Village Council - Regular Meeting

Hector. Hector. Hector. Hector. Hector.

Thank you.

Ladies and gentlemen, if you can please find your seats. I'd like to call The second budget hearing and regular village council meeting for the month of September to order. Vice Mayor. Okay. Okay. Okay.

Okay, if everyone can please find their seats.

Thank you. Mr. Clerk, can you please call the roll? And ladies and gentlemen, I'd just like to have quiet in the room. Thank you. Yes, Mayor. Mayor Salver? Here. Vice Mayor Wolf?

Here.

Councilman Fremont?

Here.

Councilman Sklar? Here. Councilman Levy?

Here.

We have a quorum. Thank you. Let's start with the Pledge of Allegiance. Please rise. I'd like to wish all those celebrating a happy Jewish New Year. We have some presentations before we begin. Actually, I'm going to request for additions, withdrawals, and deferrals.

Mr. Mayor, I have an addition to discussion items this evening.

Okay. Do you want to state what it is?

It's about a new logo for the village of Mount Harbor. New emblem.

Okay. We will add that after our discussion. Okay. R9B. Perfect.

It would actually be R9A and a half.

Right. Yeah, it's usually before public comment.

Yeah. Wouldn't be R9B, or R9A.

So that the public can comment on the discussion. I think that's how we usually do it. Okay. Perfect. So we have that, and we do have some presentations to give today. The first one is recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month. I have the proclamation here, and as a Hispanic American whose grandparents are born in Havana, Cuba, I'm honored to share this Okay. Whereas Hispanic Heritage Month is observed from September 15th to October 15th and celebrates the rich cultural heritage and contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans to our nation and communities, and whereas September 15th marks the independence of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua, followed by Mexico on September 16th and Chile on September 18th, And whereas the 2026 Hispanic Heritage Month theme, Unidos Somos Mas, together we are more, highlights the strength, unity, and profound impact of Hispanic and Latino communities. And whereas Hispanic and Latino Americans enrich our society across all fields, serving as business owners, educators, scientists, health care workers, artists, public servants, and leaders. And whereas in Bell Harbor Village, we recognize the diverse and vibrant Hispanic heritage that enhances our cultural fabric and contributes to the village's character, economic vitality, and sense of community. And whereas National Hispanic Heritage Month provides an opportunity for all residents of Bal Harbor Village to honor the achievements of Hispanic and Latino Americans and to reflect upon the ways in which their legacy inspires us to embrace unity, cultural appreciation, and civic pride. Now, therefore, I, Seth Salver, Mayor of Bal Harbor Village, do hereby declare and celebrate September 15 to October 15, 2026, Hispanic Heritage Month. And I encourage all members of the community to join in honoring the cultural history and accomplishments of Hispanic Americans by participating in educational activities, cultural events, and community outreach efforts.

So happy Hispanic Heritage Month.

Next proclamation is one that's near and dear to my heart because now this started when I was the vice mayor and I had just had a baby and then coincidentally that week I had gotten an email from the Miami Diaper Bank and we're honored here to have Gabriela Rojas, who's the executive director. I'm going to read a proclamation, then we'll have you come up and say a few words. Whereas National Diaper Awareness Week is a yearly initiative led by the National Diaper Bank Network to highlight the public health crisis of diaper need, which affects approximately one in two families in the United States. And whereas diapers are a basic necessity essential to the health and hygiene of babies and a lack of sufficient diapers forces parents to make difficult choices that risk their children's health and well-being, and whereas diaper need is recognized as a significant public health crisis that negatively impacts children, families, and communities across the nation, including here in Bell Harbor Village, and whereas National Diaper Need Awareness Week calls upon communities to take action by donating diapers or financial resources, hosting diaper drives, volunteering at local diaper banks, and raising awareness through public engagement and social media efforts such as the hashtag end diaper need campaign, and whereas increasing access to clean diapers supports families in providing a safe and healthy start for their children and ensures that no parent is forced to choose between buying diapers and meeting other essential needs, and whereas Bell Harbor Village joins cities, towns, and countries across the country in recognizing the importance of this initiative and affirming support for families in need, whereas Bell Harbor is proud to support Organizations like the Miami Diaper Bank, which recognize the importance of diapers for health and economic stability and distribute them to families through various channels. Now, therefore, I, Sat Salva, Mayor of Valhalla Village, do hereby observe the week of September 14th through September 20th as National Diaper Need Awareness Week and encourage all residents to participate in activities and initiatives that raise awareness and support families affected by diaper need. Ms. Rojas, would you like to come up and accept the proclamation?

Does everyone else want to come in?

One, two, three.

So good evening Mayor, members of Bell Harbor Village Council and everyone here tonight. It is truly an honor to stand before you on behalf of Miami Diaper Bank and to accept this proclamation recognizing Diaper Needs Awareness Week. We are deeply grateful for recognizing an issue that affects so many families yet is often overlooked. Diapers are not a luxury. They are a basic necessity for the health, dignity, and well-being of babies and their families. At Miami Diaper Bank, our mission is to make sure that families do not have to choose between buying diapers and paying for food, rent, or other basic needs. This proclamation is more than an acknowledgement. It is a reminder that when our communities, local governments, organizations, and residents come together, we can make a meaningful difference in the life of children and families. Thank you very much. Thank you.

Okay, last but certainly not least, we have a certificate of recognition for our dear Senator Chevron Jones, who has been there for us in our time of need in Tallahassee, trying to give us inside baseball on everything going on that affects us. So I do have a special certificate which that I will read, but I would love to hear for you to come up and say a few words cuz we know that how how you serve this community with so much love and we will certainly miss you. And we wish you well in your future endeavors. Certificate of Recognition presented to Senator Chevron D. Jones in recognition of your outstanding legislative advocacy and leadership in sponsoring Senate Bill 418, which enhances autism awareness and training for law enforcement officers and establishes Florida's Blue Envelope and Blue Card Program. Valhalla Village sincerely thanks you for your dedication to fostering safer, more informed, and more inclusive interactions between law enforcement officers and individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Signed today, September 15, 2026.

Thank you so much. Thank you, Mayor, and to the entire Commission. I will first start off by saying that it has been an absolute pleasure to serve as your senator in Tallahassee over the past four years. I'll be very frank with you, Mayor, the Blue Envelope program, if it wasn't for Bell Harbor, We wouldn't have gotten there across the finish line. And so thank you all because you all sent your officers up to testify in committee. And there was no doubt in my mind that we would get this across the finish line because we were able to put some stories behind it. So I do want to thank you all for it. And as this will be my last time to address this body and also to the constituents of Bell Harbor, I always tell people that when they ask about my district, I say this is the only place where you can speak at Shabbat service on Friday and preach at a Baptist church on Sunday. Amen. And that is what I had the opportunity to do as the senator here. You all will be left in great hands with Representative Ashley Gantt, who will be your new senator for this area. I will tell you, I am not going far. I will still be back and forth in Tallahassee, and I still live right here in Miami Shores. But again, I cannot thank you all enough for giving me the awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome privilege of serving you all in Tallahassee these past four years. I'm dearly going to miss you all. and I'm sure we'll see each other on the journey again. So to all of you, thank you again. Thanks.

Thank you.

I'm a stranger. Hello.

Not so fast, Senator. Listen, Senator Jones is definitely an advocate for us here in Bell Harbor and also in the state of Florida, up in Tallahassee. And he's one of those individuals, if you text him, if you call him, he's going to respond. And when we learned of this bill going to committee, I called him. I texted him. I said, give me a call when you get a chance. He called me back. And I told him, man, I have a subject matter expert here that can come up and help you out with whatever assistance you need. And Hector went up. And this is a vision that started in my office, right? Hector and I started this vision a few years ago, and to see it come to fruition with the assistance of Senator Jones is really, really very rewarding because now it allows our officers to be properly trained and to know how to properly interact with individuals when they encounter them. And now with this blue envelope, and we all know that that blue envelope It's very blue. You can't miss it. So when an officer pulls somebody over that's on the spectrum and they present them with this blue envelope, it changed the interaction immediately. And that may save a life. And that's what this is about. So we wanted to present something, and we wanted to present something to show our appreciation for allocating for such a good cause, Senator.

