Clearwater City Council Work Session - November 17, 2025
Clearwater City Council Work Session - November 17, 2025
The Clearwater City Council held a work session on November 17, 2025, at 1:30 PM in the Main Library Council Chambers. The meeting opened with service awards recognizing employees for 20, 25, and 30 years of service, as well as the November Employee of the Month and the Bi-Monthly Team Award. The council then considered a consent agenda of routine items and discussed several ordinances and the 2026 meeting schedule. All consent items were approved unanimously, and two ordinances were passed on first reading with community development board review pending.
Presentations & Awards
- October Service Awards: Chris Malone (Public Works) celebrated 20 years of service, recognized for his GIS work, employee morale efforts, and leadership during the MSB renovations.
- November Service Awards:
- Cliff Patterson (Aquatics) – 20 years, recognized for teaching swimming and mentoring staff.
- Sergeant Kevin Klein (Police) – 25 years, recipient of the Medal of Distinguished Service and Cornelius Award.
- Sergeant Lynn Sean Price (Police) – 25 years, former school resource officer, named Pinellas County School Resource Officer of the Year in 2017.
- Mark Roberson (Parks & Recreation) – 25 years, aquatic supervisor and certified instructor.
- Judy (last name not given) – 30 years, senior staff assistant in the Gas Department.
- Employee of the Month (November 2025): Edwin Simeons (Parking Enforcement) – recognized for performing the Heimlich maneuver on his trainer during his first week on the job, saving his life.
- Bi-Monthly Team Award (November-December 2025): PBI Cleanup Crew (24 employees and 3 volunteers) – recognized for cleaning a large homeless encampment on Enterprise Road, removing 7.6 tons of debris using eight 20-yard roll-off dumpsters.
Consent Calendar
All items listed below were approved by unanimous consent without discussion, unless noted otherwise.
- 3.1 – Authorized a purchase order to Benchmark VA LLC for gas leak surveys, corrosion inspections, and meter maintenance services (annual not-to-exceed $230,000; one-year term with two renewal options).
- 4.1 – Authorized a purchase order to Sport Surfaces, LLC for cleaning and refurbishment of tennis and pickleball courts at Morningside Recreation Center, Coachman Ridge Park, and Bay Park Sand Key (total $103,935; piggyback and non-competitive purchase).
- 4.2 – Awarded a construction contract to Bandes Construction Company for renovations and structural repairs at the North Greenwood Recreation and Aquatic Center ($1,979,529.21; lowest responsive bidder).
- 5.1 – Approved a purchase order to Pinellas Regional Information Management Enterprise (PRIME) for personnel and operating expenses ($323,537; net $77,216 after reimbursement of $246,320 for prior legacy CAD system payment).
- 5.2 – Accepted FDOT Speeding and Aggressive Driving 2026 Grant ($75,000 for police overtime).
- 5.3 – Approved a five-year agreement with Axon, Inc. for Sky Hero Drone Packages (drones, robots, pole cameras, warranty, training) totaling $96,760.80 (single source).
- 6.1 – Approved First Amendment to the Clearwater Undergrounding of Electric Utilities Project Interlocal Agreement with PSTA (pass-through cost of ~$15,000 for CSX-related requirements).
- 6.2 – Approved an amendment to the NPDES co-permittee interlocal agreement with Pinellas County for water quality monitoring (five-year extension).
- 6.3 – Awarded a construction contract to Gator Grading and Paving LLC for the 2025 Street Resurfacing Project ($3,000,000 annual unit price; initial one-year term with three one-year renewal options).
- 7.1 – Approved Pinellas County EMS ALS First Responder Agreement Amendment No. 1 (2% increase, $183,223; adds vehicle maintenance funding and revises personnel reimbursement process).
- 10.1 – Approved legal representation agreement with Gray Robinson to defend claims bills relating to plaintiff Maximus Giannikos.
Discussion Items
- 8.1 – Platting Process Amendments (Ordinance 9856-25) – First reading of amendments to the Community Development Code updating the city’s platting process per Senate Bill 784 (2025). Changes move final plat approval to an administrative process (city surveyor and planning director), require written acknowledgment of receipt within 7 business days, and clarify minor lot line adjustments. Staff noted that preliminary plats will still be reviewed by the Development Review Committee (DRC) and any accompanying planning applications requiring community development board approval will continue to that board. The ordinance will be presented to the Community Development Board (CDB) on November 18 and brought back to council for second reading on November 20.
- 8.2 – Development Review Process Amendments (Ordinance 9857-25) – First reading of amendments per Senate Bill 1080 (2025). Changes include codifying statutory timeframes for application completeness review, extending DRC legal sufficiency determination from 18 to 25 days, extending CDB hearing timeframe from 33 to 38 days (to align with calendar), setting maximum 180 days for quasi-judicial decisions and 120 days for administrative decisions, and adding staff-proposed readability and consistency edits (e.g., allowing immediate resubmission after incomplete application, denial citations). Staff confirmed no substantive change to actual meeting schedules. The ordinance will also go to CDB on November 18 and return for second reading on November 20.
