Martin County Currents

10/09/2024

Village Council mtg on Thursday, Oct. 10, cancelled. Village Hall closed 'til Friday

10/03/2024

Indiantown’s Village Council members learned at their Sept. 26 meeting that the presence of Timer Powers Park within Indiantown’s village boundaries handicaps efforts to expand the village’s recreational land.

The county-owned park doubles the village’s available recreational land required by its Comprehensive Growth Management Plan, although Timer Powers Park cannot be used to add sports fields or other recreational amenities for Indiantown residents.

The village’s Comp Plan requires that five acres of land be set aside for recreation for every 1,000 residents. Since Timer Powers Park is included, the village appears to have 10 acres of land already set aside for each 1,000 residents.

As a result, land developers are not required to provide any additional recreational land for village residents in their development plans. Yet, according to the 2023 Indiantown Parks and Recreation Master Plan, an additional 40-60 acres of land is needed to meet the village’s goal of a robust sports and recreational program.

In addition to the Youth Sports Fact-Finding Committee report that examined the sports programs for 13 Florida cities, the council gave their unanimous approval to raising the millage rate to 1.825 to make up for the loss of revenue over the previous four years.

The increase will grow revenues by nearly half a million in 2025, giving more leeway in the budget to hire additional personnel and provide matching funds for current and future grants.

Both the budget PowerPoint presentation and the line-item budget for the 2024-2025 budget year are available on the village website, or contact Village Clerk LaRhonda McBride at [email protected] to get a copy.

The council also approved the first reading of an ordinance to change the village’s Land Development Regulations for special events. It streamlines the process and eliminates permits for events at Timer Powers Park, for family or business events on privately owned, school, or church property, entitles applicants to a pre-application meeting with village officials, gives authority to the village manager for approvals or denials, thus eliminating the need for full village council approval of event permits. If a permit is denied, however, the applicant may appeal to the village council.

Mayor Carmine Dipaolo requested that additional language be inserted into the LDRs to prohibit events being held on the village's athletic fields.

“We’re talking about spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on these fields for sports for the kids,” he said. “…this is just to protect that investment…”

Although the village does not currently have the estimated $300,000 to restore the Booker Park athletic fields at this point, Dipaolo suggested the village should prohibit potential damage caused by heavy trucks, numerous golf carts and food trucks crossing back and forth over athletic fields and buried irrigation lines.

He likened the situation to having a flat tire, and choosing to repair the flat to stop the damage, instead of driving on the tire’s rim causing damage that’s more costly to repair. No motion followed the mayor’s request for additional language to protect athletic fields.

Instead, the discussion devolved into the pros and cons of the SwampFest, which uses the former baseball and soccer field at Booker Park for their now-annual festival hosted by the Concerned Citizens for Booker Park.

Vice president of that group, Kim Jackson, accused Dipaolo of “throwing up obstacles” to prevent approval of their current permit application for their inaugural Black Heritage Festival in February 2025, which plan for a smaller crowd than attends SwampFest.

“…We’ve bowed down and done everything, everything, that we were asked to do,” she said. In fact, the village staff had recommended approval of the permit.

“That’s not what I’m talking about,” Dipaolo said. “That (permit) is already approved.”

Actually, the permit was not yet approved, because it was processed under the old special-events rules. Had the new rules, (which were the topic under discussion) been in effect, the application would not have been required to have council approval.

After the council approved unanimously the proposed changes to the LDRs for special events, they also approved the permit for the 2025 Black Heritage Festival permit. The final hearing on the changes to the LDRs for special events will likely be at the Oct. 12 council meeting.

The council also will be seeking volunteers with an interest and/or experience in youth sports for appointment to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, the next step in tackling the issues facing the establishment of a youth sports program in Indiantown.

09/20/2024

If you thought Indiantown was rid of former village administrator Howard W. Brown Jr., you’re wrong.

Two of his acolytes, Jackie Clarke and Janet Hernandez, seem determined to avenge Brown’s ouster and their own election defeats by attacking — rather than questioning — the village’s administration during the Sept. 12 council meeting.

