County Commission confirms CR 337 will not be prioritized, moves forward with solid waste facilities in Newberry, hears update on syringe exchange program

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – At their October 24 Regular Meeting, the Alachua County Commission voted to make improvements to CR 337 in 2030-31 as previously planned, decided to move forward with solid waste facilities in Newberry, and heard an update on its syringe exchange program.

Solid Waste and Resource Recovery Facilities

Gus Olmos, Director of Solid Waste and Resource Recovery, gave a presentation that reviewed previous direction from the Board, including a vote in March 2020 to approve construction of a new Rural Collection Center and Hazardous Waste Collection Facility. In June 2021, the Board directed staff to explore the option of locating those facilities in the Newberry Environmental Park. In June 2023, the Board directed staff to continue working on a draft interlocal agreement with Newberry covering the solid waste facilities, a fire training facility, and a meat processing facility; the Newberry City Commission asked that CR 337 be moved up on the County’s road improvement list in exchange for the land for the facilities, the County Commission later voted against the meat processing facility, and the fire training facility has also been set aside.

Olmos presented three options for solving capacity issues at the Hazardous Collection Facility at Leveda Brown Environmental Park and the High Springs/Alachua Rural Collection Center: 

• Option A: Close the High Springs/Alachua Rural Collection Center and build new rural collection and hazardous waste collection facilities between High Springs and Newberry. Olmos said staff has not found a suitable location and is no longer pursuing this option.
• Option B: Keep the High Springs/Alachua facility open and build new rural collection and hazardous waste collection facilities at the Newberry Environmental Park.
• Option C: Address capacity issues using County-owned properties and facilities, including a new hazardous collection center at the Ecoloop and using the existing facility as a bulk storage facility.

Olmos said one way to reduce traffic at the High Springs/Alachua facility would be to build a bigger reuse area in Archer to attract people to that facility. He also said that the closed Northwest Landfill could take yard waste and maybe recyclables, also reducing traffic at the High Springs/Alachua facility. Olmos added that the County plans to relocate the fire station near the High Springs/Alachua Rural Collection Center in the next two or three years, and that will also provide more space for the Rural Collection Center. His recommendation was Option C–building a new facility at the EcoLoop, upgrading the Archer facility, and making the recommended changes at the Northwest Landfill.

Alford: Archer may not welcome expanded collection center

Commissioner Mary Alford asked Olmos to speak with the City of Archer about the plan because the City “really feels like they’ve had garbage being dumped on them in the past, and that’s really affected them economically. And while I see this as a different kind of facility, I’m not sure it’s going to be perceived that way by the residents or welcomed.”

Olmos pointed out the Northwest Landfill on a map; it’s off NW 173rd Street, south of U.S. Hwy 441 in Alachua. He said it is not currently in use except for a club that flies remote-controlled planes and that using it as a yard waste facility would not affect that because the yard waste collection would be near the front gate.

In response to questions from Commissioner Marihelen Wheeler about why Olmos did not recommend proceeding with the Newberry facilities, Olmos said all the options are good, but the advantage of Option C is that the County would only build one new facility, while they would need to build two new facilities with Option B.

Prizzia: “We have a willing partner” in Newberry

Prizzia said she preferred Newberry because “we have a willing partner in a municipality, willing to give us land and let us build something that’s halfway between Archer and High Springs and is super easy for our residents from all different areas to go. We could build a new state-of-the-art facility that would have all the same things you just suggested we might build at Archer and might attract people.”

Prizzia said Olmos did not have data or community engagement to back up his hopes that upgrading the Archer facility would attract more people to that facility. She continued, “So I’m just wondering why staff’s recommendation is the alternative, why you wouldn’t go with a partnership and land.” She said it seemed “pretty straightforward” to move forward with a rural collection facility in Newberry, but she was open to considering other sites for a hazardous waste facility and said the County could put hazardous waste collection sites both in Newberry and at the EcoLoop site.

Olmos said Prizzia was correct and that they could “mix and match.”

Commissioner Ken Cornell said he viewed additional capacity at the Archer facility “as more of an upgrade to the facility, which we’re already using.” He said he was okay with Option C, as recommended by staff, and added that he didn’t think that would “close out a Newberry option,” which they could look at again in 3-5 years. 

