Quarterly Meeting of the State Committee of Vendors

Chairman, Randall Crosby called the meeting to order at 8:34 a.m. Vice Chairman, Kurt Ponchak called the role.

Friday March 21, 2025                                         

The following individuals were present:  Randall Crosby, Chairman; Kurt Ponchak, Vice Chairman

District Representatives: Wanda Feldsteen, District 1 (via Teams); Patrick Martin, Alternate, District 2; Mark Turner, District 3; Darryl Brinton, District 4; David Stevens, District 5; Phil Hubbard, District 6; Jose Quintanilla, District 7; Sead Bekric, District 8; Orlando Ramirez, District 9; Antonio Gonzalez, District 10

Bureau of Business Enterprise Staff:  Bill Findley, Bureau Chief; Maureen Fink, Operations Manager; Alan Risk, Compliance Officer (virtually); John Ahler, Business Analyst; Greg Coon, Marketing and Site Development Manager; Angela Elgaard, Region 7 Business Consultant; Bernie Kaiserian, Region 2 Business Consultant; Jay Payne, Region 3 Business Consultant; Tony Arduengo, Region 4 Business Consultant; Alecia Brown, Region 5 Business Consultant; Yusnay Torrens, Region 6 Business Consultant; Mary Ellen Harding, Administrative Services Consultant; Andrea Mendez, Administrative Assistant III

Florida Division of Blind Services Director: Robert L. Doyle

Career Technology and Training Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired: Raven Pulliam, BEP Instructor; Cortney Bellande Student; Amber Ordaz, Student; William Pease, student; Joy Banks, Vending Facility Specialist; Kirishan Chand, Vending Facility Specialist.

Guests:

Motion to adopt the agenda made by Quintanilla. Second by Martin. Adopted unanimously.

Motion to approve minutes from December 2024 Committee Meeting made by Martin. Second by Ramirez.

Motion to approve minutes from Special Committee Meeting on March 7, 2025, made by Martin. Second by Stevens. Adopted unanimously.

Opening remarks by Randall Crosby:
Asked for a moment of silence for Larry Miller, Bill McDermott, and Richard Sawyer.

New Business: 
Amazon Business Report: Andrea Mendez
Amazon is an online business platform designed to streamline the purchasing and managing of expenses for businesses offing millions of products. It has competitive pricing and tools for efficient procurement. There's special pricing and quantity discounts on two or more items, account management tools, and tax-exempt purchases. If you would like to create an Amazon business account, it is free. However, there are more benefits if you subscribe to Amazon Business Prime with the features of faster shipping with same-day, one-day, or two-day delivery on some items. They have advanced analytics to monitor and control the expenses. T with the features of faster shipping without same day, one day, two-day delivery on some items. They have advanced analytics to monitor and control the expenses with buying.

There are tools with the features of faster shipping without same-day, one-day, or two-day delivery on some items. Advanced analytics to monitor and control expenses. Tools to guide purchasing decisions based on company policies with extended payment terms and pay by invoice. You can create multiple accounts through Amazon Business for each employee. Vendors can group purchases together and see the streamlined view of purchases and discounts in one package. There are different plans and pricings with Amazon business. Duo is free with an Amazon Prime membership for one user if you do not have any employees if you have an Amazon Prime membership it is free. Essentials is $179 per year, allowing up to three users in one account. They have small businesses for $499 per year up to ten users. Medium is $1,299 a year and Enterprise for $10,000.99 per year with unlimited users.

For Amazon Business users who do not subscribe to Business Prime is free and the shipping fees are typically like the regular Amazon customers where free shipping may be available on orders over a certain threshold. If you do not meet that threshold then standard shipping costs will apply. It varies by the weight and size of the selected products. To confirm shipping costs for products with a nonprime Amazon Business account, there is a Health Center which can provide more information.

Alternate Travel Twice Per Term: Randall Crosby
Hubbard made the motion to allow alternates to travel to committee meetings twice per term. Seconded by Martin. Adopted unanimously.

Renewal of Hotel Contract:
Ponchak made a motion to continue with Embassy Suites for the 2025-2026 year unless circumstances due to renovations keep us from meeting here. Second by Martin. Adopted unanimously.

Generic Vending Machines:
Darryl Brinton: Leasing is unattainable due to extremely high pricing. A 5800 would run around $6,800 exclusive of parts. The goal is to do a pilot program for about six machines to see what benefit we would get from generic machines. Facility 161, both vending routes in Jacksonville, and Quintanilla could use a generic machine to replace his antique machine. Machines are priced at $6,800 for the 3800 and 5800. With all the parts it comes to about $8,000 per glass front. The subcommittee voted to try glass front machines. Quintanilla stated that Shubert says parts are easily available. Hubbard made a motion to accept the pilot program for six generic machines. The timeframe for starting the pilot program should be determined by the Chair and Vice Chair. The equipment should be placed throughout the State and placed in facilities that would give the best return on investment. Machines should be placed in a high-volume area. Machines should not be placed in facilities that are exclusive to Coke or Pepsi. The project should begin after the end of this fiscal year. Hubbard called the question. The pilot program should run for one year. Two interstate and one non-highway vending route would be used in the pilot program. Motion passed unanimously.

