COMMENTARY
MARK SCHUMANN
Appearing before the Utility Commission Tuesday, Florida Power & Light External Affairs Manager Amy Brunjes, wife of Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers Publisher Bob Brunjes, seemed to be stressing the importance of Vice Mayor Tracy Carroll’s re-election.
“We’ve gotten as far as we have to this point thanks to the support we have had on the City Council and we need that to continue,” Brunjes said.
Brunjes also seemed to suggest a change in the Council majority could prevent the deal from going forward. Brunjes’ concerns are echoed by Glenn Heran, who heads a political action committee to which FPL has donated some $100,000 this year. Heran contends Carroll is the only one of six candidates running for City Council who supports the sale. These assertions need some fact checking.
At best, Brunjes was telling half the truth today when she said, “While it (required amendments to the purchase and sale agreement) will not change the city’s position financially at all, the terms of the deal, those amendments, would require City Council approval. So it’s important that we would get that City Council approval for everything to go forward.”
In truth, neither the current Council, nor the one to be sworn in in November, has the option to simply refuse to agree to changes in the sales contract, if those changes do not alter the City’s financial position.
According to City Manager Jim O’Connor, the City negotiated in good faith to sell its electric system to FPL. If a future City Council were to refuse to approve contract amendments that do not “change the city’s position financially,” to use Brunjes’ language, the City would be in breach of contract.
As transactional attorney John Igoe made clear last week, the City does not have the option of simply breaching the agreement. “There is no ‘opt out’ for $5 million on either side of the Agreement between the City of Vero Beach and FP&L,” wrote transactional attorney John Igoe in response to an inquiry from Inside Vero. “The City cannot vote to pay FP&L $5 million to terminate the Agreement. Each side has the remedy of specific performance, meaning either party could get a court to require the other party to perform its obligations under the Agreement,” Igoe added.
Carroll’s supporters, and Brunjes seems to be among them, argue that if the combative, aggressive and sometimes off-putting Vice Mayor is not returned to office, the 34,000 customers of Vero Electric will be doomed to paying exorbitant electric rates from now to the end of time.
This may make for clever politics, but is, quite simply, not true. Whether Carroll is re-elected, or is replaced by any one of a number of challengers, the City Council has and will into the future be committed to make every good faith effort to conclude the sale of the electric system to FPL.
The text of FPL spokeswoman Brunjes’ comments to the Utility Commission are presented below, with emphasis added. Any discerning reader can determine for himself or herself whether Brunjes came to Vero Beach Tuesday to inform the Utility Commission, or to campaign for Tracy Carroll.
FPL Spokesperson Amy Brunjes’ comments to the Utility Commission:
“Just to clarify though, and this was alluded to a little bit earlier, you know I have said, and I have been quoted in a community blog as saying we expect to have the deal done by the end of 2014. We’ve had candidates for the City Council saying that if we come to terms with the FMPA it’s a done deal; it’s out of the city’s hands and we are just going to move forward.
“But that’s only a part of what I’ve said, and I’ve been very specific to say, and it is important to know, that if we do come to these terms with the FMPA that is going to require amendments to the purchase and sale agreement. While it will not change the city’s position financially, at all, the terms of the deal, those amendments would require City Council approval. So it’s important that we would get that City Council approval for everything to go forward.
“Even if we come to terms with the FMPA, we still need to have that next step. So that’s really where we are now. It’s coming to a meeting of the minds with the FMPA, drawing up those terms, those amendments, bringing them forward to the City. We’ve gotten as far as we have to this point thanks to the support we have had on the City Council and we need that to continue.“
Indian River Guardian 
It is my hope the Brunjes wake up one day in 2014 with a weekly rental next door with lots of pickup trucks parked in the driveway and on the lawn. Will they then go to the city and personally thank Tracy Carroll,the city council and code enforcement board. for what Mrs Carroll was able to achieve ? Because Mrs Brunjes is a well paid FP&L employee anything she has to say is highy suspect.
Frank, your hope that the Brunjes will experiences the consequences of Tracy Carroll’s actions and policies is not likely to happen any time soon. They live west of Jupiter.
Jupiter? So, nothing local about either of them.
So as noted previously, we are in a contract without all the terms or consequences known, and we cannot extract ourselves. The council accepted a contract with a true “penalty clause,” one which is merely a penalty and not the only damages allowed. Bad practice.
The OUC contract limited damages for both parties, agreed to between the parties, to a certain amount. The attorneys and the council have really put us at risk here, since if we find [as we are now discovering] that our city won’t survive this deal, they can pretend that there still are “no financial consequences,” as they have done all along. Cutting services is not “financial damage,” or some other argument they’ll use. Worse and worse.
They have put us in jeopardy at every step, and it will cost far more than $10-20 per month, per city resident.
Interesting point since the Brunjes’ will not be impacted by this horrible weekly rental plauge that is about to hit Vero thanks to Tracy Carroll and her husband. The people of our city are the only ones who can derail Mrs Carroll and her rental fiasco. I believe the resale value of a house next to a weekly rental house will drive the sale price down. I know I would never buy a home next to rental property. It doesn’t make business or quality of life sense. i am also certain Councilwoman Carroll received special treatment from the code board because she is a councilwoman. Everyone else would have been treated differently
Interesting that the Brunjes don’t live in IRC as they are co-chairs of the United Way Campaign here.
kinda like the press journal they work for!