[00:00:05]
[1. Call to Order]
AND WILL YOU PLEASE TAKE THE ROLL? TRACY UPCHURCH.HERE. OK, SO ITEM TWO IS GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT.
[2. General Public Comment]
DO WE HAVE ANY CARDS OR DOES THE PUBLIC WISH TO ADDRESS THE COMMISSION? BJ KALAIDI WEST CITY OF ST.EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2021 THE TOTAL BUDGET FOR THE CITY OF ST.
AUGUSTINE IS NOT SIXTY FOUR POINT SEVEN MILLION DOLLARS.
IT IS ONE HUNDRED AND TWELVE POINT TWO MILLION DOLLARS, AS SHOWN IN THE SEPTEMBER 23RD NEWSPAPER.
CITY BUREAUCRATS INCREASED THE TRASH ON OUR WATER BILLS BY $5 DOLLARS.
THOSE WHO DO NOT PRODUCE AS MUCH TRASH SHOULD NOT HAVE THEIR TRASH COSTS INCREASED.
INCREASE THE TRASH COSTS ON RENTALS SHORT TERM RENTALS, HOME OCCUPATIONS AND COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES BY TEN DOLLARS 25.4 PERCENT OF PROPERTIES IN THE CITY LIMITS DO NOT PAY PROPERTY TAXES, WHICH IS A LOSS OF SIX HUNDRED AND EIGHTY THREE MILLION TWO HUNDRED AND NINE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND SIXTY TWO TAX DOLLARS TO THE CITY OF ST.
AUGUSTINE. THE DOWNTOWN COLLEGE DOES NOT PAY PILOTS PAYMENT IN LIEU OF TAXES, WHICH OTHER RESPONSIBLE INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING PAY.
MR. BIRCHIM 2005 AND TWENTY THREE OTHER BUREAUCRATS WILL NOT, LET ME REPEAT, WILL NOT PAY THE ADDITIONAL FIVE DOLLAR TRASH CHARGE SINCE 51 FORTY PLUS FIVE DOLLARS EQUALS 5640 AND EVERY MONTH THEY RECEIVE SIXTY DOLLARS TO PAY THEIR WATER UTILITY BILLS.
ANOTHER EXAMPLE IN LOST REVENUE IS THE CITY'S FAILURE TO CHARGE THE YELLOW GAS COMPANY TO DO BUSINESS IN THE CITY.
THE CAVALIER ATTITUDE WITH INCREASES ON WATER UTILITY BILLS OF PROPERTY OWNERS IN THE CITY OF ST. AUGUSTINE IS DISGRACEFUL.
THESE DECISIONS DO NOT PUT THE RESPONSIBILITY ON THOSE CREATING THE NEED FOR INCREASES.
THERE IS A NEGATIVE ROI RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR RESIDENTS WHO LIVE WITHIN THE CITY LIMITS OF ST. AUGUSTINE.
SINCE WE BEAR THE BURDEN OF THE 25.4 PERCENT OF PROPERTY OWNERS WHO LIVE TAX FREE, RENT FREE COSTING THE CITY SIX HUNDRED AND EIGHTY THREE MILLION TWO HUNDRED AND NINE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND SIXTY TWO DOLLARS IN UNCOLLECTED REVENUE.
THE WORD DISCRIMINATION COMES TO MIND.
AND THIS IS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, YES, DEPARTMENT REVENUE AND THE CITY RECEIVES THIS EVERY YEAR.
AND THESE FIGURES CONTINUE TO CHANGE, BUT IT'S BASICALLY A LOT OF MONEY THAT WE DON'T GET, AND I DON'T KNOW WHY WE HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING ABOUT IT BECAUSE IT'S AFFECTING EVERYBODY HERE.
ANY OTHER SPEAKERS? ALL RIGHT. PUBLIC HEARING IS CLOSED.
[3.A. Presentation and Discussion Regarding Solid Waste Services, Todd Grant, P.G., Utilities Director]
WE WILL MOVE ON TO THE AGENDA, MR. GRANT. GOOD AFTERNOON, VICE MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS, THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME THIS AFTERNOON TO TALK SOME TRASH.WE DON'T OFTEN GET TO DO THAT WITHOUT POTENTIALLY OFFENDING PEOPLE.
WITH ME TODAY IS OUR SOLID WASTE MANAGER, RICK STEVENS.
RICK STARTED AT THE CITY ABOUT A YEAR BEFORE I DID, AND HE AND I HAVE FORMED A GREAT FRIENDSHIP AND WORKING RELATIONSHIP, AND I MUST SAY THAT HE HAS DONE AN INCREDIBLE JOB OVER THE TIME HE'S BEEN WITH THE CITY OF REALLY PUTTING US ON THE MAP FOR INNOVATION, TRYING TO MAINTAIN A EXTREMELY HIGH LEVEL OF CUSTOMER SERVICE, AS WELL AS DOING EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO KEEP RATES STABLE.
COMING UP WITH SOME VERY INNOVATIVE DISPOSAL OPTIONS A LOT OF TIMES ON THE FLY.
IT'S WITH SADNESS AND KIND OF HAPPINESS THAT HE WILL BE RETIRING NOVEMBER 12TH.
BUT I DID WANT TO, I GUESS, PUT ON RECORD THAT HE'S DONE A LOT FOR THE CITY, LIKE I SAID, A GREAT FRIEND OF MINE, AND WITHOUT HIM, I WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO PUT THIS PRESENTATION TOGETHER. SO WITH THAT SAID?
[00:05:05]
AS YOU ARE PROBABLY FAMILIAR WITH THE HISTORY OF OUR OPERATIONS, SOME MAY NOT.WHEN I FIRST GOT HERE, WE WERE DOING TWICE A WEEK RESIDENTIAL SOLID WASTE COLLECTION.
WE WERE ALSO DOING YOUR YARD DEBRIS AND WE ALSO HAD A CONTRACTOR PICKING UP OUR RECYCLING. RICK CAME TO US, ME BASICALLY SAYING, YOU KNOW, THE COMPLAINTS FROM THE RESIDENTS, FROM THE MISSED COLLECTIONS FOR RECYCLING, THE AMOUNT OF ADMINISTRATIVE WORK IT TAKES TO KEEP UP WITH THE BILLING TO MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT BEING CHARGED FOR THOSE MISSED PICK UPS.
HE HAD THE IDEA OF LET'S DO IT OURSELVES.
HE CAME UP WITH THE RATIONALE AND SAID, LET'S DO A COUPLE OF PILOT STUDIES.
AND THAT'S WHAT WE DID. AND WE DEMONSTRATED THAT WE HAD AN INCREASE.
WE GAVE THE RESIDENTS A LARGER BIN, PUT THEM ON ONCE A WEEK SOLID WASTE SERVICE.
AND WE DEMONSTRATED IN THOSE TWO NEIGHBORHOODS THAT THE ACTUAL TONNAGES OF RECYCLING WENT UP AND A REDUCTION IN SOLID WASTE.
SO ALSO IN 2015, WE TOOK OVER THE RECYCLING AND WE ALSO HIRED A RECYCLING COORDINATOR, OLIVIA SMITH.
AND SO FROM THAT POINT TO TODAY IS THE WAY YOU KNOW, IT NOW IS ONCE A WEEK TRASH, YARD DEBRIS AND RECYCLING.
CONTINUING ON KIND OF A HISTORICAL MARCH THROUGH TIME.
OUR RESIDENTIAL RATES, AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE GRAPH, IT MAY LOOK DRAMATIC AT FIRST, BUT IF YOU LOOK AT IT THROUGH TIME, WE'VE RAISED RATES FOUR DOLLARS AND 10 CENTS OVER THE PAST 19 YEARS.
AND YOU CAN KIND OF SEE IT LOOKS LIKE WE WERE FOLLOWING KIND OF A COST OF LIVING INCREASE. AND THEN REALLY, ONCE THE RECESSION HIT 2008 2009, WE'VE HELD RATES STABLE FOR QUITE A LONG TIME UNTIL 2018, WHEN WE ASKED FOR AN INCREASE TO SEVENTEEN FORTY FOUR, WHICH IS THE RATE UP UNTIL FRIDAY.
SO HOW DO WE COMPARE TO OTHER CITIES? AS YOU CAN SEE OUR OLD RATE IS IN GREEN.
