Hollywood CRA Meeting May 7, 2025: Audit, Stormwater, and Executive Director Changes
Hollywood Community Redevelopment Agency Regular Meeting – May 7, 2025
The Hollywood CRA Board held a regular meeting on May 7, 2025, addressing citizen concerns about beach flooding, approving consent items, receiving the fiscal year 2024 audit results, discussing stormwater basin inspection findings and FDOT coordination, and appointing a new Executive Director.
Consent Calendar
- Approved meeting minutes for January 15, February 5, and March 5, 2025 (Resolutions R-CRA-2025-12, 13, 14).
- Approved an interlocal agreement with the City of Hollywood for reimbursement of $3,481,644 for work on State Road A1A roadway improvements (R-CRA-2025-15).
- Approved a purchase order to Post & Beam, LLC for a first aid station in an amount up to $116,541 (R-CRA-2025-16). All consent items passed unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Bob Glickman (Hollywood Beach resident) thanked former Chief O'Brien for organizing a site visit on A1A flooding issues, praised a pilot program, and urged removal of dead tree stumps along A1A.
- Kathy DeBona (Hollywood Beach Civic Association and Business Association) expressed gratitude to the board and staff, announced a May 20th civic event focus on FDOT, and introduced Eugene Bold as the new Vice President of the Civic Association.
- Elena Hershey (Hollywood Beach Business Association) indicated she had a letter of support for an agenda item and would present it later.
Discussion Items
- Fiscal Year 2024 Audit Presentation (P-CRA-2025-03): Tanya Davis of S. Davis & Associates presented an unmodified (clean) opinion. Total assets were $143 million, total liabilities $4 million, net position $138 million. The Beach Fund had a $46 million fund balance, Downtown Fund $16 million. Board Member Hernandez questioned the difference between total revenues and fund balance, requesting clearer reporting of cash and committed funds.
- A1A Stormwater Basin Inspection Update (P-CRA-2025-04) & Purchase Order Approval (R-CRA-2025-17):
- Envirowaste Services Group presented findings from inspections of four basins (Liberty, Buchanan, Oklahoma, Iris). Deficiencies included debris filling 75-80% of pipes, infiltration, leaking joints, a utility bore through a pipe, and a leaking checkmate valve. Recommendations included sectional liners, full-length CIPP liners, and annual maintenance to restore capacity.
- FDOT representative James Poole attended. Board members expressed frustration that known deficiencies from a year ago (New York and Arizona Street basins) had not been repaired by FDOT's maintenance contractor Versar.
- Board directed staff to invite FDOT's Tony Castro to the next CRA meeting to report on: (1) status of past repairs, (2) a plan for reimbursement of CRA inspection costs, (3) a long-term FDOT maintenance schedule for A1A stormwater basins.
- Board Member Hernandez proposed that the CRA fund its own biannual basin cleaning to reduce flooding; estimated cost at $40,000–$50,000 per year. The board expressed support for this approach if FDOT does not act.
- Resolution R-CRA-2025-17, authorizing a $220,453.69 purchase order to Envirowaste for inspection of 10 additional basins, was approved unanimously.
- Withdrawal of Executive Director Employment Agreement (R-CRA-2025-18):
- Acting Executive Director Susan Goldberg requested withdrawal of the item, stating that after 60 days as acting director, the dual role was not the right fit. The board accepted the withdrawal.
- The board then discussed and voted unanimously to appoint City Manager George Keller as the CRA Executive Director. Discussion included Keller's workload and potential compensation; Keller stated he would address compensation in his annual performance evaluation and would continue Goldberg's assignment pay. Several board members praised Goldberg's work and thanked her.
Key Outcomes
- Consent agenda items (5-9) approved unanimously.
- Fiscal Year 2024 clean audit accepted. Staff directed to provide a simplified one-page financial summary showing cash, investments, and committed funds.
- Purchase order for 10-basin inspection (Item 12) approved unanimously ($220,453.69).
- George Keller appointed CRA Executive Director effective immediately (unanimous vote).
- FDOT requested to present at next CRA meeting (June 2025) with: status of past repairs, plan for inspection reimbursement, and a maintenance schedule for A1A stormwater basins.
- Staff to research costs and feasibility of CRA-led biannual basin cleaning along the beach corridor.
- Informational report: Goldberg noted upcoming artificial reef deployment (May 22-25), a field trip to see reef modules (May 15), and progress on the bandshell mural and precast panels.
Meeting Transcript
Are we good? Uh sound team. Um Arlene, can you check with uh Joanna's checking? Okay. All right, great. Well, thank you. Today is May 7th, 2025. We are here for a regular community redevelopment agency meeting, but as I say, the start of city commission meetings, the meetings are never regular, uh, because there's always important subject matter uh that is uh on the table uh for discussion as there is today. Uh so let's go ahead and please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance. And to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. God bless America. All right. And everywhere else is how they say it of the chamber. Um let's go with roll call. Here. Vice Chair Kintana, here, member Biedeman. Board member Gruber here. Chair Levy. Here. All right. Uh let's go ahead with any conflict disclosures today. If hearing none, let's go ahead to 9 a.m. citizens' comments, if any. We have two cards. Let's start with Bob Wickman and then we'll end with Kathy De Bona. Followed by Lena Hershey. Bob, welcome. Good morning. Good morning, Bob Glickman, Hollywood Beach. Happy Wednesday. Uh I'd like to start my comments off with thanking former chief, but chief to me, Chief O'Brien. You know, uh I I come here a lot and I talk about the flooding that we have on the beach and the problems that we have, and I've been working with staff trying to get things done. And we had been working with previously with Gus, trying to get everybody together to do a site visit down at the uh along A1A Carter. Uh but when Gus left uh Chris O'Brien took over, and you know, he met with us, myself and Rich Shipesian, who's been here before, and he asked us, you know, what can I do to help? So we explained the situation, and I said, you know, the one thing that we always want to do is get a site visit. You know, it's one thing to talk about something, it's another thing to see something. So lo and behold, you know, a week or two weeks later, he got gathered everybody together, F dot, Mr. Morillo and his staff, the CRA and their staff and other people, the mayor attended. And we came out and we saw some of the problems. You know, I can talk about a dip in the road, but yet you saw the dip in the road. I can talk about water in the street basins just under the catch basin. And they you can see that. So by getting everybody together, which he did, and we want to thank them for that. They came up with a plan, a pilot program that they want to institute. I'm not gonna tell you what it is. But nonetheless, by getting everybody together, joining together, seeing what the problem actually is instead of listening to it, seeing it with your own eyes makes a big difference. So I just want to personally thank you, Chris O'Brien for just getting everybody together and getting them out there to see what the problem is. So kudos to Chris. The other thing I'd like to say is, you know, we have a lot of dead trees along A1A, we all know this. But if we can just remove some of these dead tree stumps that are there, or trunks, rather.
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