City Council - Regular Meeting

Good morning. Good morning. Let's call this meeting to order and start with a roll call Madam Clerk.

Mr. Engelke. Here. Mrs. Frank. Here. Mr. Howard.

Here.

Mr. Smith.

Here.

Mister Weed?

Here.

Vice mayor Bolt?

Here.

Mayor Patuta?

Here. We will, stand for the invocation and today's pledge will be led by vice mayor Bolt. Our

father, we pray for the session of the Venice City Council. Bless the men and women who have served who are serving us on our council to lead our city into a bright tomorrow. Bless those who are meeting here today with wisdom to guide their discussions and decisions for common good of our residents, friends, and neighbors. In your name, we pray. Amen.

Amen.

Pledge allegiance to the flag of The United States Of America and to the republic for which

Alright. We have an action packed ceremonial morning, so we will get started with swearing ins. If I could get the police chief to meet me up front, and we will have officers Charlie Brown, Robert Escobedo, Gary Lemscomb, Zachary Boudreault, and Michael O'Brien.

Okay. Thank you everybody. So this this is a special moment in the time of any law enforcement officer or first responder. First we're gonna start out with taking the oath of office, And that oath is really just making a promise publicly to this community to uphold the constitution, the laws of the state of Florida, and to serve with honor and integrity. And then we're gonna have a moment to pin the badges.

And that's kind of a welcoming to our organization, but more importantly, they wear their badge, every shift, they're they're gonna remember the promise that they made to all of you today. And incorporate their family members in this process because no first responder serves alone. It's important that they're here, they're gonna share throughout their careers, and the good times and the achievements, and also in the sacrifices that they make, so it's important that they be part of this process. So we're gonna start with the oath of office. I, state your name.

I, Robert Henry Escobedo.

Do solemnly swear.

Do solemnly swear.

That I will support, protect and defend.

That I will support, protect and defend. Constitution and the government.

Of The United States.

Of The United States.

And of the state of Florida.

And of the state of Florida.

That I am duly qualified.

That I

am duly qualified.

To hold my position.

To hold my position.

Under the constitution

Under the constitution

Of the state.

Of the state.

And that I will well and faithfully

And that I will well and faithfully

Perform the duties

Perform the duties

of police officer

A police officer

on which I am now about to enter.

Of which I am now about to enter.

So help me God.

So help me God. Congratulations.

Aye, say your name.

Aye, Gary Lipscomb.

Do solemnly swear.

Do solemnly swear.

That I will support, protect and defend.

That I will support, protect and defend.

The constitution and government

The constitution and government

Of The United States Of

The United States

And of the state of Florida

And of the state of Florida

That I am duly qualified

That I am duly qualified

To hold my position

To hold my position

Under the constitution

Under the constitution

Of the state.

Of the state.

And that I will well and faithfully.

And that will well and faithfully.

Perform the duties.

Perform the duties.

Of police officer.

Of police officer.

On which I am now about to enter.

Of which I am now about to enter.

So help me God.

So help me God.

I, state your name.

I, Zachary Boudreaux.

Do solemnly swear.

Do solemnly swear.

That I will support, protect and defend.

That I will support, protect and defend.

The constitution and government.

The constitution and government.

Of The United States

Of The United States.

And of the state of Florida.

And of the state of Florida.

That I am duly qualified

That I

am duly qualified

To hold my position

To hold my position

Under the constitution of the state

Under the constitution of the state

And that I will well and faithfully

And I will well and faithfully

Perform the duties

Perform the duties

A police officer

A police officer

On which I'm now about to enter.

On which I'm now about to enter.

So help me God.

So help me God.

State your name.

I, Charles Brown.

Solemnly swear.

Do solemnly swear.

That I will support, protect, and defend.

That I will support, protect, and defend.

The constitution and government.

The constitution and government.

Of The United

States. Of The United States.

And of the state of Florida.

And of the state of Florida. I am duly qualified that I am duly qualified

to hold

my position to hold my position under the constitution under the constitution the state the state

that I will well and faithfully

that I will well well and faithfully

perform the

duties perform the duties

of police officer of

police officer

on which I am now about to enter

on which I am now about to enter

So help me, god.

So help me, god. Congratulations.

I'm Michael O'Brien.

Solemnly swear.

Do solemnly swear.

That I will support, protect, and defend.

That I will support, protect, and defend.

The constitution and government.

The constitution and government.

Of The United States.

Of The United States.

And of the state of Florida.

And of the state of Florida. That I am duly qualified.

To hold my position.

To hold my position.

Under the constitution.

Under the constitution.

Of the state.

Of the state.

And that I will well and faithfully.

And that I will well and faithfully.

Perform the duties.

Perform the duties. Officer. Of police officer.

Of which

to So now help

me God.

So help me God.

We will now have the family members pin the badges. Please proceed. This is the most difficult part of the job right here. Congratulations. Let's give him one more round of applause.

Alright. With that, we'll take ten minutes and we'll be at be back at 09:20. Okay. Let's bring it back together, and we will continue our our morning of ceremonies. Alright.

Next, I'd like to bring up my friends from Sarasota Memorial Hospital so we can proclaim nurses in hospital week. Of the nursing profession and hospitals are ready to provide life saving care to those in need twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. And whereas access to quality nursing care dramatically improves the survival and recovery rate of those who experience illness or injury and whereas professional nursing has been demonstrated to be an indispensable component in the safety and quality of care of hospitalized patients. And whereas members of nursing hospital staff professions, whether career or volunteer, engage in thousands of hours of specialized training and continuing education to enhance their lifesaving skills. And whereas the professional nurses, hospital staff and their families have sacrificed to provide safety and quality care to very ill hospitalized patients.

And whereas nurses and hospitals met the challenge of an unimaginable pandemic, we have witnessed courage, compassion, dedication and caring for the City Of Venice, its residents and visitors. And whereas it is appropriate to recognize the value and accomplishments of nursing care providers by designating Nurses and Hospitals Week. Now therefore, I, Nick Pashoda, Mayor of the

City Of Venice, on behalf of the

Venice City Council, do hereby proclaim the week of May 10 through 05/16/2026 as National Nurses and Hospital Week in the City Of Venice and urge all citizens to support all nurses and our local hospitals.

Thank you so much. On behalf of our Memorial Venice team and Tiffany and I nursing directors at Venice, we'd like to thank the city of Venice for this honor. We're truly grateful. This recognition reflects the strength of our partnership. Every day we work side by side with city leaders, first responders and community partners to care for our residents and support this growing community. I'm especially proud of our staff, their compassion and dedication make this work possible. We're honored to serve, proud to partner and committed to continuing to build a healthier, safer Venice together. Thank you.

And thank you guys. The room always feels safer when you're here. All right. Next up, let's bring our fire department folks down because it wouldn't be a council meeting without the fire department coming down to do something. As long as we're not working on meat. Right? That's very true. Alright. I'll let you hold that one and then we'll shift this way. Chief, do want to come down?

Okay. Whereas emergency medical services is a vital public service and whereas the members of emergency medical services teams are ready to provide life saving care to those in need twenty four hours a day, seven days a week and whereas access to quality emergency care improves the survival and recovery rate of those who experience sudden illness or injury and whereas emergency medical services has grown to fill a gap by providing important out of hospital care including preventative medicine, follow-up care and access to telemedicine. And whereas the Emergency Medical Services System consists of first responders, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, emergency medical dispatchers, firefighters, police officers, educators, administrators, pre hospital nurses, emergency nurses, emergency physicians, trained members of the public and other out of hospital medical care providers. And whereas the members of emergency medical services team whether career or volunteer engage in thousands of hours of specialized training and continuing education to enhance their life saving skills. And whereas it is appropriate to recognize the value and the accomplishments of emergency medical services providers by designating emergency medical services week.

