.jpg)
NSBNEWS.net photo by Henry Frederick
Former Mayor Sally Mackay, shown here in the brown shirt, had reason to smile at Tuesday's City Commission meeting. That's because the commission voted 4-0 to honor the city's longstanding lease with the Angler's Club, with the city getting the waterfront property on the North Causeway back in 30-plus years, rather than selling it outright to the private club or challenge the validity of the lease in court, which would be lengthy and costly. Seated nearby in the red blazer is Ellen Darden, who is running for seat 3 on the Volusia County Council. Mackay's former foe, first-year Mayor Adam Barringer abstained from discussion and voting on the issue because of his angler membership. Barringer narrowly defeated Mackay in the November elections.
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Former Mayor Sally Mackay had reason to smile during Tuesday's City Commission meeting. She did not speak publicly, but her facial expressions spoke volumes about the commission's 4-0 vote to honor the longstanding lease with the Anglers Club with the city getting the prime waterfront property back under its control when the lease expires in three decades.
.jpg)
NSBNEWS.net photos by Henry Frederick.
At left, City Commission chambers are packed Tuesday night for discussion and a vote on the Anglers Club lease. Above, Mayor Adam Barringer takes a seat in the audience after leaving the dais to divorce himself from discussion and voting since he is an angler.
Mackay's former political foe, Mayor Adam Barringer, abstained from the discussion and voting, even stepping down from the dais and taking a seat along the side wall. He, too, was silent, but expressionless. Barringer is a member of the Anglers Club, who narrowly defeated Mackay in November for the city's top elected post.
Mackay didn't come alone either. She was joined by her husband, Richard Spangler and more than a hundred supporters who cheered the commission's decision.
In an exclusive interview with NSBNEWS.net after the meeting, Mackay said she was "pleased that the city has retained ownership of this property."
"You don't sell a key piece of downtown waterfront unless you have a longterm strategic and economic plan in place," Mackay said.
The former one-term mayor added, "Last night's decision really left all options open."
What she meant by her latter comment is that a future city commission could still entertain an outright sale to the Anglers Club or seek court litigation to try and invalidate the 99-year lease signed in 1946 that gives the private club exclusive rights to use of the 1-acre plus riverbank that is adjacent to the city-owned New Smyrna Beach Marina. The Anglers pay the city $25 annually plus $12,000 in property taxes to the county for the acreage that includes a clubhouse, a back patio area and docking for 43 large boats.
Mackay and Barringer waged a bitter campaign last fall after she and then-Commissioner Randy Richenberg, along with Commissioner Lynne Plaskett voted to spend $20,000 for an attorney to assess the validity of the lease. That attorney, Scott Glass, told the commission it was his legal opinion the lease was invalid because it was signed before state law allowed such agreements, but he added he couldn't guarantee the courts would see it that way because of the passage of time and the legal entanglements that could tie such a lawsuit up for years and potentially cost the city millions.
Even Glass ended up costing the city twice as much as what was voted on, but the city honored his fees. Commissioners Jim Hathaway and Jack Grasty were opposed to the hiring of Glass.
Ultimately, the city and the Anglers agreed to negotiate leading to an offer by the Anglers earlier this year to buy the property outright for about $750,000.
Mackay and Richenberg were bounced from office in November, while the third member of last year's board up for re-election, Grasty, romped in the primary.
Commissioner Judy Reiker, who trounced Richenberg in the general election, stated Tuesday her support for keeping the lease intact, stating, "A deal is a deal."
Plaskette, who acknowledged Tuesday that she was one of the cheerleaders behind challenging the lease, said Tuesday she was concerned about the Anglers not having an anti-discrimination clause, but added any discrimination by the private club decades earlier mirrored that of the community at large.
Bouchelle Island resident Bill Koleszar, who consistently challenged the validity of the Angler's lease was not at Tuesday's meeting and could not be reached for comment. Former mayoral candidate Marilee Walters, another critic, attended Tuesday's meeting, but made no attempt to try and get the commission to open the issue up for public input before the vote. Absent from the meeting was a third critic, Palmer Wilson, who tried to unseat Grasty.
Wilson was out of town. Wilson, a regular blogger for NSBNEWS.net, cranked out a blog on the issue that was posted on the website that afternoon and Walters, also an NSBNEWS.net blogger, wrote a blog after Tuesday's meeting, which is posted on the website as well.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
