Board of County Commissioners - Regular Meeting

All right, good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Board of County Commissioners meeting. If you all please stand with me for the pledge and the prayer. You bow your heads with me. Father, we are so grateful for you for continuing to bless Marion County as you see evident today in the audience. Lord, that you continue to strengthen our community through individuals and team efforts all across our community. Lord, as we prepare for what you have next, continue to bless this community, all that we continue to bring forward. Please help the men and women that secure our nation, both here domestically and abroad. Please be with our first responders as they continue to answer the call every single day for those in need in our community. Help us to deliberate in wisdom today as we take about the business of Marion County and strengthen us for your work in everything we do. We thank you, Lord. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

All right. So good morning, everyone, and welcome again. If you would please make sure that everyone that has a cell phone, whatever rings or dings, it could be all kinds of different things we found out over the time, please make sure they're on silent. If they're not on silent, we're going to welcome you to the podium if you're going to interrupt the meeting. So either take your call, put it on silent, or take your call out in the atrium. But if your phone rings in here, we'll invite you to the podium so we can all be entertained with your call. Thank you again for being here. We really do appreciate it. We do have a few announcements. Obviously, today is the county commission meeting at 10 o'clock. We have a public hearing for the annual resolutions of fire, solid waste, stormwater. At 2 p.m., the commission's planning and zoning hearings will happen. In September 21st at 1.30, the Silver Creek and Silver Creek 1 addition road drainage improvement areas are coming up. On the 21st, we have a workshop to discuss data centers. September 22nd is transportation organization, regularly scheduled fourth Tuesday of each month. And then we're back in the county commission meetings on October 6th. So that's your update for now. Commissioners, any questions or comments? Want to do roll call? All right, let's do it.

Chairman Dallek.

Here.

Vice Chairman McLean.

Here.

Commissioner Curry. Here. Commissioner Bryant. Here. Commissioner Stone. Here.

All here and accounted for. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Appreciate it. All right. Proclamations and presentations, commissioners. I move. I have a motion to move the proclamations and presentations by Commissioner McLean, second by Commissioner Bryant. All those in favor, signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Any opposed? That passes unanimously. All right. Commissioner Curry, you're up first with Constitution Week. You're here for Constitution Week. Come on down.

Let's come on back here a little bit. Well, good morning.

Is this working? Everybody hear me?

Well, let me go ahead and perform the proclamation here, and then we'll have a few words about Constitution Week. It says, Whereas September 17, 2026 marks the 239th anniversary of the drafting of the Constitution of the United States of America by the Constitutional Convention. And whereas the Constitution, the guardian of our liberties, embodies the principle of of limited government in a republic dedicated to the rule of law. And whereas the observance of Constitution Week was officially enacted on August 2, 1956, by President Dwight D. Eisenhower from a congressional resolution petitioned by the Daughters of the American Revolution. And whereas Public Law 915 guarantees the annual issuing of a proclamation by the President of the United States of America, designating September the 17th through September the 23rd as Constitution Week, and whereas the Ocala Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, has organized local patriotic activities to commemorate the Special Observance for decades. And now, therefore, the Board of County Commissioners of Marion County, Florida, by the authority vested in us, do hereby proclaim the week of September 17th through the 23rd, 2026, be known as Constitution Week. and urges all citizens to commemorate the formation and signing on September 17, 1787 of the United States Constitution and to reflect on all rights and responsibilities that the privilege of being American involves. Duly proclaim this 15th day of September 2026 signed by all five county commissioners and attested to by Gregory C. Harrell, our clerk of court. So I'll give you this proclamation, and just one word. If you walk into my office, you will see a picture of George Washington. kneeling in prayer, standing next to his horse about knee-deep in snow. And I reflect on that picture pretty much daily and look into that picture and look deeply into it as to what our founding fathers and the militias that stepped forward to win that Constitution for us. And this is a really special event, a special week. to be able to reflect on who we are and really how we got to be. So from the Daughters of the American Revolution, which really are responsible for bringing Constitution Week to us. So if you have a couple of words, kind of what's going on this week.

Yes, okay, so the Ocala chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution is 101 years old. It was founded in 1925. We are a non-profit, non-political organization nationwide and also we have international chapters as well that promote historic preservation. We also promote patriotism and education. And for us, the aims of Constitution Week are to emphasize a citizen's responsibility for protecting and defending the Constitution because our Constitution stands as a testament to the tenacity of Americans throughout history to maintain their liberties and freedoms and to ensure the inalienable rights of every American. We also want, as a chapter, to inform people that the Constitution is the basis for America's great heritage and the foundation for our way of life, and to encourage the study of the historical events which led to the framing of the Constitution on September 1787. And at that time, when the Constitution was ratified by enough people to make it the basis for our government, they rang the bells in Philadelphia at four o'clock in the afternoon. So, on Thursday the 17th at the First Presbyterian Church, The church bell will ring at four o'clock to commemorate that amazing day that began the framework of our country's government and protection of our liberties by specifying very carefully what could be the central government, the state government, and the liberties of the citizens of our country. So if you happen to be downtown, listen for the bell. And if you want to come and be with us while the Troop 72 Cub Scouts ring the bell, then you're welcome to join us. And we want to thank you for this proclamation and for allowing us to put our message out.

Thank you.

Yeah.

Give them a round of applause.

Starting next Monday, we will have a banner across 25th out here for Constitution Week.

All right. Perfect. Good deal. Well, let's get some pictures in.

Lacey's up next with the PTSD celebration. We got some checks, right? All right.

Well, you can.

She's doing a presentation. All right, Lacey.

Good morning, Lacey Larimore, Solid Waste Resource Liaison. The 2026 PTSD Walk Run was a tremendous success with the record-breaking attendance from our citizens. Our community came together to raise awareness and support those affected by PTSD. Proceeds from this event and the t-shirt sales will benefit the three organizations, Veterans Helping Veterans, Marion County Fire Rescue Peer Support, and Marion County Sheriff's Office Critical Aspects. These organizations provide valuable resources and support the individuals and families in our community. I would like to thank everyone who participated, donated, volunteered, and supported this event. Without the incredible support of our community and our employees, this walk would not have been possible. This event was more than just a walk. It was an opportunity to bring our community together to bring awareness and support those affected by PTSD. At this time, I would like to play a short recap video. And following the video, I will invite the representatives from each organization up forward to receive their checks.

On June 27th, Marion County stood united for PTSD Awareness Month. Under the banner of Stronger Than the Storm, hundreds turned out for a 2.2 mile walk to honor our veterans, first responders, and neighbors who carry hidden burdens every day. We stepped out to shatter the stigma, start honest conversations, and remind each other that healing doesn't happen in isolation. Local vendors lined the path to share vital resources, while PTSD awareness shirt sales raised critical support for our partners on the front lines. Fire Rescue Peer Support, Critical Aspects, and Veterans Helping Veterans USA. A huge thank you to all of our local sponsors who made this day possible. To everyone who walked, supported, and showed up for our community, thank you for proving that no one walks this road alone. Keep supporting, stay connected, and remember that we are always stronger together. Thank you.

At this time, I'd like the three organizations to come forward to receive their checks.

Good to see you.

All right, this is awesome. This is what a great opportunity to celebrate these incredible men and women that come together to support those that, in all honesty, would rather stay hidden most of the time. And we realize, even what Scripture says, right, a strand of three cords is not easily broken. And when we walk together, when we do life together, when we have a community that supports all of these folks, that's what makes Marion County truly special. So thank you guys for the work that you do. Thank you for being a part of that. And thank you for making sure that PTSD is not something that someone suffers alone. We really appreciate y'all. Give these guys a hand clap again.

