An Ordinance By The Board Of County Commissioners Of Pasco County, Florida, Dissolving The Fox Ridge Municipal Service Benefit Unit As Of December 31, 2025, And Providing Applicability And An Effective Date.

44:46Okay, we'll close public comment and we'll go to our one thirty Meeting and the first one up is P38.

44:56Do the one thirty eighty eight.

45:01Item D38 was published in the Tampa Times on April 16th, 2025.

45:09I'll read. I think my mic was off. I'll do redo that. I was like, why can't I hear myself? All right. Item P thirty eight was published in the Tampa Times on April 16th, 2025.

45:21Thank you.

45:22Good afternoon, Commissioner. Chairman. So P thirty-eight was pulled. We're going to pull it for further discussion. Did we have to say his name?

45:28Yes. And

45:29this is an ordinance, so it's not pulled. It's it's your presentation. Oh

45:34yes sir, would it would have been a good one?

45:35And I think you should give your name in the department. I'm sorry,

45:38Jerry Williams, Public Infrastructure Fisc Fiscal Business Administration Department.

45:42Thank you.

45:45Okay. PIFA 250253, an ordinance by the Board of County Commissioners, Pasco County, Florida, dissolving the Fox Ridge Municipal Service Benefit as of December 31st, 2025, and providing for an effective date and applicability.

46:04Does everyone need a full presentation?

46:07Absolutely. Okay. Um

46:08I I'm sad that they're doing this personally.

46:10Madam Chairman Mariano.

46:11Yeah.

46:11So I'm gonna say I I don't wanna see this go, but I'll I'll listen to the projection. There's a lot of stormwater stuff still be down out there. Uh you've got money in it. I think we should be looking to try to way to fund it. Let's go study this thing and bring it back to us to study What are the stormwater projects left to do? What's the cost gonna be and then how can we go look at getting funding for it?

46:33Well I heard they have a whole bunch of money in this

46:35They do.

46:36Why don't they put their power lines underground?

46:39I think they

46:39wanna I

46:40won't think they wanna stop flooding first, but either way

46:42let's let's

46:42hear a presentation. But uh

46:44All right. So you and I are kind of alike. So

46:47my apologies,

46:47Commissioner

46:48Yeah. So on uh November thirteenth, twenty twenty four, so the advisory board met. They discussed uh the possibility of uh stormwater improvement projects and also the possibility of dissolving this MSBU. So after further discussion they came to the determination that they did not want to pursue the additional stormwater projects. They wanted to dissolve and receive refunds for the available fund balance.

47:13So the um where is this?

47:17I'm sorry, ma'am. Would you like me to show you?

47:23We got a lot lot of foxes in the Game. What's the chapel?

47:27It's on the south side of 54, near Athon

47:29Floyd. Okay.

47:31Yeah.

47:32This is the old Pasco Heights Road and Bridge District, which is why which is why the MSBU was created in the first place, was to because the Pasco Heights Road and Bridge District was defunct. and the county had to step in and take it over.

47:51All right, but I'll hear the presentation like Commissioner Mariano asked and then we'll Jump

47:56into

47:56it.

47:56So the MSBU consists of 11.51 road miles, 610 ERUs, and 755 acres.

48:07And this is a uh a map depict depicting the boundaries of the MSPU.

48:15And what we uh what we'd like to do is uh recommend accept public comment and adopt the uh the proposed ordinance.

48:24Madam Clerk, Commissioner Weightman. Yeah, so I I was I was asking staff for I need I need more information. I want to see the project, et cetera. I think they're reacting to an advisory board. Now keep in mind this thing has been in place for many, many years, so many years.

48:39I think uh it was approved in two thousand and

48:45I think it was fourteen.

48:46Okay. So with all that said, they've been collecting money, trying to do these projects. They have I think The survivor was good. the desire to end it, but all those people that wanted this since 2014, they were here in this in this very office, uh very uh commission and just saying how they wanted to get this stuff fixed. We had projects together, we had a team going out there. I was out there on the digging the trenches, cleaning some stuff up that needed to be maintained. There's solutions out there to get this fixed. There's like a classic infill that They're you

49:16know, they've been as they've assessed themselves, you know, we've put the MSB in place. It is a great project to finish, but we need to finish it. We can't end it now. And all those people that have contributed over the years to put this money in to get this done should have the problem.

