[2:41] over.

[2:45] [clears throat]

[2:55] » You still smiling?

[2:59] Good. Thank you.

[3:18] » All right. I'd like to call this meeting

[3:19] to order. Um, tonight we have a

[3:22] invitation provided by Pastor Bill

[3:24] Gilmore of the First Presbyterian

[3:25] Church.

[3:27] Good evening, sir.

[3:31] » Let's pray. Lord God, we thank you for

[3:34] the blessings that we have received,

[3:36] both known and unknown, for this

[3:38] community that we live in, that we may

[3:40] all live in peace and harmony. Dear

[3:43] Lord, help us to be good stewards of

[3:44] your creation, to be thoughtful and

[3:46] loving towards this beautiful place we

[3:48] call home, to truly appreciate and

[3:50] respect the beauty of the world that

[3:52] surrounds us. Lord God, we ask that you

[3:55] share your wisdom and grace with all who

[3:56] are in authority as they are called to

[3:59] govern our city. We pray that we all may

[4:01] share in the love of our neighbor and be

[4:03] kind and compassionate towards all that

[4:05] we meet. Lord, guide us in making good,

[4:08] sound decisions for building towards a

[4:10] future that our children and their

[4:12] children may prosper and grow in a place

[4:15] that the families may thrive in harmony

[4:17] with the beautiful world around them.

[4:19] All these we ask in Jesus name. Amen.

[4:24] Please join me in the pledge of

[4:26] >> allegiance

[4:28] to the flag of the United States of

[4:30] America and to the republic for it

[4:32] stands one nation

[4:35] indivisible with liberty and justice for

[4:38] all.

[4:42] » Roll call.

[4:43] >> Council member Voguez

[4:44] >> here.

[4:45] >> Deputy Mayor Purden

[4:46] >> here.

[4:46] >> Council member Carr

[4:48] >> here.

[4:48] >> Mayor Gibson

[4:49] >> here.

[4:49] >> Council member Corey

[4:50] >> here. Council member Fullick

[4:52] >> here.

[4:52] >> Council member Fitzpatrick

[4:53] >> here.

[4:55] >> Thank you. All right. Uh public comment

[4:58] on budget agenda items. Any public

[5:02] comment on the budget?

[5:07] All right. Seeing none.

[5:10] All right. Mike, you want to read the

[5:14] >> This is a resolution of the city of

[5:16] Bonita Springs, Florida, Lee County,

[5:18] Florida, adopting the final levying of

[5:20] advalorum taxes for the city of Bonita

[5:23] Springs, Lee County, Florida for fiscal

[5:25] year 2026 2027 and providing for an

[5:29] effective date. Whereas the city of

[5:31] Bonita Springs, Lee County, Florida on

[5:33] September 23rd, 2026 adopted fiscal year

[5:37] 2026 2027 final millage rate following a

[5:41] public hearing as required by Florida

[5:43] statute 200.065

[5:46] and whereas the city of Bonita Springs,

[5:48] Lee County, Florida held a p public

[5:50] hearing as required by Florida statute

[5:52] 200.065 065. And whereas the gross

[5:55] taxable value for operating purposes not

[5:58] exempt from taxation within the city of

[6:00] Bonita Springs, Lee County, Florida, has

[6:03] been certified by the Lee County

[6:04] Property Appraiser to the city of Bonita

[6:07] Springs as 19 bill271,813,275.

[6:14] Now therefore be it resolved by the city

[6:17] council of the city of Bonita Springs,

[6:19] Florida. Number one, the fiscal year

[6:21] 2026 20227 final ad valorum operating

[6:25] millage rate is hereby adopted as 0.8470

[6:30] mills that is 0.8470

[6:33] cents per $1,000 of assessed property

[6:35] value which is greater than the rollback

[6:38] rate of 0.8411 8411 mills by 0.70%

[6:44] mills and the levy of an annual tax for

[6:46] city year is made. Number two, the final

[6:49] mill rate is established to provide

[6:51] funding for the fiscal year 2026 20227

[6:55] budget and the resulting increase in

[6:57] advorum tax revenues is necessary to

[7:00] fund various storm water improvements,

[7:02] transportation improvements,

[7:04] environmental protection projects,

[7:06] community aesthetics projects, and other

[7:08] capital projects. Number three, this

[7:11] resolution shall become effective

[7:13] immediately upon its adoption by city

[7:15] council.

[7:17] Thank you.

[7:18] >> Motion to approve.

[7:20] >> Second. We have a motion in a second.

[7:22] Any discussion?

[7:23] >> Discussion.

[7:24] >> Any discussion?

[7:25] >> Do I have any um

[7:28] any appetite of the council to go to the

[7:30] roll back rate?

[7:34] » I would like to see the roll back rate.

[7:36] That's uh

[7:38] Lisa, the roll back rate, what's the

[7:40] difference of

[7:42] is it about 109,000?

[7:46] um which isn't a whole lot. Um you know,

[7:50] just with the the climate, the way it's

[7:52] going with the amendment three and the

[7:56] Florida doge and everything. Yeah.

[7:57] What's everybody's uh feelings on that

[8:00] >> on the on the on the property tax thing?

[8:04] I mean, my honest, you know, it listen,

[8:07] if it were to pass, you know, we're

[8:09] going to have to rearrange things. But

[8:11] this is such a that for $190,000 the

[8:14] idea that we can't go back on to a roll

[8:18] back so that we're philosophically kind

[8:20] of going in the right direction.

[8:21] >> I don't it it's the problem isn't

[8:24] $190,000 problem. Okay. 109. So it's

[8:27] that's not the type of problem we're

[8:29] talking about. So if it's if amendment

[8:32] three passes, we have a significantly

[8:34] larger scale issue to deal with. That

[8:37] said, every piece of polling that I've

[8:40] seen does not show that it has the

[8:42] support and there's a bunch of money

[8:44] that is going to be getting put against

[8:46] it from all of the special districts,

[8:48] from the sheriffs, from everybody who is

[8:51] going to have a vested interest in it. I

[8:54] think the realtors dropped money for it,

[8:56] but I think everybody, every other group

[8:58] essentially is going to be dropping a

[8:59] bunch of money against it. You have to

[9:00] have over 60. They're not at 60. So, if

[9:03] you're not at 60 and you're about to

[9:05] have the world dropped on your head, the

[9:06] chances of it passing are not

[9:08] significant. So, that's that's my honest

[9:10] analysis from what I'm seeing.

[9:12] >> See, I've been struggling with this

[9:14] also. So,

[9:18] I'm gonna go with Mike and Jesse.

[9:22] >> Any other

[9:25] go ahead.

[9:26] >> I think from from my perspective that

[9:28] yes, 100 and change is not a significant

[9:31] number.

[9:32] But when you look at the con consistent

[9:36] revenue sources from sales tax, from

[9:38] state shared revenue, you're talking of

[9:41] reductions of hundreds of thousands of

[9:43] dollars. Um, three years ago, the year

[9:47] before I was elected or 24, the

[9:49] commitment by council was such that we made the adjustment in in the

[9:54] millillage to go ahead and account for

[9:56] rebuilding our reserves in terms of our

[9:59] storm water and resiliency.

[10:01] uh we are at 1.5 million or something

[10:04] like that and short of our target of $10

[10:06] million and I think um to to go ahead

[10:10] even with something less than $200,000

[10:13] with a declining revenue source it

[10:15] doesn't make sense for the limited

[10:18] impact that it would have on the budget.

[10:19] So um I'm in favor of retaining the

[10:22] discussed millage.

[10:24] >> But hold on I just to clarify. So if

[10:27] it's not going to make a difference

[10:28] because it's only 190, you're saying we

[10:30] should or we should or I'm sorry 109.

[10:32] You're saying we should or we shouldn't.

[10:34] >> I'm saying we should maintain the

[10:38] increased millage and not roll back.

[10:40] >> Okay.

[10:41] >> Well, I just

[10:44] current

[10:44] >> the current mill that as discussed and

[10:47] not going to the roll back.

[10:48] >> So don't go to the roll back rate even

[10:49] though the number is

[10:51] >> minimal amount and and reduced revenues

[10:53] and and essentially from my end is that

[10:56] not knowing what happens. Three,

[10:58] regardless of our optimism one way or

[11:00] the other, um it it's far easier to to

[11:04] keep our powder dry. Um in the event

[11:07] that it goes the other way. So, um

[11:10] >> if it goes the other way,

[11:11] >> that's just where my head is. That's all

[11:13] >> I hear you. If it goes the other way, no

[11:14] amount of powder we have is going to be

[11:16] >> Yeah, I understand that. We've got

[11:17] bigger issue fish to fry.