Good morning, everyone. My name is Josh Deese. I'm the chaplain for Marion County Fire Rescue. I represent the organization Fire Rescue Support. And on behalf of Fire Rescue Support, Critical Aspects, and Veterans Helping Veterans, we couldn't be more pleased with the community that we have here in Marion County. The support that we get as first responders and for our veterans as well is incredible. And it takes a community to really come together to raise awareness for such an important issue. And with PTSD, it doesn't affect people the same way. You know, and something that affects someone might not affect someone else and vice versa. And so when we open the conversation and we realize that together, when we check on each other, it's not, hey, something's wrong with you. As opposed to, hey, how can I help you? I see you're struggling. And it doesn't just stop with first responders. Members of our community as well. Everyone knows someone who struggles with PTSD. And so on behalf of the three organizations that are up here, we can't thank you guys enough for your support in helping us right next year. Thank you.

On behalf of Veterans Helping Veterans, my name is Miles McConnico. I'm the deputy director. Just want to thank the county, Mary County PR, and all the hard work that goes into this. I was blessed that this was my second year to be a part of this walk-run. And so it's just great to see the growth and it's great to see the community come out and support to eliminate and to fight back against the stigma of PTSD. Because, as you just said, it does impact so many out in our community, both directly and directly. So as a community, you know, we can show that and know that the resources are right here in Marion County to aid and combat that. So thank you and God bless.

Nice seeing you. Thank you.

All right. Hispanic. Come on.

Jose Torres. On the Marion Oaks Hispanic Heritage Club. Is this the is that what I'm reading there? All right. Come on. And I see you brought Florence with you. Always glad to see her. Would anyone else like to come up to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month? Good morning. Good to see you. Good morning. Good morning.

Good to see you.

Hey, good to see you. Good morning. Good morning. How are you? Good. Good. All right. All right. I'm going to. Good morning. Good morning. I am good. All right. So, Jose, you want to come over here? Sure. All right. So we have a proclamation by the Board of County Commissioners of Marion County, Florida, whereas National Hispanic Heritage Month is observed annually from September 15th through October 15th to honor the histories, cultures, traditions, and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. And whereas Hispanic and Latino Americans have made significant contributions to the history, culture, economy, education, public service, arts, sciences, agriculture, and defense of the United States of America. And whereas Hispanic and Latino residents enrich Marion County through their strong family values, faith, entrepreneurship, That's easy for me to say this morning. Entrepreneurship, cultural traditions, civic participation, and commitment to the well-being and prosperity of our communities. And whereas the Marion Oaks Hispanic Heritage Club, in collaboration and partnership with the Marion Oaks Municipal Services Taxing Unit, known as the Marion Oaks MSTU. Why aren't you up here, Henry?

and the Marion Oaks Civic Association will present the third annual National Hispanic Heritage Celebration on set, Saturday, September 19, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Marion Oaks Playground, located at 294 Marion Oaks Lane, Ocala, Florida. And whereas this family-friendly celebration will bring residents together through live music, traditional foods, cultural presentations, family activities, and community participation while promoting cultural understanding, unity, mutual respect, and neighborhood pride throughout Marion Oaks and Marion County. Now, therefore, the Board of County Commissioners of Marion County, Florida, by virtue of the authority vested in us, do hereby proclaim that September 2026 be known as National Hispanic Heritage Month. Duly proclaim this 15th day of September 2026, signed by all five county commissioners and attested to by Mr. Gregory C. Harrell, our clerk of court. All right. So do you have anything you'd like to say? Then I'm going to hand you the microphone and let someone else hold that for you for a minute. Oh, he's got a prepared speech.

Yes, because there's many people that have helped us during the year. We need to recognize it as well.

Absolutely.

It is an honor and a privilege to receive this program on behalf of the Marion Oak Hispanic Heritage Club and the residents of Marion Oaks. We are deeply grateful for this recognition and for the opportunity to celebrate and honor the rich history, culture, tradition, and contributions of the Hispanic community for this great nation. We also like to express our sincere gratitude to Marion Oak Municipal Services and the Marion Oak Civic Association for their continued support and for helping make a community celebration possible. We invite everyone to join us for our Hispanic Heritage Celebration on September 19 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Once again, thank you for this great honor and for helping us recognize and celebrate Hispanic heritage in Marion Oaks. Thank you.

And we'll go ahead and give that back. And I'm sure that's going to be a very exciting day. Lots of great things happening out in Marion Oaks on the 19th. So did you say salsa dancing? Uh-huh. Yes. Yes. Music. I'm going to hone in on the food. I'm surprised you didn't hone in on the food. What happened? You went dancing. I went food. There's something not right here this morning. Anyway, congratulations, and we are excited for the celebration, and I'm sure you're going to have a great day.

Thank you.

All right, we have Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month. Olivia Hoblett. Would you please join me on the stage?

Good morning. Good to see you.

All right. Well, let's go ahead and present this proclamation. This proclamation reads, whereas Marion County, Florida, is committed to helping its residents lead safe and healthy lives. And whereas a brain aneurysm, also known as a cerebral aneurysm, is a bulging artery located in the brain that in most cases causes no symptoms. But when ruptured, symptoms may include a sudden and severe headache. nausea or vomiting, a stiff neck, sensitivity to light, seizure, confusion, weakness or numbness, or loss of consciousness. And whereas an estimated 6.8 million individuals in the United States, or 1 in 50 people, have an unruptured brain aneurysm. The risk factors of having a brain aneurysm include smoking, high blood pressure or hypertension, family history, drug use, and traumatic head injury. And whereas the Trinity Love Hoblet Foundation, a 501c3 nonprofit organization established in 2016 by Philip and Olivia Hoblet in honor of their daughter, Trinity Love Hoblet, who was diagnosed with multiple brain aneurysms at age 9 and passed away at age 14, supports and funds neurological research, training, and treatment for brain aneurysm, strokes, and other cerebrovascular conditions while raising public awareness of the risk factors, warning signs, early detection, diagnosis, and treatment of these conditions. And whereas the Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month is an opportunity to recognize and raise awareness of brain aneurysms to enhance the health and well-being of the residents in Marion County, Florida. Now therefore, the Board of County Commissioners of Marion County, Florida, by virtue of the authority vested in us, do hereby proclaim September 2026 be known as Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month. Duly proclaimed this 15th day of September 2026. Signed by all five county commissioners and attested to by Gregory C. Harrell, our clerk of the court. So thank you very much for being with us this morning and for raising awareness on this really important topic. Would you like to share some things with us about your foundation and the other things you have going on this month? Absolutely.

Well, good morning. Thank you so much for this. When we lost our daughter, gosh, going on 11 years ago, we decided to establish the foundation because there's so many people walking out there that they're not familiar, fully familiar about brain aneurysm. So when you go to the doctor's office, do you see in your questionnaire, do you have a family history of brain aneurysm? You don't. So we're educating more people about it. Right now, there's a Brain Aneurysm Foundation estimated one in 50 people. So imagine how many people do we have in this room. One in 50 people could have an unruptured brain aneurysm not knowing about it. So if you have the worst headache of your life, please dial 911. And so we moved here three years ago, and our goal is to really how we can expand our foundation here in Marion County and really work with our first responders and our nurses and medical with training and the importance of stroke and brain aneurysm. So we're here to support the community and educate the community as well. So thank you all so much for your support and also to continue the legacy of our daughter, Trinity, who she's happy that we're spreading this awareness.

All right, what everybody's waiting for, right? It's a gift for Marion. Come on up. The whole right side of the auditorium. Yeah. Oh, and some left.

Okay, all right. Commissioners, you need to stand up this way.

Let everybody fold in here. Good morning.

Hi. Nice to see you. Hello, happy gift for Marion. Should we start lining up down here? Test the limits of the stage. This is when it's nice to have food. And it's the whole room. The whole room.

