City Commission - Regular Meeting

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Call this PMPO Beach City Commission meeting to order. January 27th, 2026 at 6 PM. If I could ask everyone here to please go ahead and silence your cell phones or put them on vibrate, one or the other, so we don't get a telephone call in the middle of the meeting. So, please just uh check those cell phones, make sure they're on vibrate or or just turn them off. It's a nice option there also. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Let's go ahead and call the role. Commissioner Fezett here. Commissioner [clears throat] Perkins here. Commissioner Seagerson Eaton here. Commissioner Smith here. Vice Mayor Fornier here. Mayor Harton here. Thank you. Our our invocation this evening is going to be given by Pastor Bill William Carlson. Um so can we please rise for the invocation followed by the pledge of allegiance. Pastor,

let's call on the name of the Lord. Father, I thank you for bringing us all here tonight to this wonderful place. ask that you would be moving in a special way for this glorious and wonderful city in which we have been privileged to move to. Thank you for the beauty of it. I think of the lighthouse and the inlet, the inter coastal, the beaches, uh the wonderful restaurants, the airport, the the baseball fields. There's so many things, so many wonderful assets here. And we thank you for all of them. We want to sanctify this time together as the commissioners meet on important issues. We pray for civility, kindness, wisdom, and respect even when we have strong feelings. And it's okay to disagree. We know that. That's part of our our country is disagreeing but not being disagreeable. So we just pray for the business to be done that you might be pleased with what is done here tonight in Jesus name. Amen.

Amen. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. All right. Can I get a motion approving the regular city commission meeting minutes of January 13, 2026? So moved. Second. Moved and seconded. All in favor say I. I. Opposed. Motion carries unanimous. Thank you. On our agenda this evening, any changes, Mr. Harrison? No, sir. Very good. Can I get a motion approving the agenda as printed? So moved.

Second. Moved and second. All in favor say I. I. Opposed. Motion carries unanimous. On our consent agenda uh this evening, uh Commissioner Fess, I didn't have a chance to get with you. Nope. We have no polls from our consent agenda. So, all items on the consent are eligible for discussion during audience to be heard. Very good. All right, that takes us up to audience to be heard. Mr. Alfred, do we have anyone signed up? Yes, Mayor, we have 14 speakers. Okay, we'll see how far we get.

Okay, [clears throat] first speaker, Nehemiah O'Neal, followed by Angel Ortiz, followed by Joshua Wilson. Nehemiah O'Neal. Come to the center podium right there. Give your name and address for the record and please limit your comments to three minutes. Thank you. My name is Nemiah O'Neal and my address is 2621 Northeast 7 Terrace PMPO Beach 33064. Thank you, sir. Go ahead.

Okay. what I'm going to talk about. It might might be a little uh unorthodox, but it is true. Okay. I started going to the activity center down there on uh Martin Luther King. Okay. I feel real good around black people because I've been raised around them all my life. Okay. Now, they picked me out to start bothering me a year ago. They kicked me out of there. And it's very few men in there and very few white people in there. And the reason why is because the secretary over at recreation told me that they had some white kids they was going to send over there and be in some kind of uh preschool or whatever, but they refused. And Elely is a all black school. And the lady that's that's running the activity center, she graduated from Elely, so she don't know that if I'm black. She can't tell. So, I'm catching it. I need to go back in there. I need my food. I started college over at BC College. Okay. Now, when I go over the bridge, I see this place every day. I should be having meals there because they they're taking something pertinent from me on a lie. That's that's called uh uh defamation of character and it's me. It it's been a whole year I've been out of there and and I'm still complaining about it. So apparently it's something about it. It's called colorism and I'm I'm a victim.

All right. Thank Thank you, sir. Um I can only encourage you to get with the city manager's office and you can you can pursue it with with Mr. Harrison. Yes, sir. Thank you. Next speaker, [clears throat] Commissioner Perkins. He can also um maybe perhaps speak with Scott. I think Scott is over there. Scott Scott. Oh, the city manager. Yes. Very good. Next speaker, Angel Ortiz, followed by Joshua Wilson. Wilson.

Hi, good afternoon. I'm uh my name is Angel Ortiz. address 123 Northeast 7th Street, PMPO Beach, Florida 33060. I'm here on the behalf of PMPO Beach youth football program for PMPO Eagles. I've grown up in PMPO Beach my entire life. I've been a resident here. I've always seen you just step closer to the microphone.

I've always seen the community, you know, get better and better over time. in the last few years. Yeah, it did grow to something substantially big, but at the end of the day, we can't wouldn't say we in particular as in residents and you know, but you guys cannot take what you guys are trying to take from these kids. I grew up in a harsh environment in PMPO Beach. Obviously, it is a totally different city now. I mean, the the guy up here prior to me, he said something about colorism. It's all kinds of folks moving into our, you know, city day in and day out. So, I think personally, if it's noise complaints, if it's trash on the floor, if it's people that doesn't that don't like the environment of the Little League football program, they need to abide by and understand that they lived around that area and that area has been a field for the longest, so they know what they're getting into when they move there. I don't think uh a song playing on a loudspeaker should defeat the purpose of these young boys, young ladies in the community having something to do, keeping them off the street, keeping them off video games at that and having something to do throughout the summer, throughout, you know, the training camps and stuff like that. I think they should have a safe space and that park is their safe space. You guys spent all this money to re renovate that park. Give them the opportunity to live it out. Let them play on it. Let them let them take it to where they got to go. Half of these kids, they might not play football for the rest of their lives, right? But they're going to stick to it because it's keeping them somewhere they belong. They're tolerating and learning responsibility and discipline. These guys, all these coaches here, they do this for free. They enjoy doing this, telling the kid what to do, what they're doing wrong, and doing right. give them the

opportunity to show the kids and let them grow. I think personally I played football in the city of Pompo when I was a kid. Like I said, I lived here my whole life and it's beautiful to walk out there and see multicultural kids, white, Spanish, black, whatever the case is. They all out there having fun. You can't take that from them. And that's all I ask because like I said, I've been here my whole life and it's beautiful to see it grow. But if you take that away from a man, I think that's going to defeat all of them, honestly. And it's going to put them in places where they don't want to be and they shouldn't be. And I think you guys should think twice about it and give them the opportunity to live it out. Very good. Thank you, sir. Appreciate that.

Mayor, Commissioner Seagerson Eden.

Thank you. I I think that the gentleman is referring to the Eagles team up at North Pompo Park and and you know I just want to dispel any rumors that might be put out there that we are trying to eliminate youth football up at the park. I've worked very hard over these eight years to get permanent bleachers, to get a new concession stand, to get all the sun shades in that park. And it while it's true, I've been on the commission for eight years, these last couple years, it has been something different. and as the commissioner of the district and my desire to keep youth football because it's a great thing. I met with coach Pop years ago and it's a great program and it's beautiful. But we have to find a balance between the community and the games, the game days, that's all. And I'm sure we can do it. But I have no desire, absolutely none, to get rid of youth football, especially the Eagles, which are Sorry, Chiefs. And you're you guys always come back with the ring. So, and it's a wonderful thing and we will keep it going. We just got to find a way to compromise. So, thank you for allowing me that personal moment to dispel those rumors publicly.

Very good. Next speaker,

Joshua. Joshua Wilson. I am not currently a city of PMPO Beach resident although I raised my family in the city of PMPO Beach. Went to middle school in the city of Pmpo Beach. I've been a coach at North Pompeo Park for 15 years between the Pompo Tigers and the Pompo Eagles. I also coached a semi-pro team at that park, the Pompano Yellow Tales led by Pastor Alan Jenkins, if you all familiar with him. I'm here tonight not in anger but more to get clarity and give clarity as the current president of the pump and no eagles but also serving for many years as the vice president under well-mentioned coach pop also being football commissioner also being a guy just willing to pick up trash at that park there's nothing nobody can tell me about the betterment for a neighborhood than kids, families cultivating on a Saturday, listening to music for four or five, six hours. There's no better healing for a community. So again, I'm not here in anger. I just want clarity and we want to provide clarity. I want to thank you all for allowing us to speak tonight. That lets me know you're willing to listen. Too often these days, we find ourselves in situations where we wonder why our children are the way they are or why society is the way it is. I can tell you

why. Long gone are the days where kids are encouraged to be outside all day. When I was growing up, playing a video game was a 30-minute hobby. Not by force, by choice. We love being in the sun. We love being in act being in activities. We play multiple sports, not even organized. We created our own inner street leagues. Sixth street vers seventh street. We go from hockey, the baseball, the football, the basketball, and then we take it inside for 30 minutes before the lights go get on. I say this to say our park is an area where every year we have 300 something kids between young men, young women who come out there when an opportunity to learn how to be great. If you know anything about the Pompa Eagles, that's all we preach. Football is a conduit. Cheerleading is a conduit for that. If we're not preaching greatness, I don't know what we're doing out here in these world today. So for us at the pump of no eagles, I want you guys to really understand what we do and why we do it. And the thing that is shocking to me.

Thank you, sir. I'm going to have to cut you off. Thank Thank you for showing up and your comments. That's no problem. I'd like to say this again. Thank you. I have I have a a support group here to come make my other points. I hope you guys recognize what I was getting my point to. Good. Thank you, sir. Appreciate you being here. Mayor, [clears throat] if I may, Commissioner Secret.

Thank you. Again, [clears throat] I don't know where this rumor started. There have been some uh difficulties, but uh there are no plans to shut down the Eagles or youth football in the city of Pumpin Beach. So, uh, and I mean, it's it's a great it is a great program. So, I don't I I you've been given wrong information. You've been given incorrect information. Um, so, and I mean I I've I've I've put it out there for that park. New concession, new press box, new windows, and that's been in the last two years. I've been fighting for that park. That's a beautiful park. And I mean, why would why would I want to eliminate youth football? I would not. So, I just want to dispel that rumor if we can. And if any of you all uh if any of you all would, you know, want to speak with me uh personally or get together with me and um the parks and recreation director, I'd be happy to do that. Uh but this this is not true. You've been misled. Uh we are not planning to shut down youth football at North Pompo Park or anywhere else in the city.

So I'm sorry. I'm I'm sorry we can't have any back and forth. Thank you, sir. So I just want to make that clear. So thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Commissioner. Next next speaker, Lenny Gradwell, followed by William Chansy, followed by Echoski. So, Lenny Gradwell,

good evening. Evening.

Thank you for allowing us to be here tonight. Uh, Lenny Gradwell, 3740 Park Central North, Pompo Beach. Um, I come to you today to represent the Pompo Eagles. You're going to have a lot of conversations about the Eagles today because this is an important program. to touch on what coach Josh was just talking about is football is a conduit. As a man who grew up with a single mom, I grew up here in the city of Pompo Beach, attended Pompo Middle, go Bengals, right? You sports saved me. Football, baseball, and we're here today talking. I keep hearing Rhonda. Rhonda, nobody's mentioned anything about you taking the Pompino Eagles away.

So, what we're talking about is the noise situation. Very good. Address the chair. That's That's fine.

Okay. So, my experience and living in these communities right now, where there's smoke, there's fire. I'm seeing it all over the place. Coral Springs, Deerfield Beach, where places where families congregate are being taken away for development. So, not saying that's what you guys are doing, but just so you guys know, it's happening all over the place. We preach faith, family, and football. We have a laundry list of kids here, not just today, but all over the place that that program has given these kids an opportunity a young man like me. I had a handful of good teachers, but man, I had some great coaches. And those coaches are what gave me the building blocks in life to be a business owner here in Pompo, my community. We cannot alter this program. We need a compromise. We need our officials to talk to us and communicate with us. What are you looking for out of us? We'll meet you because the last thing we want to do is take this thing that's so important to these kids. And if you haven't gone to a Pompo Eagles game on a Saturday, my man's sleeping over here. If you haven't gone to a PMPO Eagles football game on a Saturday, I would encourage each and every one of you take time out of your Saturday and come out there and take a look at this because it's a beautiful thing. You got all walks of life out there, all different cultures out there. But you know what it is? It's everybody is one and everybody there supporting the kids.

We get grandparents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, and guess what? A lot of people from the neighborhood come out for a good time. Very good. So, let's keep this in mind. Thank you, sir. Appreciate it. Next speaker.

I'm not as polished as these guys are in public like this. But, uh, I'm Coach Pop. I've been coaching out there involved in there since 2015. Uh, love that program. Love Pomp know any of the city workers. I needed a police officer to know what I'm all about. It's all business. Uh yes, Rhonda and I had, you know, [clears throat] Rhonda and I had communications a few years back. She helped, you know, get some things going on our park, which I appreciate, but now I'm hearing that we're going to get bumped out and moved over to another part of Pompo, which is to me is unacceptable. So, um there was a problem out there with the uh music from what I'm told. I wasn't there, you know. I stepped down a little bit. I had some health issues. So, um, I stepped away for a little while. Then I was told that there was problems with the music. If there's any kind of problems, anything to do with my park, I'm a phone call away or an email away. And I did email Rhonda on um the 15th and I of of October and said I would like to meet with her. She said she would call me in two days, one or two days, which I have the email and I could show you and I never heard anything. So to me, if there's a problem, I mean, we've been we're all adults. We can fix it over music. Okay, I'll shut the music down. Whatever it is, we do it. You know, it's a time limit. People that live over there, I understand. I wouldn't want that blasting at 11 o'clock at night either. So, we'll fix that. But it's just communication. That's all I'm asking. and moving us to another park for what? For what? After all that work, it's just not fair to us. And we put a lot of time and those young guys back there that coach it. And Pompo Cowboys here to support us. The AFL, the best league in in Florida, is here to support us. We're not bad people. We're very easily to be communicated with. If other parks are here to represent us, I'm just

telling you that we're here for the kids. This is ridiculous. If if this is the case now Rhonda, you're saying that that's not that's not the truth. I tried to talk with you. So alls I needed is a conversation. I am here. I'm 67 years old. I'm not running from anybody. So if there's a problem at our park, I'll fix it. And if Josh and I can't fix it, nobody can. So that's all. I'm not going to sit here and take your time up. But thank you very much. Thank you. Appreciate it, sir. Thank you for being here. Mayor, if Commissioner Secret,

thank you for indulging me. U Coach Pop. I I have your cell phone number and you have my cell phone number and if I got an email from you, I don't remember responding and uh I apologize, but you do have my phone number and I thought about calling you. Um but we have parks and recreation director who oversees and he is the head guy uh there. Uh, so no, I haven't heard any talk about moving the Eagles out. Yeah, we do have a little bit of a compromise that needs to be done as far as music goes and the volume of the music and that's all I comp I don't want to lose the Eagles. Are you kidding? You sports is one of the best things and you and I have talked about that. I have walked that park with you. You showed me that concession stand and my jaw dropped to the floor. But what does it look like now? And you got it. You got the new press box, the new floors, the new windows, the new bleachers, the new sun shades, and that park has been cleared out. And it's a beautiful, beautiful park. So, uh, again, you've been fed incorrect information. Uh, and I, you know, I c I can only guess where it has come from, but and also I will sell to folks up here is that there are six people that sit on this board. I'm not a queen and I would never want to close down a youth sports program. So, so I'm I'm pretty sure you'd have a unanimous vote up here. So, I just hope that you know I'll love to meet with all you, you especially Coach Pops and all the coaches with the parks and recreation. we can settle this because I represent the entire community and all the residents, right? So, I I I want

everybody to get along and and let's find a solution. I love it. I love you guys. It's the best. The teams come out with a ring every year and I seeing the the the humanity, the families come in there on the afternoon. It's a beautiful thing. And I'm proud of the improvements that we've had at that park. I'm proud to have brought those sun shades and the concession and all that for the community. So, uh, absolutely. I look forward to it. Thank you all for coming out. I appreciate it. Very good. Thank you. Next speaker,

uh, Mike Scverki, 1630 Southwest Fifth Avenue, Pumpo Beach. Um, I want to talk about somebody that just passed away. His name was John Gear. I don't know if you were aware of it. You saw it in the newspaper. Um, let me read this. This isn't making it much better. This is very good. John Joseph Gear Jr. lived a life that can be best be understood through the words he shared with those he loved most. Be bold. Be safe. Be great. He was born in March 1944, unfortunately, in Brooklyn, New York. John was the son of John Joseph Gear and Darthy Patricia Gear and he had brothers. He lived boldly through his pursuit of education and service graduating from Fordham University in 1965 and law school from Fordham in ' 68. That same year he committed his life to his wife which is an he served his country accepting a commission the United States Navy beginning a distinguished career in the judge advocate general corpse. His bold pursuit of excellence led to notable achievements within JAG to earn a master of science in forensic science from George Washington University through the university through armed oh gosh through the armed forces institute of pathology. John believed in responsibility, fairness, and care for others. From 69 to 1992, he served honorably as a Navy JAG officer, safeguarding the principles of justice and integrity. He retired as a captain. I could go on and on and on about this guy. He was one of the most fairest, honest people you'll ever want to meet. I used to talk to John. Very few know that this um when he left, I used to speak to him constantly. I even wrote the first post. I wrote, "John, you were a friend to me and I was very upset when you moved to Tennessee. We

kept in touch every few days and our constant contact will be greatly missed. A smart guy you were, but more important, you were an honest and caring person. And now you're in heaven. And there's no doubt about that." And this, let me just tell you one quick story about John. John was aware several years ago when I was helping out a candidate for several months run for office. I told John at the beginning I started off with a brand new pair of running shoes. So when the race ended, he said, "You're going to get compensated heavily." I said, "I don't think so." Anyway, he said to me for several days after the election, he said, "Did you see your mail? Did you see your mail? Did you see your mail?" I said, "No." Finally, I got the mail. In the mail was a nice letter congratulating me on how I helped and what I did and $150 to buy a brand new pair of running shoes. That's John Gear.

