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From YouTube: City Council Meeting 12-05-18 Part 1
Description
Description
B
Our
Father
in
Heaven,
we
beseech
thee
to
basura,
bestow
thy
blessings
on
this
council
and
its
members
every
meet.
Today.
We
continue
to
be
grateful
for
our
abundance
of
the
spiritual
and
material
gifts
you
have
provided
for
us
and
ask
thy
infinite
guidance
in
all
our
undertakings.
We
pray
that
our
members
will
continue
to
grow
in
wisdom
and
understanding,
thereby
befitting
our
society.
D
F
This
morning,
I
am
sorry
and
I
didn't
bring
the
plaque
with
me.
I'm.
Sorry,
that's
okay,
but
once
again
this
year
the
city
of
Punta
Gorda
was
finished
in
the
top
10
nationwide
for
cities
under
population
of
75,000,
for
their
use
of
of
technology
and
and
digital
tools,
in
engagement
with
citizens
and
processes
within
the
city.
So
I
just
wanted
to
bring
that
into
the
council
to
inform
them
that
we
continue
to
excel
and
we
have
a
great
team.
We
have
great
support
within
all
the
departments
and
look
to
continue
it
next
year.
G
D
H
F
A
G
But
before
that
brief
introduction
for
those
who
are
new
to
this,
my
name
is
Gerry.
Paul
I
run
a
firm
called
capital
access
that
provides
governmental
affairs
consulting
in
Tallahassee
to
a
host
of
stakeholders
around
the
state,
but
our
favorite
one,
of
course,
is
the
city
of
Punta
Gorda.
That's
where
we're
from
it's
what
we
enjoy
the
most
and
we
get
the
most
pleasure
out
of
serving
at
least
my
home
district,
where
I
in
Charlotte
County,
where
I
formerly
served
as
a
member
of
the
Florida
Legislature.
G
This
year's
legislative
agenda
is
largely
going
to
track
last
year's,
which
is
a
combination
of
issues
that
are
important
to
have
been
important
to
the
city
on
a
state
level.
Policy
issues
such
as
preserving
Home,
Rule,
making
sure
the
government
on
the
state
level
stays
with
it
its
bounds
in
a
whole
host
of
other
issues
that
we
work
with
on
the
policy
level
statewide
in
conjunction
with
the
Florida
League
of
Cities,
which
is
also
a
very
helpful
community
and
a
tool
for
us.
G
Quite
frankly,
each
of
the
members
of
the
council
have
been
involved
in
the
Florida
League
said
he's
over
the
years
and
I'm
sure
the
Councilwoman
Kerry
will
avail
herself
of
those
resources
as
well
and
we'll
look
forward
to
meeting
with
each
of
you
in
conjunction
with
the
league,
and
hopefully
this
year,
we'll
have
the
mayor
and
perhaps
others
come
up
to
the
session
in
Tallahassee
once
it
gets
going.
So
brief
summary:
we
have
a
hundred
and
twenty
member
House
of
Representatives
a
forty
member
Senate
of
those
members.
G
There
are
three
who
are
on
the
Charlotte
County
delegation,
meaning
that
a
portion
of
their
district
touches
this
County
and
of
them
all
of
them
will
have
an
interest
in
helping
with
the
legislative
agenda
for
the
city
of
Punta
Gorda
the
process.
The
schedule,
if
you
will
for
an
annual
legislative
cycle,
goes
something
like
this.
G
Individual
members
who
are
in
the
delegation
for
a
local
area
start
that
process
by
having
a
delegation
meeting
which
for
Charlotte
County
is
tomorrow
at
Punta,
Gorda,
Isle,
Civic,
Center
on
Shrieve
and
then
I'll
be
joining
the
mayor
there.
Speaking
with
our
delegation
members
about
the
priorities
for
the
city
of
Punta
Gorda,
our
delegation
members
are
as
follows:
we
have
a
long-standing
member
representative,
Mike
grant
and,
as
you
all
know,
this
is
his
second
term
serving
in
the
Florida
House
of
Representatives.
G
So
we
have
great
continuity
there
and
he's
always
been
just
a
wonderful
supporter
of
the
city
of
Punta,
Gorda
and
all
of
our
agenda
items.
We're
also
very
pleased
that
we
now
have
former
representative
now
senator
ban
Albritton,
who
will
be
on
our
legislative
delegation
and
he
has
a
very
warm
spot
in
his
heart
for
the
Punta
Gorda.
