HAAB Backup 04/02/1992 RBackup
Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board
Meeting
April 2, 1992
MEETING
HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY BOARD
THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 1992 AT 6:30 P.M.
BUILDING F, THIRD FLOOR BOARDROOM, EAST SECTION
t.Tdalullhl
I. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND MINUTES
II. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT
III. STAFF REPORT
IV. DISCUSSION WITH TOM WHITECOTTON, HUMAN RESOURCES
DIRECTOR
V. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS
VI. OLD BUSINESS
Update on Ms. Lozano Complaint
VII. NEW BUSINESS
VIII. PUBLIC SPEAKERS & COMMENTS
IX. NEXT MEETING
Note: Pursuant to the vote of the Hispanic Board on January
27, 1992, it is requested that all members of the Board who
will be making reports provide written summaries of their
presentations to secretary Gloria Dominguez.
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: April 2, 1992
TO: Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro MaRalich, Assistant County Attorney
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Board
RE: Staff Report at April 2, 1992 meeting
The following is a summary of my comments regarding the topic of
public records and the materials presented to the Board by
Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez.
Section 119.01(1), Florida Statutes, provides that
"it is the policy of this state that all state, county
and municipal records shall at all times be open for a
personal inspection by any person."
Section 119.011(1), Florida Statutes, provides that "For the
purpose of this Chapter:
"public records" means all documents, papers, letters,
maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings
or other material`, regardless of physical form or
characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or
ordinance or in connection with the transaction of
official business by any agency."
The history of this matter, in summary, is that Mr. Valdes
presented a number of documents at the Board's meeting in
Immokalee, Florida. At a subsequent meeting, Mr. Rodriguez
presented documents in rebuttal to Mr. Valdes' documents. After
the documents had been presented to the Board, Mr. Rodriguez
requested that the documents not be part of the Board's records.
It was this attorney's position that the public records law
required that materials presented for consideration by the Board
be considered and made part of the records of the Board. At that
same meeting Mr. Valdes introduced additional documents. It was
this attorney's advice that Mr. Rodriguez should be given a final
chance at rebuttal and that the Board could then vote to
eliminate further discussion on the topics raised by Mr. Valdes
and Mr. Rodriguez•. The Board members discussed this matter and
voted 4-2 to reject all documents presented. This attorney
consulted with the County Attorney regarding the validity of the
vote. It appears that Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78 requires a 5-person majority for official
action to be taken. Consequently, this attorney has reported to
the Board that the motion to reject the documents failed.
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
April 2, 1992
Page Two
It is the opinion of the County Attorney that Chapter 119,
Florida Statutes, requires that the materials presented to the
Board as part of its transaction of Board business be considered
part of the public record. This attorney further advises that
Mr. Rodriguez be given a single opportunity for documentary
rebuttal as a matter of fairness. This attorney further advises
the Board that it may.adopt, by a vote consistent with Ordinance
No. 91-37 as amended by No. 91-78, a policy stating that the
Board shall not receive any written materials without a'5-person
vote in accordance with Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78. The Board may further vote on a policy, if
it chooses to do so, that the receipt of written materials
presented by any speaker before the Board does not constitute any
opinion by the Board on the subject presented. It is the County
Attorney's position that the receipt of materials, in accordance
with any policy that the Board chooses to adopt, must be reviewed
on a case by case basis for relevancy and other considerations.
The County Attorney does not believe that it will serve the
public interest to engage in "hair-splitting" over acceptance
versus non -acceptance of documents presented for consideration by
the Board members at a public meeting. Florida Attorney General
Robert A. Butterworth in his introduction to the publication
entitled "Government in the Sunshine Manual, 1992 Edition,
comments regarding the public policy in Florida of open
government and states that "Florida is the established leader
when it comes to open government and public records. Although
other jurisdiction have enacted similar legislation, none has the
scope of Florida Statutes."
In conclusion, in accordance with the spirit of the Public
Records and Open Meetings Law of Florida, I furnish you the
foregoing advice.
cc: Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
cm/dp/4119
r
NAPLES DAILY NC4YS
;LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
they have a right to keep netting because their
forefathers did, or that they were here before
anyone else. The Marine Fisheries Commission
has shown no resolve in controlling the "clear -
cutting" of our waters by netters. Texas and
California have banned inshore netting, and it
most be banned in Florida while there are still
enough fish left to restock their populations
The nets must go' Use a hook and line or
releasehard-held cast -net and you can
an untargeted species. instead of killing them
all in a net and them sorting out the ones to
keep.
Gary Scott/Marco Island
E-n-g-I-i-s-h spells h-e-I-p
Editor, Naples Daily News:
So the Republican National His anic As-
sembly. whose local chairwoman is Rosa Her-
nandez, ismoving to Collier County. How ver
special.
r Mrs. Hernandez, as you stated in the arti-
cle, "Since we are getting such an influx of
Hispanics in the area, we decided that we
needed some representation." That's a super
idea. Why don't you represent them right into
English classes?
The other day I was standing next to a His-
panic woman who was speaking Spanish to her
young son. Don't these people realize that it's
these youngsters who will have to speak En-
glish to make something out of themselves in
1North America? They, should be forcing En-
;:sh down these youngsters' throats, instead of
o n ours
't theeHispan'canish dcommunity see that a
oast majority of the population does not want
to hear that language every place they go and
are starting to revolt against it?
Mrs. Hernandez, if you want to help the in-
flux of Hispanics, help them keep their heri-
tage, but teach them to speak English. -i
LAGNIAPPE: Mrs. Hernandez also states,
"We'd like to see more Hispanics running for
political office."
theynycantop t oftogwhaivt we e usave for Hispanic politicians
s'.
_Heaven help us. Dan Goldstein/Naples
FIELD INSPECTION REPORT OF THE 5312 TEXAS AVE HOUSE.
Hr. 21.00 pm.
Date: February 6,1992
Sunny day and 78 degrees of temperature
At the request of the Chairman of the Hispanic Commision Mr Zac
Lucio and the members present at the meeting of January 27,1992 I was
commisioned to perform a field inspection of the house located at
5312 Texas Av. Naples Florida.which belongs to Mrs. Concepcion
Lozano and husband and in the present Mrs. Lozano's son and daugther
and Mrs. Lozano.
Mrs. Lozano indicated the areas in the exterior wall that were affected
by the blast at the time that the Sewer Construction Company detonated
the dynamite.
Horizontal hair lines were detected along the walls on the left side,right
side and front of the house.
with the approval of Mrs.Lozano, her son and daugther it was requested
to perform an indentention through one of the hair lines that was the
most visible and with an screwdriver and a hammer the area of the crak
was expanded to reach the concrete wall and no structural failure was
observed, the crack lines do not penetrate through the 5/8 plaster wall
After pointing out this fact to Mrs. Lozano it was explained to them
that no structural danger was evident and that the house was safe to
live in and no future concern should be cerried by the Lozanos' family.
For purposes of aesthetics and for better appeareance it will be necessary
to paint and cure the areas were the hair lines occur.
After listening to the complains that Mrs. Lozano has against the insurance
company and as an architect I can only present the construction problems
that such detonation might have produce, any further steps should be
performed by the professional that is in line with such procedures, in
order to have a response from the insurance company.
j
This is all I have to report in favor of Mrs. Lozano's house.
Lai
rely
Gutierrez I. IA. P.A.
sion menber
iaime r, gutierrez is
a r c h i t e c t- p l a n n e r
660 Tamiami trail N Suite 31-D Nanles,Florida 33940 Ph. 813 649 5052
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MEETING
HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY BOARD
THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 1992 AT 6:30 P.M.
BUILDING F, THIRD FLOOR BOARDROOM, EAST SECTION
AGENDA
I. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND MINUTES
II. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT
III. STAFF REPORT
IV. DISCUSSION WITH TOM WHITECOTTON, HUMAN RESOURCES
DIRECTOR
V. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS
VI. OLD BUSINESS
Update on Ms. Lozano Complaint
VII. NEW BUSINESS
VIII. PUBLIC SPEAKERS & COMMENTS
IX. NEXT MEETING
Note: Pursuant to the vote of the Hispanic Board on January
27, 1992, it is requested that all members of the Board who
will be making reports provide written summaries of their
presentations to secretary Gloria Dominguez.
