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Minutes 03-04-85MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD AT CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, MONDAY, MARCH 4, 1985 AT 7:00 P. M. PRESENT Carl Zimmerman, Mayor Robert Ferrell, Vice Mayor-~ Nick Cassandra, Councilman James R. Warnke, Councilman Samuel L. Wright, Councilman Peter L. Cheney, City Manager Betty S. Boroni, City Clerk Mayor Zimmerman called the meeting to order at 7:05 P. M. He announced the purpose of this meeting is to consider the three architectural firms selected by the screening committee. We will try to rank these as a Council after'hearing from the various firms selected. The three firms selected were: 1. Miller, Meier & Associates 2. Oliver & Glidden Architects 3~. Wallace, Roberts & Todd PRESENTATION BY WALLACE, ROBERTS & TODD Mr. John Fernsler stated he is pleased to be here to discuss their ideas, approach and qualifications for this project. He told about the history of the firm. He introduced Mr. Alan Pruitt, Associate with Wallace, Roberts & Todd. In addition, they ~have included the architectural firm of E.K.B. represented by Mr. Harry Kirk, Vice President, and told about their experience. In addition, they propose to'utilize the expertise of Kimberly, Horn & Associates in reference to structural evaluation of buildings proposed for expansion as well as studies in regard to traffic. He told about the criteria~ taken into consideration. Mr. Fernsler then gave a slide presentation and explained the involvement of the firm with the city since 1977. He told about preparing the comprehensive plan and the things taken into consideration. He told about the preparation of the neighborhood strategy plan and working closely with the resi- dents in this area. He told about being involved with the design of Congress Avenue Community Park and preparing the overall master plan for the entire site. He showed some slides of buildings, facilities and parks designed by their firm and E.K.B. Mr. Pruit then showed slides of the present city hall complex and explained the five important issues considered in planning this project with organizing the set of existing buildings with a diversity of architectural styles into a cohesive governmental center, expansion of the existing facilities, parking problem, nature of edge conditions, and appropriate space for public events. Comparison slides were shown with their redesign of the capitol buildings in Washington, D. C. SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 4, 1985 Councilman Warnke referred to large expanses of glass shown on buildings and questioned hurricane protection and Mr. Fernsler agreed protective partitions sh©uld be included which are not portable. Mr. Kirk added there are a lot of devices which can protect glass such as built-in manufactured shutters. Mr~ Fernsler added that rolling partitions could be hidden under the eaves of the building. Councilman Cassandra questioned how our buildings could be compared to Washington as we do not have land available for expansion and Mr. Fernsler clarified that the slides were shown to point out similar problems. A structured parking garage can be built nearby. Also, there is a great proportion of unutilized space in the civic center. There is also the possibility of going up rather than out. Mr. Pruitt added that in looking at the overall design, they hope to gather the smaller spaces and create a larger space. Councilman Cassandra questioned whether 1st Avenue would be closed and Mr. Pruitt replied they do not have any preconceived idea about that, but would like to look at it as one of several options and consider the implications.. Mr. Cheney referred to the budget figures and asked if they were comfortable so~ething'reasonable could be done and Mr. Fernsler replied from his previous overview, ~he thinks they are workable. Mr. Pruitt added they have not analyzed the costs in the bond proposal, but did discuss if a plan were devised for the civic center and it required the creation of open s~a~e, was there'money in the budget for such an additional i~em and they don't believe there is a line item for~that, but i~ ~could be approached with an amount for site improvements f~r each project. Mr. Cheney clarified that the use of the phrase civic center addressed the govenmental center downto ' 7_. wn golnq from the ±~Drary to Boynton Beach Boulevard as a com le~ Councilman Cassandra asked if most of their projects were built for beauty or functional use and Mr. Fernsler replied if they had a track record of designing impractical buildings, their bUsiness would no~ be doing as well as it is.. Councilman Wright asked if any facelifts would be recommended for existing buildings and Mr. Fernsler replied affirmatively and told about rehabilitating facades in Hollywood to create a cOnsistent appearance. Mr. Pruitt concluded that they did not stress their expertise a~d abilities in planning and programming a pro.ject as they did previously, but do realize much of the programming has been done