HEADS UP!….

THE LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE/
WELCOME CENTER
WILL BE CLOSED THIS
THURSDAY, AUGUST 19.
IT’S THE BEGINNING
OF A BEAUTIFUL NEW ROOF.
WE WILL REOPEN
FRIDAY AUGUST 20
AT 9:00am.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS
PLEASE CALL US AT
(954) 776-1000!

Tags: Lauderdale By The Sea Chamber of Commerce Roof Installed, organizations, scoop, Scoops
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THE HARDER THEY FALL …

Dear Readers … Well the VFD didn’t pull down his statue in the square and we haven’t verified the McIntee memorabilia has been taken down off the VFD walls …but Vice Mayor McIntee has decided to do a “Saddam” on those who were not loyal to him and did not vote him in as Fire Chief of the VFD… In the aftermath of that loss he was out of town…laying low …but he has returned and he is on a rampage of destruction to take the VFD down!… Why else would he go to the Town Manager and make requests for Chief Perkins salary for his first year as Chief…and the current VFD roster (prev. post) …Today McIntee and the Commissioners received more requests made by McIntee through Town Manager Colon …who suddenly is more than happy to “oversee” a “contractor” of the Town… Today’s memo “As requested, attached please find the VFD table for the Total Number of Drills, Medicals & Fires Credited and Compensated for Chief Bob Perkins.”…This is just too “rich”!.. McIntee has become the  laughingstock in town!… Going after the VFD….is political suicide!… It’s time for the VFD membership to vote him out! …How can the VFD keep him as a member when he is trying to torpedo them!… How nuts is it that the former Deputy Chief  is asking for information on the Chief who was side by side with him in the time frame he is making the requests for?… What does it say besides “scorched earth”?… If McIntee is trying to say things were amiss or questionable…then just as he did with the Town Manager’s 2007 contract…he was either complicit in pulling the wool over our eyes or he did not do his due diligence!…Either way he toast…with a short memory…

Jan 2009- Excerpts…When McIntee was newly elected as Deuty Chief and was “protecting”his “troops” from any questions or requests to the Manager from residents or Commissioner Dodd!….

……………………………………………….

Commissioner Comments-VM McIntee……BC-commentary …Fire Department…

From the meeting….1/28/09….

VM- “Regarding the fire department. Going after people from communicating on a cell phone when going to a call , the pickup truck does not have a vehicle based radio. It has portable radios. If the person they’re referring to is going down the street with a siren he has something to his mouth. It’s probably the portable fire radio going to command and saying utility 12 responding. There are a hundred reasons.”

VM- “The other question about the uniform of the Chief, the equipment , the cost, those are all questions Commissioner Dodd could walk into the Chief’s office and ask him if he wasn’t satisfied with the answers then he could bring it up to the dais.”

VM- “I think it’s really blatantly an attack on the whole department to go after little things like that. I don’t understand those things. I mean the three trucks over there are the town property. The utilities, the ATVs are town property. Every time one of these trucks goes in for repair  and the last one was probably 1500 -2000 dollars. The town doesn’t pay for those repairs . The volunteer fire department pays for those repairs. Their budget from the town money that was sent to them to keep that stuff up to snuff. An oil change is 500 dollars in a diesel. All the trucks need their oil changed every few months.When that SUV or ATV went into the shop it wasn’t the town that was gonna pay for it. It was out the pocket of money distributed from the volunteers to run their equipment that was part of our budget. So things break down.”

VM- “Why would you go after for a vehicle breaking down. There’s no hot rodding on the beaches. We got printouts of anybody going over 20 miles a hour. That vehicle was near the water . It went down into the dirt and it went down before the multiple wheel drive stopped working and it wouldn’t run through the gook. But to pick little items like that and attack the fire chief, I don’t know where you’re going with tat. Just don’t understand it.”

VM-“Let’s clear up the Deputy Chief thing once and for all. When I decided to run for Deputy Chief, I was asked by the department by a vast majority to run. I said well we know what’s going to happen, there’s gonna be certain people on the dais who’s gonna scream, certain people out there are gonna scream. So they called for a board of directors meeting. The board of directors sat down. I presented my position. They voted to allow me to run. They then called a special meeting of the whole department and they voted. I won’t give you the vote but it was 2 against and the rest were in favor for me running because I am not a corporate officer. I’m a line officer, I tell guys where to squirt the water and they wanted my vast years of experience in the field with them, leading them because I’m the best leader there for that. It was done by the rules of the department and done properly.”

VM-“Now I’ve got another, Commissioner Dodd asking the Town Manager about an ethics situation. How can I be Deputy Chief and where’s the paperwork on it. How would she know?”

Response from the Manager-‘They are contractors of the Town. Compliance with standard operating procedures of organization is a responsibility of the board, command staff and its members.’

Response from the Manager: ‘ They are contractors for the Town. Compliance with the by-laws of an organization is the responsibility of the board and its members.’

VM- ” I sent a letter to Tallahassee laying out what my position was on plain paper, not the Town’s paper and gt a letter back saying YOU CAN DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO. Now Judy Vik the reporter for the Pompano Pelican back there. She did her homework. She called Tallahassee and got exactly the information I just gave. Commissioner Dodd could have done that too. It’s public information. So there’s nothing being hidden here. I mean pickayu stuff.”

12/8/08

‘Dear Mr. Claypool,

I would like the Ethics opinion of this writer holding the position of Deputy Chief of the Lauderdale By The Sea Volunteer Fire Department.

I would like you to consider the following information before you render a Ethics decision.

A. The Lauderdale By The Sea Fire Department is the sole provider of Fire protection in the town of Lauderdale By The Sea.

B. This writer receives absolutely no compensation for service provided to the Volunteer fire department and if in the position of Deputy Chief I would still receive zero compensation from this department.

C. The LBTS VFD is a Florida corporation with corporate officers and company business officers. The Deputy Chief does not sit or act in any of these capacities under the corporate by-laws.