G
He
loves
the
city
of
Punta
Gorda
and
he,
as
some
of
you
may
remember,
was
instrumental
in
brokering
the
overall
arrangement
whereby
we
were
able
to
procure
funding
both
from
the
state
and
from
the
Southwest
Florida
Water
Management
District
for
the
Punta,
Gorda,
reverse
osmosis
project,
and
so
he's
no
stranger
to
Punta.
Gorda
he's
been
one
of
our
biggest
champions
in
the
legislature
for
multiple
years
and
he's
going
to
continue
that
service
and
friendship.
Now
in
the
Senate
and
I
should
point
out
that
he
has
an
attendance.
G
One
of
his
legislative
aides,
J
Williams,
who
was
also
called
Jericho,
stand
up
real,
quick
J.
Everybody
needs
to
get
to
know
J
she's,
the
she
is
been
all
Britain,
senator
all
Britain
in
Punta,
Gorda
and
Charlotte
County
now,
and
we're
very
fortunate
that
she's
bringing
all
her
long-standing
legislative
experience
to
bear
in
this
new
term
for
the
senator
and
then
finally
Senator
Joe
gruder's,
who
was
a
former
member
of
the
House
whose
district
in
the
past
was
largely
well,
was
all
in
Sarasota
County,
but
his
Senate
District
extends
further
south.
G
Now
that
he's
moved
from
the
house
to
the
Senate
and
he's
in
that
delegation
as
well
he's
also
no
stranger
to
the
city
of
Punta
Gorda,
and
so
we
have
a
strong
delegation
going
forward
as
to
the
back
to
the
timeline
flow
legislative
process.
They'll
be
the
first
of
the
committee
weeks
that
I
mentioned
is
next
week,
December
the
week
of
December
10th
and
then
after
the
holidays.
They'll
be
two
of
those
committee
weeks
in
January
and
three
of
those
committee
weeks
in
February
and
in
the
60-day
legislative
session.
G
The
official
session
begins
on
March
5th
and
ends
on
May
3rd
and
we'll
work
closely
with
the
mayor
and
with
Howard
to
schedule
a
time
when
the
mayor
can
join
us
up
there
and
typically,
when
the
when
the
mayor
comes
up,
we
make
the
rounds
with
not
just
members
of
our
delegation,
but
key
members
of
leadership
and
key
members
of
the
those
committees
who's
whose
jurisdiction
includes
other
issues
of
interest
to
us.
So
let
me
turn
quickly
to
our
legislative
priorities.
G
These
have
been
prepared,
pursue
in
writing
and
submitted
to
the
delegation
already
pursuant
to
a
previous
agenda
item
whereby
the
councilmembers
spoke
about
this
in
great
detail.
Our
legislative
agenda
is
similar
to
last
year
as
to
issues
specific
to
the
city,
and
the
primary
one
is
to
procure
an
appropriation
to
help
funding
with
the
boca
grande
drainage
district
project
last
year
was
not
a
good
year
for
the
budget.
It
was
not
a
good
year
for
water
projects.
G
The
budget
was
somewhat
strained
initially
by
a
huge
hole
that
had
to
be
filled
for
funding
for
hurricane
Irma
recovery.
In
first
of
all,
revenues
were
slightly
down,
meaning
there
was
very
little
surplus.
Then
herma
came
along
and
gobbled
up
most
of
that
surplus
and
then,
as
some
of
you
may
remember,
most
of
you
remember.
The
parkland
shooting
issue
arose
and
the
aftermath
of
that
resulted
in
policy
and
appropriations
issues
related
to
elevated
school
safety
initiatives,
which
was
a
very
large
chunk
of
the
the
state
reserves
for
that
year.
G
Also,
we
are
working
through
continue
to
work
through
issues
regarding
funding
and
just
the
proper
management
and
processing
of
the
ro
funding
fund
funding
through
swift
mud,
the
cooperative
funding
for
the
RO
project,
we'll
continue
to
work
closely
on
that,
and
also
we
are
working
strategies
to
try
to
bring
some
resolution
to
the
request
for
I
75
signage
for
the
Vietnam
Wall.
The
current
rules
as
they're
written
are
not
favorable
to
what
we're
trying
to
do.