If it's ever going to collapse.

they barely and then we'll try to few minutes to hit the button That's money. All right. Well, Give for Marion. The Community Foundation of Ocala Marion serves as a trusted resource and champion for charitable giving throughout Marion County, Florida, encouraging philanthropy and strengthening the quality of life for all residents. Give for Marion Day is an annual initiative hosted by the Community Foundation of Ocala Marion, which engages and inspires our community to support local nonprofits through opportunities, fundraising, and community involvement. Give for Marion Day celebrates the spirit of unity, compassion, and generosity, and That defines the citizens of Marion County, inspiring everyone to join together to create meaningful impact throughout the community. Over the past six years, Give for Marion has raised over $8.5 million for nonprofits. So, Give for Marian Day is a way for you guys to figure out how to run a Marian County, Florida organization and strengthening the nonprofits supporting our community and sharing connections amongst our residents. Now, therefore, the mission of Marian County, Florida, by the virtue vested in us, hereby proclaim September 15th to be known as Give for Marian Day. Attested by all. Thank you.

Well, we're ready. Are we ready? We're ready. We're going to raise a lot of money, right? You guys are awesome. These are the real heroes back here. They're the ones that work in our community every single day to help the most vulnerable in our communities. And without them, I don't know what our community would look like. So I'm just a day. So we've got a big match. I'm super matches during the day along the way in the page that I'll give for Marion and all these wonderful nonprofits and the work they're doing. Because $10, just $10, goes a long way, right? Yes. All right.

All right, so we're going to do one regular picture, okay, where you all behave, okay? And then we're going to do one fun one where you get all your signs up as high as you can, all right? So one regular one. Marion, let's go. You fixed him.

Take care, you all. Great job. Thank you.

All right. Welcome back. We're going to jump back into the regular meeting. Mr. Walker, you're signed up first for item number 83. Morning, Mr. Walker. You know the routine. Name and address for the record, if you would, sir.

My name is Joseph Walker. I live at 18820 Southeast 54th Place, Oklahoma, Florida, 32179 in District 1. What my main concern is here is we got, on this one here is regarding money. That's old because they go to, they incarcerate it on here. And we never hear about how much money is actually collected and spent, you know, on here. And why isn't there able to look at here? We see people here that needs, that's asking for extra, you know, to cut down their cost on their incarceration or eliminate it on it. But The rest of us in the community has no idea how much money is actually coming in from the people that are locked up. They're supposed to pay $50 a day, but we have no accountability for any of this here. Is it actually working, or are we just spending all kinds of money and not getting it collected? That's what my main concern is on here. And then we have certain people... that get away without paying it because they don't own nothing. So you can't collect money from somebody that doesn't have no money. But yet we go after certain people that have property or something like this here that are trying to get better on it, make a better life for themselves, and then we hold them back here on it. on it. But I would really appreciate it if we can get something in here that states here that we can understand what the money is going for, you know, on here, and why it isn't getting collected, and why are we paying for all this extra stuff on it, because we're not collecting the money from here. What I've seen so far from the county here is we spend thousands of dollars spending on putting in court orders and liens on property and on people, and we never collect. So I appreciate if we can get something squared away in here so we can see where our funds are going and where the situation is working, which is not the way it looks like. All right. Thank you.

Thank you, sir. Appreciate it. Mr. Clerk? Sure, Mr. Chairman. Just any kind of, like, I know that's not exactly accurate, but.

Yeah, I would just point out for the board's benefit and the public's, you know, the items that come before the board on requests for reductions are just a tiny small fraction of the actual liens that exist that do get paid in service liens on the real property of folks who go through our criminal justice system. So the ones that rise to your attention here are the ones where, for whatever reason, they're seeking a reduction, but that's just a small portion of the money.

But there are plenty of other ones that don't come before us that just get paid. Absolutely. Along with the court costs and administrative costs and all the other costs of incarceration, correct? Yes, sir. Yes. Yeah.

All right. And, Mr. Chair, I would just like to point out, too, that it's been the practice of this board. If there's been any hard cost to the taxpayers, you know, even with something like this, I think we'll probably, we usually might waive the interest or something like that when we're talking about reducing the liens. But the taxpayers always made whole. It's been the practice of this board.

We certainly try to do that, for sure. I think you're right. Thanks, Commissioner. All right. Mr. Keith Fair, 722. Good morning, sir.

Good morning, Chair and Commissioners. I hope everyone's well today. Appreciate your time. We have on the agenda 7.22. And I think the developer actually met with a lot of y'all this past month. I guess I need to give you my name and address first, right? So used to doing this. Keith Fair, 230 Northeast 25th Avenue, Ocala, 34470. In your packet, you have a letter that is a support letter for Four Springs. This is kind of a last minute put together with admin. But the letter basically is important because they're going to be applying for sale funding. And sale funding is based on a points basis. And you all have already agreed or will look to agree in the consent agreement for the local government contribution and this will be tied to it. This is just one more piece when we're dealing with Florida Housing Finance Corporation to move their sale funding together and help with their funding stack. So There's two letters here. One is basically a review of the development, 108 units, senior property. They will be 100% affordable. It's located across some senior services. And the unit's rents will be somewhere between 40 and 60% AMI, maybe even a few 30%. So it'll be very, very affordable, one and two bedroom senior properties and developments. I have to tell you that the SAGE group, they've built over 10,000 units. They're basically senior units in the Tampa Bay, St. Petersburg area. They're a class developer. Those are the kind of developers we need to come into the community to help build housing that would be affordable for workforce and seniors and veterans. And Debra's a phenomenal lady and her partner, Todd. I would encourage you to read through the letter, and if you agree to what we're trying to do here, we'd ask the chair to sign the letter so we could pass it on by the 25th of September to sale funding.

Well, thank you, sir. I appreciate it. I don't know if you have any questions on that particular item. Mr. Stone, I know you've done a lot of the help with affordable housing. And, you know, it's funny enough, I didn't realize it until I actually met with Keith and the team there that I toured their facility in 2017 under Leadership Florida. And it is a pretty incredible little facility they have down there.

It will be a special place for our seniors.

Yeah. It really will. Mr. Stone, anything?

I would just say I appreciate that they have an interest in coming to Marion County. I personally will be supporting the request. And I am grateful, again, for all the affordable housing, especially for the vulnerable population. So thank you. Sure.

Thank you.

And may I just say, Keith, thank you. I appreciate your service to Marion County over the last few years that I've got to really know you and the work that you're doing. I know Dan will try to do the best he can, you know, but I'm just kidding. He'll do great. But I just wanted to say thank you to you. I think that you've helped us really refocus on affordable housing over the last few years, really bring us some things, bring us some opportunities. Commissioner Stone has been a great liaison in that regard, and so congratulations. But I just wanted to say thank you from myself and I believe the rest of the board. We really appreciate your service to Marion County and to those that need help.

Thank you. I love the county. Love this area. Thank you.

What are you going to be doing?

Fishing.

We need to talk. I'm still going to be working a few hours a week because we have these developments going on. It would be too much to dump it on to Dan to say, here, you've got to run the day-to-day operation.

Oh, that would be fun to watch. Yeah.

So I'll still be working with the three developments that we have going on, but be at a limited basis. He'll be the new executive director as of Thursday.

Congratulations to you.

Thank you.

Well done. All right. Commissioners, that's all I had signed up. Was there anyone else in the audience that wanted to speak on an agenda item? Has to be an agenda item. Yes, come on up. Please give your name, address, and then the agenda item that you want to speak on. You can come up to the other podium.

Good morning. Good morning. It's my first time here at a commission meeting. We've only been here a couple of years as Marion County residents.

I need your name, address, and agenda and item number.

Sure. My name is Melody Manger and I live at 194-91 Southwest 100th Loop in Dunnellon, Florida. Home of the beautiful Rainbow River. We want to keep it that way. I just wanted to say I'm here in support of the proposed moratorium that you all are entertaining to enact some rules and regulations over agenda item 15.4.2 about data centers.

Just so you know, we won't be hearing that item until this afternoon during our planning and zoning hearing. I understand that. We will take your comment.

