Lake Lucie
Community Development District

The regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors of the Lake Lucie Community Development District was scheduled for January 26, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. at the Village of Lake Lucie Pool Cabana, located at 8452 Village of Lake Lucie Drive, Port St. Lucie, Florida, and also via web conference.

Present and constituting a quorum were:

L. Morris Daniel – Chair
George Rowe – Vice Chair
Jean Auletta – Assistant Secretary
Tom Wood – Assistant Secretary
Anthony Kerzic – Assistant Secretary (arrived late)

Also present were:

Cal Teague – District Manager, Premier District Management (PDM)
Residents

Attending remotely:

Christopher Dudak – Client Services Manager, PDM
Bruce Metzger- Resident

The following is a summary of the actions taken at the Lake Lucie Community Development District (CDD) Board of Supervisors meeting.

The meeting was called to order at 11:05 a.m. and all Board members were present, with Supervisor Kerzic arriving 10 Minutes after the meeting started and just before Agenda item 7. Also in attendance were Cal Teague, the District Manager, and Several Residents. Attending remotely were Christopher Dudak of PDM and Resident Bruce Metzger.

There were no Audience comments on Agenda items.

A. Draft Meeting Minutes for October 27, 2023

A. Discussion on CDD/HOA Areas of Responsibility

i. Irrigation System Ownership – Is there a need for easements?

District Manager Teague stated that the irrigation pumps are on CDD property, and he asked if any lines run through homeowner property. If so, easements will be needed. Chair Daniel stated that the homeowners are responsible for their own sprinkler systems, which do not belong to the CDD. He stated that the homeowners are responsible for everything from the sidewalk in.

B. 20-Year Stormwater Needs Analysis

District Manager Teague stated that the CDD should have a plan for maintaining the stormwater system, and a 20-year Stormwater Needs Analysis was due in June 2022 with updates required every five years. He stated that he had contacted Engineer Chris Dausch from Tampa, with whom PDM works in another District, and he was asked to provide a verbal quote for this required report. He estimated that it will cost $9,000 – $11,000 to prepare it, which includes travel costs from Tampa to Port St. Lucie.

Chair Daniel had provided a letter, which he had sent to Gary Franklin of the Water Quality Division of St. Lucie County in June of 2022, stating that the District was not responsible for the stormwater system yet, so they are not required to submit this report. District Manager Teague spoke with Gary Franklin, and the Water Quality Division believes that this prior letter is sufficient, and so no action is needed currently on the 20-Year Stormwater Needs Analysis.

C. Engineering Selection Process

A sample of the engineering RFQ process was included in the October, 2023 packet.  District Manager Teague explained that, because the District is a governmental entity, it needs an engineer of record and is required to follow the legal process of advertising, soliciting qualifications and conducting special meetings in order to select one. Chair Daniel stated that the original engineering firm, Culpepper and Terpening, is considered the engineer of record, because they had originally designed the community and have all of the necessary data. He suggested retaining this firm, and the Board agreed.

D. Assessment Methodology

District Manager Teague explained that the District must have an Assessment Methodology, which is a defensible method for determining appropriate assessments on all property types. He stated that the undeveloped properties are still a part of the District and should pay assessments. He stated that it does not appear that an Assessment Methodology is associated with the current assessments.  District Manager Teague stated that he will obtain a proposal for creating a methodology for the next meeting.

A. FPL Missing Meter

District Manager Teague stated that FPL had contacted PDM to inform them that they cannot read a meter, because it is missing from its location, and Chair Daniel plans to meet with FPL. Later in the meeting, Chair Daniel explained that an electrician will be needed to trace the line and see where the missing meter is.

District Manager Teague also stated that a member of the PDM staff noted that the Lake Lucie 8201 Business Park Drive Pump account has not had a bill submitted for payment since September 2022.

B. Contracts and Invoice Processes

District Manager Teague explained that invoices should be sent to the accounts payable email account, and all contractors are required to supply a W-4 and Certificate of Insurance that names the CDD as an “also insured.” Every proposal and invoice should name the “Bill To” as the CDD with the Fort Myers address, and not the Villages of Lake Lucie or local address.  All proposals and contracts must positively state that the contractor uses E-Verify in hiring and in using subcontractors.  Chair Daniel asked for a one sheet explaining all of this, and District Manager Teague stated that the page in the Agenda packet is such a document.  Client Services Manager Christopher Dudak will also submit this electronically to the Chair, for ease of use.