M E M O R A N D U M
TO: Eduardo GalvAn, Acting Chairman
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro Manalich, Assistant County Attorney
DATE: May 29, 1992
RE: Minutes of Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Enclosed please find the minutes of the April 2 and April 23,
1992 meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board for your
signature and approval. I would note that the following change
was made in regard to the "New Business" section on page 4 of
the minutes of April 2 in accordance with the motion of Melinda
P. Riddle and the vote of the Board at the May 27 meeting. The
sentence "Ms. Melinda P. Riddle informed the group that she has
addressed this issue." is replaced by "Ms. Melinda P. Riddle
informed the Board that she had seen the article but that she
did not feel the timing was appropriate for Board action on the
matter." Once you have had a chance to review and approve
these minutes please return them to me for filing in -the
Hispanic Board file.
I have enclosed another copy of the comments regarding the
Valdes/Rodriguez documents which were approved by the Board at
a prior meeting. We forgot to formally approve this memo on
May 27 and I suggest that we consider doing so at the June
meeting. In the meantime, pursuant to Board direction, these
comments will be attached to the Valdfs/Rodriguez documents.
Please be advised that I will be in the process of going
through all of our prior minutes to make sure that they are
signed by the Chairman and that they have all been approved by
the Board. If there are any minutes which require further
Board action I will bring the matter to the Board.
Thank you for your attent• to my memo and for your assistance
in this matter.
cc: Members of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
Enclosures
mi/kke/5828
Collier County Board of County Commissioners
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Minutes of Meeting
April 2, 1992
6:40 p.m.
Members Present
Nelson A. Munoz
Gloria E. Dominguez
Bernardo Garcia
Eduardo Galvan
Antonio Perez-Benitoa
Jaime Gutierrez
Melinda Paniagua Riddle
Members Absent
Zac Lucio
Jorge Perez Avila
Staff Present
Ramiro Manalich
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
The meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board was held at
6:40 P.M. on April 2, 1992 in the East half of the Board Room,
Third Floor, Building F, Collier County Government Center.
Mr. Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman of the Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board called the meeting to order. He welcomed all
present including our Guest Speaker Mr. Thomas Whitecotton,
Director, Collier County Human Resources. The Board members
approved the minutes of January 27, 1992. A motion was made to
alter the order of the agenda by listening first to our Guest
Speaker. It was seconded and passed unanimously.
Guest Speaker
Mr. Thomas Whitecotton, Director of the Collier County Human
Resource Department stated that 300 people were hired in
FY 1989/90 and 150 positions were filled in FY 1990/91 at all
levels. He informed the Board that hiring activity this fiscal
year has been slow and is lower than last fiscal year. He also
presented the following information:
Outreach Activities
The Human Resources Department has established several plans to
encourage qualified minorities to apply for vacant positions.
Examples included the PIMA (Plans to Increase Minority
Applicants) network, sending postings to minority organization's,
meeting with a representative from the Human Resources Department
when an applicant applies for a position to ensure the
application is properly completed.
Hiring Freeze
The Board has adopted a plan to eliminate 27 positions, but all
efforts are being made to place these employees in other
positions. Mr. Whitecotton also informed the H.A.A.B that there
are few vacancies which combined with the cut -backs, have
hampered the recruitment process.
The H.A.A.B. members and public were concerned about the numbers
of minorities in managerial positions and it was suggested that
an equal opportunity plan package be presented to the Board of
County Commissioners.
Mr. Tribble from the Black Advisory Board distributed a copy of
the proposal for the establishment of the Collier County
Department of Equal Opportunity which has been presented to the
C.C.B. of C.C. Since this proposal was unknown by the majority
of the H.A.A.B. it was suggested that the members review the
proposal and present their concerns at the next scheduled
meeting. A motion was made to create a subcommittee to review
the proposal for equal opportunities and to attend the Black
Advisory Board meeting and workshop, and also to report to the
H.A.A.B at its next scheduled meeting. It seconded and passed
unanimously.
Mr. Bernardo Garcia and Ms. Melinda Paniagua Riddle volunteered
to carry out this assignment. Mr. Galvan thanked Mr. Whitecotton
for his presentation.
Mr. Perez-Benitoa excused from Part of meeting
Mr. Perez-Benitoa was excused from the meeting at 5:15 p.m. due
to illness. Mr. Perez-Benitoa therefore did not vote on the
approval of minutes, the two motions regarding the Valdes/
Rodriguez documents, the regular meeting date motion, the motion
for continuing part of the agenda to the next meeting and the
adjournment motion.
Approval of Agenda and Minutes
The minutes dated January 27, 1992 were approved with a
correction on Mr. Garcia's motion to reject any more documents
z
presented by Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez to read "rejected" not
"approved."
Chairman's Report
Mr. Eduardo Galvan informed the Board that he attended a meeting
in Immokalee with Judge Turner about Juvenile delinquency. He
reported that a large percentage of Hispanics are driving without
a driver's license. He also informed the Board that the schools
are preparing students to obtain licenses. It was suggested to
inform Mr. Jorge Avila, Chairperson of the law enforcement
committee about this matter.
Staff Report
Mr. Ramiro Manalich will report on the Hatch Act at our next
scheduled meeting. He also read about the interpretation of
public documents (See attached memorandum dated 04/02/92).
Mr. Manalich informed Board members that Mr. Jorge Perez Avila
was excused from attending the H.A.A.B meeting. Mr. Manalich
also welcomed and introduced Mr. Tribble from the Black Advisory
Board and Mr. Whitecotton, Director of the Collier County Human
Resources Department.
Mr. Manalich consulted with Mr. Cuyler regarding the
Rodriguez/Valdes documents and it was stated that the documents
presented to the H.A.A.B by Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez should
be considered public record. Ms. Melinda Paniagua Riddle made
the following motions:
1. Move that the Board establish future policy of not accepting
documents from the public unless they clearly relate to the
business of the Hispanic Board or the Hispanic Board votes
to otherwise accept the documents.
2. Move that all past records/documents involving Valdes/
Rodriguez be rejected and returned to Mr. Valdes and
Mr. Rodriguez as not pertaining to official business of the
Board.
The first motion was seconded and passed unanimously. The second
motion was seconded and passed unanimously. Mr. Manalich
informed the Board that he would consult with the County Attorney
because, as custodian of the public records under the Public
Records Law, it was his opinion that the Valdes and Rodriguez
documents would have to remain in the Hispanic Board file as
public records.
Old Business
Mr. Jaime Gutierrez presented a field inspection report on
Mrs. Lozano's residence located at 5312 Texas Avenue, Naples, FL.
(See attached photocopy)
9
Subcommittee Reports
Subcommittee reports were not presented at this meeting.
Mr. Perez-Benitoa will present his report at the next scheduled
meeting.
1. A motion was made to have a meeting every fourth Thursday
of the month.
2. To have the meeting held alternatively in Naples/Immokalee
at 6:30 and 7:00.
3. To listen to Subcommittee Reports and old business at our
next scheduled meeting. All three motions were seconded and
passed unanimously.
New Business
Ms. Gloria Dominguez presented to the Board members a derogative
article about Hispanics in Collier County which was published in
the Naples Daily News. (See attached photocopy). Ms. Melinda P.
Riddle informed the Board that she had seen the article but that
she did not feel the timing was appropriate for Board action on
the matter.
Ms. Mirna Perez suggested that all public speakers should have a
time frame for each topic to be discussed.
Mr. Frank Rodriguez of "The Hispano" newspaper was of the opinion
that public participation is needed and that meeting of the
H.A.A.B. should be scheduled in different Hispanic communities.
Next Meeting
The next meeting of the H.A.A.B. is scheduled for April 23, 1992
at 6:30 p.m., Building F, Third Floor Board Room. The meeting
was adjourned at 9:35 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Gloria E. Dominguez, Secretary
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Approved by the Board on
Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
gd/kn-kke/5830
4
FRVra
COLLIER COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY BOARD
Minutes of Meeting
April 23, 1992
6:30 p.m.