YOU CAN SEE ST. JOHN'S COUNTY RIGHT HERE.
AUGUSTINE BEACH RIGHT HERE, ALSO HIGHLIGHTED IS OUR TWENTY TWO FORTY FOUR RIGHT HERE.
SO CURRENTLY, UNTIL FRIDAY, WE'RE RANKING TOWARDS THE LEFT HAND SIDE OF THE GRAPH AND, YOU KNOW, QUITE HONESTLY, IT JUST WASN'T SUSTAINABLE.
SO A HISTORY OF DISPOSAL FEES, THIS IS, AGAIN, IS WHERE RICK'S INGENUITY HAS COME INTO PLAY. THE RED IS A SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL PER TON AND THE BLUE IS RECYCLING.
AND SO WE TYPICALLY DISPOSE AT THE ST.
JOHNS COUNTY COLLECTION STATION, AND THEY HELD RATES FAIRLY CONSISTENT.
THEY'VE GONE UP BY A COST OF LIVING INDEX.
WE WERE ALSO USING REPUBLIC SERVICES FOR OUR DISPOSAL AT THEIR TRANSFER STATION FOR RECYCLING. AND AS YOU CAN SEE, THEY HAD A DRAMATIC INCREASE.
A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, RIGHT AS THE BUDGET WAS FINALIZED, THEY UPPED OUR TONNAGE PRICE PER TON TO NINETY THREE DOLLARS PER TON.
SO IN A CRUNCH, RICK WORKED HIS MAGIC AND GOT A CONTRACT WITH ANOTHER TRANSFER STATION IN BUNNELL THAT OFFERED US FORTY FOUR DOLLARS FOR RECYCLING AND FORTY THREE FOR OUR SOLID WASTE. CURRENTLY, THAT CONTRACTOR IS HAVING DIFFICULTIES WITH HIS MECHANICAL OPERATIONS FOR SORTING RECYCLING, SO WE'VE HAD TO STOP BRINGING IT TO THEM.
AND SO WE'RE CURRENTLY PAYING ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY DOLLARS FOR RECYCLING AND FIFTY SIX DOLLARS AND 14 CENTS FOR SOLID WASTE.
THIS GRAPH JUST SHOWS KIND OF A MONTH BY MONTH, AS WELL AS AN ANNUAL SOLID WASTE AND RECYCLING TONNAGES, YOU CAN SEE IN THE TOP GRAPH WHERE HURRICANE MATTHEW CAME IN AND THEN ALSO IRMA.
SO OVERALL, WE TEND TO HAVE A CONSISTENT AMOUNT OF SOLID WASTE AS FAR AS TONNAGES THROUGH THE YEARS. YOU CAN KIND OF SEE IN THE GRAPH BELOW THAT IT HAS DIPPED OFF A LITTLE BIT, PARTIALLY BECAUSE OF SOMEWHAT OF THE PANDEMIC AND THE COMMERCIAL SIDE GOING DOWN AND THEN RESIDENTIAL AS WELL.
YOU CAN LOOK AT THE RECYCLING DIP.
THERE COULD BE A COUPLE OF EXPLANATIONS FOR THIS, MAYBE THE PERCEPTION THAT NOTHING IS GETTING RECYCLED. SO IT'S ALL GOING IN THE TRASH CAN.
AND ALSO SOMETHING RICK HAD POINTED OUT THAT POTENTIALLY PEOPLE ARE USING FEWER AND FEWER GLASS PRODUCTS, SO THE RECYCLING TONNAGES ARE ACTUALLY LOWER.
[00:10:02]
IT'S AT THIS POINT IN THE PRESENTATION.I'D LIKE TO MAKE A REQUEST THAT WE ARE GOING TO ASK RESIDENTS TO STOP PUTTING GLASS IN THE RECYCLE BIN BECAUSE THERE CURRENTLY IS NO MARKET AND IT IS GOING TO THE RECYCLING FACILITY AND BEING SPIT OUT AS TRASH ANYWAY.
AND SO IF YOU'RE OK WITH THAT, WE WILL PUT OUT ALL OF THE PRESS MEDIA TO SAY, PLEASE JUST DISPOSE OF GLASS OR REDUCE OR RE-USE IT.
CAN WE ALSO ASK THEM TO REPURPOSE THEIR GLASS? I MEAN, I KNOW I USE IT A LOT IN MY STUDIO FOR STORING THINGS SO.
CORRECT. SO I'M WORKING WITH OLIVIA ON COMING UP WITH A A CAMPAIGN KIND OF A REEDUCATION CAMPAIGN OF IT'S REALLY PAPER CARDBOARD, TIN CANS, ALUMINUM CANS AND NUMBER ONE AND TWO PLASTIC THAT ARE THE COMMODITIES THAT ACTUALLY HAVE VALUE.
AND SO WE'RE GOING TO KIND OF REBRAND OUR STICKERS, OUR FLIERS, OUR HANG TAGS.
AND THE OTHER THING WE'RE TRYING TO WORK ON IS EITHER A SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN ON HOW DO YOU REDUCE REUSE? I KNOW LAURA OVER HERE AT REFLECTIONS BISTRO, SHE USES EMPTY WINE BOTTLES TO MAKE BORDERS TO HER GARDEN, SO MAYBE SOMETHING LIKE THAT TO TRY TO GET SOME PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN IDEAS. AND SO IF EVERYONE'S OK WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO RECOMMEND THAT WE LET THE PUBLIC KNOW THAT WE'RE STILL COLLECTING RECYCLING.
IT'S JUST THAT THE GLASS IS GOING INTO THE WASTE SIDE OF THE STREAM, CURRENTLY.
ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
IF I COULD JUST SAY ONE THING TOO.
THAT REDUCE PART OF THE EQUATION IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART.
AND WHEN I GO TO A PARTICULAR GROCERY STORE, ALL THEY DO IS THE TWO R'S.
THEY HAVE THE TWO R'S REUSE AND RECYCLE, AND THAT'S THE WRONG MESSAGE TO BE SENDING.
SO IF WE CAN REALLY EMPHASIZE THAT REDUCE COMPONENT OF THE THREE R'S AND GET THE WEIGHT OF THE GLASS OUT OF THERE, I'M ALL FOR IT.
I'M GUESSING THERE'S NO MARKET FOR REPURPOSED GLASS AS AGGREGATE OR CRUSHING IT AND.
AND ALSO, THE COST TO PRODUCE A NEW BOTTLE IS ALMOST AS COST EFFECTIVE OF TRYING TO GET RECYCLED MATERIAL.
AND SO KEEP IN MIND THAT IF THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO COLLECT GLASS AGAIN FOR A REPURPOSED COMMODITY, WE WILL DO THAT.
WE WILL REINSTITUTE COLLECTION OF GLASS.
BUT CURRENTLY WE DON'T HAVE AN OUTLET EITHER FROM A DISPOSAL STANDPOINT, TRANSPORTATION STANDPOINT THAT IS USING GLASS.
THERE ARE COMPANIES THAT HAVE TRIED TO BREAK IT DOWN TO SAND SIZE AND MARKET IT TO GOLF COURSES FOR.
BUT FOR SOME ODD REASON, YOU CAN'T REPRODUCE A GRAIN OF SAND THE WAY A GRAIN OF SAND IS.
AND SO THERE IS USE OF AGGREGATE IN ASPHALT OR CONCRETE.
RIGHT NOW, WE DON'T HAVE EITHER A CONTRACTOR OR AN INDUSTRY THAT IS STEPPING UP IN THIS AREA. YEAH, I HAVE A QUESTION.
THE GENTLEMAN THAT YOU TOLD ME THAT WAS RECYCLING GLASS FOR LANDSCAPE PURPOSES.
IS HE STILL DOING THAT? HE IS, BUT HE'S A LITTLE OVERWHELMED WITH THE AMOUNT OF GLASS THAT HE HAS.
OK. AND SO HE HAS PARTNERED WITH ANOTHER GENTLEMAN THAT TAKES OUR, I PARTNERED HIM UP WITH JOE WILLIAMS, WHO HAS INDIANHEAD BIOMASS.
THAT'S IT. YEAH. TO TRY TO MAKE THAT INTO A COMMERCIAL VENTURE.