Old Business:
Biennial Seminar Planning: Jose Quintanilla
The Frank Kitchen contract has been finalized. Waiting for the Patricia Waechter contract to be finalized. There will be a light reception on Thursday night and each morning there will be coffee and tea service available provided by FRSV and remaining funds from the 2023 banquet. We are working on the tradeshow exhibitors. At the next meeting we will begin to work on exhibitors. Crosby believes that as the time gets closer to the Biennial more vendors will sign up for the tradeshow.

Ice Vending Machines: Kurt Ponchak
Ponchak and Perry are doing a pilot program for ice machines. There is a problem with theft from the ice machines. The summer may yield better results. The westbound side is better than the east bound side in Leon County. Ice purchases happen more often on the weekend than on weekdays. Truckers seem to use the machines more. Selling 7 lb. bags. There are issues with the software from the Lier ice machines (which charges a fee) and the Nyax card reader. Cantaloupe card readers (Engage) could be used on the ice machine. The two needed software pieces are not always communicating with each other which is why bags of ice are not being charged. The machine can be tricked by swiping the card, opening the door, canceling the transaction, and then removing the product. Sales tax must be paid on ice. There is no labor cost involved. Sales are picking up now that the weather is warming up. Total fees per month are $39.95 plus the sales tax and card fees. DBPR says no additional license is required. We need to try to use only one card reader company. He sold more coffee than ice cream in the summer and thought the ice machine would be a better option. As a pilot the ice cream machine was replaced with an ice machine at the cost of ~$7,800. This might be a good program for State parks, but the potential theft problem needs to be resolved. Ponchak will bring numbers from January through May to the next meeting.

BEP Updates: Bill Findley
There are a lot of events going on in Washington, DC and with military bases. He was on the CEU call set up by Bekric and agrees with some of what Nicky Gacos relayed on the call. We will need to have patience with upcoming changes as it relates to federal locations. Leased facility contracts with GSA will have to be rewritten by the department/agency with the building manager, getting a better lease somewhere else or renters will have to move to another location. It could work out for the better in some cases for us. Federal buildings that remain will have larger populations which would be advantageous for vendors in those buildings as smaller populations from some buildings may move to larger federally owned buildings. We do not have an accurate list of buildings that will be sold, or residents will move to another location.

There is some concern about the RSA (Rehabilitation Services Administration) and the program. The program may be moved to another agency which may be good as RSA is not always responsive. Last April 4th a FOIA request was made. We have asked repeatedly but are still waiting for the information. The hold up is with attorneys at RSA with getting the information. It is Findley’s understanding that the RSA attorneys have been fired, which may be good as that is where the hold up is.

Ed Spence has agreed to be the food service vendor for Eglin because Stefan Mitchell refused the offer. We are pursuing food Service at Tyndall AFB and adding vending. We are pursuing vending at Eglin AFB. One dining hall of the two at Hurlburt has been closed. A separate organization has opened a grab and go service. Hurlburt has put out another solicitation for the dining hall and a grab and go kiosk service which we will submit in mid-April. We got an extension for April and May on March 20th. We are negotiating with Key West. They have not put out a solicitation and are working with us directly. The next contract should start June 1st for five years. David Chappell has worked with us and the Air Force Attorney in DC regarding Eglin. We have a settlement agreement with Eglin for fifty machines for five years with no utilities which they usually require. We will be able to assess which locations are best and move machines to other buildings if needed. We may have to get generic machines if we want to place Pepsi products as Buffalo Rock will not give us Pepsi machines unless they service the machines directly. The Air Force has determined that AAFES (Army & Air Force Exchange Service) will have to remove machines, and we will be able to place machines in those locations. This has been a 10-year effort. We did not get the Eglin food service last summer. Chappell stated the Air Force could not defend their decision not to choose the BEP. Every contractor who put in a proposal was allowed to resubmit their proposals. We put in a proposal that was within 5.1% of the government estimate as instructed. They are communicating with us about our proposal which we believe is a good sign. Alton Palmore will be the vendor for Eglin. We will put out the Navy Base as a Type II when Palmore takes over Eglin.

We have held Roadshows in Miami, Tallahassee, Pensacola, and Jacksonville. We will be at West Palm Beach (April 7th), Ft. Myers (April 8th). We will also go to Orlando (April 28th) and Brandon (April 29th).

Representatives from both Coke and Pepsi were at the roadshow in Jacksonville. Jacksonville had a good turnout of sixteen vendors, Miami had eleven of their twelve vendors in attendance. Pensacola also had a good attendance. Tallahassee had thirteen vendors and one trainee. Thank you to the vendors who provided snacks at the Roadshows.

Bill’s expected retirement date is August 15, 2025. Alan Risk is involved in every way possible to prepare for Findley’s retirement so there will be continuity.

Findley introduced Kristan Chand and Joy Banks. Chand has been the director of food and nutrition across the nation. He is a Certified Executive Chef with the American Culinary Association. Joy Banks has worked with the Army, military, hurricane disaster and refugee camps. She has cooked for 10 – 10,000 people. Crosby and Quintanilla were part of the interviewing process for Chand and Banks.

