Longboat Key hires special legal counsel for St. Regis hearings, sewage break fallout

The hirings help ensure Town Attorney Maggie Mooney does not have a conflict of interest with the proposed changes to the St. Regis site.

By Mark Bergin
| 10:03 a.m. April 9, 2021

Maggie Mooney has worked as Longboat Key's town attorney since July 2013.

Longboat Key
News

Longboat Key is set to have special legal counsel to serve town staff as it deals with proposed changes to the St. Regis redevelopment.

“The reason for that is on certain complicated matters, as your town attorney, I’m obligated by the Florida Bar to either represent the board or the staff, but I cannot represent both,” Town Attorney Maggie Mooney said.

Jennifer Cowan with the Tampa-based law firm of Bryant Miller Olive is set to fill in for Mooney as it pertains to the St. Regis public hearings. Cowan serves as the attorney for the city of Treasure Island. It will cost $275 per hour for her services and $245 per hour for her associates.

“It is anticipated that the costs associated with those services would be reimbursable from the developer of the project,” Mooney said.

Unicorp, the developer of the property, proposed several changes in March that will lower the density of the project.

Once the town staff is finished reviewing Unicorp’s application, the town will schedule public hearings before the Town Commission and the Planning and Zoning Board.

“We did this on the initial application for St. Regis and we’re doing it again because of the complicated nature of that development,” Town Manager Tom Harmer said of the decision to hire outside legal counsel. “Last time, the town attorney hired outside counsel to represent the town staff in the review because she sits up here with the Town Commission, so she advises the Town Commission on any legal issues that may come up and wanted to have a separate attorney representing the staff so there was no conflict there on her direction.”

On Monday, the Town Commission also agreed to hire Sarasota-based law firm GarciaDell to help evaluate the possibility of filing litigation after the June 2020 sewage break.

It will cost $275 per hour for Martin Garcia and Josh Dell’s work and a paralegal rate of $125 per hour.

“The attorneys Martin Garcia and Josh Dell have represented the town’s interests in certain other litigation very successfully in the past,” Mooney said. “They are familiar with the town, and we have a good working relationship with them.”

Garcia and Dell helped provide the town legal services on several litigation proceedings related to the demolition of the former Colony site. Now, they’ll help the town evaluate the possibility of filing litigation to make up the financial losses stemming from the June 2020 sewage break.

“There is potential liability to be attributed to other parties arising out of the damages the town has incurred that are clearly set for in the consent order as we just discussed,” Mooney said.

Sewer consultant says it didn't receive indemnification letter

After approving the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s consent order in February, the town is either required to pay $188,382 in civil penalties or implement an in-kind environmental project worth at least $281,073 as a penalty for its June 2020 sewage spill.

The town is pursuing the environmental project option with plans to make wet well upgrades at Master Lift Station D on Gulf Bay Road and replacing a backup generation at the site.

In March, Town Attorney Maggie Mooney wrote an indemnification letter asking for hundreds of thousands of dollars from the engineering firm Greeley and Hansen to offset the cost of penalties from the spill.

According to the firm’s report on Aug. 14, 2017, the sewage pipe that broke had an estimated 20-25 years of life remaining. The report recommended reinspection of the pipe in four to five years. The force main was built in 1973.

In a reply letter written on behalf of Greeley and Hansen, Gray Robinson attorney Joseph Fitos claimed G&H never received Mooney’s indemnification letter. Fitos wrote that G&H became aware of the town’s request for money upon reading the Longboat Observer’s coverage about it.

“Until it was blindsided by the article, [G&H] was not aware of any additional issues concerning the force main other than what was discussed during its initial call with the town in September 2020,” Fitos wrote. “Moreover, prior to reviewing the article, [G&H] was not aware that the town was attempting to hold [G&H] responsible for the force main leak nor was [G&H] aware that the town was seeking compensation for repair and remediation efforts that were undertaken by the town without [G&H’s] knowledge or involvement.”

Fitos told the Longboat Observer that G&H declined to comment because of the possibility of litigation.

G&H isn’t the only entity the town is seeking money from after the June 2020 sewage break.

On behalf of the town’s insurer, Public Risk Management of Florida, attorney Donovan Roper of the law firm Roper and Roper wrote a 29-page letter denying Longboat Key’s claim for coverage for the damages arising out of the wastewater leak.

PRM claims the town’s coverage does not insure against the breakage of pipes.

Mooney wrote to town commissioners explaining why the town has sent letters to G&H and PRM.

“The demand letters sent from my office to Greeley and Hansen and the Town’s insurer were sent for the purpose of preserving the Town’s rights and potential claims against those parties after the Town entered into a Consent Order with the FDEP and the Town’s damages became more quantifiable,” Mooney wrote. “The recent responses from both of these parties’ respective legal counsel will be thoroughly evaluated and responded to, as appropriate."

As of April 7, Mooney wrote there is no pending litigation between the town or any of the involved parties.