Monday, January 16, 2012
One of the unique things about tomorrow night's City Commission agenda...
...is the length of the consent agenda. Item 8E sheds some light on our water permit situation with SFWMD and might go a long way in explaining why I heard a whole lot of nothing back on the status of our withdrawal permit from SFWMD. At the time, a few months ago, other municipalities and the unincorporated county went back to normal watering times. Lake Worth remains, although it is hard to tell, on the most strict watering standards.
A brief bucket of history: We had to find another source of water other than the Surficial Aquifer that the city has relied upon for years due to evidence of saltwater intrusion. After an aborted attempt at permitting for an ocean outfall for our Reverse Osmosis (RO) plant, we then went to Palm Beach County for water and then broke that contract and went back to building our own RO plant which is now getting rid of its waste through deep well injection. That method is much more unknown than the effects of an ocean outfall, but politically impossible in this day and age. However, there may be unforeseen circumstances springing from deep well injection that we won't know for many years into the future.
Well the RO plant is running and, according to the back-up memo, we made the assumption that SFWMD was going to give us a permit to draw 5.3 MGD in the dry season and 6.0 in the wet season on average from the Surficial aquifer. (M is for millions, G is for gallons and D is for day) After many go-arounds with permitting and responding to SFWMD questions, they are only willing to give us 3.0 MGD in the dry season and 3.4 MGD in the wet season. This application work was taken through the permitting process by none other than Mock-Roos. The back-up memo says that the contract for that work was approved on February 25, 2010, but going to the city's website under 2010 City Commission meetings, there was no meeting on February 25th. The memo doesn't indicate the dollar amount of that contract.
The contract to do further modelling is an attempt to satisfy SFWMD concerns that the city's requested rate of withdrawal will not create more salt-water intrusion that otherwise would occur naturally and is priced at $61,800.
What this means is that the city expected SFWMD to go along with the city's request that would NOT require EXPANSION of the just finished RO plant until 2017. If SFWMD doesn't approve that rate of withdrawal, we will have to expand our JUST FINISHED RO plant to accommodate a greater withdrawal from the Floridan aquifer (source for the RO plant.) Assumptions have been made that pushed off expansion into the future that allowed for lower rates - remember the RO plant was funded through water rate increases. And, I remember many go-arounds by the Commission on how big to make the plant initially. It is my understanding that it can double its capacity eventually, but at a cost.
Suddenly things are more clear - expect to be paying more for water in the future.
A brief bucket of history: We had to find another source of water other than the Surficial Aquifer that the city has relied upon for years due to evidence of saltwater intrusion. After an aborted attempt at permitting for an ocean outfall for our Reverse Osmosis (RO) plant, we then went to Palm Beach County for water and then broke that contract and went back to building our own RO plant which is now getting rid of its waste through deep well injection. That method is much more unknown than the effects of an ocean outfall, but politically impossible in this day and age. However, there may be unforeseen circumstances springing from deep well injection that we won't know for many years into the future.
Well the RO plant is running and, according to the back-up memo, we made the assumption that SFWMD was going to give us a permit to draw 5.3 MGD in the dry season and 6.0 in the wet season on average from the Surficial aquifer. (M is for millions, G is for gallons and D is for day) After many go-arounds with permitting and responding to SFWMD questions, they are only willing to give us 3.0 MGD in the dry season and 3.4 MGD in the wet season. This application work was taken through the permitting process by none other than Mock-Roos. The back-up memo says that the contract for that work was approved on February 25, 2010, but going to the city's website under 2010 City Commission meetings, there was no meeting on February 25th. The memo doesn't indicate the dollar amount of that contract.
The contract to do further modelling is an attempt to satisfy SFWMD concerns that the city's requested rate of withdrawal will not create more salt-water intrusion that otherwise would occur naturally and is priced at $61,800.