AND SO AGAIN, THEY'RE TRYING TO FIND MARKET FOR IT.
THEN ALSO LIKE HOW YOU CAN RAMP UP PRODUCTION BECAUSE IN THAT SETTING, YOU HAVE TO GET ALL OF THE LABELS OFF, SORT THE COLORS, TUMBLE IT.
AND SO TRYING TO GET THAT PRODUCTION COST DOWN TO WHERE IT'S ACTUALLY A MARKETABLE, PROFITABLE COMMODITY, THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE WORKING ON.
THANK YOU. [INAUDIBLE] RECYCLABLES.
WHAT DO YOU ESTIMATE THE AMOUNT OF GLASS, I MEAN BY FAR AS WEIGHT.
OBVIOUSLY, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.
I COULDN'T TELL YOU AS FAR AS A PERCENTAGE OF THE RECYCLING, BUT IF YOU LOOK PROBABLY AT A COMMON, I DON'T KNOW, RICK, DO YOU HAVE AN IDEA? IT'S A DOLLAR.
OUT OF THE RECYCLING STREAM, THIS IS THERE FOR SOMEBODY.
CORRECT? COULD BEFORE YOU MOVE ON, COULD YOU GO BACK TO THE HISTORY OF DISPOSAL FEES? YES. SLIDE.
IF I'M LOOKING AT THIS CORRECTLY, WHAT I'M SEEING IS THAT BY IMPLEMENTING RECYCLING, WE WERE SAVING MONEY IN OUR OVERALL OUR TOTAL SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL.
[00:15:01]
I'M LOOKING AT BEGINNING IN 2015, THE PROPORTION OF RECYCLING IS MUCH LOWER COST TO US.CORRECT. WHEN REPUBLIC OPENED THEIR MATERIALS RECOVERY FACILITY IN JACKSONVILLE, ONE, THEY NEVER ENTERED INTO A CONTRACT WITH US.
AND SO IT WAS I WILL TAKE IT FOR FREE.
DEPENDING ON WHAT YOUR STREAM IS LIKE, WE CAN PAY YOU.
BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, IT JUST STEADILY WENT UP AND THERE WAS OTHER ISSUES THAT THEY HAD AS FAR AS THE INCENTIVES THAT THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE OFFERED AND THE CONTRACT THAT THEY ENTERED INTO JACKSONVILLE, WHICH PRECIPITATED THESE DRASTIC RATE INCREASES AND THEN ALSO THE CRASH IN THE RECYCLING MARKET.
RIGHT. BUT WHAT I GUESS I'M TRYING TO SAY OVERALL IS THAT THE CITY HAS SAVED MONEY BY BEGINNING THE RECYCLING PROCESS UP UNTIL REALLY UP UNTIL 2019, WHEN ALL OF THIS BOTTOMED OUT. YES. SO AGAIN, IF OUR CITIZENS CAN HELP BY REDUCING THE AMOUNT OF RECYCLING NEEDS THAT END UP IN THE RECYCLING BIN, THAT'S GOING TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN BRINGING DOWN OUR COSTS. YES, MA'AM, THAT'S CORRECT.
THANK YOU. SO ON THE GROWTH SIDE, YOU CAN SEE HOW OUR RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS HAVE INCREASED JUST ABOUT EVERY YEAR.
ALMOST SIX HUNDRED NEW CUSTOMERS IN THE PAST SEVEN YEARS.
WE'VE GOT A COUPLE OF HUNDRED NEW UNITS COMING ONLINE NEXT YEAR THAT'LL PUSH US OVER SEVEN THOUSAND RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS.
OVER THAT TIME SINCE 2010, WE'VE ADDED THREE FULL TIME STAFF AND AT THE CURRENT NUMBER OF RESIDENCES, WE HAVE ABOUT 90 SECONDS PER STOP TO ACTUALLY GET EVERYTHING COLLECTED IN EIGHT HOURS. I WILL TELL YOU ON MONDAY AND TUESDAY TRASH DAYS, IT'S A 10 TO 11 HOUR DAY.
RECYCLING, ON THE OTHER HAND, IS AN EIGHT HOUR DAY.
IT'S A LITTLE BIT LIGHTER, NOT AS HEAVY.
PEOPLE DON'T PUT OUT EXTRA, SO IT'S A BALANCING ACT.
IT WAS MENTIONED ABOUT SHORT TERM RENTALS.
WHAT YOU SEE IS THE MAP, THE GREEN DOTS OR THE GREEN BEDS ARE CURRENTLY REGISTERED AND APPROVED SHORT TERM RENTALS.
THE RED DOTS ARE PENDING AN INSPECTION.
SO ONCE THEY'RE ALL ONLINE, WE'LL HAVE FOUR HUNDRED AND ELEVEN SHORT TERM RENTALS WITHIN CITY LIMITS. AND THIS MAP DOESN'T SHOW THE FULL EXTENT OF THE CITY LIMITS, BUT YOU CAN SEE SOME OF THE ANECDOTAL PHOTOS THAT WERE TAKEN OF, JUST SOME OF THE PROBLEMS WE'RE HAVING.
I SAY PROBLEMS. SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT SHORT TERM RENTALS PRESENT AND TYPICALLY WE GET 10 TO 15 COMPLAINTS.
MANY TIMES IRONICALLY, IT'S BY THE SHORT TERM RENTAL OWNER OR MANAGEMENT COMPANY ASKING CAN YOU COME PICK UP MY TRASH? BUT IT'S NOT A MONDAY OR TUESDAY BECAUSE THAT'S OUR RESIDENTIAL COLLECTION.
AND YOU KNOW, WITH THE CHECK IN, CHECK OUT TIMES DIFFERENT THAN WHAT MAY BE THE SOLID WASTE PICK UP TIMES.
WE'RE RUNNING INTO A SITUATION WHERE THE TRASH IS SITTING OUTSIDE FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS.
IT CAN BE OVERFLOWING, AS YOU CAN SEE IN SOME OF THESE PHOTOS.
AND SO WE'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS THAT ISSUE BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT TO NOT PROVIDE THE BEST SERVICE POSSIBLE FOR RESIDENTS SHORT TERM RENTALS OR ANY OF OUR CUSTOMERS.
THE OTHER CHALLENGES WHICH I HAVE.
I JUST WANTED TO GO IF YOU COULD GO BACK TO THAT PICTURE.
HOW MANY BINS? I MEAN, HOW MANY BINS ARE ALLOWED PER RESIDENTIAL UNIT? BECAUSE I'M LOOKING AT IN THE TOP LEFT CORNER IS THAT THREE OR FOUR BINS AND A COUPLE OVER HERE AND TWO OR THREE, AND IT JUST SEEMS LIKE AN AWFUL LOT OF BINS FOR ONE RESIDENTIAL UNIT.
CORRECT. HOWEVER, THE ONE THAT YOU SEE IN THE TOP LEFT HAS THREE UNITS IN THAT SHORT TERM RENTAL. OKAY. SO EACH UNIT IS GETTING A TRASH CAN.
THE ONE THAT YOU SEE WITH THE TWO GRAY TRASH CANS IT'S THE SAME THING.
THEY HAVE A HOUSE AND THEN THERE'S A ANOTHER UNIT OR IT'S BROKEN UP INTO TWO UNITS.
THERE ARE, IF IT WAS JUST ONE BEDROOM AS PART OF SOMEBODY ELSE'S HOUSE OR IT'S JUST A ONE ROOM, THEY WOULD HAVE ONE TRASH CAN AND ONE RECYCLE BIN.
AND IF THEY ASK FOR ADDITIONAL CANS, WE CHARGE THEM FOR THAT.
I TOUCHED UPON THIS BEFORE THE RESIDENTIAL COST OF SERVICE, WHICH YOU'VE ALREADY ADDRESSED IN A SENSE THROUGH THE BUDGET HEARINGS.
