placid Community Redevelopment Agency CRA Okay I'm going to call the meeting to order It's 2:05 Um Charlotte's going to do our invocation and also our pledge of allegiance Please silence your
phones Bow with me please Lord we thank you for the opportunity that you have given to us to be able to make decisions for the residents of Lake Placid We ask you Lord to give us wisdom discernment and understanding so that we can make the decisions that are best for the whole We thank you Lord for this opportunity and we ask you to bless the
hands of all of our our workers that are here We thank you Lord for each council member that is here We ask you Lord to bless their lives And Lord we thank you for this day in Jesus name Amen Amen I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
United States of America and to the republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all Thank you very much
Okay can we have roll call please here Here and um thank you Um we're going to go ahead with the consent agenda I make a motion to approve consent
agenda one both A and B I hear a second I'm sorry Okay Thank you Um anything from the audience I just wanted to say that we do have a correction that will be needed on this It from the minutes the previous minutes
it does say call to order and I'm pretty sure this was just a typo from carrying over but from it says Mayor Hullbrook So if we can just make a note that we're going to correct that for the correction of the minutes it'll because you called the meeting to order Correct So do you
want to amend your approval of the minutes to include that change Uh yes What was the change I'm sorry I didn't catch it Yes ma'am If you on the very first page right here at the top where it says invocation and then the call to order Yes It says Mayor
Hullbrook So we just need to correct that Okay With um I amend my motion to approve the consent agenda A with approval of the agenda and correction of call to order will be Vice Mayor
Deborah Worley and then approval of minutes from March 6th Okay we have a corrected motion and second So all in favor I
You want to call out Go ahead Yes Yes Yes Motion carries Okay Our next is public comments I don't see any of the public here Um new business is the downtown Inner
Lake project Thank you So we have the request for proposal for the project and it was publicly posted on bidnet direct in the town of Lake Placid website We also put it on the Next Door app We emailed it directly to the individuals or the firms
who had already previously expressed interest The RFP was released on March 20th with a proposal submission deadline of 3M on March 28th Upon re receipt of all the P proposals um we did review them It says on here that the town staff
would conduct a thorough review and evaluation after which a formal recommendation will be presented to the CRA board for consideration So they were not sealed bids Let me first clarify that However they are here for your review in this Manila envelope
So I'll give you a few minutes to to look at that and then I can kind of go over some of what we have I think also um they could vote on one portion of this or all portions Correct So you will see uh TWWQ did one
two three and four Some people did 104 some did two just three So so when it went out we told them that they could um put in the RFP for any of the phases phase 1 2 three or four We were also
directed to stay locally and we did put that that there was preference to local We have some questions that well a question that we wanted to ask because on phase two in the award recommendation memo
Um so let let me go through this really quick A thorough review has been completed of all the submitted proposals for the RFP number LP 2025-03 Based on the scoring outlined the following vendors were recommended
for award are recommended for award by phase Phase one removal and site preparation would be Robin's Nursery Now take note that they also scored the highest for phase four as well So they would be able to handle phase one and
four Phase two is irrigation installation and that's DC irrigation They are local to Lake Placid Pave replacement for phase three is LG Brick Company Now they are located in Arcadia So this is the reason why I
wanted to hone in a little bit on this Um whenever we looked at it we were thinking okay well we said local they're thinking local Hartland region They do a lot of work here And I asked Harry Harry did reach out and speak with him because this is some of the qualifications were
like responsiveness and how quick they get back to us the um how long they've been doing this and so they work very closely with the city of Barto Um I don't know if he Harry is here He can answer any questions We've looked at pictures We've done Sunbiz I mean Google We've tried to do our due diligence Um
but if you wanted to keep that local then we could explore uh with Ibanz because Ibanz did put in a recommendation um I mean a proposal So that's included for your review The alternative recommend recommendation
would be to for TWWQ because they did bid for all four phases So that is therefore a it's up to you to decide how you want us to do it Do we want to go out for and separate it out or do you want
it all at once Or I shouldn't say all at once It'll be phased Forgive me for that Do you want it all by one company I apologize My question you just push it right there Mr Hart Okay My question would be um how does
his price for all four um faces compare to the individual totaled up Let's see Is it in here So it looks like we're we have a 3,000
$13140 difference if we were to go with TWWQ opposed to phasing it out between the four It's Oh I'm sorry It's $3,000 more It would be $3,000 more to go with TWWQ
And with that calculation that you were so swift on the calculator and I just got mine out of my purse Um did you include the brick company 15,000 or did you include the pavers
uh Ibanz gardens for 11,07 Good question I went with LG Brick Company So we can do it with the local company and see what that amount is real quick It's going to be more like $7,000 difference then I believe Oh yes Yeah it
would be more I think Well yes ma'am I'm having a hard time sorting out the numbers subtracting from the lump sum so on and so forth It would have been nice if each phase was if we were given a price per company per each phase
Uh yeah on their on their quotes like for example TWWQ it's one lump sum So I'm trying to subtract in my head to take out the irrigation take out the hardscaping TWW Yeah So
Okay So he had hardcaping for 8,120 and the other bid for brick was 15,000 Uh I I'm adding I think I'm adding incorrectly Just give me one more second here
I was going to say there's no rush Okay We want to make sure you feel confident in the decision you make And okay so LG brick was 15,000 plus or
minus The uh hardscape for TWWQ was 8,000 and I'm looking for the hardcape for um Ibanz So I have if you take the Robins quote
the total of which is 22,15785 and you add DC irrigation 3,460 and you add pavers from Ibanz Gardens $11,700 I come up with
37,31785 as opposed to TWWQ Q of 43,13140 So that's $6,000 cheaper if we uh go to the individual um individual bids Let's see One of the other things that we noticed
um as far as LG brick was the underneath where the the base you can see where they talk about the supply and spread So it looks like they were going to do more prep work for the area than Ibanz was but we can't confirm that We just are
looking based off of what was provided to us with the RFP Sorry Did Brantley send this out or was this through him So originally whenever we first had the conversations not this
