Um, city clerk. >> Yes. >> Can we do a roll call, please? >> Yes. Commissioner Davis, >> here. >> Commissioner Dolison, >> here. >> Commissioner Birdong, >> here. >> Mayor Potm Mercer
>> here. and Mayor Yates is not present. >> Um the invocation in the pledge will be done at Monday night's meeting. Um and the pledge of allegiance. Um we have three presentations for Monday and the strategic plan for tonight and we'll be
doing that at the end of the meeting. Um, also there are no minutes to review and there are no ordinances or second readings to review. So now we're um have
the consent agenda and the deputy city manager will walk us through um these items. >> All right. Thank you. Good evening, mayor and city commissioners. Uh so the first item we have on the agenda tonight is an agreement for transfer of public roads for Avenue K Southwest from Sixth Street Southwest to Third Street. So
this is down by Bordon Derry and I will ask public works director Britney Hart to present this one. >> Mayor Commissioners. Uh so Avenue K Southwest is a county roadway that extends from Sixth Street Southwest on
the western side um to Third Street Highway 17 on the eastern side. This is a roadway that is currently owned by PK County. However, all of the adjacent properties are located within the city's municipal limits. You can see on your screen that there is board and dairy,
the Aldi's, and then there are businesses just on the south side. Um, so Avenue K Southwest consists of approximately 30.34 lane miles and is considered in excellent condition as Pulk County just resurfaced this roadway in early spring of 26. The ride ofway
includes sidewalks along the northern side and a portion of the southern side of the roadway. And the the drainage infrastructure within the corridor was refurbished in 2025 when Pulk County did a cured in place pipelining. Um and that is also considered to be in good condition. Uh we've inspected this area
and have found that the conditions are all good as uh stated by PK County. Um and this roadway could be taken over. If we do accept the transfer, we will be responsible for the maintenance of the roadway, the sidewalk, and the drainage infrastructure. So, there's going to be no direct
financial impact associated with this transfer. However, we're going to assume those responsibilities for the long-term maintenance, and we would incorporate this uh 34 lane miles into our roadway inventory and increase the total uh mileage used um so we can get our share of the local gas tax revenue. And so
with that, the city is going the staff recommends that the commission approve the transfer of Avenue K Southwest from Pulk County to Winter Haven and authorize the city manager or his designate to take to execute that agreement and take any other actions necessary to facilitate the transfer.
>> All right. >> Thank you, ma'am. Uh so the next item on the agenda is ITB 2615 uh Roosevelt Drive complete street project. So, this is a local agency program that we are partnering with the FDOT on uh to put a
complete street project on Roosevelt Drive. And I will ask Todd Gooding, our assistant public works director, to kind of walk us through this one. >> Good morning or good afternoon, commissioners, mayor pro Tim. Uh the Florida Department of Transportation awarded the city of Winter Haven a1,211,12
grant to fund a portion of the complete street enhancements along Roosevelt Drive from SR540 Cypress to Cypress Gardens Boulevard to Register Road. Following the award, the city entered into a lap agreement with FDOT after approval of resolution R2540
and resolution R2603. Kimley Horn has worked closely with city staff to design the project which includes extending the roadway to connect with register road, adding pedestrian facilities where none will currently exist, installing curb and gutter and rain gardens to improve the
storm water management aspect and resurfacing the roadway to enhance drivability. The project also includes a significant water utility component consisting of the replacement of an existing asbestous sewer force main and potable water man allowing the city to utilize a
coordinated one approach to minimize further disruption and improve overall efficiency. Following approval of the 100 100% design plans by both the city and FDOT, FDOT issued a notice to proceed with the advertisement and the project was advertised for bid as ITB
2615 in midFebruary of 26. Eight sealed bids were received and opened on April 8th of 26 and of the eight biders Ajax Paving Industries of Florida was determined to be the lowest responsive and responsible bidder. A recommendation of award was subsequently posted and no
protest were received. Pending award by the city commission and final approval by DOT. Staff anticipates construction will begin in late June 2026. And once a notice of proceed is issued, the contractor will have 275 calendar days to complete the project.
Total for the financial impact the total project cost was bid at $2,42,724 with the roadway portion totaling 1,218,652 and the utilities portion totaling $824,72. FD FDOT will reimburse the city a
maximum of 1,211,12 for the construction of the roadway and pedestrian improvements associated with the project. The remaining balance of $7,550 for the road portion will be funded using funds budgeted for the project within our fiscal year 2627
transportation fund. The utilities portion of the project will be funded using funds budgeted within the fiscical year 2627 utility fund to allow for a streamlined administration and issuance of a single purchase project purchase order. Funds associated with the utility
portion of the project will be transferred from the utility fund to the transportation fund. This project aligns with the strategic pillars for infrastructure under goals 3.1 and 3.2 and also under responsible government for goal 6.1.
