St. Johns County Administrator's Bi-Weekly Report

The County Administrator's Message

St. Johns County Update from County Administrator Michael Wanchick

May 22, 2009

Board of County Commissioners

Cyndi Stevenson
Chair, District 1

Ron Sanchez
Vice-Chair, District 2

Mark P. Miner
District 3

Phillip Mays, PA
District 4

Joseph "Ken" Bryan
District 5

http://www.sjcfl.us/

Join the Discussion

Town Hall Meetings - We will be holding a series of Town Hall Meetings throughout the County June 9th through the 18th to have a public dialogue with the community about the County's financial position and the challenges we face.

St. Johns County is being forced to prioritize services and programs, and these meetings offer residents the opportunity to understand the current financial situation and how it may impact them. We will also be requesting public feedback during the meetings, which will be compiled for the Board of County Commissioners prior to their budget workshops. Visit the County website calendar for details.

Administration

Economic Stimulus - St. Johns County continues to pursue economic stimulus funds as they become available through various grants and programs from both state and federal agencies. Several County staff attended an Economic Stimulus Summit in Orlando last week, sponsored by the Florida League of Cities and Florida Association of Counties, which provided updates associated with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. You may read more about the statewide efforts at http://www.flarecovery.com/.

Amphitheatre

Ancient City Crawfish Boil - The inaugural Ancient City Crawfish Boil May 8-9 was a successful event, making a significant economic impact on St. Johns County. Total attendance for the two days was 11,689 with 83 percent of those coming from outside St. Johns County. Local businesses in St. Augustine benefited significantly, with 19 percent of attendees staying in a hotel, 49 percent visiting a restaurant or bar, 21 percent visiting a local shop, and 22 percent visiting a local attraction. While the event was successful, we were aware of some concerns in the downtown area and feel that future events of this nature will be more appropriate at the Fairgrounds.
High Attendance Rates - Recent Amphitheatre events have also been very successful, with 311 selling 88 percent of capacity, and both James Taylor and Kings of Leon selling out for the May 1 and May 4 concerts. Additionally, over 1,000 were in attendance for the Night Owl Cinema on Friday, May 15.

Building Services

New Online Permitting - The Building Services Division, in conjunction with the Management Information Systems Department (MIS), has completed its new online permitting system, e-Building Services. This service provides citizens, customers, and contractors with twenty-four hour access to permits, inspections, and code information. Contractors are able to set up a personalized account with access to their Depository Account balance, inspections, and permits. In addition, mechanical, gas, irrigation, electric, and plumbing subcontractors can apply for permits through e-Building Services, provided they have set up an online permitting account. Questions regarding e-Building Services may be directed to the Building Services Division at (904) 827-6800.

Construction Services

Courthouse Renovations - The Construction Services Department held its first Pre-Bid Conference for Phase II of the St. Johns County Courthouse Renovations this week, with approximately 30 contractors in attendance. Phase II renovations will include: renovation of the old auditorium into a new ceremonial/traffic courtroom, renovation of the State Attorney's area into two new courtrooms, addition of a new finance area, jury selection/lounge area, and connection of the courthouse to the old administration building making the complex a single judicial center. In total, the project will renovate approximately 100,000 square feet and add approximately 20,000 new square feet. The project budget, estimated at $6.5 to 7 million, will begin this summer and take approximately 18 months to complete. Unfortunately, the project will create a large and inconvenient construction zone, and we apologize in advance for any inconvenience this may cause.

Development Services

Concurrency Management System - Staff continues to work on proposed changes to the Concurrency Management System (CMS) and is prepared to present their initial findings on the County's CMS. The recommended changes will be comprehensive, however they would be implemented incrementally. A presentation will be given to the Chamber of Commerce in May, and a County Commission workshop is tentatively being scheduled this summer.
Expired Building Permits - The state of the economy has provided a challenge on how to handle expired residential permits where construction had already begun, and the Development Review Division is working daily to respond in a positive manner to these unprecedented situations. To address this challenge, a "completion permit" will be issued to this type of single family residential permit in order to minimize time, cost, and redundancy of review as long as certain conditions are met. Development Review welcomes suggestions and encourages the public to contact Kathy Nielsen with any questions at (904) 209-0698 or knielsen@sjcfl.us.

