SAR: Beach commissioners double-down on efforts to acquire Mosquito Control District property on Anastasia Island

St. Augustine Beach City Manager Max Royle needs to retire. Now. He is incompetent, never providing any statistics to support his unctuous ukase. Commissioners ignored his recommendation. The highest and best use of the land is as a park. County Administrator MICHAEL DAVID WANCHICK is not to be trusted -- he is an unjust steward of our environment, as proved by his using Butler Park as a debris staging area for enough solid waste to fill in three Olympic sized swimming pools to a depth of eleven feet, without ever asking the County's environmental staff.

Posted November 15, 2016 03:12 am - Updated November 15, 2016 05:35 am
By JARED KEEVER jared.keever@staugustine.com
Beach commissioners double-down on efforts to acquire Mosquito Control District property on Anastasia Island

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The Anastasia Mosquito Control offices are located at 500 Old Beach Rd.
St. Augustine Beach commissioners agreed Monday night to make a renewed push to collaborate with St. Johns County in purchasing the Anastasia Mosquito Control District’s former Anastasia Island headquarters located at 500 Old Beach Road.

County commissioners are scheduled to vote on whether to submit their own $10,000 purchase proposal to the District at their meeting today.

The Beach commissioners, in October, reached a consensus to have city staff draft a $50,000 proposal to the District for purchase of the property.

But City Manager Max Royle told the commissioners Monday that, if the County’s expected lower bid were successful, it would allow the County to move some office and administrative space to the property and that could mean positive changes on Anastasia Island that would benefit Beach residents.

Those changes, Royle said, would likely include the shift of office space at Ron Parker Park to the Mosquito District property. That would “expand recreational usage” at the park, Royle said.

It would also, likely, free up property on Mizell Road for the expansion of a sewage plant there, he said.

“I think they are better equipped to do it,” Royle said of the County’s proposal and plans. “And their proposal makes more sense than ours.”

Commissioners, though, said they would prefer to see a more collaborative approach with the County.

Commissioner Gary Snodgrass said that idea had originally been floated with County but officials there ignored it.

“We were dismissed,” Snodgrass said.

Commissioner Margaret England, though, said that, even if the city were able to get the property for less than the originally proposed $50,000, there were future cost considerations.

“I am concerned about after you buy it,” she said.

After more than 30 minutes of discussion, city commissioners reached a consensus to offer $100 more than County’s offer for the property and to have Mayor Rich O’Brien approach County Commission Chairman Jeb Smith about collaborating on plans for the property’s future. If the County ups its bid or declines collaboration, Monday’s agreement would allow the city to bid $100 more for any amount up to $25,000.

It was unclear at the time the meeting adjourned who from the city would be attending the County’s commission meeting today.

The Mosquito Control District issued a request for proposals to purchase the property in August and later set a deadline for Nov. 18.

The District, which now serves all of St. Johns County, vacated the Anastasia Island property as it settled into its new 22,000-square-foot complex at 120 EOC Drive earlier this year.

District commissioners, when they were making plans in 2014 to build that new $4.3 million facility speculated they could sell the 2.5-acre Old Beach Road property to help offset the costs. But doing so is complicated by a reverter clause the District has with the city of St. Augustine who sold the property to the district in 1972 for $6,250. The clause stipulates the land “shall be used exclusively for public purposes by governmental agencies only.” Should the District want to sell the property to a private buyer, the city of St. Augustine would have to release the District from the clause, officials have said.

• Earlier in the meeting, commissioners voted to approve the millage rate and budget for fiscal year 2017. The votes reaffirmed votes taken in September. According to a memo from Royle, the second round of voting was necessary after the state Department of Revenue notified the city that its original notice of proposed tax increase was out of compliance with Florida statute. The original notice had incorrect amounts listed on two lines of the advertisement and one line was left blank, the memo said. The errors required that the advertisements had to be run again and new votes cast on the ordinances.

• Also on Monday night, commissioners further delayed a decision on revising policies concerning other organizations’ use of city facilities. Commissioners first directed Royle at their September meeting to rework the policies after concerns were raised about the St. Augustine Beach Civic Association’s use of Commission chambers for meetings and the serving of alcohol on city property. Changes were further discussed at the Commission’s October meeting. At issue Monday night, was whether all groups using rooms inside City Hall should be required to pay an off duty police officer to be present at meetings or just the groups using Commission chambers. Commissioners said that, before proceeding, they would like more input from the St. Augustine Beach Police Department about security and safety concerns on city property.

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Tom Reynolds
The Bug Board Property discussion was very good. This is a one time chance to do a GREAT THING for the Island Residents. A kids park, a Senior center, an educational center, and a place for community groups to meet. Now St Johns County Government wants it to store Nuclear Waste or some other kind of dangerous chemicals. NO WAY.... NOT ON OUR ISLAND !

The Civic Association Cartel use of the Commission meeting room was also a very important topic. Hearing that Community Terrorist have infiltrated the Civic Association Cartel was very alarming. I am very glad the Chief of Police is trained in fighting Terrorism. It's one thing that the Civic Cartel Leaders were using the Association Donated Funds and Taxpayer Money as their Slush Fund, but to become a breeding grounds for Community Terrorist is a SERIOUS DANGER to all City Residents !