Here are some topics from the last Board of County Commissioners meeting. If you want to know more, you can read the agendas and minutes as they get posted in the link below, and you can watch the meeting in full on our Facebook page or website here: https://clayfl.new.swagit.com/videos/196436.
Presentation on TPO Priority Projects by municipalities – the presentation starts at 46:24
Commissioners heard presentations by the Town of Orange Park and the Cities of Green Cove Springs and Keystone Heights about their priority transportation projects for the Transportation Planning Organization. The Town of Orange Park requested the Board support two trail projects and add them to the TPO priority project list and the county trail master plan. The projects include a .95-mile connection to the Black Creek to Doctors Lake Trail and a 1.9-mile Doctors Lake Extension along the CSX rail line north to the county line at NAS Jacksonville. The City of Green Cove Springs requested support for two trail projects including the State Road 16 east multi-use trail, which would run from the eastern city limits to Spring Park. The second trail project runs along State Road 16 /US 17 from Reynolds Park to Spring Park and will connect to the First Coast Expressway Connector Road. The City of Keystone Heights has requested that the Airport Road resurfacing project remain on the TPO priority list.
Presentation on Small Business Administration Disaster Assistance Loans – the presentation starts at 1:16:50
Brian Beard with the Small Business Administration provided information on low-interest Economic Injury Disaster Loans available in Clay County. Small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture, and private nonprofit organizations that sustained a drop in income indirectly caused by Hurricanes Nicole or Ian can apply for low-interest loans of up to $2 million to help meet working capital needs. These loans are available even if the business or non-profit did not have any physical damage from the hurricanes and can be used to cover operating expenses such as salaries, rent, and utilities. There is no cost to apply, no interest or payments for the first year, and a loan term of up to 30 years. After the first year, the interest rate for businesses is as low as 3.04% for Ian and 3.3% for Nicole, and for nonprofits, the interest rate is 1.875% for Ian and 2.375% for Nicole. The deadline to apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans is June 29 for Ian and September 13, 2023, for Nicole. Applications can be completed online at https://disasterloanassistance.sba.gov/ela/s/. More information is available through the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955. There will also be a training and workshop sponsored by the UNF Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the SBA at the Jacksonville main library on February 16 from 2-4 p.m., to provide assistance with the application or appeal process. No registration is required.
Regional Park Funding – the discussion starts at 1:57:26
Assistant County Manager Troy Nagle explained the funding options available for the Clay County Regional Park project. If commissioners choose the eight multi-purpose field designs over the five multi-purpose field designs, the cost would be $3.3 million above what is in the current budget for the park. There are $3.1 million in reserves in ARPA that can be moved to cover most of the additional costs to build the full eight fields. There would still be a $200,000 deficit that could be covered by moving funds from the CIP Land Acquisition budget. Commissioners also discussed some funding options that could cover the cost of adding turn lanes at the park entrance. County tourism and parks and recreation staff explained that many tournaments require more than five fields to prevent having to split a tournament between two different park locations or displacing regular user groups. The eight-field option would boost economic development and allow more public recreational use of the facility. Commissioners were all in agreement that the eight multi-purpose field design option was the best for Clay County.
Public Hearing on the adoption of an Ordinance amending Ordinance No. 89-54, Solicitation on Public Road Rights-of-Way
Commissioners held a Public Hearing on the adoption of an Ordinance amending Ordinance No. 89-54, Solicitation on Public Road Rights-of-Way. Commissioners voted to adopt the ordinance that prohibits people from using a public road right-of-way in a way that interferes with the safe and efficient movement of people or vehicles on a public road, street, or highway in the unincorporated areas of Clay County. Specifically, the ordinance prohibits activities that endanger motorists and pedestrians such as engaging in any physical interaction between a pedestrian and an occupant of a motor vehicle and stopping, standing, or otherwise occupying a median that is not a sufficient pedestrian refuge on a public road. This ordinance does not apply to law enforcement, fire rescue, or other government employees or contractors doing official duty or any person conducting an inspection, construction, maintenance, repair, survey, or other legally authorized services, or a person responding to lend aid during an emergency situation. The ordinance is not applicable to a person entering or exiting a bus or other public transit system. A violation of this ordinance is a misdemeanor and shall be enforced by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.
