We're good. Welcome to our Monday, June 15th MO meeting. Thank you for joining us. Uh would you please join us for a prayer by Pastor Jim Harp followed by the pledge of allegiance. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. Good to be with you this
morning. Let's pray. Our father, we thank you for this day and uh Lord, we thank you for your goodness to us. We thank you God for your many blessings that you bestow upon us. And uh Lord, I just thank you for the opportunity to uh acknowledge your presence here today,
Lord. There's no place where you are not. And so Lord, we acknowledge you being here. And just uh reading again from your word in uh 1 Timothy chapter 2, he said the Apostle Paul says, "First of all, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving
be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, those who are in authority." And God, I believe you you instruct us, admonish us uh to pray for those in authority, those who have been uh put in that places of authority and positions, Lord, to uh
minister uh to your people through those positions. There's accountability, there's responsibility, and as such, Lord, we need to pray. And that's my that's my desire this morning to lift up these leaders over [snorts] us here in Martin County and the decisions that will be made and the plans that will be
made not only today but in all the meetings that that go on throughout the weeks and months, Lord. And so God, I just lift them before you. I thank you for each one. I thank you for their lives. I pray for them today. I pray for peace and protection and and I pray for their families, Lord, that there'd be
health and healing in every area that's needed. And once again, God, we just acknowledge your presence here. So, I ask for this meeting today and the decisions that would be made, Lord, that would they would reflect uh your desire, your will, and your glory. And we thank you, God, that you're a good God. That
you love us so much. You care about every detail of our lives. And you care about what goes on here today. I [snorts] pray these things in the mighty name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. >> Amen. >> Amen. I pledge algiance 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. >> Can we start off with a with roll call, please? Yes. Commissioner Eileen Vargas
>> present. >> Commissioner Sarah Herd >> right here. >> Commissioner Stacy Heatherington >> here. >> Commissioner Blake Katz >> here. >> Commissioner Edward Campy >> here.
>> Commissioner Shawn Reed here. >> Commissioner Ka Mayfield has been excused. >> Mayor Carmine Depalo here. Commissioner Laura Gio >> here. >> We have a quorum.
>> Excellent. We have a new member, Commissioner Gio. Welcome. We're happy to have you here. >> Thank you. We need our representation from the city. >> Yes, we do. >> Um we Madam Chair, we also have a new staff member today. Um Tobias um Foucher is um this is his first day here and so
I want to welcome him. He's the new NO planner and we are short of an admin assistant today. So, um, please bear with us. We're we're training we're doing that duty. Ricardo and Bolivar and I will take care of of all the admin issues today. So, >> welcome.
>> Is there a motion to approve the agenda? >> Make a motion. >> Second. >> There's a motion and a second. Any objections? That motion passes unanimously. Is there a motion to approve the minutes of May 11, 2026? >> Make a motion. Second. >> There's a motion and a second. Any
objections? That motion passes unanimously. I have one request to speak from the public and it is from Gary Erler. Would you join us, please? Thank you for allowing me the time to speak. uh the vision statement of this board
and I'd like to read it off what I got off the internet to create and maintain a safe, efficient and resilient multimodal I always have trouble with that word transportation network to meet mobility and accessibility needs of Martin County residents and visitors
while pro preserving the environment supporting economic growth and enhancing the quality of life. I want to first go back well real quick couple meetings ago uh it's with within the last year I don't know the project's
100% complete but uh Avalon Street 40 homes uh now half their yards are taken away for right away I drove it this morning eight cars are blocking that driveways that's 20%
I'm sorry but it's not good planning especially when you have a safer path of right away behind those houses. We're talking about uh getting those kids to school, right? The narrow roads, two
trucks can't even pass at 25 mph, which is the speed limit. Uh putting a sidewalk to the west edge of the ride ofway, took up half their yard. Why are we trying to re-engineer existing streets to make them safer when in fact
taking away their quality of life? your your very own mission statement. You're wanting to do the same thing in Jensen Beach where you I don't know if you've actually pulled all the residents. You had uh I know you
had some uh public outreach, but I know that there was a petition going around and all the homeowners didn't agree with it. Page 36, number six, commerce from Port Serno to Indian Street. I brought this up in the
past. I'll bring it up again. Who pays what from Dominica Terrace North is now the city of Stewart, Martin County to the south. It's well documented that the number one reason for this project, yet
I've been told in the past, well, the number one reason was drainage. Um, and I've been told in the past that this project will start on the south end at Salerno Road instead of Indian Street
where in fact the drainage south is where it needs cleared. Lastly, I would like to correct the meeting minutes. Roll call just happened a minute ago. Uh, it is Mayor Shawn Reed, not Commissioner. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Any other requests to speak from the public? We will move on to the agenda. We'll take up uh 8A which is a public hearing which is the final draft 27 through 31 transportation improvement
program tip. This is a public a public hearing. I will call for public comment. >> Please proceed. >> Um okay. So, um, Bolivar Gomez, the senior planner for the NO will present this item. >> Okay. Good morning, uh, Madam Chair,
members of the board. Um, as mentioned, Bolivar Gomez, for the record. Okay. Okay. So, as mentioned, this is the uh final draft fiscal year 27 through fiscal year 31 transportation improvement program, which is also commonly known as the TIP document. Um,
this is a deliverable that the MO is required to produce annually. and to provide you all with an overview as well as the public. Um the tip document uh is essentially a comprehensive list of all the federally and state funded transportation projects that are going to be occurring in Martin
County uh over the next 5 years. It is also uh comp it is also composed of u locally funded projects as well and any regionally significant project that has been funded um can be found within the tip document. Also, our NO priority projects that have
been um funded for in some kind of capacity uh can be found within the TIP as well. The the document is also consistent with the uh 2050 long range transportation plan um specifically the projects that are identified as cost feasible. And
really the the tip is uh essentially a mirror of the DOT uh 5-year work program. Um really the purpose of the tip is to give local residents the um the ability to give input on the uh funded projects within Martin County. But but uh again it is essentially a a
mirror of the uh FO uh 27 through31 work program. Um also the TIP uh does have a 5-year planning horizon and as I mentioned earlier is updated annually and is financially constrained as well. So there's several different uh
components of the of the tip. Um really the majority of the document um lies within the appendices um specifically the uh project se sheets for all of the individual projects that are uh funded over the next 5 years. And as part of the TIP development
process, we are required to have an extent extensive public outreach component. Um we are required to uh make the document available for 45 days for public review and also host a public hearing which uh we are here today to uh to have the public hearing. And how we
went ahead and uh advertise the the tip um is through the local newspaper ads. We did have uh two separate local newspaper ads that went out to the local paper. Um it is also uh posted on our Martin website which um is still available um today.