And whereas this year's theme is improving outcomes together. Now therefore, I, Nick Pashoda, Mayor of the City Of Venice, on behalf of Venice City Council, do hereby proclaim the week of May 17 to 05/23/2026 as National Emergency Medical Services Week in the City Of Venice and urge all citizens to support many public safety activities and efforts of Venice Fire Rescue during this week.

Alright. Thank you, mister mayor, city manager, members of the council. I'm really honored to stand up here and accept this recognition. Truth be told, the true honor lies in the men and women that work for Venice Fire Rescue and who wear the uniform. They're the ones that are out there every day putting their lives on the line, in your houses, in the back of the rescue, providing that that life saving care that you that you need at your most desperate hour.

It is their dedication, commitment, courage that are the backbone to this city's public service. They are what we are here for. Every day I come to work, and it's it's a privilege to sit next to them, learn from them, hear their stories, teach them, and know the work that they're doing. The continued support of the council over the last six years has been amazing, and it's that support that's allowing us to provide the high level care that the citizens of Venice deserve. Thank you.

Okay, let's get all my clerk staff down here.

Alright.

Whereas the office of the professional municipal clerk, a time honored and vital part of local government exists throughout the world and whereas the Office of the Professional Municipal Clerk is the oldest among public servants and whereas the Office of the Professional Municipal Clerk serves as the central hub of local government by providing a point of contact between its residents, elected officials, charter officers, administrative and operational departments and other governmental entities. And whereas the professional municipal clerk's role blends administrative and statutory duties with public service, making the Clerk's office a key resource for transparency, access to records and civic engagement. And whereas Professional Municipal Clerk's have pledged to be ever mindful of their neutrality and impartiality rendering equal service to all. And whereas professional municipal clerk continually strive to improve the administration of the affairs of the office of the professional municipal clerk through participation in education programs, seminars, workshops and the annual meetings of their state, provincial, county and international professional organizations. And whereas it is most appropriate that we recognize the accomplishments of the office of the professional municipal clerk.

Now therefore, Nick Pashoda, Mayor of the City Of Venice, on behalf of the Venice City Council, do hereby proclaim May 3 through 05/09/2026, as the fifty seventh Annual Professional Municipal Clerk's Week and further extend appreciation to our Professional Municipal Clerk, Kelly Michaels and her staff, and to all Professional Municipal Clerks for their vital services they perform and their exemplary dedication to the communities they represent.

Just like to on behalf of my small but mighty staff including all of them Tony, Amanda, Tracy and Mercedes. We come to work every day with a positive attitude and just working for the city, the residents. Thank you to the council who supports us in the work that we do and Mayor Pachota. Thank you very much.

We're getting so good at this that we didn't even need to adjust microphones while you guys were down here. It's great. Alright. Next, I'm gonna bring down Vice Mayor Bolt and we're gonna do the building safety month. If I can get Derek Applegate and his team to come down.

We got everybody here today. Nice. How's everybody doing this morning? Good. Good to see you.

Let me read this proclamation. Whereas our city is committed to recognizing that our growth and strength depends on the safety and essential role our homes, buildings and infrastructure play, both in everyday life and when disasters strike. And whereas our confidence in the resilience of these buildings that make up our community is achieved through the devotion of vigilant guardians, building safety and fire prevention officials, architects, engineers, builders, trades people, design professionals, laborers, plumbers and others in the construction industry who work year round to ensure the safe construction of our buildings. Whereas, these guardians are dedicated members of the International Code Council, a nonprofit that brings together local, state, territorial, tribal, and federal officials who are experts in the built environment to create and implement the highest quality codes to protect us in the buildings where we learn, live, work, and play. And whereas, these modern building codes include safeguards to protect the public from hazards such as hurricanes, the word we never wanna use.

Snowstorms, tornadoes, land fires, floods and earthquakes. And whereas Building Safety Month is sponsored by the International Code Council to remind the public about the critical role of our communities largely unknown protectors of public safety. Our local code officials who assure us of safe, sustainable and affordable buildings that are essential to our prosperity. And whereas built to last, the theme for Building Safety Month twenty twenty six, highlights the importance of modern updated building codes to create sustainable disaster resistant structures and communities. Whereas each year in observance of the Building Safety Month, people all over the world are asked to consider the commitment to improve building safety, resilience and economic investment at home and in the community and to acknowledge the essential service provided to all of us by local and state building officials and departments, fire prevention bureaus and federal agencies in protecting lives and property.

Now therefore, I, Jim Bolt, Vice Mayor of the City Of Venice, on behalf of the Venice City Council, do hereby proclaim the month of May 2026 as Building Safety Month. Accordingly, I encourage our citizens to join us as we participate in building safety activities. Thank you. Good

morning.

Morning. Now we're gonna let Derek talk.

Thanks.

Good morning. Mayor, vice mayor, city manager and council, thank you. On behalf of the building department, myself, our partners over in the code enforcement office for VPD, the fire marshal's office, and the fire inspectors, I'd like to express our sincere appreciation for the proclamation recognizing the month of May as building safety month. This acknowledgement means a great deal to all of us who work every day to uphold the standards to keep our communities safe, resilient and prepared. We are thankful for your support in promoting the importance of building safety and the recognizing the values of strong codes, responsible construction practices. Thank you.

Okay.

Next up we'll bring down the Vice chair of our

HAP B

board, Jean Trammell. And Mr. Vice Mayor, you can do that one too.

You know, it's always a pleasure to be able to do something like this for Mrs. Trammell. She is involved in so many things around this city and has been such a supporter of this city that a lot of people don't really know. So with that, I will read this proclamation with regard to historical preservation. Whereas the National Trust for Historic Preservation established May as preservation month in 1973 as a way to promote historic places for the purpose of instilling national and community pride, promoting heritage tourism and showing the social and economic benefits of historic preservation.

And whereas this year's theme is all people are created equal, serving to recognize everyone doing the great work of saving places in ways big and small and inspiring others to do the same. And whereas Venice is blessed with a rich history that can still be seen in its built environment from Mediterranean revival style homes in Edgewood to masterpieces of the Sarasota School of Architecture in our historic downtown. And whereas preserving the John Nolan plan means saving the unique ideas of walkability, access to nature, and a community designed for human scale. And whereas Venice is home to five national historic districts, eight properties on the National Register of Historic Places, and 14 properties on the local register of historic resources. And now therefore, I, Jim Bolt, the vice mayor of City City Of Venice, on behalf of the City Council and the Mayor, do proclaim May 2026 as National Preservation Month and call upon the citizens of Venice to reflect on our historic built environment and join their fellow citizens in recognizing and participating in this special observance.

I would like to thank the city and the city council. It's always been wonderful how the city has recognized the importance of the heritage, the history that we have here. It's a very unique history. If anything happened anywhere in the state of Florida, some of it happened here. And we are so proud of the way the city has worked to preserve our history and to help educate our continuously overturning population. Thank you.

Thank you.

Okay, next I'd like to bring down City Manager, Clinch, Aaron Duggan and Hunter Carpenter. If you guys could come down, we're going do National Travel and Tourism Week. You get all the heavy hitters.

Again, this one's such a pleasure for me because I have to listen to Aaron every quarter tell us the good news and the bad news at the tourist development council of which I am a liaison liaison. So with that, I will read you this proclamation. Whereas the travel and tourism industry is a cornerstone of Sarasota County's economy generating 3,900,000,000 in total economic impact and supporting 28,600 local jobs, making it vital to the region's prosperity and work workforce. And whereas for every 95 visitors who choose to vacation in Sarasota County, one local job is supported, contributing $859,000,000 in local wages and strengthening business across multiple sectors including restaurants, retail, art and culture and transportation. And whereas visitor spending contributes significantly to public funding with millions in tourist development tax paid exclusively by visitors allocated to steward world class amenities like our beaches, parks, arts, sports facilities and community infrastructure.

