City of Gainesville d/b/a Gainesville Regional Utilities v. Parkwood Alachua Land Investments, Inc.
A developer sued Gainesville Regional Utilities for lift-station rebate fees, arguing the operative numbered paragraph required rebates for 'any properties' connecting to the lift station, while GRU argued unnumbered introductory paragraphs limited rebates to connections from outside the development. On rehearing, the First DCA withdrew its earlier opinion reversing and affirmed, holding that the introductory paragraphs were prefatory recitals that could not create ambiguity in, or restrict, the otherwise unambiguous operative provisions. A dissent argued rehearing was improper because the movant merely reargued the merits rather than identifying anything overlooked or misapprehended.
Key facts
- Developer Parkwood Alachua Land Investments sued Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) seeking lift-station rebate fees under a utility agreement.
- The dispute centered on whether unnumbered introductory paragraphs in the agreement limited rebates to connections from outside the development, or whether the operative numbered paragraph required rebates for 'any properties' connecting to the lift station.
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Why it matters
The opinion is a rare instance of a DCA panel granting rehearing and reversing its own prior reversal on a pure contract-interpretation issue, making it useful authority on both the substantive prefatory-clause rule and… — full analysis with a trial
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