AT THE SEVENTEEN FORTY FOUR WE WEREN'T COVERING OUR COSTS AND ACTUALLY OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, THE NUMBERS YOU SEE IN RED ARE WHAT WE WERE IN DEFICIT OF JUST ON THE RESIDENTIAL RECYCLING SIDE OF THE HOUSE, MEANING THAT IF YOU LOOK AT THOSE NUMBERS, HAD WE BEEN
[00:20:03]
CHARGING ANYWHERE FROM NINETEEN TO NINETEEN FIFTY, WE WOULD HAVE JUST COVERED THE COST OF COLLECTION AND DISPOSAL.SO WITH YOUR NEW RATE, THAT'S GOING TO HELP, AND LUCKILY WITH OUR COMMERCIAL SOLID WASTE AND RECYCLING AND SPECIAL PICK UPS AND RESIDENTIAL C AND D AND FRANCHISE FEES, WHEN IT ALL GETS SAID AND DONE, WE'RE BREAKING EVEN OR JUST AS SLIGHT DEFICIT IN REVENUE.
AND I WANT TO START OFF FIRST BY SAYING THAT I'M PROPOSING A SIXTY DOLLARS AND FIFTY THREE CENT A MONTH RATE FOR SHORT TERM RENTALS, THIS IS WHAT OUR COMMERCIAL RATE IS.
BUT I'M NOT CLASSIFYING SHORT TERM RENTALS AS COMMERCIAL.
I JUST WANT TO MAKE THAT KNOWN.
AND THE DIFFERENCE TOO IF I WAS A BUSINESS AND I HAD A COMMERCIAL CART PICKED UP ONCE A WEEK, THAT'S ALL I WOULD GET AND IT WOULD BE ON THAT PARTICULAR DAY.
SO AS AN ENHANCEMENT FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE, WE ARE OFFERING AN ADDITIONAL A LARGER BIN AND WE'RE ALSO OFFERING A CALL IN SERVICE EITHER FROM A RESIDENT, THE SHORT TERM RENTAL OWNER, THEIR MAINTENANCE COMPANY, CODE ENFORCEMENT.
ANYBODY THAT SAYS, HEY, THIS HAS BEEN SITTING OUT HERE OR I NEED A SPECIAL PICKUP.
WE WILL LOOK AT THE DATABASE OF SHORT TERM RENTALS AND WE WILL PICK THAT UP FOR THEM.
SO IN ESSENCE, THEY CAN GET TWO PICKUPS A WEEK FOR THIS RATE.
I ALSO HAVE IN THERE POTENTIAL REVENUE INCREASE.
I DON'T WANT THAT TO BE MISCONSTRUED AS GOING INTO RESERVES THAT REVENUE WILL ACTUALLY PAY FOR THE 96 GALLON BINS THAT WE HAVE TO PURCHASE AND THEN ALSO THE LABOR EQUIPMENT AND DISPOSAL OF THAT EXTRA TRIP TO PICK THAT UP.
SO I DON'T WANT TO GIVE THE IMPRESSION THAT WE'RE MAKING MONEY OFF OF THIS.
WE'RE JUST TRYING TO COVER THE COSTS WHILE OFFERING, YOU KNOW, AN EXTRA SERVICE THAT HOPEFULLY WILL KEEP THOSE PHOTOS FROM GETTING BACK TO US AND ACTUALLY KEEP THE STREETS LOOKING A LITTLE BIT BETTER.
MAY I INTERRUPT REAL QUICK, GOT A QUESTION FOR YOU.
WE HAVE SOME FAIRLY LARGE APARTMENT HOUSES, AT LEAST WE USED TO, LIKE ON ST.
GEORGE STREET, HAVE 12 OR 14 UNITS IN THEM.
AND THIS ONE, I'M THINKING ABOUT USED TO HAVE A DUMPSTER OUT FRONT, WHICH MAYBE STILL DOES, WHICH IS PRETTY UNSIGHTLY, BUT A STRAIGHT UP MULTIFAMILY RESIDENTIAL APARTMENT TYPE. WE HAVE ALL OVER TOWN.
DO THEY USE RESIDENTIAL OR ARE THEY USING COMMERCIAL? THEY'RE ON A COMMERCIAL FEE AS WELL.
COMMERCIAL FEE. IT'S A MULTIFAMILY FEE.
IS THAT CORRECT. YES. ALL RIGHT.
THANK YOU. SO, MAYOR UPCHURCH, WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO START OVER? [LAUGHTER] ARE THERE ANY MORE QUESTIONS ON THIS? AND THEN SO RESIDENTIAL KIND OF HIGHLIGHTED THAT YOU GUYS HAVE INCREASED THE RATE TO 22 FORTY FOUR AND YOU CAN SEE WHERE THAT PUTS US.
AGAIN, THESE ARE 2020 2021 NUMBERS.
AND SO I IMAGINE MANY OF THESE MUNICIPALITIES WILL HAVE AN INCREASE AS WELL.
SO THAT WOULD PROBABLY SKEW US MORE TOWARDS THE MIDDLE OF THE OTHER CITIES.
SO WHAT DOES THIS DO? POTENTIAL REVENUE INCREASE OF THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS BY INCREASING $5 A MONTH. THAT HELPS US ACTUALLY GET A RESERVE BALANCE.
ONE OF OUR MAJOR OBSTACLES IS GETTING NEW EQUIPMENT.
AND IF ONE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT IS DOWN, THE LEVEL OF SERVICE GOES DOWN TREMENDOUSLY, AS WELL AS THE AMOUNT OF TIME IT TAKES TO COLLECT IT AND IN A GIVEN DAY, OR WE'RE ACTUALLY BORROWING EQUIPMENT.
SO YOU'VE ALREADY APPROVED THAT RATE I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF WHAT THAT RATE IS GOING TO DO FOR US.
ALSO, WITH THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN, WE HAVE QUITE THE WISH LIST OF EQUIPMENT UPGRADES.
BY IMPLEMENTING THIS, NEW RATE, HOPEFULLY BY GETTING NEW EQUIPMENT, WE CAN ACTUALLY START IMPLEMENTING A PLAN TO WHERE WE HAVE A A CYCLE OUT OF OLDER EQUIPMENT AND WE'RE NOT CAUGHT IN THE BIND OF HAVING A MAJORITY OF OUR FLEET THAT ARE FIVE, SEVEN, 10 YEARS OLD.
THAT ARE THREE TO FIVE YEARS AND THEY'RE BEING REPLACED, YOU KNOW, DUE TO THESE REVENUE INCREASES. SO I HAVE TWO OTHER ASKS BEFORE I TAKE QUESTIONS.
SO AS OF OCTOBER ONE, THE CITY OF ST.
AUGUSTINE BEACH IS NO LONGER COLLECTING RECYCLING.
RICK HAS FOSTERED A GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH THE BEACH.
THEY HAVE GOTTEN US OUT OF SOME BINDS WHEN WE HAVE HAD EQUIPMENT PROBLEMS.
[00:25:01]
IN SPEAKING WITH THEIR PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR BILL TREDIK AND MAYOR ENGLAND AND THE CITY MANAGER, WE WOULD LIKE TO OFFER A DROP OFF LOCATION AT THEIR CITY HALL BY PLACING TWO OF THE CITY'S DUMPSTERS AS A RECYCLING DROP OFF WHERE WE WOULD MONITOR.WE WOULD PICK IT UP AT NO CHARGE.
BASICALLY, THEY'RE HOPING TO HAVE A PLAN IN PLACE BY THE END OF DECEMBER OR JANUARY.
BUT I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE YOUR BLESSING TO ACTUALLY MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT PRIOR TO MEETING WITH THEIR COMMISSION ON OCTOBER 4TH.
WE HAVE DROP OFF LOCATIONS, BUT.
YEAH, I'M INCLINED THAT I WOULDN'T DRIVE FROM THE BEACH TO RED COX ROAD OR RIBERIA STREET OR UP BY LAS PALMAS.
WHAT WOULD BE THE COST TO THE CITY FOR THAT? RECYCLING. AND SO OUT OF THAT, IF WE PUT TWO, SIX OR EIGHT YARDS OUT THERE BY THE END OF JANUARY, I COULD SEE US SPENDING NO MORE THAN A THOUSAND DOLLARS.
BECAUSE WE WOULD HAVE A NO GLASS THAT WOULD HELP WITH THE WEIGHT.
AGAIN, THE REASON I SAY NO COST IS BECAUSE THEY HAVE LENT US THEIR REAR LOAD TRASH TRUCK ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS AT NO COST.
AND SO I WANTED TO RETURN THE FAVOR AS LITTLE AS THIS IS.
