The Gainesville City Commission voted to hire a firm to create plans for a downtown streatery, to support a hands-free driving bill in the Florida Legislature and to finalize the historic designation of the Florida Theater.
The commission also directed Mayor Harvey Ward to send a letter to the Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) Authority concerning billing issues for the city’s stormwater and garbage collection fees.
The city of Gainesville charges residents for garbage pickup and stormwater through GRU’s utility bills. In the February bills, an error caused those fees to increase anywhere from 5% to 50% on customer bills.
Director of Public Works Brian Singleton told the commission that it was an issue with GRU’s dynamic scheduler. He said some bills were prorated last year, and the scheduler increased some bills to rectify the issue.
However, the increases happened for some customers where it shouldn’t have. Singleton said GRU has been in contact with him regularly as they work through around 20,000 bills. He said GRU has assured him that credits will be issued to bills that had incorrect increases.
Ward said it’s a serious issue, and while accidents happen, he said the utility hasn’t been proactive in communicating. Their website and social media say nothing about the error after two weeks.
“I am concerned about a lack of urgency getting it addressed. I would like some actual answers, public answers about this.”
He also said that it was not a problem that had happened before the GRU Authority took over management of the utility.
On his recommendation, the commission voted unanimously to send a chair letter asking for an explanation and written details.
Commissioner Casey Willits recalled the failure of the trunked radio system earlier this year and said communication was lacking there between GRU and Alachua County.
Singleton said the city pays GRU $800,000 each year for creating the bills and collecting the fees.
The City Commission also passed its final reading to increase the residential garbage collection fee by 20%. Because the city had already passed a preliminary vote on the increase, Willits said it added to confusion, with residents thinking the February bills were reflecting the increase.
With Thursday’s final vote, the new increase will start in April.
The GRU Authority has discussed the placement of the city’s fees on the utility bills and considered ending the memorandum of understanding with the city to do the work. Utility directors and public commenters have said it makes the utility bill seem higher because it includes more than just the cost for the utilities.
The city has been moving forward with the streatery project for several years. In October 2024, the commissioners approved the concept plan, and on Thursday, they voted to hire JBPro to do the design work for the streatery—a pedestrian area covering two blocks of SW First Avenue that allows outdoor eating and programming.
The entire project is estimated to cost around $3.2 million—paid through a combination of gas tax, tree mitigation funds and Gainesville Community Reinvestment Area funds.
Singleton said staff will return to give the City Commission a maximum not to exceed dollar figure. The commission also asked for staff to return with design plans instead of moving straight to construction.
The plans shown Thursday included seating in the middle of the street, but commissioners said the seating would seem better around the edges.
Singleton said the plan was designed to accommodate electrical outlets and certain programming events. Andrew Persons, chief operating officer, said staff can return with other options, but he cautioned that those options might cut down on the flexibility of the space.
The project continues to draw pushback from some downtown business owners and members of the city’s Downtown Advisory Board (DAB). Many spoke before the city’s October vote and showed petitions with more downtown business owner support.
Members of the DAB recommended reopening the street but redesigning the area so it could be closed for special events. Criticism has included that it only benefits a few businesses directly adjacent while hurting overall access.
The streatery concept, or closing streets for pedestrians-only access, is used in downtowns across the nation, and the City Commission has said they believe the project could bring people to the area and get them to walk around all of downtown as patrons.
Mike Warren spoke during public comment as president for AMJ Group, the company planning to build a more than seven story, 107-unit building on Lot 10 (150 SW 2nd Ave.).
The new building would front the streatery, and Warren said plans include a grocer on the first floor with other businesses and condominium apartment units above. The apartments would include affordable housing at 80% area median income.
Warren said he worried about being able to keep tenets if the streatery became an all-night attraction. He said Bo Diddley Plaza is already available along with Depot Park.
“I’m not sure that an outdoor nightclub, with a bandstand at the door of their home, would provide such a compatible environment,” Warren said.
In October 2024, Bosshardt Realty also expressed its opposition to the streatery. Kim Bosshardt said the company bought a building in the area with plans to open a downtown office. But she said those plans are hampered by the closure of SW First Street.
Bosshardt said in an email to commissioners that the closure was planned to be temporary.
“There are legal implications for the City to allow the street to be closed for four years—[three] past the pandemic where some municipalities have been sued for unlawful regulatory taking,” Bosshardt said. “There is a direct loss of access which substantially impairs access for owners, employees and customers.”
Singleton said the construction of the streetery should line up with AMJ Group’s construction of Lot 10. He said they would work to make sure the area served the new building, and commissioners said they wanted to ensure the Lot 10 building, and future tenants, weren’t negatively impacted.
