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Minutes 04-13-99 MINUTES OF THE CEMETERY BOARD MEETING HELD IN CONFERENCE ROOM “A”, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA TUESDAY, APRIL 13, 1999 AT 7:00 P.M. PRESENT Tim Hensley, Chairman Diane Reese, Finance Director Joan C. Kuehn John Wildner, Parks Superintendent Sue Kruse Tereesa Padgett, Vice Chair Oris Walker I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Hensley called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. II. ATTENDANCE Ms. Kruse called the roll and a quorum was declared present. Ms. Kruse announced that Ms. Candace Smith has resigned from the Board. Ms. Kruse also announced that Ms. Diane Reese, the City’s Finance Director, was present at the meeting. III. AGENDA APPROVAL Chairman Hensley asked if there were any changes or additions to the Agenda. Chairman Hensley inquired why the election of officers was not included and also Chairman Hensley thought that under “Disinterment” there should be two items and not one. Ms. Kruse said she checked with the cemetery clerk prior to the meeting and was informed that there was only one disinterment to be ratified. Ms. Kruse would follow through on this. Ms. Kruse requested the addition under “Other” of item A, Citizen’s Concern Regarding Artificial Flowers. Also, the addition of item B, Notice of Violation on the Mausoleum Building”. Chairman Hensley requested that Ms. Reese’s presentation, item VII. A, “Florida Municipal Investment Trust” be moved up to the first item on the Agenda after approval of the Agenda. Motion Vice Chair Padgett moved to approve the Agenda, as amended. Motion seconded by Ms. Kuehn and carried unanimously. MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 FLORIDA MUNICIPAL INVESTMENT TRUST Ms. Reese referred members to the material in their packet regarding the earnings of the Florida Municipal Investment Trust during the previous year. Ms. Reese said investing in the Florida Municipal Investment Trust should be a long-term investment and noted this is not the type of investment that the Trust should look to if it wanted to see interest gains on a regular monthly basis. Ms. Reese stated that over the past year money the City invested in the fund earned approximately 7.5%, but at times the fund can show negative earnings and earnings can fluctuate. Ms. Reese stated that when investing in the Florida Municipal Investment Trust, the money must remain in the Trust for a three-year term, which results in a higher interest rate. Ms. Reese noted that currently bonds are not doing well and the stock market is high. However, when the stock market goes down, bonds would go up. Ms. Reese noted that the State pool is also going down since it is heavily invested in Treasury securities and bonds and is currently at 4.8 to 4.9%. Ms. Reese suggested that the Board could invest only a part of the cemetery funds in this type of long-term investment and it would not be necessary to invest the entire fund. Ms. Reese noted that if the cemetery fund invested only in c.d.’s, it is locked into a particular rate for a certain period of time. Ms. Reese reiterated that she felt it was a safe, long-term investment. Ms. Reese informed members that the principal would not be lost, but the 7% interest earned last year may not be realized this year. Vice Chair Padgett inquired about investing in annuities on a long-term basis that would insure the principal. Ms. Reese said that annuities could be looked at and stated there is still risk in annuities and most annuities are in Treasury notes and bonds. Also, with annuities you are guaranteed a flat rate up front and some annuities pay back the principal over a period of time. It is important to determine the type of annuity before investing in it. Chairman Hensley noted that the principal is insured when investing in the Florida Municipal Investment Trust and Ms. Reese confirmed this. Ms. Reese said she was not certain if there were any annuities that would insure the principal, but would look into this. Vice Chair Padgett wanted assurances that the principal would be insured. Ms. Reese said she felt comfortable investing in the Florida Municipal Investment Trust. Ms. Reese said that a person could go directly to the U.S. Treasury and purchase a $1 million Treasury Note and the rate of return is low. Ms. Reese said this is not the time to move money into the bond market. Ms. Reese suggested that the Board wait a month or two before investing. 