One Developer Gets Message from Tallahassee City Manager, One Does Not

One Developer Gets Message from Tallahassee City Manager, One Does Not

On October 14, 2013, the lobbyist for the Mckibbon Hotel Group (MHG), Gary Yordon, responded favorably to a request by City Manager Anita Favors to donate money to charitable organization she was representing. Just one week later, October 22, 2013, Mr.Yordon, received a personal notification via email at the direction of the City Manager Anita […]

Local Author Hits New York Times Best Selling List with “Extortion”

Local Author Hits New York Times Best Selling List with “Extortion”

Tallahassee resident and author Peter Schweizer has hit the New York Times best selling list again with “Extortion: How Politicians Extract Your Money, Buy Votes and Line Their Own Pockets.” Schweizer, who is a Fellow at the Hoover Institute and the President of the Government Accountability Institute, also penned the best seller, “Throw Them All […]

Sales Tax Committee Settles on Blueprint Projects

Sales Tax Committee Settles on Blueprint Projects

The Leon County Sales Tax Committee has recommended nearly $700 million in projects to be funded an extension of the current penny sales tax. The Leon County Commission will have the final say on which projects will be placed on the ballot for voter approval this fall. The Blueprint infrastructure program is known mostly for […]

Government Spending on Homeless Shelter Move Approaches $3 Million

Government Spending on Homeless Shelter Move Approaches $3 Million

The cost to taxpayers to move the Tallahassee Homeless Shelter from Tennessee Street to a new location on West Pensacola recently topped $3 million. Back on November 25, 2013, the Tallahassee Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) approved the purchase of the current shelter property for a total of $1,950,000. The funds to purchase the property will […]

Imagine Tallahassee Narrows List of Projects

Imagine Tallahassee Narrows List of Projects

Imagine Tallahassee is a private organization created to develop a process to guide the portion of Blueprint tax money that will be allocated to economic development projects. During months of public meetings and presentations, Imagine Tallahassee followed a process that took input from citizens, evaluated current conditions, developed a vision statement and then prioritized economic […]

New Jersey Company Paves Tallahassee Roads with Workers from Out of Town

New Jersey Company Paves Tallahassee Roads with Workers from Out of Town

This week Tallahassee Reports received several phone calls from citizens who wanted to know why an out-of-town company was paving Springsax Road. Springsax Road is located just off of Spring Hill Road, south of Orange Avenue inside the Tallahassee city limits. On Friday, an employee of Tallahassee Reports traveled to Springsax Road and verified that […]

Nights and Weekends Sign-Ups Lag Honeywell Projections

Nights and Weekends Sign-Ups Lag Honeywell Projections

When the City Commission voted to move forward with the Smart Meter program in March, 2007, the decision was based in part on the proposal provided by the vendor, Honeywell. The detailed proposal showed how the City could save $44 million over the next fourteen years if 25,000 utility customers signed up for a time-of-use […]

The City Building Permit Guarantee Is Getting Results

The City Building Permit Guarantee Is Getting Results

The City of Tallahassee has been routinely criticized for years when it comes to facilitating development. The common refrain from developers was that government regulations were significantly slowing the pace of economic growth. One part of these regulations is permits. Before any construction project can be started, developers must go through a permitting process and […]

Red Light Cameras Increase Total Crashes, Decrease Right Angle Crashes

Red Light Cameras Increase Total Crashes, Decrease Right Angle Crashes

Based on operational data collected by the City of Tallahassee, listed in the table below, the use of red light cameras has resulted in more crashes at red light camera intersections three years after the implementation than three years before. Total crashes increased from 377 before implementation to 509 after implementation. More specifically, rear-end crashes […]

Brew Pub Agreement Provides Look At Business Plan

Brew Pub Agreement Provides Look At Business Plan

The Tallahassee City Commission will vote on Wednesday to approve an agreement to renovate and lease the historic electric building in Cascades Park.  According to city documents the Commission previously approved funding for the project and a proposal from Liquor Loft, LLC d/b/a Proof Brewing Company (Proof) to renovate and lease the facility for a proposed […]