BUT I NEED I'D LIKE YOUR BLESSING AS FAR AS WE WILL MONITOR IT.
IF THERE'S AN ISSUE OR COMPLAINTS, WE WILL REMOVE IT.
IF THERE'S AN ISSUE OF CONTAMINATION, WE WILL END THE PROGRAM.
YOU CERTAINLY HAVE MY BLESSINGS.
MINE AS WELL. I'M FINE WITH THAT.
WOULD YOU MAKE ONE OF THE BINS PAPER AND THE OTHER ONE PLASTIC AND TIN CANS OR SOMETHING? OR HOW WOULD YOU? WE WOULD STILL MAKE IT SINGLE STREAM IF WE ELIMINATE THE GLASS COMPONENT BECAUSE THE OTHER THING TOO, THAT I DIDN'T MENTION IS WHEN THE GLASS BREAKS THAT'S A CONTAMINATION.
IT'S ALSO A HAZARD, YOU KNOW, WHEN IT'S BEING DUMPED OUT THAT YOU HAVE SHARDS OF GLASS IN THERE. SO WE'LL MAKE A POINT OF SAYING STRICTLY NO GLASS.
AND THAT WAY, THEY'RE IS STILL GOING TO BE SOME CONTAMINATION BECAUSE WE HAVE SOME ULTRA RECYCLERS. BUT STILL, THAT'S A LOT BETTER THAN HAVING THE GLASS, BECAUSE MANY TIMES THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THERE'S A LOT OF BROKEN GLASS, IT GETS ON THE FLOOR AND THEY JUST MOVE IT OVER TO THE SOLID WASTE SIDE.
THE SECOND ASK THAT I HAVE IS THAT WE HAVE A CONSTRUCTION AND DEMOLITION FRANCHISE FEE.
CURRENTLY, THERE'S ABOUT $40,000 IN REVENUE IN THAT ACCOUNT.
WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO SIMILAR BUT NOT AS THE TREE CANOPY PROGRAM IS, I WOULD LIKE YOUR PERMISSION TO SPEND ABOUT $10,000 ON ONE HUNDRED COMPOST BINS AND OFFER THEM TO RESIDENTS. THIS WOULD BE KIND OF ON A SIGN UP.
MAKE SURE ONE YOU'RE IN THE CITY LIMITS.
WE HAD QUITE THE INTEREST WHEN WE DID THE COMMUNITY SURVEY ON I'M NOT GOING TO HAVE YOU COLLECT MY COMPOST OR ORGANICS IF I DON'T GET COMPOST BACK.
AND FROM OUR ANALYSIS, IT'S GOING TO BE A LOT EASIER JUST TO GIVE SOMEBODY A BIN.
YOU KNOW, SAY FOR $100, IT'LL PROBABLY BE LESS WHEN WE BUY IN BULK, BUT THAT WAY IT STAYS THERE. FROM A MONITORING DOES IT HELP? WE CAN SEE A SLIGHT NUDGE DOWN IN OUR SOLID WASTE, POSSIBLY A RETURN ON INVESTMENT IF YOU CAN GET ONE OR TWO TONS PER HOUSEHOLD OVER FIVE YEARS, THEY'VE PAID FOR THEMSELVES.
WE WEREN'T GOING TO HAVE STRINGS ATTACHED WITH, OH, YOU KNOW, TO SAY IT HAS TO STAY WITH THE HOUSE IF IT BREAKS OR WE'RE NOT GOING TO GET YOU ANOTHER ONE.
WE WOULD LIKE TO TRY TO IMPLEMENT THIS SIMILAR TO THE TREE PROGRAM, WHERE EVERY YEAR WE CAN OFFER A CERTAIN AMOUNT ON A FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE BASIS THROUGH A SURVEY THAT YOU TAKE THAT WAY IT LOGS WHEN YOU ACTUALLY APPLIED FOR IT.
YOU HAVE MY ENTHUSIASTIC SUPPORT FOR THAT ONE.
SO JUST AS A POTENTIAL USER, ME AS THE CUSTOMER, I WOULD JUST LIKE SIGN UP FOR A LOTTERY SORT OF THING AND THEN I WOULD PAY ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS.
CORRECT. WHAT I'M ASKING IS TO USE THE CONSTRUCTION AND DEMOLITION FRANCHISE FEES FOR THE HAULERS THAT WE CHARGE.
THEY GIVE US A PORTION OF EVERY DUMP THAT THEY TAKE FOR THE NEW CONSTRUCTION, THOSE BIG ROLL OFF DUMPSTERS.
THERE'S CURRENTLY 40 THOUSAND DOLLARS IN THERE, SO I'D LIKE TO START WITH TEN THOUSAND THAT'LL BUY ROUGHLY ONE HUNDRED BINS AT NO COST TO THE RESIDENT.
I WOULD GLADLY PAY FOR A BIN, YOU KNOW, TO HAVE IT DELIVERED AND THEN TO BE ABLE TO USE AND I DON'T, SO I'M KIND OF NOT UNDERSTANDING THE $10,000 COST.
[00:30:04]
WHEN WE MOVED HERE 20 YEARS AGO, WE CAME FROM NORTH CAROLINA.THE TOWN WE WERE IN DID THIS AS AN INCENTIVE PROGRAM TO REDUCE THE WEIGHT OF THE SOLID WASTE. YES. AND IT WAS REALLY WELL RECEIVED BECAUSE IT WAS FREE AND PEOPLE WERE ENCOURAGED TO LEARN ABOUT IT AND DO IT IF THEY HAD THE MEANS TO GET THEIR OWN COMPOST BIN TO BEGIN WITH.
CORRECT, SO FOR THOSE THAT CAN BUY A COMPOST BIN, THEY COULD HAVE IF IT'S A MATTER OF DELIVERY OR SET UP.
BUT THERE IS NO QUALIFICATIONS OR ANYTHING.
NOPE. IT'S JUST WHOEVER SIGNS UP GETS IT OR WHATEVER.
CORRECT. SO WE REALLY DON'T HAVE ANY WAY.
CORRECT. IT IS A GIVEAWAY WITH THE INCENTIVE THAT HEAVIER ORGANIC MATERIALS NOT GOING TO GO INTO THEIR TRASH.
YEAH I UNDERSTAND THE BENEFIT. RIGHT. THAT'S MY INCENTIVE.
I THINK THE GREAT BENEFIT WOULD BE, YEAH, THAT'S THE ULTIMATE LONG TERM.
I THINK THE GREAT BENEFIT IS PEOPLE WOULD LEARN HOW TO DO IT.
YOU KNOW HOW TO COMPOST, BECAUSE I REMEMBER IN THE PAST WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT THIS OVER THE YEARS, PEOPLE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN VERY CURIOUS ABOUT WELL, HOW DO I COMPOST? HOW DOES THAT WORK? HOW DO THE ANIMALS NOT GET IN THE BIN? AND YOU KNOW, WHAT DO I PUT IN IT AND COFFEE GROUNDS AND THINGS AND THIS PROGRAM TO ECHO OUR COMMISSIONER.
YOU KNOW, I MEAN, I JUST LIKE I SAY, I'M HAVING A HARD TIME GETTING OVER THE THING THAT I, YOU KNOW, A SMALL FEE.
I'M GOING TO MAKE A MOTION THAT WE APPROVE BOTH THE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT, THE CITY OF ST. AUGUSTINE BEACH AND THE COMPOSTING PROGRAM, AS OUTLINED BY MR. GRANT. SECOND.
IS THERE FURTHER DISCUSSION? SEEING NONE ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
COMMISSIONER VALDES. ACTUALLY, I WAS JUST MUSING AS A YOUNG MAN, MY GRANDMOTHER USED TO HAVE A COMPOST PILE WHERE SHE RAISED HER FISHING WORMS AND I WAS DOING A LITTLE FLASHBACK THERE SO JUST A SIDEBAR.
WELL, THIS WAS A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE, SO THE HISTORY.
YOU COULD PROBABLY SELL THE WORMS FOR PROBABLY $5 A CUP, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER.
BUT I HAVE HAD A PET PEEVE ALONG THE BAY FRONT WHERE LOTS OF THE BINS ARE PUT OUT ON THE SIDEWALK LIKE MANY, MANY BINS AND THEY'RE IN BAD CONDITION, FILTHY.
