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Commission affirms Larimer Arts Center award after formal protest; Arts Council alleges procedural errors
Summary
After a formal, ten‑minute hearing on Sept. 10, the Palatka City Commission accepted staff and the evaluation committee’s recommendation on RFP 2025‑01 for the Larimer Arts Center, rejecting the Arts Council of Greater Palatka’s protest that alleged statutory deadlines, conflicts of interest and procurement defects.
The Palatka City Commission on Sept. 10 rendered a decision on a formal protest tied to RFP 2025‑01 (Larimer Arts Center). After hearing a 10‑minute presentation from the Arts Council of Greater Palatka and a combined presentation from the organizations that stood to receive the award, the commission voted to accept the evaluation committee’s recommendation and affirm the RFP award.
The Arts Council’s executive director, Dustin Watkins, argued the city improperly treated the procurement as exempt from the deadlines and procedures in Florida Statute 120.57; the council also alleged conflicts of interest among staff who drafted the RFP and later participated in the evaluation. Watkins argued the city failed to meet the statutory timeline for protest resolution and that the procurement record omitted an operative written protest.
Representatives of the awardee coalition — River City Players, Arts Alliance of Putnam and Gathering Artists of Putnam LLC — and city staff countered that the commission has authority under the city’s purchasing policy, that the procurement used RFP scoring standards and that the evaluation committee’s signed individual score sheets supported the summary ranking. City Attorney Jane West advised the commission that city code contains a stated exclusion from the state Administrative Procedure Act and that the city was following its purchasing policy; staff reported signed evaluator score sheets were on file and that the summary ranking matched the signed originals.
After staff responses and a period of commissioner questions, the commission voted to accept the evaluation committee’s recommendation. The vote was recorded as unanimous.
What it means: the commission’s action affirms the staff evaluation and closes the city‑level protest process. The Arts Council retains the right to pursue other legal remedies identified by law; city staff advised that court jurisdiction would be the appropriate forum if statutory appeals were claimed.
Speakers and roles at the hearing are recorded in the meeting minutes; both sides presented written materials to the commission as part of the official record.
Sources: Presentations by Dustin Watkins (Arts Council of Greater Palatka), Kevin Sharbaugh (River City Players/awardee group), City Attorney Jane West and project manager Carlos Dominguez Brito at the Sept. 10 meeting.
