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Tag: David Gilson

Gilson again serving as Anna Maria building official

Gilson again serving as Anna Maria building official

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Anna Maria, Community News.

ANNA MARIA – Former Anna Maria building official David Gilson is again serving as the city’s contracted building official.

Gilson’s contracted services are being provided through the city’s recently extended and revised building depart­ment services agreement with Joe Payne Inc.

Gilson replaces contracted building official Craig Greene, whose services were also provided by JPI. Greene was recently relieved of his Anna Maria duties after Mayor Mark Short and the city commission received multiple complaints from Anna Maria builders, property owners and a con­struction industry consultant who often disagreed with Greene’s interpretation of city code and found it challenging to interact with him.

On Sept. 25, the Anna Maria City Commission approved the multi-item consent agenda that included the extension and revision of the agreement that the city and JPI entered into earlier this year. During the Sept. 25 meeting, Mayor Mark Short confirmed Gilson is again serving as the city’s building official.

The JPI agreement approved that day includes a revised compensation formula that no longer provides JPI with 50% of the building permit fees gener­ated in Anna Maria. The building official, floodplain management, inspector, permit tech and other services provided by JPI are now provided at an hourly rate.

According to the new agreement, the hourly rate for the building official services provided by JPI is $135 per hour. The hourly rate for floodplain management services is $125. The hourly rate for inspector service is $90. The hourly rate for permit tech services is $75.

The newly-extended agreement with JPI states the firm will provide the city with a certified building official who, on average, spends two days per week at city hall and works remotely for the remainder of his time. The agree­ment states the provided building official will return permit-related calls within one business day. The agreement notes someone serv­ing as a deputy building official may cover the building official’s duties in the event of “occasional absence.”

As an additional precautionary measure, the cities of Anna Maria and Holmes Beach have entered into an interlocal agreement that establishes the parameters and compensation if one city’s building official or building department needs assistance from the other city while their building official or inspector is on vacation, out sick or otherwise unavailable.

Gilson began serving as Anna Maria’s contracted building official in September 2021. He vacated that position in January 2022 after accepting a similar position with the city of New Port Richey, which alleviated the 90-minute daily commute Gilson was making to Anna Maria.

When announcing Gilson’s departure, then-mayor Dan Murphy said Gilson had done an outstanding job for the city.

In May 2022, he returned as the city’s full-time, city-employed building official and left for unknown reasons.

Gilson did not attend the Sept. 25 meeting.

Mote Marine’s City Pier plans reviewed

Mote Marine’s City Pier plans reviewed

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Anna Maria, Community News.

ANNA MARIA – Building Official David Gilson and City Planner Ashley Austin presented their review of Mote Marine’s plans to install an educational outreach center on the Anna Maria City Pier to commissioners last week.

Mayor Dan Murphy received the latest plans from Mote Marine on Oct. 13. Gilson and Austin provided their analysis of the plans during the special city commission meeting held on Thursday, Oct. 20.

He said the purpose of the meeting was for Gilson and Austin to share their analysis of the plans, with a focus on two primary criteria – assessing whether the plans meet the city’s technical requirements and whether the proposed plans meet the city’s quality expectations for a project on city-owned property.

Mote’s educational outreach center will occupy the larger and currently vacant city-owned building at the T-end of the City Pier. The smaller pier building is occupied by the City Pier Grill & Bait Shop.

Murphy sought the commissioners’ initial thoughts and comments on the plans, saying that Gilson would send questions and comments to Mote representatives. The revised plans will then be presented to the commission, which will be asked to approve the plans and authorize the building permits needed for Mote to begin the interior buildout of the pier building and the installation of its marine life exhibits.

Gilson said if the plans had been submitted as a standard construction project, they’d be very close to being accepted, but with the city being the property owner, the permitting process is different.

Mote Marine’s City Pier plans reviewed
This illustration references Mote Marine’s exhibition gallery. – City of Anna Maria | Submitted

“The way the lease is written, the owner (the city) is going to have their fingers in this entire project. The lease puts us right in the thick of it and that’s going to be very helpful,” Gilson said.

Gilson recommended the city specify that Square D electrical breaker panels are used because city staff is familiar with that brand. He also requested additional information from Mote regarding the invertebrate touch tank exhibit that requires an electrical connection, specifically, who’s serving as Mote’s contracted electrical engineer.

Gilson said the plans include a blanket statement regarding the use of corrosion-resistant hardware. He recommends the plans specify that the screws, nuts, bolts and other hardware used will be made of stainless steel, similar to what was used for the construction of the pier and pier buildings.

The plans don’t specify which type of ceiling tiles will be used. Because of the saltwater exhibits to be contained inside the building, Gilson recommends using higher quality ceiling panels that resemble drywall and are more humidity resistant than normal ceiling tiles.

Austin said the installation of an educational outreach center that offers incidental souvenir sales in an already existing space is considered a tenant buildout rather than new construction, so setback restrictions and other construction criteria don’t apply. She noted the plans don’t address signs and said Mote will need to apply for a separate sign permit.

Mote Marine’s City Pier plans reviewed
This drawing is included in Mote Marine’s latest plans. – City of Anna Maria | Submitted

Commissioner Robert Kingan asked if the plans include a backup generator. Gilson said he didn’t see anything in the plans about a generator, but that he talked to someone at Mote who said battery backups would be used to keep the live exhibits oxygenated during a power outage. Gilson said the safety of the sea creatures is ultimately Mote’s responsibility.

Kingan asked if Mote had identified a specific contractor. Gilson said Mote has a contractor that they regularly work with but the plans and building permit applications have not yet been officially submitted to the city.

Commissioner Mark Short asked Murphy if the plans he received on Oct. 13 satisfy the deadlines the city commission established earlier this year when granting Mote a lengthy extension to complete the long-delayed project.

Murphy said the latest plans comply, and that the city will hold Mote Marine to the March 2023 completion and opening deadline the commission established earlier this year.