[11:19] >> But we need

[11:20] >> but it it's I'm just saying that you you

[11:22] got less sales tax. You got reduced

[11:25] impact fees which we know are going to

[11:26] be bouncing around all around the place

[11:28] and so forth. The gas tax is down and and our and we got a reduced shared

[11:34] of of state revenue. So, so I mean you

[11:38] everything all our other revenue sources

[11:39] have been cut and to just even to

[11:41] eliminate this small amount I I just

[11:44] doesn't think it

[11:45] >> from a fiduciary standpoint to the

[11:47] citizens and the projects we're

[11:48] supporting I don't think it it's it's

[11:50] right to take that piece out.

[11:52] >> The the the position that you're

[11:54] articulating is the exact position that

[11:55] the citizens are in. Everybody is in a

[11:58] situation right now where affordability

[12:00] matters and a little bit of money a just

[12:03] this just reading the article that we we

[12:06] lowered it instead of being like

[12:08] everybody else and raised it at least

[12:10] maybe they're going to think hey they're

[12:11] on our side.

[12:13] Maybe maybe not. But if the number

[12:17] itself like you said is inconsequential

[12:20] and we're feeling you know we're

[12:22] starting to feel like we have to might

[12:24] maybe tighten things up. look around our

[12:26] community. Every single person is in

[12:28] that situation. So for us to be able to

[12:31] give a little bit of relief in a

[12:33] situation when they're feeling the

[12:34] strain, we're partners in this. And I

[12:37] think that, you know, it would be

[12:39] affordability matters and every little

[12:41] bit matters. And really more than

[12:43] anything since it is an inconsequential

[12:45] amount of money, as you stated, it's a

[12:48] signal that we feel your pain. we are

[12:50] with you and we want to make sure that

[12:53] we can maintain services but ensure that

[12:56] you as the citizens uh feel like we're

[12:59] doing right by you.

[13:02] >> Thanks Mike. Um you know I I understand

[13:05] and respect everybody's feelings on this

[13:07] being out on the campaign trail and

[13:10] talking to people. Um and this is a good

[13:13] example today. Not a single person came

[13:15] up here to talk about the budget. They

[13:17] trust us. They really do. They love

[13:19] hearing the fact that our city is in

[13:21] much better financial shape than many

[13:23] other municipalities.

[13:25] And you know, three years ago, guys,

[13:27] remember we did the right thing. We

[13:29] started building the reserve fund back

[13:30] up. And thanks to Chris's efforts on,

[13:34] you know, knowing where we should be.

[13:36] We're getting there. Um, I would rather

[13:40] be able to be in a position next year

[13:42] saying to folks, hey, we're going to be able to give you some

[13:44] money back, but it's going to be a

[13:47] really, really difficult meeting next

[13:49] year during budget hearings if if three

[13:50] passes. So, do we do the responsible

[13:54] thing and say, "Guys, we're not going to

[13:55] raise the millage rate, but we're

[13:57] concerned." And nobody wants to hear, by

[14:00] the way, nobody wants to hear about

[14:01] cutting services. They really don't. And

[14:04] so I haven't had one single person say

[14:06] to me once I've said,"Well, you're

[14:08] probably talking about saving yourself a

[14:10] dollar or two," "No, leave, as long as

[14:13] you're not going to raise it, leave it

[14:14] alone." That's what the people are

[14:15] saying that I'm talking to in my

[14:17] district. Either way, we're doing a good

[14:20] thing, but I think I'd really ask all of

[14:22] you to be really pragmatic about this

[14:24] and be the parents that are saying no, increase in your allowance this year.

[14:30] Chris,

[14:31] >> well always look at

[14:35] try to break the the tax rate down into

[14:38] two pieces. One is is supporting the

[14:41] operations of the city day in and day

[14:44] out. Uh the community policing program,

[14:46] the the uh building department and what

[14:52] we try to do in terms of services to uh

[14:55] the uh voters. The second piece is the

[14:59] what the the money we collect to build

[15:02] the city and we have done an you know we

[15:06] continue to do an outstanding job I

[15:08] think in terms of building the

[15:10] infrastructure whether it's the money

[15:13] we're going to spend on BERT whether

[15:15] it's the downtown improvements whether

[15:16] it's the east side improvements or along

[15:19] the beach so you know the the mill rate

[15:23] goes for two things it goes for services

[15:25] it goes for capital improvements

[15:28] I don't see that we've had a discussion

[15:31] in the previous budget meetings about

[15:34] the need to just simply cut back the tax

[15:37] rate. I think we have a plan that to to

[15:42] provide the services needed. We have a

[15:44] plan for capital improvements and I

[15:46] think what we're here to do is to

[15:48] finalize the money that we need to

[15:50] collect in order to achieve the goals

[15:52] that we've set out in the whole budget

[15:54] process. So I would not be in favor of

[15:57] cutting back because we if we were going

[15:59] to cut that back then we should have

[16:01] been discussing it before that.

[16:04] >> Laura,

[16:06] >> I'd just like to add to Jesse. It also

[16:09] sign shows a shine of hope that we

[16:12] believe things are going to get better

[16:14] and that our downtown folks are going to

[16:17] be hit up for money [laughter]

[16:20] and because we're not having our

[16:22] services cut. We're having the best, you

[16:25] know, events and um we're not going to

[16:29] change, but we might have to go about it

[16:31] a little bit different for a little

[16:33] while to get where we need to be. So,

[16:39] I'm still inclined to go to the roll

[16:42] back

[16:44] >> and I think you need

[16:46] five.

[16:50] » Um,

[16:52] yeah. I mean, I have to look at it like

[16:53] we've said it. I mean, we say it's

[16:56] $109,000,

[16:58] but I mean, we look at how we've wanted

[17:01] to run our city and what we've wanted to

[17:04] do and the events we've wanted to plan

[17:07] and provide for our citizens. And yes,

[17:10] it's 109 and maybe that's not a lot, but

[17:13] it's going to help us be able to still

[17:16] continue to provide for what we have

[17:18] planned and what our citizens love and

[17:23] have come to see Bonita Springs grow to

[17:27] be. So, I am inclined to stay with where

[17:30] we're at at this point.

[17:32] >> Before we vote, can I ask a question?

[17:34] Does anybody know, Lisa, maybe what what

[17:36] was the adorum year-over-year like? So, what did we think we were going to

[17:40] get? What did we actually get?

[17:47] » Because my I'm just wondering if if did

[17:49] we did we get more than 109,000

[17:53] than we than what we anticipated?

[17:56] >> Um do do you mean from the taxable value

[17:59] growth? Our taxable value this year was

[18:02] relatively flat.

[18:04] >> Okay.

[18:05] >> Um I think it was 09 actually. They got

[18:08] a little bit of a bump from June to

[18:10] July, but it was on average pretty flat.

[18:13] >> Would you would you say it would be more

[18:14] than 109?

[18:18] » Um,

[18:20] I wouldn't want to speak without looking

[18:22] back. I wasn't prepared for that

[18:24] question. Um,

[18:28] possibly. I mean, if you look in your

[18:30] budget packet, um, you know, page 11,

[18:32] the total, if we stayed where we are

[18:34] now, the increase in Avalor revenue was

[18:37] 365,000.

[18:39] That was from, um, some new

[18:41] construction. And and and keep in mind

[18:43] when we say roll back rate, that's

[18:46] designed um to produce the revenue that

[18:49] you uh would have earned in the prior

[18:51] year plus your new construction and new

[18:54] growth. because new construction and new

[18:56] growth means new services, new

[18:57] households or new businesses that

[18:59] require services. So it it's not flat

[19:01] completely revenue-wise. Um so does that

[19:05] answer your question, Jesse?

[19:07] >> So the answer to my question would be

[19:09] yes. It was more than 109.

[19:11] >> Yes. Yes.

[19:12] >> Okay.

[19:13] >> All right. So I just wanted to clarify

[19:14] that before the vote. So it that would

[19:15] cover the differential of what you just

[19:17] discussed. So you're worried about the

[19:19] 109. What I'm saying is we brought in

[19:20] more than that. So that more than covers

[19:24] that loss that you're worried about if

[19:26] that changes anything. I'm just saying

[19:28] if if that changes anything,

[19:29] >> but it didn't cover inflation.

[19:31] >> That's fair. That's look and if we want

[19:34] to figure out what that calculation

[19:35] would be and see where we're at, that's

[19:36] fine. But I mean, I think we're all kind

[19:38] of on the same page. This this number is

[19:41] not going to make or break our budget,

[19:44] but it is going to be a signal to the

[19:46] people that we represent that we hear

[19:47] your pain. And we are also in the same

[19:49] situation,

[19:50] >> Nigel. Well, I wanted to speak uh the

[19:52] realtors. I can say that realtors in

[19:55] this area were really surprised and not

[19:58] happy about what the board of realtors,

[20:00] the Florida State Board of Realtors did.

