NORTHEAST TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) — Tallahassee city commissioners voted 3-2 Wednesday to amend the Canopy Development Agreement, at the request of developers, which formally states that Canopy developers are not responsible for building the Dempsey Mayo Road Extension, which would extend it across the Miccosukee Greenway.
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City staff says developers were never required to build the connector but would have received concurrency credits to offset fees had they done so.
However, neighbors like Lynne Takacs point to a map in the previous agreement they say indicated developer responsibility for the road.
Takacs now believes the amendment shifts that responsibility to taxpayers.
"I mean, I've never seen a developer voluntarily take on tens of millions of dollars in road construction. So who's going to pay for it? The city's responsible. If we look at the agreement, the city has only been given the right of way to build it. So it's the city, ergo taxpayers, which is you and I, who are going to be the ones paying for it in the end," Takacs said.
Attorneys for developers spoke out Wednesday, saying that the changes reflect the “current conditions of the project” and that no financial obligations are being shifted to taxpayers.
“I also want to clarify there are no financial obligations being shifted onto the city taxpayers with this agreement. No one is asking the city to pay for this roadway. Nothing in this agreement obligate the city to construct this road,” said Attorney Erin Tilton during the meeting.
The amendment does give the city right-of-way to the land if it decides to build the connector in the future, but the city currently has no plans to construct it.
Staff pointed out that it could be difficult to achieve because the intersection of Dempsey Mayo Road and Miccosukee Road sits on two county roads, making the county the permitting authority.
They also confirmed that if the road is never built, the land would be preserved for infrastructure needs such as water, sewer, and electric utilities.
This is the third time the city has revised the agreement.
Changes made in 2020 reflected the city's issuance of credits to the developer for building portions of Welaunee Road and sidewalks the city was originally obligated to complete.
The most recent amendment drew concern from Commissioner Jeremy Matlow, who is also running for mayor.
Matlow said it remains unclear where responsibility ultimately falls.
"I do take issue with the fact of how we got here. We shouldn't have complete agreements written by developer’s attorneys and brought to the city commission with no changes, no input from our staff, and no thorough attorney review that really addresses the concerns in the best interests of the City of Tallahassee," Matlow said.
Mayor John Dailey defended his support of the change, citing the long history of the project.
"I have been working on this since I was elected to the county commission in 2006. It's been 20 years. We've been moving forward," Dailey said.
Westminster community residents also raised safety concerns, saying a roundabout connecting the roads would affect the area.
Resident Sunny Phillips pointed to pedestrian traffic near the intersection.
"There's WT Moore students that go back and forth and seniors crossing that, and there's already been one senior from Westminster Oaks that's killed at that intersection,” Phillips said.
Now that the agreement has been amended, the city must determine how many credits to reclaim from the developer. The dollar value of those credits has not been publicly disclosed.
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