e e e e e e Clos meeting to order of the crb roll call please chair Kim Penney here Vice chair schroth board member breckbill here board member mccristal board member Moser here and board member Noble okay seeing that we do not have quorum we will dispense with the approval of the amend uh minutes of uh minutes do we need to approve the agenda or can we City attorney the record um I mean that you'd have to have a motion in a second you can't take any action okay um I think um anything that requires an action whether approval of the minutes or the agenda I don't think he can do um I I think the uh rules do allow you to take some uh one of the items I guess uh the presentation of the community re development agency annual we can take U staff's kind of presentation and you can kind of give and we file it yeah you can have comments but Lee can we can we uh make the motion and and approve it subject to ratification next month no no some boards you can go with three and code yeah think the East Stewart's Historical Society I think that one you can but this one you got to have a majority of the board members take any action it says a majority of the uh the board members and then a majority of the ones present but you don't have a majority of one less okay so if you guys want we could still have the presentation of the uh action item number two obviously you just can't take any action on it all right so uh let's stand for the pledge so that we can do that I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all okay comments from the public there aren't any all right comments from the board members yes speaking to your mik you're a good boy I can't get it I can't move it yes I just have uh one uh question comment um seeing the approval for uh or the uh acceptance of our request for uh the train station there at bright line and uh where the plans are for it to be located should we be looking at or should the city be looking at what's going to go happen to the ball fields there that's Prime real estate at this point um it's one once that's done it's going to be a spot that uh whether it's housing or it's uh business that's going to be a uh a very valuable piece of property be uh leaving pretty much inactive so I just throw that I know it's controversial but I think we got to start looking at it having had the war of the ball fields about a decade ago and since we are an Advisory Board and since no one asked us to look at that I'm going to say until they do I don't want to take it up because we're not going to get anywhere if the commission really wants to do something I would be glad to take it up and then in an advisory capacity but until the commission has said we should look at it I don't think this Comm this committee should so well I wasn't necessarily meaning us but I was saying should the city be doing that I mean somebody should be looking at it I think cuz that there's what's going on there but well I'm going to let you talk to the Commissioners individually as a citizen of the city of Stewart oh yeah I'll do that and all never mind okay good all right do you have anything to okay all right so uh presentation of the community redevelopment agency annual report thank you panal Gandhi Savas C director for the record uh every year we're required to submit this annual report with financial statements uh from the previous fiscal year year which would be fiscal year 2023 uh to the state by March 31st of each year uh we also publish a notice in the newspaper if anybody wanted to look at the uh report and comment before we forward it to the state um you will notice in your agenda package that we did update the design and layout of the report um this is the first time we've updated in 25 years um so very excited about the look of this report and uh how professional it looks now I do want to thank Jordan pix pingston for her work on this on this uh layout in um the annual report uh I'm just going to Bree through um the different um uh topics and uh that's covered in the report um we have the table of content which outlines the sections in the report um there is a section that talks about U why we need to submit this report annually uh which is uh to comply with the Florida statute requirements and um the C statement is also in there um this section here describes how the C was created and um the Amendments we've had to the C plan since it was adopted uh which I've covered uh when we did the C plan amendment in January so again if you want to read more about it it's in this annual report uh this talks about the CRA boundary and how the Tiff Works um it talks about uh the expansion of C we've had um since 1998 then we had one and 2002 2006 and 2015 and how the increment tax revenue from base year when uh those were established and and the value in 2023 again um this is something I did Cover in the CRA plan also uh all the major accomplishments since the Inception of the CRA uh acknowledgement of the CRA board and the CRA meetings that were held in fiscal year 2023 um acknowledgement of the crb bo board um also brief description of roles of responsibility of the crb and um all the meetings held in fiscal year 2023 we do need to update the picture of the board so um sometimes when we have the full board we'll take a picture for next year's uh annual report um this introduces the C staff and their background and acknowledges the city manager City attorney and all the department heads that we work closely with on all of our projects um so the next section section describes all the C projects and programs um and more specifically the things we've accomplished in fiscal year 2023 um so in 2023 we funded eight applications under the burp program uh with a total award amount of $50,000 uh we do encourage Property Owners to invest their own money uh for the improvements uh so the total investment from private uh Property Owners was about $109,000 in fiscal year 2023 uh through the Mosaic artwork program we have a total of six mosaics already installed since we implemented the program