Good evening everyone. I'd like to call this september 4th council meeting to order.
will you all please rise if you're able, and join me in the pledge of allegiance?
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america, And to the republic for which it stands.
one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
thank you all. Would the clerk please read the roll?
mayor tinsley here. Vice mayor middleton here. Council member. Read here. Council member. Moroso here.
council member. Kemp here. Thank you. Patty. And do we have any deletions or Modifications?
yes, ma'am. You have one addition under announcements and presentations.
paperwork is in front of you. Got it. Okay. And I think I will go to the podium and do This
presentation. It'll be fun.
do something a little different. Change it up a bit. So for announcements and presentations we have a new item which is the florida league of Cities silver certificate.
and the florida league of cities university is a certificate program provided to elected Municipal officials,
and recognizes elected officials who take part in the league's many training opportunities Through a variety of in-person and virtual education
opportunities to learn about the latest issues, Trends, and best practices.
the league staff tracks each member's points through event registrations and are Accumulated from august 2024.
in conjunction with the florida league of cities annual conference through july of 2025, And this year,
our very own council member, council member chelsea reed, Was honored by having the certificate program for elected municipal
municipal officials silver certificate of leadership. So if you would all come down and join me in taking a picture and honoring chelsea, And we can give her this award together.
congratulations, chelsea.
you guys have a great year. Thank you. Oh.
I appreciate. You
guys.
thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah.
yeah. Thank you all for joining me in that. Appreciate it.
and congratulations again. Council member reed. Nice honor. Now we're moving on to comments from the public.
and actually, maybe we have some on their way.
okay. We do have two comments from the public, So if you can please come to the podium.
when I call your name, state your name and your address.
and the first one is miss ramona bean.
my name is ramona bean. I live at 5439 cicada way in the horseshoe acres neighborhood.
good evening, mayor, vice mayor middleton and city council and staff and everyone in here.
as a gardens resident I have a recurring work contract.
as some of you know it's my fifth year. I was working on wyoming as a camp cook.
I miss being here in person, though, and seeing you guys, But I want to say thank you on a couple of notes.
this summer was much better. I stayed in touch a couple ways. The pbg now app that was released back in the spring, I must say, is great.
thank you. When I get reception up in the mountains I was it was nice to keep up even if There was a weather update or anything like that.
and I could check back at home what was going on. Secondly, I've enjoyed also mary mayor tinsley email updates.
I've noticed any mayor that comes through our gardens. City council has a way of notifying folks whether social media or email, And I just want to say thank you for that.
it does help us keep in touch. Lastly, I'm starting this school year as a mom of a sixth Grader,
ninth grader, and 12th grader. And as some parents in here know, That's quite the storm. It's a good storm. And my 12th grader swims for gardens high school right here in palm Beach gardens,
and they are loving the rec center. And as a parent and my husband, We love being able to just kind of pull in there and easily drop them off and pick them
up. So thank you for all the city staff's work and everyone that was involved in that Setup.
and I just love seeing it all unfold. So that's it. I just want to say thank you. And it's good to be back in town. Thank you, Miss bean.
okay. Actually, that is it for comments that are for items not on the agenda.
so next we're going to move to the consent agenda. Does anyone need anything pulled from the consent agenda? City manager okay.
city manager. Oh I skipped right over you, I apologize.
sorry, ron. It's okay. I just have a couple of of items to bring to your attention.
just today. Where's my paper? Here it is. We received information today that the gardens Green market was voted
best farmer's market by the readers of jupiter magazine.
congratulations to our recreation department and the green market team.
we appreciate you and your hard work has been recognized.
please pass that on to staff. Thank you. The other thing, As you can see, the pictures from the green market,
the other thing was interesting is saturday we had the 2025 fire truck pull fundraising Event.
all the proceeds from that event went to the connections education center, Nonprofit school in palm beach county dedicated to creating
a world where students with autism are welcomed and empowered.
and it was quite a competition. I don't know the total amount of money that's raised yet, But just to let you know,
the lowest combined weight pool champion this year was palm beach gardens fire rescue, With a combined weight of 418
pounds. Police. And our police department led the way for the
longest time, but was edged out by another team and they ended up in second place for the Fastest poll.
you should have seen this team. So those are the two things I just wanted to bring to Everyone's attention.
they're great community events, and these are the types of things that separate us, So we're happy and proud of them.
I agree 100%. Thank you. I appreciate that and sorry for skipping over you. I guess I got ahead of myself. Now moving on to the consent agenda.
anybody have any items to pull? May I? Then may I get a motion to approve the consent Agenda?
motion. And a second, please. I'd like to make a motion to pass the consent agenda.
second. We have a motion and a second. All in favor? Aye. Motion passes 5 to 0.
tonight we are holding quasi judicial hearings on the following cases.
ordinance ten 2025 second reading and adoption. City initiated rezoning from residential medium to professional office.
ordinance 13 2025 first reading voluntary annexation.
resolution 63 2025 major conditional use within gardens town square.
resolution 64 2025 site plan amendment for longview at avenir pod ten.
resolution 65 2025 site plan approval for panther national parcel phase one.
this means that the city council is required by law to base its decisions on the evidence Contained in the record of this proceedings,
which consists of the testimony at the hearing, The materials which are in the official city file on this application,
and any documents presented during this hearing. The council is also required by law to allow cross examination of any witnesses who Testified tonight.
cross examination may occur after the staff, The applicant and other participants have made their presentations and will be permitted
in the order of witnesses. Appearance. It is necessary that anyone who testifies at the Hearing remain until the conclusion of the hearing,
in order to be able to respond to any questions. If you plan to testify this evening or wish to offer written comments, Please fill out a comment card which is located over there by the door and give it to the
city clerk over there. The city clerk will now swear in all persons who intend to offer Testimony this evening on any of these cases.
do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, And nothing but the truth, so help you god? Thank you.
patty. We're going to start with ordinance eight 2025 with the clerk. Please read the title ordinance eight 2025 an ordinance of the city council.
the city of palm beach gardens, florida, adopting a small scale amendment to the Comprehensive plan future land use map in accordance with the mandates set forth in
chapter 163 florida statutes pursuant to application number cps, Dash 25.
dash zero five. Dash 0002. In order to amend the future land use designation of 11.61 Acres,
more or less a portion of the 45.37 acre donald ross village planned unit development pud From commercial c to mixed use
mkd. The subject property being located immediately southeast of the intersection of Donald ross road and central boulevard,
providing for compliance with all requirements of chapter 163 florida statutes.
providing for transmittal to the state land planning agency. Providing that the future land use map of the city of palm beach gardens be amended Accordingly,
providing a conflicts clause, a severability clause, And authority to codify, providing an effective date and for other purposes.
thank you, madam mayor. I'm going to open the public hearing and ask, Has anything changed since first reading?
no changes. Thank you. And does anyone want or would like to see a presentation for the Second time?
no. Okay. And I do not have any comment cards on this item.
so I'm going to close the public hearing and ask for a motion and a second for ordinance Eight.
I'll make a motion to approve ordinance eight 2025 second reading and adoption second.
okay. We have a motion and a second. Any discussion?
seeing none, I'd like to call a vote. All in favor? Aye. Motion carries 5 to 0. Moving on to ordinance nine, 2025.
would the clerk please read the title ordinance nine 2025 an ordinance of the city Council.
the city of palm beach gardens, florida, adopting a small scale amendment to the Comprehensive plan future land use map in accordance with the mandate set forth in chapter
163 florida statutes, pursuant to application number cps 25050003.
in order to amend the future land use designation of 1.46 acres, More or less known as the gordon's learning center,
from residential low rl to professional office pio.
the subject property being located on the south side of northlake boulevard, Approximately 0.6 miles west of north military trail.
providing for compliance with all requirements of chapter 163 florida statutes.
providing for transmittal to the state land planning agency. Providing that the future land use map of the city of palm beach gardens be amended Accordingly,
providing a conflicts clause, a severability clause, And authority to codify, providing an effective date for other purposes.
thank you. I'm going to open the public hearing and ask if anything has changed since First reading.
good evening, madam mayor, and there have been no changes for the record. I do. I would like to take a moment just to reiterate what was presented to the city Council at first reading regarding this petition that is purely
housekeeping in nature, to provide for consistency between the land use and the existing Zoning designation,
and with the existing use on site, which is also not permitted under the existing Designation.
so there is no new development that is proposed with this with this petition.
this petition exclusively provides for the internal consistency between the use, The zoning and the land use,
and staff is happy to provide a more detailed presentation if necessary.
there have been no changes, however, since first reading. Okay. Thank you natalie. Does anybody want to see the presentation or have any questions?
nope. Okay. And I do not have any comment cards on this item.
oh well, I have a comment card, but it says eight c, Which is ordinance ten.
but if it's for this one, then I'd be happy to call your name.
is it miss janet? Okay. And that's the case. Come up.
absolutely, absolutely. And state your name and address for the record, Please.
oh, no. That's okay. Good evening. My name is janet sagansky.
I live at eight two, five six needles drive, And I'm currently vice president of the board of directors of horseshoe acres club.
I must point out a serious misrepresentation at the august 7th council meeting by city Staff.
when a council member asked if there had been any objections from the community, They were told there were none.
this is not true. Our horseshoe acres president spoke at the july 8th zoning board meeting Opposing the rezoning of the gardens learning center.
glc and handed his statement to the zoning board at the following city council meeting.
given zoning recommendation, we did not submit a request to speak.
as a result, we were unable to object to this surprising false assertion.
our biggest issue is the loss of value for our last unbuilt residential zoned 1.8 acre Lot,
which is immediately adjacent to the gardens learning center.
while zoning staff has said there are no plans for a three story building.
end quote on the rezoned glc lot. By definition, The new zoning permits it, and any potential buyer of our
lot will expect a significant discount. Because who wants to buy a home where potentially A three story building were overlooked.
their pool and backyard. No buffer will effectively overcome this.
we are submitting our objections again today in writing.
glc applied for rezoning in 2019 and our board objected.
planning and zoning documents listed 68 line item issues that their staff identified.
our board asked for landscaping requirements, A buffer area, and a deed restriction on future commercial construction.
eventually, glc dropped its effort. And yet, Here we are again, this time with a city initiated effort.
we want the council and the zoning board to consider this.
a quasi judicial proceeding does not promote the face to face, Give and take that leads to constructive communication.
airing of issues and compromise. Seacoast utilities staff met with us last month in our Community regarding a large project.
this one hour meeting left all parties informed, Satisfied and supportive of each other.
frankly, it's amazing that over the lifetime of this city, No one has realized how much better this approach would be.
we asked the council to pause this vote. Instead, Have zoning staff meet with us on site and explore a
mutually beneficial solution. Thank you. Thank you, Miss sagansky.
