City Council Meeting July 8, 2025: Ed Lavallee Retirement & Land Use Votes
City Council Meeting July 8, 2025: Ed Lavallee Retirement & Land Use Votes
The Venice City Council met on July 8, 2025, from 9:00 AM to approximately 12:00 PM (with an executive session at noon). The meeting began with a tribute to retiring City Manager Ed Lavallee, followed by public comments, consent agenda, multiple public hearings on land use changes, new business presentations, and council reports. Key votes included approval of a new Planned Public Hospital District zoning (6-1) and setting of preliminary millage rates (6-1).
Retirement Tribute
- Mayor Pachota and staff honored City Manager Ed Lavallee, who served the city for 13 years and over 50 years in public service. He received the Michael J. Roberto Award for Career Development from FCCMA on May 30, 2025. A video tribute from staff, a flag flown over the Lavallee Municipal Campus, and personal remarks highlighted his servant leadership and cultural impact. An open house reception was scheduled for 4:00-6:00 PM at the Venice Performing Arts Center.
Consent Calendar
- Approved unanimously: setting public hearing dates for millage and budget (Sept. 9 and Sept. 23, 2025) and setting preliminary millage at 3.9041 mills (operating) and 0.3405 mills (debt service) for FY2026; approval of minutes; reappointment of Oscar Guinart to Police Pension Board; approval of employment agreement for new City Manager James Clinch; special event permits for Venice Antique Car Club Swap Meet (Dec. 6, 2025), Glow Ride at Airport Festival Grounds, and 100 Block Holiday Block Party (Nov. 29, 2025); authorization of CDBG interlocal agreement.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Kristen Hofschmidt (Venice resident): Expressed support for reducing environmental impacts of July 4th fireworks, suggesting alternative locations (inland parks) and drone light shows to protect wildlife (sea turtles, least terns) during breeding season.
- Steve Carr (Central Venice Coalition): Advocated for including a 0.45-mile section of Curry Creek (through the sawgrass community) in the city’s quarterly maintenance program to prevent flooding; argued the benefits to the larger community justify maintenance on private property.
Discussion Items
- Item 25-0277 (Millage Rate): Council Member Smith requested removal from consent, arguing for the rollback rate (3.73 mills) to provide tax relief. Other members noted that the rate is a maximum and will be finalized during budget hearings. The motion to approve as staff recommended passed 6-1 (Smith opposed).
- Ordinances 2025-26, 2025-27, 2025-28 (Planned Public Hospital District): These three ordinances create the new PPH zoning district, amend the comprehensive plan to allow up to 150-foot building height and 3.0 FAR, and rezone the SMH Venice campus at 2600 East Laurel Road. Staff and applicant presented; council discussion included concerns about height versus health care needs. Council Member Smith voted no each time, citing comprehensive plan integrity and loss of control; other members supported the expansion for improved health services. All passed 6-1.
- Ordinance 2025-19 (Live Local Act Affordable Housing): First reading passed unanimously.
- Ordinance 2025-25 (Budget Amendment): Final reading increasing revenues/expenditures by $9,236,600 passed unanimously.
- Curry Creek Maintenance Update: Staff presented ongoing maintenance, an NRCS grant of $360,000 for debris removal, and potential maintenance exchange with Sarasota County (county takes over Curry Creek, city takes over Deertown Gully). Council and public input supported the exchange but urged inclusion of sawgrass section.
- Pre-Annexation Agreements (Items 25-0287, 25-0288): Approved unanimously for Flagship Medical Office Building 2 and Baker Trust Ewing Project.
- HAPB Appointment (25-0289): Stephen Green appointed to fill unexpired term through August 31, 2027, unanimously.
Key Outcomes
- Votes:
- Millage rate setting: Approved 6-1.
- PPH zoning (first reading) for ordinances 2025-26, 2025-27, 2025-28: All approved 6-1.
- Live Local Act affordable housing (first reading): Approved 7-0.
- Budget amendment (final reading): Approved 7-0.
- Pre-annexation agreements and HAPB appointment: Approved 7-0.
- Directives: Staff to continue exploring maintenance exchange with county for Curry Creek/Deertown Gully and meet with Sarasota Bay Watch. NRCS grant work expected to begin fall 2025.
- Council Member Smith: Requested that the Citizen Advisory Board's hurricane response report be formally accepted and discussed at a future meeting; Mayor indicated any member may place items on the agenda.
- Executive Session: Scheduled for noon on pending litigation/legislative updates.
- Next Steps: Final reading of PPH ordinances (2025-26, 2025-27, 2025-28) at future meeting; budget hearings on September 9 and 23, 2025.
Meeting Transcript
All right, if I can get everyone to take their seats, we're gonna call this meeting to order. Okay. Wow. Um as everyone knows, today is Ed's last meeting with the council, so there's gonna be some some things happening here in the very beginning that might be a little untraditional, especially to him, um, which makes me very happy that I get to throw some more curveballs at him today. We have an executive session at noon, and I will start with our roll call and then we'll move on from there. Mr. Engelkey. Mrs. Frank. Here, Mr. Howard. Here, Mr. Smith. Here. Mr. Weed. Here. Vice Mayor Bolt. Here. Mayor Pechota. Here. And we'll stand for the invocation. And of course, today's pledge will be led by Mr. Lavelli. It's okay. And with it is with gratefulness that we accept the task before us. We ask you to bestow your blessings on all who live in or visit our beautiful city of Venice. Amen. Amen. One nation. Liberty. All right. Ed, if I could get you to go join your family in the front of the room. There's oddly enough a seat uh vacant next to your wife. All right, and then before I join you guys out in the audience, I'm going to just real quick, I want to talk about a presentation that was done earlier this year for Ed. So City Manager Ed La Valley received the Michael J. Roberto Award for Career Development from the Florida City and County Management Association on May 30th at the Florida City and County Management Association annual conference in Orlando. This award recognizing recognizes an FCCMA member who has made a significant contribution to the development of new talent in professional local government management. Ed's mentorship and leadership have helped shape many careers throughout his tenure. The award is a memorial to the late Michael Mike Roberto, an FCC MA, past president and recognized leader in the development of public management careers. Madam Clerk, if you can go ahead and cue up the video and I'll walk out into the audience. Very impressive that you know you've come this far, 14 years at the city of Venice, and you're going out the door and still getting awards doing it. So thank you for everything you've done for us as a city, for me as a person. You've been a tremendous influence on all of your directors and the entire staff of our city of 385 employees. More than that, your reach goes into the community and communities around us. So Ed, you probably won't remember this, but I remember it very well when you were first hired here, actually before you were first hired. But you did something unexpected. I remember me and Rand Keefe, your uh executive assistant, were carrying a table unglamorously through this awkward double door in the hallway, and you appeared at the other end to help us carry the table. That to me signifies who you are. Uh you are a servant in every sense.
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