He also introduced the three students in training at the Center: Cortney Bellande, Amber Ordaz and William Pease.

Maureen Fink: She is pleased that Business Enterprise is 100% staffed.

Director Robert L. Doyle, III: 
While the President’s intent is to dismantle/abolish the US Department of Education (USDOE), key programs, services, initiatives, etc., will continue to move forward. The Whitehouse and Secretary McMann recognize that to abolish the USDOE it will take an act of Congress. The President and the Secretary of Education have recognized the need to keep programs in place for people who require special vocation services and programs that support people with disabilities. Most of the jobs related to the reduction of the DOE workforce are not in our area. They are preserving programs in our purview. Some programs may move from DOE. The BEP (Business Enterprise Program) is written into law. We have taken the position that we are not going to defend the USDOE but will work toward preserving programs, services, and advocate for special education programs, vocational programs, Randolph-Sheppard programs keeping funding levels and positions of authority in place.

The consensus is where will we go? Two possible places are the US Department of Labor or the US Department of Health of Human Services. We have historically been at both those departments in the past. We are checking with State agencies to see where we would advocate to go if Congress does move us. We will prepare to make that move to be sure the programs, resources, funding, and the level of authority remains at the current level. Early next week we will have that information from state agencies which we will take to the Legislature. The Department of Labor would be the best move. This may be a good opportunity as RSA has been cumbersome with regulations and minutiae. This is a good opportunity to get rid of some bad rules/regulations. A group of Directors is looking at how to craft which regulatory areas they would like to change within the Rehab Act itself since it is up for reauthorization.

Doyle thanked the committee for their advocacy regarding moving the Division to the APD (Agency for People with Disabilities). The Committee of Blind Vendors, Florida Council for the Blind, the National Federation of the Blind, have all communicated with their Legislators and as of this week the House Bill has been amended to strike moving the Division from the bill. The Senate has not yet amended their bill but are not planning to call the bill in its current form which Doyle believes is because of the advocacy of the Committee and other groups. The Division is not able to have an opinion on legislation, particularly with legislation being proposed by the Governor. We do feel the Florida DOE is the right place for DBS to be. However, it would be better for the State to be aligned with whatever move is made Federally. Some advocates on the Committee have stated that an agency for the blind needs to be created as discussion of moving Blind Services keeps coming up every few years.

As we are waiting for the budget, the Governor’s recommended budget did approve our request for additional budget or revenue funds as well as additional budget authority for us to be able to draw down the full amount of our federal allotment. This has been a challenge within the Division where we have cash available with federal monies but do not have the authority to spend the money. We are hoping as we see early markups from the House and Senate that they will continue to have the funds in there. The challenge now is we have Florida level DOGE, and the Governor has issued an executive order to look at efficiencies. His budget has a $3 billion dollar reduction from last year overall which did leave intact all of DBS’s positions, 289.75 fulltime equivalent positions but the Legislature is looking at positions that have been vacant and bringing over people to talk about the vacancies that have been in place for a while. We have vacancies that are potentially at risk of being taken during the legislative session. In terms of staff, Florida’s economy is strong and there are tons of dollars in reserves and the Governor and Legislature have been exceptionally good stewards of taxpayer dollars so there is no risk of staff losing their jobs; however, they are looking at vacancies. As they look at efficiencies, they are looking at personnel, programs and other efficiencies that can take place. The Department has its own DOGE committee in place while the Legislature is looking from their side. If there is a budget which does not include the Governor’s recommended budget, this Committee will have an opportunity to exercise their liberty to reach out to legislators and make their concerns known as they are less restricted in their ability to advocate for the budget than the agency.

The head of RSA, Carol Gobat, and Suzanne Mitchell have resigned from their positions effective the end of this month. Christopher Holt has stepped in to lead RSA. Dreamie Cookies will be presenting in DC on a podcast about this program which we are excited about being able to share what is going on in Florida on a national level.

Opportunities with food trailers were discussed because of increased budget authority and reduced regulations. Doyle advocated for continuing food service as an opportunity for vendors in the program.

Doyle is thinking that Alan Risk will be Bill Findley’s replacement when he retires.

Daytona Training Center Update – Raven Pulliam
Two students from the last class are currently completing OJT. There are three students in the current class. Everything is going well. They are in transition because in the past vending was handled by Snack Bar employees but during the last class students were responsible for all the vending, making service calls and correcting error messages. He would like students to take care of more vending. The food service module will be completed next week with testing. He would like to get a trial situation for Cantaloupe Go so the students can work with the program with no danger of damaging data. Fink advised that someone from Cantaloupe will be coming down and they will ask if there is a sample program students could have on their computers. Findley advised that it was the desire of BEP for Pulliam to have one full class to assess how the program should proceed. Now is a good time to discuss changes to training as one class has been completed. A work group should be formed to work with Pulliam on training changes. Quintanilla, Hietala, Martin and Ponchak should be in the work group. Pulliam has observed the age of students determines how open they are to new technology. Ahler suggested that a survey should be sent out to vendors to assess the need for additional technology training. Hietala is working on a survey.