Staff recommends the city commission award ITB 2615 to Ajax Paving Industries of Florida and authorize the city manager or his designate to issue a purchase order in the amount of 2,42724.33. Transfer the funds associated with the
utility portion of the project from the utility fund to the transportation fund and take all additional actions necessary to award the project and complete this construction. I'll stand for any questions. >> Thank you, D. Just just a recap on that,
too. That's a great example of, you know, our partnership with the state that we're getting that all those roadway improvements. Um, you know, I think our our share of that is about $7,000 and the state will put in about 1.2 million. Um, and then we're able to make utility improvements along with
that. That's just a it's a great example of the way those projects can come together >> through those. >> Thank you. Next item on the agenda is purchase of an auto car ACX64. This is a front front end commercial garbage truck and Britney will talk
about that. Um so I'll ask her to >> Yes. Good evening again. So as you are all aware that our commercial solid waste division utilizes those front-end loaders for garbage um commercial garbage and recycling collection services. Um currently we have an aging
fleet. Uh, one of our units, 6085, is a 2012 MAC front-end loader and that is in need of significant repairs and has reached the end of its usable life within our fleet. So, our staff is recommending that it be replaced to ensure that we can continue to provide seamless commercial solid waste
collection. Uh Florida Tampa Kenworth uh who is a vendor under the Florida Sheriff's Association contract has provided a quote for the purchase of a 2024 autocar ACX 64 chassis with a 28yard hyle halfpack front-end refuge
body. Um we currently operate at least three of these auto cars within our residential solid waste division and we have six more on order that we have hope to have delivered in October that you approved earlier this year. They've proven to be reliable and consistent within our fleet and expanding those
into our commercial operation will just continue to support our standardization efforts. So that 2024 auto car chassis has already been completed and upon issuance of this purchase order will be upfitted with the Hypack front-end body. Um and we anticipate uh that with the upfitting time, it's about 90 days and
we should have this completed and delivered to us in August of 2026. um which is most of you know is relatively quick timeline for a garbage truck turnaround. Those usually cost us about 18 to 24 months once we order them. So the total financial impact the total
cost is going to be $436,263. Of that $341,356 is available within the capital depletion fund to replace that unit. Uh we do have a balance of $94,970 that will be funded through the commercial solid waste operating budget
utilizing savings from projects that have been completed um as well as from budgeted funds that have not been expensed due to some vacant positions that we had within that division. For our strategic plan alignment, this aligns with the community safety pillar um and the goal 5.2 to ensure the
ability to meet service demands as our population grows. Um staff is recommending that the commission approve the purchase of this 2024 auto car with the 28 yard ha hyle halfpack front and body um and authorize the city manager or his designate to issue the purchase
in the total amount of $436,263 to Florida Kenworth and take any additional actions necessary there too. >> Commissioners any questions? >> Yeah, I had a question. Will we
the units that are being replaced will we sage them or get something >> out of it? >> Yes sir. So we will be sending 6085 to auction and then whatever proceeds come from the auction will be reinvested for replacement of future commercial vehicles.
>> All right. Thank you. >> All right. The next item on the agenda should look familiar because I think everybody saw it as the CRA board, but I'll ask Eric Lavy, our director of economic opportunity and community investment to present this one. >> Good evening. So, um, back in March, the
Florenceville Advisor Committee, heard a development proposal from Mr. Terry Dudney for property located at the southeast corner of First Street North and Palmetto Avenue North. Um he was approved for a development package uh both through the advisory committee and the CRA board uh to include a commercial
improvement grant, a small business development assistance grant, new construction missing middle rental program, um housing investment program which is a tax rebate and utility connection fee reimbursement. The last two incentives, the housing investment program, which is the tax increment
rebate, and the utility connection fee reimbursement are approved through a developers agreement. That developers agreement was approved by the CRA board. Um developers agreements also come to the um city commission um for approval.
So, it is on your uh consent agenda um for final approval of that uh that um housing investment program and utility connection fee reimbursement. >> Commissioners, any questions? >> Go ahead.
>> All right. And then Eric will present the next one as well on the Winter Haven Planning Commission membership. So, we will be uh renewing recommending re reappointment and new appointment for some members. >> Yes, sir. Um so the planning commission uh is appointed by the members of the planning commission are appointed by the
city commission. We do have um an available seat on the planning commission. We had two applicants, Miss Laura Lease and Mr. Andrew Olsen apply for um that vacant seat. Uh however, Mr. Olsen does not live on property within the city of Winter Haven. We did review
Laura Lease's um application. Uh she owns a num she she is a resident um of of the city of Winter Haven. She owns a number of commercial and residential properties within uh the city limits. She's a former teacher for Pulk County Schools and she is a recent graduate of
City University. Um and so we are recommending her to fill um the vacant seat. It is also a re reappoint of a number of seats in on the planning commission to include Mr. Mario Monaco, um,
Lina Cordderero, Wendy Venttor, Colin Wells, Ed Smith, and Tina Summerland. Those are all reappoints. >> Any questions? >> All right. So, the next item on the agenda, 10F, I'd like to ask Steve Puit, our uh, parks and grounds
superintendent. You guys may not ste see Steve very often, but Steve oversees a lot of our athletic fields, cemeteries, golf course, um, parks, grounds. I mean, a lot of stuff that you see out there, Steve is has a direct hand in the day of. So, >> good evening, uh, mayor and city
commissioners. Uh tonight I'd like to come to you that the city of Winter Haven is in partnership as you know with Tron Golf Course Management for Willbrook Golf Course and we are requesting uh to replace three central pieces of equipment uh with that would
be inclusive as you see here in the picture. The bottom left is our 5510 Toro reel master. That unit is used primarily for the fairways also green approaches and the collars. Uh the unit
to the far right there on the lower right that is our 4300 uh Toro grounds master. That unit is primarily used for the roughs uh the larger common area I mean not the common areas but the larger rough areas of the
golf course. And then the unit in the center is the Toro Z Master 5000 which we typically call our zeroturn mowers. And that unit is also used for common areas around T boxes. Uh but primarily
the common areas throughout the golf course or up around the clubhouse anywhere we have some tight areas that we can large uh with large mulling as well. Uh the funding is available um through our capital depletion fund is
supplemented also with equipment cost savings and reserve balance in the Willoughbrook fund. The total cost of the equipment uh is $198,629.38. If we go ahead and replace these units now, we're going to continue to improve the conditions of the golf course with
consistent maintenance and upkeep and keep the quality of Willbrook Golf Course up to its standards. Uh staff is recommending that city commission approve um you know this purchase and also authorize the city manager or his
design to execute any and all necessary documents for that. Thank you, Steve. Yeah, and these are the uh these are really the the frontline workh horses of the golf course here. So, having them run in kind of tip-top shape is that's is pretty critical. So,
>> any questions? >> Thanks, sir. >> Uh, next item on the agenda is our RFQ 2418s. This is the water resource facility at Pard Road and it's going into the second task order and Gary Hubbert, our director of Winter Haven
Water, will present that. Thank you, deputy city manager. Good evening, madame uh Mayor Prom and commissioners. Good to see you this evening. This item on the agenda is a task order associated with uh our a
contract with Warden Smith. They're our contractor for uh basically all of our wastewater treatment facilities and how we're going to u move from where we currently are with 50y old facilities to something a little more modern. So this
work associated with this basically is how do we get plant two in shape where we can decommission it and get flow transmitted to plant three. So this the work includes a new electrical building and a new disc filter for the
facility to kind of hold us until we can actually decommission the facility. The new electrical building will be uh designed such that it can meet the future needs at the plant 2 location which will basically be uh a booster
pump station for our reclaimed water system but it will also have a master lift station there to transmit the flow to plan three. Okay. So that's kind of a overall summary of of what this this item is that we'll be asking for your
approval on Monday. The total cost of this work um is 1,627,97. That does not include the purchase of the new disc filter. We'll we'll do owner direct purchase on that.
