##VIDEO ID:xLpijYzRCRI## e e there one two there one two e e e testing testing e e e e this this hello this is Sean can you hear me yes e e e e e well good evening everyone and welcome like to uh call the City of Homestead Council presentation ceremony for November to order it's now 5:00 p pm. and today is Wednesday October 16th uh 2024 and I said November didn't I I must have meant uh I'm thinking about Thanksgiving already fall is in the air right so we'll start off tonight with uh Council wman Bailey thank you mayor good evening everyone so in honor of this coming January's 111 anniversary for the City of Homestead this month's artist in the spotlight was a call to artists to present anything that makes Homestead Homestead so one of one of the main artists that'll be presenting and showcasing their work during um the gallery opening is Jason gther unfortunately he's traveling he wasn't able to be here today but he is is a homestead native his roots go back to his great grandparents and um when his grandfather passed not long ago he set out to just collect all these different artifacts and things that his family has collected over these hundreds of years um and it's a really cute really cute collection I love his passion um for the things that he wasn't able to get the physical piece of he has recreated some type of art form so he is really sad that he can't be here today but he really does hope that you can all make it out to our Gallery our gallery night which give me one moment as I look for it if Miss hedson with the Homestead Center for the Arts can also Jo double checking here so the gallery opening will be Wednesday the 30th at 600 p.m. at the seminal theater so you can always check our social media page for all the details but it'll be a really fun representation of what homestead means and I'm sure you'll see a lot of different things um because this big beautiful Melting Pot is just so many different things for for everybody that lives here so I would like to introduce Miss Charlie Hudson from the Homestead Center of the Arts who is also going to be participating I always have to do this bear with me be with me uh for those of you that don't don't know me I am in fact the president for Homestead Center for the Arts uh we do not have an or uh facility here but we have actually been in Homestead working in an umbrella virtual kind of capacity since 1977 and so we do have on any given day between 30 and 40 artists I happen to be a WR and normally we would have some of our artists here but there's just been a whole Brash of medical emergencies and this that and the other so we will have because the theme is you know images of Homestead what makes Homestead Homestead we'll have between four and six of our artists uh the very talented Marie Ferraro who does some beautiful work uh watercolor and some uh other mediums for those of you who are familiar with my husband Hugh Hudson who has a passion among other things for photography so he will have some of his images of out at the speedway some fantastic shots from there as well as he photographs a number of events uh that take place uh when we're doing the work for the paper so he's got some pieces of that and then we've got two or three other artists wonderful artist uh Claudia Mella who almost always participates and she couldn't be here tonight so she's got some of her beautiful photographic images and then we've got one or two more I'm not quite sure how many we're going to have total uh but they're all going to be like I said a mix of mediums and so we would invite you to please come out and enjoy those while they're up thank you so yes o October 30th the wrong month also October 30th 6 PM free food always some yummy things thank you to the seminal the friends of the seminal theater um for partnering with us in this program that is a wonderful way to allow our local artists to be able to Showcase their work and for you to be able to come out and be inspired so thank you again thank you thank you and uh it's always just for someone who as I've always said can't draw a straight line with the ruler the the talent that will will be there is always just amazing for me councilman Cannonball good afternoon everybody okay in celebration of Hispanic heritage M okay as councilman and on behalf of the of the mayor Steve ler in the city council I would like to recognize the Hispanic poets writers and aors Alors that are part of a growing community these 37 participants come from various walks of lives some are Educators business owners Rees Etc who PR meet at libraries and bell and bookstores to keep the momentum of their passion for the Arts all our poets writers in or authors from homestad or Miami Bay County I was excited when I saw the number of Muses it is interesting that to learn that five of them our L needs and they support professional and academic writers by helping them build skills to communicate more effectively their mission is to enich our cultural life while promoting sharing and preserving individual Customs through the written word they help build an understanding and appreciation of the Varity of cultures and talents in homestad on behalf of the mayor council and residents of the city of fet and as councilman I am proud to present each of them with a certificate of recognition and appreciation poet writers and ARS please step up to the podium where your name is called testing testing he we're going to call the names up if you can please come up pick up your um frame and then uh line up please so we'll begin with welcome Stephanie cabal Adriana Carrera Marisa Kya Castellano Maria Castillo Carlos colon Rodriguez Angela colon Felicia De Marine ariela Diaz Cindy fig mayel Gallardo Raul Hernandez aarias maryer mansano Diana Melendez Mercedes minota Morales we'll wait uh until everybody comes up and then we can uh applaud so we get nice one nice big Applause where were we America mansano Diana Melendez meres Minot Lis Morales Elsa Mia Alis Natalia Alisia Navaro PES Maria palit Viana VI Maria Perry liia Rodriguez Rosario Elizabeth Rowling Ivon Salas hanina salterini Irma Sanchez jior Santana Maya Santos Rosario solares Fey tol Gabriela torente e Sonia Valdez 37 poets authors and writers here so we welcome everybody has their thank you all so much thank thank you councilman Cal for bringing this very talented uh and special group together and to each one of you again thank you for your your commitment to our community and and we really uh are in allwe of your talent again thank you all probably turn it back around the other way we go ahead and turn the podium the other way yeah turn it around yeah we're we're done yeah we're done yeah okay so before we wrap this up is before we close this out um does anyone here on behalf of either heartbeat of Miami or help our city think there was some scheduling issues heart okay heartbeat's here the heartbeat of Miami is here if you want to go do that one yeah all right councilman cannibal well this is a plation to the heartbeat of Miami the heartbe of Miami was founded in 2007 as a fi based nonprofit organization to provide confident free and curent services to wom in Cal faing and plan pregnancies in Miami L County together with the Christian Community the heart Bay has established a network of medical clinics equipped with the technology and sary of Hope inet in h and on May 1st 2023 the of Miami H Clinic served 550 women their services were prly supported supported the spanic Latino and africanamerican communities in the hosted area and since 2007 mothers had given birth to over 68,000 babies with the assistance of the heartbeat of mayami Bar Miami continues to grow in South Florida and the transformation we have witnessed is short of miraculous the clinic offers various services including pregnancy related consultation test counseling goods for babies Wellness education and ongoing support and the City of HED commen work now therefore maor Steven bner by virtue of the authority based in him as mayor of the city to Herby procain October 16 2024 as heartbeat of Miami day in H again thank you all all right that concludes our presentation ceremony um as soon as those of you it appears those of you who aren't going to hang around are gone we will uh convene the council Workshop again good evening and thank you for coming out tonight we'll uh we'll convene the council Workshop in about five minutes e e for great any switched okay okay tell me how it is at the end okay all right let's go ahead if the clerk is ready we will go ahead and convene the uh Council presentation uh Workshop councilman cannibal still in the room he may be S your head back there if you would and see if he's there he may have G upstair I there's kids all right we'll give him 60 Seconds give was 60 seconds on the shot clock it's revise we there he is councilman we're ready all right no problem well good evening everyone and welcome again I'd like to call the City of Homestead Council Workshop to order today is Wednesday October 16th 2024 and is now 5:21 p.m. you call the role please Madam clerk councilman Canal councilman Roth councilman Davis here councilwoman Bailey vice mayor Fletcher here mayor L here very good our first item tonight and only item tonight is tab one car number 4359 species and placement of trees under the Urban Tree reforestation grant program Mr manager good evening Mr mayor council uh the administration would like to provide a status update on the coordination efforts met in terms of the tree planting exercise pursuant to two grants that we received I will ask the assistant city manager kimar bran to lead the presentation thank you thank you Mr manager good afternoon mayor councel uh we will like to be we'd like to first and foremost thank you guys for the cordination um meetings that we have facilitated uh in the way of a reminder the city was the recipient of two grants uh totaling uh 885,000 um $67.72 with no local contribution requirement um in the the way of background there were several locations that were identified as a part of the application that we wanted to ensure that Council had an opportunity to opine uh we facilitated uh several sessions um where we looked to get your input on locations that were appropriate for these plantings um we have uh identified those locations and we would like to walk you through the locations that have been prioritized because uh there may be uh pending uh or upcoming construction projects or uh it is there's another Grant application that would uh facilitate the planting um so our call my colleague here the assistant director of the public works department um would like to walk you through uh the final list of locations um to hopefully get council's blessing to proceed um there were some final comments that came in yesterday uh regarding uh recommendations that we can talk through once the presentation has concluded um and I will have Mina walk us through the final list of locations that we would like uh council's blessing in moving forward to the next stage of this project are we going to have to speak into the mic go good afternoon locations that were identified uh in in the presentation workshops that we had uh the first one being with cup park again the installation of landscaping would be the right way and with the park leley park is the second location the park 12 Street by Harris Field park again along the rway Campell to Turnpike was one of the locations that were identified in the Grant application um however we are not certain that this prop this portion of the Landscaping project is within the city right away so we would and we were asked by the council to take a look at it and we think that we should eliminate that location we have a substitute location for it the next location is Southwest 6th