Trust is important. Confidence wanes when commitments are not kept, especially after promises were changed unilaterally.

8:00 PM update - "Eight bells" and no documents posted on the village web site. I have been watching off and on for the last four (4) hours - time for someone else to take the watch. I have other things to do to get ready for a full and rich day tomorrow. 

Obviously Village Staff departed for the day without completing their promise (made by the current Mayor and Council) to post the documents on the village website. The Palmetto Bay Villagers left without it getting done; let's all hope that they at least set the alarm at Village Hall!


7:00 PM update - 24 hours prior to the advertised bid review meeting.

No documents posted on the website, contrary to multiple assurances.

Remember, the public was originally promised access to review these documents, 7 days in advance to the 5/1/2019 meeting - this was in writing (by formal resolution passed 5-0 by this current village council). It was then reduced from 7 to 1 day on April 23, 2019.

I refreshed my cache and clicked the link posted by the village: 

A copy of each received bid will be accessible on the Village website under the Procurement Division section on Tuesday, April 30, 2019:  https://www.palmettobay-fl.gov/418/Cone-of-Silence-for-RFPs-RFQs-Bids.  

Please feel free to email a link that does provide these documents, if such a link exists. Please e-mail this link to eugene@eugeneflinn.com. And please note the date and time that you were able to view and download the bids to be reviewed on May 1. Thanks you.

Original post of 5:45 PM, 4/30/2019: Another deadline has come and gone, ignored by the current Palmetto Bay leadership. Next update will be at 7:00 PM. A betting line has been opened on whether the village posts the materials promised by 7:00 PM, 11:59 PM, 9:00 AM May 1st or not at all. Gallows humor meant to replace the growing loss of confidence in a Council where even promises stated in formal resolutions are revised on a whim and even then are held to a standard that screams "commitments by the staff and council are meaningless!"

Darn, and after starting the day off on such a positive note with the morning blog post. The failure of the village to keep its commitment brought my mood crashing to earth. Surprised? No, but still I am disappointed.  So I vent. I vent with the goal of improving commitment to promises. I wonder aloud if this is part of the reason why our Village Attorney announced that he is leaving service of Palmetto Bay.

5:00 PM is generally accepted as the end of a business day (see the screen shot marked as blog exhibits 1 & 2). An apparent deadline came and went without the materials being posted. The link took me to screen that I posted next to it as blog exhibit 2.  This post went live at 5:45. Now we wait to see if the day prior means 24 hours prior or if the entire commitment made by Staff and the present Village Council was yet another scam.

                                   Blog Exhibit 1 (above -left)                        Blog Exhibit 2 (above -right)

Resolution 2019-015 provided for 7 days, approved 5-0, but then the entire Village Council Flip / Flopped at the special council meeting of April 23, 2019, drastically reducing the 7 day window for public preparation down to the day before (Agenda Item 4.B.) by the same 5-0 vote. 

The promise was originally 7 days notice. Here is what the website promised as of 5:45 PM on April 30, 2019:

A copy of each received bid will be accessible on the Village website under the Procurement Division section on Tuesday, April 30, 2019:   https://www.palmettobay-fl.gov/418/Cone-of-Silence-for-RFPs-RFQs-Bids.  

The information promised was not delivered at 5:45 PM.

What does the the day before mean? Obviously not be 5:00 PM on April 30, the day prior to the May 1st scheduled meeting. 

Promises made in Resolution 2019-015:

(1) After opening of bids and study by individual staff members on the bid review committee, the review committee shall meet in a public meeting to discuss and assign bid evaluation points by individual staff members.
(2)Each bid shall be posted on the Village website and a copy of each bid shall be available for public review at Village Hall no less than seven (7) days prior to the review committee meeting.
(3) The review committee meeting shall be noticed no less than seven (7) days prior to the meeting.
(4) The bid evaluations shall be reviewed by the Council at a Council meeting for disposition as the Council sees fit in its discretion
(5)The Village Manager shall select two outside consultants, not from local government at a cost not to exceed $10,000 to participate in the five (5) member evaluation committee and the evaluation shall be completed prior to February 4, 2019.

          (underline emphasis added)

Promises made, but not kept are highlighted above. 