This was the time that I thought that I had to put that in the record. No worries. And what I would like to speak about briefly is something that most people aren't talking about. Most people are talking about the impacts to our environment, quality of living, air pollution, water pollution, noise pollution, electrical strain on the grid, those kind of things. But what I particularly am wanting to remind people about is, What happens when the data centers die? All technology dies at some point. All things need to have an end of life cost factored into the beginning of life cost. So we know that electronic waste is a big polluter. It contains a lot of heavy metals, lead, cadmium, mercury. Even when they're recycling those things by grinding them up, there's a lot of toxic products produced for the air, the soil, the water. And the trucks going down the road with those things have those things spewing out of them while they're going down the road. I just wanted to make sure that those costs are factored into any approval or any regulations that have to do with data centers and put in place money that will pre-fund it. I'm not sure the mechanism that you would do that, whether it be bonds or some kind of trust, but some kind of money that's put in place in the beginning to take care of the end of life of this equipment.

Thank you for your comments, ma'am. Okay, my time is up? Yes, ma'am.

Thank you very much.

Hi, I'm Renee Andrews. I live at 12001 Northwest Highway 320. That's Micanopy, but it is Marion County. I live in Shiloh. I'd like to comment about agenda item 15142 also. I am a fifth generation Marion County resident. My husband and I own a small cattle operation. We're a pioneer century family farm here in Marion County. And I support the proposal to pass an ordinance to impose a moratorium on data centers because they use a great deal of water for cooling and massive quantities of electricity, which will strain our existing grid. And they're also quite noisy. Groundwater conservation is extremely important. We're having a drought now, and there will undoubtedly be more droughts in the future. I think a permanent moratorium would be ideal, but a moratorium of at least a year is a great idea because that would give Marion County time to develop rules that a data center would have to abide by, such as recycling water as opposed to pumping potable water from the aquifer, and paying to upgrade the electric grid. There are many other land uses that are more compatible with our life here in Marion County. Thank you for hearing my comment.

Thank you, ma'am. All right. That was everybody that raised their hand. Anybody else? All right. We're going to move on to the agenda. Commissioners, we have two sets of minutes. So moved. Second. I have a motion to move the minutes by Commissioner McLean, second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Mr. Clerk, good morning, sir.

Good morning, Mr. Chair. I'd like to present for the board's consideration an adoption budget amendment resolution items 511 through 518. I would point out that item 516 relates to consent agenda item 7711, which concerns utilities' request for approval to purchase five Blue Star generators with a trailer. OK. Commissioners, any questions?

Mr. Chair, I'll move for approval 5-1-1 through 5-1-8 along with 7-7-11. If no commissioners object to bringing that forward.

Second.

Second by Commissioner. Motion by Commissioner McLean. Second by Commissioner Stone. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Next, have item 521, which is a request for disposition of miscellaneous property, including lists of property from the Fifth Judicial Circuit and Office of the County Engineer.

Motion to approve.

I have a motion to approve 521 and 522. Second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

Next, Mr. Chair, have item 522, which is a request for adoption of the Capital Improvement Program fiscal years 2027 through 203031. All right.

Motion to approve. Motion to approve. Second by Commissioner Stone. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Good morning, Audrey.

Yeah, Mr. Chair, I'd just like Ms. Fowler to share some news with you regarding the Capital Improvement Program. some steps we're taking to increase transparency and accountability there and would like to thank her for bringing forth the idea and County Administrator Mr. Bojanis and his team for being such good partners in bringing this together.

Really excited. This is going to be like a celebration. Do we have any confetti for you? In the accounting world, this is pretty cool.

Audrey Fowler. Last year, the board approved us to add a new software, Oona, which we built the program in. We had to convert it over, so staff hasn't had a chance to dig into it too much, too far. However, we did produce our interactive web book. It is on the clerk's website. It is also MarionFL.openbook.questico.com. There's links from our site to that as well. But what's really nice is you can go in, you can see pie charts that break it down by fund. You can click on those pie charts and you can drill down. You can go in and you can see all of the projects. I know there's a lot of conversation about what are we doing in Rhodes. There's roads and roads and roads and roads on there. And you can actually go to the individual pages. It tells you what that project is. And then it also shows you maps on the bottom of the project pages where you can see exactly where in Marion County those roads are. You can see a rendering of what they're planning to do at a fire station or things like that. So we're very excited. County staff has been absolutely amazing in working with it. Definitely a big shout-out to Zach and Samantha and Kelsey and their respective departments for getting us all those pictures. That was a heavy load. And then I would be remiss if I didn't thank my staff, especially Miguel, who put that book together. He really dug into it and learned it very well. So we're very excited. We do have intentions of working with transportation and building a TIP version as well.

Excellent. Fantastic. So where's that website hosted? And do you have the address?

It is. If you go to MarionCountyClerk.org and you go to Capital Improvement Program, there's an interactive CIP book link there. You can also go to MarionFL.openbook.questica.com. That's our web link into the cloud version, and it's there as well.

Excellent. Well, thank you so much. We really appreciate it. All right. We'll come back to our public hearing commissioners in a few moments. On the consent agenda, Commissioner Stone, do you have anything?

I don't. All my questions got answered. Thank you.

All right. Commissioner Bryant.

I am in the same position.

Excellent. Commissioner Curry. No. No. Commissioner McLean. I'm good, Mr. Chair. All right. I'm good. Let's have a motion for the remainder.

Balance to approve. All right.

I have a motion to move the balance of the consent agenda by Commissioner Stone, second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Thank you, guys. All right. Mr. Attorney, good morning.

Morning. Mr. Chair, actually, I need to go back and correct something on the consent agenda. Okay. We actually needed to pull 7.1.2. All right. 7.1.2. 1.2. It was in the domain resolution.

Madam Clerk, you got that?

So I'll make a motion to amend my motion to approve the balance with the exception of 7.1.2. Correct? 7.1.2.

I have a motion by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner McLean to amend that. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

All right. Okay. Item 8.1 is a request to approve a resolution related to special assessment bonds. And... We've got the closing documents that we just did before the board meeting this morning. So that's presented to the board. It relates to a number of our MSVU road projects that are listed in the bonds. So that's presented to you for your approval.

Motion to approve.

I have a motion to approve by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

Item 8.2 is a request to approve another bond resolution. This has to do with non-taxable bonds up to $70 million, not to exceed that amount for what's referred to in the bonds as the 2026 bond. project which is the south west 38th 40th street project as well as the northwest uh 49th street phase three road project the funds will be used for acquisition of property and construction of road projects for those road projects. The funds do not represent a obligation, general obligation of the Board of County Commissioners. They did not create debt that would subject the board to any obligation to raise taxes to pay the bonds. They're paid solely from the infrastructure sales tax funds. And we've got Chris Traber from Neighbors Giblin, our bond counsel here, to answer any other questions you may have about that.

Excellent. Commissioner, do you have any questions for bond counsel? I do not. This is exactly what we've been planning on doing, getting our roads and infrastructure expedited through the process. And so thank you for the team. Mr. Clerk, your team, bond counsel, we appreciate you. And of course, the attorney's office and everyone else in between. And now Stephen will get the work done. So we really appreciate everybody coming to the table. Obviously, Marion County has definitely needed to get all these projects moving, and there are a lot of projects. Hundreds of millions of dollars have already went out the door, and we're adding to that to make sure that our community is moving forward. So thank you, commissioners. Any other questions or comments?

They're moved.

I have a motion to move by Commissioner Stone, second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. A great day in Marion County.

For sure.

Okay. Item 8.3 is a request for consideration of reduction or release of civil restitution lien on behalf of Tracy Haskins. This is what Mr. Walker was referring to earlier. I don't know if Ms. Haskins is here today.

All right.

Are you here? You might recall that Ms. Haskins appeared before the board a few weeks ago. She was in a bind. She had no water to the property. And the civil restitution liens are standing in the way of her obtaining a grant. So she's got a $1,550 civil restitution lien and also $701.75 in interest. Totaling $2,251. These relate to DUI-related traffic offenses back in 2014 and 2019. And Ms. Haskins, I'll turn it over to you to address the board.

