to make sure that uh the results are conclusive at least to to the five of you and so uh with that in mind I do just want to share a few uh highlights from the financial statements and the idea is that uh not so much that we would that we would proceed with the discussion but that uh I can at least make you aware of these and when we come back in two weeks to proceed with all the various budget and finance uh topics at the next Workshop that it would be with with these in mind um so first I just want to make it obvious that uh if it wasn't obvious previously that the city is absolutely in a growth phase and uh that is evidenced by all the new facilities all the new Services programs new Personnel new contracts uh the city has a lot going on and uh you know I suppose this is uh this is a highlight that is uh certainly uh could possibly be perceived as negative which is the general fund operating expenditures have increased 12.8% from the prior year again there's a reason for that and the reason is that the city is in a growth phase our challenge is to determine how we are going to manage that growth similarly government wide liabilities increased by 125% again that uh that probably sounds more negative than it is uh the reason for that is that the city completed two additional phases of borrowing to complete the utility or to I guess begin the utility undergrounding project and the storm water drainage projects the total amount borrowed between the two was over $9 million and so uh there's a corresponding increase to government wide liabilities in that amount keep in mind the city had uh had issued only one round of debt prior to that and that was for the city center project uh a year ago or at least a year prior to these financial statements um on the on the positive side we we issued that debt uh for a reason the reason is to construct New Capital facilities so government-wide assets increased nearly 30% uh in fact governmental funds Capital assets increased 23% from the prior year and again that is almost exclusively exclusively related to the city center facility ities a couple things to keep in mind um we want to be aware of the significance of any one-time revenues and uh you know the way we treat those because we would certainly for instance never want to receive a a non-recurring revenue and use that for ongoing Personnel costs for instance so we did receive two uh two contributions of that sort uh the first is obviously right behind me in Rock Park uh that is a donated asset on the financial statements valued at nearly $1.2 million we also received um of course the lawsuit uh settlement proceeds from BP in the net amount of $580,000 that will be booked as a uh commitment for future expenditures the mayor had asked about that uh on the agenda setting meet or I think it was on the agenda setting meeting previously um it's my suggestion that we well and the board has previously approved that we will set those funds aside for a future project and then finally the board should certainly be commended for the fact that uh it has dealt with this growth and these expenditure increases by taking some bold steps to uh stabilize the revenue uh the millage rate was increased for the first time since 1989 in this fiscal year that was just audited that combined with the property value increase was enough to generate an 18% increase in property tax revenue and at the same time the board supported uh increasing the hourly parking rate and that combined with the tourism growth that the city has experienced was enough to generate an 11.4% increase in parking enforcement Revenue so again the board should be commended for taking those actions and when we combine all those and roll down to the city's net position which uh could said to be uh similar to net worth on a on a personal basis or uh the difference between what the city owns and what the city owes the city reported a net position increase of 10.0% and that follows a 3% increase in the prior year generally speaking that number can be seen as an indicator as to whether the city is better off or worse off as a result of its operations and uh again that is a 10% increase from the prior year so with all that said uh you know I think the theme of how we approach the next workshop and how we approach the next budget is how to keep managing this growth and like I mentioned on the agenda setting uh meeting we we will do that by revisiting the policies we've already adopted we will take a look at some new policies and we will start the disc discussion uh about fiscal year 2017 to address the city's long-term sustainability that's all I have thanks bince thank you does any of the commission have any questions for the finance director good job V thank thank you all right moving on next uh public comment this section is reserved for public comment on matters or concern pertaining to City business and which are not on the agenda public comment is limited to three minutes would anybody like to speak this evening Mr cooch coic 15301 Second Street East madira Beach Florida uh what I'd like to mention tonight is uh with the budget coming up one I would hope that we would uh fix the problem that we had when we built the complex and that was the lack of any solar energy being produced we have money now it's a great time I guess to bring this up we got that BP which was uh the oil spill so now why don't we put it into something positive and put it into solar energy we don't have one solar panel on all these flat roofs that were built and I think that at this day and age is something that we really should have to look at and do and I don't think I saw the building being built so there's a lot of Steel in here so i' find it very hard to believe that a solar panel is too heavy for this building uh the other thing uh um also I would like to just thank uh the citizens of madira beach on the high turnout at the election yesterday and uh uh I was happy to see what the outcome of the referendum uh I was there out there and uh what I had heard was a lot of people might have voted yes but they got confused by the ballot language they felt they were being taken advantage of so whoever wrote that I think a simple yes or no do you want to allow somebody to sell the property would have been a lot better than the wording that was given people were very upset with that I don't know whether you heard it but I heard it and that was when they came out so uh uh something like that could be discussed in the future maybe brought up again but at this point in time if you want to know why it failed that was a big big reason so you can pat on the back whoever wrote that up and approved it thank you H did have your up that's okay yes sir I want to speak yes sir you'd have to come to the Pod excuse me you have to come to the I'm sorry is an time if you're going to make public comment on matters that are not on the agenda okay then that's the time to make comment on it yes sir thank you yes sir sir EXC okay Public public comment like I said public comment is on matters concerning or pertaining to City business which are not on the agenda if it's on the agenda wait till the agenda item comes up if it's not on the agenda and it has to do with City business Now's the Time to come up does anybody have any public comment they would like to make of matters of the city which are not on the agenda tonight okay at this time I'm going to go ahead and close public comment what oh I'm sorry you still want to come up okay I'm sorry Mr Marl how are you doing good sir good evening mayor and commissioner Marv Merl 581 Crystal Drive first let me comment about the financial numbers I just saw which were a little discouraging but on the other hand I've been here 40 years and we've never had a better Financial guy than the one you've got now so that certainly is a positive I'd like to comment about the referendum yesterday we would have had a yes vote on that if probably a dozen of us didn't get out and go door too with leaflets and put up signs around vote no you know if you read the referendum it starts out by saying right away super majority vote required for sale of real property you know that statement sounds like oh boy they're going to strengthen up the sale of city property and instead you were going just the opposite direction you were taking this Authority away from the citizens who according to the Charter would have had to vote for property sales and the way you worded it you didn't tell the people that it's in the charter and there aren't a 100 people in Madera Beach that's ever read the charter so to me you were very deceiving the way you put this together you knew what you were doing you knew you were going to fake this thing through and the citizens wouldn't know what they were voting for so I I really think you should all be embarrassed to put the referendum in front of the [Applause] citizens put a referendum in front of the citizens so deceiving and by the way these are the same people that voted all of you in office and you turn around and pull something like this trying to sneak this through that Charter has been a for 50 years now why all of a sudden boy we've got to have a referendum it it just wasn't right and even if it had one of the reasons I voted against it because I have no confidence in the business sense of this commission some of the things you've done is unbelievable now we've we've got a city manager that I'm told is a good city city manager but can you imagine two years ago this commission voted him 7 weeks vacation a year seven weeks anybody out here get seven weeks vacation a year seven weeks vacation a year and not only that if he doesn't use the seven weeks he can turn them back in at $11,000 $3,000 a week I'll tell you I have more to say but I'm really you should be embarrassed thank you thank you for your [Applause] coming Mr sh my name is Robert Shaw I live at 507 129th Avenue in Madura Beach I listen to my friend Marv Merl speak and I think it's good to remind people that what we have is a representative form of government uh we can go to a referendum form of government but we would never get our electric bill paid uh we would never get our streets paved we would be tied up constantly by referendum votes in order to get everything done so what we are saying is we either trust this commission which we elected democratically or we don't trust them and I for one trust them if they fail me I have recourse and that is the next election to replace them with somebody I feel is better worth my trust I trust this board I understand that in order to get things done you can't wait for the people through referendum vote to to decide issues so there's a reason for what you were trying to do uh I don't feel your confidence in US was misplaced I think that maybe people didn't understand what was at stake and I think somebody has to defend what you were trying to do I know what your intentions were and I agree with them thank you thank Mr sh any Miss more evening Doran Moore 13019 boa sea Avenue um echoing some comments that were made earlier I've been a resident here for over 30 years and I too am extremely disappointed in the commission and the reactions and how you handled this I think it was it was uh crafted to deceive um it was not clear and I take exception with our city manager having stated in the newspaper that uh where were we all last summer when you all did the first and second reading and you did the first and second reading with the intention I was told that you were going to help educate the residents I understand the reasoning behind why you wanted the referendum intentions may be good but the Way It Was Written the way it was sent out under the radar have there been any news reports has the beacon paper covered this has the Tampa Bay Times covered any of this this is an important issue with our city and you all haven't given any information to the press to bring out they they publish what you give them there's been no education process it hasn't been brought to the people so when we get the ballot in the mail and suddenly find out that it is deceptively worded we didn't have an opportunity it was too late so I do beg to differ with the city manager that we were given an opportunity to understand what it was you were trying to accomplish and I also agree with Mr Shaw it is a representative form of government and the disappointment that the people are going to have in this commission is going to show when everyone gets out to vote thank you thank you [Applause] Mr and just on the city's behalf we did notify to have an educational meeting I sat up here in this meeting there was not one person to show up I I think the city went out there to educate people on it was the language confusing I got to admit after talking to some people it was confusing but we were doing meetings to go ahead and educate everybody no one showed so I mean on the behalf of the city and to the city manager and his staff I know they got out there to educate everybody and the City attorney would anybody else like to make public comment Mr TR if you want to speak come to the podium please I think be Trot I live at 378 145th I'd like to commend the population of The Residency for when they didn't understand it not approving it I don't know whether they uh uh whoever wrote it uh I'm not too sure the bottom line I think the residents of the Town were well to pass it on you can do it again whatever I'm not saying anything anybody was trying to pull anything however you may not be you guys sitting here 5 years from now I'm probably going to be dead but somebody else is going to be sitting there and what you're doing is giving somebody that didn't even hear yet the ability to do what may be not beneficial you may be up on the board but you may not be the ones that are doing the things 10 years from now 15 years from now and it doesn't die thank you like to make a comment yes ma'am name is Renee 225 Bo Drive compared to most of the people here I'm relatively new to this community I have to start again or am I good enough my name is Renee krup 225 boaa Drive I've been here about eight years so I'm new to this process compared to a lot of people however uh as a 40-year school administrator and school teacher I take exception with your last remark where you said you had one educational meeting and nobody came it's incumbent on you to make that happen if you provided a meeting and no no one came obviously it wasn't out there enough it was out there in the wrong spot it wasn't out there in a timely manner it was at an inconvenient time but it's on you to provide a forum for us to show up in and to say you had one meeting and nobody came Wow Let's do what we want that does not exactly work and when people say I don't know I guess I'll just let that go so anyway I would really like more of an effort I'm a technology person I read the newspapers and there are not there's not coming through you are not getting out in on the web you are not putting stuff out there in the newspapers it is not readily available what is going on and so if people want to participate you guys make it pretty hard we have to dig and root and spend a lot of time calling down here you call you get one person you're pass to another you go on to a voicemail for somebody else it's very difficult to call anybody and actually have a human being pick up the phone you mostly go to voicemail I'm not talking maybe the first one you might get a person but then when you go to the next one more often than not you are going to voicemail it's very difficult to do business with this organization thank you very much [Applause] you Bell like to speak this evening all right closing public comment next consent agenda at this time I'll entertain a motion to approve the consent agenda I so move Mr Mayor a second I have a motion a second Mr C manager is there any comments from staff the only staff recommendation is for approval uh item number one is the uh annual amount uh we spend on our firework show um 20 uh we have $26,000 budgeted again we've received a gracious donation from our uh Anonymous uh um donator uh for a $5,000 check uh to cover the cost of the barge so we can spend $26,000 on fireworks instead of 21 uh the show this year will be approximately 21 to 22 minutes instead of 30 to 32 minutes um so it'll be a relatively intense show Peter off in the middle and then another intense uh finale so that's the um feedback that we had received from the constituency last year and then secondly is just the annual amount that we spend on our Christmas ornaments on the uh Street uh the only reason why I bring that up is during the undergrounding project it's very possible that between doing the undergrounding and Paving and everything that there may be a section of town that doesn't get get their their Christmas decorations because the the polls will be down or whatever but we'll try to be out of there before Christmas all right thank you Mr C major is there any further comment would see please call the role ice mayor Paul yes mayor Paladino yes commissioner liser yes commissioner Hodes yes commissioner Shan yes all right contracts and agreements none andf finished business none new business authorization of governmental money purchase plan and Trust adoption agreement with icma retirement Corporation Mr C manager do you want to hand that off to the finance director Please Mr Mayor this item is uh intended to satisfy a new IRS requirement uh with respect to the city's retirement plan previously the city was uh was allowed to essentially adopt its plan by only selecting the specific benefits and uh specific uh rates that uh that did not apply to the city from ic's template uh if you will of uh benefit structure the IRS is instead requiring now that we formally reopt that document to specifically include all of the items that uh that actually pertain to the city um your agenda packets include the specific rates and the two different uh plans that are managed by the city there's one for the city manager one for the rest of City staff um so essentially I'm I'm asking that we go ahead and take the action tonight to reopt the plan because we need to meet the IRS deadline requirement of April 30th um but in the meantime I do recommend uh assuming that you do approve this tonight I do recommend that we bring it back for a workshop discussion to re-evaluate the plan uh there's at least one concern I would like to share with the board and uh to my knowledge I don't I don't know that the plan has been formally evaluated in some time so uh with that said I would recommend approval at this point a motion I so move Mr Mayor I second comments from recommendations for approval the finance director stated all right is there any further comments SE please call the rooll mayor Paladino yes commissioner Shantz yes commissioner Hodes yes commissioner liser yes vice mayor po yes all right next ordinance 2015-18 Mr City attorney please read by title only Mr Mayor ordinance 2015-18 an ordinance of the city of M Mader Beach Florida resoning certain rural property generally described as 555 150th Avenue and 565 150th Avenue from Marine commercial C4 to plan development PD District providing for reading by title only and providing for an effective date hereof that was a reading of ordinance 2515 I'm Sorry 2015-18 by title only at this time I'll entertain a motion Mr Mayor I make a motion that this commission pass ordinance 2015-18 on first reading second I have a motion oh she got it okay I have a motion in a second uh Mr City attorney do you want to take a over this time for public hearing thank you mayor um since this is a quas proceeding I'm going to basically go through a process that is a little bit more rigid than what you're normally used to and it's it's solely for the reason of um possible um challenge to the action that you're taking tonight so I want to make sure that we dot all the eyes and cross all the t's so