NORTHEAST FLORIDA REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION (NEFRTC) MEETING SUMMARY Wednesday, August 24, 2016-9:30 AM NFTPO Office TPO Board Room 980 North Jefferson Street Jacksonville FL 32209 MEMBERS PRESENT: Commissioner James Bennett, Baker County, Vice Chairman Commissioner Rachael Bennett, St. Johns County, Secretary Commissioner Danny Leeper, Nassau County Commissioner Lindsey Brock, Duval County Commissioner Bill Bishop, Duval County Commissioner Ennis Davis, Duval County Scott Clem (for Jim Knight, FDOT, Board Advisor) MEMBERS ABSENT: Commissioner Chip Laibl, Putnam County, Treasurer Commissioner Scott Wilson, Duval County Commissioner Doug Conkey, Clay County, Chairman OTHERS PRESENT: Carolyn Morgan, Clay County Planning Dept. Liz Peak, Regional Mobility Group Cheryl Freeman, RS&H Jeff Sheffield, North Florida TPO Denise Bunnewith, North Florida TPO Brian Teeple, Northeast Florida Regional Council Boyd Thompson, The Ride Solution Jackie Wright, Baker County COA Tiffany Shrull, Baker County COA Inka Joensuu, Baker Klein David Dunkley, JAA Jen Newman, Ignite Coaching & Consulting 1
STAFF PRESENT: Joe Stephenson, Executive Director Ginny Montgomery, North Florida TPO Staff CALL TO ORDER In the absence of Chairman Conkey, Vice Chairman James Bennett called the meeting to order at 9:30 am. Danny Leeper led the Pledge of Allegiance and Invocation. Introductions were made around the room. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT None at this time. DUE TO THE LACK OF QUORUM AT THIS TIME, NON-ACTION AGENDA ITEMS WERE MOVED FORWARD 11. NEW WEB SITE OVERVIEW Joe Stephenson stated the new website was up and running as of Monday, August 22, 2016. He asked Victoria Pennington to present and navigate through the website for the Board. Considerable Board discussion of the web site and desired improvements followed. Ms. Pennington took note of the board s comments and will make appropriate modifications. It was noted that the web site will be updated regularly from now on to incorporate new ideas and information as well as improvements to its format. A QUORUM WAS ESTABLISHED WITH THE ARRIVAL OF COMMISSIONER BILL BISHOP 3. APPROVAL OF THE JUNE 22 AND JULY 27, 2016 MEETING SUMMARIES Vice Chairman Bennett asked for review and approval of the June and July meetings summaries. Danny Leeper made a motion to approve the June 22 and July 27, 2016 meetings summaries; seconded by Rachael Bennett; motion carried unanimously. 4. TREASURER S REPORTS FOR JUNE AND JULY 2016 In the absence of the Treasurer, Mr. Stephenson reviewed the Treasurer s Reports for June and July. He brought attention to the June report, Travel and 2
Per Diem line item expense, noting that it resulted from his travel to attend the Floridians for Better Transportation / Florida Transportation Commission meeting in St. Petersburg. He also brought attention to the July report, wherein expenses for rent and staff support are reflected in three line items. He reported that all other transactions were routine. Commissioner Brock questioned why the Accounting and Auditing line item was over budget. Mr. Stephenson explained the $3,000 paid to the TPO for accounting services was inappropriately booked to the Other Services line item in FY2014 but corrected in FY 2015 after adoption of the FY 2016 budget. The budget amendment recommended as a part of today s Agenda Item Seven will resolve this issue and another similar opportunity for improvement identified in the FY 2015 audit. Bill Bishop made a motion to approve the Treasurer s Reports as presented; seconded by Ennis Davis; motion carried unanimously. 5. REGIONAL MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN FINAL DRAFT REPORT Mr. Stephenson brought attention to the Preliminary Draft of the Regional Multimodal Transportation Plan that was distributed. He suggested the Board review it and come back to him with any thoughts or changes. He asked for any regional transportation quotes from the Board that they would like to see added. He stated the document will be brought forward for approval by the Board at the September meeting. Once approved, the final draft document will be used in the public hearings that the RTC is required to hold in each county within the region. The Board reviewed and discussed the document, offering numerous recommendations for improvement to the overall document. The staff team (Cheryl Freeman, Liz Peak, Rob Palmer and Joe Stephenson) responded to comments and committed to revise the document accordingly. Mr. Stephenson called attention to the letter from the RTC Board located on the very first page of the document. This letter, to be signed by all members of the board, will set the tone and direction of the document. He encouraged each board member to offer editorial suggestions and provided a copy of the letter to facilitate that input. He again requested that Commissioners offer quotes, calling attention to the reserved quote boxes located in the draft document. He stated the next step will be to offer each County Commission the option of a presentation of the report prior to holding a public meeting in their County. County Commissions that request this presentation will be offered an overview presentation on the RTC and the Region Multimodal Transportation Plan (RMTP) prior the public hearing in their county. The next step will be to conduct public 3
