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Votes at a glance: Suwannee County commission actions on Jan. 21, 2025
Summary
Suwannee County commissioners approved a series of administrative and fiscal actions on Jan. 21, including a right‑of‑way closure, emergency declaration, audit contract authority and several consent items.
Suwannee County commissioners approved a series of votes and administrative actions during their Jan. 21, 2025 meeting. Below are the formal actions taken on the record.
Votes at a glance - Approval of minutes and RFP bid tabulation (agenda items: Jan. 7, 2025 minutes and Jan. 10, 2025 bid tabulation for RFP 2025‑2). Motion to approve made by Commissioner White, second by Commissioner Perkins. Vote: 5–0 in favor.
- Resolution to close Louisiana Avenue (time‑specific public hearing). Motion to adopt the resolution made by Commissioner Perkins, second by Commissioner Mobley. Vote: 5–0 in favor. (Board found the right‑of‑way was within the property boundary described for the Ralph J. Platt property and that closure would not affect access to other landowners.)
- Consent agenda (items 2 through 6). Motion to approve by Commissioner Lehi, second by Commissioner White. Vote: 5–0 in favor.
- Constitutional officers: retention of excess revenues. Clerk reported $119,249.46 in excess revenues for fiscal year 2023–24 and requested authorization to retain $18,000 to purchase a FortiAuthenticator (multi‑factor authentication) and FortiAnalyzer (network monitoring) to meet CJIS security requirements and improve network protection; the office said it would return $101,249.46 if the $18,000 retention is allowed. Motion to approve by Commissioner Perkins, second by Commissioner Hale. Vote: 5–0 in favor.
- Local state of emergency for Winter Storm “Enzo.” County Attorney explained the governor issued a state of emergency and recommended the county authorize the chair to execute a local declaration effective immediately to allow access to emergency resources if needed. Motion by Commissioner Hale, second by Commissioner Perkins. Vote: 5–0 in favor.
- Auditor selection and contract authorization. Audit committee recommended Powell & Jones (Reliance CPAs, DBA Powell & Jones) as the winning bidder for the county audit RFP; the board approved entering negotiations with Powell & Jones (motion by Commissioner Perkins; second by Commissioner Mobley) and later authorized the chair to execute the audit contract (motion by Commissioner White; second by Commissioner Perkins). Recorded vote on each motion: 5–0 in favor.
- Guardrail repair bid. The board reviewed a low bid of $30,646 for storm‑related guardrail repair and approved proceeding with the contract (motion by Commissioner Hale; second by Commissioner Perkins). Vote: 5–0 in favor.
- Priority road list for FDOT submission. The board approved staff’s recommended list of priority road projects to submit to the Florida Department of Transportation, including County Road 137, County Road 250 (segment phased), and 184th (motion by Commissioner Hale; second by Commissioner White). Vote: 5–0 in favor.
Items noted but not yet finalized or requiring no vote - Agreement with Sincere Care Foundation (agenda item 9) elicited extensive discussion and directed staff to revise the draft conveyance and mortgage terms (18‑month look‑in, 30‑foot eastern utility easement, and increase the mortgage/forgiveness figure to $750,000). Commissioners did not take a final conveyance vote on Jan. 21; staff will return an amended draft for placement on a future consent agenda.
Formal vote tallies reported here reflect the board’s on‑record counts recorded during the Jan. 21 meeting.
Ending: The board adjourned after routine business and safety briefings in advance of an expected winter storm.