we're going to follow the code technically word for word uh first of all um I want to tell you or give you a summary of the project um and I'm taking this from the Planning Commission summary and that is is that the applicants are seeking to reone 4.59 acres that are located on the Southeast side of 150th Avenue Tom Stewart Causeway just south of the bridge from C4 Marine commercial to PD plan development this request is for the development of a mixed use project that will include 325 hotel/ condominium Hotel units 68 condominium units and a 200 seat restaurant and a marina the standards to be applied um to the evidence that you receive today are the standards set forth in section 110- 391 and 110- 393 all of those standards and criteria will be reviewed uh by uh the applicant and City staff the burden of proof pursuant to section 2-10 a of the code is the greater weight of the evidence the uh parties uh are as follows applicant CNT Enterprises Inc and mhh Enterprises Inc in the city the city had received three notices of intent to become parties one from Peter Trot that was received on March 11th one from John Lipa that was received on March 11th and one from William Gay that was received on March 11th pursuant to your code section 2-7 A and section 1-2 uh these um notices were not filed timely and so they will not be considered parties for tonight's meeting um the presentation will be the applicant first then the city then persons who are not parties such as others in the audience that want to speak rebuttal by the applicant rebuttal by the city summary by the applicant and summary by the city and at this time I need to read into evidence um all the expert Communications filed uh with the city and they are numerous and it may take 20 or 30 minutes to read them so sit back and relax and let me just read them word for word there are several sets of expart day communications the first are emails from residents and this is specifically just for this project Holiday Isles and I'm going to read them from the most from the oldest to the newest starting December 10th the first one is from Ron and Liz brazo it's dat December 10th 3:54 PM Dear Mr Mayor Travis Paladino and city manager Shane Crawford as concerned 19-year residents of Mader beach I was really surprised to see the development package for Holiday Isle Marina come through so quickly without any input from your city residents although I'm not opposed to the development in the city as I believe that the current Administration has been doing a fantastic job in promoting and developing the city however it appears that this project seems to be uh being put push along especially at a time when a lot of the residents will be off visiting family and friends for the holidays and will be unable to attend the meetings or information night also of concern is this is that the city has decided to deviate from its original plan of its height restriction by allowing 10 story buildings to be constructed this is surely going to change madira Beach to the point that we will start looking just like other cities up and down the beach we have a very unique City in madir Beach another point that I would like addressed is how the city City and the county are going to handle additional traffic loads as you are all aware of the huge backups we endure now during season this will sure complete things uh complicate things even more than they are now and we have not seen any plans for congestion relief and I am aware of that I am aware of or any other traffic studies I think that what I am asking and I am sure many other residents will also ask us that the city hold meetings with the residents after the holidays when we are able to participate and convey our concerns thank you Mr Mayor and Mr Crawford and Planning Commission and again it was signed by Ron and Liz brazo the next email is on December the 10th 5:33 p.m. it's an email from Cheryl Rody and it's to the commission Planning Commission it says good evening Planning Commission members the first drath of development agreement of the Holiday Isle Marina project is currently online along with the public notice you'll be receiving your packets Monday the 14th including the packets will be the development agreement if you have additional questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me next is an email from your city manager dated December 10th it's uh references development agreement um and it reads Planning Commission members and be OC members there are a lot of rumors and misconceptions about the beginning note this word process for the old levero site and potential development first of all that there is a misconception that is being it is being railroaded through this is not true Everything is a process oriented and this is no different on Monday night the plan commission will consider reone the property in the first reading of the first version of the development agreement on Tuesday night the bo will only take into consideration the rezone the reason for the need to rezone is because because a developer will not spend any money on architecture or engineering or work with fdot or Swift Mud without knowing that reone will occur this would be like any one of us paying an architect to design a very specific house and a very specific lot of land that you haven't closed on yet so the rezone gives the developer and the city the ultimate flexibility in developing a piece of property that is sure to bring significant Revenue tax base to the city the rezone doesn't give green light for the development the green light is as when the develop agreement is finalized and voted upon by the boc the rumors that the roads in the city itself is not adequate to handle this development are simply not true the developer will be charged to work with the fdot and local land owners to create Frontage roads to access traffic issues I will be speaking with the chairman of the Planning Commission tomorrow about the entire issue but rest assured this issue will involve several lengthy meetings that the public May and is encouraged to attend this won't be complete in January this will be a several month process but we want to move it on as expeditiously but as responsibly as we can heck the Barefoot Beach expansion took months and months the L development is a potential $80 million development I spoke to a boc member about this issue and suggested the bo workshops I would advise that the boc members attend the Planning Commission listen and not participate and you will see how I will recommend uh we proceed both commissions can go along with my recomendation or you both can go whichever you'd like that being said the agreement won't be finalized for several meetings what is being taken up by the Planning Commission on Monday is an apples and oranges comparison to what the boc is taking up on Tuesday if you get a concerned citizen for them or this email or please have them contact my office this is a classy and quality development this is going to involve a ton of work and lots of concentration I've been personally working on this for four years and staff and I have really ramped it up in the last six months what they're applying for is a doable by code however you are the policy decisionmaking body you are in charge I'm infamous for analogies and I won't spear uh you on this one so here it goes it was a ball of clay staff and I molded it into something that was allowable and now you can put the finishing touches on it or step on it and tell me to start over I will be meeting with the developers agent tomorrow to get 3D models and imaging ready for for you all the development agreement went on the website when we posted it in the newspaper in air it wasn't sent to you all but since it has been posted edits have been made by both sides and so I can't really say it was an error because we knew that there would be edits call me with any questions or concerns remember development isn't a four-letter word however it has to fit it has to make sense and it needs to fit mad beach don't let the numbers or the pictures scare you until you've seen the entire package and understand the entire process also remember the Alternatives instead of Quality Hotel and a nice restaurant and condo tells uh this could be a Super Target or Sam's Club also remember that if you're concerned uh a view concerned a view corridors more often than not tall and skinny is better than short and wide just to look at our neighbors to the South and that development down there so the alternatives are usually scarier than what is being applied for my final thought is this the plan commission does a very diligent job to make a recommendation to the BC they do their homework as for the boc this is an opportunity that you have been waiting almost two decades for but you are steering the ship you get to say yes or no or change it up and I can assist on any of those options so keep your chin up refer excited or upset constituents to me and have fun with this this is the most exciting time to be part of something in mad beach in a long time cities across the state and the county yearn for development options like this you have the tools to mold this ball of clay into something that fits your city perfectly so rest assured that nothing will happen too quickly or without careful consideration the next email is from the city manager to the Planning Commission actually it's to Ron and Liz I thought yeah and CC to the Planning Commission please see an email I sent to the Planning Commission the Board of Commissioners there are simply a lot of commit miscon ceptions out there this will be anything but a quick process these types of negotiations takes months and plenty of public meetings rest assured that everything here is a process and won't be pushed through $80 million deals have a ridiculous amount of details and the devil is always in those details so we spend an extraordinary amount of time on them please contact me with questions or concerns and please attend the Planning Commission on Monday the 21st they're not all that long by the way um the next one is um December 11th it is from someone shown as a name of David and his email address is frog3 Tampa bay.com it's addressed to the mayor the subject is Snug Harbor Travis my concern is that another 573 parking spots we at Snug Harbor to go west must do a uturn around in the marina and with all extra traffic the median in front has to go or stoplight at the main entrance with the left turn lane would be an idea thanks David there is no punctuation I didn't read it like that it was just no punctuation so um the next one is December 11th it's from Barb and Joe Martin it's um it says approximately two years ago the mayor and the city manager attended to social function at our Condominium Association at that time the mayor commented on on the hopeful plans for the devel M of the property adjoining the city of Mader Beach Marina and assured us that nothing would be done without involvement of the residents of Mader Beach my wife and I are most amazed at the sudden rush to get rezoning legislation passed so that this project can move forward oh yes there are meetings planned a notification has been published but public meetings seem conveniently planned in the week before Christmas when many property owners are either busy with Christmas plans traveling or if snowbirds have not even arrived as of yet was the selection of dates and oversight by the responsible parties it's our request that the public meetings be delayed to more suitable dates in January so that so that we and many many others have the opportunity to voice our concerns the city manager responded on December 11th Barb and Joe I'm going to forward an email I sent out to the Board of Commissioners and the Planning Commission nothing is being rushed this will take months and months to achieve if the board even wants to move forward there are a lot of rumors floating around out there and they're simply not true C followup email um and then there was another same form letter as the Barb and Joe Martin letter dated or email dated December 11th this one is from Tony lant it says the exact same thing as the prior email next is December 10th it's from Ron brao it's to Larry hi Larry let me know what mad cove's thoughts are on this I will send you whatever more information I get we are all going to draft our own letters to the city powers on this and may have our lawyer send one also next is an email from on December 11th it's from Larry roloffs hi all owners the city leck's restaurant property is being proposed for new development the development being proposed is an Overkill and will result in too much traffic and congestion please take the time to review the attachments to learn of this development our neighbors at Snug Harbor provided these attachments from City Hall our City commissioners and Planning Commission are evaluating this proposal and put it on the fast track it is our op our opinion of your board that we must let our city officials know that we strongly object this Overkill proposal c4th attachment for artist view as you will read this plan calls for buildings over 10 stories in height buildings that will contain 175 unit Hotel 150 unit condo hotel three Condo Association buildings containing 68 units each a 200 seat restaurant a Marina and parking for 573 Vehicles this amount of density will surely overcrowd 150th Avenue have serious impact on our Sewer and Water Systems one of the attachments has our city officials contact information we urge you to take the time to send an email to those officials letting them know how strongly we object to this proposal we're not opposed to the development of the old levero property because it currently is an isore but this is this particular proposal is overkill and needs to be scaled down Building height should not exceed the height of Snug Harbor buildings as you know we often invite our mayor and city manager to Mad Co so they can update us on City developments we have a great relationship with our city officials and if one commissioner is strongly opposed to this development uh our VP John Lipa has already called our mayor and expressed our strong objections to this project we need to follow John's call with lots of emails so take the time before it's too late and we find ourselves not being able to get 150th avue due to congestion next email is um dated December 11th it's from John Lipa it says today's Tampa Bay times has a big story on the front page about the plan development of madira beach besides the lck property development with two hotels 117 ft tall 325 room 68 residential unit condos and a 200 seat restaurant in the condo hotel and 154 boat slips worth 80 million there is a major development 80 to 100 million planed development for mad way with at least two hotels retail space and restaurants plus the wind Dixie is considered building Gulf Boulevard and may include a garage parking at the developers building a a a the developers planning a hotel and John's Pass are closer to getting financing and the Barefoot Beach Hotel and Gulf Boulevard will add 43 rooms last week Paul Skipper the owner of the strip mall where M Mader Beach printing is located and the vacant lot behind it which ab buts our property had all the tree trimmed he has not done this for 5 years the strip mall is also for sale the city manager is saying development needs to be embraced in order to keep taxes down a developers are saying zoning changes are enabling development the good news are taxes should stay low bad news lots more congestion and the Skyscape will drastically change access NE grass to our homes from 150th Avenue have to be made a major issue traffic on 150th Avenue will be very heavy almost all the time and a exceptionally heavy during Peak tour season please make your voices no and please attend the planned meeting especially the one on December 14 at City Hall next is an email from Karen Miller it's to John and Larry it's dat of December 11th thank you for your emails I was somewhat saddened this morning upon reading the paper regarding this vision for the city of Mader Beach as a life long resident pelis County I've seen many changes over the years to our beaches and beach towns and sadly they were not all for the better in fact Gordon and I remember the natural beauty of San key and Clearwater Beach before they develop it into endless rows of high-rise Condominiums and hotels you are correct in that this recent set of plans for Madar Beach will add more congestion and take away from the small Beach Town atmosphere we now enjoy next is an email from from Larry R rofs it's dated December 11th May dear mayor and city manager Commissioners and Planning Commission I think it's appropriate for you to read the attached emails below so you can see and understand the feelings for many of the citizens of your city as a whole we have been very supportive of your outstanding efforts to improve our city however we do not have a good feeling regarding the proposed plan for the old levero property you'll most likely see a ground swell regarding the proposed massive overdevelopment of the lrock property and will most likely see this firsthand at future city meetings the immediate schedule of city meetings set for this month are also a concern to many of us wondering why so many meetings are scheduled in such a short period of time during the holiday season it it can lead one to think that the holiday aisle project is being fast tracked in order to get it passed even though some of us understand that the approval process may take many months we urge the city officials to keep their previous commitments regarding the height of new buildings of keeping them to a reasonable four or five stories 10 story structure are strongly opposed by many of us we have witnessed the explosion in San key and other areas of Clearwater Beach this is not in keeping with their city of mad beach we want to keep our city two miles long and smile wide please don't lose the smile wide next is an email from Chelsea Nelson it's stated December 11th it's directed to commissioner Shan this email is in response to an email I received this morning about the development of the former lrock property from my understanding the developers are looking to build significantly sized condo hotel property with a Marina and restaurants and are seeking approval for a change in the zoning rules as of this month I definitely feel that decision is being rushed this is the first I've heard of it and I know many of my neighbors have not heard about it at all from what I know so far it seemed that this particular development will a profound impact act under Community as well as set a precedent for the kind of development madira Beach will condone for future projects I don't want to turn it into San key or Clearwater Beach where you can barely see the sun because of the condos are so high or get across the bridge because the traffic is backed up for miles no thank you I'm definitely excited to see the site development and to see madir beach pro progress into the best city it can be but I also don't want to lose our character and charm that make us who we are residents need more information and have to have our concerns and opinions heard on this matter especially if the developers are looking to build outside our current codes from the way this project is being presented or rather not being presented to the public worries me it's a feeling of not being on the up and up when we find out approval is set to be discussed so quickly and during the busy holiday season why can't this wait and have more public notice about the hearings why is the December 17th meeting for the property owners within 200 ft when no one even lives within 200 ft that doesn't sit right please let me know what meetings are eligible to attend because you can bet we want to be there and have our voices heard next is another email from John Lipa it's dated