49:31So what so what is it? There's a there is a stormwater

49:34There's a stormwater plan if you'd talk to the plan, that'd be great.

49:37Maybe

49:37Jason could

49:38be a good idea. Yeah.

49:41Uh good afternoon. Um Commissioner's Jason Mickel, Public Works Director. Uh yeah, so we we've been working with this community since twenty fourteen. Um there there's a couple of different items that they'd like to get done in the community. Some of it's stormwater conveyance, some of it was um paving of the roads. So they had they had charge themselves to make some decisions with where they wanted to go. Um when we gave them an estimate on approximately what it would cost for the stormwater plan, it was a lot more than they had collected. So they decided

50:12at that point that there was

50:13But that doesn't mean they don't have responsibilities for their ponds and where's that money gonna come from? Just 'cause they dissolved their little HOA or whatever doesn't mean the rest of the taxpayers are gonna pick it up. So I would be a hundred percent against getting rid of this if that's the way that community is gonna be able to fund their stormwater cleanups.

50:30So as a as an option, um if if it's okay with the board Well, public works could take the lead in meeting with the community again. um and assessing our plan and what we could possibly do with stormwater. Maybe there's some options for some funding um that we can we could provide and then take a look at what else could be done. Now remember we do have an MSTU, right, to do the road paving. So they don't have to

50:53They

50:53don't

50:53have to put it towards the roads, but they can put it towards fixing their stormwater ponds.

50:57Yep, exactly.

50:59I think we should put a plan over the place. But let's full s let's see the full presentation of what's to be done, what can be done, uh then maybe even put a contingent upon when you get the stormwater done, we'll then put the uh road project into the

51:16Yes.

51:17So

51:20And I'm not disagreeing with With either of the commissioners I'm but the historical framework of this was

51:29This land was cut up and subdivided And all its infrastructure was supposed to be put in by the Pasco Heights Road and Bridge District. It was not a county responsibility.

51:42Right.

51:43that was not done. They didn't maintain their roads. When The Road and Bridge District. disappeared. The state told us we had to take it over as the local government of jurisdiction. County Attorney's recommendation at that time was to create this MSBU and at least get them up to a level playing field with the rest of the county network. w once we get them there, it would make sense to

52:13dissolve them and put them into the into the stormwater utility. I mean th they are in the stormwater utility, but have stormwater maintained and the roads maintained based as everybody else has, but To my knowledge, they haven't been brought up to any kind of a level of standard for the county. They've just been collecting money out there.

52:38And and that's why I didn't want to see this thing get dissolved knowing the passion of the people from ten years ago how much they want to get this done.

52:45Yeah.

52:45And we kept it going.

52:46I mean there's regular pond maintenance that subdivisions have to do that cost money and how else how else are they gonna collect the money to do that pond maintenance? How how much is in the fund right now?

52:59It's well it's over a million because Harry's just

53:02a little over a million, yeah.

53:03So can't they

53:04start Pond by pond, cleaning it up. Just to just to clarify, th there is more than just pond maintenance out there.

53:13Well they gotta start

53:14fixing it.

53:17We can increase the MSPU so it gets fixed.

53:20Well Madam Chairman, I I'll I'll caution you a little bit with with the response you may get back because this is a butting to a MetalPoint community. They're saying that when Metapoint committed actually made it worse for 'em. So I think it's we just need to take step by step and literally go study, look at it. And I th and I I frankly think that we should be looking to the state uh is for matching funds with the million dollars we got, maybe another million. Now it shortens the gap up, maybe makes it affordable. And maybe they say, you know what, this is worth doing. But I think we need to really take a little close look at this, rather than dissolve it, let's go look at it,

53:50go back to the people, go back and study it, get the state rep involved, get the state senator involved, and find out what we can do. Because as you know, Senator Burgess even says we want to see these things done. Let's let them look at it. Maybe you can step in and help us as well. Because I mean, with the million dollars and knowing these people wanted this for ten years ago, I I think it's worth taking a bigger step rather than just dissolving this thing.

54:13Or you can get the other uh matching file. That's

54:17what I'm saying. That's why I'm talking about the state.

54:22You could Stormwater.

54:24They do that all the time.

54:26Yeah, why why not try?

54:28All right, well uh there may be residents here who want to speak um Is there anyone here that wants to speak on this issue?