Street between 187 Street um again within the right way there is PL of room the right way be able to install trees for beautification Southwest 6et Northwest 6 Street from to 9 Street um the next locations are within the same neighborhood Northwest First Avenue um Second Avenue Third Avenue uh we try to keep them within the region within the area of the neighborhood um so we I'm going to skipe over all these streets that are designated in blue they are all within this neighborhood and we're going to plant it in this area northest 9 Street from 15 Avenue to 162 um again all these parall streets Norwest streetwest 94 and Northwest 10th Street and 11 Street are all within the area uh the next location is nor 20th Avenue and from that was one of the new areas identified by the council at the workshops and Northwest noreast Second one more location which is not depicted on this map which is English Avenue English Avenue is not shown and we going to include that the remaining are that are identified in are the areas that we not recing and so Council thank you Mina so Council there are a couple of uh yesterday uh we received some additional feedback that I want to um highlight for the benefit of the the whole um there was a there was there was a recommendation on eliminating the pine tree species that we have adopted that recommendation so we will eliminate the pine the pine um species as options for plantings uh there was a a a a conversation around um is it appropriate to focus on the Southwest area of the Southwest District in this project um based on the um uh our review and an assessment it is only Southwest 6th Street uh that we are pl we have planned plantings so we we do think that uh the the other project that uh the other Grant which I think it's the EPA Grant uh that was being considered um is looking Citywide as well as Southwest 4th so I think Southwest 6 makes sense for us to incorporate um in this particular project uh there was also a question on the removal of the streets for towards the uh City Hall so just as a reminder Mari is a County Road um there was a an appetite by the council in the past to not perform plantings on County streets and utilize the plantings for city city thoral fars um we look to the council if you would like to change the direction there we can certainly incorporate it as a location um and then the other two as as Mina mentioned we are looking to incorporate English Avenue um as one of the additional new sites for plantings and the the last point was uh Royal Palms on Chrome so uh there is a recommendation well we had an an arborous report done specific to the Royal Palms that are on Chrome uh the arborist has recommended not to plant the uh extremely mature um a palm trees uh we can plant a you know the smaller palm trees however um I know there there is an aesthetic uh that we want to maintain so we would look to council to make that determination on how they would how you would like to move forward um and then we will of course incorporate that in the plan um should should we get uh Direction tonight on moving forward with these locations uh we have outlined um a a timeline that allows us to successfully complete the the implementation um you know again if the mayor and Council would like to hear about that timeline we're we're we're ready to to share that so we'll take any questions and or comments at this time thank you appreciate it from all staff Council any questions or comments on placement or species issues uh Council ba thank you mayor um who's who will be installing the trees due to the dollar amount and fing for this grant we will be conducting a solicitation so that vendor has not been selected okay I was just curious because I had brought up some of the Royal Palms that have died along Fourth Street um I think it still in general looks looks good but if we had the opportunity to switch some of those out and it not be such a burden on the city um if if this could be a good time for that to definitely consider that there's quite a few that are just just trunks with no top uh the same going into Pioneer Village on the way to the CRA building um just something to consider if that is something that um that would make sense to do at this time um as far as Mal is concerned and it being a county road I honestly don't care if it's a County Road or a city road but that drive you know we've got the sibarium we've got our brand new police well neish police station um and then we have the junkyards if there's an opportunity to fix up those those areas um I say we definitely consider it I I agree with all the areas you've chosen I know that we can't do everything um the only thing better than planting trees is planting free trees so I'm really happy um with the grant but just throwing a couple things out there that uh that came across my mind thank you councilwoman Bailey just one point um the junkyards we are in a parallel discussion on how to restore on restoration efforts uh so we would not recommend plantings in the drunk on the in the junkyard areas at this time until that restoration um approach has been finalized but the other the other locations have been noted and we will incorporate it if you if you head down that that street there is grass and areas for people to walk for kids to walk to school but when you come to those areas it's just all dirt and anytime that it rains the least bit um it's very unsafe for the kids to be walking out on the streets um so any opportunity that we have to make that just uh obviously nicer to look at but especially more safe for walking would be great Council Roth thank you just to follow up along that Corridor are there sidewalks for pedestrian walkways so maybe are we in to to take care of the the rways there or is the county inch charge of rways through that area because if kids are walking to school in hazardous conditions I think we need to address that that's not my question or point but I just thought I'd throw that in there talk West M West M by the junkyard because and that's what you were talking about right the kids are walking to school that way they go to not a Lewis but they go out to W Homestead Homestead met well no not really Homestead metal but and then coming from the Southwest Southwest neighborhoods to the sibarium you know we obviously want that to be an easy walk as well but yeah once you pass um the cian and the next block pretty much after that you've got the junkyards you've got kicks which is just a big patch of grass um but no sidewalk good and just my thought on trees um and location I think it's on second drive or second a I think it's second Drive um where the the plant is and then JD red park is the trees that were planted there years ago are pushing the asphalt up so the root systems with the bigger trees like the oak trees and the gumbo limos in the future we may have problems with the the roadways and the root structures on those trees so we have it going on now in front of JD red park so I don't know what type of trees those are that that are planted there but just to look at these larger trees I I'm sure the Buttonwood is not going to have a huge root system and the Pigeon Plum and these other ones but I think the Gumbo Limbo and the oak tree have very substantial root systems just to think about but I think you know in that regard when we did the walk around downtown talking about the streetcape there there was discussion about the root guards that are now available and I would think that were appropriate that would be some additional expense in this this planting to avoid buckling sidewalks and roads in the in the future Mr manager did you have a comment yeah actually I wanted to reiterate what you just said that this planting plan has incorporated in the plan the adequate root guards as well as some kind of restraint system from them you know kind of growing into under the sidewalks or under buildings right so with respect to the replacing the Royal Palms on Chrome and my focus is particularly north of Campbell because those seem to be more susceptable because the root balls were Disturbed when the road was widen they moved the curb outward a little bit you and certainly this the success rate of planting comparably height palms and the expense of that would be tremendous but I think that if we could find some Middle Ground go ahead and identify the Dead the dying and the missing Royals I mean that's kind of a signature that's that's a an icon of of chrome Avenue and and coming into Homestead I would really like us to to do something and and I get that maybe you know 35 years hence that those trees may may have issues um due to the expansion of the root ball within a small area but my opinion is that yeah probably some of that is due to the distress from from being excavated uh in part so i' I'd really like the council to uh to join with me and in in asking staff to to look at at that also in terms of and I had made some inquiry about malie and More in terms of malie east of Flagler over to us one if you recall when we had the sheret discussion he talked about sprucing up the entryways to City Hall and and to downtown so you know to the extent the RightWay is available and we can work with the county on what would be the prolongation of Civic court and salary over to US1 uh perhaps you know replace repair supplement what may be there and I I believe we're going to have a uh a supplemental presentation on the uh the shet in a couple of weeks Yes actually that's going to come up during the announcements okay we anticipate to schedule a chared report discussion or workshop with the council at the next car meeting which is November 12th good thank you so you know and that you know we all saw that that that was built in so again you know I kind of agree not really interested in having and and our road system is so fragmented and I know it's it's quite a hurdle to to do this but I would really like us to see to try to deal with the county to to accomplish those entryways into the Civic Center and and downtown from um from US1 um I know you know the preponderance of the trees need to be native do they all need to be native because I don't know that all of these really are I know you're supposed to have some biodiversity so I think uh the the program requirements requires Florida native trees they don't necessarily have to be native to sou day they has to be Florida native because you know and I I had made some inquiry about you know uh some different diversity of shade trees such as perhaps Tamarind trees that are throughout the AIS Field parking lot and mahoganies that are the icon trees of of JD red rather than just all oak trees and gumbo limos so we have added the tambourin tree option we'll need to take it back to the the uh the granting Agency for approval but we have Incorporated that recommendation Mr May okay and uh appreciate that and what I think one over and and this has to do with the uh the native aspect of it I know in some of the other discussions we talked about perhaps some crpe Myrtle trees to add some color is are those an option here to kind of have some more diversity and add some color and some flowering so as long as it's a Florida native we will you know seek the approval what what we what we will ensure happens in a second layer is the locations that these these plantings occur that we take advantage of the color that I think we are we are we're striving towards um and then yes we will engage with the county uh for those uh areas that we need review and approval from them and then the same with the Florida Department of Transportation uh for the Royal Palms on northome yep and I because and I was taking a look at these sites and beh when I call behind Harris Field on the east side of harrisfield where we have