D. The Deputy Chief duties supervise  and direct fire operations at active scenes and makes sure all training demands are met by the department members. The Deputy Chief has nothing to do with Corporate decisions or company policies, or spending funds of the department. It should be clear that the Deputy chief position is a line officer position only dealing with firefighting activities.

E. I am the most experienced fire fighter in the department and have over 45 years of experience.

Thank you for your time and consideration. Respectfully, Vice Mayor Jerome S McIntee’

The Response…12/19/08…

Re: Request for opinion,conflict of interest

‘Dear Mr. McIntee:

I have been asked to respond to your request for an opinion on the issue of whether a conflict of interest would be created by your serving as Deputy Chief of the Lauderdale By The Sea Volunteer Fire Department while also serving as a member of the LBTS Town Commission

You advise that the VD is the sole provider of fire suppression services in the Town, that you would receive no compensation for your services, that the VFD is a corporate entity and the Deputy Chief is neither a director nor officer of the corporation, and that the position on Deputy Chief is a “line officer position,” having nothing to do with budgetary or policy decisions of the corporation. The Code of Ethics for Public Officers or Contractual Relationship- No public officer or employee of an agency shall have or hold any employment or contractual relationship with any business entity or any agency which is subject to the regulation of, or is doing business with, an agency of which he or she is an officer or employee, excluding those organizations and their officers who, when acting in their official capacity, enter into or negotiate a collective bargaining contract with the state or any municipality, county or other political subdivision of the state; nor shall an officer or employee of an agency have or hold any employment or contractual relationship that will create a continuing or frequently recurring conflict between his or her private interests and the performance of his or her public duties or would impede the full and faithful discharge of his or her public duties {Section 112.313(7)(a), Florida Statutes.}

The Commission has already dealt with the issue in CEO 08-22, an opinion you requested. There, it was observed that Section 112.313(7) to be implicated, there must first exist an employment or contractual relationship. The Commission said:

It must then be determined whether you have a “contractual or employment relationship” with the VFD, since in the absence of such a relationship, there can be no violation. Although you relate that you were paid $160 in “training funds” for the months of March and April, you state that as of May 1, you have specifically declined any compensation from the Department. In CEO 00-23 we stated our view that refusal to accept compensation, given in advance and in writing, coupled with actual refusal of said compensation, would negate the element of employment, and therefore the potential of a prohibited conflict.

In the materials you provided in requesting that opinion, you indicated you received no compensation from the VFD and “have no intention of receiving any compensation from the LBTSVFD in the future.” Unless something changed in that respect, the previous opinion would still be applicable.

Sincerely,

Virlindia Doss

Deputy Executive Director’

VM-” It’s off the wall. Look after the big problem, let the little problems work on a head to head basis.Work it over with the individual and if you aren’t happy then take the next step.”

VM-” At least give the Fire Department Chief the courtesy, can I ask you about this and if you aren’t satisfied then take the next step or the AMR Chief or the Police Chief. I had a problem with the Police Chief about notifying residents about the burglary. Did I come and talk to you Chief? I didn’t make up all these things telling him how he should do it. I had my suggestions I mean but I never take the step of trying to micromanage something I know very little about.”

VM-” They have people going to fire scenes taking pictures of the Chief to see the way he’s dressed. What for? To cause trouble. That’s all, I yield”

……………………………………………

Interesting times for the VFD… McIntee held it over their heads that without him…the VFD would be decimated and BSO Fire would be back …The reality is, since December 14th…the VFD are being treated like Heroes…Doors are opening…Pats on the back and congrats greet them everywhere they go and the  lines of communication closed off due to McIntee are now wide open with tons and tons of support…Hmmmm…perhaps we’ll soon find McIntee in a hole somewhere…hiding out?… If …”He’s doing a Saddam”….

more to come…

Tags: Lauderdale By The Sea retaliation by the Vice Mayor, Lauderdale By The Sea VFD, local government, Local Politics, Luderdale By The Sea Vice Mayor Jerry McIntee, scoop, Scoops, VFD
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MY-MY-MY….IT SURE LOOKS LIKE THE SAME PLACE!….

Dear Readers…Hmmm…an observant taxpayer saw the work being done right by Vice Mayor McIntee’s house…You might recall the Vice Mayor was untruthful a few months back when this writer said it was not him who filled out the Citizen Contact Center  Form…He backed off…and then pulled the item after Comm. Clottey asked him to… Later the Vice mayor made a request for other Citizen Request Forms  to show they too were filled out by someone other than the resident…Of course that was not the issue…the issue was he is on the dais saying her filled it out…Add to that the town brought forward some forms from the past to bolster the Vice Mayor’s form at the following meeting…It backfired when it was found one of those forms was a year old!… Also not yet brought forth but contained in the backup last month for the development dept. was work being done on new Citizen Contact Center  Forms…YIKES!… The commission in the meantime has decided to go through with a townwide study and to put the drainage issues on hole …including the pavilion (last meeting)…So of course it’s quite disturbing to see that what appears to be the very drain in question is being dug up and fixed…Only question is…who’s doing the job?…Pompano Beach , the contractor who did the road  or the town?…

An e-mail for the answer has been sent…

………………………………………
Flag this message
drainage
Monday, October 26, 2009 2:41 PM
From:
“Barbara Cole”
Add sender to Contacts
To:
[email protected]
Steve, I have had an inquiry about the drainage work being done on SE 21st street.
I know the Vice Mayor had put in Citizen Complaint Form and after being asked by Comm. Clottey on the dais he removed it.
I also know the commission voted to forgo any such work while a study is going forth for approx. 90,000- 100,000 for a townwide plan to move forward in an equitable manner.
It was surprising to see the work being done, was it the same drainage work that was in question?
Barbara Cole

……………………………….

Thanks…keep those townwide photos coming…

more to come…

Tags: Lauderdale By the Sea Vice Mayor Jerry McIntee, local government, Local Politics, scoop, Scoops
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DID YOU REALLY MEAN 44 FEET ?….