Students asked questions about training for micro markets and informed the Committee of their future plans in the program regarding the type of facility they would be interested in.

Budget Report – Kurt Ponchak and Bill Findley
We are moving along as we would at this time of year based on financial reports, we have sufficient budget authority and cash to get us through this year. As we estimated prior to giving the two-month zero set-aside holiday, we are now at 3% and will go back to 6% and the beginning of the next fiscal year (July 2025). We should have enough cash for the full spending authority for fiscal year 2025-2026. There has been no negative impact on the budget due to reduced set aside percentages. The camera project will take us through Mid-May. If there are reimbursements, vendors should get them in before mid-May as reimbursements will slow down as we get close to the end of the fiscal year. We appreciate getting reports from Mitchell Clark timely.

Retirement is #5 under five categories for which we can use set-aside funds. Ponchak reached out to the people who were handling the Spiliotis retirement program, and they were not interested in handling this amount of money. There would be management fees, an increase to set aside and vendors would have to vote to add a retirement program. A retirement program would incentivize more people into the program.

Budget/Legislation Spending Authority – Kurt Ponchak
Everyone should have received a copy of a draft letter to the Commissioner of Education that the Budget Subcommittee is recommending to the Committee for approval to be sent under the Chair’s signature. We are requesting additional spending authority in the Rehabilitation Trust Fund and requesting additional spending authority in the grants and donations trust fund. We are requesting an additional $200K in general revenue to fund items the federal government does not allow us to spend federal dollars on. The $200K could be used as a negotiating point. It is just over $2,000,000 in spending authority and cash. Ponchak made a motion to adopt the letter to Commissioner Manny Diaz. Second by Quintanilla. The motion passed unanimously.

Policies and Procedures – Colton Knight
Type II’s need a more clearly defined policy for “best for meeting the needs of the facility.” Also, there are concerns about changing the makeup to the Type II panel and providing more information to the panel. Bylaw amendments were discussed such as electronic voting. We are asking the Chairman to hold special committee meetings as the amendments come up so they can be moved to the group for a vote and advertised well in advance of the Biennial. Committee discussion included:

Ponchak made a motion to refer the policy back to committee for public hearing and explanation and be reconsidered at the June 2025 Committee meeting for final approval. Second by Brinton. Motion carried with one opposed.
Commercial vehicle insurance may now be claimed as an expense on the vendor’s monthly report. Hubbard made the motion to accept the subcommittee’s recommendation to allow vendors to expense commercial vehicle insurance on their monthly business report regardless of facility type. Second by Martin. Motion passed unanimously.
Discussion about the use of AI to rewrite the policy manual.

Type II Update – Maureen Fink
There are twenty-eight Type II’s on the list currently. Seven of those were on the January selection cycle. Out of those seven we will have four new Type II’s once operators sign into their new Type I. One vendor passed away making one additional Type II.

Training and Recruitment – Mary Ellen Harding
We have two trainees in OJT. One finishes today, the other requested an extension and will finish April 9th. There are three students in training at the Center. There are currently two people in the process of applying but may not complete the process in time to participate in the July class. We depend 100% on Client Services to send us applicants to the program. There were about six people on the list, but they dropped out for assorted reasons.

Findley stated that we are attempting through recruitment presentations to bring in new recruits. We have travelled to Daytona, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, Pensacola, and Miami in the last few months making presentations to recruit more applicants. Also, there has been some difficulty in getting applicants into the Center. It is not possible to get employees who have other supervisors to do anything. We try to encourage them, explain things to them. We are doing our best to do what we can to educate DBS offices and Daytona staff as to what we need from them.

Compliance Officer Report – Alan Risk

CEU Summary:

Grievance Hearing Report:

Selection Cycle Update:
Seven facilities were advertised, including one snack bar, one rest area, one U.S. Post Office facility, one micro-market route, and three non-highway vending routes. A total of fourteen vendors submitted applications, two withdrew, and the remaining twelve all interviewed before the Selection Panel in Tampa on March 10th and 11th. At this current time, we are awaiting final decisions from applicants that have been offered facilities but expect all seven facilities to be awarded.

New Licensee Report:

Grievance Panel Election:
Ponchak made a motion to open the floor for Grievance Panel nominations. Second by Martin.
Nominations:
Mike Renaud – confirmed.
Sead Bekric – confirmed.
Jose Quintanilla – confirmed.
Mitzi Bowen – confirmed.
Phil Bluschke – confirmed.
Ponchak made motion to close nominations. Second by Martin.

