Dunedin City Commission Workshop Summary - February 3, 2026
Dunedin City Commission Workshop - February 3, 2026
The City Commission held a workshop on February 3, 2026, at 9:00 AM in the City Hall. The meeting covered affordable housing updates, a citizen survey preview, establishment of a Golf Club Advisory Committee, and revisions to city boards and committees. Mayor Maureen "Moe" Freaney presided, with all commissioners present. The workshop adjourned at 12:11 PM.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Ward Shaw of 1112 Tarridon Court expressed concerns about inadequate handicapped parking at TD Stadium and enforcement issues, noting he had previously raised the issue without response. City Manager Bramley stated there is reserved handicapped parking and offered to show the locations.
- Kevin Janiga, David Smith, Carl Kanny, and Kathleen Sands Martin spoke in support of forming a Golf Club Advisory Committee, citing deterioration in course conditions and a need for accountability and a maintenance plan. They each expressed interest in serving on the committee.
- On the board and committee revisions, Nancy Schmidt (Chair of the Causeway & Coastal Waterways Advisory Committee) and Kathleen Sands Martin argued against merging the Causeway committee, stating its unique issues (e.g., motorized watercraft) would be diluted. Ron Matuska asked about quorum rules for newly merged committees. Jason Williams advocated for youth representation in parks and recreation and requested a permanent seat for youth sports organizations.
Discussion Items
- Pinellas County Housing Authority Presentation & The Flats on Main Street Update: Neil Brickfield (PCHA Executive Director) and Dave Heaslip (Archway Partners) presented. PCHA has managed Palm Lake Village (475 senior units) since the 1970s and brings resources for affordable housing. The proposed management agreement for the Dunedin Housing Authority would shift from Clearwater Housing Authority to PCHA, with an interlocal agreement pending approval on February 18, 2026. The Flats on Main (78 apartments on S.R. 580) is nearing construction closing, with a 15-18 month build timeline. Commissioner concerns included school bus service (the nearest schools require walking, noted as a safety issue) and ensuring local residents and employees have priority for rentals. Staff will work with the School Board on safety improvements.
- 2026 Citizen Survey Preview: Strategy & Sustainability Manager Nicole Delfino presented the draft survey, recommending Dr. Stephen R. Neely as consultant. The survey will run from February 9 to early March 2026, with about 27 questions plus demographics. New questions focus on parks & recreation usage and budget prioritization; parking questions were removed. Staff will use a multi-pronged communication plan including lawn signs with QR codes. Commissioners suggested minor edits (e.g., correcting Spectrum channel from 630 to 639, adding column headers, specifying "Pinellas County Sheriff's Office") and discussed the need to understand citizen trade-offs for potential budget cuts. The survey was unanimously approved.
- Golf Club Advisory Committee Discussion: City Clerk Michelle Wells presented a draft resolution for a 7-member committee: 3 Dunedin Golf Club members, 3 residents at-large, and 1 Board of Finance member, all must be City residents. Initial staggered terms (4 for 3 years, 2 for 2 years, 1 for 1 year). The restaurateur would serve as ex officio. Commissioners supported the concept, with Mayor Freaney emphasizing the need for the golf course to remain financially self-sufficient. Staff will advertise and bring applications to the Commission for appointment. The resolution will return for formal approval at a future meeting.
- Board and Committee Revisions: City Clerk Wells proposed consolidations based on strategic planning direction since 2022. Proposed merges: CEQS & Stormwater Advisory Committee; Causeway & Coastal Waterway, Hammock Advisory, and Parks & Recreation; Disability Advisory & Social Services; Edgewater Drive Advisory & Public Safety. Sunsetting PRAAC and YAC. After public testimony and commission discussion, the consensus was: merge CEQS & Stormwater; merge Hammock into Parks & Recreation (Causeway to remain standalone with goal of future merger); merge Disability & Social Services; merge Edgewater Drive & Public Safety (with expanded scope beyond multimodal; 4-1 vote, Vice Mayor Walker dissenting); sunset PRAAC and YAC (with intention to engage youth through alternative means). Commissioners also agreed to add "Advisory" to all committee titles and review residency requirements during drafting.
Key Outcomes
- Interlocal Agreement for Dunedin Housing Authority: Commission expressed strong support for pursuing the agreement with Pinellas County Housing Authority. The interlocal will be considered by PCHA's Board on February 18, 2026. Staff will include requirements for holding resource fairs in Dunedin and heightened awareness.