Senator Jones, I've been dedicating my life for law enforcement for a long time, and I am a father of an individual with autism. And I have gone through the state of Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and this year I'm going to go with Donna Lorman to the Seattle, Washington, for the first time in their history of Washington law enforcement to receive autism awareness training in Washington. People, I mean, some officers may not know the person behind the bill. Some parents may not even know the name of the person behind the bill, but I do know the person behind that 418 bill, and it is you. You listened, you understood, and you made it happen. And because of your commitment, your leadership, Your legacy, the lives we're going to save in the state of Florida because of that bill. I would like to present to you, I wouldn't have my son here today to present it to you, but unfortunately my son is having a little bit of a hard day today because his computer broke. So I'm going to have to go buy him a computer. So he's having a bad day. So this is a plaque that we made here. It says, Senate Bill 418, Senator Shevin Jones. For outstanding leadership in advancing autism awareness and law enforcement training. presented in recognition for your commitment, compassion, and the community's safety. Thank you, sir. Thank you.

Excuse me. Oh, I don't know.

It doesn't. One, two, three.

Okay. One, two, three. Thank you.

Thank you.

Okay. We're now going to proceed with the second budget hearing. which is R7A, R7B, R7C, and R7D. So R7A, please, Mr. Clerk. Yes.

A resolution of the Village of Ball Harbor Village, Florida, adopting the final millage rate of the village for the fiscal year commencing on October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, pursuant to Section 200.065 of the Florida statute, providing for conflicts, providing for severability, and providing for an effective date.

Thank you. Mr. Manager?

Mr. Mayor, thank you. I think I'm going to refer to the presentation that I gave you last week if you're okay with that. It was pretty comprehensive and simply to say that this is the first item of the two major items for your budget this year. This sets the final millage rate. It is what you set tentatively in July and again for the first reading in September. And it establishes a higher legal defense fund that we've been funding to make sure that we have the resources necessary to deal with the various litigation items that we have pending, respective to the Live Local Act application we received. I do need to read a formal statement, so I'm happy to answer questions afterwards the presentation if you could incorporate Mr. clerk that presentation from last week for the record as well. But I do need to read that under consideration tonight for bell harbor village is the final millage rate for FY, 2026, 2027. A final millage rate of 2.5132 mils is hereby provided for, which is $2.5132 of assessed property value. The state-defined rollback rate is 2.0252 mils. The final millage rate is 24.10% higher than the rollback rate. This rate is consistent with your approval at your September 8th council meeting.

Thank you. Before I open up for public comment, are there any questions from the council? Is there any public comment on the millage rate? Seeing none, I'm going to close public comment. Is there a motion to approve R7A, the final millage rate for Bell Harbor?

I'll make the motion.

It's been moved. Is there a second? Second. It's been moved and seconded. This has voice vote. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Okay, passes unanimously. R7B, Mr. Clerk.

R7B, a resolution of the Village Council of Ball Harbor Village, Florida, approving and adopting the final budget and capital improvement plan for Ball Harbor Village for fiscal year 2026-2027, providing for expenditure of funds, providing for conflicts, providing for severability, and providing for ineffectivity.

Thank you, Mr. Manager. Mr. Mayor, I would try to do the same privilege presented to you last week, the full presentation on your budget. You've heard it in July and at retreat as well. So I would like the clerk to incorporate my presentation into the record. And otherwise, this is the budget you saw last week, and it's ready for your final adoption.

Okay. Thank you. Any questions from the council on the budget?

No.

Any questions from the public? No public comment. Closing public comment. Is there a motion to approve the final operating budget? So moved. It's been moved. Is there a second? Second. It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? None. Passes unanimously. R7C, Mr. Clerk.

R7C, a resolution of the Village Council of Bar Harbor Village, Florida, ratifying a one-year renewal of the village medical, dental, vision, life, accidental death, and dismemberment and long-term disability insurance policies, providing for a renewal option for up to two years, authorizing the village manager to execute the necessary agreements, providing for implementation, providing for an effective date. Thank you.

Mr. Manager? Mr. Mayor, thank you. This item is our health insurance, life insurance, vision, dental. Two years ago, three years ago, we went through an RFP process and we switched over from Florida Blue to United Health. This is a renewal after our first three-year cycle. We prefer not to switch over health insurance very routinely. This is a 4.3% increase from last year. Just if you look at the market, it's double digits in most places. And more importantly, this 4.3 increase still has us lower than what Florida Blue would have been had we renewed it then. So we're still seeing savings from what we did a few years ago. Excellent. Ready for your approval.

Thank you. Any questions from council? Seeing none, any public comment? Ms. Stoppa?

I'm not sure you all know. Oh, Anna Marie Stopa, whatever. I'm not supposed to give my address, but it doesn't matter. My issue is that I don't know if you're aware that UnitedHealthcare and the University of Miami has ceased relationships. There are a great many people that have been affected by this, so I would be... cautious and inquisitive as to what services will be rendered because the head of the Bonacante Foundation, the head of the Lena Rae Foundation, the head of one of the other charities, Cancer Link, are not going to be covered. So none of us that are on the committee, none of us that are on the board will be treated at the University of Miami. And this is because they can't get along with each other. So if you have UnitedHealthcare, I would re-examine the position to make sure that you are on coverage. Otherwise, you're paying for things that are just no longer in existence. They are not accepting UnitedHealthcare. It is all over the Internet. I was noticed, and the people that are running huge, huge charitable foundations have been noticed as well, that they will not be covered. So money doesn't mean anything to the University of Miami. So please look into it.

Thank you. Thank you. Okay, I believe, okay, is there any further public comment? Okay, I'm going to close public comment. I think that we have the representative from the insurance company on Zoom that's going to address the concern. Yeah.

Yes, good evening. UnitedHealthcare and the University of Miami reached an agreement weeks ago. So that is not accurate. We can send you the letter. But they reached an agreement, and they are in network without a lapse in coverage.

Excellent. Thank you so much. Can I ask a question? Of course.

Ruth, can I ask you a question?

Yes, of course.

Ruth, it's Jeff Freemark. How are you?

Hello, Councilman. I'm good. How are you?

I'm good, thank you. If I'm not mistaken, yes, you are correct. They did reach an agreement to renew, but I think that there are elements of their Medicare Advantage plan that effective January 1 will not be covered with UM. Is that an accurate statement? Yes.

It's the Medicare Advantage. Yeah. My division does not handle Medicare. That is not what it's saying on this letter, is that this applies to employer-sponsored commercial plans, individual family plans, and Medicaid. So if I'm reading correctly, and I'm more than happy to share the letter, It's going to impact Medicare, correct?

Yeah. As a provider, I can tell you that's right. But that will be effective January 1 on the Medicare Advantage side only.

Yes, correct.

This is for employee health insurance. It's not the Medicare piece.

Okay. Yes. Perfect. I appreciate you clarifying that, Councilman.

Yes.

Okay. I'll make a motion. Thank you. Is there a second? Okay. It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? None. Okay. R7D.

R7D. A resolution of the Village Council of Ball Harbor Village, Florida, approving the purchase of a tractor for Public Works and Beautification Department in the amount of $47,786, approving the purchase of three vehicles for Public Works and Beautification Department in the amount of $237,536, approving the purchase of a vehicle for the Building Department in the amount of $58,546, providing for implementation, providing for an effective date.

Thank you. Mr. Manager?

Mr. Mayor, thank you. This is an item, as part of our budget process, we go through and evaluate the status of the fleet. These are all fleet replacements except for the tractor. The tractor is a new add to the fleet, and that is intended to be servicing a lot of the work that goes on on the beach, allow us to be better at the seaweed, among other things, resurfacing the path as necessary. The other three vehicles are in different departments. either utility or our resort tax funds. So they're not necessarily general fund expenses, but still they're all replacement vehicles.

Thank you.

Moe is here to answer any questions. He's the one that handles the fleet.

Any questions from the council? No. Any public comment? Seeing none, I'm going to close public comment. Is there a motion to approve? Been moved. Is there a second?

I'll second.

It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, none. Passes unanimously. Thank you. Okay, we're now going to go back to the consent agenda. Is there a motion?

Just have a comment on consent, please. Okay, go ahead. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I want to bring this up every time this comes up. We have the PR people that we are continuing to pay with zero accountability. We were supposed to have certain metrics in place. We still don't have any of these metrics in place. How long are we going to continue to vote this through without holding any of them accountable? It's great. I saw the letter that came from the St. Regis, of course, who are paying for their marketing for free. Why wouldn't they be behind this? So, again, I'll ask Romero, I'll ask our marketing team, when are we finally going to have something to hold these people accountable? And if we can't hold them accountable, I think we keep throwing good man the after bad at this. So I just want to say my piece on this. Thank you.