Round 1
Wanda Feldsteen – Bekric
Patrick Martin – Renaud
Mark Turner – Bowen
Darryl Brinton – Quintanilla
David Stevens – Bluschke
Phil Hubbard – Bekric
Jose Quintanilla – Quintanilla
Sead Bekric – Bekric
Orlando Ramirez – Bekric
Antonio Gonzalez – Bekric
Kurt Ponchak – Bekric
Randall Crosby – Bowen

Round 2
Wanda Feldsteen – Bekric
Patrick Martin – Bowen
Mark Turner – Bowen
Darryl Brinton – Quintanilla
David Stevens – Bekric
Phil Hubbard – Bekric
Jose Quintanilla – Quintanilla
Sead Bekric – Bekric
Orlando Ramirez – Bekric
Antonio Gonzalez – Bekric
Kurt Ponchak – Bekric
Randall Crosby – Bowen

Round 3
Wanda Feldsteen – Bekric
Patrick Martin – Bowen
Mark Turner – Bowen
Darryl Brinton – Bekric
David Stevens – Bekric
Phil Hubbard – Bekric
Jose Quintanilla – Bowen
Sead Bekric – Bekric
Orlando Ramirez – Bekric
Antonio Gonzalez – Bekric
Kurt Ponchak – Bekric
Randall Crosby – Bowen

Sead Bekric was elected as the new member of the Grievance Board in a vote of 8 to 4. 

Marketing & Site Development – Greg Coon
Surveys:
Twenty-seven site surveys completed FY24-25 through March 2025, which include nine Federal, nine State, and seven County/City opportunities.

Solicitations:
This year we have evaluated thirteen solicitations this FY since July, with ten occurring since January 2025. In February, a solicitation came out for vending services at the Port of Palm Beach and after submitting questions regarding the advertisement, the agency contacted us to directly negotiate. A proposal was submitted to them, and we are waiting to hear back. The opportunity includes 8-9 machines averaging $55,000 - $60,000 per year in sales. We are responding to another solicitation for Indian River State College. This is a large contract that includes forty-nine machines over seven campuses generating $240,000 in annual revenue.

Installations:
By the end of March 2025, we should have completed ninety-seven machine installations so far in FY 24-25 (equivalent of 102 installed with one micro-market conversion). Current pending installations include four USPS locations in Region 4 and a new building at the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport. Future installations coming soon include expansion at a renovated building for the VA Bay Pines, SSA Miami location, Florida International University Global Forensics Justice Center in Largo,

Opportunities:
Just this week, we completed surveys at two State Parks in South Florida – Oleta River State Park, and Dr. Von D Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park, which we are evaluating and will discuss with DEP soon.

Additional Information:
Working on completing renewal for Gerstein building in Region 6. Miami-Dade County is waiting to hear from us to provide an initial draft. A GSA building manager indicated yesterday that his office of around 38 people had been reduced to just four, and that he and one other person are the sole remaining building managers for all of South Florida. He has heard that GSA may be dissolved by September 30th, and all remaining federal leases managed by GSA must be renewed with the agency occupying the location. Moving forward, he believes that federal agencies will manage their own leases and building management.

Business Analyst Report – John Ahler
All vendors were required to fill out a beneficial ownership form to make sure all corporations had a live person associated with the corporation. Cantaloupe requires the same information from the agency. Director Doyle signed a letter on letterhead which provided us with an exemption from the requirement. Credit card statements show the Center Snack Bar phone number because the State is the owner of the machines. To remedy the snack bar getting phone calls from customers who did not recognize a charge on their statement we have set up a phone number which reaches a recorded line. The recording explains who we are and why the charge shows on their statement. The recording also explains the “bank hold” customers might see on their statement and asks them to reach out to their bank if they believe the charge is fraudulent. Lastly the recording has an option to reach out to Cantaloupe for refunds and chargebacks with their phone number.

Based on Net Profit Percentage for all facilities across the program is 41.4%. Standalone micro-markets are 37.89%. Snack bars are the lowest at 26.67%. Non-highway vending is 38.69%. Interstate highway vending is almost 50%. Cafeterias are 38.25%. Snack bars are the closest, but the net profit for them is 15%.

Regional/District Updates – All

Region 3 – Jay Payne
Facility 415 and 416 (Rest Area I-4 Seminole County Eastbound and Rest Area I-4 Seminole County Westbound) will be advertised as a Type II facility. The current operator, Ryan Akeley, was awarded Facility 459 (US Post Office General Delivery Orlando) consisting of two locations on a Type 1. The current operator running the facility is Patrick Carty. Facility 497 (Kennedy Space Center Building M6493 Route) micro-market project slated for installation later this summer at OSB-2 is in the final stages of approval. Payne met with the building manager to discuss installation of cameras and internet this week. At Daytona Facility 999 (Daytona Training Center) Payne will be assisting the new Daytona snack bar staff on how to train and work with our students in the snack bar. He is also scheduling Cantaloupe to train them on the front and back end of the kiosk, entering new products, etc. Facility 460 (FDOT) has informed the BEP that they plan to close the Sumter County Northbound rest area for reconstruction in early November.

Hubbard made a motion to amend the agenda to discuss combining Coleman Facilities 509 and 495. Seconded by Quintanilla. Motion was adopted unanimously.

Discussion:
Sales are low going back to 2019. We are not able to get access to service the facility. Issues are Product limitations regarding dark colored dinks, lack of storage and the ability to repair machines is restricted. It will be difficult to put the facility out to another vendor. The job would be easier for one operator rather than a difficult situation for two operators. The combined facility would be the Type I Facility 509 (Coleman Federal Correctional Facility III) which David Stevens currently has and remove Facility 495 (Coleman Federal Correctional Facility). Ponchak made the motion to combine 495 with 509. Second by Turner. Question called by Crosby. Motion carried unanimously.

Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has informed us of plans to add additional truck parking on I-4. The Volusia County Truck Stop Parking will be installed further north on I-4 closer to the Lake Mary area in District 5. The new construction will not cause any existing facilities to close per FDOT.

District 5 – David Stevens
USI vending machines. Stevens has nine relatively new USI frozen machines. There is one USI frozen vending machine he has had issue with since installation. He has had various repair people and USI look at it and none of them can find anything wrong with the machine. The machine is now nearly out of warranty and is not reliable. Pressure needs to be brought to bear upon USI to get the machine replaced before the warranty runs out.

District 6 – Phil Hubbard
No news from his district. Orlando is doing well with the snack bars at Kennedy. He has a good crew there now. They are beginning to put walls up on Shirely Zonneyville’s rest area. Business is picking up at Kennedy since the back to work order. Parking lots are full at the facility for the first time in six years. He is trying to dial in par levels on machines to adjust to the increased population. The longest a machine goes without being seen is 14 days and some are visited three times a week. He has gone to Coke exclusively.

Region 7 – Angela Elgaard
Waiting for confirmation from Tyndall on when we can install eight machines in the new building locations.

Lawanda Feldstein and I will be attending a site visit at Hurlburt on March 24th for the start of service at Reef 2 April 2026. On March 5th I was told by Bliss Moreau (Weber) that the 231 Welcome Center will be opening back up in April. This will be dependent upon the progress of renovations done on the interior of the building. Facility 566 (1-10 Crestview Westbound) was burglarized and vandalized on March 3rd. The Crestview Police Department is investigating the incident. Facility 580 (Rest Area I-10 Jackson County Westbound) has completed a soft open and is now open for business. There was a 7.5% increase in sales in Region 7 from 2023-2024. In 2023 sales were $989,407.35 In 2024 sales were $1,063,796.29.

District 1 – Wanda Feldsteen
Nothing new to report. Her constituents have not reached out to her with concerns. She will be holding a meeting with her district in the next couple of weeks to update them on the Committee Meeting.

Ponchak made a motion to move remaining reports to Saturday, Second by Hubbard.  

Region 2 – Bernie Kaiserian
Great sales. Facility 218 (US Post Office and Jacksonville Northside Vending Route) sales over $55K for December 2024, $587K for 2024 and a 24.5% sales increase. Facility 564 (USMC at Blount Island Cafeteria) is the top Cafeteria in the program at $436K and a 29.6% sales increase in 2024 while also running a second cafeteria Facility 239 (Jacksonville Police Administration Building) at about $432K for a total of just under $900K in sales between the two facilities. Facility 608 (Gainesville/Lake City Vending Route) showed a 21.4% sales increase in 2024.

Orlando Ramirez took over a Type II at Facility 564 (USMC Blount Island Jacksonville) in February. Orlando Ramirez will be taking over the Type I at Facility 33 (Duval County Courthouse) in late April/early May. Jacksonville Job Corps tried to terminate our permit for vending at their facility effective April 4 by return email Kaiserian informed them we have a permit with them and will continue servicing the location.

Larry Miller came to Region 2 to run a small café in Jacksonville 20 years ago today. He ran a small café for a couple of years in Jacksonville and then spent five years at the Naval Air Station Jacksonville and the last 12 years at the I-75 Welcome Center. Larry was a good family man, a nice guy and worked hard as a vendor.  

District 3 – Mark Turner
Nothing to report.                                                                                                    

District 4 – Darryl Brinton
Everything is going good in the district. Fulda is excited to see people coming back to the post office. She does have ongoing issues with the frozen food machine. Brinton recommended her to have it swapped out for an ice cream machine.

Adjourned at 4:45 p.m.

March 21, 2025

Meeting Called to Order at 8:30 a.m.

Roll Call:
District Representatives:  Wanda Feldsteen, District 1 (via Teams); Patrick Martin, Alternate, District 2; Mark Turner, District 3; Darryl Brinton, District 4; David Stevens, District 5; Phil Hubbard, District 6; Jose Quintanilla, District 7; Sead Bekric, District 8; Orlando Ramirez, District 9; Antonio Gonzalez, District 10; Kurt Ponchak, Randall Crosby

Bureau of Business Enterprise Staff: Bill Findley, Bureau Chief; Maureen Fink, Operations Manager; John Ahler, Business Analyst; Bernie Kaiserian, Region 2 Business Consultant; Tony Arduengo, Region 4 Business Consultant (virtually); Alecia Brown, Region 5 Business Consultant; Yusnay Torrens, Region 6 Business Consultant; Mary Ellen Harding, Administrative Services Consultant; Andrea Mendez, Administrative Assistant III

