Alachua County Special Meeting

Minutes

Tuesday, September 03, 2024 at 1:30 P.m. - 2:30 P.m.

County Administration Building - Grace Knight Conference Room

12 SE 1 Street, 2nd Floor, Gainesville, FL 32601

Present:

• Vice Chair Mary Alford, 
• Commissioner Ken Cornell, 
• Chair Anna Prizzia, 
• and Commissioner Marihelen Wheeler 

Absent:

• Commissioner Charles S. Chestnut, IV 

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A.

Approval of Agenda

Commissioner Cornell moved adoption of the agenda. The motion carried 3-0 with Commissioner Chestnut absent and Commissioner Prizzia out of the room.

2nd Commissioner Wheeler

B.

Items for Discussion

1.

Advisory Board Appreciation and Diversity - 24-00755

Assistant County Manager Peebles and Human Resources Hani Reyes presented the above item.

Commissioner Prizzia entered at 1:35 p.m.

Commissioner Alford, Commissioner Prizzia, Commissioner Cornell, Commissioner Wheeler, Communications Coordinator Mark Sexton, County Manager Lieberman, and County Attorney Diane Johnson presented comments. 

Commissioner Cornell moved the following:

1. Ask staff liaisons/County staff that Advisory Boards with vacancies to develop an action plan which would include interaction with the Communications Department, discussion with each of the Advisory Boards, and community interaction with the Board of County Commission to seek to fill all the vacancies over the next fiscal year.

2. Ask staff to review all Advisory Boards to ensure that Boards have diversity within respect to their makeup and where necessary bring back any recommendations to the Board.   

3. Request staff to develop a volunteer/Advisory Board appreciation luncheon event. Similar to what the Library Governing Board does in an effort to recognize our volunteers and Advisory Board Members and show gratitude for their public service.

4. Review Advisory Board resolutions and bring back any recommendations for very hard to fill vacancies or other issues.

2nd Commissioner Prizzia

Chair Alford recognized Tamara Robbins who presented comments to the Board. 

The motion carried 4-0 with Commissioner Chestnut absent.

2.

Affordable Housing Plan Update, 24-00763

Community Support Services Director Claudia Tuck and Assistant Director Candi Nixon presented the above item. 

Commissioner Prizzia, Commissioner Cornell, Chair Alford, and Commissioner Wheeler presented comments. 

Commissioner Cornell moved the following:

1. Reallocate funding of $200,000 housing trust funding from blighted communities, code enforcement to housing initiative partnerships.
2. Added funding categories with details for use of the infrastructure sales tax. The Alachua County Housing Plan that authorize the housing and strategic division to proceed with the process to receive applications to the affordable and workforce housing opportunities in form similar to that presented.
3. Approve the Prioritization Tiers with the following amendments:

Funding Category Opportunities Prioritization Tiers 

Tier 1Category1 affordability: set asides for households with Tenant Based Housing Vouchers (TBV), set for Low/Extremely Low Income (ELI) households without vouchers, and developments with 3-bedroom units or larger. 

Tier 2 Category 2 inclusion: mixed income projects, set -asides for young adults leaving foster care, set-asides for veterans, set-asides for elderly households in both age-segregated and unsegregated communities.

Tier 3Category 3 community maintenance/improvement: cures blighted or financially troubled developments, new construction, or preserves existing low-income units.

Tier 4 Category 4 project financing: target small for all municipalities and unincorporated areas (outside of Gainesville) that don't have human capital and financial resources to incentivize great housing at various price points, the promotion of homeownership, ensure the feasible leveraging of county dollars into quality housing developments in multiple locations.

Chair Alford recognized Tamara Robbins who presented comments to the Board. 

Commissioner Cornell, Commissioner Prizzia, and Assistant County Attorney Diane Johnson presented comments. 

The motion carried 4-0 with Commissioner Chestnut absent.

C.

Closing Comments

1.

Public Comment

AMIkids Carlos Valdes (documentation provided), AMIkids Jasmine Hall, FEMA Representative LaSharda Leasy, Commissioner Cornell, Commissioner Prizzia, Commissioner Wheeler, Communications Coordinator Mark Sexton, Commissioner Prizzia, Brian Fisher, Tamara Robbins (documentation provided), and County Manager Lieberman presented comments.

Commissioner Prizzia requested that AMIkids coordinate with the gun violence prevention task force to explore what synergies can be created. Further she requested that they meet with Career Source as they have funds to provide training to obtain certifications for employment opportunities.  

Commissioner Cornell moved to direct the County Attorney's Office provide a legal update of what was just referred to the Board on the May 12, 2015, Byerly motion and the July 29, Corbin Hanson Memo at or before the September Meeting. 

Chair Alford recognized Tamara Robbins who presented comments to the Board.

Commissioner Prizzia exited at 3:57 p.m.

The motion carried 3-0 with Commissioner Chestnut absent and Commissioner Prizzia out of the room. 

2.

Commission Comment

Commissioner Wheeler stated that at the Kentucky state fair a cured ham was auctioned off for $10,000,000. She stated that it was obviously a fund raiser for a charity. She stated that there is money in this county as well so it maybe a fundraising opportunity. 

Commissioner Cornell stated that with the phosphate mine there was money set aside for the legal matters. He requested an update to the Board of how much of the funding is remaining. 

D.

Adjourn

There being no further business before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 4:08 p.m.