Bob Deakin Short Stories

Frank Poplawski, 86, of Sarasota is living a life that many only read about, and what most can only imagine.

He served in the Marine Corps during World War II from 1942 to 1945 and is fortunate to have survived, let alone be at the scene of one of the most famous flights in history. He came home to a welcome seen mostly in old film reels.

Frank Poplawski of Sarasota poses in front of the fountain for a recent photo in Washington D.C. Photo courtesy of Frank Poplawski

Poplawski had a chance to re-live the welcome home this past week as part of Honor Flight West Central Florida, which provided an all-expense paid flight for 71 World War II veterans to Washington D.C. to visit the monuments.

As serious and as dangerous an experience as his service as a marine was, it all started with a friend’s encouragement for a good time.

“My friend John said ‘Frank let’s join the Marine Corps, we could have a lot of fun,’” he remembers. “I passed, he failed.”

Poplawski had actually been accepted as a Naval Aviation cadet after high school as well as a student at Norwich University but chose the Marines instead. His job was relaying communications between the artillery companies and the forward observer.

“We got trapped in between the two lines for about two and a half days (in Saipan) so I had to dig a fox hole and lay low with shells going overhead,” he explains of his most harrowing moments. But he survived and thanks the Lord for intending something more in his future.

“When you can hear the Japanese talk, you wonder if one of them is going to wander into your hole,” he says of the battle. “When you’re 18 you don’t think about those things. Somebody else is going to get hit, not me. When we hit the beach on Saipan I had friends on both sides who got hit and I was the only one that survived.”

He took part in battles in Tarawa and Saipan, but it was at Tinian where he witnessed the preparation of the flight of the Enola Gay to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.

Tinian was the closest of the islands to Japan but he did not know, of course, what the mission was.

“There were a lot of B29s there. The coating of the planes that were there were silver underneath the belly. I knew nothing about the atomic bomb. Nobody did,” he said. “But you get kind of suspicious; Why in the hell are all of these planes here with all of this silver lining on the bottom.”

He didn’t ask any questions.

“That to me was a great experience. I’m not proud of what happened because of the [Japanese] people that got killed, but the other thing I’m proud of is the fact that one hundred thousand [military personnel] didn’t get killed going into Japan.”

Along with some of the lucky members of the military, he was welcomed back with waving flags, bands playing and applause. He also utilized the experience for his benefit, going to college and earning an engineering degree from the University of Vermont. He had a 20-year career at both Boeing and Grumman as a director of procurement, purchasing parts for some of the most influential aircraft in future military efforts.

“When I graduated from school in ’49 it was about like it is today; no jobs,” he remembers. “I bought things for all of the divisions of Boeing. After 20 years with them, Grumman was building the F14 and somehow the headhunters got a hold of me because of my experience.”

Following his career at Grumman he opened an antique store in Bethpage, NY for the next 20 years and loved it.

“It was so much fun. I love people and that’s what made it so enjoyable,” he says, injecting humor at the passage of time. “You’ve got 20 years, 20 years and 20 years. It adds up doesn’t it?”

He moved to Sarasota two years ago and has three children including a daughter in town, one in Bradenton and a son in New York.

As much as he was fortunate to enjoy a hero’s welcome back from World War II, Poplawski feels even more fortunate for the welcome he received at the St. Petersburg Clearwater Airport this past Tuesday upon the return from the Honor Flight to Washington, which was delayed two and a half hours because of weather.

“Now I feel I know why the lord kept me this long; so I could see these children coming in to St. Petersburg,” he says of the welcome home, which included a greeting by hundreds waiting for them at the airport, including many children. “All of these people standing there cheering – my god, somebody really thinks about us after 60 years. There are some people that really care, and especially these young kids.”

He credits members of Honor Flight West Central Florida for a great trip and even a ride to and from his home in Sarasota to the airport. Also included in the flight home was a packet of letters personally addressed to him and the others from well-wishers giving thanks for their service to the country. Poplawski was so overwhelmed with the gestures he shook hands with everyone he could get to.

“I had a wonderful time. The monuments were exceptional, the people were exceptional and the weather was good but the most splendid time was getting back to the St. Petersburg Airport,” he says. “Young kids – four, six, eight years-old waiting with their mother and father. Waiting two and a half hours, so I took the opportunity to go and shake hands with almost every one of those little kids.”

He said his message to them was hope they would be the next best generation.

Honor Flight currently has 105 chapters across the U.S. and West Central Florida has made a big mark in its two flights, the first one May and more slated for the future.

“Boy I tell you Florida really treats the people right. That was really exciting for me. It was wonderful, absolutely wonderful,” Poplawski attests. “To me that was the most important part of the trip. Looking at monuments is one thing but looking at people that are standing there waving their hands and cheering and clapping with the children really touched my heart.”

Originally published on Patch.com in July 2011

Copyright 2011

More than 70 aging World War II veterans from Tampa Bay are embarking today on an unusual one-day, whirlwind trip to Washington, D.C., to see the National World War II Memorial.

The veterans will fly from St. Petersburg·Clearwater International Airport on a trip organized by Honor Flight of West Central Florida (HFWCF) and funded by private donations.

The World War II Memorial that the vets will visit was dedicated only seven years ago, nearly 60 years after the war ended. It will be the first – and perhaps the only – time the men will see the memorial.

All expenses are covered for the veterans, and there will be volunteers there to assist them. Many of these men are now in their 80s and 90s, with some requiring wheelchairs.

“When the veteran shows up at the airport in the morning, we know what to expect,” said organizer David Howard of Gulfport. Howard and his wife, Barbara, the group’s treasurer, will both volunteer as “guardians,” and they’re excited to go.

The trip is arranged by the nonprofit, which is run entirely by volunteers, to extend thanks to these aging military heroes. HFWCF is one of 104 chapters of the national Honor Flight.

“My wife’s dad flew Honor Flight out of Chicago a year ago,” Howard said. “He was a guy who never spoke about the war (served in Europe) and he went on this Honor Flight, and it just changed his whole life.

“When they came home from World War II, they were pretty much in agreement not to talk about what happened over there because it was pretty horrific, and they haven’t.”

The Howards were so impressed with the Honor Flight from Chicago that they set out to form an Honor Flight chapter in the St. Petersburg area. They soon learned that retired Air Force Col. Fred Olson, now president of HFWCF, had already done so. So they joined as volunteers.

On Tuesday morning, the veterans will meet at the airport before dawn, be served a complimentary breakfast and board the chartered flight from Allegiant Air and arrive in Washington early. They will visit the World War II Memorial and other memorials.

George Blackmore, 92, of St. Petersburg is a decorated veteran of the Merchant Marine during World War II. His ship was attacked by the enemy in almost every ocean in the world; he earned three combat service medals and the Merchant Marine Medal.

“The Merchant Marine lost one of every 26 seamen that went to sea. That was more, percentage-wise, than all the other armed forces put together,” he said. “I’m looking forward more than anything else to honor the one out of every 26 that went down to sea.”

How was his initial welcome home from the war?

“Very few people welcomed me back,” he said. “The Army, the Navy and the Marine Corps got the glory, and we were just forgotten about. I’m not looking to be honored. I’m looking for the service to be recognized. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

Charles Moore, 86, of Clearwater was a photo navigator for the Army Air Corps on a B-29 over Japan, serving from 1943-46. He will be aboard the flight to Washington.

“We’d go up and take pictures from Guam,” he said of his World War II experience. “We would take pictures, bring them back and brief the bombing crews on the targets. The next day we’d go out and take more pictures and bring them back and they’d do bomb damage assessments.”

He is eager to get on the plane to Washington.

“I’m very excited about the trip,” he said. “One of the problems is they were so long in building a memorial for World War II veterans, whereas for Korea and Vietnam they built those immediately after those wars. They waited until half of us died off before they built a memorial.”

Frank Poplawski of Sarasota served in the Marine Corps during World War II from 1942-45 and remembers a friend suggesting they join the Marines because it would be fun.

“I passed; he failed,” he notes, adding, “I’m not a hero. I did see three major battles at the beginning of the war in the Pacific. I saw action at Tarawa, Saipan and Pimian and was on the field when [Paul] Tibbets (in the Enola Gay) took off to bomb Hiroshima. That was about it.”

He didn’t know, of course, what the mission was. “There’s a bunch of B-29s out there; they must be doing something.”

Lester Palmer, 91, of Largo enlisted in the Army Air Corps the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Before that, he had been a flight instructor at Roosevelt Field in Long Island. He remained there on standby-reserve before being called up for active duty.

“My service was not as exciting as some of the others might be,” he says modestly, downplaying flights through the Aleutian Islands. “I consider it quite an honor to be called up with these guys who probably had a lot more involved activities in dangerous situations than I’ve been in.”