last meeting but the meeting prior um it was keep lake placid beautiful and then because of Mr Brantley being the keep lake placid beautiful president we had tasked him with getting some of the the quotes the bids and then when we came back last month that was where we
received the direction to go out further and so we put it out so he had he had obtained some of the bids I I have a question on the Robins bid Um what part of this bid is the
um phase one removal and site preparation What line items are included there Yes ma'am So if you go to the last page of or the second page of their quote for service labor it says it may
be less dependent on the time spent on the job but it's 78 time 100 So it's 7,800 is what they put in there for that And then you can see the disposal fee They have a disposal fee to get rid of anything that's there So is their site
prep fee 7,800 + 150 + 100 plus 300 Yes ma'am Okay Thank you You're welcome And they would that would include the phase one for removal and then to get the site prepared and also the phase
four of final installation and mulching for that amount Councilwoman Hayes Okay So it appears to me that on the Robins bid
8350 is site prep 13,8785 is plants If we then go to the Ibanz bid The I the Ibanz bid shows a lot more in plants
They show 42,820 in plants which does not include removal of existing flower beds demolition site prep or irrigation So I would propose that we
use Robins Nursery South for phase one DC Irrigation phase two paver placement Ibanz Gardens phase three
and final installation and mulching Robins nursery page phase four and that's that total I said a minute ago 37,000 whatever I'll do it again okay I'm sorry I got a Would you
repeat that I have DC for phase one and then Ibanz No it's 22,1578 No that's not Right Excuse me Phase one is $8,350 And that's which company That's that's
Robins Then phase two is DC irrigation which is 3460 Mhm And then phase three will go to Ibanz Gardens and do the pavers part for 11,700
Mhm And then go back to phase 4 final installation mulching Robins Nursery for 13,80785 which that part includes the plants apparently Gives us a total of
37,000 317.85 I am I am assuming that phase four final installation and mulching is planting the plants and mulching them Yes Okay Do I hear a second
I'll second it I was going to say I do have a recommended motion If we want to go through that motion we would just need to take it on the phase three put Ibanz This will help Okay Our deputy clerk
Yes that's the only change Okay So would you like to read that I move that the CRA I'm sorry Do you want to read this I can I can read that Yes So I move that the CRA council board approved the phased contract awards for
the Interlake Street Skate Project RFP number LP2025-03 as recommended awarding each phase to the following vendors Phase one removal and site preparation Robins Nursery
Phase two irrigation and installation DC Irrigation Inc Phase three paver placement Ibanz Gardens pay phase four final
installation and mulching Robins Nursery Furthermore I move to authorize the town administrator to proceed with contract negotiations and execute agreements with the abovementioned vendors in accordance with their submitted proposals and the
town's procurement policies and procedures Mr Hartzel do you want to amend your second Yes Okay Nothing from the audience so take call please Council member Hayes Yes
Council member Warley Yes Council member Everheart Yes Board member Hartzell Yes Thank you The next item on
here I'm sorry Councilwoman Hayes how much did you say that total was if you don't mind 37,317.85 Perfect Okay So I had put on here a motion to [Music] transfer 30,000 from the project line
item 103541600 for parks that's on our budget and that would have been for the Dowh Hall parking and sidewalk to the Interlake Streets skate project directing staff to follow the current bidding However we have 30,000 right now
I don't know if we need to move the from one project to the other the full 30 or not We were not sure how much it was going to be when this was originally prepared I did speak with Harry and we've been looking at the Dowh Hall
project This is an item that we already know is going to take us six months for us to go out to properly do that that for the Dow Hall that we could that will move into next next year's budget So you have that money there I'm just we wanted to make sure you seen that that is a
project that we can take that money and use It's not feasible to be done in this fiscal year So you can have some room to either change that from the $30,000 from that project line item or as Councilwoman Hayes said that it's right now it's
$7,000 over Do we want to leave a little bit in there in case something happens It's totally up to you What line item was that please Yes ma'am It's it would be from project line item 103541600 which is it on our budget It
says parks but it's specifically for the Dow Hall parking and sidewalk That's what I see it right there Yes ma'am We would move money from that project to the streetscape project
to be able to make sure we can cover the cost for the inner lake rather than the full 30,000 just take 10,000 Yes ma'am That's what I was thinking since it was seven So we would just say to transfer instead of 30 we could say that we're
transferring 10 to be able for this project and that's on your screen if that's what you would like to do So anyway we have a recommended motion and um council member Iberhot suggests instead approve the transfer of 30
you're going to do 10,000 if somebody would like to make this motion I'll make the motion to transfer 10,000 um from the project line item 10354160 0
parks to the Interlate Street Skate Project Mr Hartzel could you just for the clerk's sake read that whole thing changing the 30 to 10 and that way she'll have it Just read the whole thing Okay Yes please Then I I move to approve
the transfer of se of $10,000 from project line item 103-541-6000 parks dow hall parking sidewalk to the interl streetscape project directing staff to follow the current bidding and award process I further move to
authorize the town administrator to proceed with expenditures associated with the project provided they fall within established budget guidelines This transfer combined with the remaining 10,000 Are we going to change
that Okay With the remaining 30 Okay In 103-541-6000 downtown flowers banners signage allocates a total of 40,000 towards the Inner Lake Streetcape
project Thank you I'll second Thank you Nothing from the audience Please call the role Board member Hartzel [Music]
Who is that For you For me Yes Yes Council member Hayes Yes Council member Warley Yes Council member Everheart Yes
Thank you Let's go ahead with old business that we Harry and I are going to have to get together on Yes ma'am We We'll get with them now We needed to know which approach we were going to go so then we could schedule it Okay Because I was hoping because then July is the caladium
fest Oh I I don't think it'll take that long I think Yeah we'll have that done well before then I'm sure Good Yes ma'am Okay let's move on to old [Applause] business street lighting followup for a
at the March 6 2025 CRA meeting the board directed the town administrator to identify a preferred street light design and location and to order samples for review Unfortunately due to the short turnaround time between the meetings this task has been delayed to allow for more thought and a comprehensive
evaluation staff has reviewed the style recommended by Mr Leblanc and the example is attached But um we did not want to rush this process Instead we are considering many key factors s such as the functionality and the safety the
aesthetics and charm the sustainability maintenance placement and the community impact Given the downtown revitalization workshop or plan is currently underway through the CFRPC Central Florida Regional Planning Council which includes the public input and planning for the