[20:02] >> Yeah. $10 million. But that was one of

[20:05] those I guess it was somewhat fractious.

[20:07] Um but they're not in support of it. And

[20:10] when you talk about property values,

[20:12] let's be real serious. We're not going

[20:15] to have a lot more building in Benita

[20:17] Springs over the next couple of years.

[20:18] we're kind of close to build out. You've

[20:20] got um major builders who are pulling

[20:23] back on their projections for next year.

[20:26] And then you look at uh condominiums,

[20:29] single family homes are doing okay.

[20:31] Condos are not. The average condo is the sellers are having to come down in

[20:37] their prices. So when Lisa says flat

[20:40] this year, I'm saying flat next year and

[20:43] could get worse. You know, when we say

[20:46] we're sending a good message or we're

[20:47] sending the message that we feel your

[20:49] pain, I think the citizens want to hear

[20:52] that we're continuing to run the city

[20:53] and then in a year or two they're not

[20:55] going to hear we're raising your taxes

[20:56] while your incomes have gone down.

[21:00] There's nothing easy about this, but I'd

[21:02] rather be sitting in this situation next

[21:05] year saying, "Hey, we're going to be

[21:06] able to lower your taxes

[21:08] >> in this current economy." If you think

[21:10] if we had a a polling of the audience in

[21:13] this economy and we said, "Would you

[21:15] prefer we raise your taxes or or lower

[21:17] your taxes?" What do you think?

[21:19] >> Would you prefer we leave your taxes or lower them or lower them? What do you

[21:22] think that $5?

[21:25] >> That's not relevant. You want more or

[21:27] less?

[21:27] >> It's It is relevant. Come on. Just say

[21:30] to people, "We're going to we're going

[21:31] to lower your taxes $5, but we're

[21:33] probably going to have to cut back on

[21:35] services." Why would we have to cut back

[21:36] on services when again we just

[21:38] established that we had covered it?

[21:40] >> Inflation less income than we expect,

[21:42] >> right? But if we got 365 and we're at

[21:45] 109, sub do subtract that and then

[21:48] calculate income and we still more than

[21:49] covered that. [clears throat]

[21:53] » Yes. Um Lisa, could you go ahead? Do we

[21:56] have more than 40,000 taxable houses

[21:59] here?

[22:08] I'm sorry, sir. I'm not.

[22:09] >> Do we have more than 40,000 taxable

[22:11] houses in the city of Bonita Springs?

[22:14] >> I thought it was like 48,000 or

[22:15] something like that, but

[22:16] >> that sounds You mean parcels? Actually,

[22:18] >> parcels that would re be receiving

[22:21] property taxes of some mean.

[22:22] >> That sounds like a fair number. I' I'd

[22:24] hate to

[22:25] >> be specific. Yes. If you take the

[22:26] 40,000, you divide it into the into the

[22:29] 109,000, that's $2.75.

[22:33] And I guess my question is instead of

[22:34] asking, do you want your taxes lowered?

[22:37] Do you do would would you prefer to to keep the 275 that are in your taxes

[22:43] today? Because we only charge 6.6 of

[22:46] every profit tax dollar comes to the

[22:48] city of Bonita. We are the lowest end of

[22:50] this whole thing.

[22:51] >> You're not I 100% agree with that. I

[22:53] mean the the honest to god truth is the

[22:56] schools make out the best in this entire

[22:58] deal and they're not even included in

[22:59] amendment three.

[23:00] >> I know.

[23:01] >> So I mean I mean whether

[23:03] >> my only point it's $2.75. This is this

[23:06] is not a consequential tax reduction to

[23:08] a parcel owner in the city of

[23:10] >> spring. Then why the opposition?

[23:12] >> I'm sorry.

[23:13] >> I said then why such vehement

[23:14] opposition? If it's not if it's such an

[23:16] inconsequential thing then what is the

[23:18] problem? because I value the the that

[23:20] $900,000 of income for the variety of

[23:23] issues that we confront both on a

[23:25] budgeted and an unbudgeted basis.

[23:27] >> We're at 9 109.

[23:30] >> Yeah.

[23:32] >> I mean,

[23:34] we seem to have no problem talking about

[23:36] cutting stuff when we vote for

[23:37] additional appropriations during the

[23:39] year. And from my end, 109,000 for some

[23:42] of the miscellaneous stuff that we have

[23:44] voted on the past year and so forth

[23:45] without discussing what we're going to

[23:46] cut. I mean, think about the fact just

[23:48] Byron Donald's just got us $2.8 million

[23:50] for what, Rosemary Drive or something

[23:52] like that. That wasn't that wasn't

[23:53] anything we anticipated getting. How

[23:55] much did the state give us and what and

[23:57] what for the projects they gave us? Did

[23:59] we account for that in our budgeting?

[24:00] No. Those were a hope and a prayer that

[24:02] we would get them. We got them. That's

[24:04] great. That helps our budget, but we

[24:06] can't pretend that things don't exist

[24:09] holistically because there are things

[24:11] that are coming in also that we aren't

[24:12] accounting for. So, you have to be you

[24:14] have to look at both sides of that. I

[24:15] respect your opinion, but the the

[24:17] reality is if you use the number of

[24:19] 40,000 parcels divided into 109,000s,

[24:22] it's approximately $2.75

[24:25] impact to the homeowner.

[24:27] >> So you're saying 275 is

[24:29] >> inconsequential in that I would not roll

[24:32] back the taxes for 275.

[24:34] >> So if you're saying that, what is 275?

[24:37] >> Because of the

[24:38] >> because what is look at our entire

[24:39] budget. How much what is 109 of our

[24:41] entire budget?

[24:43] Is it consequential? Nope.

[24:46] >> Okay. So,

[24:48] >> the dinosaur in the room is amendment

[24:50] three.

[24:51] >> Yeah.

[24:52] >> Right. So,

[24:53] >> there's something else we're not talking

[24:54] about is the folks on the east coast and

[24:57] not disparaging anybody personally. They

[25:00] don't seem to be able to run their

[25:01] cities very well. You've already got

[25:03] you've got cities over there with two

[25:05] and a half% 2 plus millage rates and

[25:09] they're in trouble over there with

[25:11] amendment three big time. And when we

[25:13] say that Tallahassee or I mean Byron

[25:17] gets elected, great. Good for us. But

[25:20] there's gonna be limited dollars. And

[25:22] the people that'll scream the loudest

[25:23] are the ones on the East Coast. And they

[25:26] there's 7 million people in three

[25:28] counties over there. We've got what, 1.6

[25:30] here?

[25:31] >> Yeah. I've heard him make the pitch many

[25:33] times out on the campaign trail that,

[25:35] you know, we have how many

[25:36] municipalities in Florida and only a

[25:38] handful

[25:39] over this last five to 10 years when property values have been going up

[25:44] have ever even considered or actually

[25:45] done a roll back. And he's like, and

[25:47] that's the reason that people feel okay

[25:49] with something like amendment three

[25:51] because they haven't. They they've been

[25:52] getting more money and they never did a

[25:54] roll back. So again, here we're we're

[25:56] just kind of in the microcosm of the

[25:57] same situation this year. It's we had a

[26:00] little bit more, not a much more, but

[26:02] it's we're in the decision. We're in the

[26:03] inflection point of are we going to or

[26:04] are we not going to and it's it's it is

[26:07] I think it's it is the fact that we

[26:09] neglected to do it. Not us, but of many

[26:12] of our brethren neglected to do it for

[26:14] so long while they're getting 2% and

[26:16] their property value rates are going

[26:18] through the roof that people

[26:20] holistically start to get the idea that

[26:21] cities can't manage their budget. We

[26:24] manage our budget well. We do a great

[26:25] job. But I'm saying that's how we got

[26:27] here. There's people in the audience, a

[26:29] couple right now, and there's folks

[26:30] watching on TV. And let's say it again,

[26:33] we haven't raised taxes here in four

[26:36] years. We haven't raised our millage

[26:37] rate in four years. We operate on 6 and

[26:40] a half or 6.7 cents out of every dollar.

[26:43] We're we've got I mean, we're

[26:45] financially one of the soundest cities

[26:46] in the state of Florida. And I'm saying

[26:49] that because a lot of people don't

[26:50] realize it. We're not in trouble. And

[26:53] when some when you say it's only

[26:55] 109,000, we're sending a message. I get

[26:57] what you're saying, Jesse, and you're

[26:58] right. People do want to hear it because

[27:00] some of them they're saying they're

[27:02] going to they're going to they're going

[27:03] to lower my taxes and then under the

[27:05] breath by $2.70

[27:08] rather than next year it could be a

[27:10] tough year, but at least Bonita Springs

[27:11] will not be saying to taxpayers, we've

[27:14] got to jump it to 1.3 1.5 because we're

[27:17] in trouble. Well, the real but and and

[27:19] just to be fair, the reality is even if

[27:21] it passes by next budget year, this is

[27:23] not going to be settled because there is

[27:25] going to be legal challenges because all

[27:27] of the the reality is that there's going

[27:29] to be bond holders who have already been

[27:31] made promises with Ed Warum dollars and

[27:33] then when you cut up the Ed Warorum

[27:34] dollars, they can't fulfill their bond

[27:35] covenants. So now these people are going

[27:37] to then sue the state. Bottom line, that

[27:39] is going to create a situation where

[27:40] it's not going to affect us next year in

[27:42] that way because if it were to pass 150%

[27:46] I'm telling you it's going to court.