Commissioner James Ingle said now is the time to redo any utility connections to the nearby businesses. He said many surrounding businesses have struggled with lacking wastewater and grease trap backups.
Also at Thursday’s meeting, the city finalized the placement of the Florida Theater on the local register of historic places and voted to support House Bill 501 currently in the Florida Legislature. The bill would prevent drivers from having electronic devices in their hands while driving, known as hands-free driving.
The hands-free driving bill received support from Police Chief Nelson Moya as it tracks with the city’s Vision Zero goal—no pedestrian or cyclist deaths.
Sounds to me like Gainesville and Alachua are still as Blue as the Democrat states….👎
Yeah let’s hope so. Wouldn’t that be great?!?
yes it would!
With budget constraints, I doubt many citizens of Gainesville would support the expenditure of over $3.2M++ on the Streatery to SUPPORT A FEW LOCAL BUSINESSES. There is little justification for the permanent closure of one street west of South Main Street facing a parking garage when there are superior alternatives such as Bo Diddley PLaza very close by, Depot Park and inside venues of local businesses.
At the most, it should be available for short-term events, as the DAB suggests. Perhaps food trucks could contribute money through fees/rent to use the space on weekends?
Upon review of this article, I have the following concerns.
(1) continuation of a project that has little support for the DAB, and most likely most residents;
(2) currently providing benefits to a FEW businesses and quite frankly not an unattractive set-up ( encourage people to go and take a look):
(3) a COVID-related short term 4-year project that needs to end (stop “beating a dead horse”);
(4) only a FEW businesses would benefit from capital expenditures on instrastructure improvements (sewer lines); and finally
(5) not supported by those with power and money to build in downtown.
Should the city choose to move forward, then hold a referendum so citizens can vote it up or down.
Correction: Currently NOT an attractive set-up benefitting few.
Please take a look at SW 2nd for yourself.
This is an interesting fallacy that keeps popping up – that the closure of this street will “benefit only a FEW businesses.” The reality is that the creation of an inviting pedestrian space will attract more people downtown, and more people visiting downtown benefits ALL businesses there. There seem to be some special interests that are driving some of the DAB members to oppose this since the logic of the economic and cultural benefit to this seem painfully clear, and there are many data readily available to support this.
It will kill the already dwindling businesses on the street
What downtown needs is law and order to survive
“planning to build a more than seven story, 107-unit building”: Why? New oversized structures have already altered the nature of Gainesville’s downtown. Do we really need another?
Besides the outsized scale, Real Citizen, especially looming over one-story commercial buildings with no street access or parking, the proposed lot 10 development, if built, might not compete well for tenants, even with city subsidies. The contract has been modified six times in four years at the developer’s request. The small apartments would be for rent now, not for sale as originally stated, for tenants making 140% of the area median income — 40% more than half the households in Gainesville — with city taxpayers subsidizing $1 million for a few at lower rents + $350,000 or more in infrastructure. In the beginning, the city would’ve netted $500,000 at most for the property, probably much less by now. The developer asked the county commission to lease four floors of the future building, and so far that commission has said no thanks. The hemmed-in site doesn’t seem like a good place to put a ground-floor grocery store either, with two Publixes and a soon-to-open Aldi store nearby. Across University Avenue is long-vacant acreage that would make a more likely successful and compatible development site than lot 10. City commission is banking on some vision of downtown and dismissing concerns of two advisory boards, downtown business owners, and constituents.
Par for the course as to how our city is managed
When will the Gainesville City Commission vote to hire a firm to implement and enforce its food waste collection ordinance commercial establishments and multi-family properties passed May, 2022?
Nostalgia isn’t necessarily a bad thing; however, downtown Gainesville and Depot Park areas are not (and have never been) seen as the place to go or generally safe. The entire area is certainly not worth expending millions of dollars more to improve or develop. Downtown Gainesville is where you go to do governmental business (and then leave) or get ‘trashed” (something many of our locals already do without needing any further inducement). Gainesville – spend the money more wisely elsewhere. FL DOGE may be able to advise you.They’ll look you over with a finetooth comb and may be able to show you how to manage your / our monies more efficiently.
Yes bad government killed downtown decades ago
Our current government has no clue how to revive it
It’s called law and order not a homeless ghetto
Gainesville Commission “We’re broke and must raise your taxes for essential services”
Also, “let’s waste money on a streatery and some run down building that nobody wants”
The question in my mind is WHO is profitting from these items?
Some politician’s brother-in-law or just a political contributor.?
If any of you think these are good ideas I wish you would send me the share I had to pay for this.
Actually it is the delusional ideology of our leadership