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Sarasota News Leader April 19, 2013 Page 44 RAPIDS AHEAD! Even before their first meeting, the committee's ride is appearing to be bumpy. And the city commissioners keep adding bumps. Two weeks ago, City Commissioner Terry Turner raised the idea that the city should stop participating in the CRA after 2016. He said the city contribution could and should be used to help out other areas of town. He cited the need for a parking garage on St. Armands and another near Hillview Street, with its popular Southside shopping and dining district. And he raised the fear that any post-2016 scheme could have an unelected body deciding how to spend the CRA money, saying that was unacceptable. The remainder of the commission was cool to his analysis, but two weeks later, others clearly had given the matter some thought. The City of Sarasota has relied on CRA funds to pay for some expenses observers say its general fund should have covered. Photo by Norman Schimmel "We can no longer afford to participate financially," said Commissioner Shannon Snyder. "Before this committee marches on, assuming there will be money coming from us, there mittee will have a "hard sell" convincing the needs to be a different way of doing this." county commissioners to open a multi-million-dollar pipeline to fund city projects. VenCommissioner Paul Caragiulo seemed to ice, Longboat and North Port would not be far agree. "This is what the committee is supbehind Sarasota; they have argued for CRAs posed to do — to find alternative modes to for years, but the county has blocked them. do things." Nonetheless, Snyder's motion was explicit: Snyder suggested staff provide the county "As we move forward with the CRA extension with a list of projects needed in the city. "We'll committee, the city will not be financially parswitch roles and let the county decide what ticipating." gets funded," he said. The money would come from the county, he added, because, "I don't The motion passed, with Shaw casting the see how we can afford to do the CRA any- only "No" vote. more." At least two commissioners later were uncerWith the county already counting on the mon- tain about the consequences of their afterey in its future budgets, the 11-person com- noon decision. As the evening session moved