appreciate it. With that said, natalie, can you just answer a couple questions?
if this is not obviously a site plan modification, This is actually a a zoning, correct?
correct. Correct. Madam mayor. Yes. There is no proposed site plan changes with this Petition.
correct? So if a three story building hypothetically were to be proposed in the future, Wouldn't it have to come before us again for approval?
absolutely. There's no site plan changes proposed. If there were changes that were being proposed, That would have to come before this board.
as part of the process, it would have to meet all code standards as previously described.
this is purely housekeeping in nature, and as pointed out previously to in staff's Presentation,
the current height allowance under the existing zoning designation is actually the same Height as the proposed designation,
so there's no further additional entitlement in height as part of this housekeeping Measure.
just to also make sure that's absolutely clear. So there's no site plan changes proposed. If there were changes proposed in the future, That would have to go through the city's development review committee process,
which is a fully a whole technical committee including engineering, Police, fire, our city forester,
our building official who looks at all of those changes, Determines if these plans meet technical sufficiency,
and then it would move forward through that approval process, And then it would go back to p and d and back to the council for a final approval.
yes, ma'am. Okay. Thank you. Does anybody else have any questions?
okay then I'm going to close the public hearing and bring it back for a vote and or Discussion.
so we have a motion and a second. I'll make a motion to approve ordinance nine 2025 for Second reading and adoption.
we have a motion. Do we have a second? Second? We have a motion and a second. All in favor? Aye.
any opposed? Motion carries 5 to 0. Thank you.
okay. We're going to move on to ordinance ten. Would the clerk please read the title ordinance ten 2025 an ordinance of the city council,
the city of palm beach gardens, florida, amending the zoning designation of the gardens Learning center,
such property being comprised of 1.46 acres, More or less located on the south side of northlake boulevard,
approximately 0.6 miles west of north military trail, Providing that this parcel of real property,
which is more particularly described herein, Shall be amended from residential medium density r.m.
to professional office p.o. Providing that the zoning map of the city of palm beach Gardens be amended accordingly,
providing a conflicts clause, a severability clause, And authority to codify, providing an effective date and for other purposes.
thank you patti. I'm going to open the public hearing and ask for expertise.
any expertise started with burt. None. None. None.
none. Nobody has any expertise. I don't either. Then we can move on to a presentation. It's a second reading.
does anyone want a presentation? No. Okay. Any questions or discussions?
nope. Okay. Then I'm going to close. And I don't have any comment cards on this item.
so I'm going to close the public hearing and I'm going to bring it back for a vote. May I have a motion and a second, please? I'll make a motion to approve ordinance ten 2025 Second reading and adoption second.
we have a motion and a second. All in favor? Aye.
motion carries 5 to 0. Okay. Moving on to ordinance 13, 2025 with the clerk.
please read the title ordinance 13 2025 an ordinance of the city council of the city of Palm beach gardens,
florida, annexing, pursuant to a petition for voluntary annexation, One parcel of real property comprising a total of 0.40 acres,
more or less located on the east side of us highway one, Approximately 0.6 miles north of the intersection of pga boulevard and us highway one,
in palm beach county, florida, as more particularly described herein and as depicted on The map attached hereto.
declaring that the voluntary annexation petition bears the signature of the owner of the Real property annexed,
hereby amending article two of the city charter by redefining the corporate limits.
providing for transmittal to the florida department of state, The palm beach county clerk of court,
and palm beach county, providing a conflicts clause, A severability clause, and authority to codify,
providing an effective date and for other purposes. Thank you.
I'm going to open the public hearing and ask for any expertise. None none none none none none for anybody. And I don't have any either.
then we'll move on to presentation from staff. Thank you. Thank you, madam mayor. Good evening, Madam mayor.
members of the board. For the record, martin pitts and I have been sworn in.
I have a brief presentation for ordinance 13 2025.
this is a request for voluntary annexation of one parcel totaling approximately 0.4 acres.
this is located on the east side of us one, approximately 0.6 miles north of pga Boulevard.
as depicted on the screen shown in red. As you can see, The parcel is immediately adjacent to the seminole shoppes at you know,
road. Now, this parcel is owned by elizabeth dalton, Operating as the design properties of palm beach of the palm beaches.
there is an office operating as a a yacht interior design studio.
there are no proposed, no new uses proposed or any development proposed with the Annexation.
now, when annexation requests come in, the city analyzes that request.
for consistency with chapter 171 of florida statutes. We did that analysis, and it meets all the criteria specified in statute.
this parcel is within the annexation area of interest number six of the city's annexation Study.
and the annexation does meet all of the level of service standards for annexation.
this petition was publicly noticed through mailers.
the posting of the property and an ad in the newspaper.
the notice was sent to the county pursuant to the county's annex voluntary annexation Ordinance.
and this property is within is not within an unincorporated protection area, So no additional approval from the county is required.
this did go before the planning, zoning and appeals board at the august 12th meeting, And it was recommended approval by a vote of 6 to 0.
staff recommends approval of ordinance 13 2025 on first reading based based on the excuse Me,
based on the findings of fact and staff is available if you have any questions.
thank you, mr. Fitz. I do not have any comment cards on this item, So I'm going to close the public hearing and bring it back for
this vote and discussion. May I have a motion and a second?
I'll make a motion to approve ordinance 13 2025, First reading. Second. We have a motion and a second. Does anybody have any questions for mr.
fitz or want to make any discussion or want to discuss anything? No. Okay. Then I'm going to call it. May I please call it.
all in favor? Aye. Motion carries 5 to 0. Thank you.
and welcome to the city of palm beach gardens. Okay, moving right along to ordinance 14, 2025.
would the clerk please read the title? Oh, even better.
ordinance 14 2025, an ordinance of the city council, The city of palm beach gardens, florida amending chapter 78 land development at section
78. Dash 43 review of applications for development order approval by repealing.
table one development order review and table two development review schedule and re Adopting.
same as revised and adopting new. Note three to table two.
further amending chapter 78 by repealing section 70 8-4 23 authority and re adopting same As revised to update the
plat approval process to be consistent with recent revisions in state law.
by designating the planning and zoning department as the administrative authority to Review plat submittals,
and the city manager as the administrative official to approve plat submittals.
further amending chapter 78, section 70 8-4 24 jurisdiction by repealing subsections b and C,
and re adopting subsection b as revised further amending chapter 78 at section 70 8-4 27.
enforcement violations and penalties by repealing subsection b and re adopting.
same as revised. Further amending chapter 78 at section 70 8-4 28.
exceptions by repealing subsection c and re adopting same as revised.
further amending chapter 78 by repealing section 70 8-4 29.
requirements in lieu of platting and adopting. Same as revised. Further amending chapter 78 at section 70 8-4 41.
general application procedure. By repealing subsection c and adopting same as revised Further amending chapter 78.
at section 78 446. Plat review and approval process by repealing subsections a, D and e
and re we adopting same as revised further amending chapter 78 by repealing section 70 8-4 47 signing and recordation of
plat and adopting same as revised further amending chapter 78 at section 78.
dash 461 required subdivision improvements by repealing subsection g and adopting same as Revised further amending chapter
78 by repealing section 70 8-4 82 monuments and re adopting same as revised further Amending chapter 78
by repealing section 70 8-4 93 street names and re adopting same as revised further Amending chapter 78 by repealing section
78 593 plat vacation and re adopting same as revised, Providing that each and every other section and subsection of chapter
78 land development shall remain in full force in effect as previously adopted, Providing a conflicts clause,
a severability clause, and authority to codify, Providing an effective date and for other purposes.
thank you. Patty. I'm going to open the public hearing and ask mr.
fitz to do a presentation. Thank you, madam mayor.
and I hope that my presentation is at least as short as patty's.
patty's caption reading. Okay. Once again, for the record, Martin fitz, planning and
zoning. And I do have a brief presentation for a for ordinance 14, Which is the land development regulations amendment to update the code
regarding platting in order to be consistent with recently approved legislation this year And last year.
additionally, we do have a few other glitch type amendments that we have added dealing With platting to remove outdated or obsolete references and also to update
our processes. Due to changes in technology or common practice.
this past summer, the legislature passed a law for chapter 2025 164, Which had the effect of making
plat approval an administrative process, and through that, The city is required to designate an administrative authority to accept and review all
plat applications and administrative official to approve those plats.
the. This ordinance will appoint the planning and zoning department as the administrative Authority and the city manager as the administrative
official. Additionally, last year, the legislature was passed to allow multifamily Residential units or
projects to be able to receive a number of the building permits prior to the approval of The final plat in specific circumstances,
and this will also allow enable that legislation.
now I have a list of all the changes, but I'm not going to go over all of those. The Majority of the changes are updating the review to refer to the planning and zoning
department, and the approval of the plat to refer to the city manager, But there are a few that I do want to highlight.
first, in section 7843, for the review of applications, We amended table one to update staff as the decision
making authority. And in table two, we actually added plat as a review type and identified The timelines consistent with the statutes that were just passed.
excuse me under the 78 424. We did remove an obsolete reference to an effective date that Had already passed.
78 for 46 for the plat review. We updated the reference to the technical compliance Approval or tca as being equivalent to the
preliminary plat. This enables the last years approval to be, Or last year's legislative agenda to be able to be done.
we also update the time frames for the sufficiency review from 14 working days to seven.
this was in the legislation that was passed this summer for 78.
447 we update the information that's required in the final plat, And also removed an outdated reference to the gis projection
data, which is to be used to create the plats to refer to the most recently approved Datum,
so that we don't have to keep changing it as they update their technology for 78.
482 monuments. We added the ability for staff to require a physical inspection of the Permanent reference monuments.
if determined to be necessary, and this is consistent with common practice among the County and other municipalities.
for section 78 four, 93 with street names, we update the timing for the approval of the Addressing plan to prior to the issuance of the tca.
currently, it's prior to the issuance of the first certificate of occupancy.
with our new online planning or online permitting process, We found that we need to have those addresses points sooner in the review process than we
currently do. So this facilitates that. So these proposed amendments were initiated by Legislation.
however staff really feels that they are valid and important updates.
currently plats are approved on the consent agenda with the council. We had two tonight. These amendments will allow for those to be done administratively Currently.
if there if the applicant doesn't get the milers in in time, They have to wait another month for the next council.
so this will allow them to be able to get those done quicker and assist in development.
I do want to point out that, or reiterate that the actual review process for plats is not Changing.
this did go to the planning, zoning and appeals board at the august meeting and was Recommended approval by a vote of 6 to 0.
and staff recommends approval on first reading and that's available if you have any Questions.
thank you, mr. Fitz. Does anybody have any questions?
no. Okay. I do not have any comment cards on this item, So I'm going to close the public hearing and bring it back for a motion.
second and or discussion. I'll make a motion to approve ordinance 14 2025 first reading.
second, have a motion and a second. Does anyone have any comments or want to say anything?
no. Escaping from the state. So. Absolutely. And burt mentioned it does make the process Go a bit faster.
so absolutely. And platts are technical in nature. I've always wondered why it has to go for city council approval when a professional Surveyor and our very,
very professional staff looks at it as well. And this definitely will help with the speed And permit process.