streetscaping and lighting We recommend to continue the evaluation in alignment with the plan before making a final decision And we ask that the CRA board would consider these elements as we work towards selecting a solution that will best be reflected for the needs and the
character of the community And I put it on your on the dis for you Um I'm gonna pull something up Let me find it But there are it's a memorandum regarding case study reviews on solar LED lighting projects for for
the CRA to consider as we're looking at this I believe that um we may have an opportunity with our CRA dollars that as we do this that we may be able to find a cost savings because if let me draw your attention
to on this memorandum and I'm going to go through it here in a minute Sorry I have to look through these glasses and make sure I can see right There was a pilot conducted by Duke and since we have Duke in our
backyard I don't want to miss the opportunity So let me pull up my presentation for a moment So the objective would be to implement a street lighting that will balance the charm the functionality and safety We want to leverage successful models from other Florida municipalities
and then address any questions and concerns from the CRA board Um Allan provided a list of questions that had been that had come up and so I have some of those that are in here for us to be able to review Some of the key considerations that we're looking at is
the functionality and the safety We want to look at the aesthetics and our community character but also look at how we're going to be able to sustain and maintain the lights Also the placement and then having community impact Some of the some of the questions that I've been
asked are are we only going to focus on downtown What about I mean just the downtown area where the businesses are but have we considered um expanding the lighting to the neighborhoods Well those are conversations that I've not been part of and I I don't know if our count
if the council or the CRA board has So we're saying can we take a step back and look at this because we may have an opportunity to get a bigger bang for our buck Um so there were case studies here and again I put them in there for you
One for in Denai Beach they did a solar LED street lighting and underlit neighborhoods The initial cost was 1 million They did 360 lights and it was funded by bonds Um the expansion cost however for the 300,000 for the 30
lights was done through the CDBG So they had enhanced safety and sustainability St Pete Beach also did this is who did it with Duke Energy Um similar reference to Orlando's 5 million LED project that they completed and they
had an estimated annual savings from um there's a panelis in here of 129,000 in comparison The outcome was that there was energy efficient and visually consistent lighting at all times River Park
Naples they installed 155 fix fixtures to enhance visibility The cost was 25,000 allocated for lighting repairs and they preserve the historic character and increase safety So we're asking for council consideration or the board the CRA board
to consider um some of these questions that have come up that we don't want to rush through the process was will the el the light reflect downward Yes Um we can get it where there's full cut off LED designs that minimize the
glare Do we want standard or sealed bulbs Based off of all of the work that I've done on this it says that we need to choose standard LED models modules for easy replacement And then also Allan has done extensive um research and
trying to find out what would be best suited down there And he had a good point Do we want what would you said functionality Tell me what two words you use Alan I'm sorry uh functionality or aesthetics I believe
is what I said Yeah functionality or or aesthetics because we're we talk two things but we really want both So if we rush through this then we may not get the product that's going to give us both um fixture availability based off of
what I see I don't know that we will run into some big issues with the example that was provided by Mr Leblanc I see that we can find them all over their local and statewide distributors Spiderw webs I'm I mean I'm learning a lot but they warm color LEDs
attract fewer insec insects So then that will hopefully take and eliminate some of our spiderw webs that we have out there Retrofit or full replacement Retrofit tops can reduce cost and disruption And then our inventory needs How much do we need to keep on hand in
case we have to replace th these are all questions that Allan and I have been having since we had our last meeting So we would need to keep 5 to 10% of total units in reserve So we need to consider that into our cost fixture alternatives and durability There was a question of do we
just swap out the current globes that we have now It would be more cost effective as long as the structure is intact but is it going to provide us with the the safety aspect that we need to be able to have the lights shine down opposed to up We don't know that that can work We
haven't been able to go through all of those things Allan and I haven't been able to sit to even see if what that would look like Just timing has not allowed for that Um high wind resistance Most of the fixtures that I've been able to look at
and especially with the one that Mr Leblanc provided um they do meet codes of up to wind loads up of 140 to 160 miles per hour If we were going to do this a pilot test would be recommended and we would
order three to five units for real life evaluation opposed to one because one's not going to give enough of the light on this on the sidewalk for us to even really find out it does this work So we're just putting this back in your hands and asking that for the next steps
for us to keep with the blend of the charm the efficiency and the community appeal and the lighting solutions Can we wait and let's investigate a little bit more and get some more feedback Allow us to be able to go through the process I know that um Central Florida Regional
Planning has this as one of our next topics with the banners the wayfinding sign and the lighting So I think we have an opportunity to really let's see what else we can do Obviously it is up to you
I agree I think we we shouldn't rush into this We really need to do really think about what we're doing and and I would like the full board to be here if we can have everybody else here I would and I I like the we have to do the the
functionality and the aesthetics Like for example the one that was in the packet doesn't it doesn't blend with the quaint charm that we have Um then when you mention uh the savings uh it'd be helpful to know what
percentage that was because if they have a bazillion lights and they save a million dollars So we need to know the percentage And then the last thing is um yeah warm might be good but I've seen where in um one town they put in a very
yellowish light and it was actually made my skin crawl It was it was very depressing So not too too warm You you don't want that yellowish light because you don't have color rendition good color rendition in those lights And then if
you had an incident and you wanted to say "Oh he was wearing a red shirt." Well it might be brown Um and those lights I have that issue every morning with my socks I have that I have that incandescent light in my bedroom and I
have to take those socks out to the bathroom to get the white light so I make sure I have the right color socks It's important But I I think two things in in seriousness We have contracted with the Central Florida Regional Planning Group and to move ahead without