Dear Readers…Back in 2006 we stood in front of Publix and went throughout this town asking for 44 feet…TOWN WIDE…. It was the NO-NO-YES-YES CIC Campaign…But now it is being revised…and reintroduced to 33 feet…in the south…44 feet in the north…so said Vice Mayor McIntee….

This leaves us wide open for more Bert J. Harris suits…and more non-conforming buildings…and why?…Because those stuck in 1973 do not understand and do not care about the consequences……

Although it seemed that Vice Mayor McIntee was trying to “will” the Town Attorney to 33 feet…she kept to the 44 feet townwide as is in the Town Charter …2 hrs and 30 min. into the continuation meeting on Oct. 20, 2009 is the presentation by the Town Atty. …. http://lbts.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=259

Also on the docket ……

Ethics…take away the “2-Hats”  … some took it too personally and could not see beyond…all the way to the backup……. They could not see the bigger picture …. What it is really about … it’s about catching up with all the other municipalities to safeguard against any hints of impropriety on the dais …. especially with all we’ve witnessed recently locally and throughout the county…

Lifeguards … Let’s see what the people want..and put this one on the ballot with the cost per property ….

Any other ideas come and speak and let the commission know…before or during the meeting .. it’s time sensitive to get it on the ballot in March..

Jarvis Hall 6 pm …televised on Comcast Ch. 78/ online… http://lbts.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2

more to come…

Tags: Lauderdale By The Sea Referendum 2009, LBTS Agendas/Meetings, local government, Local Politics, scoop, Scoops
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WITH KNOWLEDGE AND FACTS … COMES CLARITY….

AN OPEN LETTER….

Dear CIC- “FOG” (FRIENDS OF GANG)….As a past “FOG”…may I offer you a way to see the sunlight…to breathe fresh air again…and to not be stuck in the fog…

I was like you only a short time ago…letting the Mc-Furth “Gang” have the final word…from the dais…in the BTSTimes…and at CIC meetings…not looking any further…having my judgment “clouded”…and buying what was being sold “lock, stock and both barrels”…

It was easy…it was inclusive…and it seemed the right thing to do at the time…UNTIL…

I began to see the cracks…to see the implausibility in what was being espoused…and DARED to voice an opposing opinion…(see the How the Sausage Was Made cat.)

Such an act of “dis-loyalty” opened the floodgates of disdain…..You’re with them (CIC) or you’re branded …”OLD-GUARD”…. in order to keep the remaining “FOG”s… in place!..

Never did I see what was coming with the change in majority in 2008…the underlying bad acts that would come from it……The brazen disregard of what I thought we fought so hard to change…..There is no “political assault”…There is only accountability…just as there was for their predecessors…

The Town Manager is accountable for her positions…..her actions….her hiring and firing…her financial decisions……and fulfilling or not fulfilling her duties…just as it was for her predecessor…

The Commissioners are accountable for their positions…their votes…their actions…and doing or not doing the will of the people…just as it was for their predecessors…

The CIC is accountable for their positions…..how they promote themselves… and who they do and do not support…

UOT is accountable for their positions….how they promote themselves…and who they do and do not support….

The local papers are accountable for what they print…

This writer is accountable for what I post…

So think very long and hard about how you , a “CIC-“FOG” member are being  being positioned……In this former member’s opinion….There is no “all out political assault against three CIC-endorsed Commissioners: Clottey, Silverstone, and McIntee as well as Town Manager, Esther Colon by the old-guard political machine.”..as CIC President Bob Roberts has written…(in fact is he not doing the very same in his quest for accountability with the ” Hillsboro Inlet Battle” on pg. 20 in his own BTSTimes?)…

There is no “old-guard political machine”…they are long gone…

What there is, this election…. at this point in time are … taxpayers…voters ….homeowners….residents…and businesses…..and new candidates…who have witnessed or been impacted personally from decisions  and actions that have come from their Town elected officials and their Town Manager…on a plethora of issues…that has brought each and every one of them to decide they must not let this continue on without accountability!…

Funny thing …as a former CIC-“FOG”….it’s the very same thing that brought I and other former “FOG”s (the many)…….to the CIC not so long ago when the CIC actually stood for doing just what they now want to prevent others not aligned with them from doing now!…

LET THE SUNSHINE…..NO FOG……

…………………………………………………………………

THE CIC E-MAIL…..

From: Bob Roberts
Sent: Wednesday, October 7, 2009 7:46 AM

Dear Fellow CIC Members:

We are heading into a very busy time. The March 2010 Lauderdale-by-the-Sea Commission campaign season is almost upon us and, as the candidates begin to announce, we must be ready to skillfully gauge who will deserve the valuable endorsement and support of the Citizens Initiative Committee.

Starting next week members of the CIC, must also be ready to go to work once again to defend against what has become an all out political assault against three CIC-endorsed Commissioners: Clottey, Silverstone, and McIntee as well as Town Manager, Esther Colon by the old-guard political machine.

We need our members to attend the Town Manager?s Review on Monday, October 12 at 4 pm at Jarvis Hall and, if it moves you, to publicly say a kind word about Esther Colon who has been unfairly attacked and harassed to no end by these people.

We also need our members to start coming back to Commission meetings again and stand strong in our right to the Lauderdale-by-the-Sea we love and worked so hard to protect, preserve, and enhance over the years. Please come to the Tuesday, October 13 Commission meeting, 7:00 PM in Jarvis Hall. 6:45 if you wish to sign up for public comments.

Mark your calendar for Tuesday, October 20 at 7:00 PM for the next CIC general meeting at the Surf & Yacht Club. We will be serving wine and cheese, organizing volunteers for the Town Halloween party, and planning for our exciting campaign kick-off event!

We know everyone is busy but we cannot stress enough the urgency of the situation before us. Please make every effort to participate, our future depends on it.

Please call CIC Vice-Chair Joe Couriel at 954 -xxx-xxxx for further information.

Sincerely,

The CIC Board of Directors

………………………………………………………..

more to come…..