Resolution 2019-015 provided for 7 days, approved 5-0, but then the entire Village Council Flip / Flopped at the special council meeting of April 23, 2019, drastically reducing the 7 day window for public preparation down to the day before (Agenda Item 4.B.) by the same 5-0 vote.

PRIOR RELEVANT POST: April 26, 2019, Unsolicited bid update - committee to meet in public to review the proposals on May 1, 2019 - 7:00 PM - Flip meet Flop

So much for the language stated, but rendered hollow and meaningless through what actions (or lack of) have denied in Resolution 2019-015: 

"WHEREAS, the transparency and public awareness of the bid and acquisition process of the Village is important in building public confidence in Village government ..."  (page 1, lines 21-23 of resolution - all emphasis added)

Mark Merwitzer Interview on CBS4 Gainesville WGFL - April 29, 2019

Nearing the finish line? Years of advocating for an end to distracted driving in Florida, an update Guest Post - Mark Merwitzer - an advocate for safe road travel

EDITOR's NOTE: I am pleased to present another guest post to the South Dade Updates Blog (SDU) from Mark Merwitzer.  CLICK HERE for prior relevant posts relating to Mark Merwitzer.  Mark has been hard at work appearing over the many years before the Florida Legislature to enact life safety legislation relating to distracted driving. 

I want to thank Mark Merwitzer, a Palmetto Bay resident and a founding member of our Palmetto Bay Youth Community Involvement Board (and a past Chair of the Youth Board) for his tenacious efforts on this anti-distracted driving initiative. 

Also see a prior Guest Post from Mark Merwitzer: January 14, 2018, Guest Post - Mark Merwitzer - an advocate for safe roads - ending distracted driving

I am beyond excited to announce the passage of House Bill 107 through the Florida Legislature, and now is on its way to Governor DeSantis’s desk. Years of my hard work, along with others, has finally paid off.

Debbie Wanninkhof / Mark Merwitzer

After three years of my appearances in multiple committees, working with multiple elected officials, rallying support at a local level, and developing a relationship with many Florida politicians, as well as many families who have lost loved ones and then getting them involved, today is the day the Florida Legislature finally passed a texting while driving ban with primary enforcement.

Out of 50 states, 47 have laws to ban texting while driving as a primary offense. Florida is not one of those yet, but Governor DeSantis will have the bill on his desk within the next few days to make texting while driving a primary offense. In addition, the bill would prohibit handheld cell phone use in school and work zones. Currently Florida has a secondary offense which prohibits police officers from giving tickets to texting drivers unless another infraction is involved. Consequently, the roads are filled with people distracted by their phones often resulting in accidents and fatalities. Safety is the foremost concern for all, yet, Florida is currently lacking with this commonsense legislation. That will change October 1st, when the new law takes effect.

My personal journey began three years ago when I was just 16 years old. I was driving down the MacArthur Causeway with my dad after having lunch with my grandmother. My dad was cursing at every car that went by for swerving in and out of their lanes. I noticed that the vast majority of these drivers were on their phone, totally oblivious to the road. It occurred to me that no one was doing anything to address this massive road safety issue. When I got home and did some research, not only did I find that Florida did not have a primary enforcement law, but texting while driving impacts my generation the most.

So, I got to work. I reached out to my local officials along with the local youth councils -one of which I was the chair of- and asked them to do something about this severe problem. Unfortunately, the issue is preempted to the state which means that local governments cannot regulate texting while driving within their own municipalities. So instead of enacting local laws, I am pleased to have worked with many people such as Commissioner Daniella Levine Cava, Mayor Eugene Flinn, Mayor Cindy Lerner, and many others to have them all pass urgings (also known as legislative requests) to the Florida Legislature and then lobby for the issue.

After all of these urgings passed, I contacted Senator Rene Garcia with the help of outgoing Senator de la Portilla and asked him to sponsor a texting while driving ban in the Senate. Senator Rene Garcia agreed. Representative Slosberg sponsored the bill in the House. Even though the bill did not pass the first year, it was the very first time any kind of texting while driving bill received a hearing since the secondary ban passed in 2013. It was also that year when I traveled up to Tallahassee for the first time and presented the bill before a Senate Committee. It was nerve racking for a then 16-year-old me. I am extremely grateful to everyone who supported me in that first year.

