BY DAN HILDEBRAN
Union County commissioners, during their October 6 meeting, clarified their agendas for several board meetings to be held in Raiford, Lake Butler, Worthington Springs, Providence, and possibly Palestine from November through March.
During their September 15 meeting, commissioners agreed on the meetings to get citizen feedback on a proposed gasoline tax and other issues.
During the October 6 meeting, they concluded that the meetings would be regular board meetings with town hall-like information sessions about the proposed gasoline tax, special assessments and impact fees.
Another topic with broad interest in the county: proposed land development regulations that deal with recreational vehicle parks and accessory dwelling units, will be handled during a 4 p.m., October 20 workshop in which representatives from the North Central Florida Regional Planning Council will be present to answer questions.
During the October 6 meeting, commissioners also,
Accepted a $105,806 grant from Florida’s Division of Emergency Management
The grant will assist the county in planning, organizing, training for, and managing future emergencies.
Agreed to an audit contract with Gainesville’s James Moore & Co. The agreement specifies fees of $89,400, $92,100, and $94,900 for the audits of financial statements ending September 30, 2025, and the subsequent two years.
Accepted a $750,000 grant from the state for the county’s public safety complex.
The grant is in addition to previous grants totaling nearly $10 million.
Delayed accepting a recommendation from a committee on the ranking of firms for installing generators at Union County High School.
The generators would have qualified the site as a hurricane shelter.
The committee, appointed by commissioners, ranked Shine & Company, Inc. of High Springs as the most qualified firm, beating out Ring Power, Miller Electric, KTB Contracting and local contractor Jenkins Electric.
The federally funded $1.4 million project prohibits local preferences, which would have positioned Jenkins higher.
Commissioners questioned the request for qualifications process, complaining about the awarding of points for reference letters when none were provided, the lack of electricians on the ranking committee, and the absence of a scope of work in the RFQ.