Okay. Well, I don't know if the manager wants to address that. Go ahead.

Good evening, Mayor and Council. Councilman Squire, I feel your pain, and I know we've had this conversation many, many times, and I... I understand your frustrations. We, too, were extremely frustrated by the process of trying to identify the appropriate metrics to apply to these representatives, as we had discussed and as had been recommended by EY. And we've been working with EY to come up with an alternative. We know the problem. with the proposal that we had as far as, you know, tracking data through cell phones. It just didn't work, right? We can't get the international information. We can get it on the domestic side, but really our reps are international reps, right? So the domestic data doesn't really help as much. I will say this, you know, And I feel like I say this every year when we have this discussion, but these representatives are the people that are the boots in the ground for us internationally. They represent us in Brazil, in Argentina, in Chile, in Uruguay, in Mexico. They represent us domestically. These are the folks that we allocate dollars to do PR and marketing and sales for the village of Bal Harbor. As you all know, by state statute, we are required to reinvest our resort tax dollars in the promotion of tourism, and that's exactly what these people do, is they promote Bow Harbor as a tourist destination. Are there other ways that we perhaps could do that? Perhaps. But I'll tell you the feedback we get from the customers we serve, our hotels and our restaurants, they're all extremely pleased. These folks work in tandem with their teams as well to support them, to promote them, to market them to create public relations for them and quite frankly that's our job that's what we're supposed to be doing we're supposed to be promoting tourism to bow harbor and that is a mechanism we use to be able to accomplish that goal um you know it's a challenging year for us and i believe it's going to be even more challenging this upcoming fiscal year from a resort tax perspective a collection perspective You received the most recent letter to council that was sent out, I believe, last Friday, perhaps the Friday before. Through July, through the end of July, the first 10 months of the fiscal year, we're actually slightly ahead where we were last year. And quite frankly, I'm surprised about that because, you know, with the closure of the Ritz-Carlton in April, I really had expected for our collections to be lagging where we were a year ago prior. Last fiscal year was our record year of collections for resort taxes. It was the first time that we surpassed the $6 million in collections. But still, through the end of July, we're still slightly ahead where we were last year, despite the closure of the Ritz. Of course, we added two new restaurants, China Grill and Slim's. So that, of course, has helped close that gap. I want to say I'm optimistic that we will continue that trend for August and September, although with the closure of Hillstone, I see that as probably a very difficult possibility to achieve. But we're still optimistic that we will still really reach another record year in resort tax collections. We have challenges going into next year. The Ritz-Carlton, I know the GM is here. I hope I can say this publicly. But, you know, they're closed at least until the end of the calendar year. It might be a little bit more beyond that. Is that okay to say? It probably is going to be early 27 when they have a chance to reopen, which when they do reopen, that will be fantastic. We have the closure of Hillstone. then as you all know we have the ongoing construction at the bow harbor shops i talk to the restaurants almost every day i was just there earlier today at lunchtime and i usually go around dinner time just to kind of see how things are going and you know the restaurants are concerned about what's to come in the next few weeks few months not quite sure how much you know but with the ongoing construction in those buildings where the majority of our restaurants are located There's going to be a lot of construction taking place. The elevator bank is going to close. The escalators there in the courtyard are going to close. There's going to be a lot of construction in the front, in the sides, in the middle. And the restaurants are really concerned about what impact that's going to have to them for the next two plus years. So our PR representatives are more crucial than ever. When I talk to our restaurant GMs about what we're doing to help support them, especially over the next couple of years that they're going to experience this construction-related impacts. They tell us that the work that we do is super important to help them survive.

Again, we keep throwing all of it into this basket. There are other baskets that we're missing from a marketing perspective. This is non-trackable. Great, there are boots on the street, but we don't know what we're getting from it. And you can't tell me what we're getting from it.

Nobody can tell us what we're getting from it. I can't tell you. There's some. I think we need to.

There are other baskets we can be putting our eggs into that are more tractable. That is more modern. Again, we've been paying these people $150,000 for ad infinitum.

I can't tell you, Councilman Sklar.

And again, you can't tell me if it's working. That's the bottom line. You cannot definitively say if it's working.

I can't tell you this. So the limited data collection we do have, right, the St. Regis has been a great partner, and they share with us where their guests are coming from. And from the hotel portion of the resort taxes we collect, the St. Regis, you know, plays a huge role on the hotel side. So when we look at those metrics, the populations coming to the St. Regis are the populations where we have active representation. It's Brazil. It's Argentina.

Again, is it because we have representation or not? If we can't answer questions definitively, We have to potentially look for other marketing ideas that are measurable,

And again, we do. Our partnership with the Greater Miami Convention Visitors Bureau is critical. We work with them in tandem, hand in hand. We look at markets that they're servicing that we don't necessarily have representation in. So we partner with them on different strategies to really kind of tap into those markets as well. We work in partnership with them on the markets that we do represent. Remember, you know what it comes down to?

I'm sorry to interrupt. I always hate the theory of we've always done it this way, so we're going to continue to do it this way, as opposed to looking to new, fresh ideas. And we've been hung up on this for – I've been on the council now eight years. I think I was on resort tax for five years before that. So that's a good 13 years that I have – First-hand knowledge of this. And it's always been, well, we've always done it this way. This is what we know. This is the way we do it.

As Councilman Sklar, we believe that it works, right? But you don't know if it works.

But you don't know if it works. You believe it works. If you could give me statistics that it's truly working, I'll be the first one to wave the flag and get behind it. But you don't know.

Yeah. Well, I can tell you the data that I do have, which is coming from the St. Regis, says that those are the markets that are coming here. Will they be coming here right now?

Romero.

Yes.

Councilman Scott, with all respect, we've had this conversation a million times.

You and I.

And I will continue to have it as long as we keep spending money on it. Get it. I'm going to continue to work. And I appreciate that. You have the right. EY has come and said this is something that we should continue to do.

Is that the same EY that has not gotten us anything that we needed for our plan that we put together?

It's the company that we bought our strategic plan from. I've had personal conversations with the GMs at the hotels. You speak to the restaurants. Those are the clients and customers that do this, and they're telling us that Keep this going. You're right. We're not measuring it or we're not able to measure it the way you'd like to see it measured. But at the end of the day, something's working because we are seeing record resort tax every year over a year. And so I get it.

When we stopped it, did we not have a record also? We had nothing.

That's a very different example. We were the only destination that was open in the world. And so Miami did get a record after COVID, but that was because we were the only ones open. I hear you, and I wish I could give you what you're asking. We've tried. I don't think we can give you what you're asking for.

Can I say some comments? Maybe we should have pulled it, but I didn't want you to pull like one, two, three, four, five, six consent items. So I hope from an order perspective it's okay how we're doing this. I will say that I did this past March have the opportunity to go with George and Paula down to Mexico City and see firsthand meet with our reps and see what they actually do. And I was very, very impressed, surprised. It actually like, you know, it blew me away how much contact they have with publications, with travel agents. I mean, we were there for what, two and a half days? And we were in meetings from morning till night. Like we were exhausted at the end of the day. They gave you the dog and pony show. Well, I know, but then, you know, after that visit, there were several publications done about our visit. There was publications about Bal Harbor. I mean, I see what we're doing, and this is just one market and one of these reps. So, I mean.

Is it the right thing? In a full marketing plan, and you have only a finite amount of dollars to spend, Seth, is that the right thing?

I don't know. I don't know if anyone had the answer. You got other members?

I don't know if it helped you at all. And I understand where you're coming from, where you're saying. A couple of months ago, I asked the managers at St. Regis to meet me for lunch. And I had a First responder called. Somebody was having a heart attack. So I have to cancel lunch and I went to obviously help this person. Long story short, I asked George to please set time to meet Carlos. And so he did. So we went for lunch and he took us to the new restaurant downstairs. I don't know what it's called. Beautiful place, gorgeous town in place, highly recommended. Um, long story short, the conversation about marketing came to place and the guy, the guy was a lot of respect, Carlos, the GM, um, without even asking anything, was not prepared, was not staged or anything like that. He said to George and myself, I don't know what you guys are doing with this marketing campaign, but it's working because we are fully booked for the next year, I think you say. And a lot of the vast majority of the people are coming from Brazil. the UK, and he mentioned something else, which I don't remember. And one of the things that George asked was, is there anything you can provide to us so we can take to the council? And if I'm not mistaken, he said yes, I don't recall, but I think he said he will provide as much as he can. But I don't know. I don't know about the whole marketing eight years ago. As you know, I'm the newest guy on the block. But something is working there.

