IMDIANEDIBE SMORES MINUTES REGULARTOWN COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, JANUARY25,: 2024-9:00AM TOWN OF INDIAN RIVER SHORES 6001 HIGHWAY A1A INDIAN RIVER SHORES,FL 32963  The regular monthly meeting oft the Indian River Shores Town Council was held on Thursday, January: 25, 2024, in Council Chambers, 6001 Highway A1A, Indian River Shores. Councilmembers present were Brian Foley, Mayor; Sam Carroll, Vice Mayor; Bob Auwaerter, Councilmember; Mary Alice Smith, Councilmember and. James Altieri, Councilmember. Also, present were. James Harpring, Town Manager; Heather Christmas, Deputy Town Manager/Town Treasurer; Peter Sweeney, Town Attorney and. Janice  C.Rutan, Town Clerk. 1. Callto Order a. Invocation b. Pledge of Allegiance Roll Call  Mayor Foley called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m.. Vice Mayor Carroll offered the Invocation. Mayor Foley led the Pledge of Allegiance. The Town Clerk called the roll. All Councilmembers were present. With no request for reordering, deletions or emergency additions, a motion was made by Councilmember Auwaerter, seconded by Vice Mayor Carroll, and unanimously passed (5-0) to approve  2. Agenda Reordering, Deletions, or Emergency Additions  the agenda as presented. 3.F Presentations/Proclamations  Florida State Alliance to End Human Trafficking  Mayor Foley read the Proclamationi into the record. He presentedi the Proclamation to Tracy Ruleman who was present on behalf of the Florida Faith Alliance. Ms. Ruleman expressed her appreciation Mayor Foley  noted the Town was pleased to join the alliance ins supporting their efforts. 4. Comments From the Public Regarding Agenda Items(s)  None.  5. Consent Agenda  a. Approval of Regular Town Council Meeting Minutes dated December 14, 2023 b. - Approval of Work Authorization- Pebble Bay! North Outfall Remediation Plan e. Approval of Resolution 24-01 - Building Department Fee, Lien Search Approval of Resolution 24-02 - Support for HB: 777 and SB: 1088  Approval of Resolution 24-03 - Community Center Fee Schedule  Approval of Dune Crossover Sand Replacement d. Approval of Municipal Elections Agreement  h. Approval of 500 Beach Road Project Approval of 956 Pebble Lane Construction Approval of. JIF Plat 59  - Approval of PSD Stryker Procare Maintenance Agreement  Page 1of6     Approval of OPEB Report present voting int the affirmative. 6.! Mayor's Report  Vice Mayor Carroll made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Councilmember Smith seconded the motion. The Town Clerk called the roll. The motion passed unanimously with all  Mayor Foley reported the Chair of the Finance Committee expressed his concern over lack of quorum during the summer months. June/July were important months for purposes of budget preparation and Mayor Foley asked Councilmembers and the Town Manager to reach out tot the Committee members and stress thei importance oft their availability for meetings, adding the Town Council relies ont thei input of the Mayor Foley then gave an overview oft the prior year's accomplishments. He noted personnel additions, highlighted specific accomplishments, including the streamlining of the agenda, and noted these accomplishments were a result of excellent management. Livestreaming of Council meetings was moving forward. He hopes this will result in more people attending meetings virtually and giving feedback to the Mayor Foley thanked Councilmember Smith for her efforts on Sector 41 beach erosion and its designation He commended the efforts being made to review and rewrite the Town's Land Development Code. Mayor Foley next reported that the Town continues its due diligence with the ongoing water issues and has expressed its support for HB 777 and! SB: 1088. Mayor Foley thanked Councilmember Auwaerter for his service ont the City ofVero Beach Utilities Commission. He: stressed the Town 's decisions int this regard were made to ensure that the residents of the Town received the best water for the best price and The Town Council continues its full engagement with and on State, County, and regional initiatives. He reported the Town Clerk had initiated a Clerk's Association for Indian River County and has met with Mayor Foley expressed his appreciation tot the Public Safety Department for working towards equipment Mayor Foley then addressed thet traffici issues on A1A. The Towni is limited as to what measuresitcantake to regulate traffic along the State Road, however, the Town and State must be prepared for when the development which is under construction, located behind the 7-11, becomes occupied as the traffic will bei increased. Something will need to be done to control the convergence oft traffic from 46th Place, the 7-  most Committee members are out of town during that time.  Finance Committee, especially during the budget process.  Council.  as a critically eroded beach while serving on thel Beach and Shore Committee.  continued service.  the group towards government cooperation. compatibility with neighboring departments.  11 and the CVS.  