Guests: Kash Ahmed

Region 6 – Yusnay Torrens
The Army has offered direct negotiations for the new 5-Year Contract with Facility 606 in Key West. The new contract would begin May 1, 2025. We signed a five-year agreement with Miami-Dade Courthouse: Although the Courthouse is set to move to a new building soon, this contract provides continuity until the transition occurs. The same wording should be used for the Justice Building, which should avoid unnecessary delays. USPS and ICE Facilities merged into Facility 614 (US Post Office Doral Route). New LOFA’s were issued for Facilities 348, 588, 512, and 530. Facilities 512 (Miami FCI Class I and 2) and 530 (Federal Detention Center Miami) continue to operate temporarily merged as a Type II facility. Ongoing negotiations are in place for new contracts with the SSA Offices, First Floor at the Justice Building, and the snack bar at the Stephen P. Clark Government Center. The commissary at Krome will no longer be serviced directly by DBS. ICE has signed a contract with a new company to handle all aspects of operating and maintaining a detention center. After DBS/BEP filed for arbitration, a settlement agreement was signed providing DBS vendor, Lilian Pemberton, with 65% of the net profit on commissary sales. There will be more vending offered to Pemberton as Krome expands its services. Facility 597 (US Customs & Border Protection) sales dropped significantly given the closure of the Parole Program, which is a cause of concern for a Type I facility because the Operator does not hold a Type II LOFA at this moment to countervail the losses. We are encouraging the operator to be alert to new opportunities. Cuba Broadcasting facility is closed as part of DOGE closures. Facility 588 (US Southern Command Doral) received new frozen and food machines to replace the micro-market that was ineffective in this location Region 6 has experienced a successful year with an overall increase in sales and profit of 8%. Ongoing route development, including new contracts and agreements, will help strengthen the program moving forward. Ramirez is doing a good job at the Facility 348 - State Regional Service Center Miami cafeteria. We are moving towards the continuation of a positive trajectory in 2025.

Ponchak asked if the Committee could discuss combining the two prisons and the ICE facility into one facility. With TSA at Miami Airport, it would bring Espinoza’s facility back up financially. What guarantee do we have for Pemberton on the numbers being reported for her percentage? Findley advised that Pemberton will be ok with the new agreement and if the division pushes too hard on Pemberton’s commissary the government could decide to close it because they are not required to provide a commissary to the population at the facility which has been confirmed by attorneys at the governor’s office. If it does not go well, we will take other legal action.

District 10 – Antonio Gonzalez
The new contractor does not have enough staff to handle the population there. Krome is becoming more violent. They are only taking the prisoners to eat once a day instead of three times a day which has reduced Pemberton’s income.  

Region 4 – Tony Arduengo
Facility 634 (Polk County Vending Route): Rearranging machines at the locations has helped. More customers are happy. Facility 161 (US Post Office Ebor/Tampa Vending Route): Proposed removing slow Hillsborough County locations and postal locations before new the operator signs in. Facility 396 (East Tampa Vending Route): Vending machines replaced at Hillsborough River State Park and new washers and dryers installed. Facility 555 (US Post Office Sarasota/Manatee Vending Route): Added washers and dryers to Oscar Schearer State Park. Facility 555A Sarasota Manatee Airport Authority): Adding 3 machines to the new transportation building which should be open in the first week of April. Facility 500 (Pinellas County Route): Added 2 machines to the student services building at Job Corp. Hillsborough County: Facility reorganization of the Tampa routes is underway. Everything should be completed by the end of April.

District 7 – Jose Quintanilla
Quintanilla expressed appreciation for the work Jim Warth did as district representative. LuQuarn had some issues but is going to leave those for the incoming vendor. Weaver is having some issues with Pepsi machine repairs. Garcia is having issues with maintenance people at his facility. He has a problem with customers unplugging machines to charge their devices. Quintanilla asked if the facility could unlock their plugs or add a charging station at the facility? A lock box could be placed on the machine plugs. Fink suggested helping the customers by providing a charging station. Arduengo is going to have an electrician come move the plugs above the machines and put a lock box on the plugs. Also, he has talked with Estebo about diversifying the products in his machines.

District 8 – Sead Bekric
Two rest areas had cameras installed which has reduced theft at the facility. Some vendors are having issues getting machines from Coke. Bekric has talked with Coke about the issue, and it seems to be resolved. Fink believes we should offer repairs training to help with repair issues vendors are experiencing. There will be a CEU event with Pepsi in Jacksonville on May 10th which is a Saturday morning from 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.  

Region 1 – Maureen Fink
On February 20th Region 1 installed its first Jaffamar hot drink machine on the Tallahassee West Vending Route (Facility 502). Sales for 2/20/25 to 3/10/25 are $115.80 or fifty-two vends. Knight reports that the machine has performed well since installation. Side note, Jaffamar machines only take whole bean products. February sales for the two bagged ice vending machines on I-10 are as follows: Leon Eastbound = 9 vends/$36, Jefferson Westbound = 21 vends/$84. All micro market equipment has been installed at the Larson Building in Tallahassee and the kiosk has been programmed with Stefan Mitchell’s store information in anticipation of the opening of the micro market on the first floor. We are waiting for the internet connection to be provided by the host department. This market will be the third and final market for Facility 632 (FDOT Tallahassee), as voted on by the committee in 2023. Facility 572 (I-10 RA Jefferson County WB) has started the construction of a larger truck parking area behind the rest area. Once completed, this should help increase sales for Jim Perry. Facility 593 (FDOT Tallahassee), the route’s micro market is set to have its kiosk replaced. The older Parlevel kiosk is at the end of its lifespan and its parent company has been bought out and merged with Retail 365. This micro market is located inside the Carlton Building and is the anchor of Anthony Dagraca’s route. On 2/27 Larry Miller passed away, leaving a vacancy at Facility 423 (Rest Area I-75 Hamilton County (Welcome Center)). Larry was a BEP operator for the last 21 years and he will be sorely missed at the Welcome Center. The vacancy announcement has been sent out and the Type II panel will convene via TEAMS on March 27th to determine who runs the facility on a Type II LOFA until a permanent Type I operator is selected in the May selection cycle.

