Ocala City Council Nov. 3 Agenda: Christmas on Broadway, $13.4M for 85 Vehicles, Pool Deck and Three Rezonings

The Ocala City Council meets Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, at 4 p.m. in the second-floor council chambers at Ocala City Hall, 110 SE Watula Ave. The city's final agenda lists a resolution to rename the "Christmas in July" event "Christmas on Broadway" and move it to Dec. 13, a $13,378,535 purchase of 85 vehicles and equipment, pool deck resurfacing at the Hampton Aquatic Center, three rezonings up for second and final reading, and a liquor license request for the AC Hotel by Marriott Downtown Ocala. Nov. 3 is also General Election Day. The agenda is a plan, not a result: the order of items can change, and this page will not report votes. For the first readings of the rezonings, see our Oct. 20 meetings recap.

At a Glance

• When: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, 4 p.m.


• Where: Ocala City Hall, 110 SE Watula Ave., second-floor council chambers


• Downtown event: Resolution 2027-6 renames "Christmas in July" as "Christmas on Broadway" and moves it from July 25, 2026, to Dec. 13, 2026


• Biggest purchase: 85 vehicles and equipment for city departments, $13,378,535


• Rezonings (second reading): Ordinances 2027-4, 2027-5 and 2027-6


• Next meetings listed by the city: Nov. 17 and Dec. 1, both at 4 p.m.

Christmas on Broadway: Proposed Dec. 13 Block Party

Item 9f is Resolution 2027-6, which amends Resolution 2026-42. It changes the event name from "Christmas in July" to "Christmas on Broadway," reschedules it from July 25, 2026, to Dec. 13, 2026, and keeps the authorization for beer, wine and liquor sales in the downtown event zone. Our Ocala Arts Festival report explains how the downtown event zone works. Resolution 2026-42 is the earlier council resolution that this item amends.

The attachments to the agenda item include a city special event draft permit. The details below come from that draft and are not final; they could change before a permit is issued. According to the draft permit:

• Date and time: Sunday, Dec. 13, 2026, 2 p.m. to 8 p.m., rain or shine


• Location: Broadway Street between 1st and 2nd Avenue in downtown Ocala, described as the block between The Black Sheep on Broadway and District Bar & Kitchen


• Street closure: Broadway between 1st and 2nd Avenue, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.


• Estimated attendance: 300


• Security: four Ocala Police Department officers for security details, with price and time to be determined by the department


• Alcohol: must stay inside the designated area, with "no alcohol beyond this point" signs; glass bottles and open flames on city property are not permitted


• Benefit: a letter dated Aug. 28, 2026, from the Marion County Literacy Council says it is the designated beneficiary and that a portion of the proceeds would support its literacy services

The permit is a draft. It lists the final site plan, road-closure filing, insurance certificate and police detail application as pending, and says a final permit will be issued once those conditions are met. Other downtown events that month, including Light Up Ocala on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 3 p.m. on the Downtown Square, are listed on the same agenda's calendar.

Rezonings Up for Second and Final Reading

Council introduced three rezoning ordinances on Oct. 20. All three are quasi-judicial, and each carries a case number:

• Ordinance 2027-4 (item 9a): about 2.80 acres at 5203 SW 20th St. from B-1A (Limited Neighborhood Business) to B-1 (Neighborhood Business), case ZON26-0015. Item 9d, a public hearing on terminating the developer's agreement recorded in Book 5069, Pages 323-334 for the same parcel, is on the same agenda.


• Ordinance 2027-5 (item 9b): about 13.34 acres at 2015 and 2141 NE 14th St. from R-1A (Single Family Residential), INST (Institutional) and RO (Residential Office) to INST, case ZON26-0013.


• Ordinance 2027-6 (item 9c): about 1.11 acres, at 1920 NE Eighth Road (0.81 acre) and the adjacent property to the west (0.30 acre), from R-3 (Multi-Family Residential) and B-4 (General Business) to B-2 (Community Business), case ZON26-0016.

The agenda notes that in quasi-judicial hearings, contact with council members about the case may be prohibited, so residents with concerns are directed to written comments to the City Clerk and testimony at the hearing.

85 Vehicles and Equipment for $13,378,535

Item 10m asks council to approve use of multiple cooperative purchase agreements to buy 85 vehicles and equipment for various city departments for $13,378,535. The agenda title does not break the total down by department. The item's attachments include price quotes and contract documents from purchasing cooperatives such as Sourcewell, and quote files labeled as a pumper, a midmount tower, light and heavy rescue units, flatbeds, trailers and generators. The agenda does not say which department gets which unit.

