Good morning. Welcome everyone to the Polk County Board of County Commissioners board meeting on February the 3rd, 2026. Would you please all stand with me and we will have our Mr. Hanley do the invocation. Thank you. And then stay standing for the pledge. Good morning. I would invite you to pray with me. Heavenly Father, your word declares that the blessings of the Lord makes one rich and adds no sorrow. Today we humbly ask your blessing upon this meeting and upon all those gathered here. Extend to us your grace, wisdom, and favor. Thank you for being a God who is always generous and loving and who exceedingly abundantly blesses us in ways we cannot even imagine. And it's in Jesus' name that I pray. Amen. Before we get started with our meeting, I'd like to invite you to an event we're going to have immediately after this board meeting. It's a short celebration of Polk County's 165th anniversary. The actual anniversary date is February the 8th, but that is on a Sunday, so we thought we would celebrate it today. A little bit early, but better early than not. We will be unveiling a display of the past 165 years of Polk County's history, hear from our local historian, and celebrate with some cake. So we invite all of you, we thank you, and see you right after the board meeting outside in the lobby. We will continue with our agenda. And do we have public comments concerning agenda items? Okay. And we will move on to our County Comptroller, Mrs. Butterfield. Good morning. We have today for you to ratify, approve, and ratify payroll checks number 04384 through 04406, and the amount of $31,546.75. We have 2,981 direct deposits, and the amount of $4,659,789, and $63, dated January 23rd of 2026. We have wired electronic fund transfers of $37,161,645.95, and those are dated January 20 through February 2nd of 2026. And lastly, invoice checks numbered 498,169 through 499,016, totaling $14,624,001.90, dated January 20th through February 2nd of 2026, for you to approve and ratify, please. Motion for approval. Second. I have a motion and a second. Any questions, discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. We also request the approval of your regular board meeting held on January the 20th of 2026, please. So moved. Second. I have a motion and a second. Any questions, discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Anything else, Ms. Butterfield? Yes, ma'am. Two quick things. One, I want to highlight a successful event we had this past weekend, Passport Day last Saturday, that we held at our two branches. We process just shy of 400 passport applications between the two locations. Just to put it in perspective, on an average day, we process about 61 applications, so more than six times the amount. Thankful to the community for coming out to avail themselves of this opportunity and thank the staff for their hard work. And we do want to remind everyone that we do process passport applications every day of the week, Monday through Friday, 8 to 4 30, at any one of our three locations. And the second item is to come, and Commissioner Scott and I are going to, you know, we're on the Valentine's color theme today. Next, a week from Saturday, on February 14th, the sweetest day of the year, I'm going to host a special event again this year. It's our 13th annual group Valentine's wedding. And for any couples wishing to get married in a group of ceremony, we have a wonderful complete ceremony for couples. Make it absolutely simple. It is, the event is held at noon, and it will be at the beautiful History Center on the steps of the History Center. And Commissioner Troutman will be there to open the ceremony for us and deliver and encourage a message, a brief message to our couples. And if you want more information, visit our website at polkclerkfl.gov. So thank you. Thank you, and good luck with that event. It's always a good one. It is. It's a nice event. Moving on, before the approved consent agenda. Motion for approved. Second. I have a motion and a second. Any discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Thanks. County Attorney, Mr. Randy. And County Manager, Bill Beasley. Good morning, Madam Chair, members of the board, members of the viewing audience. The manager's office will have four items for board consideration this morning. Item number G1 is to request the board to approve a construction contract with A.C. Schultes of Florida Incorporated in connection with the Northeast Regional Utilities Service Areas Alternative Water Supply Receiving Facilities Supplemental Supply Well Project. This board action will reflect a one-time contract expense not to exceed $1,801,563. Polk County has completed the public process to solicit bids from qualified contractors to construct an upper Florida and aquifer supplemental supply well at the future site of the Northeast Region Utility Service Area's Alternative Water Supply Receiving Facility, located approximately four-tenths of a mile east of Holly Hill Road in the general vicinity of downtown Davenport. Bid number 26030 was issued, and A.C. Schultes of Florida Incorporated was the sole responding bidder submitting a qualifying bid in the total amount of $1,715,775. A recommendation of award was issued, and no protests were received. In accordance with resolution number 13066, $85,788, or 5%, is included in the proposed contract award total to address allowance and contingency work conditions. The contract time for this project has been set at 240 calendar days for final completion. Funding for this project is budgeted within the Utilities Operating Fund and is identified within the Utilities Five-Year Community Investment Program. So, Madam Chair, members of the Board, I think consistent with the Board's priority commitment to the County's Alternative Water Supply Initiatives, I would request that the Board approve the proposed construction contract with A.C. Schultes of Florida in connection with the Northeast Region Utility Service Area's Alternative Water Supply Receiving Facilities Supplemental Supply Well Project in an amount not to exceed $1,801,563. Okay. Motion for approval? Second. I have a motion and a second. Any questions? Discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Next. Madam Chair, members of the Board, item number G2 is to request the Board to approve a construction contract with Stokes Marine Incorporated in connection with the Crystal Lake Park Boardwalk Replacement Project. This Board action will reflect a one-time contract expense not to exceed $649,152.28. The existing Crystal Lake Park Boardwalk is a 600-foot wooden boardwalk that overlooks a section of Crystal Lake. The structure, which is over 25 years old, is currently closed as it has been deemed unsafe to public access due to its age and associated decomposition of the wood material. In 2023, the Board approved an agreement with the Madrid Engineering Group to provide construction plans and bid documents for the boardwalk's reconstruction. In late 2025, Polk County completed the public process to solicit bids from qualified contractors for their demolition and reconstruction of the existing boardwalk. Funding for both the engineering services and the construction efforts is provided through the Federal Community Development Block Grant funds and is included in the Board's approved Community Development Block Grant work plan. Bid number 25666 was issued and two