Southwest Ranches council unanimously approves SAFER grant application, pavilion permit payment, land purchase ratification and environmental testing

The Southwest Ranches Town Council on June 1 authorized several administrative actions in a single meeting: it voted to apply for a Department of Homeland Security SAFER grant to help offset the cost of nine additional firefighters required under the Davie public-safety contract; approved payment of City of Sunrise utility permit fees to connect water and sewer at the Southwest Meadows Pavilion; ratified a purchase-and-sale agreement for two parcels at 18211 and 18221 SW 48th Street intended as a future public-safety site; approved two revocable license agreements with Broward County to place LED monument signs in county right-of-way on Griffin Road; and ratified a purchase order for Phase 2 environmental testing.

On the SAFER grant, the administrative speaker said the town stands to reduce its first-year cost of about $1.7 million for nine additional firefighters by roughly $936,000 if the grant award is approved; years two and three could offset approximately $811,000. Council voted by roll call to authorize submitting the grant application.

The council then approved payment from unassigned fund balance to cover City of Sunrise utility permit fees tied to the Southwest Meadows Pavilion project. The itemized fees recorded in the meeting were a sewer permit of $29,927.52 and a water tap fee of $199.50, totaling $30,127.02; the mayor said those permit costs were not included in the original project budget and therefore require use of reserves.

Council also ratified a purchase-and-sale agreement for properties at 18211 and 18221 SW 48th Street. Staff reported phase 1 environmental work is complete and phase 2 monitoring wells and testing are underway after concerns about a tenant’s on-site chemicals and trash prompted additional due diligence. Staff said monitoring wells are being installed to get a true baseline because the water table in unfilled parcels can be near the surface; the town may consider temporarily covering rent or taking other steps to facilitate testing and tenant removal if necessary.

Two revocable license agreements with Broward County were approved to allow town-funded LED monument signs at 13400 and 16100 Griffin Road. Council discussed developing a policy that will govern what content can appear on the signs and to limit how flashy they are so as not to undermine the town’s rural aesthetic. Construction is expected to begin once Broward County reissues permits; staff estimated roughly 60 days from permit issuance to installation.

Finally, council ratified a purchase order to Professional Service Industries, Inc. for a Phase 2 environmental site assessment, recorded in the minutes as $71,556, to support the land-acquisition due diligence. All motions noted in the minutes passed by roll call.

The meeting also included a prolonged discussion about an email that was sent from town legal to an outside attorney that the mayor said attributed comments to Carlos Martinez that Martinez denied making. The mayor said the communication was sent without full verification and was retracted; a legal speaker said the email was intended to set forth the law and was not meant to be accusatory. The council directed staff to be more careful before issuing official town communications in the future.

Next steps noted in the meeting record: staff will submit the SAFER grant application, complete phase 2 environmental testing on the purchase-site parcels and return results to council, and finalize closing documents for the P3/FRP property, with an anticipated signing period in mid-July.