G
There
I
believe
the
spirit
is,
but
the
letter
of
the
law
is
not,
and
so
we're
trying
to
find
a
way
to
work
around
that.
That's
it's
acceptable
to
both
up
to
us
also
the
state
DoD,
but
also
federal,
DoD
rules
which
come
into
play
here
with
that
as
I
said,
I'll
keep
it
very
brief
and
welcome
to
any
questions
any.
A
A
Ever
since
you
came
on
board,
it's
helped
us
achieve
our
goals
and
helped
us
get
where
we
need
to
go,
and
some
of
the
things
that
you've
done
for
us
may
not
be
visible
to
everybody,
but
you're
working
on
our
behalf
is
really
pave
the
way
through
navigating
a
lot
of
waters,
getting
a
lot
of
people
on
board
that
we
couldn't
possibly
do
if
we
just
from
from
our
vantage
point
here
in
Punta
Gorda,
so
we
appreciate
it.
Thank
you.
Thank.
A
C
E
I
have
about
15
years
in
financial
realm
within
the
Charlotte
County
market
I
started
out
as
lending
and
worked
my
way
into
banking
and
now
a
commercial
lender
within
the
local
market.
So
I
feel
that
the
Housing
Authority
has
has
had
a
great
lead
and
has
had
great
presence
from
our
current
members
that
were
on
it.
I
Morning
hi,
my
name
is
Jacqueline
Benjamin
and
I'm.
Also
flying
for
the
Punta
Gorda
Housing
Authority
board
I
moved
here
in
the
70s
attended,
Punta
Gorda
Junior
High
on
to
Charlotte
high
school
I've
been
in
the
banking
world
for
all
my
life.
So
it's
over
40
years
and
when
I
asked.
If
I
was
interested
in
this
position,
I
thought
I
haven't
done
this
kind,
but
I
read
out,
read
it
over
and
I
thought.
This
is
something
that
I
would
really
like
to
do
for
the
community.
So
thank
you.
You're.
A
A
Good
morning,
let
the
record
reflect
that
all
Community
Redevelopment
Agency
commissioners
and
officials
are
present
for
the
December
5th
meeting
and
the
first
item
on
the
agenda
are
citizens
comments
on
CRA
agenda
items
only
which
includes
the
CRA
project
status
report,
the
approval
of
minutes
from
our
November
7th
meeting
and
the
invoices
from
iCard
Merrill
attorneys.
There's
lots
of
names,
so
any
citizens
comments
seeing
none.
Then
we
will
proceed
and
Howard
as
the
executive
director.
C
C
There
we
go
monthly,
marina,
the
municipal,
marina
monthly
report.
Again,
the
marina
is
pretty
well
packed
and
we
even
we're
up
to
six
moorings
out
there.
In
the
mooring
field,
community
room
remains
active
and
liveaboards.
We
have
20
pump
out
vessel.
We
usually
compare
ourselves
to
the
previous
month
and
the
previous
year,
so
there
you
can
see
the
increase
in
gallons
pumped
her
akane
Irma.
So
it's
kind
of
it's
kind
of
tough
to
compare
yourselves
to
last
year.
C
C
We
kind
of
put
a
fire
under
their
belt
because
they
were
getting
ready
to
lose
a
hefty
deposit
if
they
weren't
making
some
progress
so
so
the
they
submitted
a
plans,
revision
for
review
and
our
staff
will
be
working
with
walking
through
the
unit
in
two
days
to
view
the
existing
conditions
and
get
them
started.
Excellence.
C
C
The
area
one
restroom
by
the
pavilions,
the
bids
came
back,
we've
reviewed
them
and
we
hope
to
have
that
on
a
council
agenda.
Maybe
the
first
next
meeting
in
December,
hopefully
we'll
see
if
they
all
check
out
and
we'll
start
that
work
soon.
That's
for
the
new
restrooms
by
the
pavilions
that
were
built
as
far
as
area,
one.
It's
not
going
to
close
the
park.
Don't
just
gonna
have
a
designated
area
for
construction
and
the
playground.
Restrooms
are
very,
very
close
to
completion
we're
dealing
with
one
issue
regarding
the
flushing
of
the
toilets.
A
I
think
it's
important
also
you,
the
lower
right
shows
the
area
where
the
mural
is
going
to
go
to
emphasize
that
the
the
mural
faces
the
harbor
walk
intentionally,
because
that's
what
the
Friends
of
the
of
the
children's
play
area
wanted,
they're
the
ones
who
raised
the
funds
for
it,
and
this
is
the
way
they
wanted.