I MENTIONED IT TO THE CITY MANAGER.
THERE WOULD BE A WAY TO MODIFY THAT FENCE THAT GOES INTO THE SPANISH QUARTER, WHERE THOSE COULD BE RECESSED AND THEN OPENED UP AND TAKEN OUT.
SO MANY TOURISTS GO BY THAT SPOT CONTINUOUSLY.
IF YOU KEEP AN EYE ON IT, YOU'LL BE AMAZED HOW BAD IT LOOKS.
I'M AWARE OF WHERE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.
BUT MAYBE WE COULD POSSIBLY MAYBE MR. REGAN COULD SPEAK TO THIS.
SO TO COMMISSIONER HORVATH'S POINT.
SO WE'RE REWORKING THE PROPERTY THAT WE OWN WE'RE REWORKING A TOTAL DEAL WITH THE PROPERTY INCLUSIVE OF PROVIDING ACCESS FOR THE NO NAME BAR TO HAVE A PARALLEL STEPS, AS WELL AS BEING ABLE TO CREATE AN AREA FOR THE TRASH BINS AS WELL.
SO I THINK WE CAN NAIL BOTH OF THESE ISSUES WITH ONE FELL SWOOP.
IT'S MANY, MANY MORE THAN I EVER THOUGHT.
I'VE SEEN THREE SECTIONS OF NUMEROUS RIGHT IN THAT WHOLE STRIP WHERE THE CARS OR THE BUS, THE TOUR TRAINS PULL OFF THREE SEPARATE.
KIND OF RAISES THE POINT REALLY, THAT WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT IS WHETHER OR NOT IT MIGHT BE A GOOD LOCATION FOR A COMPACTOR.
SO. YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT A COMPACTOR ACROSS FROM CASTILLO.
IT WOULD BE BEHIND FENCES AND SO FORTH.
YEAH, BUT IT WOULD BE SET BACK FROM THE STEPS OF THE [INAUDIBLE].
KEEP IN MIND THAT COMPACTORS COME IN ALL SIZES SO YOU CAN HAVE A FOUR YARD COMPACTOR THAT COMPACTS EIGHT YARDS OF TRASH AND IT'S ON CASTERS.
WE RECENTLY DID THAT FOR ONE OF THE NEW HOTELS IN TOWN.
THE POINT IS, IS THAT COMMISSIONER HORVATH RAISES THAT'S A GREAT POINT, IS THAT IT'S UGLY AS SIN AS IT IS NOW, AND WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING.
AND SO IT'S A WORK IN PROGRESS, BASICALLY WITH THE UNIVERSITY.
DID WE TAKE ACTION ON YOUR PROPOSAL TO DO SOMETHING WITH THE SHORT TERM RENTALS AT THE COMMERCIAL CART RATE? YOU DID NOT. I PROPOSED CHARGING SIXTY DOLLARS AND FIFTY THREE CENTS A MONTH FOR SHORT
[00:35:05]
TERM RENTALS, WHICH WOULD INCLUDE A LARGER BIN, NINETY SIX GALLON AND A CALL IN ADDITIONAL PICKUP SERVICE ONE TIME PER WEEK.IS THAT A REQUEST TO US? YES, MA'AM. WELL, I'D LIKE TO MAKE THAT MOTION.
WE HAVE A MOTION, IS THERE A SECOND.
I HAVE A SITUATION IN MY MARINA.
WE HAVE SEVEN OR EIGHT OR NINE AIRBNB BOATS.
OF COURSE WE'RE A COMMERCIAL. WE HAVE DUMPSTERS AND WHAT HAVE YOU.
I JUST GOT CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE WITH THAT PARTICULAR THING BECAUSE THE AIRBNB IS PRETTY MUCH TARGETED TOWARDS BUILDINGS, NOT BOATS.
WHAT IF YOU HAVE A SITUATION WHERE YOU HAVE AN AIRBNB GROUP THAT'S ALREADY ZONED COMMERCIAL ALREADY HAS THE COMMERCIAL DUMPSTER THERE AS SUCH.
YOU WOULD DELINEATE TO, IN OTHER WORDS, I'M NOT GOING TO BE SEEING BILLS GOING OUT TO PEOPLE WHO ARE ALREADY PAYING FOR COMMERCIAL DUMPS.
RIGHT IF YOU'RE ALREADY A COMMERCIAL ACCOUNT, THE OTHER THING TOO, THAT I FAILED TO MENTION IS THAT FOR THOSE SHORT TERM RENTALS THAT ARE A ONE ROOM THAT CAN ACTUALLY ACCOMMODATE, YOU KNOW, THEY CAN CONTACT US AND WE WILL DO AN AUDIT OR WOULD DRIVE BY AND SAY YES, YOU'RE AT 17 [INAUDIBLE] OR 22 44 FOR THOSE THAT ARE ALREADY ON A COMMERCIAL RATE BECAUSE WE HAVE SOME SHORT TERM RENTALS THAT ARE IN APARTMENT COMPLEXES.
IT'S ALREADY BEING ABSORBED IN THAT OVERALL RATE, SO WE WOULDN'T CHARGE IN YOUR CASE, EACH INDIVIDUAL BOAT SIXTY DOLLARS AND FIFTY THREE CENTS.
WE'RE GOING TO END UP GOING THROUGH ALL OF THE SHORT TERM RENTALS TO DETERMINE WHICH ONES CAN ACTUALLY HAVE THAT RATE APPLIED TO IT.
THAT IS NOT BEING TAKEN CARE OF IN A LARGER COMMERCIAL RATE.
OK, ON THE OTHER END OF THAT SPECTRUM, YOU HAVE THE MOM AND POP THAT HAS ONE ROOM THEY RENT, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, IS THERE ANY CONSIDERATION? I MEAN, THE COMMERCIAL AIRBNB IS THERE AS WE HAVE PLENTY OF THAT ARE TURNING OVER, YOU KNOW, SIX FIVE SIX FOUR, FIVE, SIX TIMES A WEEK, THAT'S ONE THING.
AND YOU HAVE THE SMALL ONES LIKE TO MY EAST, USED TO BE MY NEIGHBOR.
I'M SURE THAT HER WASTE IS NO MORE THAN IT WOULD BE IF IT'S RESIDENTIAL.
CORRECT. SO SHE COULD CONTACT US.
IT WOULD BE AN APPEALS PROCESS.
I WOULDN'T EVEN SAY AN APPEALS THAT IF YOU SAY I HAVE ONE ROOM, I DON'T HAVE AN ISSUE WITH MY TRASH GOING OUT.
WE WE PUT HER AT 22 FORTY FOUR AND WE WE WILL DRIVE BY PERIODICALLY AND SAY, YEP, SHE'S IN COMPLIANCE. THE APPEALS PROCESS WOUL BE CALL YOU AND MAKE AN APPEAL, RIGHT? [LAUGHTER] WELL, YOU CAN LOOK AT IT THAT WAY.
I'D RATHER ISSUE THE LOWER RATE AND MONITOR RATHER THAN HAVE TO GO THROUGH AN APPEALS PROCESS WHERE THEY'RE BEING CHARGED MORE UNTIL WE DETERMINE THAT THEY SHOULD BE CHARGED LESS. AND THERE'S THE SAFETY OF COMPLAINTS BEING BROUGHT AGAINST THEM THAT WILL FLAG THE PEOPLE THAT ARE PROBLEMS. CORRECT.
I MADE ONE. YOU DID? I SECOND.
IS THERE FURTHER DISCUSSION? ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
AYE. ANY OPPOSED. THANK YOU, PASSES.
THANKS FOR REMINDING ME COMMISSIONER BLONDER ON THAT ONE.
THAT'S ALL I HAVE. I DID HAVE ON THE AGENDA THAT IF THERE WAS TIME FOR AN ADDITIONAL PUBLIC COMMENT AT YOUR LEISURE, IF YOU'RE SO INCLINED.
OK. ARE THERE ANY ITEMS BY MAYOR OR COMMISSIONERS, I HAVE
[4. Items by Mayor and Commissioners]
NOTHING. DID YOU WANT US TO TALK ABOUT FUTURE MEETINGS OR SPECIFIC TO THIS TOPIC FOR FUTURE? WE CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING YOU CHOOSE TO.QUESTIONS I THOUGHT WE WOULD ASK IS, DO WE HAVE OTHER ITEMS THAT WE WANT TO WORKSHOP SUSTAINABILITY PROJECTS, YOU KNOW, TO TALK ABOUT A CLIMATE ACTION PLAN FOR REDUCING OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT ACROSS THE CITY.