and will use that as a starting point. - 2 - SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL B~ETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 4, 1985 PRESENTATION BY OLIVER & GLIDDEN ARCHITECTS Mr. John Glidden introduced himself and Mr. Chris Jones, a partner in the firm. He advised the pro~ject team will utilize Ralph Haughn & Associates and Joel Wantman & Associates. He told about the background and'variety of~ptans prepared by Oliver & Glidden Architects. He thinks this project has all the elements of a challenging problem. He is impressed with the work which has been done to date, The~team concept will be employed to bring together the most appropriate people to work on the front end of this project and organize a physical master plan Which the city can use for a long time. Mr. Glidden then showed slides of work they have done and explained. He referred to the city having significant land holdings even though spread out over an area and'stated they feel a central four block center can be worked out. There is a variety of buildings with scattered parking. They feel the school site is the key 'element in the long range element tying together the campus of city hall. In their approrach to plan- ning and designing, they would be looking at a downtown core. They must consider things'whilch will give the city and citizens a sense of identity and'there needs to be a strong sense of arrival. Mr. Jones added that they betieve strongly in their projects' interiors as well as exteriors, and try to create architecture which works as a~ people place. There must be consistent architectural design and 'he feels t'hat can be done without significant expenditure. In reference to exterior space, they feel there needs to be one organizing space for gathering of people. ' ' Mr. Glidden stated they took the information from the schedule and basically agree with the bulk, but would re-organize to an architectural/planning approach. They will become familiar ith the program and meet with the key staff. They plan to ~evise a master plan looking at both short and' long term phases. Mr. Jones continued that they would develop an approach to the overall four block area and develop an organizational arrange- ment of all department spaces as they relate to physical spaces a~d develop a master plan. Once that is established, they would move into architectural design for Phase I. Councilman Warnke referred to buildin s sh ' . g owing a large ex anse ~ glass and told about our facili%ies bein~ u~ ....... ~ .... c~h~adquarters during a hurricane. He. stated he wOuld ..feel un- omfortable w~th a large expanse of §lass being incorporated into city facilities. Mr. Glidden explained that the percentage of glass would depend upon the use and only used~where appro- priate. Mr. Jones added that glass has insulation qualities and helps control energy. - 3 - SPECIAL CITY COUNCILMEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 4, 1985 Councilman Cassandra questioned how they visualized ~more park- ing space and building expansion and Mr. ~lidden. replied that he understands some of the preconceived~program includes upward expansion, which is a good direction to head'with land being valuable and also helps to create some open space- It' is obvi- ous more organized.parking will be 'needed and~he would encourage the city to' develop the parking scene with structured vertical parking. Councilman ~Cassandra clarified that the buildings could go upward and Mr. ~.lidden, replied that the fortunate decision was made in the past and the ability to go up is there and the only real area would be to design a roof structure to handle the live load. Councilman Cassandra referred to the downtown redeveloping and asked if they visualized joint parking efforts and Mr. Glidden agreed that would be beneficial. Mr. Jones added that a lot of direction should be given not only to the cars, but to the people. There must be a logical sequence of moving through space as well as building identity. Mr. Cheney asked if they were comfortable the improvements could be done within the cost estimates of the bond issue and Mr. Glidden replied they did review the~cost analysis and based on their experience on terms of remodeling and construction, they feel the figures are within reason and can produce a realistic and true result. Mr. Cheney clarified there would be some dollars for design and architecture and not just square boxes and Mr. Glidden agreed. Councilman Wright referred, to facelifts for %he present buildings and Mr. Jones replied this could be simple with unifYing color and Mr. Glidden added this could be done with working with simple elements such, as texture, color and material. PRESENTATION BY MILLER, MEIER' & A'SSOCIATE$ Mr. Jordan Miller, President,_.Miller, Meier & Associates, intro- duced himself and Mr. Craig'Kenyon, Project Architect. He told about the background of their company and stressed~that the main rule is to be sure the buildings function right and accomplish the needs. As managers, they will make sure the