The veterans will fly back to St. Pete on Tuesday night, have dinner on the plane and be welcomed back as heroes when they arrive.

A two-star general will be waiting to welcome each one, and a color guard will lead them through the airport. They will be escorted and saluted by MacDill Air Base cadets, the Patriot Guard, Boy Scouts, families and others.

Howard hopes this trip will hold special meaning for the veterans. “This is our last chance to thank them,” Howard said.

Want to get involved?

The cost of the flights is as much as $60,000 and Allegiant gives HFWCF the flight at cost. The organization will gladly accept donations or letters to veterans. E-mail Leonard Black at lblack1927@aol.com to submit a letter or call the organization at 727-498-6079 to make donations.

Anyone who wishes to welcome the veterans home at the airport is welcome to do so. They are scheduled to arrive at 7 p.m. Tuesday. 

Currently, there is a waiting list of 450 veterans in the Tampa Bay area to take part in future trips. There also are plans in the works to host veterans from the Korean and Vietnam wars.

Originally published on Patch.com in June 2011

Copyright 2011

The Sarasota Board of County Commissioners continued its three-day budget workshop session Wednesday, starting with the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office’s budget request in the morning segment.

Sarasota County Sheriff Tom Knight made the presentation recommending a five-year budget of $86,706,000, which was described as $1 million under budget for 2012 as a result of a Florida Retirement System (FRS) rate reduction.

He pointed out that in Sarasota County, there are 1.2 deputies per 1,000 population and the state average is 1.7 per 1,000. Per citizen the cost is $362 per deputy each year in Sarasota with a state average of $487.

One of the factors that have caused a reduction in expenses is biometric identification, it was explained. It was noted that the average stay in the Sarasota jail is approximately 20 days and the Sheriff’s Office was able to identify 219 individuals from 19 different countries who were in the county illegally and picked up for a crime in the past year. As a result of the biometric identification they were immediately sent to immigration without needing to be housed at the jail, reducing food and medical costs.

Sheriff Knight also pointed to the success of the work program, in which 165 criminal offenders have participated since October 2010. Rather than be detained in jail, they show up to work each day at the work site as part of work orders including cleaning tasks across the county, again saving food and medical costs that would be spent housing them in jail. It also saves money for the county eliminating the costs to pay employees to do the work.

“We enjoy the luxury of not having those folks checking into jail and being in the facility,” Knight said, adding that they have collected 1,150 bags of trash in that time. “Everybody that we’re able to keep out is certainly saving us money on the food cost and medical potential.”

It was also noted that 81 percent of the budget is personnel costs. Operating expenses have gone up as a result of the rising costs off fuel as well as jail medical and food costs.

Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office Maj. Kurt Hoffman explained that medical costs of those held in the jail have resulted in an enormous increase in the past year, mainly as a result of seven inmates (70 percent of the tab) and pharmaceutical expenses for detoxing and treating drug addicts. The insurance contract provides that the sheriff’s office pay any amount over a $250,000 aggregate cap and that two individuals went over that amount, including one for $448,000.

Commission Chair Nora Patterson clarified that the FRS rate will likely increase as of July this year and that next year’s budget will reflect it.

“We’re probably going to start a couple million behind the 8-ball next year,” she suggested, to which Knight agreed.

Maj. Kevin Kenny explained another detail to the commissioners for future reference, stating that most of the Sheriff’s Office facilities are not rated beyond a category 2 hurricane.

“Of the 26 some-odd facilities that we have, only one is rated over a category two when it comes to a storm,” he said, noting that the facility rated is one wing of the jail. “While everyone else is evacuating, we’re going to be evacuating some 25-odd facilities at the same time.”

Knight added that the department is working on a master plan for the improvement of the departments facilities, including the need for storage.

“Maj. Kenney’s comments are really important and we need to absorb right away. That’s pretty serious, really a wake-up call,” said Commissioner Joseph Barbetta. “We need to address this as quickly as possible.”

The County Commission continued with the budget workshop throughout the day addressing the fire department, Emergency Services, Facilities and 11 other items. The workshop will continue Friday at 9am.

Originally published on Patch.com in June 2011

Copyright 2011

Mayor Yakes presents the key to the city to Steve Karbowski. Photo by Bob Deakin

The Gulfport City Council covered numerous issues Tuesday night with a healthy dose of public input.

The meeting began with the presentation of the Spirit of Gulfport Award to Steve Karbowski for his dedication to the crime prevention group in the northwestern section of the city. Since early 2009 Mr. Karbowski and his family have led a group of neighbors to become active in the attempt to reduce crime in their neighborhood.

Mr. Karbowski and his family stepped to the podium to accept the award from Mayor Michael Yakes.

“Along with that, so you will enjoy this quality city that you are a great part of, is the key to the city,” Mr. Yakes announced. “Council Member Salmon is the one that acknowledged your greatness.”

In the past year Mr. Karbowski has organized ten block parties with the objective of neighbors getting to know each other better and to be more aware of the goings on in the neighborhood. His efforts may have contributed to reduced crime that section of the city, and his efforts were met with a warm round of applause.

*****

Mayor Yakes also presented Governor’s Hurricane Conference Certificates to to three residents for the Gulfport Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). For their recent training efforts in hurricane response, Christine Brown, Louis Distasio and Michael Worthington were each awarded certificates qualifying them to administer citizen training for disaster response. They plan to participate in hurricane training classes to citizens in the coming weeks.

*****

City Attorney Andrew Salzman responded to two questions brought up at a previous workshop regarding golf carts. He said that the city is permitted to have residents’ golf carts inspected to ensure compliance with an ordinance that would allow them to be used on the road. He also stated that inspecting the golf carts would have no affect on the city’s liability in the event of an accident.

“From the basis of doing an ordinance and additional liability the answer is you can do the ordinance and you will not have any additional liability,” Mr. Salzman stated.

Also referring to a new golf cart ordinance, which the city is still working to complete, resident Bonnie Bray spoke to the council recommending that in advance of workshops in the future, council members should consider meeting with residents as part of small committees for a more productive session.

“The golf cart resolution, when you were going back and forth and back and forth, no one could make any comments and there were easy fixes but it was a big waste of your time.” She suggesting that if a council member had previously discussed particular issues with residents they might be better prepared at the workshops.

*****

City Manager James O’Reilly announced that the city’s property appraiser presented a new “loss of property value” of 8.71 percent, which is down from the previous estimate of 10.5 from earlier this year. He asked the appraiser to re-look at the numbers and he felt the new estimate is “very positive and moving in the right direction.”

*****

Lee Stapella spoke to the council about citizens’ right regarding city personnel complaints and concerns.

“It seems that a narrow and rigid application of a three-minute time limit to the public may expose the city to needless litigation if folks don’t have time to explain their concerns,” she stated. She said many cities offer citizens five minutes to speak and that the council has the right to extend the time limit if they so choose on a case-by-case basis. “After all, the attempt of the issue is to put out a possible litigation fire and it’s useful as a cost saver.”

Mayor Yakes responded that the council and staff will take her concerns into consideration.

*****

Resident Doug Hudson complimented the city and the public works department for its recent response to excessive trash and brush gathered along curbs but urged the council to take a more proactive approach to trash pickup in the future.

*****

One resident that did not identify himself asked the council if they were considering getting rid of the Gulfport Trolley. He advised against it saying resident and tourists uses it to go in and around St. Petersburg and that he finds it very useful for someone who doesn’t have a car. Mayor Yakes said that removing the trolley service “is in consideration” but that no decisions have been made.

*****

Crea Egan spoke to the council inviting them to attend “Growing Greener” on Saturday, June 18, from 10 to 4 at the Gulfport Casino Ballroom. The mission is to display urban, sustainable gardening and living.

Originally published on Patch.com in June 2011

Copyright 2011

Council Member Jennifer Salmon makes a point to City Manager James O'Reilly Tuesday night. Photo by Bob Deakin

The Gulfport City Council Tuesday night approved the renewal of the existing franchise agreement with Progress Energy for a ten-year period. As part of the agreement, Progress Energy will pay the city a six percent ($843,095) franchise fee, which is taken from fees charged to the customers.

Council Member Jennifer Salmon questioned why the council did not have an opportunity to discuss the franchise agreement at a workshop, indicating that there may have been ways to reduce energy uses or other bids to consider. The city manager said he didn’t bring it to workshop as it is a standard agreement that the city has continued over time but that it would be brought to public discussion in the future.

Gail Simpson, manager of public policy for Progress Energy, explained that the deal is a right-of-way agreement and that the company would be willing to discuss measures to reduce energy uses for the city. Mayor Yakes added that this is the first reading of the contract and that there will be a public hearing to address it.