THOSE TYPES OF THINGS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, PREFERABLY DURING HURRICANE SEASON, BECAUSE WE EVEN WITH THE KING TIDES, WE REALLY WE JUST HAVE A LOT OF PROJECTS AND I'D LIKE TO KIND OF GET A HAND, YOU KNOW, JUST GET OUR ARMS AROUND THEM AND FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO PRIORITIZE THESE NEEDS.
MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS, SO ONE THING I WAS GOING TO BRING UP UNDER A CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS IN THE MEETING IS WE ARE TRACKING RIGHT NOW AND WE'RE PLANNING TO PROPOSE TO YOU A RESILIENCE, PRIORITIZATION OF RESILIENCY PROJECTS RESILIENCY AT THE NEXT WORKSHOP ON WHICH WOULD BE OCTOBER 11TH.
DO WE HAVE A SCHEDULE OF WORKSHOPS WITH TOPICS YET OR.
WELL, THAT'S PART OF WHAT WE WANTED TO TALK ABOUT AT THE MEETING.
[00:40:03]
OK.YEAH, IT WOULD BE GOOD TO HAVE A SCHEDULE.
BECAUSE PART OF IT IS I CAN SEE THE REACTION RIGHT NOW IS WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS A TEMPO THAT WORKS FOR THE COMMISSION.
AS STAFF WE CAN DO A WORKSHOP BEFORE EVERY MEETING.
THAT'S NOT A PROBLEM, BUT SOME OF THE TOPICS THAT ARE ON OUR LIST ARE RESILIENCY, WORKFORCE HOUSING, SOME DIRECTION WITH REGARD TO SOME PROPERTIES THAT WE [INAUDIBLE] WORKFORCE HOUSING.
AND REALLY ANYTHING THAT THE COMMISSION WOULD LIKE.
SO WE HAVE A HOST OF THINGS THAT WE COULD, YOU KNOW, TAKE INTO A DEEPER DIVE, INCLUDING OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN.
JUST WHATEVER, YOU THINK, ARE THE IMPORTANT ISSUES.
AND THEN REALLY, BUT IT'S THE TEMPO TOO.
DO YOU WANT ONE WORKSHOP A MONTH OR TWO WORKSHOPS A MONTH? BUT YOU HAVE ONE SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER.
WE CAN SCHEDULE IF IT'S THE WILL OF THE COMMISSION FOR OCTOBER 11TH, I BELIEVE IS THE NEXT MEETING. I NEED TO CHECK THE DATE AND WE CAN HAVE A PRIORITIZATION OF RESILIENCY. YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE ALL THE PROJECTS AND WHAT ARE THE PRIORITIES AS WE SEE IT? AND WHAT ARE THE PRIORITIES AS YOU SEE IT AND RECONCILE THAT? SO THAT'S WHAT WE WERE THINKING ABOUT IS OUR NEXT WORKSHOP AND WE CAN DO IT AS EARLY AS THE 11TH OF OCTOBER.
BUT IF THERE'S ANOTHER TOPIC THAT IS OF MORE PRESSING ISSUES FOR THE COMMISSION, WE'RE OPEN, BUT I JUST WANT TO PUT THAT OUT THERE.
I APOLOGIZE, I DON'T HAVE A CALENDAR IN FRONT OF ME FOR OCTOBER AND I DIDN'T BRING MY CALENDAR, BUT I'M GOING TO CHECK ON OCTOBER 11TH.
IT'S BEFORE OUR REGULAR MEETING ON THE 11TH.
I'M NOT INTERESTED IN HAVING A WORKSHOP BEFORE EVERY MEETING.
OK? PERHAPS ONE A MONTH AND RECOGNIZING WE'RE GETTING INTO NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER WHERE WE'LL ONLY HAVE ONE MEETING.
SO. SO, YEAH, THAT'S MY SENTIMENT, I'M NOT KEEN ABOUT THE 11TH.
OBVIOUSLY, WE CAN DO IT IF THAT'S WHAT WE'VE GOT.
I WOULD PREFER THE 25TH, BUT THAT'S NOT A HUGE DEAL.
I'M FINE WITH THE 25TH AS WELL.
I'M OUT OF TOWN ON THE 11TH, SO THE TWENTY FIFTH, I THINK, WOULD WORK.
OK? OK. ARE YOU? WERE YOU SAYING? I JUST WANT TO BE CLEAR. WERE YOU SAYING YOU DIDN'T? YOU'RE NOT THRILLED WITH THE IDEA OF HAVING JUST A LONG AFTERNOON OF WORKSHOP PLUS COMMISSION MEETING AND YOU WANT A SEPARATE? NO, NO.
ONE A MONTH. YEAH. THE ONLY CONCERN IS A MEETING LIKE THIS WHERE IT'S HARD TO FINE TUNE.
SO I ASSUME WE'RE FINISHED WITH THIS WORKSHOP, SO WE JUST HAVE A GAP OF AN HOUR AND 15 MINUTES, I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU KNOW, WE'D DO THE BEST WE CAN TO ADJUST THAT.
THAT'S THE ONLY DRAWBACK WITH DOING IT RIGHT BEFORE THE COMMISSION MEETING.
OK. ANYTHING ELSE? I WOULD SAY I DID THINK A WORKSHOP, A TWO HOUR WORKSHOP IS QUITE LONG.
MAYBE WE COULD PUT IT LIKE WE DO ON OUR COMMISSION MEETINGS, THERE'S A TIME FRAME.
SO ARE YOU SUGGESTING A SHORTER PERIOD? YES, I WOULD SAY FOUR O'CLOCK.
I MEAN, IT HAS ALWAYS WORKED PRETTY WELL BEFORE A COMMISSION OR EVEN 3:30.
YOU HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A BREAK.
LET'S, I THINK 3:30 MAKES SENSE ONLY BECAUSE ONCE WE START HITTING 4:30, THEN WE'LL HAVE FOLKS COMING INTO THE MEETING AND THAT CAN BE JUST A LITTLE DISTRACTING.
I THINK IT CAN ALSO DEPEND ON THE TOPIC.
THIS MEETING TO BE HONEST, THIS WAS PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD AND WAS A LITTLE BIT MORE SUCCINCT. AND I MEAN, THERE'S SOME INTERESTING THINGS THAT WE COULD TALK ABOUT WITH SOLID WASTE. I THINK IT SOMEWHAT DEPENDS ON THE TOPIC.
SURE. I WAS A LITTLE SURPRISED THAT THIS ONE WAS AS SHORT AS IT WAS, BUT THAT'S OK.
SURE. WELL, I AND THIS DID NOT DRAW A LOT OF PUBLIC COMMENT.
WE'VE HAD WORKSHOPS IN THE PAST.
SO HOW ABOUT IF WE GO WITH FOR THESE WORKSHOPS THAT WE THINK ARE NOT OVERLY CONTROVERSIAL, THAT A TIME THAT A START TIME OF 3:30 SOMETHING CLOSER TO THE COMMISSION MEETING? AND THEN WHEN WE DO HAVE SOMETHING THAT'S CONTROVERSIAL, WE'LL JUST NOTE IT AND MAYBE BACK IT UP A LITTLE BIT.
[00:45:01]
AND I DO LIKE THE IDEA OF THE CIP WORKING ON THE CIP ALONG WITH THE BUDGET, BUT THAT MAY BE, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT WE CAN FIT INTO OUR YEARLY BUDGET WORKING SCHEDULE, I DON'T KNOW. I JUST.THIS YEAR IS SO UNIQUE AND THAT THERE ARE MILLIONS OF DOLLARS AT STAKE, AND WE REALLY HAVEN'T, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT AND HEARD ABOUT IT A COUPLE OF TIMES.
MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE NUMBER IS GROWN, THAT IT'S MORE THAN WE INITIALLY THOUGHT.
AND I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I'M VERY CURIOUS ABOUT AND VERY INTERESTED IN DEVELOPING A PHILOSOPHY, SO TO SPEAK, OF HOW WE APPROACH THE SPENDING OF THAT MONEY.
