Planning Board - public_hearing

If you all will stand with me, Commissioner Pelletier, would you do the invocation? Sure. And Commissioner Ayers, lead us in the pledge. Yes, ma'am.

Lord, we thank you for allowing us to gather here today, and we pray for your guidance in making decisions on this budget for our city and our citizens. We thank you for our first responders, and we ask that you bless them and keep them and their families safe. We thank you for our citizens and employees that make Callaway a great place to be, and pray you bless them with peace and success. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen. Amen.

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.

City Clerk, please do a roll call. Commissioner Berzo? Here. Commissioner Gray? Here. Commissioner Pelletier? Here. Commissioner Ayers?

Here, ma'am.

Mayor Ayers? Here.

OK, city clerk, I guess you're going to do all the reading tonight. So if you would read the public hearing presentation of the final budget for fiscal year beginning October 1, 2026.

Pursuant to section 200.065 Florida statutes, notice of final property taxes for the city of Colorado term notice, the proposed ad valorem rate for the fiscal year 2026-27 was advertised to be a maximum of 2.7000 mills. This millage rate would be greater than the current rollback rate of 2.6839 mills. After reviewing revenue projections, and proposed expenditure levels for the 2026-27 fiscal year, the general fund budget is balanced at a final rate of 2.7000 mills, which is more than the current year's rollback rate by 0.161, an increase of 0.5999%. This means 2.7000 mills is to be levied to fund the fiscal year 2026-27 budget.

We take no action on that. That's just the announcement. Okay. And then we come to item number two, final fiscal year 2026-27 budget and city manager's budget message. And I know since city manager is on his way to a conference, he's not here. But finance director, was there any? I think the only change probably was that adjustment for the Bayway to correct that number.

Yes.

So did anybody have any question or comment? No. OK. Well, we will go on then to public participation. Did any of our public members want to comment on anything on the budget? Mr. Shanger, come on up.

Mayor, do you want me to worry about the timer?

No. I just want to congratulate you and thank you for the hard work you've done. And I think you've done a real great job. So thanks for keeping things in line. If the other taxing authorities have worked as hard as you have, why? It would be a totally different picture. Thank you very much.

Well, thank you, Mr. Shane. We're glad we could hold it at the 2.7. Anybody else? Nope. Okay, we will go on then to our agenda item number four, resolution number 26-12, fiscal year 2026-27, final ad valorem tax rate.

I will note before I read this that it does say tentative on there. It is the final, and when I read it, it'll state final, and then the one that was signed also was corrected and says final. Okay, so Resolution 2612, a resolution of the City Commission of the City of Callaway of Bay County, Florida, adopting the final levying of ad valorem taxes for the fiscal year 2026-27 and provided for an effective date.

Okay. And again, was there any comment? City Manager's not here, but is there any comment on this item? No. Anybody have a question or anything about? We all good? Did anybody in the audience want to comment just on the final tax rate? Like Mr. Shanger said, we kept it at the 2.7, so we just need a motion if nobody wants to comment.

Motion to approve Resolution 2612, fiscal year 2026-27, final tax rate. Second.

Okay. We've got a motion and a second. If there's no other discussion, is there any play?

Commissioner Birdsong? Yes. Commissioner Gray? Yes. Commissioner Pelletier? Yes. Commissioner Ayers? Yes, ma'am. Mayor Henderson? Yes.

Are you in a hurry, Commissioner? Okay. We will go on now to agenda item number five, resolution number 26-13, fiscal year 2026-27, final budget.

Resolution 2613, a resolution of the City of Callaway, Florida, I'm sorry, the City of Callaway of Bay County, Florida, adopting the final budget for fiscal year 2026-27, providing for an effective date.

Okay, and again, does anybody have any question or comment?

No.

All good? Is anybody in the audience want to comment on this item? Seeing anyone, we just need a motion.

Motion to approve resolution number 2613, fiscal year 2026-27, final budget. Second.

Okay, we've got a motion and a second.

Multiple seconds.

I'm going to try it. A motion and two seconds.

If there's no discussion, city clerks. Commissioner Pelletier? Yes. Commissioner Ayers? Yes, ma'am. Commissioner Birdsall? Yes. Mayor Henderson? Yes.

Okay, so that finishes our budget for fiscal year. But now we will adjourn this meeting, but we are going to go right into our CRA budget hearing. And we've already done an invocation and a pledge. I don't feel like we need to do that again. So, City Clerk, do please go ahead and do it. Well, this is the CRA budget hearing for the City of Callaway. Go ahead.

Board Member Bartzell?

Here.

Board Member Griggs?

Here.

Board Member Pelletier? Here. Board Member Ayers?

Yes, ma'am.

And Chairman Henderson?

Yes, here. Okay, the first item we have is approval of the minutes of the October 28th, 2025 budget hearing meeting. So did anybody have any changes to those minutes?

Adam, did you see the two references? I'm sure the software.

Did anybody have any changes to the minutes?

No.

If not, we need a motion to approve the minutes.

Motion to approve the minutes. Second.