The council approved the franchise renewal by a 4 to 1 vote with Council Member Salmon adding the ‘no’ vote.

*****

The council unanimously approved the city’s $444,081 insurance policy with Public Risk Management of Florida. City Manager Jim O’Reilly said that there was no increase over last year and that he was satisfied with the ongoing agreement.

Council Member Salmon commented that the council should be more active in seeing that there are more options available before voting on a new policy.

“It just seems like we have a fiduciary responsibility to make sure that we are re-bidding these things and encouraging a slew of applicants,” she said. “I think that’s part of our job.”

Council Member Sam Henderson later commented that the council should not try to micro-manage how the city staff does its work in day-to-day activities.

*****

The council also unanimously voted to authorize the city manager to renew the city’s sewer system repair contract with J.T.V., Inc. for a period of two years. Public Works Director Don Sopak has been working with the city for many years, is familiar with the systems throughout the city and has a good working relationship and willing to make repairs when called upon.

“To me it’s a good deal,” he said. “I do like working with them. They do a good job and we’ve never had a collapse in any line they’ve put in and they’ve probably put in a hundred thousand square feet of line.”

Resident Bob Worthington spoke up in favor of the contract renewal, warning that the pipes are old and preventing collapses is vital in avoiding larger expenses of replacing pipe.

“I’d just like to say keeping this group in here or even having another group of the same type is hugely important,” he said. “Our infrastructure here in Gulfport is the pipes in the ground that you can’t see. They’re deteriorating and in a lot of cases they’re more than 70 years old… We need to keep up with our infrastructure and I urge the council to do everything they can.”

*****

In other business, Council Member Henderson has proposed an early-morning “Keep Gulfport Weird Mini-triathlon” on September 24 on the day of the Tangerine Blues Festival. It would not be for expert athletes but more for fun and would involve a one-mile run, 4-mile bike and a swim from the recreation center to the Casino Pier. He will provide more details in the future.

*****

Council Member Barbara Banno alerted the council that the Rand McNally “Best of the Road” competition is coming to a close and that Gulfport is one of six finalists out of 600 for the “Best for Food” category. Beginning June 23, five teams selected by USA Today and Rand McNally will head to the various towns in several categories to judge for themselves. It is not known what day they will hit Gulfport but she advises merchants to be ready.

She gave credit to the Chamber of Commerce and Merchants Association to get the word out to participate in the competition and vote for Gulfport. “It’s a really good opportunity for Gulfport to be put on the map,” she said. “It’s very exciting news and I’ll keep you guys all posted.”

Mayor Yakes said the town has received calls as a result of the competition and that other local officials have indicated they will be heading to Gulfport to judge for themselves.

Originally published on Patch.com in June 2011

Copyright 2011

The Gulfport Waterfront District sign in Gulfport, FL. Photo by Bob Deakin

Gulfport’s City Council heard one presentation and examined four items at its workshop on Thursday including the operation of golf carts on public roads, an amendment to the Historic Preservation Ordinance, the Waterfront Redevelopment Area entryway sign and the proposed mooring field.

For the third time in the past year the city council discussed the feasibility of allowing golf carts – or low-speed vehicles – on public roads. Early in the discussion City Attorney Associate Caitlin E. Sirico confirmed that the city of Indian Rocks Beach allows golf carts on city streets that do not exceed 25 mph, which seemed to be what many in the discussion wanted to emulate. It was golf carts crossing or driving on busier streets such as Gulfport Blvd. or its intersections with 58^th St. or 52^nd St. that most agreed was a common danger.

Driving a golf cart in downtown Gulfport was seen as a positive for the town by some, saving both natural resources and parking. It was also seen as a sign of a friendly, eclectic community open to more forms of travel and comfort.

Resident Bonnie Bray spoke in favor of legalizing golf carts on the streets.

“With the city tax base and everything else decreasing and the tax roles going down we have to develop some uniqueness for the city. We have a small little community here in the middle of a big area and the more unique our community can become the better our property values will increase. Golf carts within the city of Gulfport will keep our business within our community, within our restaurants; it will keep the community a little bit more quaint.”

She said the city of Dunedin recently legalized golf carts on the street and that members of its merchant’s association helped push the ordinance through. She claimed it would help the lack of parking in town and that insurance can be covered under homeowners policies.

The major points of debate were whether registration of the golf carts was necessary, if insurance was necessary and how much, how rules pertaining to their use would be enforced (police department or code enforcement) and whether allowing their use might open the possibility of younger or unlicensed drivers operating them on city streets.

One possibility brought up was to create a set of safety regulations for each cart such as lights, indicators, windshields, horns and seat belts, and make the owner have it inspected by the police and put an easily identifiable marker on those carts so that the police would be able to quickly identify an approved cart.

Gulfport Police Chief Robert Vincent addressed the council and admitted it would be difficult to expect his officers to write code enforcement citations during their course of duties, as opposed to traffic violations, which are part of their normal duties.

“That does bring up an issue,” Chief Vincent responded to a question from Council Member Barbara Banno as to the enforcement of citations. “It would be enforced via a code violation not a uniform traffic citation, which is a little bit more complicated procedure. We would have to change some policies in the way we do things otherwise we would never get cops to do it. For an officer to write an ordinance violation citation right now requires that they complete an offense report, that they complete an arrest report, that they complete a booking report. It’s a very complicated process. It’s not anywhere near as simple as writing a traffic ticket.”

He said that officers rarely write code enforcement violations but when they do it’s typically for a barking dog or loud music, and that they have to file a long list of reports.

“I think that Gulfport could use a golf cart ordinance,” Vice Mayor David Hastings suggested. “I’m not in favor of this [one]. It does have some of the features in here that I would like to see as required equipment but it does lack, I think, the specifics.”

He mentioned light levels and that he wasn’t in favor of allowing carts at night. Living in the Pasadena Yacht & County Club he noted that it does have a golf cart ordinance and that teenagers will sometimes pile on the carts at night and create dangerous situations for themselves and automobile drivers. He also said he would be in favor of allowing golf carts in the downtown Beach Blvd. area.

“I think we definitely need to stay away from 58^th and 22^nd,. That is not a place to allow a crossing,” he stressed. “I would think that we would want to require, for everybody’s concern, that a golf cart would have to be insured with a minimum amount of liability to protect all.”

Council Member Sam Henderson also suggested minimum liability insurance, as well as licensed drivers only, for golf cart operators on the streets of Gulfport.

Ultimately, City Manager O’Reilly agreed to write a new ordinance stating specific requirements for the carts and where they can travel. The council will vote to approve or deny that ordinance at a later date.

*****

Mike Meidel, Director of Pinellas County Economic Development (PCED) spoke to the council to make them aware of the services that it provides including consulting, education and assistance with small business loans.

One of the points he made was that Gulfport may be able to qualify for a Brownfield grant to help develop areas around 49^th St. that may have been contaminated by hazardous materials. He suggested that the city may take advantage of working with bordering St. Petersburg to apply for such grants and that designating an entire corridor as a Brownfield may be beneficial in qualifying for a grant.

“Over time if the areas are lopsided in development it drags down the development of the entire neighborhood,” Mr. Meidel said, referring to the 49^th St. area.

*****

Community Development Director Fred Metcalf announced to the council that the Waterfront Redevelopment Advisory Board (WRAB) is looking at prices and ideas for a new sign at the entryway to the Waterfront Redevelopment Area at the intersection of Gulfport Blvd. and Beach Blvd.

“It’s a nice sign but it might need a little work,” Mr. Metcalf said of the existing blue and white “Gulfport Waterfront District” sign set into a flower garden for Gulfport Blvd. traffic to see. He and others at the meeting admitted that they barely notice the sign when driving because of the concentration needed to drive at that point of the road.

He said WRAB members would like to incorporate sailboats and a regatta theme into the new sign and for it to be artistically tasteful to reflect the art district. He presented an architectural drawing of a concept of a new sign structure about 20 feet in diameter featuring three sails labeled with the attractions of the city within a water fountain.

Mr. Metcalf said WRAB was hoping to keep the cost of the entire structure within the $25,000 to $30,000 range. They came up with an initial estimate of $1,500 for construction drawings before unveiling a final concept. Since WRAB is under the auspices of the council, council members would have to authorize the project.

He said WRAB has $11,000 in its capital budget to help pay for the sign but it was not stated where the rest of the funds would come from to pay for the project. No further discussion followed about the next step to bid for drawings or to settle on a final artistic plan for a sign. WRAB will approach the council at a later date with an update on its plans.

