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BCC Minutes 11/12/2021 SNovember 12, 2021 Page 1 TRANSCRIPT OF THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Naples, Florida November 12, 2021 LET IT BE REMEMBERED, that the Board of County Commissioners, in and for the County of Collier, and also acting as the Board of Zoning Appeals and as the governing board(s) of such special districts as have been created according to law and having conducted business herein, met on this date at 11:00 a.m., in SPECIAL SESSION in Building "F" of the Government Complex, East Naples, Florida, with the following members present: Chairman: Penny Taylor Rick LoCastro Burt L. Saunders Andy Solis William L. McDaniel, Jr. (Absent) ALSO PRESENT: Mark Isackson, County Manager Sean Callahan, Deputy County Manager Scott Teach, Deputy County Attorney Troy Miller, Communications & Customer Relations Robin Sheley, Clerk's Office Page 1 November 12, 2021 COLLIER COUNTY Board of County Commissioners Community Redevelopment Agency Board (CRAB) Airport Authority SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA Board of County Commission Chambers Collier County Government Center 3299 Tamiami Trail East, 3rd Floor Naples, FL 34112 November 12, 2021 11:00 AM Commissioner Penny Taylor, District 4 – Chair – CRAB Co-Chair Commissioner William L. McDaniel, Jr., District 5; Vice Chair - CRAB Co-Chair Commissioner Rick LoCastro, District 1 Commissioner Andy Solis, District 2 Commissioner Burt Saunders, District 3 NOTICE: ALL PERSONS WISHING TO SPEAK ON AGENDA ITEMS MUST REGISTER PRIOR TO PRESENTATION OF THE AGENDA ITEM TO BE ADDRESSED. ALL REGISTERED SPEAKERS WILL RECEIVE UP TO THREE (3) MINUTES UNLESS THE TIME IS ADJUSTED BY THE CHAIRMAN. REQUESTS TO PETITION THE BOARD ON SUBJECTS WHICH ARE NOT ON THIS AGENDA MUST BE SUBMITTED IN WRITING WITH EXPLANATION TO THE COUNTY MANAGER AT LEAST 13 DAYS PRIOR TO THE DATE OF THE MEETING AND WILL BE HEARD UNDER “PUBLIC PETITIONS.” PUBLIC PETITIONS ARE LIMITED TO THE PRESENTER, WITH A MAXIMUM TIME OF TEN MINUTES. ANY PERSON WHO DECIDES TO APPEAL A DECISION OF THIS BOARD WILL NEED A RECORD OF THE PROCEEDING 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. COLLIER COUNTY ORDINANCE NO. 2003-53 AS AMENDED BY ORDINANCE 2004-05 AND 2007-24, REQUIRES THAT ALL LOBBYISTS SHALL, BEFORE ENGAGING IN ANY LOBBYING ACTIVITIES (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ADDRESSING THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS), REGISTER WITH THE CLERK TO THE BOARD AT THE BOARD MINUTES AND RECORDS DEPARTMENT. IF YOU ARE A PERSON WITH A DISABILITY WHO NEEDS ANY ACCOMMODATION IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS PROCEEDING, YOU ARE ENTITLED, AT NO COST TO YOU, THE PROVISION OF CERTAIN ASSISTANCE. PLEASE CONTACT THE COLLIER COUNTY FACILITIES MANAGEMENT DIVISION LOCATED AT 3335 EAST TAMIAMI TRAIL, SUITE 1, NAPLES, FLORIDA, 34112-5356, (239) 252-8380; ASSISTED LISTENING DEVICES FOR THE HEARING IMPAIRED ARE AVAILABLE IN THE FACILITIES MANAGEMENT DIVISION. 1. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 2. BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS 3. COUNTY MANAGER’S REPORT A. Recommendation to approve the award of Invitation to Negotiation #21- 7898 “Collier County Sports Complex Management,” to Sports Facilities Management, LLC and authorize the Chair to sign the attached agreement (Sean Callahan, Deputy County Manager). (District 5) 4. ADJOURN Inquiries concerning changes to the Board’s Agenda should be made to the County Manager’s Office at 252-8383. November 12, 2021 Page 2 MR. ISACKSON: Chair Taylor, Commissioners, you have a live mic. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Good morning, everyone. We are here in a special meeting to discuss the contract with the chosen vendor of the Paradise Coast sports park. And I think we probably should have -- COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Are we going to have a court reporter or -- MR. MILLER: She's participating remotely. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Oh, she is. MR. MILLER: She's monitoring us. She's online right now. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Sorry. Yeah, I knew that, but I was more concerned -- I think we should probably do a Pledge, right, at the beginning of this meeting? Thank you. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Sure. (The Pledge of Allegiance was recited in unison.) Item #3A AWARD OF INVITATION TO NEGOTIATION #21-7898 “COLLIER COUNTY SPORTS COMPLEX MANAGEMENT,” TO SPORTS FACILITIES MANAGEMENT, LLC AND AUTHORIZE THE CHAIR TO SIGN THE ATTACHED AGREEMENT – MOTITON TO APPROVE THE AGREEMENT – APPROVED MR. ISACKSON: At the Tuesday board meeting, commissioners directed that the Clerk of the Circuit Court, the County Attorney's Office, representatives from my office sit down, and that happened on Wednesday. Mr. Teach provided an excellent overview of that meeting as well as the changes to the contract in consultation with the Clerk's Office. November 12, 2021 Page 3 So I'll let Mr. Teach summarize, if he doesn't mind. MR. TEACH: Okay. Commissioners, Scott Teach, Deputy County Attorney. Wednesday, at the Board's direction, we met with all the parties that the County Manager identified starting at 8:00 in the morning and, for three-and-a-half hours, discussing the major issues of concern that the Clerk had. And I'd characterize the first hour as sort of a general discussion regarding operations of the vendor, operations of concern of the Clerk's Office. It was a very protective meeting, and I think -- I think it would be fair to characterization that our conversation led to a level of comfort on many of the issues