And whereas the tourist development tax reinvest visitor dollars to support local jobs reduce the tax burden on residents by an estimated $818,000,000 annually. And fund Beach's cultural programs and community enhancements reflecting how tourism is designed to benefit residents first. And whereas strategic investment in tourism promotion through agencies like Visit Sarasota County helps balance visitation throughout the year, supporting workforce stability, small business and a sustainable visitor economy with every dollar invested in marketing, generating $156 in visitor spending. And whereas National Travel and Tourism Week highlights the essential role of travel in driving economic opportunity, enhancing quality of life, and sustaining vibrant communities across the nation and in Sarasota County. Now therefore, I, Jim Bolt, on behalf of the mayor and city council of the city of Venice, on behalf of I'm sorry, do hereby proclaim May 3 through 05/09/2026 as National Travel and Tourism Week in the city of Venice and encourage residents, businesses and community leaders to recognize and celebrate the vital contributions of the travel and tourism industry to our local economy and quality of life.

Thank you.

Really, National Travel and Tourism Week is a week for us to pause and have immense appreciation for those who work in hospitality. If it wasn't for those folks at the front desk welcoming folks into their hotel, the housekeepers cleaning their rooms, the wait staff and the bartenders that kept us fed and hydrated, it would be about a $48,000,000 tax decrease to this community in tourist development tax alone. And I always like to point out in the state of Florida, tourist development tax is spent very different from county to county and in Sarasota County about 80% of that $48,000,000 $49,000,000 brought in just from tourist development tax is spent on community amenities like beach maintenance, beach renourishment, arts grants, Nathan Benderson Park, Mode Aquarium. So we always just like to take this week to thank those who are working in the tourism industry because it really is making Venice and Sarasota County a better place for us all to live. So thank you.

I just wanna take a moment to thank you, Aaron and Hunter, for your work, promoting tourism and and promoting Venice in this county. A lot of people don't know this, but our staff work very closely with Erin and her team. They have sponsored many of our events including our annual fireworks show and our holiday parade, and they promote all of our events in an amazing way. This time of the year, we all kinda take a deep breath, right, because we can we can get into a restaurant, the traffic's a little better, and and it's easy to to take for granted how important these visitors are to our community. So what a great proclamation and a great reason to celebrate, and thank you for everything that you do. We appreciate you. Okay.

And with that, we will come back at 10:00. Okay, we are back and we are now at audience participation which will be limited to one hour. Speakers are not to address council members individually. Any person making personal impertinent or slanderous remarks or who becomes disorderly may be barred from the meeting. This is an opportunity to provide the City Council with your comments.

City Council will not respond to any questions or comments during this time per the City Code. A member of City staff will follow-up with you if it's appropriate. Any documents shown during audience participation or part of the meeting must be given to the city clerk. Madam Clerk, our first speaker.

Our first speaker is Brett Spangler. He has five minutes.

Okay. Mr. Spangler, good morning and welcome. Okay.

All right. Thank you.

Brett Spangler, Hopefully you've had a chance to read the letter I sent on behalf of Glenwood Manor Board of Directors. I wanted to read for you again a portion of the letter I received from the FAA. Ground based airport activities such as aircraft taxiing, engine run ups, use of auxiliary power units, ground support equipment, maintenance operations and vehicle traffic on airport property is the responsibility of the airport sponsor, not the FAA. Airport sponsors are responsible for managing airport facilities and day to day ground operations including addressing community concerns related to ground operations. Airport owners and operators retain primary responsibility for identifying, evaluating and implementing mitigation measures associated with airport ground activities.

Let's listen for a moment, what exactly you've been responsible for. So this is recorded from my window. As you can imagine, it sounds like a blow dryer And this can happen for hours at a time, multiple times a day. This jet in particular was a Corning jet. Seats 21 people.

Makes it kinda hard to use a pool. Open the window. Use the lanai. Enjoy the outside. These aren't FAA operations.

This is just running AC, keeping it cool. I'll spare you the last minute. Would be nice if we were spared from the noise. Thank you.

Thank you for your comments. Madam Clerk, next speaker.

The next speaker is Dennis King.

Mr. King, good morning and welcome.

Testing.

Good morning Mayor Pichota, council members, city manager and staff. My name is Dennis King. I'm a Venice resident for many years and attendant at the Venice Airport. I'm also the President of the Venice Aviation Society, Vassy, as you've heard, an airport user group with nearly 200 members. We're in favor of ordinance twenty twenty six-eighteen, the budget amendment funding a new terminal building.

The new building replaces an outdated non compliant facility, the existing 40 old terminal has exceeded its lifespan and requires constant maintenance and fails to meet current ADA standards. The new building also builds critical hurricane resilience. We survived some pretty bad hurricanes out at the airport and the new terminal is engineered to withstand major storms and enable the airport to reopen quickly afterward. This strengthens our emergency response capabilities and protects our coastal economy ensuring aviation services remain reliable and the community needs them most. Also, it maximized the new building maximizes external funding with minimum local impact with $5,500,000 coming from the FAA and FDOT grants supplemented by $2,875,000 in restricted or just capital improvement airport funds.

So the additional local share of only 540,007 and $42 leverages significant outside resources while advancing long overdue infrastructure project or a long overdue infrastructure project. And finally, as you know, this aligns with this investment fulfills the strategic plan for Venice Goal four, which is upgrade and maintain city infrastructure and it positions the airport well for future safe operation while generating potential lease revenue from the redeveloped old site. Thank you.

Thank you for your comments. Madam Clerk, next speaker.

The next speaker is Tanya Willard. She is not here, okay. The next speaker is Paul Hollowell.

Mr. Hollowell, good morning and welcome.

Good morning.

Mayor, city council, city manager, staff, thank you very much. My name is Paul Hollowell. I am also a Venice resident and a tenant at the Venice Airport. My comments this morning are directed to the airport administration building and strategic plan goal number three and I was heartened to see the strategic plan with respect to the airport, it recognizes the realities of the airport. It needs a new administration building.

The people that work there deserve much better than that that they have now. The airport, like it or not, is a substantial Venice industrial activity. It occupies a significant part of the property of Venice. It's an important commercial and residential landlord and it is a vital contributor to the economic well-being of the overall area. The strategic plan recognizes the importance of the airport.

For many years, that I have been a tenant, the Airport Administration Building has been a problem. It has water leaks, electrical, and sometimes severe plumbing problems. I can have been in it in the past when water was running down the walls on the inside of the airport manager's office. The upper floor is essentially unusable. It's time for a replacement.

The staff deserves better. Unfortunately, the name used by the state for that building has allowed some to piggyback on and use that name terminal to try and inflame people against the new building and the airport. At some airports in the state, the Administration Building is the access, but we all know that is not the case at Venice. Skyport FBO serves that function. The Airport Administration Building is just that, an administration building.

And I would say that equally important is some and unfortunate, many are also using the terminal as a language as a leverage in to attack the master planning effort. It's in many ways if you follow social media, after all if you read it on the internet, it must be true, is it's developing a form of street theater over the airport as we go through the process. I would like to urge the city to take the initiative in getting the facts out about the airport. I know it's difficult to counteract all the things you see on social media, but it's important to try to do your best to counteract what we see there and what people believe who are, you know, they're They believe what they read, they haven't been told anything else. And do one last comment, it was a pleasure to be here as the new officers were sworn in.

I enjoyed that. We have a great police force. It is a key thing of Venice that makes us all feel good. We have a great police force, they do a great job and I thank the city for that. Thank you.

Thank you for your comments. Madam Clerk, next speaker.

The next speaker is Christina Davis.