What this means is that the city expected SFWMD to go along with the city's request that would NOT require EXPANSION of the just finished RO plant until 2017. If SFWMD doesn't approve that rate of withdrawal, we will have to expand our JUST FINISHED RO plant to accommodate a greater withdrawal from the Floridan aquifer (source for the RO plant.) Assumptions have been made that pushed off expansion into the future that allowed for lower rates - remember the RO plant was funded through water rate increases. And, I remember many go-arounds by the Commission on how big to make the plant initially. It is my understanding that it can double its capacity eventually, but at a cost.
Suddenly things are more clear - expect to be paying more for water in the future.
And this...
Also from the 1/13/12 City Manager's Report...
Commnunity Sustainability Highlights
The Historic Resources Preservation Board met this week and elected new officers. Manny Occhiogrosso will be the Chair again and Wes Blackman will be the Vice Chair. At the same meeting the Board approved three (3) requests for Certificates of Appropriateness for changes to residential structures.
Lectures this week with the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
2pm
HISTORIC LANDSCAPE LECTURE SERIES:
Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmstead by Justin Martin
311 Peruvian Avenue
$20 non-members - $10 members - Patron and above members free
Frederick Law Olmsted is arguably the most important historical figure that the average American knows the least about. Best remembered for his landscape architecture, from New York’s Central Park to Boston’s Emerald Necklace to Stanford University’s campus, Olmsted was also an influential journalist, early voice for the environment, and abolitionist credited with helping dissuade England from joining the South in the Civil War. Most of all, he was a social reformer. He didn’t simply create places that were beautiful in the abstract. An awesome and timeless intent stands behind Olmsted’s designs, allowing his work to survive to the present day. With our urgent need to revitalize cities and a widespread yearning for green space, his work is more relevant now than it was during his lifetime. Justin Martin restores Olmsted to his rightful place in the pantheon of great Americans.
Justin Martin, author of highly praised biographies of Alan Greenspan and Ralph Nader, lives in Forest Hills Gardens, New York, an enclave of New York City designed by Olmsted’s son. Justin Martin articles have appeared in a variety of publications, including Fortune, Newsweek, and the San Francisco Chronicle. Martin is a 1987 graduate of Rice University in Houston, Texas.
Note: I am just finishing this book. If any of you are interested in going and sharing a ride, please let me know.
2pm
HISTORIC LANDSCAPE LECTURE SERIES:
Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmstead by Justin Martin
311 Peruvian Avenue
$20 non-members - $10 members - Patron and above members free
Frederick Law Olmsted is arguably the most important historical figure that the average American knows the least about. Best remembered for his landscape architecture, from New York’s Central Park to Boston’s Emerald Necklace to Stanford University’s campus, Olmsted was also an influential journalist, early voice for the environment, and abolitionist credited with helping dissuade England from joining the South in the Civil War. Most of all, he was a social reformer. He didn’t simply create places that were beautiful in the abstract. An awesome and timeless intent stands behind Olmsted’s designs, allowing his work to survive to the present day. With our urgent need to revitalize cities and a widespread yearning for green space, his work is more relevant now than it was during his lifetime. Justin Martin restores Olmsted to his rightful place in the pantheon of great Americans.
Justin Martin, author of highly praised biographies of Alan Greenspan and Ralph Nader, lives in Forest Hills Gardens, New York, an enclave of New York City designed by Olmsted’s son. Justin Martin articles have appeared in a variety of publications, including Fortune, Newsweek, and the San Francisco Chronicle. Martin is a 1987 graduate of Rice University in Houston, Texas.
Note: I am just finishing this book. If any of you are interested in going and sharing a ride, please let me know.
Pics of Casino Building per 1/13/12 City Manager's Report
 |
| This is the ballroom on the second floor - which, to me, seems to have a lower ceiling height than what is usually found in ballroom sorts of spaces. Anyone know how many square feet this area ended up being? |
Anyway, food for thought.
