Newberry City Commission approves Comprehensive Plan update, pre-authorizes funding for Newberry Community School
BY DAVID LIGHTMAN
NEWBERRY, Fla. – At their November 18 Special Meeting, the Newberry City Commission approved an ordinance to update Newberry’s Comprehensive Plan and agreed to authorize additional funding for the Newberry Community School and draft a letter of financial support to be included in the school’s charter application.
Comprehensive Plan update
City Attorney Scott Walker introduced the first reading of an ordinance to update the City’s Comprehensive Plan. Director of Community Development Stacey Hectus said it is a two-year process, and they are almost at the finish line. The Planning and Zoning Board recommended approval of the update at their November 4 meeting, Hectus said. She discussed the timeline of the project since May 2023, which included a workshop and other opportunities for public input. Hectus said the recommended action is to approve the ordinance and authorize staff to transmit the petition to the State for review, and after the 45-day approval process, the Commission can pass the Comprehensive Plan update on second reading in January or February.
Hectus showed the following slide listing the eleven categories addressed in the Comprehensive Plan. She said CHW Professional Consultants was hired to complete the first three categories, and the last two, highlighted in gray, did not require any changes. Gerry Dedenbach of CHW Professional Consultants explained that some outdated requirements were removed from each category while new requirements were added. (See slide below.)
Dedenbach and Hectus discussed each category and its goals, which included “naturally-occurring affordable housing” in the Housing category. Commissioner Mark Clark thanked Hectus and Dedenbach for spending so much time working one-on-one with all the Commissioners. Commissioner Tim Marden said he didn’t like some aspects that he believes are beyond the scope of what government should be involved in, such as a living wage, sustainability, and climate change. Commissioner Tony Mazon made a motion to approve the Comprehensive Plan ordinance, and Commissioner Clark seconded the motion. It passed unanimously.
Newberry Community School update
With two Sheriff’s Deputies seated next to the City Attorney due to concerns about emotions running high on the charter school agenda item, Mayor Jordan Marlowe addressed the audience and asked them to act like role models for their kids and speak politely and respectfully as they entered the next phase of the meeting. Marlowe introduced the Chair of the Newberry Community School Board, Derek Danne, to give an update on the conversion of Newberry Elementary to a public charter school.
Danne said, “Our team of experts are putting the finishing touches on our application, which is due to the Florida Charter Review Commission on November 26th. We’ve been meeting with teachers throughout the application process and received valuable feedback that has been very helpful in drafting sections of the application, including, but not limited to, curriculum and discipline. This was important to us because we wanted input from those serving within our school community.
“Some key points from our application that our board is excited to share with you relates to our teacher benefits. We do plan and we will be able to increase the average salary per teacher. This was offered as a campaign promise, and we have worked hard to ensure that we are taking better care of our teachers. Teachers will also remain in the state FRS system, and through our partnership with the City, we hope and we plan to be able to provide richer and more flexible healthcare benefits to all teachers and full-time staff. We will be able to transfer leave benefits, accrued sick leave.
“Also, as far as curriculum, we intend to implement a STEAM curriculum. For those of you not familiar, STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. We listened to our teachers, and they wanted to provide a more robust curriculum with less focus on standardized tests and [more] on real-world applications.
“We also are offering improved student services, and we’ve planned to have a fully-funded transportation and food service plan. This will provide transportation to all students who attend the school. We also plan to have an ESE Pre-K, and that will stay with the school. And we will provide ESE services, especially those as required by state and federal law. We’re excited about these key points in our application. We’re excited to present this to the folks in Tallahassee. We’re excited about getting their review and approval.
“So, on behalf of the Newberry Community School Board, I’m requesting the City be a funding backstop with a commitment of $2,201,000 from the City of Newberry to support the establishment of the Newberry Community School once the application is approved in February. This figure includes what the Newberry Community School Board already owes the City [$120,000] for partnering with us and helping with the application process. It includes every worst-case scenario, both on revenue and expenditures, and even planning for the worst case, we were able to put forth a balanced budget that keeps maximum dollars in our classrooms for the children.
“It’s also important to note – I do want to stress that this amount that we’re requesting is contingent on the application being approved. Additionally, I also want to stress that it is our hope and our goal that we will not have to utilize all these funds, that we will intend to exhaust all other sources of public and private dollars that are available to us in the creation the school, and finally, we expect that we will have an answer from the Florida Charter Review Commission in February.
“If approved, the anticipated opening date for the school would be August of 2026. I believe you’ve been provided a packet with the breakdown of the formal request, including what that figure entails and our plan for repayment. We, as a board, are asking you to make this commitment to building a strong, sustainable educational Institution for our community. With this funding commitment, the City of Newberry will be a key partner in supporting our shared vision of high-quality, accessible education for all children in our community. I hope that the work this board has done in keeping every campaign promise, from better teacher pay to being more responsive to our teachers, is visible to everyone who is paying attention to this effort. And with that, we would ask for a motion in support of our children, in support of our teachers, and in support of our community who voted in favor of this work, and thank you for your time.”