It
yeah.
C
A
A
J
J
A
H
H
H
A
J
A
Was
and
I
think
it's
important
for
us
to
emphasize
the
reason
why
we
needed
to
do
this
is
because
the
wayfinding
signage
that
we
all
discussed,
talked
about
Harold,
Court
Center
and
there
were
no
signs
on
herald
court
to
say
this
is
what
this
building
is.
So
we're
telling
people
to
go
to
this
building
with
even
knowing
what
it
is.
So
it's
part
of
the
overall
plan
and.
J
D
I
J
C
A
A
N
Is
a
resolution
which
I'll
read
by
title?
Only
a
resolution
of
the
city
of
Punta
Gorda
Florida
electing
to
use
the
uniform
method
of
collecting
non
ad
valorem
special
assessments
levied
within
the
incorporated
area
of
the
city
to
fund
the
design
and
construction
of
an
additional
canal
improvement
to
be
known
as
Buckley's
past,
stating
a
need
for
such
levying
and
providing
for
the
mailing
of
this
resolution
and
providing
an
effective
date.
O
Good
morning
for
the
record,
you'll
think
I'll
paralegal,
an
assistant
to
the
city
manager.
The
resolution
of
intent
today
to
use
the
uniform
collection
method
is
an
administrative
in
nature.
It's
required
by
state
law
when
a
local
government
levies
an
on
ad
valorem
assessment
for
the
first
time,
they're
required
to
adopt
a
resolution
which
basically
puts
the
property
appraiser
tax,
collector
and
Florida
Department
of
Revenue
on
notice
that
the
the
city
intends
to
place
the
non-apple
or
assessment
on
the
upcoming
tax
bill.
O
There's
a
proposed
resolution
pursuant
to
statute
States
the
need
for
the
levy.
It
also
identifies
the
boundary
of
the
real
property
to
be
assessed
and
it
has
been
advertised
pursuant
to
the
state
statute.
This
resolution
is
not
intended
to
set
the
assessment
rate
to
determine
the
overall
project
cost
to
define
the
water
access
units
or
the
apportionment
to
the
individual
properties
that
those
decisions
will
be
made
in.
O
What's
called
an
initial
assessment
resolution
and
that's
your
six
hearing
when
counsel
will
make
those
decisions
and
then,
after
that
resolution,
if
it's
adopted,
those
affected
would
be
direct
mailed
notices
of
how
the
water
access
units
or
the
assessment
is
apportioned
to
their
properties.
They'll
have
a
comment
period
and
City
Council
will
hold
a
public
hearing
in
April
to
determine
the
final
assessment
for
the
upcoming
year.
I
know,
there's
been
a
lot
of
questions,
and
where
is
this
information
for
us,
but
today
is
just
the
resolution
of
intent
to
use
the
uniform
collection
method.
Okay,.
C
So
again,
this
is
an
intent
to
assess
we've
done
this
with
previous
assessments.
As
recently
as
the
burn
star
Isles
electric
undergrounding
study
same
process
on
this
particular
project.
We've
come
a
long
way
since
2015
March
of
2015
you've
probably
had
over
400
people
in
the
in
the
Isles
Yacht
Club.
C
When
a
group
of
folks
from
the
boaters
Alliance
and
came
hired
a
consulting
engineer,
Hans
Wilson,
to
do
a
study
of
the
Buckley's
past
project,
it
wasn't
called
Buckley's
pass
at
that
time
and
at
that
meeting
the
group
proposed
an
assessment
that
was
the
first
time
that
a
group
came
up
in
front
of
a
public
body
and
actually
proposed
to
assess
themselves
for
this
project.
So
over
the
last
three
years
we've
been
working
step
by
step.
C
We've
had
council
has
had
numerous
public
meetings
on
this
we've
hired
an
economist
we've
had
a
legal
attorney
hired
who
specializes
in
assessments
to
come
up
with
assessment
methodology.
So
it's
every
step
of
the
way
it's
been
handled
within
the
way
you
have
to
do
assessments
and
has
been
publicly
noticed.
So
that's
why
we're
here
today
to
do
an
intent
to
assess
and
we
will
then
have
as
mikhail
Finkel
explained,
we
will
have
our
actual
hearings
come
February
and
April.
