Bridlewood Sues High Springs City Commissioner
On Tuesday, High Springs City Commissioner Katherine Weitz was served with a lawsuit initiated by Bridlewood, a land development company.
Bridlewood has demanded a jury trial and is claiming over $100,000 in damages.
Bridlewood is the developer of about 687 acres of land in High Springs. In October 2022, Bridlewood entered into an agreement with the City of High Springs to "accommodate a mixed-use development which includes residential development, commercial development… public school and community facilities.”
Bridlewood alleges that Weitz has “repeatedly,” “wrongfully,” and "unjustifiably” “interfered with Bridlewood's ability to develop the Property and proceed with construction of the anticipated residential development and associated construction and development.”
“Weitz took the actions outlined in this Complaint in a directed, intentional, and concerted effort to stall, delay, and/or prohibit the Bridlewood development project, and encouraged others to do so as well, because of the proximity of the Bridlewood development project to Weitz's personal residence” - the lawsuit.
Weitz allegedly “misused her office" and allegedly acted outside the authority of city charter.
The lawsuit states, “Prior to the first Plan Board meeting on Bridlewood, Weitz sent a text message to the wife of a former mayor attempting to drum up support for opposition to the development by Bridlewood, requesting that the wife of the former mayor encourage attendees at the meeting to speak up and object to the proposed development in order to prevent it. Weitz encouraged others to do so as well.”
On August 30, 2022, the High Springs Plan Board had a meeting where they discussed two specific plaques pertaining to the proposed development, the lawsuit describes. Allegedly, during this meeting, Weitz, “by all appearances and indications, had pre-arranged with the planning technician, Krystie Adkins, to read correspondence from a constituent which seemed to contain all of Weitz's arguments against the development. Weitz'[s] engagement in this activity was improper and a clear conflict of interest as, at that time, Weitz was a member of the City Commission. Weitz should not have been attempting to influence the Plan Board, an advisory board to the City Commission, while she was a Commissioner, who was responsible for subsequently voting on the Plan Board's recommendations on the Bridlewood project… Directly after the correspondence from the constituent was read, the Plan Board tabled the decision and set it to be heard on September 27, 2022.”
The planning board met as planned on September 27, 2022, prior to which Weitz allegedly contacted a former mayor's wife again, attempting to promote opposition to the development. Weitz allegedly asked her to encourage attendees to publicly object.
The High Springs City Commission had a meeting on October 13, 2022, where they held a quasi-judicial hearing relating to their Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) and/or the Bridlewood project. During the meeting, Weitz allegedly “attempted to prevent the City from reserving capacity for Bridlewood in its [WWTP]... During the quasi-judicial hearing… Weitz questioned the traffic entrance nearest her property without disclosing the proximity of her own residence to this entrance… During this quasi-judicial hearing… where only expert testimony was to be considered in the decision making process, Weitz delayed the proceedings by presenting the ‘research’ she had gathered and declared the Bridlewood lot sizes were incompatible with the surrounding community. The hearing was on zoning compatibility and not lot sizes.”
Weitz allegedly expressed hope that her “presentation” would be “considered expert testimony on water quality and she spoke at length on water quality and the environment again, for purposes of delay, despite the fact she had not been sworn, was not qualified as an expert, and the subject of the hearing was zoning.”
The commission held a second quasi-judicial hearing on October 27, 2022, where Weitz again allegedly “delayed the vote on zoning with another filibuster on water, a request that the project be delayed in order to hold more public meetings, performed her earlier presentation on her own research on lot sizes, and presented misinformation about an earlier development.”
Fast-forwarding to June 13, 2023, the lawsuit describes how Weitz spoke at an Alachua County Board of Commissioners (BOC) meeting. The lawsuit states she spoke "against a water/sewer line issue that her High Springs Commission had already approved, while identifying herself as a member of the High Springs Commission. She added that her Commission had also approved Bridlewood but that she had voted against that development and invited the County Commissioners to take a look at the High Springs WWTP which has asbestos pipes.”
Weitz speaks at the June 13, 2023 BOC meeting (Alachua County)
On January 19, 2024, six days before a High Springs City Commission meeting, Weitz allegedly “asked a new City Attorney if she could obtain the engineering plans and drawings for the Bridlewood development from Plan Board members. This request should have gone through the City Manager's office, but was done clandestinely. Weitz received the plans…"
The lawsuit accuses Weitz of going behind the then city manager’s back on January 23, 2024.
At the time, Ashley Stanthos was still serving as city manager. She submitted her resignation in November 2023 but she still held her position till the end of February 2024. Weitz allegedly “requested the traffic impact study from Planning Tech Krystie Adkins, who in turn offered Weitz the environmental study, the Code for endangered species, the Fish and Wildlife rules, and the engineer's comments…”
The lawsuit continues, “On the morning of January 25, 2024, at approximately 8:34 a.m., the same day that the City Commission would be voting on whether to approve Phase 1 A of the Bridlewood development, Weitz reported that there were ongoing and in progress disturbances from development related activity on a property in which there were allegedly gopher tortoises to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission ('FWC'). Weitz reported to FWC that there was heavy clearing, and offered to provide a gopher tortoise survey to FWC. Weitz further provided her cell phone number to FWC so the FWC officer could contact her directly, and offered to set a time to discuss the situation in person with the responding officer.”