I've been through that. And I know that you have to wait a whole nother month. It could be, you know, timing is everything, So it definitely does do that.
it saves time, money, and I appreciate all this. So I'm 100% for it. Thank you. I'll like to call the vote.
all in favor? Aye. Motion carries 5 to 0. Thank you ma'am.
thank you. Okay, we're going to move on to resolution 63 2025.
would the clerk please read the short title resolution 63 three, 2025.
a resolution of the city council. The city of palm beach gardens, Florida, approving a major conditional use for a fast food restaurant without a drive thru
within gardens town square. The subject site being generally located on the south side of Northlake boulevard,
approximately 0.25 miles east of north military trail, As more particularly described herein,
providing conditions of approval, providing an effective date, And for other purposes.
thank you. Patty. I'm going to open the public hearing and ask for any expertise. I'll Start with council member amaroso.
no, ma'am. Nope. And I don't have any either.
so we will call the petitioner. Hello. Hi. Good evening, Mayor and council.
for the record, my name is nicole plunkett with cutler and herring and I have been sworn In.
tonight's petition in front of you is for gardens town square. Resolution 63 2025. We do have our applicant and owner here, Pbj limited, david brock and cutler.
and hearing serves as the land planners and cutler landscape architects for this petition.
and we also have our franchise owner here for the petition. Oliver heard. So if there's any particular questions about operations, We'd be happy to answer them.
our request tonight is a major conditional use approval for a fast food restaurant without A drive thru.
within gardens town square. Gardens town square is located on the south side of north lake Boulevard,
just west of interstate 95. This particular property is approximately 17.59 acres, And it is access exclusively from northlake
boulevard. It has a land use designation of commercial and a zoning designation of general Commercial cg one,
and it's also important to note that it's situated within the northlake boulevard overlay Zoning district,
or the nbos. The center features a diverse mix of tenants including publix, Nothing bundt cakes,
lingonberry cafe, which is one of my favorite coffee shops.
crunch. Fitness. Family dentistry. And many, Many more tenants.
so it's very diverse. And the important thing about this particular shopping center, Commercial center,
is that each of these uses has different peaks and hours of operation, And also of busy hours,
which allows for a great great amenity for the property with the parking rates and Whatnot.
it's also important to note that it is located along the palm tran route, Just on the northwest corner of the property.
now, the petition in front of you here tonight is for a new fast food restaurant that is Going to be located in line of the existing building that is on the easternmost portion of
the property, and the existing duffy's out parcel, Located on the north of this slide here is a under separate ownership and is not included
within the ownership here tonight. The new fast food restaurants that we are bringing in For a brand new tenant is the popeyes.
now, popeyes has grown into a globally recognized brand over the past 45 years since it Was founded in louisiana,
and it gained the widespread popularity in part due to its unique cajun bold, Flavorful fried chicken.
and of course, we remember back in 2019 the viral success of its chicken sandwich.
the closest popeyes to this particular location is in west palm beach, Riviera beach, and wellington,
as well as stuart to the north. In this edition of popeyes will truly complement this Property,
which thrives on a mixture of uses. So we're going to take a closer look of this Particular tenant suite here.
the new tenant is going to be in 4268 located in the central tenant bay.
I'm going to walk through a couple of items within this particular request, Because we are making a couple of improvements to the property as well.
this request includes no outdoor seating, no drive thru and of the upgrades that we're Making to the property includes replacing all of the existing tenant
lighting in the rear of the building to new led lighting, Which also includes a photometric plan which has been included under review with the city
engineer and included within your packets here tonight. The operator has also included a quite a detailed trash and operations recycling narrative Within our request.
and really what they're going to be utilizing is a an operation which walks out the rear Door and accesses the dumpster on the south portion of this
particular building. This applicant utilizes a specialized waste vendor called access Waste and recycling,
which services the dumpster at least every 48 hours and provides integrated recycling for These tenants.
and really, this this service allows tenants to place both trash and recycling in the same Bin and access wastes and sorts through them,
and processes the materials to ensure proper disposal and recycling compliance.
it's also important to note that this particular operator has teamed up with dar pro Solutions.
they recycle and collect used cooking oil through their partnership, And they are in the national leader in used oil recovery.
we also took a look at the easternmost rear landscape buffer here.
there's a couple of of things that I wanted to point out. We do have existing overhead power lines. We also have underground utilities and working With seacoast within this petition as well.
and there are a handful of shade trees along this buffer with an existing green chain link Fence with slats.
however, in looking at this and trying to come up with a creative way to really kind of Patch some of the holes of the visual nature for the residences in the south or directly
east of this property. We looked at a way to get creative, And so what we're doing is proposing six decorative charcoal gray cube planters.
each of those planters is going to contain a triple pygmy date palm, Which will be six feet tall at the time of planting.
and along with those enhancements of the east buffer, We're also enhancing the landscape islands on the front side of the tenant suite as well,
near that entrance. The signage is just to show that the signage proposed within this Particular tenant suite.
we're not asking for anything out of the ordinary and what's allowed within your city Code.
we are providing for wall signage that will align with the other tenant suites in the Shopping plaza and will be submitted for a permit when that time comes.
and along with the major conditional use requests, Comes with consistency of the comprehensive plan.
and I know there's a lot of text on the screen. So I'll go through this really quickly. But I think it's important to show that our request does align with the number of things
within the comprehensive plan, including the intent to support a wide range of food Services along north lake boulevard.
this request strengthens tenants tenant mix in an active commercial center, And it also occupies a vacant tenant suite which leverages already existing
utilities, parking and access. We are adding landscape screening and enhancing the site With upgraded rear lighting to improve visual safety and a
landscape buffer edge condition. And of course, This particular request introduces a recognizable brand that supports jobs,
activates the space, and boosts the economic vitality of this center.
the request tonight also complies with the cg1 and north lake overlay requirements, And there are no waivers requested within this petition.
it provides for existing pedestrian and vehicular circulation, Which will be maintained.
it maintains the public transit access with the palm tran route, And there are no changes to emergency circulation or access.
says the rear lights are being upgraded. And of course, We've been through these in the earlier slides with the new landscaping,
and we're also not providing any changes to the exterior building.
the signage will meet the center criteria. The operation hours will align with the nearby Tenants within the plaza.
there's no environmental or utility impacts, And it'll support long term sustainability goals.
and one quick thing I wanted to mention about sustainability, And it was something that I really had a pleasure learning from our operator here of some
of the sustainable initiatives that the parent company, Who's owned by restaurant brands international,
they're the parent company of several global restaurants, Including owning of popeyes.
and this particular popeyes location will follow their national sustainability Sustainability standards.
and it reflects a strong commitment to the environment and the community.
and so they have a guidelines for focusing on food planet and people by providing better Packaging and ingredients.
ethical sourcing of where the food comes from. Climate goals with net zero emissions target by 2050.
and also like we spoke about earlier in the recycling, With the partnership with datapro for the safe oil collection and the indoor storage
system reduces the risk and waste. And like I said, I've got my team here tonight, so we'd be happy to answer any questions.
thank you for your time. Thank you. Does staff have a presentation as well?
no, ma'am. We have no additional comments and staff recommends approval. Thank you. I do not have any comment cards on this item.
does anybody have any questions for the petitioner? I've got two. Yeah. Okay. Is all the food going to be cooked on site, Or is there a commissary used to bring food in?
oliver. It's all upside down. I thought this was the answer, But I just wanted to
be sure for you. Yes, it will be cooked on site. And can you just give me an idea of the hours of operation, Maybe compared to other tenants in the center.
is it open till ten and 11? Is just curious. Yes.
I've. Is it 10 a.m. To midnight? So I've got it in here somewhere.
popeyes is proposed to be open from 10 a.m. To midnight. However, other restaurants in that plaza. Duffy's is open till 11.
crazy horse is open into the wee hours. So there are other additional tenants that will be Open late.
so up until midnight, seven days a week. Okay. Thank you. No question. Just a statement. Delighted to see all the sustainability Measures.
and thank you so much for mr. Hurd, mr. Brock, For coming today. We always appreciate when people show up when they're being discussed.
so thank you. And the chamber has a sustainability subcommittee that you may want to Connect with because they'd like to know more about the the da practices,
I'm sure, especially as well as the sorting that you have for recycling, Because I think that might be one of the first of the kind in the area that I know about.
but you would you would know more than we would. So if you don't mind sharing that with the chamber, Too, I think that'd be great.
I'd be happy to connect oliver with the chamber. Okay, super. And that's about it. And I heard a lot of residents are very excited that They heard this was coming in.
so that's kind of what it's all about, right. Thank you. I just had a question about parking.
so is parking going to be affected by this. It sounds like it's going to be a hit from day One.
and you did a great commercial for the for the popeyes. So you know, I'm even looking forward to trying it.
but would parking be affected by this in that complex? Great question. We did analyze this this particular shopping plaza utilizes a commercial Parking rate,
and so that allows additional flexibility with the types of tenants who are coming in and Out.
and since there are a number of different tenants who are open at different points of the Day,
some have peak hours in the morning, like the coffee shop, And some are later at night, maybe like crunch fitness,
that bringing this particular tenant in and reviewing with staff does meet all the parking Requirements.
thank you. Was this a restaurant before. Or they're gonna have to bring a whole kitchen in And everything now.
this was previously, I believe derek or david dance studio, Right?
yep. It was a dance studio. And how long is the build out? Until it's open, do you think? 10 to 12 weeks.
that's it. Thank you. Thank you. You guys asked all of the questions except one, Which was what do they use the reused
cooking oil for? Do you have any idea? I was just curious.
you know, I did look it up. I don't know if I have it in my narrative, But I do know that if you go on the da pro website,
online, I mean, that's that's the the really cool thing about our jobs, Of what we all do is we get to learn about so many interesting companies and initiatives.
but on the website, they do have information about what the types of things that they use To recycle and where portions of it are sent to.
so it's interesting and I don't know, I don't have it on my I'll look it up.
yeah. No, it's very interesting. Yeah. I'm just curious. Okay. Thank you very much. And as I said, I don't have any comment cards.
we did have our discussion. So I'm going to ask for a motion and a second.
I'll make a motion to approve resolution 63 2025 second.
we have a motion in a second. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? No. Motion carries five zero. Thank you very much.
