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08-11-1942 Regular MeetingMINUTES OF REGULAR -MONTHLY MEETING OF MIAMI SHORES VILLAGE COUNCIL AUGUST llth, 1942. The regular monthly meeting of the Miami Shores Village Council was held on August llth, with Mr. Earnest, Mr. Dooly and Mr. Thompson present, making a quorum. Mr. Earnest was made chairman of the meeting, and the first business to come before the Council was the receipt of a letter from Mr. Childress wherein he resigned from the Village Council, said letter being attached to and made a part of these minutes. Upon motion of Mr. Dooly and seconded by Mr. Thompson the resignation was accepted with regrets, and the chairman designated the Village Attorney to write a letter to Mr. Childress thanking him for his services to the Village during his term of office. The Council then decided that no action would be taken on a successor to Mr. Childress until all of the other 4 members of the Council could be present. The minutes of the teetings of July 20th and July 23rd, 1942, were adopted as written. Mr. Breitbart, of 9526 N. Miami Avenue, appeared before the Council in behalf of his application for a permit to maintain a wooden building on the rear of his property, and after some discussion and receipt of a petition signed by 29 people in the neighborhood objecting to said building, Mr. Thompson moved that the application for a permit by Mr. Breitbart to construct and'place a frame building on his property at 9526 N. Miami Avenue'be denied. Said motion was seconded by Mr. Dooly and unanimously carried. Pae No. 2 8/11/42 Mr. Thompson then moved that the Village Manager be instructed to have a survey made as quickly as possible to ascertain how many wooden out buildings are in existence in the Village that were built subsequent to the adoption of Ordinance No. 92 and report to the Council for further action. Said motion was seconded by Mr. Dooly and unanimously carried. Upon motion of Mr. Dooly and seconded by Mr. Thompson it was unanimously agreed that the Village continue to pay the Humane Society $10.00 per month until such time as the Council deems it not advisable. Upon motion of Mr. Dooly and seconded by Mr. Thompson the Council authorized the expenditure of not to exceed $50.00 to pay the expenses of the Chief of Police attending a law enforcement officers' meeting in Jacksonville on August 19th and 20th. Upon motion of Mr. Dooly and seconded by Mr. Thompson the July bills in the amount of $1484.17 were approved and ordered paid. The Council then discussed the proposed Community Library for the Village, and the Attorney was requested to secure copies of library ordinances from the cities of Miami, Miami Beach and Coral Gables, and prepare an ordinance that would apply to Miami Shores Village so that when the library committee presents a plan of organization and operation the Council will be prepared to act. The Council discussed the practice of accepting partial payments for garbage service, and Mr. Thompson moved that all service men who pay garbage tax to the Village of Miami Shores be entitled to a refund for the unused portion of their garbage Pae No. 3 8/11/42 tax if they are transferred away from the greater Miami area. Said motion was seconded by Mr. Dooly and unanimously carried. Upon motion of Mr. Thompson and seconded by Mr. Dooly, it was unanimously resolved that the regulations heretofor set up 'regarding the payment of one-half year garbage tax be rescinded, and that all garbage taxes be paid on an annual basis. After which the meeting was adjourned. Village Manage/1/ and Cle APPROVED BY COUNCIL: Mayor TO THE MIAMI SHORES VILLAGE COUNCIL: Several years ago when the Honorable Stanley Milledge became a Circuit Judge I was appointed to fill his unexpired term as a member of the Council of Miami Shores Village. I know at that time that during his tenure of office Judge Milledge had opposed, with the same uncompromising zeal and vigor which has always characterized his public career, all attempts of certain corporations and their satellites to con- trol and govern Village affairs in their selfish interests. I deemed it my duty to carry on those policies and, standing on my record, was subsequently elected to succeed myself as councilman. That I, and those faithful public servants who joined me, failed in resisting further encroachments of intrenched power, is not a matter of personal disgrace, but conversely - it cannot rightfully be a matter of pride to the Council majority that the Village taxpayers will be burdened for the next three years with a tax bill increased by some $6,000.00 annually. In view of the increased Village debt and the diffi- culty of the public in meeting additional demands upon their war depleted funds, I have long felt that the Village could ill afford a Village Manager at a salary of 000.00 per month, particularly since his sole authority is not vested in him by charter, but is delegated to him by the Council, and his duties could as well be performed by other clerical employees already on the Village payroll. It would seem to require no argument that in times like these inefficiency and irregularities in the discharge of duties cannot be any more tolerated in public affairs than in private industry. Having discussed the matter with other Councilmen, I was encouraged to charge Mr. McCall - not with any crime - but with gross irregularities, which he publicly admitted and for which he was as publicly reprimanded, and to move for his discharge. This motion was not only lost, but Mr. McCall was voted an increase in salary. That such inconsistent action was prompted by the personal ill will of the Council majority was not only confided to me, but should be readily apparent to any right-thinking person. I feel that the only proper motive any one can have for wishing to hold public office is a desire to serve one's #2 fellow citizens, and when, because of purely personal animosities or the improper influences of corporations seeking private pro- fit, such service can no longer be rendered, a Councilman should resign. I do not believe in dividing one's authority while holding him alone responsible for his acts, but on the other hand I do not want to assume responsibility for the conduct of a village employee while having little or no authority over him. I firmly believe conditions warrant the vesting of sole responsibility for village affairs in a united Council -- not one divided by personal dissension and to that end alone I respectfully tender my resignation from the Miami Shores Village Council, effective this day of August, A.D. 1942.