High Springs Commission to talk budget, lawsuit

HIGH SPRINGS – Thursday, Jan. 10 will mark the first meeting this year of the High Springs City Commission. One item on the list of issues is the City’s roll forward funds. These funds are those not spent during the previous year’s budget and are available for other possible uses or as contingency funds. Several options for the money have been discussed in the past, but no action has been taken.

One housekeeping issue about to be resolved during this meeting is the likely approval of the final 26 sets of official meeting minutes from 2012. City Clerk Jenny Parham served as interim city manager frequently during the past year as well as city clerk and was unable to keep up with the increased workload.

Now that this issue is about to be resolved, City Manager Edwin Booth says staff will concentrate on updating the cemetery records. “It’s the next step in updating our paperwork,” Booth said in a recent interview. “I like to take one task at a time and complete it,” he said.

Another issue likely to be discussed briefly is employee evaluations. City Manager Booth says they are due by Feb. 15, 2013. “This is something that should be done on a yearly basis,” he said, “if for no other reason than to establish a baseline with employees. They should know if they are progressing or not,” he said. Department heads will evaluate their employees and Booth will evaluate the department heads.

When asked if employees could expect a raise this year for a good evaluation, Booth responded, “I can’t make promises I can’t keep. The budget was approved before I came onboard this year. At least they would know if it can’t be done this year, it would certainly be considered for the next budget year.”

A presentation by Marlie Sanderson of the Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organization (MTPO) is expected to revolve around additional funding available to the MTPO from state and federal transportation sources based on the expansion of their planning capabilities throughout Alachua County. The 2010 Census appears to be the impetus for their ability to expand into the remainder of Alachua County.

Another item not listed on the agenda, but part of the city manager’s report will be details of his meeting in Tallahassee on Jan. 9 with Carol Westmoreland, who assists the State in the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) program for the League of Cities. The meeting was scheduled by Booth with the intention of discussing future plans for the High Springs CRA. “I expect to strategize with her and see if High Springs might have grounds to extend CRA funding a bit longer.” Booth will also present the results of that meeting to the CRA Board members.

Booth said he would like to request a letter to proceed from USDA regarding the completion of the portion of the sewer project that the City is intending to complete.

A report on possible uses for the old school house building will be presented to commissioners for consideration during this meeting. Booth is hopeful the commission will approve a public hearing to receive input from citizens prior to making any final decisions on the building’s use.

Consideration of a Mutual Aid Agreement with the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office for combined operational assistance and voluntary cooperation, a relatively routine item, is also slated for discussion. This agreement allows sheriff deputies and City of High Springs officers to work together in situations where it is warranted. A car chase across City lines might be one case where the two agencies might work together to apprehend a fugitive.

Other items to be discussed include a request for commissioners to submit a list of their goals by Jan. 16, a proclamation declaring Jan. 18 as “Arbor Day” in High Springs, a report on the status of the Ambrose lawsuit, which the Commission decided to settle in December, and approval of an amended legal services agreement with City Attorney Scott Walker.

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