Originally published on Patch.com in May 2011

Copyright 2011

Engineer Andy Nicholson gives a walk through of the Gulfport mooring field plan. Photo by Bob Deakin

With the go ahead from the Gulfport City Council, City Manager James O’Reilly will move forward with the permitting process for a mooring field in Boca Ciega Bay. Following a long discussion, Mr. O’Reilly agreed to proceed with the process at a cost of approximately $25,000 to the city.

The mooring field proposal has been discussed and debated at several meetings the past two months with much public input at the meetings, most speaking in favor of it. The city first began the permitting process with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) several years ago and as part of the process the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the Army Corps of Engineers would grant approval or denial as well.

Five residents spoke in favor of the mooring field proposal at Thursday’s workshop including former vice-mayor Bob Worthington.

“I applaud the council for bringing that back. It’s been something that’s been very necessary for Gulfport and the control of our environment along the beach and in the bay,” he said, connecting a mooring field with better enforcement of boating regulations. “I think the good boaters of this area also applaud you because it takes away from a lot of their monies that would be going to boating projects. When one of these [derelict] boats has to be removed it takes boating money away and it takes our marina money away and that hurts all good boaters.”

Resident Al Davis encouraged the council to see an active mooring field for themselves in order to make their decision and not base it on the advice of others.

“Whatever your decision is please base it on fact, and consider the economics and consider the best for Gulfport, not just the warm noses that are in the room at the time of the decision.”

Council Member Jennifer Salmon asked to have a walk-through of the map of the footprint of the field in relation to the public beach.

Andy Nicholson, consulting engineer of the mooring field project, pointed to the map and explained that distances between the field and the beach range from 590′ to 642′ to 686′ at various points on the west side closest to the Casino.

“We are putting perimeter buoys here to control the traffic and provide a bigger protection area,” Mr. Nicholson said, pointing to the eastern side of the Casino pier. “This is all going to be a very slow speed area and this is all a safe zone for critters. Although there’s not a large activity of the mammals (manatees) here we’re still giving them an extra level of protection they don’t have today.”

Mr. O’Reilly pointed out that the distances are important as it is a designated manatee habitat and that after four attempts in the past seven years the permitting process must move forward in order to see if the mooring field can in fact be approved by the various agencies.

“Not to be blunt with you, but we’re here,” he said. “We’re here for the fourth time, and I’d like to poll you and ask you if that’s something you’d like to move forward [with].”

Mayor Michael Yakes noted that the footprint of the mooring field plans have been moved west over the years to accommodate an acceptable location, to be sensitive to the environment and considerate of access to the business district.

“It has been around a long time, I think we’ve got to do what you said,” Mayor Yakes agreed. “Let’s do this.”

“I agree,” said Council Member Barbara Banno, confirming that Mr. O’Reilly wishes to move forward with the current proposal rather than continue to debate it or make adjustments. “I think it’s a step in the right direction. I think it’s good for the community… I think it kind of puts us on the map a little bit.”

“Let us go to the FDEP because I think what would happen is, I think we’d get bound up in the what if? That’s what I would rather not do,” Mr. O’Reilly responded. “If we get caught in the what ifs, we could be redesigning [the project] completely. I think we need to be able to just go use our best judgment as a staff. They’ll come back and you’ll either accept their permit if they offer you one or you won’t.”

Vice Mayor David Hastings asked for confirmation that $25,000 is the estimate to get the project to the point of an approval or denial with the FDEP and Mr. O’Reilly confirmed it was.

“I’m willing to front that money because I think the ultimate goal if we could end up with something like that, would be a positive for the city,” Mr. Hastings said.

“I’ll probably be the oddball out, and I do think that mooring fields are environmentally friendly,” said Council Member Sam Henderson, satisfied with the layout and the aesthetics of the plan. “My issue is economics in a year we’re talking about who are we going to lay off, we’re talking about raising utility rates… It seems like a luxury item and I don’t think it’s a good time to do it. That’s my personal opinion.”

At that point Mayor Yakes concluded the discussion with a majority in agreement to allow the city manager to proceed with the permitting process with the FDEP at a cost of $25,000 taken from the Gulfport Marina Fund.

Originally published on Patch.com in May 2011

Copyright 2011

Vice-Mayor David Hastings accepts check on behalf of Gulfport from Darby Dickerson of Stetson University. Photo by Bob Deakin

The Gulfport City Council Tuesday night unanimously approved an ordinance granting the renewal of a non-exclusive franchise agreement with Peoples Gas, a division of TECO Energy of Tampa, for the provision of natural gas in Gulfport.

Resident Al Davis pointed out that some residents have resorted to propane because natural gas lines do not run to their homes and asked if the agreement would make provisions for added availability of natural gas. Leroy Sullivan, a representative of Peoples Gas, confirmed that the gas mains do not extend everywhere in the city and to add service, those residents would have to share the installation expense with Peoples Gas.

“I’d like to say that Natural gas is available to anyone who wants it, it’s just a matter of what are you willing to pay for it,” Mr. Sullivan explained, including that once installed, natural gas costs significantly less than other forms of energy.

He was asked what percentage of the city is served with natural gas but was unable to to provide that number at the time. He also said that the company does not publicly provide a schematic of where the mains run in the city as it becomes a competitive issue with other energy providers. He confirmed that if a cluster of residents wanted to band together to share installation costs that the company would be willing to work out an agreement and that it is always eager to extend itself to new customers.

Vice-Mayor David Hastings, acting in place of Mayor Michael Yakes, who was absent from the meeting, confirmed that Peoples Gas is the only natural gas company that submitted a bid to the City of Gulfport.

*****

Public Works Director Don Sopak reported that sanitation pickups have increased in recent weeks in response to resident call-ins and concerns as well as seasonal increases as a result of snowbirds cleaning up in advance of the annual migration north.

“Last April was actually our record month for picking up special pickups and brush piles and debris,” he said. “A lot of those are initiated by code enforcement and a lot of them are called in to public works and probably the majority of them are never called in.”

In one week of April this year public works made a record 125 special pickups. It averages about 250 pickups per month but made 405 special pickups for the entire month of April according to Mr. Sopak. He said the March storms and foreclosures added to the debris and that crews have been working weekends to make up for the added pickups.

“We’ve been very active trying to get stuff off the road and I think it’s just a seasonal type thing that’s going to transition back.”

*****

The council unanimously approved the amendment of an ordinance authorizing residents to hold six 3-day garage sales each year.

Resident Margarete Tober asked the council if the city planned on enforcing the ordinance, pointing out that the code enforcement officer does not work on weekends when most garage sales take place. She said she believed that the current ordinance is not being enforced and urged to council to see that it is or “do away with the rule.”

City manager James O’Reilly explained that the city issues color-coded permits for garage sales to residents so the police can easily confirm if they stop at a garage sale to check. The permits can be issued and printed online or picked up at City Hall and must be visible from the street during the sale.

*****

In other news Council Member Jennifer Salmon announced that a database of at-risk boats will be available through a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) program. She said the database is used by FWC in concert with local police departments to help prevent at-risk boats from becoming derelict, necessitating an expensive removal.

Vice-Mayor Hastings pointed out that part of the program is to get at-risk boats back into compliance before they become derelict and are then defined as a criminal act on the part of the owner. He said at one point the state had $980,000 allocated for the removal of derelict boats but because of bureaucracy it removed only 83 vessels.

*****

The council unanimously approved an ordinance authorizing the mayor to execute a five-year submerged land lease agreement with the board of trustees of Florida’s Internal Improvement Trust Fund. It will renew an ongoing, no-charge lease for the City of Gulfport to maintain its properties at Williams Pier and the Casino dock.

In response to a question from Al Davis, City Manager James O’Reilly and City Attorney Andrew Salzman confirmed that commercial activity is not permitted on either of the docks but would check the laws to confirm how “commercial activity upstream” is defined in the agreement in order to ensure compliance with the state. The lease is retroactive to 2010 and the city manager confirmed that the paperwork was submitted to the state nine months ago and finally returned last week.

*****

At the beginning of the meeting Darby Dickerson, Vice President, Dean and Professor of Law at Stetson University, presented a check for $7,500 to the City of Gulfport to help pay for its July 4 fireworks display.

*****

Resident Lisa Powers then spoke to the council saying she had heard of Council Member Barbara Banno’s recent suggestion to consider a permanent stage near the recreation area of the public beach. Ms. Powers briefly explained her extensive experience in the theater, urged the council to consider building a stage and said she would be more than willing to offer her services for the staging of any events should the city follow through with it.

“I miss that outdoor free theater, family oriented, low budget [venue] and I think that would be a great use if you did get that permanent stage or even if you didn’t get the stage,” she said. “If the city wanted to support something like that I would be happy to [help]. It’s something I would be very interested in.”