that we have very limited rights of way there now and I don't know that large shade trees would would even be appropriate there it's more kind of an aesthetic aesthetic bar barer rather than than the shade and again back to the you know the crepe myrtle rather than all Pigeon Plum or something like that and last question are we comfortable that we ask the question in the right way that we are foreclosed from paying someone to relocate some of the overplanted oak trees on the right away on the east side like we did like was done in Alex muko Boulevard north of the uh the future Homestead Regional Park where we had a 100% SE uh success rate I you're you're relocating all the trees are either coming out of a nursery so I think that's a trick question Mr Mayor we need to check with the grant agencies yeah the grant is specific for planting of new trees if you want to kind of deviate a little bit and call it relocation if we can thread that needle somehow it gives us the ability to utilize overplanted trees that are now you know more mature than what we would be able to buy from a tree nursery probably at a reasonable cost just want to make sure we'll follow up we we will we will take that and and make an action request of the granting agency any further from Council let me ask if there are any public comments to be had and I the vice mayor is with us virtually vice mayor uh any further comment on this so we'll take that as a note nothing additional nothing additional at this time Mr Mayor thank you thank you Mr vice mayor all right so I'll close the public hearing on this uh nothing further thank youall look forward to seeing the uh the augers uh turning thank you Mr manager um you sir so does that conclude the workshop business all right we now adjourn the workshop and uh at six o'clock we will convene the regular council meeting it'll be six o'clock oh I'm sorry yes and the OPA will do now you're ready when the clerk signals me that she's ready to uh transition into the LPA we will go there for upon the conclusion of the previous schedule I will do whatever I can to make that okay good evening everyone I'd like to call the City of Homestead local planning agency meeting to order today is Wednesday October 16th 2024 and is now 5:45 p.m. let's have a roll call please Madam clerk councilman Davis here councilwoman Bailey councilman cannibal coun board member Roth Vice chairman Fletcher chairman lner here ex official Lawrence V very good um are there any additions deltion or deferrals from this agenda no mayor but but I I believe you all have been handed there's a REV LPA agenda which references the resoning as the only quasi judicial matter you have and then under legislative matters is the public art ordinance which is also in your packet for the council meeting right very good so we have as our first item the approval of the July 17th minutes we have a motion to approve we have a second I have a motion a second all in favor any opposed all right Mr White yes please be advised that the following item on the agenda is qu judicial nature if you wish to comment upon this item please indicate the item number you would like to address when the announcement regarding the quazi judici item is made an opportunity for persons to speak on this item will be made available after the applicant and staff made their presentations on this item swearing in all testimony including public testimony and and evidence will be made under oath or affirmation additional each person who gives testimony may be subject to cross-examination if you not wish to be either cross-examined or sworn your testimony will be given its due eight the general public will not be permitted to cross-examine Witnesses but the public May request the LPA to ask questions of Staff or Witnesses on their behalf full agenda packet on on this item is hereby entered into the record persons representing organizations must present evidence of their authority to speak for the organization further details of the quazi judicial procedures may be attained from the clerk in accordance with code section 2590 any lobbyists must register before addressing the LPA on the following item at this time LPM members must disclose any expart Communications concerning tab two uh on the agenda the rezoning car number 4,400 any disclosures on the single item none none here appears there are none no disclosures to be made so at this time I'd ask uh anyone who's wishing to speak on this item uh please stand raise your right hand to be sworn by the clerk do you hear I swear firm to tell the truth and nothing but the truths and help you may have two car number 44 is the applicant present the applicant was supposed to be present that's right this is this is yours that's right Mr Ms is here okay gotcha go ahead tab to number of 4,400 so an ordinance of the City of Homestead Florida approving the resoning as requested by Homestead business Asset Management LLC of under approximately 13,500 square foot parcel of land from one family residential R1 Zone District to restricted retail commercial B1 zoning district for property located at 29 Northwest 14 Street as legally described in exhibit a providing for complex separability and providing for an effective date very good and Mr Hennis thank you mayor vice mayor council this is a resoning from one family residential R1 to restricted retail commercial B1 zoning district for the property located at 29 Northwest 14th Street the rezoning would bring the subject property into Conformity with the established like commercial use designation of the future land use map the property is part of the 41 total properties identifi ified by the city's Chrome Avenue Corridor incentive Pro incentive program as having inconsistent zoning Flume designations within the city's Chrome Avenue Corridor staff is recommending approval of the proposed resoning thank you sir any questions or comments from Council for the record will to note that the uh applicants representative is present and again this was part of our clean up efforts if you will to to bring that Chrome Avenue Corridor into Conformity between the future land use map and the the zoning uh designation moved by board member Roth seconded by board member Bailey let's see if we have anyone wishing to make a public comment didn't think so we'll close the public hearing and we'll have a roll call vote board member rth yes board member Davis yes board member gaval member Bailey Vice chairman Fletcher yes board member Aila yes chairman lner yes motion carried right very good does that conclude the uh agenda for the LPA Mr White that concludes the quazi we have one legislative matter all right so tab three car number 4391 is an ordinance of the City of Homestead Florida amending the city code of ordinances by amending chapter 32 design guidelines Article Five public art program providing for severability inclusion in the code conflicts and providing for an effective date okay Mr Hennis or Mr White go ahead sure so uh at last month's council meeting you had first reading on a on the proposed amendment of the public art ordinance um needs to go to LPA so we're doing that now before second reading um subsequent to uh subsequent to uh first reading where you all had um expressed policy direction to eliminate the option for Onsite placement of art as one of the components of which a a private developer could comply with uh We've subsequently I think I've had conversations with all all of you we've subsequently did the research and unfortunately you will not be able to eliminate that option that option needs to remain in the ordinance for it to be uh legally valid um so be looking for a motion from you all this evening to um to restore restore keep that option available in uh the ordinance uh the other thing that you all um directed staff uh to to do is to increase the percentage from one to 1.5% um that is along the lines of what the public art uh I mean sorry the public um public project projects are not so much in line with what other municipalities do for private development so something to consider not sure if you want to go that high if you want to keep it at 1% the third thing that I need to mention is that subsequent to First reading um we discovered that um we need to have clarification language placed in the code with regards to um license agreement as it relates to placement of art on private property currently I just handed out revised language currently under the code uh we have a broad provision that basically mandates that the artist uh has to relinquish via license agreement all of their their rights to the art and that's what we want if Arts being donated to us but if we don't own the art in the case of someone someone placing art on the property that agreement is between the artist and the property owner with respect to um the copyright the ownership of that art all we need to do is require that we have the ability to have a limited license to uh utilize that artwork for purposes of promotional City uh Publications promotional purposes not for commercial purposes and so um the proposed language that I just handed out under Section 3237 D makes that distinction between donation of art to the city and then there's a new language that's shown underline which is for placement of art on private property which basically provides for the limited license agreement to be approved by the City attorney with respect to our ability to utilize that artwork image for promotional purposes City purposes is not commercial purposes so I would ask for you all to include that language for second reading very good Council questions comments counc ra I'll make a motion based on rep uh replacing it back to the originals we had to do the first one you mentioned yeah the the option of placement on private property right taking the cap back down to 1% it would be 1% for inl 1 25% for on site okay but reducing that from the 1.5 that was done at first reading retaining 1.5 for public projects which means government schools what have you and then the corrective provision for the license agreement I'll make that motion all right move by councilman uh I'm sorry board member second by board member Bailey any public comment close the public hearing and ask for a roll call on the uh motion on second reading member can board member Roth board member Davis board member Bailey board member aula yes Vice chairman Fletcher yes chairman Len yes the motion carries good thank you all right any further business from development services F from the city uh attorneys this agenda nothing at this time mayor and um any public comment with respect to the local planning agency issues all right hearing none I'll ask for a motion to adjourn moov by uh Bailey second by board member Roth all in favor any opposed so this meeting is adjourned and uh so we now have the ability to move right into the council meeting correct okay well let's uh let's take another five and regroup and we will uh we'll move this meeting forward at 605 for for for e he got you e for but I will say e for e for s you all right let's begin to take our uh position so that we can open this meeting and uh move on good evening everyone and welcome to the City of Homestead city council meeting today is Wednesday October 16th 2024 it is now 606 p.m. this evening we'll have the invocation by Pastor Jeremy Alvarado pastor of the ministerio Pentecostal loka Eternal Eternal Church followed by the Pledge of Allegiance with councilman cannibal everyone please stand Pastor my Mr Mayor members of council H our guests let us pray heavenly father as we come together today we express our heartfelt gratitude for our chance to serve and uplift our community we seek your guidance and wisdom as we engage in this import discussions before