ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla (CBS12) — What started as a St. Lucie County budget workshop turned into a tense exchange between two county commissioners, with one commissioner making pointed comments about Lakewood Park residents and another firing back over what he called an attempt to “educate” the board.
The exchange happened Monday during a St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners budget workshop, after commissioners debated funding for economic development and whether to support the Economic Development Council at its full requested amount.
County Manager George Landry first laid out several budget scenarios for commissioners, including options tied to the rollback tax rate and funding requests from the sheriff’s office, the clerk’s office, judicial agencies, Hands of St. Lucie County and the Economic Development Council. The board discussed whether to fully fund the EDC at $325,000 and how to close a multimillion-dollar gap if commissioners chose a rollback-rate budget…