Ms. Davis, good morning and welcome.

Thank you.

City Council and City Manager, you have an awesome job, a responsibility, a duty to our community. It requires you to make very serious decisions that uphold the city's vision. Of all the issues that you must immerse yourself in, I would say the airport is got to be the most serious one. One that is so complex with all the federal rules and regulations as well as the federal grant assurances that you're signing up for every time you take a dollar of federal money. I have a good understanding of this because I was a federal grant administrator for many years during my career.

I actually helped the city and advised them on projects involving CDBG funds. This issue of the airport needs to be taken seriously. The airport manager, he's looking at things like an airport manager would, I hope. Although hearing that his building is not in good shape tells me he's really not a good manager. He's not taking care of his building.

But expansion, increased traffic, increased revenue of the airport is what he's tied into, what he's keyed into. He's not a city planner. He's not responsible for furthering the goals that John Nolan brought to our wonderful community. And I I will further say, it's very apparent he's not aware of the vision that John Nolan had because he allowed two, at least one, but it appears to be two metal structures at the end of Avenue De Circa, a vista into the south end of the island and were greeted with a big metal building. That would not have been something that John Nolan would have even thought could be possible.

We need you to dive deep into the activities, the maintenance, and the management at the airport. Because in the end, it's your responsibility, just like Brett said. You can say, oh, I'm just here for the time being, I'm here for a couple years, I can vote this, but your vote impacts us for twenty years. You need to be thinking, well, what will this vote do down the road twenty years from now? You, the city, you've granted permits for major home repairs, remodeling, and even new construction down in Gulf Shores right off the new flight path to the airport.

Right? You promoted a healthy city. We just saw the folks come with the, you know, saying what a good quality of life we have here and how we promote it for biking and hiking and swimming and walking and long stretches of the beach. We've got a golf course. All these things that we promote, you guys have to weigh all that against what the airport's doing to our community.

It's a wonderful community. We have a lot of environmental items here. We have scrub jays and gopher turtles that people like to look at along the trail. We even have a resident eagle now in our area next to the airport. Does the airport manager know that? Is he planning for any activities that would impact the Eagle? These are questions that we need to get answered. We need to find out the environmental issues related to the airport before you start making major costly improvements to the airport. Thank you.

Thank you for your comments. Madam Clerk, next speaker.

The next speaker is Madeline Subic. I'm sorry if I didn't say that correctly.

Good morning and welcome.

Good morning. Good morning Mayor and City Council. My name is Madeline Zubig and I'm here today to speak about the airport master plan. I want to first remind everyone that the citizens advisory panel is meeting tomorrow, April 29 at 01:00 at the Venice Community Center on Nacomas Avenue by the library. Everyone is welcome to attend and can sign up to speak about your concerns with the airport master plan expansion.

There will also be a protest starting at 12:15 in front of the community center. I hope everyone shows up and raises their voice to stop this master disaster. Let me begin by talking about an email that was brought to my attention from the Venice Aviation Society Incorporated in April 2025. In this email it was stated that the Venice Municipal Airport has a positive regional economic impact of millions of dollars annually. This was from a Florida statewide aviation economic impact study.

Unfortunately, there was no mention in this email about a comprehensive environmental impact study for jet particulates, fumes, noise and pollution into the surrounding waterways and neighborhoods. What has the city done with all that extra income to help mitigate the pollution in our air namely jet particulates and pollution in our waterways coming from the airport? The question I want to ask city council is, are you being good stewards with monies in addressing the pollution coming from the airport? I'll give you my example that I've been using lately about this question. Question.

If I had a teenage son that wanted to borrow my car and was always getting speeding tickets and had a few fender benders, would I let him borrow it? This same reckless idea relates to City Council. If the environmental pollution I mentioned was never addressed and mitigated would I allow more airport projects to move forward to further pollute our environment? Our waterways surrounding the airport are so polluted now that I wonder what is it gonna take to remove possibly arsenic, lead, jet fuel and who knows what else? Well, we don't know what else because there's never been a comprehensive environmental impact study done.

I feel very sad to mention that I was growing my grandfather's heirloom tomato seeds a few years back right next to this dirty polluted waterway. Deartown Gully, I never knew about the toxic pollution in and around the Gully. Is the city being good stewards to address this pollution? It's time to hold city council responsible with their decisions moving forward. I'm now a Venice watchdog member and I will be voting in the next election with my neighbors and colleagues for the City Of Venice seats one, two, five, six and seven.

By the way, you're not borrowing my car.

Thank you for your comments. Madam Clerk, next speaker.

The next speaker is Tracy Kehoe.

Good morning and welcome.

I am Tracy Kehoe and I am here as a resident not as a member of the city advisory panel for the master plan update on the airport. What I wanted to say is first of all I want to thank you for really listening to us a couple of years ago and hiring. We had asked for a noise abatement officer and you all hired a community outreach officer. I'm not sure how the noise abatement officer got parlayed into a community outreach officer, but what we really need is a noise abatement officer. I feel like David has done an excellent job.

He has tried to help address everyone's issues but I feel like he is in a no win situation because he is like a public relations officer. We need somebody dedicated to noise and pollution abatement. Someone who is going to educate the pilots and I'm not talking about our pilots because I want to just praise Dennis King and Vassy, they've done an excellent job. I've been to their meetings, they always promote the fly friendly, they actually developed the fly friendly procedures. What I'm talking about is educating people who fly in here from all over Florida and other states and they don't know the fly friendly procedures.

They need letters written to them. They need follow-up. I don't think that somebody who is in charge of all the community issues and all the responsibilities that the community outreach officer has can do that. Naples supposedly has, well they do have, a dedicated noise abatement specialist. We have as many flights as Naples if not more.

And Naples is taking this very seriously and I just think it would, I think we've set up our community outreach officer for a no win situation because it's not making the community, my neighbors happy, you know it's just we need somebody dedicated to that, I'm just going to say. I just wanted to talk about the fumes, gave a letter, you'll get a letter I wrote two years ago about the fumes, the fumes are really a problem and I think it's an easy fix to just get APUs, I think they're really expensive but we would just love to see that. I would like to also say that I came here a year or two ago about the Florida Flight School, I just want to say that we sat down with them, they have been great to work with. Nick came, David came, we had a whole panel of people that met. And I think communication is key.

I really think by just working together, we were able to get a voluntary curfew put into place with the flight Florida Flight School that they actually promote within themselves, are just self governing. I'd love to see that expanded. And I just think the death of any relationship is the lack of communication and I think if we can all communicate and work together, we can help improve some of the problems that the neighbors are experiencing. I thank you so much.

Thank you for your comments.

One last thing, I'm sorry, one last thing. What they did at Naples too, just wanted to mention is they bought up the land at the airport to prevent development. And I really think this airport is beloved in terms of like they had 4,000 people come to the airport day I'm told. And I think if we could make it something really special like you know, that kids could come and just not develop it with industrial but make it something that families can enjoy like observatory and maybe know, canoeing or kayaking or just make it something that is just family friendly and a destination and I thank you.

Thank you for your comments. Madam Clerk?

That was the last one.

Okay. We will move on to the consent section of the agenda. All matters listed under the consent section are considered to be routine and will be enacted by one motion unless an item is removed by a council member. There will be no separate discussion of these items. If discussion is desired by a council member, the item or items will be considered and voted upon at the end of the consent section. With that, is there anyone that wants to remove anything from the consent section? Seeing none, I'll entertain a motion.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Vice Mayor. I move to approve items on the consent section. Second.

Second by Mr. Howard. All in favor say aye. Aye. Anyone opposed? Passes unanimously. On to public hearings ordinances final reading ordinance number two zero two six dash one two. Public hearing is now open and madam clerk you can read this ordinance by title.