Environmental Division

Elkton Hastings Historic Farmstead Survey - This survey, a new history document commissioned by the County, was recently completed by Bland and Associates, Inc. The survey was designed to address history in the southerly part of St. Johns County and assess historic farmsteads in the Hastings and Elkton area that were built prior to 1920, and ten farmhouses were identified as possible National Register of Historic Places candidates. The study fills a gap in the written history of St. Johns County and will be made available soon on the County's website.
Historic Cemeteries Workshop - The County is a partner in the T'omb It May Concern Cemetery Workshop, a three-day event to be held June 11-13. The workshop will focus on the historic cemeteries of St. Augustine and St. Johns County, with tours of the cemeteries and presentations on various topics of cemetery research and preservation. The new Historic Cemeteries of St. Johns County poster will be unveiled on the opening night. For more information contact Historic Resource Specialist Robin Moore at (904) 209-0623 or remoore@sjcfl.us.
TogetherGreen - On Saturday, May 9, participants from St. Johns County, St. Johns Audubon, and the First Tee planted over 600 trees and other plants on half an acre designated to receive habitat restoration at the St. Johns Golf Club in Elkton. Last year Land Resource Coordinator Amy Meide received the TogetherGreen grant for $10,000 to implement this project at the golf course. Selected "no-play" areas at the golf course are being replanted with native plants to create a native habitat and to save money on fertilizers, water, and gasoline.

Fire Rescue

"Party's Over" Reenactment - St. Johns County Fire Rescue joined together the week of May 18th with several county agencies to present the "Party's Over" reenactment for several St. Johns County High Schools in order to prevent underage drinking and the tragedies that it can bring. This program, which is presented nationwide during the prom and graduation season as a deterrent to teenage drinking, is a visual drama that depicts an alcohol-related accident that occurs at the conclusion of an open house party. Drama students from local high schools depict the victims involved in the accident, while local firefighters, law enforcement officers, and judges act in the role they would normally serve during and following a DUI-related incident. The program is highly emotional and designed to educate students on the dangers and consequences of underage drinking. The program was presented on May 20th to the students at Nease High School and on May 21st at St. Augustine High School.

Library

Library Website Wins State Award - Six Library staff members recently attended the Annual Conference of the Florida Library Association in Orlando. This year's conference theme "Libraries - Connecting People, Information and Knowledge" was especially pertinent in this time of decreasing budgets and increasing usage of libraries and library resources. A highlight of the Conference was St. Johns County receiving the FLA Award for best public library website. Library System Director Debra Rhodes Gibson accepted the award on behalf of the Library and St. Johns County. Check it out at http://www.sjcpls.org/
Recent Donations - The Library System is thankful for two recent sizable donations. The Hastings Branch Library has ten new donated computers for public internet access, a great addition for the public. Also, the Main Library recently installed beautiful new cabinetry and staff workstations in the work room, funded by the Friends of the Library of St. Johns County.
Staff Training - Several staff members attended a State Library Leadership Symposium in Gainesville titled "Leading in Shifting Environments." This one-day workshop offered practical applications of leadership theories to guide libraries through the changing economic tides.

Office of Management and Budget

Requested FY 2010 Budget - The Requested FY 2010 County budget should be complete by the week of June 8 after the County receives the Constitutional Officers' requested budgets and the initial County taxable property values from the County's Property Appraiser, both due by June 1 according to Florida Statutes. In Florida, Constitutional Officers are the County Sheriff, the Clerk of Courts, the Supervisor of Elections, the Property Appraiser, and the Tax Collector (although the latter two Constitutional Officers are fee-based according to Florida Statutes). After the Requested budget is complete, the Office of Management and Budget will work with County Administration toward a recommended FY 2010 County budget, which is due to the Board at their July 7 meeting. Florida Statutes also require the Recommended County budget to be balanced, meaning that total budgeted expenditures plus reasonable cash reserves must equal total budgeted revenues for each County fund.

Public Works

Sandbags - St. Johns County offered free sandbags to residents to use against potential flooding of their homes and businesses. The sandbags were available 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, May 20-22, at Sims Pit, located off Holmes Boulevard in St. Augustine. The County provided sand and bags, and residents were asked to bring their own shovels. This program was first offered last year during Tropical Storm Fay, and this second offering was also successful.
Fleet Management Productivity - The Fleet Management Division achieved 134 percent mechanic productivity for the month of April, which marks the seventh consecutive month for 100 percent or greater productivity.
LED Upgrades for Traffic Signal Bulbs - The Traffic Section earlier this year implemented a countywide program to replace existing incandescent signal bulbs with energy efficient light emitting diodes (LED's). Not only do LED's provide energy savings, but they also work longer without failing. The typical LED will last from five to ten years, whereas the incandescent bulb burns out in less than two years. This upgrade greatly reduces maintenance schedules and also cuts the cost of replacing incandescent bulbs. Savings already realized from LED's being placed in 57 of the County's 100-plus signals is 40 percent, or $23,500.
Federal Point Road Bridge - The replacement of the Federal Point Road Bridge over Cracker Swamp in southwest St. Johns County is complete, and the new bridge has opened to traffic.