Taking Parking Lots Seriously, as Public Spaces - NYTimes.com
Paved, but Still Alive
We need to take parking lots more seriously, architecturally, and to think of them as public spaces, as part of the infrastructure of our streets and sidewalks.
Click title for link to article. A local example:
MLK
“On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, "Is it safe?" Expediency asks the question, "Is it politic?" And Vanity comes along and asks the question, "Is it popular?" But Conscience asks the question "Is it right?" And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right.”
Sunday, January 15, 2012
From yet another astute reader, this one was even "certified" for a while...
With all this talk by some about the need for our new City Manager to have the ICMA (International City Managers Association) "credential," it's important to point out that "credential" only requires that one have a certain combination of experience and education, the taking of an "Applied Knowledge Assessment" (not a pass/fail test) and an annual payment of a fee to the ICMA. Here is what one knowledgeable reader (who is inside the city management profession) shared with me this weekend:
"While I agree the best thing this new commission did was to fire Susan Stanton, I believe the process they are now following was a complete setup by Stanton and the progressives. Knowing of the eventuality of her termination, I believe Stanton and Margoles (and maybe Carr) laid out a cleverly planned set of actions this commission is now following (or stuck with). On the night of her firing, staff immediately jumped into this "we must find another wonderful ICMA Credentialed Manager" and quickly brought in Kurt Bressner and the Range Riders (other ICMA managers without current employment). The ensuing discussions and debates have set up the need for the City to ONLY HIRE AN ICMA CREDENTIALED MANAGER - and all others be damned. Ms. Anderson is the public ring-leader for this new cause, actually posting the resumes of candidates who have the ICMA seal of approval. Only Credential Managers make her grade. All others are dismissed. And I must ask - Is the sign of a good City Manager to have multiple jobs in the past 25 years? Are more jobs better because it makes for a longer resume? I don't know about you, but I'd rather see a professional with 2 or 3 jobs over the past 25 years than someone with 10 or more jobs over the same time frame.
I can tell you many years ago I was a member of ICMA, just as Margoles is now. Nothing special - you just pay an annual membership fee. In my case the annual fee was about $400. The annual fee was always paid by my employer. Everyone reading this (if posted) could join ICMA for about $200 per year. If you work for a government the fee increases to a fixed % of your annual salary. Trust me on this - ICMA probably doesn't care who becomes a member, they just want the $$$. It reminds me of the GFOA CAFR Award of Excellence that Stanton bought for the City's finance department. All you need to do is submit the CAFR along with the outlandish fee and if you prepared the CAFR correctly you win the award. Most decent finance departments in America have these silly plaques hanging on a wall somewhere. There are so many CAFR Excellence awards given each year ICMA actually prints a bound book listing the award recipients.
My concern is the City is now locked into a manager search in which everyone is fixated only on ICMA Credentialed managers. This greatly reduces the potential field of qualified candidates and leaves out others who could easily handle the responsibilities. Past City Directors come to mind, also people like Joan Oliva from the CRA. These people know the City and its problems. They also know the pitfalls of the politics here. Bringing in some stranger from another part of the state, or from another part of the country, probably is not in this City's best interest. These "strangers" would not know what they were getting into. Yes, they may have loads of past government jobs under their belt (that is a whole different issue) and have paid their annual ICMA dues to make them so wonderful to the world, but they may easily be destroyed by the toxic politics and severe social problems we experience. Or maybe they are a Trojan Horse plant and come in to serve the other side and continue to prop up and support the progressive / anarchist agenda.
In summary, it seems the moment Stanton was fired this new ICMA Credentialed Manager strategy appeared at staff's suggestion, and within days there was Bressner making the case. What does this City need and what do the elected officials want - someone they know and respect, or a complete stranger who just happens to have have his or her employer pay the annual ICMA dues to make them appear better than any other candidate - by paying ICMA to receive that word "credentialed". Likewise, the City should not hire a "toadie" - a Scott Maxwell puppet (Ms. Anderson's phrase) - but this new commission majority has the chance to bring in a leader more concerned with fixing the problems in this City and undoing the recent wrongs brought about by the progressives - than in displaying their plagues and awards. Yes, being a Range Rider (very self-service group, I'd say) or credential ICMA manager is good, but it should not be a flat out requirement. And I'm sure there are several great, local people willing and able to step in and take control of this City without the need for a big state-wide or national search."
