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Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final August 13, 2019 Director of Utility Services Vincent Burke appeared before the Board with an update on the North Sebastian Septic to Sewer (S2S) Phase 2 project. He informed the Board that the County had received $500,000 which represented only one-third of the requested funding from a Legislative Appropriations grant. Using a PowerPoint presentation, Director Burke reviewed the timeline of the project to date and the area of Sebastian planned for S2S conversion and water installation. He noted that since the legislative grant was less than needed, staff sought and received approval from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to reduce the scope of the project from 201 parcels to 75 parcels. The presentation continued with three (3) suggestions to obtain the funding needed to cover the grant shortfall. Each scenario detailed the cost of providing sewer, water, or both services with variations on the amount of money provided by the optional sales tax fund and the County. Director Burke requested the Board's direction on whether or not to pursue the S2S conversion in reduced form, and he explained the next steps in the process should it be approved. Discussion ensued among the Commissioners on the merits of providing sewer and water to these parcels, and the responsibility of the County to fund the project. Chairman Solari stated his objections to S2S conversions, noting they were not a cost-effective way to reduce nitrogen in the Lagoon. The following speakers appeared before the Board: Glenn Powell, 12845 Bay Street, spoke in favor of having the County invest in providing sewer and water services to North Sebastian. Fern Grounds, 2375 1lth Court SW, received clarification on the County's Optional Sales Tax fund. The Board returned to discussion of the issue, and agreed to direct staff to move forward with the project. Additionally, the Commissioners approved supporting funding scenario three (3) which used money from the Optional Sales Tax fund, while staff also pursued an additional grant from the St. John's River Water Management District to offset the use of tax dollars. A motion was made by Vice Chairman Adams, seconded by Commissioner O'Bryan, to approve staffs recommendation with Funding Scenario Option 3, which used funds from the Optional Sales Tax Fund while also continuing to pursue additional grant money. The motion carried by the following vote: Indian River County Florida Page 25