us may our hearts be filled with the spirit of collaboration allowing us to unite in purpose let our minds be sharp and Discerning enabling us to make thoughtful decisions that reflect the needs of all may our actions embody a steadfast commitment to the wellbe and prosperity of every resident and business in the city of homestad help us to listen actively to one another embracing the diversity of thoughts and perspectives that enrich our community grant us the grace and respect deferring opinions and to find and to find the common ground together let us work diligently together a towards a bright and more inclusive for our beloved s amen flag of the United States andice thank you please be seated right all right I'll now open the floor to public comments first for those who have previously registered we have one um yeah we'll get to we have one registration but first let's have a roll call Madam clerk councilwoman Bailey councilman cannibal here councilman raw here councilman Davis here councilwoman aula here vice mayor Fletcher here mayor lawon here all right as I was saying got registered public comments um the one and only registration tonight is by Ken Russell on behalf of the Sierra Club Mr Russell are you here please come forward and give us your name and address for the record and we will set the uh three minute clock thank you welcome thank you good evening mayor council Administration my name is Ken Russell I reside at 3142 Ohio Street Little Bahamas of Coconut Grove 33133 I'm here representing Sierra Club uh asking to urging Council to take action with regard to something that the county is working on with regard to Solid Waste as you all know the incinerator burnt down over a year ago uh on November 6 the county is planning to vote on a new location for a new incinerator uh out in airport West which is further than Dural further to the West further to the north they have yet to uh create and vote on a solid waste master plan uh they have yet to factor how much additional cost this will incur for cities especially the cities further away who will now have to transport their waste further longer distances more complicated more costly will Dural pay for that will a County pay for that or will Homestead pay pay for that Sierra Club is urging the county to look at alternative options Beyond incineration yet they are fixated on incineration for the moment so we're hoping that cities join together at least to ask for a pause to not rush to decision on November 6th uh and we have draft legislation uh that we are urging cities to uh take a look at and consider in their bodies this month uh in in the hopes that they ask the county to to not vote on November 6th to make a decision so I thank you for your time right we we do we have a draft resolution that's been circulated you go ahead and shut the clock off so it doesn't make the obnoxious alarm um so you use the term Rush the decision how long has this been in play I se to recall that they've already had some deliberation to not put it back at the Dural proper site um you know that's kind of a political buzzword Rush so how how long has this really been in discussion sure since the year and a half the year and a half since it burnt down has been their decision point but we believe that anything prior to a solid waste master plan uh is a bit Hasty because you're putting the car before the horse on an8 billion expenditure over decades when that technology may not be the best thing available there are other cities other counties other countries that have figured out how to handle waste rather than the the traditional incineration methods um my County produces twice the average waste per person of counties throughout the country uh and so reduction is a first step construction of debris waste is another step and of course getting the Organics out of the landfills is another step but they're bypassing all of that and going straight to where to build an incinerator versus what should we build and so the fight over which city is currently happening versus the larger conversation and we just believe that they're they they can take a moment longer to study the whole process and options versus just picking a city that seems to be the fight right and you talk about developing a master plan so if at the next commission meeting they approve the expenditure or to go out and and do an RFP for some a consultant to do that that master plan in your experience in public office how long might might that take yes your item 4414 this evening goes through your master plan for your your your water uh waste waste water management and it's not a not a terrible process but the building of an incinerator would take over 10 years uh so they're already in the process of you know hauling their waste elsewhere to other landfills throughout the state um and they can take the moment to study the proper methodologies uh they they're bringing in a zero waste consultant who can actually give them the solutions that they don't know yet um there's cities like Boulder and Austin who have figured this out how to handle all their municipal waste without incineration um so of course we're talking about as as as environmental groups not putting the incinerator near the Everglades which is the current plan or anywhere but really we're also looking to the municipalities from a fiscal perspective of you need to make sure you're at the table if you weren't already aware of what these additional costs would be if they do make a decision this coming month um whether or not you're on board for the entire elimination of incineration or not um we just want to make sure you're aware potential going back appreciate Council any questions comments concerns Council Bailey thank you mayor I was gonna bring a boulder um my sister lives close to there I think we can do so much better than what we're doing um we just spoke about this at at our briefing uh last week um having all these national parks and the Everglades I think that Florida should be ashamed of itself for not doing better and doing more research so um I would be I would be okay with with setting something um in motion to see I just ask the county to at least think about it and make sure that that is in our best interest appreciate that just just to clarify is it and you're here speaking on behalf of the Sierra Club yes is the Baseline argument that the proposed site is not locationally appropriate the officials yes 100% putting it right by the Everglades beyond the Urban Development boundary uh utilizing that property in ways that they would not let Private Industry utilize it is definitely against our position but our greater position is that they can think Beyond incineration to start with which they're not they're they're they've completely taken all all option off but I I guess my question is is that would the Sierra Club be here if the proposal was to put it in an urban area or somewhere down in the South End thank you and I don't think we disagree with we're probably way behind the curve on proper sorting and and distribution and reuse and waste of energy and all those kinds of of things but at its core hey you're here based on locational issues no sir uh Sierra club's position is around climate uh they have not yet and this is from the county report commissioned by them to with arcades there is no method of sequestering greenhouse gas emissions from these incinerators they will act like they are because they're working on Technologies for the future they made them smell better made them a little cleaner but they still they will produce more greenhouse gas than any other option ining landfilling and so that's Sierra club's position that there should be no incinerator they don't want to KN in my backyard position they want a note position which is not on planet Earth um but they're they're they're understanding that not every city may be in that position so we're trying to help give every city the tool to at least advocate for their interests whether it's coming to their backyard or it's going to impact them fiscally all right so let let me ask our attorneys T typically we you know evolved into a polic and a practice of not enacting generally non-agenda items and certainly something that's that's brought at this level and just so so you're aware we don't have a regularly scheduled meeting to act on this other than tonight between now and and November 6th so what what would be the so if I can make a suggestion if it's the will of the council to transmit something from the city to the County expressing their opposition to this then the council can certainly um adopt a motion authorizing either the city manager to write something under his signature or somebody on the council to represent the position of the city and set forth that sentiment and have that distributed to the County Commission prior to November 6 I think that's the easiest path forward yeah councilman yeah I think before we make a decision like that um we I think I think we need more information I mean we just fought the landfill down in south of us in the county was you know very helpful in stopping that process so I don't think me personally I have enough information you know based on this gentleman's you know testimony today that would enable me to make a an educated decision on on this for a county project I just don't see and I think if if I remember correctly it's not just an incinerator it's a it's a waste to energy program so they're creating electricity through a c type project the replace was that correct replacing the destroyed coant plant yes it is a waste energy facility so I don't know you know without having enough information it'd be hard for me to support opposing the project this is my two cents no I I agree and I think that what we could do is if you could get some more information to the manager he could circulate it among Council if enough council members are on board with this to request a special call meeting for us to enact something or authorize the issuance of a letter I think that would would probably be the best course of action thank you mayor and just to clarify even though Sierra club's position is against incinerator as a whole that's not the action we're requesting of cities today we're simply asking them to ask the county for a deferral of November 6 and there's nothing in the resolution that says they shouldn't do what they're currently planning it's just simply to ask them to work on their master plan and to give cities a study of the financial impact that you will see from the relocation based on the location that you very good thank you thank you mayor thank you Council appreciate it thank you for coming down all right we have uh well are there any comments from the public either online or or in person in the chambers here tonight so I'll close the P public comment section of the agenda we have before us an addition referred to as addendum one car number 4423 do we have a motion to add this item motion to add addendum one to the agenda move by Council Bailey second by councilman Davis all in favor all right any opposed all right so let's move on to um item number four addendum one Mr furl yes Mr Mayor um item number four is a resolution of the city council of the City of Homestead Florida accepting a supplemental Proposal with Vortex Services LLC through the interlocal purchasing system tips the completion of an SS cycle 2 Wastewater Basin repair project and including lining of additional sewer lines basins and well Fields authorizing the city manager to negotiate and execute an agreement accepting the supplemental proposal and exempting the project from competitive bidding in accordance with city code section 2-41 11185 supplementing resolution number R-22 24- 07- 181 on the same