Commission denies Bridlewood Community Development District; 3-2 vote after extended public comment

The High Springs City Commission on Feb. 13 voted 3-2 to deny an ordinance to establish the Bridlewood Community Development District (CDD), a special-purpose local government proposed for the Tillman property development. The ordinance (referred to in the meeting as Ordinance 2024-O-1) would have created a CDD under Chapter 190 of the Florida Statutes to fund and maintain infrastructure within the Bridlewood development. The motion to deny passed on roll call with Vice Mayor Miller, Commissioner Bloodsworth and Commissioner Weitz voting “yes” and Commissioner Howell and Mayor Tristan Grunder voting “no.”

Developer representatives and their consultants — Chris Potts of LJA Engineering and attorney Alyssa Wilson of the law firm QTAC Rock — described the CDD as a financing and maintenance mechanism the developer had disclosed during earlier entitlement negotiations. Potts said the larger PD (planned development) covers roughly 688 acres and that the proposed CDD boundary for initial phases is about 245 acres, intended to cover early build-out roughly five to six years of work. He said the CDD would be able to issue tax-exempt bonds to fund public infrastructure that benefits the public (for example, water, sewer, roads and drainage) and that…