TOWN OFHAVERHILL TOWN COUNCIL. REGULAR MEETING THURSDAY,SEPTEMBER 26, 2024 6:001 P.M. OFFICIAL MINUTES  The regular monthly meeting of the Haverhill Town Council was held on Thursday, September  26, 2024, at the Town Hall, 4585 Charlotte Street, Haverhill, FL. Mayor Foy called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Foy offered the Invocation and led in the Pledge of Allegiance.  CALLTOORDER  ROLLCALL  Town Administrator Stevens called the roll and Council Members present were Mayor Jay Foy, Vice Mayor Lawrence Gordon, Council Member Ray Caranci, Council Member Teresa Johnson, and Council Member Dennis Withington. Town Staff present included' Town Attorney John Fenn Foster and Town Administrator Tracey Stevens. With a quorum present in the Council Chambers,  the meeting proceeded.  COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC  Aliddy Diaz of Imagination Kids, 1063 N. Haverhill Rd, requested that the Council re-consider its decision regarding flag banner signage in the Town. Town Administrator Stevens informed the Council that Ms. Diaz submitted an email to staff requesting temporary signage, and staff is  working with her on the request. APPROVAL OF THE. AGENDA there were none.  Mayor Foy inquired if there were any additions, deletions, or modifications to the agenda, and Council Member Withington moved to approve the agenda as submitted; seconded by  Council MemberJohnson. Motion carried 5-0. APPROVAL OF THE CONSENT AGENDA  1. Approval of thel Minutes of the August 22, 2024, Regular Meeting 2. Approval of the Minutes of the September 12,2024, Special Meeting 3. Acceptance oft the Infrastructure Surtax Committee Annual Report for FY23 4. Approval of Addendum No. 1 to Extend for a Period of One (1) Year the Professional Services Agreement between the Town of Haverhill and Blue Sky Emergency Management d/b/a The Integrity Group to Provide Disaster Recovery Council Member Caranci moved to approve the consent agenda as submitted; seconded by  Performance Auditing and Management Consulting Services  Vice Mayor Gordon. Motion carried 5-0. PROCLAMATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS  5. Proclamation Recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month = Sponsored by Vice Mayor  Gordon  Town Attorney Foster read the proclamation by title only into the record. Heritage Month; seconded by Vice Mayor Gordon. Motion carried 5-0.  Council Member Withington moved to adopt the Proclamation Recognizing Hispanic    REGULAR TOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 26, 2024 COMMENTS FROM THE PALM BEACH COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE (PBSO) Deputy Maldonado indicated that Deputy Schnell was unable to print the complete statistics report for the last 30 days prior to the Council meeting; however, the information available included a vehicular homicide, a vehicle burglary and a stolen vehicle recovery and arrest made. District Fire Chief Adams reported on the statistics for the last 30 days which included 11 medical calls, 8 vehicle accidents, and 3 calls listed as "other". PBCFR deployed to the Tallahassee area for the Hurricane Helene event. Chief Adams also described other activities and  COMMENTS FROM PALM BEACH COUNTY FIRE RESCUE  training events PBCFR was involved in recently. PUBLIC: HEARING ONTHE FY25. FINAL: BUDGET 6. Final Budget Hearing forl FY25  a. Town Administrator's Presentation of the Final Budget & Final Millage Town Administrator Stevens presented the final budget to the Council. The balanced final budget is the same as the tentative budget that was approved by the Council at the last meeting and includes a mil rate of4.05 which is the same as last year's mil rate. It is Management's recommendation that the Town Council adopt the balanced final operating budget in the amount of $1,564,337; the Special Revenue Infrastructure Surtax Fund budget in the amount of $256,000; the Special Revenue Building Department Fund budget in the amount of$ $271,400; and the Special Revenue American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Fund budget in the amount of $441,360 for the fiscal year October 1, 2024, through b. Mayor Foy announced that the' Town of] Haverhill Computed Millage Ratei is Higher Than the Rolled Back Rate of 3.7606 by 7.70%. The millage to be Public Comment & Comments from Town Council Members Mayor Foy called for public comments, and there were none. d. Resolution No. 2024-09: Adoption of Final Millage Rate forl FY2024/2025 Town Attorney Foster read Resolution No. 2024-09 into the record by title only. Council Member Johnson moved to adopt Resolution No. 2024-09 at 6:14 pm.;seconded by Council Member Caranci. Motion carried 5-0. Resolution No. 2024-10: Adoption of Final Budget for FY2024/2025 Town Attorney Foster read Resolution No. 2024-10 into the record by title only. Council Member Withington moved to adopt Resolution No. 2024-10 at 6:15 p.m.; seconded by Vice Mayor Gordon. Motion carried 5-0.  