[27:48] >> First the first lawsuits are going to be

[27:50] it's unconstitutional. You can't exclude

[27:52] certain entities. I won't name them but

[27:54] we have

[27:55] >> school board. But and you can't and you

[27:57] cannot go back you can't make a a

[28:00] municipality retroactively go back on a

[28:02] bond covenant.

[28:04] You're so you're you're saying that

[28:05] people have to retroactively go back and

[28:07] re renegotiate a financial deal based on

[28:10] financials that are no longer there

[28:11] because you took away the mech.

[28:12] >> I mean that's an easy win because it's a

[28:15] violation of the US Constitution and

[28:18] it's a violation of the Florida

[28:19] Constitution. You can't you cannot do anything to oblarm taxes

[28:25] that impact a bond contract.

[28:28] >> But at the end of the day, lawsuits take

[28:30] time, right?

[28:31] >> Well, it won't be it won't even it pass

[28:33] before the problem is you're Chris said

[28:35] it 100% correct but the problem is

[28:38] nothing can be done about it until it

[28:39] passes so if it it's probably not going

[28:42] to pass but if it does pass then Chris

[28:44] is 100% right but then it goes to court

[28:46] but point being this situation with the

[28:48] budget next year oh no we're going to

[28:49] have to address for amendment three no

[28:51] you're talking two if it passed and it

[28:53] got through the court rulings you're

[28:54] talking two years before it's an issue

[28:55] for us honestly if we're going to be

[28:57] honest about it

[28:59] >> if we're really going to be honest about

[29:01] it it's It's not really a tax cut. It's

[29:05] a tax shift. And sooner or later, people

[29:08] are going to figure it out. Because

[29:12] what ends up happening is if if it

[29:15] passes, then you're going to have all

[29:17] the the discussion about, well, in order

[29:20] to make budgets work, we're going to

[29:22] have to have sales taxes

[29:24] >> or income taxes. That's where they're

[29:27] going.

[29:28] There there's already municipalities on

[29:30] the other coast, I won't name them, that

[29:31] have already instituted higher taxes in

[29:34] anticipation of amendment three passing.

[29:36] >> There's so many different ways to get

[29:37] around this. You could do the Cape Coral

[29:40] thing. You could do special assessments

[29:43] uh for all over the place for supportive

[29:46] parks, for supported libraries, for

[29:49] supportive

[29:50] additional support of storm water

[29:52] resilience. You could you could play

[29:54] that game all day.

[29:56] uh you know the

[29:59] but the problem is yeah I don't know

[30:01] that I think we spent a long time

[30:04] dealing with this budget this year staff

[30:07] has put a long time dealing and I just

[30:10] don't think the juice is worth the

[30:12] squeeze on $109,000

[30:16] and trying to figure out well what

[30:17] capital project are we going to take it

[30:19] out of or what

[30:22] who who are we going to lay off or what

[30:24] services are we going to uh in order to

[30:27] make the budget balance to 109,000. I

[30:29] just don't think the juice is worth

[30:31] >> that that yes, but that's not how it

[30:33] works. So if we're short 109,000, we're

[30:35] not firing somebody. We're not getting

[30:36] rid of a capital improvement. So

[30:37] >> but we may not be able to close the

[30:39] roads for Halloween like we want to.

[30:42] >> Those are all decisions that are left to

[30:43] us.

[30:44] >> I mean, we have the ability to to

[30:47] prioritize and pay for things as we

[30:49] would like to.

[30:51] Well, why don't we uh why don't we

[30:53] >> can call the question if if I don't

[30:54] think anybody's changing anybody's

[30:56] >> I think that I just want to go ahead and

[30:57] basically close is that we've been

[30:59] talking about this budget since July

[31:02] and this whole discussion came up was

[31:03] predicated upon where rates are today

[31:06] >> and to be back here in the 23rd hour and

[31:08] all of a sudden finding the light of the

[31:10] Lord to come down and and say that we

[31:11] got to roll it back. Where was this

[31:14] discussion three months ago?

[31:17] were you here every single budget

[31:18] meeting that we've had where we where I

[31:20] said hey are we going to talk about roll

[31:22] back we're like nope nope we have to get

[31:23] through to this part and then if you

[31:25] want to do it then at that point you

[31:27] would do it I three meetings in a row so

[31:29] it's so this isn't beaming down from the

[31:31] Lord this is this has been said time again on public record in front of

[31:37] the people so this is not something that

[31:39] I just thought of right then

[31:41] >> but that was a decision that you made to

[31:42] let it be kicked down the road

[31:44] >> no Actually,

[31:47] >> it never was a discussion.

[31:48] >> We never go down.

[31:50] >> We can.

[31:51] >> We always said

[31:51] >> we can never go up. We can never go up.

[31:53] >> Now we're saying

[31:56] that the people are feeling

[31:57] affordability is a real issue. And I

[32:00] don't think that it's just $5 a

[32:02] household,

[32:03] >> $2.75,

[32:05] you're

[32:05] >> right. It's not $5.

[32:07] >> Okay. Yeah.

[32:08] >> Well, our city, I mean, Lisa, if we keep

[32:12] it the same or roll back

[32:16] be okay or is it going to take

[32:20] >> it would be staff's if if that's the

[32:22] decision of the council. We would

[32:24] recommend that we look at the unassigned

[32:26] fund balance to take the at this time

[32:29] and then you you'd have to continue to

[32:31] adjust that as you went forward. But we

[32:33] have how much do we currently have in

[32:34] the unassigned?

[32:38] » 3.9.

[32:42] » Okay. Um I think we've discussed it

[32:44] enough. If I just had one question for

[32:46] Derek before we moved on. Um,

[32:48] maintaining the current military, is

[32:50] that part of I know they just changed

[32:52] something where they wanted a more than

[32:54] a regular majority.

[32:56] >> They didn't really they didn't actually

[32:57] really change anything, but if if as

[32:59] long as you're anything above roll back

[33:03] up to 110% of roll back requires

[33:06] twothirds. So you would need five votes.

[33:10] So to maintain our current millillage

[33:12] >> would maintain the current votes

[33:14] >> and unanimous above 110%.

[33:19] » Okay.

[33:23] All right. Let's uh call the vote.

[33:25] >> Okay. So th this [clears throat] is a

[33:26] motion to adopt the millage rate at

[33:28] 0.8470.

[33:31] Council member Carr. No.

[33:33] >> Council member Fullick.

[33:35] >> Yes.

[33:36] Council member Bogz.

[33:41] » Um,

[33:44] yes.

[33:45] >> Mayor Gibson,

[33:47] >> no.

[33:48] >> Council member Fitzpatrick,

[33:50] >> yes.

[33:51] >> Deputy Mayor Purton,

[33:52] >> no.

[33:54] >> Council member Corey,

[33:56] >> yes.

[33:58] >> The motion fails by a vote of four to

[34:00] three, having not achieved the required

[34:01] twothirds majority.

[34:06] So, make a motion that we uh adopt the

[34:08] roll back.

[34:09] >> No, it goes there.

[34:12] >> It just

[34:12] >> I mean, they haven't got five votes yet.

[34:15] >> I think we should I do, but I think it's

[34:17] appropriate, Nigel.

[34:18] >> No, I I do. And that's where I'm going

[34:20] with this, Jesse, is okay. We We've

[34:22] spoken. We've all had a chance to

[34:24] >> Let's vote on the roll back.

[34:26] >> We have a motion.

[34:27] >> Motion for second.

[34:28] >> A second. All right. in any discussion

[34:32] beyond I mean my my personal feeling is

[34:35] you know just optics wise it's the right

[34:37] thing to do with everything going on the

[34:39] past couple years Doge and everybody

[34:43] else looking at all the budgets um you

[34:45] know I just don't want to be one that's

[34:46] called out for not going to the roll

[34:48] back especially when it's as we said

[34:51] it's kind of inconsequential but so

[34:54] >> so so to clarify the vote is for

[34:57] >> the roll back

[34:58] >> which only requires four.

[35:02] Right. It's a motion a second.

[35:04] >> Council member Boggas.

[35:06] >> I.