I'm sorry. Car fuel. Okay. All right, moving on to resolution 64 2025.
would the clerk please read the title resolution 64 2025, A resolution of the city council of the city of palm beach gardens,
florida, approving a site plan amendment for single family home floor plans and Architectural elevations.
typical lot landscaping, a residential entry feature with the gatehouse and a sales center With model homes for long view at avenir pod ten,
which contains 230 single family lots on 108.19 acres within the residential district.
parcel a of the avenir plan community development pcd, The subject site being generally located southwest of the intersection of coconut
boulevard and panther national boulevard, is more particularly described herein, Providing conditions of approval,
providing an effective date for other purposes. Thank you. Patty. I'm going to open the public hearing and ask for any expertise, Starting with council member primrose. Primaries? None. No.
none from me? None. And I don't have any either.
hello? Hi. Calling the petitioner. Hi. I've been sworn in.
valentina broglia of urban design studio on behalf of avanir for pod ten, Also known and approved as longview.
so the subject site is on the corner of panther at national boulevard and coconut Boulevard.
yes. I'm sorry. Right here in the red circle dot on your screen. And the site plan was approved under resolution nine 2024 back in february of 2024 for 230 Single family homes.
144 homes are on 77 foot wide lots with 130ft of lot depth, And 86 homes are on 77 wide lots with
140ft of lot depth. So are typically bigger lots in this pod compared to other Developments.
so the request tonight is for the architecture. It's going to include five models for their floor plans for typical modern architectural Styles,
the lot landscaping plans and a new entry feature under the conditions of approval for Resolution nine 2024.
it does require the architecture be approved by city council.
so to start off with the architectural models, There are five unique floor plans model a,
b, c, d and e. Models d and e will be two stories.
they will range from between 4900ft² to about 7000ft².
there are four architectural themes options one, Two, three and four in tropical modern style.
and to go through the proposed models, model a is a one story, Three bedroom, three and a half bath with a three car garage.
this is seen in a tropical modern option one in a color scheme number one.
model b is a one story, three bedroom, three garage with a tropical modern option three in A color scheme.
number two. Model
c is a one story, three bedroom, four bath with a tropical modern option three and a Architectural screen.
I'm sorry, a color scheme of number three. Models a, B and c have stone and brackets and some louvers in their architect details where as
oops, sorry model d, which is the two story, Five bedroom, six bath is in a tropical modern option four with a color scheme number four
and this includes more glass and balcony. No brackets as well as model e is also a two Story,
five bedrooms, five baths. And it does include the color scheme number six with the Tropical modern option three,
and this one does have the brackets and the stone detail.
so all models are provided in the screen in front of you.
models a, b, c and d and e. This is what the tropical modern option one inch the Architectural theme.
option two. Option three. Option four. And then
the streetscape view will show the the diversity that the architectural themes will Provide with the with the tropical modern architecture,
and which will also be held up with the anti mahogany standards, As well as other avenir developments have also incorporated
into their projects. The architectural colors will provide six color schemes that future Residents can pick from.
which will provide a large variety of choices and also accommodate the anti monotony that We just spoke about.
so just to summarize, there are five models for architectural themes in tropical, Modern and six color schemes.
now for the entry feature. We'll include a guardhouse in the center median that will be Surrounded
by landscaping and water feature, and will have the development name long view within the Front.
the guardhouse is proposed to have air conditioning. It will be unstaffed, but will have the option to be staffed staffed in the future if Desired by the client.
and the architecture will include brackets, louvers and stone, Which is consistent with the tropical modern architecture.
now for the typical lot landscaping. There will be a list of trees that the future Residents can pick from,
which will go in the front and the rear yard, Making a diversity of landscaping within the pod ten.
and as consistent with other avenir development, Landscaping exceeds city requirements.
planning and zoning board unanimously recommended approval on august 12th, And if you have any questions,
I'll be happy to answer them. Thank you. Thank you. Does staff have a presentation as well? Good evening, Council members.
no presentation from staff. Staff does recommend approval. But I also wanted to clarify that with this petition, We're not proposing any changes to the approved site plan.
thank you. Thank you. Does anybody have any questions for staff?
nope. Okay. I do not have any comment cards on this item.
so I am going to bring it back for a motion and a second.
I'll make a motion to approve resolution 64 2025 second.
we have a motion and a second. Any discussion or comments?
no, it looks great. I love seeing avenir come to fruition, You know, and it all come together,
and the look and feel and design looks great. And thank you for all the hard work that you do on it.
thank you. Anybody else? Nope. Okay, great. I do want to say I appreciate the multiple Options on the typical lot layout.
I think that not only it gives the residents an option, But it's good for the future.
for the future architectural board, the future landscape committee that hoa's typically Have.
and I think this gives a nice guide so they don't have to, You know, come back. It's actually there for them and it's a perfect opportunity for them to have that.
and I like the fact that it's in our grouping of plans to help them out as well.
and the details and the texture of the elevation looks really great. I like the undulation of the roof line and the undulation in the facade as well as in the Elevation,
so I think it looks great. Thank you. Thank you. With all that said, no further comments, I'm going to bring it back for a close, The public hearing again.
so I'm going to bring it back for a vote. All in favor?
aye. Motion carries 5 to 0. Thank you. Thank you.
we're going to move on to resolution 65 2025. Would the clerk please read the title resolution 65 2025?
a resolution of the city council of the city of palm beach gardens, Florida, approving a site plan for phase one of the lifestyle center within the lifestyle
center parcel of the panther national master plan within the planned community development Pcd the panther national master plan.
being located on the west side of coconut boulevard, Approximately 1.5 miles north of northlake boulevard,
as more particularly described herein, providing conditions of approval, Providing an effective date for the purposes.
thank you. Patty, I'm going to open the public hearing and ask for any expertise. None. No, no, none. And I don't have any either.
so we're going to move on to a presentation by mr. George. Good evening council again. For the record, George missimer with cutler and hearing here tonight on behalf of the applicant and I have
been sworn in. So our application site plan application is coming before you.
resolution 65 2025. Our project team center, Palm beach, the owner of the property.
our architect. There's only one minor building on the site. It's our bathroom building. We'll get into that. But that was designed by peacock and Lewis. Cutler hearing were the landscape architects,
as well as the land planners and our civil engineer with civil design, Inc..
so again, we're requesting approval of a site plan for our lifestyle center. It's really the first phase, which is our racket center.
so we'll get into the design a little bit. First the location. You all know the location of the panther national development within avanir.
it's in the northwestern portion. The lifestyle center is consistent.
the location is consistent with the approved master plan as well as the previous site Plans for panther national.
and it is on the southern portion directly adjacent to one of the community entrances.
and this is just a master plan graphic showing what the proposed development would look Like. We'll get closer into it.
first, a quick overview of the site details. The property itself is a little over 11.5 Acres.
we are meeting all land development regulations. There are no waivers being requested. Majority of the parcel is going to be open space and Green space for the time being,
until those additional phases of the lifestyle development are designed and will Eventually come back before you for those additional improvements.
so here's a closer view of the site plan. You can see the racket center that's being Proposed.
the amenities there. There will be four tennis courts for pickleball courts and two padel Courts,
as well as a tot lot restroom facility and a multipurpose lawn, Which is adjacent to those courts,
which will function for a variety of different events for the community.
now, the padel courts is something that I got to learn about through the project. I didn't Understand that sport at all when we first came forward.
so it's similar to racket racquetball, but obviously it's an outdoor setting, But you actually play the ball off the sides of the enclosure.
so it's a glass enclosure. So it's a pretty neat sport, So it's pretty cool to see.
there's a couple images of what that looks like. So a little bit more about the site plan From an access perspective.
the entrance is located directly adjacent to the clubhouse entrance.
so a lot of synergy with the site there. Additionally, From a pedestrian standpoint, lots of the,
you know, existing pedestrian connections through the community connecting into the racket Center,
both for golf carts as well as pedestrians. So we're keeping the golf carts separate from The vehicles,
making sure we're avoiding conflicts there. And so from a parking standpoint, We are providing 20 vehicle parking spaces and 28 golf cart parking
spaces located in those highlighted areas. From a landscape perspective,
majority of the landscape on this site has already been approved, At least from the buffers.
so the master plan and the spine road plan approved a lot of the adjacent perimeter Buffers for this site as well.
the maintenance facility, which is under construction, Approved a lot of landscaping as well from the interior side,
so we are proposing a landscape palette consistent with those previously approved plans.
a lot of heavy native materials. Very nice sustainable design complementing the rest of Panther national.
so plenty of other information if you have any questions. But I think that summarizes what we're asking for.
so we did receive unanimous support from the planning and zoning board, And staff does recommend approval,
but happy to answer questions. Thank you. Thank you. Does staff have a presentation as well? Madam mayor, No additional staff presentation.
as george mentioned planning and zoning recommended approval at their august meeting, And staff recommends approval as well. Happy to answer any questions.
okay. Thank you. Does anybody have any questions for the petitioner or staff? Nope.
if you have a comment on the statement. Glad to see the paddle. That seems to be the during our agenda review.
that's what residents are now reaching out to us for is paddle. So thank you. And of course panther national will be gorgeous I'm sure.
and thank you. That's it. Learning about paddle as well.
so interesting. I think we ought to look up what paddle is.
the biggest worry was are we going to have to start putting paddle courts around the city After realizing how popular it's getting?
so yeah, it looks beautiful. It's the new pickleball.
