DAVID ALBERS/STAFF - Collier County Commissioner Tom Henning argues with commissioner Donna Fiala about meeting procedure during a motion to rescind a municipal service benefit unit to repair or replace the La Peninsula developments seawall during the Collier County Commission meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014, in Naples. Collier County keeps La Peninsula sea wall MSBU plan See all 8 photos at full size Previous1 of 8Next In what would be a Collier County first, a new company hopes be the natural gas provider for Immokalee, Ave Maria and the farming areas in northeastern Collier County. Owners of the startup Immokalee Natural Gas have petitioned county commissioners for a franchise agreement that would give them rights to offer the utility in that area. It would mark the county’s first franchise agreement with any private natural gas or electric utility. It would also be the sole natural gas provider in the Immokalee area. Natural gas is expanding throughout the state, said Burt Saunders, the attorney representing Immokalee Natural Gas. We want to get this moving, Saunders said. There are folks in Immokalee that would like to have natural gas. And there are numerous businesses out there wanting to expand, but are waiting for natural gas to do it. A franchise agreement essentially acts as a contract for a private utility provider. It would lay out fees the utility would owe the county for access to right-of-ways and easements. And it would guarantee the utility that Collier County won’t compete with it by offering natural gas on its own, said Jamie French, director of operations and regulatory management. So when that gas company bonds or borrows money they can tell the lender that they are only competing with the open market — not against a local government, French said. Commissioners may require that any utility hoping to operate in the county enter into a franchise agreement. County attorneys will draft several options for a tentative ordinance that would require exactly that. Commissioners will consider the ordinance Feb. 25. Seawall repairs Debate over the creation of a special assessment to fund seawall repairs in front of a private development turned philosophical Tuesday. The La Peninsula condominium association has asked county commissioners to create a municipal service benefit unit at the seven-block condo-development, located just north of Marco Island. While an MSBU isn’t a tax, it operates like one. La Peninsula property owners would pay more on their tax bills every month, and the money would be collected, pooled and used to fund repairs for the development’s seawall. Since the homeowners asked for the special assessment, they are essentially taxing themselves, Commissioner Tim Nance said. But the move has been opposed by several citizen groups, including the Libertarian Party of Collier County. The group’s president, Jared Grifoni, argued the assessment would set a precedent that would allow other condo and homeowners associations in the county and state to rely on special assessments to fund projects to their neighborhoods. There needs to be a clearly identified and concrete public purpose for a county to create an MSBU, Grifoni said. And we just don’t have it. But the commission has argued, during the process of creating the MSBU, that a functioning seawall at the development is to the public’s benefit, because of the property damage that could occur if the wall fails. County Attorney Jeffrey Klatzkow said the commission has the authority to legally create the MSBU under those grounds, but recommended that commissioners bring the issue before a judge in a bond validation proceeding. Commissioners will ask the state attorney general for a legal opinion before any money is collected or spent within the development.
Posted on: Wed, 12 Feb 2014 15:29:59 +0000
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