Yes, ma'am. I need your name and address for the record, please.

My name is Tracy Haskins. I live at 6065 Northwest 64th Court, Ocala, Florida. And I've been trying to fill for this grant, because in the beginning, I was trying to save for the $3,600 that the well replacement, the pump, is going to cost me, leaving me and my son out of water since March. But a bunch of things came up with my vehicle that I had to. taken to my savings and I have filled out everything for the grant that needed to be and then come to find out that I have the lien on my name. That is stopping me from going ahead and proceeding.

Okay.

So Mr. Chair, I appreciate your second appearance before us today and in the past we have granted the release of interest. waiving the interest on what is due, only charging what has been charged to the taxpayers for her time in jail, but also what I would like to propose, as we've done in the past as well, is to put this on some sort of a payment program for her that allows the release to be the lien release to be submitted so that she can move forward with getting that grant. And so that would be my motion today.

Okay. A motion by Commissioner Stone?

Second.

Second by Commissioner Bryant. We'll allow you to, Mr. Minter, you can work that out like we have in the past. See what kind of payments you can make. And then as long as we get something in writing that says you'll make payments, we'll release the lien. Okay? Motion by Commissioner Stone. Second by Commissioner Bryant. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Good luck.

Thank you.

You can go out the front door here and then go in the next door, which is the county attorney's office.

Mr. Merger, anything else?

I have a walk-on item. All right. This relates to an item that I brought to the board's attention a few weeks ago, and that was the federal lawsuit that Marion County has been named in along with many other local governments in Florida, as well as the state of Florida itself. There's an organization called the Florida Action Committee, which is challenging the constitutionality both of state statutes as well as local ordinances related to restrictions that are placed on registered sex offenders as far as where they can live, where they can congregate in the community. And so I think I indicated to the board previously that a number of the local governments were considering in effect seeking common representation for their multiple interests. We have common interests and so I'm recommending or requesting board authorization to engage the services of the Roper Townsend Sutman firm in Orlando. I'm familiar with that firm, and they represent local governments all over the state in a number of similar types of litigation, and their rates are reasonable, and I would request board approval to engage their services.

All right.

Commissioners, we need a motion to... Motion to consider the walk-on.

Second. I have a motion to consider the walk-on by Commissioner Stone, second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. All right. And then now.

Public comment.

Yep. So anyone in the audience like to comment on this particular issue? And then we'll bring it back to the board. Commissioners?

I've read the information that was emailed to us. I appreciate it. And I do think we certainly want to defend ourselves against the decisions that we've made for our community. So motion to approve.

Motion to approve by Commissioner Stone, second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Thank you, Mr. Attorney. Appreciate you as always.

Thank you. That's all we have. Thank you.

All right. Now we'll move into our public hearing. Madam Clerk, if you would kindly notice the proof of publication.

I have proof of publication of a display ad entitled Notice of Public Hearing by the Marion County Board of County Commissioners to impose and provide for collection of stormwater special assessment. I have proof of publication of a display ad entitled Notice of Public Hearing by the Marion County Board of County Commissioners to impose and provide for collection of solid waste special assessment. I have proof of publication of a display ad entitled Notice of Public Hearing by the Marion County Board of County Commissioners to impose and provide for a collection of fire rescue special assessment. All three proofs were published on the publicly accessible website at marionfl.org slash legal notices on August 26, 2026.

Thank you so much.

Good morning, Commissioners. Chad Wicker, your Municipal Services Director. This public hearing is to consider adoption of the proposed rate resolutions for the Fire Rescue Services Municipal Service Benefit Unit, or MSBU, Residential Solid Waste Services, MSBU, and for the Stormwater Services and Stormwater Management Programs in the Marion County Stormwater Service Area and certify the non-advalorum assessment roles. Property owners have received via first class mail an insert within the proposed trim notice sent by the property appraiser, notifying them to... notifying them of proposed or adopted non-advorm assessments. The inserts reflected any changes to these three MSBUs. And this year, there are no proposed rate increases for the three assessments. There are three separate assessment rates to consider. Chairman, if you approve, we can pause between each one to allow for board discussion and or public comment. Okay. Okay with that?

All right.

The first one is our stormwater services and stormwater management programs assessment. The amount of assessment is a minimum of $10.57 with a maximum of $15 per equivalent stormwater unit or ESU based upon the type of mitigation credit approval per parcel. There is no increase proposed for this assessment rate. The tentative budget is $4,432,104.73. And at this time, I would like to turn it back over to the board for any questions and or public comments.

Thank you, Chad. Commissioner, any questions? Any members of the public wish to comment? All right. Seeing none, I should do a brief.

Second.

Motion by Commissioner Stone to approve. Second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor, say aye. Aye.

Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Thank you, Commissioners. The next one to consider is residential solid waste services assessment. The amount of assessment is currently $215 per residential unit. There is no increase proposed for this assessment rate, and the tentative budget is $36,098,838.62. And at this time, I would like to turn it back over to the board for any questions or public comments.

Commissioners, any questions? Anyone in the audience want to speak? Yep, come on down.

Anyone else?

All right. We'll close it after this young lady. Good morning and welcome. If you please give your name and address for the record.

Good morning. My name is Tara Barton. I live at 18870 Southeast 18th Place out in Silver Springs. And just as far as this tax goes, all of us forest residents don't benefit from this charge. And yet, you know, we got our taxes increased majorly last year and again this year, and we don't see any benefit from these services. Our neighborhood's full of stop signs that are like faded and potholes and

And okay, thank you, ma'am. Anyone else? All right, we're bringing back to the board.

Seeing how as everybody in the county does benefit from solid waste being available to them and that's where our garbage and disposal happens, I make a motion to approve.

I have a motion to approve by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

Thank you, Commissioners. The last assessment to consider today is fire rescue services assessment. The assessment is based on two components, a demand and availability. There is no increase proposed for next year's assessment rate. The tentative budget for fire rescue services is $55,266,021.23. And at this time, I would turn it back over to the board for any questions and or public comments.

All right. Anyone in the public want to speak? Commissioners, any questions? Got to me. Yeah. If you want to speak, come on down. Anyone else? All right. We'll close it. Here you go. This podium is open right here. Come straight. There you go. Welcome. Name and address for the record, please.

Beverly Garamore, 2546 Northeast 97th Street Road, Anthony, Florida. Okay.

I came in late, and I don't know exactly where you're at.

You're already at the end of what, the solid waste?

For the MSTUs, yes, for the non-advalor.

I'm not sure.

What is MSTUs?

Municipal Service Taxing Unit.

Right, what we got a notification on.

Yes, ma'am, probably.

Well, okay, my first statement is I want to say this paper y'all sent me?

I don't know what that paper is. You can't approach, ma'am. If you give it to the county attorney or Chad, any one of those would be fine. Chad, you can put it up on the thing. We'll put it up. You can come back to the podium, ma'am. Tell us what you'd like.

Okay, this paper is the same paper y'all sent me last year.

Okay.

The same. And so what did you do with fire rescue?

Same thing we did last year.

You increased it again because my taxes doubled last year.

No, ma'am, the proposed rate is the same. I don't know what your property assessment is or how that works. That's a property appraiser question. The county commission sets the millage rate.

But this millage rate last year with all these figures in the millions increased my taxes, doubled my taxes.

Last year.

Last year. Correct. So it's going to be okay this year?

Well, it shouldn't double. No, ma'am.

I can't just keep going up on us. I saw men and women crying last year saying they couldn't even afford it.

I understand, but the assessment is not going up. The value of the assessment and how it's not going up, it's the same as it was last year. Last year, we increased for both fire rescue and solid waste. This year, they're staying the same.

Okay. Okay, well, that was my main statement I wanted to say is this is the same sheet you sent me last year.

Yes. I mean, it's part of your tax bill, right?

Yes, it is.

Yes. It's letting you know what taxation, how it works, all the pieces of it.

So you just passed something on the solid waste, right? Correct, the same way as last year. Okay, I have one thing to say about the solid waste.