So that's uh pretty much what this item is. Uh we're asking for your approval on uh Monday evening. Any questions? >> All right. Next one is Mr. Hubards as well. Uh the East Winter Haven Aquafer Recharge with Restoration Project. This
is our Bradco Farms project we refer to it as and consulting design services with uh with RS. >> That's correct. Thank you, Deputy City Manager. So, we've been working on uh what is our first gem of the Sapphire
Necklace. As you know, we purchased the Bradco Farms property in December of 2023 and we since that time, we've been evaluating uh what is the best way to implement this project. We've gone through that
evaluation and you're going to you're going to have a short presentation this evening that shows you what it's possibly going to look like and then we'll talk about these task orders that are are coming up before you on Monday. the work that's going to be needed to
begin moving in that direction. So with that, um, we have our res team here. We also have our project manager, this is Anley Tilly. So the rest, this is Matt St. I sure do.
>> Thank you, Gary, and thank you, commissioners. It's a pleasure to be back in front of you. I think it's been almost a year now or so since the last time I get to address uh the commission, and uh excited to get to do that tonight. We're here with an update on the uh status of the sapphire necklace
project. At least the uh the initial project in that project in that process. Oh, I can I can control it. Right. There we go. There we go. >> Uh if y'all are if y'all will recall the uh project is part of the overall
Sapphire Necklace trail system and uh aquaer recharge project. And what differentiates, I believe, the sapphire necklace from other projects similar to it throughout the country that I get to work on uh is just the the additionality
that y'all's project carries that we don't see for other managed aquifer recharge projects throughout the country. Sapphire necklace not only includes a significant groundwater recharge component for water supply resilience, but it also includes flood plane and storm water storage, wildlife
habitat, passive recreation opportunities for the citizenry, and then also ecoourism opportunities for folks who are visiting the fine city of Winter Haven. Uh, just to remind everybody, I I'm I'm not from around here. You can probably tell by my accent. So, I'm from Houston, Texas. I'm
representing our company, Resource Environmental Solutions corporate office in Houston, Texas, who has a a this is what we do. We do these types of projects all over the country, and we're starting to do them in other countries as well. So they want uh they want to assign someone in corporate uh as the
project principal but our local team is made up of our esteemed pro project manager Angel Wyn who's in Tampa and also TJ Laroo who's a little more local here in in Lakeland. Uh the Bradco Farms
project which is the initial gem in the sapphire necklace. We are we are nearing completion of our due diligence period. That was our alternative analysis uh and all of our preliminary engineering reports that we put together for the city. And we're ready to move now into
the design phase of the project. And those are the tasks that are on the agenda for Monday's review. And with that, I'm going to go ahead and turn it over to Angel to walk through those tasks. >> Hi, good afternoon. Um I'm Angel W. I'm the project manager for this project.
And as you're aware, we have three items on the agenda for review and approval. And the first item is the waterline and wellhead proposal, which is known as task four. And this is the first step in getting the system uh up and operable. It includes the design, permitting,
construction, and sampling of the water line and wellhead. And this task amounts to approximately $2.4 million. Our second item up for review is the pre-permit design proposal which will be known as task five. And this is the
stage in when we take the design of the wetland and aquifer recharge system to 60% and begin the permitting process. This task amounts to approximately $1.7 million and res will be contributing a half a million dollars of grant money
grant money towards the funding of that of that pro portion of the project. The third item up for review and approval is a proposal for the boundary surveys and phase one environmental site assessments. And this will be task six. And this includes landowner negotiations
and prelim preliminary due diligent activities as the project footprint is solidified. And this task amounts to approximately $80,000. And with that, I'll turn it over to our lead engineer, TJ Laru, who will give more detail on the design and conceptual
plan. >> All right. Appreciate everyone's time today. So, what our due diligence period has allowed us to do is look at a perpet. And what we've learned is that through the use of surface bar from the Peace Creek Drain Canal and the reclaimed
water, we do have a feasible project here. And what we're able to do is reroute some of the water from the Peace Creek Drain Canal down to the central area of the project. And this is important because through the due diligence period, we ascertain that the best location to have the aquaer
recharge well is where it's shown there in the middle of the project area. And so to get the water there to ensure that we can meet the project goal of two million gallons a day on an annual average was key. And so what we were able to do is to do this in a manner at which there can be active and passive
recreation on the site. And to combat the possibility of any flooding issues, we have some uh emergency overflows in place to prevent that. On the southern wetland side, we're looking at also using the surface water and reclaimed
water to hydrate those wetlands even during the lowflow conditions. In the middle of the project near the well, you can see that there is a proposed structure there and that will allow water to move between a north and south wetland depending on the water availability to ensure that there's
enough water to maintain the health of the systems. And with that, here's some little closer views of the northern wetland system. And you can see in in better detail the grading that has gone in to the plan and where we stand today
as well as the aquifer recharge location there on the bottom left of your screen. And then again on the southern end here you can see the southern wetland system as well as that connection point and our grading plan there. And with that I'd like to pass it back to Matt who's going
to take you through some visualization of the project beyond the engineering design. And I'm borrowing these images from a presentation that was put together, a actual graduate project that was put together by Eric Gomez uh for his for