contractors submitted bids. The lowest responsive and responsible bid being submitted by Stokes Marine in the total amount of $618,240.28. A recommendation of award was issued and no protests were received. In accordance with resolution number 13066, $30,912, or 5%, is included in the proposed contract award total to address allowance and contingency work conditions. The contract time for this project has been set at 150 calendar days for final completion. Funding for this project, for this passive park refurbishment initiative project, is budgeted and available within the five-year Parks and Natural Resources Community Investment Program specific to the Special Revenue Grant Community Development Block Grant fund source. So, Madam Chair, members of the Board, I think in keeping with the Board's commitments to both passive and active recreational venues across all of Polk County, I would request the Board approve the proposed construction contract with Stokes Marine Incorporated in connection with the Crystal Lake Park Boardwalk Replacement Project in an amount not to exceed $649,152.28. Motion for approval. Second. I have a motion and a second. Any questions? I do. This has been closed how long now? A couple of years now. Okay, but before that it was very well used. Yes, ma'am. It's popular. In that community, it's very popular. And it's going to, the construction's going to start? Within about 30 days. 30 days. Yes, ma'am. So, I think they will be very happy to see this. Yes, ma'am. Come back for the neighborhood and the, for the citizens of that area. That's great. All right. Madam Chair. It's very popular right after school because the kids come down from the school. Oh, really? So, you can see it is really used by the community. And, and I know that they use it for fishing also. Yep. So, good. Okay. So, I have a motion and a second. Any other question, discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Madam Chair, members of the board, item number G3 is to request the board approve a consultant services authorization with Consor North America Incorporated to provide professional design and engineering services in connection with the Avon Park Cut-Off Road Bridge Replacement Project. This board action will reflect a one-time professional services expense not to exceed $345,036.41. As a result of the most recent Florida Department of Transportation bridge inspection report for bridge number 164312, the structure located along Avon Park Road over Bowlegs Creek, there are six metal culvert pipes that are in need of replacement due to deformation and significant corrosion. In April of 2025, the board approved CSA number 2209104 with Kissinger Campo and Associates to provide professional engineering services for the preparation of a bridge hydraulic report, a bridge development report, and 15% line and grade plans for replacement concepts of the existing bridge. Two bridge alternatives were evaluated, a bridge box culvert concept, as well as a slab beam two-span bridge concept. Based on the initial engineering investigation, Kissinger Campo Associates determined that the most cost-effective solution is to replace the Avon Park Cut-Off Road Bridge with a concrete box culvert type structure. As such, Polk County has requested Consor North America to provide professional engineering services for the design and preparation of contract plans and specifications, required permitting efforts, utility coordination, and post-design services for the construction of the new concrete box culvert structure. Funding for these bridge replacement professional services is available within the Transportation Millage Fund. So, Madam Chair, members of the board, I think in keeping with the board's priority commitments to safe and reliable transportation infrastructure, I would request the board to approve CSA number 2208404 with Consor North America to provide professional engineering services in connection with the Avon Park Cut-Off Road Bridge replacement project at a cost not to exceed $345,036.41. I have a motion and a second. Any questions, discussion? Yes, ma'am. I see Jay eased up here. Jay, I know I brought it up the other day in the agenda briefing, but what's our plan on, I know we have to shut this road down, haven't we, that's, there's really nowhere to go when you shut it down. I know you got some great ideas. And to not do it. Yeah, and not to do it while, and not be doing it while the flywheelers are going on. Yes, sir. For the record, Jay Jarvis, Roads and Drainings Director. Part of the design will be to look at alternatives. Is there a way to build some type of bypass? Are we having to buy right away to put in the replacement bridge? Those types of things, whether that's cost feasible or not. And then that will basically decide whether we're going to have to close the road down while construction is going on. We also have the alternative of doing some type of time frame in the contract bid. Basically, the sooner you get the thing done, the more you get paid type alternative. So those will be things we'll be looking at after we get the design in place and look at the different alternatives. Madam Chair, what I would say is let us vet this through the design process before we hit the streets with construction. We'll bring it back to the board and what we think is best. Yeah, and the reason I brought it up, and Jay well knows it, everybody knows it, there's just nowhere to really turn people off to get to point A to point B, and so it's something to look at. Thank you, sir. Any other questions, discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Madam Chair, members of the board, the final item from the manager's office this morning is the heavy lift of the day. Item number G1 is to request the board to approve a land purchase agreement between Wynonna, Sorensis, and Polk County for the planned construction of a new North Lakeland Government Center. Board action today will include a community investment program amendment and budget transfer to reflect a one-time property acquisition expense not to exceed $5,525,000. Polk County has a need for a new multi-purpose government center to service the northwest portion of Polk County. The new government center will be a replacement for the existing leased facility known as the Lakeland Government Center, located at the northwest corner of Parker Street and Ingram Avenue in the downtown vicinity of Lakeland. To accommodate the increased growth in the northwest portion of Polk County, a new government center would need to be located to the north and west of its current location. A review of available properties in the area, factoring in certain necessities such as size, location, access, transportation, and utility accommodation, has revealed only one site, which was determined to be the most reasonable site situated for the development of a new government complex. The selected property is a vacant parcel containing approximately 27 acres located along the east side of the four-lane portion of Kathleen Road to the south of Duff Road. County staff has had ongoing discussions with the owner regarding the purchase of this site for the expressed intent of the vision government facility. The county hired an independent appraiser to establish a value of the property, and the owner rejected the county's initial offer. Continuous negotiations with the owner have