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csmurphy8885

By csmurphy8885
in Tallahassee

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poonther Town

poonther

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Wow seminole, your explanation of Debbie's and the other's voting makes it very to clear to me now what has been going on. Thanks for taking the time to example that one. You should be the Democrat's City Commission reporter. Your explanation was much more detailed and easy to follow than anything I've ever read in the paper.

Hey don't blame me, I didn't vote for Debbie this time. ;) Mustain has been the biggest surprise for me lately, and not a good surprise. I really thought he would be more proactive and forward thinking.

RedStar25 that's the $64 thousand dollar question. We actually have a separate thread here on the Tally board just for the PAC. You may want to read it to get an idea of what is happening.

In other news, Look's like the Symphony is almost officially dead. Good for Ruby Diamond and good for FSU and FAMU.

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Florida Megalopolis

Florida

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Honestly, I can write at least two pages on this but I'll be brief and simplistic:

FSU

My thinking is that if you are trying to achieve AAU status (FSU's objective) and a diversified economy/18 hour downtown (COT), then you need to attract national attention to accomplish those goals. The article posted above is a clear indication that FSU is doing just that and is also hiring some of the best to help achieve its goal. Even though FSU is located in a city without a strong corporate base, it is still able to attract the necessary personnel and private donors to accomplish its mission because its more progressive and "pleasant". Most donors just have a stronger bond with FSU than the COT.

COT

1) What is the COT doing by hiring Al Pasini? Does he has a history of attracting major corporation and converting downtowns into business and entertainment meccas? 2) Port St. Joe was able to outbid Tallahassee/Leon County's $10 million offer to attract a research center with $40 million counter offer. 3) The selection process of designating the Johns site as the new home for the PAC could have been handled with more professionalism also. Apparently, two developers were interesting in developing the site and three members of the commission board were sort of in agreement. Andrew Gillum didn't agree, so his response was that we (Tallahassee) don't let outside developers dictate to us an appropriate location to put our PAC. I thought his statement was a bad reflection on the city and certainly not enticing to bringing in developers.

I indicated before that I liked that location for the PAC and I don't have any problem with the citizen committee selecting this site. But the reasoning behind the selection (cheaper parking and proximity to the Capitol) just seems a little odd. The first priority for most out-of-towners who are in Tallahassee for State business is finding a hotel or place of residence, not a PAC. The PAC could have just as easily been placed at the Civic Center and the John's site could have been sold to one of the developers who would have developed the site in half the time of a PAC. Sure would have been a boost to funding the CRA - now we have to wait upteen years for a project that may happen if funded.

4) Debbie Lightsey has been preaching to the choir all this time about diversifying our energy sources to become less dependent on fossil fuel, but votes no to a contract between FSU and COT because should couldn't get it drafted under her terms. The biomass plant was going to be built anyway, but why risk losing a biomass research center (which is part of the deal) for something as silly as that.

Tallahassee has a history of being unfriendly towards business development, and some of the attitudes on the commission just hasn't done enough to change that image (yet)! We certainly won't attract positive national attention this way.

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poonther Town

poonther

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seminole, after re-reading your post twice, is the following sentence a typo?

2) Port St. Joe was able to outbid Tallahassee/Leon County's $10 million offer to attract a research center with $40 million counter offer.

Not trying to be a smart-aleck, just curious, did you mean Port St. Lucie instead of PSJ, or do you know something really big happening over in Gulf County?

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seminole Whistle-Stop

seminole

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seminole, after re-reading your post twice, is the following sentence a typo?

2) Port St. Joe was able to outbid Tallahassee/Leon County's $10 million offer to attract a research center with $40 million counter offer.

Not trying to be a smart-aleck, just curious, did you mean Port St. Lucie instead of PSJ, or do you know something really big happening over in Gulf County?

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Florida Megalopolis

Florida

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seminole, after re-reading your post twice, is the following sentence a typo?

2) Port St. Joe was able to outbid Tallahassee/Leon County's $10 million offer to attract a research center with $40 million counter offer.