December 11th it's directed to the Commissioners and the Planning Commission as well dear mayor city manager Commissioners and Planning Commission I'm writing to share some of my thoughts feelings about the development proposal under consideration because of the timing of the public meetings which I such I like many will not attend I do not have plan to attend the meeting relevant meetings in 2016 thank you for your service Madar beach has a renewed sense of Pride and vigor because of the decisions who have made Mader Beach is unique it has retained a feel is appealing to its resident and visitors it's appealing to developers because we have properties that are available and could stand updating there are lots of projects in in the wind with lots of Buzz about the dollars that could be invested in our city the scope and size of these projects are so newsworthy they made the front page of both the Tampa Bay times and the Beach Beacon as you begin your deliberations we ask you begin with not just the development package before you but with a vision of the city in mind what kind of city do you want madira Beach to be is it one that is spurred by excitement and promise of investment dollars or is it one that is spurred by the look feel and vibe that we want our for our city and our residents if we begin with the end in mind then 10 or 20 years from now we can all say that this is the city that we wanted so please begin with the end in mind I live on 150th Avenue most of my friends and neighbors also live on 150th Avenue at mad Cove Boa Vista and or Snug Harbor we want to see the city move forward but many have concerns about all the development in this Corridor 150th Avenue of madira way 150th Avenue is our neighborhood if these developments were taking place in your neighborhood no you would have similar concerns many of the concerns are how will it affect our quality of life how will we be able to gain access to our homes from 150th how do we get on to 150 with sizable projected increase in vehicle traffic from the Holton project property project we don't even know what the additional impact will be for the proposed development on Mader way we understand developers are all about making money the density of the Holton project seems ambitious and excessive it will drastically alter our city this is is this the vision for madir Beach there is a proposed there is proposed something approaching 700 door between Hotel condo and Condominiums these 700 doors equate to at least 1,400 people a 200 seat restaurant with a conservative five turns of the tables equals to at least a thousand people is this our end vision for the city our 10-story buildings are Envision why does the city need an Amphitheater we have great entertainment venue at City Hall again what is our end vision for our city again thank you for your service please take time to create create or better still articulate the vision you have for a wonderful City please begin with the end in mind let move forward with decisions and support of vision we can all Embrace and call our own also please remember 150th Avenue is more than an access road to the beach in John's Pass it it is a neighborhood next is an email from Josephine puges December 13th dear Gentlemen by the way directed to the city manager and the mayor CC a number of individuals I would like to voice my objection to opinion on the new lever Rock property on the Horton project this seems a little over the top I feel it is going to harm the community not help we may need the tax revenue but building this amount of residential housing which will house 393 people on this amount of acreage is going to cause more traffic difficulties especially in tomster Bridge we do not need another cond hotel I think this is obvious do we need another hotel when one is scheduled for John's Pass we are bursting at the seams now look at the corner of Gul Boulevard in boasa Avenue seven homes why not build a restaurant on the beach at 141st as planned I also highly object to the thought and approval of over five stories high don't turn our Paradise into another Clear Water I am all for tax revenue but let's not forget why people come to madir Beach Paradise thank you for your time next is from ly Raa it's dated December 13th it's directed to the city commission and some of the planning board members as a resident of madir beach for over 30 years I'm disappointed in the city officials to FastTrack the Holton property development at tomster Causeway this development is far too dense for this small piece of property we the people of madira beach had decided many years ago that we wanted to limit the height of buildings in our community to five stories these buildings are Overkill the city officials should take be taking into consideration the traffic that this will cause on the causeway and how difficult it will be for the condo owners who live on 150th Avenue to enter the enter and leave their property this will be a very dangerous situation for not only the condo owners but all the cars that use the causeway hon properties well knew the zoning when they purchased the property and they should be advised to develop the property under the current zoning M deer beach residents do not wish our community to turn into Clearwater Beach or Miami Beach please reconsider the dates of your meetings in order for all of our outof town owners to be able to attend the meetings next is an email from Richard wolf it's dated December 14th it's addressed to the Board of Commissioners and others it reads Dear Sir madam my wife and I are in the process of purchasing a property located at 401 15th Avenue Apartment 274 mad Beach Florida one of the reasons that we were interested in this property was due to the small community feel in the area we also like the progress the community was making towards the controlled new development and upgrades to community facilities the current zoning regulations support this pattern of control growth we have read that the owner of the Holton property Holiday Isle Marina is Seeking a variance for the property in order to build a major development as the current zoning does not allow this extreme density for the property we oppose the granting of this variance and feel that this is an overreach by the developer we are not opposed to development and believe that the developer should conform the existing zoning regulations The Proposal is too much too fast and the infrastructure of the surrounding Community would not be able to handle the extreme density or the current plan or proposal perhaps the scal down version might be beneficial to the city of M Beach and its residents if this resoning and development goes through as planned any effects will be irreversible we understand that as of this writing of this message we may not have any standing but a but any decision made will affect us in the future next is an email from Diane Ray December 14th it's addressed to the commission and some of the Planning Commission members madir Beach team I strongly oppose the proposed development of the whole property as it stands the population density is too high we certainly don't need another condo hotel or a 10-story hotel I don't object to a lowrise hotel or condos with a lower occupancy let's keep more green space and limit traffic what a traffic nightmare the proposed building would create on the causeway plus losing the Waterfront views in the hometown feeling of Mader Beach will look like another Clear Water Beach way too much commercial next is an email from John Pro it's dated December 14th it's directed to the mayor and a couple of others we would like to voice my objections and opinion on the Lev Rock Holiday Isle Marine project the project is too large why would we want to be looking at a 10 story Hotel Condo building why would we want to put more traffic directly on a Tom SE Causeway entering exiting the town over the bridge can be hard enough now especially when the school is in session or the bridg is up why would we want to allow a project of over 600,000 Square ft in the midst of a small beautiful town is this a quest for tax revenue going to allow the ruination of the little Paradise we all enjoy as residents we are not against developing the property we're not against a hotel condo restaurant being placed on the property we're not against extra tax revenue being generated for the town we are against the size and scope of the project please scale it back we generate a plan please generate a plan to control the traffic on the tumer cause and plan to maintain the beauty of the area thank you John and Miriam Petro next is an email from Suzanne p and George barjack stated December 14th it's directed to the mayor we are reaching out to you to comment on the proposed holiday development when we were looking for a home on the Gulf Coast of Florida a number of years ago we considered many communities we had rented for years in Indian Shores and Indian Rocks but when it came time to buy we purchased in madira Beach we found this to be a unique and lovely area we were particularly impressed with the easy access of both the lovely Beach and more is Inland destinations by way of the tomster causeway we were and are willing to put up with the occasional delay caused by the raising of the bridge because the traffic was never too overwhelming now we see that your proposal is going to trans form our special community and not in a good way we finally understand that this location is right for some kind of development it would not be reaching out to you if that development was both reasonable and in keeping with the rest of madira beach but now we see that the project is overkill both in terms of number of buildings and the proposed height in particular the proposed 10-story buildings are in no way aligned with the rest of development madira Beach when the bridge is up traffic already backs up up the gulf on one side at times making it impossible for us to turn into Snug Harbor driveway when returning home from the East traffic also backs up on the egress and the madira beach school right away on to doomi Road and Beyond with your proposal traffic is going to be forced at times into the Gulf Boulevard inconveniencing those trying to just go north and south and Gulf as well as right into doomi it seems obvious even to the most casual of obser that this amount of development is not sustained or supported by our current infrastructure for those of us who live at Snug Harbor we already cannot go West 150th without turning East from our entrance then turning right into the marina only to do a U-turn in their parking lot so that we can legally make a left turn through the Gap in the medium at and head West at last coming from the East we need to make a U-turn through the median Gap just west of our entrance and immediately turn right into our building both these Maneuvers already take skill depth and perception and timing doubling the amount of traffic on 150 will add both inconvenience and danger we also wonder at the speed with which the transformational project is handled it seems that you do not want to allow time to hear from your current citizens we have always felt that those running madira Beach had our best interests at heart we are disillusioned and discouraged by this proposal and the speed at which it is being handled we hope that you will take our feedback into consideration we know that we are not only the only ones shocked and concerned by this proposed project and the speed at which it is being rushed through we also wonder how many affected citizens don't even know as of yet that it's happening given this busy holiday time of the year next is an email from Tim Jack Tim and Diane stated December 14th folks as new owners of madira beach we are very concerned with the development proposal for the Holton property in Tom Stewart Causeway when we began our search for our home we look for from St Pete to clear water and specifically chose mad beach because of the overdevelopment of the other adjacent communities I ask that when you consider the proposed development of this property you limit it to match the community we live in I believe if this is about protecting the tax base your current residents would rather have a tax increase than to see us start uh to move in a direction of clear water or St Peter once you open the door for one development you open it for all and there's no going back we used to visit clear water on an annual basis before it was overdeveloped and now I would have zero interest in going there as it looks like Vegas I ask does this really fit the unique character of madir beach I do not see how this development fits into this next is from Judy tager December 15th it's addressed to the commission and the Planning Commission we are against the development of the building over four or five levels I am for all plan development but not for a project like this then another project in the works on the opposite side of 150th our Corridor in and out of our city will be snarl traffic year round instead of part of the year I do not think the grocery stores here are able to handle the potential increase in population I do not think our emergency services are able to handle this demand we do not think holiday a project or the K's project is the best interest of M Beach 10 story buildings do not fit here I do not understand understand I I do understand that these projects would bring a lot of Revenue to the city but at a very high price next is from Tim Paddock stated December 16th dear commissioner shant we are three your residents of Madar Beach having drawn uh to the nature beauty and activities of the area and the friendly people that enjoy the same although the city expenditures to improve the government office and services have been well received and appreciated by many The overreaching Proposal of the so-called Al Marina property leaves us troubled we think that this development would be detrimental to the best qualities of Mader Beach and we wonder how this benefits the residents of the city the recent Beach Beacon article quoted a city official with a favorable view of the project it has a lot of money writing on it and while we don't fault the official for seeking opportunities for the city we would prefer the project instead to be viewed as having our community's quality of life riding on it as a traffic study been provided Snug Harbor residents uh Now resort to making a uturn inside the marina entrance and then heading west bad enough now but what a mess with several hundred more cars are added how we avoid the congestion that we will undoubtly occur both in and out of tomster Causeway we doubt madir Beach residents are looking for a clearw experience to their daily commute or grocery visit grocery store visit finally disappointed at the timing of the discussion decision surrounding resoning the neighborhood meeting has been set for time that will exclude working residents and the rezoning meetings have been set for times in the midst of the holidays when many of our residents I'm sorry many of our neighbors will be celebrating out of town is this fair to all allow discussion in our community we trust that you will seriously reconsider uh resoning decisions since that they're intended to keep overreaching development in check next is an email from Kathleen her stated December 16th as Florida and Madar Beach residents we are concerned with the size and scope of the proposed project with 150th Avenue is the main artery east and west through Mader Beach but it's already has plenty of traffic non-season and soon seasonal will be here it cannot sustain additional traffic with a new Venture this place will be like Clear Water clogged up please do not ruin madira Beach next is an email dated December 16th from art minion Dear Mr Mayor last week we were having dinner with a group of our friends and spouses during the dinner we all agreed that madir beach was a wonderful place to live when the conversation moved to what was about what it was what was it about madira Beach that we lik the most we all agreed that once we crossed over the Tom Stewart's Causeway that there was a sense of calm that overcame us gone as the heavy traffic in the six Lane roadways of Largo and SEO and we were in our favorite Village By the Sea we were home I am concerned that the proposed addition to the 10-story buildings on the Holton property or anywhere west of the causeway will totally change the character of our beloved City and that would be a real shame next is from Stella and Bill Mansfield on December 16th we would like to voice our objections and opinion about the development on the property located in the east of madir Beach Marina on tomster Causeway Holiday Isle Marina project well we have every while we are very excited about the proposed development we feel that it needs to be scaled back we are not against developing the property of the hotel condos and restaurant we certainly are not against the extra tax revenue being generated for the town some of the things that we are concerned about is that it will result in too much traffic and congestion why would you want to put more traffic directly into and Tom Stewart Causeway when entering exiting madir Beach over the bridge it's hard enough now especially during the tourist season school is in session and the bridge is up this amount of density will also have a serious impact on our Sewer and Water Systems next is an email from Richard McKenna dated um December 17th doesn't appear that this is well this has been well discerned or better decision to scale back on the project would have been discussed also the timing of these meetings is quite unusual in late December why wasn't it brought to awareness much earlier in the year this poor job of communicating has been exhibited next is an email of December 16th from Ed and Bonnie ears Travis and Shane you are two of the most dynamic governmental leaders that I know of at any level you have certainly made improvements in madira beach but now I feel you have overdone it I'm sure you consider it quite a coup to have brought an $80 million project and stuffed it into about 4 and2 Acres that seriously needed Improvement many cities would be overjoyed to accomplish that feat but you are ignoring several negative results that will that will spring from the completion of this project most of the flagrant negatives is the effect the project will have on traffic flow or lack of flow along 150th Avenue jamming 175 hotel room Hotel a hotel of 150 condo units a residential condo of 68 units and a 200 seat restaurant into the property that in the near past was supported only by a decent sized restaurant means adding a traffic load to 150th Avenue roughly equal to the load it carries now and keep in mind local traffic is Complicated by an active draw BGE that interrupts traffic frequently in a nearby school where hundreds of parents drive their kids to and from the school and we are looking at regular bouts of gridlock a second negative is a huge increase in the transients who will stay in the two hotels and probably rent their residential condo which will completely change the tener of the neighborhood which is now made up of three medium-sized condos which are overwhelmingly owner occupied and my third negative is that the project is over the top filling a small piece of land with a short-term renters who will be more interested in partying than enjoying the peace and beauty of mad beach destroys earlier policies and statements concerning the OB objectives of development of Madera Beach I point you to the comprehensive plan of 2008 which stated our goals and objections as ensuring that residential family and Beach Community character of Madar Beach must be maintained and protected and that we must minimize hazards nuisances and incompatible land uses and environmental degradation and further that we must allow new development and Redevelopment that will enhance