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HAAB Minutes 09/27/2007 September 27,2007 MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE COLLIER COUNTY HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY BOARD (HAAB) Naples, Florida, September 27, 2007 LET IT BE REMEMBERED, that the Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Committee in and for the County of Collier, having conducted business herein, met on this date at 6:00 PM in REGULAR SESSION at Administrative Building "F", 3rd Floor, Collier County Government Center, Naples, Florida with the following members present: Chairman: Vice Chairman: James Van Fleet David Correa Raymond Cabral Renato F. Fernandez Manuel Gonzalez Valaree D. Maxwell Cosme Perez (Excused) Ernesto Velasquez Also Present: Mike Sheffield, Assistant to the County Manager Communication & Customer Relations Department 3301 East Tamiami Trail Naples, FL 34112 Collier County Government Contact: Sandra Arnold Public Information Coordinator (239) 774-8308 www.collier!!ov.net September 7, 2007 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NOTICE OF MEETING & AGENDA COLLIER COUNTY HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY BOARD (HAAB) COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA Thursday, September 27, 2007 6 P.M. Collier County Government Center Administration Building F, Third Floor 3301 E. Tamiami Trail Naples, FL 34112 * * ***** ** ** * * * * * * * ******** * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * ** * * * **** * * * * ** * NOTICE ** All interested parties are invited to attend, and to register to speak and to submit their objections, if any, in writing, to the board prior to the meeting if applicable. ** For more information, please contact Colleen M. Greene at (239) 774-8400 ** If you are a person with a disability who needs any accommodation in order to p:n1icipate in this proceeding, you are entitled, at no cost to you, to the provision of certain assistance. Please contact the Collier County Facilities Management Department located at 3301 E. Tamiami Trail, Naples, FL 34112, (239) 774-8380. ** Public comments will be limited to three minutes unless permission tor additional time is granted by the Chailman. ** Collier County Ordinance No. 2004-05, as amended, requires that all lobbyists shall, belore engaging in any lobbying activities (including, but not limited to, addressing the Board of County Commissioners) belore the Board of County Commissioners and its advisory boards, register with the Clerk to the Board at the Board Minutes and Records Department. * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * ** * * * AGENDA I. 6 p.rn. Meeting Called to Order II. Approval of Agenda III. Adoption of Minutes From July 26, 2007 IV. New Business a. Meet new HAAB Applicant, Luis Alejandro Bernal V. Old Business VI. Public Comments VII. Board Member Comments VIII. Next Meeting: October 25, 2007 IX. Meeting Adjourns -End- September 27,2007 I. Roll Call The meeting was called to order at 6:00 PM by Chairman James Van Fleet. II. Approval of Agenda David Correa moved to approve the Agenda. Second by Manuel Gonzalez. Motion carried unanimously 7-0. III. Adoption of Minutes From: July 26, 2007 Renato Fernandez moved to approve the Minutes of July 26, 2007. Second by David Correa. Motion carried unanimously 7-0. IV. New Business a. Meet new HAAB Applicant, Luis Alejandro Bernal Chairman Van Fleet gave an introduction ofMr. Bernal who was not present. Stating he and Mr. Bernal have been acquaintances for the past 1 Y2 years. Mr. Bernal is active in the Hispanic Business Leaders Group of the Better Naples Chamber of Commerce and also serves on the Board of Directors Council of International Visitors in Collier or Civic Organization. Mr. Bernal hosted and participated in activities for an Ecuadorian group from the Civic Organization's National Parks Service, affiliated with the Galapagos Islands. David Correa moved to approve the application of Luis Alejandro Bernal. Second by Ernesto Velasquez. Discussions continued regarding Mr. Bernal's credentials. Motion carried unanimously 7-0. Michael Sheffield stated Sue Filson would be notified of the vote recommendation to the BCC for the appointment of the applicant. David CorreIa moved that the applicant has met all criteria for appointment to the Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board. Second by Manuel Gonzalez. Motion carried unanimously 7-0. V. Old Business David Correa noted he was unable to contact Mr. Touron's attorney, as requested at the July 26,2007 Meeting. Chairman Van Fleet has requested minutes from the September 4, 2007 Diversity Meeting concerning K-12 dropout rates. Stated a report would be provided at the October 2007 Meeting. Valeree Maxwell inquired if the report was for informational purposes on the dropout rate for Latino's. Chairman Van Fleet responded it was principally for the Latino population and was undetermined if the report would be categorized. 