subject providing for implementation and providing for an effective date thank you sir Mr manager will you be giving us the staff report yes uh before I ask the public director in case you have more comments back in July 17 of this year this Council approved a contract proposal to Vortex services for $1.17 7 million with a 10% price adjustment for the rehabilitation and lining of the current sanitary sewer lines as well as the man halls in SE Bas number 18 13 22 24 and 25 all of which are currently under a temporary moratorium with myate County based on a subsequent sewer system evaluation survey sses cycle 2 findings it was discovered through uh review there are the additional locations that require Rehabilitation as well so this item is to Simply expand the existing contract by including those newly found discovered areas as well as incorporating them as part of the current contract in order to save money and save timeline of completion very good thank you any questions or comments from Council all right before we move this are there any public comments so I'll close the public hearing and ask for a motion to approve addendum one move by councilman cannibal second second by councilman Davis roll call Madam clerk councilman Ross ccom aula yes councilman Davis yes councilwoman Bailey councilman cannibal vice mayor Fletcher yes mayor lner yes the motion carries thank you thank you Mr manager all right our next item tab one is a pres car number 4421 is a presentation on behalf of the Citizens Independent Transportation trust good evening and welcome good evening thank you for having me Mr Mayor uh council members Mr manager it's great to see you we used to work together back in Miami again my name is Javier betc Court executive director of the CIT and with me also is Mariana price she is the municipal program manager for our agency and she's the one that works most closely with you and the other 34 cities in Miami day County on your expenditure of your half penny sales tax funds so uh we're going around and just giving everyone an update on um the C tax that have Penny the projects that are being funed with that uh clearly it's something I know you're interested in down here in Homestead given everything you're doing with your half peny and then also the the South Corridor so without further Ado I'll go ahead and I'm going to be very quick because it's a lot of slides and I know you want to get to dinner uh if you want me to slow down or if you have questions please in a so 20 years ago actually over 20 years ago this November uh everyone who went to the voting booth saw this on the ballot and it was asking the good citizens of Miami day County whether they approved a half percentage increase in their sales tax to go to Transportation improvements what they called at the time and we still call The People's Transportation plan or PTP that measure uh was adopted um but I do want to point out the last line in the referendum language specifically asked the voters to create our organizations to oversee those funds and make sure that both the county and the cities spent that half penny uh appropriately okay so who are we what do we do essentially we're a small agency quasi independent agency of miam County charged uh with monitoring auditing reviewing overseeing and investigating the use of those half peny funds and the implementation of the promises that were made to the people um back in 2002 so we are not the Department of Transportation and Public Works we're not the TPO we don't build operate maintain or plan for the long uh range future of Transportation we're simply a watchdog agency over the fund so we are governed by 15 member Board of Citizen volunteers one appointed by the mayor one by the league of cities and the other 13 by each of the 13 County Commissioners um you are represented represented partially in this area right now uh by I believe uh one of these folks uh I'm trying remember which one let's see um I know we have a vacancy actually for most of your districts so for those people who are interested in applying to be a member of the trust uh if you live in uh commissioner Kone McGee District we do have a vacancy and uh here's how you apply uh basically you can't be an elected official you can't be a candidate for office you cannot have a financial conflict of interest with the county but you do have to reside in the district of the commissioner that appoints you we have an office that I uh lead that helps to support the volunteer members of the CIT or a small office probably the smallest in the county but we small But Mighty as I like to say one of our principal functions is to audit the cities and the county on a semi-regular basis um you know we're constantly every two or three years auditing the cities and uh following up at any findings so um there were some uh findings in past audits that we have been working diligently with your staff to address and by the way you have an amazing staff I do want to thank not only the city manager but also Cairo Eduardo Anna Sher Carlos Pamela and Raquel we work with all of them they're very responsive they're very professional they represent well and um we're working through any remaining issues we have uh with them on a regular basis so enough about us let's talk about the money so a half penny doesn't sound like a lot but it has generated quite a bit over those 20 plus years almost $5 billion now the bulk of that has gone to miate transit to operate maintain upgrade and expand Transit less than 10% of it has gone to their public works department for roadway improvements uh and Highway improvements % goes to the cities that's was an agreement reached you know from the very beginning and it's distributed to the cities by uh population PR a basis you Homestead being a fairly large city you get a good size of those funds um less than 1% goes to our office for uh oversight uh we are able to use up to 5% for those purposes we keep it under 1% strategically because we want the bulk of the funds being spent on the city on the services that people need to move around this is kind of the same information presented over the lifetime uh of collections as you see you know the sales tax keeps on increasing with the exception of the Great Recession and the pandemic um this is our current budget now it's 75% is actually now going to Transit so as roadway projects are completed we're not allowing the county to add more because we really want the focus to be on transit on those remaining Transit projects that were promised and were never delivered if you really want to geek out and get into the numbers if you're one of those folks um there is a 20-year performer online every penny in every penny out is on that 40-year performance so have fun geek out uh I should know it's an8 billion performa over 40 years and yet we have many more needs than that so we need to start thinking about how we fund those enough about the money now let's talk about the projects and services in funds so as I said 20% of the funds have gone to the cities the cities have done a very good job spending their monies on transportation and Transit improvements you're required to spend at least 20% on Transit trolley freebies on demand the other 80% can be spent on other Transportation roadway bicycle pedestrian traffic cming Etc um The Golden Passport was one of the original promises that's fair free transit for all seniors regardless regardless of income uh subsequent to that they then added what they call the Patriot p passport which is fair free transit for veterans that one is income limited so folks under a certain income um there were a number of other improvements you know we completely replaced the Metro mover Fleet the Metro Rail Fleet and increasingly the Metro bus fleet Metro mover was also made Fair free uh as I said there were 40 something Promises of Highway and roadway improvements most of those have been achieved and finally the one that everyone remembers of course is the expansion of Metro and that is is where we've had the least amount of success there was one expansion of Metro which I'll talk about in a second but we'd like to say that the most successful part of the program has been the municipal program the cities maybe because you're more Nimble maybe because you know you're closer to the people you represent you've done really a great job of using your limited Resource as well so I'm going to allow Marana price to just come in here for a minute give you a quick update on the Min good evening Mr Mayor fellow council members my name is Miana and I run the best part of the C CIT the city's uh Municipal program so uh 33 municipalities participate um and City of Homestead has always been a Star City you have a star team and uh amongst the most enthusiastic Liaisons that I have so you have a great team representing you um so I run the program I oversee the uh compliance collect reports host monthly and quarterly virtual meetings annual Workshop in person and um City of Homestead last well this FIS school year has already collected $4.3 million and half penny oh next slide and um it's projected next year to receive over 5 million the ridership last year was 39,7 41 and that was without your freebat already this year as of only quarter three your r ership is 50,60 so you're well on your way to um I mean you're already you've already exceeded it and the freebi has really helped you push through and over that amount since last year did you say our freeb ridership was 50,000 or the combined freebie and trolley um combined freebie ridership is 14376 and one of the projects we continue to work with you on is on the homestead mult modal Transit Center so we want to ensure that that's not just the parking garage for the sibarium as cool as that is the uh movie theater and the bowling alley that it really is a true Transit park and ride and your team has been great at making sure that they're adding those elements so that when that brt rolls up hopefully sometime next year um people will be able to park there okay um one of the key roadway projects that is still under works is the advanced traffic management system so this is basically smart signals right trying to get you through those intersections if you are in a car uh more efficiently and more streamlined so there was a phase one to that um that tackled a number of intersections throughout the county was successful they realized Savings of anywhere between 15 20 and some cases 25% Time Savings as a result of that phase two didn't go so well they had issues with the contractor a lot of delays so they've essentially let that contractor go and they brought in a new one and now that is also underway but the focus again has been Transit uh particularly now um a lot was accomplished as I I've said a lot of this I won't repeat it but you know the main accomplishment really was the expansion of metral to the airport that is the only Rapid Transit expansion that we've achieved in 20 plus years uh the second one is going to be right outside this building and that is the first Corridor that's being built as part of the smart plan the Strategic Miami Area Rapid Transit plan it's essentially the same corridor that were promised to the voters 20 years ago uh and never delivered so now the county working with the cities working with other partners are really trying to push those corridors um and bring them to fruition so the South border which we'll talk about in a second is exciting because it's the first one out the gate but there's also the beach Corridor the East West Corridor the kendle corridor the Northeast Corridor and the north Corridor uh I don't have to tell you this one is under construction um they are hoping uh officially to launch this second quarter of next year unofficially