Rate for thel FY2024/2025 Budget  September 30, 2025. levied is 4.0500.  REGULAR AGENDA  7. Review Request for Waiver Extension for 4950 Luwal Drive to Allow Commercial Town Administrator Stevens reminded the Council that the waiver was extended for 30 days with conditions at the last meeting to give the owner time to complete the driveway and fence installation. She noted that the driveway and fence installation is substantially completed, and all that is left to do is to re-sod the area and call for a final inspection to close out the building One of the owners of the property, Pedro Benedico, Jr., spoke to the Council and stated he was unaware that he needed to re-sod the area. Town Administrator Stevens stated that the area needs  Vehicle Parking in al Residential District  permits.  to bei re-sodded to allow for proper drainage.  Page 2of5    REGULARTOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 26, 2024  There was discussion regarding how long the waiver should be extended. Town Administrator Stevens reiterated that staff cautions the Council regarding granting of waivers from the requirements of the town code, as it opens it up for others to apply for waivers which could eventually erode the neighborhood character. She asked that if the Council decides to grant another waiver extension, it includes conditions that staff may revoke the waiver at any time that the owners park their other construction vehicles and equipment on their property or in the Pedro Benedico, Sr. spoke to the Council and noted that he spent $14,000 to improve the property to construct the driveway and fence in accordance with the original waiver. He requested a waiver Mayor Foy called for public comments. Aliddy Diaz stated that asking Mr. Benedico to sod the area to close out the driveway permit is unreasonable since he will need to rip up part oft the sod to reconstruct the fence when he decides to do SO. Town Administrator Stevens reiterated that the Vice Mayor Gordon moved to extend the waiver for 4950 Luwal Drive for six (6) months to allow a certain commercial vehicle to be parked in a residential district as outlined in the original waiver, with the condition that the open driveway and fence permits be closed out within two (2) weeks from September 26, 2024, and giving staff the authority to revoke the waiver immediately if: any other construction vehicles or equipment owned by the property owner are parked at the residence or in the roadway near the residence at any time; seconded by Mayor Foy. Motion carried 4-1 (Council Member Withington dissenting). 8. Adopt Employee Handbook Revisions as. Proposed by the' Town Administrator Mayor Foy stated that Town Administrator Stevens provided a memo detailing the request to make revisions to the employee handbook to help Haverhill attract and retain good quality employees and incentivize them to becomel highly skilled and trained employees. Council Member Caranci asked that language be added to note that the monetary incentive for obtaining a professional designation is only provided after proof of certification is submitted to Council Member. Johnson asked how many weeks of vacation is granted to new employees. Town Administrator Stevens responded that a new employee receives two weeks of vacation per year until they have reached five years of employment with the town, and for an employee who has worked in government for many years, this is sometimes a big decrease in the amount of vacation they are used to having on the books. She stated that giving the Town Administrator authority to grant up to five additional days at her discretion will make the town more competitive when trying to attract talented employees. Council Member Johnson asked about the designations that are listed in the handbook, and Town Administrator Stevens stated that the designations listed in the handbook are examples and each employee has the ability to earn designations through professional associations. Council Member Johnson stated that offering incentives is a good tool to attract and retain talented employees, and thanked Town Administrator Stevens for bringing  roadway near the property. forsix-months to a) year.  sod needs to bei installed to maintain proper drainage on the lot.  the Town Administrator.  