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Highlands Today

Renovations to start at downtown Sebring shopping center

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By JOE SEELIG

Highlands Today

Published: June 5, 2009

SEBRING - The Sebring City Council and developers for the Sebring Towne Square Shopping Center settled a legal snag Tuesday over an amended development agreement that held up renovations.

The amended document paved the way for the project to get going.

The council accepted the legal advice of City Attorney Bob Swaine, who said the amended agreement held the city's best interests, and the council unanimously voted to accept the changes he negotiated with the attorney for the developer.

Bruce Johnson, president of Bruin Contracting, represented the developer, Charles Gusmano, with Town Center Redevelopment LLLP, of Lantana.

He told the council he had a roofer lined up and was in the process of picking his contractors.

"I will be back looking for roofing permits next week," Johnson said. "I wasn't just whistling Dixie when I told you what a rush I'm in."

According to the agreement, all permits must be applied for by Aug. 1.

He also hoped to share a set of engineered drawings with the council by the end of the month.

The developer wants to repair the roofs, remodel the storefronts, redesign some of the store's interiors, plant landscaping and replace parking lot lighting and repair and restripe the parking lot. Parking spaces must be no less than 9.5 feet by 18 feet.

There will be limited access at the parking lots northwest entrance from South Lakeview Drive with a right-turn only entrance and a right-turn only exit onto Lakeview.

Cheryl A. Maymon, of CAM Realty, said in a previous report that she hoped to attract new businesses into the shopping center, including a food store, by making it appealing and giving it a downtown feel.

Councilman John Griffin said Wednesday that he wishes the project lots of success because it sits at one of the prominent entrances to the downtown.

"I hope that thing works out good," said Griffin. "And judging from their plans, I hope they get a lot of tenants in there. And, of course they're going to change the parking lot from an asphalt jungle to something we're going to be very proud of."

The shopping center is located on the southwest corner of South Lakeview Drive and Kenilworth Boulevard.

Sebring adopts local preference policy

Stimulating the local economy is the main reason for adopting a local preference buying policy, and two area businesses that bid on Sebring contracts benefitted immediately after the Sebring City Council adopted its new ordinance.

The first was Brooker Fence, of Sebring, that bid on a fence job for the city's recent purchase of Highlands Utility Company, sanitary sewer system.

With a total bid of $20,900, Brooker came in 2.67 percent higher than Bradenton-based USA Steel Fence, which bid the job at $20,355; creating an additional cost to the city of $545.

In the second bid, the city picked up a deal by rejecting all bids it received and piggybacking on a Florida Sheriff's Association quote from Alan Jay for a 2009 Chevy Silverado 1500 four-wheel-drive pickup truck for $19,853.

At its March 3 meeting, the council approved to amend its purchasing policy to "piggyback" on contracts entered into by not-for-profit corporations such as the Florida Sheriff's Association.

Alan Jay Ford would have qualified as a local preference bidder when it bid $21,952 for one of its trucks. A Ford dealer in Mount Dora had bid $21,486.

By rejecting all bids in this case, the city was able to get an even better price on a Chevrolet truck and saved nearly $2,000 without invoking the local preference.

The truck is to be used for its wastewater treatment plant workers to service the airport wastewater plant and the Highlands Utilities plant.

Councilman Bud Whitlock, who suggested the local preference ordinance, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Highlands Today reporter Joe Seelig can be reached at 863-386-5834 or jseelig@highlandstoday.com.

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