Not trying to be a smart-aleck, just curious, did you mean Port St. Lucie instead of PSJ, or do you know something really big happening over in Gulf County?

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stjoe Hamlet

stjoe

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"So are these plans no longer valid, stjoe?"

No, they are not.

FSU had collected almost $10 Million in pledges, but the largest I believe had a ground breaking deadline or the donation was lost.

FSU couldn't come up with the extra money on their own and tried to tie it in with the city on theirs, but that (as we all know) died on the vine.

FSU has since lost the donations and is looking to get about $22 Million over 3 years from the state to renovate Ruby Diamond instead.

The other issue was where it was going. This was where the Symphony Project eventually looked to go. FSU tried to the get the land, but the state wouldn't allocate FSU any money for land acquisition. The Symphony Project, of course, has since died and the Democrat wrote that FSU is looking to get $3 Million in land acquisition money to buy that land (FSU might get it with Crist in office).

That is my understanding. It has always been difficult to find out what went on with that building.

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poonther Town

poonther

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Debbie states why she voted NO on the biomass facility:

"People have asked me why I oppose the new biomass facility. Let me set the record straight. I enthusiastically voted for the BG&E contract and continue to support it. I will support other such "green energy" efforts when they come before the City Commission.

The confusion comes from the way the story has been covered. What I voted against was a separate agreement with Florida State University, which requires all our electric customers to pay higher bills for 10 years. Here's the story: FSU wanted the BG&E facility to locate on its property, but wouldn't sign the lease without this multimillion-dollar payment agreement with the city.

The property is worth $900,000. BG&E is making a one-time $2 million cash payment to FSU for use of the property. Add to that the millions more you will pay FSU over 10 years based on a sliding scale formula, and you get the picture. A great deal for FSU - not so great a deal for all our other electric customers. The payments begin as soon as the facility is open for operation.

I want to help FSU be successful. I am an FSU supporter, but my first responsibility is to protect the interests of our citizens and rate payers."

DEBBIE LIGHTSEY

Tallahassee City Commission

What do you think of her reasons that she voted NO? Is it true that we'll pay higher utility bills b/c of this project? Does Debbie truly want FSU to be successful and is she really a die-hard supporter?

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stjoe Hamlet

stjoe

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I don't want to see that Debbie is right or wrong.

I will say her understanding of economics is remedial at best.

She evaluates this project on a one to one ratio.

IE, She ignores the offshoot economic value of such research. I believe this is the core reason why she and others in the city make very poor decisions (like Torrey Pines, etc). They don't have a basic understanding of ecomomics. Sometimes, it is worth investing money because you get ancillary benefits.

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Florida Megalopolis

Florida

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Debbie states why she voted NO on the biomass facility:

"People have asked me why I oppose the new biomass facility. Let me set the record straight. I enthusiastically voted for the BG&E contract and continue to support it. I will support other such "green energy" efforts when they come before the City Commission.

The confusion comes from the way the story has been covered. What I voted against was a separate agreement with Florida State University, which requires all our electric customers to pay higher bills for 10 years. Here's the story: FSU wanted the BG&E facility to locate on its property, but wouldn't sign the lease without this multimillion-dollar payment agreement with the city.

The property is worth $900,000. BG&E is making a one-time $2 million cash payment to FSU for use of the property. Add to that the millions more you will pay FSU over 10 years based on a sliding scale formula, and you get the picture. A great deal for FSU - not so great a deal for all our other electric customers. The payments begin as soon as the facility is open for operation.

I want to help FSU be successful. I am an FSU supporter, but my first responsibility is to protect the interests of our citizens and rate payers."

DEBBIE LIGHTSEY

Tallahassee City Commission

What do you think of her reasons that she voted NO? Is it true that we'll pay higher utility bills b/c of this project? Does Debbie truly want FSU to be successful and is she really a die-hard supporter?