been ongoing, and they've proposed purchase agreement in the amount of $5,550,000 with the owner has been agreed to, and the owner has executed a land purchase agreement. Excuse me, that number is $5,500,000. The county attorney's office and the real estate services director have reviewed the land purchase agreement and recommend approval. The alternative to acquiring the property through a condemnation action would result in likely a substantial additional cost to the county. Approving the land purchase agreement and authorizing the issuance of funds for the purchase and closing cost, as well as hiring the American Government Services Corporation to close the transaction, will allow the county to move forward with the purchase of the property in preparation for the design and engineering phase of the project. A project budget of $5 million was initially established and included in the FY2526 adopted budget within the General Capital Improvement Fund. As some project expenditures have already occurred during the current fiscal year, a community investment program amendment in the amount of $569,500 is needed to cover the requested land purchase and closing costs in the amount of $5,525,000. Upon approval of the requisite budget transfer and community investment program amendment, $569,500 from the General Capital Improvement Fund reserves for capital expansion and $5,500,000 will be available for the property acquisition and $25,000 will be available to cover closing costs. The reserve fund amount will be replenished with the ending fund balance monies as part of the FY2627 budget. So, Madam Chair, members of the board, I think consistent with the board's priority commitments to public safety and general services to the citizens of Polk County, I would request that the board approve the proposed land purchase agreement, and I make these three items as a recommendation to the board. Item one, authorize the issuance of funds in the amount of $5,500,000 for the property purchase. Number two, request the board approve the hiring of American Government Services Corporation to close the transaction and approve the paying estimated closing costs in the amount of $25,000. And number three, approve the community investment program amendment and budget transfer from reserves in the amount of $569,500 to fund those purchase and closing costs as previously mentioned. And I put those three items in form of a single recommendation to the board. Motion for approval. I have a motion and a second. Discussion? Yeah, if I may, Madam Chair. Yes. So, wait, if you can just touch base. As far as those that are watching this that are part of that Kathleen community, I know we've had some discussion about seeking, you know, community input and the development of this property, although it will be for government services, it has functional features that it has to meet. But just some of those influences that we can have on how this will look aesthetically once we put plans in place. Yes, sir. Wade Allen, your real services director for the record. We've had those discussions jointly, even as much, and those will be presented and brought forward. So, we do anticipate that we're going to have, when we get a little farther along, we've got to get into design. And then once we go to that point, we'll look for some feedback. Thank you. But I think the anticipation is it will look similar to Lake Alfred. And isn't that kind of where we're going with this? Yes, sir. I think from a use and aesthetics. But I think there's going to be a little bit different flavor, maybe to the exterior of the property or something of that nature, to basically accommodate what I refer to as the Kathleen Government Center. So, anyway. Mr. Beasley or Wade, either one of you, could you provide the why we're moving with this government center and how we have one already in Lakeland and what's going to happen with that? I think people need to know why we're going to be spending this money and the reasons for it. Madam Chair, members of the board, this is kind of the third piece of the puzzle. We've been talking about a North Lakeland Government Center for 10 years, maybe. And we were able to land the plane, build the facility, open the facility in the Northeast Government Center out between Lake Alfred and Haines City. And that facility has functioned extremely well. It's still very new. We opened it in 22, maybe, I think, 22, 23 time frame. And that facility functions extremely well. It functions well for the constitutional officers that are occupying space there, as well as general county services that are there. Commissioner Braswell, we do envision a model very similar to what we put in the Northeast to serve as the North Lakeland Government Center. We're currently in an old, old facility in the downtown area of Lakeland that really no longer serves its function. And we have a five-year lease in that facility. I just think if you look at that concentric map, now you look at a county the size of Polk County and you look at where three government centers are located and how the intent is how convenient that should be to most citizens of the county who need access to those government services. I can't say enough to this board about what you're getting ready to review and consider. My hope is that the county seat offers everything. The Northeast Government Center brings relief to not only the county seat, but also to the citizens in that growing corridor of the county. And now the North Lakeland Government Center will do likewise. I can't say enough about, now it's, if the board approves this, now it's not about where we're going to build the North Lakeland Government Center, it's when we're going to build it. And as part of next year's budget appropriations, I will be asking the board for design and engineering money associated with moving that to the next phase of that project. I think it sets the tone for the county over the next 50 years. I can't say enough about the vision that this board and prior boards have had in doing just that. The citizens will be appreciative. I think I'll be proud of this. It's not cheap, but it clearly is the future of how government services get offered in a reasonably convenient manner to the citizens of Polk County. And the Northeast building that was built a couple of years, it's just, has served that community greatly. Yes, ma'am. Greatly. Continues to and will for the next 50 years. And I understand the current location in downtown Lakeland was never, it was never constructed as a government center. This will be constructed and, and, and set out and utilized as a government center. What you've got in downtown Lakeland is basically part of the old former, go back some years, I'm dating myself, the old Searstown retail establishment. So we've been there for a lot of years under lease. This basically, we did the same thing with the Northeast. If you remember, we were under lease there for many years. We are now owner occupied, pardon the expression, and we anticipate to do the same thing up the Kathleen road. Okay. Ms. Butterfield, you may see you kind of like. Sure. Well, I just want to say thank you, Madam Chair, for the opportunity to the commissioners. Thank you. We have been talking about the need that we have for a new, in my case, looking at a courthouse for our services, but a new government center. The, as no shock to