- 2026 Citizen Survey: Approved to proceed with Dr. Stephen R. Neely and the draft survey, with minor edits to be finalized before launch on February 9, 2026.
- Golf Club Advisory Committee: Direction given to staff to draft a resolution establishing the committee with the proposed composition. Applications will be solicited, and full Commission will appoint members. Resolution expected to return in about a month.
- Board and Committee Revisions: By consensus (with one 4-1 vote on Edgewater/Public Safety), staff instructed to bring forward resolutions implementing the approved merges, sunsets, and title changes. Updated residency provisions and broader scope for Edgewater/Public Safety to be incorporated. Causeway & Coastal Waterways committee will remain standalone for now, with consideration of bi-monthly meetings and eventual merger. A yearly chairs meeting and sunshine law refresher for committees will be reinstated.
- Information Item: City Manager Bramley briefed the Commission on the 227 Lyndhurst property (Elevate Florida) and indicated it will be on the February 3 regular meeting agenda for a decision.
Meeting Transcript
Call this meeting to order February 3rd, 2026, City Commission Workshop. And we'll start with Jen with the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and the Republic. One nation, under God, indivisible, liberty, and justice for all. Okay, our first item on the agenda is a presentation by Pinellas County Housing Authority and Flats on Main Street Affordable Housing Project. I will turn it over to Bob and Caroline. Thank you, Mayor Mayor and Commission. Bob Ironsmith, Economic Development Director for the City of Dunedin. It's a pleasure today to introduce two folks. We have uh Neil Brickfield, who is the executive director of Pinellas County Housing Authority, and we also have Dave Hazlip, who's putting together the uh flats project there uh as a developer archways. You know, we've really listened to the Commission uh relative to that affordable housing, needs to be a heightened item. So we always take a targeted approach, and we always look at opportunities. And today is one of those days where we think we're really moving in the right direction. Uh the Dunedin Housing Authority for the last several years has been managed by the Clearwater Housing Authority, and we want to go in a different way. We want to go with a a uh housing authority that had a lot of resources, a lot of uh passion, and this is what Neil Brickfield and the Pinellas County Housing Authority bring. We are looking to make a switch from the Clearwater Housing Authority of Management of the Dunedin Housing Authority to the Pinellas County Housing Authority. And what it what today represents is Neil is going to go ahead and give you a flavor for what they can offer and what they can do. I also want to mention that uh the Pinellas County Housing Authority brought in $10 million toward the Flats to help activate that project. If you remember with the flats, it is 78 apartments over there on uh State Row 580. So we're excited. Uh we're also looking at other opportunities with the Pinellas County Housing Authority today. So we think uh there's gonna be more to come. We're gonna certainly work in that vein. As you know, affordable housing is tough these days. Uh real estate is high. It always takes a lot of effort, a lot of resources, a lot of partnership to get to where you need to get to. But uh today, uh Neil's gonna go ahead and go ahead and share some slides and talk to you a little bit about what they offer. And they're doing affordable housing uh projects across the county, and they also offer some different opportunities. What we wanted to do is make sure that our residents and new residents have the ability to live in the city, right? Because we hear it in our travels. Of course, when I'm with uh uh Jennifer, we we hear it a lot from our city employees and from other outside interests too. So uh without further ado, let me go ahead and have the executive director, Neil, come up to uh to the mic uh for the Pinellas County Housing Authority, and we're gonna go ahead, he's gonna talk a little bit and we're gonna go ahead and advance some slides in concert with his presentation. Hi, Neil. Morning, Mayor, Commissioners, thanks for having us here today, and thank you for being such champions for affordable housing in Dunedin. Five-O, thank you. We don't keep score. Very important, though. So um we're really excited to be um taking part in Dunedin. We've actually been in Dunedin since the early uh 1970s. We're the owners of Palm Lake Village, 475 uh affordable senior housing units right off of Keene Road. Um we're really excited. Um you're gonna hear about Flats on Maine again. That would be our our second project here in this community. And I want to tell you a little bit about housing authorities and a little bit about us. So next slide. That's that's the clue. So uh we're very much a mission and valued um organization. So I don't I don't need the slide, I know this. Our mission is to provide quality affordable housing and improve the lives of residents. Our value statement is uh PCHA wants to be set the standard for affordable housing in Pinellas County, and our belief is everybody deserves a quality place to live.
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