Title
Interlocal Agreement for Public School Facility Planning (B)
The purpose of this item is to update the City Commission and the general public on the required school concurrency-related Interlocal Agreement for Public School Facility Planning, and for the City Commission to approve the updated agreement by resolution for submission to the Department of Community Affairs.
Explanation
The Interlocal Agreement for Public School Facility Planning that was adopted in November 2003 by the School Board of Alachua County, the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners, the Cities of Gainesville, Alachua, Archer, Hawthorne, High Springs, Newberry, and Waldo, and the Towns of LaCrosse and Micanopy established a framework for better coordination of local government and school facilities planning programs. The current agreement was not construed to require school concurrency. In 2005, Florida Statutes were amended to require that all local governments and school boards adopt school concurrency no later than December 1, 2008. By July 1, 2008, local governments in Alachua County must adopt a Public School Facility Element and make other school concurrency related comprehensive plan amendments. Also required by the 2005 statutory changes are revisions to the interlocal agreements for public school facility planning.
The interlocal agreements must be updated to include provisions on school concurrency implementation, public schools facilities elements, public schools capital facility programs, level of service standards, geographic application; and proportionate share mitigation. A staff working group of the School Board, local governments including Gainesville, and the North Central Florida Regional Planning Council has been meeting since the fall of 2005, and has prepared the draft update of the Interlocal Agreement for Public School Facility Planning. The working group has made presentations on the updated agreement at the Elected Officials meetings of November 15, 2005 and May 18, 2006, at the joint meeting of the School Board and the Alachua County Commission on November 15, 2005, and at public workshops on February 22nd, March 30th and May 16th.
Staff made a presentation to the City Commission on June 16, 2006. Concern about disproportionate (with respect to population) representation on the School Planning Advisory Committee (SPAC) was expressed during discussion by the Commission. This concern was presented by City staff to the staff working group at its July 20, 2006 meeting and was discussed further when the staff group met on August 10th. The other members of the group did not recommend that revisions to the SPAC representation provisions be made at this time. The staff working group agreed that these and other provisions of the interlocal agreement will need to be revisited as the comprehensive plan amendments to implement school concurrency by July 1, 2008 are developed.
The draft agreement was sent to the Florida Department of Community Affairs (DCA) by July 1, 2006 under the terms of the grant received by the School Board for preparing the interlocal agreement earlier than statutorily required. The final agreement must be approved by the School Board and the various local governments, and then submitted to DCA by September 1, 2006.
Fiscal Note
None
Recommendation
The City Commission: 1) Approve the proposed updated Interlocal Agreement for Public School Facility Planning, and revisit the issue of representation on the School Planning Advisory Committee prior to adoption of the comprehensive plan amendments that are required for the implementation of school concurrency by July 1, 2008; and 2) adopt the interlocal agreement and adopt the resolution.
Alternative Recommendation A: The City Commission not approve the proposed updated Interlocal Agreement for Public School Facility Planning until such time as the representation issue is resolved.