anyone, the county is growing in the demand for the services, um, have exceeded the, um, functionality of the leased facility, um, in terms of holding court, holding jury trials. We actually hold jury selection at the various courthouses, no longer just in Bartow. And then the ability to, um, the functionality, the Northeast government center works very, very well for our customers that we serve there and for the people in our offices and the courts to be able to, to serve those. So as I think you have mentioned the footprint, at least for that Northeast center, um, works well, and I'm sure will be used all that we've learned in the two or three years that we've been on that building to be able to lift that and be able to, uh, design this North Lakeland government center. And I hear you loud and clear that what I'm hearing is the aesthetics of the outside may be, um, altered to fit into the community. And I, I think that's fantastic for the County to consider that input, but I can tell you on behalf of our office and I know chief judge, um, spoke last week to you about the needs, um, just simply for the number of courtrooms that we need to actually hold it out there with the expansion of the courts, with our new judges that were approved last year and bringing those on, um, we can utilize these various areas. They have two in Northeast and those are being used and will be used to house another judge. So thank you very much. I appreciate it. Any other comments? Okay. We have a first and a second motion. All in favor. All right. Opposed motion carries. That's it for me, Madam chair. Thank you. Commissioner Troutman. Um, I would actually like, we have all just survived the Florida blizzard of, you know, 2026, but I see, um, Tamara out in the audience and if she could give us a brief update as far as how our utilities fared through this experience of winter for us. Okay. Good morning. Tamara Richardson, utilities director. Um, we did pretty well. The system itself is it, it's all the pipes are at three feet, which is below the freeze line. So the system itself did fine where we saw problems were from customer calls where, um, a backflow preventer, uh, it's maybe got too cold, maybe frozen, started leaking or on the service connection at the meter. So anytime the pipes would come a little closer to the surface, we did have some problems. We've gotten lots of calls. We have staff that's working 24 seven right now to respond to all those calls and get those repairs made. So we had, um, lots of play individual places. It's nothing that was system-wide, not anything that was particularly largely hit, but individual homes that have had issues, but we're working to address all those. So we've asked our, we asked our customers, just let us know we're getting to everybody. Just be patient. We're getting there. So Madam chair, we did have one or two inconvenience communities that had to go to a boil water notice. I think because of, um, a loss of water pressure. Do you have an idea as far as expectation of a week, two weeks to be able to work through those lists? I don't know what type of numbers you're dealing with. I would think within two weeks we'll have, we will have reached everybody because they've already started slowing down. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Nothing else, Madam chair. Thank you. Commissioner Wilson. No, ma'am. Don't have a time. Thank you. Commissioner Braswell. Um, yeah. First, I want to thank Amber for putting this recognition for the county together. Um, uh, this year, uh, seemed to be the right time to do it, uh, since it's the 250th anniversary of our, our country. So, um, uh, thanks Amber for, for, for, for doing all that. Uh, second, uh, second, I think I can speak on behalf of, um, every farmer in Florida. Let's get this winter over with. Um, I'm sick and tired of it. And I think everybody else is, um, I've never seen temperatures. Um, we had 22 degrees for quite a while. I think it was Sunday. It was a Sunday night, the cold night. Yeah. Uh, yeah. And, um, as low as 27 last night. So, uh, I'm ready to be done with it, but, uh, maybe, maybe, maybe it's over. We'll see. I hope so. Anything else? That's it. Okay. Commissioner Scott. Yes, Madam Chair. I'd like to reappoint, reappoint Skip Alfred as member seat nine of the Polk County Industrial Development Authority for the three-year term, February 6th, 2026 through February 5th, 2029. Second. I have a motion and a second. Any discussion questions? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Madam Chair, if I may, one other thing, just on the utility side of things, I certainly know from constituents that were concerned about water leaking and wasting water, realize that there are lots of resources that we have as a county to respond, but no different than when a hurricane happens and you've got tree damage and trees down, we can't instantaneously blitz the entire county and in one fell swoop correct it. So with those utility issues that we had, again, I think we've done a great job responding to those with the resources that we have and again, we're always being conscious of how we spend taxpayers' dollars and those budgets are key. So I just really do appreciate Tamara and her whole group and I think the communication that we had through Facebook and other social platforms was very impactful for the community as well because it wasn't just where do I find information, literally, I wasn't even asking for the information and it came up on my platform. So we did a great job, I think, this time in that communication effort. So thank you. Thank you. Anything else? That's all. Yeah, I also want to say thank you for the job well done with the county. With those kind of temperatures, I didn't know what to expect. I guess my only experience was a hurricane, so I kind of compared it to a hurricane and I knew everybody had to be like just ready to deal with whatever issues the county dealt with. So I'm very glad. I'm sorry for the farmers. I thought about them a lot, prayed about the whole situation. But other than that, I'm glad that we fared the cold temperature. We still have February to deal with, so let's just cross our fingers and hope that nothing else comes our way. That's it for me. We have a lay board appointment. Sure. I'll move to appoint Lita Epstein to the Toho Water Authority Board of Supervisors for the remainder of a vacated term ending September 30, 2028. Second. I have a motion and a second. Any questions, discussion? Hearing none. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. We're going to move on to our expedited hearings or our hearings because we don't have expedited hearings at this one time. That's correct, Madam Chair. We'll go straight into the normal public hearings. Prior to doing so, I'll go over the public hearing general procedures. I'll remind everyone if you wish to speak on any of the public hearing items, you need to fill out a speaker card in the back and give the card to a member of the communication staff. We ask that you please turn off your cell phones and other devices that may distract from the public hearings. Please adjust the microphone and state your full name and address for the record before you begin speaking on a topic. Individuals speaking during the public comment section of a matter will be strictly limited to three minutes. The Board is experiencing these matters and is able to discern what is legally relevant to an issue and what is not. Information that is relevant or repetitive only serves to frustrate and necessarily prolong the day's business. The Commission expects civility at all times during all public hearings. Speaking out of turn, shout out from the audience. Disapplicable sounds or utterances while another is speaking are unacceptable and you will be asked to leave the chambers for the remainder of the day. If any person decides to appeal any decision made by the Board with respect to any matter considered today, you will need a record of proceedings and that for such purpose you may need to ensure that a verbatim record of proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is based, which you must gather at your own expense. Anyone in the audience who wishes to speak and present testimonies today must be sworn in. All testimony given during public hearings shall be deemed to be sworn. This is only for the section for the public hearings. At this time, if you're going to address the Commission or speak on any case today, please stand, raise your right hand, and answer out to the following question. Do you swear or affirm the testimony or evidence you provide to the Commission today is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? Thank you, Madam Chair. At this time, we'll go to 01. Thank you. Good morning. For the record, I'm Amy Gregory, Traffic Manager for the Roads and Drainage Division. And before you this morning is a public hearing to consider adoption of a resolution to allow the placement of six traffic calming devices or speed humps along Hancock Road in Lakeland. Hancock Road is classified as a local residential road, 12 feet wide, 4,435 feet long, with a posted speed limit of 25 miles an hour. Upon receiving a request for traffic calming, staff collected speed and volume data and reviewed the crash history, and with an 85th percentile speed of 43 miles an hour and an average daily traffic of 399 vehicles, Hancock Road met the Board's traffic calming policy criteria for speed and volume. Staff subsequently distributed ballots to the homeowners with property fronting Hancock Road, and we received the required 80 percent favorable response from yes votes and from non-votes per the Board's policy. Staff also distributed ballots to the homeowners whose access is through Hancock Road, and we received the required 50 percent favorable responses from yes votes and from non-votes per the Board's policy. On January 6, 2026, a hearing date of February 3, 2026, was set by consent agenda, and staff posted on-site notices as well. And as much as the Board's criteria for the installation of traffic calming devices have been met, staff recommends the adoption of a resolution to install six speed humps along Hancock Road. And I'll stand for any questions. Any questions for staff? Okay. Hearing none, we will go on to the public hearing. I've got a few people that have signed up already. Jeff Shenfield. I hope I said their last name correct. Close. Please state your name and address. And you have three minutes. Good morning. My name is Jeff Shenfield. I live at 9565 Hancock Road. I've lived there for seven years, eight years. As she put in her description, it's a one-mile, single-lane road, 25 miles an hour through the strawberry fields. In 2020, they did the traffic study, and she listed everything out, 400 cars, 43 miles per hour. But that was six years ago, five years ago. Now it's even faster and much more volume every day. Last fall, our neighbor's child was waiting at the bus stop just across the street from my house and was nearly hit because the cars, when they pass each other, they actually have to get off into the dirt. And when they get off into the dirt, it's not very bright out there. So there's kids standing there waiting for the bus before time changes, and the kid almost got hit. So it's a huge safety concern out there. So for the safety of the residents, please vote to approve these speed bumps. Thank you. Thank you. Madam Chair, may I? Hey, Jeff, where is the bus stop located, if you look at that? The bus stop is, if you see J.A. Fenton Road coming from the west, or on this picture from the top down, right there where the mouse is, the bus stop is on the corner where the two roads intersect. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. I have George Stephen Black. Good morning. George Stephen Black, 9905 Hancock Road. I live on the corner of Hancock Road and Old Dade City Road, at the north end of Hancock Road. We first bought property there in 1976, 50 years ago. Built our home, moved in in February of 1980, so we've been a resident there for 46 years. As has been said, Hancock Road is a county-maintained road, not built to county-maintained standards. As was said, it's only 12 feet wide on 90% of the road. Now, just south of my driveway is a little bit wider, 16 foot going into the first S-curve. But people come off Old Dade City, and they use it as a shortcut so they don't have to stay on Old Dade City and go around by Socrumb Elementary to West Socrumb Loop. They're using Hancock Road as a shortcut, and none of them do 25 miles an hour. Just the other day, one of these sports cars, he was doing probably 40 by the time he hit the S-curves. Then he floorboarded it down the straightway before he got to the curve that goes around the lake, and I heard him all the way going south, just getting it as hard as he could. If he would have met another vehicle coming towards him, there would have probably been a wreck. As Jeff said, because it's only 12 foot wide, the county roadway maintenance years ago added some lime rock on each side of the pavement. So you have to get half your vehicle off the road to meet the vehicle coming towards you. And that being said, a lot of people don't want to get off the road. They want to keep doing their 50 or 60 miles an hour, and they're either going to hit you or you're going to have to get all the way off. So the speed humps, I hope, will help control the people that's using the road as a shortcut, as a road course. But I think the ultimate fix is going to be when the Kathleen Road widening and extension project takes place. It's supposed to stay west of Hancock Road, so people on Old Dade City will be getting on Kathleen to head south. People coming from Kathleen will either get off on Sokrum Loop or stay on until they get on Old Dade City. But that project is just now getting started, just hadn't even hired a consultant yet. So we're talking, you know, several years down the road. So hopefully the speed humps will deter traffic now. Thank you. Thank you. That concludes our speakers for this topic. So I will bring it back to the board for a motion. Close the public hearing. Hmm? Close the public hearing. I did. I closed the hearing. Yeah. All right. Motion for approval. Second. Okay. I've got a motion and a second. Any discussion or questions? Hearing none. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Moving on to the next one. Good morning. For the record, Scott Lowry, Real Estate Services Support Manager. I've got two items this morning. The first one is a petition received from Barbara Monday to vacate a portion of deeded right-of-way for Johnson Road in the Auburndale area. Subject area lies in Section 20, Township 27 South, Range 25 East. Right-of-way for Johnson Road was conveyed to Polk County through a series of quick-claim deeds, with the southernmost portion being conveyed in 1971 by a quick-claim recorded in OR Book 1338, pages 855 and 856. Johnson Road is a paved roadway, excuse me, maintained by the county. However, the road stops short and does not extend into the right-of-way lying adjacent to the petitioner's property. It does not appear that the subject portion of the right-of-way has ever been paved or been maintained by the county. The petitioner is requesting the vacation of the right-of-way adjacent to her property to remove the public interest and allow for future development of two residential home sites via an access easement. The owners of the two properties to the east of the subject area were contacted, and one of the owners objected. However, she currently has and is utilizing legal access from Berkeley Road. Vacating the subject right-of-way will remove the public interest in the subject area and allow the petitioner to move forward with her plans. The appropriate utilities and county divisions were notified. TECO requested an easement for existing facilities. And the county requested, oh, thank you, a 15-foot-wide easement that extends on the east half and extends all the way to an existing drainage deets on the south. The petitioner has agreed to both requests. Staff recommends the board adopt a resolution to vacate and close a portion of deeded right-of-way for Johnson Road, as more fully described in the legal description contained in the petition and resolution. We also request the board accept the drainage easement that's been granted by the petitioner. And I'll remain standing for any questions. Any questions for staff? Hearing none, we'll open it up for public hearing for this item. And I have Helen B. Ganey. My name is Helen Ganey, and I live on 1407 Johnson Road, and I've lived at this property for 54 years. I will repeat some of the things that you may have said not to, to help me get through to my point. We object to the county vacating the deeded right-of-way on Johnson Road. This is a public right-of-way and should remain public. It will serve a purpose to get to this land past the paved road. A resident paved the last part of the county of that 25-foot, and the county repaved it the last time it paved Johnson Road. We all gave 25-foot to this road to get to our homes, and our people passed that paved road. It's a double-paved road of 50-foot. It goes to 25-foot. And the other, they built, the county built clay. Clay's under the grass now because, yes, it hasn't been maintained other than mowed. It's been mowed. The neighbor next to that property graciously mowed that right away. So it hasn't been grown up because of a resident taking care of it. And we enjoy walking that area, too. We want drainage not to be disturbed like it has already been done with new construction in the last three years. The land, and this is very wetland we're talking about. I'm not against my neighbor selling it because her daddy was our neighbor. It's that we don't want to be flooded out. That was built up more than the normal. That many load after load after load after load of big loads hauled in. Usually you just build up around your house, you bevel it out, so your land can still take care of the water. There's been no provisions, and it's coming back on us. It would have flooded my neighbor if he hadn't used a sump pump during the hurricane last time. It floated, the water floated across the road. In front of our houses. So that tells you how much water is coming back on our land. And the drainage has not been kept clean. Is that three minutes? That's three minutes. Thank you. Okay. May I say also that if you don't hear it. Ma'am, your time is up. But I want to, it's towards you. If you don't approve it, can you delay it to make sure you have that right away for drainage? That's what, the drainage mentioned in there. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Madam Chair. Yes. Can we speak, because I know we specifically call out the drainage easement, which is actually an improvement versus what we have now for access. Can we speak to some more detail on the drainage easement? We have the easement in hand. It's been granted and executed by the petitioner. One thing about it which makes it better is it would actually extend a little farther to the south than the right away does, which would actually connect to the southfall ditch. Right. So I think in the past we had not had access to that. So from complete maintenance provisions, we didn't have access to be able to do that. The current right away stops at this, where the yellow is. So that's as far as the right away extended. This easement would extend about 40 feet farther south and connect with that ditch. So it's an improvement to the drainage situation. Correct. We believe so. And if I may, one other thing, I don't know if Jay's still here or not, but as far as a schedule for us to go out and implement the maintenance required, I'm assuming since we haven't had access to it, there's likely some issues that may be there that we need to address sooner than later or to reestablish drainage if it has been impeded over the years. I'll let Jay speak to that. Once again, good morning. Jay Jarvis, Roads and Drainage Director. Yeah, we have met with the real estate services people about this particular vacation and discussed the drainage. Our intent would be that once this is, if this moves forward and is finalized, we would go out there and get it on schedule basically to clean the drainage system and basically go as far south as what is shown to tie into the existing outfall system and get that established. And then, of course, maintenance would be kind of more as-needed type maintenance. In the future. From a schedule perspective, Jake, if this is approved today, can we get that scheduled on the reestablishment and complete it before hurricane season is upcoming? Yes, sir. Just want to make sure they have relief, at least provisions for relief in place prior to that. Yes, sir. Thank you. And that will be the first time they've actually had someplace for the water to go, so it's going to go down with the extension, get into that existing drainage ditch that goes underneath Berkeley Road, I believe, over to Lake Erie. Yeah, it goes down to basically the gapway intersection with Berkeley Road and then ultimately goes into the lake, that system down. So the water will have somewhere to go? Once again, it's what we control and what exists. It will get to the system. I just don't know about the functionality of the existing system that we don't have the easement on as far as how open that may be. The part that goes across the private. That is correct. Yes, sir. Any other questions for Jay? Thank you. Thank you, Jay. I have Mark Hudhavson. Hello. I'm Mark Hunhausen. I live at 1410 Johnson Road across from Junior and Helen there. My biggest concern was just like Helen that we were going to get, Johnson Road would get cut off from that little creek that runs southeast. I've lived on that property since 1972, so that is the natural flow of the property. And I thought this old country boy better learn how to build an art. But Mr. Allen assured to me that you folks would be able to reconnect and keep the water going that way, and I'll take him for his word on that. Thank you. Thank you. And the last