Thank you, sir. Mayor, Commissioner Perkins, I want to thank Mike for bringing that to our attention. I did not know he uh passed away. Very, very outstanding guy and um family has my condolences. Thank you. Very good. Thank you. Next speaker,

Mark and Trigula. Mark and Treala, 1401 South Ocean Boulevard. Mr. Mayor, commissioners, happy winter, although it's always winter in here. Um, in the notistant past, the city had the opportunity to install islands in the center lane of A1A using, I believe, state funds to pay for it. Overriding the concerns of the fire department regarding evacuation routes, emergency vehicles, the city shoehorned four of these islands onto A1A. The first one to be removed was in front of the Ritz Carlton development. The second one was adjacent to my building after there were five accidents in the first 30 days, one involving a resident of my building. Last night they completed the removal of the third one which was located in front of the Waldorf project. That's three out of four that have been removed. I don't know who planned or thought that these were a good idea, but they were dangerous for vehicles turning into properties on A1A and to pedestrians crossing a very busy road. It didn't stop people from illegally passing in the turning lane and increase the number of accidents in this area. I don't know who paid to remove the three islands. Likely the one by my building was the city. I don't know. Maybe the Ritz and the Waldorf kicked money in to get the others removed in front of their projects. I don't know that either. What I do know is that just because something is being offered and you think it's free does not mean that it actually is free or that it automatic that it's automatically a good idea to accept it. If removal of these three islands did cost the city any money,

that money could have been used elsewhere. We need to do better. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Next speaker. Mayor, we have a next speaker uh named Tina Sole, but she indicated that she's here to speak on the ER standing ER. Okay. Well, that that item's coming up on the agenda, so she'll have to speak. You're welcome to speak on any matter except something on the agenda. So, if you're if you need to speak on the agenda item, you need to wait until it comes up. Very good. Thank you. Next speaker is Arlos Reyes. Okay, we're good. Thank you.

Jeffrey Hess Hessie. Jeffrey Hessie.

Hi there, Jeff Hussy. Uh 4440 Northeast 20th Avenue, Lighthouse Point. um here on behalf of the Pomp Eagles organization as well. Um a lot of people have spoken about what the what the park means and everything that surrounds our children and and what we are. I think the rumors are stemming from us from some outside sources that are saying that we're going to start out the new season underneath probation. Um there's investigators out there taking pictures. Um, it it kind of sounds like it stems to me from there's some families around the park that don't like the noise. We can always look at everything, but to give you an idea, I didn't grow up in PMPO Beach. I live over in Lighthouse Point. My son is an eighth grade at St. Colen. Uh, going to St. Thomas next year, National Honor Society member, you know, straight A student, everything. He chose that park. So when it comes down and I look at all the choices that we do have around here, he could have gone to the Chiefs, could have gone down south, gone up north. Papo was where some place that he felt very safe at. He met a lot of good friends. We've got phenomenal coaches, coaches that have taken him to the levels that I would have never thought. Um even though we are across the street from North Po, we would have drove him, you know, 100 miles to find something good. So, you know, always kids ahead at any time that we, you know, even think he's aged out. He's going to high school next year. My myself and my wife are going to sit behind and we're going to volunteer another year and we'll probably volunteer another year and another year. So, it's built a longlasting memory for us. Um, and to even think that that park would leave for families that, you know, you buy a

house around park, you're going to hear noise. You buy a house in front of a railroad track, you're going to hear noise. You buy a house on the side of the road in front of federal highway, guess what? You're going to hear the noise. So, a couple bad seeds I don't want to have ruin the batch of 300 kids that call this their home. Um, that's really all I got to say. I hope if it does come down the point, we have open conversations and we can rectify that situation where everybody's happy. Thank you. Very good. Thank you, sir. Mayor, Vice Mayor,

thank you, Mr. Hussy for being here and congrats to your family and Cam for uh his future football career at St. Thomas. Um I feel like we're getting a lot of bits and pieces here, but uh there's clearly something going on because I think someone said it where there's smoke there's fire. Uh and we've been here long enough to know that when this many people come out there is an issue. Uh so um I would like to ask the city manager to work with parks and wreck to get us some kind of u memo or report on what is going on and whether the team is under probation and if there's investigator an investigation going on and a summary of what the issues are so we can uh so we know what's going on here.

Thank you. Very good. Mayor Commissioner Seagerson Eden. Thank you. Oh the parks and rec director is here in the audience. Why don't we have him come up to the podium and see what he can do to clarify it? Mr. Moore, you want to address this now or you want to do some It's up.

Good evening, Scott Moore, Parks and Recreation. Um, to be honest about moving, I don't have any clue what they're talking about whatsoever. So, any rumors or anything like that? And I've also not been notified by anybody from the Eagles and just on text messages um with staff or as my staff. So, I'm not really sure what's going on. So, I'll be more than happy to meet with whoever or have my football staff meet with them, but I'm not sure what what everyone's coming forward for. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Scott. We will follow up the vice mayor's suggestion. Thank you. to uh

absolutely okay. It's a mystery. Sounds like some bad information out there. Very good. Thank you, Mayor Commissioner Fess.

So, I I I just wanted to add to that. I would I would also like a little bit more information about the noise complaints that we've heard because I do remember and it sort of joged my memory when the the man um I guess it was pop or somebody said that they emailed in in October. And I do remember being copied on a couple emails last fall, not necessarily from from from other families with the football fields about the noise and complaints and concerns and opportunities. So I it might not be anything about moving, but I know I've heard some complaints about [snorts] from residents that that want to work with whoever was complaining. So maybe if we I think maybe it's a two-part, Mr. Harrison. So, if maybe we can make sure we get clarification on what the complaints are as well as, you know, put the put the rumors to to rest on the moving, but maybe we can get those noise resolves noise complaints resolved with the residents and make sure that everybody plays plays nicely together again. Thanks.

Very good. Uh, yes. To Commissioner [clears throat] to add to that, um, Mr. City Manager, I look into um what someone said. They walked up and said it's they're supposed to be moving the Eagles to another park. Never heard that, but if you can look into that as well. I never heard that as well. Mr. Moore, [clears throat] mayor, as Mr. Moore just clarified that there he has never heard anything about that. There has never been any plan to do it. Just stood at the podium and said that. Very good. All right. Um well, that that concludes audience to be heard at this time. Um any remaining speakers will have to be heard at the end of the meeting. Okay. Good. Thank you. That takes us up to our consent agenda. Can I get a motion approving item one through four? So moved.

Second. Second. All. All in favor say I. I. I. Opposed. Motion carries unanimous. Thank you. That takes us up to our regular agenda. Item number five is the second reading of an ordinance.

An ordinance of the city commission of the city of PMPA Beach, Florida, amending chapter 155, zoning code of the city of Palm Beach code of ordinances by amending section 155.4209 4209 institutional healthc care uses to further define listed uses and standards for separation from residential uses and for overnight treatment and to create a new use for hospital-based off-campus emergency department providing for definitions in article 9 definitions and interpretation part five terms and uses defined by amending appendix a consolidated use table to reflect existing and new healthcare uses providing for serverability providing an effective date Second moved. Moved and seconded for discussion. Good evening, Miss Dolan.

Good evening, Mayor Commission. Gan Dolan, Development Services. This is the second reading of this code text amendment to add a hospital affiliated off-campus emergency room to our uses. And myself and the applicant are available if you have additional questions. There have been no changes since first reading. Very good. Does the applicant wish to make any presentation or just here for questions? Um, I guess the applicant is just here for questions. Very good. This is a public hearing. Can uh can uh anyone from the public wish to address this matter?

Please come forward. Just give your name and address for the record. Well, my name is uh Patrick Bartholomew and uh I am a congregant at the First Haitian Baptist Church of Popano Beach and many of our members live in Popano. I was here last time on um uh Tuesday, December 9th, 2025 during the first reading of this project where I enumerated the different advantages of having such a facility in the community. So our resident residents, they do need more access to more health care options. So, I'm here again to show my support to this project and to prayerfully see this coming to fruition. So, I'm asking you um Mayor Harden and uh Vice Mayor Fier and uh and commissioners to uh please open your eyes and and and and see how important this is to the community. Thank you.

Very good. Thank you, sir. Appreciate it. Next speaker. Good evening, sir. My name is Rick Bun. I live at 360 Southeast 15th Avenue, PMPO Beach. I've been a resident of PMPO Beach for 56 years. Mayor, vice mayor, commissioners, city manager. I love my city. Been here a long time. I've seen the good. I've seen the bad and I've seen the ugly. That's why I'm here tonight to speak about changing one of the most important codes for our citizens, protection. Over the years, I've served on many boards and committees. So, I would like to shine a little light on what's before you tonight. I served on the zoning board of appeals for many years. I was on the board when this agenda item appeared asking for a variance to put a 24-hour hospital-based emergency room or freestanding ER at the old Pompo Beach Alley Center. We denied the request not once but twice and there were reasons why we did that. As my memory serves me and as I get up in the ages it's not too good sometimes. Here are some of the reasons why. There are many requirements one must meet for variance to be granted. One being a hardship. [snorts] They stated the variant if they didn't get the variance it would create a hardship not allowing a freestanding ER at this location. When they purchased the property or in the process of purchasing the property they knew what the zoning was for the property or they should have. It's not a hardship. The city is not stopping them from building or using the property.

They're just saying you have to follow the codes and what you want is not allowed on this property. We also found out that Lighthouse Point, a few blocks up the road, Deerfield Beach, are are going to open very similar things on a larger plot of land. This location in Pmpo Beach alley is only about 2.5 miles from the North Bard Trauma Center. And then south of that is the Imperial Point Hospital. Some of the people in the area are just having a real hard time finding what this is all about. They don't have lawyers, architects, and doctors and lobbyists with them. They only have the zoning board of appeals and you the commission to hear to protect them. The zoning board of appeals has spoken. Now they're waiting for you to do what's right. I hope certainly hope you understand the consequences of your decision. If you decide to change the city setbacks referring to the residential neighborhood with one swipe of the broad brush for the entire city, just allow this project to go forward. You will be opening Pandora's box. This would be a slap in the face to all the residents who ride all the residents who reside here. I would have to put this decision in the ugly box. Thank you for your time and consideration and may God bless you and the city.

Thank you. Thank you, sir. Ladies and gentlemen, if I could ask you to please no applause during the meeting. I appreciate that. Next, next speaker.

Commission, city manager. Thank you for allowing me to be here tonight. Jamie Bun, 2681 Northeast 22nd Court. Uh, so I live actually a street over from the neighborhood where this development is being proposed. And as my father pointed out before this, I think one of the things that's super important to acknowledge is the fact that this group of folks, private equity that came in and purchased this property, they they knew what the zoning requirements were before they purchased the property. And I think the gravity of what you guys are voting on here to make a sweeping change in policy that could have broad citywide effects to future developers to future private interest group to come forward and look for their nest best opportunity embedded right in the heart of a residential neighborhood to create a heavily established commercial enterprise of the nature of what we're talking about with 24-hour emergency service is definitely opening up a significant can of worms. He already pointed out uh where North Broward is. I actually walked both properties today. I measured both properties. We're looking at a property in our neighborhood that's just over an acre in size. If you drive 3.7 miles to the north to the Holy Cross property that's opening in May, it's over two acres in size. It's more than double the size of this property. There is no thoroughfare in the neighborhood behind it. It's bricked off. It's impassible. There is no way. It's surrounded by commercial properties with a brick wall with town houses on the other side that they cannot interact with. Very, very different property. The neighborhood where we're at has kids on bicycles, pedestrians walking, people walking their dogs, people accessing 14th Street Boat Ramp, Merit Boatyard.

It's a busy place. Not only is there not a need for this property, there's not space for it. There really isn't space for it. And I think the message that we would potentially be sending by voting yes for this when they already knew what they signed up for is going to create more problems down the road than you guys can even imagine with other developers coming in with similar interests. And I'll put it the way that the pastor so eloquently put it when he started out his speech this evening. And he was talking about the beauty of Pompo. He talked about Hillsboro Inlet. He talked about the lighthouse. He talked about all the amazing things. And never heard him talk about a 24-hour er embedded in a residential neighborhood. Is that what we want city the city of Pompo to be? Is that what we want it to look like? There's plenty of places for this property. Please think about your neighborhoods. Think about the place you want for your kids and your family and let me know if you want a 24-hour emergency room walk-in clinic in your neighborhood.

Thank you, sir. Next speaker,

Mark and Trigala 1401 South Ocean Boulevard. Let's review. A for-profit standalone emergency room wants to develop a parcel of land not zoned for their use. The city of Pmpo Beach denied their application for a variance. So, the private company rewrites the zoning and somehow gets it on this commission's agenda on December 9th. How? I don't know. The zoning commission rep recommends against approving this change and local existing health professionals spoke against approval, but the commission voted 4 to2 in favor at the first reading. I spoke at both December 9th and I believe January 13th meetings, pointing out the hypocrisy of commissioners who vote in favor of bloated projects like the parking garage, claiming they are not experts on parking garage and have to listen to the expert at the city, but now ignore the recommendations of the city because now they're somehow experts on standalone emergency rooms and zoning impacts. As an example of unintended consequences, the New Pelican published an article on December 18th stating that Broward Health was withdrawing from PMPO Beach Community Court as a direct result of that fortitude vote. That was in the paper. At the last meeting, a doctor working for this private enterprise indicated that this facility will be doing MRIs and CT scans. I state again that if I'm sick enough to require an MRI or a CT scan, I want to go to the hospital. I don't want to go to this place because if the CT scan shows something, I have to go to the hospital. If the CT scan doesn't show something and I still feel sick, I still have to go to the hospital. It's just a way to make money. Lastly, as I stated before, there is a process that we have in place. you apply for a variance and it is either approved

or denied. It takes a certain hubris, greed, and whatever to then say, "Let's just change the rules so that we can make more money." I urge you not to approve this citywide zoning change that we will have to live with going forward forever. If private enterprise wants to build something outside of current zoning, they should make their case for a variance, not do an end around to change the rules to suit them. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Next speaker.

Hi, my name is Elizabeth the Bolt. Could you pull that down a little bit? Thank you.

Hi, my name is Elizabeth the Bolt. and I live at 2560 Northeast 22nd Street in Pompo. I am a native of Florida. I was born in Miami and I kept moving up and up because they keep destroying my city. I live two houses away from a drug rehab. When I moved in there, it wasn't like that. Now people are screaming well things I can't say here and especially in front of little children across the street riding a bike about six houses down now they're trying to put in this building where who knows what's going to come in with ambulances and all kinds of noise and the drugs that they're going to have for people because when they come in it's going to be an emergency. So these people that are all also in the drug houses that walk around like poor Mrs. Little Miss panties we call her that I wish somebody would get off the street because I'm scared to death what's going to happen to her. Now we're going to have more of them because of this thing that's coming in. I just don't think it's a good thing. Like many people have already said, it's like opening a a can of worms. And no one has been informed. I wasn't informed till the last minute. Pam, a next-door neighbor, and some of my other neighbors said, "Lizzy, did you hear of this?" And I'm like, "No, I had no idea. I ran here. I ran here. You don't know how many other people don't know about this. And if they knew, they wouldn't want this in their community. Not with little children. And I have no parking in front of my

yard. I've been digging it because they took away my parking because it was flooding. I've had so many problems and I've worked so hard because I love my city. I love Pompo. I don't want to move again. Please don't do this to us. Please don't do this to us. God bless you all. Thank you. God bless America and the children. Thank you, ma'am. Next speaker.

Hello again. My name is Ramon Feliciano 111 Bry 22. Pull that mic up a little bit now. There you go. I'm too tall. Sorry. Is that better?