C. Required Annual Supervisor Ethics Training and Electronic Filing of Form 1

Included in the packet was a memo stating that the Supervisors are required to complete 4 hours of ethics training annually. It is required in Fiscal Year 2024, and going forward, and will first be reported by Supervisors on the Form 1 due in 2025. There are also links to some free and some paid ethics trainings, and a clarification that Form 6 is not needed for Supervisors, only the Form 1.

The memo also explains that there will no longer be paper submissions of the annual Form 1 to the Supervisor of Elections.  Client Services Manager Dudak explained that, beginning this year, the State Ethics Commission will send a link to submit an electronic Form 1, which will come directly from the State to their email addresses of record.  Supervisors should watch their email accounts for this communication.

D. Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Schedule

District Manager Teague stated that the Budget schedule is included in the packet, and and it establishes that the Proposed Budget will be presented at the April 26, 2024 meeting for adoption, and by law it must be approved by June 15th. The Budget Public Hearing must be at least 60 days after the adoption of the Proposed Budget, and that will be on July 26, 2024, and where the annual Budget for Fiscal Year 2025 will be adopted.

A. Audits Updates

The Fiscal Year 2022 audit findings letter is included in the packet, and a hardcopy of that audit was presented as a handout.  The 2022 AFR and the 2022 Audit were late submissions, and staff has heard nothing further from the state on any penalties for the late submission. There may still be some repercussion to the District for missing the deadlines. District Manager Teague stated that there were some audit findings in the past, but they have since been resolved. He stated that the Fiscal Year 2023 Audit is underway and is due in June, 2024.

B. Closing of Chase Bank Accounts

District Manager Teague stated that the District is being charged for the current accounts at Chase Bank, whereas there are no bank fees at Valley National Bank. Valley is paying approximately 5% interest on their checking account. He stated that the current Chase Bank accounts will be closed after the meeting by Chair Daniel and District Manager Teague, and all monies have already been transferred to the Valley National Bank account. 

C. Remote Meetings Process

District Manager Teague stated that there seems to be an issue with connecting to WiFi locally with the laptop that PDM had planned to provide to the District for remote access to the meetings and electronic records. He may come back to the April meeting, or may ship the laptop back to the District when it is functioning.

D. Local Access to Electronic Records Process

There is a need for the purchase or rental of a laptop to connect to remote meetings and to provide local access to District records. The laptop and software were offered to the District at $1,000 total, and payment will be spread over 10 months. This includes a cost for the license of the records retention program Docsvault, which will allow access to District records. The software costs $225 for the first year and $45 annually. The laptop and the license are both outside the scope of the short-term interim agreement. The Board approved this expense.

Chair Daniel expressed concern about designating responsibility to a local person for providing records access, because there is no local full time staff, and he wondered if they can gain remote access through the District’s website. Staff will ask the District’s Attorney if that would satisfy the local records access law.  

District Manager Teague stated that the financial statements are not completed, but he hopes to present them at the next meeting. He also stated that assessments are over 50% collected, and all collected monies are now entered into the new checking account at Valley National Bank.

There was no report from Attorney Greg Urbancic.

There was no report from Engineers Culpepper and Terpening.

District Manager Teague presented a proposal as a handout for pool repair from USA Pools, which was provided by Chair Daniel. Because the District does not have the funds to repair the pool, a loan or line of credit can be secured. As long as the repayment terms are under 5 years, bonding will not be required. The Board authorized Chair Daniel and District Manager Teague to apply for a line of credit up to $200,000. Although the proposal for the pool is $94,492, the line of credit will also be for future work on the degrading culverts to the lake, for electrical work, and for mailbox replacement.

Chair Daniel had stopped previous repairs to the pool because of the cost. The current work will remove the concrete and tiles, replace deck drains and piping, and the new deck will be made of pavers and fill, so that future repairs can be easily accessed without needing to break through concrete. He noted that the warranty is 6 months on commercial pools.

After discussion, with comments from the Audience, the Board approved Chair Daniel and District Manager Teague to apply for the line of credit or loan, whichever is available.

Chair Daniel stated that bids for repairing and painting the Business Park sign have been received. There are also lights in the Business Park that need to be repaired. The oak trees in the community will be trimmed in the next few months, and the cost will be approximately $35,000.

Audience members asked how to access the new WiFi in the Clubhouse.

The Next Regular Meeting will be on Friday, April 26, 2024 at 10:00 a.m.