their input I think is ridiculous We we have contracted with them We need to allow them to come to the table and and tell us what they see because we have we have paid for their expertise and now to just move forward without even hearing it I think is is not a good use of
taxpayer money I also agree that we should have the full board here when we make this decision because the third thing is these lamps Um I think we had these street lamps
that are on there now When did those go in Tell you I've been here 21 years roughly 20 20 years or more Right And they So we're making a decision um in an awfully quick manner for um
expenditures that are going to stay in place whether we like them or not 20 to 30 years And so I think it's very important that we proceed slower with this Yeah I think Bird had told me 30 years So I bet it was It's about 30 years I bet it was because it was it was
shortly after I got here I think So so thus I would recommend I would make a motion to support continued evaluation of downtown street lighting needs and defer final decisions until the downtown revitalization plan is
complete Staff is directed to consider all relevant factors including design safety sustainability and community input and bring recommendations back to the CRA board at the next meeting This ensures decisions are aligned with the
plan's goals and reflect the best long-term value for our community Do I hear a second Okay I just had one question and I'm sure we've talked about this a lot but um so when is our projected time to
have the the revitalization plan complete I don't know about when it's complete Um because she I want to say we have a year timeline I believe is what it is So if we wanted to say downtime revitalization
um because she gives us she will give us a followup after so we could if we get that we could always amend this later if we needed to Would it be better then if I we say after they have the the the workshop because she'll give us recommendations after workshop
recommendations are received Well if I if I change the um the motion to say until the downtown excuse me until this portion of the downtown revitalization plan is
presented There you go Okay Do I hear a second to the MO Okay Any any other discussion Hearing none and hearing nothing from the audience please call the role the vote Council member Hayes yes Council member Warley yes I'm sorry
Council member Everheart Council Member Worley and yes board member Hartzel Okay So um project updates is next on our old business Can I just um interject the
next time you do these that like where it says project update can we have a little bigger font Yes it's a little small and a little light the print you know a little darker print Thank
you Got it So the Dowhole renovations we This is not to vote on This is to put it out here so that you can see what the next option is that we need to be looking at for the Dowhaul renovation project And Harry is here and he can answer some questions um he has met with
um he's met with two construction contractors to give their input on what they feel like would be best for the um the Dow Hall building So these are just examples and Harry if you want to jump in here at any time you
can because he has been primarily our liaison with this So there are examples here and what we would like is before we move forward with this is to be able to again have thoughtful consideration to what we would like to see down there and then
what the building is capable of being able to do So Harry do you want to piggy back on that a little bit on what you've been told with some of the aesthetics with the building I have two contractors that come out there One of them know they didn't come back with pull closer maybe They didn't
come back with anything But then Bill Brantley came out there and he said that the roof is too low to build just a leanto type straight across like this Like that So uh yeah like that one right
there It'll bring it down too low like seven feet off the ground I just need to know what type you want to see out there so I know what to have a contractor bid Um Ken said it needs to be built off of
the roof If you scroll the opposite way something like that we could do it I'm just I'm not sure where how to proceed with it without if there is a style that is preferred it
would help us so that we know But um something like that will also work because it's up higher on the roof than just the way that it's flush with the roof Yeah And this is for the Dh Hall patio project Yeah Now that one concerns me
with um the penetrations to the roof and also having it lift up in a hurricane Take that I like this one I don't care for that style It looks like it has little feet Um I like this one too
This is for reference for the people that aren't here This is the one where the it starts about halfway down the roof line and becomes another roof Are there any issues there Harry with leakage and and attaching a roof to a roof No there's no leakage
there That's actually more of what Ken Leblanc was speaking of He was supposed to come back with an idea but I haven't heard from him Yeah And I like the the dressing up on like scroll down a little bit where it had the um what if you call
it a cornis or whatever on the columns or like this just to dress it up a little That that still comes right at the roof line No no no I'd be the same same as the slope roof but instead of just a
plain thing and columns add something to the columns to dress it up rather than just the straight column Yes Correct Yes I think that was just an idea of coming off the roof not an actual or actually if you did this one
and put it up higher like the gray rendering Okay Is that enough guidance to Does that help Harry It helps Okay Good And I just I have to say that um so Allan and I can't miss the opportunity
for us to to say thank you to this team because um I've been asked in the past um some of the questions I have received is why does Sebring allow for businesses to get money from the CRA to be able to
update their business or to have facade grants Um every CRA establishes what their parameters are and so I have to then say when our CRA was established we had a different purview that we were going opposed to what Sebring was doing Um so some of the other questions that I
have been asked and I just missed that thought It just went like that Tell me this gets better y'all Well I think part of it too is you know if we don't use our CRA money what is it five years then we lose it we have to give it back to the
county So and Sebring gets so much money between 500 700,000 depending on what the taxes are in the economy So if they don't use the money they have to give it back So some of the projects they're doing they might
not do if they had limited funding because they have so much money and I don't I'm not sure I don't know how they think but they're probably not wanting to give it back to the county they'd rather invest it in the downtown but they have they are flushed with money and they have to spend it I mean they do
actually have to spend it or give it back And so they're faced every think every year How are we going to spend this money So I think that's a big difference that people do not understand They think our CRA is the same amount of money as is Avon Park and Sebring And
Sebring has actually has another CRA out at the airport but I'm talking about the downtown one Right All right Yes I I just wanted to bring up one just quick thing not to send us on a bunny trail but um it it kept me up last night so
that makes me crazy Um I think it's important that we remember the whole CRA district We have been focusing so much on downtown Interlake Maine um HGTV Flowers POTS We have a a large in my