District 2 – Patrick Martin
Some of the facilities in District 2 have seen the return of employees to the buildings. DBPR has not yet seen the return of employees. April 11th is supposed to be the final date for employees to return to work.

Director Doyle committed to funds for the replacement of air conditioners in Carpenter’s facility but after three years there has been no resolution. The problem is causing the loss of income for the operator. Doyle: The operator is being considered. It is not a simple solution but rather an engineering solution that could cost $100K to repair. We have looked at other solutions. We have not seen financial reports or loss of product from the operator. From the federal perspective we have restrictions on what we can spend money on. Ponchak: Has there been a cost analysis done on what the cost of running the air conditioner would be compared to replacing/reworking the system? Could they close the doors and put in a mini split unit in?

Bruno Arnold has been a stellar OJT trainee and Knight expects him to be a great vendor.  

Region 5 – Alecia Brown
As we reach the end of the first quarter of 2025, The region is still awaiting Palm Beach County Agreements. Both vendors at Facility 469 (Palm Beach County Courthouse) and 257 (Palm Beach County Courthouse) have maintained status quo to date.

The region still has two facilities, on third party Facility 612 (Broward County Sheriff's Complex) and 547 (Transportation Security Administration, Ft Lauderdale). It is hoped we will have a blind operator in those locations after the September Selection Cycle. The region also experienced some restructuring with the addition of the Collier County rest areas on Alligator Alley. After the passing of operator Bill McDermott Facility 431 (Rest Area I-95 St Lucie County Southbound) went up for bid on January’s selection cycle. The facility is currently being managed on a Type II temporary basis by Mike McCrea. Machines have been removed effective 01/30/2025 due to lack of viability at Facility 636 location (Jonathan Dickinson State Park). We hope to include the addition of two new vending locations to Facility 469, Port of Palm Beach, and the removal of a third party at the Vista Center, which has become vending only with the closure of the snack bar. We are also pursuing the Indian River State College contract with forty-nine machines across five campuses. We aim to include the addition of one more location to Facility 547 (Rest Area I-95 St Lucie County Southbound) contingent upon review. More to come on those as they are being reviewed.

Ramirez asked if the facility will be added to the May Selection Cycle to allow time for the new operator to get the required clearances for the airport and the FBI? Some streamlining needs to be done to remove some locations on the route to make it viable prior to putting it on a bid cycle. Villeda may not want to take on added locations. Ramirez suggested adding the snack bar might be a good option which would provide storage for the vendor. We are working towards getting two of the three third-party facilities with vendors. We can go month to month with the third party at the facility if needed when the current contract ends October 31st.

District 9 – Orlando Ramirez
Everything is running smoothly. He met with David Coe who took over vending in the Palm Beach Courthouse. No major issues currently. He will be sending an email to the group to see what they want to do regarding his district representative position since he is moving to Region 2.

Unfinished Business: 
None

Roundtable Discussion – All
Quintanilla asked if it would be possible to go to 12% net profit expectation for snack bars and cafeterias, vending routes, and micro markets 20-25% and rest areas 30-35%? It does not look like anyone is having issues with net profit percentages. We may look at net profit and performance points. Net profit does not really tell how well someone is doing. Some of our older vendors are keyed in on the net profit number. Hubbard and Knight asked if it would be possible to suspend net profit to get some true numbers? Ramirez says he has experienced MBR reports after taking over a facility that has completely incorrect numbers. Fink believes we need to work with operators who are having problems rather than changing the whole net profit requirement. A standard deduction rather than an itemized deduction was discussed. The Budget Committee should discuss a standard deduction.

Knight has discovered that cereal and oatmeal are non-taxable items.

Vispero has scaled down to smaller micro markets with a JAWS screen reader. 100% accessible.

A payroll service, Gusto, is seamless and is easy as reviewing timesheets and clicking submit with comparable prices to other services.

Findley: Storage is a problem for some vendors like Valerie James at the airport. We got permission through Mitch Clark to pay for the storage. Getting storage through our system is difficult. It would be easier for individuals to pay for their own storage and deduct the cost since the Division cannot reimburse. A purchase order might be a way to pay for storage. Leasing’s process is very difficult. A list of which facilities need storage should be identified. Can we do a trial with Valerie James? Weaver uses private storage in Tampa. Weaver pays $600 for storage.

Meeting adjourned at 10:05 a.m.

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