District 2 – Council on Aging – July 22, 2009

Kimberly Lawrence presented the Stormwater Program Presentation.

Osceola County Employees in attendance included:
- Beth Knight (Chief of Staff)
- Dr. Tina Bond (NPDES Coordinator)
- Matt Vespi (Grants Manager)
- Iris Soto (Administrative Support Coordinator)
- Linda Tolete (County Manager Administrative Assistant)

Resident Concerns:
Q: What happens to the canals and waterways that are “clogged” if this assessment is not approved?
A: County staff will continue to provide the current level of service for these systems, which is generally reactive in nature.

Q: Grass is being cut three times a year around the [subdivision] pond and sprayed twice a year. “Service is terrible—what have you done so far?”
A: Some ponds that are currently funded by a Municipal Service Taxing Unit (MSTU) or a Municipal Service Benefit Unit (MSBU) may not have been adequately funded in the past; therefore, the maintenance of these systems may be inadequate for aesthetic preference. Under the proposed stormwater program, mowing will occur either 21 times per year or 46 times per year, depending on what the residents’ aesthetic preference within their subdivision service area. The subdivision service area will be charged for the level of service that is being received. Aquatic Weed Management will also occur 12 times per year under the proposed program and structure maintenance will also be addressed.

Q: Citizen has called in January, February, May and June about the weeds growing in the pond behind his home. What is being done?
A: Tina Bond and Kimberly Lawrence have conducted field visits to Zacalo Way, have spoken to the residents regarding their concerns and have worked with the contractors to address the previous concerns. The Aquatic Exotic grant was providing aquatic weed control maintenance of the Buenaventura Lakes Ponds; however, this grant ended June 30, 2009. The aquatic weed control treatments have been resumed by the MSBU in place and future inquiries should be directed to the BVL MSBU office.

Q: Indian Wells resident expressed they don’t have a problem but had some concerns regarding their current contracts for mowing. They are pleased with their current mowing contractor and do not wish to change at this time.
A: Indian Wells mowing contract will be honored and it will continue under the new funding mechanism for pond maintenance.

Q: Inquiry surfaced about the Board of County Commissioners having already approved and budget and fees to include stormwater; where has that gone? What happens to the MSTU/MSBU’s that are currently collecting for stormwater services?
A: The County’s current stormwater program is funded through the general fund. The proposed program would free up approximately $3.3 million of the general fund to either be used on Capital Projects or available for a millage reduction.
There are approximately 300 subdivision ponds that are owned and/or maintained by the County. There are also a number of MSTU/BUs within the County that provide the funds for subdivision pond maintenance. Some of the MSTUs are inactive and do not collect funds for stormwater management; some MSTUs are underfunded and do not collect sufficient funds to maintain stormwater ponds; and other MSTUs collect sufficient funds to adequately maintain stormwater ponds. There are a variety of levels of services provided through MSTU/BUs. The proposed program addresses standardizing the levels of service to provide consistent and appropriate pond maintenance. Should the proposed program be approved, the portion of the Subdivision MSTU/BU’s that fund stormwater maintenance will no longer be collected.

Q: Canal in BVL has not been cleaned in over 10 years! Mowed and sprayed 3 – 4 weeks ago and the grass is getting burned along the canal/pond.
A: In our current program, canals are on a 12 to 15 year cycle for maintenance. Staff inspected the canal on July 29, 2009 and came to the following conclusions: The inspection revealed no symptoms of herbicide damage anywhere within the canal or along the edges of the canal. The vegetation may have recovered since the last herbicide application. Herbicide application records were reviewed and noted that the Royal Palm ditch was treated June 16, 2009 for grasses. If the canal was treated that long ago, vegetation would have had plenty of time to recover from damage, especially during the summer when weeds are actively growing.

Q: Citizen commended Kimberly and staff for awesome job! She expressed their HOA went bankrupt as there are 36 homes in foreclosure in the Coralwood subdivision; therefore, no one is paying dues. Seventy-seven homes (77) cannot maintain the amount of water there. She referred to a petition/request for staff to go out there and check the ditch off of the Florida Turnpike (left), east of Mill Creek Slough, and under the Osceola Parkway. Debris in the area, south of Mill Creek Slough, was pulled (MSBU) and cleaned out. Their bill is $600 for mowing, $320 for aquatic weed control and $60 for electricity… Their board voted to find out how to “disband” their HOA - what they can do? They don’t have money to pay for legal fees! What is the best direction?
A: Staff took the contact information to discuss these issues further. Follow up: Staff spoke to the president of the HOA Coralwood Subdivision and told her the Mill Slough system was inspected up to the Turnpike right of way and it seemed to be clear. Upon further discussion, Staff realized that the flooding they were concerned with was from July 16th and 18th when that area received two high intensity rainfall events. She stated the water was gone within an hour at which point Staff explained to her the system was working properly.

Q: T&R Lawncare currently maintains some of the ponds around the County, including those at Indian Wells. Some of the ponds maintained by T&R are mowed 26 times per year and believes that 26 times per year should be the minimum level of service. T&R does a lot of tree trimming and other activities that is not included in their contract.
A: Staff appreciated his insight and will take these issues into consideration when rebidding the mowing services for the subdivision pond maintenance.

Q: Indian Ridge has a lot of dry ponds, how do you assess that?
A: Dry ponds are assessed for mowing only, based on acreage of the dry pond area. Assessments will vary based on the amount of acreage that requires mowing.

General Concerns:

• Bad timing for asking citizens for money – it simply is not a good time! It would be easier/cheaper to move to a nicer place!
• Wildlife is being affected by poor water quality (i.e. snakes, fish w/sores, etc.).