process is smooth and everyone knows what is happening and why, He told about doing the complete job including the interior, etc. Mr. Craig Kenyon explained,the organizational part of the company. He told about various departments encompassed in the company. They have a ,consultant for developing security. He explained their method of independent cost control with an outside firm to assure accuracy. - 4 - SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 4, 1985 Mr. Miller then showed slides of projects they.have done in relation to this. He noted that about all the jobs go out for public bid and they have designed~many governmental buildings. He told about remodeling a school campus With demolition, etc. while the school stayed in operationl He told about alterna- tives developed for expanding Tamarac City Hall. He showed a model of the Tamarac City Hall and Police Station. Mr. Miller advised they have meetings ~and make reports on those meetings, so everyone knows what is going on. Also, budgeting is important to them and part of-their design process. He read a list of projects and figures. Councilman Warnke asked how they relate the square footage cost and Mr. Kenyon replied ~that the police station is program- med to 10,000 square feet for $85 per square foot, which he feels is very realistic. The budget is comfortable for the square footage and' intent of the facilities. He showed a tentative project schedule and explained. He showed a chart with estimates and actual bids of their past projects. Mr. Miller continued that they would tike to share their thoughts and the various possibilities here. He showed various sketches of their ideas and stated they would like o d~velop these into schemes. Mr. Kenyon explained possible ifficutt~es which may be encountered with vertical expansion. He stressed an master planning, it is important to consider the entire four block area, Mr. Miller then showed four possible schemes for~ the public works facility. He added these are a series of ideas and they would like to work with the city on getting the right scheme to get the building to accomplish the tasks and purpose. Councilman Warnke referred to hurricane protection and Mr. Miller replied that manually applied hu'rricane shutters are not the answer, mechanical shutters are cost prohibitive; so after doing research, they have found they could buy bullet- proof glass for less money than hurricane shutters and this is installed on the first three floors where the damage occurs. Mr. Kenyon added that this is insulated glass which saves on air conditioning costs. Councilman Cassandra referred to vertical additions and Mr. Miller replied they have learned that going up is tougher than going out and results in putting toO much money into the building. Councilman Wright referred to the parking structure being two or three stories and Mr. Miller agreed. Mr. Kenyon added that phasing can be helpful and told about building an addition and moving the staff into it and then rebuilding the original building without disrupting current conditions. - 5 - SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 4, 1985 Mrs. Dorian Trauger referred to plans for the Civic Center on Congress Avenue and Mr. Miller replied that they ~have done civic centers, but were told to first concentrate on this governmental center. Mayor Zimmerman referred to the bond issue consisting~of six different questions and questioned what the result would be if only a few are approved and Mr. Miller replied they are inter- ested in very large or small projects. Mr. Cheney added that it was indicated the firm selected as the architect would do at least two or three ~buildings and would not be committed to all six. At first, the Civic Center on Congress Avenue was not included and it was agreed the first project must be the police and fire stations which may as well address the whole block in- cluding city hall and library, so they all fit together. The public works complex is a free standing area and would be a different design task than this area. DISCUSSION OF FIRMS Mayor Zimmerman suggested discussing the order in which to place these three firms. Vice Mayor Ferrell stated he would rate Miller, Meier & Associates as No. 1; Wallace, Roberts & Todd as No. 2; and Oliver & Glidden Architects as No. 3. Councilmen Warnke and Cassandra and Mayor Zimmerman agreed. Councilman Wright commented on the thought given the project by Miller, Meier & Associates, Mr. Cheney expl~ned that two or three buildings could be given to the first'choice and other projects to the second choice. Favorable comments were expressed about Miller, Meier & Asso- ciates' presentation. Mayor Zimmerman concluded that this will be placed on the agenda for a final decision tomorrow night. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Zimmerman declared the meeting adjourned at 9:45 P.M. CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA Vice Mayor - 6 - SPECIAL cITy COUNCIL MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 4, 1985 ATTEST: (Three Tapes) - 7 -