Recreation and Parks

Renovated Boat Ramps - St. Johns County has reopened the Frank Butler Park West and Green Road Boat Ramps after both went through major renovations funded through Florida Inland Navigation District (FIND) Waterways Assistance Grants. Improvements at Frank Butler included a new wider boat ramp to accommodate the heavy use at the site, a dock with floating dock to assist boaters in launching and recovering their vessels, handicapped accessible sidewalks to all amenities, new restrooms, four new 20 by 20 picnic pavilions with benches and grills, improved stabilized parking surface, native landscaping, a clam bake area, and new security lighting. At Green Road, the existing ramp and associated dock were replaced. Assistant Recreation and Parks Director Wil Smith wrote the FIND grants, which combined totaled more than $230,000.
Temporary Bridge to Become Reef - The Recreation and Parks Department in partnership with the St. Augustine Port Waterway and Beach District has received the Army Corps of Engineers permit to deploy the Temporary Bridge of Lions, once dismantled, into an artificial reef about eight miles off the coast of St Augustine. Once deployed, the Bridge of Lions Reef will be the largest concrete structure reef in the State of Florida. The permitted site is 80 acres and will provide residents and guests with an accessible fishing area close to shore.
St. Johns Golf Club - St. Johns Golf Club is offering two great opportunities to get connected in the game of golf. First, the Get Golf Ready in 5 Days program will offer a series of five introductory lessons offered by PGA professionals in a small-group environment from June 1 - June 5. The lessons begin at 5:30 pm daily, and the entire program only costs $99. Secondly, PGA professionals Wes Tucker and Tom Stecker will offer free 10-minute golf lessons on Saturday, May 30, from 8:00 am until noon. To register for either event or to learn more, call (904) 209-0350.
Upcoming Events - Two great events are scheduled for Saturday, May 30. First, the Just TRI IT! Kids Triathlon will be at the Willie Galimore Center beginning at 8:30 am. Kids ages 6-12 will swim, bike, and run to test their skills and endurance against other participants. Proceeds will benefit the Children's Museum of St. Johns. More info is available (904) 797-7243 or info@explorecmsj.org. Secondly, a free Summer Safety Celebration will be on May 30 from 11:00 to 2:00 at the Solomon Calhoun Community Center in West Augustine. Local agencies and organizations will provide activities and information on safe ways to have fun this summer. The event will include a free cookout and car seat inspections with reduced priced car seats available for purchase.
Swimming Pools - St. Johns County has partnered with the St. Augustine YMCA to provide aquatic services and swim lessons at the Willie Galimore pool, beginning June 15, and at the recently opened Solomon Calhoun pool. For more information call (904) 829-5250.
Recreation Event Samples - The Table Tennis Club of St. Augustine meets every Monday and Tuesday at 6:30 pm at the Willie Galimore Center, where players of all skill-levels are welcome to play. The program includes a small fee, and participants should bring their own paddle and a ball. Additionally, the National Beach Paddle Tennis Tournament is being held at Ron Parker Park May 21 -25, with teams from around the country participating in this annual event. The public is welcome to come.

Utilities

Stimulus Funding for Utility Project - A collaborative project between the St. Johns County Utility Department (SJCUD) and the City of St. Augustine Beach was recently awarded $9.92 million through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The stimulus funding was announced on May 13th in Tallahassee at a Department of Environmental Protection public hearing, and will fund the installation of central sewer systems and the elimination of septic tanks in seven beach neighborhoods. Although the City of St. Augustine Beach is the project sponsor, through an interlocal agreement the SJCUD will handle the engineering, construction, and construction administration. The completed projects' assets will be owned and maintained by the SJCUD.
Funding Near the Maximum - Because the City of St. Augustine Beach is considered a small, disadvantaged community, based on its 2000 Census population, 65 percent of the $9.92 million funding will not need to be repaid. Even though this was the sixth ranked project in the state for Clean Water ARRA funding, it received the second highest ARRA funding. Additionally, the principal forgiveness of $5.9 million was the highest in the state. It should be noted that the maximum funding available to any of the competing projects was $10 million in Fiscal Year 09.

Michael D. Wanchick
County Administrator
Email: mwanchick@sjcfl.us