
projections, whether it's water, libraries, or whatever you're looking at,
and we will do that.
I -- what I'm trying to explain is -- is if it's that -- I won't call it
insignificant, but if it -- if -- if it's that kind of an impact, I would
recommend that it's best that we understand where we are and then
move forward to next year's AUIR to make the needed adjustments
based on what the DCA tells us in regards to how they want us to do
population projections. So we'll be prepared to discuss all that when
we come back next week.
Page 216
November 20, 2006
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Okay. Miss Student, do we need a
motion to continue this until the 29th?
MS. STUDENT-STIRLING: Yes.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Is there a motion to continue this
meeting to the 29th?
MR. ADELSTEIN: So moved.
MR. MURRAY: Second.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Motion made by Commissioner
Adelstein, seconded by Commissioner Murray. All those in favor
signify by saying "aye."
MR. BENNETT: Aye.
MR. VAN FLEET: Aye.
MS. VASEY: Aye.
MS. CARON: Aye.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Aye.
MR. ADELSTEIN: Aye.
MR. VIGLIOTTI: Aye.
MR. TUFF: Aye.
MR. SCHIFFER: Aye.
MR. MURRAY: Aye.
CHAIRMAN STRAIN: Motion carries unanimously. We'll see
you-all on the 29th at 8:30.
*****
There being no further business for the good of the county, the
meeting was adjourned by order of the Chair at 5:15 p.m.
Page 217
--'----."-.-~--.".-,..,..'",-----.~-'~'~.,,&'__>_,_'__~._~___O,M"'_'"."".,..."......__
November 20, 2006
COLLIER COUNTY
PLANNING COMMISSION
MARK STRAIN, Chairman
Transcript prepared on behalf of Gregory Court Reporting Service,
Inc., by Rose Witt, Danielle Ahren and Karen Blockburger.
Page 218