Tags: Citizens Initiative Committee, Civic Organizations, Lauderdale By The Sea CIC, Local Politics, scoop, Scoops
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DEJA VUE…

Dear Readers …Flashback…to 4th of July and those 4th of July “committee” meetings open to the public… but put on the Town/Jarvis Board so few of the “Public” would know or show up……It worked!…

Yesterday, one Commissioner was told the Town Manager Review with the FLOC Range Rides would be Monday October 12, 2009 at 4 pm…(prev. post)…

Today, this writer drove by Jarvis Hall to check out the sign…WHAT SIGN?…There was a small addition on the Oct. calendar…”Workshop 5 pm”…no description..and a different time…perhaps the Town is looking for the same outcome as those July 4th meetings?… (Remember it worked!)…

There were two big signs posted on the board and on the Jarvis door for the BOA  stating their October meeting is canceled…Hmmmm…

PIO Steve D’Olivera walked by just as I was leaving…I explained the situation and he assured me he would find out the time and put it on Channel 78…and get back to me…

Bet ya there will be plenty of signs put out for the Mc-Furth Halloween event ….. Priorities don’t ya know!…

This is what continues to be wrong in this Town…with this Administration…pulling these kind of stunts!…

more to come……….

Tags: Lauderdale By The Sea Town Managert Esther Colon Performance Review, LBTS Agendas/Meetings, local government, Local Politics, scoop, Scoops
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AUGUST 27, 2009 2 PM IN TOWN HALL… CONFERENCE ROOM….

Dear Readers ….the bid was like all the rest for RFP 09-07-04 “Sewer Line and Storm Drain Maintenance & Repair” …3rd paragraph included in the bid package, “Sealed Proposals will be received by the undersigned at the office of the Town Clerk, Town Hall 4501 Ocean Drive, Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, Florida 33308 until 2:00 PM on Thursday, August 27,2009 AT WHICH TIME THEY WILL BE PUBLICLY OPENED AND READ ALOUD, SHORTLY THEREAFTER. Any bid received after time and date specified will not be considered”…So at 1:45 this writer and Commissioner Dodd came separately to see what would happen with this 4th RFP after the previous 3 starting on July 29, 2009 (prev. posts) were NOT publicly opened and read aloud…according to any sane person’s interpretation of what that means!… Turns out the 4th time was again the distorted and disturbing interpretation used by the Town Administration asserted point blank by the Town Clerk herself. The Town Clerk with the Assist. Town Manager concluded that it NOW means…to open them, read the names (this time the towns) and NOT the bid prices!…This writer again as I did on July 29, 2009 if they were NOT going to read out the prices and received the same response…”NO”…Commissioner Dodd then made reference to the bid and paragraph 3…and received the Town’s interpretation! … An interpretation not used prior to the July 29, 2009 opening or any surrounding towns!….Again this will be addressed on Sept. 9, 2009 at the Regular Commission meeting to change the LBTS purchasing manual to add the specifics to again allow the RFPs to be opened at the time and date published….An ordinance also needs to be made so there can be no more nonsense done without the commission’s knowledge…most other towns have an ordinance as well as the manual…

I  e-mailed the Town to see about seeing the RFPs  after turning down the $47.58 charge for the packets themselves (prev. post)…and received the following response…

RE: Recent PRR on bids
Monday, August 24, 2009 1:30 PM
From:
“Steve D’Olivera”

To:
[email protected]

Barbara:

I spoke with the Town Clerk and she said to call her office if you want to set up a time to review the bid packets. She suggested setting aside at least an hour. The only time that she requested you not come in was between 12 and 2 PM, when staffers go on lunch break and she is short-staffed. Town Hall closes at 4:30 PM.

Steve

I sent a reply of thanks to Steve and called the office as instructed, the Receptionist went to inquire and came back with the same times, I asked about setting up a time as the e-mail said and was told I did not need to do that!…

This writer made the trek to the Town Hall to see the previous 3 no longer “read aloud” RFPs …which never took longer than 10-20 minutes tops…10 days after they were accepted…(this must be done by all the bidders if they want to see what they can usually see the day OF elsewhere)…. and was now advised “to set aside at least an hour” for just the July 29, 2009 RFPs!… On top of that the Town Clerk told the PIO that she is “short staffed”…so the the change of procedure helps how exactly?…

Upon my entering the building at 2 pm, I found the 3 bids were available for me to look at….but when I asked if I could use the conference room which was empty, I was told by Officer Specialist/Assist. Town Clerk Nikki Smith who checked with someone in the back (Town Clerk or Town Manager?) “NO. you will have to sit in the lobby.”…More bad P.R. for the current administration!…DUMB!…

July 29, 2009…RFP 09-06-02 ….IT Bids… (information technology)

This package of 9 bidders was just clipped together with a big black clip…

1. Dynamic Systems Solutions Inc. Fort Lauderdale- Terms initial fee $1,500/ system maint. & network support$2,400 per mo./ additional consulting $85.00 per hr.

2. Calvin Giordano & Assoc. Fort Lauderdale- Assoc. $165- 3 hrs. $495.00/ network admin. $135-8 hrs. $1240.00/ IT support Spec. hrly support $85.00 32 hrs.$2720/ monthly fixed fee $4450.00

3. Brazart Corp. Oakland Park price proposal $968.00 per mo./ addt. time $60.50 per hr/non-sched.- on call addressed in less than 8 hrs

DeRose Technologies Pompano Beach Windows server std. $820.00/ Microsoft exchg. 2003 $300/ email software $150.Cisco $125/laptop comp. $1360/ desktop comp. $2100/ per mo. $4855.00/ tech support level 1 $70 per hr/ level 2 $95 per hr/ systems eng. $135 per hr

5. JDL Technologies Fort Lauderdale monthly maint. option 1 per hr $120/ option 2 2 hr $80/ option3 server and infrastructure maint. & setup $299/ updates $100/ exchg. $24/ backup verification $24/ labor hrly $80

6. Dennis R Deblois Miami monthly maint. $1500/ beyond hrly $125

7. Solution Response LLC Coral Springs30 on call hrs per mo. $60 per hr/ greater than 30 $65 per hr.

8. City of Coral Springs Coral springs 10/1/09- 9/30/10 monthly $700/excess hrly rate $70

9. Rad Gov Fort Lauderdale on call support $54.18/ monthly maint. fixed service fee $133, 120.00

BC- No evaluation or analysis was included by staff….although the e-mail exchange (prev. post) between the Town Atty-Asst. Town Manager and Town Manager Colon ends with the Town Manager sending an e-mail stating the staff will review and recommend to the Commission (evaluate)…Hmmmmm…..