Um also the tip has gone through the uh MO advisory committees um during the month of May as well as June and also the hard copies can actually be found in the local libraries here in the county as well as uh here on the first floor of the county administrative center.
So the the visual here on on the right hand side really gives uh a nice visual of how um projects make their way into the tip. Um every uh every year in June the the MPL policy board you all adopt a list of project priorities and that essentially gets transmitted to the
Florida Department of Transportation District 4 and if we're lucky enough uh those projects uh many of those projects will make their way into the uh draft tenant work program which comes before you in October and then from there the the Department of Transportation sends us a download of
all the uh Martin County projects which essentially makes up the the tip document which we are here today uh with you all today in June. So this here is the uh fiscal year 27 through fiscal year 31 project
priorities. This is actually the uh roadway improve project priorities that uh this board uh approved uh last year in June. So I am happy to report that um there are several of these projects that didn't make their way into this tip cycle uh for uh for programming and
funding. Um a couple of examples is the state road 710 project. Um the widening from uh two lanes to four lanes has made its way into the tip as well as the uh Willoughby Boulevard extension from Monterey Road to US1. Um there is uh funds program for design for that
project. Again, this is the list that the board approved last June. The the top one is the uh transportation alternatives program TAP priorities. Um the most recent addition to the tip is the Fisherman's Cove sidewalk project that um that has been approved and uh can be
found in a project sheet within the TIP. And then also the the the bottom table is the safety priority list that the board approved uh last year. And then this here is a list of the public transit priorities as as part of the uh T public review period. We are
also uh required to u make available the the public transit priorities um as well for public review. Um, this here shows the five-year summary of funding. I really wanted to just focus on the the number on the bottom hand bottom right hand side of the screen. Um, the total that we're
going to be receiving for this tip cycle is uh a little over $740 million uh for the next 5 years. And as a comparison, uh a year ago during last year's tip cycle, we received $370 million. So that has a a major increase for safety
improvements which um we really want to thank the department of transportation uh district 4 for assisting Martin County in receiving these federal and state funds as well as this board of course for um really um voicing their concerns um and prioritizing safety projects.
So this here is just an example project of a of a tip project sheet that can be found in the document. This is specifically state road 710 from the Martin uh/OSHobe County line to southwest FP and L access road. Um as you can see there are several different
uh funding sources and phases for this particular project. Um there are construction funds for for this particular segment in 2030-2031 that >> and uh here this table actually shows the public involvement schedule where we
are today. Um as I mentioned we we made the first draft available um all the way back at the uh end of April. So um uh it's gone through the advisory committees to this point. Uh we haven't received any public comment on the on the draft tips to this point and um we actually also learned that Department of
Transportation actually did approve the final draft um they actually uh reviewed it um within the last month and they uh have formally approved it um as well. And with that, I'm happy to answer any questions on any any of the projects and
staff is recommending approval of the uh final draft 27 through31 transportation improvement program. >> Thank you. Questions for Mr. Gomez. This is a public hearing. Would anyone from the public like to address us? I don't
see any. Back to Chair Mayor Reed. >> There's a little button you can push there. um >> uh to touch base on uh the public comment that was mentioned. I I've mentioned uh the same concerns and questions for several MO board meetings
and my questions have never been answered and it's regarding the transportation alternative program regarding the sidewalks and the land development code and the non-conforming and code enforcement when we authorize sidewalks in neighborhoods that were never designed for them.
I don't know if the same thing I see two on here. There's Washington Street and there's Fisherman's Cove, which I've brought up Fisherman's Cove more than once. I did bring up uh the other one as well that the public comment had mentioned. So, I'm not sure what staff's direction
is for answering the questions regarding where it comes from. Uh specifically regarding Fisherman's Cove, if there are public emails uh where the public had outreach to our elected officials to to showcase that they wanted sidewalks in their
neighborhood instead of staff going for potential grants and then presenting it to the public through outreach and programs. I'm just looking for something to back it up. >> Okay. Um just to clarify um all of the projects that you mentioned Avalon
Washington and Fish Fisherman's Cove are all um applications that are from the same funding source. They're transportation alternative program funds or TAP funds that there are federal funds. They were applied for by Martin County. Um they were applied for be at
the request usually of the public that wanting sidewalks in their neighborhood. Your questions have been answered at past meetings when you've brought up the code enforcement issues. You have been informed that that is not an NO issue. That is a county issue, a Martin County issue. And this board does not look at
code enforcement. Um I'm going to um um we have a representative from the attorney's office that will kind of can chime in on this after I um just let you know that it was the county that was the applicant. So, this application as does when the city um applies for TAP
funding, it goes to the city commission first and this these cases it went to the county commission first and they approved it and then it's sent to the NPO to prioritize the to approve and to prioritize those projects. Martin County MO, we're a small county. We don't get a
lot of funds, usually enough funds to fund one tap project. So, there's usually only one tap project every year. in um bigger um counties with have more population, they get a lot more money. So like Broward NO, I mean they may get like 30 TAP applications a year. So the
role of the advisory committees of the NO as well as the NO is to vet those projects, review them, and then prioritize them so they can send them to the state to fund because usually there's always more projects than funding. In our case where there's only one project a year usually, so usually
that's the priority. you all have an opportunity to review review it, discuss it, and approve it um so it's submitted to the state um in the case. [clears throat] So, I'll be happy to turn it over to the um uh representative from the attorney's office if you want to talk about code enforcement. That's
just not something that the NO board addresses. So, how the county or local governments address their code enforcement issues with grant applications. >> Thank you, Beth. >> Yeah, the >> So, so what is the the question specifically? How does this The question is you have property owners that have
non-conforming because they don't meet the land development code for parking requirements. Now, >> um I code all I can say from a code enforcement perspective is if it doesn't if it doesn't meet our ordinance, they will go out there and site people, but
this project wouldn't have been done had we uh made a non-conforming use. I'd have to do a little more research on that with our land use attorneys. Um, but I I I can't see how it's a non-conforming use when it was >> there's an approved project.
