Good evening, everybody. We have plenty of seats, so I hope everyone can please find a seat. I want to thank you all for being here tonight. My name is Dean Trantellis, the mayor of the city of Fort Lauderdale, and on my sides are my esteemed colleagues on the commission. Thank you all for being here tonight for our first meeting after our summer break, August 18, 2026. Thank you all for coming. So we have some special guests here tonight. We have the Fort Lauderdale High School ROTC, who is here with their teacher, Chief Daniel Tyson, and the cadets, Destiny Callahan, Luna Filippo, Liam Sanders, and London Walton, and they're going to present the colors and do the Pledge of Allegiance. So may I ask you all to please rise. To the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice. Let's give a round of applause to our ROTC cadets. Thank you. Please be seated, everybody. So for those of you who are here for the first time, we have a certain series of things we do before we begin our actual meeting, and right now I'd like to all ask you to join me in a moment of silence. Thank you. Mayor, could I just add, as we just took a moment, but I just want to add our thoughts and prayers for the family of Pearl Goodman. Pearl passed away, and Pearl and Stanley have been amazing pillars of our community and philanthropists and just amazing, amazing couple. They've moved to D.C. and Pearl recently passed away, so I just want to share that. Also, Alvin Belant, also a person who's been an extremely great family, wonderful philanthropist in our community. Alvin, his son, and Linda have been great friends, so I want to recognize them also. Thank you, Mayor. Okay, so we have, at this point, I just want to announce a few retirements. We normally recognize and show our appreciation for those people who have worked with our city for over 20 years, and tonight we have four such persons. Starts with James Paskowitz, who's been a paramedic firefighter with our fire rescue department. He's been with us for 27 years, so thank you so much for your service, James. Rufus James, who's been the director of our FXC airport, who's been with us also 27 years. Thank you so much, Rufus, for your commitment to our community. Keith Garner, a driver engineer with fire rescue, been with us 29 years. Thanks so much, Keith. And Brian Porter, also a driver engineer with fire rescue, who's been with us 31 years. Wow, thank you so much, Brian, for your service. Chief, do you have anyone else left in your department? I mean, okay, put it in my app next week, okay. All right, very good. So, Mr. Clerk, would you please call the roll? Commissioner Herbst. Commissioner Glossman. Here. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Here. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Here. Mayor Trent Hiles. Here. Full attendance, so thank you so much. We have some announcements now with regard to our agenda. We're going to be removing the first presentation, presentation number one. I believe that was State Representative Chip Lamarca, who is going to be here, and I believe he's asked to attend the next meeting. Let me make sure. Yes. And also, we are removing CM4, CR3, and CR4. And then there'll be a walk-on resolution with regard to the acting city manager. And then there's an agenda item revision. There are three of them. CM8. It's been revised to update the amount of grant funding received and include a First Amendment to the grant agreement. CM9, Exhibits 3 and 4, were added as additional information. And CR1 in the Consolidated Budget Amendment was updated. Items C and L were revised. And item M was removed. So, with regard to the minutes and the agenda as amended, do I hear a motion to approve? So moved. Do I hear a second? Second. Moved and seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Yes. Commissioner Glossman. Yes. Mr. Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Mayor Gentiles. Yes. And those items are now approved. Now, before we begin the agenda, we take this moment to recognize people, individuals, events in our community with our presentations. And our first presentation tonight, I would invite Commissioner Beasley-Pittman to present a proclamation declaring August 18, 2026 as St. Thomas Aquinas High School Girls Rowing Team Champions Day in the city of Fort Lauderdale. Can I ask coaches, Kathleen Wiltas, Megan McDevitt, and the St. Thomas Aquinas Girls Rowing Team? Come on up. Wow. Look at them. Give them another hand. This is awesome. Congratulations. Congratulations. If I can get one of our coaches to stand next to me here. Thank you. Thank you. I should hold on to this right now. How are you doing? Good, good, good. All right. This is very exciting. I'm really honored to be able to present this proclamation from the office and from the desk of our mayor in recognition of the 2026 SRAA National Champions St. Thomas Aquinas High School Girls Rowing Team. That's impressive enough right there. Whereas, founded in 1936, St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale has a longstanding tradition of academic excellence and students' achievement and academic success. Whereas, the St. Thomas Aquinas Athletic Program has earned recognition at the state and national levels across numerous sports, reflecting the dedication, the discipline, and commitment of its student athletes and coaches. Whereas, in May 2026, the St. Thomas Aquinas Girls Rowing Team made school history at the Scarletic Rowing Association of America, SRAA, national championship at Milton Lake in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, capturing the national title in the Girls' Junior 4-plus event. And whereas, the champion vote was crewed by Haley Chaykin as the cot swan, Gianna Atino as the stroke, Aaliyah Alana Fernandez, third seat, Maddie Thordight, two seat, and Raylan Dudley as the bow. Where determination, teamwork, and focus propelled the Raiders into its historical victory. And whereas, the fellow rowers, Grace Maynard, Olivia Hickey, Lucia Mulligan, and also Emma Yergen, also represented St. Thomas Aquinas at the SRAA national championship. While this accomplishment of the Raiders throughout the season reflected the collective efforts and commitment of the entire girls' rowing team. And whereas, the championship marked its first national rowing title in St. Thomas Aquinas high school history. And its accomplishments achieved through dedication of the student athletes, the leadership of the coaches, Megan McDermott and Kathleen Wotash, and the support of the athletic director, Tuan Russell, and the encouragement of families, donors, and the entire St. Thomas Aquinas community. And whereas, the city of Fort Lauderdale takes great pride in the remarkable achievement and the comments of St. Thomas Aquinas girls' rolling team for representing their school, our community, with dignity and on a national stage. Now, therefore, we, as the city commissioners of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, do hereby proclaim August 18, 2026, as St. Thomas Aquinas high school girls' rolling team day! Here in the city of Fort Lauderdale, and encourage us all to join in in congratulating this team on its historic national championship and its extraordinary achievement. Signed this day, the 18th day of August, 2026, by our Mayor Dean Trantellis. Let's give them a hand. And at this time, yes. No, I'm going to go a little further. Let's stand and give them a standing ovation. Thank you. This is girl power, right? This is girl power. And we will allow you to please greet our audience if you would like to say something. Thank you. Hi, I'm Coach Kathy. This is Coach Megan, and this is our kind of small team. Just want to say thank you to the city of Fort Lauderdale for recognizing us. We are a rowing team, and most people don't even know what rowing is. But if you do know what it is, it requires a lot of hard work, discipline, showing up every single day, six days a week. And these girls work super, super hard. So I'm very excited that they're getting the recognition, especially after they won a national championship. And not only did those five girls win the national championship, but among these girls are many state champion or scholastic champions of this past year. So we all work together to make each other our collective best. So everyone had a part, and I'm super proud of everyone. So thank you. Thank you. Thank you. We're going to ask that. We have certificates for each one of the girls as well, and we're going to come. Sophia's going to read them, and I'm going to present. Okay? All right. All right. Clarissa Alleman. Clarissa. Gianna Ateno. Layla Castro. Haley Shakin. Ryland Dudley. Alana Fernandez. Brooke Fagon. Olivia Hickey. Melina Lopez. Lucia McGilligan. McGilligan. Grace Maynor. Mayte Sierra. Stella Sermans. Mayte Thorndyke. Thank you. Mayte Thorndyke. Isabel Vega. Emma Yeager. And Emily Grzymski. Did I say that right? Grzymski. Good try. Congratulations, girls. We're going to take a photo. Ready? At least. All right. Let's go. One, two, three. One more here. One, two, three. It's way here for parents. Can I take a photo? You guys want to take a photo? All right. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, folks. And, again, congratulations. Our next presentation is to be made by our Vice Mayor, Ben Sorensen, who's going to present a proclamation regarding Ukraine Independence Day here in the city of Fort Lauderdale. And I'd like to invite representatives of the Ukraine Association of Florida. I'm going to butcher all of your names. That's President Dmitry Boschko, Natalka Boschko, Victoria Volinet, Diana Muller, Julia Klondotenko, and Olina Poliszczuk. Beautiful. Mayor, it sounded fluent to me. That was great. Very nice. I faked it. You came across just great. Well, thank you all for being here. And, Mayor, they have a hat for you that they wanted to give, so I'll, yes, and wanted to recognize Ukraine Independence Day, so I'll share this, and then love for you to share more about some of the festivities that are coming up, celebrating it. So, this is in recognition of Ukrainian Independence Day, whereas on August 24th, 1991, Ukraine declared its independence a historic milestone in the Ukrainian people's pursuit of freedom, democracy, and self-determination. And whereas on August 24th, 2026, marks the 35th anniversary of Ukraine's independence and provides an opportunity to honor the strength, resolve, and proud traditions of the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian-American communities across our nation. And where Ukraine continues to endure the profound impacts of war, while its people demonstrate extraordinary courage, resilience, and fight, I might say, we honor and celebrate that independent streak and that nation's sovereignty. And we remember all those who have lost their lives in the fight for their independence and maintaining their independence, and the many families and communities affected by the war, and honor Ukrainians throughout the world who continue to preserve their heritage. And whereas the city of Fort Lauderdale recognizes the Ukrainian-American community and its contributions to our city, culture, civic, and economic life, we honor the people of Ukraine and their hopes for peace, security, and a prosperous future. Now, therefore, we as the city commissioners of the city of Fort Lauderdale proclaim August 24th, 2026, as Ukrainian Independence Day in the city of Fort Lauderdale. Signed, your mayor, Dean J. Trantelis. We want to thank the city of Fort Lauderdale for recognizing our organization and the Ukrainian-American community, which has been here in South Florida for over 75 years. And we'd like to invite you all as acknowledging that independence, we just wanted to give you guys something fun to do. So if you're not busy this Saturday, we're having a giant festival free to anybody, completely free, completely free, no money required. Just come on down to West Palm Beach between 4 and 7 p.m. this Saturday, and come and enjoy all the food, all the dancing, all the wonderful things we're going to have in West Palm Beach. Again, this is free to the public. You can also check us out on uaflorida.org if you want to find out more about the festival. And again, this is our thank you to the many Americans and Ukrainian-Americans who have supported Ukraine in any way possible. We really would like to thank you, and we'd like to invite you to our festival. Thank you very much, and we appreciate you. Thank you very much. It's highly important for our friends and our families in Ukraine to see this proclamation. This signature, this piece of paper, it's not just a piece of paper that you can hang on the wall. It's a sign of support. It's a sign of compassion. It's a sign of empathy, which gives people power to stay alive, to fight, and see that they're not alone. So thank you so much for being with us. Thank you for supporting us. Thank you. And looking forward to see you guys again at the festival. Thank you. Oh, wow. You're going to make me fatter than I am. And we know that this independence is a continuing struggle for independence. It obviously didn't end 35 years ago, and I know many of the American people support your efforts to continue in that effort to maintain your independence. So there you go. Thank you, and I will cherish this hat that you gave me. But I'll share the candy. I'll share the candy that took you. Go for it. Anyway, so this Saturday, August 22nd, from 4 to 9 p.m., on the Great Lawn on Clematis Street in West Palm Beach, they're having the Ukrainian Cultural Festival. Again, that's this Saturday from 4 to 9 p.m. in West Palm Beach. So it's pre-admission, and there's a kid's zone. I'm sure there's a bounce house. Okay, anyway, I'll be attending a, well, we'll go there. Okay, so now we'd like to take this opportunity to begin our meeting, and this is where I ask each member of the commission if they wish to pull a consent agenda item from the consent agenda. If we do that, then we will vote on that separately, and otherwise we will vote on all the other consent agenda items together. So, Commissioner Herbst, do you have any consent agenda items you wish to pull? Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? None. Commissioner Glassman? None. Vice Mayor? None. None. Okay, and I have none. So, aside from the ones that were already pulled, as we know, which would be CM4, CR3, and CR4, those will be discussed at a later meeting. Do I hear a motion to approve all the consent agenda items except the ones that have been removed? So moved. Second. Moved and seconded. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Mr. Mayor. Hold on one second, Mayor. Pardon me, Mr. Mayor. Mayor, did you include the walk-on resolution in the consent agenda? No, that one comes out at the end of the meeting. Okay, thank you. Yeah, yeah. Thank you. Yes, Mayor. Commissioner Herbst. Wait, hold on a second. Hold on. Did you want that as a consent item? No, I wasn't clear whether you did or not do that, but that you would accept it on the agenda. You placed it on the agenda tonight. That's what I was confirming. Has everyone seen the walk-on resolution? Yes. Yes. Yes. May I add it as a consent agenda item, then? Yes. Okay. I'll add it as a consent agenda item. So, in addition to the ones we removed, this walk-on will be added as a consent agenda item. So, Commissioner Beasley-Pittman, their motion would be as amended? As amended, yes. Thank you. Who seconded it? Second as amended. Okay, great. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Yes. Commissioner Glossman. Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Mayor Trentals. Yes. Thank you. Thank you, City Attorney. Okay. Moving all the way down to M1 motion. Motion approving an agreement for invitation to bid FXC Taxiway Bravo and Quebec Realignment Project. Weekly Asphalt Paving. Someone like to move the item? Moved. Second. Moved and seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Yes. Commissioner Glossman. Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Mary Trentals. Yes. And M1 is now approved. M2. Motion approving an agreement for invitation to bid Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport regarding pavement rehabilitation. No one has signed up to speak. Someone like to move the item? Moved. Second. Moved and seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Commissioner Glossman. Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Mary Trentals. Yes. And M2 is now approved. M3. Motion approving an agreement for invitation to bid. This is water meter reading and related services with Burmex. No one has signed up to speak. Someone wish to move the item? Moved. Second. Moved and seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Commissioner Glossman. Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Mayor Trentals. Yes. And M3 is now approved. M4. A motion approving an agreement for request for proposals. This is the P25 radio communication system refresh replacement rebid with Motorola Solutions. No one has signed up to speak. Someone would like to move the item? Mayor, could I ask some questions about this before or would you like to move it first? Let's move the item and get a second and then we can open for discussion. Moved. Thank you. Second. Moved and seconded. Yes. Thank you. Is anyone here from Motorola? No. Yes. Yes. Yes. All right. No one has signed up to speak, though. But could I? You can certainly address it. Could I invite them to speak? Yes. Yes, sure. Thank you very much. Come on down. Thank you. I'm excellent. How are you doing today? You're doing. Excellent. Thank you for being here. So, for the past year or so, I've been bringing up the topic of our BDA system in Fort Lauderdale. Well, that communication system has been having some issues, as you probably know. I have been hearing from condominiums in my district regularly on this. In fact, as most recently as just this past Thursday, a little cottage industry has sprung up to help these, and I put help in quotes, the condominiums deal with this BDA issue and this communication issue. No guarantees. Buildings are spending upwards of $200,000 to make sure that we have that communication effectively. And I'm not diminishing the need for that effective communication. Public safety is paramount. But I am starting to get the feeling that the buildings are being taken advantage of. I am starting to get the feeling that this is not really something that they should be worrying about because when they got their COs, when the buildings were constructed, there was no issue. Year after year after year, they were passing their tests in terms of fire inspections. Communications were fine. But as Fort Lauderdale grew and as we saw more development and more buildings, that seemed to create an issue whereby buildings were no longer having that clear signal that they needed. There were dead spots in buildings, whether it was in elevators, whether it was in stairwells, whether it was in the lobby, whether it was in the garage, whatever. But the responsibility just falling on these associations, these kind of minimum associations, is really difficult. This is a tough time for buildings in our state. The state has mandated many, many hoops that they have to jump through in terms of structural integrity reserve studies, in terms of property insurance premiums, in terms of, in the county, a 40-year recertification of their buildings. It's a difficult time. I know of many people that have been forced to sell their units to leave. They cannot handle the special assessments. And this is just adding another layer of difficulty on those owners. So that's sort of a quick wrap-up of what's been going on. And by the way, when some of these buildings are spending these exorbitant amount of dollars to put in something that's supposed to help, whether it's a booster or whatever, what they're finding is that it's not even a guarantee. A building could go up somehow and block a communication signal from a tower when a new building goes up near them, perhaps, and boom. All that money they spent, everything they thought was going to be good, is no longer good. So my question to you is, we have an agenda item in front of us here for $23 million. So for $23 million, are these radios, are these devices, everything that we're purchasing, everything that we're moving forward with you in terms of this communication system, are there any guarantees? Is this going to assist us and to assist our residents in having better communication when fire goes into a building to inspect and they get on their radios or their phones or whatever, and they try and make sure that they're able to communicate whatever the issue is? So, again, very important. I'm not diminishing that need. That's paramount. But I just think that the onus should not be falling on them. It should be incumbent upon us. There's a tower right out there. Why aren't we improving our towers? Why aren't we improving our communication systems? Why aren't we doing anything that makes sure that that line of communication is clear and needed and working? So that's my question to you. For the $23 million, how much can we expect in terms of improving the need for the BDA system? Yeah, absolutely. So the last 10 years, there's obviously been tremendous growth throughout the city of Fort Lauderdale. That was one of the drivers of this RFP is the challenges of in-building coverage that the current system has. So we have spoken a lot with both IT, police, and fire. We've done a ton of testing with our solution. There are coverage guarantees that we not only meet but exceed as part of the RFP requirements that are going to greatly impact and benefit your first responders in regards to in-building coverage. So we're going from a current three-site system. We're adding a fourth tower and a fourth site, which will tremendously improve your current P25 radio coverage. We've also included, as part of our solution, we have a Motorola solution called Smart Connect. That's going to be activated on the core as well as all of the portable radios and mobile radios. Smart Connect connects the LTE system with Wi-Fi as well as P25 communication. So if you don't have P25 communications in a building because of how thick the brick is, you'll be able to either connect to the Wi-Fi within the building or LTE. Thank you for that. So I also know of buildings in my district that when they put in hurricane glass windows, hurricane-resistant latest code, that also created a problem. Will this, what you just explained, address even that circumstance? It will, yes, sir. It will. So when might we expect to see these kinds of improvements in communications for our first responders with this new technology, new towers, new equipment? When can we see that? Yeah, so the hope is that the contract gets approved today. We would like to have a kickoff meeting with the city next week. And we have a 21-month deployment timeline from the time the contract is signed, from the time we'll go system acceptance. 21 months. Correct. From whenever this all gets executed. Yes, sir. Okay, so a little less than two years. Yes. Okay, so first responders, are we hearing this? Are we saying, yay, happy, this is great? We're not going to harass these buildings so much. We're going to just take it easy. We're going to calm down for maybe 21 months. We're going to let all this play out. We're going to get all this new technology. We're going to see all the new cell towers go up. We're going to understand that we're all making progress together and working together. And I'm glad you're all nodding. Yes, that's wonderful. Thank you. Okay. I thank you for the information. Yeah. Thanks, Michelle. Thank you. Thank you. And just to city manager, I mean, so I think important questions. And the state requirement, I think, is one that requires the elevated communication in the condos, the clear communication. Per the state guidelines, we've been engaging with condos. So, are we able to say that this is in progress over the next two years and that suffices? I just want clarity on that. Yes, that falls under the State of Florida Fire Prevention Code. I'll let Chief Golan explain if there's any opportunities. I think it's also based on when inspections or certain things happen with those buildings. So, good evening, Mayor, Vice Mayor, Commissioner, Stephen Golan, your fire chief. Great question and absolutely in the correct path there. So, we will still have to do the inspections in the building. We are not able by state statute to pause those inspections, and we will provide that notification. As we've been for the last 24 months at this point, so long as we are working towards a solution, we will not impose fines on those buildings. And so, looking towards what that would be is the solution that would be driven by the city with putting in a more robust system. And we've also, in the last couple of months, have tested some of this solution to see if there would be improvements. And just in the little testing that we were able to do throughout the city in various buildings, we did see an improvement in the communication by implementing the system that is proposed. That's very encouraging. So, City Manager, if I could ask, is there a way that we can do some sort of educational campaign? Is there a way that we can make sure that every single building in our city knows that we are working on this, that we're hoping within 21 months, that we're working towards a solution? Because there are many that feel in limbo right now. They don't know whether they're going to, you know, get further – they don't know if they're going to get fined. I'm happy to hear about the fact that we're just calming down with the fines. But I think they need to understand that. They need to understand that we're working towards a solution. We're encouraged by this $23 million spend, and we can educate them as to what is entailed in all of this just so they know, because we still get asked this question all the time. And I just think it's really important that if it's a one layer of education that we just send out and folks are aware of it, I think it would just allay a lot of concerns, and it would just really – it would make people feel a little bit more knowledgeable and also a little bit more comfortable. Commissioner, absolutely we can. We did some education through the fire department when this BDA issue first came up, and we'll supplement that now that we have this agreement that will likely be in place that we can communicate further on. That would be great, because I would love to see something that I'm able to send out, something that – and it's not just my district for sure. I mean, it's the whole city, but I am getting a lot of this kind of a concern. So I really think that an educational campaign is really important. So thank you. And, Chief, thank you. And, Chief, hold on. Just a couple more questions. Thanks. The determination on the levying of fines is solely the city's discretion? Yeah, the fine – The state is not – That's correct. Determined. Great. So that's all – so we'll toll all fines is what I'm hearing you say. Yes, sir. Okay, great. And then when these – and you might have to ask Motorola, but when the systems tap into a building's Wi-Fi, is that building approved, or do they just – is it automatically able to tap into the network? Maybe. Yeah. You guys are radio shopped. We would have to be – we'd have to – it can't just connect to a network. It's not going to have access to that network. I think the key piece of this puzzle is the LTE component or the cellular component, and that's what we really tested when we were out there. I think it's a lot easier for the community to accept doing an improvement to their building for cellular communications because the everyday user in the building would also benefit from that. So if you're in your building now and your cellular phone is working, by all reasonable expectations, the radio should be able to connect in those same areas. There is the potential that under the Florida State statute that there are some areas that are critical areas of the building. Those are the elevator shafts, the lobbies, the stairwells. And in