The next year is when things really got moving. After going up to Tallahassee multiple times in 2018, the bill managed to get through the Florida House and 3/4 of the Senate committees. Unfortunately, the last committee chair, Rob Bradley, refused to hear the bill. Senator Bradley single-handedly killed the bill last year. That action devastated many families who lost loved ones and went to Tallahassee to advocate for the bill.

However, I was not discouraged at all and decided to keep up the good fight.

But, as the saying goes, the third time's a charm. This year, I am grateful for the sponsorship of Senate President Designee Wilton Simpson and the work of Representative Jackie Toledo. With their sponsorships and the backing of a coalition of which I am a part of, getting grieving parents on board, sacrificing my spring break, talking to dozens of legislators, and appearing at almost every hearing for the bill, we were finally able to get it done this year. I am so glad to see my hard work finally pay off.

Thank you to everyone involved for making our roads safer.

-Mark Merwitzer

Unsolicited bid update - committee to meet in public to review the proposals on May 1, 2019 - 7:00 PM - Flip meet Flop

Update on the unsolicited bid. I spoke at the April 23, 2019, Special Council Meeting, asking for an update as to the date for public action by the committee on the unsolicited bid. Staff provided an answer during the meeting that it could be done May 1. 

After all, the bids were unsealed on March 7. The original time frame determined by Resolution 2019-015  was for a review committee to convene and review in less than 3 weeks. It had been more than 7 weeks since the bids were opened without an announced date for the committee review.  

Promises made. Promised DENIED: The Village Council had previously passed Resolution 2019-015 on January 7, 2019, requiring that the bid proposals be released to the public 7 days before the meeting. 

The council may have stated in Resolution 2019-015 the following: 

"WHEREAS, the transparency and public awareness of the bid and acquisition process of the Village is important in building public confidence in Village government ..."  (page 1, lines 21-23 of resolution - all emphasis added)

Bold promises made, but never kept. The resolution lay dormant from January until April 23, when promises made were revoked while others were simply not delivered. I speak specifically to the Special Council meeting, item 4.B, where the bold promises of the January resolution 2019-015 was drastically curtailed both in shortening access time to documents [item (2)] as well as not following their own bold promises on the 7 day notice [see item (3) of the resolution].  

So when campaign time rolls around, remind the Mayor and Council of how they seem to be unable to stick to a theme, rights granted and then taken away, as this same village council voted 5-0 on April 23, 2019 to shorten that time period for review from seven (7) days to a mere day prior. That’s right, from one week to just the day before to review the documents.

Promises made in Resolution 2019-015:

(1) After opening of bids and study by individual staff members on the bid review committee, the review committee shall meet in a public meeting to discuss and assign bid evaluation points by individual staff members.
(2)Each bid shall be posted on the Village website and a copy of each bid shall be available for public review at Village Hall no less than seven (7) days prior to the review committee meeting.
(3) The review committee meeting shall be noticed no less than seven (7) days prior to the meeting.
(4) The bid evaluations shall be reviewed by the Council at a Council meeting for disposition as the Council sees fit in its discretion
(5)The Village Manager shall select two outside consultants, not from local government at a cost not to exceed $10,000 to participate in the five (5) member evaluation committee and the evaluation shall be completed prior to February 4, 2019.

          (underline emphasis added)

Flip, meet flop.

The "deliverables" This is another glaring example of this current Mayor and Council Flip / Flopping on Transparency which has become an all too familiar theme. It shows why Palmetto Bay residents need to read everything on their own, stay up to date and monitor, unable to rely upon initial action as it is always fluid and subject to change. 

Resolution 2019-015 provided for 7 days, approved 5-0, but then the entire Village Council Flip / Flopped at the special council meeting of April 23, 2019, drastically reducing the 7 day window for public preparation down to the day before (Agenda Item 4.B.) by the same 5-0 vote.

Failure to keep stated commitment on notice to the Public: The notice of for the meeting of the review committee meeting was posted 4 days prior to May 1 - not a full week, or 7 days as promised. I have posted a JPEG of this notice provided to me by a reader of SDU.

Transparency - is the Palmetto Bay Council placing the cart before the horse or is the fix in on the multimodal?