the city and protect the city's existing character in change Crawford's own words development needs to fit madir Beach next is [Music] from danta Molino December 20th I am against the development of Holton project to the extent proposed it is not in keeping with the spirit of Madar Beach as a unique Beach town without major commercialism don't ruin our town next is from Donna Abbott December 21st I was surprised that when I read the AR article in the Beach Beacon stating that the lack of attendance at a recent meeting regarding development of the above property I was surprised that I had not heard of the meeting at all until the moment until that moment and after looking into the matter I I I became further concerned a development of this size concerns all the citizens of the Town holding meetings about such an important issue during the month of December right before Christmas automatically imits the attendance as many folks are either busy preparing for the holiday or traveling to be a family and other states I sincerely hope that the reason for holding the odd timing was not to limit opposition I have valid concerns about the proposed development field that the 10 story building should be out of question zoning laws should be upheld traffic in that area during the months of January through March is already so congested and a building of that height has no place in our town we must fill every inch of space with a highrise I know a traffic study was done in September but our busy season does not even begin until November and at its worst from January through March we moved here for a reason please rethink this project it's wrong for our town and can easily cause a multitude of problems for our citizens next is from Tom Boer stated December 21st I'm a Madera Beach voter slow this down and make sure it makes sense your job will on the line if it is a disaster this is directed to the mayor by the way just slow down and go about it in normal business rushing projects usually ends up being a disaster only when will a new bridge also when will a new bridge be built this should be involved in the decision making approvals of large projects another email from Tom Boer this one's dated December 21st you're out of line I made no threat in my email at all I was trying to point out our repercussions now you have me wondering what is really going on I'm a resident who tried to point out the obvious I think that you were threatening me do I knew to contact the police I have owned madira Beach since 1982 there was never been than any project this big I feel I have the right and obligation to question you your attitude is uncalled for another email from Tom Boer I've been in madir Beach since 1982 I've never been involved there caused no trouble I sent an email to Mr craw another one from Mr Boyer I've owned a madir beach since 1982 I sent an email to Mr Crawford attached then he tried to intimidate me by claiming I threatened him I hope only I pointed out the obvious call me and the List's phone number next is December 21st it's from floran somala to commissioner Shan traffic now backs up along 150th Avenue when Tom Stewart Causeway Bridges raised with the density of this project traffic will probably back up along Gul Boulevard traffic is even heavier during school drop off and pickup hours consider how this will negatively affect the safety of the residents during emergency evacu uation order smaller hotels such as the newly opened Mar on American Legion Drive make a profit and it's expected smaller establishments on the whole Holton property will also make a profit the Treasure Island City commission recently faced a similar situation with a vacant beachfront property to the north of the Thunderbird where a five-story hotel is going up the developers appealed to the ti commission that building less than seven stories would be to their detriment the ti commission disagreed and stuck with the city's five-story limit and did not allow a variance the developers are building a five-star hotel the be also needs to stick to its guns and limit height of new buildings to five stories occupied plus an unoccupied ground floor madir Beach development must be done responsibly next is an email from Teresa Sanchez and Maria Castillo it's stated December 21st mayor Paladino city manager Crawford vice mayor po commissioner Hodes commissioner liser commissioner Shan Mr Everett Mr Noble Mr Brown Mr Carr M doming Mr Lawrence and miss rasmon the undersigned as owners of the condominium at shores of madira 15,400 go Boulevard madira Beach Florida would like to inform you of our disagreement with the development project resoning the property known as the Holton property from Tom Stewart Causeway from C4 to PD plan development with the proposed building three condo buildings one condo Bill one condo hotel one Hotel restaurant and parking for 5 7 Cars Plus Marina slips at the east of the property in addition to the existing covered Marina slips as you well know and experience the traffic congestion now backs up 150th when the bridge is raised with the density of this project traffic will probably back up along Gul Boulevard traffic is even heavier during school drop off and pickup hours consider how this will negatively affect residents on their daily business and imagine during the emergency evacuation the infrastructure as it is currently cannot not handle the traffic that will come about during the proposed development this quaint Oceanside town will negatively be impacted by gridlock turning it from picturesque Haven to a noisy and chaotic town please listen to all the voices of all the concerned citizens of Mader Beach and rethink the long lasting impact that this will have on our wonderful Seaside community and vote accordingly next is from Brenda Boyd December 21st dear madir Beach City officials and planning commissioner recently moved to Mader Beach for the funky charm and improvements being made by this Beachside Community I really love the feeling of small town and I've met a lot of nice people I've watched madira Beach grow over the years and make improvements like updating the parking meters improving the signage and the new Civic Center part of the charm of madira beach is the old Florida style I feel it would be lost should the Commissioners and planning Commissioners allow for development on the Holton Pro property I would all I would attend the meetings to be held early next week except I'm out of town for the holidays much like many other MB residents surely are I encourage you to postpone the first readings of the zoning appeal and the commission readings until after the start of the year when the more residents can to participate in the Democratic process enabling comment having five 10-story buildings as a gateway to mad beach is not the first impression that I would want to convey for our community as they am not a fan of Clear Water Beach partly why I chose to call Mader beach home and I'm concerned about the Aesthetics of the proposed buildings will also create a bottleneck on Tom St Causeway with all the traffic such a complex would bring with it many concerns surround the cond hotel and the hotel that are proposed I'm not opposed to new development and was happy to see Beach Club of madira built in a place of the rundown surfs in at the same time more reasonable schedule for comment and more reasonable development the project should be considered for the Gateway of our beautiful beaches I understand the lure of the tax dollars and such development would bring the community however the community must weigh the impact it would have on our quality of life next is from Pat Bion from December 22nd it's addressed to the mayor the city manager and the Commissioners my name is Pat batan I a board member of the madira place Condominium Association my wife and I have owned a condo at madira beach for 15 years we have loved living in this small unique Beach town you are to be commended on the wonderful work that this Council has done for the past 5 years you have given us new and beautiful city hall you with the help of the sheriff department have reduced the crime rate in our city uh and have resolved many other problems shortterm rentals derc boats Street flooding Etc but we are very concerned with plan development on Holiday Isle Marina property this development will create traffic Nightmares on the Tom Stewart Causeway my wake and most of the people have spoken strongly object to this development next is January 8th is an email from Tom Green it's directed to the commission and the Planning Commission to all for three generations my family is called madira Beach our winter home we have maintained a home that goes back to 1937 pay taxes support the beautiful this beautiful city unfortunately it's losing its charm and affordability with many families that love it so much this proposed development project will destroy so much of what we are please to not approve this proposal there are some things more important than the Mighty Dollar next is from Bob Barnett dated January 8th as a resident of madir beach I am writing to you as the Mader Beach City commission asking you carefully consider the proposed usage of the Holton property and not approve plans as they are currently proposed I have two objections of the plans uh I have seen first the height of the building five story 51 story buildings clustered on a small parcel is out of character for the rest of the beach I think a six-story medium Rise building should be a maximum allowed second traffic congestion all of the people that 325 hotel rooms plus 200 seat restaurant plus the 68 Gonda units will draw to an already tight corner of the causeway will cause delays in the causeway and will be frustrating for the drivers trying to enter and exit the new complex space is very tight to add a left turn for d drivers coming from the mainland to enter this new complex likewise how would drivers exit the complex and turn left on Gul Boulevard there is no room to add a turn lane my fear is that the solution to these problems will be the new traffic signal on the causeway to accommodate all traffic in and out from the complex thank you for serving the city of Mader Beach please carefully consider this development and only approve a plan that will work for all the citizens of Mader Beach next is from Ellie akley January 10th I see that the Board of Commissioners will hold a public hearing to change the zoning of marine property to plan development on the small Holton property why are you trying to ruin the unique quaintance of madir Beach and try to make it into something that is not do you want to turn it into another Destin which was once a sleepy fishing Village everyone loved until greed overtook common sense and long-term planning land got sold and the rules were thrown out and mega buildings were built and it now is a big mess no one likes to visit it let alone stay there short-term Greed for long-term disaster I've called and left messages for you in December and did not hear back from you I have written several elected officials in Tallahasse questioning madir Beach's power to Strongarm residents out of their rights and quickly throwing these money hungry ideas down our throats it will ruin madira Beach I have attached a copy of my letters please stop all this abuse of power now stop taking over private property on the beach to throw parties and make money stop trying to make money by selling the parks around town and stop all foolishness of ruining our city next is uh from ingred Pharaoh spill stated January 11th board members of Mader Beach I as a resident of mad beach and native to the area I'm looking forward to zoning change at the Holton property we appreciate all of the changes that have taken place over the years to make our city more beautiful place to not only live but for others to visit we take pride in saying that we live in this beautiful area that more and better changes are forthcoming we can't wait to have another great destination our community to enjoy by land and water I like the plans that were shared at the last meeting and think it will be you will think it will make the entrance of our city beautiful I believe that with more people residents in tourus wanting to come to our city our businesses large and small will Thrive and will return and generate more funds for the city even though more even for even more improvements in the future I thank you for your time look forward to meeting you this evening next is Grace Brown January 11 to the commission and the Planning Commission dear officials I'm asking you as uh resident madir Beach to carefully think before you approve the project to be built on a Holton project or Tom St Causeway I moved here 16 years ago because I love the beach and the easy access and the small town peaceful feeling I get every time I cross over the bridge I sell real estate here I can't tell you how many times I've heard the same comment from my clients I'm all for new development but why does it have to be on such a grand scale other than big bucks for the developer Tom Stewart is already very congested during peak hours and super congested during spring break I can't imagine how bad it would be that with that many more cars a day that property isn't that huge why not have the same type of scenario only on a smaller scale I'm sure you could find a developer willing to do that after all the Marriott came in and they seem to be doing fine by the way is this the same developer who tried to go in by Gators please listen to your citizens of Mader Beach as they are the ones elected you what you do with this project will set a president future of the for future devel next is from Paul and Julie Allen February 6th to the city commission and also the Planning Commission I just wanted to say that I think that the project is not in the best interest for mad beach to be able to cross a bridge without big hotels is a welcome site this allows that the administration cares about the people of madira beach you have a chance to not follow site with communities that after they allowed such thing to happen have regreted it make mad beach unique inviting and not block the Sun or make the Sun out of or take the Sun out of sunshine state I don't even want to begin to tell you the traffic issues that will negate the community as a result of this project for the sake of madira Beach pelis county in the state of Florida leave something behind that you will be proud to leave to your kids grandkids and Beyond make something that welcomes people friends and family Beach Community next is from Jeff Taylor it's to the commission and the Planning Commission stated the 6th of February I keep getting blasted by some group calling themselves concerned citizens urging me to write against the plan development of mad beach I say F them I am 100% for modernization and development de Beach I say bring it the bigger the better let the tourists pay for development and infrastructure improvements I welcome them with open arms next is February 7th Michael Jensen dear mayor Paladino we have been receiving information from concerned citizens of Mader Beach regarding potential construction of the Marin in 150th Avenue madira way we have a condo in boka Vista and we're very concerned about these develop vment efforts the reasons we bought in Boke of Vista were due at small town atmosphere quaint Beach town and proximity to the beach at times the traffic is very heavy and it's very difficult to cross the roadway to drive toward the beaches if these projects are approved I don't think the area can handle the influx of the people in the vehicles we were at the condo at the end of March last year and the area was crazy if you were not in the archal park by 10 10:30 all the parking spots were gone and people were parking the wind Dixie and wherever they could find a spot how will this impact the streets and the beach are with such large number of hotels condo hotels and Condominiums we hope these questions will be considered and answered before these projects are approved we are all for progress but based on the proposed construction of Mader Beach is going to look a lot like Treasure Island and St Pete Beach which means it will lose its character and that all we find most attractive about it next is Diane Ray February 8th please vote no to Marina resoning more research needs to be done in regards to traffic and infrastructure impact next is Judy tager from February 10th I'm against any PD that is all eight stories tall the holiday Al project is the first and the other developers are lined up like vultures waiting to see how this project plays out Gulf Boulevard 150th madir way will be a consistent gridlock every day for 12 months of the year if these projects are approved our two-story grocery stores will be congested all the time our public services will be strained and this is just one PD there are several vultures that want to build 8 to 10 stories just the construction alone will create problems since 150 is the main Corridor to travel on and off the island the people that are in favor of this kind of project probably have some kind of benefit they think that they will get from this the developers and those that will benefit in this such as the city the real estate broker Yacht broker Etc could give a damn about the daily problems these projects will cause the residents that live here I do not think the city needs two or three more hotels ridiculous I think most of the people agree that four or five story development would be much more acceptable since four or five projects are in the works I'm hoping that you will think twice about saying yes to granting the PD status from C4 PD status will then allow these developers to build eight-story buildings as a commissioner you're supposed to represent the people of madira beach I hope you as a commissioner have the guts to vote no to allowing this eight-story development there's just a couple of more thank god um March 10th from floran somala dear elected and appointed officials we must State our strong opposition to proposed development of the Holiday Isles Marine Arena plan as many concerned citizens have pointed out additional traffic from this development we create tremendous traffic problems when crossing the tomster causeway especially if there is an emergency evacuation order or in the case of emergency medical service vehicles that need to get through the traffic and across the bridge to area hospitals added to this is the double whammy of Redevelopment of the Loft property along 150th Avenue madira way into high ride High occupancy buildings adding even more traffic ingestion to 150th Avenue in tomster caway Bridge traffic as it exists today backs up along 150 at the Gulf Boulevard and West to D and dumi Road and Beyond to the east when the bridges raised for a single boat to pass under and that is not even taken into consideration the madira beach Fundamental School drop off and pickup hours with additional vehicular traffic from the holiday all project and now the Loft property will be facing an impossible traffic situation we certainly don't choose to live in madira beach that becomes a mini Clearwater Beach only yesterday we drove from Clearwater City Hall to Clearwater Beach and the traffic was so heavy it was Bumper to Bumper all the way across the bridge it took nearly 20 minutes just to travel three and a half miles we live here in madir Beach we don't want to deal with horrendous traffic jams overdevelopment lowers the quality of life we are all for renovating renewing rehabing Mader Beach as well as responsible development approving an eight-story High occupancy buildings of holiday aisle plan together with the Redevelopment m mway in 150th Avenue to the park west of the bridge with even taller buildings along with its attendant congestion is not responsible in our view we urge the madir beach elected and appointed officials to