BY JAMES WILLIAMS
Special to the Monitor
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS—The last Keystone Heights City Council meeting for the year was held Nov. 20 and began with seven speakers from the floor.
Local resident Evan Stanley set the evening’s theme, commenting on a new ordinance restricting beach park usage in an effort to curb expensive vandalism.
“(New) rules don’t matter unless they are enforced,” Stanley said. “New rules do not stop rule-breakers. Enforcement stops rule-breakers.”
Opposition to beach park restrictions
Real estate agent Deirdre Murphy added that the new park ordinance requiring youngsters to have a parent or guardian with them “… just seems silly… There’s just a handful of kids (doing the damage), and it seems to me that we are basically reprimanding all children because of a few.”
Another speaker, who is on the city’s Planning and Zoning Board, had not witnessed from his front porch the malfeasance that plagues the park but did see teens using the basketball and tennis courts as late as midnight during summer months, despite the fact that lights were off.
“They’re having a great time. They play tennis. They mind their own business and then they go home,” he said.
Peggy Bach asked if anyone at the meeting had ever actually been to the High Ridge Estates neighborhood, the oft- reputed source of park vandalism. Ms. Bach had gotten to know kids who hung out at the beach, including some from broken homes. She thought most of the young people were from within the city limits.
“Most of these kids, they don’t have family to go back home to…. Our park is a safe haven.
Christine Arnold asked the city to fix its website to quell misinformation passed around on social media. “We’re supposed to be a Smart City. It seems like it would start with the city’s website,” she said.
Opposition to new city hall
Several speakers advocated refurbishing the present City Hall building’s roof instead of building anew.
One unidentified speaker voiced concern about a potential new two-story city hall building. “I think that takes away from the small-town feel,” the speaker said.
Councilman Tony Brown made clear that public speculation and social media misinformation about the potential new city hall had hit his last nerve.
“Aaron Bean made a phone call to me,” he said “and when you have a congressman that has a pocketbook up in Washington that can help us out here in Keystone and we come up with an idea of a new city hall. It was an idea, guys. It was in a workshop. We discussed it, and what I saw on Facebook made me sick because everybody just jumps to conclusions. We don’t have a plan. One person said it’s going to cost one point something million dollars to build this thing. How the heck do you know that? But everybody in this community just took off and blasted us for having an idea for the future…. We have a job, to plan for the future. That’s all. This was an idea. It wasn’t anything that was sketched in stone…all we did as a council…was to have an idea…. We were looking at the possibility, and we weren’t even in negotiations with (other county) agencies yet.”
Mayor Nina Rodenroth also addressed social media, newspapers, and rumors regarding a potential new city hall.
“We were seeking an architectural concept for consideration. If we feel this becomes a good decision for our taxpayers, then certainly we are going to share every detail with you all for your input,” she said.
The council plans conceptual discussions on tennis and basketball courts and a long-discussed splash park. The city will also be looking at the feasibility of surveillance cameras for safety, parking, bathrooms, lighting and other amenities.
Other business
In other business, the council:
.Approved the Rotary Christmas Party at the pavilion, with an alcohol policy waiver;
Agreed to hold a workshop in January to finalize language for alcohol waivers in the pavilion and review its regulation on parks.
Made two appointments to the Planning and Zoning Board and changed the date for a third to begin immediately:
Discussed when and how to post meeting minutes for the public before or after approval;
Finalized plans to interview city clerk candidates. Four top candidates will be interviewed on November 28. The salary offer will be $80,000 to $90,000, depending on the candidate’s experience, education and background. This compares favorably with other Florida cities of equal size and is in sync with Florida League of Cities standards.
Agreed to contract auditing services with Reddish and White. The audit will potentially include CRA and city accounts, and cover costs of bookkeeping assistance, at a total cost not to exceed $47,500.
Planned a workshop with the Heritage Commission to discuss a quote from commercial contractors who have worked with city government to build a small city museum.