There is the truth, then there is the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Its time for the members of the Palmetto Bay Village Council to 'fess up. The legislative session is nearly over and they Village council has three (3) big legislative asks still pending before the legislature. One looks speciously like the Village Council is fully aware of the contents of the Unsolicited Bid and are working hard to obtain funding from the State for its share of this proposed public/private partnership (details below). Here are the pending appropriation requests:

$ 1,790,800 Total money requested from the legislature limited for 3 projects, broken down as follows:
$   745,900 Multimodal center – location undisclosed (23% of the total estimated cost)
$   745,900 Enviro Center to be constructed at Coral Reef Park
$   299,000 Drainage for sub basin 61 (50% match from Village)

$ 1,790,800 Total money requested from the legislature to cover:
$ 6,089,800 total cost of these proposed projects to the residents of Palmetto Bay.

Approximately 29% of the total cost is covered by the proposed appropriations (if 100% funded)

I am going to focus on the big one - the annual attempt to gain money from the legislature for the Multimodal Center - $745,000 from the legislature to build (representing 23%) a project currently estimated to cost $3,245,900 at the present time. Note this is also a capital expense – no operational or maintenance money is sought, nor is there a plan enumerated as to where this is going to go.  (CLICK HERE to view prior posts relevant to the multimodal proposals) Questions include:

• How much additional money will be received from other sources to complete this project, as the total cost is ESTIMATED to be $3,245,900 as listed on page 7 (out of 8) (item #19.) (TPO Grant?)
• Is this to be built on land owned (and, therefore to be leased) from South Motors, the Owner of the Banyan lot I proposed some time ago?
• Is this money to be added as the Village contribution to the mysterious unsolicited bid project (CLICK HERE for prior related posts). Please note: The specifications for parking in the The proposed project (presently proposed as a five story project) state that the Development initiative includes the construction of a mixed-use facility including a 450 space minimum parking garage

The park & ride will provide approx. 500 parking spaces, on-demand service dropoff/pick-up & other amenities - which sounds like it is applicable to the yet to be discussed unsolicited bid proposal.

This is why I ask, is this 'unsolicited bid' process really unsolicited or has it been carefully crafted behind the scenes? Its a fair question.

Here are the Palmetto Bay appropriation requests pending before the Florida Legislature:

HB 3763 - Palmetto Bay Multimodal Transit Station (23% of total project cost)

Appropriations Project by Fernández

Palmetto Bay Multimodal Transit Station: Provides an appropriation for the Palmetto Bay Multimodal Transit Station.

Effective Date: July 1, 2019

Last Event: Now in Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, March 6, 2019 6:11 PM

CLICK HERE to view the full bill text

Details/Amount sought:  $745,900 (total cost of project est.: $3,245,900)

For fiscal year 2019-2020 the nonrecurring sum of $745,900 from the State Transportation (Primary) Trust Fund is appropriated to the Department of Transportation to fund the Palmetto Bay Multimodal Transit Station as described in Appropriations Project Request 1445. 

Purpose (CLICK HERE) to view the 8 page Appropriations Project Request
Description: To build a multimodal station as a regional park and ride for county transit services. The park & ride will provide parking to support Miami-Dade County's Bus Rapid Transit system on the county's Transitway that will transport residents as far south as Homestead to the S. Dadeland Metrorail Station, which lacks sufficient parking to support the S. Dade commuter ridership. The park & ride will provide approx. 500 parking spaces, on-demand service dropoff/pick-up & other amenities. 

***   ***   ***

HB 4081 - Palmetto Bay Nature Education Center (33.2% of total project cost)

Appropriations Project by Aloupis

Palmetto Bay Nature Education Center: Provides an appropriation for the Palmetto Bay Nature Education Center.

Effective Date: July 1, 2019

Last Event: 1st Reading on Tuesday, March 5, 2019 11:28 PM

CLICK HERE to view the full bill text (HB 4081)

Details/Amount sought:  $745,900 (total cost of project est.: $2,245,900)

For fiscal year 2019-2020 the nonrecurring sum of $745,900 from the General Revenue Fund is appropriated to the Department of Environmental Protection to fund the Palmetto Bay Nature Education Center as described in Appropriations Project Request 1620.

