Monday, April 22, 2013
Commissioners designated the southern magnolia as Dunedin's official tree April 18, despite a sudden public interest in paying homage to the city's past with the orange tree.
Jennifer Lumm wish she'd known sooner about the movement to make the southern magnolia Dunedin's official city tree. In the end, sudden public uprising in a tree that would pay homage to Dunedin's citrus grove heritage was no match against a citizen advisory group's selection for one with much deeper Southern roots. The environmental committee's southern magnolia defeated the orange tree in a 4-1 commission vote Thursday. Designations were also passed for the osprey as the city bird and magnolia as official flower. "We're from the South, we love the magnolia tree. We just don't think it's a representation of Dunedin," said Lumm, who spearheaded a budding orange tree movement that caught the sympathy of at least two commissioners. She …
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
City leaders are repealing Dunedin's official tree of 45 years Thursday to make new designations for the city's tree, bird and flower.
The southern magnolia tree is Dunedin's next city symbol. So are the osprey and magnolia flower. Commissioners are repealing Dunedin's official tree of 45 years at Thursday's public meeting to make new designations for the city's official tree, bird and flower. They're replacing the bauhinia tree after it received criticism in recent years for being a non-native species. The bauhinia tree was designated the official flowering tree in 1968. It was a citizen group's recommendation as part of a city initiative meant to enhance Dunedin's reputation as a "city of beautiful trees," city records indicate. In recent years, the city's volunteer Environmental Quality Committee questioned the bauhinia's official designation because it is not native …
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Dunedin City Hall
542 Main St, Dunedin, FL
/articles/dunedin-looks-to-undo-history-replace-official-city-tree
944000
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Sunday, March 10, 2013
Finalizing the plans on the six-years vacant Gateway Project lot in downtown Dunedin is in "the home stretch," according City Manager Rob DiSpirito during Thursday's commission meeting at City Hall.
City Manager Rob DiSpirito can envision it already: A pedestrian-focused block extending downtown to the hospital, with green space, apartments, retail shops and restaurants welcoming visitors at downtown Dunedin's easternmost gateway. It's been a long time coming, and would be such a boon for downtown, he said following Thursday's commission meeting at City Hall. And they're so close to setting the plans in motion. Developers of the vacant 4.1.-acre prime downtown parcel at Main Street and Milwaukee Avenue, across from Mease Dunedin Hospital, get six more months to close the deal, commissioners decided Thursday. But DiSpirito expects them to be ready much sooner than that. Plans have been delayed for the better part of six years because …
Friday, March 8, 2013
Dunedin commissioners agreed in a 3-2 vote to move forward on a three-year-old agreement with Glen Steinke, the expiring concessionaire at Sail Honeymoon on Dunedin Causeway, to open the land to competitive bidding.
Sail Honeymoon supporters turned out in droves to Thursday's city commission meeting, hoping to convince city officials to make a policy exception for beloved owner Glen Steinke. Despite Steinke's plea to "do what’s right, do what’s right for me, right for the taxpayers and right for the community," the exception they all hoped for wasn't approved. An estimated 60 supporters filled the seats inside City Hall, overflowing into the aisle and front foyer. They wore printed stickers that read "I Support Glen + Sail Honeymoon Dunedin Causeway," and many spoke of their affection for the longtime owner of the iconic kayak rental business. They all asked them to skip the competitive bidding process, known as the RFP (request for proposal) process…
Thursday, March 7, 2013
With a looming deadline for developers to close on the second half of the six-years vacant Gateway Project lot in downtown Dunedin, city staff and Pizutti Builders are looking to firm up a final price. The negotiations may mean another 180-day extension.
The deadline for developers to finish buying the second half of a vacant downtown Dunedin lot across from the hospital is approaching fast. And six years after initially brokering a deal, they may get another 180-day extension on Thursday. Pizzuti Builders, part owners of a 4.1-acre prime downtown parcel at Main Street and Milwaukee Avenue, received an extension in August after revealing the initial plan to turn the site into a block mixed with apartments and retail space. Builders wanted a better deal on the final price tag, one that took into account the economic downturn. Commissioners will discuss the developer's looming deadline with the city, possible sale figures and updated plans for the site, which include fewer apartments and …
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
After months of delays, Dunedin's city attorney and staff experts are recommending that elected officials allow the Causeway concession services open to competitive bidding at Thursday's public meeting at City Hall.
