GREEN COVE SPRINGS – City Council members submitted a counteroffer to settle its lawsuit against four contractors city staff believe were responsible for a 2017 drilling mishap.

City Attorney L.J. Arnold brought an offer of $210,000 to council members near the end of Tuesday’s 90-minute meeting.

It cost the city $236,760 to fix the waterline that took out service to numerous businesses near U.S. 17 and State Road 16. The contractors declined to pay that amount and the city filed a complaint six months ago. Council member Mitch Timberlake’s motion to “split the difference” between the two offers, about $223,000, passed with a 5-0 vote.

Arnold said he never balked from the $236,760 mark in negotiations, but this was the most serious offer received so far.

“I haven’t brought back the silly low-ball offers,” Arnold said.

The suit had accumulated less than $10,000 in legal fees for the city. Arnold said if the suit went to trial, the city could pay much more.

“It’s hard to justify going to trial over this,” he said.

Council member Pam Lewis said she was bothered by the lawsuit.

“Just because we’re the government, they think they don’t have to adequately compensate us,” she said. “That's the impression I get.”

In other business, council members voted to let a resident move forward with a carport application and have staff review the city’s carport standards. Planning and Zoning Director Michael Daniels said resident Peter Gomes’ proposed carport was similar to multiple carports approved between 2007-16.

In 2016, the city created a tougher carport ordinance, requiring garages in all five types of residential zoning districts. Gomes said he wasn’t told of an appeals process and felt the process wasn’t fair three years ago. A staff report indicated council members wanted to limit cluttered carports at the time.

“Instead of enforcing the rules that we have, we change them, and it punishes everybody else,” Gomes said.

Timberlake said some carports were well-kept. He said the carport issue should be revisited by staff.

“I’m much more in favor of us trying to work with people who abuse the rules rather than saying everybody else can’t do it,” Timberlake said.