Illegal dumping found at new community center site

BRADENTON - An issue has arisen with the 13^th Avenue Community Center site, County Commission Chairman Gwendolyn Brown said Tuesday at the County Commission meeting.

The center is being built on 24^th Street Park, she said, and it's been a park that the county has supported for years despite it being in the city of Bradenton.

"In the process of them preparing to build 13^th Avenue Community Center, they discovered a dump site," she said. "And the material that has to be moved has been tremendous."

There was environmental testing done before work began on the site, Brown said.

The city of Bradenton is seeking support to pay to remove the material, Brown said. It was brought to her attention last week, and County Administrator Ed Hunzeker asked her to tell Mayor Wayne Poston to send a letter asking what he's looking for.

The suggestion is to allow Hunzeker to work with the city and they would deal with the issue jointly, she said.

Hunzeker said he asked staff how much it would cost to remove the trash, and it would not exceed $72,000. He suggested that the city and county share the amount up to $72,000 and come back to the board for further discussion if the cost was any higher.

County Commissioners Carol Whitmore made a motion for up to $80,000 and it was seconded.

The motion carried 4-0.