his advanced degree. Eric now works for Catalyst Design Group and Catalyst is part of our team for the design phase of the project under task five. Eric did a really good job as a student and I can't wait to see what he does when he updates these images uh as part of our design
team and now now a professional landscape architect. Uh just visualizing what the project could encompass the elements that it could bring to bear as we move into the actual uh implementation of the project. other other uh uh folks that are on our team,
our local team. Drummond Carpenter is going to support us with the actual uh water quality and uh uh treatment of the water before the water goes back down into the aquifer recharge well to meet state and federal water quality requirements. Phillips is on our team as
a value added member of our team. They will be informing our design as we move forward as far as the actual construction logistics where material would have to go, how we would get in and out of the site for for the actual construction phase of the project. Ducks Unlimited is part of our team as well to
inform the final habitat design. They have been informing us all along on the preliminary work that we've done. And then of course catalyst who provided these uh these uh initial early uh uh uh visualizations of what the project could look like when Eric did his graduate
work. And with that we'll wrap it up and take any questions. Thank you'all. If I could just expand a little bit. Um, so the the the concepts that that we're looking at, me go back to the I'm going
to go to the the northern wetland. This includes two additional uh major properties. The Muny property is to the to the north on this diagram. It's about 100 acres and in between there is the
King property. Uh we'll be coming back to city commission uh later this fiscal year to actually purchase the Muny property and the King property will be an easement. But these properties were crucial to make this project um
uh more desirable I think for our citizens. And it's very close if you if you can remember what the original concept plan looked like. This is very close to what we imagined um this project would look like. So, the
res team has done an outstanding job with this and I'll be happy to take any questions you might have. >> I never thought I'd see you today. >> I know that. >> I wanted to I wanted to highlight something from the financial impact
section. You know, when you add all these task orders up, overall it's about $4.2 million. But when you start backing out the credit from KO and you back out grant funding from FD, you know, the city's portion of that ends up at about 1.3 million. That's another example of a
place where we're taking our local dollars and leveraging it against state dollars and private dollars to try to bring a project like this uh to the community. So, >> yeah, that's a great point. You know, we have uh $2 million from Pepsi. Uh Rez brought with them 1.5 million from
Coca-Cola. Half million of that will go towards this initial task. The the remainder will go towards the construction. We have um 6.375 million from Resilient Florida to go towards this project in the future. So
that's going to be uh used also for uh land acquisition and and uh construction and the remainder of the balance of the project when we get to that point will be funded most likely through a revenue bond. >> Jerry, I just have one question. I
thought I saw some structures on I don't know that this one is the one, but uh when it was going from one to the other, is that like an over There it is. Is that like an overflow like um >> So that will actually be a pump. >> A pump. Okay.
>> To uh to pump from one side to the other side. And you can see our utility complex over there on Buckeye Loop Road. >> So we're going to be backing right up to this project and it's just going to be incredible. We envision that uh we'll have people that will come into our
parking lot just to get access to the trail system that'll eventually be here to really enjoy this project. So, we're pretty excited about this. We would think that construction of the actual project because of permitting probably
would be um looking Anley, what what are your thinking? >> Yeah. So mid 2027 start of construction and we get to that point, we're already drilling the well. If you happen to go out that way, the drilling rig is on site now. So we're drilling the recharge
well. So we're making good progress on this project. >> Thank you. >> All right. All right. Um, next item is also utilities related. So this is u with the Pulk Regional Water Cooperative. So uh connecting us with the city of Auburnale so that we're able
to wheel some water. today as well. >> Thank you, deputy city manager. So, um, as you know that we're going to be taking water from PRWC at the Pard Road new water production facility, which you approved at the last city commission for
the design of that. And here in the next very near future, you'll be uh we'll be bringing the Seymar agreement to you for that approval in construction of both the Pard Road and the Cypresswood facilities. At the Pard Road facility, we'll be
taking 1.52 million gallons eventually for the city of Winter Haven. We'll be taking another 1.65 million gallons for Auburnale and 1 million gallons for Lake Alfred. Okay. We will be wheeling water through our
system to the city of Auburnale and the city of Lake Alfred. And this agenda item is to extend our transmission system to the new receiving station that will be built by PRWC for Auburnale. So
it's an extension of about uh 2300 ft um along Derby Avenue uh over to the city of Auburnale. Uh the cost of this effort is uh
one second here. This is for the design and and CI services. $129,555 and Deubberry engineers would be the engineers doing this work. So um this item will be on your agenda for uh Monday evening and we're asking
for your approval and I'll stand for any questions. And Gary, this is an item that would be uh covered under a future reimbursement agreement potentially with the PRWC. Correct. >> That is correct. We will be we will be entering into an agreement with PRWC for this work.
>> And just to add a a few footnotes to what Mr. Mr. Hubard has said we are already um I've provided a draft of a reimbursement agreement for >> logistics >> logistics and that's in process of being reviewed. Um and I believe that just as
a matter of note the overall estimated construction cost for this particular sub matter is about 2.3 million give or take. Um so we are well within the statutory threshold to allow us to use Dubberry as one of our continuing contractors and that just so happens to
out well because they also are the engineers for the PRWC. So hopefully that will help ease and streamline efficiencies when we are seeking reimbursement. >> Yeah, great point. Great point. Thank you. >> Any questions?