>> Yeah, there's minimum parking requirements. >> So, if you don't meet the minimum parking requirements, then you're non-conforming in the land development code for the county. Um, so I've brought that issue up in the past regarding Fisherman's Cove. Uh, I brought it up uh
regarding Timberwick and Jensen Beach, regarding the public outreach. Um, and I see, >> excuse me, Mayor Reed, have you um let the county commission know that? Have you, um, submitted a like a request for service or because like I said, like I've said at previous meetings, this is these those that's the county is the one
applying for the funds. So, um, if you, um, if you don't mind, I mean, that those that should be directed to the county commission. Um, so I mean because I don't know if the count it doesn't seem like the county would submit an application if it didn't um follow their
ordinances or follow their local procedures and rules. >> That that's my first thought, but we could look into this. >> Mr. Propari, would you identify yourself for the record, please? >> I'm sorry. Sebastianski, uh, assistant county attorney.
>> So, should I what what should I do then as a board member up here? Should I you said raise the questions with the BOCC then. So do I >> if it's if it's a concern of the city commission then the city commission can certainly write a letter. I mean you're the mayor so write a letter from the city commission to the board of county
commissioners commissioner um chair chair um herd is also the chair of the um county commission. So you can write a letter as on behalf of the city commission or if you wanted to do it personally. I mean there you could go to the county RFS site and um request for
service for that. >> So do my comments on this board not suffice to meet that requirement though? >> Well that I'm telling you what I've told you at past meetings to please contact the county commission either personally or if you or if the city commission is concerned about these applications, you know, to please I mean that's that's
part of what this board is about. like if you bring something like this up like you have in the past, um your the suggestion is to please have the commission reach out to the county commission and the city commission, please reach out to the county commission and let them know your concerns. But the NO board, I mean,
that's not part of their purview is to look at land development codes. I mean, we're for the federal TAP applications for um improvements for bicycle and pedestrian facilities in the area. Um, this board's responsibility is to review and prioritize those projects which you
have done with all all of those applications. Commissioner Gobi. Yes. Um, new to the board. Thank you everyone for welcoming me. I have a question regarding the Willoughby extension. It's the one project I do know about. I've been involved in it.
But it was my understanding that there was at least 60% of the individuals in that area who have reached out to the of FDOT saying that they were not in favor of this project. So I see that it's still on the agenda. Does it just stay
on the agenda till there's a final vote? I don't know the process. Well, they're in the they're doing the PD&E study which is an environmental study and in this case um the Willoughby extension is one of the highest levels of the PDE. So I think it's taken about almost four
years to complete. Um recently the NO board did have a presentation from the from the project manager um of that study from the FDOT project manager and he talked about not only um the traffic um benefits from that for that study but also the um update for the environmental
analysis that was done on that study. So um I think that was back in either um February or April. So that those um no board meetings are online. So if you wanted to [cough] kind of look what the um um um project manager discussed, you
can can look at that. Um he also talked about the PD&E process which looks at different alternatives for that project. The one um there is an alternative as a no build alternative. I know the city of Stewart actually that commission did submit a letter stating to FDOT that
they supported the no build alternative, but um right now the study is still going on. Um, and so we're just kind of waiting till the it's on the list right now. So until we get the um the final document and um analysis from FDOT, um
projects usually stay on the list until they finish that phase. >> Okay. Is there an anticipated date for that report? >> Sorry. >> Is there an anticipated date for that report from FDOT? >> You know, um of of any We can get that to you. The the completion date of the PD study. Like I said, this is a high
level of environmental study and it takes almost up to four years for this kind of study in EIS. >> Thank you, >> Commissioner Vargas. >> Yeah. Uh, Mayor Reid brought up a very important point and I did drive the area as Jensen Beach uh about the students
walking to school. Now, Mayor Reid, were you talking about there is passageway behind the homes that is safer in that area or which area were you talking about? >> That that was public comment that mentioned that. Yeah, exactly. Um, that's right. The gentleman in the back there. That's right. And is he going to
be speaking again? Uh, >> chairman woman heard. >> He's requested to speak and it is a public hearing. >> All right. >> Sure. >> Absolutely. [clears throat] I I wasn't sure I could could speak on
this agenda item with so many, but the right of way behind those homes off of Avalon would have been the safer path for those children to make it to school. I I looked at the map. It's it runs the whole length from Serno to Cove. The
kids wouldn't have been anywhere on the school. I drove it this morning. There's a AT&T or there's a van there pulled two feet on the other side with a cone out. You can't get I had to go on the other
into the other rideway to make it down the road. It's my understanding that those neighbors I'm sorry I drive an ice cream truck. I'm all over the county. I'm in every one of your jurisdictions. I'm in Indian Town. I'm in Jensen Beach. I'm all over Martin County. Usually
every week I talk to everyone. Um, I understand that they didn't want that road widened and that's the reason why the sidewalk was pushed so far to the west of the rideway. Proper planning, quality of life, and everything that we all hold dear me from
7 years ago moving here and understanding it and and embracing it. that pathway, that ride ofway could have been done and we wouldn't have had as as Mayor Reid has brought up multiple times
and I understand we're beating a dead horse. I'm just saying moving forward, we need to look at every possible possibility and not take the easy way. Thank you. >> Thank you, >> Commissioner Heatherington. Yeah, I
could speak uh not on some of the other projects, but specifically and briefly to Fisherman's Cove. Over the years, we've had a number of calls to their our district office requesting pedestrian safety, um requesting sidewalks,
requesting safer paths to the bus stops. I believe, if my recollection serves me, we even had public comment at a Board of County Commission meeting. So, um, that I can attest that there are a number of our constituents in district 2 that have
specifically requested safer paths and sidewalks and fisherman's code. That's it. >> Any further comments or questions? Is there a motion to approve the tip?
