Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) sent a letter to Gainesville City Attorney Dan Nee on Wednesday asking the city to abandon its plan to hold a special election concerning the utility’s governing body in November.
The Gainesville City Commission is expected to take a first vote on the special election Thursday afternoon at its regular meeting. If the special election ordinance passes a second vote later in June, the city would coordinate with the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections Office to conduct the election, which would likely cost over $200,000.
In Wednesday’s letter, GRU Utilities Attorney Derek Perry told Nee that the election would be a waste of taxpayer money for both the city and utility. He said GRU would sue to block any result that came from the special election.
The referendum on the special election would ask the same question posed to Gainesville voters in the November 2024 election. Almost 73% of voters approved the referendum to remove the GRU Authority, but a lawsuit by GRU has paused implementation. The case is currently before the First District Court of Appeals.
“It makes little sense for the City Commission to reengage in a process that is already proceeding through the courts,” Perry said. “The city adopts the ordinance; the [GRU] Authority challenges; the city is enjoined; and both parties end right back where they are now, albeit having squandered taxpayer/customer dollars and precious judicial, legislative, and local government resources.”
Perry asks Nee to “caution the City Commission to let reasonableness prevail….” Perry also said the special election ordinance violates Article VIII, section 2, of the Florida Constitution’s limitations on municipal power along with Florida Statutes 101.161(1). These sections largely deal with cities being bound by special law and ballot language requirements.
In May, Nee told the City Commission that the appeal process would finish in nine months at the earliest and could last another year, ending in the spring or summer of 2026. While an appeal to the Florida Supreme Court would be unlikely, Nee said it is conceivable since the lawsuit deals with important Home Rule issues.
He said holding a special election wouldn’t hurt the city, but it could invite another lawsuit and leave the city in the same position of waiting on the courts.
Commissioners said they didn’t want to wait for the tumultuous relationship with GRU to get settled through the appeal process. They pointed to an April ruling that said the city had the right to amend its charter, even sections added by the Florida legislature.
Nee said he’s unsure on what basis the court would delay the result of the special election since the city would point back to the April ruling.
Why is that every time a story about the city and GRU is printed, the only thing that runs through my head is another power grab by the 1%’s of Gainesville?
Not just a power grab, a money grab. The City wants to tax County ratepayers to finance and push its DEI initiatives.
No public vote on GRU management would be valid unless ALL GRU customers are allowed to vote, including the roughly half of GRU customers who live outside city limits.
The referendum isn’t democratic. It’d be only for city voters not the entire GRU service area voters. Plus it’d be in 2025, an odd year when even fewer voters show up.
Shame on Janice Garry and LOWV for pretending to be pro-voter rights.
Obviously, the will of the people, as expressed via their votes, is the least relevant component of this issue. The will of the Governor and his sycophants (Perry, Clemons, et al) is supreme. I’d encourage the City to proceed with the election ordinance, but to include the ability to delay, depending upon how expeditiously the current suit is proceeding.