>> Okay. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Uh next we have the resolutions and deputy city manager will give us an overview of the resolutions. >> Yes, ma'am. Thank you. So, first resolution is R2616, which is acceptance
of conveyance of certain non-exclusive utility easements from the Gates of Lake Region Homeowners Association. I'll ask city attorney John Murphy to give us an overview of that one. >> Thank you, uh, Deputy City Manager. Um, just a brief overview of this item. We, uh, we we operate Lift Station, I
believe it's 179, um, which is located there, uh, just adjacent to the, uh, to the Gates of Lake Region Country Club. You all may be familiar with that. Um that particular subdivision was uh platted originally in 1995
uh when those lands were uh at that time located in the unincorporated area of Poke County. After they were platted, they then annexed the property into the city limits and the property was uh was developed uh as it is today a single
family uh residential community. Um, interestingly enough, uh, it appears that, uh, although the plat was accepted by the Poke County Board of County Commissioners, um, there was not an express conveyance of any of the utility
easements to the city of Winterhaven at that time. Uh, and furthermore, it was discovered not too long ago, about a year ago, that the TICO bill for lift station 179 had been paid for by the HOA. Um, and that was a system and and
equipment that the city of Winter Haven had always uh through its custom and practice and through uh its um conduct had had maintained and and operated and we considered it as and do to this day as part of our system. Uh when that was
brought to our attention by the HOA, we we had some further discussions and negotiations with them and we ultimately uh entered into a settlement that resolved the issue of TICO. We uh informed Tiko that bills from I believe
it was June of 2025 forward should be going to the city of Winter Haven. We agreed to reimburse the HOA uh a sum of money um that would have represented about five years worth of TICO bills. Um
and uh we also uh indicated to them to the HOA that we needed an easement from them um to confirm uh the city's ingress egress and ability to maintain and and take care of the infrastructure that was utility infrastructure that's in that
subdivision. So that's what this uh this easement uh that they've provided to us uh uh reflects. And uh in exchange for the easement, the monetary consideration that we provided was about a 12 month uh
period worth of credit on their reclaimed water that they purchased from us. And I I want to say that's around $23,000 give or take. Um I think that the um uh that's probably uh reasonable under the circumstances. Um, and so what we're
asking for you to do on Monday is to affirmatively accept the conveyance of the easement that's been recorded in the public records. So there's affirmative acceptance of that and to um, you know, ratify, accept, and confirm the other actions that I've just described. So
that this is sort of a cleanup matter. Uh, it resolves an issue uh, that was brought to our attention um, in a satisfactory manner with, you know, citizens in our community. uh it has the full support of our utilities department, city manager, and the city attorney. So, we're uh we're looking for
that. >> Happy to answer any questions if you have any. >> Any questions? >> Thank you. >> All right. Next, >> the uh final final item on the agenda for this evening um as far as resolutions go is R2618. So, this is adoption of a capital asset policy for
the city. Um so you know the issuance and management of capital assets is an important component of our financial strategy and having a clear and comprehensive policy promotes consistent reporting compliance with accounting standards, strong stewardship over public assets and standardized capital
capitalization and depreciation practices. Uh key provisions of this policy um include capitalization threshold. So that is assets that have an individual cost over $10,000 or an estimated useful life of at least three years will be capitalized and recorded
as capital assets. So a perfect example of that are the mowers that we looked at tonight, right? Those will those will end up as capital assets because of their cost and the fact that we plan to use them for more than three years. It also uh the policy also creates asset categories. So it establishes
standardized classifications for land, building infrastructure, equipment, leased assets, subscription software, intangible assets, and construction in progress. So making sure that we know how to categorize those assets. And again, I think that last one, construction in progress, is always interesting because, you know, it's it's
something we may not think of as an asset because it's not something that's usable yet, but it is something that there's been investment in, so we capitalize it as an asset. And then uh depreciation standards. So capital assets excluding land and construction in progress will be depreciated using a straight line method over established
useful lives. Um the other things that are included in there are asset tagging and inventory. So how do we actually um assign numbers and track all of that information with those assets? Uh transfers and disposals. So um me I think you asked a question about what are we doing with the front end loader
that uh we're we're replacing. So how do we actually get rid of those policy speaks to that? And then the internal controls and financial reporting and kind of our audit compliance stuff that we uh we for every year. So, this is just kind of updating our policies on that and making sure that they're tight. Our new CFO
Chris Reer uh have worked on this and Alan Weekes, our budget management officer, is here to answer any questions that you guys may have. But, uh there's no financial impact associated with it. Kind of the opposite on this one, right? We're making sure that we're we're tracking and accounting for all the finances. And then staff recommends the
city commission adopt resolution R2618 establishing the city's capital asset policy and authorize city manager or is designated to take any further action necessary related there too. >> Any questions discuss? Okay.
Now I guess we'll be ready for our strategic um plan and presentation. >> Yes. >> And the quality of life. >> Yes. This is this is a great one. Right. Quality of life. So just as a reminder um we We present on every one of our strategic pillars every month. Uh we
present one strategic pillar a month. So of our six strategic pillars, we hit each one twice a year. Uh so this month we are working on quality of life. Uh so the the elements of quality of life, these are things that you know we think of as uh living and general well-being,
access to clean water, mobility, opportunities for cultural and recreational activities, aesthetic features of the community, and kind of that overall sense of community and belonging, which I think you'll hear a lot about uh this evening. So with that, I will turn it over to Chase Hope from our aquatics team uh to kind of kick us
off and tell us a little bit about the kindergarten swim program. And then after her, we'll hear about our summer camp program, an update on the Carolon bell tower, and then a little bit kind of a crescendoing here with our America 250 and Rock and Freedom Fest.