one for this topic is Mr. Hector Santiago. I appreciate it. My name is Hector Santiago. I live in 3821 Berkeley Road. I appreciate the opportunity you've given me to speak, but they have done everything. Thank you. Thank you. That's all I have, so I close the public hearing, and I'll bring it back to the board. Hold on. Just a second, please, if you don't mind. Just so we're clear, there's a house constructed on this property right here. They also objected, but they have access, they have an easement that runs them to Berkeley Road. So they're not actually accessing this point today. This will be an access easement afterwards, after we've instructed, you know, we're only dealing with the vacation today. What gets constructed out here will have to be looked at from a land development, engineering, and also through swift mud from that standpoint. I would like to also say that basically on the east side of this road, this is a one-lane road, so you understand. North of here is basically a one-lane road for a good portion. And so from that standpoint, the drainage ditches on the east side of the road, the driveways there have culverts. There's an identified ditch for a good portion there. On the west side of the road, there is no drainage. The culverts are very far up north. Most of the properties down to the south do not have culverts. There's not really a ditch line. It's just a, you know, basically kind of a swell-type situation. So realistically, we'd probably have to do a cross-strain at some point in time to get it back into this location here. But that's some of the items that Jay will look at and go from there. So thank you. Mr. Santiago, you didn't use your three minutes, so I'll allow you to come back. Thank you very much. Yes, the gentleman is right. There is a house being built in adjacent to Johnson Road, but he hasn't said that the access to that house, the safest access to that house is Johnson Road. That house has been built about 600 feet from Berkeley Road, and that house is only about 50 feet from Johnson Road. Let's say anything happens, where is the safest place to go? From Johnson Road or 600 feet from distance to Berkeley Road, where the Eastman is located at? So I would like you to think about that and oppose to this vacate of Johnson Road. Thank you. Thank you. And just to be clear on that point, Johnson Road is not a county road at this location. They would not be able to connect to it. All right. I've closed the public hearing, so bring it back to the board for questions, discussion. Do I have a motion? So moved. I have a second. I have a first. I have a second. No more discussion I've heard. So all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Okay. My next and last item is a petition received from Frank Upon to vacate a portion of platted public drainage retention easement lying within his property as shown in the Platt of Country Class Estates, Phase 2, recorded in Platt Book 92 at pages 45 and 46. The Platt of Country Class Estates, Phase 2, was filed in 1991 and dedicated all of the rights away in easements to the use of the public. The petitioner is the owner of Lot 30, which contains a single-family residence and is encumbered by a large platted drainage-slash-retention easement over the rear of the property. The petitioner purchased the property approximately two years ago, and a recent survey revealed that in addition to the residence, along with two existing sheds associated with the prior owner, encroach into the drainage easement. The petitioner is requesting the vacation of a portion of the platted easement in order to clear the encroachments caused by the previous owner and to allow for future improvements in the rear of the current residence. County's Roads and Drainage Division staff and the county engineer have reviewed the request and have no objections to vacating the subject portion of the easement. Vacating the requested portion of the easement will remove the public's interest in the subject area and allow the petitioner to resolve the existing encroachments and move forward with any future improvement plans. Staff recommends the board adopt a resolution to vacate and close a portion of the platted public drainage retention easement shown on the platted country-class estates Phase 2 as more fully described in a legal description contained in the petition and the resolution. And I'll remain standing for any questions. Any questions for staff? Thank you. Obviously, that area out there we heard a lot about during this past storm season and needing to clear drainage and to get water off of property. I'm assuming if you're recommending us approving this that you don't see it as a negative impact on surrounding neighbors. Staff reviewed it and they don't see it as an impact. Actually, the petitioner had volunteered to, they're planning to fill this area. It's about 85 cubic yards to fill. They plan to remove that here to offset that impact, to mitigate that impact. Plus, they said the effect was negligible as it was. And neighbors were notified of this? Uh, no, they were not, uh, because it does not, uh, lie adjacent to, to anyone other than the petitioner. Okay. Any other question for staff? Madam Chair, just one other clarification. On that proposed cut area that they're using to offset the fill, that's still above, or it's not in the floodplain, correct? It's following the same kind of... Correct. It's only, here's, you can see the ditch outlined here. It's on the other side of the ditch. Okay. Just want to make sure. Very good. Thank you. Anybody else? And we don't have any, uh, public speakers for this, so we close the public hearing and bring it back to the board. Move for approval. I have a first and I have a second. Any questions, discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Thank you. Thank you. Now we're going to move on to the request from the general public, an opportunity to be held. Do we have any? Okay. In order that they were received. Thank you. I have Kay Bork. Yes, ma'am. Good morning, commissioners. I appreciate the time this morning. Um, the pictures that you'll see in this, uh, presentation, there they are, are actually animals from Polk County, so I'll love them more. I'd like to use my comments today for recognition of those who are in the trenches every day, working to save the animals who, through no fault of their own, have ended up without a family to love them. There are some who stop to save an animal off the street. There are others who speak up when they see an animal tethered outside all the time. Some trap sprays, strays, and bring them into rescue before they add to intake numbers at the county shelter. Others partner with the shelter to pull animals into rescue and foster, and some work with the homeless population to help them care for their pets. Some manage community cat colonies. Some trap, neuter, and release to stop cat population growth. Some foster animals, giving them a chance to know what a home is like so that they can be adopted. Some take care of the mamas and babies while they are most vulnerable, bottle feeding when necessary. Some take the medical cases to give them a fighting chance, or in the case of hospice, a chance to feel love at the end of their lives. Some volunteer to walk dogs, to trap cats, to take animals to veterinary appointments, to attend community events to educate the people of