At the July 22, 2008 Board of County Commissioners meeting, the board took the following action:

Max Planck Society – approved a grant agreement with the Germany-based Max Planck Society in the amount of $86.926 million for construction and operation of a 100,000-square-foot biomedical research facility on six acres at FAU’s Jupiter campus. The state is providing approximately $94 million. Max Planck agrees to create 135 new high-wage jobs and to commit 3 percent of the royalties it receives each year from the medicines it develops to educational programs in Palm Beach County from 2012 through 2038.

Budget – set the countywide non-voted millage rate for the FY-2009 budget at the current rate of 3.7811 mills; set public hearing dates of Monday, Sept. 8 and Monday, Sept. 22 for tentative and final adoption, respectively. Both hearings will begin at 6 p.m. in the sixth floor commission chambers.

Water resources – accepted state funding in the amount of $500,000 and $200,000, respectively, toward restoration of the Lake Worth Lagoon and the Chain of Lakes.

Red light cameras – directed staff to contract with an outside vendor for implementation of the county’s new traffic control program that involves installing automated cameras at certain intersections to deter red light running.

Underground power lines – agreed to allow FPL to use county-owned easements and rights of way to provide underground electrical utility service to private communities on a case-by-case basis; approved a right of way agreement for the installation and operation of underground FPL facilities leading to the Frenchmen’s Creek community.

MSTU policy – due to reduced revenues, the board amended the municipal services taxing unit road construction program as follows: a) removed the 50/50 matching provision, meaning the requesting property owners will be responsible for the full cost of a project; b) removed nine previously approved MSTU projects at the property owners’ request; c) reaffirmed three previously approved CCRT-funded projects, but agreed not to accept any new CCRT or MSTU petitions for at least 12 months.

Roadside vendors – approved on first reading and advertised for public hearing on August 19 amendments to the county’s roadside vendor ordinance to include a) increasing the permitted work space to 500 square feet for vendors operating outside the urban services boundary; b) increasing permit fees for the first time in 10 years; c) prohibiting vendors from operating along rights of way near parks where park visitors use the right of way for parking; and d) tentatively agreeing to grandfather in one roadside vendor operating near Coral Cove Park.

Process Drive – adopted a name change for the east-west segment of Fairgrounds Road, which runs along the north border of the South Florida Fairgrounds. The new name, Process Drive, will help eliminate confusion with another segment of Fairgrounds Road that extends north from Southern Blvd.

Alligator Alley – adopted a resolution opposing the privatization of the Alligator Alley toll road.

Burglar alarms – approved on first reading and advertised for public hearing on August 19 amendments to the existing burglar alarm ordinance that would replace the special master appeal process with an appointed, three-member False Alarm Appeals Board; also would increase the new application fee from $18 to $25 and the renewal application fee from $5 to $25.

# # #