FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:    Pete Winton, Lee County Administration
                (941) 335-2777

FORT MYERS, Fla. (June 26, 2001) – In the last meeting before its three week summer recess, the Board of Lee County Commissioners today took action on the following major items:

Ambulances – approved the purchase of six new ambulances for $829,632 and gave EMS the authority to buy an additional 30 ambulances over the next three years (for a not-to-exceed price of $4.5 million) for future growth and replacement needs. The vehicles are being bought from American LaFrance MedicMaster.

Utilities – approved a contract with Centex Rooney Construction Co. for $4.94 million to complete the expansion of the Fiesta Village Wastewater Treatment Plant from a capacity of 2.5 million gallons a day (mgd) to 5 mgd. Earlier this year the Board approved new equipment for the project in the amount of $1.97 million, bringing the total cost to $6.91 million. The expansion is expected to be completed in July 2002.

Roads – approved a contract with Better Roads Inc. to extend Three Oaks Parkway from Corkscrew Road to Williams Road just north of The Brooks residential development. The extension will be four lanes and cost $1.7 million. It should be completed by February 2002. Also approved a contract with Westwind Contracting Inc. to build the extension of Veterans Memorial Parkway from where it now ends at Surfside Boulevard west and north to Burnt Store Road. The project cost is $6.9 million with construction to be completed by August 2002.

Tax – set the Communications Service Tax for unincorporated areas at 5.42 percent. The tax, part of the state-mandated Communications Tax Simplification Act, requires a local tax to be established on all forms of telecommunications, including cable, telephones, pagers and cell phones. It will be charged as a percent of customers’ bills. Formerly, only a cable franchise fee was charged. Any proceeds from the new tax that is above a "revenue neutral" position, based on the cable franchise fees, will be segregated for consideration of lowering the rate next year.

Lee Tran – initiated a discounted transit fare program of 50 cents for youths 17 and under who show proof of age with a Lee Tran photo ID and have a valid Lee County Library Card. This replaces the original "Kids Ride Free" program started two years ago but suspended because of overwhelming demand and abuses by riders over the age limit. The Lee Tran Intermodal Transfer Center will issue photo IDs to library cardholders who meet the age eligibility of the program.

Conservation 2020 – agreed to use $600,000 of Conservation 2020 funds for land stewardship and management activities (including restoration of lands and removal of exotics). Ten percent of the tax revenues currently received are set aside in a trust to pay for these activities – but only the interest earned on the trust is used and it is not enough to pay for the growing need for restoration. The requested $600,000 will come out of principal and should get the county through to the referendum to renew the Conservation 2020 tax in 2002. The plan was recommended by the Lee County Conservation Land Acquisition and Stewardship Advisory Committee.

Sanibel Causeway – forwarded the Sanibel Causeway Improvement Study's Preliminary Engineering Report to the U.S. Coast Guard for its approval and/or comment. The engineering report recommends the rehabilitation of the drawbridge (Structure A), the immediate replacement (several years off due to required approvals) of the middle bridge (Structure B) and the possible replacement of the third span (Structure C) prior to the end of its service life, estimated to be in 10-to-15 years. The cost to implement all of the recommended improvements is $29-to-$37 million depending on when Bridge C is replaced.

Community Planning – established a new Administrative Code outlining the administrative procedures governing community-planning efforts. The code requires community-planning groups to operate in compliance with Florida’s open meetings and public records laws and for members of groups receiving financial support from the Board of County Commissioners to file limited financial disclosure forms and quarterly client disclosures.