Courthouse tabled again
BY PAM BRANNON Gulf Breeze News news@gulfbreezenews.com

Broxson

If you know someone who might have a site that would be great for a new courthouse complex, it isn't too late to tell Santa Rosa County Commissioners about it. Especially if they might be willing to build such a judicial center and lease it to the county.

While trying to decide what to do about building a new courthouse, the Santa Rosa County Commissioners decided this week to do nothing - for now. But they did ask the county staff to keep studying each of the potential sites that have presented proposals and to see who might offer some solutions within their proposals for transportation issues connected with a new judicial complex.

But commissioners decided they should not ask voters in November for a one cent sales tax to build a new courthouse, and they could not agree right now on any other options, except to put the project on hold again.

After a lengthy discussion at the county board of commissioners' meeting last week, commission chair John

Broxson of Gulf Breeze said, "Right now it is obvious we have no consensus on the board. We have two commissioners who have said they would not vote to ask for a sales tax referendum in November, one commissioner who wants to go the route of a design/build/lease option, and one commissioner who wants the site in East Milton when no one else seems in favor of that. I believe we should make a motion to postpone any selection right now, and keep studying the proposals that we have been given."

Goodin

Commissioner Gordon Goodin of Navarre asked, "Does that include accepting new proposals, like from anyone who might want to design, build, then lease a judicial complex to the county? We may get even more sites if that option is on the table."

Broxson said, "I don't think any good option should be off the table. Yes, it includes such options. If someone wants to build us a judicial complex and lease it back to us, I think we should hear those proposals, too."

When the discussion had turned to a possible funding of a new courthouse through a one cent sales tax referendum on November's ballot, Commissioner Tom Stewart, who was the county board's chairman last year, reminded commissioners, "You all know there has been no one who has pushed for a decision on building a new courthouse harder than I have. It was a priority for me last year, during my chairmanship. But, since more than 60 percent of the county's voters told us Jan. 29 that they wanted tax relief, I don't know how you can ask voters for a one cent sales tax increase at the same time as we are supposed to be trying to find some tax relief from the last ballot referendum."

Commissioner Goodin said, "I think instead of asking people for $30-$40 million for a courthouse, we should be using money like that for roads, if we could get it. And if we had someone else design/build/ and lease a judicial center to us then we could worry about roads and transportation issues."