in the creek District uh last year we provided funding for two mosic um that were that were installed on the sidewalk in the creek District uh we received one applications for the mural matching Grant applica uh grant program uh it was for the VA building on MLK and East Stewart um that project has been completed since it was approved uh through the resident itial facade Improvement and paint up program uh we provide funding for minor exterior improvements uh for Residential Properties and exterior paint uh we received three applications last year and uh we provided total reimbursement of $1,500 uh our residential street tree program was implemented a couple years ago um this was the second fiscal year 2023 was the second year of the program and we installed six trees in the Sherwood Forest neighborhood which which is a neighborhood just east of the Eastward area uh the CRA provides funding for the operation of the tram system uh we were up on the ridership in 2023 by 9,000 passengers from the previous previous years um we have those panels on top of the trams for advertisements all those panels were rented out and we collected a revenue of $4,000 um we also wrapped one tram uh with the bright green color to increase visibility and we plan to wrap the other two uh by the summer this year uh we partner with Main Street to apply for Grant to update the historic property survey update U that report was adopted in 2023 uh it also gave us the basis to designate downtown core as on the national register of historic district um I know we call it a historic district but we don't have a formal designation so Main Street did apply for the second Grant to pursue that nomination of downtown area on the national register of historic places uh we're also pursuing nomination application to designate Eastward neighborhood on the national register of historic district uh that report is almost completed and we plan to submit that to the state by the end of this month and get that formal historic uh District designation so we can do the the plaque uh in the EAS neighborhood we also celebrate dedication of historic marker uh for Mount Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in May 2023 uh we amended the neighborhood revitalization program to include the self program um which was adopted in January 2023 uh the program provides Grant up to $2,500 for energy efficient improvements um we received two applications that qualified for the program and we're in the process of executing agreement for those two applications um we also approved budget of $40,000 for to acquire the parking management system um to enforce parking in Downtown that system um has been purchased and uh we expect uh to have that installed by the fall of this year I thought the chief said that that system they were having issue with the vendor but they changed the vendor so that's moving forward um the downtown undergrounding project um just want to remind you that this project is also it's it's the whole downtown it's just not seminal street it's Oola Street seminal Street St Lucy Avenue and Colorado Avenue which is the core downtown area um the design for undergrounding and semal streetscape is completed uh we advertised for RFP twice uh but we did have to reject the proposals uh the first proposal didn't include the price and um we went back to the the pro um to the application uh to the proposer and they didn't submit the price the second proposal had too many math errors and um the price just seemed inflated um so we rejected that one uh we advertised for another bid in January 2024 and received one proposal so we'll be taking that to the board uh end of this month so we can start negotiating with that contractor may I make a suggestion sure that you take out seals completely I think it's very misleading to the public oh and it and it looks like you're spend going to be spending Millions yeah on one one block yeah so I I would suggest that that be T be taken from from uh that project completely out like the title you mean like just yeah to clarify that it's downtown undergrounding split two well we've already done the seven all Street Scapes so we no longer need to even mention it right yeah so we we can focus more on the undergrounding which is the most expensive part of this project and then you know it does it doesn't appear to be one block in everyone's imagination right that seems to be the confusion um and so here uh we have some photos demonstrating difference between the utility lines above ground and lines Underground on Oola Colorado and St Lucy Avenue um so this project not only increases reliability especially after the storms but aesthetically as you can see will improve impr our downtown uh we received tap grant for the Riverside uh Park improvements project we completed all the grant deliverables in 2023 uh the project is uh scheduled to go out for bid in April and award contract by June so the construction is expected to start in Fall 2024 uh we also in that neighborhood there's a small like a mini pocket park uh so we completed a design for that Park in 2023 and the improvements will include irrigation shade trees paved walkways benches decorative fence and new park signage um to improve the user experience so um you know they're going to get a uh not only streets gate but also Park improvements in that area um in 2023 we applied for the water quality grants um through the FD for drainage improvements in the stman neighborhood unfortunately we did not get the grant for this project um but we did review the score sheet um to see where we fell short on on on the points um so we're going to apply again and uh make a stronger applications because now we know where where we didn't do well um on the scoring sheet so hopefully we can improve the application and and try to get a grant for this neighborhood next year um the CRA contributed approximately $200,000 for structural repairs for of Waterfront Restaurant uh which is a city owned restaurant uh city-owned property um the overall improvements