OK, we've got a motion and a second. We're all anxious. OK, if there's no further discussion, all in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed? OK, the minutes are approved. We will go on to the regular agenda. Which is CRA resolution number 2026-01 adopting the fiscal year 2026-27 CRA budget. City Clerk? Okay.

A resolution adopting the annual budget for the City of Callaway Community Redevelopment Agency for the 2026-27 fiscal year beginning October 1, 2026 and ending September 30, 2027 providing for severability and providing an effective date.

Does anybody have any comment or question?

I just have a comment on the budget, not itself, the expenditures, but there was some mention at some of the meetings about CRA. For those of you that don't know it, a while back we went to a mail out to everybody in the CRA area, tell them they're qualified to get some of this money. So after 10 years, we've had a few. So it's not that we haven't tried two or three demo grants during Hurricane Michael. But other than that, so we've tried.

But I think those were all commercial. They're all commercial. We tried to do some residential and nobody.

Nobody wants the money. It's theirs.

Well, I think they don't want to have to match it.

They want to pay. Yeah, right.

If it was 100%, I think it would be different.

If it was 100%, yeah, they'd ask for it, yeah.

But I'm sure that is still in the budget. There are some grant opportunities in the budget.

Yeah, I'm glad you brought that up because we have, ever since we formed the CRA, we've tried to get them to do it. And if people don't necessarily understand the CRA, I recommend they go online and take a look and read what the CRA is all about. But it's supposed to be for development. In specific situations, stormwater is one of them, roads are others. And also, the idea is to continue to develop businesses and properties to increase values. That's the whole purpose of it, to increase the values. It's been unfortunate. We've actually expanded some of what the original CRA was, particularly as it related to Cherry Street. And that's before you came in with Bob, that we've tried multiple times to get people on Cherry Street, because that's one of our main corridors, to improve their properties. At one time, I think Bob... When you were commissioner, we tried to do something with the parking and develop a parking on a person's property. We were willing to, with CRA money, do that type of thing. We've done everything except give it away, and we can't give it away. It has to be a conditional situation. People say, well, you know, we should be able to, you know, we've got people that need more money than others and all that business. Well, we're not in that kind of business. That's not our situation. And it's a, it's, you know.

We've done a couple of facades, too, of businesses. You know, we did on the business, you know, Highway 22 way back many years ago. I remember that one. And then we did the clinic also up up.

Cherry Street, right there at the beginning of it. And then the demolition grants. A lot of the newer people that are coming into Callaway don't realize what Temple Parkway looked like. And what we were able to do with CRA money as far as getting properties cleaned up. there, and particularly businesses. And we actually had some businesses that applied for the grant. We actually had one that had $10,000 coming to them if they just did this or that and the other. And they fell short on that. They didn't get the money, but they still had to do demolitions at their own expense. We've done everything except twist the arm or use some type of...

I just wanted to clarify that because there's been some talk about our CRA and how we're handling things and we are communicating to the public. We have communicated and we continue to communicate. In fact, it went out in the water bill. I remember, right?

Water bill? We've gone door to door with notices and actually put notices in the CRA areas. And on Cherry Street several times.

We've done everything except knock on doors. Yeah.

And hand them a stack of money. Right.

Well, it goes back to the old thing. I'm proud of what we've done with the CRA and with CRA funds. But it's the old phrase, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. Right. Yep. We've tried and we tried. Glad you brought that up, Bob.

I just wanted to make comments on that. Didn't want to delay the meeting, sorry.

That's good.

Well, that understanding, because I remember what took place Monday. Part of that was brought up as a question. And most of our candidates really didn't understand. Right. what the situation is.

Also, one of the questions had to do with demo and hurricane. Michael, we don't have anything in Callaway that needs to be demoed.

It's been over.

We've been done for years, commercial and residential. Yeah, 80-something properties.

Well, some of the questions generally were general for the entire.

Yeah, the whole county.

Be a little bit more appropriate for, as I pointed out, as far as the rental properties, the bed and breakfasts or whatever.

They ask that every time.

Yeah.

That's the beach. That's the other side of the bridge.

Yeah, right. Yeah, we're on the side.

Anybody have any other comment on this resolution, 202601? And did anybody in the audience want to comment on the CRA budget resolution? I'm not seeing anybody. We need a motion.

Motion to accept CRA budget resolution. Second.

Okay, we've got a motion and a second.

If there's no discussion, city board. Board Member Pelletier? Yes. Board Member Ayers?

Yes, ma'am.

Board Member Birdsell? Yes. Board Member Griggs? Yes. And Chairman Henderson? Yes.

I know we asked for public participation on that agenda item, but there's another item for public participation. I mean, it still would relate to this, so I doubt that anybody wanted to comment since nobody wanted to comment before. So we're going to do one thing that I would like to say before we go. I found out about noon today that I'm having surgery next week. So I will miss y'all for a little bit. But I'll be here in spirit. I'll be watching on Facebook or calling in. I call in as often as I can. I'm going to have to bring my phone. Get ready to step up to the plate, Commissioner Grayson. Hopefully, I'll be back before too, too much time passes. But with that, we will adjourn. Thank you, our few citizens that came. Thank you for coming.