The lawsuit alleges that later the same morning, Stathatos “provided an updated plat for the Bridlewood development, along with a Gopher Tortoise study that had just been received by Bridlewood's engineer, Chris Potts.”
The same day, later in the afternoon, FWC dispatched an officer to respond to Weitz's report. The lawsuit appears to show excerpts from the dispatch request.
The city commissioners met in the evening. According to the lawsuit, “The purpose of the meeting was for the City Commission to approve the final plat and development plan for the Bridlewood development…" The lawsuit states that the sworn testimonies of Stanthos and Potts showed the Bridlewood development project met legal requirements and standards.
Regarding the turtles, according to the lawsuit, "Mr. Potts further testified that the environmentalist had found some gopher tortoises in the Phase 1 construction area, and that they were in the process of relocating them. Mr. Potts explained that Bridlewood had to wait for the Suwannee permit before it could apply to FWC for the relocation permit. Mr. Potts further explained that Bridlewood had the area designated and segregated so construction activities would not impact the gopher tortoises, and explained that all of the subject tortoises would be relocated in the next few weeks.”
The lawsuit alleges that Weitz engaged in the following actions at the January 25, 2024 city commission meeting:
According to the lawsuit, “The looping issue and the sunset date which Weitz introduced and pushed for were added to the Motion to Approve the Bridlewood Development Plan. Weitz then moved to amend that motion to require the additional hurdles she requested but nobody would second her motion… Weitz was told at the meeting that the permit to remove the gopher tortoises could not be requested until Suwannee River Water Management had issued its permit, which had been issued just prior to the meeting."
The lawsuit alleges that Weitz demanded the turtles be relocated prior to project approval, while believing approval was required for Bridlewood to relocate the turtles. "Weitz made the demand with the intent to place the project in a Catch-22 position," allegedly.
According to the lawsuit, on April 15, 2024, the Plan Board held a meeting on Bridlewood’s proposed Community Development District (CDD) and approved it with member Rick Testa in dissent.
On April 18, 2024, Weitz allegedly asked the city attorney to get her information on the CDD to share with Jeremy Marshall, the new city manager, before the information came to her fellow commissioners.
The City Commission met again on April 25, 2024. According to the lawsuit, Testa spoke against the plan board’s decision on the CDD at the meeting, allegedly presenting a “copious amount of misinformation.”
At the May 23, 2024 commission meeting, Weitz again allegedly “presented her own research and much misinformation in an attempt to confuse the two new members of the Commission. Despite being reminded they were at the meeting to discuss the CDD and not the Bridlewood project, as it had already been approved, Weitz attacked the approval of the project from several angles… Despite the meeting's purpose being advertised as a vote on the CDD, the issue was tabled, at the request of Weitz that a workshop be scheduled on the CDD.”
On October 1, 2024, Weitz, at the time mayor of High Springs, appeared at a BOC meeting on the Mill Creek Sink Project. Weitz “appeared in a City Commissioner shirt with the City seal and her name, and introduced herself as the current Mayor of High Springs," the lawsuit describes. “During her time at the podium, she complained to the County about sinkholes at the WWTP and Bridlewood.”
Weitz speaks at the October 1, 2024 BOC meeting (Alachua County)
On November 21, 2024, the city commission and plan board held a joint meeting on the CDD. Allegedly, “Weitz personally advertised this meeting on Facebook and stated falsely she was hosting this public meeting… At this meeting, Weitz presented more misinformation she had gathered and was supportive of others who did the same. Rick Testa falsely and recklessly claimed that the CDD was unconstitutional and presented an encyclopedia of false information about Community Development Districts generally…"
The lawsuit continues, "On February 13, 2025, a meeting occurred before the City Commission... on the vote for the CDD. Weitz presented her own research/misinformation again insisting on comparing Tampa to High Springs in terms of home prices, conflated luxury community with luxury home, pulled high numbers out of the air and described the homeowners association fees as being equal to the CDD fees, despite being repeatedly told she was incorrect… To add to the confusion, Weitz cited Mr. Testa's misinformation and declared the CDD unconstitutional. It was evident from the questions asked by the two new commissioners they were confused by all this intentional misinformation… Weitz made the motion to deny the CDD and it carried 3/2.”
The lawsuit alleges the following civil charges against Weitz:
Bridlewood is represented by the Coleman, Yovanovich & Koester Law Firm.
It’s unclear who will act as Weitz’s legal representation. She hasn't submitted a response yet in court as she was only recently served.