opinion in my estimation a large CRA area to address and some of the areas of that you talk about blight there is a lot of that and I don't know what we can do to allow people access to some money to
repair their homes or if we need to do more curb or better streets so that they don't flood I don't know why some of the yards are so bad but I just don't feel like people that live there do that on purpose I think if they had an
opportunity to have a better looking place I I'd like to believe they would So I I think we have to be careful that we don't just focus on what's going on in downtown and and I I know the businesses on Interlake need attention and I lead the band for that but I also
think that we have to continue to think about the overall the blighted conditions in our CRA area So just a point uh even well going through the original documents for our CRA it says that the
it can be amended by a supermajority So if we would want to go on a more like a sebring thing if we had a supermajority and we had the discussion with Burton a couple definitions for supermajority and we never did hash out which definition
applied but but we could But we could but we could yes the the ability is there to amend it Yes Yeah Okay Any other I do know what I was going to say now I looked back over at the gentleman here CRA in Sebring and
also in Avon Park was included administrative functions Ours does not So I've they have dedicated staff who can be paid from the CRA to perform the duties that are being done
Um Allan has been down two people So he has been in the field doing a lot of work Now he's helped me with some of the things like the lights and things of that nature the the benches but Harry has really spearheaded running with this and being pretty much our CRA
coordinator because I say "Harry I don't have time for this I need to give this to you." And then he takes and gets it done So I just wanted to be able to recognize them why they were here because they have full-time jobs with the other work and now we're making it happen with this
I think that that that we should kind of hold that thought as well because I agree and I and I certainly appreciate the extra work that these folks have put in But that's another reason why we should only meet quarterly because this puts a tremendous
amount of pressure on our on our dwindled staff to try to come up with the things that we ask of them in 30 days rather than 90 days It would be I think they they everything would be researched more thoroughly because you would have time to do it correctly right
And it's not fair to put them under unrealistic um deadlines and then say "Oh but that wasn't done well." So thank you Okay So I think as that moves us into the next Oh no I got two more I'm gonna
keep moving I'm sorry Um so then the South Main Flower Pot project all of the amounts have come in for that and so we we were able to follow our purchasing guidelines and it's not something that would have to come back here Um so for
it's okay Yes ma'am For the South Main So the the the flower pots have been ordered the um plants have been ordered and we are looking at the pavers right now to see Now I do want to I want to engage you on this for a moment Whenever
we originally voted and we were doing the pavers I vaguely remember that we I want to say that I thought we were saying at first we were going to do eight inches but then we eight I'm sorry eight feet That's what I'm eight feet and then we scaled it down to where it's
the it was six five Okay I'm sorry I have all these numbers because I've been going back through my notes It doesn't look as nice as we had originally planned for it to look because it just looks like it's pot sitting on top of I don't think it was large enough for us So Harry and I have been having
conversation and we were like well do we take out two pots and just leave one No There we don't want to do that But when we were brainstorming this morning we had an idea of what if we just go ahead and add around the perimeter then Yeah I was say yeah And I don't know how
it would look but if you add an accent color for the around the perimeter rather than the same brick it'll give it some aesthetic design I think that's good but it would not be consistent in design with what's on Northbank Was that
is that even an issue What we were thinking is if if you would approve for this then we would go ahead and do it Why right now when we do the south main so that you can see what it looks like and then move the other on the other side down Yes ma'am
Yes ma'am Yeah And I had asked Charlotte about that cuz when I just think it makes all the difference in the world It just to me it's kind of like a like a blog where before with the pictures we looked at with the wider pavers it was a real feature for the flowers and it just
doesn't to me we need that So I I think we should do it on South Main and then maybe when we get further along we can add the pavers and maybe do the accent around the the perimeter So I think that's a yes I was going to say
if you if you vote for that today we can go ahead and do that with the accent down south main and then we'll work to do it down north main as well Okay So do I hear a motion Okay Um make a
motion that the uh pavers be a combination of a what is it now 5 foot six foot 5T It's 5T We want to go eight foot Okay A total of eight
feet and having an accent border of whatever Whatever Whatever Look I'll just say and have an accent border um on South Main because that's going to depend on the
size of the pavers what size the border is going to be Yeah um with the provision that this could also be applied to North Main in the future Perfect Okay Thank you All right Um any other discussion on this from the podium from
the board Who made the second Okay None from the audience So please call for the vote Council member Everheart Yes Council member Hayes Yes Council member Warley Yes
Board member Hartzel Yes Okay So we'll go ahead Is that Are you done You got one more She got She's got one more in there She Lake Plazet Parks So we This again is in here
forformational purposes Um the you have our list from the park inspections I will email out I was I wanted to get the placer AI data to you for this meeting and it just hit me that
as soon as I looked at this that I did not get that but I I have it in my email so I will send it to you where we talked about the traffic to the parks that are located within the CRA district the ones located within the CRA district are of higher priority and so
we wanted to bring that to this council so that you could see based off of what we have to remove from the parks The first one is the bysentennial park equipment replacement And I did add
together Allan took some of the pieces here that if we remove this is what would be good to replace back in with like So it was like equipment something that had been there that was very much similar It's just replacing with like with like Keep in mind that we have
opportunity to potentially go out for um FDRAP money for some of these parks So just um just say that just to keep it in mind Um so for bysentennial just on the equipment that we would need to put back
in there that's being taken out we would look at $8,552 And again that's for the bicesentennial park Bicesentennial Park is Dow Hall Yes Okay That that price does not include shipping for any of these Correct
Strictly just the playground equipment And we we we've got plans for the bsentennial park already where we have money on there Yes So this is here just for you to see if we remove and and the park is used Now the Placer AI data is
very difficult to pick up because it's based off of the phones that are coming through there So with having a road on both sides it was very difficult to use However I will tell you I've been frequenting down in that area So I can see the park use The park is used a lot
