NORTH PORT, Fla. — A referendum on the Nov. 5 ballot in the City of North Port could change the way the city pays for projects, if approved.
Currently, because of a rule in the city’s original 1959 charter, the city cannot borrow money or incur debt without voter approval. Deputy City Manager Jason Yarborough told Fox 4 that because of the rule, the city has to pay for projects in cash.
Watch Fox 4's Alex Orenczuk report on an upcoming referendum on how the City of North Port pays for projects:
“Right now we have a pay as you go way of keeping up with infrastructure,” said Yarborough. “That has two main disadvantages. One is that as you save, the costs of construction keep escalating. The second part is that the costs are being put on the back of the existing citizens.”
Yarborough said the pay as you go system is not ideal for the city, nor its citizens.
“That is problematic trying to create a fair and equitable system with pay as you go,” said Yarborough.
The current system also means the city can’t accept federal or state loans, which proved to be problematic after Hurricane Ian.
“Our inability to receive federal and state low interest or no interest grants or loans, is going to be a problem,” said Yarborough. “We are literally leaving hundreds of millions of dollars on the table because we are not able to incur debt without the permission from the citizens. Tampa is getting that money, Orlando is getting that money, Sarasota is getting that money, other places are getting that money except for us because we have an antiquated city charter that does not allow us to incur debt without a blessing from the citizens.”
The city’s legacy wastewater reclamation facility was one example of how the current rule makes maintenance of city infrastructure more difficult. Nancy Gallinaro, Utilities Director, told Fox 4 that without being able to borrow money, maintenance of the facility is paid for through increased rates.
“You can't just kick the can down the road, you can’t say well I'm just not going to fix this pump or I'm not going to repair this pump or I'm not going to paint this tank or I'm not going to line this pond, you have to do this work,” said Nancy Gallinaro, Utilities Director. “So without the ability to borrow the money, those costs are going to be incurred by the people currently paying the water rates and currently hooking up. It’s unsustainable.”
If passed, the city would be able to borrow up to $15 million per project to pay for infrastructure maintenance, emergencies, public health and safety projects.
"There is no other city in this state of 411 cities that has this kind of charter, it is unusual to say the least," said Yarborough. "All we are saying is let's be normal, let's be able to keep up with our infrastructure, let's be able to respond to natural disasters and keep people safe."
Residents of North Port will vote yes or no on the referendum on Nov. 5, the amendment to the charter reads as follows:
Florida local governments may issue certain debt for various governmental purposes. The City Charter requires voter approval before the City issues any debt. Should the Charter be amended, allowing the City to issue debt payable from funds other than property taxes without voter approval: (i) for safety and public health projects with a maximum principal amount of $15,000,000, increasing annually based on a cost index; and (ii) to respond to a declared emergency or disaster?
To pass, the referendum needs to receive 50% plus one of the votes.
To learn more about the referendum, CLICK HERE.