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poonther Town

poonther

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Here's how Commissioner Katz sees the biomass deal. I think along the same lines as he does. I even voted for coal, but the more I educate myself on the deal and the more I learn about alternatives, I'm not so sure I'm in favor of it anymore. However I am glad I did not vote for Debbie this last time.

I read with interest Commissioner Debbie Lightsey's characterization of the biomass deal made by the city of Tallahassee with FSU (letter, Jan. 30).

The biomass deal gives the city a commitment from its largest user for the next 13 years, which is a critical part of our need to ensure adequate income to deal with the needs of the utility. Additionally, the establishment of the energy research institute at FSU gives us another way to attract the types of businesses we are pursuing. Finally, the economic development base this plant gives us and the additional tax revenues and jobs created make losing this to another county almost unimaginable. Unless the FSU site had been used, we were not going to have this plant and the attendant economic development in our community.

This plant will help diversify our fuel mix without creating pollution or increasing the carbon-related energy costs that are on the horizon. Perhaps with a few more like it we can save the $1 billion that is currently being proposed for Taylor County for a coal plant that does not even rank as the most current technology.

Then we really could lower every citizen's cost of electricity and help in the effort against greenhouse gases that are destroying our wonderful way of life.

ALLAN KATZ

Tallahassee city commissioner

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seminole Whistle-Stop

seminole

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I wouldn't say I'm a die hard supporter, but she makes a great point. This was the valid reason the City Commission meeting ended the way it did the first go-round. There's always an un-told story and she was truly looking out for the best interest of the rate payers. Afterall, what good are all of these energy projects if they continue to increase in cost to the users. I give her a thumbsup for her stance :thumbsup: even if it came at an unopportune time.

Do not confuse this with me not supporting the project. I'm very much a supporter, only saying Lightsey had good reason to vote the way she did.

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cityboy05 Hamlet

cityboy05

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I am not sure if anyone posted this yet, but the FSU college of music is getting funds for a concert hall. I heard that the concert hall would cost over 30 million dollars! Supposedly FSU is going to give most of the money to the college, they are also trying to get some funds from the state of Florida. If I remember correctly the concert hall would hold about 5,000 people somewhere inside of the Ruby Diamond Auditorium. It was kind of implied that there is a lot of room inside this particular area. This state of the art facility would be used only for the music program @ FSU with acoustics that go way beyond the "average acoustics" that Ruby Diamond posses. I think maybe the students who attend FSU have some kind of idea on this. I am not really sure if to many people know about this. Maybe I wasn't suppose to say anything. O Well!!

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Florida Megalopolis

Florida

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I am not sure if anyone posted this yet, but the FSU college of music is getting funds for a concert hall. I heard that the concert hall would cost over 30 million dollars! Supposedly FSU is going to give most of the money to the college, they are also trying to get some funds from the state of Florida. If I remember correctly the concert hall would hold about 5,000 people somewhere inside of the Ruby Diamond Auditorium. It was kind of implied that there is a lot of room inside this particular area. This state of the art facility would be used only for the music program @ FSU with acoustics that go way beyond the "average acoustics" that Ruby Diamond posses. I think maybe the students who attend FSU have some kind of idea on this. I am not really sure if to many people know about this. Maybe I wasn't suppose to say anything. O Well!!
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stjoe Hamlet

stjoe

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Cityboy,

FSU has publically stated in a few articles (recently) that Ruby diamond would be renovated for a cost of $25 Million.

I want you to be right, but I would put $$$$ on it, that FSU is not doing anything but that. They simply don't have the money. I think the project you are referring to was the old plans (see posted by TJ above) and that died long ago.

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cityboy05 Hamlet

cityboy05

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Well....... I got everything from the Dean of the college music Don Gibson. And he said himself that it is not a renovation project. There will be a separate concert hall, how they are going to pay for it? I really don't know but I am just going by the words of his mouth. And all of this was stated last week Saturday February 24th 2007 in the opperman building between 10- 10:30 A.M. I would really hope that this guy wasn't blowing hot air. That would really look bad on FSU.

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