She submitted her resume to the town following her comments. The council has taken no action or had further discussion about a stage since the initial suggestion.

Originally published on Patch.com in May 2011

Coyright 2011

Members of the City Council of Gulfport, Florida.

The Gulfport City Council received two stern criticisms from residents at Tuesday’s meeting regarding garbage left out for pickup at homes throughout town. Residents Doug Hudson and Mike Schnippering each admonished the town for allowing residents to leave excessively large items and brush at their curbs as well as leaving it out too far in advance of the scheduled pickup dates each week.

Each expressed regret that they had to publicly speak to the council but felt the issue should have previously been addressed by the sanitation department or other city employees. They felt that the appearance of trash at the curbside is an eyesore for the entire town and suggested ways to deal with the issue.

“In general people put them out on Monday mornings and if they’re lucky they’ll be back in on Wednesday and they’ll do the same procedure again: Thursday morning garbage out, Friday, Saturday back in,” Mr. Schnippering attested. “So basically six days of the week we’re looking at garbage.”

He also claims people are putting out sofas, mattresses and other large items not knowing whether the sanitation trucks are permitted to pick them up or not, and if so, when.

“There could be a solution in my opinion that people need to be more educated, people maybe need to be fined if they actually do not follow the rules,” he said. He proposed that perhaps a sticker could be put on the garbage cans explaining the rules in order to protect the curb appeal of the city.

Mr. Hudson said he has been notifying the city of the issue via online forums but felt compelled to finally approach the council in person.

“The current condition is unacceptable,” he said. “When we moved here in 2003 we were instantly impressed by Gulfport’s character and charm. Now when I look around I see unkempt yards, impassible sidewalks due to overgrown trees, illegal handyman and discount rental and ‘for sale’ signs and piles of garbage and trash that go uncollected for weeks.”

He criticized the city for not replacing a code enforcement officer absent on medical leave, describing it as “disgraceful.”

“As a responsible citizen I call in for a special pickup when needed and it’s quickly taken care of but what about the residents who are not responsible citizens?” he asked. “Do their neighbors have to suffer week after week? Is it the neighbor’s responsibility to notify the Public Works Department and make sure the ordinances are enforced? What about the employees who ride past these piles of trash while making their scheduled rounds?”

He suggested citing or fining the property owners and that it should be an “easy fix.” He also urged the council to require garbage collectors to notify the town when violations occur.

“The responsible parties should be billed and the added revenue would certainly help to pay for any additional expenses,” he said. “Second, we need to get this city under control. If the goal is to beautify the city then we should implement free days where anything left out will be picked up at no charge.”

Following the two public comments Gulfport Mayor Michael Yakes recommended that the city manager make recommendations to the council for future discussion. Later in the meeting Council Member Jennifer Salmon asked City Manager James O’Reilly to explain what could be done to address the issue.

“We are looking at expanding our pickups and mechanisms to make it available more often,” Mr. O’Reilly said, explaining that budgetary constraints are partly responsible for not being able to enforce the ordinances or better address problems that come up. He said he hopes to propose a solution to the problem as the new budget is discussed in the coming months.

Mayor Yakes later said the public works department did a one-time clean up of the right-of-ways in 2006, which was effective.

“We need to lead by example when we use the words ‘curb appeal’ and ‘right-of-ways’ and we can do better,” Mayor Yakes said. “I’m surprised that it has come to a neglect [issue] but we need to work together and take care of that.”

He asked the city manager to implement a right-of-way cleanup as soon as possible dealing with the worst areas first.

“We do a one-time cleanup and see how it goes or maybe we implement a once a month cleanup. I think that’s important and I know everything comes down to money and cutbacks, there’s no doubt about it, it costs, but sometimes you can’t afford not to.”

He finished by saying that the city cannot let evictions and foreclosures have a negative effect on property values and suggested that garbage cans residents use could be upgraded to a standardized type for a fee for more durable storage.

“We’re looking at the possibility of an eighteen percent increase (Public Works budget) somewhere down the line and I think that we can look at stepping it up a notch on our quality of service,” Mayor Yakes finished.

Originally published on Patch.com in May 2011

Copyright 2011

The view from the Casino dock in Gulfport, FL. Photo by Bob Deakin

The Gulfport City Council has revisited discussion of a proposed mooring field in its waterfront area. Gulfport Harbormaster Denis Frain gave a presentation to the council Tuesday night describing the proposal as an environmentally-friendly means to help enforce the laws of boats moored in the bay.

The proposal he presented calls for a maximum of 50 moorings with the north end beginning 305 feet south of the end of the Casino dock out 965 feet further south. The eastern boundary would be directionally at the city’s first easement east of Veterans Park with the west boundary line directionally from the public beach.

City Manager James O’Reilly ultimately recommended 25 moorings and added when the prospect of a mooring field was first proposed in 2004 it was for 100 moorings but with the economy and other concerns he felt a recommendation of 25 is a more workable number.

The buoys would be aligned similar to a parking lot with spaces large enough for 45 to 60-foot boats. The proposal calls for an auger mooring system screwed into the sea floor with floats in the middle and top to keep the line straight and off the bottom. Mr. Frain stated that there is no sea grass in the area of the proposed mooring field, which has been an environmental concern over the years.

“Boaters are discovering Gulfport every day,” Mr. Frain said in his presentation. “What they found out, just like we all did, is that Gulfport was a charming town with water access to public beach, restaurants, grocery stores and of course our pubs. What some of our boaters didn’t know was that our bay is a sand/mud mix, and that traditional long term anchoring accompanied with a lack of maintenance is not going to hold a vessel in inclimate weather for even an afternoon thunderstorm.”

He explained that as a result, abandoned and abused boats have ended up strewn about the bay “with very few laws on the books to deal with the problem.” He also noted that Gulfport’s harbor is within a mile of the Intracoastal Waterway, making it an enticing stop for water vessels passing through.

“The staff couldn’t find any environmental impacts,” he said of his employees research in planning the current proposal. “There was no sea grass and there was adequate depth of the water.”

The state would require an upgrade of the city’s facilities including the restrooms and laundry area at the marina to accommodate patrons of the marina and those on the additional boats in the mooring field. It would also require a pump out vessel for waste removal from the boats to the town’s sewer system.

“I used to tell my staff that we’re fast becoming a destination for all kinds of cruising boaters, which include boating clubs, loopers and weekenders,” Mr. Frain said. “I can tell you here tonight that we have become that destination. Embrace them. We have visiting vessels from all over our great ocean and even other continents.”

The cost to the city of Gulfport would be approximately $1,250 per mooring (25 moorings) plus $20,000 to $25,000 for permits for a total of approximately $55,000. Drill tests must also be performed to ensure that the moorings would hold. The city had previously begun the permitting process with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, suspended the applications and will now reinstate the process.

Council Member Jennifer Salmon said she was opposed to the proposal several years ago because of environmental concerns for the sea grass and manatees but would be willing to consider it this time in a council workshop session. She added that she has since learned sea grass would not be present below the location.

“It’s a very different kind of project than [what was presented] several years ago,” she said. “As long as we’re willing to be more flexible, keep it contained and have it be something that really protects the environment in terms of the sea bottom…”

Council Member Sam Henderson also had environmental concerns and said he has a lot of questions about the proposal for the workshop, particularly in regards to funding.

“I have no doubt that this is the environmentally sound thing to do and I really appreciated you taking me for a ride to see what kind of boundaries we need to look at from the water side of it,” Mr. Henderson said to Mr. Frain.

Gulfport resident Lee Stapella and several others at the meeting suggested making a visit to the Vero Beach Mooring Field to see first-hand evidence of a long-running mooring field, a suggestion seconded by resident Al Davis.

“The opportunity to see that I think is crucial to this decision whether you’re for it or against it,” Mr. Davis stated. He later brought up abandoned and deteriorated boats.

“The mooring field allows you to essentially upgrade the neighborhood. It should not be used as a means to keep people off the water.” He also suggested 25 moorings is too few for the amount spent on the project.

A resident with shoreline property near Williams Park spoke in favor of a mooring field reasoning it would be beneficial to Gulfport economically by drawing in money that would pay for the expenditures.

One of the scenarios that is most harmful to the sea floor, the resident said, is derelict boats and the mess they cause when eventually removed, creating a gully in the sea floor.

“It’s a disaster,” he said. “I think there’s eight of them [out there] but there’s three right where I’m at.”

There was no discussion of fees charged per mooring per day. By comparison, the Vero Beach Mooring Field fee is $11 per day per buoy with $1 for showers. Much larger fees are charged for a variety of other services such as anchors and installation.