An ordinance of the city of Venice Florida establishing the Venice Grand Oaks Community Development District pursuant to chapter one ninety of Florida statutes providing for the district's external boundaries providing for functions and powers of the district, providing for the initial board of supervisors for the district, addressing corrections of scrivener's heirs, providing for appeal of all ordinances in conflict here with providing for severability and providing an effective date.

Madam Clerk, have we received any written communication since the last hearing?

No, we haven't.

All right. And is there an update from staff since last hearing? Okay. How about an update from the applicant? Any public comment, Madam Clerk? No. Public hearing is now closed. I'll entertain a motion.

Mr. Mayor.

Mr. Engelke.

I move that Ordinance twenty twenty six dash

one two be approved and adopted. Second.

Seconded by Vice Mayor Bolt. Any council discussion? Alright. Seeing none, we will move on to an electronic vote. Madam Clerk, if you can make us ready for that vote. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. Madam clerk, you can tally and display. Passes unanimously. On to ordinance number two zero two six dash one three. Public hearing is now open. And madam clerk, when you're ready, can go ahead and read this ordinance by title only, please.

An ordinance of the city of Venice, Florida amending the city of Venice comprehensive plan future land use map and associated pages pursuant to petition number 20 five-sixty three CP to change the future land use designation for specific real properties generally located at 490 Substation Road from high density residential to industrial providing for repeal of all ordinances in conflict or with providing for severability and providing an effective date.

And do we have any written communication since last hearing? No. All right. Is there an update from staff? Update from the applicant?

Madam Clerk, public comment? No. Public hearing is now closed. I'll entertain a motion.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Vice Mayor. I move that ordinance twenty twenty six dash one three be approved and adopted.

I'll second.

Seconded by mister Engelke. Any council discussion? Seeing none, madam clerk, if you can make us ready for an electronic vote. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. And, madam clerk, you can tally and display the vote. And this passes five to two. On to ordinance number two zero two six dash one four this is a quasi judicial procedure public hearing is now open and madam clerk you can read the ordinance by title only when you're ready.

An ordinance amending the official zoning atlas of the City Of Venice, Florida pursuant to zoning map amendment petition number 20Five-64RZ to change the zoning designation for the property generally located at 490 Substation Road from residential multifamily one to industrial providing for repeal of all ordinances in conflict here with providing for severability and providing an effective date.

Anyone wishing to speak there's a kiosk in the back my left of the room Please go to the kiosk to check-in and fill out the speakers card. Staff is available in the back of the room to help you if you need assistance. And then Madam Attorney if you'd like to inquire as to the conflicts of interest or ex parte communications since last hearing.

We don't need to cover conflicts of interest again but if you've had ex parte communications that are not part of the record since the last hearing, last meeting then just please indicate at that time by raising your hand, I don't see any.

Madam Clerk do you have any written communication? No. Is there a staff update? Any questions from Council of Staff? Alright, applicant update? Any questions of the applicant by the Council? Alright, Madam Clerk, do you have anybody signed up to speak? No. Any final comments by staff? Final comments by applicant? Public hearing is now closed. I'll entertain a motion. Mr. Inglekey.

Based on the evidence in the record, I move that ordinance number twenty twenty six-fourteen be approved and adopted.

Seconded by Vice Mayor Bolt. Any council discussion? Seeing none, madam clerk, if you're ready us for an electronic vote. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. And madam clerk, you can tally and display. Passes six to one. Alright. We are on to ordinance number two zero two six dash one seven. Public hearing is now open. Madam clerk when you're ready if you can read this ordinance by title only please.

An ordinance of the city of Venice Florida amending chapter 50 personnel article three pensions and retirement division two municipal firefighters pension trust fund adding new section fifty-one 110 deferred retirement option plan providing for codification providing for severability provisions, repealing all ordinances in conflict here with and providing an effective date.

Any written communication since last hearing?

No.

Update from staff? No, okay. And then any public comment? No. Public hearing is now closed. I'll entertain a motion.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Vice Mayor. I move that Ordinance No. Twenty twenty six-seventeen be approved and adopted.

Second. Seconded by Mr. Howard. Any council discussion? Seeing none, we'll move on to an electronic vote. Madam Clerk, when you're ready, can set us up for that vote. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. Madam Clerk, you can tally and display. Passes unanimously. Okay. We're on to two six dash zero five seven two and I will give the City Manager the floor to introduce the topic.

Thank you, Mayor. In your agenda today, there are two versions of the updated strategic plan, one a clean copy and the second a red line version with the changes hopefully everything captured that we discussed at the last meeting. I do want to point out, there is one item on the final last Page 19, which was an additional item that we had not discussed specifically. This came out of a conversation with our planning director regarding the exact areas that we talked about in relation to the JPA at our strategic planning. Mr.

Clark pointed out to me that we talked about three different areas, some are smaller, some are larger. So in the spirit of making this a more general plan, we changed the comment from identifying specific acreage to just saying consider adding areas as strategically appropriate to the JPA. This is a document that will be back before you if we are successful in renegotiating. So just wanted to point that out, everything else directly came from your comments at the last meeting. Thank you.

Any questions of counsel from staff? Okay. Madam Clerk, anybody signed up to speak? No. I'll entertain a motion.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Vice Mayor. I move to approve Venice strategic plan for fiscal year ending 09/30/2027 as presented.

Second by Mr. Weed. Any council discussion? Seeing none, Madam Clerk, if you'll ready us for an electronic vote. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. Madam clerk, you can tally and display the vote. Passes unanimously. On to new business ordinances, we'll start with ordinance number two zero two six dash one eight and madam clerk when you're ready you can go ahead and read this ordinance by title only please.

An ordinance amending City Of Venice ordinance number twenty twenty five dash 32 as previously amended, which adopted the official budget of the City Of Venice, Florida for the fiscal year beginning 10/01/2025 and ending September 3026 by increasing the total revenue by 4,916,229 and total expenditures by 4,916,229 and providing an effective date.

And do you have anybody signed up to speak? No. I'll entertain a motion.

Mister mayor.

Mister vice mayor.

I move to approve ordinance number twenty twenty six dash one eight on first reading and schedule it for final reading.

I will second. Seconded by mister Inglekey. Any council discussion? Seeing none, madam clerk, if you're ready, ask for an electronic vote. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. And madam clerk, you can tally and display the vote. We right will be Linda Seni, sure Quarterly that Financial direction. Update. If Ms. Seni would like to come down, come up, come down, whichever way it is.

And you can go ahead and take the helm and guide us through your presentation. Ms. Senny, I'm going to actually pause you there and if we could take a quick five minute. Sure. We'll come back at about 10:40.

Okay. Miss Ceni, I wanted everybody to be nice and fresh for this wonderful quarterly update we're about to receive. Very excited.

Good morning, Mayor and Council. Since you're so excited, I guess I'll start. This is quarterly report and it's halfway through the fiscal year to give you an update of where we're at mostly I'll focus on the general fund. For the revenues, the Avalorum property taxes at this point to date we've received 92% which is common. This is about the percentage that we see halfway through the year is 92% of what we have budgeted.

So we're on track with that. For the police and fire casualty insurance, which is the red number two, we don't get that money until usually August or September so that will show zero until that point in time. Communication services tax, the number three on here is we're right on target at 50% of the budget for revenues. Utility services tax, the number four is slightly above target at 55%. Franchise fees are just slightly also above target at 53% which is the number five on your screen.

License and permits are below target at 38%. The business tax receipts are at are collected 18, only 18,963 but those are usually collected in August and September, which is why this is a low percentage because the money for that comes in August and September. And then the zoning permits and certifications are up $129,119 at that dollar amount. So for intergovernmental tax revenues, which is on page eight, it's number seven. The state revenue share and proceeds are slightly above target at 51% but the local government half cent sales tax are below target at this point at 47% so they kind of offset each other.