I'd be surprised if that happens but hopefully sometime next year you're going to see gold standard brt service running down the quarter serving your great City and the idea as I think you know uh that at some point in the future when it can be justified um in terms of ridership and land use that that that can be converted to rail the beach Corridor AKA Bay link as it used to be known is going to be a Metro mover connect connection right now from downtown to Miami Beach and then also downtown to the Design District that's still in Planning Development and Engineering East West Corridor uh was originally going to be some kind of brt project along 836 itself the County's taking a step back they're reassessing that they're looking at Alternatives commuter rail along the existing CSX lines potentially metr mover potentially uh brt but not necessarily on 836 maybe flly Street okay the Kendo Corridor isn't really moving they had looked at a brt for this but there are really a lot of issues with it so they've kind of just pause this and are waiting to see how some of the other things pan out the next one that is likely to happen is the Northeast Corridor so I think most people at this point know about bright line now bright line is great but it's too expensive you know for everyday use for everyday people and it doesn't have enough station serving the bulk of myud County so we need to complement bright line with a true commuter real service more akin to the Tri Rail and that's what the county is currently negotiating with bright line the underlying railroad FC the state and federal partners and I don't want you know to to jinx it but we hope that they're going to come to some agreement soon and finally the north Corridor this is still the one Corridor that they're still proposing metral expansion for and uh it's in state of Planning Development engineering because it's Metro raal it's also the most difficult to achieve it's the most expensive by far and it's going to require a huge amount of federal dollars which are very competitive and not easy to get lots of Park and Ride facilities that we've invested in you know throughout the county we need additional funds I'm sorry to make you hungry with this slide but you know the the Hat Penny federal and state grants isn't going to cut it we need to look under additional rocks for additional funds to bring these plans to fruition finally we're focused on other things first last small connectivity doesn't do you any good to build these things if you can't get to it or from it into the neighborhoods or your business areas improving the customer experience people need to want to get out of their cars and ride Transit uh and that's only going to happen if it's wellmaintained if it's clean if it performs well enhancing County Municipal connectivity so this is an important one we don't have one transit system in mi County we have 35 we have TR rail 36 maybe tril bright line and then 34 cities each doing their own thing and from the customers perspective from the writer perspective you know that's not ideal right you got different apps they don't always connect well so we're constantly working with you all your neighbors the county other partners to make sure that those systems are connected and integrated and finally Community engagement uh I think people deserve to know what's happened with their half penny you know and I I don't think the word is really getting out there enough that's why I'm doing this here today that's why I'll volunteer to come on down here again and and present before Community groups Civic groups business groups if you like me to just send me their information and we'll follow up couple of program programs I want to end on number one is a CIT ambassador program um if you ride Transit on a regular basis whether that's the county system or the city system we're looking for people to volunteer to be ambassadors all you have to do is continue to ride the system as you always do you'll be you'll have access to an app you submit your observations about your experience you know it was late driver was rude the driver was fantastic whatever it may be you get points for that information for for submitting that information and you can exchange those points for rewards free Transit passes free Uber rides Etc so great program you can apply on our website and then finally I H I uh launched a podcast a couple years ago focused on mobility and transportation again it's not the most exciting conversation I have with people but it's important uh and uh we're having great success with having key leaders talk about Mobility every two weeks in fact I'd like to invite the mayor or manager whoever would like to uh join me on that podcast uh we broadcast it out of South Miami we'd love to have you uh with that be Happ to answer any questions thank you thank you Council any questions quick comments questions appreciate you coming down thank you and welcome to council AV GL you made it here in one piece okay we have uh now the consent agenda consisting of Tabs 2 three four five six seven and eight a motion to enter to uh approve the consent agenda moveed by councilman Roth seconded by councilman cannibal all in favor any opposed next item is public hearings land use ordinances Etc Mr White yes please be advised the following item on the agenda is quazi judicial in nature if you wish to comment upon this item please indicate that you would like to address when the announcement regarding this item is made an opportunity for persons to speak on this item will will be made available after the applicant and staff have made their presentations on this item swearing in all testimony including public testimony and evidence will be made under o or affirmation additionally each person who gives testimony may be subject to cross-examination if you do not wish to either be cross-examined or sworn your testimony will be given its du8 the general public will not be permitted to cross-examine Witnesses but the public May request the council to ask questions of Staff or Witnesses on their behalf full agenda packet on on this item is hereby entered into the record persons representing organizations must present evidence of their authority to speak for the organization further details of the Quasi judicial procedures may be obtained from the clerk in accordance with code section 2590 any lobbyist must register before addressing the Council on this item at this time council members must disclose any expart Communications concerning tab nine on the agenda this evening no disclosures no communication so at this time I'd ask anyone in the audience who wishing to speak on this on Tab nine uh which is car number 4400 please stand raise your right hand to be sworn by the clerk do you hereby swear fir to tell the truth and nothing but the truth to help me by thank you you may be seated tab nine car number 4,400 is first reading of an ordinance of the city of hestad Florida approving the resoning as requested by hestad business Asset Management LLC approximately 13,500 ft parcel of land from one family residential R1 zoning District to restricted retail commercial B1 zoning district for property located at 29 Northwest 14th Street as legally described in exhibit a providing for conflict cability providing for an effective date thank you Mr henis thank you mayor Homestead business Asset Management LLC is the applicant for this application it is a resoning from one family residential R1 to restricted retail commercial B1 with a property at 29 Northwest 14th Street this property is part of the Chrome Avenue Corridor incentive program um project as dealing with projects that are inconsistent in zoning and flum designations within the city's Chrome Avenue Corridor the applicant has submitted all information and is present for the presentation tonight and staff is recommending approval of the proposal move move by Council Ross second by which one of you by Bailey any further questions or comments from councel there any public comments roll call for approval please councilman Ron yes councilman Davis yes councilwoman aula councilman cannibal councilwoman Bailey vice mayor [Music] Fletcher yes mayor lman yes the motion carried thank you and moving right along tab Tim Mr Burl yes mayor Tab 10 is the first reading of an ordinance of the City of Homestead Florida amending chapter 18 motor vehicles and traffic to create article 3 speed detection systems and school zones of the city code of ordinances to authorize the placement installation and operation of speed detection systems on roadways maintained as school zones establish traffic enforcement procedures when speed detection systems are utilized for school zone limit violations and create hearing procedures related to such school zone speed limit violations providing for correction severability refle implementation codification and an effective date thank you sir Mr manager can we summarize this by saying this is a statutory requirement in order to install the proposed schools own speed detection systems yes align with the mayor's interpretation can we wave the staff report yes okay any questions or comments from Council move by Council woman Bailey Say by councilman cannibal any public comment roll call Madam clerk councilman Ro councilman cannibal councilwoman Bailey councilman Davis yes councilwoman abula yes just may Fletcher with a comment if you yes sorry thank you one one thing I did wanted to make sure and and staff did reassure me in our briefings is that the schools would be contacted there would be Outreach and so anybody listening who might have that concern that will happen thank you thank you mayor LNA yes the motion carries very good thank you all all right tab 11 Mr Pearl yes Mr Mayor tab 11 is the first reading of an ordinance of the City of Homestead Florida amending the budget for the general fund for the fiscal year beginning October 1 2024 ending September 30th 2025 by decreasing the total budgeted revenues and expenditures by 2,372 264 providing proability and an effective dat thank you Mr manager so this is simply a housekeeping item uh during the budget process we mentioned that there was a famous $2.4 million shortfall in the taxable Revenue so this is simply to correct the records and in addition to that I think there is a a minor adjustment in the expect expected Revenue stream that is coming from the tax Ro Mr Finance director do you have any additional comments other than the $31,000 council has been briefed so simply to correct the record that the actual Revenue stream coming from the tax row is less $2.4 million which has been less 31,000 that's going to be coming back to us again for those listening this was a county calculation error I we heard the word shortfall a minute ago that's probably not the best word to use we never had it we didn't spend it we did not lose it this is uh correcting a math error at the County uh county level so we have a motion to approve move by canall and second by councilwoman Bailey any public comment hearing none anything further from Council roll call Madam clerk councilwoman aula councilwoman Bailey councilman Roth councilman Davis yes councilman cannibal vice mayor Fletcher yes mayor Lo yes the motion carried thank you and moving on second reading on Tab 12 Mr Pearl yes Mr Mayor tab 12 is the second reading of an ordinance of the City of Homestead Florida amending the city code of ordinances by amending chapter 32 design guidelines Article 5 public art program providing for severability providing for inclusion in the code providing for conflicts and providing for an effective date good so we need a motion uh Mr White yes so everything that was mentioned on the public record during the public hearing for the LPA carried over