Council members will discuss the mooring field proposal at the City Council Workshop on May 26 at 3 p.m. at Gulfport City Hall.

Originally published on Patch.com in April 2011

Copyright 2011

Political analyst Dr. Susan MacManus at the University of South Florida (Sarasota-Manatee) Selby Auditorium in Sarasota. Photo by Bob Deakin

Florida residents are extremely concerned about the lack of jobs, financial stress created by the bad economy and fiscal barriers in maintaining businesses. These and other concerns were made abundantly clear in Leadership Florida’s 2011 Sunshine State Survey, presented and interpreted Tuesday by political analyst Dr. Susan MacManus at the University of South Florida (Sarasota-Manatee) Selby Auditorium in Sarasota.

Dr. MacManus, Distinguished Professor of Public Administration and Political Science at USF, was quick to point out that unlike many polls taken of much smaller samplings of residents, the Leadership Florida poll, conducted by The Nielsen Company, gives a more thorough and representational reading of the public pulse in regards to economic and political issues.

“I can’t tell you how many bad surveys are out there,” Dr. MacManus stated, “that have sample sizes of three or four or five hundred… Of course the timing is to get the analysis to the legislators and the new governor before the session begins, so they have all seen it.”

Florida is still the number one bell-weather state in politics, Dr. MacManus assured, owing to its size, ethnic and economic diversity, and it will continue to be the key state monitored in future elections.

The first survey question she discussed was, what is the single biggest threat to Florida’s economy? The top five answers on the survey were as follows: 

1. Taxes
2. Loss of jobs
3. Home foreclosures
4. Citizens leaving the state
5. Industry leaving the state

When the survey was conducted, she said, Florida was number two in the U.S. in unemployment rates and is still in the top five. As for foreclosures she noted it was number four in January and is now number two.

“When you have economic anxiety in a population it colors every single dimension in people’s evaluations of government and business and nonprofits and every other institution that we have in this country,” she said.

Is Florida is a better place to live than it was five years ago? Is another survey question?

“It’s not a pretty picture,” Dr. MacManus said. “People who have lived here at least five years think that the state has gotten a lot worse as a place to live and the quality of life.”

She reasoned that a good sign of conditions is if people stay in the area, and while subsequent questions reflect a negative outlook for the state, opinions of Florida’s quality of life have improved slightly in the previous years, which she sees as a “glimmer of hope.”

Are you seriously considering moving out of the state? Was also asked on the survey.

“Obviously this is something that policy makers are very interested in is how much bleeding is still going on in the state in light of the economic woes that Floridians describe themselves as being in,” she said. “It ticked up slightly (21% over 17% in 2010) but not significantly.”

Why are you considering moving out of Florida? Followed that question.

Cost of living, lack of jobs, family/health/personal situation, high taxes and property/home insurance were the top five responses in that order. Dr. MacManus added that the construction sector has seen the highest rate of job loss in the state. She also qualified some of the responses by saying that younger residents typically respond wanting change while older residents are more apt to keep things the same.

Barriers in starting new businesses is a key subject in the survey, and Dr. MacManus pointed to the difficulty in securing loans (52%), the prohibitive cost of property insurance (51%) and health insurance (50%) as key roadblocks.

“What is really, I think, one of the most interesting aspects of this entire survey, and is a mess in Florida is property insurance,” she explained. “Health care costs and property insurance are seen as much larger deterrents than some of these other things such as bureaucracy – licensing, rules and regs, lawsuits, etc.” 

Attitudes about taxes are one of the most consistent opinions year after year, Dr. MacManus said, noting that the survey indicates Floridians feel property taxes in the state are generally the unfair while sales taxes are most fair because everyone pays the same percentage.

As for reducing Medicaid costs, survey respondents suggested the following solutions in order. 

1. Reduce/eliminate fraud
2. Cut benefits to recipients
3. Impose stricter eligibility requirements
4. Cut amount paid to providers
5. Require recipients to receive services through HMOs

2011 is Leadership Florida’s fifth annual Sunshine State Survey, which is a comprehensive poll of more than 1,200 Florida residents to discover their views regarding the most pressing issues facing the state. This year’s results were compared to those from each of the past five years in graph form on the document.

The survey was conducted via telephone calls to residents (registered voters or not) over age 18 at randomly selected households. Dr. MacManus initially conceived the idea for the survey and approached Leadership Florida to partner in the study. The full results can be viewed online at the Leadership Florida web site.

Dr. MacManus answered questions from audience members following the presentation, ranging from the ethics of political campaigns, wages for workers, race relations, college grads’ ability to find jobs, Florida’s future and its ability to recover from the recession.

“We’re used to, in a recession, rebounding ahead of other states,” she stated. “We are lagging for the first time and that we’re not used to. Floridians are impatient. I still think Florida, with the environmental aspect, the weather and local communities taking charge and making things better, it will still be a very attractive place.”

Following the presentation and public response, Dr. MacManus was asked what most struck her about the survey.

“The consistency,” she said. “The impact of economic woes and their outlook towards everything. Also, Floridians seem to be happy with their school systems – there really is a much more positive look than one would think.”

If this survey had been conducted ten years ago, what would have been the concerns?

“Growth,” she responded. “Congestion, traffic. Too many people moving in. Today it’s jobs. It’s a whole one hundred and eighty [degree] attitude about growth.”

Originally published on Patch.com in March 2011

Copyright 2011

In a stunning development at the very end of a contentious four-hour meeting Tuesday night the Gulfport City Council voted 3 to 2 to deny an amendment to a city ordinance that would have continued the application process for a planned Dollar General store on Gulfport Boulevard.

The Council voted twice during the evening, approving the first of two amendments pertaining to the Dollar General application then denying the second, effectively rejecting the current application for the 12,000 square-foot national chain discount store between 51^st St. S. and 23^rd Ave. S. .

City Hall Council Chambers were filled to capacity for the meeting, mostly by residents, in addition to several business associates of Dollar General. Ten individuals spoke in favor of the proposed project early in the meeting followed by nearly 20 speaking passionately against it with two others speaking neutrally.

Resident Bob Worthington spoke in favor of the project.

“I think this is a worthwhile project,” he said. “I think it will make the neighborhood look nice and it will certainly improve the tax base. I’m sure it will improve the city revenues and I ask you to give it every consideration.”

“I think it’s going to be new and fresh and nice on Gulfport Boulevard,” said resident Marge Milford, “so I’m urging you to approve this.”

Resident Faun Weaver presented the council with a petition signed last year by 220 residents following  the initial application submitted on behalf of Dollar General, which failed in a 4 to 1 vote in March 2010.

“You cannot tell me that bringing a box store of any kind into a residential neighborhood on this side of 22^nd [Street] in our art district in any way is gong to improve our neighborhood,” Ms. Weaver reasoned to the council. “You are going to increase traffic – foot and vehicular – you are changing the energy and the rhythm of our neighborhood.”

Following the public comment period, council members debated merits of the project at length, focusing on technical details of the proposed store, its effect on traffic in the area, delivery trucks in the neighborhood, litter, fencing and whether permitting the business would open doors for commercial development on the rest of the surrounding area.

Council members then voted 3 to 2 to approve the ordinance (2011-04), which requested an ammendment to Gulfport’s Comprehensive Plan allowing for a change in the designation of specific parcels from Residential Low Medium (RLM) to Commercial Limited (CL).

The council was then prepared to table the discussion and subsequent vote on the second ordinance [ 2011-05] until its next meeting in two weeks since the meeting had gone into its forth hour and because residents complained that there was insufficient notice warning of this meeting. Following more discussion and the advice of Town Attorney Andrew Salzman, however, the council decided to resume the hearing and move onto the second ordinance on the agenda, drawing frustrated groans from some in the audience.

After a long explanation by council member Jennifer Salmon on why the council must make its decisions based on laws and not public reaction, one resident asked aloud if there was any point in voicing concerns while another stormed out of the meeting shouting “no democracy!”

The meeting quickly resumed and the second public hearing commenced.

Nearly all of those who spoke in the first public comment session of the evening then took their turns and spoke again, reiterating their points on why they did or did not endorse having a Dollar General store in Gulfport. Most who spoke a second time voiced similar points although with more passion and in some cases anger.

Eventually, Council member Sam Henderson brought the council’s discussion to an end.

“After reading that one line about the best interest of the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the city of Gulfport, I think the experts of the neighborhood are the people who live there… You have the dedication of those who are most affected by it sit here for all of this and I’m ready to go and vote on the second [ordinance],” Mr. Henderson at the end of a discussion about the wording of language pertaining to city ordinances.