believe it or not Well good It is used It really is used a lot So just keep that in mind Now the Spruce Park would be next And what is that going to be on the on the budget What is that going to be Spruce Park or is that named something
else on the budget We we don't even have it on there right now but remember with the CRA it's project driven So you can take and say we have there's I'm just going to throw it out there there's $10,000 um in the budget and we can take and
move it from the whatever line I line item project and you can create spruce park project So this board has the ability to say well we want to take and create a project now and then it will be spruce park and this is what we want to allocate to it So you do have that
ability since it falls within the CRA district and where is this located spruce park Uh behind the old bowling alley Behind what The old bowling alley on Spruce Street Oh yes Yes I remember Thank you
And they are used our parks are really utilized a lot They really are Um but for the Spruce Park just playground equipment replacement replacing like with like um is I have $13,140 What do we have to do um underneath
these pieces of equipment We have to put that that special mulch type stuff or what what Yeah ideally we would do away with the sand put a border up uh put weed barrier down and then fill it with safety wood
mulch So that that's an anded that is an additional expense not included here Right Correct Okay We just had sand delivered Uh everything is safe right now Uh but it would just Okay It
would be better long term to have a border Okay Thank you I'm not sure I just to replace like and kind maybe we could replace with something better That's what or more or more more
uh whatever the word is just better than leentine I apologize for pointing that's what Allan said that was that would be our recommendation That's why I said this is just forformational purposes if we were to replace it like with like we were hoping it that you would say that
because we want that's what we think we need to do We need to decide what we really want at these parks We know they're being utilized but if we have to replace it's the same thing If we have to replace it can we have make sure we have a plan on what we want to do I I hate to use this word but I know in
absencia over here she's listening She's telling me we need a workshop on this because she would say that if you were here yes we we need to know what equipment we want down there We need to know what you want that the specific parks to look
like Because right now if we went through just in just replacing again like with like and we know that we would probably want something different we're looking at a cost between the three of $26,782 And we could say hey yes just go
buy it and put it out there But what are we doing long range for planning Yeah Let's have a plan And then rather than just throwing some equipment in a yard Yeah Yeah And and you have Taylor Park yet That's the one over by Serenity Village right Taylor Park Yes
It's got the new structure but we just had to pull out the dome structure due to deterioration What if What would it take to put a basketball hoop up somewhere Obviously with my stature I don't have a
lot of experience in basketball but I just think that when I drive around the neighborhoods and I see a lot of toys and bikes and stuff in the yards I almost always see one of those freestanding basketball hoops So but then we would have to put pavement
Yeah Yes Uh we have we do have the ones by the library but uh if you were to do something else it depends on if you want to do something like a half court or a full court Well see I'm not thinking of that I'm thinking about making like a a
half circle just around the the basketball hoop I'm not thinking of making the whole park into a basketball um you know arena because then we've taken out all the little kids and you know all that type of thing But I just kind of think that maybe somewhere we
should put another um basketball h because I am told of course they they're never there when I walk in the morning because I walk in the dark but but um I I am told that those basketball courts are are often utilized over there So maybe we should put at least a hoop
somewhere You would have to also consider putting up a very tall chain link fence behind it to encapture the ball from going out into the roadway or a house Yeah Yes Yeah One of the things that really takes up a lot of space when you do paving is you
have to have retention and sift mud makes us way overdo our retention in our town But you know I'm just saying it's not just taking that part of it Then we're going to take more land out of that park to put the retention Right I'm sure Yeah Okay Okay It's It's been my
intention to get up to the Sebring I think they call it the morning park It's a I think interactive park Um to see what they've done I think they have like maybe hopscotch or they have a whatever But um and then Sebring has the concrete
cornhole things Um instead of just replacing let's get creative and do something Okay Okay are you ready I also noticed that
in for some reason it didn't include um on that on this page I know it's very hard to see Councilwoman Hayes but it says attachments and then for the Dow Hall you would have had on the dis the pictures here and I have extras because I brought extras in case the public
attended So if you would like to take any extras again these are just preliminary designs that were completed by our previous town engineer based off of some of the feedback that he had received So this is nothing set in stone It was just what we had been developing
for the Dow Hall um or I should say bysentennial on here I know they've got different names park and there's three different maps for you to to look at Again um this isformational purposes for you to be able to review as we develop
that park Does this colored paper come in here Is that this Yes ma'am And they're very hard I we I could not figure out how to print the thing on the really big paper but we can do that if you'd like Well this is fine Thank you
Okay Um and then the last thing I have is the benches So I know that in the last meeting we were asked to order a bench and put it out here on display and um I'm again time for time purposes I
didn't get that ordered and then when I got ready to order I stopped and I'm going to explain why Couple different things when when we brought it was we needed to gauge you to see what we wanted to have down there Now I did a lot of research on the benches and that
one is actually rated the top in um with National Parks and Recreation Association So I tried to see what they were doing in different areas what they recommend things of that nature But the benches for the downtown improvements though is I'm asking you to reconsider
the process the purchasing process because we were going to go out to bid we were going to wait for someone to come back and tell us you know how much they would charge in things But whenever you look at the current procurement path um it includes the benches and a larger
project bid It requires for the full RFP process It may result in the contractor marking it up We also have the sale sales tax that we can take advantage of not being taxed and it's it's just higher total cost is what I was thinking
So when I went through um I propose that if you will authorize it that we can purchase them directly because we can use our government pricing We can do the tax exempt Um we will avoid the contract overhead Um it's also streamlined process where we just order it we get it