Sure.

When that place out there on, I think it's County Road 35. Faceline, yes, ma'am. When it was built, what I learned last year from sitting in here and listening is that it was built in the beginning with an incinerator, per se, the way that you would burn that waste off.

No, ma'am. Y'all didn't have that? We've never had an incinerator.

Or talked about it.

Or talked about it. So.

So that's what we. Anyway, what they said last year is that they tried it in the beginning. And it wasn't feasible. They did. They stated in the record that they tried it in the beginning and it wasn't feasible.

We looked into it. We looked into it. So back in 2011, 2012, when we decided to make the decision to have solid waste transfer down to the heart of Florida, down in Lake Panasoffkee, we bought all of that tonnage from them at $8 per ton, which was a huge savings to the citizens of the county. We did look into incineration and it wasn't feasible because number one, the technology just wasn't there. Florida is a very humid climate number one when it comes to technology and so it's not super efficient and the cost to build an incinerator would have been astronomical. So that option was ruled not a good option for Marion County. That was what the discussion about an incinerator was about.

Okay. Well, are we not in a position right now, being that we have so much waste, to go ahead with such a plan?

No, it would cost a couple hundred million dollars to build one of those.

You would 5X your assessment. It would be five times more money than you're paying today.

Our population would have to more than double to produce. Well, we don't have the room for that.

You're going to go out into the national forest.

But the tonnage required to burn.

Incinerators only work in communities that have a million plus people contributing to an incinerator. You have to have over a million households in order for the economics to start working.

Well, couldn't different counties get together and build one?

Well, they could, but then the transportation cost would kill you. Okay.

So we even actually back in 2011, 2012, we actually tried to put a waste consortium together with our surrounding counties to have the different counties come together to participate in funding the landfill and all that. We tried really, really hard to make that happen because it would have been extremely beneficial to our citizens, and we just couldn't get the other counties to jump on board.

Okay. Thank you, ma'am. Well, thank you for letting me come in on the tail of this.

You're welcome. Have a great day.

Thank you for participating.

Peggy Litt, 11315 Southwest 27th Avenue. Our taxes did go up exponentially last year for the assessments. It was painful. And I would have expected these taxes to go down this year now that we've paid it. That should have been spread over 10 years, five years, something like that. The fact that the county put all of that on the residents at one time was outrageous in my opinion, and I fully expected it to go down. But it looks like we're just staying with the status quo. We went up almost doubled, and now we're just staying with the status quo, and we should be happy because it didn't go up anymore. It should have gone down, in my opinion. There's so many more people living in our county now from other states because of what's going on in the world, and I feel like the current citizens are carrying everybody that's moved here. I think it's astronomical. I've been in the real estate business for 38 years, and the county is going to tax me right out of business.

Thank you, ma'am. Anyone else? All right, seeing none, we'll bring it back to the board. Commissioners?

So, Mr. Chair, I will say when we made that decision last year to increase the assessment, we did so with the help and consultation with our clerk. Because we had been eating into our reserves for years upon years and At that time, we did make the decision to increase those assessments, and it is spread out over a period of time.

No, ma'am. It was not spread out.

Ma'am, you can't speak anymore.

So I make a motion to approve.

She's responding to my comment. I understand. You can have a seat. Thank you.

Motion to approve.

I have a motion to approve by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Thank you, Commissioner.

And I was referring to the solid waste assessment that we had been eating into those reserves.

I know. Thank you, ma'am. I just wanted to put that on the record. I appreciate you. All right. Anything else? We're good? All right. Let's move back into County Administrator.

Good morning, commissioners. The first item, item 9.1, is we are presenting a developer agreement for you related to proportionate share for intersection improvements at County Road 42 and Southeast 73rd Avenue. And County Engineer Stephen Cahoon will go through the details of this agreement.

Good morning. Stephen Coon, county engineer. This is a developer's agreement for the Heritage Oaks development. They were required to have a proportionate share payment for the impacts that they were having on the network. Under Florida statutes, they're also allowed to receive an impact credit for the equivalent dollar for dollar for the proportionate share payments that they make. What does all that mean? There's a southbound left turn lane at Southeast 73rd Avenue and County Road 42 that needs to be constructed because of this development coming in. There's insufficient right-of-way currently to the west, northwest corner of that intersection. We've been working with the church on that end through my office to try to secure some additional right-of-way. And in essence, what this is is a proportionate share payment from the developer. The code does require a supermajority vote by the board for approval of the same.

Okay.

The supermajority vote requirement because this improvement is not in our five-year TIP. Okay.

So are we actually going to get the proportional share payment or are they going to get enough credits to offset it?

No, they're going to give the proportionate share payment. That payment's due within 60 days, I believe, per the agreement. But then they also get an impact fee credit back. This development is anticipated to generate around $850,000, $875,000 in impact fees. They'll get an equivalent credit back in the amount of the $72,000 that they'll be giving in proportionate share payment. Statute's set up that way where they do get a dollar for dollar back.

Any questions or concerns, commissioners? All right.

Motion to approve.

I have a motion to approve by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. All right. Now your update.

Yes, sir. Roads, roads, and roads. We heard it today in the CIP discussion. Yes, sir. Bringing forward the September update. Again, this is just a snapshot of the things we've got going on in the county. Audrey also talked about that CIP. Lots and lots of roads updates and information in both of those. length so emerald road extension i just want to highlight this one again this is a new two-lane road from southeast 92nd loop to the florida northern railroad there just south of maricamp connection to maricamp in essence we're expecting the construction to be completed around june of next year i think it's going to go a little quicker than that the contractor is making a lot of progress You'll see some images here where they're actually building the tunnel between the different spray fields. So this is city of Ocala and Marion County utility spray fields. A lot of the work that's going on besides this tunnel today is applicable to utility installation and relocations and then also the city and Marion County utilities is having to relocate some of those spray heads out in that spray field as well. We're about 50% completed with the lime rock installation and then we've got a lot of mass grading that's also nearing completion. The second road, State Road 40 at Northwest Southwest 80th Avenue intersection. So this intersection is part of the 80th Avenue corridor segments 1, 2, and 3. This is at the intersection of 40 and 80th. Nearly completed. We're expecting November. This entire project should be completed. They're working on the north end of the road today. You already see that we've got traffic signal pole foundations placed. Also, there's relocation ongoing with the water mains along 80th Avenue. Southwest 80th Avenue segment two. So we just talked about the intersection improvement at 80th and 40. Segment one under construction. Segment three has been awarded and notice to proceed to the contractor is pending. And then segment two we're at 60% set of plans. Fast approaching the 90% set of plans. Once we get to 100% plans we'll be able to advertise. We're expecting somewhere around April of 27. for that to happen. We've already began discussions with SECO. There's a large transmission line on the west side of the corridor. There's a little bit of relocation that's going to need to occur. So early utility relocations and discussions are going to help this project move along quickly. And then also we expect to start getting some properties acquired in the coming months as well. And last but not least, the Northwest Northeast 35th Street Phase 1 project. This is the section of 35th Street that is currently two-laned just to the east of the four-lane section, so essentially West Anthony Road all the way to CR 200A. That section is fast approaching the construction advertisement. We're about 80% completed with our land acquisition. At the last board meeting, we had another property that was acquired for this project. We've been coordinating a lot with City of Ocala on some relocations that need to happen on the north side of the corridor. And I'm expecting and hoping that we can get this construction solicitation out the door the first quarter of fiscal year 27. So that would be December time frame.

Thank you, Stephen. I appreciate it. It's only taken 20 years.

Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

I just want to say, I mean, you've got to be the engineer of all engineers, right? Because Monier couldn't do it. Tracy couldn't do it. But Stephen Calhoun, way to bring it home, buddy.

I'm just kidding. The legwork that was done before I got here, I'm just riding the coattails, sir. Not Calhoun. Yes, sir.

I like Calhoun. It sounds a little more Alabama. Tomato, tomato, it's all there.