They waited until after the swearing-in of new council members, Phyllis Waters Brown and Vernestine Williams-Palmer, at 5:50 p.m., followed by the first public hearing of Indiantown’s 2024-2025 budget based on the new millage rate of 1.825.

The council approved both the budget and new millage rate unanimously.

It was during the public comment period after Councilman Carmine Dipaolo was elected mayor and Angelina Perez was re-elected vice mayor that former councilwoman Clarke addressed the council. She announced that she’d “been silent for two years,” but had been watching their meetings online.

She said that residents had been asking her about the increase in water and wastewater rates. Although couching her words phrases like “thanking you in advance,” Clarke demanded that Village Administrator Taryn Kryzda meet with residents at her church, Evergreen Baptist Church in Booker Park.

“I’ll be waiting for you to give me a time and a date,” Clarke ordered. “You make the flyers … you make this happen….”

If she had been watching the meetings, Clarke would know that the council directed Kryzda to host a Saturday meeting for all residents to explain more thoroughly the village’s need for higher rates and fees. The Saturday meeting will be Oct. 12 at three different times during the day at Village Hall.

The new rates stem from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection declaring that the village’s rate structure for its water utility provides insufficient revenues to be sustainable.

The debt incurred from the purchase of the utility four years ago, coupled with the unsustainable rate and fee structure, makes the village ineligible for the $12.5 million SRF (State Revolving Fund) loan that it needs to upgrade the village’s water plant, wells, and replace water lines, despite the fact that 65 percent of the loan could be forgiven.

Clarke was a member of the administration that took part in the decisions leading to the village’s debt, its unsustainable rate structure, and excessive spending.

Another town where Brown is currently the city manager, the Town of Century, lost more than $15 million in grants in August due to its debt and Brown’s excessive spending habits. (The article from NorthEscambia.com is attached.)

In her comments, Hernandez challenged Finance Director Mike Florio’s request to shift the village's banking from separate, segregated and multiple checking accounts to a single pooled cash account. “This should not be done,” she declared.

Hernandez said she based her opinion on a budget class she recently attended.

Accusatory in tone, Hernandez declared the move would lead to mismanagement, misallocation of funds, and the lack of line-item accountability, which, interestingly, described accounting practices under Brown’s administration. For instance, all conference and travel expenses for all employees and council members were lumped into one account by Brown’s accountant, G&L Accounting.

As a result, the only item available to answer public records requests for one person’s travel expenses was the total expenditure for all employees. That’s no longer the case.

A pooled cash account is the recommended Best Management Practice for government accounting, according to Florida’s Government Finance Officers Association standards.

The practice has been adopted by all major cities and counties that can afford to purchase the powerful ERM (Enterprise Risk Management) software, Florio explained, designed to protect sensitive data, increase productivity, and eliminate financial fraud.

Hernandez seems to have forgotten it was Brown who spearheaded the purchase of the expensive software three years ago. He touted it as “a move to greater transparency” for the village, but it was not installed until the new village administrator took over.

Brown’s lack of transparency at Indiantown has followed him to unsuspecting Century and East Point, whose residents are unaware that Brown is the interim city manager at both cities, drawing hefty salaries from both.

It’s time that Brown’s diehard supporters in Indiantown accept the fact that the wool was pulled over their eyes, which is Brown’s greatest skill. They should recognize that the village cannot meet its full potential until everyone, including Clarke and Hernandez, moves beyond Howard W. Brown Jr. and his legacy of division.

https://www.northescambia.com/2024/08/why-were-millions-in-grants-pulled-from-century-this-is-what-our-investigation-found

09/10/2024

Time to get your tickets before they sell out!

09/10/2024

Indiantown's 2 New Council Members will be Sworn In
Thursday, Sept. 12 at 5:50pm
in Village Hall

09/08/2024

Finally, new rules for Indiantown events reflect a new direction

The village’s burdensome permitting process for special events was a consistent irritant among residents and organizations, both within and outside of Indiantown's boundaries. Reflecting a change in philosophy from the previous administration, the council directed their village manager in May to simplify the process.