Members Present
Nelson A. Mufioz
Gloria E. Dominguez
Bernardo Garcia
Eduardo Galvan
Melinda Paniagua Riddle
Members Absent
Antonio Perez-Benitoa
Jorge Perez Avila
Jaime Gutierrez
Zac Lucio
Staff Present
Ramiro Mafialich
Staff Liason to Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
The meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board was held at
6:45 p.m. on April 23, 1992 in the east half of the board room,
third floor, Building F, Collier County Government Center.
Mr. Edwardo Galvan, Acting Chairman of the Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board called the meeting to order. He welcomed all
present and reported the resignation of H.A.A.B. Chairperson, Mr.
Zac Lucio.
A motion was made to have Mr. Galvan act as Chairman for the next
two meetings. It seconded and passed unanimously.
Mr. Mafialich informed the board members that Mr. Avila has been
excused from attending this meeting. Mr. Garcia made a motion to
request a written report of Mr. Avila's absence from the Fire
Department. It was seconded and passed unanimously.
Ms. Paniagua made a motion to accept the minutes at the next
meeting it seconded and passed unanimously.
Chairman Retort
The chairperson had no report to submit at this meeting.
Hispanic Affairs
Minutes of April
Page 2
Staff Report
Advisory Board
23, 1992 Meeting
Mr. Mafialich informed the board of
resignation and circulated copies
members present.
chairperson., Mr. Zac Lucio's
of resignation letter to all
He also recommended to have the election of a chairperson and
vice -chairperson at our next scheduled meeting. Mr. Mafialich
informed the board members that it was the opinion of the County
Attorney that the Rodriguez/Valdes documents are public records and
cannot be removed from the file and returned to the parties.
Mr. Garcia made a motion to have the board pass no judgment on the
validity of the documents, not to accept the records and to
consider it as not pertinent to official matters of the Board. It
was seconded and passed unanimously. Mr. Mafialich spoke about the
budget calendar on equal opportunity. Mr. Mafialich informed the
Board about the need for basic advertisement and the meetings of
subcommittees to avoid violation of the Sunshine Law. He also
offered to be of assistance to the subcommittees.
Subcommittee Report
Ms. Melinda P. Riddle and Mr. Bernardo Garcia presented a written
report on the creation of an equal opportunity division (see
attached copy).
Mr. Galvan made a motion to accept the recommendations as
presented. It was seconded and passed unanimously.
Mr. Garcia made a motion to recommend that Ms. Paniagua be the
person to -work with the B.A.A.B and other request Mr. Garcia and
Mr. Mufioz will assist. The B.A.A.B meeting is scheduled for
May 13, 1992 at 6:30 p.m. in the east half of the board room, third
floor, Building F, Collier County Government Center.
It was agreed by the H.A.A.B members that Mr. Galvan will write a
letter of support to B.A.A.B on behalf of the board and will affix
his signature to the proposal.
Old Business
Mr. Garcia congratulated Mr. Gutierrez regarding the field
inspection report on Ms. Lozano's residence. Mr. Perez-Benitoa
report will be covered at the next schedule meeting.
New Business
Mr. Garcia was of the opinion that the derogatory articles on
Hispanics published by the Naples Daily News should be addressed.
0
Hispanic Affairs
Minutes of April
Page 3
Advisory Board
23, 1992 Meeting
Mr. Mufioz made a motion to have Mr. Garcia contact the editors of
The Naples Daily News on behalf of the H.A.A.B and to invite them
to attend our meeting. It seconded and passed unanimously.
Mr. Mufioz made a motion to limit public speakers to five minutes
per topic it seconded and passed unanimously.
Public Speaker and Comments
Mr. Victor Valdes, editor of Las Naciones Newspaper introduced Mr.
Moises Gomez and Mr. Bruno Gomez. He stated that both brothers
have been brutally abused by The Collier County Sheriff's
Department. Mr. Moises Gomez has a fractured hand and his brother
is severely bruised.
Mr. Garcia suggested that we invite Sheriff Hunter to attend our
next scheduled meeting, and ask the Gomez brothers to be present at
the meeting. Mr. Mafialich reminded the H.A.A.B of the ordinance
under which this board was created. We cannot operate where there
is a conflict of interest, a County personnel grievance matter or
matters outside of the jurisdiction of the Board of County
Commissioners. With those caveats, we can listen to individual
cases. However, Mr. Mahalich will consult with Mr. Cuyler.
Mr. Garcia stated that we can present to the Sheriff the perception
of The Hispanic Community toward his Department. Mr. Jose Gomez
agreed with Mr. Garcia's comments and stated that it is imperative
to know what kind of complaints can be brought before the H.A.A.B.
He added that a civilian review complaint board is necessary in
Collier County. Mr. Garcia made a motion to invite Sheriff Hunter
to be our guest speaker at our next scheduled meeting. It was
seconded and passed unanimously.
Next Meeting
The next meeting of the H.A.A.B. is scheduled for May 27, at
7:00 p.m. in Immokalee. The place of meeting will be announced
in writing to all members.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Approved by the Board on
Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
#4252
1992
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: May 13, 1992
TO: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro Mahalich, Assistant County Attorney
RE: Memorandum of the Hispanic Board to be
attached to the Valdes/Rodriguez documents.
Pursuant to the unanimous vote of the Board on April 23, 1992, I
have prepared a sample memorandum to be attached to the Valdes
and Rodriguez documents. If the Board indicates its approval of
this memo at the May 27th meeting, the memo shall be attached to
said documents.
mt/dp/4759
M E M O R A N D U M
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
FROM: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
RE: Valdes/Rodriguez Documents in the Hispanic Board file.
Please be advised that the documents attached to this Memorandum
have been determined to be public record by the office of the
County Attorney but the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board wishes to
clarify that it has voted to reject these documents and has not
accepted them. The Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board expresses no
opinion or judgment as to the content of these documents. The
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board further states that it does not
believe that the content of these materials is in any way
relevant to matters concerning the Hispanic Affairs Advisory
Board.
This memorandum has been approved by vote of the Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board on May 27, 1992 at public meeting.
Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
#4260
/Q y/y�
M E M O R A N D U M
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
FROM: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
RE: Valdes/Rodriguez Documents in the Hispanic Board file.
Please be advised that the documents attached to this Memorandum
have been determined to be public record by the office of the
County Attorney but the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board wishes to
clarify that it has voted to reject these documents and has not
accepted them. The Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board expresses no
opinion or judgment as to the content of these documents. The
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board further states that it does not
believe that the content of these materials is in any way
relevant to matters concerning the Hispanic Affairs Advisory
Board.
This memorandum has been approved by vote of the Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board on June 25, 1992 at public meeting.
Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
#4260
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: May 13, 1992
TO:
Hispanic Affairs
Advisory
Board
FROM:
Ramiro Manalich,
Assistant
County Attorney
RE: Memorandum of the Hispanic Board to be
attached to the Valdes/Rodriguez documents.
Pursuant to the unanimous vote of the Board on April 23, 1992, I
have prepared a sample memorandum to be attached to the Valdes
and Rodriguez documents. If the Board indicates its approval of
this memo at the May 27th meeting, the memo shall be attached to
said documents.
=/dp/4159
M E M O R A N D U M
TO: Eduardo Galvdn, Acting Chairman
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro Manalich, Assistant County Attorney
DATE: May 29, 1992
RE: Minutes of Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Enclosed please find the minutes of the April 2 and April 23,
1992 meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board for your
signature and approval. I would note that the following change
was made in regard to the "New Business" section on page 4 of
the minutes of April 2 in accordance with the motion of Melinda
P. Riddle and the vote of the Board at the May 27 meeting. The
sentence "Ms. Melinda P. Riddle informed the group that she has
addressed this issue." is replaced by "Ms. Melinda P. Riddle
informed the Board that she had seen the article but that she
did not feel the timing was appropriate for Board action on the
matter." Once you have had a chance to review and approve
these minutes please return them to me for filing in the
Hispanic Board file.
I have enclosed another copy of the comments regarding the
Valdes/Rodriguez documents which were approved by the Board at
a prior meeting. We forgot to formally approve this memo on
May 27 and I suggest that we consider doing so at the June
meeting. In the meantime, pursuant to Board direction, these
comments will be attached to the Vald6s/Rodriguez documents.