I had to look it up as well. I do also commend the thoughtful design of the continuing the Continuing the separated pathways.
the lifestyle center will definitely enhance panther national's unique community.
and it'll also provide our western employment trip capture and support recreation and Wellness.
so much appreciated. With all that said, I'd like to bring it back for a motion and a Second,
please. I'll make a motion to approve resolution 65 2025 second.
we have a motion and a second. All in favor? Aye. Motion carries five zero. Thank you. Thank you so much.
now, moving on to ordinance 11, 2025. Would the clerk please read the title ordinance 11 2025 an ordinance of the city council of the
city of palm beach gardens, florida. Adopting the budget for the city of palm beach Gardens for the fiscal year commencing october 1st,
2025 and ending september 30th, 2026, providing a conflicts clause and severability Clause,
providing an effective date and for other purposes. Thank you, Patty, and I'm going to open the public hearing and ask miss zach for a presentation.
good evening, madam mayor. Council for the record. Ariane, Zach. And tonight I am pleased to present the first presentation for the proposed budget for Fiscal year 2526.
so let's jump in and get started. So we'll start by taking a look at the budget adoption Timeline.
and you'll see on july 7th, council set the proposed maximum millage rate at 5.0537, Which is the same rate as the current year's rate.
and the budget was issued to both council and the review board on august 8th.
and then we posted online for the public's review on august 15th, And we did receive the budget review board and shared it with council on august
28th. And tonight is our first public hearing, With our second hearing scheduled for august.
excuse me september 18th, 2025 at 6 p.m. In city council chambers.
so we'll move on and take a look at our property values. And this year we saw an additional $595 million in new construction with a 6.64% increase In existing properties year over year,
bringing our total property valuations for fiscal year 26 to 21.7 billion.
this is up 9.64% from our prior year's valuations at 19.8 billion.
so we always like to highlight the work that the budget review board does. And last year they did note that the operating the there was pressures on our operating Expenditures.
and they stated that while the tax revenues have increased, The budget review board acknowledges the increase in population and growth results in
higher expectations expenditures for the city.
and if the actual financial results do not forecast the requirement to use 100% of budget Stabilization funds and eliminate the need to dip into unassigned reserves,
then council should give consideration to reducing the millage.
and this is why on july 10th, under resolution 30, Staff recommended to council and council approved the proposed maximum millage rate set at
5.0537 again, which is the same rate as the current year's rate with no debt millage, Which is 6.64%
above our rollback rate of 4.7391. And staff does believe by keeping the millage rate flat This year.
homesteaded properties capped at that 3% under our save our homes amendment will see Minimal tax changes.
and we do believe that this will promote promote stability and reduce uncertainty for our Residents this year.
so let's take a look at the history of our millage rate. And after several years of responsible rate decreases, You'll see here in 2014 we had we were as high as
5.9. And then we dipped into 5.5 and stayed relatively flat for a few years before we Started to decline again,
where those were, the years that we had the four rate reductions, And now we're starting to level off once more.
there were a few factors that influenced staff's recommendation this year.
and for one, the demand on city services continues to grow in response to all the new Development in the population is increasing,
as we've been discussing over the last few years. It's placing increased demands on our public safety, Our infrastructure and recreation operations at the state level.
there is also talks of eliminating property taxes, Which could cut roughly 105 million in revenues from the city.
state statute also limits how local governments can raise and use funds.
and just to kind of give you an idea. Public safety alone this year represents 93 million Of the total general funds budget.
so if this did come to fruition or some version of a tax reform, It could.
it will definitely challenge local governments to find revenues to replace that shortfall.
oh, and sorry I went ahead. There also are federal tariffs that remain in flux with Tariffs and the planned dismantling of fema at
year's end, which also could potentially reduce future disaster aid and likely shifting That burden,
financial burden towards the state and local governments to absorb.
and given these risks, this is why staff believes it's critical to maintain our reserves And have stable revenues.
and according to cost projections from the us corps, Army corps of engineers, debris removal alone following a category four storm could
potentially cost the city approximately 38.2 million.
and this estimate is only for the debris cleanup and excludes any additional costs such as Damage damages to city existing city
facilities, as well as compensating staff for their time and efforts in those cleanup Times.
so keeping the current millage rate. A flat helps preserve our financial resilience and Ensures that we can continue to respond to disasters without compromising services for our
residents. Which brings us into taking a look at the county wide proposed millage rate Comparison schedule that we'd like to show every year.
you'll see the agency in green is recommending a reduction, Those in red are recommending an increase,
and everyone else is maintaining flat year over year. And you'll see in this far right column, the increase over the rollback rate ranges from 3.94% and as high as 97.95.
and in comparing where palm beach gardens stands amongst our peers, You'll see us here at 6.64%.
we're right in par with similar cities, and this reflects a very strong and sustainable Position this year for our budget.
so now let's switch gears and take a look at what impact that proposed rate will have on a Typical homesteaded property.
whose homes are capped at 3% under the save our homes amendment.
this year, we looked at assessed values ranging from 450,000 to 1,000,050.
and these homes this year will see an annual increase ranging from $68 to $159.
and then when you take a look at what effect the proposed tax rate will have on a typical Non homesteaded property,
we use the same valuation assumptions as based in the previous slide.
and these properties will see an annual increase ranging from $227 annually to 531.
and we always like to highlight this slide and to show what portion of a resident's tax Bill actually is paid to the city.
and about $0.72 of every dollar is actually paid to the county.
the school board and other taxing districts. Whereas 2020 $0.08 of every dollar is Actually paid to the city.
so let's move on and take a look at our all funds summary.
and I'll go ahead and pull up our budget here, Which is on opengov. And we also have it posted on the city's finance website under the budget.
and you'll see that this year the total budget is a little over 300 million.
our governmental funds make up 269 million of the total budget and are proprietary funds Or self-insurance.
in our internal fund comprised 31 million of the total budget.
and when you scroll down and take a look at the revenues by type, You'll see that ad valorem is our largest revenue source at 35%.
our beginning fund balance, or our carryforwards from the prior year is 31%.
and then charges for services is our third largest revenue source at 15% of this year's Budget.
and then when we scroll down and take a look at.
our expenditures by type. You'll see. It's no surprise personnel is our largest use at 130 Million.
our reserves are. The amount of funds that we're keeping in our savings is 79 million.
and our operating costs total 54 million for this year.
so next, we'll move on and take a quick look at the general fund, Which is the city's largest fund,
which comprises 210 million of the overall budget.
and again, no surprise, ad valorem is the largest source of revenue at 105 million in the General fund this year.
our beginning fund balance or carryforwards 57 million. And then we have all of our other miscellaneous revenues that make up the rest of the Budget for the general fund here to the right,
permit for fees and franchise fees and charges for services, Just to name a few.
and then we'll scroll down and take a look at our expenses.
and again, personnel is our largest use at 102 million of the overall general fund budget.
our reserves or other are set aside for our savings is 46 million.
operating is at 42. And I'd also like to call out the 9 million in other uses or transfers To other funds.
we do have. Excuse me, we do have 9 million for other funds, Which is planned to transfer to recreation.
3 million of that for the burns road community center, Which just recently reopened in may,
and also the new district fieldhouse, which is scheduled to open in 2026.
so we also have 6 million that we're requesting to transfer to the police impact fund to Help fund the renovation of the tactical training facility
to expand training and office space, which we'll get into a little bit more detail in Later slides.
all right. So there were a few cost drivers this year that affected the budget.
the most significant is all, again, all this rapid growth that we're seeing around our Community and new development that's occurring throughout the city.
this has led to the request of additional 42 new full time positions.
and this growth is also the catalyst for expanding our facilities, Including the upcoming indoor recreation facility over at the north district park and the
planned expansion of the tactical training facility to accommodate additional training Space and office space for staff.
at the same time, we're maintaining a 24 over seven police and fire coverage, Staffing three person rescues,
adding five new police officers to meet the demand and growth in avenir and tod areas.
preparing for the fire transition to 24 over 72 or that fourth shift transition in october Of 26.
and also adding fire dispatch services to our residents, All while we still have a very competitive labor market that's placing upward
pressures on salaries as we work to retain and also attract new talent.
and finally, as I mentioned earlier, we also have that uncertainty that we're seeing in Both federal and state policies,
fiscal policies that adds another layer of complexity to our budget this year.
so moving on and taking a look at the impacts of the general fund personnel.
this year, they are up 13.6 million for a total of 102 million.
this is a 13% increase over last year's budget and is primarily driven by higher salaries,
which also impacts related costs such as retirement contributions and insurance costs, Which we'll get into next.
and moving on, we'll take a look at general fund salaries. They're up 9.9 million for for a total of 69 million due to proposed salary increases for Staff.
this the city does workforce does include both bargaining and non-bargaining employees.
and previously we did have three bargaining units, But changes to state law last year did require seiu to prove at least 60% of its
members were paying dues. And seiu was unable to meet this threshold.
so they have been recently decertified and will fall under the general employee category.
and then at the time of preparing the budget, Pba was under negotiations.
but for budgeting purposes, we did project across the board increase for them as well in The budget this year.
the city's agreement with af also runs through september 30th, 2027.
under resolution 57 2024, sworn fire personnel will receive a 7% market adjustment with a 3% base adjustment
in in in excuse me april 26th. Starting in october of 26, Fire personnel will move to that 42 hour work
shift with a 24, 72 and this change is improved is to improve health and wellness, As well as a recruitment and retention
tool. And for general employees, the budget does recommend a 6% cost of living increase Supported by the latest cost of cost employee cost
index figures that's been released. So moving on to the summary of new positions.
we'll start with the special revenue fund. We do have four positions that we are Requesting.
and these positions are paid from revenues that are generated from user fees from from These funds.
recreation is requesting a rec supervisor, a rec coordinator and a customer service Specialist to accommodate the opening of the new north district.
county field house. And also golf is requesting a golf operations coordinator, And this position was recently a part time position.
and with the growth that the at the par three new par three has seen. The request is to have a full time position now to accommodate all those additional Programs.
and then this year, the general fund includes an additional 38 new positions requested Here on the screen,
all needed to keep pace with all this growth and demand on our services that we're seeing From from all the growth around the city for a total of 42 new
positions. And if approved, it would increase our full time count to 674 employees, Or approximately 9.27 positions per 1000 of the
population. In this slide is critical in showcasing how we are able to achieve greater Efficiency compared to our pre-recessionary years,
so we're showing that we're doing more with less employees.
pension costs are also up 1.7 million per actuarial valuations for both pd and fire, As well as statutory rates for frs for a total of 15.6
million, or a 10.10 point 7% increase due to plan trends.
medical costs are also up 11.6 million, or 1.1 million.
for premiums paid through our self-insurance fund to align with actuarial results.
we do still have a very healthy reserve balance at 8 million, And the office of insurance regulation requires us to have 90 days.
so we're well over that minimum. And that 8 million in reserves will cover roughly eight Months worth of claims.
all right. So we'll take a look at our maintenance, Repair and operating schedule that david and his team over at public works puts together
every year. It's a five year maintenance schedule that we review annually to prioritize Projects around the city.
we do have 412,000 planned for parks, irrigation, Repairs, fencing, netting and sod replacements,
a 1.3 million planned for various repairs around the city.
structures and equipment. We also have 820,000 earmarked for roadway resurfacing, Striping,
parking lot and sidewalk repairs, as well as 200,000 for tree trimming and plant Replacement.
and every year, we also program 250,000 for both our canal maintenance program and the Annual stormwater repair program.
in addition to this, we do apply for we did apply for a state grant of $500,000 state Grant that we unfortunately did not receive this year,
but we'll try again next year. So we'll move on and take a look at our five year capital Improvement plan,
which is also reviewed annually to prioritize projects around the city.
this year, the general fund makes up 5.6 million of the overall budget.
request capital projects or our impact funds make up 10.8 million, And then our special revenue fund makes up 150,000.
and then we'll scroll down and just take a look at some of the larger projects this year.
we do have a $3 million planned for the public safety radio replacement program, Which is just year one of a three year plan
to enhance our public safety communications around the city.
we also have 1.1 million requested for the riverside youth enrichment center improvements.
this will. This project will include a septet or security enhancements to the lobby of the Facility,
as well as additional workspace for teachers.
oh, sorry. Wrong one. And then we also have 8 million planned for the public.
the police training facility expansion project, 6 million of part of this is part of that transfer that we're doing from the general fund
that we're requesting from the general fund, And 2 million is coming from their impact reserves.
and then we'll just run through the rest of the funds. We'll start with the special revenue fund, which makes up 27.1 million of the overall Budget.
you'll see recreation is our largest fund at 42%.
our golf is the next at 33%, and the housing fund is 20%.
it's the third largest. And when you scroll down to the revenues by type, You'll see charges for services is the largest use a source of revenue at
14.4 million. Our beginning fund balance or our carryforwards from the prior year is at 8.2.
and then we also have that 3 million plan for the transfer from the general fund to assist With rec impact or rec special revenue for the opening of
the new district park fieldhouse, as well as the reopening of burns road.
and then when you scroll down to expenditures by type.
you'll see personnel as our largest use at 13 million reserves in what we're holding in Savings is the next largest set.