And then also within there on the top, the federal grants, the city has received $265,000 under an ICE agreement that the police department has with them. So that's a federal grant that has come in for $265,000 For number eight, the charges for services are below 48% of the budget amount. The EMS transport fees right now are at 47% and that always has to do with the timing of our billing and getting reimbursed from insurance companies, Medicaid and or third parties. So that's based on the timing but right now it's at 47%. The general fund investment earnings which is the top one, number nine on here is 89% of the budgeted amount.

And so we have for any of them unexpected where you see the where it's highlighted that tannish color, we've increased the projection on the revenue side. Based on where we are today, we've increased the revenue projections. Then for miscellaneous revenues, the first six months are above the budget amount for the entire year. The second quarter included the percentage of sales contribution from the Venice peer group and that's on the one that's rents, the first number 10, the rents, that's from the Venice Peer Group, so we did receive that. And then also under the other miscellaneous revenue, that includes a bank rebate of almost $67,000 that we get from Chewis for using our P Card because we get a rebate back when we use the P Card, so we try to use the P Card for any purchases that the vendor will accept the P Card.

And then we also have received 79,118 of insurance settlements from the hurricane damages that we've had so far. So that's the revenue to date. And then for expenditures, the expenditures are tracking as we would expect at this point in time. There are three departments that are above the target, the 50% I'm sorry, there is two departments above the 50% target. There are the two percentages that are highlighted in pink.

One is the fleet services division has spent 55% of its annual budget due to the purchase of an above ground fuel storage tank and as mentioned last time when I did the report was the parks division is at 80% because we gave the $5,000,000 for Wellfield Park to the county and that was dispersed in October, the first month of the fiscal year. So that is why those two departments are above their projected at this point in time. So overall, the ending fund balance number when we completed the fiscal year 09/30/2025, It's the last light blue number, it was $35,300,000 under the actual fiscal twenty five column. And a portion of this fund balance was encumbered and carried over to fiscal twenty six, that's $2,100,000 That is the first number in the darker blue that says net encumbrances including committed fund balances. So those are POs that we already had or projects that we rolled over for $2,100,000 into fiscal twenty six from fiscal twenty five.

So when I did the last quarterly report, we expected fund balance to end up at 27,700,000 for 09/30/2006. But because of the increase in our revenue projections, changing those revenue estimates, expect that fund balance will now be $28,400,000 at the end of fiscal twenty six. And down on the bottom shows what reserves are, we have 25% is our target policy reserve for the general fund and then we have shoreline of protection $400,000 natural disasters is 5,000,000 Seaboard redevelopment, we originally had $3,000,000 and then we had budgeted $200,000 for demolishing public works buildings at the seaboard area. So now that reserve is down to 2.8. And then for the parks and local agreement for the transition for Wellfield Park, that is pending park impact fees.

If there is not enough park impact fees that are collected, then the city would be responsible so we estimated in $300,000 for that. So any questions where we are with the general fund at this point in time?

Any questions from Ms. Setti?

So if anybody has any questions on any other of the funds when you're going through the report then just feel free to call me at any time.

Okay. Thank Thank you very much for your presentation. All right, we will move on to council action discussion word 20 six-five 91 and this is considered the Citizens Advisory Board's recommendation for the City Council to approve placement of a mural of Old Betsy on the rear of the Old Betsy Museum. Let's see, Madam Clerk, do you have anybody signed up to speak on this?

We don't have anyone signed up to speak and there was a prior communication that was provided to you in advance. Okay.

The only thing I wanted to say you know in relation to this is, when this came to the Citizens Advisory Board, I did have a discussion with the artist and with Mr. Midlam, there was a dalmatian on the drawing and I suggest that they change the dalmatian to a golden retriever since we have a golden retriever in our department. It would be more specific to us. So I do want to make everyone aware of that discussion just in case that becomes a concern for anyone. With that, there is nobody signed up to speak so I will entertain a motion.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Vice Mayor. I move to approve the placement of a mural of Old Betsy on the rear of the Old Betsy Museum as presented. I will second.

And I would just ask that we include that change from the Dalmatian to the Golden Retriever just for safety sake. Agreed. Okay. Seconded by Mr. Inglekey. Any council discussion? All right. Then Madam Clerk, if you'll make us ready for the electronic vote. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. And you can tally and display.

Passes seven to zero. Okay. We're now on to 26Dash0592 and I do need to recuse myself from this as I am the co owner of the business and property owner. So I will pass the gavel to Vice Mayor Bolt and I will move myself to the audience.

Mike.

Sorry. I would I would ask the city manager to introduce the topic for us please.

Thank you Vice Mayor. Well first off, we were approached by Mark Windroff, who's the developer's representative. And he presented this concept to us, which is a pretty common partnership between these affordable housing developments and the other stakeholders in the community, but not something we've participated in, in the past. So we had to do a little homework on our side to fully understand this agreement, which looks like a good a really good opportunity for us. We've struggled in the past with affordable housing initiatives, things that are within our wingspan, and especially things that can support our own staff members.

So, this, as it turns out, is a great no cost opportunity for us to get reservations in this future affordable housing project for our staff members in the city. Our Assistant City Manager, Roger Romanheiser has led the charge here working on developing the items that are in front of you today. So if you have any additional questions, would welcome him up to answer those. Thank you.

Thank you. Are there any council questions? Mr. Engelke.

Perhaps we can discuss a little bit about how this well we know how it came about, but why would the applicant be asked I'm assuming we were asked to participate. And as I understand it, there's no downside. What's the upside or downside for the applicant in terms of why would they put out such a gracious offer?

For the record, Roger Romanheiser, Assistant City Manager. This project was part of a HUD grant for Sarasota County and it was advertised to them as provide high quality affordable housing for our hometown heroes, including employees of the sheriff's office, firefighters, school district staff, nurses and caretakers. So I did talk to Mark Vengroff yesterday and I asked him the same question and he said there is no financial incentive to offer this prior year agreement. He said it's purely for philanthropic reasons and it's quote simply the right thing to do.

Okay. Thank you. I would just like to say that, I really think this is a great thing that I would give them props for doing this. We know how difficult it is to come up with affordable housing and particularly in the city of Venice and the surrounding area. So this being the case, it may offer an opportunity for us to hold on to some people that might otherwise leave us because they can't afford to live here whether it's the price of gas or the time they spend to get here. So I think it's a really great idea. Thank you, Roger. I appreciate your help. Madam Clerk, is anyone signed up to speak?

No. Okay.

At that point, I will entertain a motion.

Mayor. Vice Mayor, I make a motion.

Mr. Smith.

I

move to approve the priority access to housing agreement between the City of Venice and Venice Avenue Apartments LLC.

I'll second.

Thank you. Mr. Engelkeefe second. Any counsel discussion?

Mr. Vice Mayor, if I may, I would just like to commend the Mayor for this. I appreciate this philanthropic effort and I think it is much needed in the city. I hope we can have more things like this, but I congratulate you and thank you for bringing this to us.

Any other discussion? Madam Clerk, can you prepare us for thank you, when you see your buttons flashing, thank you. Can we have a disclosure, Madam Clerk?

We did receive a voting conflict of interest signed form from Mayor Pichota as he indicated in his comments that he, as an owner. So, it's been filed, it will be attached to the minutes as required.

Very good, thank you. Can you show us our vote? Okay. Minus the mayor, it is approved unanimously. I will return the gavel at this point.

What I missed? No, I'm kidding. Okay. Moving on to twenty six-five ninety three planning and preparation for the sunset of Florida Senate Bill SB180 and this was put on by Mr. Inglekey if you'd like to introduce the topic briefly sir.

All right.