>> I'll move approval of the tip. >> Second. >> There's a motion and a second. All those in favor? I opposed? No. Is that opposition mayor? >> It is. Yes. >> There that motion passes. Uh with commissioner or mayor uh Reed
dissenting. Let's move on to item number 8B which is the uh FY28 through 32 list of project priorities. Okay. So, um the tip the last item
actually closes out the um the that NO cycle of funding where now this item the fiscal year 28 through fiscal year 32 list of project priorities starts the next cycle of NO funding. This list of project priorities um is um in final
draft form. You all reviewed it and approved it back in February. Um it went to the district office so they could vet the project so hopefully find funding for us when they present the um tenative work program to us in the fall. Um that
comes back in final form at this meeting so you all can approve it and we'll submit the adopted copy to the um to the district office. Like I said, it'll come back um in the um form of a draft tenative work program in the fall and they will let us know what projects they
have funded and then from there it goes to Tallahassee and is part of the state's transportation budget. So there were a couple of changes from and there are four lists as um Boulevard reviewed in the last item with the tip. He reviewed the four lists from last
year that you all approved. There are four lists this year. The primary list is the roadway list and there are a couple of changes on here um since February when you all approved it. One was at your request. Actually, it was um
the city commissioner, it was actually Commissioner Collins at the time requested that the FEC railroad bridge over the St. Lucy River to be included on this list. Um we uh um the passenger rail station was included as number five, but he requested that the FEC
railroad bridge is included as well because that the um the city is working to apply for federal funds for that bridge. Both these funds and as well as the funds for the passenger rail station. Those are illustrative projects in our long-range transportation plan.
They don't compete with the other projects for those funding on this list, but because they're federal funding, it's important to include this list and show that the NO has prioritize these projects. The second change since February is the US number eight, and
that is the US1 um extended right turn lane. Just to kind of give you a um a reminder, um the state has funded for construction a project, an intersection project um at the intersection of US1 and Caner Highway. Um there's a
presentation on that project later in the agenda. Part of that project is a triple left turn from Caner turning north towards the Roosevelt Bridge as well as a dedicated right turn lane when you're on US one turning right onto Caner Highway. um that in an analysis in
the PD&E study for that project, it was found that the right turn lane really needs to be longer than it is as part of this intersection project. It needs to be extended um probably over 900 ft. But because this project does not include
that in the scope, um FOT recommended that we have a separate project to extend the right turn lane, a dedicated right turn lane, will it be included in the intersection project? it just won't be that added length that this this project that this separate project
indicates. And like I said, the um the intersection project will be presented to you later on in this agenda. Just a as a reminder, the two new projects um well, there's one new project on this list and that is uh number 12. That is
the resource surfacing and safety improvements on Martin Highway and that is from east of Fox Brown Road to west of I95. When we submitted the draft list back in February, um the county had submitted a scoping application for this
project. Um so that has been um being reviewed by FDOT right now. Um the second list is a safety list and that also has a new project that you all um approved back in February as part of the draft list and that is the dedicated left turn lane going westbound on Bridge
[clears throat] Road is Southeast Power Line Avenue. Um the other two um list that um that's kind of that that could be where's the sorry about that. Okay. Um it's kind of sensitive. Um the other two
list on this um on this um uh on this item, one is the transportation alternative programs or TAP priorities that we were talking about earlier and that is for sidewalks and bicycle improvements along certain roadways. This past year you all had approved a
Palm Lake Park sidewalk project and right now FDOT is reviewing it and so that's why it says pending on this list, the last item [clears throat] on this list. And then the fourth um list of project priorities, we're required to have a transit list. And we get this from the public transit um system every
year. And it pretty much the items on this list stay the same where the capital projects, capital money will be spent on bus replacement and expansion and the required security and safety percentages that are required to go towards those kind of projects. And then the operating funds received um from the
federal government are spent on operating the system. So, I'll be, like I said, um, these projects pretty much mirror what you all approved back in February, but I will certainly be happy to answer any questions if you all have any questions. And staff is recommending approval of these pro list of project
priorities that we can send to FDOT. >> Commissioner Campy, >> thank you. Miss Beltran, do we have the ability to maneuver any of these on the ranking or is this a >> Sure. Sure. Yeah. If you >> I would make a suggestion that we take number six and switch it for number
five, rotate those two and make the um railroad bridge a higher priority than the station. >> Okay, >> that's just my suggestion based on the fact that uh the railroad bridge is nearly a hundred years old. Uh it's a
very important um project and I think the more I appreciate that it's on the list and the more we show how important it is to the community uh even by bringing it up a single rank. The other thing I'd say is this is our sort of our wish list just because I I don't want
the residents to think just because something is on this list that automatically wheels are in motion to start all these projects. I get some of these have long long long lead times. So, I just maybe it's just more of a small issue, but I think the bridge uh