N
A
Are
there
any
questions
for
the
council
members
to
Howard
and
Michaela
or
David,
and
what
we
will
do
is
we
will
begin
of
the
public
hearing,
and
this
is
a
public
hearing.
You
will
have
three
minutes
to
speak
on
this
topic
and
what
we
would
like
for
you
to
do
is
come
to
the
podium
and
you
can
line
up
behind
right
here
behind
you
can
see
that
our
fire
marshal
has
their
hand
up,
so
you
can
line
up
there.
A
N
Let
me
follow
up
on
my
previous
little
comment.
As
you
heard
the
time
to
question,
the
manner
in
which
the
assessment
is
going
to
be
assessed
will
be
at
the
public
hearing
in
February.
The
relevant
opinions
that
you
might
give
today
are
whether
or
not
this
ordinance
this
resolution
should
be
adopted.
In
other
words,
if
you
feel
like
the
project
shouldn't
be
funded,
that's
relevant
for
the
council's
consideration
today,
if
you
feel
like
it,
it
shouldn't
be
funded
by
means
of
a
of
a
non
tax
special
assessment.
N
That
also
is
relevant
for
the
City
Council
of
the
year
today,
or
if
you
support
the
fact
that
the
City
Council
is
elected
to
fund
it
by
means
of
a
non
tax,
special
assessment,
because
that's
what
City
Council
is
required
to
do
in
determining
whether
or
not
to
pass
this
resolution
today,
not
fund
it
funded
by
means
of
taxes
or
find
it
by
means
of
a
non
tax.
Special
assessment.
That's
what's
on
the
agenda.
K
Thank
you
good
morning,
I'm
Carolyn
Freeland,
a
resident
and
former
mayor
of
this
great
city
of
Punta
Gorda
in
preparation
for
this
morning,
I
pulled
out
my
file
on
Alligator
Creek.
This
project
has
been
discussed
since
my
husband,
Tom
and
I
first
arrived
here
over
20
years
ago.
Finally,
in
2015,
as
Howard
referred
to,
the
project
got
momentum
with
the
admirable
work
of
the
voters.
K
Alliance
City
Council,
as
he
mentioned,
and
staff
received
hundreds
of
letters,
emails
and
personal
communications
regarding
the
cut
and
in
April
2015
as
mayor
I,
chaired
an
open
workshop
where
residents
had
the
opportunity
to
weigh
in
on
the
project.
By
our
count,
there
were
approximately
850
people
at
the
meeting,
then
on
May
6
2015
City
Council
took
the
leadership
agreeing
to
move
the
project
forward,
recognizing
that
there
might
be
bumps
in
the
road
because
of
the
regulatory
approvals
required.
K
The
vote
was
unanimous
because
it
was,
and
still
is,
the
right
thing
to
do
for
all
of
Punta
Gorda,
not
just
the
bird
section.
It
is
tasted
in
three
years
as
Howard
should
have
mentioned,
but
we
have
arrived.
I
was
thrilled
to
learn
from
the
weekly
report
that
work
on
Buckley's
cut
is
now
on
schedule.
K
You,
as
our
City
Council,
must
take
the
responsibility
to
lead
Punta
Gorda
today
for
its
future
I
was
very
pleased
to
hear
that
council
has
approved
or
is
considering
approval
of
a
grant
to
help
support
the
cutthroat
I
would
urge
our
council
to
again
request
staff
to
find
additional
funding
so
that
no
assessment
is
needed
for
our
residents.
I
know
that's
a
big
charge,
but
I've
really
urge
you
to
take
a
look
at
other
funding
options
and
please
do
not
delay
begin
the
work
on
Buckley's
cut
as
soon
as
possible.
Thank
you.
P
Hi,
my
name
is
Matt
Ezra
I
live
at
50
24
Captiva
Court,
which
is
a
cul-de-sac
lot
about
100
feet
from
the
rim
canal.
If
you're
familiar
with
the
area
and
one
Street
in
from
the
La
Coste
Island
Drive,
Acosta,
Island
Drive
intersecting
with
the
rim
canal,
is
at
the
end
of
the
proposed
benefit
area,
I'm
a
long-term
resident
and
boater
in
these
waters.
Those
say
land
power
at
this
location.