Purpose (CLICK HERE) to view the 7 page Appropriations Project Request

Description: To capitalize on the existing 20-acre natural pineland preserve area within the 52-acre Coral Reef Park and establish a Nature Education Center to provide educational courses to the general public in an effort to promote conservation of the natural environment. This is particularly important for younger children to learn about nature, the outdoors and environmental protection.

(EDITOR’s NOTE: This can also be described as defining the money ask to enable it to be used to rebuild the Community Building at Coral Reef Park)

***   ***   ***

HB 4069 - Palmetto Bay Drainage Sub-Basin #61 Construction (50% of total project cost)

Appropriations Project by Aloupis

Palmetto Bay Drainage Sub-Basin #61 Construction: Provides an appropriation for the Palmetto Bay Drainage Sub-Basin #61 Construction.

Effective Date: July 1, 2019

Last Event: Now in Appropriations Committee on Sunday, March 10, 2019 6:55 PM

CLICK HERE to view the full bill text

Details/Amount sought:  $299,000 (total cost of project est.: $598,000)

For fiscal year 2019-2020 the nonrecurring sum of $299,000 from the General Revenue Fund is appropriated to the Department of Environmental Protection to fund the Palmetto Bay Drainage Sub-Basin #61 Construction as described in Appropriations Project Request 1621.

Purpose (CLICK HERE) to view the 9 page Appropriations Project Request 

Description: Palmetto Bay is requesting funding for the design, construction and construction support of stormwater improvements to its sub-basin #61. Improvements include building, additional catch basins, manholes, culverts & exfiltration to connect the catch basins within sub-basin #61. Improvements will reduce pollutant load contribution from 3 main pollutants from the sub-basin into Biscayne bay Aquifer, control flooding during storms such as Hurricane Irma and improve surface water quality. 

(EDITOR’s NOTE: Stormwater money has been important to Palmetto Bay which historically has received anywhere from $100,000 to the high of $800,000 in any one year – there have also been years where ZERO was received for Stormwater improvements.)

Palmetto Bay - Transparency - on sale to those who can afford it

Tax, Tax, Tax. This current Village Council has recently conspired to raise park user fees and now the Village Council is churning its way to enacting a 30 year tax on our electric bills - just in time to take over for the expiration of the 30 year County agreement (can we never let a tax expire??). This tax is a misnamed "Franchise Fee" - misnamed because FPL pays nothing for their rights granted under this agreement - instead, they collect the franchise fee from you, the electric service account holder and remit a percentage of that back to the Village coffers as general unrestricted revenue. (CLICK HERE to read an earlier related post - part 1 - what is the FPL Franchise fee)

Does Transparency Matter? It should to you.

So let us compare - I have requested information through a public records request from the Village of Palmetto Bay seeking information that I believe each and every member of the village council should have before voting to enact a very long term commitment that we, the people, are bound to for 30 years - up to the year 2050.

I spoke at the April 23, 2019, Special Council Meeting, making a plea for the release of this information, making the argument that this is the very same information that they, as public officials, should have and should carefully read and consider before voting on a 30 year mortgage placed upon the residents.  My argument fell upon deaf ears. Crickets.  

Why should the Village be charging me $$$ to gather the materials necessary to educate the Mayor and Council on an issue that they should be educating themselves on prior to such an important vote? 

Palmetto Bay did not tell me that they do not have the information, instead the Village of Palmetto Bay is demanding payment of approximately $72.00.  That's right, $72.00 for information that relates to an ongoing issue, not anything that has been sealed, stored or archived. Or at least it should not be stored or archived as this is an active issue. And they want a deposit up front. This their response, verbatim:

If you agree to this cost estimate, please remit a 50% deposit in the amount of $36.00 for your request. All public records requests involving extensive assistance require a deposit in advance for the reproduction of public records requests. You will receive a final invoice after the reproduction of your request is finalized.

So really, we are to believe that this mayor and council have absolutely no information readily available? It would be incompetence if they a really basing their vote on the limited information they have provided in the agenda items. It would be contrary to the Public Records Law, Chapter 119, Florida Statutes, if Palmetto Bay officials are hording the information, placing a 'research charge tax' on residents that want to see their information.

