Council Meeting Roundup: Crosswalks, Crosstalk and Calendars

Key Biscayne Village Council members thank Jose Llanes, general manager of the local Winn-Dixie store, for his contributions to the community at the Dec. 10 meeting, the last of 2019. (Annali Hayward/Key News)

2019’s final Village of Key Biscayne Council meeting had all the trimmings. The meat of resolutions; the stuffing of the Manager’s report and some sweet and spicy sides. Dig in. But leave room for dessert.

For starters

Fr. Andrzej Foltyn of St. Agnes Catholic Church gave the invocation, calling for “charity and restraint” in words and kindness towards those that disagree with us. The theme through to public comments: former Council Member Betty Sime Conroy paid heartfelt tribute to the first Village Manager, Sam Kissinger (who passed away Nov. 29) and residents thanked both Village staff and officials for their contributions to the community.

Council then formally thanked local Winn-Dixie store manager Jose Llanes for his recent efforts in overhauling the premises and transforming it into a modern supermarket.

The main course

The intersection between Grand Bay Drive and Crandon Boulevard turned into one of the meatiest morsels of the evening. Full coverage of the crosswalk crosstalk here.

Moving on, Council debated the ethical pros and cons of reimbursing elected officials for legal fees incurred if they are investigated. The vote passed 5-1 (Moss voting no) on first reading. The second reading will be Jan. 28, 2020.

The consent agenda request for $77,384 for 40 ballistic helmets and 40 assault rifles for Key Biscayne’s police force to better protect the community (particularly schools) from mass shootings was approved without a hitch. The monies will come from the dedicated Law Enforcement Trust Fund.

Similarly a request from Mayor Mike Davey to support state legislation levying the fossil fuel industry seemed to be a no-brainer for all Council members. Davey said the issue of charging a “revenue-neutral fee” on carbon production at its source was first highlighted to him by some local high school students and that although “we have some good folks in Washington on these issues, I’d like to push it and ask for your support on this.”

This would have led nicely into an update on the recruitment of the Chief Resilience Officer position, except there wasn’t much to say apart from that Village Manager Andrea Agha has advertised a job description and will start interviews soon. There was brief discussion of how successful examples of this model integrate resilience throughout every project and department in a municipal administration — one example being in Key West, the location for a climate summit attended by staff and Council members last week.

This linked to other resilience issues Agha briefly updated Council on during her Manager’s report, including the advancing of the study for inclusion in the Army Corps of Engineering beach renourishment project, as well as the next phases of the septic tank report. Check back with Key News for updates on those.

Fr. Andrzej Foltyn of St. Agnes Catholic Church Key Biscayne gives the invocation at the start of the final Council meeting of the year, Dec. 10 (Annali Hayward_Key News)

On the side

Sadly for Council Member Ignacio Segurola, his dream of having an intern was not to be — at least in a formal way. His colleagues on the dais were respectful of the time and thought he gave the proposal — and many of them agreed with some of the idea, which aimed to ease time pressures for Council members as well as provide opportunities for students interested in government. But therein lay the rub (and a lengthy discussion). Vice Mayor Brett Moss wondered if a permanent staffing solution would be better. Segurola explained it was an optional program and only those who wanted one would participate. But Davey and Council Member Katie Petros said they couldn’t picture how they would interact with an intern without spending time on mentoring. Ultimately all except Council Member Allison McCormick (who was willing to let Segurola try) could not get over the administrative burden it may have placed on the Village Clerk in matching up applicants to officials and being the placeholder for the positions.

For dessert

And finally, in a baffling end to the evening, it took nine adults some 50 minutes to decide the dates of 16 meetings for 2020. Maddening as it was, the apparent difficulty belies a Council getting to grips with the manager’s work process even as it balances its own big personalities.

Davey, conscious of the restrictions of the Sunshine law, wanted to add an extra meeting on Jan. 14, saying “we have big things to do, let’s get going.” But he faced vehement opposition from Council Member Luis Lauredo, who said too many meetings mean Village staff have no time to get work done. 

“We’re not supposed to be getting things done, they are,” Lauredo said, referring to Agha and her staff.

Part of the conundrum arose from Council’s agreement (after a messy 2019 budgeting process) that next year community groups will follow a more defined process for requesting their funding, including presentations — which had to be added to the calendar.

When asked Friedman said his experience of other municipalities is that some manage to have only one meeting a month and still do not have agendas “like books.”

“It’s all in how you manage it,” he said.

To that point, Agha raised the fact that Council members often add topics last-minute to the Reports and Recommendations section, meaning she spends time scrambling to understand the background of an item that may be brand new before the meeting. 

Ultimately the calendar stayed broadly similar to Village Clerk Jennifer Medina’s proposal, with an additional note that the Police Policy Town Hall is slated for Jan. 14.