“Special event permits should be just like getting a building permit,” suggested Councilman Carmine Dipaolo. “The rules should be the same for everybody, and if (applicants) meet all the requirements, they get the permit…It should be simple and it should be handled at the staff level. There’s no need for event permits to come before the village council.”

Previously, events with attendance of 250 or more, or with amplified sound, or requiring road closures all had to be approved by the village council.

After the first draft of the new LDRs (Land Development Regulations) for special events was presented July 16 to the PZAB (Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board) for a public hearing, board members kicked the draft back to the village attorney for more revisions.

They rejected the idea that the village manager should have final authority over permit applications. Instead, a major event permit denial may be appealed to the village council.

The revised draft, which incorporated comments by the board members and the public, was presented again Sept. 5 in another public hearing. The draft was approved by the PZAB members, who voted to recommend passage of the new rules at an upcoming village council meeting.

Changes include eliminating village permits for authorized events at county-owned Timer Powers Park, as well as for weddings, funerals, birthday parties, and similar events that are not open to the public.

Permits also will not be required for indoor events at churches, civic organizations, schools, or outdoor events when held on the school, church or civic organization property, even if open to the public.

Businesses wishing to hold private events on their own premises also are no longer required to obtain a permit.

The deadline to file for a permit is now 30 days in advance (Sheriff’s Office review requires 35 days in advance if security is requested), instead of 60 days, and may be filed up to a year in advance, if so desired.

A pre-permit application meeting with Indiantown officials may be held in advance, if the applicant desires it, to go over the application and requirements.

Applicants also will be required to provide proof of application to purchase liability insurance, instead of purchasing it advance as a condition of permit approval, since the applicant cannot get a refund if the permit is not approved; however, they must provide proof of purchase within three days of permit approval.

Additional events were added that require permits, including block parties and processionals, which require street closures.

The revised draft will go before the village council for another public hearing. The council has the authority to approve the draft as it was revised, or to make additional revisions prior to final approval. The link to the entire draft is below:

AN ORDINANCE OF THE VILLAGE OF INDIANTOWN, FLORIDA, AMENDING SECTION 3-5.7 “TEMPORARY USES AND SPECIAL EVENTS” OF THE VILLAGE OF INDIANTOWN LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS; CREATING SECTION 3-5.10 “SPECIAL EVENTS”, OF THE VILLAGE OF INDIANTOWN LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS; PROVIDING FOR THE REV...

08/30/2024

A public hearing on Indiantown's REVISED rules for special events will be Thursday, Sept. 5, in Village Hall at 6 p.m.

08/24/2024

Some call it “growing pains,” and simply the result of a new village trying to define itself. Others call it “government overreach.” Still others call it “discrimination.”

No matter the name, the village government set rules at last night’s village council meeting (August 22) that will bring much-needed stability and financial soundness to the fledgling government.

“We’re five years behind the eight ball,” said Councilman Carmine Dipaolo. “We needed to catch up so we can go forward.”

The council voted unanimously to accept the staff’s proposed budget based on the higher millage rate of 1.825 for 2024-2025. Few questions were asked, and no changes were made. The budget presentation is posted on the village’s website.

The new millage rate calculation was based on what the rate should have been over the previous four years in order to offset the government’s rise in operating costs and to compensate for the two years in which the village’s revenues dipped.

The four social policies demanded by the federal Housing and Urban Development program prior to receiving the $550,000 grant to harden the Indiantown Civic Center also were approved.

The grant was awarded to the village in May 2022 with a 30-day deadline to forward the policies to HUD; however, the policies had never been written. Without the grant funds, the village cannot be reimbursed the $40,000 they spent in May 2022 to cover the cost of engineering plans for the Civic Center project.

They also voted to accept higher water utility rates, as well as a policy for automatic incremental increases in future water and sewer rates recommended by staff in order to meet the stipulations set by the Department of Environmental Protection’s $12.5 million grant for the water utility. Without a sound financial policy and a sustainable rate structure, the village likely would be unable to qualify for any future DEP grants, according to village officials.