2 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 Vice Chair Padgett inquired how long this program has been in existence and Ms. Reese thought it was three years and stated more municipalities are joining in. Mr. Walker inquired what the minimum number of years that the money could be invested in the Trust. Ms. Reese stated three years, which is an intermediate term. Chairman Hensley inquired if the Board was prepared to make a decision this evening or did the Board wish to discuss the issue further and remain with the c.d.’s. Ms. Kuehn suggested that one-third of the fund could be invested in the Trust. Ms. Reese would not recommend that the entire Cemetery Fund be invested in the Trust and stressed it is important to keep the portfolio diversified. Vice Chair Padgett expressed some concerns about the newness of the Trust and inquired as to the name of the firm that handled the investments for the Florida League. Ms. Reese stated that a firm in Atlanta handles the investments. Chairman Hensley noted that although this particular Trust is fairly new, the concept of the investment is not. Ms. Reese said it is patterned after the State pool, but the State pool is short term. Whereas, the Florida Municipal Investment Trust is much more long term. Also, Ms. Reese informed the Board that the money can be taken out of the Trust at any time and does not have to be left in the Trust for the full three years. There is an option of withdrawing funds twice each month and you would receive the entire balance of the account at withdrawal time. In order to do this, notification of withdrawal must be in writing. Ms. Reese suggested that she could invite a representative from the Florida Municipal Investment Trust to address the Board and give the Board a better overview of the Trust. Ms. Reese said she feels very secure with the Trust. Chairman Hensley said the Cemetery Fund should be earning more interest on its money and this Trust appears to be a safe investment. Mr. Walker suggested that the Board should invite a representative to come to a future Board meeting to make a presentation before a final decision is made. Chairman Hensley requested that Ms. Reese contact the Florida Municipal Investment Trust to arrange for a presentation and get back to Ms. Kruse. The Board thanked Ms. Reese for her presentation. IV. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – FEBRUARY 9, 1999 Chairman Hensley inquired if all the Board members had an opportunity to review the minutes of the February 9, 1999 meeting. 3 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 Motion Mr. Walker moved that the minutes of the February 9, 1999 meeting be approved. Motion seconded by Vice Chair Padgett and carried unanimously. V. RECEIPT OF BALANCE SHEETS – JANUARY & FEBRUARY 1999 Ms. Kruse informed members that the insurance charges are being lowered from $150 to $144 for the vehicles. Vice Chair Padgett inquired about the repairs to the 1996 Ford and Mr. Wildner stated those were repairs to the tractor. Vice Chair Padgett inquired why there would be so much expense to a newer vehicle. Mr. Wildner stated that it is a very big piece of machinery with a great deal of hydraulics and this is considered normal maintenance. Mr. Wildner was not certain of the type of repairs that were made to the vehicle. Mr. Wildner stated that repairing this type of tractor requires a great deal of labor to get to the problem. Chairman Hensley inquired what the hourly repair rate was and Mr. Wildner stated it probably varied, depending upon which employee performs the work. Mr. Wildner informed the Board that there are two different types of billing and the Cemetery Board asked to be billed in this manner. Mr. Wildner informed members that the General Fund Vehicles are charged one rate for a whole year per vehicle based on what the shop historically budgets for that particular vehicle. For example, a certain pick-up truck could be $900 per year for repairs regardless what the repairs are. Also, there is a certain amount allotted for replacement costs and if it is determined that the vehicle needs to be replaced, the department gets a new vehicle and does not pay for the new vehicle because it has been budgeted over a certain amount of time. Therefore, a department would be billed so much per year for repairs and replacement of a certain class of vehicle. Mr. Wildner said that the Cemetery Board did not want this arrangement and objected since the dollar figure at the time appeared quite large and the Board requested to be billed only when the maintenance occurs and agreed to pay for the repairs and replacements as needed. Also, the Cemetery Board agreed that when a replacement vehicle was needed, the Board would purchase the vehicle and pay for it. Therefore, Mr. Wildner stated that if a repair was not properly done the first time, the Board would be billed for the repair for the second time. Chairman Hensley inquired how often vehicles are replaced. Mr. Wildner said a national average is used in replacing vehicles. Mr. Wildner stated this included all types of vehicles including tractors. Chairman Hensley asked Mr. Wildner if he could determine what the costs of the cemetery vehicles would be applying the formula used 4 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 by