Panama City CRA backs five-year, in-house paving program, cites cost savings and hiring
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Summary
The Panama City Community Redevelopment Agency on Nov. 4 approved a five‑year interlocal paving agreement with the city committing $450,000 a year for Millville and $250,000 a year for Downtown North to expand city crews’ paving work, estimated to deliver roughly 2.12 miles in year one and save about $265,000 versus contractors.
Panama City — The Panama City Community Redevelopment Agency on Nov. 4 approved a five-year interlocal agreement proposal to expand in-house paving and resurfacing by city crews, committing $450,000 per year for the Millville CRA and $250,000 per year for the Downtown North CRA. Staff estimated the first year would deliver about 2.12 miles of soil‑improved full‑depth reclamation paving and forecast a year‑one savings of roughly $265,000 compared with hiring private contractors.
The board voted unanimously to support the recommendation and directed staff to pursue the interlocal agreement with the city. ‘‘There’s plenty of cost data that we can come up with to show,’’ Public Works Director Clint Murphy said, adding that the city’s estimates are likely conservative. Deputy City Engineer Matt DeVito said staff had reviewed recent bids and internal projects and that the $750,000 contractor estimate for full‑depth reclamation may be conservative for some corridors.
Staff told the board a municipal paver and related equipment would cost about $275,000 and that financing a lease‑to‑purchase or a short lease with a buyout would be possible. The proposed program would hire four additional positions to operate equipment and perform paving work; staff estimated a per‑mile materials cost near $212,000. ‘‘This is super scrappy — a lot of departments working together,’’ Chairman Branch said during deliberations.
Board members pressed staff to document the comparison with private contractors in writing before final execution and to include a multi‑year budget and quarterly progress reports. ‘‘I would like us to, at least have from a vendor…what can you match or beat this,’’ said a board member who asked staff to provide vendor benchmarking to guard against short‑term undercutting by private firms. Staff committed to providing supporting cost data and to returning the interlocal to the city commission for its approval; the city commission will have an opportunity to review and ask questions before execution.
Why it matters: Board members framed the program as a tool to target repairs in low‑to‑moderate‑income neighborhoods, where smaller residential streets are often left behind because contractor mobilization costs make those projects uneconomical. The CRA’s investment is intended to increase the pace of neighborhood repairs while leveraging city crews to reduce procurement overhead.
Votes at a glance: At the same meeting the board also approved a package of routine and program items, all by unanimous vote: adoption of resolution CRA 2025‑1104.1 recommending community redevelopment plan amendments; a $90,000 professional services contract with the Burke Blue law firm; a tax‑increment rebate agreement for Panama City I, LLC (80% of eligible costs capped at $119,618.33 for up to 15 years); a 3‑year MOU with the St. Andrews Waterfront Partnership to support the Panama City Publishing Museum (annual allocation $35,000 plus up to $10,000 in matching funds); purchase of 704 East Fifteenth Street for $175,000 (appraisal $250,000); and task orders for a Downtown Marina Uplands feasibility and visioning package (PFM $35,000; Dover -- listed in packet at $122,600). Each item recorded a roll‑call approval by the CRA board.
What’s next: The interlocal agreement will be considered by the Panama City Commission; CRA staff said they will present the supporting vendor comparison and a proposed multi‑year funding and work plan at that stage.