August 11, 2009 …..RFP 09-07-01….. Commercial Blvd. Drainage Project

This RFP was in a big blue notebook which included dividers…the 1st one was for analysis and it was empty…

1. Mullings Engineering Sunrise-removed their bid due to a misinterpretation of the bid…contained was the removal and the letter refunding the dep. from the Town Clerk…the bid was $44,170

2. Williams Paving Co Miami Dade $80,000

3. Man Con Deerfield Beach $61,500

4. Johnson Davis Inc. Lantana Fl. $69,000

5. Ric Man Int. Inc. Pompano Beach  $115,617

6. Straightline Engineering Miami $58,300

7. Omega Boca Raton $64,894

8. Florida Siteworks Davie  $33,450

9. ABK Construction Miami  $69,000

10. Miguel Lopez Medley Fl. $79,125

11. DBF Construction Pompano Beach $65,813

12. Coastal Contracting Hollywood $36,445

13. Atlantic Civil Construction Orlando Fl. $73,000

14. PBH Enterprises $48,333.60

15. ARZ Builders Boca Raton $ 47,500

16. GMI Contracting Davie $48,400

BC- With such a large range…we must look for any and all change orders from the lower bidders as the job progresses/ with a$36, 445 bid from Coastal Contracting the company contracted for the Pavilion and quoted in the Hi-Riser as saying the drainage was addressed with the administration prior to construction…only to be informed the town did not have the funds (did not reach the commission for decision) this too should be added to the long list of bad unilateral decisions made by the Town Manager on her Performance Review…

August 11, 2009 …RFP 09-07-02…. Parking Citation Process Services

This was the RFP that was first put on as an “emergency” consent agenda item for the hand held devices that started the spiral down to the RFPs no longer being “read aloud” in retaliation (this writer’s opinion) for Comm. Dodd’s finding the real costs involved in the backup materials…insisting on an RFP… bad advertising used (prev. post) and a vote after no bids were received from the dais to go out again….

1. Duncan Wisconsin (current vendor)…Autocite X3 hand held -provide 3 option 1 price per citation processed $2.62 …Special collections contingency fee 30% on deliq. accts/ option 2 Equipment fee- price per hand held per mo. $250….price per citation $1.93…Spec. Collections contingency 30% of actual fees collected on deliq. accts.

2. Complus Terrytown N.Y. hand held IT 3100 Series Casio / option 1 $2.95 per ticket issued/ option 2 percentage 11% all stat of Fla. ticket collections…11% all out of state ticket collections/ alternative solution $2 per ticket issued regardless of ultimate disposition or process ability of each citation

3. Iyetek Kalamzoo, Mich. (The Rep came and spoke at the commission meeting to re-bid this project after the non-responses) The package included the following LBTS issues approx. 14,000 citations per year/ the current system was last updated in 1996/ Iytek proposes a revisited system with online management providing the same functionality as the old system while adding state of the art features…3 units 1st yr rental fee per unit $2851 per/ standard ticket $1.25 per/ ticket processing  …in state 25% /out of state 30% / total start up $13,590

BC- Again no evaluation or analysis was included and again we will need to see when and if staff does “evaluate” before the Sept. 9, 2009 meeting where all should be on the agenda for the Commissioners to decide…If there is no “evaluation” ie “review and recommendation”…more unnecessary time will be used to be spiteful and vindictive (this writer’s opinion) for calling the Town Manager to task for her past unilateral actions!…

more to come….

Tags: Lauderdale By The Sea RFP bid prices, local government, RFP 09-06-02, RFP 09-07-01, RFP 09-07-02, scoop, Scoops
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WANT S’MORE? ……… PLACES TO GO…. Stories …

http://heresthescooponline.com/

Tags: scoop, Scoops, Web News
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LOOKS LIKE 3 BROOMS ARE GOING TO BE GONE IN MARCH…….

Dear Readers….As I finish up on the Town Manager and her “Gang of 3” at the 7/14/09 Commission meeting … Comm. Dodd’s agenda item under New Business concerning the Town Manager “severance package” in her contract…(prev post)…..make sure to get a copy of this week’s By-The-Sea-Future and Pompano Pelican…and read the many articles…letters to the Editor and the Editorials….concerning the insubordination of  Esther Colon……

In the previous post (#4) we addressed the scope of Comm. Dodd’s item…the “severance package” of a full year’s salary…if the Manager is terminated ….and revealed the difference between her 2 year old contract versus that of her predecessor ….who had NO such severance package…. Here is some more of what took place ….all because one Commissioner thinks  it is wrong for a Town Manager to have such an agreement…along with a non-fixed term clause ….No wonder she can be insubordinate…she holds all the cards…she saw to that all on her own!…..”Fiscal irresponsibility” to the tune of well over $150,000.00….

We left off with Comm. Dodd making his points…and then it was Comm. Clottey’s tirn…she chose to inquire from the Town Atty. on contract law and if the dais could do anything….

The Town Atty. said the following ” In general principal, yes (you cannot change the TMs contract, its binding) as long as the agreements enforced as long as it’s not been BREACHED um,  those would be the terms that would govern this.”