of the property uh prevented from becoming blighted and continue to serve as public gathering and entertainment space in our downtown area uh we completed 30% design for MLK streetscape project uh we met with the property owners along MLK uh and some of the community members who had expressed uh some concerns about the design and road safety uh we also met with Martin County School District to discuss the RightWay dedication on their side of the property for for um extending the sidewalk on the north side of the road um so we're working on completing 60% plans and we'll schedule another neighborhood meeting sometimes in the next few months uh guy Davis Park project this is also 30% design completed uh the consultant is finalizing 60% design um and we expect to complete the full design plan by June uh but between that we will go out to the neighborhood and get their final feedback before uh we uh go out for bid on this project um as for funding the city made an appropriation request from the state budget for this project um so they have this project in their budget to be funded at $500,000 so we'll uh have a better idea if this stays in their budget by April and this is led by um Jim's um Team Jim Charles spe team Gateway and District signage project um the Gateway project includes the horizontal um vertical downtown signage and District signage uh the construction plans for downtown and District sign signage was completed in 2023 we went out for bid on this project and the contract is expected to be awarded end of this month uh and the construction can take four to five months from the time of the award um those horizontal sign that you see um in the lower um uh page well which says Stuart welcomes you um those are going to be placed along Federal Highway and caner Highway so that requires fot to review and approve uh So currently uh that's in permit review process and we'll have to bid that out separately and uh during the form based code update we also worked on updating the eastart master plan um so that was updated adopted in July 2023 the southeast Dixie Highway streets skate project uh from Joan Jefferson to Colorado Avenue we received tap grant for this project for program year 2627 so we'll start working on the design for for that section in early 2025 um the Federal Highway Street planting program and master plan as you know was adopted uh in October 2023 um we recently sent out postcards to Property Owners to promote the program we are getting some calls from the property owners interest in the program so we'll be scheduling meetings uh and site visits to encourage them to participate in the program uh we're also working on wrapping the traffic control boxes within the CRA uh we reached out to Martin County uh because they maintain um those traffic control boxes so we'll coordinate with them to amend the maintenance agreement uh to include City's responsibility for maintaining the wp uh we're also working on um coordinating with uh getting a photographer and images for the wraps and um we'll coordinate with sign company to actually fabricate and install those wraps so hopefully uh we can have that completed by fall of this year uh we received $750,000 in cdbg housing uh rehab Grant uh the top applicants are required to comply with uh site specific environmental review and approval the the top six applications have cleared the environmental and they're scheduled to sign contract this month um so the the work on uh rehab work will begin soon after that and the remaining five applications have to go through the bid process and clear environmental uh through the Deo before they sign their contract uh but we hope to complete all this by again um this fiscal year uh we got we received 4.79 $9 million in cdbg Co grant for acquisition demo and new construction for a job training center in at 710 MLK Boulevard we closed on the property earlier this year um we contracted with kimly horn to prepare the site and Architectural plans for the project and at the same time we're coordinating with project LT uh and preparing mou which is memorandum of understanding to provide the services at the new facility uh we expect to go for bid for this project by the end of this year and construction is expected to be completed by early 2026 are we bus are we are we doing the construction ourselves or are we giving it to we are the recipient of the grant so we have to finish the project um and again I mentioned earlier uh we continue to partner with Main Street and promoting downtown uh to support downtown businesses um Main Street applied for those two historic um grants to update the survey and um to apply for National register of historic district for downtown core um Tiff revenue for fiscal year 2023 was 4.2 million which was deposited into the CRA trust fund uh we use those funds for activities like Professional Services incentive programs tram operation design and um design for improvement projects uh such as Dixie Highway guy Davis Park and MLK streetscape we were expecting to start the undergrounding project in fiscal year 2023 but as you saw we just didn't get the right bid so uh it got delayed and uh we're required to include the financial statement and of income and expenses for fiscal year 2023 um this is UN audited um statement uh our audit doesn't get completed until May so as soon as it's completed we'll publish um the audited report uh within 45 days uh once it's completed and staff is requesting to approve the filing of the 2023 C annual report well since we can't do anything yeah uh does anyone have questions for panel I have a question go ahead um I have a question on um on the parking situation uh on the system that I know that you know I remember when we met with the developer or the consultant and we approved all that but I remember at that time a parking garage was off the table so they were giving us a recommendation based on the fact that people were going to be parking in various parks parking spots all over the city and this was a system to coordinate