for here that motion uh would include motion to uh reinstate the option for placement of art on site would include um the uh percentage to be rolled back to 1% as well as the incorporation of language related to uh limited um license agreement uh for placement of art for art that's placed on site for the city to use for promotional purposes very good thank you all right to move it moveed by councilman Roth second by Council Bailey speak yes question by Council a and I wanted to just clarify it includes the one and a half for public projects that doesn't change it wasn't changing okay good right That Remains the Same thank you for that clarification all right any public comment I'll close the public hearing and ask for a roll call vote councilwoman Bailey councilman cannibal councilwoman aula councilman Roth councilman Davis yes vice mayor Fletcher yes mayor lner yes the motion carried and next is a resolution tab 13 car number 4417 Mr Pearl yes Mr Mayor tab 133 is a resolution of the city council of the City of Homestead Florida approving subcontractor agreements to implement the children's trust at Miami Dade County grant that was accepted by the city for contractual Support Services to families exposed to violence providing for implementation and providing for an effective B thank you Mr manager so this item is a follow up to a prayor action taken by Council uh this is regards to the children's trust and also the subcontractor agreements between the city and those entities I'm going to ask ACM kimran to provide the details thank you Mr manager uh Council as the manager referenced uh the we engaged or we were the recipient of uh $700,000 with the children's trust uh we as in the implementation of that uh program we have uh engaged Dade legal and Familia Christy House Mare and SOS which is the start-off Smart organization uh to implement the program uh this item uh speaks to the allocation of dollars for each organization um and as a reminder for the benefit of the council there was a $70,000 uh match uh that the city has put forward um we are happy to take any questions at this time thank you appreciate that questions from Council yes Council thank you mayor uh not so much a question but just to um let my colleagues know that in our briefings I was asking about um um you know any reports any follow-ups on the prior Year's U Services that were given and so there really hasn't been a formal uh presentation of those kinds so I'm going to be sponsoring a reso that'll come in a future time to encourage our our nonprofit Partners working with us to report to the city managers and uh to be available to have a Public Presentation as well so just wanted to share that thank you appreciate that would be that be more in the form of a a mandatory you know as we partner with them in the future they're going to have to show us how they performed and and an audit of some sort just show how the money how they spent the money exactly very good look forward to that that's uh that's how we better do business appreciate that I fully on board with uh we we share with a lot of entities that councilman Davis May thank you we were thinking uh we were thinking along the same lines we've spoken with the city manager and to have an annual report frequently I mean our non for-profits do excellent work excellent but frequently they're brought up with big words and things and you know all these great things that they do but I need to know how many how many U billable hours were used by legal aid how many people were housed you know those kind of things and and the duration of Housing and those are the kind of quantifiable things that we discussed in the in that if they can provide that on an annual basis I think that is an excellent stewardship of of these tax dollars as they go forward all right so that'll be in a pipeline under your business in the future so I don't think we needed clear d a direction by vote to the attorneys to do that under our new protocol year ail to bring that forward so thank you you're welcome mayor and I'll like a motion to approve all right so we have a motion to approve this item second by councilman cannibal any further public comment close a public comment and ask for a roll call vote please councilman rth councilwoman abula councilwoman Bailey councilman Davis yes councilman cannibal vice mayor Fletcher vice mayor Fletcher yes mayor lner yes the motion carries all right thank you moving on to tab 14 car number 4411 Mr Pearl yes Mr Mayor tab 14 is a resolution of the city council of the City of Homestead Florida accepting a grant award from United States department of justice under the public safety partnership and community policing grant program for the City of Homestead police department approving the grant agreement establishing a budget for the expenditure of Grant funds in the amount of $249,990 providing for implementation and providing for an effective date thank you sir Mr manager so this item is actually a great uh process Improvement for the city uh we're asking Council to consider the item to allow us to go into the next phase of policing which is accreditation what a huge step forward it is a huge step forward and it's also a professional recognition that the city's uh PD is an excellent organization to work for and also to deliver Services amen do we have a motion to get it on the floor move by councilman Roth by councilwoman aala do we have any further questions or comments from Council any public comment on this item so I'll close the public hearing and we'll have a roll call vote councilwoman Bailey councilman cannibal councilwoman aula councilman Davis yes councilman Roth yes Vice May Fletcher yes mayor lner yes the motion carries thank you and tab 15 car number 4412 Mr attorney yes Mr Mayor tab 15 is a resolution of the city council of the City of Homestead Florida approving subcontract agreement with the Miami day County to implement a grant award accepted by the city from the state of Florida Department of Children and Family Services for law enforcement and Social Service intervention and Prevention Services for domestic violence victims authorizing the city manager to execute the subcontractor agreement providing for implementation and providing for an effective date thank you Mr manager this is one of those housekeeping items we are trying to close the loop and I'm going to ask assistant city manager kimar bran to provide additional details as to what transpired between City of Homestead and my imidate county for this contract award thank you Mr manager uh so as the manager referenced this is a the City of Homestead was awarded a grant uh through DCF in the amount of 313 ,600 uh prerequisite of that Grant or requirement of the grant was that the city engaged with in a formal agreement um with our partners miid County being one of them uh that agreement should have been executed by December of 2023 um through the centralization of our grant of the grants uh function uh we discovered that this agreement was not executed uh so we are bringing it to council to formalize that execution um and then we will transmit it to the county for them to essentially review approve and execute uh that we can satisfy that requirement um it is critical that we do that to uh eliminate uh the continuation of an imposed penalty so we are seeking council's approval at this time good thank you Council we have a motion moved by councilman a seconded by councilman Davis any further questions or comments from councel any public comments close the public hearing and ask for a roll call vote on Tab uh 15 councilwoman Bailey councilwoman aula councilman Davis yes councilman Roth councilman canaval vice mayor Fletcher yes mayor law yes the motion carries all right and next is tab 16 car number 4414 the water and wastewater infrastructure master plan yes Mr Mayor tab 16 is a resolution of the city council of the City of Homestead Florida accepting a proposal and approving work authorization for Engineering Services required for the city's Water and Wastewater infrastructure master plan project between the city and CES Consultants pursuance A continuing contract awarded under RFQ 2013-07 providing for an effective very good if there are no objections or nothing to add by the manager we waved the staff report I know we've all been briefed during budget time leading up to this great step forward to again put some more bricks in the foundation of our operations so do we have a motion to approve mooved by Cannibal seconded by Bailey any public comment hearing none let's have a roll call that councilman Davis yes councilwoman Bailey councilwoman aula councilman cannibal councilman Ross vice mayor Fletcher yes mayor lner yes the motion carries and coming into the home stretch tab 17 car number 43435 EPA Community Grant Community change Grant statutory partnership agreement Mr furl yes Mr Mayor t s is a resolution of the city council of the City of Homestead Florida authorizing the city manager to identify and enter into Environmental Protection Agency environmental and climate Justice Community Grant change Grant partnership agreements with qualified and eligible entities providing for implementation and providing for an effective date thank you Mr manager do you have a presentation or a report yes I'm gonna ask assistant city manager Zach to do a quick two-minute presentation oh Mr manager I didn't know I only had two minutes go ahead take five you've been you've been told I can get it done um so good evening uh mayor and council tonight we have a brief presentation regarding the EPA Community change Grant um we will go over just a quick overview of the program a the city's application uh proposed components our um potential Partnerships and then a requested action for a little bit of history on um the way this Grant application started to be developed this began as a community redevelopment agency application that was then shifted to be a more uh Citywide and comprehensive application so there may be some references in here that are specific to CRA or or the Southwest um those will be uh changed to be a little bit more broad as we continue to refine our scope um but just as a overview of the program the EPA started the community change grant grant applications this year as authorized by the inflation reduction act each application is eligible for up to $20 million in funding with no local match the anticipated award and performance period begins in January 2025 and would continue through December 2027 what is unique about this program is that Partnerships are not only encouraged they are required so each application must have a lead applicant in this case it would be the city a unit of local government and a statutory applicant which is a non-governmental nonprofit organization the overall focus of the program is on reducing pollution increasing Community climate resilience and building capacity to address environmental and climate Justice issues which essentially boils down to the intersection between economic and environmental um disadvantaged areas so our uh overall application centered initially on Southwest Fourth Street and now is um as I mentioned uh more city-wide focused we are planning to align with needed infrastr ucture improvements and engage with strategic Partnerships to strengthen the application and amplify our impact um so as we look at what our proposed project components are of course Street redesign allowing for electric utility undergrounding uh the relocation and restoration of other City Utilities installation of multimodal Pathways electrical vehicle charging storm water improvements the planting of native plants and trees and of course Road reconstruction restoration ideally we would align this with a needed uh Wastewater or