City commissioners faced a variety of public hearings last week as planning staff and the community discussed map amendments and community districts.
However, a few key items tucked away in the consent agenda were never discussed at the dais.
Plant City Police Department was authorized to get new equipment following the announcement that the federal government has allocated $12,514.00 in grant funds to PCPD under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program FY2020 Local Solicitation.
The grant is non-matching and formula based and the funds have specific conditions on how the money can be used. Three percent of the grant funds — or $375.42 — will be allocated for the National Incident-Based Reporting System. The remaining funds were proposed to go to two purchases.
PCPD asked to use the money to get a FALCON Rapid ID Edge Device Software with Blue Check Finger Scanner as well as to get six FDLE FALCON Rapid ID Devices. The devices themselves each cost $2,203 and combine to a total of $13,218.
Those devices will be distributed throughout the department to the Patrol and Investigation Division supervisors. They can be used for a variety of investigations, including for those who fail to identify themselves during criminal investigations or to intercept when someone provides “false information on their identity, identification of missing/endangered persons or the identity of unidentified deceased persons,” according to the report.
The total purchases amount to $1,079 more than the allotted money provided by the grant. Once the grant is awarded, a budget adjustment will be presented to the city commission for approval to appropriate $12,514 toward the equipment. The overage of $1,079.42 will come from PCPD’s operating costs.
Commissioners also did some housekeeping last week when they renewed the interlocal agreement between the City of Plant City and Hillsborough County for traffic control signal maintenance. The agreement is a two-year term from July 2020 to Sept. 2022. The county adjusted the end term to September so it will align with the fiscal year.
Under the agreement, the the city will be responsible for maintaining the signals at Alsobrook and Collins streets, Alexander Street and Jim Johnson Road, Alsobrook Street and Park Road, Park and Gordon Food Services roads, Park and Jim Johnson roads and Turkey Creek and Sydney roads. It is also responsible for Turkey Creek and Airport roads, but the signal is currently installed there as part of the road improvements for Turkey Creek Road, so the City of Plant City will be compensated for it.
City Manager Bill McDaniel also discussed his hopes of getting further funding for sanitation and safety measures at city buildings. Under the CARES Act, state, local and tribal governments are able to apply for aid from the Coronavirus Relief Fund. Some items he hopes to get to protect staff and the public that have to enter high-traffic areas like City Hall include PPEs. Currently, city staff manually checks temperatures of those who walk in the doors during meetings and scheduled gatherings. McDaniel hopes to purchase a piece of equipment that allows someone to put their wrist into a machine that checks temperatures. He also wants to get more PPEs for staff and is asking for $1 million in that category.
He’s asked for $2 million to reduce contact points by getting items like sensors for the sinks and paper towels and automatic doors at the entrance to City Hall. They need plexiglass or barriers between employees as well to reduce contact points.
McDaniel is also asking for another $1 million for the tech advancements. He said if the pandemic has taught them anything, it is that they need to be able to rely on technology to support remote work. He said the city needs to purchase additional tech to make work smoother and help improve remote meetings. Even if there are in-person meetings in the future, he believes some elements of virtual will remain.