7.1 and then we have our operating expenses for next year is 5.7 million.
and then we'll take a look at our capital projects fund which is also our impact funds, Which comprises 31.5 million of the overall budget.
the $0.01 surtax fund is our largest fund in this category and it totals 9.9 million.
we do anticipate that the $0.01 surtax program in the county will sunset by year end.
so the funds that we have in this account will sit in reserves to ensure that we have the Funding to pay the last two remaining years of the debt service.
and then our police impact is the next largest at 8.7 million.
eight of that is for the expansion of the tactical training facility. And then rec impact is our next at 6.2. And then we'll scroll down and take a look at our Revenues by
type. Beginning fund balance is our largest. That is the carryforwards from the unspent Balances in our capital projects that are currently ongoing that we're carrying into the
new year that we're anticipating to. We also have the 6 million planned transfer from the General fund for the police impact project,
as well as 5 million that we are anticipating for impact fees that we'll receive this year In the new development.
and then when you take a look at our expenditures by type, You'll see reserves is our largest use.
we plan to put 15.8 million in savings, our capital outlays, Which is the projects that we have planned in impact funds this year is
10.8 and our debt service is 3.3, or that those include both of our bond as well as the Golf course bond payments
in this fund. And then we'll take a look at our last fund, Our internal service fund, which comprises 31.2 million
of the overall budget. You'll see the self-insurance fund is the largest, At 74% of the overall fund balance,
and the fleet comprises 25%. And no surprise, Charges for services is our largest revenue source at
21.5 million. Our carryforwards are estimated at 8.6, And then we have our miscellaneous revenues here to the side.
and then scrolling down and taking a look at our expenditures, Personnel again, is our largest use at 14.9 million.
reserves are 9 million. And our operating expenses this year for both of those those funds Are 6.2 million.
all right. So let's switch gears and take a look at our ten year forecast, Which does maintain a flat operating millage of at
5.0535.0537, with no debt millage through year ten and also in year ten are unassigned.
reserves are estimated to be at 41 million. And this year, Staff does propose to increase our reserves to maintain a 20% threshold in
response to strengthening our position for emergency management planning, Which does meet council's threshold of at least 17% of expenditures.
so this year it will add roughly 4.3 million to our unassigned reserve balance.
and at the end of year ten, it will leave us with 841,000 estimated in our budget Stabilization fund.
so on this slide, you'll see our purple is our budget stabilization, Green is our unassigned reserves and the gold dotted
line is our millage rate, which remains flat at 5.0537 all the way through year ten.
and you'll notice here in fiscal year 27, we do anticipate a $3.4 million drawdown from Budget stabilization to support the second year of the
public safety communication upgrade program, And also in fiscal year 2030, you'll do you will see an increase in unassigned reserves.
the city does plan to issue a public improvement revenue bond to fund the replacement of Fire station one.
it is a 50 year old building that no longer meets operational needs or current building Standards.
so in this graph, it does just represent that that year, The increase in the percentage of expenditures in order to meet that,
that threshold set at 20%. And as those capital expenditures start to go out the door, You'll see that we do start to decline again until we find ourselves at the 41 million in
year ten. And then we also always like to include the total cost comparison slide to kind Of compare ourselves with other
local agencies, municipalities, just to illustrate how the city continues not to levy Trash collection,
a utility tax, any stormwater assessments or fire fees.
so in this assessment, we assume a property of valuing at 450,000 with a $50,000 homestead Exemption.
and for the utility calculations, we assume 2400 a year for gas and electric, 780 for water,
and 3600 a year for internet, phone and tv charges.
so when you put it, bring it all together in this table. You'll see here comparing ourselves with other local municipalities.
we do not charge that utility tax, the garbage collection, Stormwater assessment or fire fee.
and then I'll also like to note those agencies highlighted in blue. Their city ad valorem is lower than ours. And the reason for that is they participate in The county's mstu program for fire services.
so that portion of their tax bill is found under their other ad valorem column.
and once you put all that together, you'll see here gardens still has the lowest tax Liability at $7,432 this year.
and before I end, I would like to. Oh.
two more slides. I think the budget reviews board's letter there that it's it's all good.
it's weird. Oh, good. Good, good. Okay. Perfect. Thank you. I would like to end by thanking each of the budget review board committee Members for their time and effort this year in reviewing the budget,
and staff shared the budget review board with the council on august 28th.
and I would like to read a few summaries from from the report this year.
so the budget review board stated that they were pleased to maintain the same millage rate As the previous year.
holding the rate constant occurred after thoughtful review of the city's financial Position and budgetary requirements,
and the city should continue to review its internal reserve policy considering the Legislation,
and determine if certain contingencies are needed. If property tax legislation moves forward and is enacted.
and that wraps up tonight's presentation with one final note.
the final budget hearing will take place on thursday, September 18th at 6 p.m.
in city council chambers, which leads us into the required actions for tonight, Which their staff does have two motions.
the first is staff recommends a motion that the city of palm beach gardens adopts a Proposed operating and total millage rate of 5.0537
mills, which is greater than the rollback rate of 4.7391 by 6.64%.
and staff recommends a motion to approve ordinance 11 2025 on first reading, Adopting a budget for fiscal year 2526.
thank you. That's it. Thank you. I appreciate that.
before we move on to voting, does anybody have any questions for miss pantak?
okay. So with that said, I don't have any comment cards on our budget.
so I'm going to close our public hearing. And can I get a motion and a second to adopt a Proposed operating and total millage rate.
I'll make a motion to that to adopt a proposed operating and millage rate of 5.0537 mills,
which is greater than the rollback rate of 4.7391 by 6.64% and the second second.
okay, we have a motion and a second. Let's bring it back for discussion.
and I'll start with council member primrose. I just I just have comments if we want to Dive into those before the next reading.
so so first of all, let me thank the city manager, Our finance administrator, gary and zach,
whether live or cartoon on our internet. So thank you for all the work that you do, As well as all of our senior management leaders for their budgeting efforts again this
year. This team really continues to excel at the budgeting process, And they always apply a very conservative approach when it comes to forecasting revenues,
coupled with aggressive forecasting of expenses. The strategy will continue to deliver positive outcomes to our financial performance, With no annual surprises to our taxpayers.
also, I'd like to thank the budget review board for all their efforts in reviewing and Providing their comments on this budget as well.
some of the highlights of this year's budget for me include. Property assessed values have Now increased 14 consecutive years in the city.
it just shows you what we're delivering as a product that people want to be here. A flat Millage rate,
which is only half of the maximum rate allowed by the state of florida.
also, we don't have add ons for charges for many services, And we have a communication service tax that has not increased since 2011.
I remember when this tax was approved and residents thought it would be something that the City was going to increase every year to add revenues to the bottom line,
but that never materialized. So thanks to staff and your budgeting efforts and really Honing in on the numbers and the expenses.
that tax remained flat for 14 years, increasing the unassigned reserve balances by 4.3 Million to 32 million.
and that does not include fluctuating budget. The budget stabilization fund that is available to cover any capital projects or operating Shortfalls.
and in this budget, it's pretty impressive that we're increasing it by 42 positions to Accommodate needed expansions of our public safety divisions,
including 23 new firefighters, to meet the newly structured four shift system of 24 hours On duty,
followed by 72 hours off duty, as well as ten new police positions and general staffing Increases to accommodate new facilities and a growing population
base. There are also some challenges, not all rosy state discussions on a reduction or Elimination of the property.
ad valorem tax collections will be very painful, Not only to the city, to the county, and to our state.
where would the city get additional revenue to maintain the staffing needed for public Safety,
as well as our daily operating personnel? You. Nobody knows. I know this was talked about in 2010 and never went anywhere.
I can't imagine this is going to come to fruition at any significant number.
but if it does, somebody got to tell us where this money is coming from or we're taking People off the streets to protect you.
I don't think that's a viable option for us. Possible changes to fema, Disaster reimbursements,
putting pressure on our unassigned reserves, Which aaron spoke very eloquently about how we're increasing those amounts to cover
shortfalls, which we may have to do if we're not going to get reimbursed in a timely Manner.
we got to clean our streets. We got to take care of our city and get it back to normal as Much as possible.
if a 4 or 5 or, god forbid, some other type storm hits. Our city also challenges significant increases in our operating expenses that will Consistently outpace our revenue growth in the future.
how are we going to deal with that? Annual required increases in unassigned reserves to Meet our required minimum threshold of 17% of our general fund expenses?
if you go back to 2020, our unassigned reserves were 23 million or 24% of the general Operating funds.
so even though we've done a great job in adding $9 million to that number over the last Five years,
that margin has dipped from 24 to 20%, which is kind of our threshold. So now we've really got to pay attention to that number, Because operating expenses aren't changing in terms of hiring future public safety
positions with competitive pressures from surrounding municipalities as well as the County.
the county hires, I think, a couple hundred people every year. Jupiter has 100 positions or so they're looking for.
and then we've got 23 and possibly more in the future. I talked to chief brier. We've got a good crop of people that we're hopefully bringing in That will be consistent to keep that staffing level or needs to be.
but again, a concern because there's outside competition and pressures. Everybody wants to come to gardens, I know that.
but other pressures from other areas with dollars or other commitments that could be Concerning to us,
we're going to have to deal with that in the future. In summary, For me, the city budget for the decade beginning in 2020 started off with the challenges
of covid, but the city has persevered with some great results for the past five years, Including millage rate reductions totaling 10% as we lessened
potential tax collections from our residents to assist with rising inflation and other Costs they were dealing with in their annual expenses.
we made the commitment to help and we did increasing unassigned reserves.
so we focused on that increasing staffing and all levels, Not just public safety, but all levels of our city to really meet service expectations,
which our residents expect, and then continuous development of new parks and operating Facilities to handle an annual population growth,
averaging over 1000 new residents to our city every year in a decade, That's 10,000.
that's a 1,518% increase. So think of that. We've got to accommodate who's moving here and Why not.
right. I mean, it's a great place to be for me the next five years. What we should expect is a flat millage rate, Annual increases in the unassigned reserves to maintain our threshold,
expanding on targeted fee structures to support the funding of our tremendous recreational Facilities.