the General Fund vehicles and report back to the Board. At that time, the Board may want to reconsider how it pays for vehicle repairs. Vice Chair Padgett inquired if it would be possible to determine what the repairs were. Ms. Kruse said she had inquired some time ago about getting an itemized report of the repairs and was told the Board would be charged for this. Mr. Wildner said he would ask if there was any back-up information on the repairs to the cemetery vehicles. Ms. Kruse located a memorandum in the file that had been received by the Board in April of 1997 from Mr. Fisher which stated the department is not set up for that type of reporting in the computer and would have to charge the Board for extra paperwork. Motion Ms. Kuehn moved to place the January and February 1999 balance sheets on file. Vice Chair Padgett seconded the motion that carried unanimously. VI. RECEIPT OF SALES REPORTS – FEBRUARY & MARCH 1999 Motion Vice Chair Padgett moved to place the sales reports for February and March 1999 on file. Motion seconded by Ms. Kuehn, which carried unanimously. VII. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. FLORIDA MUNICIPAL INVESTMENT TRUST (PREVIOUSLY DISCUSSED) B. MAINTENANCE OF THE MAUSOLEUM Ms. Kruse referred members to a memo received from Mr. DeBeck, which is included in their agenda packet. The memo addresses the cleaning and resealing of the Chattahoochee stone decking. It was noted that the memo contained three estimates one for $1,715, a second for $2,100 and a third for $6,225. Mr. Walker noted there was a big discrepancy in the quotes. Mr. Wildner felt that the high bid was actually a courtesy bid and that the company actually did not want to perform the work, which resulted in an extremely high bid. Mr. Wildner was not certain if the bids were fair or not as he was unfamiliar with this type of work. Vice Chair Padgett was not certain if the work should be performed before the mausoleum is completed. Ms. Kuehn inquired if pavers could replace the Chattahoochee, since it has to be constantly cleaned. Mr. Wildner also said that the 5 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 pavers are not maintenance free and there is always grass growing in between the pavers and they require a great deal of work. Chairman Hensley suggested that Mr. DeBeck should be consulted on his preference among the three companies who submitted quotes to perform the work. Chairman Hensley asked when the mausoleum should be completed and Mr. Wildner said it is anticipated that it will be completed within a month. Vice Chair Padgett inquired if there would be plantings and this should also be taken into consideration. Mr. Wildner stated that the walkway around the building has been completed, but was not certain if Chattahoochee was used. Chairman Hensley requested that Mr. DeBeck be consulted when the best time would be to perform the work. Mr. Wildner will follow through on this and Chairman Hensley suggested the matter be tabled. C. CEMETERY IMPROVEMENTS Ms. Kruse informed members that Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz requested at a City Commission meeting in March that the cemetery needs improvement and does not present the best image of the City. Ms. Kruse referred members to the page from the Commission minutes regarding former Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz’s request that was included in the agenda packet. Ms. Kuehn noted that the hedges along Woolbright Road are in very poor condition. Mr. Wildner said that people continually drive into the hedges. Chairman Hensley asked Mr. Wildner if he had any idea as to the cost of placing a fence along the cemetery. Mr. Wildner said he had discussed this with Mr. DeBeck prior to his leaving on military leave, but could not locate Mr. DeBeck’s report. However, Mr. Wildner thinks the cost is in the range of $45,000 to $47,000. This is the figure supplied by the company that is placing the fence around the water treatment plant across the street. Mr. Wildner said this type of project would have to go out for bid in any event. This is the cost for an aluminum fence as opposed to a wrought iron fence. Also, it was discussed that a black fence would look better around the cemetery as opposed to a white fence. Chairman Hensley asked if installing a fence would create difficulties in seeing out the cemetery upon exiting. Mr. Wildner said this would not be a problem with the fence and the road would be visible since you can see through the spokes of the fence. Mr. Walker noted that the Commission minutes suggest that the Cemetery Board view the fence being installed by the Water Department. Vice Chair Padgett inquired if the fence would only be along Woolbright and Mr. Wildner said it would. However, Vice Chair Padgett suggested that estimates should be obtained for Woolbright and along 6 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 