Please be advised that I will be in the process of going
through all of our prior minutes to make sure that they are
signed by the Chairman and that they have all been approved by
the Board. If there are any minutes which require further
Board action I will bring the matter to the Board.
Thank you for your attent, to my and for your assistance
in this matter.
cc: Members of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
Enclosures
m/kke/5828
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: May 13, 1992
TO: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro Manalich, Assistant County Attorney
RE: Minutes of April 2, 1992 Meeting
Enclosed in your Agenda package please find the minutes from the
April 2, 1992 meeting of the Hispanic Board. My review of these
minutes indicated that several changes were necessary to more
accurately and completely reflect the proceedings of the Board on
April 2. Specifically, I have indicated the voting results on
each motion that was seconded and passed that is listed by
Ms Dominguez and I have clarified the discussion and motions made
regarding the Valdes and Rodriguez documents. The only other
changes were correction of Ms. Riddle's first name from "Belinda"
to "Melinda", the corrected spelling of Mr. Tribble's name and
clarification that Mr. Perez-Benitoa was excused from the meeting
due to illness and therefore did not participate in the votes on
several motions.
Regarding the section titled "Guest Speaker", Human Resources
Director, Tom Whitecotton offered a number of clarifications and
changes to more accurately reflect the substance of his comments.
I have included all of his suggested changes in the text of the
minutes.
Unless there are other corrections which the members wish to be
made to these minutes, I hope that my corrections will facilitate
approval of these minutes at the May 27 meeting.
rm/dp/4258
Collier County Board of County Commissioners
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Minutes of Meeting
April 2, 1992
6:40 p.m.
Members Present
Nelson A. Munoz
Gloria E. Dominguez
Bernardo Garcia
Eduardo Galvan
Antonio Perez-Benitoa
Jaime Gutierrez
Melinda Paniagua Riddle
Members Absent
Zac Lucio
Jorge Perez Avila
Staff Present
Ramiro Manalich
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
The meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board was held at
6:40 p.m. on April 2, 1992 in the East half of the Board Room,
Third Floor, Building F, Collier County Government Center.
Mr. Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman of the Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board called the meeting to order. He welcomed all
present including our Guest Speaker Mr. Thomas Whitecotton,
Director, Collier County Human Resources. The Board members
approved the minutes of January 27, 1992. A motion was made to
alter the order of the agenda by listening first to our Guest
Speaker. It was seconded and passed unanimously.
Guest Speaker
Mr. Thomas Whitecotton, Director of the Collier County Human
Resource Department stated that 300 people were hired in
FY 1989/90 and 150 positions were filled in FY 1990/91 at all
levels. He informed the Board that hiring activity this fiscal
year has been slow and is lower than last fiscal year. He also
presented the following information:
Outreach Activities
The Human Resources Department has established several plans to
encourage qualified minorities to apply for vacant positions.
Examples included the PIMA (Plans to Increase Minority
Applicants) network, sending postings to minority organizations,
meeting with a representative from the Human Resources Department
when an applicant applies for a position to ensure the
application is properly completed.
Hiring Freeze
The Board has adopted a plan to eliminate 27 positions, but all
efforts are being made to place these employees in other
positions. Mr. Whitecotton also informed the H.A.A.B that there
are few vacancies which combined with the cut -backs, have
hampered the recruitment process.
The H.A.A.B. members and public were concerned about the numbers
of minorities in managerial positions and it was suggested that
an equal opportunity plan package be presented to the Board of
County Commissioners.
Mr. Tribble from the Black Advisory Board distributed a copy of
the proposal for the establishment of the Collier County
Department of Equal Opportunity which has been presented to the
C.C.B. of C.C. Since this proposal was unknown by the majority
of the H.A.A.B. it was suggested that the members review the
proposal and present their concerns at the next scheduled
meeting. A motion was made to create a subcommittee to review
the proposal for equal opportunities and to attend the Black
Advisory Board meeting and workshop, and also to report to the
H.A.A.B at its next scheduled meeting. It seconded and passed
unanimously.
Mr. Bernardo Garcia and Ms. Melinda Paniagua Riddle volunteered
to carry out this assignment. Mr. Galvan thanked Mr. Whitecotton
for his presentation.
Mr. Perez-Benitoa excused from part of meeting
Mr. Perez-Benitoa was excused from the meeting at 8:15 p.m. due
to illness. Mr. Perez-Benitoa therefore did not vote on the
approval of minutes, the two motions regarding the Valdes/
Rodriguez documents, the regular meeting date motion, the motion
for continuing part of the agenda to the next meeting and the
adjournment motion.
Approval of Agenda and Minutes
The minutes dated January 27, 1992 were approved with a
2
correction on Mr. Garcia's motion to reject any more documents
presented by Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez is "rejected" not
approved.
Chairman's Report
Mr. Eduardo Galvan informed the Board that he attended a meeting
in Immokalee with Judge Turner about Juvenile delinquency. He
reported that a large percentage of Hispanics are driving without
a driver's license. He also informed the Board that the schools
are preparing students to obtain licenses. It was suggested to
inform Mr. Jorge Avila, Chairperson of the law enforcement
committee about this matter.
Staff Report
Mr. Ramiro Mafialich will report on the Hatch Act at our next
scheduled meeting. He also read about the interpretation of
public documents (See attached memorandum dated 04/02/92).
Mr. Mafialich informed Board members that Mr. Jorge Perez Avila
was excused from attending the H.A.A.B meeting. Mr. Mafialich
also welcomed and introduced Mr. Tribble from the Black Advisory
Board and Mr. Whitecotton, Director of the Collier County Human
Resources Department.
Mr. Mafialich consulted with Mr. Cuyler regarding the
Rodriguez/Valdes documents and it was stated that the documents
presented to the H.A.A.B by Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez should
be considered public record. Ms. Melinda Paniagua Riddle made
the following motions:
1. Move that the Board establish future policy of not accepting
documents from the public unless they clearly relate to the
business of the Hispanic Board or the Hispanic Board votes
to otherwise accept the documents.
2. Move that all past records/documents involving Valdes/
Rodriguez be rejected and returned to Mr. Valdes and
Mr. Rodriguez as not pertaining to official business of the
Board.
The first motion was seconded and passed unanimously. The second
motion was seconded and passed unanimously. Mr. Mafialich
informed the Board that he would consult with the County Attorney
because, as custodian of the public records under the Public
Records Law, it was his opinion that the Valdes and Rodriguez
documents would have to remain in the Hispanic Board file as
public records.
Old Business
Mr. Jaime Gutierrez presented a field inspection report on
3
Mrs. Lozano's residence located at 5312 Texas Avenue, Naples, FL.
(See attached photocopy)
Subcommittee Reports
Subcommittee reports were not presented at this meeting.
Mr. Perez-Benitoa will present his report at the next scheduled
meeting.
1. A motion was made to have a meeting every fourth Thursday
of the month.
2. To have the meeting held alternatively in Naples/Immokalee
at 6:30 and 7:00.
3. To listen to Subcommittee Reports
next scheduled meeting. All three
passed unanimously.
New Business
and old business at our
motions were seconded and
Ms. Gloria Dominguez presented to the Board members a derrogative
article about Hispanics in Collier County which was published in
the Naples Daily News. (See attached photocopy). Ms. Melinda P.
Riddle informed the group that she has addressed this issue.
Ms. Mirna Perez suggested that all public speakers should have a
time frame for each topic to be discussed.
Mr. Frank Rodriguez of "The Hispano" newspaper was of the opinion
that public participation is needed and that meeting of the
H.A.A.B. should be scheduled in different Hispanic communities.
Next Meetinu
The next meeting of the H.A.A.B. is scheduled for April 23, 1992
at 6:30 p.m., Building F, Third Floor Board Room. The meeting
was adjourned at 9:35 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Gloria E. Dominguez, Secretary
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Approved by the Board on , 1992
Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
#4257
4
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: April 2, 1992
TO: Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory BgaFd
a
FROM: Ramiro Mahalich, Assistant County Attorney
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Board
RE: Staff Report at April 2, 1992 meeting
The following is a summary of my comments regarding the topic of
public records and the materials presented to the Board by
Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez.