Goodness gracious. But the only thing that's going to be pushing on this one is right-of-way acquisitions. And, again, we're fast approaching getting all that secured.

Tracy said it wasn't fair, though, because we gave you a whole lot more money than we ever gave her. Yes, sir. Agreed.

Agreed. Again, just a snapshot. Lots of information out there on all of our projects. And that's it for this road update.

That's a beautiful thing to finally see that thing on a project list. Yes, sir. Thank you so much.

Absolutely.

All right, commissioners, any questions? We appreciate you, Stephen. All right. Monier? That's all that I have. Anything else? No, thank you. All right. Commissioners, we have committee items 10-1 through 10-6. Yes, Mr.

Chair, a number of appointments. Item 10-1 regarding the Board of Adjustment was a request for appointment of an incumbent alternate member to a full member. Mr. Samuel Hunt received the appropriate votes.

That is?

I have a motion to move Mr. Samuel Hunt by Commissioner Stone, second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

Item 10.2 regarding the Code Enforcement Board was a request for appointment of one full member and one alternate member. Mr. Jeffrey Bell received the appropriate votes as a full member, and Charles Hanna received the appropriate votes as an alternate member.

So moved. I have a motion by Commissioner McLean. Second. Second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

Item 10-3, regarding the Housing Finance Authority, was a request for appointment of three full members and two alternate members. The applicants William Gilchrist, Maria or Mariah Moody, and Kyle Yancey received the appropriate votes as full members. And Kimberly Hatch and William, or Bill, Mess received the appropriate votes as alternate members.

I have a motion by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner Curry. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed?

That passes unanimously. Item 10.4 regarding the Industrial Development Authority was a request to appoint one member for a full term. Ms. Anna Souza received the appropriate votes.

I have a motion by Commissioner Stone. Second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

Item 10-5, Marion Oaks MSTU General Services, a request to reappoint one incumbent member, Ms. Stella Owens. Receive the appropriate votes.

I have a motion by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously.

10.6, regarding the Pine Run MSTU Advisory Council, request to reappoint one incumbent member for a new term. Mr. Stephen Cochran received the appropriate votes.

I have a motion by Commissioner Stone. Second. Second by Commissioner McLean. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. I have one item under notation for action, 11-1.

No one has an issue with it. I'll make a motion to approve.

I have a motion to approve. Okay, thank you. My commission McLean, all those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That passes unanimously. All right, we'll go into our second part of public hearing. Commissioners, we've got a few people signed up. Bob Burton. Burton is up first and Joanne Brayton. You can come up to the next podium. Mr. Walker is on deck.

Joanne Brayton.

Hold on one second, sir. Are you here? No? All right, Mr. Walker, if you'll come down to the next podium. All right.

Mr. Burton, go ahead. I'm 15250 Southeast 105th Terrace. Since I've been in here the last time, a couple of big things have happened. Something I was involved in, in the panhandle of Florida, senators are going to Walton County to pick up, but it's viral news right now about state agencies involved with our Mr. Ballard, who says he's the GOP super lobbyist, Brian Ballard, who says his clients are buying access to power and decision-making, insider power and decision-making. Well, these guys are wanting to do new legislation. And it has also to do with local agencies. But we don't need new legislation. We need to get rid of this right here. And I brought some. But I'm also been in this stuff since the 70s about our water. And what we're running into is a And here, by the way, this is the document that we put with the court to keep this woman's children from being taken away forever. So we'll be into that with those senators. But we're running into, and you might be interested in this, Mr. County Attorney, Florida Statutes 876.23, and it's subversive activities, which are literally actions to overthrow our constitutional form of government. And that may sound fantastical, but I have all the elements to show it, just like our framers had all the elements listed in our Declaration of Independence. And I'm calling on you all And I'm trying to talk to you all about these things because our 250 years is more than fireworks and cotton candy. We have ideals that we live by. And that's what I'm here for. And I'm not y'all's enemy. And I'm not trying to get y'all in trouble or I'm trying to work with y'all. Because what I have... You're going to wind up in trouble with the rest of these. The last guys I went up against in Suwannee County, the first state's attorney was removed. Two judges were removed. Seven judges were removed from the case. Second state's attorney elected, moved to Arizona, changed his name. And the commissioner of Florida Department of Law Enforcement resigned when I showed him his name in this deposition with people that you guys are currently working with. So there's some serious issues, and you guys can not take my phone calls and not return them. But I am moving forward. Now I have funding, I have an IT guy, and I'm gathering people. So you have my contact information. I don't know that I need to call any of y'all to continue to try to get me called me back, because I just don't think that's going to happen. How do the people, what I want to be is the lobbyist for the outsiders because you guys have the insider lobbyist. We don't have a voice at all. Our taxes are being raised. We're just told, thank you for your time. Goodbye. But I'm going to push for that statute that I read to you. I don't want that. I'm related to some of y'all. I think you're good people. I don't think you realize what you're getting into. We need to go back to our constitutional form of government. It has eroded quite a bit, but it's never too late to take it back to what that flag stands for. My family's 1878 Marion County. I'm not... I voted the way y'all did in the elections. I'm not some liberal derangement syndrome person. Probably worse, but the... But what I have, you guys need to be looking at. Because you're involved with people... that are foreign agents, for one thing, registered foreign agents. But at any rate, I mean, anybody, you're all welcome to call. If I can't work with you all, I'll just assume that you're knowingly and willfully going to the other side. But you need to read that statute. Who will tell you what it is? But we have murder, pets killed, children taken. And my wife, they shot her cat when she was dying of brain cancer. And they raided my home. Two years later, they dropped the charges and took off, ran for the hills. So I don't yield. I never will. I will not stop until anybody in my way is held accountable. But you all have my number, I believe, so do what you will.

Thank you, sir. Thank you. Mr. Walker?

Good morning. My name is Joseph Walker. I live at 18820 Southeast 54th Place, Oklahoma, Florida 32179. Today we're going to talk about the Forest Library. I see the library service got 110 grand this year to help with the grant they got from the state, which I'm opposed you guys even get any money from them, but that's the way it is on it. So here's what on it. What we're looking at here is we got a library over there that's not maintained. And we can't quit people from dumping on there. We got a fence that's down. And a barbed wire fence, you could say. Laying down there on there. So we've had problems with it here. Well, I talked to a library with facilities. And they're putting up signs out there right now. We're getting them out there. See what we're getting there? We're getting the new signs up. There's two of them out there, a new one. I guess they're going to put another couple out there on the back side. So we're making progress on it. Last year, they took care of this here and got that replaced on there. When I walked the property, I found that problem in there. It had to be welded back on there, I guess is what it was. That was taken off laying out there, debris and stuff in there on the county property. It appears that nobody ever bothers to walk their own county properties and see what's going on here on it. I don't understand why we don't, but that's the way it is.

Last year when I picked up

On here. The two blocks from the dump. I got the dump across the street there. On 314A there. For pickup tires. All the time there now. And also for furniture in there. So I took it off the library and cleaned it up. On it. We made some progress in here. We're moving forward with it. But... We still got that... There's a picture of... There's a picture of the fence. You see that barbed wire on there? That's what is entered. 314A, they come in on that logging trail there. You have to cross federal land. It's 100 feet in there on it to get to that location there to start on there. But I suggest we put up a 10-foot gate in there. Wide gate. And we stop all the traffic back there and the dumping on also on the federal land back there, plus the county property. But nobody wants to do that on it. So this one here now, the one back here on 10th Street. That's back there in the corner. I don't know if you can see the number on there or not. You can get that located down there. You see that where they got the five-wire fence there? The fence has been cut. You know, we got about 30 feet on each side. That's a corner post there. And the fence is down there. It's a five-wire fence. And it's still laying there, you know, on it, but we don't take it out. This is where they're dumping in that area. They just dumped again in their last month here. They brought two trailers in there on it. And it seemed like nobody noticed this until I go out there and tell them about it, you know. Nobody seemed to want to do their job. But we appreciate if we can get this year, we got the extra funds that we could put up a fence out there close this area up, and we take care of that, and we eliminate our problem in here trying to get a dumping back in here. Because we're spending thousands of dollars cleaning up after these people. For no reason. If we'd have it closed off like it should be, which should be maintained, we'd get extra funds for it, but we don't see no one to use it. So I appreciate if you guys could get together here and get our directors responsible for this library on here, take care of it. We need something done on here. We're going to keep on here and just keep on dumping year after year after year, and we keep on spending the money out there. You know how much it costs us? How much does it really cost us to go out there and send out code enforcement out there or solid waste, come out there, tell the people they clean it up, they'll leave us sitting out there for years.

