We encourage every KCBer to Email Your Commissioners.
Visit the CPH City Hall Design Pages
KCB News in January
KCB news this month includes groundbreaking for City hall.
Lock Down: the Question of the Year
People Are Asking, Does the city commission (still) have a siege mentality?
What will the KCB City Commission do at the Regular Meeting on January 22?
The city commission will host a regular monthly meeting in Marble Hall and on Zoom on Thursday, January 22.
Note that the restriction on public commentary continues for all meetings; "Members of the Public may speak for three minutes and may only speak once unless waived by a majority vote of the commission."
KCBers may want to ask our commissioners about items on the agenda or other issues in the city.
The agenda includes:
Administrative Notes:
Marathon Fire/Rescue reported that about 6.5% of their 2025 responses were in KCB.
KCB logged about 6.5% of Marathon Fire/Rescue service calls. Our FY25 payment was $970,000 against the total Fire/Rescue budget of $8,155,853. People Are Asking why we pay 11.9% of the Marathon budget for 6.5% of the costs.
Code enforcement, the police department, and building department launched a citywide waterway inspection program for seawalls, docks, missing buoys, and boat lift reflectors.
The waterway compliance has generated about 40 seawall or dock notifications or citations to property owners.
The city administrator is working on invitations to bid for Shelter Bay pavers at the retention pond, the basketball half court, pickleball court shades, and the fishing pier project for Sunset Park.
The building department has relocated to the city hall trailer.
The Tiki Restaurant remains on schedule for completion in June.
Consent Action Items:
The commission votes for Consent Action Items with a single motion. This month they include meeting minutes for the December organizational, public hearing, and regular meetings, a warrant for $1,043,877.13 and a contract renewal with The Southern Group for $54,000 (The Southern Group is a lobbyist in Alabama, the Carolinas, Florida, Georgia, and DC--Kate DeLoach is our representative). They will install new committee and board members Joe Schmidt and Peter Testa to the Utility Board, Janie Byland and Janice Mueller to Beaut, Larry Freels to P&Z, and Jessica Borraccino to CRS.
Discussion Action Items:
Resolution 2026-01 changes building permit fees, fire safety inspections, transfers, sewer connections, P&Z review, and vacation rentals
Resolution 2026-02 changes miscellaneous fees such as variances and trailer parking.
Resolution 2026-03 changes the penalties in the schedule of violations
The commission will discuss evaluating golf course safety.
Ordinances and Resolutions:
The commission will do final readings of Ordinance 2025-497 to amend the Comprehensive Plan and Ordinance 2025-507 to amend the Land Development Regulations. 2025-497 (first reading March 20, 2025) adds sections for coastal storm areas, community wide resiliency, flood risk in coastal areas, flood zone designations, site development, and reduction of flood loss and claims. 2025-507 (first reading December 18, 2025) reduces the setbacks for residential pools.
Commissioner Tom Harding will publish the December, 2025, Financial Summary. He will also give the Wastewater Sampling Summary Report of January 19 and discuss the US1 and Sadowski Causeway pedestrian crossing, a suggestion to lower city speed limits to 20 mph, and summarize the city's three emergency generators.
Vice Mayor Doug Colonell will give a city hall update and discuss moving the Farmers Market.
The agenda has no information about the city attorney's report or commissioner's reports and comments from mayor Foster or commissioners Diehl or DiFransico.
Read the full Key Colony Beach City Commission Meeting Agenda and Packet.
Click or tap here to email your questions and comments to the commissioners and city clerk.
Join the 01/22/26 meeting from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device:
Please click or tap this URL to join: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89884064712?pwd=KqWT4Bh1SxUUgcr3sbPPESzQ1Qxqmc.1
Passcode: 203066
What did the City Commission do at the Golf Course Workshop and Special Meeting?
The workshop discussed the comprehensive agreement and several attachments, the golf course lease agreement, as well as Daryl Rice's comments.
The golf course contract came up at several commission meetings in 2025. The question was very controversial. KCB residents and golfers strongly supported Daryl Rice, the current lessee and manager of the course. Public input and commission discussion continued throughout the year.
Find the complete transcript of this workshop and special meeting plus the contentious recreation history here.
The city has this reminder: "As we enjoy this special time of year together, let us also take a moment to give thanks and honor our veterans for their service and sacrifices. In that spirit, we kindly remind residents to help keep our city looking its best by ensuring that American flags are properly maintained. If your flag is showing signs of wear or fading, please consider replacing it.