Thank you sir. The state government a couple of years ago last year put out, SB one eighty which says that we as a city can, not make any building codes or development plans any stricter than they were as of 08/01/2024. So, there's a sunset on this that comes up on 10/01/2027. And what I'd like to do is is be prepared as legally as we can be to if there's anything that we want to tighten up on our building codes or, land development codes or or storm water type of thing. If we can be prepared for 10/01/2027, as far as the law will permit us, that's the introduction here.

So what I wanna do is be out in front of the state, this time, and because the state did debate the possibility of, amending SB one eighty this past year, but I think it was voted down or never made it to committee or never made it to vote. So, we're kind of left hanging. And it's very, very important to us, at least to me for, home rule. And we need to be able to dictate to or respond to our, citizens request concerns. But unfortunately, the state has kind of stepped in and is beginning to erode continually to erode our home rule.

And so I think this is an opportunity here to maybe, claw back a little bit, provided that there is no additional catastrophes as defined. And, I think we need to kind of be prepared for whatever opportunities that will present itself on or after 10/01/2027. Thanks.

Madam Clerk, do you have anybody signed up to speak? No. Okay. Then I'll entertain, is it a point of order Mr. Smith or is it just, okay, I'll entertain a motion at this point.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Vice Mayor. I move to direct the appropriate charter officers to research and provide advice to the City Council including a list of SB180 items and steps the city can take over the next seventeen months to ensure we are prepared to implement new codes that will support resiliency and other strategic goals as soon as possible after SB180's 10/01/2027 sunset date.

Seconded by Mr. Howard and council discussion. Mr. Smith.

Mr. Mayor, we've discussed this previously and would like to invite the city manager to address this. I believe we have started to make a list of all the things that we have discussed that we wished we could have voted on and the city attorney advised us we could not.

Yes, thank you. We do. We have a running list going, our planning director and myself of items that you all have directed us to pursue in the past that we have been unfortunately unable to make take action on. We were all very hopeful for some sort of glitch build this year. It didn't happen, but that doesn't mean it may not happen in the future or it may get extended due to natural circumstances that are written into the bill.

All that to be said, we want to make sure we're keeping a list that is current and we would be happy to bring that list back to you in the future for feedback on making sure there's nothing missing from that list and prioritization. If there are certain items that you would like for us to have ready to go as soon as the bill does open up, we'll be glad to take action on that within the boundaries of the law. And I think a city attorney could add to that. But there are some things we can do on a staff level to be prepared for that expiration. But then we there will be a point where we cannot move forward under the confines of law. Thank you. Mr. Weed?

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. My comment is actually just kind of a parliamentary comment for the record. Mr. Engelke did a fine and eloquent job of the presentation, but in doing so he stated that the law states, and I would just like to clarify for the record that what he stated was a consensus of the law and not actually a reading of the law, that it was paraphrased. I just would like that to be in there so this could not be challenged in the future.

Any other comments? Okay. Then with that, we will move on to electronic vote. Madam Clerk, if you can ready us for that. Council members, when your lights are flashing, you can indicate your vote. And Madam Clerk, can tally and display the vote. Passes unanimously. All right. We will move on to Charter Officer reports starting with Madam Attorney.

No additional comments today.

Madam Clerk?

I just wanted to remind the council that we do have an ethics training that's being hosted by the Longboat Key Community Center or the City Hall and it's this Friday. I believe it starts at 01:00. I can confirm that with our city attorney who's participating in the training.

01:00 it's going be amazing.

It is going to be amazing and so just a reminder if you can't make that training we can make other arrangements for you but that one's free and our great city attorney is one of the presenters so I'm going to highlight it.

Mr. City Manager.

Thank you, Mayor. Two things from me, just wanted to share a huge thank you from our police department for all the participation in the staffing study field visit last week. They got great information from all of their meetings and had extensive meetings with members throughout the community and our own staff as well. They are diving into the data analysis phase now, so they'll be compiling all of the qualitative and quantitative data that they've assembled They're moving very quickly. We would expect probably within a month, they're going have this report complete and then they'll be coming back to you all to present their findings and to be open to any questions that you have.

So thank you again for your support with that. Second thing I had is as if moving all of our solid waste operations was not enough, they are now taking on route changes. So I applaud the very timely and ambitious plans of our solid waste department. As our city has grown, especially in the Northeast, the current routes have stretched certain days beyond capacity. So they are rightsizing the routes and it's going to result in some route day changes for our residents.

So that's going to be starting on June 1, and and they're going to spend the next month doing public outreach, letting everybody know how those route changes may impact them. No change to the number of days collected, still twice a week on garbage, and no change to our commercial routes. But the residential routes will be changing on June 1, so stay tuned for that and if you get any questions about it, there's extensive information on our website. That's it for me. Thank you.

Correction, merits twelve thirty to 04:30 on Friday. I don't want anybody to be late if you're intending to go, sorry.

Just for the record, said no comments so I was.

All right. Council Member Engelke. No report. Council Member Weed.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Two things I'd like to reiterate what the city manager said. I found the consultants with the police department at a very professional and educated job and really thought that time was well spent. So I thank you and applaud whoever made those arrangements.

The second thing is I was able to participate in a meeting with the United Way long term recovery program and believe it or not, they still have dozens of homes that they are working with recovering from our hurricanes of the past and the volunteer efforts there are just remarkable and commendable. This is a fine program and this helps a lot of the people in our communities that need assistance recovering even to this late date from those storms. So I commend their efforts.

Mr. Howard. Thanks,

Mayor. Echoing my colleague, the interview sessions at the police department were very thorough and with the organization that's doing that or the consultants doing that were very professional and the questions were very appropriate what they were looking for. The safety day, the trash routes, we had a beautiful trash truck setting out there with a map, QR codes, magnets specific to your area if you attended that to tell you about these changes and you could tell the guy who's 20 with the city and very enthusiastic about his job. The ethics training, unfortunately, will not be able to attend the long boat as much as I'd love to see Kelly Fernandez and others present. I will be in Gainesville at the end of this week.

Our youngest daughter is graduating, with her BSN in nursing. So the nursing proclamation today, it meant a lot. Thank you.

Mr. Smith?

Thank you. I have two things, Mayor, if I can. And the first one is I direct it to the City Manager. I also participated in a very productive discussion with these consultants that were talking to all of our council members and a whole bunch of other people I believe about our police staffing and I wonder, I don't think the community is aware of that, I don't know if it's ever been discussed by the council publicly, so I'd ask the city manager to communicate what exactly we are doing there. Sure,

I'll make it brief here, but we are in the middle right now of a police staffing study and it's looking at both the data driven demands of our police department. They've taken all of the dispatch data from the county over the last several years and they'll be reviewing that extensively to see how we are responding to the community's needs. And it's also taking a look at what our expectations are in terms of service delivery, not only from the council, but our residents, HOAs, non for profits, Chamber of Commerce partners, Sarasota Hospital. So they're going to be combining that information into a final report, looking at our organization and really giving us advice on two areas. Is our organization structured properly for a police department of this size in Southwest Florida?

And how do we need to look strategically ahead at providing the staffing needs to serve this community as we are growing? So those are the two main goals that they'll be bringing back to us. And I just want to reiterate that it's totally data driven. We really, at this point in time, do not know what the results are going to be of that study. But over the next few weeks, as they finish analyzing this data, we'll have a more clear idea and look forward to bringing that back to you all in about a month's time. Thank you.

Ms. Mayor, if I can, I'm still I don't know if reeling is the right word. From the video that was played for us by Brett Spangler, I believe, during public comments and I have been invited down to a couple of homes to sit and listen to the jet noise and I accepted those invitations and if anything, that didn't quite capture how loud, how bad and how odorous that experience is when you live right across the street. I was struck also by the letter he was reading from the FAA saying it's our responsibility, not the FAA's responsibility to address anything that is in excess there. And so I would like to ask the city manager and or our airport manager to give me some assurance that this council will have some input and when that input would take place for the airport master plan process.

