Council okays Fair Street Center

GAINESVILLE - The Gainesville City Council Thursday morning approved construction of the Fair Street Neighborhood Center.

The vote was 3-2, with councilmen George Wangemann and Danny Dunagan voting against it.

Both argued again that the $700,000 facility would be a costly duplication of services with construction of the Frances Meadows Community Center less than a mile away.
Dunagan said he would still like to hold costs down, possibly to $500,000.

"I don't know how that could happen but we can cut it down considerably, I think; some of the parking, some of the fancier landscaping, maybe some of the interior," Dunagan said.

Housing Programs Director Frances Williams told council members a vote against the Fair Street project would lead to a federal funding cut off.

Williams, who manages federal Community Development Block Grant funds, added the city would have to pay back the $285,000 in federal money already spent, with the grant money paying most of the project cost.

"If we don't do this project and spend this money as planned, we're going to get put on a hold list and this program is going to stop," Williams said.

Gainesville realtor and low income housing advocate Frank Norton told Council that federal block grant funds should be spent on housing, not on facilities like the Fair Street Neighborhood Center.

Norton said the true construction cost was a million dollars, not the $700,000 requested by Parks and Recreation.

"Why aren't we spending a million dollars on support of additional quality low income housing," Norton asked.

Williams said Fair Street qualified for the Community Development Block Grant Funds because of the low to moderate-income neighborhood makeup under City Council's direction to focus on a public facility for the area.

Parks and Recreation Board member Beverly Robinson said she was glad Council approved the board's construction spending resolution and voted to keep its word.

"I thank the Council for honoring their word to do what they said they were going to do with that and for moving forward," Robinson said. "I think it says something for the Council, that they are trustworthy, that we can count on them to be of their word."

Figueras, Mayor Bob Hamrick and Ruth Bruner voted yes.

"I think it's been resolved," Figueras said. "The bids are in and we're going to work for it from there. The city is not tax spend, the city is a very responsible."