- 9.1 – 2026 City Council Meeting Schedule – Approved as amended. The proposed schedule follows Council Rule 1 (first and third Thursdays, except January/July second Thursday, no third Thursday in December). Adjustments made: cancelled the second meeting in March (March 19) per council consensus; moved the April 13 and 16 meetings to April 20 and 23 to accommodate travel; shifted the annual strategic session from January 29 (Thursday) to January 28 (Wednesday) to avoid conflict with the U.S. Conference of Mayors winter meeting. The mayor also noted a delegation trip to Israel May 4-7, with Vice Mayor presiding during that absence.
- 10.2 – Second Reading: Ordinance 9854-25 – Adopted on second reading, adjusting minimum monthly wastewater collection (sewer) rates for customers with meters under one inch.
- 10.3 – Second Reading: Ordinance 9855-25 – Adopted on second reading, amending the Clearwater Code of Ordinances by establishing Division 3 – Community Resiliency and Leisure Services Advisory Board and amending membership composition of the Sister Cities Advisory Board. Includes edits from the previous council meeting.
Key Outcomes
- All consent agenda items were approved unanimously.
- Ordinances 9856-25 and 9857-25 passed on first reading, with final adoption scheduled for November 20, 2025, after Community Development Board review.
- Ordinances 9854-25 and 9855-25 were adopted on second reading.
- The 2026 city council meeting schedule was approved with the amendments noted above.
- The council received verbal reports from the city manager (none) and city attorney (none). No new business or council comments were raised. The meeting was adjourned at approximately 3:00 PM (approximate time based on transcript length).
Meeting Transcript
Agency. And we'll recess for just two or three minutes while we switch out some things here and get ready for the work session. This time I'll call call to order the November seventeenth, twenty twenty-five work session of the Clearwater City Council. This time we'll move to item two on the agenda, and that's our October service awards. So first I'd like to call forward Chris Malone from the public works department. Hello, sir. A Clearwater resident since nineteen seventy-one. Chris long aspired to get back to the community that shaped him. From St. Pete College, he received his associates of arts and associates of science degrees in an area of study, geographic technology, geographic communications, architecture, sustainability management, and business management with a Bachelor of Arts and Science and Management Organizational Leadership. That's a lot. That is a lot. Chris began his career with the city on October 17th of 2005 as a survey assistant one, where he played a key role in implementing trilateralization GPS technology. I apologize if I did not say that right. Collecting data from all 156 benchmarks citywide. His professionalism and technical aptitude quickly led to a series of well-earned promotions across departments. In May of 2006, he was promoted to development review technician in planning and development. In August of 2006, Chris was promoted to traffic engineering assistant in the engineering department, traffic division, and served as the primary permit preparer for five years of the city's Ironman events. In 2009, he hand-drawn detailed map of Clearwater Beach, became a permanent artwork posted on the Marina kiosk and was featured in the City Communications Net newsletter. From July of 2010 until today, Chris has been working in the Geographic Technology Division of Public Works and Engineering, where he went through a series of promotions from drafting and mapping technician, CAD and GIS technician too, to senior CAD and GIS technician. In December 2024, he took an additional responsibility as a lead worker of CAD and GIS Technicians Group. As an essential working during COVID-19, Chris led his GIS team while also supporting engineering permit reviews. For many years, he has become a public records research specialist and an archivist of city projects and plans set for engineering. Beyond his technical impact, Chris has played a central role in boasting employee morale, organizing every employee appreciation luncheon for engineering and public works. His recent leadership shined as lead move clear coordinator for the MSB renovations project and was recognized in June of 2025 as a citywide employee of the month for beyond the expectations of his role, demonstrating remarkable initiative and commitment. Recently, retired construction manager, division manager and landscape architect Tim Kurtz once said, Chris always goes the extra mile to present his findings in a clear and concise manner. There are many times that Chris has saved the day by finding the one document that clarified the issue. Chris's dedication, skill, and positive spirit have made a lasting impact on the City of Clearwater and all who work with him. Please congratulate Chris for 20 years of outstanding service. We look forward to celebrating many more achievements in years to come. Chris, you make Clearwater thrive. Thank you so much for having me of you. Thanks. Thanks, Joel. Thank you for his pressure. Thank you. Good night. So Assistant City Manager Bao, you may want to get the city manager water or gator, because she's got eight of these for you today. I do. She may want to keep her away. She's got a ways to go. Today we proudly celebrate and honor Cliff Patterson for 20 years of service in the field of aquatics with the city of Clearwater. For two decades, Cliff has dedicated his career to providing safe, high-quality aquatic programs that have touched the lives of countless community members. From the very beginning of his career, Cliff has been a trusted leader, mentor, and role model. Through teaching hundreds of children to swim, coaching summer pool team programs, and mentoring new staff, Cliff has not only helped individuals gain vital water safety skills, but also inspired future aquatics professionals. Many of those he guided credit Cliff with sparking their passion for serving others. Beyond his visible role on the pool deck, Cliff has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure the success of Clearwater's aquatic facilities. Whether maintaining rigorous safety standards, improving operational efficiency, or adapting programs to meet the evolving needs of the community, his contributions have been essential in keeping our aquatics program strong, relevant, and impactful. Reaching 20 years in any profession is a noteworthy achievement. Reaching 20 years in aquatics, where responsibility for safety, education, and community engagement is so critical, is a remarkable achievement and is worthy of recognition.
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