All right. Um, sorry for my appearance. Busy day at work. So, I just wanted to make I wasn't able to make her last one, but I did make some of the other ones. I was the chicken guy. I was comparing Chick-fil-A and Raising Canes for all the local places we had and uh different varieties. Good. Um I don't want to contradict my fellow residents. Oh, my timer's not going. I don't want to contradict my fellow residents or or come across condescending, but one thing I did agree with the last uh several folks was uh they want to protect the community and I think we do that by providing more healthcare. This is a growing community. This is an aging community. I I am maybe I'm just had different experiences with healthc care facilities, but this is not a gentleman's club or pawn shop we're putting there. This is a hospital. It's not a detriment to the community. It is a benefit to the community. Um, again, I understand the concerns, but my personal concern is as we just explode in population and I have family members spread all through Broward, Oakland Park, Margate, Co Coral Springs, and they've been to Broward, Holy Cross, everywhere, HCA. Um, so different different pros and cons to each health care system, but I've never heard uh somebody ever say there's too much opportunity to go to the hospital here. It's not a good thing. Um, if anything, it's I have to drive an hour, you know, if you're from the the sticks to the nearest hospital. So, I really don't see personally this being a bad thing. I do agree we should protect the community with more access to healthcare in an emergency. Um, and I think you guys are doing a great job advocating for your constituents and this is in my opinion very needed and very wanted overall um in Pompel. Thank you guys so much.

Very good. Thank you, sir. Next speaker.

Good evening. Um, my name is Melissa Weekly. I live at 2680 Northeast 23rd Street. Good evening, mayor and commissioners. This amendment bundles multiple changes together and was initiated by a private applicant, which makes it especially important to understand what is being proposed. I went to staff directly for clarification, and my comments tonight are based on their responses. Staff confirmed this ordinance relies on applicant written standards and was not developed through a city-led planning process or independent analysis. The applicant previously sought a variance under the current code which was denied by the planning and zoning board in a six to1 vote and then pursued a privately initiated zoning text amendment. Other healthc care providers previously raised broader zoning questions but those discussions were not pursued through a city-led process. Tonight I want to focus on what this ordinance actually allows. [clears throat] Staff confirmed there was no study or data done to show where additional emergency rooms are needed or whether they belong near residential neighborhoods. If this passes, a 24-hour emergency room can be approved automatically with no planning and zoning review and no public input. Staff acknowledged a hospital-based emergency room is more intense than urgent care. Yet, urgent care still has a 500 foot buffer and review while the emergency room would not. Staff responses rely on assumptions that sirens aren't expected and that buffers will handle impacts. But buffers block view, not noise, overnight activity, or constant operations. Some operational impacts simply aren't governed by zoning and can't be assessed once approved. Approval is by right. This ordinance allows smaller site and non-ontiguous parcels. That means a property, a project can technically meet the rules

while spreading parking, buffering, or access across disconnected lots, pushing impacts closer to homes without another review. Once approved, staff confirm these rules apply everywhere going forward. There's no limit on clustering and no uh way to revisit or uh a site in operational change because the code relies on facility names and square footage. A medical use could expand services or rebrand without meaningful oversight. Even with modern health care, it no longer fits fits the needs into those labels. This isn't about stopping emergency care. Off-campus ERS are already allowed today with review. This is about whether the city keeps the ability to decide where a 24-hour emergency facility makes sense. Once it's allowed by right, the city can't fix it later. I respectfully ask you to vote no and keep the current rules, please. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker,

James Scott, 2761 Northwest 4th Court, Pumpo Beach, Florida 33069. Um, behind me I have um some of my members of my president of the Pumpino Cowboys. And we know broken bones and head injuries not always happen during business hours. When a child gets hurt on the field at 8:00 p.m. We cannot wait 5 hours in a crowded hospital. This type of facility has a wait time of 5 to 10 minutes to see a certified emergency doctor. That speed matters when it's a child in pain. We should not have to drive to Bokeh or Dearfield Beach to get care for our kids and the care that they deserve. We deserve a safe, moderate option right here in our city. And this is why I'm asking you guys to vote yes. Please consider the kids. Think about the kids. This community is steady growing. And like the guy said earlier, I think we should take advantage of this and allow as much as many facilities as possible for these kids. Thank you.

Very good. Thank you, sir. Next speaker.

Good evening everybody. Danny Massa. I live in uh PMPO Beach, 2840 Northeast 23rd Street. I just want to bring a couple things to your attention. It's a change of use building. Just laid some facts out there for everybody. The closest residential house is 57 ft away from this property. It's a change of use property. The property is around 55,000 ft under roof. And the occupancy load in there is going to be what? How many people? One person for every 250 thou 250 ft. You're going to need roughly 200 cars. There's not enough parking for those cars. Where are those cars going to park? They're going to be lining down the street. They're going to be parking on the neighborhood streets. Okay, so this these are just facts. You can't have a place go into business if it doesn't have the proper parking. What are you going to do? Build a parking garage over the top of it? There's not enough room. You can't have parking spots to just back out on roads. It's a violation. They have to have turnaround room. So, we need to take the facts in here. I'm all for hospitals. I'm all for helping the kids, helping the elderly, helping everybody. But you have to have the proper property and the proper use of that property with the correct amount of space to make it functionable. You're going to cause chaotic mess. Look at Chick-fil-A. All the cars that would line the road, they had to redo their drive-thru, do a double lane. We didn't let the car wash go where Kentucky Fried Chicken went because of the amount of car flow. We have to take the facts here. So, I wanted to bring those facts to you. I appreciate your time. Have a good evening.

Thank you. Next speaker.

Hi, my name is Rob O'Neal. I live at 2611 Northeast 22nd Street, approximately less than a 100 yards from the proposed site. And you know, this is not about health care. This is about money doing backroom deals with you guys to pass a thing that the city didn't approve. Your own staff doesn't like it, but you're going to pass it anyway. You know, and I think you owe us a very good reason why you're going to vote yes for this because I know it's a done deal. Sorry, but that's just how it is. You know, it's typical Florida backroom stuff. And uh if you don't think so, tell me I'm wrong. You know, like Charlie Kirk said, prove me wrong and show me. So this is all about money and the bowling alley. It's the space is not the right size. It's not in the right place. There's a urgent care across the street. Holy Cross has a urgent care across the street. HCA has several MD nows within a mile north and south of this building. You don't think we're covered with health care? It's too much. I mean, Broward's not that far away. And if I was hurt, I'd go to Broward, you know, cuz these guys, if you have to get in an ambulance, they're going to send you out to HCA out in Coconut Creek. They're not going to send you to Broward Memorial. It's not in their business plan. So, you have to understand where the money is coming from. And if you vote yes for this, I know they got to you because the people that live there don't want it. And any of these other guys that they pay to come up here and say some baloney about football injury, blah blah blah.

It's just, you know, more typical Florida backroom deal. I won't go on any further. I just I'm counting on you to do the right thing and send these guys somewhere else. They also could put an imaging business there that's not open 24 hours a day and still make plenty of money. So, it's not like it's this or the highway. There's plenty of options of what they can do there without being open 247. Thank you. Very good. Thank you, sir. Next speaker. Good afternoon, everybody. Uh, do I do the address thing or no? Okay. Pardon me. I don't think I do my address, right? Name and address.

Okay. Corey Thompson. Uh, address 2160 Northwest 4th Street, Pumpo Beach, Florida, 33069. Um, first of all, I got to go to the first thing, the first matter from what I read in the paper with they uh, North Barber saying they pulling services. The only way to respond to things like that is to still do what's right for the people. Mayor Harden, you as the mayor of this city and you all as commissioners, nobody should come to Pompo and think they can threat us and all these people talking about Pompo. My grandfather and his father was in Pompo and I have pictures when it was dirt roads. So all these newcomers thinking that oh this that. Nobody wants to hear all that. We need an urgent care facility because when you go to the hospital on Friday or Saturdays and even on some occasions on Sundays, it's a mad house. It's people everywhere. And last time I checked, we have a community of geriat people, John Knox Village, Commissioner Darlene, Cypress Ben, Commissioner Ronda Eaton, and Liberty Park and several other communities in District 4, Commissioner Beverly Perkins. And you all as commissioners comprise together to make sure our geriatic community has other options. You have power when you have options. And what we're looking for in the city of Pompo is options. And we're not going to respond to a threat of pulling services. What we're going to do is say HCA find a way if you want all of this and then they'll understand you can't come to pump and know and threat us.

Thank you. Thank you sir. Next speaker

name and address.

Um David Miller resident district 5. I just wanted to come up here not to even tell you how to vote, but I wanted to say that for a regular guy like me, them some very, very, very, very vague words like hospital affiliated off-campus emergency department. I'm like, what is that? I'm trying to imagine what that's going to be. So, um, with that being said, I can understand because I live on a road where they detour traffic on a small back alley road with big old city buses. It don't feel good. It don't look good. So, I just want to say, not trying to tell you how to vote, but if it was me in my community, I don't even know exactly where it's at. Have no background information, but if it was me, I wouldn't want every day uh ambulance coming down the little old street I live on. And that's all I wanted to say. Thanks.

Very good. Thank you, sir. Next speaker, Vincente Thor. Um, Mayor, let me just say this to that speaker that came um two speeches ago. Bro, you ain't lived in this city long enough to ever threaten and say some derogatory mess about somebody getting paid. Do you know how many times my grandparents had to see people like you come to our neighborhood and act like you doing us doing us a favor? address address the chair.

Mayor, he might ever get up here again and talk about somebody getting paid because I know I ain't getting paid. And a lot of these kids, they don't get nothing. When was the last time he volunteered for something in our neighborhood? So, please, if you want to if you want to talk about the issue, mayor, he needs to direct the issue and talk about that. And to say that our commission is on a payroll, dude, do how many times how long have you even been in PMPO Beach? If you want to talk about your issues, stick to your issues. Other than that, I will get out my Christian behavior and call you what I think you are. You sound like a racist cracker. That's Mr. Mr. Throw.

That's That's out That's out of out of line. It's out of line. Okay. Very good. Next speaker,

Jocelyn Jackson. Um, as we look around in this audience and I I can probably tell you majority of people are over 50 cuz I'll be 56 in 35 days. So with us having to the opportunity to have health care in emergencies, you know, things happen, you know, at the age and you look at the community, you look at the age of your grandparents, your parents, your loved ones, your kids, something happen, accidents happen. Sometimes you can't get to the hospital, you don't have the time. But if you have a urgent care, you know, you wake up some feverish, you know, you probably have fever, flu, cold, different symptoms, your children, you know, vomiting. So if you have urgent care in your community, that's beautiful. But guess what? We got strip clubs in our community. That's 24 hours. We got one on power line. We got one running MLK. We got a prison that's 24 hours. Okay. The people that they let them out, they put them in a prison. So for you to sit here and complain about an urgent care in your community and our children have to endure prostitutes, homelessness all over everywhere. Land before the businesses, you can't even get in your businesses. The homeless is sleeping in the businesses. You see them sleeping on the benches and you you you come up here and say

our community we don't want urgent care to hear the sirens. We have the sheriff department in our community. That's what we dealing with in our community. substations within our community, liquor stores. Everywhere you turn, it's a liquor store. And y'all coming up here speaking about urgent care. Look at the writing on the wall. It's no longer about the entitlement. It's what's needed. Urgent care is needed. Like I said, some majority of the crowd here is over 50. Some of you 70 and 80. You need an urgent care. Very good. Thank you. Next. Next. Next speaker.

Good evening. My name is Allan. Um, I live in 2491 Northeast 22nd Street. [clears throat] I'm not well verssed in this, so I'm not as eloquent as my previous speakers, but uh, I think that regardless of whether there is or isn't, the reality is on the street where this is proposed, there's no street lighting. It's very difficult to see at night. When I come home from work at night, I can't see anything. I got I got to put the high beams on. So, that's number one. Number two, you have a capacity issue. There isn't enough parking for the structure as is, which I anticipate the moment this is passed, they will revise to rebuild something bigger. Again, there is a parking capacity. So, regardless of where this goes, there's a lot of logistical things that need to be addressed before this is even set in place to begin with, if it even is appropriate in this location. I think the problem is not that it's urgent care, but the rather the location that is in accessibility to people if it's even put in place and what can it actually serve once it's there. Um I think that the building itself is not suited for any medical use because it used to be a bowling app. I mean I'm surprised Bolero didn't buy the building but here we are. So that's all I need to say.

Thank you sir. I want to get you know Appreciate it. Thank you, sir. Next speaker.

My name is Owen Gaul. I live at 1012 North Ocean Boulevard. I didn't know about this um issue until today, but when I heard about a proposed 24-hour emergency uh standalone emergency facility, all sorts of bells and whistles went off in my head. this community who I've been associated with for a long time and a full-time resident since probably 2021 has developed a serious homeless problem which is aggravated by um drug use. Who are these emergency room patients going to be? Does the hospital corporation have they told us if they have a uh method with which to be reimbursed by indigents that have oded and need narcan? What a deal. Um I've been shot. I pray to God if something like that happens again, they take me back to North Broward as opposed to the emergency room stand alone. I want a hospital if I need an emergency room. I want specialists. I want cardiac experts. I want people that know how to treat a stroke. With regard to Hospital Corporation of America, I believe the organization is if you walk in there with your son that broke his arm

in football, are they going to treat him? any of these people, many of these places, they're standalone and they're for profit. You have an insurance plan that they recognize. Do they have a way in which to offload the expense associated with it? If you aren't, my concern is this is going to aggravate our homelessness and the drug use in our community. I thank you. Thank you, sir. Next speaker.

Hi. Um, Suzanne Label, 2720 Northeast 23rd Street. So, I live about half a mile from the site that would benefit from this proposed zoning change. So, I want to be clear, I'm not I'm not going to be impacted or not directly impacted. I'm here because I'm deeply concerned about this, what this means for Pompino generally now and in the future. The residents who live near this location likely purchase their homes with a reasonable expectation that the surrounding commercial spaces would remain generally consistent with the existing zoning. This proposal would significantly change those rules and would negatively affect their quality of life and property values. More importantly, it raises a broader concern. If zoning can be changed here for one applicant, what prevents similar changes elsewhere in the city with negative negative impact on residents? Are any of our homes safe from this? Zoning exists to provide stability and predictability. As residents, we are required to follow it, which is why changes should not be made lightly or in isolation. It's troubling to see a significant change driven by a single private entity simply because it has the resources to pursue it. That creates an imbalance between residents who must comply with the rules and applicants who can effectively change them. Uh uh one particular issue stands out with this ordinance 25444. Under this proposal, an urgent care facility would face more restrictive conditions than a freestanding ER. That inconsistency inconsistency suggests this ordinance was not developed as part of a thoughtful long-term zoning strategy. As well, if this passes tonight, a review for a special exception won't even be necessary for this type of use. Variances uh to code are intentionally difficult to obtain and permanent changes to the zoning code should be even more carefully considered. A variance affects one site. A zoning change affects current and future sites across the whole city. These changes are

drafted and submitted by private entity for its own benefit without sufficient consideration for neighboring residents or the preced precedent being set. As one commissioner previously noted, once zoning laws are loosened, control is lost. The planning and zoning board uh exists to take the long view and to consider unintended consequences. They rejected this by 6 to1 vote. I respectfully ask why the city commission would choose to override the clear recommendation of its own experts. Like many residents, there have been times I've wished zoning rules were different, but I've also learned that those rules often protect the community even when they're inconvenient. I believe this is one of those cases. When we purchased our homes, we trusted that the city would be managed to enhance our quality of life. Increased noise, increased traffic. Do not do that. Any economic benefit should not come at the expense of the residents who live here. I urge you to respect the planning and zoning board's recommendations and to uphold the integrity of our zoning code. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker. Mike Scverki, 1630 Southwest 5th Avenue, PMPO Beach. An indigent an indigent once in a blue moon. Some crazy statements some of these people have. Why don't we turn it back into a bowling alley? It's 5050 here. We got half of this way, half that way. I think we should turn it back into a bowling alley. And since we we help out some of the businesses in Pompo, since that bowling alley supposedly wasn't doing that well, maybe we can help them out periodically. Who knows? We help out so many other businesses. Why don't we do that and we'll make everybody happy. How's that sound? Or I have a better idea. We moved that ugly McNab house and spent God knows how much money and it sits over there in the corner. And if you want to talk about the poor homeless people, at least let them sleep over there. Okay, so we spent all that money moving that piece of trash building that you want to spend over $30 million for a flower bed in the back. Okay, why don't we pick this building up over there? the old bowling alley, put it over here where you want to waste a few hundred million dollars to build a new city hall because that's where we could really use an emergency place right over here on Dixie and Atlantic across the street because you screwed up Atlantic and Dixie and there's car accidents non-stop. So, put the damn building over there.

Let let him let him continue. This is the smartest thing you could ever think of. This is getting rid of stupidity. pick the building up, drive it down the street, put it over there, and we don't need a new city hall, and I just saved the city a few hundred million dollars. One or the other. Okay. And as for that stupid McNab house, get some gasoline and burn it down. Very good. Next. Next speaker. Thank you, sir.