[35:07] >> Mayor Gibson.

[35:08] >> I.

[35:09] >> Council member Corey.

[35:10] >> No.

[35:11] >> Deputy Mayor Purton.

[35:12] >> Hi.

[35:14] >> Council member Fitzpatrick.

[35:15] >> No.

[35:17] >> Council member Folic.

[35:19] >> I.

[35:20] >> Council member Quir.

[35:21] >> Hi.

[35:23] >> Motion carries.

[35:25] Five to five to two.

[35:28] All right.

[35:32] Thank you.

[35:34] Moving on to number seven.

[35:39] A resolution of the city of Bonita

[35:41] Springs, Florida, Lee County, Florida,

[35:43] adopting the final budget for fiscal

[35:45] year 2026, 2027, and providing for an

[35:49] effective date. Whereas the city of

[35:51] Bonita Springs, Lee County, Florida on

[35:53] September 23rd, 2026 held a public

[35:56] hearing as required by Florida statute

[35:58] 200.065.

[36:00] And whereas the city of Bonita Springs,

[36:02] Lee County, Florida, set forth the

[36:04] appropriations and revenue estimate for

[36:07] the budget for fiscal year 2026 2022 as

[36:11] follows. Expenditures. General fund

[36:14] 24,543,829.

[36:20] Special revenue 5,396,295.

[36:27] Debt service1,533,000.

[36:31] Capital projects 21,88,667

[36:37] total all funds 52,561,791.

[36:43] Now therefore, be it resolved by the

[36:45] city council of the city of Bonita

[36:47] Springs, Florida, number one, the fiscal

[36:49] year 2026 2027 final budget is hereby

[36:52] adopted. Number two, this resolution

[36:54] shall become effective immediately upon

[36:56] its adoption by city council.

[37:00] >> Do we have a motion?

[37:02] >> Motion to approve.

[37:03] >> Second.

[37:04] >> Wait, we have just to clarify what

[37:06] Arlene is asking for. We would have to

[37:08] do an amendment on the 109,000 to have

[37:11] that come out of the unassigned funds

[37:13] balance.

[37:14] >> I make a motion reduce community

[37:16] policing $109,000.

[37:25] >> Okay.

[37:27] >> This is just expenditures, right?

[37:28] >> Just expenditures. Yes.

[37:36] » But we had Oh, yeah. Yeah, we had we had

[37:39] a motion in a second for the second.

[37:40] >> So So does that mean like no more like

[37:43] automatic dogs for Carmine? [laughter]

[37:46] >> No, that's No, that's not what we're

[37:48] discussing. There was a motion in a

[37:49] second to approve

[37:50] >> what's already, you know, before us.

[37:52] >> Chris just said

[37:54] >> I offer an amendment.

[37:55] >> Yeah,

[37:56] >> but there was no second to the

[37:58] amendment.

[37:59] >> Okay, then

[38:01] I'll listen to anything else in terms of

[38:03] where you want to actually do the cut.

[38:05] >> Okay. I would recommend that we do it

[38:07] from the unassigned fund balance.

[38:10] >> That that decision doesn't have to be

[38:12] >> made today, but it will have to be made.

[38:15] >> I mean, I think we can make it. Does anybody have opposition to

[38:20] >> What if we asked for don sponsorships

[38:24] for some of our events? We spend easily

[38:28] we could get $100,000 to support

[38:31] >> create a budget based on asking for

[38:33] money that

[38:35] We own a business.

[38:36] >> All right, let's call the question.

[38:41] » No, I'm serious. You really want to cut

[38:44] the unassigned surplus? We had this

[38:46] discussion two years ago and

[38:47] >> 100%. Yes,

[38:49] >> we had this discussion two years ago and

[38:51] we ag that that I thought there was a

[38:53] pretty persuasive argument at that time.

[38:55] we really needed to be up around $10

[38:57] million on the end of sign.

[38:58] >> I do remember those of us who said that.

[39:02] >> And now we're gonna say, "Well, we don't

[39:05] we we only got 3.9, but let's cut it out

[39:08] of there." Is that what you're saying?

[39:10] >> No.

[39:11] >> Okay. Where do you I thought you wanted

[39:14] to cut it out of the unassigned.

[39:17] >> I'm sorry. Did anybody cut it out of the

[39:19] unassigned?

[39:20] You're willing to take the 109 out of

[39:23] the unassigned surplus, which we agreed

[39:25] two years ago should be about.

[39:27] >> No, no, we didn't. Okay. So, there was

[39:28] no that was what you said because you

[39:30] said it doesn't mean we agreed to it.

[39:33] >> So, there's that. And second, if my

[39:35] question is, do I want to take it out of

[39:36] Lee County Sheriff's Office or the

[39:38] unassigned fund balance? I think that's

[39:40] a pretty easy question and that's why

[39:42] you didn't get a second.

[39:44] >> So, you're perfectly willing to spend

[39:46] over $3 million on community policing.

[39:48] >> $3 million. Okay. So

[39:50] >> yes,

[39:50] >> 3.9 million for a city of 60,000 people.

[39:55] Yes, I am.

[39:56] >> That's a sterile

[39:57] >> public safety is our number one public

[40:00] safety is our number one responsibility.

[40:02] So, the fact that we are getting the

[40:04] deal that we get with Lee County, which

[40:06] includes not only all of the tools that

[40:09] are in the Lee County box, you're

[40:11] talking search and rescue, you're

[40:13] talking choppers, you're talking uh

[40:15] drone service, you're talking dogs,

[40:17] you're talking detectives, you're

[40:18] talking all of the apparatus that comes

[40:20] with Lee County. So, that is

[40:22] >> they would provide us if we were had the

[40:24] same policing as Astero.

[40:28] >> Well, Astero doesn't protect its

[40:30] citizens the way that we did. Oh, is

[40:31] that right? It's a high crime area.

[40:34] >> They don't put the money or the

[40:35] resources that we do into public safety

[40:38] because they don't they don't see the

[40:40] necessity for public safety. And I

[40:42] understand, listen,

[40:42] >> we're a high crime area and we need

[40:44] this.

[40:45] >> Who said we're a high crime area?

[40:47] >> We're the most we are the mo we are we

[40:49] are the most uh we're the most upand

[40:52] cominging place in all of Southwest

[40:54] Florida. We have there are more

[40:56] millionaires in Bonita Springs than the

[40:57] city of Naples. So I don't know exactly

[41:01] >> more billionaires in Naples.

[41:03] >> So are we having to decide right now

[41:05] where then that why are we arguing this

[41:08] at this point?

[41:09] >> Because we have a presentation.

[41:10] >> Oh because we're arguing him because

[41:13] >> but we're not going to take policing

[41:15] away. I mean let's

[41:16] >> we're not I'm saying well there $3.9

[41:18] million. We can surely find $109,000 out

[41:21] of that. That

[41:22] >> of all of the things that we do that is

[41:24] the one thing that you would choose to

[41:26] take money from. Chris,

[41:28] >> I would have chosen to do it a long time

[41:30] ago, but I didn't want to fight the

[41:32] battle until somebody decided they

[41:34] wanted to make a political

[41:36] >> Why would you want to cut for of our

[41:37] entire budget that we just talked about

[41:39] $52 million you would take out of

[41:42] >> out of Lee County?

[41:43] >> Loaded.

[41:44] >> What do we do that's more important than

[41:45] provide safe public safety? Chris,

[41:48] >> nothing. We don't do anything more

[41:50] important than that.

[41:51] >> Okay, we're going to end this part of

[41:54] the discussion. It's not It's not part

[41:55] of what we're voting on right now. We

[41:57] already have a motion and a second. Roll

[41:59] call, please.

[42:00] >> Council member Fullic.

[42:02] >> I.

[42:03] >> Deputy Mayor Purdan.

[42:04] >> Wait, what is this?

[42:06] >> So, this is the motion is second to

[42:08] adopt a resolution for the final budget

[42:10] for fiscal year 2026 2027.

[42:14] >> Oh, yes. No, we do that later.

[42:16] >> Oh,

[42:17] >> we're voting on exactly how it's in the

[42:20] >> You're only voting on the expenditures.

[42:21] I I misspoke earlier. Only voting on the

[42:23] expenditures. You do not have to address

[42:25] the

[42:25] >> We're not specifying

[42:26] >> not specifying. It's only this

[42:28] resolution just just regulates the

[42:30] expenditures.

[42:31] >> Okay.

[42:33] I'm going to begin the roll call

[42:35] vote from the start. Council member

[42:36] Folic,

[42:37] >> keep it at I Mike.

[42:39] >> Okay. Deputy Mayor Purton.

[42:41] >> Council member Corey.

[42:42] >> No.

[42:44] >> Council member Fitzpatrick.

[42:45] >> Hi.