Page 2of6    7. Councilmember Items  Councilmember Auwaerter reported on his attendance at the Public Safety Pension Fund meeting held earlier in the week. Although the fund had seen a 13.34% return over last year, it continues to under perform as much of the fund is invested in real estate holdings. He added that there were two equity Although the Board did agree to transfer some of the investments into index funds, the progress was slow. He noted that if the funds were performing optimally, it would result in a lower multiplier for the He did note that one of the Public Safety representatives serving on the committee complained about the percentage the officers had to put into the fund. Councilmember Auwaerter reminded all that the Town gives 100% of the 175/185 money back to the officers. He took exception1 to the comment that the officers were getting a raw deal and asked the Town Manager/Deputy Town Manager to put together an informational sheet explaining tot the officers exactly! how thet funding works so they can understand how the Town goes beyond when funding its pension plans. Most municipalities use the 175/1851 funding to In addition, he explained that the taxpayers were paying for legal counsel to advise the Pension Board. Hel believes the attorney representing the board was doing a disservice to the Town. The make-up of the board was next discussed (1 member representing the Police, one member representing the Fire Rescue, two members appointed by the Town Council and the last member is appointed by the four sitting members). He added that the member appointed by the Board was nota resident of Indian River Shores. Town Manager Harpring agreed to look into the terms of membership Councilmember Auwaerter again reminded all the Town had fully funded the OPEB. Mayor Foley highlighted Councilmember Auwaerter's points for consideration in the presentation. Discussion continued. Councilmember Auwaerter noted the Town Treasurer had put together a spreadsheet a few years back that had fully explained the pension fund and the Town's contributions. It was agreed to put together an educational presentation to show exactly what the Town offers its employees through The council also asked the Town Manager to keep watch on the proposed legislation re: pension to be  funds also underperforming by 7%, leaving money on the table.  Public Safety officers.  offset their general fund.  andi term limits.  funding and the 175/185 account. Discussion continued. sure it will not have an adverse impact ont the Town. 8. Discussion with Possible or Probable Action  a. Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council- -Town Designee and Alternate  The Town Clerk offered the Staff's report. Vice Mayor Carrol offered to serve as the Town's appointee to the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council with Mayor Foley offering to serve ast the alternate member. The Town was asked to send al letter of support to Brightline for thei installation ofal Brightline train stop int the City of Fort Pierce.Thes stopl hadt tol bei in either Martin County or St. Lucie County. Discussion ensued. By consensus of the Council, it was agreed to send al letter supporting a Brightline stopi in the City of Fort  b. Brightline Stop = Fort Pierce  Page3of6    Pierce. 9. Staff Updates  a. Building Official Report & Statistics  Towni Manager Harpring reported that the eighth edition of the Florida Building Code had been published. He notedi milestone inspections on qualifying condominiums: andt the: software migration continues sot that eventually the Town's Building Department can communicate with the County and adjoining Town Treasurer/Deputy Town Manager Christmas presented the OPEB report to the Town Council. She highlighted areas ofthe report. Discussion followed. Ms. Christmas noted the Budget amendments would be coming in February. She reported she attended the Pension Board meeting and the Board had approved the actuary evaluations for this fiscal year. She noted the employee's required contribution Deputy Director Mark Shaw addressed the Town Council. He commented that as the most senior Public Safety Officer in the Department he has been extremely appreciative oft the pension plan the Town offers He reported that he, Councilmember Auwaerter and Town Manager Harpring met at A1A, in front of the 7-11 with Chris Harris, Treasure Coast Supervisor of FDOT. Mr. Harris was able to see for himself the dangerous traffic situation at that location. Although the crash data did not support the Town's desire for acrosswalki to be placed there, Mr. Harris would still prepare a plan of action to include the crosswalk. Asafollow up, Councilmember Auwaerter requested the Town Manager place al beach access sign at that location as you would never know there was public access at the Tracking Station property unless you Deputy Shaw next reported on the derelict vessel program on1 thel Indian River Lagoon. Three of the: seven vessels remain with one of those still in the process of being removed. In response to Councilmember Smith, Deputy Shaw commented enforcement is an ongoing fluid process. Mayor Foley commented that although theanchorage limitation: area willl be at toolt to assisti in regulatingt theproblem, iti is notap panacea. Discussioni followed to include initiating stronger legislation to alleviate the problem.  municipalities.  b. Town Treasurer Report  went from 9%1 to 8.09% and the Town's contribution went from 22.74% to 17.79%.  Public Safety Department Report & Statistics  the Public Safety Department.  Discussion followed and it was agreed to let the FDOT go through their process.  