Advisory board approves reallocation of park bond funds to Bass Park and Lauderdale Owls Landing

The Fort Lauderdale Parks & Recreation advisory board voted to reallocate park bond funding after a staff recommendation on reassigning money freed by the planned closure of a Broward County school.

Quintin Pugh, assistant city manager, asked the board to recommend moving $474,147 toward Bass Park and returning $300,000 to Lauderdale Owls Landing in District 4. "We wanna redirect those funds," Pugh said, explaining the change followed the school closure and the original allocation to that elementary site.

Board members pressed staff on project readiness and whether District 4 had higher-priority gaps. Pugh said Lauderdale Owls Landing is about 60% through design and estimated the project's value at roughly $3.6 million, and urged adding a contingency for Bass Park to avoid construction stoppages.

A board member moved to approve the reallocation and the motion was seconded. The board conducted a roll-call vote and the chair announced the motion carried unanimously. The meeting transcript records multiple, slightly inconsistent figures related to the redistribution: staff referenced $474,147 to Bass Park and $300,000 back to District 4, and elsewhere a remaining-balance figure of $774,147 was used during motions. Staff said they would provide more detailed accounting at a future commission update.

The board also approved the prior meeting’s minutes and elected a new vice chair during the same session. The reallocation decision is a recommendation from the advisory board; any final budget or ordinance adjustments will be processed through the city’s capital projects and commission workflow, with operations and maintenance costs to be addressed through the city's general fund and future budget processes, staff said.

The board did not record mover/second names in the oral motion transcription; staff committed to circulate follow-up detail on exact allocations and funding sources.