carefully consider their decisions in this regard as we all have to live with them for a long time next is from Kathleen Han dated March 12th dear Commissioners and city manager I will be unable to attend the March 16th boc meeting due to recent surgeries but I feel compelled to send you this email in L of my three-minute Podium talk I and my neighbors at madira Cove have been strong supporters of the planning and execution of many Endeavors taken by you over the recent planning of holiday owl project and newly announced meder Beach development project has left me and my neighbors completely confounded as to what is going on up to now all the plan and execution has enhanced our fine City but the current projects cited above are a complete opposite they will not enhance our city but turn into another Clearwater Beach this is not what we want and it's not what we thought you wanted it's not what we elected you to do for us these two current projects being considered by you are not in the best interest of our fine City and will result in unbearable traffic congestion along 150th Avenue we feel betrayed because many of us feel that these plans were in the works far back back to 2014 when you passed ordinances 2014 07 08 and 09 these ordinances now allow for resoning the properties if you approve resoning and will result in increased density regardless of the wishes of your citizens if we had known that the results of the approval of those ordinances would allow the buildings as high as 10 to 11 stories you would have seen the outrage that is now apparent all across the city just because high-powered teams from the developers descend upon you and almost demand that you must pass their plans because they meet the new ordinances does not mean that you must approve all the tall structures they propose use your authority to reject the plans and tell them to come back with architectures that meet the intent of refined City just as you did with the mar Courtyard next to American Legion you are not in the business of patting the pockets of Rich developers at the expense of your citizens the resulting traffic congestion along 150th Avenue our neighborhood will be unbearable if not a danger to those of us who must enter and exit our home we know if you lived in our neighborhood you would have similar concerns we have no doubt your neighbors in your neighborhood feel the same way if the traffic was increased dramatically this is the only emergency evacuation route out of our city and that and the street that services our school and all emergency service Vehicles entering and leaving our city to approve projects that would add thousands more vehicles per day 150th would be a violation of the trust that we have in you and would be nothing short of a total failure of responsibilities to the citizens of M Beach unlike the Planning Commission do not ignore your citizens who voted you into office to represent all of us many of us are now wondering if there are under the table agreements between the developers and some City official um this is the thinking that always comes about when City Planning start to deviate from Fast approvals and developments many of us were outraged when our City attorney announced that the quad judicial process regarding this project is in effect and went on to say that he advises City Commissioner that they could not discuss these projects with their constituents how unamerican when citizens cannot talk to their own elected officials about concerns and the issues they have my time is up but I and my neighbors implore you to vote against the rezoning of the two projects mentioned above or that the very at at the very least scale them down to a reasonable level if you vote to approve the resoning then you must tell the developers that no final plans will ever be approved if the buildings exceed five stories because that is in the best interest of the the citizens that elected you to office and assigned Larry rolloffs next one is for Mary nef Mary and John nef March 14th uh we live at 317 number F Rex place in for more than 2 years we have put up with the dirt noise truck traffic Etc needed to finish the work of the new city hall fire station rec center and Rock Park we were glad to do it as we felt the city needed a place for its young people and thought it would benefit the entire community of Mader beach at the same time there was also work done on the beach the tearing down of buildings and building of a new CVS to add to the congestion amount of dirt dust and noise the construction of the new pier is also on the table although I do not remember the hearings uh the petition granted by the state of Florida says that there is no objection from the CIT citizenry a large claim to make when the citizens did not know of it until after the fact millions and millions have been spent in just a few years to make the above additions our taxes went up more than one quarter in just one year all these issues pale in regard to the problems we would face of the new plans regarding the nearby developments presented in the past few months are passed when the proposed development was announced for the former lrock property we were very concerned and troubled by the additional traffic and would be that would be created in a traffic sensitive area not to mention the population density that would be added to the causeway in the downtown area our concerns were not allowed to be expressed as almost all the meetings were either canceled or held over the Christmas holidays at no time during those hearings were we the residents of madira beach told that another development would take place on the heels of the first one and just on the other side of the the street these additions would make the entire project overwhelming with the added traffic and the number of new residents and would impact all of us including our safety and the security of our area residents we already have an intolerable situation trying to get out of the yacht club area sometimes sitting at the stop on the corner for up to 15 minutes and traffic backed up all the way to 150th Street just to be stopped again with the Bridge open I cannot imagine the congestion with just the first development but with the second top of it it will be impossible to get anywhere whether walking or driving we are not talking about one building or two buildings but more than eight different buildings some of some as tall as 11 stories right now you can look down the beach from the water side at John's Pass and the only buildings that are tall right now on the corner next to our beach with the addition of the 2,000 cars in people and that is allowing for us only one person per unit I cannot imagine the nightmares we will face including flooding terrible traffic congestion there is no way to even anticipate all of the problems we would face including the years of tearing down and rebuilding we would we would have wanted to live in Clear Water if we wanted to live in Clear Water we would have purchased there we moved here because of the proximity to the library Park Beach and grocery not to mention the laidback atmosphere we found in Mad Beach I have not talked to a single resident that I have gone door too that is in favor of either of these developments please stop the madness Okay we got two more um in this file all right so this is from PJ Everett it stated March 15 dear mayor Paladino and vice mayor po apparently our city now accepts written submissions from residents regarding recently proposed developments I base this on on the change in the process adopting the Planning Commission meeting on March 14th where the City attorney read expart Communications in the evidence we are writing to you about the proposed development on the property next to the city marina known as lever site holiday aisle project that is on your agenda for March 16th we are in favor of the development of the site in line with all the overall vision of Mader Beach town center and concur with our city goal to maintain this unique Beach Community character is published in the city of madira beach website Planning and Zoning we have a very special unique town on the gulf beaches currently seen as balanced between commercial and residential needs Al by it requiring Improvement madir Beach does not wish to become another clor Beach or St Pete Beach we have our own identity rooted in a fishing Village Heritage with a Seaside appeal for us madir Beach's uniqueness comes from Fantastic combination of grocery drugstore post office Library rec center in City Hall while within a compact walking area lowrise Main Street district with shopping opportunities and services for a range of incomes suitable for residents and visitors alike primarily distinctive local shops and restaurants only found on madira beach not National brands or chains not replicating the high-rise steel concrete and glass congested centers of Clearwater Beach Miami and other towns across the US in this case having attended the legally required developers meeting we do understand this proposal is a mixed Community attempting to make the most of the water site water side site and serve as a Gateway into our town we applaud The Architects for trying to create some interest with views with stepped buildings and providing some public amenities however as the yearr round residents and property owners of madir beach we do have some concerns and observations mad beach Gateway development scale this proposed development will be a new Gateway building to madir beach the first View and impression presented to visitors and residents alone like the current Gateway and marker to the town is is is the Towering Ocean Sands development on the junction of 150 at the Gulf Boulevard when built this development was widely considered a mistake as evidenced by the change in the zoning regulations so that today A high density Ocean Sands would not be permitted currently there is no incentive for redeveloping the Ocean Sands and thus removing this blate or blot on the landscape it appears that this uh current proposal proposal under consideration a massive and an adjective used by uh our city manager in the wave volume 4 issue one development recreates the city acknowledged area erors of ocean Sands we urge you not to repeat planning mistake of the past that leaves future generations with unwanted highdensity eyesore at various public meetings the developer stated to Residents that the final buildings will be may be small than that is stated in the planning agreement with the city this may well be the case but it is not an assurance we can rely on the Bland development agreement is what we can rely on to ensure that development maintains our unique Beach character and will also uh set the president for the developments that follow mad Beach town center we understand from the city manager that the developer needs to make a return on his investment in reality the developer's primary objective is to maximize his return which means highest ities and buildings that can he can negotiate with the city such development is not compatible with the objective of maintaining the unique character an unique Beach Community character it would Propel the character of madir beach in the direction of the suffocating atmosphere of Clearwater Beach is that what the commission intends higher net worth visitors are prepared to pay more for lower density high quality accommodation the developer will make a substantial return on Lower densities the the city also gains through the increased tax Bas and this is very attractive for investment in public amenities I caution the commission against greed not to be seduced by the notion allowing taller buildings higher densities and return for the increased tax base concurrent with a larger tax base is increased cost to provide and operate greater infrastructure capacity the legacy of higher costs for the future Generations there will be many more opportunities to increase tax base in a sustainable way with other developments in the PIP line along the causeway of Madera Beach as explained by our city manager in the current issue of the wave the ordinances that you pass with the other members of the Board of Commissioners to allow the plan developments are effective tools that come with great power and great responsibility specifically you have the power to balance the size density and increased tax space of the proposed of The Proposal in front of you against the detrimental impacts on our city and the harm to the way of life of our citizens we trust you would not approve something that doesn't fit what what madir Beach is all about to use Shane Crawford's words and maintain the unique Beach Community character of our city other concerns traffic and numerous times of traffic on 150th C is problematic at best we urge the commission to require and then act decisively on the findings of a new traffic study in February 2016 currently the height of tourism season and look at the sporadic nature of the 3,000 plus cars using the site day daily the school traffic study is helpful for that area but it's a different type of traffic in different location and was done in September the slowest month of the year Aesthetics as mentioned above we have unique opportunity to use this site as a distinctive attractive gateway to the madir beach for the next 100 plus years both the height and shape and the proposed contemporary Coastal architecture is less than inspiring and makes no distinctive statement of madir beach as a Seaside Town nor honors the fishing Community Heritage we urge the commission to be proactive in this area and require something more uh considered as exterior architecture with the compromising the fun without compromising the functionality of the buildings residents should have some workshops and give input on this aspect pedestrian safety we praise the Developers for proposing pedestrian walkways in a new route under the drawbridge to connect the Millennium Park Florida is well known as the most dangerous place for pedestrians while making Road improvements the developers should consider other opportunities for improving pedestrian safety particularly at other points along Tomas causeways under your leadership madira beach has come a long way in recent years let us let's not now clone it into another Clearwater Beach St Pete Beach or mini Miami but rather retain our unique Beach Community and develop our own distinctive locally appropriate scale and style we are pro Pro appropriate locally sensitive development Philip assigned Philip Everett and Ellen lamper okay those were all of the emails Mr Mayor I still need to I still need to to address a couple of other matters before we move along the first is the experte contact that was made with the Commissioners that have given me their reports i' like to start with um the report given to me by commissioner Hodes I'm going to read the email that she received and the response that she gave there are a couple of them December 16 from Patrick Sullivan just a quick note to say I'm strongly against the proposal to build a three three town three1 story buildings the holiday project the project is way too big the congestion will be unbearable I request that the project be limited to five stories let's not change the face of mad beach thank you and commissioner Hodges responded on December 17th thank you Mr Sullivan for expressing your thoughts and concerns regarding the holiday project we have scheduled a neighborhood meeting for this morning Thursday December 17th at 10: a.m. at the city center room to address questions or concerns you may have please attend if you can also Monday night the Planning Commission will hold their meeting uh if this is most workable for you you again thank you for your time and concerns we have a beautiful city uh we all love and that is why we are here next is an email to commissioner Hodes dated December 16th by Timothy and Bonnie Paddock dear commissioner Hodges we are three-year residents of madira beach having been drawn to the nature beauty and activities the area and the friendly people that enjoy the same although the city expenditures to improve the government office and services have been well received and appreciated by many The overreaching Proposal of the so-called Holiday Isle Marina property leaves us troubled we think this development will be detrimental to the best qualities of madira Beach and we wonder how it benefits the residents of the city the recent Beach Beacon article quoted a city official with a favorable view of the project that it has a lot of money riding on it and though we don't fault the official for seeking opportunities for the city we would prefer the project instead be used by having our community's quality of life riding on it has a traffic study been provided Snug Harbor residents Now resort to making U-turn inside the marina interest heading west bad enough now but what a mess when several hundred more cars are added how will we avoid the congestion that will be undoubtedly occur both in and out of tomster Causeway we doubt Marina be mad beach residents are looking for a clear water experience to the Daily commuter grocery store visit finally we're disappointed at the timing of the decision uh discussion of decision surrounding the resoning the neighborhood meeting has been set for a time that will exclude working residents and the rezoning meetings have been set for times in the midst of holidays when many of our neighbors will be celebrating out of town is this a fair way to allow a discussion in our community we trust you will seriously consider rezoning decisions since they are intended to keep overreaching development in check please consider this project with the knowledge of the permanency of your decisions on the quality of life in our city please ask yourselves as we have how this project will improve the enjoyment in life of Mader Beach residents not just the funds that can be generated it seems development of this property can have some value but please do not allow its overdevelopment thank you for your consideration um commissioner Hodes responded on December 16th Mr padak thank you for your interest in our city we have a lot of good positive things happening and I appreciate app your concern of the Holiday Isle Marina on Thursday December 17th we'll have a neighbor meeting at 10:00 a.m. at the city center room which should be informative the City Planning Commission will also have a meeting on Monday evening at 7 pm information concerns will be addressed hopefully you will be able to attend again thank you for your interest have a be we have a beautiful city and we're all proud of and then he responded on the 16th thank you for your information my wife Bonnie should be able ble to make tomorrow's meeting next week is questionable due the spending Christmas with their family out of town like many of my interested neighbors and then commissioner Hodes also made note of a telephone conversation on January 8th I received a telephone call from Denise Addis 526 Lan Drive she states the phone number on the holiday aisle project she said she had received emails and questions on this project I advised her that the city scheduled meetings for the resident to attend explaining the planning board had a meeting scheduled for January 11th 2016 at 700 p.m. she continued to ask questions and I advised her I was not able at this time to discuss it with her since I wouldn't talk about the project she indicated that it must not be true told her I didn't indicate that and advis her to contact City Hall and speak with the city manager of the City attorney I also repeated myself on the planning board meeting and that she was welcome to attend and the conversation ended those were all the experte contacts from commissioner Hodges I have a couple more uh for vice mayor po first of all Mak a note that commissioner po spoke to the following individuals and this was the substance