Polk County. Some work on the animal control team, both in the field and at the shelter, fighting for the animals, trying to get them back out the door, offering comfort and fundamental needs. Many provide support with money, food, cat litter, puppy pads, medications, toys, beds, blankets, and so on. I want to thank all of those people who are standing in the gap for those animals who have no voice. But you know they have one thing in common. Their hearts ache when they cannot help because there are so many. They are discouraged when they see litter after litter that could have been prevented. They're angry when they see a case of abuse that is unfathomable. But they work tirelessly because they know that these lives matter and that they are the ones who are left to pick up the pieces when the county fails us. Using the roadmap that I shared at your last meeting, I'd like to focus in on one area that can move the needle when it comes to intake numbers. Sterilization. High volume, low cost dogs and community cats are the key to reduce the number of animals entering the shelter system. Some rescues and others have previously proposed programs and would be excited to work with you to identify county funding to assist low-income Polk County residents to spay and neuter their pets. By working with people, implementing life-saving programs, and treating each life as precious, Polk County can truly show it believes in animal welfare. Thank you very much for the time. Ms. Kay, I'm sorry. Did you provide your name and address at the beginning? I have. My name is Kay Bork. I'm at 1133 Brook Road in Fort Meade. I apologize. Thank you so much. Next I have Ms. Debbie Hicks. Good morning. Debbie Hicks, 236 Alderman Road. And it has been extremely cold. And I imagine the animals, the dogs and cats all over the county and at Animal Control would be glad when this is over because as I volunteered there, it's all concrete. It's all metal. It's all concrete. There's no insulation except on the roof in one of the buildings. And I was there when the good-hearted people that worked at Animal Control were trying to cover the vents that the lady talked about last meeting because you can't close any of the vents. You can't close any of the windows. And the doors that get pulled down are garage doors that have no insulation. So anyway. And then when the inmates come in, they hose everything off. They take the dog out, hopefully, take the dog out, at least while I was there. And they hose down the thing, and it goes down the drain. But then the bed gets wet. Most of the time, the bed don't get dried. It's vinyl. It's cold. There's just no relief for these animals. They don't get taken out every day. So they're in 24-7. So the facility needs to be redone. It's just old and obsolete, which now that we're building this new building out in Kathleen, which I'm sure is much needed. And as Ms. Butterfield said, the county is growing. So the demand is growing on all our services. So we need to improve the county facility, which we own. It's our facility. And we're providing it to the sheriff's office to run. But we own the facility. And we need to acknowledge it's almost 40 years old. And as I heard a comment earlier about setting the tone of the county, don't we want to set a tone for the next 50 years of good animal control? It seems like a no-brainer. Then, the advisory committee. As we've heard with Kay, and as we've heard with all these people, there's different things we can do to bring the county, the people in this county, even more involved. But we need an advisory committee where these things can be discussed. To discuss the different ways we can get the people in the community to help with this solution. As we know, there's lots of them helping with this, but they're not stopping the process of having so many animals. That we need to try to stop. Thank you very much. Thank you. Madam Chair. May I? Yes. Also, Ms. Hicks, just FYI. They did put insulation panels, sheets over the vents. And despite what many people want to post on social media, there is heat in that building. They have heaters in there. So, just rest assured that it was not 22 degrees in the air for the animals. That makes me feel better, but not much. Thank you. Next, I have Johanna Mokai-Ajende. Good morning. Johanna Mokai-Ajende. 109 Sandburg Lane, Winter Haven, 33884. I feel like I was just here, but I'm back. And at this point, I was joking with myself that it feels like a job interview that I'm not getting. So, in true job interview form, let me tell you about myself. I did take off from my full-time job today to be here. I teach yoga on the side. I take care of my elderly parents. I volunteer with rescues. I'm not a rescue itself. I volunteer. I walk the dogs. I clean up bowls. And recently, I started trapping cats to be spayed or neutered and release them back where they're taken care of from their community. I support local business. I shop. I dine at local restaurants because I believe in supporting the community. I try to do my part to be an integral part of this community of Polk County. And I've been here for 15 years. And there's something to be proud of in having that strong sense of connection. And respectfully and unfortunately, I feel like we are not connecting, you know, with you guys as the commissioners and as elected officials. We ask for your participation in animal welfare. I know there are other issues in this county that we must address. We care about those two. We all want to work toward the betterment of Polk County. But today, we are here to speak for and defend the animals who cannot defend themselves. You're hearing from us here today, but there are thousands of voices online. The comments, the shares, the outrage, and the pleas. I urge you to make yourselves aware. It sounds like you guys have been seeing some of those. But more and more people are demanding change who are not physically standing here on this podium. In fact, since I started trapping for Street Cat just a month ago, I've had three people reach out to me to ask for help. Again, I'm not a rescue, and I'll try to help. But we need kind of, you know, your advocation to this as well. There's this concept called the beginner's mind. And this applies growth within the individual, but as well as society as a whole. And the beginner's mind is a mind that doesn't assume it already knows everything. Once we do, you know, we tend to surround ourselves with people with the same narrative. Then there's no room for growth. We become stuck. Right now, animal welfare in this county is stuck. What we have been doing is outdated. It's no longer working. So maybe I invite you guys to be part of this community that we're speaking for, the animal welfare community. We visit animal control. I'm happy to see that they do have a little bit more comfort. Start a dialogue with the local rescue leaders. Volunteer your time. See it firsthand. Even open the door for us to have that conversation with the Sheriff's Department. We're asking for progress, for compassion backed by action. Thank you for listening, and I hope we can move forward. Thank you very much. I think that's all that I have, so I close the public hearing, and I think we're adjourned. Please make sure that you come to the lobby with us and help us celebrate the 165-year anniversary. Thank you. This meeting is adjourned. Thank you.