[42:47] >> Council member Carr.

[42:49] >> Hi.

[42:50] >> Mayor Gibson.

[42:50] >> Hi.

[42:52] >> Council member Bogz.

[42:53] >> Hi.

[42:54] Motion carries six to one.

[42:57] >> All right. Thank you. Moving on to item

[43:00] eight, public comment. Any public

[43:02] comment on tonight's budget meeting.

[43:11] » Ron George for Little Hickory Island. I

[43:14] know $109,000 isn't much, but I have to

[43:17] agree it's a great signal to the

[43:19] citizens that we are at least thinking

[43:21] about budget. So, I appreciate the

[43:24] support of that. Thanks.

[43:26] >> Thank you, Ron. Anyone else?

[43:30] Right. Is there a motion to adjurnn and

[43:32] move into our regular meeting?

[43:34] >> Motion to adjourn.

[43:35] >> All right. So, moved.

[43:37] >> All right. So, I'll call our regular

[43:40] meeting into order.

[43:42] Um, the invocation and pledge of

[43:44] allegiance were observed during the

[43:45] budget hearing. And since nobody left,

[43:48] uh, I think we can forgo the roll call.

[43:51] So, moving right into public comment on

[43:54] agenda items for our regular meeting.

[44:01] » Good afternoon, Mr. Mayor, City Council,

[44:03] Kyle Moran, Felts Avenue, um in the

[44:06] downtown. I wanted to discuss agenda

[44:08] item 8 uh B. I also want to thank you

[44:12] for that rigorous discussion of uh the

[44:14] city's uh budget. You know, I think it's

[44:17] worth everyone remembering when you go

[44:19] to pay your property tax bill in the

[44:21] city of Bonita Springs, this city gets

[44:23] less than seven cents of the dollar that

[44:26] uh you spend on taxes. Uh the state

[44:29] allows the city to charge as much as 10

[44:32] mills, which is $10 per thousand. And um

[44:36] the city charges 85 cents a thousand.

[44:39] So, thank you um for your rigorous uh

[44:43] budget management. And uh what's

[44:45] remarkable, too, is that when you do

[44:46] spend, you spend wisely. And uh if you

[44:50] think about that BERT vote, which is the

[44:52] first time in the city's 26-year history

[44:54] that we had a real referendum in a

[44:56] community made up of 51 gated

[44:57] communities, a real referendum about how

[45:01] the leadership in this building was

[45:03] spending their money. And what's so

[45:06] remarkable about that with the massive

[45:08] turnout and the massive vote of approval

[45:11] is that people said, "We're in favor of

[45:13] you spending a little extra of our tax

[45:15] dollars to build really great community

[45:17] assets." I think that's an incredible uh

[45:20] endorsement for what you're doing. And

[45:23] what you're doing is so apparent in that

[45:25] downtown. You're you're building economy

[45:28] or sorry, you're building community, but

[45:29] you're also building economy. There's

[45:31] real economic development happening

[45:33] there. You're about to cut a ribbon on a

[45:36] beautifully revitalized banyan tree

[45:38] park, right? Once an eyesore is become

[45:41] going to become a great public asset,

[45:43] the band shell is the same. You have

[45:46] this wonderful collection of parks and

[45:48] it's being joined by a lot of private

[45:51] investment. And at the same time, the

[45:53] gateway to that downtown on that

[45:55] southern side is not fitting the great

[45:57] downtown that you're building. So when

[46:00] you bury those power lines with FPL,

[46:03] when you build a really great community

[46:06] entrance, you're moving towards a

[46:08] completion of that mission. And that

[46:09] mission is so important. For too long,

[46:12] Bonita was a place that people drove

[46:14] through and a result, as a result of

[46:17] your actions, it's increasingly becoming

[46:19] a place that people drive to, a great

[46:22] destination. So, I want you to know that

[46:26] not only do the taxpayers support what

[46:28] you're doing through that BERT vote, but

[46:30] the people that work in and invest in

[46:33] downtown really support what you're

[46:34] doing as well. I hope you'll approve

[46:36] agenda item 8B, and I want to thank you

[46:39] for all your great work on behalf of our

[46:41] city. Thanks.

[46:42] >> Thank you, Kyle. Any other public

[46:44] comment on agenda items?

[46:49] Right. Seeing none, we'll move on to uh

[46:52] ceremonial proclamations and

[46:54] presentations. Uh tonight we have a

[46:56] presentation honoring Dr. Lawrence

[46:58] Antinucci, president and CEO of Lee

[47:00] Health upon his retirement. Deputy Mayor

[47:03] Burden handling this

[47:13] » microphone.

[47:18] [laughter]

[47:23] sunlight. [laughter]

[47:33] » Okay, this is a certificate from the

[47:35] city of Bonita Springs in recognition

[47:37] presented to Dr. Lawrence Antinucci from

[47:39] Lee Health. Uh they reached out to us

[47:41] just a couple weeks ago and uh Chris

[47:44] Lopez, Mike Nf have been a great part of

[47:47] their team. and they're always keeping

[47:48] us in the loop on what's going on and

[47:50] sharing the good word about Lee Health.

[47:51] Um, as you move on to your next venture,

[47:54] we are very uh grateful for your

[47:57] contributions that you've given to

[47:59] Bonita Springs. So, let me give this a

[48:00] little read for you. In recognition of

[48:02] your distinguished career, come on up.

[48:06] In recognition of your distinguished

[48:08] career and enduring contributions to

[48:10] advocating health care excellence and

[48:12] enhancing the quality of life for the

[48:14] residents of Bonita Springs in Southwest

[48:16] Florida. As you embark upon a

[48:18] well-earned retirement, the city of

[48:19] Bonita Springs extend its gratitude and

[48:22] warmest wishes for a healthy, happy, and

[48:24] fulfilling new chapter.

[48:27] [applause]

[48:36] » [applause]

[48:50] » Thank you.

[48:56] [clears throat and cough]

[48:59] » Thank you.

[48:59] Good night.

[49:01] >> Thank you.

[49:02] >> Where are you going?

[49:04] >> Not going anywhere.

[49:08] » Thank you for everything.

[49:09] >> Well,

[49:12] >> all right. Moving on to the consent

[49:14] agenda. Do we have a motion?

[49:17] >> Motion to consent agenda items.

[49:21] >> We have a motion.

[49:23] >> Second

[49:24] >> and a second.

[49:26] >> Council member Fitzpatrick.

[49:27] >> I.

[49:28] >> Council member Corey. Hi,

[49:30] >> Council Member Qu.

[49:31] >> Hi,

[49:32] >> Mayor Gibson.

[49:33] >> Hi,

[49:34] >> Council Member Bogaz.

[49:35] >> Hi,

[49:36] >> Deputy Mayor Purden.

[49:37] >> Hi,

[49:38] >> Council Member Full.

[49:39] >> Motion carries.

[49:43] » City attorney items.

[49:45] >> The only item I have for you this

[49:47] evening is a resolution terminating a

[49:49] development agreement um with the Bonita

[49:53] Beach Road Golf Community. Essentially,

[49:56] once the project has reached its final

[49:58] conclusion, we're we have no more

[50:00] obligations. They have no obligations on

[50:02] the development agreement. And so,

[50:04] there's a request to close it out. Um

[50:07] staff and representative uh the

[50:10] community is here to answer any

[50:12] questions, but my understanding is that

[50:14] this will also allow them to finalize

[50:16] some of the amenity centers and other

[50:18] items in the community.

[50:21] Okay,

[50:23] we have a motion.

[50:25] >> Motion to approve.

[50:26] >> Second.

[50:27] Roll call.

[50:29] >> Deputy Mayor Purton.

[50:30] >> Hi.

[50:31] >> Council member Fullick.

[50:32] >> Hi.

[50:33] >> Council member Bogaz.

[50:34] >> Hi.

[50:34] >> Council member Corey.

[50:36] >> Hi.

[50:36] >> Council member Fitzpatrick.

[50:37] >> Hi.

[50:38] >> Mayor Gibson.

[50:39] >> Hi.

[50:39] >> Council member Carr.

[50:40] >> Hi.

[50:41] >> Motion carries.

[50:42] >> Right. Anything else, Jack?

[50:45] >> Nothing else.

[50:46] >> Thank you. City manager items.

[50:48] >> Thank you, mayor and council. time. Uh

[50:50] Laura Taylor is in the audience. Um

[50:52] we're going to bring forward to you an

[50:53] amendment um to the approve the

[50:56] restructuring of the design phase of the

[50:58] public safety facility. Uh we previously

[51:01] brought to you forward um an agreement

[51:03] on April 15th. Um the purpose of

[51:06] separating the two is to give us this

[51:08] would just be the design. Uh the amount

[51:11] also includes

[51:13] some previous design elements that were

[51:15] in the original quote as well. that is

[51:17] the 900 um $97,700.