I know we were advised early on what they were doing and I am expecting they would come back with a report, But I'd like to know what and how the council will have some say in that whole process that's ongoing.

I would look to the mayor if you want to hear from additional staff because I don't want to speak to the specifics of when and where we're going to be coming back with this report.

No, would encourage you to give him a brief answer but if he wants a presentation put on the agenda that he can always do that. So you're absolutely welcome to answer his question. I don't think we need to have staff come up unless he wants a presentation on the agenda.

Very good. Well, that would be a good way to talk about this in more detail. But right now, we're in the middle of the master plan process. We have our second round of advisory board meetings tomorrow, both the Technical Advisory Board and the Citizens Advisory Board. And that really is the goal of these meetings is getting feedback just like we heard today, to hear what those pain points are from the community and from the stakeholders on the airport.

And as we're developing this master plan, the goal of that master plan is not only to meet the future demands from the aviation side of things, but to make sure we're managing the development of the airport in a way that is complementary to the neighbors. So this is great feedback. I mean the feedback we're going to receive tomorrow will be similar to what we received today, I'm sure, from the surrounding community. And our staff will be working to tailor that plan to meet the aviation demands while also balancing the needs outside of the fence line. We will absolutely be back to talk to counsel.

We had our presentation in the fall to present how this process is going to work, but we're really right in the middle of it right now. So we're going to have the second round of advisory panel meetings tomorrow. And then our third round of advisory panel meetings will be in the fall. Actually, we're looking at around November, I believe. Intentionally taking the summer off to allow people to come back into town, so we make sure we get that participation from the public.

So I think it's important that the community hears really the FAA has some pretty low level requirements for community engagement when you're doing a master plan. So we could just on a staff level, finish this plan and move forward and bring it to you for adoption, but that's not acceptable to us. We understand that there is an extreme value in that community engagement. And so that's why we're taking our time and we're making sure to have those opportunities for the public to share those concerns and then to take action on the items that are within our control. I can tell you right now, our airport director is actively working to update the policies and procedures for the airfield, something that is overdue and something that will help address some of these jet concerns directly.

So he's taken action right now and there's going to be additional items as part of the master plan to mitigate those concerns.

Mr. Mayor, let me thank the City Manager for that report and just let me say it may be appropriate for the council to consider a workshop of its own on this topic while we are still in the master planning stage, I would like you to consider that anyway. Thank you.

Ms. Frank?

Thank you. Two quick updates. I was able to attend the Venice Housing Authority meeting that took place back on April 15 And just some positive news there while they're in maintenance mode for Venetian Walk 1 And 2, they did receive significant funding from the federal level in the six digit range to make capital improvement enhancements. As you guys know, Venetian Walk I is well over ten years old, so there's definitely some capital needs that those buildings have on their radar. So the group housing authority board met and discussed prioritizing those.

The biggest ticket that rose to the top was some security enhancements. They have outdated and limited cameras in the building. So they're committed to significantly enhancing the video capabilities and then there's just some other really great projects. They're going to be able to fix up the playground, the gazebo, the railing that's aging, some other capital improvements to that property. So that was all very positive that came out of the Venice Housing Authority Board two weeks ago.

And then the second thing I just wanted to mention was it was a privilege to attend with city staff and the mayor the Habitat for Humanity of South Sarasota County home dedication. Just a really tremendous collaboration between the nonprofit and the city and obviously was made possible by Mr. Edmund Campbell as well. And so I just wanted to thank the city and also mention that Habitat for Humanity of South Sarasota County was very clear and explicit that they would love to partner with the City of Venice again. They are always on the lookout for parcels or projects within the city limits and so I'm hopeful that potentially there will be more to come in collaboration with them. Thank you.

Vice Mayor Bolt. Thank you. For those of you out there that think that we show up every two weeks and that's it, you need to look at the agenda for this week. I just want to really bring up that obviously we have two meetings for the airport which is extremely, extremely important. I encourage my colleagues to attend at least one of those.

At the same time, we have a ribbon cutting for the Loveland Center at 09:00 tomorrow morning, which some of us have been involved in different ways. Thursday, we have a booster station ribbon cutting. And then I will be going to the Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation on behalf of the mayor and the city for their award ceremony that night. And then I'll go to do that ethics training with Kelly and all her friends. So it's a busy busy week for us, and it's not out of the ordinary to be honest with you. Hope I didn't steal any of your thunder there, mister mayor.

There's plenty of thunder to go around. All right. I just want to quickly go over something with the council. I've been attending and many of you have seen me, our different advisory boards. This is that time of year where I go and so normally what we would do is we would have a chair discussion and we would bring out all the chairs from the boards together, the charter officers and I would meet with them and this is at the council's direction.

There's actually written direction that this is something the mayor is supposed to be doing. So what we did this year is we changed it up a little bit and we are actually going to each Board. We've noticed a shift in some of our chairs are coming off the Boards and new chairs are starting and new members are joining Boards. So we felt that it was a better idea this this year to go to each Board and present to the whole entire Board. So kind of just discussing their roles, responsibilities, council's involvement, staff's involvement, our expectations, those kind of things.

So just some things I wanted to just quickly remind everybody with a lot of these new members coming onto the Boards, do make sure that as the liaison to your Board, you go and introduce yourself to the new members. Some of them are a little confused as to who the council liaison is because I know that some of these meetings, a couple of us may attend, three or four of us. So just make sure you go and introduce yourself to each one as the liaison to the board so they know exactly who that council member is. And most importantly, I just want you to not be surprised when I show up to present at the meeting with the charter officers because that is what we're doing and I believe we're almost done, but it's been actually a little bit of a good refresher for a lot of folks. With that, I will go into some of my highlights of events coming up.

We've got, he was in the audience, he left, the Centennial Park at nine a. M. On Wednesday, May 6. Please join us. We're going to be doing the renaming of the Park Gazebo for Bob Vetter of Venice Area Beautification Inc. And his many contributions to the city in the downtown area. Venice City Hall and other city buildings will be closed to the public on Monday, May 25 for the observance of Memorial Day holiday. The American Legion Novelle Post one hundred fifty nine will once again host the annual Memorial Day ceremony in Venice at ten a. M. May 25 at Patriots Park, is 800 Venetia Bay Boulevard and the public is invited just make sure you bring chairs.

Mark your calendars, this is going to be a good one, I'm going to actually proclaim away hurricanes, it'll be a lot of fun. It's a free two day City of Venice Hurricane and Home Expo next month at the Venice Community Center in partnership with the Venice Gondolier. Federal State, Sarasota County, Municipal, Nonprofit and Community Groups will be tabling Friday, May 29 and storm prep, landscaping and home improvement and recovery related business vendors will be on hand Saturday, May 30. Speakers that Friday will include Venice Fire Chief Frank Giddens, Police Lieutenant Matthew Sosnich, Community Rating System Coordinator, Christina Rimes, Assistant Utilities Director, Patience Anastasio our Building Official, Derek Applegate Sarasota County Emergency Management Chief, Sandra Tapumine and ABC7 Chief Meteorologist, Bob Harrigan. They'll all be present.

Raffles for weather radios and generators, giveaways, and food available for purchase both days, 9AM to 2PM. You can make a weekend of it and be storm ready, especially if you are a new resident. And a reminder that hurricane season is only thirty four days away, But I'm gonna proclaim them away, so we're not gonna worry about it. It's gonna be a great hurricane season with no hurricanes. Fingers crossed. Alright. Madam clerk, do have anybody signed up to speak? No. With that, we are adjourned.