BC- She has breached her contract, by not having a performance review last year…for the audit that she accepted in a written letter without the approval of the Commission, though her Town Clerk wrote the Commission “accepted” it….(they did not) ….she ” informed them” of her intention , and did not present them with the current engagement letter containing the current and future charges…at approx. $200,000 over 3 years….(The 2009/2010 budget shows the $55,000- $60,000 budgeted item…whic includes the 2nd year % increase)…

Comm. Clottey went on to say that the suggestion made by Comm. Dodd to have the staff seek out info on neighboring town manager’s agreements…was “pushing it a little bit too far” and said each commissioner could make those inquiries themselves…We hear the Town Clerk did start those inquiries before this meeting…were there any responses back to the Town?…Can you imagine if all 5 commissioner called each town for the same info…But perhaps the Comm. knew full well no other Comms. would bother!…

We already pretty much covered Comm. Silverstone in the previous post…he was complicit in the managers fiction of the contracts…hers and Baldwin’s…thus making his outrage particularly disturbing to observe after revealing those facts…We guess BFF Silverstone has had so much practice in this type of behavior that he does not know how not to do it!….

It was quite amusing at the end of his “first bite of the apple” when he said ” I apologize for this ON BEHALF OF THE TOWN MANAGER CAUSE THIS IS EMBARRASSING….”…Hmmm……. Bet he didn’t know he had it exactly right!….

The Mayor tried to bring the dialogue back to why Comm. Dodd put this on …because he was requested by residents and that is what the commission is supposed to do…including the fact that Comm. Silverstone has often said this very thing himself from the dais….

Jimmy-boy didn’t disappoint…….”Let  me respond to that as Commissioner Clottey said it’s our job to do the HOMEWORK . BEFORE I PUT ANYTHING ON THE AGENDA, I DO MY HOMEWORK….” OOPS!…We guess he forgot to check his old memo from TM Baldwin on Jun 14,2006 that stated specifically to him and his BFF as new commissioners…that he [Baldwin} did not have severance…could be fired or resign without notice and his UP TO 10 week UNPAID time to do consulting…GIVE HIM AN F Professor Clottey!

His fellow recipient of the June 14.2006 TM Baldwin memo concerning his TM agreement …. VM McIntee really went to town..

VM-.” This is outrageous! It reeks of vindictiveness. It reeks of somebody who is very unhappy with the staff. It reeks of somebody that no matter what you do it’s not gonna be right. I read the e-mails that have come across all our desks, they’re outrageous, they’re nasty, they aren’t professional. They’re singling out people ah, using the excuse  that ah, asked me to do this, I got a phone call, a rumor. Ah, I just read one e-mail that specifically said that in 90 days you’re getting rid of the police department. I want a report on it. That’s outrageous! A rumor and you’re gonna call the Town Manager to task. She (OOPS) wants a report whether we’re getting rid of the fire (OOPS) police department in 90 days. It’s a year and a half. We know that that’s an outrageous statement to accept a rumor and go after the Town Manager with it. This is vindictive, this is wrong. We have a great Town Manager. We have done a tremendous job in this town. We are one of two towns in Broward County that are, that are in the tremendous financial state and it’s because of the Town Manger. This is a person that I’m not gonna get my way so I’m gonna bark and scream and holler. (sounds like the VM talking about himself inside the VFD according to the leaks) And it’s wrong and I apologize to the Town Manager and I GOT HUNDREDS , I’M NOT TALKING 20 or 30 PEOPLE ( The hall held “HUNDREDS”on 6/30/09). I’M TALKING HUNDREDS. (So where were/are they?) And she’s stronger then people realize cause they all know she’s honest, sincere and can be trusted. And that’s something that we all know. (Who’s all?) And I wouldn’t even mitigate this by accepting any part of it. If you want to know all these answers the person writing this should go get them himself and do his own homework (McIntee did not do his!) This is outrageous!”…He will come back to dig himself a deeper hole…

TOWN MANAGER COLON- ” Commissioner Dodd, ah, you’ve known me for I’d say maybe 2 years? There’s some members on this dais that know me for 9 years. (Silverstone?) If you think for one moment think that I have been a Town Manager for one year (Comm. Dodd said 2) I guess we haven’t been sittin’ on the same dais. But there are many residents , residents that support me, residents who don’t support me. I think both sides. I am not changing my ways but since June of 2000 that I’ve walked in this organization I  have been assigned the task of Assistant Town Manager many a times.  In the interim of Laura Ward before and after Laura Ward was here. I was also assigned the task of Assistant Town Manager. I was never compensated for that task,  I never asked to be compensated for that task. But maybe you read the Pompano article a couple of years ago OOPS..it was a couple of months ago) that a manager was there for 1 year  and he received a 1 year severance pay. (and the Pomp. Bch taxpayers were outraged!)  I HAVE NO PROBLEMS WITH MY CONTRACT. (Now we know why…prev. post) I know that I am more than competent. The problem  is that I am gonna NOT bend for any elected official that doesn’t like my managing style. (Nope that’s reserved for the gang…especially McIntee)…AND I’M NOT CHANGING. THIS IS WHAT, THIS IS WHAT I AM . THIS IS WHAT THE FORMER ADMINISTRATION AGREED WITH THE CONTRACT. And you like me you don’t like me that’s ok cause I’m still comin’ to work and I’m still doing my job and I’m gonna have my smile and I will support my staff tooth and nail. You can investigate whatever you want and I HAVE A LEGAL AGREEMENT DRAWN UP BY THE PREVIOUS TOWN ATTORNEY AND EXECUTED BY THE PREVIOUS TOWN COMMISSION. ( they were hoodwinked!) But not for one moment you or any residents out there that I really don’t know what you’re sayin’ think that I’ve been sittin’ here and assuming all of these responsibilites for only one year (No one said 1 year) cause that is not the case.”

BC- This …after the the “waiving of the fees” diversion to the noise ord….the RFP stubbornness…and the “sweetheart deal” for McIntee…makes many wonder how much further she can go with her “competency” as TM….