[51:22] Um the purpose of this would allow us

[51:24] then to separate out the actual build

[51:26] and give us more time to hopefully

[51:29] achieve some outside funding sources. Um

[51:31] we wanted to follow the procurement

[51:33] policies of both federal and state uh

[51:35] processes. Uh the original look would

[51:38] have possibly been a little bit of a

[51:40] faster bill, but we're going to

[51:41] simultaneously keep this open, these

[51:43] options open so that we can um keep

[51:45] pursuing those outside funding sources.

[51:50] >> All right. Is there a motion?

[51:52] >> I say a motion to approve the

[51:53] restructure.

[51:54] >> Motion second.

[51:56] >> Second.

[51:56] >> Okay. Roll call.

[51:59] >> Council member Corey.

[52:00] >> Hi.

[52:01] >> Council member Carr.

[52:02] >> Hi.

[52:02] >> Council member Fitzpatrick.

[52:04] >> Hi. Council member Voguez. Hi.

[52:06] >> Deputy Mayor Purden. Hi.

[52:07] >> Mayor Gibson. Hi.

[52:09] >> Council member Full. Hi. Motion carries.

[52:11] >> And just to keep you all informed, we've

[52:13] continued our staff meetings and

[52:14] outreach meetings with our community

[52:16] partners. Um we've um had staff meetings

[52:19] with uh Tony staff as well who would be

[52:21] staffed in there and additionally Lee

[52:23] County Sheriff's Office um has been

[52:25] participating in those meetings as well.

[52:27] So we've continued the process moving

[52:28] forward. Um the next item we have is uh

[52:31] to approve the cost estimate and project

[52:33] agreement with FPNL for the

[52:35] undergrounding of power conversion

[52:37] project at Bonita Beach Road and 041. Uh

[52:40] Matt can give you a little bit more

[52:41] specifics. We did introduce this idea

[52:43] during the CIP and we were asked to

[52:45] start to pursue that project under our

[52:49] um beautifification and um placemaking

[52:52] and the funding is available currently.

[52:54] Um I think one of the reasons we would

[52:56] like to move forward now is because the

[52:58] process with FPNO previously has been um

[53:02] a longer process.

[53:04] >> Um

[53:05] >> it moves at a glacial pace. [laughter]

[53:08] >> So we're looking for your support to

[53:09] move this forward for the design and um

[53:12] if there's any questions on the project

[53:13] or giving that opportunity since we

[53:15] haven't brought any discussion forward

[53:17] since the CIP meeting on this.

[53:19] >> Nigel.

[53:19] >> Yeah, I don't want to be sarcastic.

[53:21] That's a serious question.

[53:22] [clears throat] If they go forward with

[53:24] this, um, will there be any significant

[53:28] expenditures

[53:30] when we put in the pedestrian bridge

[53:32] over Bonita Beach Road? No. The the the

[53:36] short answer is this is is a really

[53:38] limited scope which is right at the

[53:40] intersection. Um, it it doesn't extend

[53:44] that far to the west.

[53:45] >> So, shouldn't be any surprises.

[53:47] >> No, there should be you you'd have the

[53:49] st same overhead lines that you have

[53:51] there today.

[53:52] >> Thanks, Matt.

[53:53] Motion to approve.

[53:54] >> Second.

[53:55] >> Motion. Jim.

[53:56] >> Yeah. Just one point. Did when I asked

[53:59] Arlene about this earlier, um there was

[54:01] also this would also facilitate the

[54:03] changing of the signals there. Is that

[54:04] correct?

[54:05] >> Uh it it really is inconsequential with

[54:09] the signals. Um you know, I think a

[54:11] future thing that we could coordinate

[54:12] with Lee County on as well is is

[54:15] changing.

[54:15] >> It's not part of it's strictly the

[54:17] bearing of the the the existing

[54:19] overhead.

[54:19] >> The current project is strictly bearing

[54:21] them. The goal would be to bring back a

[54:23] beautifification project which would

[54:24] hopefully cons consist of the mast arms

[54:27] which would be more hurricane sturdy as

[54:29] well as um more aesthetically.

[54:32] >> It'll give you the ability to do those

[54:34] things in phases. You could do the mast

[54:36] arms, you could do the the gateway

[54:38] feature. It gets the primary wire

[54:41] clutter from the FPNL. Ultimately, we

[54:44] will have to enter into agreements with

[54:46] whoever else is hanging on their poles.

[54:48] It's usually not as significant. Uh, one

[54:51] thing to note which is pointed out here,

[54:53] we'll have to come back to you with when

[54:55] they get their design plans, we'll have

[54:58] to drill the conduits, which is fine. It

[55:01] actually probably speeds things along a

[55:03] little bit.

[55:04] >> It will cost us.

[55:06] >> Thank you for the clarification.

[55:08] >> You're welcome.

[55:09] >> There was a motion in a second.

[55:11] >> Mayor Gibson,

[55:12] >> I.

[55:12] >> Council member Bogaz.

[55:14] >> Hi.

[55:14] >> Council member Fitzpatrick.

[55:16] >> Hi.

[55:16] >> Council member Fick.

[55:17] >> Hi.

[55:18] >> Council member Carr. Hi,

[55:19] >> Deputy Mayor Purden.

[55:21] >> Hi,

[55:22] >> Council Member Corey.

[55:23] >> Hi.

[55:23] >> Motion carries.

[55:25] >> Anything else?

[55:26] >> The only thing that I wanted to share is

[55:28] we did receive a call from staff at um

[55:31] Congressman Donald's office about um

[55:33] providing some office space. I'm going

[55:34] to get more details on that, but um

[55:37] typically when it's intergovernmental,

[55:38] you've authorized staff to help and

[55:40] assist if they wanted to have office

[55:42] hours as such. We've done this for both

[55:44] state representatives and congressional.

[55:47] So, if you would like me to get more

[55:48] details, I would of course send that out

[55:50] to everyone first once we get

[55:52] finalization.

[55:53] >> Okay. Thank you.

[55:55] >> And that's it.

[55:56] >> Did they pay us?

[55:57] >> Typically, that's not

[56:00] >> That's curious.

[56:00] >> It's an intergovernmental courtesy.

[56:03] [laughter]

[56:05] >> Uh, mayor and council member reports.

[56:07] Chris,

[56:08] >> I have nothing to

[56:10] >> Laura.

[56:10] >> Yeah, I'm good.

[56:12] >> Nigel, um, just a couple things. one

[56:15] last night. Actually, you were there

[56:17] too. Uh Mike, u our property appraiser

[56:19] Matt Cwell did an excellent job of u

[56:23] explaining to our downtown business

[56:25] alliance members what some of the

[56:27] ramifications could or could not be as

[56:30] far as amendment three, but he was also

[56:33] extremely complimentary and didn't have

[56:34] to be of the city of Bonita Springs and

[56:38] um how things are run here. um he made

[56:41] the comment that we're in much better

[56:42] shape than many other municipalities and

[56:44] counties. Um there's no TDC meeting in

[56:47] September. I said that the last meeting,

[56:49] so the next one will be in October. Um

[56:51] just a this is something the city is not

[56:54] paying for, but the Veterans Advisory

[56:57] Board uh started an initiative um almost

[57:00] a year ago and we want to have a Purple

[57:03] Heart memorial downtown in um

[57:07] most probably uh next to the LS Hotel

[57:10] and um it's going to be privately

[57:13] funded. So, I will just ask that uh

[57:16] anybody who works for a large company or an individual who feels so

[57:20] inclined um we've got a lot of funds to

[57:22] raise. Right now, we're at about 5,000

[57:25] which is about 10% of our goal. So, if

[57:29] there's somebody out there that wants to

[57:30] support um that initiative, uh the big

[57:33] question we get asked is will the

[57:35] sponsors or the contributor's name go on

[57:38] the memorial? The answer is no. But

[57:40] we're looking into an alternative of

[57:41] possibly doing bricks on the walkway.

[57:44] But it's going to be clean. It's going

[57:45] to be beautiful. And it's going to be

[57:46] appropriate. We have a number of Purple

[57:48] Heart recipients in our city and it

[57:50] would be good to honor them.

[57:51] >> Thank you.

[57:52] Jesse.

[57:55] >> Uh I don't have anything. Thank you.

[57:58] >> Come on.

[57:58] >> I think I think I spoke enough tonight.

[58:01] [laughter]

[58:03] >> All in good fun.

[58:05] >> Tim, no items.

[58:08] Amy,

[58:09] >> um just one thing. Uh if you remember,

[58:12] we started the pilot program for the um

[58:16] it was beach or facility parking. Um and

[58:21] it was a good opportunity to see the

[58:23] interest in what our citizens um you

[58:26] know were wanting or you know would

[58:28] enjoy having an opportunity to have. And

[58:31] we did sell 37 passes which was a total

[58:34] of reimbursement of the city of $1850.