over the river is of higher importance in my opinion than the passenger rail station, even if it's just one ranking. >> Commissioner Vargas, >> yes. I noticed that some of these projects have county funding also with
it. State, federal, county. You've talked about in the previous section. Is that correct? No. Well, the list that the roadway list, no, those are 100% funded with state and federal funds. Um, so, um, so the projects that are funded from this list, the most recent, um,
project from last year's list, the the big project that was funded was State Road 710. So, that's all federal and state funds. >> I understand that. But I think in the previous section, A I noticed federal, local, bridge bonds, state, local would be US, tolls, turnpike,
>> total. So we're putting in funding also for those I'm talking about under a >> under a >> section a yeah the first section we spoke about >> under the tip >> under the tip >> under the the tip okay so under a for
the tip do what what which is there specific >> we're talking on page 32 of 270 I'll just go right there >> 32 >> I've seen that several times >> okay so let's go up here Okay. >> So, where it says local, that's county
funds. >> Yeah, those are county funds. So, there are some projects that are funded that are local match. They're used for local match for federal and state funding. For instance, the transit system, there's a local match required for capital and um operating funds that you all get from
that the county receives from the federal and state government. The capital money is matched 80% capital. I mean 80% um federal 20% um local and I think the operating is 50/50. Um the tap funding um the um it is the tap projects
are usually funded for construction and I believe C and I too whereas the design of those projects are funded by the local government. >> Okay. So in spite of the fact that you know we just had a very sobering report in our last board meeting about the
change the potential change in income. Are we still required for this particular number to supply or you're not certain about that? >> Well then no that's the we're so so the the project the grants that have already been applied for are there are going to there are planned to be applied for
right now. The thought is that um that the local match will be you know budgeted accordingly. Now if something comes up at the local level where the local government is not able to pay that local match we would simply you know they would simply inform FOT the NO and
the F dot or federal highway that the local match is not available. I mean that's >> okay. So that's not set in stone because we really are in a fluid position right now. >> Okay. And then I'm going to go back to page 236270, the section you're on here. Bus replacement expansion. We've had
discussions about this. The buses are huge. We talked about jitneys, smaller buses. [sighs and gasps] So far as wrership, >> okay, so we're going to place it with very large buses also. >> Okay. So this is a list that um the NO
receives from the transit division of the county. And so whatever the transit the board of county commissioners and the transit division decides and approves in their plan, that's what they send the NO and that's what we put in this list to send to FOT. Now, if
there's a change in that um once again, then um the county would let the NO and FOT know. So when this list is revised next year, you'll see a different list. >> Okay. So, aren't you going to be retiring some of the buses within about
2 years? >> That would be >> from the original contract with the federal government. >> That is not the MOO. That's the transit division for Martin County. So, if they decide to do that, they will let us know on next year's list of project priorities or program of project is the
acronym is the POP that the Federal Transit Administration uses. They will let us know and that change will be reflected in the list for next year. >> Okay. Okay. So that would be the BOCC deciding that we are going to retire those buses >> and you will see that change in the draft list actually that comes before
you in February. So that would be February of 2027. >> Further questions on the uh list of project priorities. Is there a motion to approve? >> I will make a motion to approve. >> Second. >> There's a motion and a second. All those
in favor? I >> opposed. That motion passes unanimously. Next, we will take up agenda item C, which is continuity of operations plan. Yes, the continuity of operations plan or coupe is a federally required
document and we are periodically required to update that document and Ricardo Vasquez the principal planner for the NO will present this item. >> Good morning. As Beck mentioned, Ricardo Vasquez, principal planner with the MPO. Good to see you all this morning. So, as
Beth mentioned, our continuity of of operations plan or what we call our coupe is a document that is our guideline of how we will conduct business in the event of an emergency in this county. Um, that's more likely going to be a hurricane for us. Um, but
back in 2020, of course, we had the pandemic. So, um, back in 2021, we did that was our last major update to the coupe or we added how we would conduct business during a pandemic. But for the most part, our coupe outlines how we're going to hold meetings, how we're going to meet our deadlines, and how we make
sure that the MO keeps receiving funding for the county and for the municipalities for transportation projects um in the event of an emergency. So, just because an emergency happens doesn't mean um the world stops. We have to keep we have to keep working. So, this document uh does that and make sure that we're we're on track with our
projects and our plans. Um with that, this update uh we reviewed it. We have no major changes to the document. What we did is we made it more ADA accessible. So we took out some decorative items. We updated the pictures with alt text um so that the document in the event that it's
requested by someone that it is ADA accessible. So those are the the only real major changes to this document. So I'll be happy to answer any questions and we are looking for approval of the coupe update. >> Any questions for Mr. Vasquez?