Since
1998,
we
are
eighteen
to
twenty
minutes,
depending
on
wind
and
tidal
conditions
from
the
outer
markers
of
Ponce
de
Leon
indolent
Inlet.
P
In
order
for
an
assessment
to
be
judged
legal,
it
must
provide
a
special
benefit
to
the
property
and
result
in
a
fair
and
reasonable
apportionment.
You'll
see
these
words
popping
up
in
the
rest
of
my
morons.
In
other
words,
is
the
methodology,
logical
and
factually
driven,
and
does
it
make
sense
in
this
case,
the
special
benefit
is
based
on
three
assumptions:
improved
navigational
access,
water
quality
improvements
and
improve
property
values.
P
P
First
point
is:
improve
national
navigational
access
in
my
case,
I
already
have
closed
navigational
to
the
harbor.
Certainly
other
parcels
in
the
bird
section
that
are
10,
20
or
30
minutes
or
more
from
my
property
to
the
harbour
receive
a
greater
benefit
than
the
pros
opposed
minuscule.
If
any
improvement
I
believe
that
fails
to
prove
that
point,
water
quality
improvement,
my
property
already
Regency
enjoys
a
full
tidal
flow
and
water
exchange.
A
simple
site
visit
will
confirm
this.
P
Please
use
the
title
rule
of
twelfths
as
a
guide
when
making
these
observations
to
us
see
that
full
tidal
flow
failed
on
that
point.
Improve
property
values.
Well,
not
so
much
for
me
again
being
on
the
customer
of
the
proposed
benefit
area.
There
would
be
little
to
no
improvement
in
time
or
distance
to
the
harbor
for
me
and
consequently,
no
improvement
to
my
property
value.
In
fact,
when
it
comes
time
to
sell,
it
will
not
only
create
more
competition.
For
me
with
light
properties
that
are
now
closer
to
the
harbor.
A
P
These
and
other
reasons,
I
request
to
be
removed
from
the
proposed
benefit
area.
We
did
not
receive
a
shall
benefit.
Expanding
the
benefit
area
beyond
the
bird
section
is
a
clear
overreach
designed
to
increase
the
number
of
accessible
parcels
in
order
to
lower
the
assess
whether
the
additional
access
is
a
reality.
The
city
and
council
will
benefit
from
windfall
in
property
values
of
revenue.
Why
not
fund
this
as
a
normal
project?
Thank.
A
N
The
methodology
is
not
appropriate
for
consideration
by
the
City
Council
today.
We
understand
that
there
are
opinions
pro
and
con
with
respect
to
the
choice
of
the
way
that
that
the
methodology
was
selected
and
you'll
have
an
ample
opportunity
in
the
february
public
hearing
to
air
that
out
and
those
people,
for
example,
that
are
here
to
talk
about
whether
or
not
it
should
be
funded
like
for
merit
by
means
of
special
assessment.
N
Their
opinions
might
be
overshadowed
today
by
a
discussion.
That's
focused
on
the
methodology
of
the
special
assessment
itself
so
to
make
the
decision
clearer
for
the
City
Council,
please
wait
until
February.
If
you
have
objections
to
the
way
the
assessment
has
been
proposed
and
and
confine
your
comments
to
whether
or
not
it
should
be
by
special
assessment
by
a
tax
or
maybe
by
some
other
method
on
source,
and
that's
what
the
City
Council
needs
to
hear
as
to
whether
or
not
to
adopt
this
resolution.
Q
Good
morning
my
name
is
Judy.
Grosvenor
I
live
on
seagull
Court,
obviously,
in
the
bird
section
in
there
five
years,
I'm
excited
about
the
Buckley
Pass
through
and
I
want
to
thank
the
council
for
all
the
work
they've
done
on
this
project
over
the
last
several
years
and
I
am
in
favor
of
a
non
tax,
ad
valorem
special
assessment
for
the
project
for
any
funding
needed
beyond
grant
money
or
other
sources
that
the
city
may
be
able
to
go
in
for
the
project.
Thank
you.
Thank
you.
R
My
name
is
Wendy
young
I
live
on
raven
court
in
the
bird
section
I'm
here
to
welcome
our
new
City
Council,
and
thank
you
for
the
opportunity
to
look
anew
at
this
issue.
I
believe
that
you
have
the
opportunity
today
to
correct
some
errors
that
have
been
made
by
past
City
Council
on
this
issue.