Hi. Uh my name is Cindy Corbett Elder, 2361 Northeast 15th Terrace, Pompo. I have been a resident of Pompo unincorporated and not uh for 37 years. Um I just want to thank you all for actually putting this at a 6 pm meeting and not doing the second vote at 1 p.m. We are grateful. Obviously a lot of people wanted to speak on this issue, but what it comes down to is a very clear common sense. You have a planning process. You have a zoning code. You had someone buy property knowing how it was zoned. They went through the process. They didn't get what they wanted because it doesn't fit. I'm not saying anything about healthc care things. I'm talking about the process. This is common sense. Commissioner Eaton, you are my commissioner. Commissioner Harden, you were elected citywide if I'm not mistaken. You have a lot of citizens and you need to got start listening to them. You know about planning. This doesn't make sense. It deserves a no vote. It deserves to be killed. You've got residents that are talking about how it isn't even safe to walk back there. You know, come on, vote no. I urge you all to vote no. I know at least two that will because they have a lot of common sense. And the other last thing I want to say is I hear some of the stuff going on up here and you all say trust the staff. Trust the staff. Trust the staff. And Jorg, trust the staff. What did the staff say? No, this shouldn't be backdoored. You're going to screw up your planning process. Plan for an ER in an area where it will fit. That's all. Thank you.

Very good. Thank you, ma'am. Next speaker. Hello, Dennis Efron, 627 Northeast 11th Avenue in Old Pompo. I would like to make two points, one as an HCA employee and one as a Pompo resident. So HCA is a large corporation, very scary and monolithic, but it's made up of people like me. I'm just a little individual who does my job every day. and I sit in a lot of meetings about IT technology and it's a lot of back-end stuff, but I want to assure you that in all the conversations that we have, patient care really is at the forefront of everything we talk about. HCA is a company that I'm proud to work for and they see a business opportunity and a patient care opportunity here in Pompel that they're trying to take advantage of. I don't think there's anything insidious going on. They're just trying to provide a service to the community as they do throughout all of Florida. As a Pompo resident, I look at that property that is in, you know, particular to this request and it used to be a bowling alley, which is not necessarily the quietest or most tranquil commercial use of property. It's next to probably the busiest fast food restaurant in Pompo and across from the mall. I don't think a healthc care facility is going to trump the noise or commotion that's going to come from any of those other activities. In healthcare, we try

to keep things nice and quiet so that our patients can heal. Uh nobody's going to come out celebrating their 300 or um you know have a little bit of a ruckus from one too many. So, uh, I don't think we have to be afraid of that. So, I just think that this is something that could be a big benefit to the community and I think the risk, if any, is no greater than whatever else might go into that property. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker. It's rather Shannon Bun, 2681 Northeast 22nd Court. Um, so I just want to be clear about what I perceive is the discussion here, right? It's about changing the code for the city and this code for the entire city. This change is being prompted by a private healthc care company by one applicant. That's the discussion. The discussion isn't whether we need more health care or better health care or whether freestanding ERS are beneficial to the community or not. I think we can all agree that we all want access to healthcare. We all want access to great physicians and easy access, right? I want that. But that's not the discussion here. What we're saying is that for one applicant, we're going to change everything for the city. And by doing that, based on what a previous person shared, we can now have a freestanding ER on one lot and then another commercial enterprise in between and then a lot in between or maybe even residences in between or maybe we can have three freestanding ERs next to each other. I mean to me now that we are possibly changing the code, the list is endless. There are no traffic studies. there's no study of really the lot per se because

it's pretty much open-ended. Um, again, I think there's a lot of reasons that freestanding ERS would be beneficial to our community. What I'm going to say is that where this applicant is proposing to put it and how they are proposing to change the code for the entire city is ridiculous. There are two freestanding ERs just north of us and a trauma center within like a four to five mile radius. I can drive to all of them within an slow pace seven minutes from my house. And with respect to everybody who's like our ER or all these ERs take so long. Unfortunately, I've been to North Broward several times with my kids and myself. with my children myself, I have never waited more than 15 minutes to be in the door and never more than 45 minutes for any assessment to start. So maybe other people's experiences have been different, but I can only speak very highly of North Broward emergency room. Um, going to a more microcosm personal level, if anyone has actually looked at the proposed design of the applicants freestanding er. Oh, I forgot about the time. Look at the design.

Maybe let's pay extra on that. Thank you. Next speaker. Hello. My name is Susan Hines and I live at 2660 Northeast 23rd Street. And I'd like to know if I'm allowed to ask a question of the commission or the applicant. Am I? Go ahead and spit it out.

Yeah. My question is as we're looking to change a code, which is sounds like it's a major deal, I'd like to ask if an thorough analysis was done on whether this was needed at this point in time in this area. What I mean by needed, that the current ERS were over capacity, that weight times were prohibitive, that people were dying because they couldn't get in. Um, has that been done and presented? So, if I hear you correctly, it has not been done and we're going to do a major change to a code that's potentially citywide. Is that correct? Without a proper analysis. And if one of the reasons for changing the code is because there's an emotional feeling that we need it for health care, then that doesn't sound proper to do. that if we're making a big change like this, the proper analysis and data needs to be shown that this code change is needed for the health of the community and the health of people. So that was my question. And by the way, I'm new to Pompel and I love it.

Very good. Thank you.

Next speaker, anybody? Hi, I'm Gigi Dubc, 3236 Northeast Fifth Street. And to look at my notes, the planning and zoning board did not approve this project. As you all know, reintroducing it through a zoning or text amendment designed to permit this use raises serious procedural and precedent concerns. Advisory boards exist to provide independent review. When their recommendations are effectively bypassed, it undermines confidence in the land use process and the uniform application of von of zoning laws. I ask that my concern and objection be entered into the public record.

Very good. Thank you for that. Next speaker. My name is Michael Weir. I live at 2200 Northeast 25th Avenue in Pmpo Beach. My house is in an R1 residential zone. City's codes for those zones seek to make a safe, pleasant area for residents to live. Across the street from me is a B1 zone. Those codes protected my property by limiting the types of businesses that could be established in those zones such that they had minimal impact on the value of my property or my quality of life. to change the code. Reducing the 500 foot limit for certain types of businesses in that area would reduce the value of my property and negatively impact my neighborhood in general. Over the past almost three years, my neighborhood, Avalon Harbor, has come before the commission and made their feelings known about changes that would affect that code. It seems to me that the members of the commission do not value the single family homes or the area of Avalon Harbor. I want [snorts] to point out that our neighborhood is contingent to Lighthouse Point. Lighthouse Point that has a lower millage rate, has their own police force, has license plate scanners to help reduce crime in those areas, and has a city commission that values residential neighborhoods and the waterfront lifestyle that is in uh that

area. If 13 colonies in 1776 could withdraw from the largest, most powerful country in the world, some 13 blocks should be able to deanex themselves from Pompo Beach in 2026 and reanex themselves to Lighthouse Point if the commission doesn't respect the desires of our neighborhood. Thank you. Very good. Thank you, sir. Next speaker,

and Bosworth, 4015 West Palm Air Drive. I just want to um kind of follow up on what a few people did, which was to refocus the conversation away from the emotional things like what happens when a kid breaks their arm. If your kid breaks their arm, the crying is real, it's loud, and you want them seen as as soon as possible. It is sadly or thankfully not life or death, right? There are options. You may have to wait. It may be painful and unpleasant, but it happens. My own child has been to a 24-hour emergency room, the one that's on um SE State Road 7 in Coconut Creek, the West Bro uh West Bokeh one. It's a useful thing. But what's being discussed here is a change to a code that isn't just a precedent of changing this code for this thing, but for changing any code for anything. My own neighborhood is impacted by land use drama right now, which we will not get into by partially a land owner who bought the property knowing full well how it was zoned and what they could do. and it's in their documents and there's still a fight. So before we go around changing codes, we need to be sure that what we're doing makes sense everywhere. I think my commissioner would say that a freestanding ER somewhere in district 5 would actually answer the concerns of some of the people who say they need one. No one is complaining about giving anyone access to health care. And the things that Miss Jackson was saying, those are real things, right? She's not lying when she says that there are those things, but that is not the discussion here. So, make sure when you're voting, you're voting on what the actual discussion is here. Because making a

change like this for a big entity who bought with their eyes wide open gives license to everyone who comes in with money and power and wants to make a change behind the backs and against the will of the people who live there. So no one is saying we don't want the health care. We want it wherever it belongs. But that spot is not the only spot in Pompo for that thing. You bought it that way you suffer the consequences. There's nothing that says you can't keep your um walk-in urgent care open till 9:00. And there's nothing that says an open 9:00 urgent care isn't there to take care of a broken arm. It doesn't belong there to take care of the kinds of things that involve ambulances anyway. So there would be no need for an ambulance bay. Stay focused on the issue. The issue is whether to change the code. It is not whether we need a healthc care facility. Thank you.

Thank you [applause] ladies and gentlemen. Please please no applause. Appreciate it. Further input from the public. Anyone else? Okay. Couple of folks wanted to wait until the last minute. Anybody else after this gentleman wish to speak from the public? Please come forward. Good afternoon, Ronald Thirsten, 571 Northwest 21st Court. [snorts] Good afternoon, commissioners. I'm speaking for the seniors and neighbors in our community. For us, having healthc care close by is about safety. We live with the fear of getting trapped by a train or stuck in traffic on the highway during a medical crisis. If your mom falls in the middle of the night, do you want to wait for hours in the ER or get her seen as quickly as possible? We need a facility that offers test without a long commute. A real 247 ER. The residents standing behind me ask you to put our safety first. Please give us the peace of mind that help is just down the street. I hear everybody keep talking about Broward Health, but I don't know if anybody know read the paper where Broward Health pulled out of the community our community court. Brower Health dumped the homeless people. They dumped them. So why should we lay in bed with Broward Health when they do not want to take care of Pompo?

Because they can't have the whole pot. We need another entity for health care. It's not about Brow Health. Brower Health does not care anything about pumping no beats. Everybody saying, "Well, they could drive to Lighthouse Point. Well, they could drive to Deerfield. Why can I Why we can't drive to Pumpino Beach where we pay taxes and where we live?" Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker,

Kevin Adams, 171 Northwest 17 Court, Pumpino Beach. Well, I mean, he kind of said what I was going to say about the brow health because that's what I read and them pulling out and pretty much Yeah. I mean, if they going to pull out, we can't let them scare us into just choosing them. Everybody need healthcare, not just one area. All the pump need healthcare. It need to be seen in a timely manner. Whether it's a kid, an adult, it don't matter. Healthcare is for everybody. And if you don't want to be woke woke up because some am I mean think about that person that's hurt. They need to help. Help is better than you being sleep. I mean I would rather say it's somebody life than get two more minutes of sleep. So I think we we should go for it. Very

good. Thank you sir. Next speaker. Tina Sulli, 2651 Northeast 22nd Street. Um, I was born and raised in Pompo. Born in Fort Lauderdale, raised in Pompo. And, um, speaking to this gentleman, the bowling alley was not noisy. So, that ends that conversation. Um, we were not notified about this change, which I think isn't that required for a zoning change. Why weren't we notified?

There there was there was notification sent out by staff. How was how were we notified? Staff took care of it that I mean mailed notice. Well, I didn't receive one and neither did any of my neighbors and we I'm live I live right on that street. So, that was that's a problem. And should there be signage up when there's a zoning change? Um, this is this is not a zoning change. This is a text amendment to our zoning code. So, should there be signage up for that? No.

Okay. I just I to me that facility it the property is too small and I don't know how that was voted upon voted yes because for the people want another emergency room. There's one in the mall on the in the out parcels of the mall. I mean, how many do we need? There's one right down the street in Lighthouse Point and they're building a new one as um another ER. This is this is going to be an ER that has overnight stays. That's what it says. So I just it's the property is not um acceptable to have that type of building or traffic. Thank you.

Thank you. Just to just to correct what I said that there there is no notification necessary around that that property because it's not sight specific. This is a total text amendment for the for the entire city the whole city which is even worse. Okay. Just wanted to correct that, ma'am. Thank you, speaker. Anyone else after this gentleman? Please come forward, sir.

Good evening, mayor, vice mayor, commissioners. My name is Steve Arens. I am a property owner and business owner at 10:15 South Federal Highway, P in Pmpo. Uh being on the city commission of Oakland Park, we are having these 24-hour emergency rooms in our city, too. Now, I thought you were going to be strengthening the restrictions on these things and putting them where they're not in near uh neighborhoods and I just didn't get a chance to read the backup. I found out about this at 5:00 tonight. So, didn't have a chance to read the backup on it, but you really need to put some significant distance restrictions between these places. And then you need to uh make sure that they you you keep these neighborhoods safe. And I invite any one of you to come by my business one day and spend a day there and see how many ambulances come by there with the sirens blasting. And I know they shut them off right before they get to Imperial Point Hospital. I'm half mile from Imperial Point Hospital. And it's at least half a dozen or more, sometimes up to a dozen depending on what's going on. And these people, you need to protect them. I mean, I I know about it. I've been a city commissioner for 20 years now, and my main thing is to make sure that our neighborhoods are protected. So, just think about that. Uh, this is a big business. I mean, these things are popping up everywhere. And the reason they're popping up everywhere is because they make money for the hospital, for the corporations, for tenant, for HCA, for Baptist, for all of them. So, just keep that in mind. I know, you know, if I had a chance to read all the backup material, I could speak a little more intelligently on this, but I I feel for the residents who who are going to be have this in their backyard because these things happen 24 hours a day, just

like you say, it's a 24-hour emergency room. So, I appreciate you everything what you do. I know it's you it's a tough job and I do not think any one of you has taken any money for anything because I know your integrity and it takes a lot to do this job. So I appreciate you and I know all these people do out here do appreciate you too. Thank you.

Very good. Thank you sir. Next speaker and is is there anyone else after this last speaker? Very good. This will be the last speaker. Thank you. Go ahead sir. Mike Sullie, 2651 Northeast 22nd Street. I've been here since 1956. Okay. Um, the site I'm a contractor. Um, luckily retired. I work for another county entity. Okay. The whole thing is the site isn't applicable for the use. Um, as far as availability for health care, they just went through uh my mother passed recently, a few years ago. She's 98 years old. Never had any issues getting her to the hospital. My father-in-law, we took care of him till he recently passed within a year. No problems getting him to the hospital. Um, you know, Florida cracker. Okay. And I'm not the br sharpest rock in the box, but you know, emergency services has hauled me off. No problems with getting to the hospital. So that whole line is, you know, BS. Sorry. So, but it's more about that's the wrong site there, you know. I mean, if you're going to gripe about an ER versus a bowling alley, it seems like an asinine argument, but that's what it is. So, I hope you vote no. Thank you.

Very good. Thank you, sir. All right, that ends public input, a commission discussion. Vice Mayor,

thank you, Mayor. I do want to start off by thanking my colleagues for agreeing to postpone this to a 6 pm meeting because we did have a big turnout here today. We heard the good and the bad, but it's important that people have the opportunity to come out and and say what they need to to say and for us to to listen. So, thank you to to everyone for for doing that. Um, we heard a lot today. One, I've always said this, one of our most important jobs is protecting the neighborhoods because growth will and development will keep coming at us and all we can do is our best to to protect our neighborhoods and maybe slow it down a little so that we encourage and get the right kind of development with the right constraints. Um, this does zero distance restriction between residential and these facilities. And I I I feel for the people who live who live near this, but I also worry about the the broad text amendment that this applies anywhere in our city. So, this we don't know where it'll come next. Uh, but it is a citywide text amendment. So, um, I have a lot of respect for the work that was done by planning and zoning and ZBA over the years and I I think it is also a bad precedent to be doing something like this. Um, and so it's allowed with no special exception, no distance requirement, and I've brought this up a few times, but our city commission has no mechanism for looking at site plans. So, if our city had some kind of call-up option to look at a specific site plan that we had concerns about, then maybe I would be more comfortable with some of these text amendments, but our site plans are only looked at by planning and zoning. And this wouldn't require a special exception from ZBA. So, we as a commission would never look at a site plan for one of these again uh because we don't do that. And if you didn't like

where it was going or your residents in district two or district four or five or three or one don't like where it's going, uh, as long as it meets the standards, you don't have any mechanism for stopping it. And that concerns me. And then one other thing I did want to address that someone brought up tonight was the parking requirement. And I don't see this in the ordinance. Uh, so I would, is there someone, Miss Dolan, can you address what the parking requirement would be? The parking is in another section of the code, so that wouldn't be changing with this ordinance. I don't know by heart what the parking requirement would be, but they're not going to use the existing building. They're going to rebuild it.

I understand, but I I just, you know, when we build apartment buildings, we talk about do we have enough parking spaces for the number of units and stuff and I'm sure there's I'm sure it's thought out, but it is a new use here. So, yeah, it'll have to go through site plan and it'll have to meet the parking requirements in the code for this medical use. I don't know what that number is, but yeah, there's a whole separate parking code. It's not changing. Okay. Uh that's all I have to say on this one that um you know, again, I think if we had different processes in place as a city commission, then we might be able to make more progress on on things like this, but without a callup option, getting rid of all the protections for every neighborhood in this city concerns me. Thank you.

Very good, Commissioner Fess.