of their conversation Sarah Gonzalez engineering specialist at D question was asked if there was a moratorium and how many boat slips were allowed also talk to Sandra Gonzalez fd3 traffic operations discuss the distance between red lights Dr Daniel Santos at ISD transportation supervisor F do the question of how close can a red light be to opening a to an opening bridge and if there was an opinion on the traffic study done by Gulf Coast Consulting she spoke to Ray Eubanks that the Department of Community Affairs the phone conversation concerning recommendations and objections to the 2008 comprehensive plan and letter dated January 13 2009 she spoke to Eric McCartney permit engineer fdot dis discussed the amount of the increase in the traffic during tourist season she spoke to Jason mcdarby landre Duke Energy regarding Duke Energy easements and um she also made a site visit she drove to the site but did not get out of her car she spoke to the following residents and this was the substance of their conversation uh Stella Mansfield provided a site plan and resoning application and ordinances 201407 0809 spoke to Dan Penn discussed planning meeting on B times and dates he asked about a petition to stop the project and I directed him towards the city clerk she spoke to Donna Thompson um she was concerned about getting through traffic and I explained that we would not know much until fdot did their analysis she also spoke to Judy tagert um dates and times of the planning meeting me and the boc meeting Sam Baker reviewed the survey with him and Nancy Brer discussed the dates of the planning meeting and boc meeting and then there are some emails that I need to read as well was an email on December 14th from Lynn Raa as a resident Mader Beach for over 30 years I'm disappointed the city official to Fast Track the Holton property development on the Tom Stewart Causeway this development is far too dense for this small piece of property we the people of madira beach had decided many years ago that we wanted to limit the height of buildings in our community to five stories these buildings are Overkill the city officials should not be taking into consideration the traffic that this will cause on the causeway and how difficult it will be for the conduit owners to live 150 Avenue to enter and leave their property this will be a very dangerous situation for not only the condo owners but all the cars that use the use the causeway Holton properties well knew that the zoning uh when they purchase the property and they should be advised to develop the property under the current zoning um vice mayor responded December 22nd the bocc meeting is taking place tonight however nothing will be discussed regarding the Holton property next discussion on the property January 11th 2016 not necessary to attend this one next is an email to the vi vice mayor from Richard wolf it's stated December 14th this is the same email I read to you earlier from Mr Wolf the response um by the vice mayor was the boc meeting is tonight but nothing on the Holton property will be discussed the next discussion will take place on January 11th save that time to attend next is an email from Diane Ray dated December 14th I strongly oppose the proposed development on the Holton property as it stands the population density is too high we certainly don't need another condo hotel or 10 story Hotel I don't object to lowrise hotel or condos with a lower occupancy please keep more green space and limit traffic what traffic what a traffic nightmare the proposed building would create on the causeway plus losing the Waterfront views in the hometown feeling of Madera Beach will look like another Clearwater Beach way too commercial and the vice mayor responded thank you I sincerely share your view that email was sent on December 14th next email was the one I already read to you from Tim and Diane Jax from December 14th the vice mayor responded the boc meeting is tonight however nothing will be discussed in the Holton project the next discussion on that will be January 11th 2016 next is the email I previously read from Josephine pugal stated December 15th the mayor the vice mayor responded Josephine the meeting tonight just got cancelled the one tomorrow may also be cancelled I'll let you know what I hear next is the email that was from Arthur Menan on December 16th one I already read uh the vice mayor responded art the meeting for 7 tonight has been canceled a good chance the one tomorrow will be two I will keep you advised and there was also a follow-up email the next day art the meeting is on tonight but nothing regarding Holton property will be discussed next date is January 11th 2016 save your energy for that one next is the email from Timothy and Bonnie Paddock the one I already read to you from December 16th the vice mayor responded Tim the meeting just got canceled I'll let you know if the one tomorrow is canceled too I'll keep you in the loop and there was a follow up by the vice mayor there is a Bo meeting tonight however nothing will be discussed regarding the Holton property it will not be discussed again until it is taken up with planning that date is January 11 2016 next is an email from Richard McKenna December 17th doesn't appear that this has been wel well discerned or better decision to scale back on the project would have been discussed also the timing of these meetings is quite unusual in late December why wasn't this brought to the awareness much earlier poor job un communicated had been exhibit the vice mayor responded the boc meeting is still on for tonight but nothing will be discussed in regards to the Holton property next meeting on that will be January 11 2016 that is to make sure you attend thank you for your support next is an email to from the vice mayor to Greg at Mac something or other according to city man it's stated December 21st according to city manager there was a power Spike at the city hall and some wires were fried we have no lights or AC or power to record the meeting I will let you know if I hear anything else it was also mentioned that they may have to cancel the meeting tomorrow night the vice mayor also sent an email to Donna Abbott Donna this meeting just got cancelled and a good chance tomorrow's will be too I'll keep you advised that's dated December 21st the same exact email was sent to Kathy Hanratty on December 21st email that I read to you from December 21st from Teresa Sanchez and Maria Castillo was responded to by the vice mayor by the the boc meeting is on tonight however nothing will be discussed regarding the Holton property next discussion will take place on January 11 2016 no need to attend this one next is the email from Brenda Boyd that was dated December 21st the vice mayor responded to it on December 21st Brenda as of today we have the planning meeting in an open form however it has been decided that nothing will be recommended to the bo until January 11th planning meeting I know that you cannot attend tonight but please encourage anyone you know to attend the developers and their attorneys are supposed to be there I have requested a neighborhood meeting with the bo prior to us voting on anything thank you for your comments um and then she responded thanks resp responding to me Elaine I appreciate the response and letting me know that there will be a neighborhood meeting I hope it is planned for after the new year I will let my neighbors know about the meeting this evening and then the vice mayor responded back the city manager just called me and the meeting tonight has been canceled due to a power Spike that fried wires that run lights AC and recording equipment good possibility that tomorrow's meeting will be cancelled too I would prefer that they be in January when residents are here and can participate this project is immense and and no one after this will be two and another one after this will be two um no need all hands on deck to save our community from greed next the vice mayor we is responding to the email I read to you from Tom Green dated January 8th thank you so much for your input it's very valuable information I greatly appreciate it I'll keep you advised if there are any changes in either meeting next the vice mayor responded to the email from Bob Bernett that I read to you dated January 8th her response was thank you so much for your input it's greatly appreciated please attend the planning meeting and the BC meeting if there are any changes like there was last month it will advise as quickly as possible next is an email from from Jan Ford dated Sunday January 10th I want to express as a matter of as a mad Beach property owner I am totally opposed to this proposed de development I want to preserve the small town atmosphere we currently enjoy and think the additional traffic this development would produce will be detrimental to our town it always makes me sad to see that one of our existing hotels demolished in favor of a new hotel or condo I love the old Florida flavor of our Beach Community I think it highly unlikely as the city manager suggested that rejecting this project would make us susceptible to having a big box store encroach on our community especially since Walmart has just opened their new super store within a couple of Miles this past year Sam penel Park would be much more likely destination for these businesses rather than looking to building new high-rise monstrosities I would much rather our city government focus on assessing zoning restrictions that prevent current property owners from pursuing reasonable use of their existing property I realize I'm only one voice but I would like uh to know I would like to know my opinion is important to my elected representatives and those my tax dollars employe and the vice mayor responded Jan thank you as far as Walmart Super Target super center or Bass Pro Shop there is not enough acreage for any of these stores you may think you're the only one voice but those voices combined are what counts please attend the planning board meeting tonight at 7: and the bocc meeting meeting on Tuesday at 6 next email was the one I read to you from Ingrid far pharoh spilled January 11th it was in the packet there was no response next is an email um dated March 11th From Grace Brown who is a realtor it's to the vice mayor actually it's to All City officials I'm asking you as a resident madir Beach to think carefully before you approve the project to be built on the Holton property in Tom Stewart's Causeway I moved here 16 years ago because I love the beach and the easy access and the small town peaceful feeling I get every time I cross over the causeway bridge I sell real estate here and can't tell you how many times that I've heard that same comment from clients I'm all for new development that why does it have to be in such a grand scale other than big bucks for the developer Tom Stewart is already very congested during peak hours and super congested during spring break I can't imagine how bad it will be with that many more cars a day that property isn't that huge why not have the same type scenario only on a smaller scale I'm sure you could find a developer willing to do that after all the Marriott came in see seemed to be doing fine by the way this is a small this is the same developer to go in by Gators uh please listen to your citizens of Mader Beach as they are the ones elected you what you do with this project will set president for future development and the vice mayor responded Grace thank you for your comments please attend the planning board meeting at 7 pm tonight in the boc meeting tomorrow at 6 next is an email from Mary nef to the vice mayor Elaine Poe vice mayor it was a shame that the meetings up till now were scheduled over the Christmas holiday when most of the conduit owners about 90% our complex were still up North this addition to our small community will destroy its small town atmosphere the vice mayor responded thank you please continue attend meetings this is not over yet um there is a group here that wants to start a petition however we have we we have to wait until everything is passed sounds a little backwards I was not allowed to attend the meeting last night but I've gotten numerous emails and phone calls this morning asking me if the deal was done the answer is no then next are the emails that um the vice mayor received following her telephone conversations from Daniel Santos Transportation supervisor at fdot also an email from Sandra Gonzalez fdot and Eric McCartney next is an email it's stated February 5th it's it's titled friends and neighbors you have all been aware of the proposed massive plan put before our city planning board and the considerable opposition by many of our residents many of us believe the traffic impact alone would offset any possible advantages to our citizens the planning board has been unable to provide a recommendation to our city officials at this time I feel this is due to significant opposition for our residents Channel 11 news is scheduled to do a story on the MB residents views on the proposed development projects Channel 11 will be at madira code condos 399 150,000 10 a.m. February 8th this is next Monday morning this is a great opportunity to sh to show up to oppose the major development we don't need all of us to voice our opinion but a large turnout would go a long way to demonstrate the resident concern if you feel as we do about this project please come out Monday and bring anyone else you know with you or with similar con concerns and the vice mayor responded uh will you keep me in the loop on the Holden property our comprehensive plan requires a transportation analysis where access by development is requested to a road that is the jurisdiction of the State of Florida and there can be no issuance of development orders until fdot has completed our review our next meeting to discuss this issue is March 16th Mr Mayor that is all of the emails expert to Communications from the vice mayor have not received any other Communications or reports unless you as the mayor or commissioner liser or commissioner shant wants to make known on the record any experted Communications if not i' would like to move forward to the next portion of the meeting M sh you have any M LTI proceed all right thank you at this time what I'd like to do thank you for your Indulgence everyone anyone that's going to speak tonight at tonight's hearing stand up raise your right hand I'm going to swear you under oath everyone is going to speak do you swear that the testimony you're about to give is going to be the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth okay thank you please be seated uh mayor it's now time for the applicant to make their presentation good evening mayor and Commissioners do we need a break first before we proceed it was more than 20 minutes wasn't it an was it an hour about an hour and 20 minutes e e e e e e e e e e e e e care spe back yeah e spe what e are you looking e I'm G I'll just start with it ladies and gentlemen can we please come to order we're reconvened at 8:40 the applicant would like to proceed good evening mayor and Commissioners Katie Cole with the law firm of Hill Ward Henderson 600 Cleveland Street sweet 800 Clearwater Florida representing the applicant CNT and mhh Enterprises and Mr Jim Holton thank you uh for having us here tonight and proceeding with this hearing uh as Mr tras advised it is a quaza Judicial hearing and we've all just uh participated in one of the first burdens of Quai judicial hearings which is uh the explanation and disclosure of expar communication xparte communication is uh prohibited in EX in Quai judicial hearings because it creates a presumption of prejudice regarding the application and therefore creates a conflict of interest between the elected officials who are voting on the application hence the reason to disclose so uh I was just realizing as I was going through the logs uh Mr tras that I believe that the vice mayor Poe had one additional meeting with the applicants representatives in December that we wanted to be sure was on the record as being disclosed I also just for the record wanted to point out that we did receive and review the uh log of xparte communication from Those Who provided it prior to the meeting and uh with respect to the vice mayor there was significant uh prejudicial statements including that uh statements regarding that the process was not over yet and we need all hands on deck to save our community from greed um the applicants taken the position uh not to ask for the vice mayor's recusal due to uh the Prejudice but uh recommend that we proceed without that understanding that the vote tonight is based on the evidence presented tonight and while uh elected officials are able to investigate on their own the decision and your burden is to base your decision upon the evidence presented tonight the competent substantial evidence uh pursuant to your code uh another housekeeping item uh I wanted to go on the record to state that I agree with Mr tras uh with respect to the three uh requests for party status that those were untimely filed um based on the date of March 11th as their filing date with today's hearing date and your code stating they must be filed uh five days in advance and when it is less than a 7-Day time period you exclude weekends and holidays that would mean these uh notices of party status would have needed to be filed uh last Wednesday so we agree with Mr tr's determination that there should not be any parties of status finally our last housekeeping item was just to confirm uh and enter into the record the initial and revised applications and supplemental information that's been submitted to your city staff uh the evidence and presented by staff and applicant at the Planning Commission the neighborhood video meeting and materials which were provided to the city um and so I wanted to confirm that the commission would accept those into the record Mr Mayor that's your decision um so you need to acknowledge one way or the other you're going to receive those into evidence and it's my No loan or do I need a consensus from the commission no sir that is your decision proceed Thank You by proceeding I can I Pro yes you accept this thank you so now with this housekeeping out of the way we will proceed with our uh case in point and I uh wanted to start with the concept of a special area plan and I think it's very important we heard from many of the letters that you all received and we heard of the Planning Commission the two Planning Commission meetings that were held and the developer heard at the two neighborhood meetings and individually at the meetings that it held with snug Harbor's uh board of directors that uh well where did this idea come from and why is it appropriate for this community and the 2009 Special area plan articulates the ability to Cluster intensity and density on areas surrounding the town center and to facilitate the Redevelopment of privately owned owned property very interesting in 2014 when the city amended the plan to expand the use of the additive density and intensity in not only the commercial core District but the causeway District where this property is located the penis planning Council went through a pretty extensive review as to what that impact is and the records of the penel planning Council uh and the discussion there talks about how within the Town Center plan because not surprisingly it is your town center is a lot of public property it's a public park it's your uh where you expect your community to engage and so there is limited private property to redevelop within this area it also went on to discuss the fact that there are many already developed Condominiums within this town center plan that exist and so frankly there were few opportunities for redevelopment and so the intensity and density that's Pro provided for within the plan would really only be able to be concentrated on a limited number of properties