I
think
the
city
and
the
residents
are
in
favor
of
the
past,
I
think
the
city
and
the
residents
are
in
favor
of
the
ad
valorem,
not
an
ad
valorem
method.
R
I
believe
that
the
City
Council
should
honor
and
respect
the
integrity
of
the
entire
Punta
Gorda
iles
Canal
District,
and
put
this
assessment
in
the
same
method
that
we
use
for
all
of
funding.
All
the
other
aspects
of
the
Punta
Gorda
Isles
Canal
District,
in
other
words,
spread
that
ad
valorem
assessment
across
all.
You
would
actually.
R
You
may
not
even
need
to
have
a
special
resolution
if
you
did
that,
because
you'd
be
using
the
exact
same
method
that
we
use
for
all
the
others,
but
it
would,
it
would
be
fairer
than
the
politically
charged
term
special
benefit
area
which
suggests
to
everyone
else
in
Punta.
Gorda
Isles
that
they're
not
going
to
benefit
from
this
at
all,
and
we
know
that
that's
not
true
Gary
wine
is
said
before
this
benefits
all
all
of
Punta,
Gorda,
Isles,
Carolyn
Freeman
just
said
exactly
the
same
thing.
R
So
I
asked
the
council
to
look
at
this
again
and
seriously.
Consider
having
this
assessment
be
across
the
end.
Haier
Canal
District
I
also
want
to
express
my
opposition
to
the
new
methodology
called
water
assessment
units.
I
believe
that
that's
a
precedent
that
we
don't
want
to
do.
It
means
that
you,
the
City
Council,
will
have
set
a
precedent
that
it
can
carve
out
certain
aspects
of
Punta,
Gorda,
Isles
canal
district
and
assess
them
in
a
different
way
than
the
rest
of
the
canal,
district
and
I.
A
K
S
Lynch
anyways
I,
don't
think
we
should
be
paying
a
special
assessment
for
that.
Just
like
I
use
an
example
of
when
they
put
in
the
pass
in
Punta
Gorda,
which
are
beautiful
and
are
beneficial
to
the
residents
that
live
along
those
paths.
I'm
sure
their
appraisals
have
gone
up
their
tax
they're,
probably
going
up
because
they
have
a
better
property
now
because
of
the
path
I,
we
shouldn't
pay
for
it
individually.
It
should
be
as
a
city,
it
improves
everybody.
Anybody
wants
to
come
on
the
water.
S
A
T
Morning,
my
name
is
Jane
Leach
and
I
live
on
Raven
Court
I
had
a
I
had
prepared
something
today,
but
listening
to
past
mayor,
Freeland,
I
totally
agree
with
her
I
also
agree
with
my
neighbor
Wendy
young.
However
I
just
have
a
question.
There
seems
to
be
some
confusion
on
the
definition
of
a
water
access
unit,
I'm,
not
sure
whether
that's
considered
my
whole
property
or
the
number
of
feet
that
I
have
on
water
fund.
T
A
L
Dominique
1447
Raven
Court
I
am
opposed
to
the
use
of
a
non
Advil,
Orem
assessment
being
limit
being
levied
on
a
limited
number
of
properties
within
Punta
Gorda
Isles.
As
stated
in
the
resolution,
I
am
NOT
opposed
to
the
design
and
construction
of
Buckley's
pass,
but
I
am
opposed
to
burdening
the
funding
of
the
pass
on
a
limited
number
of
beneficiaries
within
the
canal
system.
L
L
L
Buckley's
Pass
is
not
designed
for
the
exclusive
use
of
a
limited
number
of
taxpaying
voters.
It
is
designed
for
access
to
the
canals
from
a
significantly
different
location
than
current
entrances.
It
will
serve
as
an
alternative,
safe
harbor
entrance
in
bad
weather
conditions.
It
will
provide
an
alternative
entrance
or
exit
should
another
entrance
become
blocked.
It
will
in
fact
benefit
all
users
of
the
canal
system.
A
commonly
argued
premise
is
that
the
properties
in
the
designated
benefit
area
will
see
increased
property
values,
thereby
justifying
their
responsibility
to
bear
the
cost
of
a
new
canal
entrance.
L
This
speculation
is
ill-conceived
if,
in
fact,
these
properties
do
increase
in
value
their
ad
valorem.