I'M NOT SURE WE'VE HAD THAT KIND OF DISCUSSION.
THAT'S JUST MY INPUT. YEAH, AND I THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT TOPIC.
DO WE ANTICIPATE THE AMOUNT WE'RE GOING TO RECEIVE IS LARGER.
FROM? WELL, ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT THE SIZE OF THE ARA DISBURSEMENT? YEAH. YES. THE ARPA FUNDS. YEAH.
IT'S AT SEVEN. WE IDENTIFIED THE NUMBER.
IT IS LARGER, BUT WE'VE IDENTIFIED IT AND I THINK IT'S SEVEN POINT SEVEN FOUR MILLION.
NOW THIS NEXT WORKSHOP, THOUGH, YOU KNOW THE PRIORITIZATION RESILIENCY.
I THINK IF THERE'S ONE THING THAT'S REALLY FOREMOST ON PEOPLE'S MINDS, IT'S RESILIENCY, AND WE CAN'T TELL THE COMMUNITY ENOUGH ABOUT HOW MANY THINGS WE HAVE HAPPENING.
I WOULD ANTICIPATE THAT'S A WORKSHOP THAT COULD BRING SOME PEOPLE OUT.
SURE. AND ALSO THERE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S DIFFERENT AGENDAS AND ISSUES AND BALANCES.
I WOULD STILL KEEP THAT AS A THREE O'CLOCK START.
THAT'S MY GUT. AND WE'LL MOVE THAT TO OCTOBER 25TH.
OK? OK. COMMISSIONERS, ANYTHING FURTHER? IS THERE ANYBODY ELSE?
[5. Additional Time for Public Comment]
WE'VE NOW COMPLETED THE SCHEDULE, AND IF THERE'S ANYBODY THAT WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS THE COMMISSION, NOW WOULD BE THE TIME.THANK YOU, CHARLES PAPPAS, 46 MACARIS STREET.
I JUST WANTED TO COMMENT SOME THINGS ON THE TRASH, ON MY NOTES, I WROTE EARLIER.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, SUSTAINABILITY GOAL OF THE CITY.
TRASH IS RIGHT THERE UP ON IT, BUT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO GET A LOT MORE CREATIVE IN THE FUTURE AS TRASH IS GOING TO BE HARDER AND HARDER TO GET RID OF.
I THINK WE MIGHT MIGHT START LOOKING AT DOING ONE TRASH BARREL PER UNIT PERIOD.
AND IF PEOPLE HAVE ADDITIONAL START LOOKING AT OTHER WAYS FOR ADDITIONAL REVENUE, THAT GETS TO THE PART OF REDUCING WASTE.
IF YOU HAVE ONE THING TO REDUCE WASTE AND THERE'S WAYS TO DO THAT IS YOU COULD HAVE PRE-PAID CITY TRASH BAGS.
FOR THOSE PEOPLE WHO MIGHT HAVE OCCASIONAL EXTRA WASTE, THEY CAN HAVE A ROLL OF TRASH BAGS THEY BOUGHT FROM THE CITY.
IF YOU HAVE UNITS THAT ARE CONSTANTLY AND YOU CAN'T GET THEM TO REDUCE, THEN YOU WOULD OFFER THEM A SECOND BARREL, BUT THEN THAT WOULD BE BILLED THAT FOR THAT UNIT.
I THINK YOU FIND PEOPLE WHEN THEY HAVE A LIMIT, THEY TEND TO STICK TO IT.
A LITTLE CONCERN WITH THE STRS.
I DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM CHARGING THE COMMERCIAL RATE, BUT TALLAHASSEE MIGHT.
THE WAY TALLAHASSEE KEEPS GOING AFTER THE STRS CONCERNED THAT IF WE DON'T HAVE AN ALTERNATIVE PLAN, SUCH AS HAVING THAT ADDITIONAL CHARGE THAT IS EQUAL TO ALL RESIDENCES.
BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE TALLAHASSEE IS WORKING, THAT WE CAN'T TREAT STRS SEPARATELY, NOT AT THAT POINT, BUT IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOING THAT DIRECTION, SO WE MIGHT NEED A PLAN B ON SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
AND IT MIGHT BE A GOOD TIME TO DO A STUDY AT SOME POINT ON MULTIPLE DEVELOPMENT UNITS OR CONDOS. BECAUSE IN MY NONSCIENTIFIC APPROACH OF JUST NOTICING LIVING AT CONDOS WHEN YOU HAVE A DUMPSTER AND TRASH IS UNLIMITED, IT SEEMS EACH UNIT SEEMS TO CREATE MORE TRASH, SO IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING TO LOOK AT FOR ALTERNATIVES.
AND ON RECYCLING, WHEN WE HAD SINGLE STREAM COME BY, THAT WAS A GODSEND.
SO WE THOUGHT, BUT NOW IN THIS TIME IN DAY WHEN RECYCLING IS HARDER TO GET RID OF, THAT'S ACTUALLY IS EVEN HARDER.
IT MIGHT BE TIME TO START LOOKING BACK AT SINGLE SEPARATE BINS FOR RECYCLING, AND IT MIGHT BE TIME TO BE CREATIVE TO LOOK AT THE END PRODUCT COMPANIES AND WHAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR. BECAUSE IF WE CAN SUPPLY THAT, THAT MIGHT MAKE RECYCLING BETTER AND SOME TYPE OF CREATIVE WAY OF CREATING CONTRACTS WITH THE CORPORATIONS RATHER THAN IN THE
[00:50:01]
MIDDLE. AND SOME THINGS WE MIGHT LOOK AT IS SINCE GLASS IS HEAVY PERHAPS FINDING WAYS FOR THE LOCAL BARS AND RESTAURANTS TO STOP USING BOTTLED.PERHAPS YOU'RE GETTING MORE INTO TAPS, FOR BEER AND STUFF IF YOU GO BY AND YOU SEE HOW MUCH GLASS IS IN THEIR BINS, THAT MIGHT BE HELPFUL.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
IS THERE ANYBODY ELSE? BJ KALAIDI WEST CITY OF ST.
AUGUSTINE, I APPRECIATE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK AGAIN, ESPECIALLY AFTER YOU ALL HAD YOUR CONVERSATION, AND I DO WANT TO SAY WE DO APPRECIATE WHAT MR. RICK AND HIS CREW HAVE BEEN DOING IN THIS CITY OVER THE YEARS.
DON'T HAVE ANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THAT, BUT I DO WANT TO MAKE A SUGGESTION.
ONE COMMISSIONER WAS CONCERNED ABOUT FREEBIES FOR THE COMPOST BINS.
I DON'T BELIEVE THAT MR. TODD OR ANYONE IN HIS DEPARTMENT WOULD HAVE ANY PROBLEM WITH ANYONE ON THIS COMMISSION OR IN THE CITY LIMITS MAKE IT A DONATION IF YOU WANT TO DONATE TO THE PROGRAM.
I DON'T THINK ANYONE WOULD HAVE ANY PROBLEM WITH THAT, AND IT'D BE A GOOD PRECEDENT, I THINK, FOR THOSE WHO ARE CONCERNED AND MAYBE WOULD ENCOURAGE THE PEOPLE THAT WANT TO COMPOST. SO THAT WAS I WAS SITTING THERE LISTENING TO THIS WE ARE ALL FOR FREEBIES.
BUT IF YOU CAN MAKE A DONATION TO THE CITY WASTE DEPARTMENT, I'M SURE THEY TAKE THE MONEY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND SPEND IT WISELY.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
IS THERE ANYBODY ELSE THAT WISHES TO ADDRESS THE COMMISSION AT THIS TIME? SEEING NO ONE, THE ADDITIONAL PUBLIC COMMENT IS CLOSED AND WE WILL STAND ADJOURNED.
I JUST DIDN'T KNOW, DID YOU? YOU KNOW, I CAN FILL ANOTHER HOUR IF YOU WANT.
[LAUGHTER] I'VE GOT IDEAS FOR THE FUTURE, FOR SOLID WASTE, BUT THEY'RE JUST IDEAS AT THIS POINT. BUT I'LL LET YOU ADJOURN.
THANK YOU. WE'LL STAND ADJOURNED.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.