Cape Coral’s Community Newspaper Since 1961
www.capecoralbreeze.com
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
50 Cents
Arbitration may settle dispute between city, Waste Pro By MEGHAN BRADBURY
news@breezenewspapers.com
Whether the city of Cape Coral has to pay its solid waste vendor $1.5 million in fees retained by the municipality in the wake of collection complaints will be decided by binding arbitration if Cape Coral City Council approves a proposed memorandum of understanding between the parties Wednesday. An arbitrator also would decide whether to award attorney fees to either the city or Waste Pro in the contractual dispute that dates back to last September when the city
began deducting money from Waste Pro invoices in months following Hurricane Ian. In addition, the memorandum addresses related issues, including disputed administration fees, some settled, some to also go to arbitration; and which entity is financially liable for the thousands of waste carts lost in the storm. The city and Waste Pro of Florida Inc. entered mediation on May 15 and the memorandum is a result of that effort. The city deducted $94,032.92 from Waste Pro's invoice for September,
$452,475,21 in October and $296,793.33 in November 2022, citing what it alleged was a failure to provide the service level called for in the contract. According to the memorandum, Waste Pro “disputes the validity of those deductions and claims that it is entitled to payment of approximately $1.5 million or less.” Waste Pro, which sued the city over the matter, has agreed to go to binding arbitration. The city also assessed administrative charges against Waste Pro in the amount of $80,750 from August 2022 through April
Lee County to host Florida-Friendly and Native Plant Swap & Seed Exchange
INDEX Legal Notices . . . 6-12 Local Tides . . . . . . . 5 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . 4
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See ARBITRATION, page 5
Donalds responds to state’s changes in Black history instruction standards
NEWS OF NOTE
Lee County Parks & Recreation will host a Florida-Friendly and Native Plant Swap & Seed Exchange from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Aug. 19, at the Karl Drews Community Center, 18412 Lee Road, Fort Myers. Participants can expect a morning of plant-related educational opportunities with fellow plant enthusiasts. The event features a Plant Swap & Seed Exchange, the UF/IFAS Master Gardener Help Desk, a Native Plant Sale hosted by the Native Plant Society, local nurseries, consultation firms and more. To participate, bring one or more clearly labeled healthy plants or seeds. Plant species listed by Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council, Federal Noxious Weed or USDA Invasive Species will not be permitted. To RSVP and reserve a table, please call 239-5331470 or email TRossi@leegov.com.
2023. According to the memorandum, “the city has agreed to reverse charges totaling $58,500, which leaves $22,250 of remaining distributed administrative charges.” As far as the carts and containers lost during Hurricane Ian, the city has paid to replace them and submitted a claim to FEMA for reimbursement. These carts will remain property of the city after the expiration of the contract. If the city approves the memorandum,
By NATHAN MAYBERG
nmayberg@breezenewspapers.com
City seeking members for Yacht Club Stakeholder Group The city of Cape Coral is creating a stakeholder group to help shape the future of the Yacht Club. The group will help determine “which stylistic elements from the existing ballroom will be considered for incorporation into the new building(s)” and will include members of city staff, the city's appointed Youth Council and Cape Coral residents. “We are seeking community representatives who have lived in Cape Coral for varying amounts of time,” city officials said in a release issued this morning. The survey submittal deadline is Friday, Aug. 4. Those interested in being a part of this stakeholder group can visit the city website at www.capecoral.gov and find the pop-up on the home page to provide the following information: ■ First and last name
■ Year you first started living in Cape Coral ■ Total Years You’ve Lived in Cape Coral ■ Email address ■ Phone number
Participants will be chosen via a lottery, city officials said. “If we receive multiple interested persons, the names will be entered into a lottery and chosen at random,” the release states. “Chosen stakeholders will be contacted by the City if they are selected. This group will first meet near the end of August 2023.” Source: City of Cape Coral
The Cape Coral Yacht Club ballroom and related facilities have been closed since Hurricane Ian. VALARIE HARRING
Florida Congressman Byron Donalds, R-19, weighed in on the state’s controversial new Black history teaching standards, giving them an overall thumbs up with one caveat. He called them “good, robust and accurate. That being said, the attempt to feature the personal benefits of slavery is wrong and needs to be adjusted.” In a post on Twitter X, the Naples Republican who is the GOP’s lone Black congressman representing Florida, Rep. Byron also said that the Donalds attempts to feature the personal benefits of slavery “obviously wasn’t the goal and I have faith that FLDOE (Florida Department of Education) will correct this.” Florida Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz responded to Donalds the same day on Twitter by saying, “The federal government won’t dictate Florida’s education standards. This new curriculum is based on truth. We will not back down from teaching our nation’s true history at the behest of a woke White House, nor at the behest of a supposedly conservative congressman.” Donalds’ district covers Fort Myers Beach and most of Lee County. Last week, the Florida Board of Education approved a revision of the state’s Black history curriculum for Social Studies classes which was meant to satisfy the requirements of the Stop W.O.K.E. Act approved by the Florida state legislature
See DONALDS, page 5