the eastside of the cemetery. Mr. Walker did not think that the cemetery fence needed to be as high as the Water Treatment Plant fence, which appears to be six to eight feet in height. Mr. Walker suggested that the fence for the cemetery should only be about four feet in height. Also, Vice Chair Padgett suggested that consideration should be given to installing a gate, which would only be opened for funerals and that there only be one main entrance to the cemetery along Seacrest Boulevard. Mr. Wildner agreed that a fence should be placed on the Woolbright side and staff could lock the gates at 4:30 p.m. when they leave to prevent autos from cutting through. However, after discussion, it was determined the only time the gate needed to be left open would be for a funeral. Chairman Hensley requested that Mr. Wildner obtain additional bids for the fence with varying heights. Chairman Hensley suggested that the next meeting could begin at the Cemetery to give members an opportunity to look over the Cemetery and its surroundings to determine what would look best. Motion Ms. Padgett moved that the Cemetery Board obtain estimates for installation of a fence. Mr. Wildner reminded members that because the cost of the fence was over $10,000, a formal bid procedure must be followed. Ms. Kuehn suggested that certain plantings could be placed instead of a fence. Mr. Wildner said that because the soil is in such poor condition around the cemetery, he did not think that any plantings could survive. Ms. Kuehn seconded the motion that carried unanimously. D. REPORTS ON CEMETERY AREAS ASSIGNED TO MEMBERS Chairman Hensley said he drove by Sara Sims and it looks fine, but is very dry. Chairman Hensley inquired if the cemetery was still being watered and when Mr. Wildner learned Chairman Hensley was referring to the Sara Sims Cemetery, Mr. Wildner said it is not being watered. Mr. Wildner informed the Board that there is a problem with the well that serves the Park as well as the Cemetery. Mr. Wildner said he has obtained repair estimates and specifications have been drawn up to replace the well. Mr. Wildner said that this would probably be completed within two to three months. Mr. Wildner said that the grass would come back once it gets watered and after so much repairs, it would be more feasible to replace the pump than to repair it. Mr. Wildner said that because of the high location of the property, the current well was not designed correctly and needs to go deeper. 7 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 Vice Chair Padgett said her area at the cemetery is about the same and has some brown spots and the markers need trimming. Mr. Wildner said staff has begun to trim the cemetery. Ms. Kuehn said her area had some weeds and the hedge looks unsightly. Also, Ms. Kuehn said that the wall is rusty. Mr. Wildner said this was the result of the well. Mr. Walker stated his area needs raking. Mr. Wildner said the leaf-raking machine is being repaired and as soon as it is fixed, raking will begin. Mr. Wildner informed the Board that Black Olive trees loose their leaves a great deal in the spring. Chairman Hensley asked Mr. Walker if he had an update on the mausoleum. Mr. Walker said it should be completed within ten days. NOTICE OF VIOLATION st Ms. Kruse informed the Board that she received a call from Mr. DeBeck on April 1 and he informed her that when Mr. Osborne submitted the survey for the permit, it did not show on the survey that there was plumbing and water service lines running under the building just completed. These lines service the restrooms and Ms. Kruse informed Mr. DeBeck that this was not a problem that the Cemetery Board should be dealing with and that the Cemetery Board does not take over the mausoleum until after it is built. Ms. Kruse questioned why the Building Department didn’t perform inspections that would have revealed this problem. Ms. Kruse said this is Mr. Osborne’s problem and that the violation states the existing water lines must be moved before a C.O. is issued and needs to be addressed by Mr. Osborne and his contractor. Secondly, the Building Department inspectors should have discovered this violation when the permit was applied for or during their inspections. (Ms. Kruse determined the next day that the water pipe had been removed and work was allowed to continue.) E. PARKS DEPARTMENT REPORT Mr. Wildner reported that he has been on military reserve for two weeks, but is aware that mowing has taken place and the edging around the stones has begun. Chairman Hensley inquired if preparations for Memorial Day are underway. Mr. Wildner said staff has received notice from the Veteran’s groups that they will be performing their traditional service and staff always makes extra effort to make sure the cemetery looks exceptional for the Memorial Day services. 