All City Council meetings may be viewed at www.youtube.com/cityofdestin.
August 1st Council Meeting Recap
Public Comment:
Mayor Gary Jarvis asked staff to report locations of sunken vessels to FWC so they can follow protocols for removal of the vessels. Councilmember Dewey Destin recommends the city takes the initiative of marking the location, such as placement of a buoy, in the interim instead of waiting for FWC to act which could take a while as they will need to follow rules and regulations before taking any action. Deputy City Manager Webb Warren reported that staff has been working with Okaloosa County regarding this issue, and that the county is going through the process. The city will take the necessary measures to remedy the situation on an interim basis.
Councilmember Hebert requests the city takes the necessary action to remove the nearly sunken and abandoned vessels as reported by a previous speaker from the Holiday Isle Improvements Association. She will send the information to staff so they can report it to the county or FWC.
Councilmember Dewey Destin recommends contacting Mr. Alex Fogg of Okaloosa who has been spearheading the removal of derelict vessels with the State of Florida.
City Manager Report:
Establishing the FY2023 Tentative Millage Rate and Budget Public Hearing Dates - Motion passed 6-0, to set the tentative millage rate for ad valorem taxes at 1.6150 mills which is 12.22% more than the rollback rate of 1.4391 mills and confirm the date and times of the public hearings for the FY 2023 Budget on September 8, 2022 at 5:30 PM and September 19, 2022 at 6:00 PM.
Capital Project Management provider recommendation - Motion passed 4-2 (with Council members Bagby and Braden dissenting), to direct the City Manager and City Attorney to negotiate with Matrix Design Group, Inc. for Capital Project Management services and report back to the council with a contract to consider.
Councilmember Bagby requests staff obtain the following information during their negotiation with Matrix and report it back to council:
• Names of the project managers
• Names of the construction managers
• Managers’ background and certification
Councilmember Bagby also wants to know how staff intends to deconflict this contract with their existing continuing services contracts with other firms.
Medical & Ancillary Benefit Renewals - Motion passed 6-0, to authorize the City Manager to renew existing ancillary benefits with Guardian and to accept Florida Blue’s proposal of PPQ Plan 03769, with its companion Health Savings Account Plan to be effective September 1, 2022.
Cross Town Connector / Stormwater Update - Motion passed 4-2 (with Council members Schmidt and Braden dissenting), to direct the City Manager to enter into the addendum to the agreement with Atkins Consultants and execute the redesign of the Destin Cross Town Connector retention system, in order to underground retention pond #2, in the amount of $45,491.58, to provide council the option to turn that area into a park/green space, as previously designated.
Flood Insurance Update / Risk Rating 2.0 - Public Works Director Michael Burgess provided the Flood Insurance Update to the council.
Baseball Conversion Costs @ DES - The Deputy City Manager provided council the information on the costs to renovate the Destin Elementary School baseball field to meet high school standards. Staff will bring back the cost analysis for renovating the Morgan Sports Center baseball field on August 15th council meeting.
Announcements:
1. Okaloosa County Schools start back on Wednesday, August 10th.
2. The Library will be closed on Friday, August 19th, for staff to attend the annual OCPLC staff training day and will open as usual on Saturday, August 20.
3. Many thanks to the staff for hosting Big Truck Day on Friday, July 29th.
4. The Destin City Council will host a Budget Workshop on Thursday, August 11th at 5:30 PM.
5. For the month of August, randomly selected Destin households will receive information to participate in Destin’s 2022 Community Survey. There will be a Motion to direct the City Manager to enter into the addendum to the follow on survey for all residents to participate at a later date. Staff is working with POLCO which is overseeing the survey and the letters that are going out to the households will be signed by Mayor Jarvis.
6. Early voting for the primary elections is scheduled for August 13 – 20, from 10 AM to 6 PM at the Destin Community Center.
Council Comments:
Councilmember Bagby - Place City Manager Evaluation under his name on the August 15th council meeting agenda. Staff to contact FWC and get all the pertinent and related decisions on the derelict vessels and provide information to council.
