GRU (Gainesville Regional Utilities)

The GRU Authority held a meeting Wednesday night, discussing cost-saving measures, federal funding for infrastructure upgrades, urgent repairs and the recent ballot referendum.

The Gainesville Regional Utilities ballot referendum, which would return control of the utility company to the Gainesville City Commission, passed overwhelmingly, with nearly 73% of the vote on Tuesday night.

A judge ruled Wednesday that the Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority Board cannot be dissolved until the outcome of its lawsuit against the city, even if voters approve the referendum on the November ballot.

The Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority unanimously passed three resolutions Wednesday that will allow it to hire its own attorney, request to exempt itself from right-of-way regulations and permit fees, and ask the city to remove the referendum from the November ballot asking city voters whether to return control of the utility to the city.

That comes after months of pushback and a lawsuit from Gainesville residents questioning the governor’s ability to appoint board members who don’t live within the city.

A variety of scenarios relying on solar power and batteries are now under consideration for future power generation by the Gainesville Regional Utilities board.

The Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority board postponed a decision Wednesday on whether its government services contribution fund would be cut in half or eliminated altogether.

Grocery stores continue to open in West Gainesville while store options in East Gainesville remain sparse. Parts of East Gainesville qualify as a food desert, according the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Hundreds of job seekers made their their way around the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Multipurpose Center Tuesday morning for the annual Gainesville job fair. Gainesville's unemployment rate increased from 4.3 percent in April to 5 percent in July, so the job fair was just what many people needed.

Rep. Keith Perry confirmed that a bill which would have allowed voters to establish a HB-1325 has died in the Florida House of Representatives. The hearing of HB 1325, was postponed during the last meeting of the Regulatory Affairs Committee.