Prizzia said one thing the Board has been “hammering up here again and again… is community input and community engagement, [and] there’s been none on this. In Newberry there has been plenty, and they were very supportive.” She said they would still have to “build stuff” in Archer, High Springs, and at the EcoLoop, “so I just feel like this is sort of like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole, and I’m trying to get to why.” She pointed out that there’s no demand at Archer; the demand is in High Springs, and there’s no data to show that people who live in High Springs would be willing to drive to Archer to use that facility.

Olmos said they’re not trying to get High Springs residents to drive to Archer but to get the people who live in the middle to go to Archer instead of High Springs by offering more convenient services there.

Chestnut: “Real serious concerns about the Springs County stuff”

Commissioner Chuck Chestnut said, “You know, I stated my concerns earlier on, the last time we talked about the Newberry stuff, and I had some real serious concerns about the Springs County stuff. And my feelings haven’t changed at all because I have not heard any Commissioner from the City of Newberry say that they support or do not support Springs County. And I just have issues with putting resources somewhere where we don’t know what the future is. People have continued to talk about Springs County, and they’re saying it’s one Commissioner. But to me silence is consent, when you don’t hear the other Commissioners say that they don’t support that. So I don’t know what to think.”

Prizzia asked Chestnut, “So you’re okay with us just doing it in Archer and hoping it works?”

“When certain things don’t go a certain way, we talk about Springs County, it’s sort of like threaten [sic] us to do something that someone else wants done. And I just have issues with that. I really, really do… I mean, at some point, the legislature might change its mind and say, go ahead. We don’t know. And the way things are going nationally and stuff, that can happen. So that’s just my concern.” – Commissioner Chuck Chestnut

Chestnut responded, “I have no problem with that. But I’m just saying, I just need more information here… I have nothing against Newberry. I’m just tired of being an elected official and hearing about Springs County. I’m really upset about that. Because if you don’t like Alachua County, what is the issue here? What is wrong with Alachua County? We as a Commission have tried to address all of the issues and all of our small municipalities and tried to create a relationship with them so that we’re all on the same page here. But I’m just tired of that popping up every now and then. When certain things don’t go a certain way, we talk about Springs County, it’s sort of like threaten [sic] us to do something that someone else wants done. And I just have issues with that. I really, really do. And, you know, I love Alachua County. I live in Alachua County. And so it’s very important to me that we maintain Alachua County and not create a new county in Alachua County… And years ago, Gilchrist County was a part of Alachua County. But then it came that way, so I mean, I’m just concerned. I mean, at some point, the legislature might change its mind and say, go ahead. We don’t know. And the way things are going nationally and stuff, that can happen. So that’s just my concern.”

Prizzia: Springs County is “sort of a ridiculous notion”

Prizzia responded, “We have to recognize that we are Alachua County. And what makes us great is the fact that we take care of all of our residents and that we really focus on service delivery for our residents. And the majority of our residents–… we have a huge population that lives on the western side of our county, which is, you know, one noisy Commissioner who has a bad opinion and some of his constituents have decided that they want to secede. But clearly our legislators made the point, and we’ve all made the point, that we recognize that that’s sort of a ridiculous notion–you know, we’re not going to split up our county, and they would be fiscally constrained and wouldn’t even be able to provide the services that are necessary. We have an obligation and an opportunity to provide those quality resources and we have a willing partner in a municipality to provide us land resources to build it on. And meanwhile, we’re over here trying to cobble together an alternative plan… To me, [Newberry is] just a win-win scenario… And I hear you that the politics are ugly… But we as elected officials, in my opinion, sometimes have to rise above those ugly politics and do what’s best for our people.”

CR 337 traffic study

Public Works Director Ramon Gavarrete presented a traffic study that had been performed on CR 337. The consultant found 25 crashes between January 2018 and December 2022, two of which were fatal. Both fatal crashes involved drivers who were under the influence. The study found that seven crashes were “correctable,” meaning some kind of improvement to the road would have prevented the crash. The consultant also found that seven more correctable crashes are anticipated by 2035, and with a projected increase in traffic from development, 13 crashes are anticipated by 2035. Gavarrete summarized, “Having said that, that is still not what will be considered a crash problem on any roadway.”