>> All right. Good evening, Mayor Promp and commissioners. My name is Chase Hog and I'm a recreation supervisor in aquatics. As some of you guys may know, our department does provide swim lessons to the community. And this past year, we
were able to provide almost 900 lessons through the American Red Cross learn to swim program. But tonight, I am thrilled to speak about a new partnership that we had this past spring with Pulk County Public Schools where we were able to
provide swim lessons to kindergarten students during their school day. So this partnership consisted of a two-eek program. The first week the students uh participated in watching water safety videos and participated in some water
safety activities during their PE class at the school. The second week they were transported from the school to the rowdy gains Olympic pool where they then participated in a inwater swim lesson with our certified instructors. Um, the
first school that we were able to partner with was JWIT School of the Arts. We got to serve three different kindergarten classes for a total of 50 students. The second school that we were able to partner with was Snively Elementary School. We served another
three different kindergarten classes for a total of 42 students. This opportunity was amazing for the kiddos. They um some of them had never taken swim lessons before, so it was their first time. Um some made sure to tell me that the Rowdy
Gains pool was the biggest pool they have ever seen before. And honestly, what kid doesn't want to leave school and go swimming? This program definitely uh brought some excitement and some fun, but it also brought a lot of progression
with these kids swimming skills. On day one, we did have a lot of kids that were very reluctant and fearful to get in. But come that last day, they were jumping in. They were comfortable, confident, and having a great time. Um, I know for myself as well as our instructors, seeing that excitement and
then seeing that progression with the kids definitely does make what we do so rewarding and meaningful. I am excited to see how this partnership progresses in the future. We are currently working on expanding the program, being able to
offer more lessons for more kindergarteners and more schools. So, I cannot wait for the day where I get to stand before you guys again, give you an update on how this partnership has progressed. Um, and I thank you for your time. So, I am going to pass it to Miss
Tanisha Duncan and she is going to give you guys an update on the city summer camp program. Thank you. Good evening, Mayor Prom and Commissioners. Uh my name is Tanisha Duncan. I am the recreation supervisor 3 at the Fieldhouse and I'm also the
summer camp uh coordinator. Um I would like to share some highlights with you about our camp that is called Camp Off the Chain. Uh this year we have four sites. So, we have Win Haven Recreation and Culture Center. We have the Fields House, Rotary Park, and then also we
have the opportunity to be at a school at Lakeship Elementary. Um, in previous years, we served 280 campers. Uh, this year we're serving 340. Um, our camp operates from Monday through Friday. Uh, this week, we started camp um, I wanted
to mention that June 1st to July 24th. We operate from Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Um, camp consists of they swim twice a week. They go on a field trip once a week. Um, some of the field trips that we're going on is Gator Gatorland. This week is, uh, Funspot,
um, Urban Air, Bonnet Springs, uh, Pioneer Village. We also have a volunteer program for our leaders in training, 15 to 17 year old, the high school kids. they're able to help out and they get community service as well.
Um we started our registration April 7th with typically at the fieldhouse we fill up within 30 minutes. Um within two days all four locations were filled up. Um I'm excited to say that we have um Otis
Birdson that is going to be hosting a basketball skill camp next week for a week. He has 100 plus participants and also our campers at Win Haven Rec will be able to participate as well. Um I wanted to also thank some of our
internal uh partners that help out which is national resources aquatics team um the police department um I want to forget anybody public service um and the airport and solid waste as
well and the library. Um we do have a partnership with Pulk County School Board that is starting tomorrow. They're going to be providing summer camp um the feeding program. So they'll be able to get lunch uh breakfast and also 1:00 p.m. snack. Um that starts tomorrow and
then it will end on July 23rd. So that caters to um the kindergarteners, anybody under 18, so they'll be able to get a lunch as well. And with further ado, I'd like to introduce Katie White, who's going to talk on the Carol Carol
project. Katie, >> good evening, Mayor Pro Tim, and commissioners. I'm Katie White, project lead with parks and recck department, and I'll be giving an update on the Carol Bell Tower. Mr. Tom, who is a longtime resident of Winter Haven and very active in the community, approached
the commission or the city in late 2024 about donating funds to erect Carolon Tower in South Central Park. He was inspired by a similar tower he had seen in Holland. The bell tower was intended to honor his family who have been in the area since the 1920s and to be a gift to
the city of Winter Haven and an attraction and a unique feature to downtown for everyone to enjoy. The city commission entered into an agreement in early 2025 for the development of the bell tower. Mr. donated around 360,000 for the entire
project with 230,000 going towards the tower and the remainder for a design element, hardscape, electric, and a few other elements. The steel bell tower was installed in April of this year and stands approximately 24 feet tall and
was engineered, fabricated, and Installed by the Verden Company out of Ohio, the tower contains 23 bronze bells weighing from 20 to 97 pounds with the lowest bell being located 9 ft from the ground. The bells were cast in a bell
foundry in the Netherlands. Within each bell, there are electrically operated cast iron strikers. The site also includes a 5-ft raw iron gate, accessible sidewalk from the trail,formational plaques, and a decor decorative bell
ballards in between the tower and parking lot. Staff are working to finalize the bell schedule. Currently, the tower rings on the hour with Westminster Times. Staff are also working to coordinate schedules with other times in the area. The bell tower
also is currently programmed to play four songs a day. The bell tower came with a two octave keyboard and hundreds of pre-programmed songs. There are several categories of songs that the tower can play, including classical, general, patriotic, which
will be be a great asset for the upcoming fourth seasonal holiday songs, which will be great for Christmas and other holidays. Some other neat features of the tower are the songs can be added through the Verden company. And another really neat uh option is that you can
play on the keyboard and record it and the tower can play it at any time. So where we currently are and next steps for the project are to complete the site work and also to gain remote access to the programming. Staff are also continuing to receive training on that
programming. The tower will require annual maintenance which will be contracted through the burden company and Mr. Ol has set up an account for that. Staff are working with Mr. to plan a celebration in the fall with a ribbon cutting and a concert. We'll have a
definitive date and additional details coming soon. And now I'll hand it off to Katrina to give an update on America 250. Good evening, Mayor Prom and Commissioners. My name is Katrina Hill, the director of public affairs and communication, and I have had the honor
of working with Natalie Wilson, Scott Eers, and the rest of the team um as we gear up for America 250 and really um increasing our celebrations and festivities around Fourth of July this year as part of that. So, what you see
on the screen, you each have a set of this um at your seats. So, the shirt on the left is actually a staff shirt, red, white, and chain of lakes. All of our city staff has received this shirt this week, or they will by tomorrow. We're in the middle of delivering all of those. Um, and they are all going to be allowed
to wear them on their Friday. I say their Friday because not all of our staff works Monday through Friday. Um, so you may see some wearing them on Wednesdays and Sundays depending on their shifts, but all of our staff get to kind of wear these on their casual Fridays um to celebrate and represent
the city as we celebrate America 250. The yellow version of the same design that you see there in the middle of the screen is actually what our staff will be wearing at the Fourth of July event. So that's how you'll identify our staff working the event. Um, the hats that are
there in the middle of the screen with the same design are being given to our staff that work primarily outdoors, especially those that potentially wear some safety gear. So maybe they can't wear the t-shirts on their Friday, so they've got something that they can wear when they are out in the field as well.