were familiar with the area.  a. Public Works Department Report  Town Manager Harpring noted Mr. Bryant had been busy monitoring projects along A1A. Mr. Harpring noted that Mr. Bryant has been surveying the beach dailya and was documenting erosion and! had arranged for sand to be delivered to the beach at Beachcomber to allow public safety access toi the beach. Sergeant. Jake Maikrantz addressed the Town Council. He reported that a case scheduledi to gol before the Special Magistrate had come into compliance. He gave a brief explanation as to what would constitute: a Attorney Sweeney presented a power point to the Council on proposed legislation that would govern shortterm rentals. Her noted that proposed Senate Bill 280 and House Bill: 1537 would completely exempt  d. Code Enforcement Report  landscape violation, i.e., overgrown trees, trees growing through gutters.  10. Town Attorney Report  Page4of6    the Town from any regulation of vacation rentals and any regulation would lie under the Florida Building Code and the Town's ordinances such as noise complaints, etc. He added that the proposed regulations He then discussed Bill 472 that proposes to raise sovereign immunity limits currently in place. He commented that if this bill should pass, it would encourage lawsuits and insurance rate increases for Town Manager Harpring gave a brief update on the funding for Sector 4. He will be making a full presentation to the Town Council at the February 22, 2024, meeting. Currently there was one private In support of the Phase 2 rewrite of the Land Development Code, the Town Manager held a meeting earlier in the week and will be forwarding Council documents for review as well as for public Manager Harpring next announced that both the Finance Committee and the Planning, Zoning and Variance Board would bel having vacancies in November. Correspondence willl bef forthcoming: astothose vacancies and reappointments. Should the Council have questions, they can be directed to the Town Town Manager Harpring announced that the Indian River Land" Trust was hosting a walking tour and field event at Bee Gum Point, off Fred Tuerk, on March 8, 2024. The Town would be supporting the effort by He extended a thank you to the Town Clerk for her management of the Town owned John's Island  would not affect HOA regulations.  municipalities. 11. Town Manager Report dune restoration pending.  presentations.  Clerk.  offering parking andi restroom facilities.  Cemetery.  12. Counci/Committee or Non-Action Items  a. Call for Committee Reports, Informational Updates or Comments  Councilmember Mary Alice Smith reported on the most recent meeting of the Beach and Shore committee meeting. Most of the easements have been received and recorded. There has only been She said the project has been delayed because there was an artifact found off the coast. The project will most probably begin after turtle nesting season, explaining in detail the permit process and construction timeline that caused the County to delay construction until next November. She encouraged the County to continue to move forward and not sit back. She added that a potential Mayor Foley next addressed the Town Council. He explained that in past year's the Town Council would send al letter to the Florida League of Cities in: support of their legislative agenda. This year he did not want to send al letter because the League was opposed tot the passage of HB777/SB1088. The Town supports the proposed legislation because it removes the statutory authorization that allows municipalities to impose a surcharge for serving water and sewer utility customers who are outside  one property that has denied allowing access.  storm could impact the progress.  theirj jurisdictional boundaries.  Page5 5of6    He would like tos send al Resolution from thet towni ins supporto ofH HB777/SB1088 tot thel League of Cities, Mayor Foley noted that at the Treasure CoastLeague of Cities meeting, when he announced his intent, Vice Mayor Carroll reported on his attendance att the. January Affordable Housing Committee meeting. The State Housing Program (SHIP) has approved five million dollars for affordable housing programs. There was also a new foreclosure prevention clause that would assist homeowners who have fallen behind and aret facing foreclosure int thei form of a no-interest loan up to $8,0001 to be paid back within  and the Town's legislative delegation as well as the Governor.  her received support from those present.  2y years.  The next meeting was scheduled for February 28, 2024.  Councilmember Auwaerter announced the City of Vero Beach Utilities Committee did not meet in January. He was hoping a cost estimation for the new: sewer treatment plant would be announced at  the February meeting.  He reported on the MPO meeting he had attended.  He then expressed his appreciation to the Mayor for pushing back against the Florida League of Cities about HB777. He commented on the ludicrous arguments being used in opposition to this bill. He mentioned the phony cost allocations being used and spoke specifically about the City of Vero Beach's  agreement with the Town. 12. Call to Audience None. 13. Adjournment  With no further business to come before the Town Council, the meeting adjourned at 10:36 a.m.  Approved: February 22,2024  Janice C: Rutan, Town Clerk  Page 6of6