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GRU Authority Board prepares lawsuit amid ongoing tensions with City of Gainesville

In Gainesville, there's more wrangling between the Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority Board and the city.

In a GRU meeting Wednesday night, the board announced it's preparing a lawsuit.

The lawsuit stems from a city commission meeting last week, when the city decided to move forward with a reworded referendum to regain control of GRU.

Although Gainesville voters overwhelmingly chose to dissolve the GRU Authority back in November, the city referendum was blocked in a legal ruling — because the judge found the language was unclear.

At the GRU Board meeting, Gainesville local Janice Gary — a longtime customer — shared her frustration:

“It is ridiculous that voters have to keep saying the same thing over and over and over. For years and years and years, this authority is a political operative,” she said.

The Florida Legislature voted to create the GRU Authority Board in 2023, with its members being selected by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Aileyahu is a reporter for WUFT News who can be reached by calling 352-392-6397 or emailing news@wuft.org.

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