And then each of you and our administrative team and directors have received a polo um with the same design. So if we need to be a little bit more formal, we can still represent the campaign. Next up, um, these should be in anytime
in the next week or so, and then we're going to work with our streets team to get these put up, but there are two sets of banners that are going to be going up all around town. So, think of everywhere that you normally see our holiday decorations, you're going to see um, these decorations. So, what you see on the right of the screen is some of our
gateways have larger um, banner brackets and double-sided like that. So, there are five of these locations throughout the city. There's one at the airport, one on MLK or out on Dundy Road, um, Havenale, Fieldhouse, and I believe out on MLK as
well. So, you'll see both there. On the left, you'll see how all of the other banners will be installed when we have single brackets, and that's that every other one will alternate those designs. So, you've already seen the red, white, and chain of lakes design. The fireworks friends in freshwater is going to be our
sort of design theme for Rock and Rock and Freedom Fest event. We also have some really fun bunting and ribbons and things coming in that you'll see put up downtown. Um so this is just a a kind of quick rendering example of what that might look like, but some of
our buildings downtown are going to have the bunting. Um, all of the big trees throughout our parks downtown and along the Chain of Lakes trail are going to have big red, white, and blue ribbons tied around them. Um, that's going to contribute to our wayfinding for the event itself. So, since people can't use
Third Street to walk down to MLK Park like they may have in the past, we're going to be doing some really robust communication and signage to point people to the Chain of Leaks Trail, which is nice and shaded. They'll be able to walk right up to the park and those ribbons will kind of guide their way. We also have some bunting and
ribbons coming to go along all the railing along Central. So really trying to create a festive downtown and and sense of place and sense of celebration around America 250. And then a special edition of our Rock and Freedom Fest this year. So again,
you see that fireworks Friends and Freshwater design. Those t-shirts will actually be available um for sale to the public as kind of an event swag. We also may or may not have worked to procure some t-shirt cannons so that we can can send those out into the audience and create some fun that way. Um, we're
excited to welcome Bay King's band back as our entertainment, our headliners for that event again. Um, but you're going to see some additional things happening on the stage. So, when they take their breaks between sets, um, we're going to do some things to honor veterans. Um,
and some fun audience participation activities. um think good old American activities like hot dog eating contests may happen while we're there. Um we've got some other event swag and giveaways that we'll be handing out. We have our food trucks and our vendors coming
again. Um we think we've kind of optimized that load in plan a little bit learning from um last year. Um we have enlisted the fire department to bring our giant American flag um back out to the event. Um, our partners at the
Cypress Gardens water ski team are going to do an enhanced show, water ski show in celebration of America 250. And then finally, closing the event with fireworks. It is not a longer fireworks show this year, but it is more robust. So, fuller show, bigger finale, um, and
big celebration that way. Um, mentioned it a moment ago, but I'll mention it again. Um, we are working on parking plans. We recognize that there's some construction out here. We will work with Tucker to make sure that's buttoned up and as safe as it can be, but obviously we don't want people walking through the
construction site. So, we are working with um Bayare Winter Haven Hospital to utilize their parking lots that are along Lake Silver Drive. Um and then we've got all of our facility parking around here. The parking garage will make the the walkways up to the park
very clear. We are going to be running some shuttles, so we'll have some routes. So, if you're parked at the parking garage where we can shuttle you up to the park as well. Um, so you'll see communication coming out about that here in the coming weeks. Um, and we've, um, I know they just had a meeting
today, I think Charlie shared with me, um, to talk about safety plans and inclement weather plans and all those types of things. So, making sure it is a safe and fun event. We expect a big turnout and we want to have an extra special celebration this year. So we
have talked about the kindergarten swim program, summer camp, the Carolon bell tower and America 250 and Rock and Freedom Fest and staff is here if you have any questions. >> Yeah, the uh I guess with the
250 250 what do we estimate the number of people come out to that? I mean, it's it's a pretty crowded situation already and I'm just wondering, you know, as as we've grown, the city has grown u you know,
what kind of numbers are we looking at because it is taxing trying to get in there now? >> I'm going to defer to assistant city manager for public safety, Mr. B. >> That was that was a topic of our discussion today as well. I know Scott and uh we've in the past probably
estimated around 5,000. Um, there could be more than that because this is a 250. So, we're planning for the best that we can to to deal with a very large crowd. So, we're anticipating high and if it's
less, that's okay. We're we're prepared, but I think the the estimates were right around 5,000. >> If you were to look around the lake, that number I think >> the summer camp. Uh what is the cost now
uh per student for for the camp? You said 340. >> So it's $150 for the eight weeks for city residents and 300 for non- city residents for eight weeks. >> 300 for non city. >> Yes, sir. Commissioner, >> how many non city do you have?