[58:37] So, it cost each one $10 and reimbursed

[58:39] them. Um, it showed that there is

[58:42] interest, but right now, seeing that a

[58:44] lot of the facilities, the bathrooms and

[58:46] such weren't open, um, I think we can,

[58:50] um, I want to see about closing it at

[58:52] this point as of September 30th, October

[58:54] 1st. And um just waiting for updates

[58:57] since the beaches and facilities will be

[58:59] closed or the bathrooms and the

[59:02] rebuilding the parking that we close it

[59:04] for the time being and waiting for

[59:06] updates from the county and um look at

[59:10] it as we receive updates to when we want

[59:12] to reopen that to our citizens of Indis.

[59:16] >> Question.

[59:17] >> So were the passes like one year from

[59:19] when you bought them or is it just like

[59:21] a calendar year? It was the for the year

[59:25] >> from when you bought it

[59:26] >> year for when you bought it.

[59:28] >> It was from the date of purchase.

[59:30] >> Purchase.

[59:30] >> Okay. Yeah. So, so it makes sense to

[59:32] hold off because they can't really use

[59:33] them right now. So,

[59:34] >> correct. So, at this point, I'd say to

[59:36] suspend the program until we get further

[59:38] updates from

[59:39] >> the county of our parking and bathroom

[59:42] situation and

[59:44] go from there with the program. I think

[59:46] there's interest, but I think at this

[59:47] time it's going to be difficult to

[59:51] pursue that at this point.

[59:55] >> That's good. Lori, you had a comment.

[59:56] >> Well, I was just wondering if we kept it

[59:58] open but said there's a highest until

[1:00:02] bathrooms are open and then those people

[1:00:04] automatically the passes are just

[1:00:07] cleared. So, the city can hold on to the

[1:00:09] money or not. I mean, $10 back and

[1:00:13] forth, you know.

[1:00:14] >> I mean, the

[1:00:16] $50.

[1:00:17] >> It's $50.

[1:00:18] >> $50 back.

[1:00:19] >> $10 for this.

[1:00:20] >> It's a reimbursement program. So, they

[1:00:22] have to buy the county pass first and um

[1:00:24] >> reimburse them for

[1:00:25] >> we reimburse them, but we're not sure as

[1:00:28] to the access availability for Fenitas

[1:00:31] at this point. But I think that when we

[1:00:34] get more updates, we could bring forward

[1:00:36] restarting it and then find the

[1:00:38] appropriate time to market it as well

[1:00:40] because we did a soft launch of it and

[1:00:42] um to start.

[1:00:44] >> I don't think staff wants to have to

[1:00:46] deal with people running back in with

[1:00:47] their passing. You never told us there

[1:00:49] were no bathrooms on the beach. I want

[1:00:51] my money back

[1:00:52] >> and no parking

[1:00:54] >> parking. [laughter]

[1:00:56] You had a

[1:00:56] >> daring season.

[1:00:57] >> Oh, I I'm sorry. It was I pressed. Um, I

[1:00:59] just wanted to also I forgot to remind

[1:01:01] everybody regarding the great Florida

[1:01:04] places that that does close at the end

[1:01:06] of the month. So, if they everyone could

[1:01:08] take their opportunity to vote, that

[1:01:09] would be great.

[1:01:09] >> And it's legal to say vote often.

[1:01:12] >> No, if you can you can try, but you

[1:01:15] can't.

[1:01:15] >> In the beginning, it was letting me vote

[1:01:17] for additional days, but now it's like I can't get back in anymore.

[1:01:20] >> If you have a phone and a laptop,

[1:01:22] >> well, yeah, you can do it from each

[1:01:23] thing. And so, whenever I visit

[1:01:25] somebody's house, I do it from their

[1:01:26] house. So,

[1:01:30] No, I won't be asking for that in the

[1:01:31] general election. I promise. [laughter]

[1:01:34] >> Um, all right. Uh, so my turn. The, uh,

[1:01:38] I just wanted to let everybody know that

[1:01:40] National Walk to School Day is coming up

[1:01:42] on October 7th. Um, I'll be joining

[1:01:44] Principal Hernandez of Bonita Elementary

[1:01:47] to walk with the students, uh, starting

[1:01:48] at 7:30 a.m., uh, they walk from the

[1:01:51] flea market on Bonita Beach Road to, uh,

[1:01:53] Bonita Springs Elementary. So, if

[1:01:55] anybody wanted to join me, it's uh

[1:01:58] usually fun to to walk with the kids. Um

[1:02:01] meet at the uh I don't know if we meet

[1:02:03] at 7:30 or if we start walking at 7.

[1:02:05] Probably start walking at 7:30.

[1:02:06] >> We start walking at 7:30.

[1:02:08] >> So, be there a little early,

[1:02:09] >> a little bit earlier. And um Jane will

[1:02:11] be sending out reminders as well.

[1:02:12] >> Okay,

[1:02:13] >> perfect.

[1:02:13] >> Thank you.

[1:02:14] >> And it is fun.

[1:02:15] >> Yeah.

[1:02:17] Um and then I just also wanted to let

[1:02:19] you know how the DC trip went. Um it was

[1:02:23] a little different than what I was

[1:02:24] expecting because I really didn't know

[1:02:25] what to expect. Um but it was uh

[1:02:28] interesting. The meeting wasn't at the

[1:02:30] White House. It was just at the White

[1:02:31] House office building which is next

[1:02:32] door. Um but they had somebody from each

[1:02:35] department come and talk to us about

[1:02:37] what they do and what they can do to

[1:02:39] help the city and then said if we had

[1:02:41] any issues to reach out to them and they

[1:02:43] you know love to help us out with

[1:02:44] things. Uh, everybody mentioned uh

[1:02:47] different grants that were coming up,

[1:02:48] but almost all of them were like ending

[1:02:50] within days of that meeting. So, you

[1:02:52] know, but I'm pretty sure Ellie keeps up

[1:02:54] on all that anyway. So, any of those uh

[1:02:57] what we already knew about. Um, but it

[1:03:00] was u very very interesting and I was

[1:03:02] honored to go and and thank you so much

[1:03:04] for uh indulging.

[1:03:07] >> Well, I'm I'm ordering my 8 by10 photo

[1:03:10] view with both the president and the

[1:03:12] vice president over your left shoulder.

[1:03:13] It's heartwarming.

[1:03:17] >> So, um, and that's all I've got. So,

[1:03:20] public comment.

[1:03:21] >> We have one registered speaker, David

[1:03:23] Lux.

[1:03:30] » Good evening, council. Uh, David Lux,

[1:03:31] resident of Bonita Springs. I'm here to

[1:03:33] discuss uh signage at the Bonita Springs

[1:03:36] Dog Park and the Mayood Park playground

[1:03:39] entrance. Currently, there seems to be a

[1:03:42] uh inconsistency and lack of clarity on

[1:03:44] the posted park hours. The Bonita

[1:03:46] Springs Dog Park, there's a sign at the

[1:03:48] gate entrance that states 7 a.m. to

[1:03:51] dusk. However, there's no signage at the

[1:03:53] sidewalk entrance off of East Terry

[1:03:56] Street indicating the park's hours of

[1:03:59] operation. At the Mayood Park entrance

[1:04:01] located at the corner of Bonita Drive

[1:04:03] and Streetsboro Lane, the st the sign

[1:04:05] states, "Dawn to dusk." While these

[1:04:07] signs may seem straightforward

[1:04:08] individually, the differences in wording

[1:04:10] combined with the lack of signage at the

[1:04:12] East Terry sidewalk creates confusion

[1:04:15] for residents and visitors uh of when

[1:04:18] they're permitted to be on that park

[1:04:20] property. Uh my request to council is to

[1:04:23] provide clear and consistent information

[1:04:25] to residents and I respectfully ask that

[1:04:27] the city consider installing signage at

[1:04:30] the east terry entrance at the sidewalk

[1:04:33] uh that matches that same signage at the

[1:04:36] gate where cars would pull into the

[1:04:38] park. That way people on ebikes and

[1:04:41] pedestrians can clearly see the posted

[1:04:43] hours of that park. Um, consistent and

[1:04:46] clear posted hours at each entrance

[1:04:48] would help eliminate the confusion and

[1:04:50] provide residents with clear

[1:04:51] expectations so everyone can comply with

[1:04:54] city park regulations. Thank you.

[1:04:56] >> Thank you,

[1:04:57] >> David.

[1:04:59] >> Any other public comment?

[1:05:03] » All right, seeing none, motion to

[1:05:05] adjurnn.

[1:05:07] Thank you.

City of Bonita Springs, City council meeting, September 23, 2026

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