of contention. The -- and just to -- from the beginning, on your daises, I've put forward the copy of the agreement, which I previously provided to you on Wednesday. One page was slightly modified, the Page 1 of the Exhibit E pro forma, and that was just to reflect the landscaping amount at $140,000, which is consistent with the Exhibit D operating expense, and that is the low budget county landscaping fee pro rata for what would be the remainder of this contract term under the first year; year zero it's called in the agreement. And the reason why that was done was just the general counsel for the vendor contacted me yesterday and said, we had talked about this, and the Clerk agreed with this, and Robin's here from the -- Robin Sheley's here from the Clerk's Office, and she confirmed via email, as well as Crystal, that this was acceptable. It's just a -- it's consistent with the Exhibit D, and it allows her to pay up to this amount for the landscaping maintenance for the remainder of this first -- if you were to award -- initial award of the contract term. The primary change that drove some of the revisions on the agreement was how the -- how the revenue would flow. And what we decided, Sports Facilities Management has operated in a couple November 12, 2021 Page 4 different fashions. They've done it with just an operating account, and they've done it as we're proposing here today where the county will set up a revenue account. The Sports Facilities Management will deposit, within 48 hours, revenue into that account that they received, and then, at the end of each month, they will invoice the county for their expenses. They will also invoice the county for their payroll compensation, and those monies will be paid out of the revenue account back into the Sports Facilities Management operating account. The Clerk found that this would be a good way for her to be able to have more control of the assets and all the indicia of trustworthiness, the accounting bank statements, quarterly sales tax, and all those will be provided as well. That was the primary driver of the changes. There were some additional minor changes which I've reflected in a memo that I provided to you last night. Those were relatively minor changes, and you are presented with the agreement today. And I'm happy to answer any questions. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: I do have a couple of questions. We have -- we haven't been asleep in Collier County in terms of having sports events, and I understand that the plan of staff is to bring those sports events to the -- to the sports park, the big ones, and we have contracts with those entities. How is that going to be treated? And now we don't have SFI in there, but they have contracts, ongoing contracts with -- MR. TEACH: Yes. And that's identified in the agreement as well. The list of those agreements has been provided to Sports Facilities Management. They will take over the management of those agreements. The Clerk's Office, Crystal, we had this conversation on Wednesday, and they have since been provided, and the new vendor will take management of those agreements. November 12, 2021 Page 5 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: And so will they honor the terms of the contract, or will these be brand-new contracts? MR. TEACH: I believe, through our discussions -- and Jason can come up here, but they're going to be doing some due diligence. They're going to be looking at some of these agreements. They may be -- in their opinion, they may believe that they can renegotiate those for better terms. And I don't want to speak on your behalf, Jason, but I think that was part of our conversation. MR. CLEMENT: Yes. Hi. Good morning. Jason Clement, Sports Facilities Companies. Our intention is to evaluate all those agreements. If they're good agreements, we're just going to execute on them on behalf of the county. If we have any concerns with those agreements, we'll bring them to the county. We'll have a conversation about them. We don't anticipate any issues at this point given what we've been told. And in this scenario, we'll just execute them and manage them. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Okay. So then -- and there's a term that's two years. You'll let it go for the two years unless there's a real problem? MR. CLEMENT: That's right. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: So I'd like to put on the record that any kind of changes or any concerns you have, I would like the County Manager to bring it to the commissioner -- commission -- commissioner body for discussion. Thank you. MR. ISACKSON: Understood. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Thanks. Commissioner Saunders. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: Yes. Just a couple quick questions. I'm fairly certain we're going to approve this agreement this morning, and I understand a representative of the Clerk's Office November 12, 2021 Page 6 is here, and she's shaking her head that everything seems to be fine, and we've heard that from the County Attorney as well and the County Manager. When are you on board? When do you have personnel here? What happens over -- in this transition, which will start here probably in about five minutes? MR. CLEMENT: Right. We didn't intend to be presumptive, but our COO, Dave Pritchett, stayed since Tuesday and began some of the preparation, if you will. We've identified an interim team that will come down and manage the park beginning November 22nd when the current operator is out. And in the meantime, we've begun operations with the current operator about that transition plan and how we can be in place. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: The current operator, you said November 22nd. I was not aware of the date. MR. CLEMENT: Yep. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: That's my bad. MR. CLEMENT: Yep. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: Is there any ability, depending on their position, to move -- have your folks here sooner so that on November 22nd it's not you've got a few folks coming down that day or the day before, but -- and we're only talking about 10 days from now. MR. CLEMENT: That's right. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: But I just hate to see on November 22nd no one there and you guys walking in the door. So I'd like to have you come in earlier and make sure that on November 23rd we don't miss a beat. MR. CLEMENT: Yeah. These 10 days will have an overlap. So we've been in conversation with the existing operator. They've said all the right things in terms of wanting to transition well. November 12, 2021 Page 7 Obviously, we'll need to execute on that, but they've said all the right things. And we, obviously, have said the right things as well, that we're going to transition. And so we'll have duplicity, if you will, over the next 10 days to make sure that we understand what's happening from their perspective. And the good news is, is that we have -- with Marissa, we have county representation who's out at the park managing as well. We've been in conversation with her about what needs to happen. So, yes, the short answer to your question, will we have representatives on site? We will over the next 10 days as part of that transition plan. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Commissioner LoCastro. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: No. I mean, you actually kind of sort of answered my question, but you can expand on it a little bit. I was wondering how your transition was going with the current contractor. Obviously, they rebid for the contract; didn't get it. You know, sometimes being disgruntled, you know, a lot of bad stuff can happen in 10 days, and I'm certainly not accusing them of anything. But, you know, you've already answered it, that they're saying the right things; you're looking for the right things. But I'll just, you know, stress that if we can help you with anything -- I mean, you know, don't be shy about -- we want that transition to go not only perfectly but for you to -- like, Commissioner Saunders said, on Day 1 to feel like, you know, you don't have a list of 15 things that we should have done in the last 10 days. So, I mean, do you have any major concerns or anything at all? It's great that they said the right things, but is there anything -- you know, that's why we're here to talk about the transition and making sure you get off to a fast start. I mean, we have realistic expectations. We know this is a big monster. You're taking a big November 12, 2021 Page 8 bite of the apple, and you have a lot of great ideas and whatnot. But is there anything that, you know, you want to say to us or anything that we can help you with? MR. CLEMENT: Well, I can share -- and, Dave, feel free to come up if you want to fill in any gaps that I share. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: Or any big major concerns. Like, you know, we may not know everything. We're not in the park every day. So if there's some observation that you want to sort of go on record saying, hey, I want to separate rumor from fact, you know, these are three or four things. You've done a lot of meetings, but we haven't been in them. But in the end, the success of the park is really our ultimate responsibility. MR. CLEMENT: Well, the truth is, the meetings began on Tuesday, because we were under the cone of silence up until that point when that was released so that we could work through the agreement situation. So at this point I wouldn't say that there's anything that I would say is a major red flag other than we're going to have five business days to unwind the current operator and have us become a part of it. We got into details with the current operator on certain agreements, the lodging technology that they're utilizing, the POS system, operational items like that, what does inventory look like, who's going to -- obviously, we'll take inventory on day one to make sure that what's there is accounted for properly and all of those sorts of things. On Tuesday of this week, we're bringing in our marketing, finance, and account -- down from Tampa, marketing, finance, and accounting, risk management, HR, events programming operational team so that we can do a formal kickoff and really put everything on the board. And the truth is, our account executive has put together, you know, a transition plan of what we need to accomplish in these November 12, 2021 Page 9 five business days, 10 days total, and we're just going to start executing on that. And we will make you aware, you know, through the County Manager's Office, if there's anything that's a red flag that reveals itself. But, in the conversations thus far, we don't have any reason to believe we can't have success in this transition here. But we certainly would like to sit down and talk with you about what your vision is for the park and, you know, what your hopes and expectations are from the relationship with us, should you vote us in, so that we can make sure we set up the operation in a way that delivers on those expectations and, frankly, the investment that the Board has made on behalf of the taxpayers. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: Is there anything major in infrastructure or, you know, automation or anything that the current contractor brought in that was above and beyond the contract that they're actually exiting with that causes you any kind of major concern, or they're basically leaving everything in place? I mean, obviously, the county owns the bulk of the things there, but is there anything magical that sort of walks out the door that you have to replace or that causes you any sort of initial concern? MR. CLEMENT: Not that we're aware of at this point in time. The one area is the lodging piece, because there have been relationships with hoteliers and businesses in the county that are relying on those room nights. There are events booked, room nights being booked, so we don't want to break that. We're not looking to just pull that out and yank that out. So we've had preliminary conversations with the current operator, and they've agreed to allow us to leave that in to make sure that the system is consistent for the businesses within Collier County at this point in time. They also have reason to do that. I believe they make money on that system. So it's a good leverage point as well to make sure November 12, 2021 Page 10 that the transition is positive. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: One last question. And a lot of times when you have an overlap like this, sometimes the new contractor that comes in reaches out to the old contractor and actually steals one or two people that they think are magical or amazing or to give continuity. Is there anybody you're keeping from their staff or you're hiring over onto your team? And I'm not suggesting that you should. It's just a totally ballpark, you know, blind question. MR. CLEMENT: Yeah. My understanding is there are four full-time persons there right now. We're going to talk with all four, have a conversation with them, and that there are about 20 hourly part-time folks that do a good job out at the park. We don't see any reason to, you know, break something from that perspective. If they're good, we would bring them in, and it will just make the transition more effective. But we haven't been provided the opportunity to have a formal conversation with them yet until the contract is executed. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: The senior leadership team is all yours, right? MR. CLEMENT: That's right. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: And their senior leadership team and even midlevel leadership team exits, correct? MR. CLEMENT: So, yeah, nothing from their corporate senior leadership team. No, we have not had conversation about them -- COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: Okay. Thank you. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Commissioner Solis. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Well, I think we know where this is going, so I was going to congratulate you on surviving the process. But I was also going to just suggest that there's the FRLA, the restaurant lodging association, the local chapter. I don't know if you've spoken with them. November 12, 2021 Page 11 MR. CLEMENT: No. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: But, really, I would recommend you sitting down with them ASAP. And I think that, you know, they're really interested in working with whoever is managing the park and trying to be as proactive and as helpful as they can be, you know, to drive the revenues of the park and, obviously, to the hotels as well. And I can get you all that contact information if you'd like. Randy Smith is their -- kind of their legislative liaison, I guess you would call him. MR. CLEMENT: Okay. That would be great. And I would imagine there are other personnel that we should talk with -- COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Sure. MR. CLEMENT: -- in and around the TDC that would be involved that would be helpful to start building relationships with as well. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Right. And, obviously, have you spoken with Paul Burns yet? MR. CLEMENT: No, not formally because of the cone of silence. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, there's -- Paul Burns is now our executive director of the CVB, and so it would be a good place to start. But I would also strongly recommend that you touch base with the FRLA folks, because they're really interested, obviously, in moving the park forward and seeing it be successful. MR. CLEMENT: We'll do that. Thank you. MR. PRITCHETT: Jason? COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Okay. MR. ISACKSON: Commissioners? MR. PRITCHETT: I'm sorry. May I? Dave Pritchett with Sports Facilities Companies. I'm our chief operating officer. November 12, 2021 Page 12 On Wednesday, Marissa and I spent a substantial amount of time just going through a number of matters related to the park. And so we had a very, very good conversation with a long list of matters that we're going to continue this afternoon. I met this current staff of the park, and I'm going to go back today and meet them as well, talk to John Simone, who's the general manager, so I'll be spending time with the staff today. I know we're still in a transition window, so we won't get started. But it will be important for us to set their, you know, emotions -- you know, calm them due to the uncertainty. So Jason mentioned this, so next Tuesday and Wednesday, we're bringing -- we're mobilizing really the full force of our organization in our departments to come down, working with Melissa. So we're coming down Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. And Melissa -- or Marissa, excuse me, is mobilizing the key players in the community and in the county. And we're working through that agenda today. So all of these parties, Commissioner, that you speak to we'll be meeting with next week. And from there, we'll continue. And a few of our members are going to stay through Thursday and Friday, and then the following Monday and Tuesday, a number of our -- several more of our team members will come down. There will be new team members. We have an event crew that's going to come down and be on site. So we are poised, ready, and positioned to hit the ground sprinting. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: And I would just add, just one last thing is that it might be helpful to have an ongoing dialogue with them. I mean, they -- I think they want to be more involved in just, you know -- and I think they're interested in creating more connections between the facility and whoever's running it, and, you know, the hoteliers and the restaurant owners. I think it would probably be a healthy thing. November 12, 2021 Page 13 MR. CLEMENT: Message received on that. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Thanks. MR. TEACH: Commissioners, I wanted to just bring one more thing to your attention that I had put in my memo to you, and it concerns the commercial rights, specifically naming rights. It's an issue that had popped up several years ago. And during the course of our discussion I had raised it, and the reason was there's a difference between a sponsorship, which might be from an event, or something like that, and a naming right, which might be a stadium or maybe Smith Fields, or whatever the case may be, and there could be circumstances where a local business or individual just walks into the County Manager's Office and says, I have this much money, and I want this named after me. And so my concern was that if it is not, like, a finder's fee, if they don't cultivate the person that walks in, we should probably get a greater percentage of it. Most of these type of relationships, the manager does receive a portion because they might take the ball from us and carry it through to fruition. And so what the agreement did and what I tweaked in here was with respect to the naming rights, the County Manager's Office and the Sports Facilities Management will have a continuing conversation with a goal of bringing back an amendment that addresses the financial aspects of naming rights within 90 days of the effective date of this agreement. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Are you aware that we actually went through that process a couple of years ago? MR. CLEMENT: We've been told that there was an investment that may not have materialized in outcomes, but that's as much as we've been -- CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Yeah. Folks were contacted, especially in this community. So I think as we go forward, if someone at some point decides to -- would like a name on a building November 12, 2021 Page 14 or whatever, I think that needs to be taken into -- into consideration. Sometimes these agreements are a long time brewing, but the contact was made. MR. CLEMENT: Okay. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Thank you. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: One follow-up in reference to that. We do have a list of local entities that may have an interest in that. For example, Naples Community Hospital, Physicians Regional, Arthrex. There's some major ones. And it may be worthwhile -- there's no agreement now as to fee splitting and all of that. That's going to come within 90 days. Just a question: Should we provide a list of the folks that we have spoken to, we've had some contact with, so at least you know who we're dealing with so there won't be any arguments going forward? And I think the County Attorney and the County Manager could probably put together a list of those fairly quickly, because the split of fees will be substantially different for NCH, for example, than it would be for the Cleveland Clinic if some other entity came. MR. TEACH: Yeah. Commissioner, to the extent that -- I don't have that list, but obviously, to the extent the County Manager's Office has that list of people who have presented previously, I think it should be provided, and then that could be utilized in the course of the negotiations as far as the fee splitting. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: Mr. Manager, do we have any information on that that you're aware of? MR. ISACKSON: I'm sure we do. There's been contact over the last, I want to say, year. Mr. Callahan and probably Ms. Reynolds from my office also would have that list. So we can make sure we communicate that with the vendor. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: Yeah. It just avoids conflict at the end if they know who we're already dealing with. November 12, 2021 Page 15 MR. ISACKSON: It was my office's intention to cultivate a transition meeting next week with the vendor to talk about these types of issues, so -- I failed to mention that at the outset of the discussion. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: And I also think the folks that we hired, maybe it was two years ago, they would have a list of who they contacted on behalf of the sports park. MR. ISACKSON: We'll run that to ground. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Thank you. All right. So before we go any further -- and I don't mean to cause a -- I don't mean to do this last minute but, frankly, I've had no choice. I'd like to read a statement, but I cannot support this vendor at this point. I have a great deal of confidence in the members of the selection committee who were chosen to rank the finalists replying to the Paradise Coast Sports Complex ITN; however, I have no confidence in the selection process that was used to rank the companies responding to the ITN for the management of the Paradise Coast Sports Complex. The ITN criteria is in front of you, and Sherry, I hope she's listening, because it needs to come in the room now, and it tells the story. Financial performance information is not one of the criteria. This was a critical oversight. How can the selection committee rank a company if its actual financial performance is not part of criteria consideration? The ITN's highest ranking criteria were facility management and marketing, 20 points; work experience, 20 points; price proposals, 20 points. Our County Manager has stated that he has no reliance on pro forma numbers. The ITN criteria listed above are important considerations in the process, but we still need to see what each November 12, 2021 Page 16 company's financial performance has been at the different facilities they submitted as a reference. I was surprised to learn that those figures were not readily available when I asked for the budgeted and actual figures from the County Manager's Office several weeks ago. It was obvious that this budget information had not been required in the ITN process and, therefore, not considered in the decision-making by the selection committee. It was the experience and expertise of our County Manager that started the information flowing by asking for the CAFR from each of the facilities. This is outlined in my email to the County Manager, Mark Isackson, on November the 10th, 2021. We are making a critical decision regarding the management of a $120 million facility, and making a decision today is a hasty decision that I would not recommend that we do. We have three choices. We can decide today, decide we're going to go out for another ITN again, this time including financial performance information, or ask staff to meet with the three finalists to learn what the numbers are in the nonpublic and public facilities they manage. Compare one management firm to the other based on their accurate financial performance. It is assumed that the county will continue to pay the debt service on the complex but, if at all possible, the taxpayers should not be subsidizing the day-to-day operations. Take a look at Rocky Top's financial information or Myrtle Beach included in the attachment I sent to you and the County Manager. It has been said that these venues don't make money, but in the research I have done, it does seem that there are facilities out there that do make money and do not require an ongoing subsidy. We should find out why, and see if Paradise Coast Sports Complex can be one of those complexes. In my opinion, we owe this to the taxpayers. And so I'd like open the discussion, and if there is none, then I'd November 12, 2021 Page 17 like to ask for a motion. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: I'll jump in and say a few things. First of all, thank you for the information, and I certainly appreciate all the extra effort that you've put into this. I'm satisfied with where staff's recommendation is today. That's not to denigrate in any way your efforts, but I think we're -- and I don't really feel that we're rushing into anything. We've been dealing with this now for a couple months. We certainly ran into a little bit of rough spot on Tuesday in terms of the Clerk's issues. That's all been ironed out. I'm ready to proceed today, but I want you to understand and know I respect what you've done. I respect your position, but I think we're ready to move forward. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Okay. And in my -- where I'm looking at this, in conscience, I couldn't vote for this, because I think there's really a problem here. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: Yeah, I'll just -- CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Commissioner LoCastro. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: Yeah. I'll just make a few statements. I appreciate the deep dive analysis that any commissioner makes, but I wish that would have been made, you know, years ago when the sports complex was open, and then we wouldn't be sitting here, you know, hiring our second contract and trying to do it right the first time the second time, which is really disappointing. I mean, you know, very similar people were involved in the first process. And I don't know what kind of dive was done, but I'm actually, you know, satisfied with this dive. I think every complex is different, so I think some of it isn't apples to apples. You know, you're comparing, you know, a complex that's in Wappingers Falls, Idaho, or whatever to, you know, a complex that's here in Southwest Florida. I'm looking more at the overall company itself. I think it is extremely important to see the November 12, 2021 Page 18 financial success of the company in other places, but I think it's one variable. I think our staff did, you know, a deep dive, and I would hope it was much deeper than was done the first time. I also think the presentations by the companies matter as well. And I'm not wowed by, you know, folders and glossy pictures and whatnot, but I think also, too, you know, I've done my own research diving into all the companies that were finalists and whatnot. And, you know, at some point you've got to trust your gut a little bit. We're never going to have 100 percent guarantee that's -- and that's why we have all these out clauses. If we had a 100 percent guarantee, then the first contractor would be still at the facility doing great things, and we'd all be applauding that person. So even when everybody was proud of their work the first time, now everybody's sitting here saying, we can't wait till they're out. But we have ways of getting out with you, you know, as