I'm all for marketing this village. I think... There are other opportunities. I'm all for promoting the hotels. I'm all for promoting the restaurants. I'm just going to continue to wave the flag that I don't think this is the right way to do it. I think there are better uses of the money that we could promote the hotels, the restaurants in Bell Harbor as a whole that are better than Something that's not measurable. That's it.

Nice, Mayor.

So, Councilman, I hear what you're saying and it makes logical sense, obviously, from a measurement perspective. Do you have, because I don't know anything about marketing and you're kind of in that business, do you have suggestions of ideas of ways that can be marketed and measured better than what we're doing?

A hundred percent. I mean, there's, I think we have to be doing a lot more influencer stuff. I think we're starting to do a little bit of it. We do a little bit of that with the fam trips that are set up through these people, but these are also things that I think From a PR and marketing perspective, we should be doing a lot more. It's the modern way of marketing. Like you said, we got magazine articles. When's the last time anyone really has picked up a magazine to really read it? It's not the way things are truly marketed in today's world. They're not.

But those articles all make it into social media and they have electronic. We're not going to solve it here. No, we're not. It's a discussion. You absolutely, and you've been consistent for sure. We've tried to give you what you seek. Believe me, it's not for lack of effort. No, I know.

I'm the one that brought up the strategy plan. I thought that was the first step in the right direction to make this happen. Again, I want to see the St. Regis do great. I want to see the Ritz do great. No question. I'm so excited about the Members Club at the Ritz, you can't believe it, even though it's right below my window. There's no one more excited about it than me. So these are things that I can't wait to come to fruition, and I think we have to continue to market this village as a luxury destination, and I just think there's better ways of spending the money.

Understood. Thank you.

Any further comment?

One more question. Yeah.

As far as the marketing and what Councilman Sklar just mentioned, have we done any trying to identify influencers on the countries that we are targeting, like influencers in Mexico?

We have influencers, and we bring fam trips in. Remember, this piece, this is about $140,000, $150,000, something like that, the ad. Out of a $2.5 million marketing budget, this is a faction of all of the efforts that go on into the marketing. This is not your only piece. It's an important piece, and Buzzy, I hear you 100%. But, you know, they're getting good feedback from the people that are doing it. And you're right, they benefit from it. But they're the ones that are supposed to benefit from that portion of the resort tax.

That's what resort tax is about.

Yeah, exactly.

Okay. I see public comment. I'm going to take public comment. You can come up for public comment on the consent agenda, anything on the consent.

I'm the same person. I think the issue is twofold, which you refuse to look at. It's not just the marketing, who I think are doing an excellent job, excellent job of promoting what we used to stand for and still do. Our problem is that the repeat business could be an issue of internal, an internal issue with the Bell Harbor shops. Friends of mine came over from France. They rented a car. They drove up here from wherever they were staying down in the Grove. And I'm waiting for them. And the man says to park the car, we want $30. And he said, Monsieur, I am not asking to buy the parking space, I am asking you to park my car. And I think that hit me so hard that it was, this is a multiple aspect of getting people into the community. You have to have cooperation from both sides and both parties. If you want it to be empty, then you're going to have it empty. Aventura, you go up there, every restaurant is packed, every little stand is packed. You come to Bell Harbor, there's nobody in the shops. I go there, I shop there. I've been shopping there since my mother took me there when I was nine months old and Saks Fifth Avenue across the street where there was no shops. Now we have probably the most magnificent shopping mall in the country, but it is now facing construction and it's facing overestimating their value. What needs to be done is there needs to be a cooperative effort to make people want to come there, not just going to the far lands and saying, you've got to come see our location. You have to have reasonability along with accessibility. And if there is no parking, unless you park in Surfside, then you're going to be paying an exorbitant rate, plus the fact none of the restaurants are considered economic, economically feasible for the average person that would want to come and see the magnificence of Bell Harbor. So in my opinion, I think you have to kind of multiply what is being done by such a great job. You really do an incredible job. And I think you deserve the credit for that. But I think it's not just the responsibility of them doing it. It's the responsibility of the people that are benefiting from the the beauty that we have offered and the requirements that have always been in Bell Harbor, I think it has to be worked out. And I don't think the lawsuit helps. I don't think the construction helps. I don't think the parking helps. The traffic doesn't help. That's an issue that must be considered when you're evaluating a gentleman and a woman who obviously does their job.

I'm going to move the consent agenda. Is there a second?

Second.

It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? None. Okay. R7E, Mr. Clerk.

R7E, a resolution of the Village Council of Ball Harbor Village, Florida, honoring the life, legacy, and service of Rabbi Shalom Dober Lipskar, authorizing the addition of Rabbi Shalom Dober Lipskar's name to the plaque at Founders Circle, honoring individuals who have made significant contributions to Ball Harbor Village, providing for implementation and providing for an effective date.

Thank you. Mr. Manager? Mr. Mayor, thank you. Can we queue up the slides? Yeah. This one is one that's really quite special, I think, for us in this community. You know, as you know, we're celebrating our 80th anniversary for Bal Harbor. And we are also involved in some significant construction that the shops is undertaking. And as part of that, they had to redo the harding alignment that we called the project for traffic. And we suffered through that construction. But at the conclusion of that construction, the site looks really nice, but it brought to light kind of the site at the Founders Circle location that left a lot to be desired. It kind of was dedicated in 1990, as you know, and had seen, I think, its better days. But through that construction – I don't know what's happening here – Can someone wear my pictures?

Before and after looks a lot alike.

Yeah, yeah. We're there. Yeah, and they're in the agenda.

Maybe it takes a minute.

This reminds me of like the children's book.

Yeah.

Like depending on where you turn the page.

I can narrate it to you through your, you all have it on your agenda. You've seen this before. I'd like the audience to see it. Yeah. Can we reload that or something like that while I speak to it?

Okay.

Okay.

Okay.

There we go.

There you go. So can I, I can't move slides in, right? That's you guys? Oh, I can. Okay, so we dedicated it almost 30 years ago. And it identified three distinguished individuals in this community who had significant impact on Val Harbor. Before and after, as you can see now, the tile was damaged. A lot of trees were kind of in disrepair. It now looks a lot better and a lot more fitting for what Bell Harbor is about and more in keeping with the beautification that has happened in its environs around it. As you can see from an aerial on the right, you can see it really is starting to look better. like what it should look for what it's supposed to be in Bell Harbor, which is a memorial location to honor and recognize the individuals. There's a night picture, and you can see that it still shines day and night, and we will have art there. We will continue to have our holiday tree and menorah there as well, and we will from time to time have events there, as you know. But when it came to the the name itself, the founder circle and the plaque and the memorial left a lot to be desired. And so what you see on the left is what was there, what you see on the right is more of an image of what will be there, not, you know, be proportionate and slightly larger than what's there now. But it also created an opportunity to recognize someone who has had a significant impact in this community over 40 years. And when we spoke about this, you asked us to meet with the family of the rabbi. The mayor and I did do that and met with his widow. And they were quite pleased, I think, and duly touched with the gesture that will allow Rabbi Lipsker's name to be added to a plaque that had three other names that they felt were acquaintances and friends and impactful as well. And I think they were quite honored. We asked them to bless the occasion and agree, and they have. And we're looking at November 5th as the opportunity to go ahead and do the rededication of this plaque and this founder's circle and adding his additional name. And so the resolution here today is to formally have his name added, which is an appropriate act, not only deserving but also appropriate because it's probably the highest honor that this council can give a resident of this community. And I think that I can't find anybody more deserving. And when there is another person equally deserving, then that council can undertake that opportunity as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Manager. I'd like to personally add that, you know, I guess for 38 of those over 40 years that he's been in this community, I've been here and I was able to really witness the transformation. When I first started going to the synagogue, it was on Harding Avenue in the storefront. And now we see what's there, not to mention, that's just the brick and mortar of it, but the impact that he's had on the entire community, Jews, non-Jews alike, is immeasurable, and I think this is a fitting honor, and... I'm glad that, you know, the administration came up with this idea. I think it's great to be able to tie it into the 80th anniversary and really honor someone who's impacted, you know, Bell Harbor during that time. So I'm certainly in favor of it. Anything? I mean, we need public comment, I believe, right? Yeah, you'll need public comment. I need public comment, yeah. Yes, it's Robert C. Graham, Stanley Whitman, and Saul Taplin. Thank you. Okay. Any public comment? Seeing none, any comment from council?