Thank you. Um okay, so there was a lot to unpack. I first I want want to echo the appreciation for the of not just our our colleagues for moving this to the 6 pm meeting, but also to everybody who has emailed, who has commented, who has called, who has texted, who has shown up tonight and said what they want to say, whether you are for it or against it. This is what this is about. This is what these meetings are for. They're for you and this what we're here is for you. So with that in mind, um there was something that I that I wanted to make sure we come back to. I think every one of us again is in agre is in agreement that healthcare is important. So is the protection of our neighborhoods. So I've mentioned this at previous meetings and I'm going to just sort of reiterate it quickly again. protections that we have to control what happens in and around our neighborhoods are protected by our zoning laws and our zoning our code of zoning code when we make a text amendment and I believe that was a little bit I was a little shocked by that that there wasn't sort of more notice for such a widespread zoning text amendment that would potentially really change the history and the quality of life for many residents across the city. Again, I'm not talking about healthcare. I'm talking about businesses where you do it for one specific theft. You do it for everything. So, when you remove the rules, you remove the power for residents to actually have a say in how their neighborhood is shaped, how their community is shaped. So just so briefly we I I brought it up before about Senate Bill 180 and that is one of those things that we are challenging and it's primarily to do with residential districts and how we cannot as a as a board make more restrictive codes or changes that would be less in favor of development. But if we make things less

restrictive, we cannot we will not be able to undo those things easily or make them more restrictive should unintended consequences appear. So we would change the rule book for every future citywide proposal at this point if we were to approve this. Um I have mentioned it before and I mention again I I will not and I cannot support this. I've had so many people, not just for this one particular area, but for everything citywide. We have so much changing on a day-to-day basis, on a minute-by-minute basis sometimes. And I've heard so many people come up here, regardless of what we're discussing, and say, "We want a voice at the table. We want to sit. We want a seat. We want to be heard. We want us to be listened to. We want you to vote a certain way. We want input." this widespread change and text amendment change would remove a lot of that input about how it's going to affect your neighborhood. Um, and I'll just I'll just kind of close with this one thing. Um, somebody mentioned when they purchased the property that they knew what they knew that we'd what they were buying and that's true. The part that stuck out the most for me was the comment that he said, "We trusted that the city would be managed to preserve our quality of life." And I'm going to tell you right now the end of your life there's not you're not thinking about oh my gosh did was my was my investment worth it. You're thinking about the things that matter most to you, right? You're thinking about your quality of life and how well and how you lived it and the people you love and surround yourselves with your family, friends, and loved ones. So I I don't I don't support this and I and I believe we can do better as a city and work together. Thank you.

Very good. Further commission discussion. Commissioner Commissioner Smith,

I heard a couple times tonight that the city did not support this ordinance. Is this true? No, I think they mean the planning and zoning board voted it six to one against it. The staff has always recommended approval.

Okay. and staff. [clears throat] Um, when the applicant came to you with questions about the our ordinances for medical facilities because this only affects medical facilities. We're not changing the zoning code for anything else. And it it looked like we had a lot of stuff bundled into specialty. And it to me when I looked at the existing code it it felt right to separate it out. What what was the thoughts? Is that the thoughts you guys had when the applicant came to you? You thought what was your

Well, we've had other challenges with code sections. So the history of this code section is back in 2015 we had seven rehab centers coming in in one year. And that's when people were dying right and left with this uh drug rehab scam that was going on between the sober homes and the drug rehab facilities and people were dying and there weren't laws for BSO to enforce. So we tried to use zoning to stop the inflow of these um unfortunate h uses that were really destroying people's lives. So we had to do this in a way that bundled these uses together so it wasn't clear obvious that we were discriminating against drug rehab uses. As soon as we got this code adopted, the state had stepped up and created some regulations that really stopped that flow of those drug rehab uses. So now that that problem is solved, we're kind of left with the zoning code that creates this idea that medical uses are bad. So when you use zoning in replace of law enforcement, there are negative consequences and we're dealing with that now. We do regret that it appears that we thought in zoning that medical uses were bad. There's so many worse commercial uses that could go on this property. and really medical uses are so needed, but at the time people were dying and we were using zoning to stop the mad inflow of these drug rehab uses. So that's the ugly truth behind how this came about. And so we first amended this code for a surgical center which went fine and now we're looking at it for this emergency room use. And this whole 500 foot

separation is is has created this idea that medical uses are bad and that's not really where we want to continue to be.

That was kind of my thoughts too as as I read through it. Um and and we're here to make citywide [clears throat] ordinance change to our zoning code and a text amendment change. We're not voting on the location. This is not a vote about can an emergency room go in at the bowling alley. If we vote tonight and we approve this, that property starts from scratch with site planning and it's not a just a go, but and it's not a zero distance between residents. It's 300 ft. 300 feet is pretty big because I have a barrier behind my place that's 30, ladies and gentlemen.

Oh, sorry. It has to be with it can be within 300 feet but with the barrier they has to have the barrier there's no 300 buffer it's it's a one and a half acre limit on the size this will keep them from proliferating everywhere because there aren't that many one and a half acre commercial lots but there is no distance requirement there's they added a huge buffer requirement but there's no distance requirement there but there is a buffer requirement

yes and they are not going to be bringing being an ambulance to the facility because an ambulance will not take you to a freestanding emergency room. It will only take you to a hospital. However, you might have an ambulance that leaves. They will be on federal highway if it's this property. Depends. I'd love to see one in district five on a on a different street, but they will be leaving on the main road, not on the side road, which has the ambulance sirens anyway. Um, and one thing that I mentioned at the last time we talked about this is I kept hearing about how disruptive this would be to a community. So, I went to the um Coconut Creek um standing room emergency, the place where Ann Bosworth's um child went, and I sat in the parking lot for about a half hour. This was 3:30 in the afternoon. There was no cars. There was nobody came and left. So, I went inside and talked to the staff. And at 3:30 in the afternoon, they had had 12 patients and no ambulances. It was a peaceful property. They had a picnic table for the staff. There was um right next door to apartments. It was a very peaceful environment. And this place had a second story because they also had um offices above which is is not normal is what they told me. And I really think that people when they're looking to move to a city, they're looking for schools, they're looking for police, they're looking for fire, they're looking for groceries, they're looking for shopping, they're looking for recreation, and they're looking for medical services. I think that I too don't think medical is a bad thing. And I think providing urgent care, which is different than this, but urgent care is part of this.

Urgent care is where we go when we can't get to the doctor. Freestanding emergency room is where we go when we can't get to a hospital. And a lot of Pompo does not live on federal highway. We don't have hospitals in a lot of PMPO. So we need we don't even have in district 4, we don't even have an urgent care. So there are places where we need this in our city. So um I think that's all the comments that I have. Mayor, thank you. Very good. Further commission discussion. Commissioner Seerson Eaten.

Thank you, Mayor. This property is zone uh B3 and these would only could be allowed in B3s. Is that correct? Where are I supposed or I want Yes. And keep in mind that like Miss uh Smith just said, it's not a sight specific amendment. We know that they have looked at this property and will be looking at this property, but again, it's not a sight specific amendment. It is any property in B3 that's an acre and a half could get could have an FSER on it if the demand was there. And and and we when we talk about zero distance, um you still have building site, you have still have building setbacks. Oh yeah, sure.

And buffers. So it's not like they can put it right up on the edge of the property. And that that zero comes from B3s abuing up onto residential properties. And if you look anywhere in Pompo on Federal Highway, Sample Road, uh you have B3s that back right up to residential properties. Now, that wasn't something we created. It was something that was done years ago by the county and now we're sort of living with it. And um and um and you can't hardly put anything there unless you know you're grandfathered in. Um, so, um, you know, when all of this came up, when about a year and a half ago, I had never even heard of a freestanding emergency room. Never heard of it. And, and I I think it's worthy of cate of sort of clarifying it. And Gene, you can correct or add on uh if I'm missing something, but we only have certain codes for like hospitals and and and urgent cares and others. Well, you think about a hospital like North Broward. You have an eight eight 10 story building. You have a surrounding campus and a surrounding um parking uh facility, parking lots, sometimes structured parking. Um and this is this is different. This is like just the emergency room portion of a hospital. And the fact is we did not have a category for these freestanding movements uh emergency rooms. It's not really a hospital. So when they go to ZBA or uh or or they go to P&Z, the the board members who I appreciate all their services, um they they only have what they have to deal with within our ordinances to go by, especially ZBA

for zoning board of appeals. Um very difficult to get it passed and of course it's not a hospital. So there that was part of so that so when a a private individual in a corporation and anybody in the state of Florida, anybody in the United States or you know can request a um a text amendment and basically [clears throat] what they're doing is creating a new category of I guess use right so freestanding emergency didn't they don't exist in our code we have nothing to guide we have nothing to go by we only have hospitals for example sampling and the urgent care and whatnot. So, um, and I and I agree with D Commissioner Smith. I mean, this is this is for the entire city. It's not usurping any of the ordinances for hospitals and the 500 foot separation or anything like that. Just creating a new category for a new use um that we hadn't had before. So, we're we're not going, you know, we're not going down a slippery slope there. And and I also might add, um, Deerfield and Lighthouse Point both welcomed this sort of use with open arms. And these the beauty of these types of facilities is that they are designed to be infill. They're not huge facilities. They're not huge hospitals. Imagine, you know, all of the the population that we have on the barrier island, the ability to go uh to close by just up the road, come over the causeways and and and be there. Um, and also I mean I had a meeting in in uh at one of my community meetings in Crest

Haven and you know 90 u 98% of the room thought it was a good idea and was in favor of it because we had convenient health care right nearby. Um and and I you know and and again some of this some of the information that's been out there on social media acts as if it's not like they're North Broward and they're bringing every every uh crime scene or vehicle accident in an ambulance over there. That that that is not what they're designed to do and that is not what happens. And yeah, it's for profit. I mean really what isn't for profit these days? Um, so it so for me with all of that said, I can see that we would need a freestanding emergency room in the Palm area, District 5 or District 4. Uh, it's not quite in District 2, but it's very close to District 2. So, uh, and I don't other cities are doing it. It is a new thing. It's a new animal. And um that's why we we are doing this this new category and I don't want to deny the entire city. I know this is a tough location. Who knows? The applicant might just decide to sell the property and look for another spot. That's his prerog prerogative because that is privately owned property. Um but um I don't I don't want to deny the entire city this uh of that use. Um so like I was the first time I am going to be in favor of it. Thank you very much.

Very good. Further commission discussion. I got Commissioner Fessic and then I've got uh Vice Mayor.

Thank you. Okay. Um let's unpack. Uh so first at previous meetings we we were told we're cons consistently reminding each other that this is a citywide zoning text amendment but yet we keep talking about the ambulances that aren't going to make a lot of noise or um or that so many people would be in favor of something around this particular location. It's not location-based. It's not about healthcare. 98% of anybody would love better healthare. Period. It's not that's not what we're talking about. um the fact that other cities are doing it. If I you could probably all most of you like somebody said earlier are a little bit older and we've all heard this frame saying from your parents. If everybody was jumping off a bridge, would you do it too? The question is the question is does it make sense for us? Does it make sense for us as a city? Does it make sense for us on each individual location to be able to take that opportunity to allow it or not allow it and maybe even learn from some of these cities who are already doing these things and what their challenges have been or will be. I think doing a little due diligence and doing a little taking a little bit of time for that um to make sure that we do it right is important. Um the second the last part about that is we were talking about the planning and zoning board that that unanimously turned this down and the ZBA that unan unanimously turned this down. I believe we have to be especially careful about our voluntarily removing any local guard rails we have through our own zoning code or to or text amendments because like I said once they're gone they're gone and they're difficult to restore. Also want to state for the record, I'm really disappointed that I've heard so many people here that this has come continued to come back repeatedly over the years in different versions, multiple times to several different

boards, multiple times at this point to this commission despite pretty clear and consistent resident opposition. And so at some point we have is a conversation where repeated attempts start to feel like the process is being used to wear people down rather than just listen to them to begin with. So residents should not have to keep fighting the same battle over and over again when the message has been very very consistent. We do not support this change. Period. I think it's um I think it's clear that I heard the message loud and clear. Um the second the second portion in our backup was related to another entity that did support this project. When you read in our backup that we have a letter of support from our economic development council and they submitted an unsigned letter of support in connected to this zoning change. Now in in other letters in other items they submit letters of support and they are signed. This one was unsigned and so and just comes from the council. So I I would like some information about who that came who who who that came from first of all. Um I'd also want to examine some of and this is maybe a topic for a little bit later, but I want to make sure that I examine the broader role that the economic development council is playing in relation to major city and CRA projects like this one and land use matters like this one, including who the decision makers are on that council. And so the council's own minutes and agenda items will reflect those membership the attendance list and our city appointees the name those names matter when you look at how the public is being told that the EDC supports something because you need to know who is supporting that. Um so the hypothetical question that I have is when an advisor advisory sorry advisory body that is not elected weighs

on land use issues that directly impact neighborhoods what transparency standards should apply especially when that input is being used to counterbalance the clearly stated views of the residents multiple times multiple years and the residents are the ones who have to live with the consequences like I said it's a hypothetical question, but it's one that warrants some serious thought as we embark upon this and I'd like to really make sure that we do right by the residents and we spoke no on this and do not support it. Um, and I would like to bring the other conversation back or get related to who's putting the time in over here um with our councils and making driving these changes that we have to continue to have these meetings over and over again when residents have said no. Thank you.

Very good. further commission discussion. Vice Mayor, thank you. Um, I want to reiterate that I have no problem adding healthcare and no problem adding a category. Uh, I I do believe this is a new category of healthcare and we probably should be adding it to our code. My problem is how we got to this these bullet points and this specific code. So, um, Miss Dolan, I have a couple questions for you. is did we do any studies to determine if one and a half acres is standard for one of these? Like what is the average in the county for the the size of the the parcel?

This was proposed by the applicant and it was not proposed by the staff and we did not do any studies.

So this is where I am concerned about staff saying we support it and all of all of what we're hearing here. We didn't do a bottoms up analysis of what makes sense in PMPO Beach. We didn't look at what size lot makes sense. What we didn't look at uh the distance requirement that other cities have. We didn't we didn't benchmark whether they all you have a special exception if it's within a couple hundred feet. So if I made a motion now to change this to two acres and 200 foot buffer. It seems just as random as one and a half acres and no buffer. That would would would that make this site not applicable for Right. So what we have in front of us isn't something that city staff did analysis on and determined this is exactly what we think is the right answer for how PMPO Beach should amend their code to put in these emergency rooms. It is initiated by the applicant and their needs to make this site work. And that has always been my problem. It is still my problem with it. If the city came to us and said we did all this work and we think this is a great way to add freestanding emergency rooms to our city, it would allow them in Palmer. would allow them in district 2, then I would be all for it. But we haven't done any of that work. We have instead fed what is required to make a site work and then written code based on that. Thank you.

Very good. Um I just got Miss Dolan. I've got a couple of questions. Well, maybe for for you, but maybe also for the applicant. I'm not sure. Now, someone was concerned about overnight stays at at at this facility. Is is that allowed? There's no beds in this facility. There's no being admitted. It's an outpatient facility. Very good. I just wanted to get that on the record. Okay. Um, also [clears throat] someone was concerned about does everybody get treated there or do they turn people away if they don't have an insurance?

Good evening, Mayor Commissioners. Matthew Scott from Greensp Marty here on behalf of the uh applicant. No, they don't. They're not allowed to to turn people away if they don't have insurance. So even though they're not I I know this is a text amendment but I'm talking about the particular person who has proposed this. So even though correct that organization is not a tax assisted any freestanding ER for that matter because you're making a policy decision wouldn't be able to turn away people based on their insurance coverage. So the law says everybody gets treated regardless. Gotcha. Very good. Um and thank you for that. Appreciate that. And als um this is probably Miss Dolan again. I'm sorry. I'm sorry to go back and forth like this. Is this identical to what was presented to the planning and zoning board and to the ZBA?

ZBA was a totally different animal. That's when they were trying to come in under the specialty hospital which has such stringent standards they had to get a bunch of variances they couldn't get those. So that's totally separate. The what has changed since P&Z is they added the minimum acreage requirement and they added a more intense buffering requirement. So it's changed since it was before the planning and zoning board. That's correct. But the planning and zoning board's objection was more about having any kind of 24-hour use within 500 feet of a a residential. That was really what they hung their hat on. Gotcha. But there are a lot of commercial uses that would could go here that could be 24-hour uses. So,

understood. Thank you. Very good. Further commission discussion? Um, I'll just go ahead and call the role. Fezit. Nope. Commissioner Perkins. Yes. Commissioner Seagerson Eaton. Yes. Commissioner Smith. Yes. Commissioner Oh, sorry. Vice Mayor Forier. No. Hard. Yes.

Very good. Let's take a 10-minute recess. Heat. Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat.

Down. Hey.

Hey, honey. Hey, hey, hey.

Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat.

Hey, Heat. Heat.

[music]

Heat. Heat. Go ahead and call this PMPA Beach City Commission meeting back to order. That uh finishes up the item number five. Let's move on to item number six is the first reading of an ordinance.