"If you have a neighbor who is out of town or may need assistance replacing a flag, please contact Sylvia at city hall (305-289-1212 #2) and we will be happy to help."
New City Hall is Underway
Construction and renovations to Marble Hall has officially begun and chain link fencing divides the parking lot. During this phase of the project, access to the post office, parking areas, and portions of the property will be affected. There will be signs, barriers, and fencing to guide us through the parking lots, to the post office, and to Marble Hall.
City Hall Closed
KCB city hall offices will be closed on Monday, January 19, for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
KCB City Commission Regular Meeting on January 15
The city commission public hearing and regular meeting scheduled for January has been moved one week to Thursday, January 22, at 9:30 a.m..
Farmers Market
The KCB Farmers Market continues on Tuesdays at 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. through the season. The commission may choose a new location for the farmers market.
Beauty in KCB
Beauts and friends finished mulching the front garden in just an hour last week. The next party is in the Barrier Garden in the 7th Street parking lot adjacent to city hall (the Farmers Market parking lot) on Wednesday, January 21, at 9 a.m. Volunteers will trim, weed, feed, and spread 25 bags of prime mulch.
Concerts in KCB
The KCB Community Association Concerts in Sunset Park series begins the 2026 season with John Bartus, the 42nd Anniversary Concert, live in the new tiki in Sunset Park on Sunday, January 25, at 4 p.m.
Celebrate the 42nd Anniversary of John's first show in the Keys with a program of his original songs from throughout the years, as well as some long-time favorites.
Music fills KCB this season. Bring a lawn chair or blanket and your favorite beverage. Here's the schedule:
January 25: John Bartus
February 1: Rick Lieder Band
February 15: Ericson Holt
February 22: Stormfront
March 1: KCB DAY!
March 8: Brothers of Others
March 15: 79th Street Band
March 22: KCB Band
Meetings
Beginning in February, all Commission, Board, and Committee meetings will be moved to the afternoon starting at 3:30 p.m. This change anticipates the upcoming city hall construction. The post office hours are not changed.
During the construction period, there may be noise, dust, and increased activity on the entire lot. There will be a "safe passage through the parking lot to Marble Hall and the post office."
Ground Breaking
The commission broke ground for the new city hall project on December 19. Monroe County Mayor Michelle Lincoln, Marathon Mayor Lynn Del Gaizo, and representatives from Pedro Falcon Construction and CPH Architects joined the commissioners, city staff, and KCBers for the ceremony.
See photos of the event here.
100% City Hall Design Drawings
The city commission held a special meeting in August for a presentation by CPH Architect Brandan DeCaro. The commission discussed the construction cost, rammed through the 100% design drawings, and approved the final bid package and contract.
Here is an abridged architectural plan showing the elevations and floor presented by CPH plus the elevation and 3D image from the citizen proposal to create a legal two story entry and to resolve the ADA access: http://peopleareasking.org/resources/100_submittal_set_floorplans-08-14-2025.pdf
KCBers are still very concerned that we're buying a five-six million dollar shopping center facade as the showpiece for the city despite the obvious violations of KCB ordinances, the probable violations of Florida Building Code and Florida statutes, the likelihood of an ADA lawsuit, and the concerns that there has been no citizen architectural review.
It is noteworthy that the simplest solution (first recommended at the beginning of this project) is to build the entrance lobby on ground level and floodproof it.
That simple solution eliminates ADA issues, eliminates parking lot issues, reduces the overall height of the building, and reduces costs.
The commission ignored that answer.
|
Here is an abridged architectural plan showing the elevations and floor presented by CPH plus the elevation and 3D image from the citizen proposal to create a legal two story entry and to resolve the ADA access: http://peopleareasking.org/resources/100_submittal_set_floorplans-08-14-2025.pdf
All the official "City Hall Renovation" documents released so far can be found here: https://keycolonybeach.net/about-our-city-2/city-hall-renovations
Click or tap here to email your questions and comments to the commissioners and city clerk to ask these and other questions about the plans.
Download a `PDF of the City Hall comparison drawings
Click Here for the February, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the March, 2025, KCB News (or a look at how we got here)
Click Here for the April, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the May, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the June, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the July, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the August, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the September, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the October, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the November, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the December, 2025, KCB News
Click Here for the January, 2026, KCB News