those, we require a 99% connection. Some of those areas may still require some amplification in order to reach the goal, but it won't be the same as wiring an entire building. And then we're also hopeful that by adding the additional antenna that that will reduce that number as well. Okay. Great. And remind me of the location of the additional antenna. Right now, the BDA would be in the areas that needs to be boosted. So the antenna goes on the roof, but it goes throughout the entire building to make sure that the radio can connect. Oh, I thought Motorola was installing one antenna. They are. Right. And where is that? Where's the antenna you're installing? Is it southeast? Yes. It's to cover the beach area, the south end of the beach. That's what I thought. Okay. Do you know where specifically you're planning? Okay. Yeah. That's great. No rush yet. Thank you. Great. Thank you, Chief. That helps. Thank you. So, Chief, just one second, because I just want to piggyback on something you mentioned. So if there is an area where we think that maybe a building just needs a booster, how is that? Is that information communicated with them so they don't think that they have to go out and shop for an entire system that's a lot more expensive than just a booster? I'm just concerned about how they get that education if there is an issue. Well, I think per the communication that we've been sharing this evening, I really wouldn't encourage a building to be making advancements towards installing that system at this time. We're better off to continue to move forward with the progress, make sure we have radio communications. But a piece of that puzzle is also going to be what we're implementing. So until such time as that is completed, it would be very difficult to get a full capture of what those buildings look like. Newer buildings coming online will already have the BDAs that are engineered with inside those buildings. And so there's a lot of pieces to this puzzle that will be moving forward over the next 21 months. Okay. So I just want to make sure, Chris, that when we get our educational campaign going, that we let people know that the fix might be as simple as just a booster, that they don't have to start thinking that they have to replace an entire system or implement an entire system. I just want to make sure that we're giving them all of the information that they might possibly need. Understood. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Chief. Any further questions or comments? There being none, please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Bezu-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentels? Yes. And M4 is now approved. Congratulations. Finally, we got it going. Long time coming, but I appreciate everyone's efforts in making this happen. Moving on to R1, appointment of board and committee members. Mr. Clerk, please read the names into the record. Thank you, Mayor. For the September 2nd resolution, Board of Adjustment Deborah Peters, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen for a full position. James Brenner, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen into an alternate position. Central City Redevelopment Advisory Board, Olga Zamora, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. Public Art and Placement Advisory Board, Carly Summer, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen. Tara Rose, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen. Tayana Daraville, that's the designee of the chair of the Broward County's Public Art and Design Committee. And for tonight's resolution, Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, Commissioner Pamela Beasley-Pittman. Aviation Advisory Board, Olivia Anderson, nominated by Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Budget Advisory Board, Jason Jeffress, nominated by Mayor Trentels. Melissa Milroy, nominated by Mayor Trentels. Olivia Kalle, nominated by Commissioner Herbst. William Brown, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. Rich DiGirolamo, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. Samantha Perryman-Jones, nominated by Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Anid Metellus-Thompson, nominated by Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Melinda Boker, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen. David Ortolani, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen. Charter Revision Board, Richard Weiss, nominated by Commissioner Herbst. Community Appearance Board, Teresa Height, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen. Community Services Board, Latrinza Greaves, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. Education Advisory Board, Kim Mowat, nominated by Mayor Trentels. Fire Rescue Facilities Bond Issue Blue Ribbon Committee, Julie Doya, nominated by Vice Mayor Sorensen. David Cooper, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. Historic Preservation Board, Ian Lowe, nominated by Mayor Trentels. Homeless Advisory Committee, Antonio Docal, nominated by Commissioner Herbst. Housing Authority of the City of Fort Lauderdale. Board of Commissioners, Mike Lambricks, nominated by Mayor Trentels. And Susan Grant, nominated by Mayor Trentels. Invest Fort Lauderdale, Inc. Amanda Bartle, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. Marine Advisory Board, Courtney Day, nominated by Mayor Trentels. Northwest Progressive Flagler Heights Redevelopment Board, Brandon Loy, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. Sustainability Advisory Board, Robert Dallas, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. And we received one additional nomination, if we could put on as amended. That is Sunrise Key Neighborhood Improvement District, Bob Venero, nominated by Commissioner Glassman. And that rounds it out. Okay, great. Thank you so much. Are there any additions or modifications? We have a couple people who signed up to speak. Why don't we have them speak first? Donnie Ward, followed by Jesse Marcelin, and then Michael Rayner. Is the, press the button on the bottom of the mic. Press the button. There you go. Good evening. I was wondering if I could serve on the board for the City of Fort Lauderdale Housing Authority. Because I'm one of the ones that's been living on the properties for maybe like almost 30 plus years. And it's a lot that I know some of the managers and most of like the tenants and stuff like that. And it's like by me going out of the communities and stuff and talking with like my neighbors and like the people in the community with different managers and stuff like that. I know most of the stuff that's going on in the community and most of the stuff that needs to be addressed. And all kinds of good things like what needs to be fixed, what needs to be done. That's pretty much the reason why I'm here today. Okay. All right. Thank you, sir. Okay. Thank you. Mr. Clerk, do we have, on this board, do we have a member that's, who is a resident? Give me one second. Nicole Blake. I'm sorry? Nicole Blake. Yeah, that's what I thought. Okay. Thank you. And we're required to have one tenant member, correct? Yes. Yes. Okay. How many, sir, Mayor, how many members do we have on this board? So, I'm allowed to pick up to seven. Up to seven. Right. Right. So far, we have one tenant member, which is required by HUD. We have two African-American members. Okay. We have one LGBT Q member. Okay. Uh, and, uh, uh, we have a, uh, uh, female member. Right. And tonight, I'm looking to add one female member and, uh, Mike Lambert. Okay. Okay. So, that's up to the seven. Up to the seven. So, that would be the seven. Right. Okay. With one tenant, I guess, out of the seven. One tenant member. Okay. Uh, Mayor, can I just add one thought? Yeah, go ahead. Can we wait till we finish with the, uh, I have two more people who want to sign up to speak. Okay. Sure. Yeah. I just wanted to address this particular issue. Okay. Go ahead. Go ahead. So, so, I think the idea of having a tenant is a great idea. Um, as I understand, the one HUD representative is, has a tenant-based voucher that she's using to pay the mortgage on her house, which is absolutely permissible under HUD rules, and I have no problem with that. I'm not objecting to that. But I think that there's an advantage to having somebody who actually lives in a housing authority property, because I think the experience of being a resident in the property is completely different from owning a home and using your tenant-based voucher to pay the mortgage. I'm not suggesting at this time that we, you know, remove anybody, but I think at some point going forward, this is a worthwhile category. I've discussed this with the folks from the housing authority, and they don't have any objection to it. And I genuinely think that somebody who's on the property every day that's, you know, is exposed to the folks that live there, the issues that are associated with management and so forth of a property, is entirely different from a tenant-based voucher. So, you have, you know, you have, you have, you have the property vouchers, and you have a tenant-based voucher, and that's two entirely different groups of people, and I think they should both be represented. So, just kind of put that out there. Well, I, I, I remember, if I'm not mistaken, we, we were having difficulty finding a tenant member, which is why we accepted her, even though she was using her, her voucher to pay for her mortgage. And, and I think she brings value because she's also, she's also part of the Broward County Housing Authority, too. So, I think she's a subject matter expert, and I'm not suggesting for one second that we should replace her. I, I'm suggesting that we could, in addition to that individual, that having somebody with, who's a, a, a resident of the property, as, as you say, you have seven nominees to this, at some point in the future, I think we should have somebody who is a tenant on site. Okay, that's all, not, not suggesting we replace, replace anybody right now, but as your next vacancy comes available, I would suggest that we look to find somebody that's an actual tenant of the property. Okay, good idea. Jessie Marsland, push that button at the bottom of the speaker. Good afternoon. Great, got it. Um, well, just to piggyback on what Commissioner Hurst say, I do agree, because we do need somebody who actually experienced what the tenant and resident's actually going through. Yes, hearing our story is okay, but to actually experience is even better, because you actually know exactly what it is to wait for years for appliance to be fixed, or, um, the property is not being pressure washed, or the rent continue to keep going up, and none of these questions is being answered. The office is not able to help us. We get turned around from the office, because they don't want to hear that, because it's not an urgency to them, because they don't live as a tenant or a resident. And just like you said, we do need, we do need somebody who actually experienced what we actually going through, because it's still ongoing, and I don't think it's fair as a resident or tenant to go through these matters to where we live in public housing is supposed to be affording housing to where it's based on your earnings and your income. And it's not that, because every year the rent is going up from $75 to $150 every year, and when we ask why the rent is remaining to continue to go up, but our income is not being, um, you know, looked at or being concerned, we're just signing leases, but the rent continue to go up. What about the people who's living there who has a stable or just a fixed income? Um, what about those individuals? It's not fair to them, because then it's hard out here. And then every year we hear, oh, it's, it's state taxes, state taxes, taste taxes. It's the same thing repeatedly over and over again, and nothing is being changed. Okay. You realize that these meetings are open to the public, and when the board does meet, anybody who is a member or a tenant is allowed to come to those meetings and can speak and provide an opinion as to conditions or expectations. So it doesn't, they don't, a person doesn't necessarily have to be a member of the board. They can certainly be heard at any of the meetings, because they're all public, and they're all noticed for, for public discussion, just to let you know that. All righty? Yes. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Uh, Michael Rayner? Good evening, Mayor and Commissioners. Michael Rayner, um, I, along with the other speakers, we all live at Kennedy Apartments, which is a low-income tax property, um, that's part of the housing enterprise, which is subsidiary of, um, the housing authority. The meetings of those, of that governing body that actually governs that, has been violating statute for years, for Sunshine, uh, because those meetings were not publicly advertised. You know, when I moved first over to Rock Island, I tried to complain about security issues and other things, and I had housing authority staff give me the runaround to find out who to actually go to, to talk to stuff. So I started going to housing authority commission meetings, and I was told, this isn't the place to, to talk about that. You have to go to the, the appropriate meeting, but they would never tell me when that was, because it wasn't sunshine. The office, the Broward Office of Inspector General is concluding its investigation to a complaint I filed, which they have findings on sunshine violations, public records, and more. HUD has a whistleblower, uh, investigation that they're doing on procurement for sole sourcing contracts that should have been put out to bid. We also have an issue where now they're contracting with Broward Health potentially right now in the works, when that also should have been put out to RFP, because these properties are all governed by either the housing authority or an entity under the housing authority, which also has three members of the housing authority board, which constitutes that they must be advertised to the public. Now the meetings that are done at corporate, now you can't park in the garage as a member of the public. You have to fight for three parking spaces in front of the building, and there's no accessibility. You have accessibility for people to come to a meeting. So it's nice to say that the housing authority meeting itself might be advertised, but the accessibility is not there, nor is it advertised to the residents. They don't want the residents to know where to come to talk to. The commissioners themselves that this commission has appointed don't even engage with the residents. They, they literally make a joke over showing up to the annual meeting as to who's going to draw the last, the short straw to actually show up and listen to their residents. It's insulting. You know, what you heard today here was about representation. You know, when we look at the expiration dates of the existing members, you have Ty Richardson, the existing vice chair, his term expires or renews in 2027 of May. Jason Kay, the chair, expires in May 2028. You have Nicholas Tranicus, who's going on his fifth term, who was just reappointed, who I would have actually opposed, but I had been in Tallahassee fighting for a hundred million in funding. And, you know, and so you're not having the representation here. Susan Grant will bring good governance, but I think for now, what you're hearing from the communities, we need representation. I mean, I had a date Saturday night and I had to explain to a man that he had a black ant crawling all over him because of a roof leak. Michael, your time is up. Okay, Mayor. You heard your statement. There's no timer for the public though, which, and, but to you, Mayor, I don't know. I just said your time is up. But Mayor, we've heard your point. We've heard your point. Okay. We respect your opinion. Okay. We need to move on with the meeting. Thank you. City Attorney, when we talk about Sunshine violation, are we talking about notice of the meetings to, to the public or isn't Sunshine just a question of whether or not members of a board are speaking to each other on issues that they're going to vote on outside of the meeting? That's what the Sunshine law refers to, but I'm not exactly sure what Mr. right are speaking. He might be speaking about something different, but still an ethics issue. Right. But, but, but notice of the community is not a Sunshine violation. It's, it's, Sunshine is with regard to members of a board, like the commission speaking, talking about policy decisions outside of the, of the, of a convening. Communicating on something about what you're going to vote. Right. Okay. I just want to make sure I understood that. Okay. All right. You know, at some, I agree with Commissioner Herbst at some point, we might want to consider an additional resident, but I'm very comfortable. I think that Susan Grant will bring a good deal of value to this. And I believe Michael Lambrecht also, I mean, the idea is to try to find affordable housing opportunities for people. And Mike is, is been very involved in the finance industry and is knowledgeable, the operations of housing authorities, been a member of the audit committee of Broward County Housing Authority. So he brings value as well. So I'm, I'm perfectly comfortable with continuing to, to, to nominate them. I have a question regarding the opportunity for appointments for those individuals pertaining to this particular board. Um, overall with the representation that we're selecting to represent our neighbors. Um, no, we're not here to represent neighbors. We're here to, to create a board that, that, that can get the work done to get the value, you know, that what needs to get done in the housing authority, which is to find housing opportunities, find real estate, find, uh, financing opportunities. It's not, it's not just, uh, United Nations of the public. That's, that's not, well, the way you describe the individuals on the board, it sounds like the United Nations. We tried to, we tried, we tried, I think we're pretty good. But, but what I'm saying there, yes. Okay. Well, what I'm hearing and what I'm, I'm going to do some more due diligence about the responsibility and what is expected of this board. Okay. If we have members that are under housing that is representing the city of Fort Lauderdale, I think we need to make sure that who is representing whatever this finding that type of housing, making sure that, um, everything is recognized. Those individuals need to have a understanding of what the people need. You just can't put someone that's check off a box and say, oh, go and do the job because you have, um, some expertise in, um, building or finance. It goes more than that. It need to have some compassion and some, um, um, a rate, relatability is where I'm going. And, and I'm not, I, like I said, I don't know enough, but what I'm hearing, I have some concern. And I think that we should, you know, hear what they're saying, see what we can find out. If there's something we need to do different, let's at least address doing that. And I don't disagree with you. At some point, we, when we have that opportunity, I think we should take advantage of it. Uh, I think we are fully compliant with the statute. I think that the members on the committee now, uh, represent the community demographically, at least, as well as, uh, with, with the talent that they bring. Um, and at some point, perhaps we can consider opening it up to another member, another tenant member. Uh, and, uh, but keep in mind, we had trouble last time trying to find a tenant member. And that's why we chose the individual that we have today. Um, what is her term up? Do you know, by the way, I can't see you because the sun is. We need a blind. We need a shade. Sunset. Chief, can you work on that, please? Put a flag there or something. But, um, also, Mayor, um, I appreciate you, um, acknowledging that this is something we should consider. Um, and I'm going to say even sooner than better, um, later, because you said something about, um, when the opportunity come, I think we should make the opportunity. Um, I'm just curious when, if we can do it through the process, though. What, what, for, for Nicole Blake? Yeah. Uh, her term ends May 28th, uh, 2030. 2030. 2030. 2030. How long are the terms? What year? We're here 2026. They're four year terms. Oh, so she was just reappointed. Yeah. On, on May 29th. Okay. All right. Let me, let me ask this question. I'm, I'm, I'm going to ask the question, then I'm going to move on. Keep going. Keep going. Okay. Um, is there an opportunity to, um, remove someone that's in a position and reappoint someone else as, um, because I believe, um, Yes, we can do that, but we have some terms coming up at the beginning of next year, and we can, we can, uh, we may have at 27. Yes. Yeah. It's just next year. We can do that. And, uh, and we, that would be an opportunity for us to substitute one of the existing members with, uh, with a tenant member. Well, it's, it sounds like it may need to be more than one. So I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I know this is, this is a board that you select individual. Is that correct? Okay. Um, I'm gonna, whoever can tell me more about this process. Um, cause I know we can't talk about the process because it's a voting opportunity, but, um, city attorney or, um, um, city manager, we'll talk about that so I can understand. And then we can see how we could address this where it could be a balance and be also beneficial and someone that's someone's plural that's going to relate to the tenants. Thank you. Got it. Okay. We're ready. Um, any, any comments? Can I just get some clarification? Does this commission actually have the authority to remove people that are on that board? Commissioner, in the same way that the mayor may select with your approval, he may remove with your approval with certain conditions. The person would have to have that, um, a neglect of duty, misconduct, et cetera. So there would need to be some sort of criteria for removal. Or at the end of their term. Well, that's not really removal. That's just not a reappointment. Right. Right. That's just not a reappointment. But there are definitely conditions for removal. Yes. Okay. Thank you. Okay. Please call the roll. Uh, I need an introduction as amended to include the additional name. What was the amendment? The amendment was to the Sunrise Intercoastal board member. Oh, okay. I'm sorry. Sunrise Key. Yeah, that's what I meant. Sunrise Key. Thank you. I move as amended. Thank you. Okay. The resolution has been introduced as amended. A resolution of City Commission of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, appointing or nominating, if applicable, Boarding Committee members as set forth in the exhibit attached here to and made a part here of. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trintals? Yes. I want to thank those individuals for their, uh, their commitment to the city and for volunteering their time. We thank you very much for your efforts. Um, R2, resolution declaring notice of intent to convey city-owned property located at 1306 Northwest 6th Street in the, uh, Northwest CRA, uh, setting a public hearing October 6th, 2026. Um, someone like to introduce the resolution? Introduce. Resolution has been introduced. This is for the purposes of setting the hearing, correct? Okay. Yeah. Uh, please call the roll. A resolution of City Commission of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, providing notice of intent to convey one city-owned property located at 1306 Northwest 6th Street in the Northwest Progresso Flagler Heights Community Redevelopment Area to the Fort Lauderdale, uh, Community Redevelopment Agency for Public Purposes pursuant to Section 8.02 for the, of the city charter subject to terms and conditions, providing notice of a public hearing before the City Commission at 6 p.m. on October 6th, 2026, for consideration of the terms and conditions and authorized execution of the conveyance instruments by the proper city officials and providing for an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentonis? Yes. And that resolution is now approved. Moving on to R3. This is a resolution amending the interlocal agreement between the Fort Lauderdale Community Redevelopment Agency and the City of Fort Lauderdale to authorize funding for redevelopment projects to implement the central city redevelopment plan and authorizing the executive director, the executive director to negotiate and execute any and all documents or instruments necessary or incidental to consummate the transactions. Consummate. Someone like to introduce the resolution? Introduced. Okay, no one signed up to speak. Uh, please call the roll. A resolution City Commission of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida amending the interlocal agreement between the City of Fort Lauderdale and the Fort Lauderdale Community Redevelopment Agency to authorizing funding for community redevelopment projects and activities that implement the central city redevelopment plan within the boundaries of the central city community redevelopment area and providing an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentonis? Yes. And, uh, that item is now approved. Moving on to R4. Resolution approving and ratifying a collective bargaining agreement. Yay. Between the City of Fort Lauderdale and International Association of Firefighters AFL-CIO-CLC representing the rank and file effective October 1st, 2026 through September 30th, 2027 and authorizing the execution of the collective bargaining agreement. Um, one person to sign up to speak. Keith, that's just so that you, do you want to speak? You're here to thank the City Commission for his generosity and, uh, uh, and cooperation and are so happy to be firefighters in the City of Fort Lauderdale. They take the words out of your mouth? Yeah. A hundred percent. Good evening, Mayor, Vice Mayor and Commissioners. Keith Costa, President of Fort Lauderdale Firefighters. First and foremost, I'd just like to thank City staff and, uh, Chief Golan for their hard work on getting this done. Uh, this will be probably the first time in over 30 years that we've gotten a collective bargaining agreement done on time, on time. Um, I'd also like to thank my executive board staff and my brothers over at the FOP, Scott Mosley and Scott Hoffer for their support throughout this whole thing. Um, rank and file, almost 90% approval on this and for Battalion Chiefs R5, 100% approval. So, I'd ask for your support and thank you very much. Thank you. I, I'd echo that by the way. This is the first time in my 20 years here that I've seen us get a contract done on time. I, I, I flabbergasted. So, congratulations to everybody that was involved on both sides. Yes. I really appreciate everybody coming together and getting this done. So, it's an amazing job. Congratulations. Must be our city attorney. That hard nose, hard bitten. I'm sorry. Okay. Um, so, would someone like to introduce the resolution? Introduced. Resolution. The R4 is introduced. Please call the roll. A resolution and city commission of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, approving and ratifying a collective bargaining agreement between the city of Fort Lauderdale and Fort Lauderdale Professional Firefighters, Inc., IAFF Local 765 for the period October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, and authorizing execution of the collective bargaining agreement. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Toffs? Yes. And R4 is now approved. Now we have a resolution approving and ratifying a collective bargaining agreement between the city of Fort Lauderdale and the International Association of Firefighters, AFL-CIO-CLC, representing the battalion chiefs effective October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, and authorizing the execution of the collective bargaining agreement. Would someone like to introduce the resolution? Introduced. Introduced. No one has signed up to speak. Any questions? There being none, please call the roll. A resolution and city commission of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida approving and ratifying a collective bargaining agreement between the city of Fort Lauderdale and Fort Lauderdale Professional Firefighters, Inc., IAFF Local 765 Battalion Chiefs for the period October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, and authorizing execution of collective bargaining agreement. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Toffs? Yes. And R5 is now approved. Congratulations. R6, a resolution approving an affordable workforce housing tax reimbursement incentive application and workforce housing incentive agreement with affiliated development. This is Cypress 400 Corporate Drive. Jeff, are you here? Yes. Oh, there you are. It's hard to see. The sun is... You signed up to speak. You want to say anything or just to... Just to... Okay. Anyone else have any questions or comments? I do. I have a question. I support this um, project here, but I do have a question. Um, searching for some clarification. Um, this project, it reverse it, does it reimburse itself? Uh, does it allocate, um, for flex unit or racks units? Anyone? I know the answer to that. Anyone? I'm trying to find out about our flex and rec, rec units that's available in our... We're using up the inventory of flex units? Yeah. Yeah. Good evening, Nectaria Chakas on behalf of the applicant. Um, these were not flex units or, um, RAC units because this was up in the, um, uptown area, um, not in the uptown district, but these are not RAC units. These are by right units, essentially. Understood. So question to staff, um, where are we in regards to our availability with flex racks unit? So the, the, the market... Yeah, I think you're referring to market rate units or just in general? In general. What is that inventory? Where are we right now? So I'd have to get, I'd have to pull it up and give you the numbers, but in terms of market rate units, it's, it's practically zero because this has been swallowed up very quickly. So we do have, I believe, some additional, uh, workforce housing units that are left, but very few. Adam, what do you have to say? Sure. Uh, essentially, uh, Adam Schnell, urban design and planning. We have approximately about 1400, uh, flex units available. We do have a plethora of applications that we're currently, uh, reviewing that will most likely eat most of those units up though. Okay. Now, um, um, I thought we were at about zero. We're not at zero. You're saying we have 14. There are some projects that came back in. So those units entered the pool again, but we're currently reviewing about two or three projects that will actually take those units off the table again. So essentially, we do have, uh, zero units available once those projects are approved. Okay. Cause my concern with that zero number, um, we need to, um, get with the county and get some more units because we need housing, that type of housing. And I want to have a deeper conversation where we're able to, um, solicit requests from the county, um, more units where we'll be able to offer that ability for our neighbors. So I don't believe we received a response from the county yet, but we have reached out to them just to ask the question, you know, what would be their stance on that and give us some preliminary feedback. Okay. So once we have that, I'll be happy to share it with everybody. Um, could you share with us what, um, amount we have asked for? We didn't ask for an amount. We were just asking, would they be open to the question? Because we've been told in the past that they were not because when they passed the Geller amendment, that was supposed to be the bucket of units that we were supposed to be pulling from. They allowed us to transfer affordable units into the, into the market rate bucket, but those got snatched up fast and wiped away. So what we've been told before is that Geller is where they would like us to pull units from, but we're asking if there's an opportunity to revisit that and see what the, what their stance would be on that. Okay. Um, so Geller is just where there's a commercial corridor, right? And racks, right. And then you also have live local, which is another option for live local have any limit on it. I mean, no, the live local units are generated by the state as long as they meet the requirement for 40%. Right. So they still move all these. All right. So we're going to have this conversation again. I'm hoping that, um, we'll get some pull from support rather from the county because understanding that if we're at zero, I have some strong concerns with that and whatever we can do as a commission to secure more housing opportunities, we need to take advantage of that. And I'm thankful that you have been proactive to reach out to the county for that. And, um, if even we can talk about that negotiation opportunity with them, we know that they like certain things. They want to know how long we're going to commit, um, to that type of housing. Um, you, you know, I go in deep. I'm, I'm, I'm that one that's going for that legacy opportunity because we know that the longer we have that opportunity, more families have, um, are able to remain housed. So, um, even with that, I'm, I'm going to just put out there what I'm thinking. I'm hoping we ask for 750. Okay. And that way we get that percentage and we'll walk away with what we need to ensure that we're able to offer more housing throughout the city, including district. Absolutely. And commissioner Ella Parker, deputy director of development services. I also wanted to clarify that the Geller amendment units actually work quite well. They provide an opportunity for those developers that do not want to create the affordable component by doing market rate and paying an in lieu of fee, which goes into a shared split fund between the city and the county, or you can actually provide those affordable units and develop the project with them. So even though we don't necessarily have flex units left, there are plenty of opportunities to develop projects through that process. Um, in addition to doing, um, the units that are also in our, in the reserve pool where we get 500 unit increments from the county, but those, as you remember, um, were developed through a policy that we did for Fort Lauderdale, which focuses on smaller projects that require infill development or projects that actually contribute to the affordable unit pool. So I would say that even though we don't have a specific flex unit pool remaining with the Geller policy, there's plenty of opportunities to do both market rate and affordable housing projects. That opportunity that we're referring to, are we having developers knock on our doors? Yes, because that is the only pool of units left. So they either pay that in lieu of fee or they develop the project with the affordable units. And that's again for major corridors, including the Northwest RAC and our regional activity centers. Okay. Thank you for that. So don't go away. So, well, this begs the question, what about all these stagnant projects that have been, that we've approved that are sitting there for years? How, how does state law, affect our ability to, uh, to terminate those approvals and we can put those back in the pool and to get, uh, development projects moving forward? Can you explain to us how that works? Yeah, no, that's a very good question. So those, those units that were approved through prior pools, um, unfortunately the extensions that are granted by the state allow those projects to exist for a long period of time, whether that's based on a major event that happened, um, you know, anything that the state passed as far as an extension for a project, um, creates, you know, kind of like a holdout of those particular units. But as they come back into the pool, if a project does expire, um, those can also be applied for. Well, so, so major events are like hurricanes, floods. We haven't had one of those in a while. Right. Thank God. So, uh, I need a piece of wood here. So, but so, you know, what would be a triggering, what would be a triggering opportunity here to, to pull those units back? Because we're talking about hundreds, maybe thousands of units that are just sitting there, um, undeveloped, actually creating blight in our, some of our city spaces because they're just open fields. Right. What are your thoughts about that? Just lobbying the state to get those extensions not to be so lengthy. Um, I also, Anthony reminded me, um, Commissioner Beasley-Pittman that we also do have a pool of Northwest RAC units that have not been completely, um, used up. So that's also an opportunity, um, there. And Mayor, we also, just to reiterate what Ella said, we monitor those extensions. So we have a clock on everything. So we know when it started and when it ends. Okay. If it ends, we do push it back into the unit count immediately. Okay, great. And, and curiosity with the state granting these extensions, um, what has kind of been like the average? Do they get like one, two, three? Is it like till they say, okay, so we're not doing it anymore. It's been a little, um, there's been a variety. Okay. Uh, some of them have been longer than others. Some of them have notice requirements. Some of them don't have notice requirements. Some are automatic. Some are not. But what's the time? Give me like a time if, you know, I don't know you want to lock in, but just like, you know, has it been an average of an extension of four years or 30 days? Commissioner, you know that, you know that favorite word of yours, perpetuity? Yes. That's, that's, that's, that's where they're applying that one. Okay. I think it's generally four years, um, and then there's a tolling period, but, uh, you know, it just, it's kind of complicated. So what we have to do is we have to track each one and what, what it came under for the extension, because some of them are similar. Some of them are different. It just depends. All right. Thank you. And I, and I look forward to more conversation to, um, learn more how to move and maneuver through this because we need those houses. We need the housing. Understood. Thank you. Okay. Um, so we were on, uh, our six, um, has the, has the resolution been introduced? Will someone please introduce the resolution? Introduce. Resolution has been introduced. Um, please call the roll. A resolution city commission of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, approving an affordable workforce housing tax reimbursement incentive and an avalorum tax reimbursement agreement with affiliated development, LLC, for the project known as the Cypress, located at 400 corporate drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, delegating authority to the city manager to execute such agreement together with any supplemental documents in connection there with and providing for an effect date. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Yes. Commissioner Glassman. So I, I just first want to say, Jeff, thanks for taking this project over. I know it's going to be a great one. So thank you very much. Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Mayor Tentals. Yes. And our six is now approved. Congratulations. Thank you. Mayor Tentals. Is the Andrews Avenue project done yet? Yeah. A couple months? Yeah. Early ago. Mayor Tentals. Very good. Oh, the ground break. Okay. I see you moving a lot of dirt there. No, but the era is moving is early. The era is like a couple of months ahead. Where is that? Mayor Tentals. What's the address? That's the Andrews. That's the Andrews. Yeah. I didn't know the area. Yeah. That's what I said. Early. That's a big project. Yeah. Mayor Tentals. Keep it up. See ya. Okay. R7. This is a quasi-judicial resolution approving a site plan level two development permit for a site development with an alternative design request. This is ACS Flagler LLC Shader Retail at 801 North Federal Highway. Anyone wishing to speak must be sworn in. The commission will announce any site visits, communications, or expert opinions received and make them a part of the record. Commissioner Herbst, do you have any disclosures? Take your time. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Conversation with Nick Dorea. Thank you, Nick Dorea. Nectaria. Can we talk? Okay. I met with Nectaria Chakas. Yes. Nectaria Chakas on August 17th. Yesterday. And Vice Mayor. Yes. With Nectaria. Okay. I see the picture. Yes. I remember this. And yes. Mayor Nectaria as well. Thank you. Okay. Very good. She gets around. Okay. Busy woman. Okay. Nectaria is the only person to sign up to speak for questions only. Anyone else wish to speak on this item? There being no one, would someone please move to close public hearing? Second. Moved and seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Yes. Commissioner Glossman. Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman. Yes. Mayor Trentos. Yes. And public hearing is now closed. Would someone like to introduce the resolution? Introduced. Resolution has been introduced. Any questions? Please call the roll. And that's for approval? For approval. Yes. Thank you. For approval. And I'm hoping that this will be a catalyst for that little block or two right across from Holiday Park. This is a really nice little project. Thank you. What is it replacing? It's not really replacing anything. It's a long deserted building right on 8th and Sunrise. White building. Was that an automotive store? I don't remember what was there. It's been a while though. It was a dry cleaner. Was that a dry cleaner? Yeah. It's been a while. Oh, it's a dry cleaner store. Yeah. So, uh, but this is a nice little they, you know, it's, they're going to fix it up. It's going to be nice and I'm hoping it'll really clean up that couple of blocks. Good. Please call the roll. A resolution city commission of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida approving a site plan level two development permit for a site redevelopment with an alternative design that meets the overall intent of the downtown master plan for the improvements in addition to the existing retail building named shader retail consisting of 2,944 square feet of the existing retail space use proposing to construct an additional 1,824 square feet of retail use located at 801 north federal highway Fort Lauderdale, Florida in the regional activity center urban village zoning district having an underlying land use designation of downtown regional activity center providing for severability and providing for conflicts. Vice Mayor Sorensen. Yes. Commissioner Herbst. Yes. Commissioner Glassman. Yes. Commissioner Viva Pittman. Yes. Mayor Trintas. Yes. And, uh, R7 is now approved. Um, for, is it, does it require two readings or just the one reading? Okay. Okay. Moving on to PH1. It's a public hearing resolution approving notice of award and sale of city owned property located at South Rio Vista Boulevard, uh, to Raymond Ray and Terry Ray pursuant to charter. Um, uh, can someone from our, um, can someone from staff talk to me about this? Chris, how did we come up? This is 20 feet on the water and it's $56,000. How do we come up with that price? Yeah. So we did an appraisal. Angela Simon with our real estate office is coming up to explain the appraisal on this and how we got to where we are today. Well, I saw, I saw on the, on the, the, uh, cam where it said that the, the appraisal was $75,000 as of May 11, 2026, but we're, we're willing to accept 75% of it. Why is that? So that's, oh, go ahead, Angela. Oh, hi, mayor commission, Angela Salmon, city manager's office. When we brought forth the notice of intent, it provided the value, the appraisal value of 75 K. And during that resolution, it set what the charter says, which is a hundred percent of the appraised value to 75%. The Rays have been maintaining this property for many years and that using it to maintaining and using it. Yes. I see the, I see the sidewalk, you know, they, it's like theirs. Yep. They've been taking advantage of it. Yep. And also there's a seawall associated with that property, which they will be repairing, which will be a covenant as part of the cell. There's a seawall, a seawall on this property that needs repairing. And they will also be making those repairs, which also, it's just part of their seawall, a contiguous seawall. Yes. I just think this is a giveaway. I mean, 20 feet Rio Vista on the water for $57,000. When the appraisal came back at 75 K, I had some of the same questions to the appraiser and based on the history of the property and the easement that was already on that property because the Rays have an easement on that property. That was the recommendation from the appraiser. But the easement was for an underground sewer line, which has been abandoned. Correct. So there's no easement. No, there is an existing easement in the Rays' favor to use that property. For who to use the property? The Rays. They had an existing easement on the property. So it's their easement. Yeah. Right. They're easement to use the property. There's no impediment for the use of this property if the Rays were to purchase it. There's nothing, there's no obstruction, there's no encumbrance, there's no impediment at all. So how do they come up with an appraised value of $75,000 or 20 feet in Rio Vista Boulevard on the water? If there's the direction to go back to the appraiser and speak with them about it, I can, we could pull this item and I can do that. I just think we're cheating the city. So Mayor, if I could say something. You have some insight on this? Yeah. I've been working on this for years. Oh, you have. Probably six years, Mayor. Yeah. So it has been a long and circuitous path. I don't mean to save you. No, but your point is fair. Part of the reason for the lower appraisal price is the declining condition of the seawall, which is going to require significant investment to upgrade. A second piece is just the small, you know, the narrow kind of nature of this parcel. This is something that Ms. Ray has on a fixed income and with some family health challenges. A fixed income with a house as massive as this? I want to know what the fixed income is. Yes. Well, she's here, Mayor, and she has some family health concerns as well. I don't mean to be facetious, but at the same time, I do feel the city's entitled, you know, to fair value. I mean, they basically, it's their driveway. They have things parked in it already. They have a sidewalk. They basically have taken it over. And you say that they've been taking care of it. Well, they've also been using it too. It's not like it was just an open field. Look, look, Vice Mayor, if you've been working on it and this is your recommendation that we accept this, I will go with your recommendation. It just seems like, it just seems like something that I, at first blush, just seemed to raise a few eyebrows. That's all. Okay. Do we always just get one appraisal? Yes. For all city owned properties, when we do this process with this charter section, we only get one appraisal. We only get two appraisals when we're doing acquisitions. Just one appraisal. And is it customary for us to accept just 75% of the appraisal? Um, I actually did a lot of research into that. Um, we haven't really sold a lot of property because of the market and because we don't have a lot of property to sell and the properties that we have sold were between 2020 and 2021. And yes, we did 75% for a church. And one thing I want to mention is each one of these properties that we have come with a history and a lot of what direction for each property is based on that history. And so three properties sold, one to a church for 75%, the other two were 100%. So, so mayor back on June 16th, when the commission adopted the resolution for the intent to sell, the commission actually through that resolution set the minimum purchase price at 75% of the appraised value. So this is consistent with that resolution that was set. The appraiser also appraised this because of an existing encroachment agreement that the Rays have had for many, many years for the use of this site, that the best use and the appraised value is based on an assemblage with the raised property. So that was the basis for the appraisal at the, at the value that it came back to us. But just as a, um, what could we, this, this is a slither of land? What could we as the city do with this land? No, I'm just saying, yeah, for something like this, we, I'm sorry, go ahead, Mayor. No, I'm just saying what can the city do with the land? I'm just saying, it just seems that if you were to take, if you were to take, um, a hundred foot lot on, on the, on the river in Rio Vista, it would not be the proportionate share would not be $57,000. You know, these, these lots go for, you know, a hundred thousand dollars every 10 feet. You know, some of these lots sell for like three or 4 million on, without a house on it. So anyway. All right. I said my piece. We'll go with what the vice mayor recommends. Thank you, Mayor. Appreciate it. Would you like to introduce the resolution? Yes. Introduced for approval. Now it says public hearing. Do I have to close public hearing? All right. Um, motion to close public hearing by the vice mayor. Do I hear a second? Second. Move the seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beatsley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Tullis? Yes. Public hearing is now closed on PH1. Someone would like to introduce a resolution? Introduced. For approval. Resolution has been introduced for approval. Please call the roll. A resolution of the city commission of the city of Fort Lauderdale. Hold on a second. Hold on a second. Ross and Liz Summerstein have signed up to speak. Do you want to say anything? Only questions. Okay. Please proceed. Okay. A resolution of the city commission of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida pursuant to city charter section 8.04 accepting an offer from Raymond B. Ray and Terry Ray in the amount of 56,250 for the purchase of real property located at South Rio Vista Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33316, approving the purchase and sale agreement and further delegating authority to the city manager to execute the purchase and sale agreement and other documents related to this transaction providing for an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beatsley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Tullis? Yes. PH1 is now approved. PH2, public hearing, first reading of an ordinance amending the city of Fort Lauderdale unified land development regulations to amend the list of permitted and conditional uses of community of community business and boulevard business zoning districts to add fortune tellers, psychic readers, and accessory users as to retail sales. Wait, we have an influx of seers coming into our community. Is anyone here tonight? No, they knew what was going to happen. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. Sorry. Ha, ha, ha, ha. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Do you want to sign up to speak? Would someone like to move to close public hearing? So moved. Do I hear a second? Second. Move to seconded to close public hearing. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beatsley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Tullis? Yes. Someone like to introduce the ordinance? Introduced. The ordinance has been introduced to add fortune tellers and psychic readers as accessory uses to retail. Who's, who proposed? Who's pushing this? This is an old, this is from an old court case years ago. This has been going on forever. I mean, the society of fortune tellers and psychic readers have not approached me on this yet. No. Well, they knew what was going to happen. Yeah. All right. The ordinance has been introduced. Please call the roll. In ordinance to the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida amending the unified land development regulations article two zoning district requirements, more specifically section 47-6.10 list of permitted and conditional uses community business district in section 47-6.11 listed of permitted and conditional uses boulevard business district to include fortune tellers and tellers psychic readers to the list of permitted and conditional use tables for the community business district and boulevard business district in providing for correction of scriveners. There is severability repeal of conflicting orders provisions and effective date. Vice Mayor Sorenson? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beatsley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Tullis? Yes. And PH-2 is now approved. PH-3 public hearing first reading an ordinance amending the city of Fort Lauderdale unified land development regulations um regarding fences walls and hedges to revise the method of measuring the height of fences and walls. No one has signed up to speak. Um uh someone like to move to close public hearing? Yeah. Second. We don't have to close public hearing. I'm sorry. Oh sorry. Just kidding. Yeah. Uh Vice Mayor Sorenson? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Comedians on the stage. Commissioner Classman? Yes. Commissioner Beatsley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Tullis? Yes. The public hearing on PH-3 is now closed. Would someone like to introduce the ordinance? Introduced. And Mayor, I'd like to thank Anthony Pajardo. Thank you for all your work on this. Ella, I'm assuming you were a part of this too. Maybe. Thank you. Who else? Dwayne? I feel like you were part of it. Who else? Carl. Thank you. Yes. Thank you for your help. This was a massive lift, Mayor, and I just appreciate getting this right. Thank you. Yes, Mayor. Okay. So, um, would you like to introduce the ordinance? Introduce. Introduce. For approval. Introduce the ordinance and introduce. In ordinance of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, amending the Unified Land Development Regulations, Article 1, General Requirements, more specifically 47-2.2, Measurements, and Article 3, Development Requirements, more specifically Section 47-19.5, Fences, Walls, and Hedges, to revise the method for the measurement of the height of fences and walls and providing for correction of Scrivener's errors, severability, repeal of conflicting ordinance provisions, and on effective date, Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentals? Yes. And PH-3 is now approved. Moving on to PH-4, first reading of public hearing ordinance amending the City of Fort Lauderdale Unified Land Development Regulations regarding the Historic Preservation District to include an update to the list of permitted uses and limitations on permitted uses. No one has signed up to speak. Would someone like to move to close public hearing? So moved. Second. The move is seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentals? Yes. Public hearing on PH-4 is now closed. Would someone like to introduce the ordinance? Introduce. The ordinance has been introduced on first reading. Please call the roll. In orange of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, amending Section 47-16, Historic Preservation District of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida Unified Land Development Regulations to update the list and limitations of permitted uses, providing for codification and correction of scriveners errors, and for an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentals? Yes. And PH-4 is now approved on first reading. PH-5 public hearing, quasi-judicial hearing to consider a resolution approving a waiver of limitations at 301 Hendricks Aisle for a one-bolt lift extending 27 feet plus or minus as measured from the property line into the waters adjacent to the upland property. Anyone wishing to speak must be sworn in. The Commissioner will announce any site visits, communications, or expert opinions received, and make them a part of the record. Commissioner Herbst, do you have any disclosures? Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? No disclosures. I have none. Commissioner Glassman? I spoke to some folks from the Hendricks and Venice Aisle Civic Association. And Vice Mayor? None. Okay. No one has signed up to speak. Someone please move to close public hearing. Moved. Second. They're moved and seconded. Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentals? Yes. And public hearing is now closed on PH-5. Would someone like to introduce the resolution? Introduce. The resolution has been introduced. Please call the roll. And that's for approval? Yes. Thank you. A resolution of City Commission in the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida pursuant to Section 47-19.3 of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida Unified Land Development Regulations approving the application by Stanley M. Stein, aka Stanley Michael Stein, as trustee of the Stanley Michael Stein Trust, No. 1, dated October 9, 1997, as amended for a waiver of the limitations of ULDR Section 47-19.3 C for installation of one boat lift extending a maximum distance at 27 feet plus or minus into the waters adjacent to the upland property. Such property being located at 301 Hendricks Aisle No. 4, Dock Slip No. 4, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301. And more particularly described below, subject to certain terms and conditions repealing any and all parts of resolutions in conflict here with and providing for an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentals? Yes. And that item is now approved. Just one second. Okay. All right. Moving on to ordinances of first reading. This is OFR 1, first reading of an ordinance, repealing ordinance number C-84-88 to facilitate the renaming of Southwest First Avenue and Northwest First Avenue from West Los Olos Boulevard to Sistra Boulevard to Mary Brickell Avenue. No one has signed up to speak. Anyone have any questions? Someone would like to introduce the ordinance? Introduce. The ordinance is introduced. Please call the roll. In ordinance of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida repealing ordinance number C-84-88 in order to facilitate the renaming of Southwest First Avenue and Northwest First Avenue from West Los Olos Boulevard to Sistra Boulevard in the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Mary Brickell Avenue and providing for severability repeal of conflicting ordinance provisions and effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentals? Yes. And OFR 1 is now approved. Bless you. Bless you. I just want to make sure I'm reading this right. Jeffrey Francis, what did you sign up for? Five. Okay. I wasn't quite sure what that was. We're getting there. OFR 2, first reading and ordinance amending city of Fort Lauderdale code of ordinances. Chapter 9, buildings and construction, including Article 2 permits and inspections to revise the building permit fees and provide private provider permit fees reductions in compliance with state legislation. No one has signed up to speak. Someone would like to introduce the ordinance? Introduce. The ordinance has been introduced. Please call the roll. In ordinance of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, amending Chapter 9-48 general permit fees of the code of ordinances of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida to revise private provider permit fees and fee reductions in compliance with Florida state legislation repeal of conflicting ordinance provisions and providing for an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trent Tauss? Yes. And OFR 2 is now approved on first reading. OFR 3, this is the first reading of an ordinance amending Chapter 15, Article 10 on vacation rentals to clarify the enforcement authority to revise certificate of compliance suspension and penalty provisions to establish inspections, access requirements, and preserve enforcement following ownership or entity changes, and to enhance compliance requirements. We have one person who signed up to speak, Vanessa Sparduto. Is Vanessa still here? Yes. There you are. Come on up. Just push the button at the bottom of the speaker if you could. There you go. All righty. Mayor and commissioners, I'm asking you to defer this ordinance tonight because the process that produced it deserves scrutiny before you vote. For months leading up to this amendment, Vice Mayor Sorensen hosted meetings focused on vacation rental enforcement and potential ordinance changes. Vacation rental operators were not invited, and I later learned our exclusion was not accidental. I know what happened in those meetings because I attended them before I was removed. I heard a neighborhood representative proposed ordinance and enforcement changes. I heard city staff evaluate whether they were legally possible. I heard officials from other cities explain tools Fort Lauderdale could adopt, and I heard proposals assigned for follow-up. These were not casual neighborhood conversations. They were helping develop policy, and some of those concepts are in the ordinance before us tonight. The resident complained that people operating without certificates were not being punished quickly enough. Hollywood explained its model. This ordinance now creates a thousand dollar per day penalty. This same resident repeatedly raised code's inability to gain interior access, including during an investigation of an alleged unpermitted garage conversion at a neighboring property. This amendment now creates a complaint-based requirement, specifically including unpermitted construction or alterations and makes refusal of violation. He also pushed for additional nighttime code staffing. That staffing is now approved in the 2027 budget. And then there's the hotline. I have an email from said resident to the city staff expressly referring to the VR working group meeting organized by Mayor Sorenson, Vice Mayor Sorenson, excuse me, Mary Trentalis. It says the group reached a consensus that calling the responsible party was counterproductive to the process of creating a code case for violation. They asked that the call stopped and he was following up to make sure it had been canceled. Vice Mayor Sorenson followed up the next day on his behalf. Later, when I asked why the calls had stopped, city staff told me in writing, the purpose of the contact center was not to contact the responsible party while acknowledging staff had been, the contact had, I'm sorry, they had been making those calls until there was a change in the city's process. Those are materially different explanations. And these were no longer merely complaints. They were producing citywide changes without comparable input from the people being regulated. Now compare that access with mine. Vice Mayor Sorenson, I repeatedly asked you to meet with me because I was seeing increasingly dangerous patterns involving vacation rental bookings and guest behavior. I was not asking you to get me out of enforcement. I was warning you about what I believe was and is becoming a public safety threat. In one email, I told you I believe there was a connection between what I was seeing and recent fatal shootings. I told you I was scared. I told you it was getting worse. And I pleaded with you to stop ignoring me and help before somebody else got hurt. And you never responded. All of those concerns still exist today. So while one private resident was getting meetings, proposing ordinance changes, influencing enforcement, requesting staffing, following up with the city, and receiving public praise for helping generate more than $100,000 in fines, I could not get my commissioner to meet with me about an escalating public safety concern. Could you please conclude your remarks? Yes, sir. Additionally, I was excluded from the conversation. There were later emails that showed this resident demanded that I be removed. And shortly after, Vice Mayor Sorenson removed me. Okay. Really what I'm asking for tonight, you guys, is can we please have a stakeholder workshop? Can everybody come to the table and talk? These policies are being made to regulate us and we're not even allowed to have a say or a seat at the table. And- Okay. Thank you. Thank you. We hear you. Okay. All right. So we'll have a discussion now. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Portia, do you have any thoughts on this? Good afternoon, Mayor, Vice Mayor, Commissioners. A comment that I would make is following our June 2nd meeting where the Commission provided staff direction, I did meet with Ms. Bertuto to go line by line based on the feedback that she had regarding the ordinance. We did receive that feedback. And so, I pushed back a little bit about the idea that vacation rental operators were not included in the process or provided an opportunity to have input because that has occurred since we last met in June regarding this item. Okay. So you reached out to the community, both including operators. So we notified all operators of the amendment through NUMO, which is the system that regulates or identifies any of the operators that are advertising. And then I specifically met with Ms. Bertuto. Following that meeting, I sent an email following up on items that we discussed and I did not receive any response from Ms. Bertuto. Okay. All right. Thank you. And Mayor, I've met with, I've included this vacation rental operator in meetings. I've had a communication with her. I've met with other vacation rental operators. So, as I'm sure many of us have. Okay. All right. Wait. No, I, I, you had your turn to, um, you had, you can't speak from the back of the room. You can't speak from the back of the room and I, and I, and you've already had your opportunity to speak. So we're going to move on right now. And, uh, would someone like to introduce the ordinance? Introduced. The ordinance has been introduced in ordinance to the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, demanding article 10 vacation rentals of chapter 15 business tax receipts and the miscellaneous business regulations of the code of ordinances of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida to clarify enforcement authority, revised certificate of compliance, suspension, and penalty provisions, establish inspection access requirements, preserve enforcement following ownership or entity changes, providing for codification, providing for severability, provide for repeal of all ordinances in conflict, and provide for an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trintels? Yes. And I do, in reading this, uh, ordinance, um, you know, I recall the conversation. We had a very lengthy conversation with the commission at that time. And we did give direction to staff to make enhancements in order to make, um, compliance, uh, easier and, and in fact, um, more painful for non-compliance. And I think that you've done a good job. And, uh, and we're here on first reading. If there's, uh, Vanessa, if you want to speak with city staff between first reading and second reading to, to have a conversation that you feel that there perhaps may need, we may need to modify any part of this, you can take that opportunity over the next couple of weeks because we still need a second reading on this before we finalize these, this ordinance. All right. Moving on to OFR 4, um, first reading and ordinance amending, ordinance number 95-41, which established a defined contribution money purchase plan for certain city employees by changing the plan administrator to one designated by resolution. Okay. Uh, would someone like to introduce the ordinance? Introduce. No one has signed up to speak. Please call the roll. In ordinance of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, amending ordinance number C-95-41 by providing for the city's 401a defined contribution money purchase plan to be designated by resolution amending the definition of city-sponsored defined contribution plan in section 20-107 of the code of ordinances in the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and providing for codification, severability, repeal of conflicting ordinance provisions, correction of scrivener's errors, and an effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glassman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor your turn, tell us. Yes. And OFR 1 is now approved on first reading. OFR 5, uh, first reading and ordinance amending ordinance number 80-67, which established deferred compensation plans for city employees by changing the plan administrator to one designated by resolution and changing the public official designated to make certain determinations. We have Mr. Francis who signed up to speak. Mr. Francis would like to come up. Did you travel here from Columbus, Ohio? Thank you, Mr. Mayor. And I did travel here tonight. Um, and to the vice mayor and commissioners. I'll give you an extra minute. Well, thank you for that. Um, it's been a privilege of ours as nationwide to serve the city of Fort Lauderdale since 1980. And it's one we don't take for granted. It's a, it's a, it's a humbling experience to serve the city employees that take care of all the residents here, right? Um, from emergency management to just the overall operation of the city and our ability to help them save for and prepare for retirement is, is truly our honor. Um, in November of 2024, our process was initiated through an RFP or request for proposal, um, where today the city had multiple providers too. Um, so your employees could choose with their voluntary dollar, um, which, um, deferred compensation program was best for them and their families. Um, through that process, um, a decision was made by procurement through the process, um, to go with a new provider that wasn't currently serving the city of Fort Lauderdale. Um, since then though, much time has passed and, and in this time period, the provider that was initially selected during that procurement is going through a major merger and acquisition. Um, in fact, um, they've been acquired. Um, I'm not sure they could answer the RFP today as they did that. When you think about basic things like what is their employee identification number, where are they headquartered? What is their leadership? What is their vision? How would they serve the city? We really don't know as they've gone through this merger and acquisition and, and they're being acquired by a company today that's really not in the space. Um, so I think there's lots of questions on the horizon as far as, um, you know, where will this provider land as you look towards the future? And I'm asking the