I think our residents are accustomed to paying for quality programs, And non residents will also support these increased initiatives,
but at a higher cost. You want to come into the city and use our facilities? Come on in. I'm sure we've got the room. We can make the room, But your cost is going to be obviously a little bit higher than what the city residents
pay, because that's our priority. Ongoing capital projects, Enhancing and beautifying our city,
really to maintain the signature city image that everybody has of us.
so I'm supportive of the budget. I look forward to seeing how the next five years play Out,
and I look forward to working with staff to keep our residents happy, Keep the millage rate flat and offering all the services that they they need and expect
from us. Thank you. Thank you. Council. Council member. Reed. Okay, sure. So no questions. You just. I'm good.
okay, great. Wonderful. I do have a few statements and just a couple of questions as well.
first off, it's always immaculate. Thank you to you to your to your staff, To all the department heads that provide all this information and all the staff that's
involved. The wonderful thing about this city, So is that the right hand knows the left hand is doing.
you guys flow of communication between everyone is apparent because everything is touched In this.
and and the cip alone shows that because that's exactly that shows the flow.
most of all, thank you so much for having open gov. So that anybody can go online and see where every single one of their pennies goes.
bert sorry. Council member also mentioned personal property taxes.
did a little math with our property bill. I've lived in the same house for I think 26 Years,
but we pay three times as much a month for our homeowner's insurance. Excuse me, for our homeowner's association than we do for living in palm beach gardens.
just the money specifically for palm beach gardens. And that third of our hoa bill gives Us all of the city services.
whereas the three times that that I pay every month to the homeowner's association, You know,
we barely get our mailboxes painted, right. So it's pretty extraordinary how far a dollar Goes when you are paying into the city of palm beach gardens.
I know if you need a police officer or an ems paramedic there at our homes in minutes Faster than anywhere else,
everything is beautiful, our sidewalks are gorgeous and that is why this budget is so Important.
so that's why the property tax bill is is imperative.
every month when you're paying it. So if we lose $105 million of property, Property tax funding.
I know that you guys are nimble. I know you're already working on it. And we had our agenda review. You discussed that as well.
but with 93 million of it going towards public safety, That's just scary, right?
so our council will be involved in everything we can to help protect and make sure that Our residents are covered for that.
during my agenda review, I did ask about our mobility plans, Which we're really excited about,
whether it's burns road or fairchild. And todd engel, Our city engineer, mentioned that we're just waiting for some information from dot and
that we are ready to roll. So I know if anyone's going through the budget, They'll see that that's out there.
and the city has done everything that we can to get those going. The question I do have is we did have a couple of things that were new this year.
which one of one? One of them was a pbj. And so I just wanted to see if it's being Utilized,
what residents want to know, what are they asking. And and you know, so when you guys pitched it last year.
so just kind of wanted to check in on that. Yes. It's doing fantastic. There's been for the last few months.
when it first kicked off, candice and her team with our public communications department Did share questions as the chat was learning with the departments.
and over the last few months, we've been working to answer those questions.
and now that the they have all that data, it's getting smarter.
and it's even answering the questions now without her having to reach out to the Departments as much anymore.
and also there's been another multi language feature to it as well.
so people are using it not only in english but in other languages. So that's nice to see the interaction with it.
excellent. Okay. In the same vein of questioning. So our budgets been online now for a couple of years.
are we getting lots of clicks. Are people spending a lot of time on it. Yes. Thank you for the question. Over the last 30 days, We have had 141 users go to the site,
and of that, the average duration while on the site has been over seven minutes, Which is very,
I think is very successful, even knowing that 75% of the users are accessing the website With a mobile device.
so to be able to capture, you know, a resident on their mobile device to go through our Budget for seven minutes,
that's that's a feat. So I'm, I'm very happy with those figures. Nobody does anything for more than seven minutes on their phone nowadays. It's a very Quick swipe.
okay, great. And then just, you know, once again, One of the favorite slides that we all love that you present is how we do less with more.
the statistics are just obvious. In 2007, you know 10.41 employees per resident.
now we're at 9.27. So we continue to do so much with with less.
and it's extraordinary. And that is just the most cohesive, Fabulous staff that we have all ever had a chance to work with.
so I we can't lodge you guys enough. And then just lastly, You know, since 2019, we've been lowering and lowering millage,
and it's been over 15% since then. And it's something that I think anyone who's been on This council or anyone who's worked on the budget should be really proud of.
and keeping it flat this year just does make sense. So thank you so much for a beautiful presentation. Thank you. Thank you.
council member, vice mayor middleton. Thank you.
it's a tough act to follow once you go third. So because they take all the questions and make all the great comments. But I'll just Mention some will be redundant.
but thank you, ariane and your entire team and our entire staff for another insightful Budget year.
the budget communication improves every year and the website is user friendly and the Budget information is fully accessible to everybody.
and I know it's given in many different ways now, Including some video vignettes which we appreciate the community support with.
your delivery tonight was very detailed and I appreciate the level of detail that we can Understand.
it can go into many, many different layers and can be a little bit overwhelming.
the government process differs significantly from budget operations, So I think people need to understand that.
one of the things I asked from during my agenda review was if anybody felt like they were Missing anything,
and staff members are. So you reiterated that staff members were so attentive during the Process.
it allows them to compare and contrast last year to this year, And everyone seems to sharpen their pencils.
they're working smarter, not harder, and they're very cost cost conscious and very mindful Of spending.
so they're always looking out for the residents and everyone. And we appreciate that team effort. Legislation, As we know, is the big unknown this year during the florida league of cities meeting in
august. The primary topic of discussion was the potential reduction or elimination of Property assessments.
that was big, and this would have a significant impact on our budget and planning process.
and in addition, the federal government is talking about some kind of plan to eliminate or Restructure fema.
that's a big line item for us, and we appreciate you being mindful of that and putting in Reserves for for that.
this action may result in the transfer of responsibility to state and local authorities, And we take responsibility for that.
safety is our number one and our top priority for our city and our residents.
as noted previously, the city is proposing to maintain the same millage rate as last year, Reflecting a continued commitment to fiscal responsibility and offering relief to our
residents. And maintaining this rate also enables the city to continue delivering high Quality equality services its residents expect.
so I fully support that. And I also commend and thank the the brb for all their support And detailed report that they
gave to us. That was very helpful and insightful. And I do I just want to reiterate again that they're recommending, Monitoring and comparing actual financial results to the ten year forecast.
and that would be important. And if these results do not indicate to use all or most of The projected funds,
we should continue to review this and determine whether our millage rate can be reduced, Which I know we do on a regular basis.
so I just want to focus on that. And I do support the budget. And thank you very much. Thank you, vice mayor.
council member kemp. My first budget. So it was pretty in depth.
and you gave us a lot of information to go through. And that's the one thing I want to say. I mean, It's everybody.
and it's lowered taxes every year. And, you know, Of course, being the first time up here.
you hoped you see him lowered again, but I think you nailed it with keeping it steady as We need to be.
going through all of those, I clicked on all the boxes, I open them up, I made my own spreadsheets,
and after making sure everything aligned, I kind of went through and agenda review and, You know,
seeing all the work that your staff put into it and everybody put into it was just Impressive. And so that weighed on me believing in keeping this a level year
going through the budget review board and seeing everything that they did. In my agenda Review,
I asked, you know, on the budget review board, We got their names, but, you know, what do they do?
and kind of resumes. And it was kind of impressive to hear what they do in their own time,
how much money they manage and budgets they do. So, you know, seeing the how much wisdom lies within that board, You know, to listening to them wait on me to,
to to make sure that we kind of came to a final decision. And I want to thank them too, for volunteering all their time to go through all of this And all of that's great staffs the best around and budget review board
gave us a very good thing. But one of the biggest things that I kind of went through when We got the transmittal letter to kind of weigh on me at the end,
was go back and reread that, and I reread it again today, And it was what the residents kind of thought about what they what we have and,
you know, as having my own business it's kind of like you always go, Are people getting what their money,
or do they believe they're getting their money's worth? And when the survey was done, You know,
most people don't send a survey back unless they want to say something negative, Like, I got a bad haircut or I got this to kind of get attention.
and when you look at the survey results, one of the biggest things that stuck out to me Was 96% of them said they would recommend to other people to live in the garden.
so that stuck out that they're getting their money's worth there. 96% of them believe that They're getting their money's worth.
in that review, 94% of them were very satisfied with, You know, fire rescue.
and I like seeing that in the five year plan, We have a new fire station to kind of go with burns road community center with this
wonderful city hall and kind of tying those into it. Another big thing that stuck out is, you know, The next thing on the list was the two highest things were fire rescue,
and 90% of people sent back that they were very satisfied with the police department.
and that says a lot. And that's big in today's world. You hear every time you turn on a tv for the last few years, Defund the police, defund the police.
and I think that we need to be a city that makes sure that we remain a city that's funding The police.
and we're doing that this year with, you know, All the upgrades over here. So I found that was, you know, a big thing to be said with the times.
91% of the people were very satisfied with the overall appearance of the city. And you could go around the city and you talk to roads and how they're always seeing how The roads look and machines to,
to to grade them and see when they need repair. So, you know, it all shines through in the budget, You know, with doing less or doing more with less shows through with just these ratings
that we're getting. You know during these questions, The residents were satisfied.
but some of the other things that came up with were they satisfied with what they received For their property taxes was directly asked.
and 92.1% of them was neutral to very satisfied with 18.2% being very satisfied, 47.5 almost half being satisfied
with what they get for their property tax dollars. So, you know, I think that that speaks for itself.
and when I went back and reread all these numbers again and wrote them, You know, I wrote them down and said, let me go back and see if people are really happy
with property taxes, because you always hear lower taxes, And you see these numbers of just how happy people are.
and it says a lot about the city and keeping it level with all the uncertainty coming Through.
I mean, tariffs on building construction and everything else that might hit us down the Road.
the elimination of the property taxes. I mean, It's, you know, it doesn't make sense. You know, we know what our residents want. We need to keep property taxes. We need to keep It local. We need to keep it here. And, you know, if that happens, like I said, it's, you
know, $105 million was what we bring in. And just public safety is 93 million of that.
so like I said, that's that's a huge one to kind of to keep and pay attention to and to Keep our,
our level level right now. So the housing market's leveling off.
so we don't know how high that that's going to keep going up or for how many years, Even though it keeps going up in gardens,
I assume it will in the city. You know, and even the fema reduction or elimination of fema After the hurricane season.