Okay.

Well, I'm honored to move this resolution. Is there a second? Second. It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Passes unanimously. Okay, R7F.

R7F, a resolution of the Village Council of Ball Harbor Village, Florida, approving an agreement with Sheila Elias for the temporary installation of the exhibition of artwork at the Ball Harbor Waterfront Park in Ball Harbor Village, providing for implementation and providing for an effective date.

Thank you, Mr. Manager. Sylvia's coming on up. Why don't you present this one, Sylvia?

Good evening, Honorable Mayor, Vice Mayor, and Council. Thank you for having me to speak on this item. So this item before you, there's actually two items. I'll go through this one first. Back in 2023, a few years ago, the Resort Tax Committee at that time had tasked our team to look at a way that we could activate, bring some sort of activation to Bell Harbor as part of Miami Art Week. And so in that same year, for Miami Art Week, we launched an activation at the 102 Beach Access Path, which is just south of Oceania. Hopefully most of you are familiar with that, but it's a beach access path from Collins Avenue to the beach path. It's a great opportunity to enhance that space, activate that space. And so we launched our first activation as part of Miami Art Week that year with Tanya Esponda-Aja. Since then, we have continued every year. We got a lot of wonderful feedback, a lot of great success. Then next year, we expanded and also included an activation at Bow Harbor Waterfront Park. So this item before you is a proposal for an activation as part of Miami Art Week at the Waterfront Park. Sheila Elias is a Bow Harbor resident, actually, is an established artist for more than four decades. contemporary artist in different mediums. And she also happens to have been married to Saul Taplin, who was on the Founders Circle plaque. So this really is a unique tie-in for us as part of the 80th anniversary celebration. So she does various mediums encompassing painting, photography, sculpture, and digital media, and has been exhibited extensively throughout the United States and internationally. She's been part of the South Florida arts community since the late 1980s. She's also been an early innovator in merging art and technology. And so this actual, this series is her iPad series where she created artwork with her iPad then printed them on canvas, and then painted those artworks. And so this proposal for Bow Harbor Waterfront Park, as part of also this unique tie-in to the 80th anniversary, would bring four of her pieces to the park. So these are pieces that she had already... These aren't newly commissioned for this installation, but it's an opportunity to showcase this artwork that belongs to her. So this first piece is Wings Wisdom, very colorful. All of these, like I mentioned, were created with technology. She actually created these on her iPad. and then printed them and painted them to embellish them. So there's four pieces, Worshippers, Osiris's Heart, and this last piece, Good Lord, I can't read that. Strange the 80s. I don't have my glasses, sorry. So these four pieces would be displayed in the lobby of the Waterfront Park. And actually, Sheila is not charging any fees for this exhibit. She's excited to partner with us. She's excited to be able to display her artwork here. the lobby she's hoping that maybe she gets in some interest in her collection and so the plan would be to display these at the end starting at the end of November we would have an opening event likely that first Monday right before our Basel begins December 1st and then have these up in the lobby for two months And that's the presentation on that item. I don't know if you want me to go into the next one.

Can we, I think it would be, yeah, let's do them both. Do we have to read the resolution? Just go ahead and present it. Okay, fine.

Okay, so the second item before you is the second installation to take place at the 102 Beach Access Path. So, you know, this, we had an opportunity to, we were connected with a young emerging contemporary artist. Her name is JJ Hammond. She actually has strong ties to Miami. She was born in California. but was raised between Asia and the United States. She actually graduated high school from Miami Country Day. So she really kind of claims Miami to be the beginning of her art career. And so she works in mixed media. She uses recognizable materials, repurposed toys, retro televisions, resin, wood, that kind of thing. The proposed location, like I mentioned, is the 102 Beach Access. The original proposal that was in your packet was while we were still negotiating with her, kind of working through. So we kind of gave you an idea of some of her artwork and concepts. But we were able to negotiate and finally work out a full proposal. This is a commissioned installation that would go specifically for the 102 Beach Access. So her work explores nostalgia, childhood, and memory, and the experience of growing up in an increasingly digital world. So she has proposed these arches to go along the pathway. These arches are made of repurposed toys, so it's just a bunch of childhood toys that make up the arch and then covered in resin so that it will structurally withstand the elements out there. She would have a plaque there, a new door will open, toys on wood. And then there would also be these two sculptures, which are toddlers, babies, made out of these similar toys, repurposed toys, pieces of CPUs, just all of these different components that really kind of plays with the idea of childhood and childhood. in that contrast with the digital component. So these two sculptures would be there as well. And then she's proposing kind of her trademark is this star. So she's proposing painting the light posts that are along the pathway with this star. It would be in a glow-in-the-dark paint that would kind of light up the pathway as the sun is setting as well, kind of inviting everyone to come out to the beach. She would also do this mural on the wall. You're capable of building the life you dream of, again, with her signature spark. There are a few other options that she proposed for the quote, but I think this one is very suitable for this exhibit. And then her cost, she is a contemporary artist. I think I mentioned she's showcased exhibits in both Miami, New York, all across the country, actually. So there is a cost. She's making this, like I mentioned, she's commissioning this piece, this work. installation specifically for our location. So the total cost for this would be $7,500. Yes.

The components don't add.

Oh, I got you. I'll double check with her because she just sent this to me last night. She might have not changed that $7,500. So I will clarify with her.

I think on our presentation, the original materials was $5,000, so I think that's the difference.

Well, because originally she was proposing something that was going to go out on the beach path. She was proposing a few different ideas and a much larger sculpture. But she was concerned about not having enough time to get that done. And that's kind of why we were still kind of going back and forth about what that final product would look like.

It's like 6,500. Okay.

So, I mean, I guess for the approval purpose, though, should we approve the higher amount?

Yeah, I would say not to exceed 7,500.

Yeah, and I'll negotiate with her. I'll continue to negotiate with her on the price and get us back to where that 6,500 should be.

Okay. Okay. Perfect. So we've heard of both of these artists. It's very exciting.

Anything from council before I open up public comment?

Any public comment on either R7F or R7G? Seeing none, I'm going to close public comment. Yeah, let's read. Yeah. Yeah, okay. So is there a motion to approve R7F? I'll make a motion. It's been moved. Is there a second? It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, none.

R7G? R7G, a resolution of the Village Council of Ball Harbor Village, Florida, approving an agreement with J.J. Hammond for the creation and installation of a proposed temporary art exhibit at the 102 Street Beach access path in Ball Harbor Village, providing for implementation and providing for an effective date.

Thank you. Any further discussion? Seeing none, any public comment? None. Is there a motion to approve R7G? I'll make a motion. It's been moved. Is there a second?

I'll second.

It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, none. R7H, Mr.

Clerk. R7H, a resolution of the Village Council of Ball Harbor Village, Florida, the second amendment to the employment agreement between Ball Harbor Village, Florida, and George M. Gonzalez in accordance with the amendment attached hereinto as Exhibit A and providing for an effective date.

Thank you. Mr. Manager? Mr. Mayor, thank you. As the title says, this is the second amendment to the employment agreement that we've had for nearly 13 years now. I want to let Vice Mayor Wolf kind of walk you through it. It is consistent with what you saw at your mini-retreat and follows on the direction you gave us in February to try to work out an agreement that would encourage a continuation of service, which I think it does.

Thank you. Mr. Weissman. Thank you, Mr. Manager, again. I think you guys have all seen this. As you know, I was charged to work with the manager through this contract conversation over the past three months or so. I think we had very productive conversations. We all realize the value of the manager and the value the manager brings to the city, especially given what's the projects – well, I wouldn't call them projects. Well, one project, obviously, the Jetty project, which is going to be a huge benefit to our city, and obviously the Bow Harbor shops situation and the requirements there and negotiations. And probably the only person who knows the most history of that, which is our manager – So we came to agreement on most all points. We disagreed on some, and we agreed to move on from them. But I think we got to a great place, and I think that's it. Thank you. If anybody has any questions.