that and let people know I mean now that this item's on the agenda with uh with the parking garage over at um at the station do we need to spend 70 or 880,000 on that on the parking the management system yeah well I think we still need to monitor three-hour parking restriction because um we need to have a quick turnaround for people that want to park and you know enjoy the restaurants and leave we don't we don't want somebody parking in our core area for 6 to 8 hours enforces the three-hour parking yeah but isn't don't we have people doing that well it'll make well once the once we have the system people will stop Force I just saw a guy when I was paring he was going to a restaurant to work so it was 3:30 qu to 4: in the afternoon he's going to be there till about 9:00 tonight at the earliest is he going to leave so right then he's confident enough that he will not get a ticket right yeah but if you put the system and he's still not going to get a ticket He he'll go in and move his car back and then he'll put his car back in and he'll start all it doesn't work that way no the system rescans the license plate so um you know even if they move the car with in the restricted area they'll get ticketed they have to move out of the restricted area no you could be like being and saying I don't believe in that but I know as far as the system is concerned it'll work just fine all right thanks any other questions I don't have questions I have comments um I just have General comments about the direction of the CRA first of all I just want to say I think that the CRA is really moving in the right direction um I think the vision for the city that you all have um it honors the past while also making um the city a more livable place and I think that that's that's great I do have a little bit of feedback um I've got some notes here that I will pull up um so generally I I just wish um in certain areas we could start pushing the design limits a little bit more to make walk uh downtown and the surrounding areas more walkable um MLK is an example I actually biked that way here today and um I think parts of the plan are really great but then on the east side you know the bike or the shared use path goes away and it turns back into sidewalks and then there's no connection on Palm Beach to to cross into the existing neighborhoods um that's an example that I think your um Consultants that you have hired should really be pushing the envelope there to make it actually walkable um and and one of the reasons that I mentioned that is I think a lot of a lot of the um efforts that we make in downtown and the businesses are all surrounded on folks who are here for season or maybe older folks and we're not having having a lot of young families in downtown right now like maybe you can go to the playground you can go to kuas um and you can get ice cream but um I'd like to see more efforts for um active Recreation downtown and I don't think we have to come up with like whole Master plans for Parks um it could be a moment in Memorial Park or a moment um you know over um off of flag is it Flagler park off of flagor Park where you get more families who um have a reason to come to downtown and then from there maybe businesses will follow that lead and and cater to those people because they are here year round and there are a lot of families that can walk or bike to downtown if they feel safe and if they have a reason to um let's see you know Bonnie the uh that I know Pan's got some plans drawn up already I think for some of the things you're talking about in Flagler Park including potentially splash pads um playground equipment that's big enough for grandparents and others to get on you know it's it's not uh it's not handicap accessible but it's and I know we've got we had plans on that drawn out to to start developing that side of the park to make it more uh familyfriendly bring more younger families down because they always complain about what they're pay they're paying taxes and they're not getting anything you know exactly and so that I think that would be great to look at that again and that's not a critique in any way it's just um in terms of priorities I'd love to see um that be something that can happen in the next meaning extension of the downtown from St Lucy onto right now yeah yeah the extension would be great um but but just making it one making it more connected so that families do feel safe right because um my family will bike to Kanas and then we will bike over and get ice cream downtown but I don't think a lot of families feel comfortable doing that even though they live within walking or biking distance because it's it's uh our Transportation downtown in a lot of ways is is designed so that people can can move through quickly and they do they speed through and they're not even stopping in downtown they're they're using this as a way to get to and from work or other places and so um especially with the bright line coming in we're going to have a lot more pedestrians coming through and um so I'd just like to see um maybe some focus on that for 2025 um but um otherwise I just want to commend you all on the on the ideas that you're bringing forth and what you're pushing um I I probably write four or five community Redevelopment plans a year for other cities and the things that I recommend they do you all are doing so great job thank you there's nothing else please file the report thank you um unless anyone on the board cares I think panel will bring back the D and D on the landscape code in at her discretion May probably in May if she is available when we agenda once again again um if you are on this board there's no one here but the people who are on this board so I'm going to say it maybe someone's watching if you're on this board that means you have a commitment to come to the meetings otherwise do not be on this board because we can't advise if we don't have a board to make this up so I I urge by other board members that they come to the meetings if there's nothing else we're adjourned