Comm. Silverstone jumped in again…and boy was it a beaut!…

“Just to add to that business in the integrity that Esther is saying right now. By getting rid of or transferring Chief Gooding  that’s probably the worst thing that could happen for me , for my political career, if I, if I decide to run again. If that’s not proof that I didn’t have anything to do with that I don’t know what is! ESTHER MADE THIS DECISION BECAUSE IT WAS THE RIGHT THING FOR HER , THE RIGHT THING FOR THE TOWN OK. IT WAS MADE ON THE BASIS THAT FOR MYSELF OR FOR VICE MAYOR MCINTEE OR ANYBODY ELSE UP HERE. IF THAT’S NOT PROOF ENOUGH, so everybody’s coming up to me and saying all this garbage and nonsense look at the facts. If the intent was to get me re-elected more easily or whatever the case may be or not by the action the Town Manager took has been a negative impact on that. Now that’s proof that she is not political. If she was political and would hear of that she would re-consider that. She didn’t do that SHE DID WHAT SHE THOUGHT WAS THE RIGHT THING TOWN AND AT THE END OF THE DAY THAT’S HER JOB. WHAT IS RIGHT FOR THE TOWN AND I APPLAUD THE TOWN MANAGER FOR DOING WHAT SHE DID. And I yield”

BC- Commissioner Silversone has now sealed his fate …he is a ONE- term Commissioner …for his opponents will use this in their campaign to remind all he “applauded” the TM for “getting rid of ” Chief Scott Gooding!…WOW!…

The Mayor tried to move on to the next item…but the Vice Mayor wanted to go for a second “bite” at that apple…

VM- ” No, no I’m still doing my second bite of the apple Mayor, thank you. I mentioned an e-mail, I’m gonna read it to everybody at home and here, this is to Ms. Colon from Stuart Dodd …(Below is a copy of the e-mail the VM read)….

July 9th 2009

Dear Ms Colon,

I would like to be in a position to categorically confirm or deny whether any of the rumors I’m hearing from several sources have any validity. Normally I would not give such rumors the time of day but I am still trying to make sense over the dismissal of Chief Gooding. Under the current contract I understand the BSO police department can be terminated with 90 days notice. I would like some form of statement from the manager please that confirms or denies that any work or proposals to terminate BSO are under consideration. Are the budgets being revised and the costs of such a move being evaluated with the aim of forming a Lauderdale by the Sea police department in the near future or early 2010. A “fluffy” statement to the effect that the “ manager can be expected to look at all options” is not an acceptable reply. Are you prepared to notify all commissioners that you have not done any work, are not doing any work nor have you been asked to do any work with respect to producing figures for establishing our own police department again?

I look forward to your reply – You might also want to say a few words at your manager’s report at the next commission meeting to dispel the many rumors.

Many thanks

Stuart Dodd

BC- I was thrilled the VM read it…for first it showed this was NOT a nasty e-mail…it was a Comm. doing his due diligence…and second it dispelled the erroneous statements the VM kept making that night about rumors and “lies” that the Manager /Gang would replace the police in 90 days…What was asked in this e-mail/ on this site and in the local papesr was/is the 90 DAY NOTICE GIVEN to the BSO police…knowing (prev. post) that the BSO contract states the BSO will stay to transition in a LBTS police dept. for as long as it takes to provide the same level of public safety (HMMMM, if that really is the case…BSO is here to stay!)….

The VM added commentary to Comm. Dodd’s e-mail…saying it was “outrageous”…”The Town Manager has a responsibility to look out for the good and fiduciary and honesty and sincerity of this whole town. And, and to send a nasty e-mail like this is outrageous, just plain outrageous….going on to say town staff moral is low…”most of the commission smile and laugh AT them (OOPS!) , try and go out of our way to be good”….going on to say Comm. Doddd doesn’t say hello to them (who says?)…and said ” I think we have the best town employees in Florida”…and that he deplores this…

BC What the VM did not include was the e-mail response to Comm. Dodd from the Town Manager to this particular e-mail…”Memorandum July 13,2009 …She answered a few of Comm. Dodd’s e-mails…in this one memo

“In reference to your email dated July 9, 2009 (4:45PM) please be advised that any elected official with fiduciary responsibility should be able to validate rumors that consist of any preposterous three month transition concerning public safety. I will not respond to your questions, as I don’t acknowledge rumors and I will wait for a policy from the Town Commission pertaining to any contractual services.”

BC-HUH!….Re- read it folks….re- read it!…YIKES!….

Commissioner Dodd tried once more …and when he misspoke …due to the late, late hour approaching midnight…(He was the only vote for the meeting to continue the following day)…..as he asked the TM when she was elected…It was Jimmy-boy who pounced on his mistake (Jimmy-boy …get real!)…Comm. Dodd rephrased it to ask when she was promoted …when she became TM…

TM- ” I really don’t know the exact date, I’ve been doin’ it for so long”…

BC- April 24, 2007….voted in 5-0…..May 22, 2007….received contract….and was Acting TM for 11 weeks before the vote per her own words in the 4/24/07 meeting minutes…

Comm. Dodd went onto clarify after all the diatribes from the “Broom Boys and the Broom Flyin’ Gals”….his original points of making sense of the Scott Gooding situation….the aftermath in town…….his right to e-mail for the answers and that those e-mails were perfectly professional and there was absolutely nothing wrong with them…in requesting the TMs policy and position…along with addressing her severance agreement….