8 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 VIII. NEW BUSINESS A. RATIFICATIONS OF VERBAL APPROVALS 1. Disinterment of William Edward Boody from Crypt D-18, Section C, Sunset Building and Refund of $1,377.00. Chairman Hensley noted that a telephone call was made to members and everyone was in approval of this action and the Board must now ratify the action taken over the telephone. Motion Vice Chair Padgett moved to ratify the action taken by this Board with regard to the disinterment of William Edward Boody. Motion seconded by Ms. Kuehn and carried unanimously. B. Refund Request from Maria Fernandez Garcia for Lots 263A, 263B and 266B, Block N, BBMP in the amount of $600.00 Motion Ms. Kuehn moved to grant the refund request of Maria Fernandez Garcia. Motion seconded by Mr. Walker and carried unanimously. Chairman Hensley inquired if the election of officers would be appropriate at this time. It was noted that the Board currently has two vacancies--one Regular member and one Alternate member. Although it is not necessary to have a full Board for the election of a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, it was decided to wait until these vacancies are filled. IX. OTHER 1. CITIZENS CONCERN REGARDING ARTIFICAL FLOWERS th Ms. Kruse said she received a memo informing her that Mr. Rick D’Atrio of 626 SW 4 Avenue called the Citizen’s Action Center regarding cemetery rules for the placement of artificial flowers on graves. Mr. D’Atrio feels that the rule regarding seasonal flowers being removed within two weeks after placement should be changed. Mr. D’Atrio said that he and his wife place silk poinsettias at Christmas time and Easter lilies in the spring. Other people place different kinds of flowers, such as roses and daisies at the 9 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 same time, and those flowers remain for a much longer period of time. Mr. D’Atrio does not think this is fair that his flowers are removed within two weeks. Mr. Wildner said this policy has been followed by staff at the direction of the Cemetery Board for the removal of seasonal flowers. Chairman Hensley inquired if this should only apply to real flowers or flowers outside of a vase. Mr. Wildner stated that it did. However it is left to staff to determine whether a particular flower would fall into this category. Ms. Padgett also suggested that parties other than staff could be removing the plants since they are expensive silk flowers and Mr. Wildner stated that this also has happened in the past and that other flowers have been stolen from the cemetery. Mr. Wildner said he would ask the cemetery crew to determine if in fact they were removing the silk flowers, or that someone else was taking the flowers. Mr. Wildner said if the silk flowers looked nice, he did not see a problem with leaving them up for a longer period of time. Ms. Kruse said she invited him to tonight’s meeting, but he said he could not make it, but will call her tomorrow. Mr. Wildner would follow through to determine who in fact is taking the flowers and to further look at the interpretation of the policy. Vice Chair Padgett inquired if there was currently a full cemetery crew. Mr. Wildner said that there has been, but the third person has just transferred to the Utility Department, which is common and that the third staff person always seems to move on. Also, Vice Chair Padgett noted that the raising of markers has not been done for a long time, which Mr. Wildner acknowledged. Also, Vice Chair Padgett inquired how long it took to mow the cemetery and Mr. Wildner said it takes approximately two and one-half days and this is done approximately three times per month. Ms. Padgett felt there should be some time allotted for the raising of the markers, since there were only 16 openings and closings during February and only 19 in March. Further there were only seven markers set in February and six in March. Mr. Wildner said that the crew is constantly busy and there are many tasks that have to be routinely performed. Mr. Wildner stated he would prepare a report for the Board on how time is allotted. Chairman Hensley noted that whenever he visits the cemetery the crew is constantly working, as well as routinely assisting people locating graves and answering questions. Ms. Kruse informed the Board that her staff is currently inputting the cemetery records st into the computer and that 1,631 names have been inputted since March 1. Chairman Hensley confirmed that the Board Members would meet at the th Cemetery for the next meeting, which is scheduled for Tuesday, May 11 at 6:30 p.m. 10 MEETING MINUTES CEMETERY BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 13, 1999 X. ADJOURNMENT Motion Mr. Walker moved that the meeting adjourn. The meeting properly adjourned at 8:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted, _____________________________ Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (two tapes) 11