Transparency is limited to those who can afford it in Palmetto Bay.

So let’s look at the documents attached to the FPL Item (item 4A) planned to be discussed at the April 23, 2019 Committee of the Whole (COW) Meeting (CLICK HERE for the COW agenda):

      [                                                                                                                                        ]

(THIS AREA INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK to represent the lack of available documentation)

That’s right, nada, zilch, not a single document or item of staff report. The current Mayor and Village Council is really simply going to pass this 30 year tax without a referendum and, apparently, without any tangible research.

Yes, that is right. It appears that according to our current mayor:

This Franchise Fee must be passed to find out what's in it!

The Village essentially wants me to pay for them to gather the documents that their own staff and elected officials should have and review before acting on legislation. Good luck for all who like to research consequences in advance as Transparency appears dead in Palmetto Bay

There is also no urgency to discussing this matter in public as well. Hurry up and wait.  It is unfortunate that the current Mayor and Village Council once again failed to reach an item of public importance when the 6 PM Special Council Meeting of April 23, 2019, went very late, causing the rescheduling of the 7 PM Committee of the Whole meeting. Perhaps the allegation of actually discussing the FPL Franchise Fee was in fact just a cruel April Fools Joke.  See my prior post of Monday, April 1, 2019, Not an April Fools prank. The FPL Franchise Agreement will finally receive public scrutiny as it will be NOW discussed on the April 23 COW. A win for grass roots.

No win, the "win", just more delay.  The current Mayor and Village Council pulled delay and denial from the mouth of transparency. As of this date, the only information placed in public regarding the Franchise Fee so far only is what I have put out (which has been recycled by our current elected officials in some of their sparse info provided - and they are welcome to continue to distribute the information I have gathered and posted - proving the point that I provide more information to the public than our Village Administration).

There is very little information to date, as proven by my public records request as well as the lack of documentation provided as part of the agendas. This is especially troubling as This is an ordinance what has already been heard and passed (4-1) as item 13C on first reading at the January Regular Village Council Meeting. (CLICK HERE to review the original agenda item that passed 4-1). 

For now, you have to CLICK HERE if you want information and the links to actual independent sources. This is your online Tool Box for reference materials on the FPL Franchise issue.

Tactical Transparency in Palmetto Bay - who is managing information, the elected officials or campaign consultants?

The Special Council meeting held on Tuesday, March 23, 2019 was the 8th Special Council Meeting of 2019, the 10th overall since this current Mayor and Council took office 5 months ago, on December 5th, 2018.  This meeting marked the twenty-fourth (24th) meeting of any type (determined by whether a separate agenda was created for it) during this same time period. That averages to more than one meeting per week! No wonder they are asking for more staff to be hired (that's another issue for another time).

I joined my fellow residents in the public seating and listened to the comments and complaints of last minute additions, no documents to review in advance,next day roll overs, meetings that are difficult to get to one time (early 6 PM start times) as well as frequency of the meetings. (And note - the lack of documentation will be covered in another post - "Transparency - on sale to those who can afford it" - coming soon).

It is clear that this council is exhausting residents and eroding confidence and, worse, suppressing participation in the public process due to agenda uncertainty. Residents cannot or will not participate live if they don't know when, or even if an item will be reached. Many also have to shift schedules to make a meeting on a specific night. They cannot devote hours and then consecutive days of the weeks.  The agendas should have some certainly, not merely list what MAY BE COVERED in any particular meeting. Who has the time and flexibility to attend multiple meetings waiting to see if the item is reached that the individual is interested in?

Transparency should be an absolute - but it has become Tactical in Palmetto Bay. The story is long and time is short,so I am going to break up the concerns into several posts. This is the intro and I will provide some examples of transparency:

• Information provided and available without having to file detailed public records requests
• Public record requests should be filled when information is available, rather than waiting for 'deadlines'
• Staff reports are filled with information, both fiscal impact is listed as well as the staff report providing some simple, but important information that includes:
• Who - who or what does this item impact - either beneficially or to their potential detriment.
• What - what is the item about, ordinance, resolution, etc
• When - when will this take effect
• Why - why is it needed

Unfortunately Palmetto Bay officials have shifted to a tactical transparency. I can point to several examples that played out on a single issue at the Special Council Meeting held on Tuesday, April 23, 2019.