Any questions from council before I open up for public comment? Any public comment? Anika?

Nika Logan, 64 Camden Drive. So what is the final dollar? Is that public knowledge?

Of course. We're here. George, you don't have a PowerPoint on your new agreement?

I mean, there's multiple aspects to it. It's not a single number. There's multiple aspects. There's salary. There's bonus. There's dividends. It's in the agenda.

So do you want to overview it, like overview the highlights? I mean, making the agreement is one thing, but I think everybody in the village deserves to know what the manager is going to make and if we think it's realistic and reasonable or not.

Sure. I mean, it's in the agenda, for sure. I don't know if most people should read the agendas, but we can go through it.

I'm going to put everything else up on the screen. Something as important as this.

I have it here if you want me to.

Well, this is a whole document. It's not like a PowerPoint. Why don't you finish from the comment and then answer whatever questions you have. It's the standard process here.

Okay. Rekelly?

I in one sense agree with Nika that this is a huge decision and it affects the budget. But, and Nika was around in those days too, when George Jorge came to this town to work, it was in the middle of an absolute nightmare with a forfeiture fund. I wouldn't, if I were able to do what he does, I wouldn't take the job. It was a $71 million theft, which still nobody knows where the money is. And this gentleman stood up, handled the situation, and has handled more difficult situations like dealing with the Bell Harbor shops. So to me, he's worth his weight in gold. in order to have such a qualified human being willing to take care of the residents of Bell Harbor. That's what he has been hired to do. That's what he has done. And he has done it with dignity and respect and honor for everyone that lives here and who speaks at this dais. Thank you.

Thank you. Any further public comment? Seeing none, I'm going to close public comment. Vice Mayor, did you want to go through just a few pages of the amendments?

How many pages? I was just going to go through the highlights. Mika, if you have other questions, you can ask other questions. The current salary was moved from $325,000 to $415,000. The bonus pretty much stayed the same as he was getting previous years. The original five-year contract had the pension at an 8% pension, which is an accelerated rate. That has regressed back to the standard rate of 4%. Pretty much those are the main items. We have a consulting agreement based on tenure for the longest that he stays. We'll keep him on for some time afterwards. He leaves for consulting. Those are the main aspects of the contract. Again, I don't know how many pages it is in there, but you can read it. Feel free to read it if you have other questions. Please let us know.

Okay. Any further comments? I'll just add that I want to thank Vice Mayor Wolf for putting the time into this. I think the result is one that we are all happy to get behind and of course we are very pleased with the performance of our manager and we wish him to stay as long as he's willing to put up with us. So I will make, well, I guess, Vice Mayor Wolf, do you want to make the motion? Motion to approve the second amendment. And I'll second that. It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Opposed? None. Passes unanimously. Okay. Before I open public comment, Councilman Sklar.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Actually, it's something that you and I had a little conversation about. I wish I was able to get it in, but to put it on screen. I'm just going to show everybody what our logo is. It looks a little bit like clip art for a luxury community that we are. It's a little embarrassing. I've seen logos from a lot of the other neighboring cities and villages and They're beautiful. I mean, this literally looks like we took four little things of wheat, threw it in a circle, and it's really, I don't think it really displays what Bell Harbor means. So I'd just like to bring up, if everyone's in favor, I mean, I'll help spearhead it along with Romero and our graphics team to try and come up with a logo that truly represents what Bell Harbor is and means.

Before you guys dive in, I just want to clarify that. What you have there, that's our seal. It's used as a logo because we don't have a logo other than the Bow Harbor things. And so if there's a desire to create a logo, I would suggest logo but keep the seal because that's kind of your official stamp. But we'll see what comes of it.

But unfortunately, it's what we're using right now. Correct. So to be able to design something that you could put on a shirt and be proud that it looks nice or a hat or anything else that we're using it for. you know, the lapel pins or whatever it might be.

I'm certainly in favor of it. I think in the age of AI, it should be hard to whip up something that's worthwhile to change something. I'm partly to blame because I, on some of my attire, stopped using just the regular Bal Harbor Village, Florida, just because I feel like it looks like I work at a hotel or at my valet. Yeah, I mean, it just doesn't seem like very civic. It's not civic-oriented. It doesn't really represent our city. I know that's what was developed from a marketing perspective, but it's different when you're marketing to outsiders as a destination versus official marketing to the community. So I think it definitely deserves a look at, and I don't think it's going to be an expensive or costly endeavor. So I don't know what the process is.

And I would support that as well. I would only use AI if it's on the positive side of AI these days. But I do think in concert with the 80th year, I think the timing is excellent.

I agree.

Perfect. The only problem is the mayor may have to change a lot of his wardrobe.

like two shirts. Yeah, yeah, look, your logo, your image is all, should be done with intention, and so that's something that we can look at, but yeah, we're not going to slap AI together. We'll get some professional...

I remember when... When we did it, you were on the result tax committee. When we actually did all the branding and the flag and everything else, and it was a

I think we should keep that brand. This is just adding another tool to the toolbox.

It's adding a layer that I think we'd be proud of as a logo.

Okay. Thank you. So I think there's good consensus there. Public comment? Nika?

Nika Logan, 64 Camden Drive. I think we have to rein in the Bell Harbor shops. The construction is nonstop, day and night, and it's really aggravating, irritating, and it's taking away people's quality of life. And if you live along Park Drive, you live along Camden Drive, at that end, it's terrible. You hear them hammering. You hear the saw running early in the morning. You hear them shouting. They have no respect that there are people who live in the community. They think they rule the world, and it's ridiculous. They should have hours when they can work, when they can't work. And we should hold them to it. And it's out of control, and it's ridiculous. There's filth. It's just awful.

Public comment? Dave Sanchez.

Hello, Dave Sanchez, 10894 Street, Bay Harbor Islands. The logo idea is great. I think it's well, if we can get designers, and I'm very much in favor of AI design thing, but I would like if the logo has the important landmarks that The view of the hotels on the beach, the jetty. These are things that I always think of when I think of Bell Harbor as a person who lives in Bay Harbor. I mean, we have a logo in Bay Harbor. It's kind of crappy. It's terrible, but I have to handle it. I mean, I miss my old logo. On Bay Harbor back again, recently the town has proposed and approved an increase to the toll prices. Right now it's sort of like 220 or 225. I'm not certain, but they're going to increase it by a dollar, so 325 when you pass through it. And another thing that was also being looked into is on updating the current pass plan. Now, if you don't want to pay the... If you want to update the tolls going back and forth, a person with a Sumpass transponder, which is the only requirement that's needed, can pay for a $360 annual fee via the town's portal to not pay continually every time you pass through the tolls. But recently, in Bay Harbor, our new lawyers and financial director kind of stated that, well, now we can do preferential pass plan rates, similar to what is in Venetian Causeway and in the Working Back Causeway that connects Key Biscayne. Before it seemed like it wasn't possible. A lot of lawyers before said, not really, we can't do it, we can't do provincial. And so now there's this idea that's being passed around. Right now, on starting on the first of, October, the town of Bay Harbor will have a past plan that will be from 360 to $200 annually, which is beneficial for me and my family and such. But also there's discussions that are directed for the mayor of Bay Harbor to talk with the other mayors from the surrounding areas, specifically Surfside, Bell Harbor. in New Creek Village, any other municipality, about adding residents or employees into that PASS plan. Now, I just want to know if there's been any discussion about communication between Bay Harbor about the PASS plans or anything like that, since, in my opinion, I would prefer for residents and employees of Surfside, Bell Harbor, and Bay Harbor to be included into the PASS plan. So that's all. Just want to know if there's any updates on that.

Thank you. Public comment, Penny Seppler?

Penny Seppler, 102.75 Collins. I just wanted to say I just renewed my past plan, and it was going to be due, let's say, October 4th. It was 350 plus an $8.75 fee for the credit card, and that's what it was. So there was never any discussion about that. you know, it being something else. I mean, that's how much it is, $350. So I think it's well worth it.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Public comment? Yeah. Last bite of the apple for the night. Okay.