In response, I pointed out the difference between the ICMA "credential" and the American Planning Association (APA) credential of American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP.) Not only do you need a requisite combination of education and experience and payment of an annual fee, you need to PASS a test that determines your level of familiarity and mastery of core planning principles and history. Not everyone who takes this test passes and there is a cottage industry to prepare those who take the test. I know some people who have taken the AICP exam two and three times before they pass. They also change the test every year and include many current topics relevant to the planning profession. After you pass the test, you get a certificate indicating such and the privilege of using AICP behind your name in professional correspondence, letterheads, business cards, etc. However, you are also required to maintain your certification by gaining continuing education credits through approved courses each year. This is much more of a REAL credentialing program than that of the ICMA. So, the question remains, why are some fixated on it to such a degree?
I would also state that the term "progressives" is grossly misused in describing those that support the former Commission majority. And, I also should mention that this person used a more colorful name when identifying Ms. Anderson...
More from our astute reader:
"Yes, the AICP and even LEED-AP are different in that you need to pass a test then maintain the certification through routine continuing education. ICMA is simply a membership.
Yes to your thought about Stanton selling her soul to support the extreme left wing agenda of the progressive / anarchist group. The mere fact that she was turned down on 300 consecutive job interviews should say something about her / him as a candidate. This also goes to my concern that hiring a complete unknown person (Editor: Which would be encouraged by requiring ICMA certification) opens up the possibility of a Trojan Horse candidate. I can see the five commissioners finding and settling on a certain candidate who initially appeases all sides, then that person turns out to be another Stanton-like manager. Or the hiring of an unknown may present a very short-term manager who quickly finds out that the quagmire of issues is overwhelming and runs for the hills, only after picking up his 6 months of severance."
"While I agree the best thing this new commission did was to fire Susan Stanton, I believe the process they are now following was a complete setup by Stanton and the progressives. Knowing of the eventuality of her termination, I believe Stanton and Margoles (and maybe Carr) laid out a cleverly planned set of actions this commission is now following (or stuck with). On the night of her firing, staff immediately jumped into this "we must find another wonderful ICMA Credentialed Manager" and quickly brought in Kurt Bressner and the Range Riders (other ICMA managers without current employment). The ensuing discussions and debates have set up the need for the City to ONLY HIRE AN ICMA CREDENTIALED MANAGER - and all others be damned. Ms. Anderson is the public ring-leader for this new cause, actually posting the resumes of candidates who have the ICMA seal of approval. Only Credential Managers make her grade. All others are dismissed. And I must ask - Is the sign of a good City Manager to have multiple jobs in the past 25 years? Are more jobs better because it makes for a longer resume? I don't know about you, but I'd rather see a professional with 2 or 3 jobs over the past 25 years than someone with 10 or more jobs over the same time frame.
I can tell you many years ago I was a member of ICMA, just as Margoles is now. Nothing special - you just pay an annual membership fee. In my case the annual fee was about $400. The annual fee was always paid by my employer. Everyone reading this (if posted) could join ICMA for about $200 per year. If you work for a government the fee increases to a fixed % of your annual salary. Trust me on this - ICMA probably doesn't care who becomes a member, they just want the $$$. It reminds me of the GFOA CAFR Award of Excellence that Stanton bought for the City's finance department. All you need to do is submit the CAFR along with the outlandish fee and if you prepared the CAFR correctly you win the award. Most decent finance departments in America have these silly plaques hanging on a wall somewhere. There are so many CAFR Excellence awards given each year ICMA actually prints a bound book listing the award recipients.