>> I'll move approval of the coupe update. >> Second. >> There's a motion and a second. Any further discussion? All those in favor? I opposed. That motion passes unanimously. Thank you. We'll move on to agenda item D,
which is uh discussion on state road 5 US1 at Caner Highway intersection improvements project. >> Yes, we are fortunate to have Dearis Williams. She is the project manager for the US1 at Caner Highway intersection
improvement projects um um the project and she is um here to update you all on the PD study and this has been um this was a um NO priority. It was priority number 14 in 2023 and we've worked closely to um with FDOT to expedite this
project and it does have currently funding for construction program. So with that I will turn it over to you Demarz. Thanks for the introduction, Beth. Again, I'm Dearis Williams. It's funny. I I was able to look up when the MO priority in 2023, but I I I'm sure it
showed up previously. Um, and I'll actually let me go state that initially this project just added a right turn lane from US from southbound US1 to Caner Highway and then later on
um a few years probably more or less around 2023 um the right the triple lefts were added um from Caner Highway to northbound US1. So this this presentation is to provide
a project status update and also share a a need for the intersection as well that couldn't be um addressed in this project. So the next two slides I have orange colorcoded kind of to denote just the right turn lane scope. Then there'll
be two more slides that that is kind of colorcoded green to denote the triple FS. So in this illustration um I I highlight the right turn lane um widening portion of the intersection. Um
it requires right away on the southwest corner of the intersection which is a parking area for a plaza. And then in the following uh slide it's the payment marking that accommodates the right turn lane. This right turn
lane is approximately 220 ft. And I will be elaborating why this project can only accommodate a a shorter version of a longer right turn lane need. So in this slide it illustrates the or
highlights the widening portion to accommodate the triple lefts. And on the Caner highway side, the the road is skewed to the left or to the west. And then there's on the receiving end on the US1 side, um there's [clears throat]
also widening to receive the triple lefts. Um so when when we provide triple FS the designers kind of model if um some combination of vehicle semi-truck
vehicle um some combination that meets our astral standards and in order to the reason for the um skewing of Caner is to provide some um buffer space so that Colorado um is also making a left turn simult
simultaneously um with Caner 2 US1 and they're maintaining a a buffer required space. Um so this part requires um rightway on
the southwest corner and the the skewing of Caner Highway actually eliminates a bunch of parking spots that's abud the the back of sidewalk today. Um right now we we actually anticipate that during
the rightway um acquiring process we'll we might face some resistance because there's a restaurant that we could see from aerial view um gave up some parking spaces for um outside seating and so
this will just add to you know the reduction of of uh parking spaces. But nonetheless, I'm pretty sure we'll we'll acquire it. It just will probably take a little bit longer to, you know, to to to get settled on that
um those impacts. And then, you know, on like I mentioned, we're widening the the pavement because to receive the triple lefts, um the design team actually avoid um did a design change to avoid on the
northeast corner doing any rightaway takes by um utilizing this is like extra information. Um uh there's an existing mast arm and it and the arm was long enough to to accommodate additional signal heads and
you know they did some structural um analysis to to ensure that it could handle that and also since the sidewalk is very narrow there. I actually had to excavate um where the anchor bolts were cuz it cuz it was covered, you know, to
to provide space for the sidewalk. That was removed to make sure the those are in good condition and then um covered up again. So, a little uh fun fact there. And then this illustration pretty much is um the
new parent markings accommodates the the triple FS. So during when we added the triplef uh scope there was a concept development study that provide traffic modeling to
ensure that doing or justify that the triple lefts actually um is beneficial for for the intersection operations. And in doing so, um, the design team spotted that the right turn actually requires
probably approximately 900 ft. The the study was done in 2023 and then they showed like a modeling of 2025 um, no build scenario and then 2045. So respectively you had 900 over 900 foot
need and then over 1,000 foot need in 2045. So the I went ahead and and requested a rideway cost estimate for like you know the ideal length and I
think we went with 1,000 ft. And one of the reasons why we're doing the shorter version, which I'll also elaborate in the next couple of slides, you know, there's a gas station and and there are some challenges with that gas station there, but overall um the cost um to
fund the rideway for that length, we were 10 million under budget or um yeah, under budget pretty much. So, we decided to keep the right turn lane. um what we
can and um despite that in the peak hours in the morning and the and and in the afternoon, there's still uh intersection delay is reduced throughout the whole day. And by separating the right turn lane, there's um a reduction
of potential rear ends by separating right turn lane through through lane. So, back to the gas station. Um you know, on the top there's two driveways. Those are the locations. probably not very uh easily spotted from an aerial view. Um
and then so one of the challenges we anticipated is that we would have some o um providing that right turn lane would overlap underground storage tanks um for fuel for for the gas station. Also, um
there's less maneuverability between the the fuel aisles and also we we thought that this would impact the delivery trucks from accessing and maneuvering it. So, we anticipate total business damages in in this scenario. So, maybe
perhaps this might just mean okay, we're going to acquire the whole property as well. So this um version of the slide shows what the right turn lane would you know look like and if [laughter] if
um just to illustrate kind of the impacts. Now you have um at the back of sidewalk approximately 8 ft that's not enough to to maneuver between aisles. So, um we see the need to provide an an additional project that would extend
that right turn um back, you know, up to a full 1,000 ft [laughter] to provide the, you know, storage for the for the queue needs and and having that project fund the the added, you know, 10 million
or the project in itself would have the rightway of 10 million. for phase 43 um which is acquiring the rightway and all that goes with it um support for it you know appraising it and those type of services. So going back to the current
project um we initially uh were going to let this project in fiscal year 28 um with a production in September 2027. However, going back and forth with the legal team and the rightway team um and making sure that we had the proper uh
justification for the right turn and the triple lefts and so forth. That that kind of took up some time. We had to multiple meetings and then um the rightway phase, the rightway group seeing that we're eliminating a bunch of parking spaces said uh we need 24 months
instead of 20 months for the for the project. So that kind of would push out the the project um about a year later. Um and then also uh ideally we we would want to um fund the construction fiscal
year 29 but um it's unlikely that will occur only because uh a lot of the funding is being um supporting the state road 710 project which we know has a lot of uh fatalities and and so it's a top
priority. So, um, maybe just 5 months later, we're going to we anticipate letting to be in July 2029, which is the first month of fiscal year 30. And the rightway and services are 5.2 million today. The anticipated construction cost
2.8 million and the construction support which is um construction inspection um engineering um services 573,000. So for the the need that we saw for a project that extends a right turn lane,
we anticipate that project would have like a 4-year design life because somewhere in the middle you would have a 24-month rideway phase. Usually you have the initial plans, it enters the rightway phase and then we can confidently produce um 60% plans knowing
that we have acquired the rightway. So an example would be, you know, if we potentially fund fiscal year 27 design and have a lighting in fiscal year 31 would probably, you know, um fitly n uh
nicely fit right after um the main intersection project improvement happens and then the extension could happen potentially um right after. So it might could be seamless to the public. Um so anticipated cost for for that since it's
just the extending the right turn lane 171 for design right away and services 10 million construction cost 591,000 and construction support 121,000.