Following that comment a motion was made to vote and the council voted 3 to 2 to deny the amending of the ordinance designating a change in two parcels from residential to commercial and one from residential to open space. Council members Michelle King and Jennifer Salmon voted ‘yes’ while David Hastings, Sam Henderson and Mayor Mike Yakes voted ‘no.’

According to Dollar General’s statistics it is the nation’s largest small-box discount retailer with $11.8 billion in sales in 2009 including 9,200 stores in 35 states.

Originally Published on Patch.com in March 2011

Copyright 2011

Mr. Taylor is a first time candidate for town office, as is Ms. Banno, and he is running on a platform of preserving the downtown area for residents, resisting influx of national franchises and preventing further development of the marina. The six-year Gulfport resident is a psychiatric nurse by profession and stated Sunday that he would reduce his work schedule if elected.

Mr. Taylor mentioned that rumors have abounded in blogs and among residents about potential privatization of The Casino in Gulfport but that he could not confirm anyone had made such a proposal or had formal discussions on the matter. He did say that if the discussion were to come about he would be firmly against it.

“That’s really important for our nonprofit events. You can’t have anything for the arts council or any other things if we lease it out as a private place,” he stated, adding that if privatized, financial benefit would be put ahead of community benefit. “That’s our key location in the whole city, our primary landmark.”

Donald McKeating of Gulfport met Mr. Taylor outside the restaurant and offered his views on why he would vote for him.

“I think he’s more community oriented. I think the other candidate is more business oriented and more corporate in her outlook,” he said, later adding, “I really like this community and I believe of the two candidates Avrio would preserve what’s really unique about Gulfport.”

Rossi Bonugli, a part-time Gulfport resident and admitted snowbird, pointed to the candidate’s intention to try to preserve Gulfport’s character as his reason for support. “Maintaining the integrity of the community and not letting it turn into what much of the rest of the [surrounding] area has become – big boxes and national franchises,” he said.

Resident Thomas Gabriele added, “he has the vision for Gulfport that I think most people want.”

Lynn Kiehne suggested that Mr. Taylor would help in preserving Gulfport’s charm.

“Avrio has a real respect for trying to maintain what I would call old Florida,” she said. “He appreciates the need to keep Clam Bayou clean and did a lot to help restore that habitat. He also wants to keep the grass-covered [approach on Beach Blvd.] from development. He appreciates what’s special about Gulfport and what keeps it special.”

Mr. Taylor stated that he is against a mooring field in the Gulfport marina, which has been mentioned as a possible consideration on his opponent’s campaign web site.

“I don’t think this is a really live issue right now, but this is something she would like to do,” he said. “One of the problems is that our marina is a big source of income for the city, and it’s already about twenty-five percent empty.”

He feels that a mooring field would draw more business away from the marina and that boaters using it would be able to continually move their anchors and stay for extended periods of time, avoiding fees to the city in addition to contributing to pollution and potential crime.

The candidate, whose campaign manager is Ian O’Hara, stated that his primary goals are to keep the community as is, maintain its existing social services, fight tax increases and support the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) project in the 49^th St. redevelopment district. 

Originally from Maine, the 55 year-old resident holds a BA from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and a master’s in Intercultural Management from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, VT among other certifications. He has lived and worked throughout the country and abroad and speaks Spanish, Portuguese and Korean. He claims to have knocked on a thousand doors thus far during his campaign.

“I raised three boys and this is the kind of community I want my family to grow up in,” Mr. Taylor said.

Gulfport has a five person elected council with each member serving a two-year term. The city is divided into four wards with the mayor serving as the fifth member of the council. Meetings are held the first and third Tuesdays of each month.

Originally published on Patch.com in February 2011

Copyright 2011

The Sarasota Downtown Improvement District (DID) is preparing for its first wave of cleanup projects for 2011 and will begin seeking bids for the work to be done at its next meeting.

DID members met at City Hall on Tuesday morning and hammered out a list of concerns in the downtown district, most of it pertaining to the care of plants, grass and appearance around businesses and in vendor areas before and after festivals.

The DID is looking for ways to maximize its budget for this year and is considering ways in which to save money. Members discussed including a deposit in the fees in which vendors are charged to set up shop during festivals and other events, however, no action was taken on that front as they were careful to consider the vendors and shop owners in continuing to make Sarasota an enticing destination for vendors, business owners and tourists.

“We just have to be prepared that after [shows] we have to go through and spruce the whole area up,” said Ernest Ritz, Vice Chairman of the DID, speaking of festivals and events throughout the year.

“We have to be careful there too,” added Chairman, Larry Fineberg. “Festivals and these types of events are what make downtown such a great place. I don’t want to do anything that would discourage that from happening.”

Sarasota Police Lieutenant Randy Boyd, who was also present at the meeting, reminded members that the police department has surveillance cameras mounted within Selby Five Points Park, connected to a central source, that can be monitored live or reviewed later for evidence in the event of vandalism or abuse to grounds during festivals.

“Not only can you tell if someone’s smoking a cigarette, you can tell if it’s a filtered or non-filtered cigarette,” Lt. Boyd said.

Mr. Fineberg also commented on the condition of Main Street and what can be done to improve it.

“When you walk down the street it looks horrible,” he said, referring to the condition of grass and plantings along the street. “When you look at how much money is being put into it and it’s still a bunch of dirt. If we want our downtown to look as good as it can we need to step up and put in some maintenance to make sure that the mulch that’s gone after a month is replaced, the plants that are trampled are freshened.”

The DID also was presented with a proposal for improved facilities for the Sarasota Farmers Market in the coming year by Shari Shepard, a volunteer for the Downtown Sarasota Alliance. No actions were taken and no new facilities approved.

The DID hired a representative from DWJA Landscape Architects to put together a spec sheet outlining the work to be done to maintain and beautify the downtown district including plantings, mulching, sweeping, power-washing and other forms of cleanup throughout downtown Sarasota.

The DID’s maintenance budget is based on tax assessments and changes each year. Downtown is always maintained by the city but the DID’s efforts will be complementing the work of city crews. It has not yet been determined what percentage of the total cleanup costs will be covered by the DID but members are anxious to get additional cleanup work going as soon as possible. The DID’s budget for 2010-2011 fiscal year, as outlined on its web site, is $362,500.

“The idea is to keep downtown looking as good as it can,” Mr. Fineberg said at the end of the meeting. “Once we go to bid then we’re going to figure out how much money as a board we want to devote to the maintenance of downtown.”

The Downtown Improvement District is bounded on the north by Second Street, on the east by Goodrich Avenue and Pine Place, on the south by Ringling Boulevard, on the southwest by Palm Avenue or the properties on the southwest side of Palm Avenue, and on the west by Cocoanut Avenue.

New DID officer elections will be on the agenda for its next meeting. Additional information about the DID’s plan is available on its web site at www.did-sarasota.com.

Originally published on Patch.com in February 2011

Copyright 2011

City Manager James O’Reilly and City Attorney Andrew Salzman explained why the issue was on the agenda and what the stipulations were in having it addressed for the first time since 1983, noting that it was necessary to put it on record that the area be preserved as is unless the council chooses to allow construction or paving of the area to facilitate parking or access during events held in the area.

“This will formalize the actions taken under resolution 1983-19 that prohibited any construction of any building or structure upon the greenway,” said City Manager James O’Reilly. “This is an annual discussion. What this will do is formalize the action. A lot of these things were never recorded. They were never taken to task.”

Council members questioned wording of the resolution as to whether it would be permanent.

“If this doesn’t prohibit anybody in the future from changing this, then why are we going through the exercise,” asked Council Member David Hastings.

“What you’re doing is putting future councils on notice,” Mr. O’Reilly explained. “It was rumored that this exists or that exists. This will put it right with the deeds on public record.”

“I would suggest that the section between 26^th and 25^th be somehow treated differently,” asked resident Bob Newcomb, speaking to the council. “I think that is essential to the long term life of the senior center. I do find it inconsistent with our past actions where we try to keep things flexible so that down the road we can do the right thing when the time comes along.”

“Every time you put a building or a parking space on something that’s already open space it depletes the environment and I think we need all the open space we can get,” said Barbara Cleveland in her turn addressing the council. “We already build and build and that’s why we want to build parking spaces there because there’s no other place for parking space but there’s also no other space for runoff.”

She suggested planting a tree or even a playground on the space and that paving it would detract from the attractive qualities of the area.

Ultimately the council voted to approve the wording of the resolution to prohibit the construction of buildings on the property.

“The ability to improve upon the space, on the footprint that we have, exists, the parking that we have exists,” Mayor Michael Yakes said. “If that property that is to the north of it is [addressed] by the intense spirit of this resolution and the will of the people, it will still be able to at times when needed, entertain the overflow of parking.”

