Seth Johnson
The High Springs City Commission voted Thursday to continue with only four of its five commissioners until a special election in February or March.
The special Thursday meeting came after former Commissioner Steve Tapanes, elected in November 2023, resigned on Dec. 30. Tapanes said he had issues with the new financial disclosure form required to hold the position.
The Florida Legislature just voted in 2023 to change the form details, requiring more information. The change has caused city commissioners across the state to resign.
High Springs Mayor Katherine Weitz said she wasn’t even aware of the new requirements, called Form 6, until the middle of December.
With Tapanes’ seat empty, the city charter mandates a special election to fill the seat. The election must happen within 60 to 90 days of the vacancy—which is between Feb. 28 and March 29. However, the national presidential primary election also falls within that window on March 19.
City staff said the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections, Kim Barton, hasn’t given High Springs a firm date for its special election. The ballot for the presidential primary is already set, meaning the city can’t piggyback on the March 19 date when polls and machines will already be open.
City staff expect to hear from Barton next week and have a firm date by the regular meeting on Jan. 11.
The city charter also allows the City Commission to appoint an interim commissioner to fill Tapanes’ seat.
Commissioner Andrew Miller said he’d rather leave the seat vacant, but commissioners Tristan Grunder and Byron Williams worried about any tie votes that could happen in the meantime.
After polling the audience and talking about problems appointing an interim, the City Commission voted unanimously to keep the seat vacant.
A special election will also bring an unexpected cost to city. An exact price tag hasn’t been determined, and the commission discussed alternatives to reduce costs, like moving from two polling locations to one. But that action would require mailout notice to residents and might not offset the cost.