An ordinance of the city commission of the city of Papa Beach, Florida, amending chapter 90 animals by amending section 90.39 retail sale of dogs and cats to provide additional restrictions for the retail sale of dogs and cats within the city providing for severability providing an effective date. So moved. Second moved and second for discussion. Mr. Berman. Thank you. Joined by Mr. McCann who's there supporting me in in the second row. I I looked there before I

That's all right. He's He's We'll get it. Uh as requested by the commission. Uh, I've amended uh our initial proposed ordinance uh in a manner that eliminates uh pet stores from being able to obtain uh pets for sale from hobby breeders and eliminating the definition. Uh pet stores in the city uh hereafter we'll only be able to sell animals from an animal shelter rescue organization uh or one that operates out of a connection with a pet store or retail store. Uh that's the change. Uh, as of now, there is one pet store that has opened under our current ordinance and is active in the city. Uh, we've listed an amateurization period of 180 days for them to come into compliance with these requirements as far as sourcing their animals. Uh, but they will not be able to continue operating uh as they are under this change. Thank you. I have nothing further.

Very good. Thank you for that, sir. This is a public hearing. Is there any input from the public on this item? Please come forward. like to rec recognize city commissioner from Halllandale. Very good. I caught him. Hello, city commissioner. Hi, welcome.

Hi, Michelle Lazero, 2621 Northeast 10th Street, Howlandale Beach. I was just saying that I wish Howandle had this great civic involvement and then I was like, never mind, [laughter] never mind. But it's great that you have such community input. It is. Anyway, I sent you guys an email last night. And I know it was last minute, but in between the time I was here this time and last time, and thank you uh to your attorney, did great job. Um there was a 47page report commissioned by the attorney general in Florida. And the report found that uh deceptive pet sales lost Flidians more than 25 $25 million annually. So, it was clear that the public supported the prohibition of sales in puppy stores. And since 2010, this is out of the report, since 2010, Florida has passed an astounding 87 ordinances that prohibit sales, including Miami Beach, Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and Sarasota. The report warns that more than 80% of puppies sold in Florida, come from largescale commercial breeders, otherwise known as puppy mills. And the policy si suggestion out of this report was that they end the practice of pet retail to save Florida consumers 25 million in spending on the purchase and care of sick animals. So, um, speaking of deceptive practices, as your attorney mentioned, there is one store currently selling puppies, and that store had 27 fake reviews on Yelp, which had to be taken down or acknowledged by Yelp that they were fake. So, this is exactly the deceptive practices the report was talking about. So my question to the commission would

be why would you give bad actors six months to phase out business practices? 90 days is more than fair. Their puppy sales are a very small number. We had someone go in. There was a very few amount of dogs in the back. It's not their primary source of business. So we feel that myself, HSUS and others that have supported this that 90 days instead of 180 days would be very fair and reasonable. Some places give 30 days, 60 days, but I think 90 days given the fact that they've had um 27 fake reviews is probably the best way to go. So thank you.

I almost did a good job. No, it's perfect. It's okay. six months is reasonable, but we asked, you know, 90 days. So, other than that, it's awesome and thank you very much. Very good. Thank you. Further input from the public,

Steve Aren, 1860 Northwest 40th Court, Oakland Park, speaking on on this item because we prohibited this in our city and it was the best thing we ever did. There are too many stray animals, too many animals being put down. There's no need to have any of these puppy mills have a place to proliferate. They're they're terrible practices. I agree with Michelle. I mean, 180 days is a lot. 90 days is sufficient time. They just need to move these things out because they're just going to move to another city. That's what they're going to do. They're going to find another city that they don't have this ordinance. So, I I really wholeheartedly hope he passes on first. I think it's first reading. Uh so [snorts] keep up the good work. I know it's rough. Our commission is not like this. Uh when I'm saying our commission, our commission meetings aren't like this. We have probably this many people in our commission meeting. So you all say whether you agree with each other or not, you all are doing a great job and I and I appreciate what everything you do for Pompo.

Very good. Thank you, sir. Further input from the public. Seeing none, public input closed. Commission discussion. Commissioner Fessk. Thank you. Um, thank you, Michelle, and thank you. Thank you, Mark. I know that that you have done a lot of work on this and and refining it, and I want to say thank you for for working to make sure that it it aligns. Um, I I don't know between the two of you, uh, Mr. McConn, or you who I should ask, is is 90 days a reasonable request or is there a reason why we settled on 180? Just out of curiosity. It wasn't really settled. Uh if I may, your uh mayor, go ahead. Go ahead.

Thank you, mayor. Um we looked around at other cities ordinances and they usually had that was a general period of time. Uh the most uh that we saw is usually 180. Whatever the commission considers a reasonable time. I'm happy to put into the ordinance, but we look around at what some other cities that's where we got it from.

Okay. I I guess maybe rather than having any sort of change, does anybody else I guess up here by maybe by show of hands, would anybody else be opposed to moving it to 90 days without having to I mean just because I don't want to have to go through votes and it's silly, but if I mean so we can wait, but it I mean I'm I'm all for this whether it's 180 days or 90. I think would have to agree 90 days is you know 90 days is more than you get to if you're going to be evicted I think. Right. like to say so you're in or so lots of court things there's I mean 90 days is a sign or 180 is significant

other the other considerations were to allow the store to sell out remaining stock which may have been sourced from uh breeders and and things of that nature. So you know it seemed like a reasonable time period but again we'll do whatever the commission directs. Well I like I said I I I support this no matter what. Um but if if ever if it's amendable to anybody I would be happy with um with shortening the time frame to 90 days. Thanks, Commissioner Seagaton.

Thank you, Mayor. Um, no, I I'm uh I want to get a clarification if I could, Mark, on this current existing store. Is is he just going to have to shut down or is he going to just have to stop selling whatever he's going to have? I know this this store was inspected by our animal control and seem to be but what what what kind of does that put us in any forcing this guy to shut down? Does that hurt is that a danger to the city at all?

Well, there are potent potential legal challenge from from the business. So, we are we're not forcing the shutdown. We're changing the way they source their animals. And I don't know based on the type of dogs that they sell, if they're going to be able to restock or obtain pets for sale. Uh they'll have to do it under the ordinance. Uh we've looked at the law. We've looked at several lawsuits in this regard and uh we're prepared if uh if it comes. But yeah, it does have some there is liability with this in terms of uh potentially forcing a business uh to to be unable to operate. That's a possibility. Can't say it's going to happen, but we're talking about sourcing. We're not talking about we're not forcing them to close their doors.

I'm saving my arguments for the courtroom, but uh it's a good question. Thank you. Um that's all I have, mayor. Thank you. Very good. Further commissioners got Vice Mayor. Yeah, I just want to say thank you to Michelle for her persistence with this one and working with us on it and helping educate everyone on uh the nuances here and thank you to uh Steve for letting us know what's you know what's working in your city and what's not. It's always good to to hear from other people facing the same circumstances. Um I would be in support of the 90 days. So do do we need a motion for that Mark?

I'd like to make a mot helpful just to make it clear. I'd like to make a motion to amend uh G to 90 days and we don't have to readvertise or anything. No, it's not in the title. So, we're good for to 90 days anyway. Second. Moved and seconded to change the 180 days to 90 days. Okay. Um any discussion on the motion? And you can bring this back on sec for second reading, right? Yes. We'll have it change for second reading if the commission so desires. That's right. Okay, let's go ahead and call the RO on the motion. Commissioner Fezit, yes. Commissioner Perkins, yes.

Commissioner Seersonen Eaton, yes. Commissioner Smith, no. Vice Mayor Fornier. Yes. Harden.

Yes. Back on the actual item. Further commission discussion. Commissioner Smith. I um I'm not familiar I don't have a dog so I'm not real familiar with um puppy mills but I am familiar with breeders and um commissioner thank you for sending that late email. I did read through um a little bit of it in the summaries and one of the things that they're recommending is that they modernize lemon laws which would allow the people that buy the the dogs 30 days to report um illnesses. So amending a lemon law which I don't have all the information on it was just one of the things that they mentioned. And also if a pet dealer sided with two pets some more within the same litter that they're they're responsive responsible for their preventive care and their corrective action. So it seems like these are coming from the state that no they're just suggestions to a uni a university came up with. So it to me the breeders that I know of are good breeders. It seems like there should be a way that breeders should be certified so that you know that the animals come from a a litter where the female doesn't have more than one litter a year. And if all we are selling through the pet stores are rescue dogs, how do we know that they aren't sick? How do we know that they haven't been bred come from a litter that's had more than one litter a year? So, it just seems vague to me. And I know that we have a business that um does have hobby bred dogs.

And is that person here tonight? Know they've come in the past. Um I just hate to see us put a business out of business if they're not causing any problems. And I know you cited Yelp, but Yelp to me is not a legal thing. It's just people's opinions online. And have we ever had this store have any violations with the animals? And do we do some kind of inspections periodically? Who who can answer that? Mr. Mr. McConn,

good evening. Rob McConn, public works director. I know based on complaints the animal control officers have visited that pet store and they never documented any issues with the pet store. So selling the dogs or any other aspect of the store. Okay. Thank you. That's and that is our means to know whether they're doing things the right way is through is through the inspections. That's the means that we have as a city to know. Okay. Yep. That's all the questions that I have. Thank you. Very good, Vice Mayor.

Thank you. I want to try my best here, maybe with the help of Mr. Burman to clarify some of this. Um, so, uh, they might not be in violation of the current code, which allows them to have dogs from breeders. Um, so, so a hobby breeder can still sell dogs, they just can't sell them through a pet store, right? um which I think the pet stores are more prone to uh ending up with dogs from puppy mills and sick dogs and and things like that. So, um, you know, I think I I don't know. I have I've I have rescue dogs, but, um, dogs do end up animal shelters, and I don't know how this works that you can sell dogs from a shelter. Then I guess shelters still can, but you can't um lack of violations from the the the existing store. um still means that they are selling puppies from breeders right now because that's our code, right? Is that correct?

Yes, it is.

Okay. Um Okay. So, we are eliminating that in item one and item two here. So, um I look I think the study that was sent around last night too um was really eye opening from the attorney general that this is on the state's radar as such a costly issue and really um that for consumers um which I would not have thought about it from that perspective as much that this is really a financial issue for consumers who spend even with credit card like there there's like lending practices that are associated with some of these businesses and you end up paying what was like 16 or $20,000 for a dog that cost less than that. So, it sounds it seems like there's a lot of deceptive practices in and around some of these businesses too. So, um it was an interesting study and I appreciate it seeing that. But I I do have concerns about the business, the one business we have, but they are still able to be a operate as a pet store. They just can't sell the couple dog. They can't continue to sell the couple dogs that they have from breeders, right? Right. They can sell anything else. Not preventing them from selling anything else in the store, right?

Cats, but animals. Yes, animals. Yes. Okay. Thank you. Um, go ahead, Commissioner Fess. Sure.

Just one just one thing. So, you're correct that this store does have other things besides pets. They sell accessories and all the things that every good pet owner wants to bo buy and spoil their pet with and you know even you know really adorable things. So to be fair they have the means to to continue to do business by even eliminating this. So it's not necessarily putting them out of business. Um if anything they would probably be able to have more space for the more retail um and the retail markup. So just in just in history, the the the markup in the pet industry is a good one. It's a good solid business because people love their pets and they treat them like members of their family and they become members of their family. So I I think if you look at how many of our residents and and people around the world consider their pets as family. If you're bringing someone into your home, you want to make sure that that person has or that that the puppy has been or cat has been cared for and and has the best start ever. For somebody else to deceptively practice and say, "Hey, we've got this dog this dog or cat and we're going to charge you 10 or $15,000 for this dog or cat that's a specialty breed that is literally just sitting." And if you've ever seen the videos of some of these puppy mills, I would encourage you between this reading and the next to please do that sad research. And it's it's worse than the Sarah Mclalen Dog is animals commercial from the '90s. Um it's bad. It's really scary and it's sad. So this is something about being responsible stewards of how we conduct business in the city and and just being good people in general, making sure that other people don't profit off of really really terrible practices. Thank you.

Very good. Um Mr. McConn, question for you. So there's a lot of discussion about puppy mills. Um are they is this business that's open in PMPA right now? Are they buying from puppy mills? I don't know the answer to that question. I have no documentation that they're buying from puppy mills. And it's when what what do we inspect for? Well, the health of the animal that's in the store and the source certificate of where the animal came from. So, you know, is how thoroughly is that checked on that documentation? I don't I don't have record of that.

So, that's that that's kind of the crux of the issue. Is that it? I mean, you're from your viewpoint [clears throat] about this matter that okay, there's could be fraud involved with that documentation where the dog comes from. The concern is there could be puppy meals, but we have no record of that occurring in the city. So, there was not currently a problem in the city we need to address. The concern is something may happen in the future I think is what this ordinance is trying to address. Okay. Mayor. Okay. Mr. Burman,

they have to provide a certificate of source. It's it's documentation where it came from the they're not supposed to have that more than one litter uh per year, etc., etc. Unfortunately, we have no way to inspect or no way to uh determine if the materials they're furnishing are self- serving or correct or not. We try and set we tried to set as tight standards. Matter of fact, we use the standards provided years ago by Hallandale Beach that we utilized. We use their ordinance. It's changed and things have changed since then, but there's no way other than go out, inspect, see if the animals appear to be uh well cared for, healthy, etc. And that's what Mr. McCann's staff is doing. Uh we have standards, but again, it is somewhat self- serving. They get to the paperwork gets filled out. That's how it's done basically. I did want to mention one other thing that the governor I know called for changes. I don't know if the legislature is going to do anything. Currently, uh, section 828.29, Florida statutes, deals with dogs and cats offered for sale, health requirements, consumer guarantees. That section obviously has a lot of loopholes and is not or potentially from what we've heard from Miss Lazro is not doing what it's supposed to do. um whatever the commission decides tonight and I'm not pushing one way or the other. My point is that we will continue, my office will monitor this legislative session. If anything changes that would allow a change in our code, I'll bring that back to you at a later time no matter what. So, we'll keep an eye out to Tallahassee, see if there are any changes for you. That's all I wanted to let you know.

Very good. Thank you. For the commission discussion, Commissioner Seerson Eden, just just one more thing. Um again this existing business I mean I'm I'm a little bit torn uh because he did he's doing it according to what our current code says and I wouldn't and and we're sort of you know maybe a large portion of his business you know comes from these these animals. Uh, I don't know. But is there would it would it be beneficial at all to at least grandfather uh this this business in potentially?

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Commissioner. Commissioner, I'm sorry. I I I can't do that. Thank you. Um, doie. Very good. Um, all right. Well, I don't you know, you know, Commissioner Seerson, you've got the floor. It it it I'm just worried that uh we're going to be there will be some liability and but if uh the rest of the commission isn't, then I'm fine with it, you know. Thank you. We're good. Further commission discussion? No, we're good. Right. Seeing none, let's call the role. Change can be made. So, Commissioner Fezic, yes. Commissioner Perkins, yes.

Sigerson Eaton, yes. Commissioner Smith, no. Vice Mayor Pier, yes. Mayor Harden, yes. Item seven is a second reading of an ordinance. An ordinance of the city commission of the city of Palm Beach, Florida chapter 97, noise control of the code of ordinances by amending section 97.60 noise disturbance to provide for alternative enforcement providing for severability providing an effective date. So moved. Second. Moved and seconded for discussion. Mario. Good evening, Mayor Flango. Thank you, sir. Marius Talongo, uh, code compliance director for the city of Pmp Beach. Um, there have been no changes since first reading. Um, I'm here open for any questions you might have.

Very good. Thank you for that. This is a public hearing. Is there any input from the public on this item? Seeing none, public input closed. Commission discussion, questions, concerns. Seeing none, let's call the role. Commissioner Pasik, yes. Commissioner Perkins, yes. Commissioner Sigerson Eaton, yes. Commissioner Smith, yes. Vice Mayor Pornier. Yes. Mayor Hart. Yes. Item number eight is a second reading ordinance. An ordinance of the city commission of the city of PMPO Beach, Florida, approving and authorizing the proper city officials to execute a service contract between the city of PMPO Beach and Miller Electric Company for as needed repair and maintenance of electrical switch gears providing for severability providing an effective date. So moved. Second. Moved and second for discussion. Miss Muhammad

RN Muhammad Utilities Directive for the city of PMPO Beach. Uh no changes from the first reading. Very good. Thank you for that. This is a public hearing. Is there any input from the public on this item? Seeing none, public input closed. Commission discussion. Seeing none, let's call the role. Commissioner Fez, yes. Commissioner Perkins, yes. Commissioner Seager, Eaton, yes. Commissioner Smith, yes. Forier, yes. Harden, yes. Item nine is a second read of an ordinance. An ordinance of the city commission of the city of Pablo Beach, Florida, approving and authorizing the proper city officials to execute a service agreement between the city of Palmetto Beach and Electric Power Switch Gear Inc. for as needed electrical switch gear maintenance and repair services providing for severability providing an effective date. So moved. Second.