hearings in each county. He noted that one of the six required public hearings must be held before the RTC Board and suggested that this requirement be fulfilled at the Duval County Public Hearing. This hearing could be held in conjunction with (but separate from) a regularly scheduled RTC Board meeting, or on a different day, and the TPO Conference Room can be reserved. Revisions resulting from Public Hearings and County Commissions input will then be incorporated into the RMTP document and brought to the RTC Board for adoption. Commissioner Lindsey Brock moved, and Commissioner Rachael Bennett seconded a motion to establish September 2, 2016 deadline for comments on the RMTP to Mr. Stephenson. The motion carried unanimously. 6. APPOINTMENT OF REGIONAL TRANSIT COORDINATING COMMITTEE MEMBERS Mr. Stephenson presented a list of the appointments to the Regional Transit Coordinating Committee. He stated Bill Bishop will be the Board Liaison to the Committee. He reported that St. Johns County has not designated a representative as of today but suggested tentatively that Becky Yanni could be the committee member with Ed Clark as the alternate. In the absence of Chairman Conkey, Vice Chairman James Bennet appointed members of the Regional Transit Coordinating Committee consistent with the attached list. Vice Chairman Bennett next appointed Commissioner Bill Bishop as Board Liaison to the Regional Transit Coordinating Committee. The Board expressed consensus approval of these appointments. 7. BUDGET Mr. Stephenson reviewed the Carry Forward Analysis including the monthly expenditures for 2016 and the estimated carry forward amount to the 2017 budget. He stated that the carry forward amount will remain an estimate until the 2016 fiscal year ends, and that the estimate was prepared to reflect maximum FY 2016 expenses, resulting in a minimum carry forward estimate. He next presented a Recommended Budget Amendment that: Increases the amount budgeted for Accounting and Auditing by $3500, resulting in a new budget of $8,500 for this line item. Increases the amount budgeted for Rental and Leases by $2000, resulting in a new budget amount of $4,000 for this line item. Reduces the amount budgeted for Other Services by $5,500, resulting in a new budget of $14,500 for this line item. 4
Rachael Bennett made a motion to approve the Budget Amendment as presented; seconded by Bill Bishop; motion carried unanimously. Mr. Stephenson also Draft Preliminary Budget for Fiscal Year 2017 to the Board to their review. He noted that the agency s FY 2017 budget should be adopted at our September meeting. 8. REGIONAL TRANSIT ACTION PLAN (RTAP) IMPLEMENTATION: CONTRACT PROPOSAL Mr. Stephenson reminded the Board of his intent, expressed to the members present at last the July meeting where there was no quorum, to engage the Regional Mobility Group for an amount of $5000 for Liz Peak s services. He noted that $5,000 is the maximum amount that the Executive Director can spend without specific Board Approval in advance. He noted that $5,000 would be expended by the end of August, 2016. He then recommended that the Board approve a contract for $34,000. This amount will cover services provided over a four to five month period. The board discussed this matter and suggested that the contract total should be $29,000 rather than the recommended $34,000 in order to keep the total pay-out to RMG and Ms. Peak under the $35,000 purchasing threshold. Mr. Stephenson was advised to check with legal counsel regarding increasing the contract. Rachael Bennett made a motion to authorize up to $29,000 to contract Regional Mobility Group to assist with implementation of the RTAP; seconded by Bill Bishop; motion carried unanimously. 9. AUTHORIZATION TO APPLY FOR GRANT FUNDING FROM THE NATIONAL AGING AND DISABILITY TRANSPORTATION CENTER Mr. Stephenson announced another opportunity for grant funding. The grant comes from the National Aging and Disability Transportation Center. Liz Peak presented the grant as an innovation to promote the availability and accessibility of public transit options. She stated there will be 6 grants of $50,000 awarded nationally. The deadline for the application to be submitted is Friday, August 26, 2016. Ms. Peak explained the ways the grant could be spent on Regional Branding and Marketing, with the objectives of increased understanding, utilization and support for accessible regional public transit. She stated that the application requires at least two, but not more than four, letters of commitment and support. These 5
letters will come from, JTA, FDOT and the Regional Transit Coordinating Committee member agencies. Ms. Peak noted that an agency s first grant is often the most difficult to acquire. It was suggested that the grant application include reference to the fact that the Board has successfully managed public funds over the three years since it began operations. Rachael Bennett made a motion to approve the RTC applying for the NADTC grant; seconded by Lindsey Brock; motion carried unanimously. 10. RTC BOARD MEETING SCHEDULE The Board reviewed their calendars and discussed several dates to change the Board meeting time and date to accommodate everyone. It was decided to hold the meetings on the second Wednesday of every month at 1:30 pm. This time change will take effect at the September 14 th meeting. Lindsay Brock made a motion to accept this time change for the Board Meetings; seconded by Rachael Bennett; motion carried unanimously. 12. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR S REPORT No report at this time. 13. PUBLIC COMMENT None at this time. 14. ADJOURN There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:20 a.m. Doug Conkey, Chairman Rachael Bennett, Secretary 6
Attachment 1 Regional Transit Coordinating Committee Appointments August 24, 2016 RTC Board Liaison: Commissioner Bill Bishop Baker County Council on Aging: Jackie Wright, Committee Member Tiffany Shrull, Alternate Clay County Council on Aging - Clay Transit: Committee Member Andrew (Drew) DeCandis, Sheryl Hartzog, Alternate Jacksonville Transit Authority: Brad Thoburn, Committee Member Nassau County Council on Aging - Nassau Transit: Janice Ancrum, Committee Member Mike Hayes, Alternate The Ride Solution: Boyd Thompson, Committee Member Wanda Nye, Alternate St. Johns County Council on Aging Sunshine Bus: Becky Yanni, Committee Member (tentative) Ed Clark, Alternate (tentative) North Florida TPO: Elizabeth De Jesus, Committee Member Northeast Florida Regional Council: Margo Moehring, Committee Member Florida Department of Transportation: Doreen Joyner-Howard, Committee Member Janell Damato, Alternate Thee Perry, Alternate 7