You know what?

Yeah. Have a good day.

You too, sir. Amanda did get your signs up, though, so thank you, Amanda. Appreciate it. Great job. I didn't see Jared in here, so tell him we said thank you. All right, we have Stale, our gang. Are you here? Signed up. And then Kim Heath. No. Anyone else in the public want to speak? All right. Seeing none, we'll bring it back to the board. All right. Commissioner, we'll start with you. Commissioner Curry, any comments, sir?

Well, just a notation. If you go to 7.3 on the agenda of gross services, The population growth is astounding. You know, before 2020, before the pandemic, the county was growing somewhere between a half and at most 1% a year, which is doable. You can take that amount of people and integrate it into the community and services and so forth. But we're growing upwards of 4%. And according to the Bureau of Economic and Business Research, in 2020, we were like 375. Now we're at 447. And the public may find this interesting. So when compared to last year's numbers, the growth from 24 to 25 was 12,538 or 3.37 for the unincorporated Marion County and 14,022 or 3.39 countywide. This year's growth numbers 16,941, or 4.8%, pushing 5%, for unincorporated Marion, and 19,197, or 4.49%, countywide population growth. So, you know, it's not just Marion County. I mean, if you look at the state, the last numbers I saw, we were at 23 and a half million. You take that, I was just up in North Carolina, I have a little place up around Sapphire Highlands, about an hour from Asheville. I won't even go up there now, Labor Day, Fourth of July, because it's just too cram-packed full of people. And all that happened after 2020 after the pandemic. And that's what's happened to us. And if you go back before 2020, you go back 10 years of the Great Recession, where we were really kind of in negative numbers, and go to 2020, 21, to where we are now, I'm crying out like everybody else, I guess. I mean, we're trying to provide services, but the growth is an onslaught. And it's just not Marion County. It is the entire state of Florida. And you can't shut down the state, and you can't shut down the county. So, I want to thank the community, because they've been a really solid partner in regard to, for example, the sales tax, allowing us more money on a 20-year basis to now be able to bond projects to get things in the ground faster. But The way I approach it is when I talk to people and they say, we need to stop growth until we can catch up with infrastructure. Well, if it takes five, six, seven, eight years to improve or build a road, probably closer to eight years, it's kind of like what level That is a term that I'm trying to think. Recession. What level of recession do you want us to try and create? Because if you take the building industry and you put it on its heels, like it was in the Great Recession, where we had 14, 15 percent unemployment, That analogy doesn't work. So I guess I'm just appealing to the community to understand the position that the commission's in and our staff to try to handle the growth. We live in the same community. The traffic's horrible. There's no doubt about it. But we have a lot of projects. We've got over 30 projects with FDOT alone. Each year we average over 30 with them. It may be an intersection improvement, it may be repaving, it may be a new road, but FDOT is a great partner. This is kind of like just dumping everything on the table for a moment. But you have to sit down and analyze what the effects. We couldn't even shut it down. We can't do a total moratorium. But when I look at these numbers, it's staggering. I mean, these numbers, what, Monir, 2030 numbers? We were anticipating our growth at this level to be in 2030, and here we are in 2026? Yes, sir.

Yeah.

So we're grappling with this growth. The population, people say quit building. That's not going to happen. But people need to think a little different and deeper in regard to this moratorium question. And when I'm able to sit down with people one on one or small groups, and kind of put it all in perspective, they get it. They understand. But if you don't have the massive amount of information that we do on a regular basis, it's easy just to grasp onto a convenience store type solution and say, shut it down. And that's going to solve it. But that only makes for more problems. I'm going to probably say more about this afternoon at P&Z and a couple of areas, but I just wanted to draw attention to the growth and the fact that we can't stop it. We can't put a barrier up it. on I-75 and tell people they can't come to Marion County. But we are grasping and wrestling with this stuff every day. And kudos to our gross services people. I mean, they are just slammed. They are hammered when you're getting, you know, over 5,000, 6,000 permits a year. So anyway. I probably said more than I should, but I wanted to draw attention to these new growth numbers.

Thank you, Commissioner Curry. Commissioner McLean? Commissioner Stone?

I'm good. I will say those numbers are extremely high. And, I mean, additional information that we have tells us that we need another 16,000 jobs by 2030. We are building for the future. We can't just look for today. Even the nation grew in nearly 13 to 14 million people in the nation in the last six years. So, again, it's not just Marion County. And quite frankly, Marion County is an exceptional place to live. We're right in the middle of the state where it's protected as much as possible when it comes to the hurricanes, as Florida is known for being a peninsula. So, I mean, we truly do have a peninsula, excuse me, but we do have... wonderful quality of life in Marion County and I look forward to continuing to maintain that level and make it even better as we look to the future. So I appreciate your comments this morning Commissioner Curry and that it's 7-3-1 for anyone who wants to go back and really dig into those numbers for our growth. So thank you.

Thank you. Commissioner Bryant?

I'm good.

All right. Excellent. Well, thank you guys for an incredible meeting. I wanted to encourage you. Mr. Mentor, you have a thought?

Well, just as a follow-up to give for Mary, and apparently there was a couple in the audience this morning, and they volunteered to pay the civil restitution lien that we had before us this morning.

That's wonderful.

Wonderful.

That's how you live in a beautiful community.

So, again, thank you for bringing Give for Marion back. I mean, there are so many wonderful nonprofits that help make the quality of life better for so many people. And so, again, Give for Marion is going strong today and through tomorrow. And so I've done my part with several of those wonderful nonprofits, and I wished I had more to do across the board today. But I encourage everyone to take a look at those nonprofits available that do great work for this community.

Absolutely. Excellent. Commissioner, I just want to remind you, too, that the Heart Walk is coming up October 17th. Commissioner Stone, maybe you could help promote that.

I was just thinking, where's the ribbon?

I know. We need the ribbon. Amanda, I need the ribbon for next time. If you could help me, I'll send you the information. I think we have a Marion County team already set up or somebody's on it. So we'll put that out there, Commissioner Stone. Stone, I know you're like the walk champion. If you could help me promote that, I'd appreciate it. Yes, sir. October 17th. Anybody else? Commissioners, you want to come walk with us? And we could have a team battle for the heart walk. Let's do it. All right. So, Monir, we'll see if we can beat you. Okay. All right. I'm sure the fire department wants to be on the commission team.

No golf cart.

Yeah? All right. Well, thank you guys for a great meeting. With that, we'll be in recess until 2 o'clock this afternoon. Thank you all. Bye-bye. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to our planning and zoning portion of our hearing. If you please stand with me for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Madam Clerk, good afternoon.

Good afternoon. Chairman Zalek? Here. Vice Chairman McLean? Here. Commissioner Curry? Here. Commissioner Bryant? Commissioner Stone?

Mr. Bryant's on her way. She'll be here in just a few minutes. If you could read all the proofs of publication for this afternoon.

Okay, I have two proofs of publication. I have proof of publication entitled, Notice of Public Hearing by Marion County Board of County Commissioners to Consider Requests for Land Use Change, Rezoning, and Special Use Permit Applications, published on the publicly accessible website, marionfl.org, slash legal notices on September 8th, 2026. And I have proof of publication entitled, Notice of Public Hearing,