54:36Madam Chair, I have no one signed up and no one on WebX for this item.

54:43I'll take a motion.

54:47What's the mechanism to make make them spend the money?

54:53Because ultimately they're looking s for tax relief, right? That's why they're doing it so they don't have to keep paying more into the tax fund. It's pretty simple.

55:02No. Yeah,

55:03if they get rid of their if they get rid of their MSPU then they all get refunded, then they're only paying the MSTU for the rope paving. So they're looking at tax relief. They're looking to try to not have to pay more in taxes. That's probably the thought behind this, which is a fair thought. I don't blame them. Oh I don't

55:17do it.

55:17But if there's a million bucks sitting in there and it's just compounding and it's still being what's the mechanism to to make to spend this money? Can the county say spin it or they have to say spin it or what's the what's the rules of it? This is your

55:30MSPU. It would uh public works would be the one doing the projects.

55:35So then my question is Why hasn't been public works been going into the fun and getting some level of work done over the last ten plus ten years?

55:47Yeah, I think Jason can probably speak to that. There's just been a number of um I guess I'll just use chicken in the egg sort of conversations if they relate to roads.

55:57They're gonna want to get rid of it 'cause they're not seeing any action.

56:00Until they get flooded, then they what happened?

56:03These folks have been living

56:07They know what they're living. They know where they're living, they understand their community and the lay of the land. Literally. So

56:14But Commissioner Weightman, if I could, Commissioner Weightman, keep this in mind. We were here with the public hearing this and they were all complaining about the flooding, the flooding, the flooding. The reason the MSB was created is to solve those things. Now they haven't Maybe we haven't done the assessment high enough for it yet? But again waiting for the projects to be brought, I think now is the perfect time to go look at everything. These people put themselves in the position of we had to solve it, this was the solution. We just haven't executed yet. We need to execute it before we dissolve it.

56:43And you've not been here when we've d solved it this way, but this is how this got solved for your golf course community and they're flooding. And they're still Timber

56:50Oaks.

56:51Exactly. MS

56:51BU. I understand. My question is Why hasn't the county taken the funds and put the funds to work? Now when it's triple the cost today than what it was over the course of time.

57:08Yes sir. So so my my understanding, but I would just defer it to uh to Jason. So that the requirement to get them in a better situation in terms of stormwater runoff was going to be in happened in several phases. So I believe a single phase has occurred, but additional phases would have had to happen, and those additional phases would have caused an increase in their assessment. So they made the determination based upon estimated costs to pause. So

57:33I use the analogy how many traffic accidents need to happen before they get help, before they get a red light. That's the same

57:40And well they've they've adopted the MSBU adopts a paygo model. So they until they have the funds to do the next phase of the project, nothing happens.

57:48Well then w then th then we're going in the wrong direction. Sorry.

57:52So if we can't do anything with it, either give it back to 'em.

57:55No.

57:56Or we need to get work because it's just gonna get worse and worse and worse. And the funds aren't gonna keep up with the volume of work that needs to happen.

58:03I say let's find a way to help them get it done. I'm

58:05Museum.

58:07Yeah. Because they're gonna get flooded.

58:09And and again I I I think I think we all need to go back and look at historically what happened, how this all happened, go look at the minutes, maybe get them produced for us, send us the links so we can listen to what the testimony was done way back when. Historically, I think it will be very helpful. And then I I would like to g give staff time to go out and study it. Put a financial plan together, bring it back to us, let's go look at it, and then we can make a full good a very good decision uh to what's the best thing to do. But we don't have enough information that yet, and I certainly don't want to close this thing out now. So I'm gonna move to continue. Do you think th

58:39n is ninety days enough or any longer?

58:41Ninety days is fair.

58:42Alright, so let me continue this ninety

58:44days. August the August fifth. Um your next day the Dade City meeting in the ninety day region would be August fifth at one thirty or soon thereafter. So

58:54Um and under discussion. I heard so based on what Commissioner Weightman said, you had M S B U and M STU?

59:02Well yeah, the MSTU is county wide. Wait, wait.

59:06Oh the local one. Okay. So

59:09they don't have to worry about paving anymore. We just want to focus on the stormwater maintenance and whatever it is that needs to happen. So all in favor? Aye. Aye. All right, good. Thank you. P thirty nine.