Alachua Talks Budget

ALACHUA ‒ The Alachua City Commission met Sept. 13 to discuss city finances. Interim City Manager Mike DaRoza presented the City’s proposed 2021-22 fiscal year budget totaling $41,302,014 — a $5,009,067 reduction from the prior fiscal year’s amended budget of $46,311,081. The General Fund tentative budget is based on a tax rate of 5.3900 mills which is 5.37 percent more than the rolled-back rate of 5.1155 mills.

In other City business, the Commission adopted the TK Basin Annual Maintenance Service Assessment Resolution. On Sept. 13, 2010 the City Commission adopted Resolution 10-25, which provided for funding of the TK Basin Maintenance Assessment Area. Each fiscal year the City must adopt the assessment resolution to be paid by each property owner within the maintenance assessment area. In 2010 The City Commission also approved an automatically renewing agreement with the Alachua County Tax Collector to reimburse the Tax Collector for administrative and actual costs incurred to collect the assessment on the ad valorem tax bill. The reimbursement cost is 2 percent of the total assessment and is included in the total assessments to be collected. The annual rate for the 2021 budget is $25,000.

On July 20, 2021, the City received formal proposals from qualified vendors to provide Grant Administration Services for the 2019 Small Cities Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). The City received one proposal in response, which was received from Summit Professionals, Inc. The Commission approved entering the contract with Summit Professionals in the amount of $52,500, which will be paid by the grant funds.

On July 19, 2021, the City solicited formal requests from qualified vendors to provide professional architectural, engineering, landscape architecture, or surveying and mapping covering 13 different services. The City received 10 qualification packets of which nine of the 10 qualified. One firm was disqualified as it was located outside the qualifying geographic area. The Commission directed city staff to enter into negotiations with the qualified firms for services they were most qualified for. Cost for these projects will be determined once negotiations are finalized.

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