TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Behind-the-scenes maneuvering and calls busted into the open this week when Democratic State Representative Allison Tant posted that an influential pro-business political committee floated the idea of a new tax district to pay for what is set to become “FSU Health.”
One problem: Bugra Demirel, the chairperson for Grow Tallahassee, denies pushing the idea of a new tax and said it just isn’t true.
Two of the three main players in the saga, Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare and Florida State University, declined to comment or didn’t respond to our request for comment.
Requests for comment from Mayor John Dailey and Commissioners Dianne Williams-Cox, Curtis Richardson, Jeremy Matlow and Jack Porter are pending.
While the situation seems to evolve more and more each day, at last check, TMH supported an idea put forward by Williams-Cox to expand the FSU Health Board to 19 seats, ensuring TMH maintains a one-seat majority in the years to come.
That’s different from a proposal accepted by FSU, where Florida A&M would gain one of FSU’s seats, while Tallahassee State College would gain one of TMH’s seats. In that proposal, the state government would indirectly take control of the board.
More Tallahassee news:
Grow Tallahassee has posted a Q&A on its website about the TMH-FSU deal and said it has been acting as a go-between and guiding conversations behind the scenes.
Demirel confirmed he did have a phone conversation with Rep. Tant in recent weeks, but he vehemently denied ever floating the idea of a special taxing district. Rep Tant, on the other hand, is adamant Grow Tallahassee did put forth the idea, and she indicated she would withdraw her support for the partnership if new taxes were imposed.
Gaining federal and state money was identified as a main reason for the partnership, as FSU could secure research and other dollars.
In an interview with WCTV, Rep. Tant went on to say any special tax would need to be passed by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis. That’s the first real talk of legislative involvement, as negotiations have so far been between FSU, TMH and the City of Tallahassee.
So far, city commissioners have voted 3-2 to advance the sale under a previous framework that did not include board seats for TSC and FAMU, though a majority of commissioners have voiced support for their inclusion. It’s unclear if the deal would be killed if the seats weren’t added, or added in a way that gives the state indirect control.
Behind the scenes, the commission voted 3-2 to authorize the city manager to negotiate a sale price, which he previously told WCTV he envisions payment over time instead of a lump sum. However, no sale price has been announced and no final vote has been scheduled so far.
Separately, the NAACP announced a “community town hall” at the Watson Temple Institutional Church of God in Christ on Tuesday, November 18, from 6-8 p.m.
The town hall comes after the NAACP broke with Black faith leaders in not supporting the deal, leading to dueling statements between the NAACP and Rev. RB Holmes.
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