So, um I know Beth had let me know um when I was presenting to the I think uh is it the technical advisory group that that the extension project was prioritized. So that's good news. So
does anybody have any questions? Yeah. You think that that right ofway is for the total project is going to be $10 million? I mean 15 million five plus 10 um hold on let me see go back this time
it was on the rightway um would be 10 million which includes the the services >> plus the current one is 5.2. >> Oh yeah the so so the current one stands
on its own. Yeah, but if if if it was done if we anticipated the funding needs for right away earlier enough, it would have been a project with $15 million um right away >> and construction cost for the right turn
lane extension project is only $591,000, >> right? Because the other one is um 2 let me see I I don't >> 2.8. I don't trust my memory. So 2.8 And yeah, since it's just a right turn lane extension, yeah, it's it's a lot
less cuz a bulk of the work is being done by the the current project. Um, also the the uh drawings are really really unclear. So, let me just walk through the changes that are proposed.
If I'm headed uh I I'll east on Caner, the changes are going to be on the eastbound from Caner, west side of US1, there are going to be three dedicated
northbound lanes, one through lane, one right lane. Is that correct? Uh so yeah the Caner is tricky because for the most part you know starting from way west Caner is a
east and west corridor but then um the leg you know south of this intersection it kind of behaves more like a northbound southbound. So um and then US1 typically you a north south corridor here it almost resembles an east and
west. So, let me follow what you're saying. Um, uh, you said eastbound. So, that would be, >> um, on this, um, >> eastbound Caner at the intersection, west of the intersection, there are going to be three dedicated north
>> lanes, one through lane, one right turn lane southbound. >> Is that correct? >> I think uh, so it's interesting. I think here it shows two, but it the Caner Highway is a sixlane corridor.
>> So, um it should remain that, >> but you can't if you're going to add a uh a left turn lane, >> then it changes. >> Correct. >> Yeah. Three left turn lanes that go north. Yes. >> Yeah. So, yeah. >> Do the do the westbound ones on Caner
remain the same? Three. >> Yeah. So here you have two that eventually opens up to three >> because the the lanes coming from Colorado and then the right turn there isn't a a full need for a three lane but then
it does open up to to three is US1 are the lanes remaining the same north and south both sides of the intersection. >> No if you have three lefts you need to have three lanes for them to go into. That's what she's talking about with the gas
station being too tight. >> Gas station's too tight. >> Oh, I thought that was the southbound one. Gas. >> Some are going northbound on US1. It'll it'll remain the same. The three left turns are going into the three lanes on northbound US1. There's no extensions of US. >> Three to two would.
>> And what does Colorado westbound look like? Any changes there? >> So Colorado um there is like a a buffer um between the through There a new lane. Is there a new dedication for a lane? >> No, it's just a skewing of the left turn lane.
>> Yeah. Right here. >> And US1 southbound and also westbound. Is there an additional lengthening of the the westbound right turn lane? >> Yes.
>> So that you can more more cars westbound on Caner. >> You're going to need it. There there's a a re rest re restriping of you know I wish I had an aerial view of what it is today but
um >> do you want us to pull up an aerial view of >> Yeah. Yeah. If you have one it might be easier to I think what would have would have been a through lane is is going to be pavement marked as a as a a third left
turn. So the through lane will be a through and a right turn lane. Through from >> No, it would be only left turn only. >> No, it will be through. Yes, there's a through lane. Has to be a three. >> So there will only be one through lane >> and one right turn lane.
>> Yeah. >> And three left >> instead of now, which is stupid. And it's even hard to tell the 50T cars. >> Yeah. are there. So right now you have these two lanes are are um left turns
>> and these two are through >> and then you have the right I think in the new configuration um these three will be >> left then you have the through and then a right. >> It's a vast improvement. >> Um [laughter]
I'm assuming that cuz again I need that I don't know how to toggle back to the to the PowerPoint. >> Gotcha. If we could maybe toggle >> this is better. >> Yeah. >> And then there's going to be some
skewing just to be able to have the [clears throat] left turns happen at the same time. Okay. So, so, so um the right lane is becoming a right and through. There we go. So, you still maintain two throughs? >> No, it's not. Tell Please tell me that's
not true because that's really stupid right now. If we're going to continue that, it's it's a big mistake. There should be one right, one through, and three lefts. >> If you go back to the photograph, >> the aerial actually. >> Yeah. >> And yeah, go north a little bit towards
the city of Stewart. Keep going. Keep going. >> Everyone that goes this road knows that there's two lanes and then it merges right there and everyone's forced to try to push in because by the time you get to >> the traffic circle, it's one. So everyone merges over one lane into
downtown Stewart's probably enough. >> Well, unfortunately I don't have the the the engineer of record with me, but I I will convey your your your feedback and and see there's I imagine
that there's a a justification for that uh configuration. >> Okay. >> Um so your recommendation is that the rightmost lane be a right only? Yeah. >> Yeah. Currently is >> there. There's no way possible for it to have a through lane. The ways configured
there. If you look at it, you'd be on the sidewalk >> if you went through >> on the opposite side where the bank is. >> Right. Right. Um Yeah. Customarily when when there's a deflection in the through the intersection, there's guide uh
guidelines. However, the the trip the left turns are being guided. So, if we had I'd imagine additional um guidelines for for the straight path that that would clutter the the
intersection with uh guidelines, but I'll provide that feedback and and see. Madam Chair, >> Al also the if there are three dedicated left turn lanes onto US1, then the people on Colorado turning north on US1
won't be able to turn right on red. >> That's correct. >> Yeah, I'm I'm sure that's being taken into account. >> Commissioner CS >> wondered if we could go to page 266.
So when we look at the challenges, roadway [snorts] pavement widening, overlaps, underground storage tanks, space loss from access to fueling aisle, truck access, loss for fuel delivery, total business damages, and then the
recommendation NO prioritize right turn lane extension project. >> How are we going to resolve those challenges if we're going to
honor this recommendation? Like >> which challenge are you speaking about? >> The ones are listed. Well, most likely we're going to acquire that right away because the the the property owner won't be able to function as a gas station any longer.