well. So this is a contract that's both ways. I think you can sit here and peel this thing back, you know, to death. And I would hope that that's what our -- or I feel confident that's what our county team did. I wasn't impressed a few days ago, but I would expect that you've had some pretty, you know, deep-dive discussion. I mean, the county clerk just left a voice mail on my phone, maybe all of our phones, saying that she thought, you know, exponential progress had been made in a very short time and that she was very impressed and felt, you know, very confident. And I really -- you know, I really respect Crystal's analysis on contracts a lot. We talk a lot. And she definitely points out things sometimes. Maybe some people might think she's a little rough around the edges. I don't care how she is around the edges. I just care about the numbers. But I don't think anything's going to be 1,000 percent perfect, but I agree with Commissioner Taylor. I would -- I'd rather make no November 12, 2021 Page 19 decision now than a bad decision, but I feel like you are an extremely solid company. The things that I've looked into, I've been very impressed by. And, like I said, it's like any other contract; we always have an out. And I think, you know, kicking the can and keeping the current company certainly isn't the way to go. And I think you-all feel enough pressure to have success here in Southwest Florida. It's your reputation on the line as well. So I can tell you, we're going to be screaming from the mountaintops at how crappy your company is if something happens or, on the flip side, singing your praises that, you know, you came into an operation and went from worst to first. So I don't -- you know, I've done a lot of homework these last couple days as well and, you know, I feel confident that with the options that we had to choose from -- and not that I'm settling for the best of the worst, or sometimes it's been said in this room, I hate all the options; I'm going to vote for the one I hate the least. I'm not saying that here. I agree with Commissioner Saunders. I think we have a chance to accelerate the sports complex, and I think you're the company to do it. And this contract, you know, will continue to have additions added. I'm sure we'll have amendments and different things that pop up, whether it's naming rights or whatnot. And I think your company has a track record across the country of taking things to a national level as opposed to some of the local folks that came here. So I -- you know, what questions I have, I've already -- have already been answered for me. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Commissioner Solis. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: You know, I agree with Commissioner Saunders. I mean, I respect the way you feel about the process, but we have a procurement process that we went through, and we have to trust our staff and, in my opinion, yeah, I November 12, 2021 Page 20 mean, could we have been a little more prepared on Tuesday, probably, but I think we've gotten to the goal line. I have the utmost confidence in the company here that's being selected, and I think the sky is the limit. So I'm going to support awarding the contract. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: So do I hear a motion? COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: Yeah. Madam Chair, I'll make a motion to approve the agreement that's before us this morning. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Second. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Motion on the floor. And I'm looking for Terri. She's not here. Motion on the floor and a second. All those in favor, say aye. COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye. COMMISSIONER LoCASTRO: Aye. COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: Aye. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Those opposed, like sign. Aye. It carries 3-1. MR. CLEMENT: Thank you. We'll serve you well. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Thank you. MR. ISACKSON: Commissioners, before you adjourn, I just want to extend a note of appreciation to Jennifer Reynolds and Marissa Fahey for over the last 48 hours working on behalf of my office involved with some of these discussions. So I wanted to put that on the record. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Any other comments, commissioner comments? COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: Yeah. I'll make one quick comment. I want to thank the County Manager, the County Attorney, and the Clerk for -- CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Here, here. November 12, 2021 Page 21 COMMISSIONER SAUNDERS: -- going above and beyond a little bit to make this work. I was -- I knew the quality of the people that were involved, so I knew you could work it out, and we're here today because of that, so thank you for that extra effort. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: Especially for working on Veterans Day, Mr. Teach. Any other comments? (No response.) CHAIRMAN TAYLOR: All right. We are adjourned. ******* November 12, 2021 There being no further business for the good of the County, the meeting was adjourned by order of the Chair at 11 :33 a.m. BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS/EX OFFICIO GOVERNING BOARD(S) OF 2 SPE DISTRICTS UNDER ITS CONTROL PENNY YLOR, HAIRMAN ATTEST CRYS SAL IK..IKINZEL, CLERK ttest as ttb`Chairm ' signature only., These minutes approved by the Board on !'_c:err- 1,kt -at) t , as presented v or as corrected . TRANSCRIPT PREPARED ON BEHALF OF FORT MYERS COURT REPORTING BY TERRI L. LEWIS, RPR, FPR-C, COURT REPORTER AND NOTARY PUBLIC. Page 22