Trucking along Orange Avenue

Happy Tuesday!
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To paraphrase Buddy the Elf: “Did you see today’s County Commission agenda? It’s ginormous!”

Let’s jump right in:

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— Impact fee workshop at 9 a.m. and impact fee public hearing in the afternoon at 1:15. The plan would nearly double single-family home impact fees from $7,949 to $13,109. Most of those jumps are in the transportation and schools categories.

County commissioners can’t pass this fast enough. It’s the first step that commissioners have in the works to address growth. And while impact fees have been around for decades, this is the first time I recall an urgent need for them.

Builders are the usual impact-fee opponent, but it’s been crickets this year. Everyone recognizes we’re staring major needs in the face and little way to pay for them. The argument that higher impact fees will drive growth to surrounding counties — not hearing it.

— Landfill fees are also going up. Public hearing for that is at 1:10 p.m.

I’ve been writing about landfill fees for quite some time. I know citizens don’t want to see fees increased, but what’s the option? The landfill runs like a business; no general fund taxes are used to support it. Households pay an annual $27 “disposal assessment” fee (no change this year), and there are user fees for garbage, tires, appliances, and the like.

— Proposal to enact an ordinance banning certain lawn fertilizers during the rainy season. I blogged a bit about this in April when various environmental groups invited me and other reporters on a tour of King’s Bay.

I struggle with environmental politics more than any other area, mainly because I have trouble grasping the science. Looking forward to the discussion.

— Here come the federal cuts trickling home. The county will need to pony up $68,000 to continue running the Nature Coast Volunteer Center. I encourage readers to look at its presentation on the board’s agenda.

Two thoughts:

One, we have a county filled with retired people looking to fill the hours in the day. The NCVC fills that void in a very worthwhile way.

Two, a few years back, I spent the morning with a Meals on Wheels volunteer. What struck me most was the number of lonely seniors who look forward to that meal delivery every day.

— Let’s talk a bit about Orange Avenue in Floral City. Last year, board Chair Rebecca Bays started a discussion about eliminating truck traffic on Orange Avenue, the historical oak tree canopy thoroughfare that, as anyone who drives it can see, is falling apart pavement-wise.

The problem, as Bays outlined, is GPS directs truckers off I-75 at C.R. 48 in Sumter County instead of the S.R. 44 exit a few miles north up the freeway. 

The county asked for a study. The Citrus-Hernando Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) did one and reached two conclusions: Either upgrade C.R. 48 to handle truck traffic; or stop truck traffic on C.R. 48. Take a guess which alternative is preferred.

Sumter County has already erected “No thru trucks, local delivery only” signs on westbound C.R. 48 at the interstate. Citrus is looking to do something similar on its side of the Withlacoochee River.

Anything the county can do to reduce heavy-load traffic on Orange Avenue is a plus. The road, an iconic gem in Citrus County, is in horrible shape. A few weeks ago, the county did some hurried patch work to smooth over the ugliest sections. That helps, but this road is in a world of hurt.

— There’s a proposal to buy an Inverness office building at 102 E. Highland Blvd. for the Guardian Ad Litem program. The agenda backup says there are two appraisals and the county should negotiate the difference between the two.

The only reason I mention this is that the agenda doesn’t say how much the appraisals value the property. So, I looked it up on Zillow: The “zestimate” is $180,000.

— Do we need to move land-use hearings to a different day? That seems to be the prevailing thinking, and it certainly makes sense.

This County Commission is having lots of workshops, which is a good thing. They often schedule them the morning of regular meeting days (such as today). Zoning hearings don’t start until 5:01 p.m. That can make for a very long day, and exhausted commissioners making significant land-use decisions is not in the public’s best interest.

Yes, that means more meetings. No one wants more meetings. But it’s a better alternative than what we have now.

Today is County Commission day. You know where to find me.

Have a terrific Tuesday, friends.

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