Issue - the notice to the general public - as posted on the Village Website:

Posted on: April 23, 2019

TONIGHT AT VILLAGE HALL:

6 pm: Special Council Meeting, Drafting Session for Downtown Urban Village Code 

7 pm: Committee of the Whole Workshop

Don't take my word: Here is a screen shot of that web post:

INCOMPLETE NOTICE, dependent upon lazy readers.  First read indicates that this special council meeting is about "Drafting Session for Downtown Urban Village Code." 

Your big mistake - you stopped reading there, assuming that was the only action scheduled.  Far from true - there was a robust agenda planned for 6:00 PM. And many of these items were added to this special council meeting less than 24 hours earlier! Note you can download either the original version or the "amended version"

The original Special Council Meetings was called to work on the Downtown Code with 2 (what could be quick) resolutions, items 4 A & 4B [CLICK HERE to view this original agenda (11 pages including attachments)].

But this is what the Village Council mistakenly believed they could get through in a meeting scheduled for a single hour [CLICK HERE for the amended agenda - (27 pages with exhibits)]

This meeting did not end until 9 PM, pushing back anyone (and there were a few) who were there for the COW agenda items.  The lack of transparency on the COW - that agenda will be covered in another blog post - but the intro here is that what should have been an agenda devoted to the FPL Tax became a footnote, one item out of a 16 item Committee of the Whole Agenda (CLICK HERE for the agenda) - now how much time can anyone reasonable expect to spend on a tax that will be assessed by this council for a 30 year period?

Note that the COW, not reached as scheduled on April 24, 2019, and the 16 listed items (plus what ever new items need to be added) will be held in May, 2019.

Happy Earth Day - 2019. Green, then silver, then Gold. Keep pushing for sustainability.

Where are we in regards to protecting our fragile ecosystem?

Do you know the approximate age of the Earth? 4.543 billion years. Yet today, 4/22/2019 is just the 49th Earth Day celebration. ACTING on Earth Day is more than just a movie night, it is taking action and participating, doing things differently, ending (sub)Urban Sprawl.

A brief history of Earth Day: The April 22 Earth Day was founded by Senator Gaylord Nelson, and was first organized in 1970 to promote ecology and respect for life on the planet as well as to encourage awareness of the growing problems of air, water and soil pollution.

I am proud to have led Palmetto Bay and created more than a simple Earth Day Celebration, but set Palmetto Bay to be committed to Earth Day 24/7/365. We don’t just recognize a day, we are now in big, in such a big way, that we take a full week to celebrate. Green activities, all free to the public, have been going this past week. We continue to involve our youth in partnership with the local schools as they are going to inherit what we leave behind.

It did not escape my notice, and it is sad that Palmetto Bay failed to get involved in Baynaza in 2019. I think 2019 may have been the first year we left it up to the County. Baynanza should be inter-governmental and represent collaboration, that no one group can undo what others refuse to do.

I was pleased to announce on Friday, July 20, 2018, that Palmetto Bay was certified by the FGBC as a Green City. Next stop is Silver and then Gold Certification so long as the subsequent councils continue to subscribe to the green footprints cast before them.

 

 

Participating in a python hunt to 
remove an invasive species

Today, Monday, April 22, 2019, is the 49th Earth Day Celebration.  What, if anything, are you doing to mark this event?  Please feel free to CLICK HERE for past updates on Earth Day. I recommend that you also take the time to review the Official Green Page of Palmetto Bay: "Palmetto Bay Village Green" which has both information of all the events of the week as well as the ongoing green efforts of our village. 

Prior relevant blog posts: Some relevant posts on my personal blog include Invasive Species, creating a backyard oasis, Celestial Events: there have been many posts throughout this blog covering these topics and how they are relevant to our South Miami-Dade Communities. Please take the time to check a few out. It is all about my transparency. I am about preservation of Palmetto Bay. That means thinking differently, saving the 22 acres of the rapidly deteriorating Pine Rocklands at the Palmetto Bay Village Center.

Finally, on a silly, but fun note, no special day is complete without viewing Google's special Earth Day animated doodle on the Google site.

Happy Earth Day – 2019!

Eugene Flinn