Gavarrete also showed the costs and anticipated crash reduction benefit for three improvement options for the road, and none of them exceeded the recommended cost/benefit ratio. Gavarrete acknowledged that CR 337 is a substandard road, but “that does not mean that it’s an unsafe road.” 

Improvement of the first section from the second curve to the county line is planned for 2030, and the second section, from the state road to the second curve, is planned for 2031. Gavarrete’s recommendation was to maintain that schedule. 

First motion – Option C and maintain road schedule

Cornell made a motion to adopt staff’s recommendation (improve CR 337 in 2030 and 2031), go with Option C on waste collection, and perform community engagement to obtain feedback on improving both the Archer and High Springs Rural Collection Centers. Chestnut seconded the motion.

Cornell said that if staff comes back and says Archer doesn’t want to improve its current facility, the Commission may consider other options, including Newberry: “I’m not closing out the Newberry option in the future. I think we may also need Newberry in five years… We’ve kind of been on pause, I feel like, for over a year.”

Alford said that since they’re ready to move forward in Newberry, taking the time to do community engagement is “keeping it on pause… I can’t support your motion.”

Wheeler said she didn’t want to go against Gavarrete’s recommendation, but “I know that I will disappoint my Newberry friends if I don’t advocate [for putting the waste collection facilities in Newberry]… But in terms of the road, I feel like I have to support what [Gavarrete] is advocating, in terms of the timeline… So I am good with leaving the facility in Newberry and hope to goodness that they would feel like they could compromise with us–if we’re providing the facility, then they could compromise with us on the road just a little bit longer.”

Prizzia: “I feel like we could bond this road, we could get this project done”

Prizzia said Newberry was not asking the County to change their “pavement management system. They’re asking us to do something different… I understand sticking with our pavement management system and our plan, but we could bond this road and do it… I feel like we could bond this road, we could get this project done, we could solve a lot of our problems to get a win-win with this Rural Collection Facility and the Hazardous Waste Facility on the west side.” She also said the County should address the curves on CR 337, which is not in the current plan.

Cornell said he thought it was “out of order” to tell staff to go issue a bond to fix CR 337; he said if they were to decide to issue a bond, they should ask staff to come back with priorities for using those funds. He said Newberry could implement impact fees for the development there and come back to the County with funds to move up the road improvements.

“And now that we’ve gone to these districting issues that we’ve got, you know, we have to really pay attention to the people who we are actually representing here on this board.” – Commissioner Marihelen Wheeler

Wheeler said CR 337 isn’t the only road in her district that’s in bad shape: “I’ve got… 235A, that everybody keeps talking about? That’s in my district. And now that we’ve gone to these districting issues that we’ve got, you know, we have to really pay attention to the people who we are actually representing here on this board… I’m hearing from Newberry, who is, you know, folks, I’m supposed to be speaking for here, because there’s no one here to speak for them, that they want this waste collection center over there, and in the sense of good horse trading, they wanted the road to be a part of that deal… In fairness to the community, we need to have that vote.”

Chestnut: “We’re going to eventually ignore the equity process of the whole plan.”

Chestnut pointed out that the County paid a consultant to develop the Pavement Management Plan with an equity component, and “I like to stick to the plan. See if the plan works. If the plan doesn’t work, then we make changes or tweak the plan. But we haven’t even given an opportunity to see if it works or not.” He said other municipalities would start asking to have their roads moved up if the County moves CR 337 up on the list. He said he wasn’t against putting the waste processing facilities in Newberry, but he didn’t want them tied to improving the road. He concluded, “Now it’s like we’re picking and choosing what areas we want to do, and so we’re going to eventually ignore the equity process of the whole plan.”

Prizzia said she didn’t want to change the order but wanted to move things along faster by issuing bonds. But she also said, “I think that a project-based decision is different than a Pavement Management System… This is a conversation about a very specific project in a very specific place that benefits our community.”

