Redevelopment Progress at Risk By: Peter Altman

This session, Florida’s community redevelopment agencies (CRAs) are being targeted for an “overhaul” to institute reforms related to their operation. However, proposed bills in the Florida Senate and House, CS/CS/Senate Bill 1054 and CS/House Bill 9, go too far to limit the creation of new agencies, and to limit their terms. This proposed overhaul of…

Lakeland CRA board to reconsider its ways

A string of recent tough decisions and moral dilemmas in the sale of city-owned properties have left some questioning if it’s time to reevaluate the process. Members of the Lakeland Community Redevelopment Agency’s advisory board asked city officials Thursday for suggestions on how to make the sale of city-owned land more transparent and consistent. The…

Ethics commission approves settlement with Andrew Gillum

The Florida Commission on Ethics today approved a joint settlement agreement with 2018 gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum for accepting a gift over $100 from a city lobbyist while he was mayor of Tallahassee. After about five minutes of discussion, the commission by voice vote accepted the joint stipulated agreement announced in April, that dropped four…

Leesburg to bring website up to ADA compliance

The City of Leesburg is revamping its website to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. City commissioners last week voted to spend up to $100,000 to rework the site after settling a lawsuit alleging documents weren’t accessible to blind people. Specifically, the suit said, the documents weren’t compatible with text-to-voice assistive technology. Joel Price,…

Trump signs long-awaited $19.1B disaster aid bill

President Trump on Thursday signed the $19.1 billion disaster relief package that passed the House on Monday. “Just signed Disaster Aid Bill to help Americans who have been hit by recent catastrophic storms. So important for our GREAT American farmers and ranchers. Help for GA, FL, IA, NE, NC, and CA. Puerto Rico should love…