Moved and second for discussion. Once again, Miss Mohamd. No changes from the first reading. Very good. Thank you for that. This is a public hearing. Is there any input from the public on this item? Seeing none, public input closed. Commission discussion? Seeing none, let's call the role. Commissioner Fezic, yes. Commissioner Perkins, yes. Commissioner Seagerson Eaton, yes. Commissioner Smith, yes. Vice Smith Forier, yes. Harton, yes. Item 10 is the second reading of an ordinance. An ordinance of the city commission of the city of Papa Beach, Florida, approving and authorizing the proper city officials to execute a service agreement between the city of Pala Beach and Mills Electric Service Incorporated for as needed electrical switch gear maintenance and repair services, providing for servability, providing an effective date. So moved.

Second. moved and second for discussion. Once again, Miss Muhammad, no changes from the first reading. Very good. Thank you. This is a public hearing. Is there any input from the public on this item? Seeing none, public input closed. Commission discussion. Seeing none, let's go ahead and call the roll. Commissioner Fez, yes. Commissioner Perkins, yes. Commissioner Singerson, Eaton, yes. Commissioner Smith, yes. Vice Mayor Pier, yes. Hard. Yes. Item number 11 is the second reading of an ordinance. An ordinance of the city commission of the city of Palm Beach, Florida, approving and authorizing the proper city officials to execute a service agreement between the city of Palm Beach and Caris LLC for the purchase of corrosion control chemicals providing for severability providing an effective date. So moved. Second.

Moved and second for discussion. Once again, Miss Mohammed. No changes from the first reading. Very good. This is a public hearing. Is there any input from the public on this item? Seeing none, public input closed. Commission discussion, questions, concerns? Seeing none, let's go ahead and call the role. Commissioner Fezic. Yes. Commissioner Perkins. Yes. Commissioner Seagerson eaten. Yes. Commissioner Smith. Yes. Vice Mayor Pornier. Yes. Hard. Just for the public's knowledge, they don't all go this easy, but yes. Yes. [laughter] It's not over yet. All right. That takes us up to additional audience to be heard. Yes, Mayor. We have uh some speakers here. A moment while I gather the paperwork.

Absolutely. And thank you for your patience. Okay, first speaker, David Miller. David Miller. Okay, you didn't have patience. Speaker, Brandy Zebedo. Okay, just name and address for the record and please limit your comments to three minutes.

Hello. Good evening. My name is Brandy Zabidol and not only do I live in Desist 2, I represent the PMPO Beach Highlands and I would like to say that I'm here in support of the Pompo Eagles and I'm so grateful that we as a commission and mayor were able to clear up some of those quote rumors. I'm so glad that we have confirmed that the Pompo Eagles will stay at their nest at North PMPO Park. In addition to that, I would also like to bring forth some um things that are kind of alarming and concerning. But before I do that, I'd also like to thank Scott Moore and Tommy Bright for their continued support of all the things that we hope to bring forward and to continue working together with us as a community. In addition to that, we do have some residents who are continuously complaining to specifically our sitting commissioner for our district. And two, um I think that it's very important that we only we we don't just only advocate for the people who are complaining but also find a solution. I find that I am very solutionoriented and I have gone in the neighborhood in the community and have found solutions for the problems because these are my people and I speak for them. So with that being said, I'd like to bring to your attention that our defiill machines that everybody else in the city seems to get, ours is locked up in a in a room that has no access. So whose life matters? Because we have one on the golf course, but not for our children at the Pompo Eagles. I'd also like to bring to your attention that during all of our football games or a good majority of them including their practices, the bathrooms are locked and we're not able to access them and we have people using the restrooms outside. And as a fellow Rotarian, Mr. Mayor, you would also know that it is very important for sanitation purposes that we have access to those kinds of things. And as the four-way test, this is not all this is not fair to everyone involved. So, I'm here as their voice and as their person to represent them to also let you know that the field lights are turned off while they're on the field. The children are on the field and the lights are turned off on them. They

don't have proper ventilation inside of their um their concession stand that supposedly is state-of-the-art, but I've seen the other facilities that the other teams have and it's nothing in comparison. So, how about before we start to advocate for only a specific kind of person who maybe looks like you and and is this is also an election year. So, it also makes sense that maybe we have a conversation with everybody involved and not specifically the ones who support your initiatives and your election and your Brandy, please address the chair.

Oh, of course. And in addition to that, I have actively been working on these solutions with my park management and my directors and I've been working around the commissioner because these are my people and I speak for them. So this will not be the last time you hear from me, but I'm so grateful that you have conf con confirmed that we are not moving anywhere and we will keep our nest here at North Pompo. Thank you very much. We're good. Thank you. Next speaker, Delvin King.

Just just name and address for the record and please limit your comments to three minutes.

All right. Delvin King, 2601 Northwest 12th Street. So, it looks like we got some disconnect here in our district. Things it looks like it should have been met behind closed door. A good commissioner knows what's going on in their community and would have an open door polit policy. See, majority of the problem here is that a lot of you guys are not reachable. Everybody's locked up on the fourth floor and it's a big inconvenience. I request that all commissioners have an office move to their district. Just about everybody has a community center that the office should be located at. I think except district one, but you you can go to the library or the firehouse. I know you don't care. But that's majority of the issue. These people should have been able to come to you somewhere in their community and knock on your office door and meet with you. Not well telling through the mayor letting you know that they should be able to meet with them. So majority of the problem is there's a disconnect between the people and the commission. There these people shouldn't have to come in here and make this big ordeal about some foolishness going on at the park. But that's something that again not just you but our city manager Mr. Sleepy should have been taken care of. So let me say this also. We need change here in Pompo. It's time for ch. It's time for new leadership here in Pompo. It's time for some new people to sit on this DAS so that we can have change because it seems like we keep going through the same thing over and over and over. And again, I'm tired of seeing things being done through

people being being said through people that have a $150,000 contract here in Pompo. How could you have a $150,000 contract in Pompo work for the city? You're supposed to be working with the city, but from what I see on Facebook, they're working against certain people on this das. They work for whoever it works for so that they can deliver the message that they want to deliver. But I'm, you know, I'm not going to talk about RMA today. But listen, go ahead.

I think I'm the best choice to sit in uh district five seat. So, I'm just letting you know, Miss Smith, you got some smoke coming cuz I'm coming for your seat. Thank you so much. Very good. Next speaker. That concludes audience to be heard. That's it. Okay. Very good. [snorts] Bless you. All right. Um that takes us up our next scheduled meetings. We got February 10th, 2026 at 1 p.m. a regular city commission meeting, followed by February 24th, 2026 at 6 p.m. a regular city commission meeting. That takes us up to reports. Mr. Harrison, city manager. Mayor, excuse me. I'm sorry, Commissioner Perkins.

Before if if you don't mind, can I go before the city manager? I'm just not feeling the best today, but I just want to go first. Fine. You don't mind? Go ahead. Your report. Commissioner Perkins report.

Yeah, my report. So, I wanted to um bring to um everyone's attention that I sent a letter to um excuse my voice, but I sent a letter to um BSO regarding the January 13th incident that happened at um 920 Northwest 8th Avenue in the city of PMPO Beach where um an incident uh captured police officers um beating and kicking a resident that was on the ground. and I waited to hear from city staff. I'd never heard anything and I waited to hear from BSO. I didn't hear anything. So, [snorts] I did um speak with the chief and he said that he could not give me any information because there is a review or investigation going on regarding the um the incident. However, my concern is this. Um I was told that it aired on channel 7 or channel 10. I don't know which one, but at that point when it aired, I think this city or BSO should have spoke publicly to the community and have should have said something, but at this point, nothing has been said or done other than it's an investigation. Um, now I know that an investigation can last months, maybe a year and and I'm thinking maybe BSO think it will quiet down or have some idea that it might quiet down. But I want you to understand you cannot cover up what the eyes see.

So this video is out there and I expected staff or BSO to address address this community which is district 4 and no one has done that. Now, if this incident, excuse [clears throat] me, if this incident had happened on the beach or in a different district, I'm sure there would have probably been a press conference or something. I don't want BSO to be lax in this to think it's going to go away. Um, because silence or delay only deepens the mistrust

from the community and I think this incident needs to be addressed. Now, I did send a letter to BSO requesting one, two, three, four, five different areas, and I'm told that we're waiting on the um the investigation to be completed. So, I just need BSO to know that we're not going to sweep this under the rug. It's not going to go away and we're waiting on a response from the community. I don't know whether you are in contact with the family. Have you spoken to the family of this young man to find out how he's doing or anything? But I just feel like the the Northwest community has been neglected because there has not been a um excuse me, a response from BSO regarding u this incident. Now, I did receive a letter, a return letter from the the chief that of course it's an ongoing process and that he can only give me limited information. However, the community has not received anything, nothing. So, this video is going viral. Everybody can see with their own eyes what has been happening. No one from BSO or this city is saying a word, but the community is talking. So, I need BSO to get on top of this because it's not going to go away. That's that. And I wanted to um the last thing is I wanted [snorts] to thank everybody for attending the um the MFK celebration uh in Pmpo Beach. I thought it was a great event. I was very happy with the um commissioners that all showed up and turned up for the event. And uh with that, I'm done. Thank you, Mayor.

Good. Thank you. Hope you feel better. Hope you feel better. Back to you, Mr. Harrison. Yes, sir. So, uh, Alex is bringing around copies for each one of you. The the top document is the notice of funding availability for this budget year's uh, HUD monies in CDBG and home. Uh, there's a detailed breakdown of how that works. And uh Commissioner, I'll get you extra copies for your uh Yeah, he he just sent one at your I got it.

Okay. All right. And uh then the next booklet is from our building department uh which is uh rep represents all of significant projects that uh are in the building department. Now, there's a cumulative total of over $900 million in new projects. So, I guess we're doing something right. [laughter] That's my report. Very good. It's uh got Mr. Rat there. [cough and clears throat] [snorts] It's good. Very good. We'll move on. City attorney, Mr. Burman.

Thank you. Do I have no booklets or materials? So I have no report. Thank you. Okay. Next. Next time, Mr. Alfred, city clerk. No report. All right. Moving right along. That takes us up. Commission city commission commissioner Fessic.

Um so I wanted to kind of briefly bring up two two topics. The first is related to a lot of the commentary um that has gone on related to the Oceanside parking garage um and the the fishing village area. Um I at my last meeting, my last community meeting, I had a I had a lot of conversations with residents um because it was right after that our our last meeting. I also met with business owners in the area and I've met with a couple different HOAs and other members of the community as well as participating in a lot of conversations about the reasons why I felt a certain way and how I think we can do better. Um, in the midst of all of this, it was brought to my attention that there's still very much a push for me to rethink my decision and to come back at or revisit a this conversation. I want to make sure no matter what that you understand that I'm going to only do things that make sense for the community as a whole. Um, and so if anybody has any questions about that, I want to make sure that you can come to me directly and make sure that you know that and invite you to rather than believing what somebody else may be saying or assuming because assumptions know what they do and we're not going to go there. Um, so please come to me. Honestly, I think we were promised things during phase initially during the Pompa Beach Fishing Village initial deploy when we were talking about how we're going to make all these things happen. I read through all the documentation. It was supposed to be a phased approach there. You heard there were supposed to be markets, a market. There were supposed to be a a parking garage. There were supposed to be some green space. It was supposed to be walkable from the inter coastal all the way to the beach. And I know that that's what residents would really still still love to have. Yes, we need a place to park, but we also need a place to enjoy where we're parking, not just be shoved between buildings. So, uh, I'll save the the bulk of that for another conversation. But, um, I do have the second thing that I want

to make sure that I bring to your attention is I was I received and I and I want to thank staff for getting it to me on time. We have in the city um, the ability for our city manager to approve concurrence contracts or procurement uh, with a procurement threshold. And I know you may or may not have heard it before. Um but my question in some of this is what are scope change thresholds would be? So at what point does a change in scope of work require a contract to be rebid rather than automatically approved through a concurrence process especially when that contract and there were multiples of them do not have uh said that they would just expire otherwise. Um secondly dollar increase limits. I don't know if we have any under concurrence. Um, that can be something that I will meet with the city manager on. But the biggest the biggest question I have is at what point do we end up having some sort of oversight as a board as a commission to bring an amended proposed contract back to us rather than having it fall through the concurrence agenda where we may not understand or have any issues with. So there's a few I'm not questioning the vendor because there's multiples under this concurrence process. I'm questioning just the process itself and I want to make sure that we're using concurrence as it's supposed to be intended rather than a workaround when scope and cost expand significantly. Um so I wanted to just I would like to have a I would like to have a conversation publicly um about concurrence and I think that we have a workshop that we were supposed to have at some point related to this. So, I just wanted to make sure I could ask the city manager when does that look when does that procurement or will we be having a procurement or or concurrence conversation collectively as a workshop anytime soon? And can we

So, you're wanting to review these contracts that we that we've gotten and but do it in a public forum. I feel that this is feel like there's some that make complete sense, right? There's some that that make complete sense when you go through them. They haven't changed. The scope of work hasn't changed. People have done exactly what they've always done. That is concurrence. When a scope of work changes significantly or the dollar amount changes significantly at that point, do we have a process where something would warrant review or is it just automatically as long as it's under that threshold? Well, it wouldn't be automatic, but we would take each situation, you know, uh, individually and weigh the factors.

Okay. Well, I'd like to I'd like to make a motion then that that we bring back a formal that um Mr. Harrison, you bring back a formal policy clarifying concurrence contract limits, including dollar and scope thresholds that trigger rebidding or commission review, required documentation for scope changes, and transparency safeguards because concurrence is supposed to be used for efficiency but not for a workaround to expanded contract scope. And I just want to make sure that that we have that are able to have that discussion deep though. So you you made a motion to to have to ask the city manager to bring some information to Yes. Yeah.

No, for a formal policy to bring back a form to have a formal policy clarifying these things to bring it back to us to vote on to discuss to to vote on and maybe it's a motion for a I don't know what it's going to be. I mean I I just trying to figure out what what your motion. The motion is to bring back a formal policy clarifying those concurrence contract limits. I believe there is one, isn't there, Mr. Burman? Yes. But clarifying them, I'd like to be able to Let's let Mr. Burman, can you tell me is is There is a policy. Yes, there is a policy. Okay. So, there's no clarific There is a policy.

Correct. There's a policy, but there's a policy. Is there a scope change threshold policy? Is there a dollar increase limits under concurrence policy? Is there substantive substantive vers um substantive change versus administration policy? Is there compet comparability and fairness? At what point does it go out or should it go back through the procurement process? These are the things that I would like to have addressed. And it's not it's again it's not about vendors. It's about us being stewards of of the money that's going out. And like I said, I appreciate very much the fact that we we had the opportunity to review these contracts. It does warrant the amount of money that's been going out the door and the changes in some of the contracts warrant a second review and and and warrant us making sure we're paying more attention to be stewards of of the finances in the city. Well, that that's that I mean, whatever you want to do is fine, but I'm just trying I'm just trying to make sure that all that information isn't already in the policy. And that's why I'm looking at Mr. Burman. Mr. Burman, I mean, as long as changes in scope or changes in dollar amounts or or any of those other changes that Commissioner Fessick was talking about, as long as they're underneath certain thresholds within our policy, there's there's no reason for it to come to us for review. Is that

We'll revisit this again at another time. We're not I'm just trying Commissioner F. I'm just trying to get get I mean if you if you my report that's fine with sign we'll just I mean it's No, seriously. I'm just trying to get the information you're looking for. I or understand the information you're looking for.

Well, many times when I'm trying to get information I'm looking for I get shut down. So I would just figured I would try to be upfront about what I was looking for to be very collectively clear that we continue to have problems where these vendors are having bloated contracts and the money is going out the door. There's one contract in here that is for um for a project that we have not approved the budget for. So I I just there's there's a few things in here that that that's why I'd like to say have policies to make sure we know what we're signing off on and if there is something out of sorts that we are made aware of it. That's all. Um all right, that's it. I that's all. I'm not I'm not gonna I'm not gonna if if nobody wants to to work there, then then I'll I'll skip it. I'll I'll move on. Um, I I keep going. I mean, at this point, at this point, it's one of those things where I'm not meant when I have something to say or I ask certain questions, one of the things that I do not appreciate is is is having where my words repeated back to me as if I'm a 5-year-old. I I I just don't appreciate that. Um, so anyway, out of out of concern for brevity and I'm tired and I'm ready to go home. Um before I do wrap up, I want to thank everyone who did come out to the meetings um that I did have and the conversation that we had. I did made this u WhatsApp group so it's easier to con to for announcements. Um I'll just set it there. It's basically I'll put it on my website as well, but it's just a way that's one-sided. You have announcements only. So basically instead of having to send out emails non-stop, which nobody really checks anymore, you can just get so you know when a commission meeting is coming. You can know when there's just a city of information like we have this beautiful uh Thank you again, Scott. we have this beautiful um calendar of events in February. So anytime there's an event I can share, I will make sure that I share it so that you are aware of what's happening in our district. Um secondly, our next D district 1 meeting will be scheduled is scheduled for February 11th um from 7 to 8:00 p.m. Um I'm going to share a few more details soon, but just save the date for now and time on your calendar. I wanted to thank

you very much for staying connected and engaged. It's going to be it's going to be a long road, but I want to appreciate and send my appreciation to everybody who did show up. And I think the appreciation we were shown by having people show up at 6 p.m. in mass and and show their appreciation for speaking on topics that were important to them should be celebrated. Um although Miss though Commissioner Perkins is not here, we have two birthdays this month. Mine is one of them and hers is the other. U before we see each other again. So, happy birthday to Commissioner Perkins and um happy Yeah, happy birthday to me and another year older and I'm not sure about the wiser part, but we'll figure that out later. Anyway, hope hope you guys have a rest of your great night and thanks again for everything.