The last words went to the Town Manager…and they are words that all should read and remember…..and then decide…if it might be worth paying 1 years severance to replace her ASAP!…

TM Colon -” I informed you I would not interrupt Commissioner Dodd anymore but I will inform every member of this dais one more time! I will not have one Commissioner tell me how to do my job, when to do my job, who to fire , not to fire, what kind of little deals people have, what kind of rumors going on out there because that’s not the way I work! And if that is what is bothering any particular Commissioner it’s gonna keep on bothering you because when 1 Commissioner comes in to my office and asks for a document. I tell that Commissioner if I have it available on my desk I will give it to you, but I am not gonna drop and I have given specific instructions to my staff that they will not drop what they’re doin’ to respond to THAT COMMISSIONER because he is a Commissioner! Every Commissioner and every resident has the same right and the same treatment (HUH?) and if any Commissioner wants statements of who I talk to and who I don’t talk to, I will tell you as you has come to my office from the best of my recollection. But I am not gonna be quizzed by you or any other Commissioner on what I do and what I don’t do cause the only thing I do is follow the law and do my job. And we can have this argument everyday and I WILL CONTINUE TO DEAL WITH YOU COMMISSIONER DODD because I will tell you personally and I’m tellin’ every Commissioner on this dais you get more with honey then with vinegar (Listen to your own words much?) and YOU HAVE A HABIT OF SENDING E-MAILS and I have them because I RESPOND TO THEM ALL OR I RESPOND BY SAYIN’ I WON’T RESPOND. SO WE CAN HAVE MY CONTRACT ON EVERY AGENDA, YOU CAN INVESTIGATE EVERY COMMISSION, BUT COMMISSIONER CLOTTEY I APOLOGIZE I CAN GUARANTEE YOU IT WILL PROBABLY BE A REAL, I THINK IT’LL NEVER HAPPEN, BUT I ASK ANY COMMISSIONER WHO THEY WOULD LIKE ME TO HIRE AND FIRE (We hear she did just that with hiring the Fire Marshall…per VM McIntee) WHICH RFP YOU WANT ME TO ISSUE AND WHICH VENDOR THEY WOULD LIKE ME TO TALK TO (We hear she did just that with the VM and the VFD canopy, command car etc….) BECAUSE HONESTLY THAT’S NOT MY STYLE (we know!) I  AM A NEUTRAL (polarizing!) PERSON. I DO MY JOB AND YOU’RE THE POLITICIANS, I’M NOT. YOU SET POLICY, I DON’T!”

BC- We hear Yesterday the Town Manager had staff deliver letters of thanks to July 4th volunteers, hand signed with seal of LBTS pins attached….HMMMM. sounds pretty political to me!…”Campaigning to keep her job?” came to ind…

In closing…how in the world could the dais have moved on after this? I agree with the 2 local newspaper Editors (from the non- Gang publications)…Town Manager Colon should be fired!!!!

more to come…

Tags: BSO, LBTS Agendas/Meetings, local government, Local News, Local Politics, Public Safety, scoop, Scoops, town manager colon
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PEER REVIEW….

Dear Readers …the Coral Reef project …(previous posts) …a project “spearheaded” by Marc Furth…( along with former Mayor Wardlaw)…with the dais assist from BFF VM Mcintee….has received some good news….and some bad…Either we are about to embark on something to put us on the map or we have been duped…..Even this project is not without lack of backup …according to the article…..ARGHHHH…

Excerpts…

‘Lauderdale-by-the-Sea – A proposal to install an electrified artificial reef on the ocean floor off Lauderdale-by-the-Sea has won approval from a key federal agency, making it more likely the high-tech conservation project will get built.

The Army Corps of Engineers issued a permit to the town to work with Global Coral Reef Alliance, of Cambridge, Mass., to install a cluster of metal structures that would use a low-voltage current to stimulate the growth of corals, creating habitat for fish and other marine creatures. The group has used the patented Biorock process to construct artificial reefs in several other countries, including Mexico, Jamaica and Indonesia.

Under the town’s $65,000 contract with the group, structures that resemble six-foot-long Quonset huts would be placed on the ocean floor in shallow water. Divers would collect pieces of living coral that had been broken off by storms or ship groundings and attach them to the metal structures. Two buoys equipped with solar panels would provide the electricity through insulated cables. The electrical current would draw dissolved minerals from the water, causing the minerals to build up on the metal structures. According to the group’s web site, corals grow three to five times faster under these conditions and stand a better chance of surviving stressful events such as increases in water temperature.

Thomas Goreau, president of Global Coral Reef Alliance, declined at first to discuss the project, saying he was unhappy with a previous Sun Sentinel article that quoted “people who didn’t know what they were talking about” questioning the value of the technology.

McManus said Goreau hasn’t published peer-reviewed studies comparing electrified reefs with identical structures in similar habitat without electricity, making it difficult to make a fair assessment of the technology. But he said the Biorock reefs do seed an area with coral, and said there is experimental evidence that the technology enhances the growth and survival of newly transplanted corals.

“It doesn’t seem to do much after the first four months, but the first four months are critical,” he said.

Goreau, in an e-mail, said neither Dodge nor McManus had first-hand knowledge of his work, although he considered them competent scientists. He said he had done comparative experiments but was focused now on saving corals at a time when they’re dying around the world.

“We have deliberately not published most of our results, because we are too busy getting results growing reefs full of corals and fish while there is still a dwindling window to do so, and don’t have the patience to play these academic games fiddling while Rome burns,” he wrote. “We prefer people to see for themselves what really works, because the results are so overwhelming.”

He said there have been “a dozen or more” peer-reviewed papers on the process, most of which he said were posted on his web page, which contains many papers on various coral topics, many of which lack any indication of where or if they were published.

Asked to take a look at the papers on the website, Dodge responded in an e-mail, “I looked at the website and didn’t find any peer-reviewed articles that demonstrate that organisms on Biorock reefs grow better, faster, are more healthy, etc. than others.”

It’s unclear when the project will get built. Goreau said the construction is probably several months off. Ken Banks, natural resource specialist with Broward County’s Environmental Protection and Growth Management Department, said they need a permit from the county. He said he couldn’t discuss whether they were likely to get one because they had not yet filed an application.

Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is known as one of the best spots for beach diving because the reefs are accessible from shore. Steve d’Oliveira, spokesman for Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, said the town supports the project.

“We want it done as soon as possible,” he said.’

full text link below….

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/community/news/lauderdale_by_the_sea/sfl-electrified-reef-b062009,0,4283894.story

Tags: coral reef, LBTS Agendas/Meetings, local government, Local News, News, scoop, Scoops
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