Section 119.01(1), Florida Statutes, provides that
"it is the policy of this state that all state, county
and municipal records shall at all times be open for a
personal inspection by any person."
Section 119.011(1), Florida Statutes, provides that "For the
purpose of this Chapter:
"public records" means all documents, papers, letters,
maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings
or other material, regardless of physical form or
characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or
ordinance or in connection with the transaction of
official business by any agency."
The history of this matter, in summary, is that Mr. Valdes
presented a number of documents at the Board's meeting in
Immokalee, Florida. At a subsequent meeting, Mr. Rodriguez
presented documents in rebuttal.to Mr. Valdes' documents. After
the documents had been presented to the Board, Mr. Rodriguez
requested -that the documents not be part of the Board's records.
It was this attorney's position that the public -records law -
required that materials presented for consideration by the Board
be considered and made part of the recordv of the Board. At that
same meeting Mr. Valdes introduced additional documents. It was
this attorney's advice that Mr. Rodriguez should be given a final -
chance at rebuttal and that the Board could then vote to
eliminate further discussion on the topics raised by Mr. Valdes
and Mr. Rodriguez. The Board members discussed this matter and
voted 4-2 to reject all documents presented. This attorney
consulted with the County Attorney regarding the validity of the
vote. It appears that Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78 requires a 5-person majority for official
action to be taken. Consequently, this attorney has reported to
the Board that the motion to reject the documents failed..
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
April 2, 1992
Page Two
It is the opinion of the County Attorney that Chapter 119,
Florida Statutes, requires that the materials presented to the
Board as part of its transaction of Board business be considered
part of the public record. This attorney further advises that
Mr. Rodriguez be given a single opportunity for documentary
rebuttal as a matter of fairness. This attorney further advises
the Board that it maycadopt, by a vote consistent with Ordinance
No. 91-37 as amended by No. 91-78, a policy stating that the
Board shall: -not receive' -any written materials without a 5-person
vote in accordance with Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78. The Board may further vote on a policy, if
it chooses to do so, that the receipt of written materials
presented by any speaker before the Board does not constitute any
opinion by the Board on the subject presented. It is the County
Attorney's position that the receipt of materials, in accordance
with any policy that the Board chooses to adopt, must be reviewed
on a case by case basis for relevancy and other considerations.
The County Attorney does not believe that it will serve the
public interest to engage in "hair-splitting" over acceptance
versus non -acceptance of documents presented for consideration by
the Board members at a public meeting. Florida Attorney General
Robert A. Butterworth in his introduction to the publication
entitled ".Government in the Sunshine Manual, 1992 Edition,
comments regarding the public policy in Florida of open
government and states that "Florida is the established leader
when it comes to open government and public records. Although
other jurisdiction have enacted similar legislation, none has the
scope of Florida Statutes."
In conclusion, in accordance with the spirit of the Public
Records and Open Meetings Law of Florida, I furnish you the
foregoing advice.
cc: Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
m/dp/4119
Y-
k
k NAPLES DAILY news Fri., Mor._,- et-,t; G, Y992 3A
!LETTERS TO THE EDITOR *,.a
they have a right to keep netting because their
forefathers did, or that they were here before
anyone else. The Marine Fisheries Commission
has shown no resolve in controlling the "clear -
cutting" of our waters by netters. Texas and
\ California have banned inshore netting, and it
must be banned in Florida while there are still
enough fish left to restock their populations.
The nets must got Use a hook and line or
hand-held cast -net and you can release alive
h an untargeted species, instead of killing them
f all in a net and them sorting out the ones to
keep. Gary Scott/Marco island
E-n-g-I-i-s-h spells h-e-l-p ^
Editor, Naples Daily News:
So the Republican National Hispanic As-
sembly, whose local chairwoman is Rosa Her-
nandez, is. moving to Collier County. How very
f special.
Mrs. Hernandez, as you stated in the arti-
cle, "Since we are getting such an influx of
1 Hispanics in the area; we decided that we
l needed some repmsentation." That's a super
idea. Why don't you represent them right into
Enish classes?
qhe other day I was standing next to a His-
panic woman who was speaking Spanish to her
oung son. Don't these people realize that it's
these youngsters who will have to speak En -
gush to make something out of themselves in
North America? They should be forcing En-
glish down these youngsters' throats, instead of
trying to force Spanish down ours.
Can't the`Rispanic community -see that a
.least majority of the population does not want
- h to hear that language every place they go and
-are starting to revolt against It?
Mrs. Hernandez, if you want to help the in-
flux of Hispanics, help them keep their heri-
tage, but teach them to speak English. 111
LAGNIAPPE: Mrs. Hernandez also states,
"We'd like to see more Hispanics running for
political office."
ion -top of what we have for.politicians now,
tthey'-want i'to-give -Vs Hispanic politicians?
HeavenLelp us. -r' Dan Goldstein/Naples
FIELD INSPECTION REPORT OF THE 5312 TEXAS AVE HOUSE-
Hr. 21.00 pm.
Date: February 601992
Sunny day and 78 degrees of temperature
At the request of the Chairman of the Hispanic Commision Mr Zac
Lucio and the members present at the meeting of January 27,1992 1 was
commisioned to perform a field inspection of the house �oc,Aited at
5312 Texas Av. Naples Florida.which belongs to Mrs. Concepcion
Lozano and husband and in the present Mrs. Lozano's son and daugther
and Mrs. Lozano.
Mrs. Lozano indicated the areas in the exterior wall that were affected
by the blast at the time that the Sewer Construction Company detonated
the dynamite.
Horizontal hair lines were detected along the walls on the left side,right
side and front of the house.
with the approval of Mrs.Lozano, her son and daugther it was requested
to perform an indentention through one of the hair lines that was the
most visible and with an screwdriver and a hammer the area of the crak
was expanded to reach the concrete wall and no structural failure was
observed, the crack lines do not penetrate through the 5/8 plaster wall
After pointing out this fact to Mrs. Lozano it was explained to them
that no structural danger was evident and that the house was safe to
live in and no future concern should be cerried by the Lozanos' family.
For purposes of aesthetics and for better appeareance it will be necessary
to paint and cure the areas were the hair lines occur.
After listening to the complains that Mrs. Lozano has against the insurance
company and as an architect I can only present the construction problems
that such detonation might have produce, any further steps should be
performed by the professional that is in line with such procedures, in
order to have a response from the insurance company.
This is all I have to report in favor of Mrs. Lozano's house.
'ncerely
aim R Gutierrez I. IA. P.A.
sion menber
jeime r, gutierrez im
a r c h i t e c t- p l a n n e r
660 Tamiami trail N Suite 31-D Naples.Florida 33940 Ph. 813 649 5052
a.La
KWAR tQ .M;mbIiml
DATE: April 2, 1992
TO: Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro Mafialich, Assistant County Attorney
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Board
RE: Staff Report at April 2, 1992 meeting
The following is a summary of my comments regarding the topic of
public records and the materials presented to the Board by
Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez.
Section 119.01(1), Florida Statutes, provides that
"it is the policy of this state that all state, county
and municipal records shall at all times be open for a
personal inspection by any person."
Section 119.011(1), Florida Statutes, provides that "For the
purpose of this Chapter:
"public records" means all documents, papers, letters,
maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings
or other material, regardless of physical form or
characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or
ordinance or in connection with the transaction of
official business by any agency."
The history of this matter, in summary, is that Mr. Valdes
presented a number of documents at the Board's meeting in
Immokalee, Florida. At a subsequent meeting, Mr. Rodriguez
presented documents in rebuttal to Mr. Valdes' documents. After
the documents had been presented to the Board, Mr. Rodriguez
requested that the documents not be part of the Board's records.
It was this attorney's position that the public records law
required that materials presented for consideration by the Board
be considered and made part of the records of the Board. At that
same meeting Mr. Valdes introduced additional documents. It was
this attorney's advice that Mr. Rodriguez should be given a final
chance at rebuttal and that the Board could then vote to
eliminate further discussion on the topics raised by Mr. Valdes
and Mr. Rodriguez. The Board members discussed this matter and
voted 4-2 to reject all documents presented. This attorney
consulted with the County Attorney regarding the validity of the
vote. It appears that Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78 requires a 5-person majority for official
action to be taken. Consequently, this attorney has reported to
the Board that the motion to reject the documents failed.
