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Commissioners OK $30,000 For Community Center's Upkeep

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 20, 2008

Noteworthy items from the Aug. 11 Plant City Commission meeting include:

•Commissioners unanimously agreed to earmark $30,000 in the 2008-09 budget toward upkeep of the 1914 Plant City High School Community Center, 605 N. Collins St. Under terms of the agreement discussed only briefly, city staff and board members of the East Hillsborough Historical Society - the building's primary tenant - will meet to determine how the sum will be allocated.

A proposal by the city would deed the 94-year-old brick building to the society, a tenant there since three years after its 1974 founding as a nonprofit organization.

•Commissioners opted to act quickly to relocate city utilities in the way of pending construction of left-turn lanes at Alexander Street and James L. Redman Parkway. Under a state Department of Transportation contract, Lane Construction will build the turn lanes at one of the city's most congested intersections.

To provide continuity of work and avoid delaying the project, commissioners agreed to waive the formal competitive bidding process and, instead, solicit competitive quotes.

Lane, the same Lakeland contractor awarded the DOT contract to build the turn lanes, quoted a price of $125,410 to relocate the utilities, which was $40,000 less than the nearest of the two other competing contractors.

•To avoid a communications outage like the one that plagued City Hall in May, commissioners agreed to upgrade its 8-year-old phone system. A total system failure left City Hall without a phone system from May 1-6.

The upgrade, to be done by Embarq Inc. under an umbrella contract with the state, will cost $78,109. Additional necessary switches and other hardware to be acquired through another state contract with a different company will bring the cost of the upgrade to nearly $93,000.

Two other communications companies submitted higher bids for the upgrade.

•Commissioners unanimously adopted a resolution boosting the mileage reimbursement for city employees who use private vehicles to conduct city business.

The resolution boosts the rate to 50 cents per mile. Since June 2003, the rate had been 36 cents per mile. The current Internal Revenue Service allowance is 58.5 cents.

Reimbursement applies to employees who use a private vehicle in lieu of a city-owned vehicle, for example, to represent the city at an out-of-town conference.

•The commission adopted a resolution appointing members to the city Code Enforcement Board.

Gary Winter was named to fill the unexpired three-year term of Bobby Sapp, who died July 25 at age 75. The term for that seat commenced on April 1.

Mark Richter, a second alternate on the board, was elevated to first alternate.

David Miller was appointed second alternate.

In the event a board member is absent, alternates serve in that member's place.

George Wilkens

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