My concern is the City is now locked into a manager search in which everyone is fixated only on ICMA Credentialed managers. This greatly reduces the potential field of qualified candidates and leaves out others who could easily handle the responsibilities. Past City Directors come to mind, also people like Joan Oliva from the CRA. These people know the City and its problems. They also know the pitfalls of the politics here. Bringing in some stranger from another part of the state, or from another part of the country, probably is not in this City's best interest. These "strangers" would not know what they were getting into. Yes, they may have loads of past government jobs under their belt (that is a whole different issue) and have paid their annual ICMA dues to make them so wonderful to the world, but they may easily be destroyed by the toxic politics and severe social problems we experience. Or maybe they are a Trojan Horse plant and come in to serve the other side and continue to prop up and support the progressive / anarchist agenda.
In summary, it seems the moment Stanton was fired this new ICMA Credentialed Manager strategy appeared at staff's suggestion, and within days there was Bressner making the case. What does this City need and what do the elected officials want - someone they know and respect, or a complete stranger who just happens to have have his or her employer pay the annual ICMA dues to make them appear better than any other candidate - by paying ICMA to receive that word "credentialed". Likewise, the City should not hire a "toadie" - a Scott Maxwell puppet (Ms. Anderson's phrase) - but this new commission majority has the chance to bring in a leader more concerned with fixing the problems in this City and undoing the recent wrongs brought about by the progressives - than in displaying their plagues and awards. Yes, being a Range Rider (very self-service group, I'd say) or credential ICMA manager is good, but it should not be a flat out requirement. And I'm sure there are several great, local people willing and able to step in and take control of this City without the need for a big state-wide or national search."
In response, I pointed out the difference between the ICMA "credential" and the American Planning Association (APA) credential of American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP.) Not only do you need a requisite combination of education and experience and payment of an annual fee, you need to PASS a test that determines your level of familiarity and mastery of core planning principles and history. Not everyone who takes this test passes and there is a cottage industry to prepare those who take the test. I know some people who have taken the AICP exam two and three times before they pass. They also change the test every year and include many current topics relevant to the planning profession. After you pass the test, you get a certificate indicating such and the privilege of using AICP behind your name in professional correspondence, letterheads, business cards, etc. However, you are also required to maintain your certification by gaining continuing education credits through approved courses each year. This is much more of a REAL credentialing program than that of the ICMA. So, the question remains, why are some fixated on it to such a degree?
I would also state that the term "progressives" is grossly misused in describing those that support the former Commission majority. And, I also should mention that this person used a more colorful name when identifying Ms. Anderson...
More from our astute reader:
"Yes, the AICP and even LEED-AP are different in that you need to pass a test then maintain the certification through routine continuing education. ICMA is simply a membership.
Yes to your thought about Stanton selling her soul to support the extreme left wing agenda of the progressive / anarchist group. The mere fact that she was turned down on 300 consecutive job interviews should say something about her / him as a candidate. This also goes to my concern that hiring a complete unknown person (Editor: Which would be encouraged by requiring ICMA certification) opens up the possibility of a Trojan Horse candidate. I can see the five commissioners finding and settling on a certain candidate who initially appeases all sides, then that person turns out to be another Stanton-like manager. Or the hiring of an unknown may present a very short-term manager who quickly finds out that the quagmire of issues is overwhelming and runs for the hills, only after picking up his 6 months of severance."
January Mango Groves Meeting
Please join us next Thursday night, 1/19/12, 7pm, at Compass, for the monthly Mango Groves Neighborhood Association meeting. If you are in possession of a sign we ask that you put it out at this time too. We will be having our election and swearing in of officers at this meeting, along with an update from PBSO.
Have a great weekend, MGNA Board of Directors
mangogroves.org
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Marilyn Monroe
“I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.”
Thursday, January 12, 2012
New Jersey cosmetics manufacturer relocating headquarters and manufacturing operations to the City of Lake Worth
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