Christian Peterson
reporter.riverbendnews@gmail.com
On Tuesday, April 15, the Suwannee County Board of County Commissioners met for its regularly scheduled meeting. The meeting began with the approval of the previous meeting's minutes, followed by a call for public comment. The first person to step up to the podium was Wayna Hannaka, who spoke about the duties of the Public Works Department and how they help the community. Wendy Martin then stood up to speak, voicing her concern about the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) resolution since the county was already providing the services. She also expressed her concern about the possible elimination of property taxes. Following her was Vince Smith, who informed the public about an upcoming Florida Department of Transportation meeting, requesting that the public show up and voice their concerns. Virginia Smith then stood up to speak. She talked about the North Florida Utilities Authority Director position, claiming that the applicants did not meet the qualifications. Finally, Moses Clepper stood up to speak. He suggests that the board place proclamations and other related agenda items at the beginning of the meeting. He also requested that the board allow public comment at the end of the meeting so individuals could speak on the things that were discussed during the meeting. He ended by voicing his concern about the number of change orders for county projects, along with his favor for DOGE coming to review county finances. The board then moved on to proclamations and presentations. First was a proclamation declaring Monday, April 14 as National Lineman Appreciation Day and the week of Monday, April 14 through Sunday, April 20, as National Lineman Appreciation Week. Suwannee Valley Electric Cooperative CEO Mike McWaters took the time to introduce some lineworkers and speak on some of the dangers of being a lineman. The board thanked the lineman for their work and then approved the proclamation. The Sons of the American Revolution were next; they presented awards to Suwannee County Sheriff's Office K-9 Officer Justin Dalton and Dispatcher Katie Bledsoe for their helping save a child. Following the award presentations, the board moved on to its time-specific items. The first item was an application by Proactive Investments to amend the Official Zoning Atlas of the Land Development Regulations to change a piece of property from Agriculture-1 to Commercial Highway Neighborhood. It was explained to the board that the motion had appeared before them in February, but it had been rejected due to a lack of specific use for the property. Development Services Director Ron Meeks explained a little more about where the property is, and how it could be useful for small commercial use. Quinn Skierski, the applicant, apologized for not being at the first hearing; he explained that he hoped the rezoning would be more useful to the tax base and would help provide services to the nearby sawmill and the catalyst site. The board then approved the ordinance. The board also approved a second ordinance amending the Future Land Use Plan Map of the Comprehensive Plan, as it directly related to the previous ordinance. The following item was another ordinance to amend the atlas for a separate property located in Dowling Park to a Commercial Neighborhood. The board approved the ordinance unanimously. The board then approved the consent agenda for the evening before moving into its staff items. A discussion then ensued with Emergency Management Director Chris Volz. The board was concerned, as some grant applications had not been submitted due to a lack of paperwork from departments; there were also concerns about funds that had to be returned because they were not spent, as well as the inability to move forward with other grant applications. The board requested that emergency management approach them with information and the department's needs so that they could make sure nothing was falling by the wayside. The board made it clear they were very concerned about the lack of communication within the various county offices and departments. Multiple private citizens also voiced their concern about this and the missing grants, wanting accountability so that the issue would not happen again. The board then approved paving a quarter-mile portion of 81st Road. The approvals continued with the board approving the resolution expressing support and cooperation with the state's DOGE program; it also approved the final plat for John's Crossing. After this, the meeting was adjourned. The next Suwannee County Board of County Commissioners meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 6, at 5:30 p.m. in the Judicial Annex, located at 218 Parshley St. SW, in Live Oak.