Marlowe: “Pretty much everything you said during the campaign”
Mayor Marlowe said, “What you’re telling me is that you and your team… have actually managed to balance the budget, increase teacher pay, keep the better, richer healthcare, [and] be more responsive. Pretty much everything you said during the campaign… It’s what Newberry has continued to do over and over and over again. We hit the mark. We set the goal. So it is amazing because I knew that it was going to be tight, but to hear you stand and say that now we’re here and all of those campaign promises have been met, it truly is amazing.”
Clark asked about potential grants and how those will be used. Danne answered, “Assuming those grants come through, we would be able to pay those funds back quicker than the schedule that’s been presented [with repayment planned to begin in 2030].” Marlowe added that waiting until 2026 to open the school allows more time to apply for and receive grant money.
Motion
City Manager Mike New said he had planned to give a brief presentation, but all of the points were covered in Danne’s detailed update. After some discussion, Marlowe asked for a motion. Mazon made a motion to pre-authorize the requested funding and draft a letter of financial support for the charter school application, as New suggested, and Marden seconded the motion.
During public comments, Jessica Carey said, “For too long, we have witnessed a lack of accountability and failure to provide the resources and leadership our children deserve. Not only our children, but also the teachers in our community. What the County has provided is excuses, failing infrastructure, and a focus on divisionary issues in our community versus the safety and education the 29,000 students and families that it serves. This conversion charter is not just a step toward independence. It’s a giant leap and unique opportunity towards excellence… It allows us to create a tailored approach to education that reflects our unique and special needs of our community, not that of Gainesville.”
The motion passed unanimously.
Let me be sure I understand. Newberry increased property taxes by not rolling back the millage rate, and now, even though we pay our public school property tax, our city taxes are also going to this “loan”? All for a project that didn’t pass the vote threshold in the original statute? Not to mention that the leader of the effort is still in jail. Nothing to see here.
You’ve got it backwards. Here’s the statute: “An application submitted proposing to convert an existing public school to a charter school shall demonstrate the support of at least 50 percent of the teachers employed at the school and 50 percent of the parents voting whose children are enrolled at the school.”
The FLDOE regulation at the time incorrectly said “a majority” and has now been changed to align with the statute. The vote passed with a majority of the parents and 50% of the teachers.
OK. Newberry raises property taxes, water rates, etc. cuz it is broke. Newberry is imposing impact fees, Newberry is begging Tallahassee for giveaway welfare grants to build their new sewer plant cuz they cannot afford to pay for the plant their rapid sprawl development is causing. Newberry approved two CDDs, allowing developers to borrow money that neither they nor Newberry can afford and kick the can down the road and let suckers who buy into the new developments pay for.
Newberry said they want to get Title 1 grants from the Federal Department of Education. To qualify 40% of the students need to be from poverty families. Do they qualify? And did they not notice that Donald Trump wants to eliminate the Department of Education so it looks like Trump will be eliminating Title 1 funding. Bad timing.
Where the holy **** is Newberry going to get the $2 Million to loan this charter school? No mention of that.
Interesting Crickets, all your false claims are interesting to read but what you failed to comprehend is the plans to eliminate the federal department of education bureaucracy doesn’t mean the elimination of federal education funding; rather the funding is allocated to the states to monitor and apply as they see fit. Trump and Vance believe in state run education which given the current leadership in Florida would benefits Newberry community. It’s called federalism and it’s how the founding fathers wanted our country to succeed. Less red tape means less waste, and efficient spending of funding to educating our children.
Additionally, if you looked into the 50 year strategic city plan from early 2024 or 25 year community plan discussed and approved by the commission last night you will understand the cities detailed plans for this approved growth.
Based on your response you may want to review those cause your ill informed .
Also, please educate yourself on governmental educational funding perhaps actually understand the application for charter conversion before you make such broad assumptions because there are several methods of funding that would be available, applied for, and if only 1 comes through the need of back stop line of credit is not needed.
The legal and financial professionals (best in this state) have insured this application are setting this charter conversion for success. This completion of experts and community members been able to do better with less than ACPS. Maybe you should be questioning why ACPS fails to do the same with so much more?
This is positive change and fear claims of raising taxes is just that fear. FYI, Newberry cannot raise taxes for education to all taxpayers for charter conversion so please do not make false claims.
None of us have any idea what eliminating the Dept of Education would mean, especially given the kind of governance we’re likely to get from Trump’s Molesting with the Stars cabinet choices and Vance who’ll say and do anything anytime if it advances Vance.
I don’t think “federalism” envisioned taxes collected at productive blue counties, cities, and states being handed out to dead end red locations with no strings attached (70% of GDP produced by Biden locations last time, down to about 61% Harris this election). But hey, the same guys came up with slave state give-aways – including 3/5 of a person – when busy with that foundering (missing “L” is not a typo).
And building on top of lynching sites!!!