>> Mhm. >> Um but that's that's what you know kind of was the challenge to us making a longer right turn lane. um just the the rightway cost impacts and and
what we will end up doing to the to that gas station that will drive up that rightway need cost or >> and perhaps that's the reason the rightway cost is projected to be so high is that
basically >> that that contributes to it. Yes. >> Right. Right. It basically >> besides that it's actually a really long you know lane >> right >> based on the Q >> basically it would mean the gas station has to go somewhere else
>> there is not going to be a gas station there which may have to be but >> most likely yeah >> right okay thank you >> any further questions >> Mr. Joby. >> Yeah, I'm not sure. This question is really not for the MO or the FDOT. It's
actually to this commission. As Mayor Reed stated uh previously, um with all of these widening roads, we're taking away um parking limitations for now businesses or maybe losing businesses. We're taking them away for uh homeowners. So, I
understand that the MO and the FDOT do not deal with the restrictions and the guidelines within the county and the city, but I think it's really important going forward, and I apologize. I know I'm new to this committee, but it's really important going forward that before we get to this level, the county
and the city should have been involved in those decisions so that we could then look at what rights would be taken away from business owners and homeowners. >> Thank you. Any further questions?
This is just for information and discussion. There's no motion that's necessary. Thank you. >> All right. Thank you as well. >> Thank you. >> We look forward to an engineers report. Uh now, is there a State Road 710 update? >> Yes. Victoria Peters is here from the
district office to give the State Road 710 update. Morning. >> Good morning, chair. Good morning, members of the board. Thank you, Ricky. My name is Victoria Peters from FDOT. So, I'm in here. I'm in lie of uh Mr.
Rob Lopez, who is your project manager for 710. He's in another meeting. Um so, I am taking the reigns for today and thank you so much for the opportunity. So, um first up for 710, I have other uh updates as well. We have completed, good
news, we have completed the right-of-way requirements for all segments except the segment of 45333-2 which we are expecting this segment to be completed by the end of this month. Excellent. The maps and legal descriptions for all other segments,
they're currently being under development. This should be also completed by end of November and the appraisals for those maps will will be completed thereafter. Currently, we're in the process of scheduling initial public hearings for
all the segments. The -6 and the -4 will be the first to go and they'll be held in October, this October. Um, in the meantime, we have been having one-on-one meetings. The department's been having one-on-one meetings with the property owners, and the discussions have
primarily focused on driveway usage and access for the property and other drainage concerns. The letting dates you see on the public website are still the target dates that we feel are feasible. Thank you, Ricky.
Additionally, we have some really good news. FDOT has been looking at additional short and midterm solutions to increase safety in the corridor. Here is some great news I want to share with the board this morning. We have recently completed a State Road 710 passing zone
feasibility study and also a speed study. These studies were accomplished with an eye to determine additional midterm solutions and improvements in the corridor. We have received the draft report and currently the draft report is under review and the review takes
approximately three 3 to four months before we receive the results. Additionally, our Palm Beach operations folks went out to the farmers market event and received feedback and suggestions to place flashing speed signs with blue I think it's new for the
department with blue flashing lights along 710 in strategic locations to alert drivers of the posted speed limit um and what this versus what their speed actually is when they drive by. FDOT is now in the process of procuring these
special signs. They take about one to two, I'm sorry, one to two months until they are procured and placed. Additionally, approximately one month ago, FDOT attended a safety exchange in the Treasure Coast and there was a recommendation to build a pulloff area
for law enforcement. And today, Chris Carries, uh, our Treasure Coast Operations Engineer, he's usually at these meetings, um, is not here today because he's with the sheriff's department on 710 touring the area to eval evaluate potential pullover areas where the sheriff could safely pull over
speeders and provide more enforcement on State Road 710. And I'll take any questions you may have. >> Questions? >> Thank you very much. Thank you. >> You're welcome. And also I wanted to I wanted to speak with commissioner I'm so
sorry your name. >> Okay. Goi. >> Job. Um I did hear back. I was chatting with our team and the project manager Venita said your PDN that you asked about uh for Willoughby would take approximately 2 years to complete. They think and I have the chat. I have some
good news. Um they think it will be actually in 27 instead of 28. 28 would be the two years. Um, and it's going to go to um I'm so sorry I had it's going to go to public hearing, I believe, in a year. So, and we're going to have a
public workshop before that. So, we're aiming 28 is the the date. We're trying to get it done sooner. >> Thank you so much. >> You're welcome so much. Thank you. And thank you, Ricky. Thank you, board. Further questions? We have reached the end of our
published agenda. Are there any comments from committee members? Any comments from FDOT? >> There is a committee member question. >> Commissioner Heatherington. >> I just wanted to thank uh Secretary
Brun's office and DOT. We um had been receiving a number of constituent resident concerns along Caner Highway um on traffic safety. So they implemented a roadway safety on it and there were
eight steps to it and if you um we will publish and hopefully we'll have the findings but there was a good I know many of you can't see this a 20 some odd people that showed up to the roadway safety audit between um FDOT representative Beth and her office was
there our public works department and analyze the corridor and what they find a lot of our residents always today they're speeding they're speeding in fact 85 percentile there were many people speeding on Caner highway upwards of 60 and 70 mph
so they implemented um sort of the um the audit and they presented their preliminary findings to our office they will now um formalize those responses and those findings and they will present those and implement some changes to that
corridor door, which could be pedestrian safety. It could could include um signalization and um certainly some roadway pedestrian safety. So, I want to thank the residents for speaking up and I want to
thank DOT for actually implementing this roadway safety audit audit and I expect that we should have that report in the next month or two and hopefully they can come back here and present that to the uh MO once it's finalized.
>> Thank you. Any other comments? Miss Beltran, any comments? Our next meeting is September 21, 2026.