here and we can take care of it instead of all of that additional work that's going to go into I would have to have Harry work with the contractor Now we've got to make sure they put it together put it out and so it it ends up being a little bit more work Um let me see So the example that we had
provided in the meeting before was the Georgetown bench It was through Barco products Um and it was a cast aluminum frame recycled plastic Um we needed to clarify this part Councilwoman Ibrahart and I were
downtown Sebring and we realized that the price originally was for a 4 foot and then Allan even said "Are we going to go with 4 foot Are we going to go with six foot?" So the benches that are out there right now are 4 foot but do we
want only 4 foot Do we want six foot Do we want six foot with the thing in the middle We've seen um benches that has it's like they look like they're two-seater almost looks like it's four-seater You definitely want the the thing in the middle If you go with six
feet you definitely want the thing in the middle because that keeps people from sleeping on the benches Okay So with that um if you take and we were authorized to order 30 benches um if we went out for the current
procurement method of contract bid between um 1,400 and 1,600 per bench we're looking at anywhere between 42 to $48,000 Uh if we direct purchase this we're looking at anywhere between
33 to 3600 in total So it's a savings of between 6 to $12,000 It just depends And so in our thought process I'm like well that gets us more We don't want to take I didn't want to take it out of our CRA money when we could use that somewhere else was our thought process So so we
would take that money out of town money for the um just we don't have it in there It's not It's Yeah Yes ma'am It's only in the CRA budget So we would still We can still purchase like that and use CRA money to do that That's still legal
Yes ma'am Yes ma'am It's within as long as you vote on it here it's still legal and we just I think the reference was is that rather than spend the extra money going through the bid process save that money and not take it out right Take it out of the Yes Yeah Let's just we'll
still take it out of the CRA money but it's going to save us money if we go this route opposed to going out RFP contractor and everything So I had a re I have a recommended motion and I I printed it out and big if anybody wants it but I do have a recommended emo em
motion Okay Um before we go too far with finalizing this I'm having second thoughts on the design of the benches Okay I went to that unity breakfast in Sebring and they have instead of having
the um recycled plastic for the seating area it's all cast aluminum And I do think that looks better and black We were both walking and we looked at it and said "Wow that actually looks really good." And so I was like "Well I have a
confession I didn't we didn't order it yet." And so we wanted to bring it back here Again we're not looking to rush anything We want to do what you would like for us to do So it's up to you It's your purview You decide what how you want us to handle Well once again I think we're looking at a a purchase of
significant dollars that's going to last a significant number of years And I think we should reconsider because I agree I wasn't too keen on the design It's a little too frilly for me to um feel like we could keep it clean Um and
so and and I I I think that it would be better if we reconsider a little different design as well So let's table and and uh step back and take a look Okay Okay And then um for pricing it maybe we could get some 4footers for the
small areas and some sixfooters for the large areas Always we can always do that And um I also talked with uh Jennifer with the chamber and we were having conversation with um Gibby about how
long the benches are You know the questions that came up here They purchased the bench but does that mean they own it indefinitely Um and so Jennifer was going to search up for those rules and what the what it said when they signed it They do not believe that it's indefinitely So then there's
conversation to be had about that because I was asking about the the plaques that for for those Now she said they did order all new ones because it's time for them to update it So she said that if we wanted her to hold off then she could But so just wanted to update you She is working on that so that we'll
have some more information on how they were handling it Joyce said yours was uh perpetual though wasn't it Didn't you say your bench that you purchased was perpetual No Oh no No no no There was never that understanding Okay It was just to pay off the mortgage on the
building It was that that was the whole theme for the benches Okay And and while we're on benches did you remove one of the benches from Devain Park Two Uh they they had they were broken Uh basically they had a crack on one of the seats uh
one towards the middle and the other one right where it bolts down So I where the where we my partner and I that walk feel like that there's a little rise there and sometimes we need a little rest there was the bench was gone
We we don't have any spares but we could probably shift one from a different area if we have permission It's okay We're getting in better shape But thank you I thought we maybe I just wanted to make sure I hadn't lost my mind Thank you That brings up a good question I mean it's a good thought though because now
we're I mean you're the composite they're supposed to last a really long time and so it makes us now go okay also looking at the material What material are we going to use And remember the the benches we looked at before were composite right And then we happened to
be down there for the to do the RFP We we did a walk through Well we we scheduled for the a walkth through No one showed up Um and while we were down there we we discussed it with Jennifer And so yeah even even though they're supposed to last a really long time in my opinion they're nearing the end of
their lifespan being out there I wondered too because we have so many benches in front of the college if we could maybe utilize some of those in other parts of town probably could probably maybe the two
that you took out see about weeding out two of those possibly or even one and put over and then let's see what it looks like Just a thought Frank I thought you said those are very well used over by the college the benches over by the college I thought you said they were very well
used Not I don't Excuse me Um I see them being used but not not overused So you'll see some people sitting there but I've never seen them all of them full with everybody sitting on them you know So do you think we could get get
away with one or two less Yeah I think so Okay Easy Yeah I mean I I used to walk my dog every day there and there's just really not they're not used that much And for a while there was a homeless couple homeless people that used them consistently But and once in a
while you'll see the kids want waiting for someone to pick them up or whatever But you if you look how many there are there's a lot of them Yeah And so maybe we could weed out some of those and use them other places where they don't have any benches and maybe even in the parks you know so
the parents can have some place to sit while they're watching the kids Yes Okay Is there any other discussion under old business Um Oh I'm sorry We haven't finished that yet Okay Um the C is the
quarterly CRA meetings Wait can I can I just go back for a second I um these priority recommendations that are in here and there are um 15 of them and
This was from Dr Spinger Play well 360 That whole thing Oh on the Yes ma'am Yeah you're looking at me like I have three heads Um I would just like to um if we could