Councilmember Schmidt - Morgan Sports Center Baseball Field - Will wait for the cost analysis for renovating the Morgan Sports Center baseball field staff will bring back on August 15th council meeting. Helicopter Usage and Safety - Motion to direct the City Land Use Attorney to coordinate with county staff to determine and provide to the council the current permitted uses and future allowable uses of the property currently being utilized by the tour helicopters. Requests the following categories be added to the Code Enforcement Report: Reactive and Proactive Responses.
Mayor Jarvis - Requests staff includes the following information to the Morgan Sports Center renovation cost analysis report they plan to bring back on August 15th: * Pros and Cons (positive and negative impact). Councilmember Bagby would also like to see a list of other things the city is already doing for the Destin High school, i.e., the use of the soccer field and softball field.
City Attorney - Motion passed 6-0, to schedule a Council Executive Session concerning litigation involving the Destin Fishing Fleet, Inc., v. City of Destin, Okaloosa County Court Case No. 2019-CA-000425F, on August 15, 2022, at 5:30 PM.
August 15th Council Meeting Recap
City Manager Report:
Destin High School Request for A Baseball Field @ Morgan Sports Fields, Update - The City Manager provided the following update: DHS reps will present request to Parks and Rec Committee on August 23rd. DWU will present their recommendation to the city. Item tentatively scheduled to be on the September 8th council meeting agenda.
Adoption of a Formal Annexation Policy - Motion passed 7-0, to direct the City Manager to prepare an Annexation Policy for council consideration. Councilmember Bagby requests staff look at the Pros and Cons of Annexation from the landowners’ perspective similar to the Pros and Cons from the city’s perspective as they develop the policy and present that information to council.
Mobility Plan Update - Mr. Alan Steinbeck, 3TP Ventures, Inc, presented the Mobility Plan update.
Impact Fee Study Update - Mr. Alan Steinbeck, 3TP Ventures, Inc, presented the Impact Fee Study update.
Destin Youth Council Membership Appointments - Motion passed 7-0 to appoint the following 11 students to the Destin Youth Council:
• James Ball
• Anna Marie Carroll
• Grace Fountain
• Charlie Frankfurt
• Alaina Granier
• Gianna Jackson
• Bianca Rodriguez
• Macy Sexton
• Parker Sexton
• Alexis Ventimiglia
• Annabelle Zielinski
Councilmember Wagner recommends bringing in representatives from the Florida League of Cities to do a youth council educational seminar in Destin and inviting the youth council group from the other local municipalities.
Announcements:
1. Derelict boats on the harbor - update
2. Early voting for the 2022 Primary Election is on August 13th thru August 20th, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, at the Destin Community Center
3. Primary election is Tuesday, August 23rd
4. City facilities will be closed on September 5th for Labor Day Holiday
5. The next Council Meeting is scheduled for September 8th beginning at 5:30 PM
6. Youth tackle football program - update
Council Comments:
Councilman Wagner / Community First Meetings - Councilmember Wagner requests council consider moving Section 6: Comments / Presentation from Mayor and Council, at the very beginning of the agenda to facilitate as much citizen output and collaboration.
Florida League of Cities Annual Conference Report - Councilmember Wagner reported that the Florida League of Cities Annual Conference he recently attended was excellent.
Councilmember Wagner expressed the need to address the lifeguard situation on their beaches soon. The Destin Fire Control District expects to have a lot less amount of lifeguards next year as compared to this year due to cost of living increase. They need to find additional revenue source or do some budget cuts to increase their lifeguards service expenditures. The City Manager will speak with District Chief Sasser to gather more information regarding this issue and provide a report at the next council meeting.
Councilmember Bagby - Motion passed 7-0 to direct the City Manager to develop draft metrics for FY 22-23 and bring them back to the council by the second meeting in September.
Motion passed 7-0 to appoint Ms. Lisa Mason to the Parks and Recreation Committee.
Councilmember Bagby requested an update on the Citizen Survey.
Update and exact timelines for the survey will be provided at the next council meeting. The city will do some social media posts to get the information out to the public.
Councilmember Schmidt - Fiscal Year 2022 - 2023 Strategic Plan - Councilmember Schmidt recommends creating an easy-to-follow tutorial video online showing how to use the COMPASS Energov System. Councilmember Schmidt recommends the city develops some type of “chain of command” for email responses to avoid having different individuals responding to the same email.