Mr. Yakes stated that the area was once sand spurs and not one of nicely groomed grass.

“As we are doing now it does not prohibit, does not block, does not stop the progress in the future to review what we have,” he said. “If [future city councils] feel that it is time for a change we’ll let that change occur by them but I appreciate now that we preserve that property and keep it the way it should be.”

Resolution 2011-07 passed unanimously.

Earlier in the meeting, resident Lee Stapella spoke out in reference to the public’s ability to hear the council members speak at meetings.

“Our ability to hear you impacts the sunshine of all your meetings,” Ms. Stapella said, using “sunshine” in reference to Sunshine Laws stipulating clearly disseminated information to the public. “At the last council meeting I, and others across the aisle asked [Council Member Michelle] Ms. King to use the [microphone] since she could not be heard.

“It needs to be mandatory and not discretionary,” she added. “It impacts the fact that this and all your meetings must be fully in the sunshine and not just portions of it. Because if you’re not fully in the sunshine the dire consequence is an unfortunate re-do and re-vote and re-discussion of the meeting.”

“The microphones are not, in my opinion and experience, something that we do not use [deliberately] but when you do turn or you’re trying to address somebody we’ve had some problems,” Mayor Yakes responded, asking the council to consider the public’s ability to hear everything spoken. “It does happen. So we need to just to be conscious of that.”

The next council meeting is on Tuesday, March 1 at 7 pm at City Hall.

Originally published on Patch.com in February 2011

Copyright 2011

In addition to the 25 percent overall reduction in crime compared to 2009, burglary and auto theft were reduced by 38% and 58% respectively. Violent crime was also reduced 27% and property crime 25% over 2009. A special enforcement team conducted investigations in the 49th Street “redevelopment” area, making dozens of arrests, and adjusted its policy to allow officers to pursue stolen vehicles.

An emphasis on communication – within the department and with the public – was a priority for the department in 2010 and it took significant measures toward improvements. It launched a Facebook page to make it easier for the social networking public to keep up on events and announcements, and Gulfport Police Chief Robert Vincent created Chief Vincent’s Blog to facilitate immediate and accurate interaction between the department and residents.

“I really wanted to increase the amount of communication within the department and between the department and the town,” Chief Vincent said this week. “We also signed up with Media Alert to put out information directly and immediately to the public.”

Media Alert serves as a news conduit between local media and public information officers from many different organizations within ten counties of west central Florida. It delivers news to all registered media outlets simultaneously, within one minute of release, and is free of any advertising or outside influence.

A particular area of concern for the department has been the 49th St. corridor, the crime in that area and the health of its business community. Gulfport City Manager James O’Reilly explained that as much as crime is a concern, so is communication and good will between the police department, business owners and residents.

“We’d like to develop where we have an officer more in tune with issues related to that area,” Mr. O’Reilly said. “To establish relationships with the business owners and residents is very important. We would also like to attract new business to that area.”

Thanks to funding from the Department of Justice, a new community resource officer will focus on identifying businesses and partners in the 49th St. area to better facilitate problem resolution, which is also a priority concern for Chief Vincent.

Simply stated, problem resolution is, in the eyes of the public, whether or not the police were able to solve the problem they were called upon to address.

“That is a major goal for us,” the chief said. “We are refocused on problem resolution and we will continue to work on our redirection on that front.”

Regarding Gulfport traffic, an intersection safety program was initiated last year, effective this month, which includes the installation of cameras and monitoring of patterns and infractions at three major intersections.

“It’s actually going to be a pretty affordable thing,” Chief Vincent stated, explaining that an outside company installs the cameras, the police monitor activity and the company is paid through fines.

In other significant improvements initiated last year, an additional resource officer was added to Boca Ciega High School to address increasing numbers of disorderly youth, and a patrol officer was added to the Pinellas County Prescription Drug Task Force to address the increasing problem in Gulfport and surrounding communities.

Regarding news with Gulfport Police Department personnel in 2010, Chief Vincent took the “interim” title away from his name last year following the retirement of longtime Gulfport Chief G. Curt Willocks.

Officer Robert McLaughlin was selected as Gulfport Police Department’s Officer of the Year in 2010. In addition to his exemplary work ethic Officer McLaughlin was credited for the development and implementation of a complete overhaul of the dangerous traffic situation at Boca Ciega High School, making it safer for all who use the area on a daily basis. He also played a major role in the 58% reduction in auto theft by leading a committee of officers in a juvenile probation program.

The promotion of Officer Thomas Woodman to sergeant in January filled a vacancy created by the retirement of Sergeant Terry Taylor, who at the time of his retirement was the longest serving member of the Gulfport Police Department with nearly 25 years of service. He was recognized by the Gulfport City Council and Chief Vincent at a ceremony on January 4.

Sergeant Woodman has served with the department since 2006 and is a member of the Marine Unit and Special Enforcement Team. He served with the United States Army and graduated Cum Laude from the University of South Florida with a B.A. degree in criminology.

Goals that the department has set for 2011 include reduction of crime and fear of crime in the 49th St. redevelopment area, increasing involvement by Gulfport police officers in local organizations outside the department and the reduction in serious accidents at signal-controlled intersections.

Originally published on Patch.com in February 2011

Copyright 2011

Hard times have hit almost everyone at one time or another, and a helping hand can make an enormous difference in a time of need. It is that concept that has driven the parishioners at the Bethel Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church to see that anyone in dire straights will at least have food on the table.
 
“If they need, we give. That’s our concept,” says Rueben Mayes, a deacon at the church in St. Petersburg, FL near the Gulfport border. Mr. Mayes and his wife, Ruthie, have been running the program at Bethel since its inception in 2003 with help from a team of others at the church.
 
Bread, meat, canned goods and other items are given out on Wednesday and Thursday each week from 10 am to 1 pm at the church. Recipients are required to fill out a brief form that roughly defines their level of economic need, they consult with Deacon Mayes and they’re on their way.
 
“We don’t try to judge what they do or don’t need,” Mr. Mayes said earlier this week, walking through the back room of the church tending to the loading area where bags of perishable and non-perishable foods are given out. “If they come in and say that they need it we give it to them.”
 
The church pays part of the cost of the food out of its budget and the rest is covered by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) through Religious Community Services, Inc. (RCS) based in Clearwater and Feeding America Tampa Bay. The church also receives contributions of bread from a local Publix and canned goods from Big Lots.
 
The Bethel Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church assists as many as 400 individuals and families in Pinellas County each month. It has been doing so for eight years since Mr. and Mrs. Mayes, Barbara Burrell, Vera Byrd and The Reverend, Lionel Clements, initiated the program. They are assisted by Arletha Chapman, Nathaniel Roundtree, Annette Squire and Aislee Tucker.

They help the homeless, veterans, people from low-income housing developments and anyone who will let them help.
 
“A lady came in today and said she used to encourage people to come but they would not come,” Mr. Mayes said, explaining the hesitancy some have to reach out for help. “She feels that we are a big help to a lot of people now, because they now will step out and receive food.”
 
Economic conditions since 2008 have made for nearly double the number of meals given out each week.
 
“Within the last year and a half we have definitely noticed an increase,” said Pastor Dr. Rickey L. Houston, who credits the church volunteers for their extreme dedication for starting the program and seeing that it continues to help the community. “In some cases with these families we know that there was literally no food left in the house.”
 
“The program is not exclusive to this church,” added Nathaniel Roundtree, also a deacon at Bethel Metropolitan, while tending to duties. “There are other churches that offer a similar program.”

Feeding America Tampa Bay is a hunger-relief charity with a mission to feed the nation’s hungry through a network of food banks. It annually provides food to more than 37 million low income people including 14 million children and 3 million seniors. Formerly known as America’s Second Harvest of Tampa, it provided 19 million pounds of food – or one million meals per month – in 2010 to ten counties throughout west central Florida.
 
Pastor Houston estimates that the church distributes approximately 10 to 20 tons of food on an annual basis. “This has been what I feel is a great outreach to the community,” he affirms. “It is something that I really couldn’t imagine the church doing without.”
 
A native of St. Petersburg from Davis Elementary School through Gibbs High School, Rueben Mayes says the recipients are gracious in their gratitude for the food.
 
“The people are very appreciative. We get all walks. We give out without any consolation. Just walk right in,” he says. “We thank God and the church for allowing us to be able to provide food for eight years [and for] the ability to give back and take care of the needy.”
 
The Bethel Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church was founded in 1903 and has been at its current location on 26^th Ave. since 1985. The congregation is under the direction of Pastor Houston and includes more than 900 members from Gulfport, St. Petersburg and other communities.

Originally published on Patch.com in February 2011

Copyright 2011