Council discussed how to fill the District 4 vacancy created by Councilwoman Haider's resignation effective August 23, 2024.
City Attorney Duffy confirmed the Charter requires appointment within 90 days by the remaining council, that a special election is not provided for in the Charter, and that the new council (seating December 3) cannot make the appointment because 90 days from the resignation falls before that date.
Council debated a timeline: applications to go live the same afternoon, deadline September 11 at 5 p.m., interviews during a special workshop on September 17 following the regular business meeting, an additional evening workshop on September 24 for public comment, and appointment on October 1.
The motion passed unanimously.
Financial Services Director Helena Alves, Budget Manager Gwen Ragsdale, Budget Coordinator Rayen Balman, Utility Director Amanda Ree, Storm Water Deputy Director Lynn Stevens, and Capital Projects Director Carl Cody presented the final proposed FY 2025 budget across all appropriated funds, totaling approximately $421.8 million.
Key discussions included a proposed millage rate of 4.2154 (down from the FY24 adopted rate of 4.2570), a newly identified $250,000 reduction available to further lower millage to 4.1893, storm water department requests for 10 new positions tied to the 2023 rate study, water and wastewater capital needs, and Vice Mayor Danko's insistence on a full rollback to 3.9961.
Council directed staff to present rollback options and reserve fund history at the September 5 public hearing at 5:15 p.m.
Raised concern that someone could move into District 4 on a short-term rental to seek appointment, effectively buying the seat; urged the application process require at least a multi-year residency in the district for renters.
Spoke about the unprecedented nature of nearly complete city council turnover; urged that the appointment be temporary until a special election can be held, arguing the voters of District 4 deserve to choose their representative.
Raised statistics on animal sheltering in Florida, noting Flagler County is one of only 13 counties without a municipal shelter; urged the city and county to work together to establish a public shelter given explosive growth.
Agreed with previous speaker about appointment concerns; urged that whoever fills the seat be someone the public can trust; suggested nighttime meetings so more people can attend; argued the council should not vote on major building and construction items before their terms end.
Announced his intention to apply for the District 4 appointment; noted he previously ran for the seat but stepped aside; expressed hope to gain the council's trust.
Opposed the appointment process; urged a temporary appointment only until a special election can be held, possibly in March 2025; expressed concern that appointed members historically served developer interests rather than residents.
Expressed full support for an immediate appointment to fill out the two-year term; stated trust in current council's competence and opposed the expense of a special election.
Asked for clarification on whether the 90-day appointment window starts from the August 23 resignation date, noting the math puts the deadline after the new council would be elected but before they are seated.
Urged the council to defer the appointment to allow the newly elected council members to make the decision; argued the recently voted-out council members should not be selecting who fills the seat.
Agreed that newly elected council members should be given the opportunity to decide who they will work with; expressed disappointment that candidates in the runoff were not present to make that argument.
Stated he spoke with the Supervisor of Elections office and confirmed the charter requires appointment or placement on the next scheduled election; suggested opening applications for five days to attempt to get candidates on the November ballot rather than appointing.
Echoed support for an election rather than appointment; suggested a temporary appointment could be made while provisions are arranged for a special election, potentially combined with the Bell/Flagler Beach March election to reduce costs.
Supported going the appointment route for the full two-year term; stated citizens elected the council to make decisions according to the charter and the public should accept and respect that process.
Disagreed with the council's approach; argued the 90-day window interpretation should potentially allow for a special election in March; urged the charter be properly interpreted and the people's desire for an election be honored.
Urged flexibility in the process to allow an election if possible; noted that a lot of damage can be done in two years by an appointee who turns out not to serve residents' interests; reiterated support for nighttime meetings.
Stated he lives in District 4 and currently has no council representative to call; strongly supports filling the seat as soon as possible through appointment so District 4 has representation.
Asked the city attorney to clarify whether the resignation date could be interpreted differently to potentially give more flexibility on timing; asked about the letter date versus effective date of Haider's resignation.
Disputed the mayor's statement that homesteaded residents have seen decreased tax bills over four years; stated she has received increases in her city tax bill and that non-homesteaded residents are seeing much larger increases; urged the council to address the county's larger share of the tax dollar and to pursue a full millage rate rollback.
Raised concerns about Vince Lion being discussed on social media as a potential interim appointment candidate, citing conflicts of interest due to his active board membership at Flagler Humane Society while the county is investigating complaints about the organization and a criminal animal cruelty case involves an FHS employee.
Spoke about Flagler Humane Society's failure to respond to certified letters requesting a board meeting to discuss animal welfare concerns; described inadequate enrichment for dogs spending 150+ hours per week in kennels; requested a forensic audit of FHS finances; noted an animal control officer has pending animal cruelty charges and asked why that person is still working with dogs.
Spoke on water quality, noting chemicals found in municipal water systems and the threat of more concentrated pollutants as population growth stresses aquifers; raised concern about algae in freshwater canals from lawn fertilizer and herbicide runoff.
Spoke on behalf of animal lovers; criticized Flagler Humane Society for operating as a private organization on land originally donated by the city's founder; raised concerns about euthanasia rates, lack of transparency in how $4 million in revenue is spent, and the need for a publicly owned municipal shelter with more oversight.
Spoke as an animal lover with two rescue dogs; asked whether the city could stipulate in its animal control contract with FHS that the city gets to appoint a board member to provide oversight, given that tax dollars fund the shelter.
Addressed the recent primary election results as the start of a new movement in Palm Coast; urged residents to recognize and discard dark money PAC mailers that all originate from a single address in Tallahassee rather than from candidates directly.
Thanked Flagler Beach for lowering speed limits for pedestrians; criticized the council for not lowering residential street speed limits from 30 to 20 mph despite acknowledging the danger of streets without sidewalks; described children walking to school and residents walking dogs on roads with dump trucks passing at speed.
Agreed with the previous speaker on pedestrian safety and speed limits; also raised concerns about Flagler Humane Society adopting out sick dogs with contagious conditions such as kennel cough and hookworm without adequate health screening; urged consideration of another shelter in the county.
Described excessive dump truck traffic on Point Pleasant Drive in the P-section — estimated 60 to 80 trucks before 1 p.m. — related to nearby residential development, causing vibrations throughout her home and safety concerns for pedestrians, dogs, and children at bus stops; asked the building department to require trucks to use alternate routes rather than concentrating all traffic on one street.
Read aloud the language of the previously approved charter amendment regarding fiscal contracting authority and bonding, then argued the language is intentionally misleading because it removes a $15 million cap and 36-month repayment limit on city debt without saying so clearly; expressed concern the amendment is designed to enable a $90 million stadium in the westward expansion funded by taxpayers.
Ordinance 2024-XX approving the 2050 Comprehensive Plan Text and Map Series for the City of Palm Coast was introduced for a first reading.
The council took a recess immediately before proceeding to this item and the transcript segment available does not capture a substantive discussion of its contents.
Reporting of Emergency and Sole Source Purchases for July 2024 was listed under City Manager matters.
No substantive discussion of this item was captured in the available transcript segment before the recess.