Taxes
will
also
increase
the
spending
them
twice
once
for
bearing
the
cost
of
the
canal
improvement
and
second,
by
increasing
their
ad
valorem
taxes,
the
benefit
area
is,
in
fact
the
penalized
area.
We
already
have
a
healthy
non
ad
valorem
assessment
district
in
place.
It
is
the
Punta
Gorda
isles
maintenance
assessment
district.
It
has
served
to
foster
a
community
spirit
that
makes
our
city
unique
in
many
ways.
L
M
Good
morning,
good
morning,
Karen
Turnbull
Touhey
court
bird
section
since
1991
I
am
in
complete
agreement
with
everything
said
by
the
previous
speaker.
I
had
a
question
for
the
attorney.
When
the
person
spoke
about
the
resolution,
she
did
mention
that
boundaries,
the
boundaries
of
the
area
were
included
in
that
in
the
resolution
today.
Is
that
correct?
Okay.
A
M
We
are
talking
about
assessing
a
certain
chunk
of
PGI,
not
the
entire
area,
so
those
comments
related
to
that
is
relevant
today.
Is
that
correct?
Okay,
all
right,
this
City
Council
I've
been
to
numerous
meetings
on
this
topic
here.
The
City
Council
approved
this
major
two
and
a
half
million
dollar
plus
project
on
the
basis
of
its
benefit
to
the
entire
community.
That's
been
repeated
numerous
times.
M
Therefore
it
should
the
cost
should
be
borne
by
the
entire
PGI
community.
There's
no
way
that
the
benefit
to
any
individual
property
can
be
quantified,
there's
no
way
it
can
be
quantified
in
terms
of
property
value,
there's
no
way
it
can
be
quantified
in
terms
of
ease
of
exit
in
terms
of
whether
you're
going
to
use
your
boat
or
not.
M
In
terms
of
how
long
it's
going
to
take
you
in
terms
of
which
exit
you're
going
to
use,
there's
no
way
those
benefits
can
be
quantified
so
for
the
city
to
say
that
a
certain
percentage
of
the
population
gets
0%
benefit
and
therefore
pay
$0
of
the
cost.
And
yet
a
small
group
gets
100%
of
all
benefits
and
therefore
should
pay.
The
entire
cost
is
just
simply
not
appropriate.
It's
not
reasonable.
M
U
U
The
Isles
has
always
been
one
unit.
We've
never
ever
looked
at
each
other
as
differently
to
separate
us
by
putting
one,
as
everyone
has
said,
one
specific
area
that
you
just
can't
do
that
when
you
do
that,
you
create
division
and
I,
don't
think
this
council
would
ever
want
to
intentionally
create
a
division
or
a
rift
amongst
the
members
of
the
community.
U
We
are
all
for
the
Buckley
Pass,
whether
you
have
a
boat.
You
don't
have
a
boat,
whether
you
just
want
to
enjoy
the
water
fish
off
your
dock.
It
creates
an
environment
that
makes
the
Isles
what
we
are:
the
Isles
Punta
Gorda,
just
like
our
parks
and
our
bike
paths
and
our
trails.
A
lot
of
us
can't
use
every
amenity
that
our
great
city
offers,
but
we
don't
begrudge
the
city
from
doing
it.
U
We
encourage
the
city
to
do
it
because
it
brings
such
greatness
to
our
city
and
makes
Punta
Gorda
and
putting
to
go
to
Isles
the
wonderful
and
outstanding
boating
community
living
community
residential
commercial
that
we
could
ever
have
all
these
amenities
to
divide
us
to
begin.
That
kind
of
a
thing
becomes
a
very
slippery
slope,
because
future
projects
now
will
create
the
same
animosity
as
we
go
forward
with
questioning
all
the
time.
How
does
it
benefit
me,
as
opposed
to
my
neighbor?
U
We've,
never
done
that.
I
am
all
for
the
pass.
I,
don't
think.
There's
anybody
who's
not
for
the
pass.
It'll
expand
people's
opportunities
to
go
on
a
Sunday
right,
a
Saturday
ride
will
every
day
or
on
his
Saturday,
go
around
the
canals
and
look
at
decorations
and
people's
yards
and
get
ideas
on
how
they're
gonna
decorate
their
ads.
It's
like.
We
always
diff
done.
We
do
this.
We
have
this
all
the
time
so
we're
just
embellishing
our
community
with
the
Buckley
Pass,
whether
you're
boating
or
you're,
just
living
there.