By Juliana A. Torres
Staff Writer

With the city short about $7.8 million to complete the renovation of Lakefront Park, Kissimmee commissioners decided to invite Osceola County commissioners to a workshop in order to solicit funding from county government.

“I feel that we need to start getting more commitment in reference with the county: how much money they want to authorize to participate in this project,” Commissioner Art Otero said. “I know that this is the time to do it, because right now, they’re going through the budget.”

A workshop date had not been set at deadline Friday.

Commissioner Cheryl Grieb, who sits on the Osceola County Tourist Development Council, said the council is already tapping into reserves with the several projects it wants to pursue and is facing uncertainty in potential tourism given the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

“We’re trying to brace ourselves right now for potentially further lessening our revenues,” she said, explaining that she would nonetheless support the city pursuing county tourist tax dollars for the lakefront. “It’s scary times out there right now for the tourist development tax, but I would certainly support that.”

Commissioner Jerry Gemskie said he thought a discussion with the commissioners in order to ask them directly and “end it one way or another” was a good idea in helping the project move forward.

Other topics of discussion will be scheduled for the joint meeting, including the county’s proposed downtown parking garage, the development of the Beaumont district and possible joint community redevelopment agencies for the Vine Street corridor as well as the area around Orange Blossom Trail and Main Street.

The city already has $20.2 million budgeted through the 2013 budget year for the lakefront renovation. City officials have already asked the county for $5 million to help the city complete the project. The additional funds would increase the city’s chances of completing the project within three years, as planned.

The funding shortfall has already caused the plans to be redesigned to accommodate phased construction. The redesign itself, approved in the consent agenda this week, will cost the city $66,852.

Several other decisions were made during Tuesday’s commission meeting:

City to renew

waste contract

After the possibility of the city taking on trash collection on its own proved expensive, commissioners agreed to allow staff to negotiate another five-year contract with Waste Management.

“My original thought was that we really wanted to take it over and do it ourselves,” Public Works Director Dave Derrick said. “But looking at that and having to put out $6 million just kind of changed my mind. I thought we would realize additional revenue to make it more worthwhile. At this point, I don’t think that’s the best option.”

Per the motion made by Grieb, the city’s negotiations will attempt to lower the rates, which the city’s contracted study proved were high in some areas compared to the rates of surrounding municipalities. The city would bid out a contract if the commissioners weren’t satisfied with the resulting contract from Waste Management, Grieb said.

Waste Management’s previous five-year contract expired in October. The commissioners decided to renew the contract for one year while a feasibility study, to consider the possibility of bidding out the solid waste services as well as the city handling the services in-house, was completed.

Commissioners gave Waste Management credit for its good track record thus far, few complaints within the community and what Derrick called “some intangibles” the city gained in its long term relationship with the company, including its fast response during the 2004 hurricane season, a smooth billing process through Kissimmee Utility Authority and projects such as the solar-powered trash compactor currently being tested on Dakin Avenue.

Mayor Jim Swan, who works for Waste Management, abstained from the vote and discussion leading up to it.

Final changes to the city charter

The last two proposed amendments to the city charter – allowing one more Kissimmee Utility Authority board member to be a resident outside the city limits and eliminating a four-fifths voting requirement for changes to the KUA charter – gained final approval Tuesday.

The commission did briefly consider giving the Kissimmee mayor, currently a nonvoting member of the KUA board, voting power, which also would require a charter amendment. However, City Attorney Don Smallwood requested more time to research the legality of that change. Commissioners also were divided on whether the board, given the change, should consist of a total of six voting members or if one of the current board member positions be eliminated, keeping the votes to five.

The issue will be reconsidered at a later commission meeting.

The commission also approved how the 10 total charter amendment proposals would appear on the August ballot. For a complete list of all changes to the Kissimmee charter, visit http://bit.ly/9DVDgN.