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County asks city commissioners to meet Feb. 18 to try to resolve dispute over annexation ordinance 616
Summary
Gulf County representatives asked Port St. Joe commissioners to hold a joint session Feb. 18 to discuss Ordinance 616, an annexation of about 100 acres on Industrial Road, and to use the meeting to avoid a statutorily required conflict assessment and potential litigation.
Port St. Joe commissioners agreed Feb. 4 to set a joint meeting with Gulf County for 9 a.m. Feb. 18 to discuss Ordinance 616, the proposed annexation of roughly 100 acres in the city's industrial park, after county counsel said the county intends to pursue the dispute process in Florida Statute 164.
Jeremy Novak, attorney for the Gulf County Commission, told the Port St. Joe board that the county had adopted a resolution and served notice after the city completed a first reading and advertised Ordinance 616. "The county now is posture to sue the city of Fort St. Joe and stop an annexation of a hundred acres of property in Industrial Park," Novak said, urging the two governing bodies to meet together in hopes of avoiding litigation.
The city's attorney confirmed that the county's notice triggered the statutory requirement for a conflict assessment meeting under Florida Statute 164, which ordinarily requires a meeting between representatives of the two bodies within 30 days unless they agree otherwise. Commissioners discussed whether the county's proposed meeting would be styled as a workshop or the conflict assessment required by statute; Novak and the city attorney said the county intended the Feb. 18 session to serve both purposes and to give all 10 elected officials a chance to talk before the city's March 4 second reading.
The commission voted 5-0 to advertise and hold the joint meeting at 9 a.m. Feb. 18 in the city commission chamber. No amendments to the ordinance were adopted at the Feb. 4 meeting.
During public comment, residents pressed for transparency and attendance by all elected officials. Christy McElroy and other speakers said they wanted all commissioners present and the meeting publicly noticed so the public could observe the discussion. Commissioner remarks at the Feb. 4 session show an interest in using the joint meeting to allow staff and elected officials to question the property owner and clarify outstanding issues before the March 4 second reading.
The conflict-assessment process and the Feb. 18 workshop do not change the city's advertised schedule for Ordinance 616; if the city adopts the annexation at its March 4 meeting and the county proceeds with litigation, statute provides for subsequent mediation steps, Novak said.
Votes at a glance: the commission voted 5-0 to advertise and schedule the joint conflict-assessment/workshop for Feb. 18 at 9 a.m. at City Hall.
The meeting materials note this item as Ordinance 616 (first reading and request to advertise); the transcript and county letters referenced the county resolution and Florida Statute 164 as the governing authority for the dispute process.