possibly fix up those signs that are at the boat ramp It's number 15 and the the rules and warning side signage because th that really is a high-risisk area for us and I don't know if I mean those
signs are really awful and maybe I mean there's like mold and stuff Maybe we could pressure wash it and it'd be okay But I don't think it would cost a fortune to replace those signs would it No we're going to order new I I think I would like to see that as a priority I
know these other things are important but I think for all the people that use that boat ramp we really need to put that that verbiage that's in number 15 out there in a better way Yes ma'am Um Harry was already looking at replacing the signs So yes ma'am We're going to
take No no no you can't I I didn't know what money I You know she's the money one I She's not here so I I don't know which money making the comment Yes ma'am I just think it need to be done Thank you While
you're speaking about signs something else to keep in mind would be for the names of the parks Instead of just having a street sign printed out with the name of the park it might be a good idea to think about a decorative way to Yes advertise the parks Good
Okay So let's go to C under old business quarterly CRA meetings And just as if you all don't mind I know there's been some changes when people get I this is my collection for rents and payments and it's killing me My
business is suffering from coming the first Thursday If I we could move it to the second Thursday it would be very helpful I I don't know why we did it the first Thursday Maybe so we could do this before the town council meeting Um but I
mean it's really hard for me It's very very difficult and my my people are suffering for it and it bothers me Like I've had many calls and I just it's hard It's the third and some people pay on the third but I have to also pay people
My owners are waiting for me to transfer money today and I have just been my knots my stomach's in a knot That's all I can tell you So if we could move it to the second Thursday if everybody agrees with that I I don't have any problem with that But the other thing I think we
need to seriously address is two things please The quarterly meetings but even more importantly we need to move this to 5:30 because look at the the tremendous crowd we have here There's nobody here except us that are paid to be here And
and we're not getting any input from the public at all And I don't know how many people are listening right now but I would guess maybe two Uh and I could probably name them But you know this is just not right And the mayor can't even come right Uh and so it just happens to be I think we made it Thursday for me
because that's my day off But um I I just I agree with Deborah This is very difficult if we do it the third Thursday and I don't you know I guess I I would like it on Thursday because it's my day off but the third Thursday council isn't
the second Monday so it's not in the same week as council and um you know maybe that would work for folks or we could at least make it work but it would certainly be better for you Deborah Yeah I I prefer to keep it the first two weeks of the month just because if you
need to go somewhere you need to do something you've got two weeks without meetings Yes You know because we have the regional utility then we have council then we could have this and then we're kind of unless we have another meeting The only thing though is keep in
mind that that means staff has to prepare for three meetings That's the only thing But if we went to quarterly it would be better Yes If we go to quarterly that would definitely balance it out because right now we're just we're leaving a meeting and then because you've got to think we've got loop we have council we have
LPA we have CRA and and then on the other hand we were talking in council about going to two meetings a month in council because we were taking so long Correct So if we go if we get take this at least to quarterly we wouldn't be
putting that tax um on staff and everything as well Right And that was our recommendation was could that was what we our ask was can we take this meeting can we vote today for it to go to quarter resume quarterly and to 5:30
and the second Thursday Well we were requesting for it to be the third week but obviously we're it's it's your vote Yeah If it's the second Thursday it's the same week as council Mhm If it's the third even if we go to council twice a
month it would be second and fourth right So this could be the third Okay And then I think we'd be okay And the only objection that I think we would have is possibly from at least Ken maybe that who was not here that we aren't
going to get things done fast enough But I think the issue with that I have with it is sometimes we go too quickly and we make big decisions with the CRA and decisions that are going to last us 20 to 30 years and I feel rushed and I
think staff feels rushed as well and I don't I don't think that's good for the town that we should make those decisions just because we feel like you know there's some kind of a pressing need So so you want me to make I would make a
motion that this the CRA meeting be moved to quarterly and that quarterly meeting would be held on the third Thursday of the month at 5:30 p.m Second Any further
discussion hearing Nothing from the audience Please call before the vote I'm sorry Was it you that seconded Okay Council member Hayes Yes Council member Everheart Yes Council member
Warley No Board member Hartzell Yes No Would we don't we have to bring this up for a second a second reading second time I think we have to meet next month and bring this up for a second reading I
think Yes Yes Okay Do we do we have to have Bert do an ordinance or do something There's nothing Okay I think the ordinance gives us the opportunity to meet um quarterly or what it's in
there but it's within the ordinance that we could do this Yes So as we used to right Well the the requirement is quarterly So we took it by vote It's not a requirement for us to meet every month In fact it's it's you know we're only
supposed to meet every quarter So the requirement is at least quarterly Correct Yes Correct So he doesn't have to do anything Right Okay Um we're at the end of the agenda Does um Miss
Hayes I think um I think that's all I have Thank you Miss Eberhart I I would like to bring up um to Charlotte Um there's apparently a move in Tallahassee to do away with the CRA and it's made it
through two committees Has Has has Lake Plaza taken a stand and contacted any of our representatives or senators We have and we central Florida regional planning It's also affecting them It would affect it if it passes it would affect them as well So I've been in
close contact with Jennifer Cotto Salbury Yes sir Absolutely Yes sir Yeah That would take um our local authority away and give it to the state and I think that's very dangerous for us especially us in a small town Did did
you get any feedback from the legislators whether we should make a a bigger thing Do we need to write letters Do we need to Yes If um it's on the through the Florida League of Cities on that if you go on there they have where you can contact your
legislature regarding it and they have a where you click on there and you put it in there I think we all need to Okay Yes ma'am I appreciate you're bringing that up It's a real important issue I mean we won't be meeting at all That's right It
won't matter Yeah I mean I love the CRA Um I I can't It's It's come under threat several times but I think this is the most it's made it through committees to get rid of it So it's unfortunate So um Miss
Everheart nothing Okay Hearing nothing from more from the board I'll call the meeting adjourned at 3:27 Very good Thank you ma'am