2 September 27,2007 Valeree Maxwell expressed concern that Latino and Ethnic groups that fail the FCA T drop out of school. Stating it was a very serious situation. Chairman Van Fleet concurred with Ms. Maxwell, expressing his concern that the statistics were not accurate. It was implied that Guidance Counselors "may" advise faltering students to obtain a GED, and the student would no longer be included in the drop out statistics. Valeree Maxwell responded that the "Option 2 Program" was recommended to EFC students which entails the student be out in the workforce, this would allow continued funding for the school. The students would receive a Certificate of Completion in lieu of a Diploma. VI. Public Comments None VII. Board Member Comments Michael Sheffield announced that he would continue to serve as Staff Liaison for the Board until such time that a replacement from the County Manager's Office was selected. After discussions Michael Sheffield's expertise and professionalism was welcomed by the Board. Valeree Maxwell noted a Naples News Article referencing "C-Cat" Code Compliancy Advocacy Taskforce (Attached). Stating the C-Cat Taskforce was created due to code violations that were issued to individuals with language barriers, disabilities or the elderly. Ms. Maxwell requested the Committee Members review the article and submit questions, noting there was a scheduled C-Cat Taskforce Meeting in October. Subsequently, in November, Commissioner Coletta will present the issue to the BCC for a vote. It was suggested that volunteers be present at Code Enforcement Hearings for translation. Manuel Gonzalez queried if the individuals were ignoring the code violations that were issued. Noting Code Enforcement does have bilingual staff members. Renato Fernandez questioned how the individuals who were receiving violations originally purchased their property if there was a language barrier. He further stated that they are living in America, and not requiring immigrants to learn the English language was doing more harm than good. Chairman Van Fleet suggested in addition to the group of volunteers the development of an Ombudsman Office. Michael Sheffield responded there was a bilingual Ombudsman Office in place and he would provide the information to the Committee. 3 September 27, 2007 Chairman Van Fleet requested that Commissioner Coletta be advised of the Ombudsman Office as another possible resource. Mike Sheffield questioned if the C-Cat Taskforce was providing a list of recommendations for the County. Valeree Maxwell responded that the finalized Program would be supplied to the Board. Manuel Gonzalez noted the Court has a published list of approximately 57 interpreters that were available for individuals arriving into the country. Manuel Gonzalez reported his attendance to the Minority Task Force Meeting on September 13, 2007. One issue of concern expressed by the Representative for the People of the County was the number of jailed Illegal Immigrants. The Minority Task Force was developed in unification with "ICE' Immigration Customs Enforcement to identify citizenship and determine what the appropriate plan of action would be i.e. completion of the sentence or deportation depending on the severity of the crime. The advertisement of bilingual positions - 24 Civilian, 17 Law Enforcement, and 10-11 Corrections Officers would be published. Adding any known qualified candidates should be directed to the Sheriff's Office. Announced Homeland Security has granted monies to the Sheriff's Office to deter counter terrorism. Based on a recent article in the Daily News, the Nation had reached a historical high of 37.5 million Illegal Immigrants. Over 12.5% are Hispanic, originating primarily from Mexico and are deficient in procedures, customs, basic education, and with language barriers. Mr. Gonzalez suggested Ms. Maxwell contact the Census Bureau for the demographic statistics on Housing and Education categorized by State and County. He also recommends that the American Community Survey of Households should be reviewed. The annual survey is based on income, social status, originating country, and type of employment be reviewed. VIII. Next Meeting: October 25, 2007 It was agreed unanimously 7-0 to cancel the meeting for December 27, 2007. The November meeting would be held November 29,2007 4 September 27,2007 ***** Being no further business for the good of the County, the meeting was adjourned by order of the Chair at 7:03 P.M. COLLIER COUNTY HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY COMMITTEE James Van Fleet, Chairman These Minutes approved by the Board/Committee on as presented or as amended 5