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
April 2, 1992
Page Two
It is the opinion of the County Attorney that Chapter 119,
Florida Statutes, requires that the materials presented to the
Board as part of its transaction of Board business be considered
part of the public record. This attorney further advises that
Mr. Rodriguez be given a single opportunity for documentary
rebuttal as a matter of fairness. This attorney further advises
the Board that it may adopt, by a vote consistent with Ordinance
No. 91-37 as amended by No. 91-78, a policy stating that the
Board shall not receive any written materials without a 5-person
vote in accordance with Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78. The Board may further vote on a policy, if
it chooses to do so, that the receipt of written materials
presented by any speaker before the Board does not constitute any
opinion by the Board on the subject presented. It is the County
Attorney's position that the receipt of materials, in accordance
with any policy that the Board chooses to adopt, must be reviewed
on a case by case basis for relevancy and other considerations.
The County Attorney does not believe that it will serve the
public interest to engage in "hair-splitting" over acceptance
versus non -acceptance of documents presented for consideration by
the Board members at a public meeting. Florida Attorney General
Robert A. Butterworth in his introduction to the publication
entitled "Government in the Sunshine Manual, 1992 Edition,
comments regarding the public policy in Florida of open
government and states that "Florida is the established leader
when it comes to open government and public records. Although
other jurisdiction have enacted similar legislation, none has the
scope of Florida Statutes."
In conclusion, in accordance with the spirit of the Public
Records and Open Meetings Law of Florida, I furnish you the
foregoing advice.
cc: Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
m/dp/4119
FIELD INSPECTION REPORT OF THE 5312 TEXAS AVE HOUSE.
Hr. 2'.00 pm.
Date: February 6,1992
Sunny day and 78 degrees of temperature
- At the request of the Chairman of the Hispanic Commision Mr Y.ac
Lucio and the members present at the meeting of January 27,1992 I ra.;
commisioned to perform a field inspection of the house'7oc4ted at
5312 Texas Av. Naples Florida.which belongs to Mrs. Concepcion
Lozano and husband and in the present Mrs. Lozano's son and daugther
and Mrs. Lozano.
Mrs. Lozano indicated the areas in the exterior wall that were affected
by the blast at the time that the Sewer Construction Company detors*r1
the dynamite.
Horizontal hair lines were detected along the walls on the left side,right
side and front of the house.
with the approval of Mrs.Lozano, her son and daugther it was reques�ed
to perform an indentention through one of the hair lines that was tha
most visible and with an screwdriver aAd a hammer the area of the cr,ak
was expanded to reach the concrete wall and no structural failure was
observed, the crack lines do not penetrate through the 5/8 plaster wall
After pointing out this fact to Mrs. Lozano it was explained to them
that no structural danger was evident and that the house was safe to
live in and no future concern should be cerried by the Lozanos' family.
For purposes of aesthetics and for better appeareance it will be necessary
to paint and cure the areas were the hair lines occur.
After listening to the complains that Mrs. Lozano has against the insurance
company and as an architect I can only present the construction problems
that such detonation might have produce, any further steps should be
performed by the professional that is in line with such procedures, in
order to have a response from the insurance company.
i
This is all I have to report in favor of Mrs. Lozano's house.
'ncerely
�,n
A. utierrez I. IA. P.A.
sion menber
jaime r. gutierrez L
a r c h i t e c t- p l a n n e r d'i.2
660 Tamiami trail N Suite 31-D Naples.Florida 33940 Ph. 813 649 5052
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: May 13, 1992
TO: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro Maftalich, Assistant County Attorney
RE: Minutes of April 2, 1992 Meeting
Enclosed in your Agenda package please find the minutes from the
April 2, 1992 meeting of the Hispanic Board. My review of these
minutes indicated that several changes were necessary to more
accurately and completely reflect the proceedings of the Board on
April 2. Specifically, I have indicated the voting results on
each motion that was seconded and passed that is listed by
Ms Dominguez and I have clarified the discussion and motions made
regarding the Valdes and Rodriguez documents. The only other
changes were correction of Ms. Riddle's first name from "Belinda"
to "Melinda", the corrected spelling of Mr. Tribble's name and
clarification that Mr. Perez-Benitoa was excused from the meeting
due to illness and therefore did not participate in the votes on
several motions.
Regarding the section titled "Guest Speaker", Human Resources
Director, Tom Whitecotton offered a number of clarifications and
changes to more accurately reflect the substance of his comments.
I have included all of his suggested changes in the text of the
minutes.
Unless there are other corrections which the members wish to be
made to these minutes, I hope that my corrections will facilitate
approval of these minutes at the May 27 meeting.
=/dp/4258
Collier County Board of County Commissioners
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Minutes of Meeting
April 2, 1992
6:40 p.m.
Members Present
Nelson A. Munoz
Gloria E. Dominguez
Bernardo Garcia
Eduardo Galvan
Antonio Perez-Benitoa
Jaime Gutierrez
Melinda Paniagua Riddle
Members Absent
Zac Lucio
Jorge Perez Avila
Staff Present
Ramiro Mahalich
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
The meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board was held at
6:40 p.m. on April 2, 1992 in the East half of the Board Room,
Third Floor, Building F, Collier County Government Center.
Mr. Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman of the Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board called the meeting to order. He welcomed all
present including our Guest Speaker Mr. Thomas Whitecotton,
Director, Collier County Human Resources. The Board members
approved the minutes of January 27, 1992. A motion was made to
alter the order of the agenda by listening first to our Guest
Speaker. It was seconded and passed unanimously.
Guest Sneaker
Mr. Thomas Whitecotton, Director of the Collier County Human
Resource Department stated that 300 people were hired in
FY 1989/90 and 150 positions were filled in FY 1990/91 at all
levels. He informed the Board that hiring activity this fiscal
year has been slow and is lower than last fiscal year. He also
presented the following information:
Outreach Activities
The Human Resources Department has established several plans to
encourage qualified minorities to apply for vacant positions.
Examples included the PIMA (Plans to Increase Minority
Applicants) network, sending postings to minority organizations,
meeting with a representative from the Human Resources Department
when an applicant applies for a position to ensure the
application is properly completed.
Hiring Freeze
The Board has adopted a plan to eliminate 27 positions, but all
efforts are being made to place these employees in other
positions. Mr. Whitecotton also informed the H.A.A.B that there
are few vacancies which combined with the cut -backs, have
hampered the recruitment process.
The H.A.A.B. members and public were concerned about the numbers
of minorities in managerial positions and it was suggested that
an equal opportunity plan package be presented to the Board of
County Commissioners.
Mr. Tribble from the Black Advisory Board distributed a copy of
the proposal for the establishment of the Collier County
Department of Equal Opportunity which has been presented to the
C.C.B. of C.C. Since this proposal was unknown by the majority
of the H.A.A.B. it was suggested that the members review the
proposal and present their concerns at the next scheduled
meeting. A motion was made to create a subcommittee to review
the proposal for equal opportunities and to attend the Black
Advisory Board meeting and workshop, and also to report to the
H.A.A.B at its next scheduled meeting. It seconded and passed
unanimously.
Mr. Bernardo Garcia and Ms. Melinda Paniagua Riddle volunteered
to carry out this assignment. Mr. Galvan thanked Mr. Whitecotton
for his presentation.
Mr. Perez-Benitoa excused from Part of meeting
Mr. Perez-Benitoa was excused from the meeting at 8:15 p.m. due
to illness. Mr. Perez-Benitoa therefore did not vote on the
approval of minutes, the two motions regarding the Valdes/
Rodriguez documents, the regular meeting date motion, the motion
for continuing part of the agenda to the next meeting and the
adjournment motion.
Approval of Agenda and Minutes
The minutes dated January 27, 1992 were approved with a
2
correction on Mr. Garcia's motion to reject any more documents
presented by Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez is "rejected" not
approved.
Chairman's Report
Mr. Eduardo Galvan informed the Board that he attended a meeting
in Immokalee with Judge Turner about Juvenile delinquency. He
reported that a large percentage of Hispanics are driving without
a driver's license. He also informed the Board that the schools
are preparing students to obtain licenses. It was suggested to
inform Mr. Jorge Avila, Chairperson of the law enforcement
committee about this matter.
