Hawthorne contracts with county for planning services

Hawthorne agreed to contract with the Alachua County Department of Growth Management for a year’s worth of planning services, costing the city $27,500.

The county has been working with the city ever since the city planner, Kelly Moosbrugger, quit in the spring.

City Manager Ed Smyth said the new agreement is about $12,500 less than the city would have to pay to hire a full-time city planner.

Smyth said the city does not have enough work for a full-time planner and that it’s more cost effective to hire the county for the four hours per week as spelled out in the contract.

He said Moosbrugger did city planning for about a day and a half per week and spent two days working for the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA). Smyth said he doesn’t want the city to pay the entire salary for a new city planner, if the CRA is getting most of the benefit.

Commissioners were hesitant to sign a yearlong contract with the county but agreed to the deal, given that the contract can be terminated at any time with 30 days notice.

The commission approved the measure by a 3-2 vote, with commissioners William Carlton and DeLoris Roberts voting against it.

“What we had worked,” Roberts said.

She proposed working with the county for six months and then hiring a University of Florida intern.

Two citizens, Danielle Catanese and Heather Surrency, also spoke in favor of hiring an intern or full-time city planner.

Catanese said she has worked with the county and former City Planner Moosbrugger and said Moosbrugger had a much better grasp of the local issues, was more personable, had a hire quality of work and was easier to work with.

Smyth said even though the contract was approved, the city will still look into hiring a UF graduate student down the road to intern with the city for about $11 to $12 per hour.

An interlocal agreement with the county must be formalized to finalize the contract.