water Improvement project in order to help save those funds as well uh the construction of Homestead live is a proposed use um so that would be used uh funds for construction of this community and event space and everything that goes with it and then other miscellaneous improvements in funding or again EV charging is a big Focus of this application and this grant program Street trees storm water improvements other infrastructure improvements and an allocation for Grant Management costs for the city to be able to recover our time and expense Partnerships um I'll go over what the requirements of a statutory partner are again this has to be a non-governmental nonprofit entity the uh entity must have a physical location within the proposed project area they must have experience working with the targeted community and the programming that they offer must complement what the epa's focus for the grant awards are and the overall scope of the application other potential partners that we would like to bring on are for Workforce Development and climate ready job training the provision of resilient Community facilities youth education and engagement uh organizations that provide benefits to local schools that are advancing economic mobility and environmental knowledge organizations that provide Civic engagement opportunities and experiential learning opportunities uh we have a focus on these items especially in the partners because these are not uh things that traditionally the city is able to provide with our existing departments and with that our requested action tonight is a motion to approve this resolution that authorize the city manager to enter into a partnership agreement with a qualified entity for the purposes of this Grant application as well as any additional subsequent or substitute agreements as may be required again all obligations would be contingent upon the city's receipt of Grant funds so if we promise a certain scope and award to an entity we only have to provide that if we actually receive the fun from the EPA good thank you sir I don't think you met the two minutes but I think we're within the five any questions or comments from from Council councilman Roth just just one the authorizing the city manager to enter into an agreement with a partnership agreement um this is a $20 million potential Grant and I think it should come before us for any entity that would be considered to be a a partner with the city just my thought Mr so I think time is of the essence in terms of submitting the application uh we already know that if we were to be successful the allocations would have to come back to council for approval first what we're asking approval for is to be able to submit an application in the first place to at least place a good the best foot forward if you don't have an application there's no for Council to take so I think between now and when we hope to submit which is uh first week in November we will also Circle back to council members in case you have ideas suggestions and recommendations I don't think anything stops us from having multiple program Partners doesn't have to be only one we can have as many as Council can provide so I think I want to make sure that we don't foreclose the door by limiting ourselves before we even have an opportunity to be considered thanks and I think your key comment here is that the expenditures and allocations to projects as they go forward we'll come back here vly has to come back to council right all right any further Council Bailey thank you mayor so this was obviously the item that that got me rethinking about um you know Recycling and reducing and I just wanted to put it out there one more time I just feel like it's a sign or an opportunity um if there is a way for us as a city to look at what the Count's doing you know we're working on all of these Master plans for a reason and not to put it all on the county I think that us As Cities and municipalities need to do better if there is an opportunity for all for us to come together to make a better decision for the future um to just not pass up that opportunity I don't have any answers it really upsets me that I don't I wish that um that there were more um more clearer answers of ways that we can can do better um but if this is an opportunity for us to look into some of those those options then please let us do so amen Council woman AO thank you mayor I like the idea of making Homestead Greener you know maybe maybe there are some initiatives that we can um uh enact under this uh under this grant um but I wanted to just make a comment that looking at the map uh for epa's area map all of District 5's residential areas are included so I thought that was uh important to notate and um I I do recognize that it kind of wants us to concentrate the impact but it's $20 million I'm sure we can try to spread the level around the city a little bit um especially like with the landscape improvements and the EV charging I don't I think we should put the EV charging stations where the Teslas and the electric vehicles are more likely to be so if we can consider that that'd be great thank you we uh we can definitely take that into consideration um as you noted the EPA guidance does want a concentrated area I also want to bring to your attention and council's attention that we do have other applications specific to EV charging that include locations on the east side and certainly my conversations with staff on this item have been it's got to CommunityWide where where it's usable CommunityWide I know we have to have a core area but uh you know just these Landscaping grants we talked about earlier I think they're probably fairly spread out where where it's appropriate to use them thank you sorry I just remembered um so I brought up a few months ago that someone from freebie had mentioned that the charging stations at Homestead station weren't working so definitely consult with with freebie to see where are other areas in the city because they're finding that they'll pick somebody up go drop them off and then there might not be a close enough charging station so maybe to see from freebie where those uh where the majority of those rides are missing a charging station thank you hey thank you do we have we have a motion we okay Mo by Council Bailey second by councilman Davis is there any public comment he'll close a public hearing if there are no further questions or comments from Council let's do a roll call up councilman Roth councilwoman Bailey councilman cannibal councilwoman aula councilman Davis yes vice mayor Fletcher yes mayor lner yes the motion carries all right very good um Mr manager anything further again um I would love to kind of uh remind Council that at the next car meeting we intend to bring a workshop to review the visioning Char report that we are currently taking a review internally so we want to see and pick your brains in terms of what the report says and which direction you want to go that's what I have very good Mr attorney no new items we still have to catch up on the items from last time all right councilman cannibal anything further councilman Davis councilman Roth councilwoman ala yes mayor thank you I wanted to announce that uh water stone the community of water stones tree lighting ceremony that we uh get to enjoy every year is coming up November 16th so please save the date and um I wanted to also give thanks to staff for helping with the D5 beautifi D5 project which is in process and um you know it's all hard work you know even simple projects tend to to require a lot of work so thank you all for what you're doing and uh I wish you all a great rest of your week thanks thank you all right councilwoman Bailey thank you man a couple quick things I'm Trayvon brown with Bol build your own legacy is hold is hosting his Breast Cancer Walk October 26 at Rosco Warren Park 8:00 a.m. is registration and 9:00 the walk begins he had an amazing turnout last year it was his first year um he's one of our local mentoring basketball uh coaches so please if you have a chance to support him do so kudos to PD for the National Night Out I thought that it was our best yet um all the organizations that were there just amazing coming together with resources and most importantly would like to wish my fabulous Mommy a very happy 77th birthday I will see you in a little while very good we didn't keep you too late all right vice mayor are you there any further yes I have two quick items if I could please certainly uh first I wanted to apologize for not being here tonight I'm not feeling very well and I didn't want to get anybody sick so I decided to stay in and come in Lally um today I did have a a discussion with the uh chairman of the Orange Bowl committee and uh one of their Vice President of Operations regards to their event that they're going to be hosting in Homestead on November 23rd currently they're looking to distribute approximately a thousand turkeys uh on that date um they're looking for partners to maybe uh add additional turkeys to that uh distribution I know we talked about this brief but I would ask each of you all to to look into your uh your coffers and see if there's maybe some funds you might be able to uh to release to help with that uh event and again that's going to be on Saturday November 21st uh 23rd I'm sorry uh I will also speak with the manager in regards to some City support services that they are requesting that we might be able to provide whether or not we can I don't know but we'll have that discussion with the city manager tomorrow but looking forward to having that uh event in November as well as uh next week is uh of course a race week here in Homestead uh it's our time to shine it's our time to get ready for uh going after the Championship race um and one of the things I'd like to do if if we could uh as a council agree that uh on Sunday uh for the uh the city Skybox that we agreed that that be used on Sunday for city bus business and race business and we try and keep children under the age of 16 out of there on Sunday we can put them over in the garage suits or in the other seats but uh we're going to have some pretty important people down here that that can help us get the overall uh Championship race down here it' be like nice to showcase the city without the doors opening and closing and being able to have a conversation so I would ask each of you all to think about that uh when you're uh Distributing your tickets uh again we have some uh some very important people that are going to be down here that can help us get that Championship race back down here in 2026 with that I'll yield the floor back thank you Mr Mayor thank you Mr vice mayor appreciate that point well well taken um so in in that regard and I had mentioned to assistant manager uh Brown about I know in years past we always and we should be this way each and every day and we'll get there make sure that our main thoroughfares are mowed the Palm FRS the branches and the trash are picked up to put our best foot forward for the thousands of folks who are going to be in um our community for race weekend let's uh manicure those uh streets as as best we can beyond that I just wanted to remind folks that this Saturday night the 19th we have our our annual trick retreat at laer Park right what what time does that start 6 six six to nine I know at least a couple of council members will be uh Dawning costumes and handing out uh handing out goodies so uh come on out and see us I know it's been a very well attended and you know ever evolving uh event so we'll see you out at ler Park on Saturday Saturday uh Saturday evening so with that I have nothing further do we have a motion to adjourn moved in second all in favor I any post thank you all appreciate you being here good night