Reese Stopa. I think a great deal of accolades are due to the gentlemen that sit at the dais. And also for Susan and the new gentleman. To go against, I hold, because I was on a committee that tried to fight the expansion of the Bell Harbor shops. Council approved. They let the church get annihilated, but they didn't like the bells, so that went. But in order to stand up for the residents, this council has not only done it in such a proper way, but in a way that they have to listen now. They are not Bell Harbor. They are not the individuals that went through all the problems with the construction, with whatever, and what we're going through now. So I am thanking you gentlemen for being representative of the community. I am thanking you for putting your foot down and saying no more, no mas. Rien, whatever other language you speak, they are not going to get away with thinking they own this town and they can turn it into a nightmare of a town. This was a small community that respected one another after a few little arguments, but this is unconscionable what they're doing. The other day the bridge broke. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, nobody could get anywhere. Think of that if the bridge breaks because it's in horrible condition. What are we going to do in an emergency? When there's construction, when there's gentlemen giving me directions on how to drive on a street that I've known probably longer than they're alive. It's just not tolerable. And I thank you for being who you are and what you have done for this community.

Thank you. Okay. That was the last public comment of the evening. Anything from council or Mr. Manager, did you want to address any of the construction issues? I thought we had some.

Yeah. The construction issues. The Bell Harbor shops, as you know, have been under construction for many years. They are racing to complete, substantially complete and get a temporary certificate of completion for the shell of the project. Their initial goal was today. They did not meet that goal. They're hoping sometime in September. They have been lately. testing the fire alarms in particular and we had to notify the fire department actually that they were requiring those tests to be done after hours and we had to notify the fire department that they can't do that after hours. They need to do those inspections during the day. I know that Mauricio has also cited them on occasion for doing work either early or after hours. Yes, they have I think pushed that envelope, and yes, I believe our police department and our code department have been on top of it. I assure you that we are watching every step of the way. As you know, we're in litigation, but we're also trying to make sure that they get to their completion properly and they meet all the code requirements so that we can get them on the tax roll and they can open the expansion, which has been approved for almost 10 years. That's different than the Live Local Act and the dispute that exists in that regard. Our intention is to keep those separate, and we try to do that as best we can. But as you know, in most construction, when they're getting to the end, they try to push whatever envelope they can push to get it as exactly as slap on the wrist or whatever. But Mauricio and Code have been on there, and I think that that's gotten better. I hope it has. But You know, there still may be occasions where, and in those instances, it may not be the shops themselves, it may be the contractors. There's hundreds of employees in there, both from the shell work and then from tenant improvements within each of the units. And so we're monitoring as closely as we can. Both our building official and Mo are constantly making sure that we're on top of that. Thank you.

Okay. The Manager's Report.

Mr. Mayor, I do have actually two items that I'd like to kind of bring to your attention today in the Manager's Report. It's not really an action item but more like a guidance item. The first thing, I actually have a PowerPoint. Go figure. If we recall that up, you'll recall that a few months ago through a discussion item, Vice Mayor Wolf introduced the idea of adding beach fitness equipment to our beach path. And we reported on to you the progress and some of the complications of having to get the permit approved through the state. In the meantime, Councilman Wolf met with other members in the community, some who were in favor, I'm sure, and some who expressed a lack of support for it. And they suggested and Councilman Wolf asked me to conduct a survey. Similar to what we did when we considered the pickleball courts under the bridge and at different times we'll do surveys to kind of gauge the community's interest in an amenity. That one was skewed for sure. This one, not so much, I don't think. But I do want to kind of walk you through it because the survey results are at best mixed. And in some questions, pretty clear that this is not the amenity that your community is looking for, at least the respondents. And so, you know, just so you know, it's about 270 respondents, 269 respondents, which is good for a community our size and a survey of this nature. Primarily from the east side though, if you look at where the responses are coming from, 74% are residents on the east side of Collins, 12 and 14 for the other two areas that we identified. This is probably the best slide to do it. And you can see that the highest number of strongly opposed is 33%. If you add somewhat opposed, you get to 42%. Whereas on the strongly supported, it's 27% and somewhat, you're at 38%. So that's the closest number when you kind of just say, basically, would you support outdoor fitness equipment? But we asked a couple of other questions just to kind of make sure that people were thoughtful. And so the next question was the likelihood that you would actually use it. There's a number of other questions. I'm hiding the three that really made most sense. The likelihood that you would actually use it. And you can see here that 40% of the respondents that answered this question said they were very unlikely, and another 11% saying somewhat unlikely, so more than half. We're saying, we're really not going to do this. Very likely is the 16 and the 15. If you want to add them together, you're at 31, 32%. The next question we asked is, how often, if you were going to do this? And it starts to get worse. 45% said never. Another 17% said maybe three times in a year. That, to me, starts to get to where you're at 62% saying, this is not for me. I'm not really going to use it. Some of them may not be opposed to it, whereas the several use was about 20%, maybe once a week, another 10%. What we did find, and then the phrase, they preferred keeping the beach path open, natural, jogging, walking, and felt that the existing facilities at the park were sufficient. You started to get close to 70% of your respondents saying, you know, we're kind of good. What we did get, and we'll go back and answer any questions you might have, is this is what they do want. out there. More shade, more benches, opportunity for seating, and more lighting, which is something else that we've had a discussion item over and we're putting an RFP out for. So with these kinds of results, if you really want to use data as your guide for decision making, you ought to really rethink whether or not you want us to pursue the beach equipment, fitness equipment on the path at this time. You can always go back and revisit it at a later time. Maybe, you know, the community desires change, but these answers kind of make sense to me. If the bulk of your respondents are on the east side and every one of those buildings has a gym and fitness equipment available to them, I see why this is the response we got. But I need guidance to you on whether you want us to continue or pursue the lighting and push this as a secondary thing at a later time.

I'd like to hear from the vice mayor, I guess, who proposed this resolution.

Yes, I would. I mean, again, as George mentioned, I thought it was a good idea to put out a survey and get people's input. Obviously, I thought it was a good idea, but I shouldn't spend council money because I think something's a good idea or, you know, city's money. So, again, this is the feedback. My question was I wanted to be brought here because I didn't want to spend a lot more time and, you know, the team's time working on this if we felt that these were – not good results, and people aren't interested, and we don't do it. We move on. So I'm interested in hearing your guys' thoughts. And obviously, it's not huge. It's not like a majority of people said, yes, let's put it in. And so I think it's a big effort to do it. I think that some of these ideas Obviously, lighting, which I brought up as well, which is for sure important and I think will cost more than originally thought. But I think it's very important at night for sure. That's security, safety, and all kinds of important reasons to have that. And I've heard benches and seating in shaded areas for a long time. So those, I think, would be overwhelmingly positive for everybody. So I don't know if anybody has any other feelings about it, strong one way or the other.

And I'd just like to say that for as long as I've been on this council, we've been talking about doing some sort of master plan or something for the beach path. And we always put off improvements like lighting, like benches, like workout equipment in the name of that master plan. That's just never happened. I know that we have other priorities like the jetty, village hall. But I mean, I certainly think that that's one of the places in the village that is most utilized by all the residents, east, west. village, gated community and all that. So I think it's something if we can do, maybe it doesn't have to be a master-master plan or just some sort of improvement plan that is easier to implement. I mean, I think we need all of these things.

Yeah, this kind of stuff I don't think you need a master plan for. I think we can go out there and scout out where the shade, where the benches make most sense. We've done that in the past. The lighting is, I think, the thing that is going to be your most impactful thing. improvement. The kind of rerouting the path and all that stuff, that, you know, I mean, it kind of works. I don't know that there's a whole lot more, maybe some greater landscaping.

To Seth's point, If we're going to do it, let's potentially put a master plan together as opposed to putting lighting in now and then we decide to finally do the master plan and we have to redo it again five, seven years from now. Is there a way that we could just measure twice, cut once on it?

Of course, it will push back the lighting process, but yeah, we can put an RFQ out and get a planner to go and do a visioning exercise on the path if that's something that... If you see it's way too much, then we do the lighting. Now, let me say that I want to manage expectations on this. There's a finite set of dollars available out there. We want to make sure it sits in priority of you've got two major projects coming your way now. Our focus is on two major projects. We can do the master plan. It's not going to be cheap. The lighting alone is going to be a significant nut, let alone really going out there and doing a full-fledged you know, improvement, but you've said it before, if you can make the jetty look nice, then lead up to it should be as well.

You know, we spent a lot on our waterfront park that probably isn't utilized, forget, I don't have the real statistics, even as much as the beach path is.

Yeah, your path is your biggest asset.

Yeah, so if we're going to budget something and spend money, I think that it would be money very, very well spent.