Sail Honeymoon's expiring contract is causing Chuck Ankney to lose sleep. Ankney, the city's purchasing manager, is worried that repeated delays in the bidding process that allow the kayak rental business to operate on the Dunedin Causeway could potentially push the agreement past its July expiration, a violation in the city's purchasing policy. "I was thinking about this issue last night when I was trying to go to sleep….not a preferred way to go to sleep," Ankney wrote in a Feb. 21 email to City Attorney Tom Trask. Some Dunedin officials have pushed for a loophole that would allow Sail Honeymoon to skip the bidding process altogether, an exception given to no other business in the city. Leaders are reviewing the policy as it pertains to…
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Dunedin City Hall
542 Main St, Dunedin, FL
/articles/city-attorney-staff-sail-honeymoon-concession-should-go-to-bid
944000
/locations/8955533
A misunderstanding prompted the 2010 commission to hold off on sending Causeway concession services out to competitive bidding until January 2013.
Dunedin officials made a deal with Glen Steinke three years ago, in an effort to right a perceived wrong. The 20-year kayak rental concessionaire had been operating Sail Honeymoon on Dunedin Causeway under an oral contract for six years at the time. He worked under year-to-year renewals at the city's request because officials were waiting to see how or if Pinellas County's pending plans for a larger free-span bridge joining the mainland to Honeymoon Island would impact the future placement of the concession. In the middle of what Steinke believed were talks to extend his license agreement again in 2010, city staff discovered that he had expired on his renewal extensions, which meant the time had come for the city to put the Causeway …
A story on Dunedin officials' Jan. 24 discussion for creating a loophole in policy that allows a Causeway concessionaire to skip the re-bid process in a soon-to-expire city agreement sparked some insightful opinions.
Dunedin Patch's story "Are Dunedin Officials Playing Favorites with Sail Honeymoon?" generated lots of discussion several weeks ago. The story focused on public officials' Jan. 24 discussion for creating loophole in policy that would allow the Causeway's Sail Honeymoon concessionaire to skip a re-bid process in a soon-to-expire legal agreement he made with the city three years ago. At least three commissioners moved to delay the bidding process for the Causeway concession contract, saying they wanted to review and address concerns the city's purchasing policy. Some said they also believe Glen Steinke, owner of Sail Honeymoon, who has been operating on the Dunedin Causeway for about 20 years, was treated poorly prior to the legal agreement …
"To not give him a long term contract would be such a loss to all of us on the Causeway and Dunedin," writes Lucy Lynch, Dunedin Causeway resident.
- GOVERNMENT
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Wednesday, March 6
Dear Editor, I have been on the Dunedin Causeway either visiting my family here or as a resident since the early 1970s. During that time I have seen many changes and watched many businesses come and go on the Causeway. I am writing to request that you give Glen Steinke and Sail Honeymoon a long term agreement and not go to RFP. I, as well as my fellow members of the Dunedin Beach Civic Association and the City of Dunedin, have been the recipient of Mr. Steinke's many years of care and consideration for the Causeway. He is certainly the trusted eyes and ears for us on the Beach. As you know, he was awarded and entered into the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce Business Hall of Fame for 2012-2013. Mr Steinke has established a successful, reliable…
28.059878
-82.813209
Sail Honeymoon
61 Causeway Blvd, Dunedin, FL
/articles/letter-to-the-editor-give-sail-honeymoon-a-longterm-contract
943570
/locations/8949849
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Commissioners discussed the possibility of sending a local delegation to Stirling and Toronto in order to preserve and maintain the city's international partnerships during a Feb. 28 retreat on Dunedin's future.
The last thing any Dunedin official wants to see is an empty stadium on Douglas Avenue. And it would be a faux pas not to attend sister city Stirling, Scotland's rather important anniversary celebration next year. To avoid either scenario, Dunedin commissioners proposed budgeting to send at least one among them to Toronto and Stirling to keep up its long-distance partner relations, during an all-day commission retreat focused on Dunedin's future Feb. 28. Travel to Canada Protects Blue Jays Relationship, Officials Say As the agreement with the Toronto Blue Jays nears its 2015 expiration date, so are fears the team will vacate Florida Auto Exchange Stadium in favor of another city. Many residents in recent months have called for swift and …
Tim Dickson
8:31 am on Monday, April 29, 2013
Tim When we moved here in 1956, most of the city was orange groves and HP Hood was a major employer. The Duncan grapefruit was developed here. What contribution to the city history was made by the Magnolia tree? I don't see the value in replacing the the Egret (on the city seal) with a filthy bird like the Osprey. Perhaps the city commissioners should be replaced with representatives who will … more ›