A maintenance complex being built behind resident’s homes in the Woodmont Country Club were never in the original plan approved by the City of Tamarac. The complex was supposed to be built just off of University and 78th Street, however, Country Club owner Mark Schmidt said under oath that he couldn’t get access from Broward County for an egress – or driveway onto University Drive.
After a public records search with both the city and county, no record of Schmidt filing for an egress for this plan was ever submitted.
The City believed he did submit his plans and was refused by Broward County. After all, he testified he did so while under oath at a city commission meeting. So based on his testimony, they instead voted to put the maintenance complex in the middle of a residential neighborhood. Because he didn’t apply with the county, the homeowners in Pines III now will have a 153,000 square foot maintenance compound on the defunct Pines course property behind their homes.
At the District 4 Neighborhood Meeting hosted by Vice Mayor Debra Placko, questions were taken from the floor. The very first question asked was why when someone lies under oath, and perjures themselves that there were no penalties. The answer given by City Attorney Julie Klahr was that a private party would have to hire an attorney to prosecute.
When the meetings are recorded, why then, it was asked, doesn’t the city prosecute? That was left pretty much unanswered.
We’d love the commission do what’s proper for the community: hold another hearing in front of both the planning board and the commission based on truthful testimony.” – Dick Brown.
After the meeting, Justin Smith introduced himself to me. He was the son of the man I called a liar. I told him that I stood by it. I explained to him that at the Planning Board Meeting, on February 1, 2017, under oath, he testified that an application for egress onto University Drive from the Woodmont Country Club Property between the Cypress Club and 78th Street had been denied.
Justin Schmidt said that they had never submitted an application. I said, if there was no application ever submitted, it couldn’t have possibly been denied. That being the case, it was an untruth, alternate fact or an obvious lie. He tried to justify it by saying that there were feelers that had been presented to Broward County and the Department of Transportation. He said they were told that it probably wouldn’t have been approved.
No application was ever submitted.
We’ve learned that there are some people that you can take at their word and others that you just cannot.
At the same meeting, Land Use & Zoning Attorney Scott Backman testified that they were using three sheds for the maintenance building at just over 9,000 square feet. Pictures were taken and presented showing the disgusting condition those sheds were in, with junk strewn in and around them. Then at the commission meeting, after seeing the pictures of the deplorable condition of the sheds, Mark Schmidt stated that no, those weren’t the real sheds, He stated under oath that there was actually a 9,000 square foot building that was being used. One was a lie.
Justin Schmidt said Scott Backman probably just misspoke, regarding, the three maintenance sheds with a total storage of just over 9,000 square feet. I told him that I thought Backman, as evidenced by the pictures submitted at the Tamarac Commission Meeting on February 22, 2017, to the city clerk by Cliff Seitles, proves that Mr. Backman was telling the truth and I thought it was his father who had lied.
He wanted to discuss it further, however, I told him I had to go.
Bottom line is, the approval of the Major Revised Site Plan of the Maintenance building on February 22, 2017 by the city commission was approved based on lies.
This 153,000 square foot maintenance complex should never, ever be built in the middle of a beautiful community and certainly never next to a quiet residential community where it will negatively impact traffic. The University Drive site is certainly better suited for both Tamarac and Woodmont.
We’d love the commission do what’s proper for the community: hold another hearing in front of both the planning board and the commission based on truthful testimony.
We’ve been promised many things over the past 13 years, none of which was ever done. We’ve been lied to, time and time again. Now, we’ve again been fed a bunch of lies, and we’re not buying it. We were told that even if a person lies under oath unless a private party wants to hire an attorney and press charges, nothing will be done about it – even though all proceedings have been recorded. Why then go through the charade of swearing someone in, if untruths are just not prosecuted?
Instead just the opposite. Rewards are given, proving beyond a doubt that dishonesty pays.