>> None. We weren't able to take any and um as I mentioned before within 30 minutes and within a day or two we were full at all four locations. >> So first options given to the city residents. >> Yes sir. >> Okay. And the new recreation center how many are there?
>> There's a hundred over there registered. >> You're welcome. >> And they're and they're underway right summer camp is full swing. >> Yes it is. We went to fun but we're going to Funspot this week. So we've been going >> Yep. All right. >> I just have one more thing on the
swimming if you want. Um I know you Kowanas used to do the swimming and they had every child a swimmer program and I they've been with the city for a long time. I know. Um and they had said that they kind of haven't done it in the last
couple of years, but they wanted to go get back into it. Do they need to see you or >> uh Yes, ma'am. So, um I have connection with uh Dave Browns with Kowanas. He actually just came out this past uh yeah, this past March. Um while we were
uh certifying our new water safety instructors, he brought some kiddos out so that our instructors could get some teaching experience and we could also provide those lessons to a few kids. So, okay. >> Yes, ma'am. >> Clarion Clarion uh bell tower. Uh are we
going to try to promote that? It's kind of a unique uh to have something like it in our city. Correct. >> I'm sorry. What was that? >> The Clarion Bell Tower. >> Oh, the Carol. So, will will we uh do something to promote that and as as a
destination to come, you know, and you know, uh pretty much see something that is kind of unique. I know there's others, you know, that are of course B tower, but it's not different. But I mean, but uh something very I think in P
County in the central Florida area. So, are we doing anything just kind of promoting that or making make that known to the public? >> We have plans to promote it. Um, we are going to be working on several promotional things uh with the Trail
Town and also tied in with Bell Tower. So, that's coming >> as we get the finishing touches put on that. You know, we'll you'll start to see more of that come out, but we're still they had a lift out there today. They're still working on some things, but as that kind of comes to finality, you'll start to see some more promotional material roll out about it.
>> Yeah. What's the the expected completion on that? >> Expected completion >> uh in the next couple of weeks. >> And we'll do something more formal uh in line with Mr. Ult's wishes uh later in the year when he can have some family and others present. >> We're targeting fall so the weather is a
little bit nicer since it'll be an outdoor concert. Um it'll pretty much bring your lawn chairs and We'll have a organist that will be playing on the keyboard. So, >> okay. Um, there are no ordinances for first reading. There's no new business.
And if there are no other questions, concerns or comments, we'll adjourn. M mad madam mayor prom just a quick uh comment and I can speak more about this on Monday but um just reminding the uh the city uh you all and what have you um
there's a provision in Florida statutes and the elections code that deals with communications now that we have a proposition that is going before the voters in November regarding property tax reform. Um there's a section of the elections code which is referred to as
106.151 that prohibits certain public uh expenditures and communications directly to voters that would now kick in because that is a ballot measure. So I just want to remind everyone of that. We we'll be giving you know as we
proceed forward um we'll make sure that we continue to be mindful of that um prohision on the expenditure of public funds um and people on our behalf types of communications that are allowed or not allowed um and I know that
Commissioner Davis has had some involvement with this with regard to the Poke County School Board's half mill um or property tax um issue legally, you know, um and so we I will
continue to keep you apprised as as as we can along with city staff management as to those types of things and I'm sure working in conjunction with Miss Hill and I would imagine throughout the state um that there will be some some uh
hopefully some uniformity. But the point that I'm trying to make is that there is a law on the books that prohibits certain things. And I'm sure that we want to be very mindful of that as we now move down the road because I'm sure
that there will be uh a lot of eyes on the local governments and making sure that they adhere to the to the to the statute as it relates to communications regarding the property tax reform matter. >> And John, I I would anticipate some
education coming from the Florida cities on that as well. Yeah, I I would expect that as well. And I know that um Miss Hill and I have had discussions about that already. Um there's already been some information in a preliminary basis provided by the Florida League of
Cities. Um I just wanted to um uh assure the elected body that we're we're we're we're on top of it. Um just make your awareness of it. Um there are some protocols that we need to be mindful of and we'll continue to keep you posted
>> and you'll keep keep us up to date on all of the um in details of each one of them. >> Yes, ma'am. >> Okay. >> Yes. If if I understand um the use of public funds that also would apply any
you know we're salary >> we don't really go on the clock or off the clock. When we're in our official capacity as a commissioner we can't advate for against um the the resolution. >> So that means um it doesn't just mean
here when we're in a meeting or in a public meeting if we're speaking publicly and people start asking us questions, we we can give facts. We can talk about how much of our budget is made up from property taxes, but we can't give our opinion and we certainly
can't say vote up or down either way. So and and that'll be the guidance we'll get. The best thing you know, air on the side of caution and just say I can't talk about it. I can't advocate for it. You know, you can answer questions, but otherwise, we're not out there to that. I'm sure there will be a concerted
effort across the state on both sides. Uh, it'll be very rigorous debate. I don't think people will be confused. Um, and we'll have ways of explaining the impact and let the voters decide. >> Right. That's that's well put. Um, and yes, that
I really can't add any more to that. That was that was helpful. Yeah. Just so and the reason I'm bringing it up is just because it is something that I it's now relevant. Um so just want to be mindful that. >> Thank you.
>> Thank you. And uh guess we're >> good job. I