Part of the new rate schedule was an increase in the late payment fee from $5 to $35, which caused consternation from some council members, until Finance Director Mike Florio explained that 400 to 600 ratepayers of the village’s nearly 2,000 total are consistently late.

The late payments interrupt the flow of cash into the department, thus the village cannot pay its bills, Florio added. The only other solution was to increase water rates even higher — thus, those who pay on time would be subsidizing those who don’t.

Council members voted to accept the higher rates on the condition that a workshop be held, in addition to the notice in water bills, to inform ratepayers of the new fees.

Village staff also recommended that the new special-events permit for the Concerned Citizens for Booker Park be denied; however, no vote was taken.

The staff had determined that the group’s parking plans were inadequate, since they planned to use only street rights-of-way for parking at the Black History Fest in February 2025. The group also did not qualify under the village’s LDRs, which state a permit should not be issued for a new event if the group did not comply with the conditions of a previous permit.

They also questioned that the DJ listed on the permit for the Black History Fest was the same that used a semi tractor-trailer for a stage at SwampFest.

The meeting erupted with the familiar accusations by the CCBP organizers that they were being treated differently than other groups.

Councilwoman Vernestine Palmer suggested a round-table meeting sharing a meal, either lunch or dinner, “with all sides bringing their complaints to the table to find a solution,” Palmer said.

Any solution they find still will need to meet all the requirements of the LDRs that were in place when they filed their permit. Since they intend to have alcoholic beverages available and amplified sound, the village council still will need to approve their permit application.

The next village council meeting will be Thursday, Sept. 12, in the Village Hall. It will begin with the swearing-in of new Councilwoman Phyllis Waters Brown. Also scheduled at that meeting is a report by the Youth Sports Fact-Finding Committee.

08/22/2024

The Concerned Citizens for Booker Park had some legitimate questions about their SwampFest permit application.

They should have asked, can one person in the Parks Department have the authority to deny them a location for the SwampFest without the nonprofit first submitting a permit application to the village staff for evaluation?

If so, when was that authority granted, because it seems not be part of the village’s Land Development Regulations.

What can be found in the LDRs, though, is the criteria for evaluating the suitability for holding an event in a park owned by the people of the entire village, whose taxes pay for the maintenance, the lights, and future improvements. The park belongs to everyone who lives in Indiantown, not just one group.

According to the village’s code LDR 3-5.7(2)(c), EACH and every permit application will be reviewed in advance by the Parks Director and/or the Village Administrator for these things, based on the number of people likely to attend:
— Is there adequate parking so as not to cause any hazards to other drivers and pedestrians or that might block sidewalks or driveways?
— Are there sufficient garbage cans?
— Will a sufficient number of portable toilets be provided?
— Will there be sufficient lighting?
— Will sufficient security be arranged in order to ensure a safe and orderly event.
Those first five questions are simply to determine if there are sufficient support facilities available to hold the event in the first place.

Two more factors, however, are heavily weighed:
— Will holding the event NOT result in causing excessive wear and tear to the village’s facility, whether it’s equipment, water lines, or even … a grass field?
— Most important, did the applicant COMPLY with the terms and conditions of any previously granted permits?

That tells you that any issues that happened around SwampFest, such as NOT supplying the liquor licenses of vendors selling alcoholic beverages as part of the SwampFest permit application, will, indeed, have an impact on a future permit application.

What’s amazing is that all these real issues were supposed to be on the table during the workshop August 8.

Instead, it became a harangue from CCBP members about one issue — the village staff sending deputies after them, accusing Village Administrator Taryn Kryzda of “weaponizing” the Sheriff’s Office and of deliberately “sabotaging” the SwampFest to prevent it from happening, when she actually worked to make sure it DID happen.

Multiple times, the public heard, “The rules should be the same for all, not different for one group or another.” That’s what the LDRs are for — to ensure that everyone knows the rules and that they are fair and equitable.

The division grows wider by the week, fed by those who have attempted to benefit from a divided community. No one wins in that scenario.