State Street garage process moves forward

At its Monday, July 18, regular meeting Sarasota city commissioners moved forward with a plan to build a State Street parking garage. A timeline for the project has the garage being built by October 2013.
The Department of Neighborhood and Development Services staff sought approval from the commission with a garage development process and agreement. The agreement requires the construction of a public parking structure with at least 300 parking spaces to be completed in four years on city-owned land located on State Street and is adjacent to Lemon Avenue.

Also at its city commission meeting, the commission:

Authorized the mayor and city auditor and clerk:
• To execute an amendment to an agreement with a consulting company that is performing work for the Hi Hat Ranch Pond Rehabilitation Project.
• To execute an agreement between the city and Jon F. Swift Inc., concerning the St. Armands Circle Medians Enhancement Project.
• To execute an amendment to an agreement between the city and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for the city’s advanced wastewater treatment facility.
• To execute an agreement to perform manhole rehabilitation services.
• To execute an agreement to perform a concrete tank repair.

Adopted:
• A resolution the amends portions of the current fiscal year budget.
• An ordinance on second reading that amends the city charter to require a super majority vote of the commission to approve franchise agreements and city contracts longer than 10 years and any changes to the city’s pension plan.
• Ordinances that call for a referendum to amend the city charter to lengthen the timeframe necessary to obtain voter signatures on a citizens’ initiative petition, to delete current provisions regarding employee subsidies and to reflect recommendations made by the Charter Review Committee.
• Ordinances that change the date for a city commissioner runoff election from the second Tuesday in April to the second Tuesday in May and alter the candidate qualifying periods for city elections in order to comply with state law regarding the mailing of absentee ballots to voters serving in the military.
• An ordinance that amends city code to include a definition for the term Parking Pay Station.
• An ordinance that requires a referendum to determine whether the city charter could be amended to allow commissioners’’ annual salary to be increased up to the full salary authorized by the state for its population category.
• An ordinance that requires a referendum so the city should not enter into any derivatives in connections with a bond issuance.

Discussed:
• Setting forth the investment policy applicable to all city finds with the exception of pension funds and post employment benefit funds.

Removed:
The Community Gardens property at 1440 Blvd. of the Arts from the city’s affordable housing list.

Agreed to vacate:
• Certain portions of a 60-foot wide South Palm Avenue right of way.

Contact Kurt Schultheis at [email protected].