Hampton Aquatic Center Pool Deck: $252,360

Item 10b is an award of contract to Aquatic Renovation Systems, Inc., doing business as RenoSys Corp., for pool deck resurfacing at the Hampton Aquatic Center for $252,360. The agenda does not give a start date or say whether the pool will close during the work. Contact the city's Recreation and Parks Department before planning around it.

AC Hotel by Marriott Downtown Ocala: Liquor License

Item 9e is a quasi-judicial request for the sale of beer, wine and liquor for on-premises consumption by Domach, LLC, doing business as AC Hotel by Marriott Downtown Ocala, at 211 SW Broadway Street. Our AC Hotel report covers the project, which the developer lists as coming in late 2026; no opening date has been published.

KAS Ocala and the Flyover Ocala Rezoning Request

• KAS Ocala (item 9g): an amended and restated concurrency development agreement for KAS Ocala Limited Liability Company under Chapter 163, Florida Statutes.


• Flyover Ocala (item 10a): a request from attorney Robert W. Batsel Jr. to represent Flyover Ocala, LLC and R.C.P. Ocala, LLC concerning a rezoning request for properties west of Interstate 75 and northeast of the intersection of SW 66th Street and SW 43rd Avenue. Flyover Ocala, LLC also appears in an Oct. 20 council item on the Mockingbird Ridge planned development; the Nov. 3 agenda does not say whether the two are connected.

Grants, Utilities and Other Money Items

• Foxwood Farms sewer expansion (10c): Budget Resolution 2027-104 appropriates $718,476 from Florida Department of Environmental Protection Grant No. LPS0025 to the Fiscal Year 2025-26 budget.


• Overdose patient care (10i, 10j): an agreement with the Marion County Hospital District to fund medical services for overdose patients, $199,999, with Budget Resolution 2027-106 to accept the money.


• Homeless services data (10l): Budget Resolution 2027-107 accepts $237,244 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for Marion County's Continuum of Care Homeless Information System, 2024-2025 program year.


• Drainage grant (10g, 10h): a second modification to a Florida Division of Emergency Management subaward for a residential drainage project northeast of 16th Avenue, raising the total award to $395,034 with $164,179 added (Budget Resolution 2027-105).


• Fiber optic work (10d, 10e): a one-year renewal with American Cable Electric, LLC for up to $1,500,000, and added spending of up to $3,000,000 under the Gulf Coast Custom Cables, Inc. agreement.


• Other: vehicle routers for Police and Fire Rescue, $138,059 (10f); SECO Energy utility services for three years, estimated at no more than $260,000 (10k).

Proclamations, Appointments and the Consent Agenda

The Mayor's Citizen Recognition Award goes to Alina Stoothoff (item 4a). Beth McCall, executive director of the Marion County Children's Alliance, receives a "Look Up Marion, Put Down the Phone Day" proclamation (item 4b). The consent agenda has a $64,500 contract with Via Transportation, Inc. to extend the Remix planning and scheduling software for SunTran, the appointment of Charles Hannah to the Municipal Code Enforcement Board for a term ending March 1, 2028, and Utility Advisory Board reappointments for John Blackstock, James "Allen" Curry, Sarah Greene and Gregory Steen, plus the appointment of Thomas Butler, for terms ending Nov. 4, 2030.

How to Attend or Comment

According to the agenda, speakers who want to address council must complete a written public comment form and give it to the City Clerk before the meeting is called to order. Speakers get three minutes, and the Council President may allow more. The agenda also encourages written comments to the City Clerk before meetings for the public record. Public comments appear as item 16, after the department reports. The city's Legistar calendar has a video column that links recordings after meetings; the Oct. 20 meeting has one. Anyone who needs accommodations to participate should call the City Manager's Office at 352-629-8401 at least 48 hours ahead. Contact details for council members are on our Ocala City Council page, and the full November schedule is in our November public meetings guide.

What Comes Next

The agenda's calendar lists council meetings on Nov. 17 and Dec. 1 at 4 p.m., a Community Redevelopment Area Agency meeting on Nov. 17 at 3:45 p.m., a Transportation Planning Organization board meeting on Nov. 19 at 3 p.m., and city office closures for Veterans Day on Nov. 11 and for Thanksgiving on Nov. 26 and 27.

Sources: City of Ocala City Council Final Agenda, Nov. 3, 2026; City of Ocala Legistar calendar; City of Ocala Legistar file RES-2027-6 and its attachments (alcoholic beverage location permit application, draft special event permit and beneficiary letter) and file 2027-0206 (vehicle purchase attachments). Checked Oct. 29, 2026. AI tools helped gather the sources and draft this page; each fact was checked against those sources before publishing.