Staff Report
Mr. Ramiro Manalich will report on the Hatch Act at our next
scheduled meeting. He also read about the interpretation of
public documents (See attached memorandum dated 04/02/92).
Mr. Manalich informed Board members that Mr. Jorge Perez Avila
was excused from attending the H.A.A.B meeting. Mr. Manalich
also welcomed and introduced Mr. Tribble from the Black Advisory
Board and Mr. Whitecotton, Director of the Collier County Human
Resources Department.
Mr. Mahalich consulted with Mr. Cuyler regarding the
Rodriguez/Valdes documents and it was stated that the documents
presented to the H.A.A.B by Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez should
be considered public record. Ms. Melinda Paniagua Riddle made
the following motions:
1. Move that the Board establish future policy of not accepting
documents from the public unless they clearly relate to the
business of the Hispanic Board or the Hispanic Board votes
to otherwise accept the documents.
Move that all past records/documents involving Valdes/
Rodriguez be rejected and returned to Mr. Valdes and
Mr. Rodriguez as not pertaining to official business of the
Board.
The first motion was seconded and passed unanimously. The second
motion was seconded and passed unanimously. Mr. Manalich
informed the Board that he would consult with the County Attorney
because, as custodian of the public records under the Public
Records Law, it was his opinion that the Valdes and Rodriguez
documents would have to remain in the Hispanic Board file as
public records.
old Business
Mr. Jaime Gutierrez presented a field inspection report on
Mrs. Lozano's residence located at 5312 Texas Avenue, Naples, FL.
(See attached photocopy)
Subcommittee Reports
Subcommittee reports were not presented at this meeting.
Mr. Perez-Benitoa will present his report at the next scheduled
meeting.
1. A motion was made to have a meeting every fourth Thursday
of the month.
2. To have the meeting held alternatively in Naples/Immokalee
at 6:30 and 7:00.
3. To listen to Subcommittee Reports and old business at our
next scheduled meeting. All three motions were seconded and
passed unanimously.
New Business
Ms. Gloria Dominguez presented to the Board members a derrogative
article about Hispanics in Collier County which was published in
the Naples Daily News. (See attached photocopy). Ms. Melinda P.
Riddle informed the group that she has addressed this issue.
Ms. Mirna Perez suggested that all public speakers should have a
time frame for each topic to be discussed.
Mr. Frank Rodriguez of "The Hispano" newspaper was of the opinion
that public participation is needed and that meeting of the
H.A.A.B. should be scheduled in different Hispanic communities.
Next Meeting
The next meeting of the H.A.A.B
at 6:30 p.m., Building F, Third
was adjourned at 9:35 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Gloria E. Dominguez, Secretary
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Approved by the Board on
Eduardo Galvan, Acting Chairman
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
14257
4
is scheduled for April 23, 1992
Floor Board Room. The meeting
1992
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: April 2, 1992
TO: Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
a.
FROM: Ramiro Mahalich, Assistant County Attorney
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Board
RE: Staff Report at April 2, 1992 meeting
The following is a summary of my comments regarding the topic of
public records and the materials presented to the Board by
Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez.
Section 119.01(1), Florida Statutes, provides that
"it is the policy of this state that all state; county
and municipal records shall at all times be open for a
personal inspection by any person."
Section 119.011(1), Florida Statutes, provides that "For the
purpose of this Chapter:
"public records" means all documents, papers, letters,
maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings
or other material, regardless of physical form or
characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or
ordinance or in connection with the transaction of
official business by any agency."
The history of this matter, in summary, is that Mr. Valdes
presented a number of documents at the Board's meeting in
Immokalee, Florida. At a subsequent meeting, Mr. Rodriguez
presented documents in rebuttal to Mr. Valdes' documents. After
the documents had been presented to the Board, Mr. Rodriguez
requested that the documents not be part of the Board's records.
It was this attorney's position that the public records law
required that materials presented for consideration by the Board
be considered and made part of the recordw of the Board. At that
same meeting Mr. Valdes introduced additional documents. It was
this attorney's advice that Mr. Rodriguez should be given a final
chance at rebuttal and that the Board could then vote to
eliminate further discussion on the topics raised by Mr. Valdes
and Mr.. Rodriguez. The Board members discussed this matter and
voted 4-2 to reject all documents presented. This attorney
consulted with the County Attorney regarding the validity of the
vote. It appears that Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78 requires a 5-person majority for official
action to be taken. Consequently, this attorney has reported to
the Board that the motion to reject the documents failed..
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
April 2, 1992
Page Two
It is the opinion of the County Attorney that Chapter 119,
Florida Statutes, requires that the materials presented to the
Board as part of its transaction of Board business be considered
part of the public record. This attorney further advises that
Mr. Rodriguez be given a single opportunity for documentary
rebuttal as a matter of fairness. This attorney further advises
the Board that it may,adopt, by a vote consistent with Ordinance
No. 91-37 as amended by No. 91-78, a policy stating that the
Board shall not receive any written materials without a 5-person
vote in accordance with Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78. The Board may further vote on a policy, if
it chooses to do so, that the receipt of written materials
presented by any speaker before the Board does not constitute any
opinion by the Board on the subject presented. It is the County
Attorney's position that the receipt of materials, in accordance
with any policy that the Board chooses to adopt, must be reviewed
on a case by case basis for relevancy and other considerations.
The County Attorney does not believe that it will serve the
public interest to engage in "hair-splitting" over acceptance
versus non -acceptance of documents presented for consideration by
the Board members at a public meeting. Florida Attorney General
Robert A. Butterworth in his introduction to the publication
entitled "Government in the Sunshine Manual, 1992 Edition,
comments regarding the public policy in Florida of open
government and states that "Florida is the established leader
when it comes to open government and public records. Although
other jurisdiction have enacted similar legislation, none has the
scope of Florida Statutes."
In conclusion, in accordance with the spirit of the Public
Records and Open Meetings Law of Florida, I furnish you the
foregoing advice.
cc: Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
m/dp/4119
N.
c
NAPLES DAILY I-cWS Fri.,Niar.;, :941 TA
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR,. _..
they have a right to keep netting because their
forefathers did, or that they were here before
anyone else. The Marine Fisheries Commission
has shown no resolve in controlling the "clear -
cutting" of our waters by netters. Texas and
1 California have banned inshore netting, and it
must be banned in Florida while there are still
enough fish left to restock their populations.
[[ The nets must go! Use a hook and line or
hand-held cast -net and you can release alive
an untargeted species, instead of killing them
all in a net and them sorting out the ones to
4 keep.
Gary Scott/Marco Island
E-n-g-l+s-h spells h-e-I-p
Y
Editor, Naples Daily News:
So the Republican National Hispanic As-
sembly, whose local chairwoman is Rosa Her-
nandez, is, moving to Collier County. How very
C special.
Mrs. Hernandez, as you stated in the arti-
cle, "Since we are getting such an influx of
Hispanics in the area; we decided that we
I needed some representation." That's a super
idea. Why don't you represent them right into
English classes?
r The other day I was standing next to a His
-
f panic woman who was speaking Spanish to her
oung son. Don't these people realize that it's
these youngsters who will have to speak En-
glish to make something out of themselves in
North Arnerica? They should be forcing En-
glish down these youngsters' throats, instead of
trying to force Spanish down ours.
F Can't the Hispanic community see that a
t bast majority of the population does not want
I to bear that language every place they go and
ate starting to revolt against it?
Mrs. Hernandez, if you want to help the in-
i flux of Hispanics, help them keep their heri-
tage, but teach them to speak English. ? 11
LAGNIAPPE: Mrs. Hernandez also states,
"We'd like to see more Hispanics running for
political office."
On top of what we have for -politicians now,
4hey'-vant eto-glve -us Hispanic politicians?
eavenhelp us.:.ar^
Dan Goldstein/Naples
FIELD INSPECTION REPORT OF THE 5312 TEXAS AVE HOUSE-
Hr. 21.00 pm. - ...».