Mr holton's property which his family has owned for more than 50 years is one of those properties it's over 4 and a half acres and it's located at the base of the bridge as you all know and it is ripe for redevelopment for what your plan suggests should be a mixed use project like to introduce the members of our team that we have here tonight Mr Ed Hooper with the consus group Mr isan petran with bear petran Architects he's the architect of record and Mr Robert pergal with Gulf Coast cons Consulting uh each one of them will offer testimony to you tonight and with in that respect I'd like to present the uh resumés of Mr Hooper or excuse me Mr pery and Mr Petri to the a City attorney and the city clerk to enter into the record and qualify each of them as experts in their fields uh each of them before they speak will give you a recap of their expertise uh for your information thank you I'd like to introduce Mr Ed Hooper with the cons grp Mr Mayor and council members good evening uh my name is Ed Hooper a partner in the consus group a government community relations consulting firm and representing the Holton project holiday Al before you tonight based on the 15 minutes that Mr trasco that it would take to read his emails that turned into an hour and a half um we've heard a lot tonight you just heard Miss Cole articulate what exactly this body whether it was made up of you or others prior to you and what the desire was when you created this town center special character District you had a vision of what you wanted your City to become especially in this particular area as the entrance to your city from the East and I really think it's a pretty good it's a pretty good Vision good for you for having the foresight to do that and as you heard uh let me assure you that the applicant did not request December meetings we were trying to work with the city staff and adapt to their schedule as they would prefer this to come forward this project which incidentally began in June of 2015 nine months ago this project began so we are not rushing through a project we have worked with your staff and your expertise and your and your experts for quite some time trying to get this into a position to where it is before you today and as you heard we had neighborhood meetings one in this room well attended and and an additional one that was not required but we were certainly glad to do it to talk about this project and we listened we listened very well we listened to the point where we made a reapplication based on what we heard from not only the city staff but the residents and I want to tell you what we did in response to that discussion and and and what Mr Holton had decided when we re put in a amended application and by the way his family has owned that property since the 60s his desire is he's going to be a resident on that four and a half acres and be one of your residents every day since that initial application based on what your code would allow as the maximum allowable development under the PD zoning what's before you today has 47% of the maximum density Mr Holton could have asked for 47% based on your code what maximum is allowable today as far as height and bulk this project today is 42% 42 of the maximum allowable bulk that he could have asked for so we are we have reduced our number of units by 22% we have lowered four of those five buildings based on what we have listened to four of the five the one that we did not reduce was never 100 feet anyway so that didn't um that's still not going to be that we have accounted for even an additional amount of parking spaces over and above the initial application not only do we meet the code we're going to far exceed what would be required of the number of units and so we think that based on what we hear and the fact that Mr Holton is a local resident and wants to be part of this community for a long long long time we think we have presented to you an application that is far within what could be requested we think that we have strived to make this both landscaping and everything about it and let me let me one one final thing about a 200 seat restaurant to give you an idea what a 200 seat restaurant rest restaurant equates to that is the size of a typical Chili's 200 seats so it is uh well within what uh would fit in this two stories above the parking deck of this restaurant facility this has been planned with the The View corridors and the Aesthetics and what we think madira Beach would be proud of to be the entryway into their city as they cross as your residents and visitors cross that bridge and to talk specifically about the Architectural Components I'm now going to turn it over to Mr iston petronet principal and bear petronet architects of clearw thank you so much good evening mayor uh Paladino vice mayor po Commissioners you need speak right into that microphone hear you okay I can hear myself there we go uh my name is ishan petronet uh it's a good Hungarian name for people that care um I am a registered architect uh for about 35 years now and I'm a principal at Bear petronet architecture uh as of today at 2430 Terminal Drive St Petersburg Florida um I'm here to talk about section two site plans and Provisions uh required uh our team's vision for this project was to create a cohesive mixed use development. caters to the Daily and weekly guests residents of uh of Madura Beach and full-time onsite residents the guest experience for this project was to focus on the Boating and the marina Lifestyle by by embracing its inter Coastal relationship uh relation and location and whether by arriving by boat or by car the site is designed to maximize enjoyment of the water and the views with this proposal we created an architectural consistent design that allows for views from within the project and outside the project provides for a light and Airy environment hides the cars and fulfills the owner's program satisfies the city requirements and allowing for a vibrant new place for guests and residents quickly the resid the project contains uh several key design and programmatic elements namely again concealed parking garage uh service areas are all concealed uh we have an elevated above flood plane Esplanade level that is pedestrian oriented and contains the primary individual building entrances so they're all up at that the level we have a continuous 15ot wide prominade around the building that uh the buildings engage so it's not just a parking lot it's actually many of the buildings um are down there uh we have a residential condominium building um it's basically composed of three separate structures two of them are seven stories and the one Center one the smaller one actually uh s uh widthwise is Nine Stories above the parking uh we have a limited service hotel that's 7even stories above parking um in a condo Hotel that's six stories above two stories of parking and a restaurant that is uh two stories about that parking deck um in conformance to the design standards U of the sapn and the future land use plan this development was designed so that each building within it is architecturally consistent with the others within the development um thus creating a cohesive hole again the goal in the building placement of where we how we designed it is was to maximize the views so that you don't have a big block that from inside you can't see outside that was the whole thing and from the outside that you can't see what going on inside um and like I said as opposed to a densely packed blocker building and that's the the conversation you know you taller and the reason they're that height is so we can get them thinner um to allow for building to building separation uh the buildings um in our opinion have a have well articulated exterior facades on on all sides not just the inside not just the outside but on all four sites that incorporate balconies Glass Walls other adornments and stepping to further break down the mass of the buildings the whole idea was to really have um not as much open land uh open View and open air as we can um as you approach the building excuse me the site from either the east or the West the hotel does serve um as the visual anchor uh it's and as you approach you'll start to see as you come over the bridge then you'll see the marina the prominade and you'll start to really see The Pedestrian and the um and the uh boating activity uh number two was the um integral to the development's layout and the design what really was The Pedestrian experience uh this is accommodated with pedestrian access uh on both sides of the causeway a uh new Under underbridge connector that connects over to that's pursuant to your plan um a 15t wide and that's the minimum width uh prominade along the marina and along the the perimeter of the site with access up to the Esplanade levels as well um and then the esplanad level is really the ground plane and that's where the entrance is to the main buildings are and uh then also number number three all buildings within development carry a similar design and articulation they're similarly scaled and even though the restaurant is shorter um we didn't make all the buildings the same that that we do have their cousins I guess if you will to create a similarity in design uh we also placed all the buildings around the perimeter of the Esplanade level again to number one to engage the prominade so somebody walking along that can get into any of the buildings um and then uh I'm sorry excuse me and then what that does it also allowed for the Esplanade level which is the level above the flood plane to provide the building access for veh vehicles and um pedestrians uh the Landscaping was a big criteria I'm clicking my pen it's fully uh integrated into the design furthering the cohesiveness the entire site is designed as a coordinated interrelated site and as required a full landscape plan will be provided for final approval at each phase of the project um as we'll be discussing the staff comments a scale of development while is larger than several of the existing adjacent developments uh however individually the buildings are of actually similar scale to the bab Vista which is seven stor over parking that's primarily what our buildings are um the scale of the bu development is within the parameters proposed by the sap um to maintain the visual design as a requirement of the uh the plan all the various mechanical areas service areas the loading docks the trash um are hidden from you uh or screened uh relating to building materials as stated before the building incorporates uh high quality materials appropriate to the architectural style primarily stuckle glass facades decorative glass and metal railings and other features and all within a natural uh a neutral excuse me um color palette the effect is harmonious the buildings will blend with each other in our opinion the design and layout of the development enhances the site and redevelops right now a vacant parking lot um and Sport storage area the site is significantly lower than the apex of the bridge and still allows for sub um allows for views allows sufficient space between the buildings for the views as we discussed before and um the idea is to create an inviting destination not a fortress and that's really again why we had to separate the buildings so you didn't have this wall of building that nobody knows what's going on inside as mentioned before the plan envisioned significant Landscaping designed from the onset as a mature development and T in keeping with the goal of a cohesive development signage will be carefully and sensitively incorporated into the final design in summary we do believe this is an important project for madira Beach we approach as such and the surrounding Community our team's vision is to create a cohesive mixed use community connected to the greater madira Beach Community and to serve as the Eastern Gateway into madira Beach all within the directives of the special special area plan thank you and we're available for questions and Mr Robert perley I'm shorter good evening my name is Robert pergal lizy I'm a aicp certified planner and a professional transportation planner with Golf Coast Consulting 13825 iot Boulevard suet 605 Clear Water I have 28 years of experience in preparing Transportation studies I was contacted in September to provide a traffic study for this project I don't get to pick when I do them but I'm told I need to meet a deadline uh we always in our traffic studies use fdot standard seasonal adjustment factors to adjust any traffic counts any raw traffic counts we get to peak season equivalents and that was done in the case here we conducted the counts in September and these were actual volume counts along 150th Avenue those counts were adjusted to reflect peak season conditions kind of the situation we're in right now this week next week uh which which assumes a worst case scenario the existing conditions on 150th Avenue or Tom Stewart Causeway or State Route 66 depending on your P 666 depending on your perspective operates at level of service C carrying a little bit over 2100 vehicles on a four-lane divided arterial State roadway we did a revised traffic analysis based on the reduced plan based on the reduced plan this project generates just over 3500 daily trips of which 28 289 would occur during the afternoon peak hour e thank you sir uh one thing we didn't do and this was to be conservative in the study is we did not take into account any potential internal capture and internal capture is something that occurs it's actually a trip ruction Factor when you have mixed uses in a project uh it's it it goes to account for any internal traffic interchanges between the mixed uses we use the Standard Institute of Transportation Engineers trip generation rates and we assumed all of our traffic all vehicles would exit out externally onto the roadway network uh we then split that traffic some of it goes east to the mainland some of it goes west towards the beach uh we have a median opening at the Western driveway which is serve the city marina and that's part of our access the future conditions with the project impacts are still at level of service C it's important to note the adopted level of service standard in your comprehens ensive plan is D and the standards are a is the best B C D and F being the worst so level of service C is within the adopted level of service standards of the of the city comprehensive plan the level service DEC capacity of a four-lane divider arterial is 3580 vehicles per hour with the project impacts we expected this section of roadway right out in front of our project to carry a little bit over 2300 Vehicles which represents a level service C condition so there's quite a bit of excess capacity there the proposed improvements that we're proposing to make as part of this project and have discussed with fdot are to extend the left turn lane and relocate the meeting opening that serves the marina driveway a little bit further west like another 50 ft further to the West to provide maximum storage length for left turn Vehicles the improvements also include a pedestrian walkway underneath the bridge fdot prefers the median opening relocated further from the bridge and we've been in continuous contact with fdot throughout this project I want to touch a little bit on Hurricane evacuation in the event of a hurricane watch Hurricane Warning tropical storm warning Advanced warnings are given days in advance in that situation the bridges remain closed they don't go up and if required all Lanes would be in One Direction heading off the island we believe there would be ample opportunity for Hurricane evacuation of the beach including any permanent residents that would reside here after the planning board hearing we conducted additional accounts on 150th Avenue these were done in February just last month as you might expect they were a little bit higher than what we got in February but I can say that using those traffic counts that we got in February and adding this project traffic on top of it we would still be maintaining level of service C conditions on 150th Avenue uh I stated we've been in constant contact or continuous contact with fdot f do is in agreement with the proposed Road improvements and they're awaiting our permit application I'll turn it back to miss Cole and we're here to answer any questions you got I have one you're going to add 3580 cars per hour oh no ma'am no say that again then I missed it the capacity the level of service D capacity understand that part is 3580 our project would add 289 during the peak hour the 3500 number was the daily that's a of 24-hour total thank you thank you and not to be remiss with the audience behind us we do have pictures you all received in your application packet the actual uh site plan applications but we did want to bring some pictures that uh is provided is a blow up blow up of the Exhibit C which is the off-site improvements uh paper in your site plan and this was just sent around and I'll set it back so the audience can see it as well it is part of the application part of this uh process is unique in the fact that the comprehensive plan when it was adopted in uh 2009 states that the there's a recommendation that the city adopt a provision that all Redevelopment and development Pro uh projects within the special area plan must do the PD zoning in 2014 when and the PD zoning was already in existence it was adopted by the city in 2005 to contemplate a variety of different developments in 2014 amendments to the special area plan were adopted and that resulted in the requirement of a PD zoning application in conjunction with uses and specific properties that were seeking to use this addative density and intensity which is permitted by your plan it included in those amendments was also the requirement that the owner enter into a development agreement with the city to memorialize what that plan looks like so it's several layers of the same type of permissions that and regulations uh but I thought it was important despite the fact that you're not actually uh hearing the development agreement tonight I thought it was important to go through some of the provisions of that agreement because it's truly integral to the PD plan and it is what establishes the conditions of approval and the permit and actually permits then the construction uh based on these conditions of approval and as you can expect the conditions of approval were generated generally by your staff and then uh discussed between the developer and your staff and they include uh the responsibility to relocate utilities as necessary and to ensure that Public Utilities continue uninterrupted and or provided the the construction is subject to current regulations of the building code uh that erosion control measures are applied that Swift m and Dot permits are properly obtained and presented to the city prior to certificates of occupancy being issued uh the the public works department the fire department community service departments of the city all have final approval on the actual engineered site plans upon their submittal and that the final approval of the parking count and Mr Hooper and uh Ison both spoke to this that the parking is provided in its entirety um some of the comments were about archal Park not being able to handle more traffic and more parking it's important to note that this project provides 100% of your minimum uh parking as required by code and not seeking any parking variances a phasing plan would be approved by your staff uh and then uh the off-site roadway improvements which are the exhibit that I just showed uh are are requirement and they must be constructed prior to phase one of the construction of the project uh Mr Healey of your staff and I uh have had continued to have discussions since the submittal and since the Planning Commission and listening to the comments and one thing that we recommended uh this week that should be included in clarified