this idea to the Council.  Page 3of5    REGULAR TOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 26, 2024  Council Member Johnson moved to adopt Employee Handbook Revisions as submitted by Town Administrator Stevens, inserting additional language that the employee will be provided the incentive for professional designations upon presentation of the license or certification to the Town Administrator: seconded by Council Member Caranci. Motion 9. Approval of Professional Services Agreement with Essential Net Solutions to Provide Information Technology Services for the Town of] Haverhill for a Period of Town Administrator Stevens reported that cybersecurity services have been added to the agreement, as are required by state law. She stated that the one-year agreement is within budgeted amounts for FY25. She mentioned that she is proposing a one-year agreement as opposed toa three-year agreement SO the town does not have to go out to bidi for the services which adds costs Council Member Caranci moved to approve the Professional Services Agreement with Essential Net Solutions to Provide Information Technology Services to the Town of Haverhill for a period of one (1) year; seconded by Council Member Withington. Motion  carried 5-0.  One (1) Year  to an already strained budget.  carried 5-0. REPORTS 10. Town Attorney 11. Mayor  Town Attorney Foster did not have anything new to report.  Mayor Foy reported that Jeff Hmara spoke at the Distrtict II/III meeting about a diminishing remembrance of 9/11 and noted that it is an important time for Americans to be unified. Mayor Foy noted that they also spoke about the homeless bill at the meeting, along with the County transportation plan. Town Administrator Stevens stated that she included information on both of those topics in the Council packages and asked Council Members to review the materials whichi is very informative. Mayor Foy stated that the NPDES meeting was held last week and this year's audit does not include Haverhill. He noted that the permit reviewer is getting pressure from EPA Town Administrator Stevens noted that her written monthly report was submitted in the Council packages. She updated the Council that FPL should be finished fixing thel bad lateral line thati is affecting Briarwood ini the next two weeks. She also mentioned that the Town willl hold the annual Trunk-or-Treat event again this year on October 315t. There will be an ice cream vendor, a  toi follow thej permit requirements and standard operating procedures.  12. Town Administrator  face painter, and balloon artist at the event.  13. Treasurer accepted by the Town Council.  The Treasurer's report for August 2024 was presented by Town Administrator Stevens and Council Member Withington moved to receive and file the Treasurer's Report for August  2024: seconded by Council Member Johnson. Motion carried 5-0.  Page 4 of5    REGULARTOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 26, 2024  14. Committee Delegates  Vice Mayor Gordon reported that the street lighting issue on County roads is up in the air. Town Administrator Stevens stated that she is still following it and it appears it is morphing into the transportation plan as opposed to a separate issue. He also stated that the Town co-sponsored the Palm Beach County League of Cities monthly meeting yesterday at the American German Club  and it was al big success. UNFINISHED BUSINESS NEW BUSINESS  There was no Unfinished Business to come before the Council at this time.  Council Member Johnson reported that vehicles and all-terrain vehicles continue to utilize the easement area near the canal behind her house. After a brief discussion, the Council directed Town Administrator Stevens to write a letter to the Lake Worth Drainage District requesting that  they provide a locked gate to the easement area.  ADJOURNMENT 6:53 p.m. 24,2024. Approved:  There being no further business to come before the Town Council, the meeting was adjourned at  Minutes prepared by Town Administrator Stevens and adopted by the Town  on October  )  Tracey L. Stevens, Town Administrator  #  Page 5of5    SIGN IN SHEET TOWN OF HAVERHILL REGULAR TOWN COUNCIL MEETING Thursday, September 26, 2024  6:00pm  Name Please Print Clearly  E-Mail Address  Telephone Number  Property Address  bdha a AARARBERA PBSO AGiddy Dicz janradysalegmal S6778-881  1063 D facerhill  Diaz Imaginafonkidze S6a 2420020 IC63Huerki  eddy  hotmal.com  lbe M Berchio denelo@yohe 581-907-27u 4950 Lowal D2 Hbvekils  Rbo AR-fleplr 561 -932-8113 TvacAdums PBLEN