I agree with you 100%. The only thing that I would say is, again, with all the – I mean, benches and seating should be an easy thing to put in and not a big costly thing to put in that we could do and improve. And I think lighting as well is just – I think putting in a master plan delays something for a longer period of time just given all the projects we're working on. So, I mean, personally, I think just from a security perspective and benefit perspective, lighting should be good. I don't know that we would need to change – redo the lighting. I mean, the path is the path. So those are a couple of things that I just think, even if we do a master plan, which I agree with you, we should eventually do. I just don't know that we fit it in now, and then maybe we wait five years just to get lighting on the path.

Yeah, this is low-hanging fruit, I think, is what... Councilman...

I don't think we need to create a problem where one hasn't been presented to us. I compliment you for going out and having the survey done. We've got data. We've got responses. We've got our community telling us that they're not in favor of the equipment. These are the things that are important to them. Nobody apparently said anything about redoing the path or anything along those lines. I would address what our residents are asking for. And if we have the opportunity to do a master plan, which is not on our priority list for this year, at some point in the future, do it in the future.

I would agree.

Okay, so I guess staff will come up with some sort of... Yeah, we'll try to...

The lighting you've given us direction on already. The guidance I want to make sure from today is that to put a fork on the fitness equipment for now. You can always come back as part of the master plan and take a look at it. But the lighting and where we have benches and shading opportunities, we should... explore and try to capture that low-hanging fruit. You know, we've got a jetty, a village hall, and then a rec center here when village hall is done. Those are three significant major projects coming your way. A full-fledged master plan on that. The plan we can do, but the execution, you know, you don't want to plan it too soon and then by the time you're executing, it's a whole different community with a whole different set of desires.

Okay.

What was your second item?

Second item is I'd like to ask the chief to come up here. I'm sure you've heard a lot about flock cameras and LPR license plate readers, the back and forth of whether the state allows it, all of the controversy around the privacies and so forth. Many communities are dealing with what the governor recently kind of said push down as it relates to cameras on state right-of-ways. I don't want to spend a lot of time, but I want you to know what we have so that you can be informed in case you are asked, since it is out there in the ether as it relates to data centers, privacy, all the things that you've kind of been reading about. So I'd ask the Chief to just kind of walk you through very briefly what we have and what we're doing and what are the protections we have in place.

All right. Currently, right now, good evening, Mayor and Council again. Currently, right now, what we have is one fixed LPR camera, and that's located on the southbound direction on Frontage Road. It's fixed to a village pole, and it captures vehicles exiting southbound on Frontage Road, and the vehicle's coming down off of Hollover Bridge. The other device we have is a mobile device, which is not under scrutiny by FDOT because FDOT is only concerned about the ones that are on FDOT right away. Our pole, where the camera is, the village owns that pole. We're still trying to determine whether or not that is actually on the FDOT right away. We had a meeting today with our vendor. We're going to finalize that to see if we have to remove it. I can tell you that over the years, We probably, our LPR camera system has been in place for 10 years, over a decade. And what we do is, how the officers use it, especially on Collins Avenue with our traffic enforcement initiative, when they receive alerts from from a vehicle that either, you know, a person may have a bench warrant or hooked into a traffic offender, a suspended DL or a missing person or a missing child, that information is sent to the officer computer that that vehicle is now entering our jurisdiction. So it gives officers the opportunity to set up and look for that vehicle and particularly stop and save someone or arrest a person that, you know, has an outstanding warrant or shouldn't be driving in our community. Now, There are some concerns with flock cameras. We don't have flock cameras. We have vigilant cameras. Chief, can you clarify what a flock camera is?

Let me just be very clear. Flock is just a brand of a type of camera.

Right.

It's the name of a company. We are, as part of our CAD system and our security system, have a Motorola product of vigilance. Vigilant, correct. And that is... It doesn't use flock, it uses a different brand of a camera, but essentially our cameras, the generation that they are, are predominantly license plate cameras. Doing visual recognition, kind of that kind of stuff.

Correct. So what the camera does is captures the tag, and then it records the type of vehicle that it is, the direction, and the time. That's it. It doesn't capture the individual that's in the car. It doesn't capture the occupants in the car. It's just the physical tag. And if the tag is, say, for instance, on a hot list, it would alert the officers about that. Now, what we've done is obviously when this whole controversy started, we looked at our policy right away to make sure that we were in compliance. We have a policy in place that where we have audit controls in place. Each user, all of our majority of our officers have access. Each user, each officer has their own access code. Once they log in in there and they run a tag or they search something, whatever, it leaves a paper trail. So we know exactly who runs what and when. And when we do our audit controls, like we do with all our criminal justice databases, I think we do it monthly or quarterly, if I'm not mistaken, when we do those audit controls, we look at the number of people who ran it, see if they're authorized to run it, and whether or not there's any misuse or abuse. And I'm happy to say that we haven't had any issues with our LPR system. for misuse.

Part of the controversy that you hear about is that a flock captures a lot of images and using AI can start to do more than just the license plate reader. And then it's shared to a lot of different agencies and a lot of different law enforcement jurisdictions. And then we don't have that. We're not part of that system. What we are is part of the vigilant system, which allows us to use the data that's in our neighboring jurisdictions. So it's not just – we have one camera, but if – a vehicle that is on the list, drives through Sunny Isles Beach, say, on its way southbound, it will alert us as well, so that by the time it arrives to us, we are mobilized. Correct. If that camera under the bridge notified us by the time we scrambled, They're probably in Surfside and moving down the line, similarly with Miami Beach and Surfside. So it's a show. We're in the hole of the donut, if you will. And so we're kind of in a good place. But the concern that I know the controversy would be about is really more the facial images and the privacies that people are feeling is being abused. That's not us. That's not this system. But nonetheless, I asked the Chief, you know, let's make sure we look at the policies. One of the things he forgot to mention, Chief, is that it used to be also the data storage. How long do you keep the data? And we're now down to a 30-day retention. So that it's not sitting out there in perpetuity. Interestingly enough, you do have, not flock, but visual cameras that are not license plates inside the gate when we have the whole gated system with the camera security system. Most houses have ring doorbells that share data as well. Every one of those buildings up and down Collins have cameras. And we use and partner with all of them. You've got examples of instances where we've had either a hate crime and we've been able to track the person by using the cameras. So the cameras themselves, if used properly, are a valuable law enforcement tool. Excellent tool. And I think our agency has had successes with those, and you are familiar with some of those. What we're not doing is engaging in some of the stuff that I think the controversy is about. It's really trying to identify people and tracking locations. The one concern I shared with the chief was to make sure that there is an adequate and appropriate audit trail. What I don't want is officers inappropriately tracking things that they shouldn't be tracking.

Correct. Yes. And, you know, like the manager alluded to, you know, we had quite a few success stories. Most recently, there was a young lady, I think she was in the Harbor House, a resident of the Harbor House. A young girl, she had ran away, and there was an allegation that she may have been sexually assaulted. And so we were able to, with the Lysoplate reader technology, track the vehicle up in Broward County and recover her. Another incident that we all, tragic incident that we all kind of remember was the Ethan Gordon case that the kid who was killed on Frontage Road. Because of that technology, we were able to track that vehicle and create a timeline. So these are valuable tools that we use in law enforcement, not just in Bell Harbor, but throughout the state of Florida and so forth. We get information from Miami Beach has the same system that we have. Sunny Isles has the same system that it has. Bay Harbor used to have it, but they switched it to someone else. But it allows us to have that data, and that's what's important, that data. So we know who's coming in our jurisdiction, and if we need to access it to find something or find someone, we can do that. So it has its value to it.

There's no action today? It's a controversy out there. I just wanted you to be aware in case you do get questions. What do we do?

Perfect.

Village Clerk's Report.

No report this evening, Mayor. Thank you.

The Attorney's Report.

I have my monthly reports in your backup, but I'd also like to request executive sessions in the following litigation matters to be scheduled at a time to be determined pursuant to Section 286.011.8 Florida Statutes for the purpose of discussing settlement negotiations and strategy related to litigation expenditures. Each of these cases are Bal Harbor Shops LLC versus Bal Harbor Village. And the clerk has the case numbers if you would like to see them. We refer to them as the live local lawsuit, the noise lawsuit, the supermajority voting requirement lawsuit, and the federal taking claim. Thank you.

Thank you. Motion to adjourn. Adjourned.

Yes, sir.