in the draft development agreement so when you actually receive your agenda packet with the final development agreement for your approval is a requirement uh for a hurricane evacuation and operation this is integral for the temporary lodging uses is uh the The Operators acknowledge that as temporary lodging uses um that these that evacuation standards are met as required in uh the countywide plan as well the burden tonight is for the applicant to present this evidence and for you to weigh the evidence that's presented tonight uh that the project as presented meets the code in your comprehensive plan Mr Hooper described the responsiveness of the developer and while we know understand that some people think it's too t dense or intense the developer did respond to those comments and create a project that is less than 50% of what could otherwise have been proposed on this project our architect reviewed your criteria and its code and offered specific examples of how the project meet your code Mr perley testified as to the level of service in the concurrency as to and as to Do's uh review of the access management plan to the site the conditions of approval will be memorialized in the development agreement that will be forthcoming at second reading in brief conclusion this application meets the intent of your special area plan it meets the vision that was established in your comprehensive plan it's specifically responsive to the 2014 amendments to your comprehensive plan and fully complies with the code and we would respectfully request your approval tonight on first reading of this plan development resoning thank you thank you m any questions from Miss Cole no um and just I've got one comment to make and at the time believe 2009 I was on the Planning Commission for the uh when we did the Town Center C did spend I'm sorry at this at uh on 2009 I was on the Planning Commission it did pass with full approval of the Planning Commission the Town Center the city spent $250,000 on that plan and uh uh Madam Shan you were the mayor at that time with commissioner lster did that pass through the commission if I believe so would fall unanimous okay thank you just for the record I want to make sure because I we worked this process all together yes and I'll also point out along those lines in 2014 uh the commission unanimously approved the amendments to the special area plan to facilitate the Redevelopment of these particular sites and those were the ordinances that the city work with Dave he yeah thank you okay Mr Mayor if there are no questions of the applicant now it's time for Mr Healey followed by Mr Cerna to make staff uh presentation to the city before we hear from the public okay Mr Hy if you want to proceed mayor Paladino members of the commission Dave with Calvin jerd on Associates 13535 Feather Sound Drive in Clearwater and I'm here tonight with my associate Louis Cerna uh to present the staff report uh that we have worked on in conjunction with your staff with regard to this project I guess given some of the formalities I'll file my resume if I may with the clerk as well I'm a fellow of the American Institute of certified planners I have 47 years of experience in City Planning and Land Development um here in Ellis County for the last 38 years I guess the first thing I ought to say is that I wasn't the consultant that did your town center plan for $250,000 let me make that clear what I would like to do is revisit some of the points that uh Miss Cole touched on with respect to the chronology to you're here tonight you've heard heard a lot about you're going to hear a lot more about details Building height density parking a lot of the specifics that are very important but I want to try and put that in context of what's happened really over the past 14 years that began in 2001 in madira beach with the initial discussions on what ultimately became the Town Center special area plan uh I'll so I'll talk a little bit about that background and then turn it over to Mr Cerna who will review the specifics of our staff Report with regard to those important specifics of this project that process involved a series of public meetings and shetes dating back some 14 years the process kind of kicked into high gear in 20062 2007 with the city's consideration and update of its then 1999 comprehensive plan uh that requirement was one of the state growth management act whereby your plan was required to be updated periodically and you went through a quite protracted process in 2006 and 2007 with the so-called evaluation and appraisal report process that led to the adoption of your updated comprehensive plan in 2008 important to note that in that 2008 plan it provided for a new plan category called plan Redevelopment mixed use it didn't put it on the map it didn't really enumerate how that was to take place but the plan articulated the intent to create this new district and provide for redevelopment through the use of that District in 2009 then the Town Center plan as the mayor referenced was prepared a so-called special area plan that term comes from a requirement in the countywi plan that in order to utilize some of the specific Provisions that are available to you as a community you have to not only adopt it through the ordinance process at the local level which you did but it was approved as an amendment to the countywi plan --------- everyone welcome to the city of M Beach Board of Commissioners regular meeting today is Wednesday March 16th and the time is 6 pm. commissioner ler will you please lead us in this evening's invocation I will Mr Mayor thank you our most gracious Heavenly Father we thank you for the continued blessings on the uh city of madira beach we ask for your wisdom and your guidance as decisions are made here tonight that will affect the citizens here and the citizens throughout the city it's always in your name we pray amen amen please remain standing and join me in the pledge of allegiance to the flag of our country I pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all would the city clerk please call the role commissioner shant yes mayor Paladino here vice mayor Paul here commissioner liser here commissioner Hodes here all right before we get L going ladies and gentlemen a couple of housekeeping uh rules I would ask you to please all turn off or silence your cell phones if you need to use the restrooms it's right through this door right here uh there'll probably be many people speaking this evening so look we all live in the same town so let's show each other respect if not the deputy will take care of the issue all right and if you know Deputy elect it you know he's on it all right uh at this time I will entertain a motion for approval of the provided minutes I so move Mr Mayor second I have a motion excuse me I have a motion in a second is there any additions or Corrections good job would the city clerk please call the rooll here I'm yes commissioner lster yes commissioner Hodes yes commissioner shant yes mayor Paladino yes uh before I ask for approval of the agenda Mr city manager I believe there's some changes on the agenda yes Mr Mayor and uh one more additional housekeeping rule um for anybody that's going to speak tonight at the podium you you really got to get the mic close to your mouth so that people at home can hear us also and and I love you all dearly but anybody that's got one of those click pens up here stop clicking it because the AV guys is already yelling at me so stop clicking your pen because no one can hear at home and with that Mr Mayor uh item number eight on your agenda resolution 2016-14 I'm asking to be removed um I I wanted that one bad and if you remember that that's the one that we got graded about as closely as you possibly could without passing for that Grant and I Mr Mar cono and I spoke with the panel's planning Council we discussed the possibility of possibly expanding our application and after further review um it just sounds like a waste of staff's time and and their time as well so we are going to go after a grant um that's in resolution 2016-13 um but we would ask that uh number 14 be removed at this time a motion for the uh agenda I'll make a motion to approve the agenda with the exception of resolution 201614 to be removed I have a motion second is there any uh questions from the commission on the agenda is there any comments from staff on the agenda say cler please call the role commissioner Hodes yes commissioner Shantz yes mayor Paladino yes vice mayor po yes commissioner liser yes and at this time we would ask uh we have a president excuse me a proclamation to do and Carlos would you please join me at the podium I'm G tell you what guys I've gotten old in six years I can't a single joining us from the life florida.org donating Oregon corre tonight we're here to go ahead and present him with Proclamation City one of the mosts or every year and where newent is added to the naal patien many people where everyone or and tissue can register their wish to save life through organ tiue donation at www florida.org or on their driver's license now therefore I Tris Paladino mayor of the city of M Florida hereby proclaimed the month of April April 2016 as Donate Life month abely [Applause] [Applause] all right next we have the uh independent auditor report Mr city manager or the finance director going move forward with that yeah thanks U I just have a few things to say before I introduce John Hower um just to give a little bit of background to the city commission by the way I apologize to the audience for uh being here for an exciting agenda item and having to listen to the audit first thing up but uh with that said I do want to thank the board for uh supporting the RFP process that the finance department went through last summer uh if you recall we uh we received responses from five different firms we narrowed it down to two and Wells Houser and shotel was the audit firm selected John Hower is a partner with that firm and he will be under contract with us for at least two more years uh in fact John has some some familiarity with the city going back several years I believe he was the auditor here in the mid 90s as well um the scope of John's Services was to not only provide an opinion on the financial statements but also to assess the city's uh control environments our inherent risks and our policies and procedures that are designed to mitigate those risks and I'd like to commend John for what I felt was a very Hands-On process we began back in June with an interim audit um which allowed hopefully allowed John to gain some familiarity with uh the current Administration and the city's current processes and procedures uh we follow that up with pre- audit work in November and finished up with uh about two weeks of field work in December at the moment and for the last couple of months uh between John and myself we've been working on finalizing the financial statements uh he's been finalizing his opinion letters and reports and of course uh we're finalizing the caffer um the the status of the caffer at this point is currently delayed um let me first mention that we recently received our fourth consecutive uh award from the gfoa for a certificate of achievement for excellence in financial reporting um that should be uh that's attributed to staff's work in the finance department uh and the city commission's support of Staff in that regard uh as I said we're currently delayed in filing the uh latest application for that award the reason for that is uh due is is not due to anything on staff's part but uh is entirely due to a new uh a new standard issued by the governmental Accounting Standards Board gby accounting standard number 68 uh requires new pension accounting that uh cities have not previously been required to report um this new standard requires the city to book a portion of the Florida Retirement Systems net pension liability so the city is currently waiting for that information from the F FRS along with all of the other other participating cities in the state so again the fact that we are waiting on that information uh is not unique to Mader Beach all cities that are participating in that pension system are waiting on the same information when we do receive that we will of course present to you the final version of the financial statements and the final bound version of the cafer document and as in previous years the board will will formally accept that document so with that said I'd like to introduce John Hower and he will he will discuss the the methods that he used during the audit he'll uh discuss the reports that are being prepared currently in draft form and ultimately share the opinion rendered on the city's financial statements Thank You Vince thanks for having me tonight mayor and Commissioners uh as Vince said I'm John Hower partner with the firm of Wells Hower and chatel uh the independent Auditors for the city of madira Beach uh we completed our audit fieldwork all the way back in uh February 4th and the financial state have been drafted as well as all our reports and I'm here to tonight to present those reports to you um once the information from Florida Retirement Systems received we'll finalize the reports the date will change uh based on when that information is received but it should be honored before April 30th 2016 that's anticipated maybe by the end of the month but there's been no information on when exactly that will be uh there'll be a separate report report not bound within the cafer that's called the required communication to those charged with governance uh it basically sets out some of the qualitative aspects of the accounting and the audit that we went through while we were here from as Vince says from June to to February um that uh talks about the implementation of new accounting standards of course the primary one would be gby 68 governmental Accounting Standards Board statement 68 which is a county and financial reporting for pensions uh the city will book its portion of the Florida retirement system asset or deferred outflow or liability deferred inflow related to the pension uh plan that the city participates in um that allocated amount is less than 1% of the total plan but still that last amount of that number is not not available yet U it also talks about estimates that management may use within the calf or the financial statements and we feel the most sign ific estimate is the useful lives of the assets that are in service for the city that of course affects the depreciation expense which then affects the results that are portrayed in the financial statements the lives that are used by the city we determined were in accordance with those used in general government accounting and they're all reasonable and consistent and uh we had no reason to question anything else difficulties encountered performing the audit we we had no difficulties whatsoever we uh found staff and management to be very responsive to our inquiries uh we when we requested documents that were provided in a timely basis and all the responses were received are reasonable uh corrected and uncorrected misstatements as we go through the audit and we find items we feel should be reclassified or restated we will Point those out in the form of journal entries and we had two entries that we proposed discussed with management they agreed and they've been posted to the books uh the first entry was you receive uh storm water Revenue Bond proceeds that were that are shown as revenues from a budgetary basis but when you roll into the cafer those then become a liability so we reclassified those from revenues on a budgetary basis to liability in the uh cap or or Gap basis the other was a cont two contributions were received uh that were related to the improvements that went on here in the city center uh and they were actually netted against the actual Capital outlay when you spent the money to buy the assets I believe it was a scoreboard and a sign uh so we moved those to revenues and grossed up the capital outlay but other than that we we found the books in in really really good order um inbound within the report the primary report is called the independent auditor report um and it will preedee and be bound Within the Capal precede Management's discussion and Analysis uh the report will state we've completed our audit as of the fiscal year ended September 30 2015 that its Management's responsibility for the preparation and fair presentation of the financial statements and it's our responsibility to design procedures to audit those statements and express an opinion so we've performed our audit procedures we've gathered our evidence and we feel and conclude the evidence we have gaed is sufficient and appropriate to issue an unmodified opinion on the financial statements no qualifications uh the remainder of the reports are in the back of the cafer it's a pretty massive document so you may not even get back to those so what I'd like to do is go through a few of those there's a report on internal control and compliance we perform test of the uh internal controls and also with compliance with laws regulations and grants um we're pleased to report that we have no items no deficiencies significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in internal control were noted nor were there any instances of non-compliance uh that we need to report there's a report required by the auditor general uh on compliance with the investment related to Florida Statutes 218 and we determined the city was in compliance with Florida Statutes and the rules of the auditor general as it pertains to the city's Investments so no no instances of non-compliance there either uh there's also a report on the BP oil spill or Deepwater Horizon oil spill funds that's now required by the auditor general uh there will be a schedule within the cafer showing the receipt and expenditure of those funds and the remaining fund balance and we were able to determine the city's properly accounting for those funds as revenues in expenditures out and also providing for within the fund balance or position of the city uh the last last report is is an independent Auditor's management letter that's required by the auditor general of the State of Florida uh the report requires us to determine if there are any findings in a prior year that those findings have been addressed and corrected uh there was one finding in the prior year report and we determined it has been corrected and is not a recurring item uh we're also required to comment whether the annual financial report that's filed the State Department of Financial Services is in agreement with the caffer and of course kaffer is not complete yet but we will perform that procedure once it's complete to agree those two reports to make sure they're they're in agreement the um also requires us to perform Financial condition assessment procedures uh this is really taking the five years of historical data from the city um and calculating 24 Current financial ratios or indicators and then comparing them to benchmarks of other similar cities um and The Benchmark group is really similar cities with um be the fund structure uh population as well as uh taxable property values and I will say you're in a very small group there's only three other comparable cities in your benchmark group um these indicators are compared to these benchmarks and the overall rating at the end is you tally the 24 ratios and then it's either a favorable unfavorable or inconclusive overall rating um the overall rating for the city was inconclusive uh to receive favorable or unfavorable you'd have to have 60% of those indicators being favorable or unfavorable if it's less than 60 it's just automatically inconclusive most of the times most of the Cities I work with and other other cities I I look at re receive that inconclusive so it's not an unusual rating to to obtain of course you don't want the unfavorable um but uh overall like I said