County Manager Michele Lieberman said the County is already bonding large projects and that issuing bonds now would only get them a few years down the list; she also said that if they issued a bond for CR 337, they might not have the bonding capacity they need when they get to large projects that are ahead of CR 337 in the list. She said CR 337 is slated to be bonded in 2028.

Alford said the City of Newberry would need to accept the traffic study. “And… if they’re willing to go forward, and under those conditions, we would say we’re not doing the road until the traffic study says that it’s required to be safe, right?… And so if they don’t want to go forward with the road, then they don’t get the project. I think it’s pretty simple. And then we go to other alternatives.”

Cornell’s motion failed, 2-3, with Cornell and Chestnut voting in the affirmative.

Second motion – Option B and maintain road schedule until traffic study results indicate road is unsafe

Alford made a motion to go forward with Option B, and if Newberry is unwilling to go forward, given the results of the traffic study, then go to Option C with community engagement. Wheeler seconded the motion. Prizzia clarified that the County will communicate to Newberry that they plan to improve the road in 2030, and if Newberry is not okay with that, they will move to Option C. Alford also clarified that if a future traffic study shows that the road is unsafe, the County will then “do what is required.”

Cornell asked to split the motion. Prizzia said Cornell just wanted to split the motion so he could vote to maintain the Pavement Management Program, “so he can pretend like he’s throwing [Alford] a bone. It’s not true, Ken, because we already have [the schedule for improving the roads].”

Cornell said he just wanted the Board to confirm that they’re not deviating from their road plan: “We’re not horse-trading.”

Lieberman said the Board had previously voted in Newberry to move CR 337 up on the list, so if they wanted to do something different, she needed clear direction.

Alford modified her motion to give direction that the County will not be improving CR 337 because the traffic study shows it’s not needed, “so that would be a misuse of taxpayer money.” She said they could revisit that in the future if a traffic study says otherwise.

The motion for Option B (keeping the High Springs/Alachua facility open and building a new Rural Collection and Hazardous Waste Collection facility at the Newberry Environmental Park) passed 3-2, with Cornell and Chestnut in dissent.

Prizzia: “Don’t you all think we need to fix those curves?”

Before taking a vote on the motion to keep CR 337 at its current place on the road improvement list, Prizzia said she didn’t want to vote for the motion because “our transportation improvement plan doesn’t include fixing those curves. Don’t you all think we need to fix those curves?”

Gavarrete said he didn’t include fixing curves because there is no funding to buy right-of-way. He said decisions on safety improvements will be made closer to the construction date, depending on funding and other factors.

Alford’s motion to make no changes to the road improvement schedule passed unanimously.

Syringe exchange program

Alachua County Support Services Director Claudia Tuck provided an update on the County’s syringe exchange program.

The program was started after an ordinance was passed in 2020, and the County later signed an agreement with the Alachua County Health Department to partner in the program. After some false starts in efforts to obtain an operator for the program, the County learned in March 2023 that the Florida Harm Reduction Collective was willing to be the operator. Tuck said the County is still looking for funding to actually implement the program.

Cornell made a motion to approve the oversight plan before the presentation from the operator, and the motion passed unanimously. Alford thanked Tuck for her efforts: “This is so important.” Prizzia agreed, “Yes, it’s really important.”

Tim Santamour from Florida Harm Reduction Collective gave a presentation in which he said they receive funding from “a lot of organizations from around the country and international, and that’s how we plan to fund this program.”

Casey Willey, who founded the local organization Out of Harm’s Reach, said her mission is to “reduce the number of accidental deaths, illnesses, and/or diseases related to substance use in our community, and we do that through education, advocacy, and empowerment.” Her organization distributes free Narcan and does training for recognizing and preventing overdoses. 

Santamour said the Collective just received a grant from Gilead to do Hepatitis C testing and treatment navigation that will allow them to employ one full-time person. He added, “We do not plan on using any taxpayer dollars to purchase any of the materials that may be prohibited under state law. But there are other funds out there that we’ve secured.”

In response to a question from Alford, Willey said citizens can get Narcan by doing a web search on “free Narcan near me.” Alford encouraged everyone who works downtown to “have Narcan easily available, because it’s a real problem.”