Very good. Commissioner Seagerson Eaton.

Thank you, Mayor. Um, so I just want to make an announcement to um some of the folks that have um emailed and called and I also want to thank them. Apparently we have a issue with some of the new street lights. Some of the globes were defective. Some of the other cities other cities have experienced this thing. So they're they're they're going out and they're sort of going out all at once in an area. So we do have our si uh city engineer uh John Stfopoulos working with um FPNL. In fact, they have a meeting a in-person meeting scheduled for February 12th. FPNL is aware of the situation and is working to fix it and assess where they are. Um, and as as I've always said, uh, I don't if I don't live on your street, I don't know your street lights out. And I've if I I'll I'll give my number here right right here in public, but I have my cell phone number on all my business card. I always say it takes a community to make a community great. So, by calling me, um, it's the best thing you can do for your community. So my number is 954-5477179. And I want to thank the city engineer John uh for looking into it. And also I just want to briefly touch upon how I'm looking forward to having a conversation with the coaches and the boosters from the Eagles organization. I I uh not trying to move the Eagles out and and it just would be so much better if you had all communicated with me. Coach Pop has my cell phone

number. Call me. Let's set up a meeting with uh with y'all and staff. I do have about 600 residents that Excuse me. That's okay. Okay, that's Oh, yes. That's That's enough. I always return my phone calls. Sir, sir, sir, sir, sir, please, please. Go, go ahead. Go ahead, Commissioner Seagerson. Eaten.

Thank you. Um, now I lost my train of thought. Um, I do have 600 residents that live in the apartment complex behind there and another couple hundred that live to the surrounding areas. So, I I have a balance. And I got a lot of noise complaints the last two years. a lot. So, um I know we can find a compromise and we can work together and things will be lovely because I do represent the Highlands and I do represent District 2. Thank you. Very good. Thank you, Commissioner Smith.

You know, I do. Um the last quarter of 2025 um there was an increase in fires in our city and we had three condo fires just in district 5 in the last quarter. So I asked um our fire chief Pete McInness, hey Pete, to um help me with an article uh that I could publish and I dedicated my December newsletter to that article on smoke alarms and kitchen fire prevention. And on March 4th, I know it's a ways away, but um Chief is going to and his team are going to hold a fire safety training at Skolnick and we're going to learn how to use a fire extinguisher. I don't know how to use a fire extinguisher and I bet a lot of people don't know how to use a fire extinguisher and I am welcoming any district that wants to join us at Skoolnick. We have the big room. I'm going to get some flyers or if you want to do something in your district, um let's all rally together because we do have an issue across the city recently with with some fires. So, thank you um [snorts] Chief um McInness for helping me with that. And um also we got an email, we all got an email from from Major Elwood that overall citywide crime is decreased. It's decreased for all across the board 13% with 405 fewer f crimes reported between 2024 in 2025 and homicide incidences are down 39%. I had an error in my newsletter and you would have seen that it was down nine but it's actually down 39% and it's down on every single category. So thank you BSO for for what you do to keep our community safe. We appreciate that. Um, on January 15th, it was an honor to be at Comp PMPO's Community Court where 23

graduates of the program were there. Thank you to uh, Cassandra Rhett. Thank you to um, Judge Florence Taylor and Judge Betsy Benson for everything you do to do community court to change people's lives, to get people on track. And this is this is graduates that are that are working that are housed that have just gone through all the programs to change the life around. And thanks to community court, the judges and a lot of community service people that come forward to help Judge Ang. Oh, I didn't have that on my list. [clears throat] She's she's new.

She's new. Okay. And um my positive quote for tonight is my quote that I had on my shirt at the MLK parade, which was a great parade. Little cold, but great. But my quote is I, and it's so perfect for everything our world is going through right now, even today. His quotes just are impactful. I've decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear. Thank you, Mayor. Thank you, Commissioner Smith. Vice Mayor, thank you. I I know it's late, but it's not as late as it normally is. So, I [laughter] do have optimistic.

It is. So, I have a few things because every time we're so tired, it's five, six hours in. I think we're only at three and a half. So, that's my that's my positive for the night. Um, so it gives us more time to talk. Um, a couple quick updates and then I have kind of a long um thing that I want to talk about that's been on my mind. Um, I will resume my community meetings next month. We did not get one on the schedule for January. So, I'll resume community meetings at the American Legion next month. Um, before I forget, happy birthday, it sounds like to Commissioner Fezik. Um, and Commissioner Perkins. Uh, and, uh, I want to give two updates quickly and then talk about what like what I said, what's on my mind. So, um, the six terrace bridge has the RFP is back out on the street for this project. So, I want to let residents know that we are continuing to work on this one. Uh the the bid uh or the RFP went out January 9th, I believe. There was a pre-biders conference call on January 15th and bids are due on February 9th. So, after that, obviously, the procurement process is is underway and will take place and hopefully um we get some responses that um that meet all of the criteria and timeline that we of have required. So that is the update on that bridge. We are still working on it. Um to to address Commissioner Fez questions about concurrency and and and just some of those details. I don't want to just dismiss that or you to feel like it's being dismissed. It it always brings me back to this procurement workshop and when are we going to have it? So, I know we sat down and had one-on- ones, but at one point this commission did vote to have a procurement workshop, and it still hasn't been scheduled, and it's it's probably been almost a year. So, I' I'd like again an update on when that is

being scheduled, like on a calendar notice basically for when it is because we did vote as a body to have that, and I I think it's important. and I had a one-on-one meeting with um assistant city manager Earl Bosworth and uh our purchasing director and it was very informative but a lot came out of it that I want to be able to discuss with my colleagues and I think the a workshop is the best way to do that. Um I think that's all of the things I have on that. So I wanted like I said it's something big on my mind about how this city operates here. Um, and I want to talk about these issues. Uh, so it's really about how we do deals here in Pompo and the collective future of our of our city because the deals we make in the past, the deals we're making now really impact the residents here now, but also the future of our city and what it looks like. And we heard a lot here tonight. We heard a lot from residents. Uh, and I know all of us hear from people. So, um, you know, right now I do hear a lot of residents who are are having big issues with uncertainty and rising costs and feeling overextended and they have real legitimate concerns. Um, I've seen some businesses closing, more businesses closing. Um, you see coming soon signs, but not as many businesses saying open for business. Uh, and then we have some business owners coming here to our meetings making really ominous predictions if we don't do the right things that they may not make it. So, uh, I want to talk about a few of these big projects and how we got here and what we're going to do. Um, so the first one I want to talk about is the pump because I recently saw a new Curish development in Virginia and it always reminds me when I see them moving on to other places and all the success and all the checks being handed out to communities, it reminds me of of what we were promised here and what we've

actually seen. So, I asked Kervin to put up some a presentation for me uh and just for everyone to kind of remind everyone of what we were sold, what the management team here, uh and the vision was for. Um it was beautiful. I mean, some of the renderings, you might as well just put them in a frame. They were so pretty. Um there was like a crystal lagoon. Uh there was a lake for boating and fishing. There was a Publix. Um, and these things were all promised as part of it. So, I want the first one I sent you, Kvin, just as a reminder. Thank you. Um, you kind of just scroll through them. You can see the pictures and then there's Keep scrolling. There's uh going Whoa.

Yeah. Well, I just want people to I just want a kind of a quick like reminder of what this looked like in this jewel that it was supposed to be this $2 billion project. Um, you can keep going. Yeah. The lake, the I mean the the live entertainment district, the the flagship Publix with new retail going in. Um, the the the the outdoor gaming areas, all of this keep going. The the lake for fishing and boating. I mean, I when I looked through this, I was I actually had kind of forgotten about some of the amenities that we don't see. Keep going. Keep going. Um there's some point we're going to get to the lake, the walkable main street. There we go. So, I think that's I I mean, I think that's a good reminder of what was promised out there. Um and the community was sold this vision and we gave the rights away to to do this. And what we've seen now is I think very little progress. and there's no accountability. And that's what bothers me the most about some of these big developments, the lack of accountability. Um, I think because memories are short and elections happen and there's always someone to blame, the can just keeps getting kicked down the road. But what's actually happening out there, as a reminder, is there's no restaurants or entertainment district. There's no Crystal Lagoon. There's no lake for boating. There is no Publix. There is no hotel. And there's really no signs of any of that coming. In fact, some of it we know isn't coming. Um, I have never seen a report on how many jobs were created for Pompo residents out there. Um, and then I saw Virginia I saw them holding a check for the city for $15 million uh from from Cordish Group. And I I I mean I think we could really use a $15 a $15 million check that would help pave our roads and and you know buy some of the capital assets we buy every year. I know that's not how it happens, but but really we have not uh we have no accountability for for what has happened

out there. Um I want to know how many jobs are created. I want to know how and I want to know what's going to happen and when. Um who I don't know who in the city or who here holds developers accountable, but it seems like nobody does. Just able to kick the can down the road for as long as as they can get away with it and they've moved on to other projects. So this one really bothers me. Um, the other thing I want to talk about is um the beach. The the businesses came here and they were very frustrated about the lack of parking as am I, but they were promised more parking and that was kind of allowed to fester or percolate for years until now all of a sudden we are in a crisis situation. And to me, the fact that we've let it get to the point where is a crisis, that is a failure of of leadership. Um, but I want to remind everyone this commission did not create that problem. Uh the ball was dropped a long time ago and now there's like this self-inflicted urgency to rubber stamp a process that some of us don't have confidence in at a price tag that we can't stomach of $12 million more than the next bid. Uh, and it feels like wrapped in a bit of manipulation, politics, pressure, uh, quid proquo, uh, cone of silence violations, like all of it just designed to force us to go along into compliance. And I will not, for one, rubber stamp any deal unless I think we're getting the best deal available. So, I think there's a history of this city making bad deals, and I, for one, will not support what I view to be a bad deal uh, that squanders taxpayer dollars. Um, and then one other project that I want to talk about, which I always get ridiculed for talking about, but it's it's important. It's uh all of those glossy uh flyers and renderings that RMA created that uh convinced the mayor and other commissioners and city manager to uh take a lane out of Atlantic Boulevard. Um that is a failed project. Now, at

this point, people come talk about it all the time. It's online. We all sit in the gridlock. It has permanently altered the character of the neighborhoods in my district and created gridlock. So, we were all told Atlantic Boulevard will flow perfectly and the sidewalks will be full of people walking. Um, well, it doesn't flow perfectly. Doesn't flow at all sometimes and there aren't people on sidewalks. So, this it will work. Just trust us. Didn't work. And trust is not a plan. Trust isn't data. It's not measurable and it didn't work. So, I understand why people have are hesitant to trust at times. Um, I'm going to reiterate the plea. What are we going to do about Atlantic Boulevard? And what are we going to do about the old Pompo neighborhood that now has cutth through traffic flying through the the grid of streets? We have got to figure out a plan for that neighborhood. And Atlantic Boulevard may be secondary at this point because it's such a it's we're still not even done messing it up, but um Old Pompo deserves uh their neighborhood to be looked at and prioritized because they were the casualty of the poor decision and the the people who get punched drunk on pretty renderings. Uh so I want to plan for old pump and out Mr. Harrison. uh you know and then we've got I always say the past is always the biggest predictor of the future. Uh so we have a history of making bad deals. Um with the downtown being what I view as one of the biggest ones of those bad deals. Um the the city the city has asked us to take on hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of taxpayers for the last year. um take on all this debt, burn through millions of dollars of taxpayer money, paying developers and consultants with, you know, nothing to show. Um the residents here are smart and they see it

and um they don't want to give up more land and rights to developers in exchange for these empty promises and overdevelopment. They're sick of it. Um, and the residents notice when there are people who spend years fighting against the city, then all of a sudden they get a six-f figureure contract and they're change their tone completely. Like the, you know, we always advocate for transparency, but transparency has a way of of making its way uh to the top. People people things become clear as time goes on. Um, but I'm going to ask on that project, too. Where are the jobs going to be? Where how are small local companies going to benefit? How are people going to afford to live here? And what is the economic benefit benefit of all this growth for the people who are here? Uh and as we give land away and rights are given away and green space is given away and neighborhoods aren't protected by this commission, uh pe people are forced to live in a city that they they didn't choose and it doesn't reflect their vision. So, it's simple for me. Uh, we need to stop believing these ridiculous pretty pictures. Um, we need to stop funneling money to outside developers and we need to trust the residents who understand what is at stake here. Like the people who showed up today and knew what was at stake for their neighborhood and the people who show up and talk about the loss of the green space at the air park. They see the writing on the wall. They know what it's going to look like here in 5 years or 10 years if you just keep giving incremental bits away to anyone who comes and asks. So, we need to fix our roads. We need to keep our families safe. We need to protect our green space. We need to listen to people. We need to focus on affordability. I cannot say that enough, but I hear that over and over. I know so many people who are have left or are

leaving the city because they cannot afford to live here. And for me, I do not want to put our children in debt for a concrete future that they never asked for and they do not want done with with having to look at kids and think that we're going to be that in 30 years my kids are going to be paying off a new city hall, things like that. So, um those are my frustrations with what's gone on here over the last year. Um I had a state of the city meeting and it was a very positive meeting and there there's a lot of good. But uh tonight was I I needed to share the my frustrations with how the how the deals we make in this city uh are not working for the residents of this city. And I'd like us to every time you make a decision on something to think is this really the best deal for the residents of the city, the people who we represent. And with that, my closing quote tonight is simple. He who controls the fool's gold controls the fools. Thank you, mayor.

Very good. Thank you, Vice Mayor. Um, just a couple of things I just want to touch on. Um, some statements were just made that um, you know, concerning our parking proposed parking garage in the beach area that, um, that we were going to spend 12 million more than the next one. Um, that was directly um directly said, "No, that's not true." by city staff on the record. Um there's also records that are available to us. We can look at all the RFPs that the responses to the RFPs for the um parking garage and we can verify that ourselves. So to say that we were going to spend 12 million more than the next one, well, not for the same item. So apples to apples is important when you make a comparison, not just say, well, because it, let's face it, look, you can go out and you can buy a t-shirt for for $3 or you can buy a t-shirt for $250. Depends upon what the t-shirt is. Depends upon what you decide you want to purchase. And this city has uh has set a standard in the beach area and elsewhere that uh yeah, we wanted to have something that was that was still appropriate for that area. Also, there's vice mayor. She talked about squa squandering taxpayer dollars and a history of bad deals by the city. Well, I certainly didn't cause the taxpayers to have to spend an extra hundred million dollars of their dollars to support the new city hall. I wanted to save those taxpayer dollars, but it's the results of the votes by the vice mayor and others that we had to spend that those dollars. So, you want to talk about a history of bad deals, let's look at developers. You want to complain about some developments in the city, how they didn't turn out the way

the pictures are. I've been doing this a long time. If somebody comes and they want to develop their property, they tell you what they want to do. They tell you what they plan to do. Okay? If they're entitled to do it, they're entitled to do it. Show you pretty pictures. They try and get people excited probably because they're looking for financing also. But there's no guarantee you're going to get that. No guarantee. That's private property out there. With our projects, we can say what's going to be built. With private property out there, those private industry people who own it, they can do what they want within the guidelines that the city has. So to say we've got a history of bad deals, not until recently. And that's [clears throat] been shown true by by the kind of growth we've had, the kind of people that have looked to PMPO Beach and said we're going to invest in that community. So, for somebody to say, "We're we're squ squandering taxpayer dollars." You're right. But not because of me. Um, it's uh it's it's other other folks on this commission, one of which was Vice Mayor who just just said that. Sorry, I had to say that. Um, don't usually like to do that during reports. Okay. Well, anyway, um, happy birthday, Commissioner Perkins and Commissioner Fess. and MLK parade was great. But the one item that I really did want to touch on before I got distracted, um, Major Elwood, something serious happens in this city, I think it it's it it it's owed to this commission to hear about it. about as quickly as possible from the folks who are in the know what's going on. For us, all of us, and this isn't just about me, this is us. For us to see a clip on the nightly news of a BSO deputy

in Pompo Beach looks like kicking somebody in the head. for us to see that and not have gotten any notification from somebody to look out for that. I just I I don't we get along good. I think we do. But sometimes I got to call you on the carpet. I don't know who dropped the ball on that one, but by God, somebody dropped the ball. We deserve to know about stuff like that before we see it on the evening news. That's all. Thank you. Have a good night.