Date: February 6,1992
Sunny day and 78 degrees of temperature
At the request of the Chairman of the Hispanic Commision Mr Sac
Lucio and the members present at the meeting of January 27,1992 I was
commisioned to perform a field inspection of the house'Yocaited at
5312 Texas Av. Naples Florida.which belongs to Mrs. Concepcion
Lozano and husband and in the present Mrs. Lozano's son and daugther
and Mrs. Lozano.
Mrs. Lozano indicated the areas in the exterior wall that were affected
by the blast at the time that the Sewer Construction Company detonated
the dynamite.
Horizontal hair lines were detected along the walls on the left side,right
side and front of the house.
with the approval of Mrs.Lozano, her son and daugther it was requested
to perform an indentention through one of the hair lines that was the
most visible and with an screwdriver ald a hammer the area of the crak
was expanded to reach the concrete wall and no structural failure was
observed, the crack lines do not penetrate through the 5/8 plaster wall
After pointing out this fact to Mrs. Lozano it was explained to them
that no structural danger was evident and that the house was safe to
live in and no future concern should he cerried by the Lozanos' family.
For purposes of aesthetics and for better appeareance it will be necessary
to paint and cure the areas were the hair lines occur. .
After listening to the complains that Mrs. Lozano has against the insurance
company and as an architect I can only present the construction problems
that such detonation might have produce, any further steps should be
performed by the professional that is in line with such procedures, in
order to have a response from the insurance company.
This is all I have to report in favor of Mrs. Lozano's house.
' ncerely J(/�/�
aimQ Gutierrez I. IA. P.A.
sion menbez
jaime r. gutierrez im
a r c h i t e c t- p l a n n e r
660 Tamiami trail N Suite 31-D Naples.Florida 33940 Ph. 813 649 5052
a.i.a
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: April 2, 1992
TO: Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
FROM: Ramiro Mafialich, Assistant County Attorney
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Board
RE: Staff Report at April 2, 1992 meeting
The following is a summary of my comments regarding the topic of
public records and the materials presented to the Board by
Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez.
Section
119.01(i), Florida Statutes, provides that
"it is the policy of this state that all state, county
and municipal records shall at all times be open for a
personal inspection by any person."
Section 119.011(1), Florida Statutes, provides that "For the
purpose of this Chapter:
"public records" means all documents, papers, letters,
maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings
or other material, regardless of physical form or
characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or
ordinance or in connection with the transaction of
official business by any agency."
The history of this matter, in summary, is that Mr. Valdes
presented a number of documents at the Board's meeting in
Immokalee, Florida. At a subsequent meeting, Mr. Rodriguez
presented documents in rebuttal to Mr. Valdes' documents. After
the documents had been presented to the Board, Mr. Rodriguez
requested that the documents not be part of the Board's records.
It was this attorney's position that the public records law
required that materials presented for consideration by the Board
be considered and made part of the records of the Board. At that
same meeting Mr. Valdes introduced additional documents. It was
this attorney's advice that Mr. Rodriguez should be given a final
chance at rebuttal and that the Board could then vote to
eliminate further discussion on the topics raised by Mr. Valdes
and Mr. Rodriguez. The Board members discussed this matter and
voted 4-2 to reject all documents presented. This attorney
consulted with the County Attorney regarding the validity of the
vote. It appears that Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78 requires a 5-person majority for official
action to be taken. Consequently, this attorney has reported to
the Board that the motion to reject the documents failed.
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
April 2, 1992
Page Two
It is the opinion of the County Attorney that Chapter 119,
Florida Statutes, requires that the materials presented to the
Board as part of its transaction of Board business be considered
part of the public record. This attorney further advises that
Mr. Rodriguez be given a single opportunity for documentary
rebuttal as a matter of fairness. This attorney further advises
the Board that it may adopt, by a vote consistent with Ordinance
No. 91-37 as amended by No. 91-78, a policy stating that the
Board shall not receive any written materials without a 5-person
vote in accordance with Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78. The Board may further vote on a policy, if
it chooses to do so, that the receipt of written materials
presented by any speaker before the Board does not constitute any
opinion by the Board on the subject presented. It is the County
Attorney's position that the receipt of materials, in accordance
with any policy that the Board chooses to adopt, must be reviewed
on a case by case basis for relevancy and other considerations.
The County Attorney does not believe that it will serve the
public interest to engage in "hair-splitting" over acceptance
versus non -acceptance of documents presented for consideration by
the Board members at a public meeting. Florida Attorney General
Robert A. Butterworth in his introduction to the publication
entitled "Government in the Sunshine Manual, 1992 Edition,
comments regarding the public policy in Florida of open
government and states that "Florida is the established leader
when it comes to open government and public records. Although
other jurisdiction have enacted similar legislation, none has the
scope of Florida Statutes."
In conclusion, in accordance with the spirit of the Public
Records and Open Meetings Law of Florida, I furnish you the
foregoing advice.
1,
cc: Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
mt/dp/4119
DATE:
TO:
FROM:
M E M O R A N D U M
April 2, 1992
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Ramiro Manalich, Assistant County Attorney
Staff Liaison to Hispanic Board
RE: Staff Report at April 2, 1992 meeting
The following is a summary of my comments regarding the topic of
public records and the materials presented to the Board by
Mr. Valdes and Mr. Rodriguez.
Section 119.01(1), Florida Statutes, provides that
"it is the policy of this state that all state, county
and municipal records shall at all times be open for a
personal inspection by any person."
Section 119.011(1), Florida Statutes, provides that "For the
purpose of this Chapter:
"public records" means all documents, papers, letters,
maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings
or other material, regardless of physical form or
characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or
ordinance or in connection with the transaction of
official business by any agency."
The history of this matter, in summary, is that Mr. Valdes
presented a number of documents at the Board's meeting in
Immokalee, Florida. At a subsequent meeting, Mr. Rodriguez
presented documents in rebuttal to Mr. Valdes' documents. After
the documents had been presented to the Board, Mr. Rodriguez
requested that the documents not be part of the Board's records.
It was this attorney's position that the public records law
required that materials presented for consideration by the Board
be considered and made part of the records of the Board. At that
same meeting Mr. Valdes introduced additional documents. It was
this attorney's advice that Mr. Rodriguez should be given a final
chance at rebuttal and that the Board could then vote to
eliminate further discussion on the topics raised by Mr. Valdes
and Mr. Rodriguez. The Board members discussed this matter and
voted 4-2 to reject all documents presented. This attorney
consulted with the County Attorney regarding the validity of the
vote. It appears that Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78 requires a 5-person majority for official
action to be taken. Consequently, this attorney has reported to
the Board that the motion to reject the documents failed.
Gloria Dominguez, Secretary
April 2, 1992
Page Two
It is the opinion of the County Attorney that Chapter 119,
Florida Statutes, requires that the materials presented to the
Board as part of its transaction of Board business be considered
part of the public record. This attorney further advises that
Mr. Rodriguez be given a single opportunity for documentary
rebuttal as a matter of fairness. This attorney further advises
the Board that it may adopt, by a vote consistent with Ordinance
No. 91-37 as amended by No. 91-78, a policy stating that the
Board shall not receive any written materials without a 5-person
vote in accordance with Collier County Ordinance No. 91-37 as
amended by No. 91-78. The Board may further vote on a policy, if
it chooses to do so, that the receipt of written materials
presented by any speaker before the Board does not constitute any
opinion by the Board on the subject presented. It is the County
Attorney's position that the receipt of materials, in accordance
with any policy that the Board chooses to adopt, must be reviewed
on a case by case basis for relevancy and other considerations.
The County Attorney does not believe that it will serve the
public interest to engage in "hair-splitting" over acceptance
versus non -acceptance of documents presented for consideration by
the Board members at a public meeting. Florida Attorney General
Robert A. Butterworth in his introduction to the publication
entitled "Government in the Sunshine Manual, 1992 Edition,
comments regarding the public policy in Florida of open
government and states that "Florida is the established leader
when it comes to open government and public records. Although
other jurisdiction have enacted similar legislation, none has the
scope of Florida Statutes."
In conclusion, in accordance with the spirit of the Public
Records and Open Meetings Law of Florida, I furnish you the
foregoing advice.
> n
cc: Kenneth B. Cuyler, County Attorney
im/dp/4119