I mean, one hurricane and I think it was $38 million just in picking up trash.
you know, we can't that's just an unsurmountable number. And the amount that comes into, you know, paying for overtime for the people, Staffing everything,
that stuff that we're not even counting into that.
and, I mean, that's just one year, one hurricane. If we go back and you look at 2004, we had francis and jean helena milton last year on the West coast.
so it would be devastating for a city with this to to try and lower taxes.
so I believe with all this and, you know, the approval of the residents and the people of What they said in the surveys,
you know, and with our reserve coming down to 20%, You know, that's kind of right at that,
that crucial moment where we need to keep it level this year. So that's why I'm in support of this keeping it the same millage rate.
thank you. I'll end with mine. But I like going last because you guys pretty much said it All.
and I do want to concur with my colleagues and thank ariane and her team and department Heads and the budget review board for their efforts in continuing
to find ways to be efficient effective and very fiscally responsible.
you're all remarkable, and I know I can speak for the council when we say we appreciate You very much.
and our city is continuously growing exponentially. In fact, we just received an email that our our residents doubled year to year growth Rate.
now we're over 60, almost 65,000 residents. And with that said, Our upcoming transition to 24,
72, I understand the need for 42 new positions, For sure.
everyone's feeling the effects of inflation. Of course, The implementation of tariffs, the cost of materials,
insurance, including us the city that coupled with the threat of eliminating property tax,
which is how we afford to provide our residents with our award winning public safety and Fema,
the threat of losing those dollars an increase in our reserves is totally understandable.
we are very fortunate to have this amazing team and we want to keep them here.
council member amoroso mentioned, you know, jupiter hiring so many people.
and we are so lucky to have the staff that we have.
I think the increase to keep everyone here is right in line with our sister Municipalities.
so we also provide rental assistance program for our employees, For those that qualify and continue to
provide medical coverage. And I'm 100% supportive of all of that.
and here in palm beach gardens, we are so lucky to have been fiscally responsible over the Years,
as everyone mentioned up here. And once again, We're realizing an increase of 8% of our taxable value.
and nine, hopefully soon. Nine large developments coming online this year and next year, The first quarter of next year.
and the budget summary points out the issues of affordable housing and that, Of course, with employee rental assistance program,
which is absolutely commendable. I really commend you all for doing that because that Helps retain employees.
attainable housing is a big issue for everyone including our businesses.
they can't find support staff, teachers, etc. To live in the area that they work. So I'm really glad to see the rollout of the single Family rehabilitation program for for those that qualify,
because that's very helpful to and all of these are included in our, Our budget, and I'm supportive of keeping the millage flat.
look forward to seeing the rental assistance program open up to residents and utilize the Balance of the workforce housing revenue for similar programs to help
our residents and businesses and employees also, In addition to the planned recreational projects.
I'll just say it would be nice to include the replacement of a single basketball court Somewhere visible near plant drive park.
I'm going to leave that up to staff to look at. And finally, I just want to share a suggestion which our budget has has been more and more Transparent as we've
progressed each year. I think council member brought it up.
vice mayor middleton brought it up with it all being online.
and it actually realizes the actuals every single night it updates, Which is amazing.
of course, people like me get lost in a wormhole when I'm going through all of that. But I would like to if possible, maybe next year we could stream our budget review Committee online to help with that transparency going forward.
but I appreciate it. And that will conclude, I agree with all of my colleagues.
so with that said, let's vote call back to vote for we had a motion and a second for the First motion,
which was to adopt the proposed operating and total millage rate.
so let's call that vote. All in favor? Aye. None opposed.
the motion carries five zero. And can I get a motion to approve ordinance 11 2025?
excuse me, 2025 on first reading, adopting a budget for fiscal year 2025 2026, I'll make a motion to approve ordinance 11 2025 on first reading adoption a
budget for the fiscal year 20 2526. Second, we have a motion and a second.
all in favor? Aye. Motion carries five zero. Thank you.
and now we're going to move on to items for council action or discussion?
items of interest. Anybody? Council member. Kemp.
looks like you have something to say. Yeah, I know that we had brought up last month about Max getting with us about state road seven.
I know you said you're going to get with us next meeting, So looking forward to that. But, you know, as I and I kind of mentioned it in as I made
some comments on the budget, but when I was going through that survey, Too, at the end of that, it was kind of some things that jumped out from residents. And
one of them was like 54% bike friendly infrastructure in pedestrian.
and it's kind of, you know, it kind of looked at these and said, We're already doing a lot for bikes and stuff, but to make sure that we keep that in mind
for planning and zoning when new things get approved to make it, You know, bike friendly and pedestrian friendly.
and another one of those that stuck out was 50% large community events.
and you know, kind of when I saw that, I kind of said we do kind of a few things in the City,
such as the cognizance here. Mardi gras is here and different things.
and, you know, maybe we should look into and I mean, We already sorry, we already put out so much already through all the different apps and
ways that we communicate through social media and stuff. But how could we get information out, such as things as concert in the park, Or bring attention to the tgl or,
you know, green market? Like I said, I know we already have a lot of these things. It just seems like if people are saying that, You know, 50% of the residents want more big events,
that maybe they're just not hearing about some of the things we have. And how do we look Into doing some more to get those things out there,
or if there are other options to give that? And then the last thing on the survey was more Park amenities.
I kind of looked at that too, and was like, we have so many amenities within the Community,
you know, golf the pool, the community center with burns road fieldhouse coming online or Being built,
pickleball center. But you know, instead of, You know, bringing more things online, you know,
to maybe look at, you know, free play occasionally had some of the things that the city Owns,
you know, for high schoolers or teenagers, you know. You know, like free play at the nest on a slow night out there to kind of keep staff There.
maybe the parents come out, drop them off, and then maybe bring people back as repeat Customers when it's not there.
but then they see the other things or free days at the pool if they bring a student id, Something like that.
and then, you know, you kind of mentioned a basketball thing, You know, with that more amenities to the park and free throughout the year.
you know, I know we've mentioned it multiple times is looking, You know, at different amenities that we could add such as, like you said, another
basketball or, you know, bringing a skate park back and looking at the need for that. So that was just what I had on my council discussion for tonight.
thank you. Does anybody want to add to that? No thank you.
and I think we're going to be rolling out our maybe we already have the new resident Opinion survey.
so ron, is that going out in the near future.
because that might help answer some of those questions. No, that won't be going out till closer to spring or summer.
spring or summer? Closer to spring or summer of the following year of 2026.
is that what you're saying? Correct. After the working with the consultant now.
but it's not going to be ready to hit the street until spring.
july, april, may. June. But that would help answer some questions.
update I guess some of the what the residents want to see, Because I think the survey was from 2023.
the the last survey I believe was 2021 was 23.
and yes, we hope it does give us the residents opinions on a lot of things.
a lot of those types of things. But yes, I agree with what you're saying.
anybody else have any comments. Okay. I will add to that.
I wanted to just let everyone know that natalie crowley and I attended virtually the Issues forum meeting and county transportation master plan
and traffic signal timing was a common denominator. I do want to applaud the county efforts in trying to collaborate with us all, And would love to use this opportunity to provide our constructive
criticism or constructive input. Maybe they'll be holding, But it's important to note for everyone to participate that they're going to be holding a
public meeting, and that's for residents to gather their input, Community input, which then one for the north end,
north county, which would include palm beach gardens and jupiter, Is going to be held on wednesday,
september 10th, 2020, this year, noon to two.
and it's an in-person meeting at the campus drive library.
the palm beach gardens campus drive library. So I just wanted to let everyone know about That.
and on behalf of the council, I would like to publicly thank our staff and consultants for Their efforts in the vision zero community
input workshop. I know a lot of effort went into it. Unfortunately, the weather didn't really cooperate.
I think it was like a mini hurricane that night. It seemed to be. But I think a lot of the vinyl aerial that was put out on the floor, It was so informative.
all the boards were very informative and I appreciate all of your efforts.
it would be nice to see that big vinyl aerial on the community center wall.
it was really cool to see. And hopefully the next workshop will have a little bit more Participation.
and as I think our vice mayor mentioned, we participated in the league of cities Conference.
and common issues this year seem to be, of course, What we all noted, which was the loss,
potential loss of property taxes. And that's I cannot point that out enough as everyone Just set it up here.
that's something that that's how we afford our public safety, Our public services, our fire,
our police and all of these wonderful things that we provide with for our residents.
the other topic was e-bike safety. And I know a lot of communities are having heartburn Over that.
and that was a topic that seems to be very common from everybody.
and you know what? Ghost bills will be coming back which that will be probably the Property tax and others.
and I know ron, we had mentioned, but I forgot I know our lobbyist does a presentation Every year about that.
is that next month, october? So. October? Yeah.
so next month we can have a conversation about those. He'll educate us about what happened last year and have a conversation of what to expect Going forward and like to also at
the league of cities, our very own candace was a panelist.
and she did a phenomenal job. I think that was one of the most popular sessions.
everyone appreciated her input and she did an excellent job.
everyone, if you'd like to. Also, I wanted to make sure that everyone knew that there will Be a 911 remembrance ceremony at fire station 63,
which is on north lake boulevard, and that's hosted by our palm beach gardens fire rescue.
so everyone's welcome to join in. And last, I just want to make a special call out to our Very own steve step,
who will be inducted into the fdle hall of fame at the end of the month, So congratulations.
well deserved. And that is it. Do we
have a city attorney report? I just wanted to let you all know that I did promulgate a Draft in local agreement today to.
not to the county, but to many different municipal attorneys throughout the county and as Well as some city staff to give them a
chance to to take a look at what I've drafted so that it might be helpful for them.
and then I'm eager to get their input and then see if there's anything that I'm hoping That there'll be something worthwhile that maybe I didn't think of,
that we could include. And then we'll be probably sharing that with the county in the near Future.
to see where we can go on that. But just to give you an update on that, Because that deadline is coming up october 1st.
and so it is it is promulgated. It's out. It's out there for people to review.
it's no secret work product so they can all take a look at it.
hopefully it'll be beneficial. No secret what work product. It's not. It's just public record so they get to use it.
so I wanted to share it with all of them. So because my hope is that all the Municipalities that we will have a similar interlocal agreement.
so I tried to give them something that I thought would provide a solid foundation so that We would be more unified.
it just will make it easier to negotiate these things with the county and the methodology For doing this proportional sharing of impact slash mobility fees.
if we're if the municipalities are all on the same page, United front would be great.
that's all I got. Thank you. Okay. Well, yes, We'd like to follow the law.
okay. Thank you. Is that it? And seeing if we have no other business, Then other business,
then this meeting is adjourned. Thank you all.