Hi Everyone,
Thanks for another great turnout at the last meeting. Your attendance at city meetings and interest in the welfare of our community is how we hold our leadership to a higher standard.
What happened at the last meeting?
The Mayor and city administrator are now requiring the public to fill out a separate form for each agenda item they wish to comment on. The implementation of this new rule is cumbersome and fails to serve the public interest. Any rule or procedure that stands between the public and their right to participate in a public meeting should be looked at with great skepticism. Everyone should be allowed to speak without having to specify in advance whether they’re speaking for or against an agenda item.
The commission, on a 4 to 1 vote, amended the city’s purchasing procedure, increasing the city administrators spending limit from $500.00 to $5000.00. The city administrator, without holding a vote for approval before the commission could spend up to $5000.00 if the amendment passes on second reading at Monday’s meeting.
The commission, again on a 4 to 1 vote, adopted the quasi-judicial procedures that I discussed in the March 25th newsletter. The adoption of these procedures sets the rules that the city commission will adhere to during a quasi-judicial hearing. This type of hearing is usually held when a zoning change, variance, or approval of development project is requested.
The city administrator and the assistant city administrator both tendered their resignations last week. The commission voted 4 to 1 at a special meeting held on March 29 to accept the resignation of the city administrator. There is a special meeting scheduled for 5:00 PM Monday April 10, 2023 at city hall to discuss designating a commissioner to assist with the exit of the city administrator.
On a more upbeat note, the infamous North Putnam Grove Road shed in the ditch has finally been removed. On March 21, 2023 our city administrator Kohn Evans sent a letter to Marcus McDonough, director of Volusia County Mosquito Control informing him that the city had received a complaint about the shed and offered the city’s assistance in it’s removal. We should all offer our thanks to administrator Evans for her assistance in remediating this potential threat. Now we need to remove the debris and clean all the storm ditches that protect our community from flooding.
For an in-depth analysis of the evolution of the January vote-by-email arrangement, a Florida Sunshine Law violation, Check out the latest edition of The Joe Show.
What’s Coming up
Looks like there’s a contract change order in the agenda pack for next week’s meeting. The change order is for the sewer project up in Indian Harbor estates and has a total value of $138,593.83. Hopefully it’s money well spent and not due to an oversight or mistake. That’s a lot of money, probably enough to clean a few miles of flood control ditch. As I mentioned above, the second reading for the amendment of the city’s purchasing procedure is also in there.
The Agenda also includes:
A resolution to establish an auditor selection committee including the vice-mayor in the absence of the Mayor.
Two written bids to seal, coat, and restripe the Basketball courts at Nancy Cummings Park.
Estimates on the cost of a 4-wheel off-road vehicle for city employees.
Purchase appraisal for the property at 222 Cummings Street.
Remember, the Special Meeting on Monday April 10, 2023 5:00 PM – for discussion of hiring a city administrator and assistant administrator.
The next Oak Hill City Commissioner’s meeting is April 10, 2023 at city hall. The time is 6:00 PM. Click here for the agenda and click here for the agenda pack. The agenda pack contains all the information that city staff present to the commissioners to help with the decision-making process. Please come and let your voice be heard. Your presence and participation are how we hold our commission to account.
It’s my pleasure to serve you, I appreciate your support.
Joe Catigano
Oak Hill City Commissioner
Seat 3