commission, I'm asking, um, your staff to reconsider and take a pause. Um, like we're seeing most entities across the country right now. Nationwide is one of the largest providers of deferred compensation. Here in the state of Florida, um, we are the largest provider serving not only the state, um, but also 60 counties and close to 200 cities and special taxation districts. And with plans the size of the city of Fort Lauderdale, many of them have consultants. And I can tell you from speaking with those consultants at the firm levels, they're all taking pauses right now to see, um, what's going to happen with this firm that's been acquired. Um, so this seems like a decision that may have been prudent at the time, but today warrants a pause, um, to make sure you're not on the bleeding edge or possibly on the, on a choice of making a decision to move to a company that may not exist as you thought it did when the decision was made to hire them. Um, so I'm, I'm rising into that occasion, asking for your consideration, uh, thoughtful pause, and understanding that through a consolidation process, there could be savings to your employees by going to one provider because of that scale. We're proposing to actually reduce our fees, um, that would save the city, your employees approximately a half a million dollars, um, while you were to go through this reevaluation process and opportunity to perhaps issue a new RFP or at least pause until the time when you can see who this new firm is going to be and how they're going to serve the city of Fort Lauderdale. With that, I thank you very much for your time this evening. Okay, great. Thank you so much. Can I ask a question? Uh, excuse me, just, just a question. So the funds that you offer within that, are they proprietary funds or are they, uh, any kind of fund that would be available through a standard brokerage? Can I go by, you know, Vanguard funds, for example? Sure. No, um, Mr. Commissioner, that's a great question. There is, uh, several different funds you can choose from, and I do believe there's also a self-directed brokerage option, which will allow you as a commissioner or employee, someone that's participating in the program to essentially buy whatever is out there available to the public. Because that's historically been the problem is that you've traditionally offered to us only captive funds, you know, throughout the years. I'm not sure what your current offerings are, but historically for the years that we've utilized, um, your services in the past, we didn't have the availability of some of the low cost passive index funds that we might have wanted to get to. So irrespective of whatever fees you're charging, the fees within the funds themselves were actually pretty high. You know, we were looking at, at managed fund fees that were relatively high through the years. Um, issue I've been bringing up for a long time, actually. So I was one of the ones that I've actually been encouraging our staff to go out to bid on our 401a and 457 plans going back as far as 2012. Uh, we actually never went out to bid on our plans, which as you know, as a fiduciary, uh, responsibility as the plan sponsor, we were probably putting ourselves as significant liability, um, for not doing that. Our plan fees were actually very high for many years, as I'm sure you're probably aware. So this is something that was long overdue. Um, I think you had ample opportunity to cut your fees over the last 20 plus years that I've been here. Uh, and it wasn't until we started looking at putting it out to bid that I think you started finally getting a little bit more competitive. So I, I think this, uh, this process is one that I think brought you guys to the table and got you to sharpen your pencil a little bit. So I'm glad we went through this. Um, I'm not sure that backing down at this point is really the best thing for our employees. Sure. And one, I appreciate the comments. And as you can probably imagine, um, through an RFP process is generally when pencils are sharpened. Um, and it has been a competitive position here in the city where you've had a choice, right? Participants that your employees could choose with their voluntary dollar, what program was best for them and their families. Um, as I, as I look towards the future and you raise the question of fiduciary, I think that's a great question. Um, my question back would be, is it prudent to move to a firm right now that's going through a major acquisition and merger that may not be the firm that you selected? So would it be actually prudent as fiduciaries to take that pause at this moment in time to when you could evaluate what this firm will look like into the future? And is it truly still the best decision, um, for the city of Fort Lauderdale? And, and that's what I'm asking through the competitive process, right? We would love to continue to serve the city of Fort Lauderdale, obviously. Um, but at the same time, we want to make sure that the right thing is happening for your employees. Um, and we're not sure at this point in time knowing that this merger is occurring and not knowing what the horizon is going to look like for this firm and how they're going to serve the city of Fort Lauderdale and recognizing that the questions of your RFP wouldn't be able to be answered largely the same as they did then today, um, is a great reason as fiduciaries to take that pause. My only concern is we did an RFP back in 2020, which my selection committee decided not to move forward on, unfortunately. And it's taken us now six years to get the next RFP out there and execute it. So if it's going to take us another six years to do another RFP, I might be concerned about that. Um, if I may, uh, Linda, could you come up and speak to some of these questions? If I could, Mayor, while, while Linda's coming up, I just like to, I don't want to confuse the issue, but this item before you tonight changes our ordinance related to how the plan administrator is designated to do it by resolution. It's not actually authorized or accepting or entering into an agreement based on the RFP. That'll be at a future meeting. So I just wanted to be sure. But I think it's kind of a larger conversation around this, and I think this is an important time to have that conversation. So I'm glad you're bringing it up. And I'd like to thank you for the opportunity. Thank you. And by the way, again, Linda knows that I've been hitting her over the head about every six months on this issue for as long as she's been working for the city. Yes. Uh, good evening, mayor, vice mayor, commissioners. So, um, as this acting city manager said, this particular ordinance change is to change in the ordinance that was written in 1980, it named who the plan administrators are. And we did do an RFP. We are looking for a new plan administrator for the 457 and the 401a plan. But in order to do so, we have to correct the error or the way that it was drafted before where it was naming who the vendors are. So typically when we write code, we don't write a particular vendor name in there. We just talk about the program. So one of the things that happened with this, um, code back in 1980 was it was not codified in our code of ordinances. It was an ordinance that was done to appoint these, um, plan administrators. So what we're trying to do now is to actually change the code to remove an individual party name. So if we change plan providers, we can do it by resolution and this time codify it in our actual code of ordinances where you can see a 457 plan was established by the city without naming who the vendor is and in the future resolution, if we change it, award who, who the plan administrator is. But to address Commissioner Herbst's questions, yes, this is not our first go around at this. We've tried more than one time to try and onboard a new plan administrator to help reduce the fees that the employees pay because to his point, the fees that were developed back then and put into the services agreement were never negotiated or through an RFP process. So the, they just pay whatever the, the fee was way back when. So as a way to try and drive down the amount that the employees pay for their investments in these plans, we did the RFP process to get some competition in there to ensure that we're getting, they're getting the best rate they can. Yeah. So Linda, I'm sorry, John, is that you finished? Yeah. Okay. So let me, I just ask you, um, does the amount, does, does the vendor themselves, I know this is not about choosing a vendor tonight. So we'll move forward on this. But since we've, since we've opened the door to discussion, um, so what consideration is being given to the quality of the vendor? In other words, is the return on investment a function of the quality of the vendor that we've had all these many, many years? Can we expect the same return on investment or better with any, with any new administrator? The return on investment, well, what it is, is not the return on investment because as the employee, you choose what investments you do. We're not going to control how much you make or what investments you put it in. What we're trying to do is see what investment products are out there so you can make the best choice for yourself and lower the fees you pay for those options. I see. Okay. All right. Very good. So Linda, is there any concern about what was mentioned to us this evening about the merger and acquisition of the, of the other, uh, firm? Are we going to be digging into that, Chris, Linda? We are going to be digging into it. We're currently right now have an agreement with the person who was selected to be awarded the RFP. Um, and so we're working with legal now on the documents and we do know about the merger to the new firm, but we don't know all of the details yet. Um, at this point in time, we did have an evaluation committee who was basically, the evaluation committee included every member, every union had a membership on there as well as somebody from general employees. So we don't want to just throw out the work that they did. Um, and I have not seen anything yet that gave me any reason for pause that whatever the merger is would affect. We're not working with them now, so we don't know what they're going to give us. We're awarding it to them for the first time. So we have not tried them to see if they're the best plan provider yet because we're going through the process, right? So we've never worked with them before. Okay. I just want, I'm sorry, go ahead. No, so we don't know what service levels and how those things are going to change because we don't know what the current is other than what they pitched us doing their presentations. It just raises a bit of a concern for me. Um, also the work that all of those representatives did was before probably that merger and acquisition happened. So I, I want to make sure that we're really checking this out as thoroughly as possible. By the way, is, um, is OFR4 at least related in any way to OFR5? They are. Are there fees in both OFR4 and OFR5? Absolutely. So with the 457 plan that we have two plan providers. The other one is for the 401A plan that we have for the ICMA. And there's only one provider for that. And there are fees included in both. Yes. That's paid by the employee. So that is something that is going to be looked at for both OFR4 and OFR5? Yes. Because this new provider will be taking over both plans. Yes. Okay. Great. Thank you very much. Okay. Any other questions or comments? There being none, someone would like to introduce the ordinance? Introduced. The ordinance has been introduced. Did you have a question? Okay. Um, the ordinance has been introduced. Please call the roll. In ordinance to the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, amending ordinance number C-80-67 by providing for the administrator of the city's deferred compensation plan to be designated by resolution and for the director of finance to be the designated individual to ensure certain statutory requirements and providing for codification, severability, repeal of conflicting ordinance provisions, correction of scriveners errors, and in effect date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentos? Yes. And OFR5 is now approved on first reading. Moving on to OSR1. This is the second reading, an ordinance amending the classification table of a pay plan and establishing a new classification. No one has signed up to speak. Someone would like to introduce the ordinance? The ordinance has been introduced. Please call the roll. In ordinance to the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, amending the non-bargaining unit classification table of the pay plan of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, as amended by creating and adding one job classification, providing for severability, repeal of conflicting ordinance provisions, correction of scriveners errors, and effective date. Vice Mayor Sorensen? Yes. Commissioner Herbst? Yes. Commissioner Glossman? Yes. Commissioner Beasley-Pittman? Yes. Mayor Trentos? Yes. And OSR1 is now approved on second reading. There's nothing further on the agenda. City Manager, do you have any additional business with the commission tonight? I do not. And City Attorney, do you have any additional business? No, Mayor. Any announcements? Sorry, Mayor, hold on one second. I'm sorry. City Manager, were we going to talk about the September date? We heard that there was one commissioner that had a conflict. Okay. So what is it? What's the decision? So for the September meeting, the 14th to 15th, we have a budget meeting one day and a commission meeting the other day. We were seeking, and if any of you had any conflicts with consolidating those dates, and it sounds like one does, so we won't be able to consolidate that date. Or that would be a consideration to not consolidate that date. So we'll have a budget meeting one day and a commission meeting the next. What are the dates again? It's like the September 14th and 15th. Okay. All right. Thanks. Thanks, Mayor. All right. Let me know for the business of the commission. This meeting is now included. Thank you.